The GovCon Index barely edged in positive territory Thursday with a gain of 0.216 points to 78.940 on a choppy trading day for U.S. markets.With a Friday gain, the Index would record a full week of five consecutive positive days for the second time in the fourth quarter so far.
Index stock Health Net (NYSE: HNT) fell 5.07 percent and the S&P 500 composite index’s healthcare sector declined 1.63 percent after UnitedHealth (NYSE: UNH) cut its profit outlook for this year.
Technology stocks Intel (Nasdaq: INTC) and Apple (Nasdaq: APPL) led the upswing in technology stocks to offset the healthcare losses, according to Reuters.
U.S. markets have priced in a 72-percent chance of an interest rate hike in December, Reuters reports.
Top GovCon Index Gainers
| Symbol | Company | $ Current Price | Net Change | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| COL | Rockwell Collins | 92.26 | +2.26 | +2.51% |
| HII | Huntington Ingalls Industries | 134.08 | +2.65 | +2.02% |
| BAESY | BAE Systems | 29.62 | +0.54 | +1.87% |
| TXT | Textron | 43.32 | +0.73 | +1.71% |
| RTN | Raytheon | 126.00 | +2.05 | +1.65% |
Market Summary
| Advancing Issues | 21 |
| Declining Issues | 8 |
| Unchanged Issues | 1 |
| Index | Value | Net Change | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| GovCon Index | 78.940 | +0.216 | +0.274% |
| S&P 500 | 2, 081.26 | -2.32 | -0.11% |
| Dow Jones Industrial Average | 17, 732.75 | -4.41 | -0.02% |
| NASDAQ | 5, 073.64 | -1.56 | -0.03% |
