Nasdaq Small Caps Lead Up Session; Nasdaq 100 Chip Name Breaks Out

Stocks continued their bullish advance in afternoon trading Monday, with more record highs for the major stock indexes. The Russell 2000 outperformed with a 1.1% gain, coming within seven points of its all-time high of 1559.61.

[ibd-display-video id=3030876 width=50 float=left autostart=true] A congressional vote on the GOP tax bill could come as early as Tuesday.

The Nasdaq composite was up 0.9%, while the Dow Jones industrial average and S&P 500 added around 0.6% each. Volume on the NYSE and Nasdaq was tracking lower than Friday's level, but remember that volume skewed higher Friday due to options expiration.

Inside the Dow, Apple ( AAPL ) added 1.5% to 176.62 as it works on a base-on-base pattern with a 176.34 buy point.

In the stock market today , a couple of deals made headlines. Hershey ( HSY ) picked up Amplify Snack Brands ( BETR ) for $1.6 billion including debt. Shares of Amplify soared 71% to 11.99. Campbell Soup [ticker symb=CPB ] agreed to acquire snack company Snyder's-Lance ( LNCE ) for around $4.8 billion. CNBC reported last week that Campbell was in talks to acquire the snack maker. Snyder's is known for its pretzels and Cape Cod potato chip brands. Shares jumped 7% to 49.99 on the heels of a 13% gain Friday.

Shares of China-based Vipshop ( VIPS ) soared 40% on news of a deal with Tencent Holdings (TCEHY) and JD.com (JD).

In the semiconductor space, KLA-Tencor (KLAC) gapped out of a flat base with a 110.11 buy point, rising 5% to 111.05. Last week, the trade group Semi said good times will continue for the semiconductor equipment market for at least another year.

Inside the IBD 50 , Universal Display (OLED) was a top performer, up more than 4%, as the stock continues to show supporting action at the 10-week moving average. Note that support is coming after a recent breakout from a late-stage base.

Fellow IBD 50 name YY Inc . (YY) jumped nearly 4%, but it is extended after a second bounce off the 10-week line after a breakout from a cup-shaped base in late September.

Akamai Technologies (AKAM) soared nearly 13% to 65.75 after Elliott Management late Friday disclosed it has taken a 6.5% stake in the company. Brad Zelnick, an analyst at Credit Suisse, upped his price target on Akamai to 75 from 55.

On the downside, CSX Corp . (CSX) fought back to unchanged after a soft start on news of the death of its highly regarded CEO Hunter Harrison. Shares plunged nearly 8% Friday after the railroad operator said Harrison was taking a medical leave due to unexpected complications from a recent illness.

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