The New York equities markets were higher at noon on Friday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average 0.9 percent higher to 12,176.54, while the Nasdaq Composite was up 2.3 percent to 2,384.64 and the S&P 500 had added 1.1 percent to 1,378.94.
Defense companies that saw losses right after Tuesday’s elections regained some of those declines later in the week but still ended the week below their starting levels. Raytheon fell 0.2 percent during the week to $48.90, while Lockheed Martin dropped 1 percent to $86.10 and Northrop Grumman was 1.8 percent lower to $64.73.
Health sectors were affected by the elections on concerns that their prices could be driven down by decisions from the new Democratic majority in Congress. Among the pharmaceuticals companies, Johnson & Johnson fell 3 percent to $65.80, while Pfizer declined 3.7 percent to $25.58 and Merck ended the week 4.9 percent lower to $42.88.
Wal-Mart was 2.2 percent lower on the week to $46.49 on the fears of investors that the new Congress could raise the minimum wage and move to regulate labor more closely.
Homebuilders saw declines as the housing market continued to suffer. Toll Brothers dropped 2.3 percent to $27.59, while DR Horton fell 2.4 percent on a downgrade from Merrill Lynch and Pulte Homes was 2.6 percent lower to $29.32.
Gainers on the week included Four Seasons Hotels, which added 28.3 percent to $81.97 after a private consortium of bidders offered $3.7 billion for the luxury hotel group. OSI Restaurant Partners was 21.6 percent higher to $39.45 after it accepted a $3 billion private bid.