Several ASX 200 shares have hit fresh highs on Wednesday as markets continue their strong run into the final stretch of 2024.
Shares in Qantas Airways Ltd (ASX: QAN), JB Hi-Fi Ltd (ASX: JBH), and the iShares S&P 500 ETF (ASX: IVV) each nudged new highs in trading today.
Zooming out, it's been a busy year for each one of these ASX 200 shares. Let's take a closer look.
Qantas shares take flight
Qantas shares reached an intraday high of $9.21 in earlier trade today, taking out its previous all-time high of $9.06 apiece earlier this month.
The ASX 200 share has delivered quite turnaround in 2024, surging nearly 70% year to date. It has climbed from $4.77 apiece in October last year.
Morgan Stanley is bullish on Qantas, rating it a buy with a lofty $10.50 price target.
Its analysts believe Qantas is now positioned to pay dividends in 2025, marking the first shareholder payout since 2019. The broker forecasts a 27 cents per share dividend next year from the airline.
JB Hi-Fi hits new high
Retail powerhouse JB Hi-Fi also joined the rally today, climbing to highs of $97.61 earlier in the session. The ASX 200 share has since cooled to $96.15 apiece at the time of writing.
JB HiFi's closed at a previous all-time high of $95.20 earlier this month.
Despite a challenging retail environment, the electronics giant has caught the bid in December, resulting in an 8% gain this past month alone.
Bell Potter reckons JB Hi-Fi is well-positioned to capture the growing demand for artificial intelligence (AI)-driven mobile phones and personal computers.
The broker estimates this could boost JB Hi-Fi's revenue by up to 12%. Bell Potter has a $98 price target on the ASX 200 share.
S&P 500 ETF outpaces ASX 200 shares
The iShares S&P 500 ETF is an exchange-traded fund (ETF) that tracks the United States-based S&P 500 Index (SP: INX), which is considered a proxy for the US market.
The IVV ETF notched up a new high of $63.91 before retreating to $63.87 at the time of writing. This caps off a strong year so far.
This has been fuelled by the ongoing strength in US markets. The S&P 500 index is up more than 27% this year to date.
But the IVV ETF has soared more than 36% providing a significant advantage over most ASX 200 shares.
The performance was driven largely by the standout performance of the Magnificent Seven, a group of mega-cap tech names that includes Apple, Nvidia, and Microsoft.
Meanwhile, Northern Trust Asset Management remains "very bullish" on US equities.
The firm cited earnings growth and solid fundamentals from the tech sector as key drivers for further upside.
ASX 200 shares takeout
Qantas, JB Hi-Fi, and the IVV ETF have all hit fresh highs today, extending already solid performances so far in 2024.
Each of these shares has support from analysts and those with skin in the game moving into 2025.
Time will tell how this plays out.
