Bubbling Bitcoin, Biden’s Latest Lawsuit, and DJIA Returns
Behind The NumbersJanuary 13, 2025
- S&P 500 Soars – The S&P 500 finished off December 2024 with a 2.4% decline for the month. However, year-to-date, the S&P 500 posted a 23.3% return (source: Y Charts).
- 2024 S&P 500 Stars – Palantir Technologies Inc, a software company, had the highest 2024 share price gain at 340.5%. Vistra Corp, an electricity and power generation company, took second with a share price return of 257.9%, followed by NVIDIA at 171.2% (source: Y Charts).
- Dow’s Double-Digit Return – The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) finished December 2024 out at $42,544.22, a $2,366.43 drop from November 29, 2024. However, the DJIA finished the year up 12.9% from $37,689.54 on December 29, 2023 (source: Yahoo Finance).
- Sector Stars – The Communication Services sector posted the largest return in 2024, with a return of 34.8%. In close second was the Financial sector, with a 2024 return of 30.6%. Materials was the worst performing sector in 2024, with a mere gain of 0.2% (source: dashboard-us-sector.pdf).
- S&P 500 Strugglers – Walgreens and Intel were the worst performers on the S&P 500 during 2024, with -64.3% and -60.1% share price declines, respectively. Walgreens was removed from the DJIA back in February (source: Yahoo Finance).
- Bubbling Bitcoin – Bitcoin finished the year at a closing price of $93,429.20 on December 31, 2024. This is more than double Bitcoin’s $42,265.19 close price on December 31, 2023. Bitcoin broke $100,000 for the first time on December 8, 2024 (source: Yahoo Finance).
- Sinking Sectors – The Consumer Discretionary sector was the only sector with positive results in December 2024, solidifying a 1.1% gain. Materials had the largest decline at -10.8%, followed by Energy at -9.5% (source: Y Charts).
- Launching a Lawsuit – Nippon Steel and U.S. Steel launched a formal lawsuit against President Biden over a $14.9 billion blocked deal. The lawsuit alleges that President Biden violated the Constitution by using a national security review for political reasons to stop the deal (source: Reuters).
- The Latest Sales Weapon – A study by Salesforce found that artificial intelligence powered chatbots resulted in a 4% year-over-year increase in online sales between November 1 and December 31. Similarly, shoppers now use AI chatbots 42% more than
one year ago (source: Reuters). - Gone for Good – Doug Pederson, former Jaguars head coach, and Jerod Mayo, former Patriots head coach, were both fired in the first week of January 2025 after winning a mere four regular season games. Jerod Mayo now makes the list of the shortest head coaching stints in NFL history (source: Sporting News).
This newsletter is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice or a recommendation regarding any specific product or security. Past performance is not indicative of future results. You cannot invest directly in an index. All references to tax or legal matters are provided for informational purposes only. You should consult your legal or tax professional regarding your specific situation. All investing is subject to risk, including possible loss of principal.
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