The S&P 500 soared to a closing high for 2023 on Friday, extending November's rally into the new month.

The broad market index rose by 0.59%, ending the session at 4,594.63. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.55% to 14,305.03. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 294.61 points, or 0.82%, to close at 36,245.50.

The Dow rose to another new high on Friday, bringing its 2023 gain to nearly 9.4%, after it notched a new 2023 high and capped off its best month in more than a year.

The S&P 500 closed at its highest level since March 2022. Stocks bringing the broad market index to these heights include Ulta Beauty and Boston Properties, which rose 10.8% and 11.2%, respectively. Paramount popped 9.8%.

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on Friday pushed back against the market's expectations for interest rate cuts ahead, saying it is "premature to conclude with confidence" that monetary policy is "sufficiently restrictive."

Yields fell as equities rallied during the day, even after Powell's cautious remarks as traders interpreted them as a signal that the central bank is at least done with hikes. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell more than 13 basis points to 4.213%.

"There's a trifecta of drivers here. The first is the inflation. Second is the Fed seeming like it may be stepping to the sidelines, and then third is this cooling in the economy that is starting to unfold, but at a very gradual pace," said Mona Mahajan, senior investment strategist at Edward Jones. "It's almost like a Goldilocks cooling. It's not too hot. It's not too cold. And that's exactly what markets are embracing."

Mahajan added that markets seem to be pricing in rate cuts, but not until the back half of 2024.

November's big rally was due in part to traders beginning to believe the Fed was done raising rates and that the central bank may even start cutting them in the first half of next year. The Fed next decides on rates on Dec. 13.

Friday's moves come on the heels of a blowout November rally. November's gains snapped a three-month losing streak. The S&P and Nasdaq rallied 8.9% and 10.7%, respectively, to notch their best monthly performances since July 2022. The Dow surged 8.8% for its best month since October 2022.

This week, the S&P 500 added 0.77%, while the Dow rallied 2.4%. The Nasdaq advanced 0.38%. It marked the fifth consecutive week of gains for the major averages.

This month is typically a strong one for equities, with Decembers that precede a presidential election generally delivering outsized returns.

"It's a seasonally strong period," said Bob Doll, chief investment officer at Crossmark Global Investments. "If the market still buys the notion that the Fed has solved the inflation problem and that they're going to cut rates next year, but that the economy's gonna be okay and earnings will be fine—and that's the consensus line at the moment—then that's good enough for stocks to go higher."

Stocks rally on Friday

Here's how the major indexes closed on Friday:

• The S&P 500 gained 0.59%.
• The Dow Jones Industrials Average added 294.61 points, or 0.82%.
• The Nasdaq Composite gained 0.55%.

— Pia Singh

Bank of America forecasts 5000 level for S&P 500 by the end of 2024

Bank of America thinks the benchmark S&P 500 thinks can reach the 5,000 by the end of next year, as Wall Street has already past a point of "maximum macro uncertainty."

Analyst Derek Harris wrote in a Friday note that markets have already "absorbed significant geopolitical shocks," and the Federal Reserve has has so far meaningfully helped tame inflation with rate hikes in 2023. The move higher would mark a roughly 10% increase from current S&P 500 support levels.

"Macro signals are muddled, but idiosyncratic alpha increased this year," Harris wrote. "We're bullish not because we expect the Fed to cut, but because of what the Fed has accomplished. Companies have adapted (as they are wont to do) to higher rates and inflation."

— Brian Evans

Deutsche Bank stands by NIO buy rating but slashes price target 31%

Deutsche Bank stood by Shanghai-based electric vehicle manufacturer NIO Inc. in a report out Thursday, rating the $12 billion stock a buy ahead of quarterly results due Dec. 5.

But the firm slashed its price target by 31% to $11 from $16. The new target still implies upside of 53% for NIO shares.

"Similar to earlier in the year, we think NIO must once again prove to investors that it can be a first-tier EV player," analyst Edison Yu wrote in a nine-page note. "Competition is only getting fiercer and we worry the management team has yet to exhibit the tenacity required to consistently take market share from incumbents ... but we do think a comeback is possible next year as the revamped sales strategy takes hold. Tactically, sentiment is very negative and can quickly change if management starts making more shareholder friendly moves (e.g., reduce costs, bring in more ecosystem partners)."

NIO's sponsored ADRs are off 25% in 2023 after plunging 69% in 2022.

— Scott Schnipper

This week's major Nasdaq winners

The Nasdaq Composite is one pace for 0.3% weekly gain following after a strong finish to November and start to the final trading month of 2023.

PDD Holdings is one of the best performers in the concentrated Nasdaq-100, with shares up nearly 22% week to date. Workday and Crowdstrike are also on track for big wins, with shares up about 15% and 12% respectively.

Other major winners include Palo Alto Networks and Lululemon Athletica, with shares up 11% and 8%, respectively, since the week began.

Some technology behemoths have underperformed, with shares of Alphabet and Meta Platforms down about 4% each. Nvidia's lost 2%, while Marvell Technology is headed for a 6% loss.

— Samantha Subin

Manufacturing data Friday is yet another sign of an economic slowdown, some investors say

Despite the recent rally in equities, some analysts remain cautiously optimistic about the broader health of the economy.

Data released earlier Friday showed that U.S. manufacturing remained at low levels in November, according to the Institute for Supply Management, which said that its manufacturing PMI was unchanged at 46.7 last month. November was the 13th straight month during which the PMI came out below 50, which is an indicator of a slowdown in manufacturing.

"This was a disappointing number, definitely. It fell below expectations. But what's important is that everything underneath also pointed to to significant slowdown," said Anna Rathbun, chief investment officer for CBIZ Investment Advisory Services, taking the report as another sign of an emerging economic slowdown in 2024.

"The slowdown on American spending has already begun," Rathbun said. "If we start seeing attrition in the labor force, is already a lagging indicator. It doesn't bode well for 2024."

According to Edward Jones' senior investment strategist Mona Mahajan, this anticipated economic slowdown could actually provide a "good setup" heading into 2024, however, as it proves the market has avoided a deep recession and fought inflation.

"The slowdown, in some ways, will help confirm the end of this cycle and the start of a new economic cycle," Mahajan said.

— Pia Singh

Oil falls more than 2% on OPEC skepticism, U.S. rig count

Oil prices continued their slide on Friday amid disappointment with OPEC+ production cuts and as U.S. oil rigs rose slightly week over week.

The West Texas Intermediate contract for January fell $1.89, or 2.49%, to $74.07 a barrel, while the Brent crude contract for February declined $1.98, or 2.45%, to $78.88 a barrel.

Oil has declined about 5% since Wednesday's close despite efforts by OPEC and its allies, OPEC+, to boost prices.

Seven OPEC+ member Thursday promised cuts of 2.2 million bpd for the first quarter of 2024, but traders were skeptical that they would actually deliver.

Meanwhile, U.S. oil rigs rose by 5 week over week, but are down 122 year over year.

— Spencer Kimball

24 S&P 500 stocks hit new all-time highs

Stocks have been on a red-hot streak since November, and it seems the market has no intention of slowing down as it heads into a new month.

During Friday's trading session, 42 stocks in the S&P 500 reached new 52-week highs. Of these names, 24 stocks notched new all-time highs.

These include Phillips 66, CBOE Holdings, Boston Scientific, Parker Hannifin, Palo Alto Networks and Roper.

— Christopher Hayes, Lisa Kailai Han

Legacy tech stocks outperform in market rally

Some of the former leaders in the technology sector have enjoyed a strong rally in recent weeks that have helped push the U.S. stock market back near its highest level of the year.

Over the last month, Intel is up more than 16%, and IBM has jumped more than 9%. HP Inc. shares are up more than 10% in that same time frame. Dell was sliding on Friday after its third quarter report, but the stock is still up over 4% in the past month.

"While Nvidia garners all the attention, of all things Intel recently has outperformed. Together with almost daily new highs in IBM and Dell, it's enough to make you think PCs are here to stay. These may not be as much fun as the Mag 7, but that's only true if you define fun as volatility rather than making money. In any event, the real point here is that it is encouraging to see stocks like these acting well, in addition to the Nvidia's of the world," Wellington Shields analyst Frank Gretz said in a note to clients on Friday.

— Jesse Pound

Wendy's rises after report of new activist activity

Shares of Wendy's were up more than 3% in afternoon trading after Reuters reported that activist hedge fund Blackwells Capital is preparing to push for board representation.

The report, citing people familiar with the matter, said that Blackwells planned to nominate multiple candidates for Wendy's board.

Another activist fund, Nelson Peltz's Trian, already owns a large stake in Wendy's. Blackwells criticized Trian's approach to Disney earlier this week, the Reuters report said.

— Jesse Pound

Altimmune shares surge on positive obesity drug trial data

Guggenheim analyst Seamus Fernandez said Altimmune's positive results with its experimental obesity drug trial open the door for the company to strike a partnership or be acquired. Shares of the clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company were up about 25% in trading on Friday afternoon.

On Thursday, the company said more than half of the patients enrolled in its pemvidutide trial achieved at least a 15% weight loss. Even better, about 30% of phase 2b trial participants, lost as much as 20% of their starting weight. These results would make the drug competitive with treatments like Novo Nordisk's Ozempic and Wegovy and Eli Lilly's Zepbound.

Altimmune's stock is down more than 75% this year, putting its market value at just over $200 million. Fernandez said the stock could trade at $10, which is about 150% higher than its current level.

—Christina Cheddar Berk

Dow outperforms this week

The Dow has outperformed this week, boosted by big rallies from a handful of members.

The blue-chip average is tracking to finish the week more than 2% higher. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite are slated to end the week up just 0.7% and 0.1%, respectively.

Salesforce has led the index higher this week as investors cheered the software company's earnings report. With a jump of 15.9%, the stock is poised to notch its best week since August 2020.

Boeing and American Express have seen the next biggest gains so far this week, adding more than 6% and 5%, respectively.

Despite the average's ascent, about one-fifth of the 30-stock index is poised to close the week lower. Disney is on track to post the largest loss this week with a drop of more than 4%.

— Alex Harring

These are the stocks moving the most midday

Here are some of the companies making the biggest moves during midday trading:

• Tesla — Tesla shares slipped less than 1% as Wall Street assessed the company's long-anticipated Cybertruck following a delivery launch event Thursday in Texas.
• Disney — Disney shares were virtually flat after the entertainment giant reinstated its dividend at 30 cents per share amid a renewed proxy battle with Nelson Peltz and Trian Fund Management.
• Alibaba — Alibaba shares fell 2% after Morgan Stanley downgraded the China-based e-commerce company to equal weight, citing a slower-than-expected turnaround in its cloud business.

Read the full list of movers here.

— Samantha Subin

Tech-focused ETF heads for fifth straight positive week

The TrueShares Technology, AI and Deep Learning ETF (LRNZ) climbed nearly 3% in Friday's session and was on track for its fifth straight winning week.

Elastic gave the ETF upward momentum on Friday with a rally of more than 30%. UiPath and Samsara were also among the top performers, gaining more than 24% and 14%, respectively.

The stocks were also the three best performers within the index on the week, with Elastic and UiPath both slated to close more than 30% higher.

Elsewhere, a handful of members are on pace to end the week lower. Mobileye led the losers down with a drop of more than 7%. Okta followed, shedding more than 6%.

If the gains hold through Friday's close, the ETF will end the week about 5% higher. With five winning weeks in a row, it would mark the longest positive streak since a seven-week long one that ended in June.

— Alex Harring

Powell says rate cut talks are 'premature' and more hikes could come

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell described discussion of cutting interest rates as "premature," saying more hikes could be on the horizon.

"It would be premature to conclude with confidence that we have achieved a sufficiently restrictive stance, or to speculate on when policy might ease," Powell said in prepared remarks for an audience at Spelman College in Atlanta. "We are prepared to tighten policy further if it becomes appropriate to do so."

His remarks come ahead of the central bank's next meeting on Dec. 12-13. The Fed has kept rates level at its last two meetings.

"The strong actions we have taken have moved our policy rate well into restrictive territory, meaning that tight monetary policy is putting downward pressure on economic activity and inflation," Powell said. "Monetary policy is thought to affect economic conditions with a lag, and the full effects of our tightening have likely not yet been felt."

— Alex Harring, Jeff Cox

How to watch Powell's remarks in Atlanta

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell is about to begin speaking at Spelman College in Atlanta. He will participate in a fireside chat after his speech.

Investors will keep an eye out for any insights into the health of the economy and state of inflation, as well as for any clues into the future of monetary policy.

His remarks, which are slated to begin around 11 a.m. ET, can be watched here.

— Alex Harring

Morgan Stanley's Wilson sounds alarm on earnings headwinds

Michael Wilson, Morgan Stanley's chief U.S. equity strategist, cautioned that the near-term backdrop for earnings remains tough.

"The combination of weaker earnings revisions breadth, cautious corporate commentary, weaker leading survey data, and a decelerating fiscal impulse suggest that earnings headwinds will likely persist into early next year before a durable recovery takes hold," Wilson said in a note to clients.

Wilson has been one of the biggest bears on Wall Street with the lowest S&P 500 year-end target of 3,900 among top strategists, according to CNBC Market Strategist Survey.

— Yun Li

Stocks open slightly lower

Here's how the major indexes opened on Friday:

• The S&P 500 lost about 0.2%.
• The Dow Jones Industrials Average shed 11 points, or less than 0.1%.
• The Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.3%.

— Pia Singh

The Fed will need the all clear on inflation before cutting rates, one analyst says 

More investors are anticipating a rate cut in the first half of 2024, but one analyst expects the Federal Reserve will need the all clear on inflation before it starts to ease. In fact, Howard Silverblatt, senior index analyst at S&P Dow Jones Indices, said the first rate cut will happen in the third quarter. 

"As for the Fed, more speeches will create more concern, but the expectations of a first half cut appear to have taken over the majority opinion," Silverblatt wrote Thursday. 

"I, however, remain in the minority: the Fed needs the cinders of inflation to be cold and won't risk even a whiff of inflation, meaning they will hold off until Q3 2024 (with continued strong employment for the half of 2024 not helping the first cut schedule)," he added.

— Sarah Min

These are the stocks making the biggest moves premarket

Check out some of the companies making headlines in premarket trading.

• Elastic N.V. — Stock in the search company surged more than 18% following an upgrade to overweight from Wells Fargo. Analyst Andrew Nowinski noted Elastic is in a strong position to take advantage of a generative artificial intelligence opportunity for its search platform which could drive revenue moving forward.
• Walt Disney — Shares of the conglomerate ticked up 0.35% after the company announced it would reinstate a previous dividend of 30 cents per share, which follows a proxy battle from Nelson Peltz and his firm Trian Fund Management.
• Alibaba — The Chinese multinational slipped roughly 2% after Morgan Stanley downgraded the stock to equal-weight, with the firm noting concern over a slower-than-expected rebound in Alibaba's cloud segment.

Read the full list here.

— Brian Evans

Paramount Global stock rises on report of potential streaming bundle with Apple

Shares of media conglomerate Paramount Global climbed about 3% in premarket trading on Friday, following a report from the Wall Street Journal that the company has discussed bundling its streaming service with Apple.

The discussions involved bundling Paramount+ with Apple TV+, the report said, and could see the companies ultimately offer the package at a discount which would amount to less than an individual subscription to each service.

The move comes as streaming service providers continually increase prices in order to streamline profitability amid a more competitive landscape.

— Brian Evans

Disney reinstates dividends after three-year pause

Shares of Disney were up nearly 0.4% before the bell on Friday, a day after the entertainment conglomerate announced it would reinstate its stock dividend at 30 cents a share. The company plans to record this dividend on December 11, payable January 10, 2024.

"This has been a year of important progress for The Walt Disney Company, defined by a strategic restructuring and a renewed focus on long-term growth," said Mark Parker, Chairman of the Board. "As Disney moves forward with its key strategic objectives, we are pleased to declare a dividend for our shareholders while we continue to invest in the company's future and prioritize meaningful value creation."

The announcement comes after Disney announced in February that it planned to reinstate its dividend by the end of the calendar year. The company had earlier paused its dividend payment in November 2020 due to the onset of the pandemic.

— Lisa Kailai Han

Fed Chair Powell to deliver policy address in Atlanta

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell speaks Friday in what will be a closely watched speech as markets look for clues about the future of monetary policy.

The U.S. central bank leader will deliver remarks during an event at Spelman College in Atlanta starting at 11 a.m. ET. That will be followed by a fireside chat with a moderator, then a roundtable at 2 p.m. to discuss tech innovation and entrepreneurship with local leaders.

Following a series of economic reports showing that inflation is decelerating, markets expect that the Fed is done raising interest rates and in fact likely will start cutting next year.

—Jeff Cox

Pfizer shares falling after it stops developing experimental weight loss drug

Pfizer shares were falling about 4% in premarket trading after the pharmaceutical maker decided to stop developing a twice-a-day version of its weight loss drug, citing adverse side effects.

"At this time, twice-daily danuglipron formulation will not advance into Phase 3 studies," Pfizer said.

Pfizer said it would release phase two data on a once-a-day version in the first half of next year and then determine the path forward from there.

Pfizer shares have trailed other drugmakers this year as it falls behind in the weight loss race. Shares of Pfizer were down 40% year-to-date through Thursday's close. By comparison, shares of Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk, the two leaders in the burgeoning market, are up by 50% or more each in 2023.

-John Melloy, Annika Kim Constantino

China's manufacturing activity unexpectedly expands in November: Caixin survey

China's manufacturing sector unexpectedly expanded in November, according to a survey by Caixin.

The Caixin purchasing managers' index climbed to 50.7 last month from 49.5 in October, as a rise in new orders helped lift factory production.

The November PMI recorded the fastest expansion in three months and beat Reuters poll estimates of 49.8.

"Though modest, the rate of new order growth was the best seen since June, with firms often noting that firmer market conditions had helped to lift sales. However, new work from overseas continued to fall slightly, underscoring a relatively challenging external demand environment," the survey said.

A reading above the 50-point mark signifies growth.

— Shreyashi Sanyal

Japan November factory activity contracts, October unemployment dips

Japan's factory activity contracted for a sixth straight month in November amid falling domestic and international demand, according to a private survey.

The final au Jibun Bank Japan manufacturing purchasing managers' index fell to 48.3 last month from October's 48.7, but was marginally better than the initial reading of 48.1.

A reading below 50 indicates contraction.

A separate reading showed Japan's October unemployment rate fell to 2.5% from the prior month's 2.6%.

The reading was also slightly below Reuters poll forecast of 2.6%.

— Shreyashi Sanyal

South Korea factory activity unchanged, stops contraction for first time since June 2022

South Korea's factory activity has stopped a 17-month contraction streak in November, according to private surveys by S&P Global.

The country's manufacturing purchasing managers index came in at exactly 50, representing unchanged operating conditions for the sector.

S&P said that output levels broadly stabilized in November, leading to manufacturers increasing staffing levels and buying activity.

However, it added that "this masked a more subdued outlook for the coming year as firms signalled the weakest degree of optimism for five months amid concern over sustained economic weakness."

— Lim Hui Jie

Where the major averages stand ahead of December

This is where the major average stand after November's rally and ahead of the start of the final trading month of 2023.

Dow Jones Industrial Average:

• Up 1.6% for the week and headed for fifth straight winning week for the first time since November 2021
• Gained 8.8% in November for its best month since October 2022
• Up 8.5% for the year
• Sits 2.7% off of its record high

S&P 500:

• Up 0.2% for the week
• Jumped 8.9% for the month to post its best monthly performance since July 2022
• Up 19% in 2023
• Sits 5.2% off its record high

Nasdaq Composite:

• Down 0.2% for the week and set to snap a four-week winning streak
• Surged 10.7% in November for its best month since July 2022
• Up 35.9% in 2023
• Sits 12.3% off its record high

— Samantha Subin, Chris Hayes

Stocks making the biggest moves after the bell: Walt Disney, Ulta Beauty and more

These are some the stocks moving the mot in extended trading:

• Walt Disney — Shares added about 1% after the entertainment giant reinstated its dividend at 30 cents a share. The move comes amid activist investor Nelson Peltz and his firm's proxy fight.
• Ulta Beauty — Ulta Beauty shares surged more than 11% on strong third-quarter results. The company also updated the low end of its full-year guidance.
• Samsara — The Internet of Things company jumped 15% in extended trading after posting a top-and-bottom line earnings beat and sharing upbeat guidance.

Read the full list of stocks moving after the bell here.

— Samantha Subin

Stock futures open slightly lower

Stock futures opened slightly lower in overnight trading Thursday after the major averages capped off a strong November.

Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 25 points, or 0.07%, while S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq-100 futures slipped 0.1% and 0.2%, respectively.

— Samantha Subin