19/07/2015 11:23 AST
The Nasdaq Composite closed at a record on Friday, powered by a rally in technology companies following Google's blockbuster results.
The tech-heavy index gained 44.96 points, or 0.9%, to close at 5,210.14, booking a 4.25% weekly rise.
Google(GOOGL) (GOOGL) shares soared 16% to a record close, after the tech giant beat analysts' expectations for quarterly profits after the market close on Thursday.
However, action in the broader market, captured in the S&P 500 , was less robust, as nine of the 10 major sectors finished lower, led by losses in energy, materials and utilities sector stocks.
The benchmark index eked out a modest gain, rising 2.35 points, or 0.1%, to 2,126.64, settling only 4 points below its all-time closing high. After three weeks of declines, the index posted its first weekly gain of 2.4%.
Without Google, the S&P 500 would have lost ground Friday, according to data compiled by Howard Silverblatt, senior index analyst at S&P Indices. On an index level, adjusted for float, the two Google issues added approximately 6.20 points to the S&P 500 for the day, he said.
Some analysts doubt the benchmark index can surpass its record and move higher.
"While I would like to believe the S&P 500 can rocket through those [all-time] highs into another whole new leg to the upside, my models just don't support that view. What is more likely is for the SPX to fail in making a new all-time high, or marginally make one, but then succumb to a bout of selling," wrote Jeffrey Saut, chief investment strategist at Raymond James.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended lower, falling 33.80 points, or 0.2%, to 18,086.45 but still booked a 1.8% weekly gain.
The market has rallied over the week as fears about Greece's debt crisis have receded, and as Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen and other central bankers worked to reassure investors.
As second-quarter earnings continue to roll out, traders should be "riding the trend here as the bulls will continue to pay up for these earnings," said Chris Weston, chief market strategist at IG, in a note on Friday.
Weston added: "It seems only a matter of time before the S&P 500 joins the Nasdaq in making a new all-time high in my opinion."
Other strategists sound worried, especially by the aggressive buying of tech stocks. "The trading action in the U.S. equity market in the past 24 hours is the type that prompts flashbacks to the equity bubble blow off in early 2000," said Mike O'Rourke, JonesTrading's chief market strategist, in a note.
Friday's economic news: Market reaction to inflation and housing data ahead of the opening bell was largely muted. Consumer prices index data matched expectations, while housing starts came in above forecasts.
The cost of consumer goods in June (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/consumer-inflation-on-rise-again---but-slowly-2015-07-17)rose sharply for the second month in a row, pushing the annual rate of inflation into positive territory for the first time in 2015.
Home builders ramped up construction in June (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/home-builders-rush-to-put-up-rental-units-at-28-year-high-2015-07-17)and the University of Michigan's consumer sentiment (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/umich-sentiment-falls-to-933-in-july-reports-say-2015-07-17-1091152) gauge fell to a preliminary July reading of 93.3 from a final June level of 96.1.
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