Nasdaq, S&P hit record highs as tech, health stocks rise

The Nasdaq and the S&P 500 opened at record highs on Wednesday, powered by technology and healthcare stocks, while the Dow was weighed down by a fall in IBM's shares.

IBM fell 3.9 percent after the company's quarterly revenue came in below expectations.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq closed at a record high on Tuesday, helped by a jump in Netflix, with the index posting its longest streak of gains since February 2015.

The S&P tech sector has been the best performing sector this year despite concerns about stretched valuations as investors look for growth sectors immune to policy uncertainties.

"Netflix's strong results has caused money to move to tech stocks in anticipation of stronger earnings," said Adam Sarhan, chief executive officer at 50 Park Investments.

"If the big names such as Alphabet, Facebook, Amazon are able to show growth in an otherwise low-growth environment, then investors will pay for these stocks."

All three big tech names will report results next week.

Microsoft, which reports results on Thursday, was up 0.6 percent and was among the biggest boosts to the S&P and the Nasdaq.

At 9:45 a.m. ET (1345 GMT), the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 4.76 points, or 0.02 percent, at 21,579.49, the S&P 500 was up 6.35 points, or 0.25 percent, at 2,466.96.
READ MORE