Despite weakening commodity prices across the board, the Canadian stock market continued to rise for a second consecutive session on Tuesday as solid tech earnings kept the momentum going. After crossing the 25,000 level for the first time ever in intraday trading, the S&P/TSX Composite Index gave up some of its gains later during the session, but it still settled with a 134-point, or 0.5%, increase at 24,923.
On the one hand, weaker metals prices continued to keep shares of mining companies under pressure. Shopify’s (TSX:SHOP) upbeat results and solid outlook triggered buying in tech stocks, contributing to the TSX’s gains.
Top TSX Composite movers and active stocks
Shopify stock popped by 21.4% to $152.26 per share, making it the top-performing TSX stock for the day. This rally in SHOP stock came after the Ottawa-headquartered e-commerce platform giant announced a solid 26.1% year-over-year jump in its quarterly revenue to US$2.2 billion, with increased adoption of its platform across diverse merchant sizes.
While Shopify’s gross merchandise volume rose 24% and operating income more than doubled from a year ago, its adjusted quarterly earnings climbed by nearly 46% to US$0.35 per share, beating analysts’ expectations of US$0.27 per share. The Canadian tech giant expects its revenue to grow at a mid- to high-20s percentage rate in the fourth quarter. After the recent rally, SHOP stock is now up around 48% year to date.
Primo Water, Denison Mines, and Tilray Brands were also among the session’s top performers on the Toronto Stock Exchange, with each climbing by over 5%.
On the flip side, shares of AtkinsRéalis, Algoma Steel, Nutrien, and Superior Plus tanked by 3.5% each, making them the day’s worst-performing TSX stocks.
Based on their daily trade volume, Enbridge, Manulife Financial, Suncor Energy, Shopify, and Barrick Gold were the five most active stocks on the exchange.
TSX today
After falling for several days in a row, gold and silver prices witnessed a minor recovery in early trading on Wednesday. At the same time, base metals and natural gas prices continued to slide. Given these mixed signals, I expect the commodity-heavy TSX Composite Index to remain flat at the open today.
While no major domestic economic releases are due, Canadian investors will closely monitor the latest consumer inflation report from the United States this morning, which could guide market sentiment and influence trading patterns across sectors.
On the corporate events side, many TSX-listed companies, including CCL Industries, Northland Power, Element Fleet Management, Mattr, SmartCentres REIT, Loblaw Companies, Hudbay Minerals, and Maple Leaf Foods, will announce their latest quarterly earnings today.
Market movers on the TSX today
