Tech stocks lift S&P 500, Nasdaq as Federal Reserve meeting kicks off

The S&P 500 hit an all-time high on Tuesday while the Nasdaq touched a two-week peak as technology stocks caught a bid ahead of the Federal Reserve’s two-day policy meeting.

The Nasdaq rose 0.7%, extending a rebound in tech-related stocks that were at the heart of February’s selloff. The index is now about 4% below its Feb. 12 record closing high.

Apple Inc rose 1.4% as Evercore ISI hiked its price target on the iPhone maker’s shares to the highest on Wall Street. Other mega-cap stocks including Facebook Inc, Netflix Inc, Alphabet Inc and Microsoft rose between 1% and 1.7%.

The Dow slipped on Tuesday after notching sixth consecutive intraday record highs as optimism over a $1.9 trillion fiscal stimulus package and ongoing vaccination drives bolstered views that the economy was on a path to recovery.