US Markets

Stocks end higher on Fed hopes, S&P sails past 1750; NFLX skids 9%

Pisani's market close: Momentum names drop
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Pisani's market close: Momentum names drop

Stocks recovered from session lows to close higher Tuesday, with the S&P 500 hitting a new high above 1,750, after the tepid September jobs report gave further evidence to investors that the Federal Reserve will continue to support the economy at the current pace.

(Read more: After-hours buzz: Amgen, Broadcom, Cree & more)

"We are 100 percent allocated to the markets, but we are watching the risks very carefully," said Lance Roberts, CEO of STA Wealth Management. "If this market begins to correct and break any technical support levels, we'll be getting out and reducing out exposure—we have a very itchy trigger finger at this point."

Stocks initially rallied sharply at the open before losing steam around 10:30 am ET, dragged by the Nasdaq as high-momentum names quickly reversed their gains. Major averages resumed their gains in the final hour of trading.

(Read more: Watch Art Cashin: Why high-momentum stocks got hit)

Major U.S. Indexes


The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 75.46 points to finish at 15,467.66, lifted by Disney and P&G, earlier touching a one-month high. The Dow is trading within 1.5 percent of its all-time record set last month.

The rallied 10.01 points to close at 1,754.67, soaring above 1,750 for the first time. The Nasdaq gained 9.52 points to end at 3,929.57, hitting a fresh 13-year high. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq logged a five-day rally. The CBOE Volatility Index (VIX), widely considered the best gauge of fear in the market, finished above 13.

Most key S&P sectors ended higher, led by materials and consumer staples.

Tread carefully with momentum stocks: Pro
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Tread carefully with momentum stocks: Pro

Apple finished slightly lower in volatile trading after the tech giant unveiled new versions of its full-sized iPad, called iPad Air, and iPad Mini in time for the holiday season. The tech giant also said a new version of its computer operating system, OS X Mavericks, would be available for existing customers to download free immediately.

(Read more: Apple reveals new iPad Air)

And adding fuel to the tablet war fire, competitors Nokia and Microsoft each unveiled tablet devices, ahead of Apple's event. Nokia took the wraps off its first-ever tablet, the Lumia 2520 in Abu Dhabi. And Microsoft started selling its new Surface 2 tablet in the U.S. starting midnight.

(Read more: Apple's iPad not for you? Other tablet options)

Netflix finished sharply lower, reversing an initial spike at the open. On Monday, the online video company posted blowout earnings after the market close. At least 10 brokerages boosted their price targets on the firm. The stock has almost quadrupled since the beginning of the year.

Meanwhile, Netflix CEO Reed Hastings commented that the company's stock is caught in some "investor-fueled euphoria."

"When it bounced up this morning, it [was up] over 300 percent year-to-date and that's a stock that begs to be sold," said Dan Fitzpatrick, president of Stockmarketmentor.com. "The weekly chart shows the stock extended 61 percent above the 200-day moving average...It was a typical 'buy the anticipation, sell the event.' And if you think about it from a trading standpoint, it gapped up so much this morning, why wouldn't you take those profits? We have a situation where a rising tide lifts all boats, but when that tide stops rising, you're going to see a real pullback as well. Nothing wrong with Netflix."

Other momentum stocks such as Priceline, Pandora and Facebook also turned lower around the same time, but recovered throughout the afternoon.

On the economic front, U.S. employers added just 148,000 workers in September, according to the Labor Department, missing expectations for a gain of 180,000 new jobs. Still, the unemployment rate dropping to 7.2 percent, the lowest level since November 2008.

The report, originally scheduled for release on Oct. 4, was delayed more than two weeks due to the government shutdown. Most market-watchers now expect the central bank to continue its $85 billion a month bond-buying program until well into 2014.

(Slideshow: 5 of the coolest jobs ever)

Closing Bell Exchange
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Closing Bell Exchange

On Monday, Chicago Fed President Charles Evans, one of the more dovish members of the Federal Reserve's Open Market Committee, had said the central bank was likely to delay tapering off its asset purchases for several months, awaiting "a couple of good labor reports and evidence of increasing GDP growth."

"The Fed will be in no rush to engage in tapering this year," wrote Tanweer Akram, senior economist at ING Investment Management. "As a result, 10 year Treasury yields are likely to stay confined in a range of 2.2 percent to 3.2 percent rest of the year."

Meanwhile, construction spending climbed 0.6 percent to an annual rate of $915.1 billion in August, hitting a 4-1/2 year high, according to the Commerce Department. The report was originally scheduled for release on Oct. 1 but was postponed due to the shutdown.

Among other earnings, DuPont edged higher after the company posted earnings that topped expectations, thanks to strong solar panel sales and other products, while revenue was essentially in line.

United Technologies edged past estimates by a penny a share, while revenue fell short of projections, due to weakness in military aerospace markets and the slow pace of recovery in Europe. But the company raised the lower end of its earnings forecast for the full year.

Fellow Dow component Travelers easily beat forecasts and announced a $5 billion addition to its stock buyback program. Still, shares closed slightly lower.

Amgen, and Juniper Networks are among notable companies slated to post earnings after the closing bell.

(Read more: Some earnings stink but not enough to stall stocks)

Transocean rallied after after S&P Dow Jones Indices announced the drilling services company will replace Dell on the S&P 500 index after the close of trading next Monday.

—By CNBC's JeeYeon Park (Follow JeeYeon on Twitter: @JeeYeonParkCNBC)

On Tap This Week:

WEDNESDAY: Mortgage applications, Sept. import/export prices, FHFA home price index, oil inventories, LinkedIn mobile strategy event; Earnings from Boeing, Caterpillar, GlaxoSmithKline, AT&T
THURSDAY: Jobless claims, PMI mfg index, new home sales*, natural gas inventories, Kansas city mfg index, Fed balance sheet/money supply; Earnings from Ford, 3M, Credit Suisse, Amazon.com, Microsoft, Western Digital, Zynga
FRIDAY: Durable goods orders*, consumer sentiment, iPhone 5s & 5c sold overseas, Twitter roadshow begins; Earnings from P&G, UPS

(*Report likely delayed due to government shutdown)

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