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Stocks Rally Into Close; Markets Batten Down For France Election Outcome

X A late-day rally salvaged moderate gains Friday, a session that was quiet until the final hours despite a blowout April jobs report and a long list of earnings wins.

The Nasdaq and S&P 500 led, ending up 0.4%. The Dow Jones industrial average pulled off a 0.3% advance. Small caps ran slightly ahead of the group, with the Russell 2000 adding 0.5%.

Preliminary figures showed volume sharply below Thursday's levels.

Wall Street closed for the week with an eye toward Europe. The final round of the French presidential election pits right-wing national Marine Le Pen against an experienced centrist, Emmanuel Macron. Polls favor Macron, but Le Pen has a fervent following, and the results could have stark implications for the future of the eurozone.

Oil prices recovered a bit of ground Friday, with West Texas Intermediate settling up not quite 2% at $46.22 a barrel. Still, oil ended down more than 6% for the week, breaking psychological levels of support and marking its lowest weekly close since Nov. 11. Transocean (RIG), Chesapeake Energy (CHK) and Occidental Petroleum (OXY) all were within the top five gains among S&P 500 stocks.

At the bottom of the S&P 500, refinery engineer Flour (FLR) dropped 5% in heavy trade after reporting under par first quarter earnings, weak guidance and being downgraded to hold, from buy, by CFRA.

IBM (IBM) was right behind Flour on the S&P 500 and at the bottom of the Dow Jones industrial stocks, down 2.5% in powerful volume after reports quoted Warren Buffett declaring his Berkshire Hathaway (BRKA) had trimmed its 81 million-share position by 30% since the start of the year.

At the top of the Dow industrials, DuPont (DD) surged 3%, turning the stock positive for the week. Brazilian officials recommended the merger of DuPont and Dow Chemical (DOW), according to reports on Friday. Regulators still need to vote to approve the combination.

Apple (AAPL) rolled up 1.7% to post another new high. For the week, that left shares up 3.7% in their best performance since early February.

Tesla (TSLA) leapt 4%, taking back some ground after three days of selling. Shares ended 7% above a buy point of 287.49, and just below a follow-on buy point at 313.83.

Looking at stocks reporting earnings, Sierra Wireless (SWIR) and Noble (NE) were among the big winners, up 15% and 12% respectively. American Vanguard (AVD) jumped nearly 13%. El Pollo Loco (LOCO) soared 11%.

Universal Display (OLED) bolted 24% higher as first-quarter results crushed analyst expectations. The stock was already extended from a rebound at the 10-week line in mid-April.

On the downside, Air Lease (AL) dumped 5% in heavy volume, losing support at its 50-day moving average. The company's first-quarter results, reported after Thursday's close, missed analysts' targets on the top and bottom lines.

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