Big Tech's Big Day

By Alex Eule | Monday, June 28

Busting Antitrust. Technology stocks continued their recent run of outperformance today. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite was already having a solid day thanks to another decline in bond yields. The yield on the 10-year Treasury slid nearly six basis points, or six-hundredths of a percentage point, as inflation worries continue to ebb. (Tech and other growth stocks are theoretically more valuable as yields fall, because their future profits become more valuable in today's dollars.) 

The Nasdaq's day got better around 3 p.m., when a U.S. District Court judge dismissed a closely watched antitrust case against Facebook. In lawsuits filed last December, the Federal Trade Commission and state officials argued that Facebook had become a monopoly in so-called "personal social networking services." The FTC sought to undo past acquisitions, including Facebook's purchases of Instagram and WhatsApp. 

Judge James Boasberg didn't mince words in his opinion: "The agency’s complaint is legally insufficient and must therefore be dismissed." Notably, the opinion did allow for a "re-pleading," essentially asking the FTC to make a better case. New FTC Chairwoman Lina Khan is likely already working on it. She's been a critic of Big Tech and argued that antitrust regulation requires new ways of thinking in order to counter the power of technology companies. And she now has a better idea of what the courts will allow -- and what they won't. 

Investors were still buoyed by the Court's decision -- and the thinking that antitrust cases against tech now face even bigger hurdles. Facebook ended the day up 4%, closing at an all-time high. Apple, Amazon.com, and Microsoft were each up more than 1%.

As tech advanced, the Dow Jones Industrial Average struggled. The more value-focused index fell 151 points, or 0.4%. The broad-based S&P 500 was up 0.2%, good enough for its own all-time high. 

DJIA: -0.44% to 34,283.27
S&P 500: +0.23% to 4,290.61
Nasdaq: +0.98% to 14,500.51

The Hot Stock: Enphase Energy +7.4%
The Biggest Loser: Carnival -7.0%

Best Sector: Communication Services +1.1%
Worst Sector: Energy -3.4%