The major U.S. stock indices opened Thursday in positive territory, though nobody's breaking out the champagne over these gains. The Dow Jones added 0.10% to reach 47,930.00, while the Nasdaq edged up a barely-there 0.01% to 23,454.19. The S&P 500 matched the Dow's pace, climbing 0.10% to 6,856.66.

Sector Movement: Financial Strength, Healthcare Weakness

Financial shares provided the day's leadership, jumping 0.4% on Thursday. Meanwhile, healthcare stocks continued their retreat from Wednesday's session, when the sector dropped 0.6%.

Dollar General Crushes Expectations

The real action came from Dollar General Corporation (DG), which saw shares rocket over 7% higher after delivering third-quarter results that blew past Wall Street's expectations. The discount retailer also sweetened the mood by raising its full-year 2025 guidance above analyst estimates.

The numbers tell the story: Dollar General posted quarterly earnings of $1.28 per share, demolishing the consensus estimate of 95 cents. Revenue came in at $10.649 billion, edging out the $10.639 billion that analysts were expecting.

Notable Gainers

Polyrizon Ltd. (PLRZ) absolutely exploded, surging 134% to $16.61. The Israel-based biotech company released preclinical data Wednesday showing its proprietary naloxone hydrogel sticks to nasal tissue longer than currently approved intranasal naloxone sprays on the market.

KALA BIO, Inc. (KALA) shares jumped 50% to $1.39 after SEC filings revealed that Oxford Finance LLC scooped up 1.62 million common shares, giving it a 16.5% ownership stake in the clinical-stage company.

Able View Global Inc. (ABLV) also posted impressive gains, climbing 56% to $1.1250.

The Day's Losers

Genesco Inc. (GCO) had a brutal morning, plummeting 28% to $25.84 after reporting third-quarter results that missed expectations. The footwear retailer also slashed its fiscal 2026 guidance below analyst estimates.

Cross Country Healthcare, Inc. (CCRN) shares tumbled 20% to $7.57 following the company's announcement that it terminated its merger agreement with Aya Healthcare.

Nauticus Robotics, Inc. (KITT) fell 18% to $1.2799 after announcing exchange agreements that will allow conversion of existing securities into 3,814 shares of Series C preferred stock.

Commodities Snapshot

In commodities trading, oil slipped 0.2% to $58.86 per barrel while gold ticked up 0.1% to $4,234.70. Silver took a bigger hit, dropping 1.5% to $57.74, and copper declined 0.5% to $5.3620.

Global Markets

European markets posted solid gains across the board. The eurozone's STOXX 600 climbed 0.5%, while Spain's IBEX 35 Index added 0.5%. London's FTSE 100 rose 0.2%, Germany's DAX 40 led with a 0.9% gain, and France's CAC 40 advanced 0.5%.

Asian markets closed mostly in the green Thursday. Japan's Nikkei surged 2.33%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 0.68%, and India's BSE Sensex gained 0.19%. China's Shanghai Composite bucked the trend, slipping 0.06%.

Economic Data

U.S. initial jobless claims delivered some positive news, declining by 27,000 from the previous week to land at 191,000 during the last week of November. That's a sign of continued labor market resilience.

On the flip side, U.S.-based employers announced 71,321 job cuts in November, representing an increase from the 57,727 cuts reported in the same period last year.