Wall Street today: Dow Jones hits record high on Fed rate cut hopes, UnitedHealth jumps

The blue-chip index Dow Jones hit a record high on Friday as UnitedHealth jumped after Berkshire Hathaway raised its stake in the health insurer and on hopes of an Fed interest rate cut in September.

At the opening bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 248.7 points, or 0.55%, to 45,159.91. The S&P 500 rose 8.8 points, or 0.14%, to 6,477.38​, while the Nasdaq Composite dropped 1.3 points, or 0.01%, to 21,709.336.