Media Stocks Rally to Recover Some Lost Ground After Coronavirus-Driven Meltdown

By Todd Spangler

LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – UPDATED: Financial markets ended another seesaw day on the upswing Tuesday as investors looked to snap up bargains and return to something like a normal trading session after weeks of coronavirus-driven uncertainty.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended the day up 4.9%, or 1,167 points, recovering a little more than half of what Monday’s losses. The turmoil comes after Monday’s biggest one-day declines in U.S. stocks in 12 years driven by fears over the ongoing spread of (COVID-19).

The Dow was up 3.5% at market open Tuesday following the index’s 7.8% slide Monday, but was up only 0.4% at noon ET. The S&P 500 climbed 3.4% at the opening bell before dipping to 0.8% at midday. The S&P was up 136 points, or 4.9%, at the close of trading. The NASDAQ gained 5%, or 394 points.

Amid heavy trading Tuesday, major media stocks rose in early trading, then slumped but finished out with solid improvements following Monday’s drubbing.

ViacomCBS, the traditional media giant most battered on Wall Street in recent weeks, ended the day with a 7% gain to $20.53. The same was true for AMC Networks (up 6.9% to $27.80). Station group owner Nexstar made up about half of Monday’s losses with a 7.4% gain to $90.40. Disney posted a 6.8% improvement to close at $111.46. Netflix ($364.13), Apple ($285.34), Discovery ($25.08) and Fox ($28.76) were among the companies posting gains of 5% or more.

Investors remained skittish as Wall Street continues to hover on the brink of a bear market. Markets were initially encouraged by an announcement from the White House on Monday evening that President Trump planned to meet with GOP lawmakers to consider “a possible tax-relief measure” on payroll taxes in response to the coronavirus pandemic.