Investing.com -- U.S. stocks ticked up on Tuesday in cautious trade, as investors showed little reaction to testimony from Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen on Capitol Hill, appearing more focused on poll results ahead of a highly-anticipated Brexit referendum later this week.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 24.86 or 0.14% to 17,829.73, while the S&P 500 Composite index added 5.65 or 0.27% to 2,088.90, each extending gains from Monday's rally. On the S&P 500, six of 10 sectors closed in the green, as stocks in the Energy, Telecommunications and Technology industries led. Stocks in the Basic Materials and Health Care sector lagged, each closing in negative territory for the day. Both the Dow and S&P 500 remain about 2% below their all-time highs. The NASDAQ Composite index, meanwhile, rose by 6.55 or 0.14% to 4,843.76, driven by strong performances fromMicrosoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) and Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL).
For the most part, investors shrugged off remarks by Yellen before the Senate Banking Committee on Tuesday in her first public appearance since the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) left interest rates steady and lowered their long-term outlook at last week's June monetary policy meeting. In prepared remarks, Yellen indicated that the FOMC will maintain a cautious approach to monetary policy, amid an uneven economic growth outlook and widespread uncertainty in the labor market. Yellen also emphasized that a U.K. departure from the European Union could have serious consequences on global and U.S. financial markets by triggering a "risk-off" environment that could create a spike in the dollar.
The top performer on the Dow was Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT), which surged 1.32 or 2.64% to 51.39. It came as the tech giant unveiled its Microsoft Wallet app on Tuesday, a card-based payment technology that will become available to customers worldwide later this summer. The technology, which will be usable in over a million retail locations, aims to make mobile payments simpler for users with Windows 10 mobile devices, Microsoft said in a statement. The worst performer was Boeing Company (NYSE:BA), which lost 0.98 or 0.74% to 131.77. Boeing (NYSE:BA) closed just below McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD), which fell 0.79 or 0.64% to 122.63. Shares in McDonalds are virtually flat since the fast-food chain announced plans last week to move its corporate headquarters to Chicago by the Spring, 2018.
The biggest gainer on the NASDAQ was Micron Technology Inc (NASDAQ:MU), which added 0.44 or 3.57% to 12.76 amid reports that Samsung (KS:005930) could cut its Dynamic Random Access Memory (DRAM) supply over the second half of the year. It comes as Micron looks to shift its reliance on DRAM semiconductor memory technology to 3D NAND and 3DX Point platforms, which are newer and reportedly provide more stability. Tech stocks performed admirably on Tuesday, as Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:WDC), Symantec Corporation (NASDAQ:SYMC) and Cerner Corporation (NASDAQ:CERN) all rose by more than 2%. The worst performer was Endo International, which slumped 0.63 or 3.92% to 15.44. Over the last year, shares in the specialty drugmaker are down nearly 80%.
The top performer on the S&P 500 was Marathon Oil Corporation (NYSE:MRO), which gained 0.62 or 4.28% to 15.10. While U.S. crude futures halted a three-day winning streak in Tuesday's session, North Sea Brent pared earlier losses to close above $50 a barrel. The worst performer was Williams Companies Inc (NYSE:WMB), which fell 1.26 or 5.65% to 21.06.
On the New York Stock Exchange, advancing issues outnumbered declining ones by a 1,751-1,268 margin.