Ford Motor (NYSE: F) hit a new 52 week high today of 9.14 before afternoon profit taking came in and pushed shares lower. The stock has been very strong lately, and recently was considered to be the stock of the year from the writers of CrossingWallStreet. Shares finished the day down slightly at $8.94, down 0.45%.

Technology giant Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) also rose to a new 52 week high today. Shares of the company hit a day today of $30.14. Shares of MSFT finished today trading session up 0.4% to $30.11, just three pennies off its new 52 week high.

Gold prices continue to rise, and Yamaha Gold (NYSE: AUY) has been benefiting from the recent gold rush, setting a new 52 week high earlier in the session at 13.49. After hitting another new high today, the profit takers came in and sold the stock off a bit, which ended the day slightly lower at $13.15, down 0.23%. Gold prices rose as high as 1146.5 but closed down 70 cents to 1,140.5.

What are your favorite stocks right now? Which stocks do you see rising to new highs in the near future?

The DOW closed the day up 0.7%, NASDAQ up 0.8% and the S&P rose 0.5%.

Walt Disney (NYSE: DIS) reported fiscal fourth quarter earnings last night following the market close, and easily outpaced analyst estimates. Analysts had been expecting to see the company report 41 cents per share, but the actual report was much higher at 46 cents per share.

Retailer J.C. Penny (NYSE: JCP) reported third quarter earnings this morning that fell a penny short of analyst estimates, but fell in the upper range of the company’s earlier earnings forecast.

DIS stock traded up 4.8% on the day, while JCP gained 6.2% on the day.