Executive Mosaic’s GovCon Index and the U.S. stock bellwether S&P 500 composite index closed at record highs Tuesday for the second consecutive day as markets continue to shed fears over potential ramifications from the Brexit and investors show more willingness to take risks.
The GovCon Index recorded a gain of 0.416 points to 81.522 with services-oriented contractors and middle-tier technology makers as the top performers while prime stocks Boeing (NYSE: BA), Northrop Grumman (NYSE: NOC), Raytheon (NYSE: RTN) and Huntington Ingalls Industries (NYSE: HII) as the GCI’s four decliners.
Both Raytheon and HII hit 52-week highs shortly after the 9:30 a.m. Eastern time opening bell before a quick tumble thereafter into negative territory and closes at respective declines of 86 and 72 cents.
Stocks that reached 52-week highs in intraday trade that closed at gains included Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT), Honeywell International (NYSE: HON) and ManTech International (NASDAQ: MANT).
AECOM (NYSE: ACM) added 3.03 percent on the company’s five-year, $100 million contract award from Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport for program and construction management services at the U.S.’ fourth-busiest air transportation hub.
Leidos Holdings (NYSE: LDOS) gained 2.28 percent with 4.7 million shares traded versus the 10-day average of 1.3 million a day after the government services contractor’s stock plummeted 6.27 percent on high volume close to eight times above the 10-day average.
The GovCon Index has climbed 5.49 percent and the S&P 500 that contains 11 GCI stocks is up 5.61 percent since the June 23 nationwide referendum that saw a majority of U.K. citizens vote to exit the European Union and sent global financial markets into a two-day mass selloff.
U.S. investors continued to welcome a new stimulus in Japan ordered Monday after the election there, according to CNBC.
Top GovCon Index Net Gainers
| Symbol | Company | $ Current Price | Net Change –´ | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MCK | McKesson Corp. * | 195.66 | 2.02 | 1.04% |
| CACI | CACI International | 92.05 | 1.33 | 1.47% |
| OA | Orbital ATK | 85.98 | 1.23 | 1.45% |
| LDOS | Leidos Holdings | 48.50 | 1.08 | 2.28% |
| ACM | AECOM | 33.98 | 1.00 | 3.03% |
Top GovCon Index Percentage Gainers
| Symbol | Company | $ Current Price | Net Change | % Change –´ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NAV | Navistar International | 13.02 | 0.72 | 5.85% |
| I | Intelsat | 2.79 | 0.10 | 3.72% |
| CSRA | CSRA * | 25.20 | 0.81 | 3.32% |
| EGL | Engility Holdings | 25.55 | 0.77 | 3.11% |
| ACM | AECOM | 33.98 | 1.00 | 3.03% |
*Also listed in the S&P 500 composite index
Market Summary
| Advancing GovCon Index Issues | 25 |
| Declining GovCon Index Issues | 5 |
| Unchanged GovCon Index Issues | 0 |
| Index | Value | Net Change | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| GovCon Index | 81.522 | +0.416 | +0.513% |
| S&P 500 | 2, 152.14 | +14.98 | +0.70% |
| Dow Jones Industrial Average | 18, 347.67 | +120.74 | +0.66% |
| NASDAQ | 5, 922.82 | +34.18 | +0.69% |
