The end of week 2 Q4, and week 1 of Q3 reporting, had all the indexes seeing new gains, the Dow and the S&P both seeing their 5^th straight week of gains, all on positive economic data demonstrating continuing market strength and the VIX remaining historically low at 9.6.  Bank of America came in above forecast, Wells Fargo below forecast, consumer prices up and the healthcare sector taking a hit over Trump’s latest executive order.  Volume was close to recent averages at 5.8 billion.

^{fri  OCTOBER 13, 2017 / 4:23 pM}

Wall St. ends up after economic data; S&P up for a fifth week

Caroline Valetkevitch

DJ: 22,871.72  +30.71     NAS: 6,605.80  +14.29      S&P: 2,553.17  +2.24     10/13

NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks rose on Friday following upbeat economic data and gains in technology shares, pushing the Dow and the S&P 500 to a fifth straight week of gains.  Data showed U.S. retail sales jumped in September, and the University of Michigan’s consumer sentiment index hit its highest since January 2004.  Another report showed consumer prices recorded their biggest increase in eight months as hurricanes Harvey and Irma boosted demand but underlying inflation remained muted.

Netflix (NFLX.O) shares closed 1.9 percent higher after hitting an intraday record high at $200.82 on a slew of price target increases ahead of its earnings report on Monday.  Apple (AAPL.O), up 0.6 percent, gave the S&P 500 its biggest boost, while the S&P technology index .SPLRCT was up 0.5 percent. Shares of big banks were mixed following reports from Bank of America and Wells Fargo.  “We’re seeing a continuation of the strength in the market combined with low volatility. There seems to be money searching for stocks and looking for investments, simply because the momentum is still positive,” said Bucky Hellwig, senior vice president at BB&T Wealth Management in Birmingham, Alabama.

“Also we’re entering a seasonal period where it’s difficult to fight the tape. So I imagine there’s cash coming in off the sidelines.”

The CBOE volatility index .VIX remains at historically depressed levels, closing at 9.61 on Friday.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI rose 30.71 points, or 0.13 percent, to end at 22,871.72, and the S&P 500 .SPXgained 2.24 points, or 0.09 percent, to 2,553.17.  The Nasdaq Composite .IXIC added 14.29 points, or 0.22 percent, to 6,605.80, a record closing high. 

For the week, the Dow was up 0.4 percent and the S&P 500 was up 0.2 percent. The Nasdaq rose 0.2 percent for the week, registering a third week of gains.

Bank of America (BAC.N), the second-biggest U.S. bank by assets, rose 1.5 percent after the lender’s profit topped estimates due to higher interest rates and a drop in costs.  But Wells Fargo (WFC.N) tumbled 2.8 percent after it reported lower-than-expected revenue for the fourth straight quarter due to a decline in mortgage banking revenue.  The reports from the Wall Street banks kicked off the third-quarter earnings season, with investors hoping profit growth will help justify valuations after a rally that has sent the S&P 500 up about 14 percent so far this year. 

Also limiting the day’s gains, the healthcare sector .SPXHC was down 0.3 percent as health insurers and hospital operators tumbled on news that President Donald Trump scrapped billions of dollars in Obamacare subsidies to private insurers for low-income Americans.

Centene (CNC.N) sank 3.3 percent, Molina Healthcare (MOH.N) dropped 3.4 percent and Anthem (ANTM.N) fell 3.1 percent.  Tenet Healthcare (THC.N) dropped 5.1 percent and Community Health System (CYH.N) declined 4 percent. 

Advancing issues outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by a 1.43-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 1.08-to-1 ratio favored decliners.

About 5.8 billion shares changed hands on U.S. exchanges. That compares with the 6.1 billion daily average for the past 20 trading days, according to Thomson Reuters data.