Initially boosted by jobless claim numbers, the Dow Jones Industrial Average pared back some of those gains in midday trading Thursday as the blue chip index strives to snap a three-day losing streak. Meanwhile, Magnificent Seven companies were mixed as Nvidia (NVDA) and Meta Platforms (META) rose and Google-parent Alphabet (GOOGL) stumbled on the stock market today after its recent breakout.
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Gold futures held steady after a strong rise recently, trading at $2,313 an ounce. Silver, however, kept moving higher and rallied 0.7% to $27.25 an ounce. Copper shot 0.9% higher to $4.23 a pound; the industrial metal is now up 8.7% since Jan. 1, indicating demand globally may be recovering in the wake of positive manufacturing data from China and the U.S.
Meta, a half-size position in Leaderboard, jumped more than 3%. Nvidia stock at one point breached 900, reaching as high as 906.33. The stock is up 81% thus far this year vs. a 4% gain by the Dow Jones industrials.
Outside the Dow Jones, a growing number of companies staged fresh breakouts too.
Federal Signal (FSS) cleared a five-week flat base that shows an 85.98 entry. Shares in the supplier of road and infrastructure maintenance gear outperformed major indexes with a 3.3% lift to 88.36.
The 5% buy zone in Federal Signal goes up to 90.28. Volume is running 95% above the 50-day moving average, signaling heavy demand among mutual funds, insurers, pension plans and the like.
Stock Market Today: Jobs Report Looms
Initial jobless claims for the latest reported week climbed to 221,000, much higher than the Econoday consensus forecast of 213,000. The four-week average of initial claims ticked up to 214,500, another indication that the Federal Reserve’s aggressive rate hikes in 2022 and part of 2023 are helping cool the hot labor market.
On the markets, volume is running mixed, up more than 7% on the New York Stock Exchange but down 8% on the Nasdaq vs. the same time Wednesday.
Investors are eager to see the March nonfarm payrolls report on Friday before the open. In February, the jobless rate edged up to 3.9%. That is not expected to change, while economists see 200,000 net new jobs created in the past month.
Google Stock: Decent Relative Strength
Alphabet, the Google search engine operator, fell nearly 0.9% and traded as low as 152.18 in the early going. Reports said the web search and cloud computing titan is considering a paid service that incorporates artificial intelligence software.
Alphabet is struggling to coast past a base with a new buy point at 153.78. But Google stock has not fallen much below the proper entry of 152.18. And the stock is leading the key 50-day moving average higher this past month, a bullish sign.
The Relative Strength Rating of 82 for Alphabet, according to IBD Stock Checkup, is decent on a scale of 1 to 99. IBD research has found that among the biggest stock market winners, the average RS Rating at the time of a strong breakout is 87.
HubSpot Breakout
Reports that Alphabet is interested in purchasing marketing software firm HubSpot (HUBS) sent the latter’s shares cruising past a new buy point at 660.
Like Federal Signal, HubSpot too has formed a flat base while finding support during pullbacks to the rising 50-day moving average. HubSpot stock rose more than 8% and reached as high as 693.85. At that price, it briefly surpassed the proper buy zone from 660 up to 693.
Please read this Investor’s Corner on the importance of buying growth stocks as close as possible to the buy point and not far extended from the pivotal breakout price.
Before Thursday’s price spurt, HubSpot held an enviable 95 Composite Rating on a scale of 1 to 99.
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Dow Jones Today
The Dow Jones index rose nearly 0.5% in recent action, but the Nasdaq outperformed with a 1% advance on the stock market today. The Nasdaq 100 nearly matched the composite’s gain, up almost 0.7%. The S&P 500 climbed 0.8% in midday trades.
Within the Dow Jones, more than a dozen names rose 1 point or more. Travelers (TRV) and American Express (AXP), two Dow financial components, rallied more than 2 points each.
Small caps continued to recoup this week’s losses. Amid a mild dip in long-term interest rates, with the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury bond trading at 4.34%, the Russell 2000 lifted 1%.
Trading near the 2,100 mark, the Russell is still nursing a 1.3% loss for the week. However, the weekly chart shows bullish support at the small-cap index’s rising 10-week moving average.
Nvidia Shows Positive Action
IBD’s Big Picture column in recent days has emphasized that although the number of distribution days remains high within the 25-session count, the stock market has been able to weather such blows.
Meanwhile, megacap tech and AI chip leader Nvidia has been showing positive action by moving sideways after a strong breakout past a 505.48 buy point in early January.
Nvidia not only is holding near 900, a key century mark on its chart, but it also is working on a potential new base. The light pullback seen in recent weeks may set up a flat-base pattern.
Stock Market Today: Levi Strauss Continues Recovery
Outside the Dow Jones, Levi Strauss (LEVI) continued its impressive recovery on the stock market today. Shares bolted 10% higher for the week following February-ended quarterly results that came in better than expected.
The jeans and casual apparel firm saw profit fall 24% to 26 cents a share as sales slipped 8% to $1.56 billion. However, Wall Street is expecting a robust rebound in the bottom line, with earnings expected to jump 166%, 35%, 20% and 25% over the next four quarters.
In late January, Levi Strauss made good on a second breakout attempt. After initially stumbling, shares rose past a 17.22 proper buy point in a long and deep cup with handle. Since then, the midcap stock has surged more than 27%. Thus, investors could lock in at least partial profits.
ConAgra Brands (CAG) also led the upside on the stock market today. The packaged foods titan gapped up and rallied more than 5% on fiscal third-quarter numbers. The stock rallied back above its 200-day moving average and is trying to clear upside resistance near 30.
The daily chart highlights a 3-1/2-month base that features the elements of a double bottom and a 29.89 entry.
Please follow Chung on X/Twitter: @saitochung and @IBD_DChung
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