Investor Optimism Improves After Dow Rises For Seventh Straight Session

The CNN Money Fear and Greed index showed an improvement in overall sentiment among U.S. investors on Tuesday.

The Dow Jones gained more than 300 points, recording gains for the seventh straight session on Tuesday.

Bank of America Corporation BAC shares rose 4.4% on Tuesday after the company reported better-than-expected second-quarter financial results. Morgan Stanley MS shares also climbed 6.5% after reporting upbeat second-quarter financial results.

As far as the earnings season is concerned, out of the S&P 500 companies that have released quarterly results so far, around 84% of those exceeded profit estimates.

On the economic data front, retail sales in the U.S. increased 0.2% month-over-month in June versus a revised 0.5% growth in the prior month, but down from market estimates of a 0.5% rise. Industrial production in the U.S. declined 0.5% from a month ago in June versus a revised 0.5% fall in the prior month.

The Dow Jones closed higher by around 367 points to 34,951.93 on Tuesday. The S&P 500 rose 0.71% at 4,554.98, while the Nasdaq Composite added 0.76% at 14,353.64 during the session.

Investors are awaiting earnings results from The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. GS, Tesla, Inc. TSLA and Netflix, Inc. NFLX today.

At a current reading of 82.0, the index remained in the "Extreme Greed" zone, versus a previous reading of 80.0

What is CNN Business Fear & Greed Index?

The Fear & Greed Index is a measure of the current market sentiment. It is based on the premise that higher fear exerts pressure on stock prices, while higher greed has the opposite effect. The index is calculated based on seven equal-weighted indicators. The index ranges from 0 to 100, where 0 represents maximum fear and 100 signals maximum greediness.

Read Next: Goldman Sachs Likely To Report Sharp Decline In Q2 Earnings; Here's A Look At Recent Price Target Changes By The Most Accurate Analysts