US equity markets advanced after a choppy session that saw the benchmark indices log their worst weekly performance since March - Dow settled +477-points or +1.90% higher after spanning an intra-session range of 783-points or ~3.5%. The broader S&P500 gained +1.31% after trading up ~3% at its session high and down ~0.6% at its session low. Real Estate (up +3.16%) and Financials (+3.01%) – with gains of over >3% - led nine of the eleven primary sectors higher. Utilities (down -0.22%) and Consumer Staples (-0.18%) were the laggard primary sectors. American Airlines Group Inc gained +16.41% after the carrier said it expects to halt its daily cash burn by the end of 2020 thanks to cost cutting measures and an improvement in travel demand, easing concerns about its short term liquidity. The NASDAQ gained +1.01% after briefly dipping into negative territory earlier in the session. Adobe Inc rose +4.9% to US$406.54 the software company posted its second quarter results after the close of the previous session, settling just shy of a record all time high (US$406.82) after touching an intra-day day record high (US$411.72). Dicks Sporting Goods Inc rose +8.96% after announcing it would resume paying shareholders a quarterly dividend (US$0.3125 per share on 30 June, unchanged from the previous quarter), citing strong early sales at its stores that re-opened. The sporting goods retailer said it expects to have nearly all its stores re-opened by the end of the month and has restored previously cut salaries for all its employees (except certain executives). In merger and acquisition (M&A) news, CNBC reported that AT&T Inc (up +1.1%) is in talks to sell off Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment in a deal that could value the gaming business at as much as US$4B. Take-Two Interactive (down -0.7%), Electronic Arts Inc (-0.4%)and Activision Blizzard (+0.6%) have all been identified as possible suitors.
