Dow Jones futures edged higher overnight, while S&P 500 futures and especially Nasdaq futures rose. Apple (AAPL), Meta Platforms (META) and Amazon.com (AMZN) headlined a huge wave of earnings, while the December jobs report is on tap before Friday’s open.
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The stock market rally rebounded strongly Thursday after the major indexes sold off Wednesday as Fed chief Jerome Powell said a March rate cut was unlikely. Treasury yields fell solidly again, largely on renewed concerns about regional banks.
Meta stock skyrocketed after hours on strong earnings, guidance, a first-ever dividend and a $50 billion buyback. Amazon rallied on robust profit and accelerating sales growth.
Apple stock fell despite an overall beat as China sales showed weakness and the company gave weak guidance.
Deckers Outdoor (DECK), Skechers (SKX), Atlassian (TEAM) and LPL Financial Holdings (LPLA) also reported Thursday night. DECK stock jumped late, while Skechers and TEAM stock plunged. LPLA stock was not yet active.
Early Friday, Exxon Mobil (XOM), Chevron (CVX), Regeneron Pharmaceuticals (REGN), AbbVie (ABBV) and Saia (SAIA) are among the notable reports.
Meta stock is on IBD Leaderboard. TEAM stock, Deckers and Meta are on the IBD 50. DECK and Atlassian are on the IBD Big Cap 20.
Jobs Report
The Labor Department will release the December jobs report at 8:30 a.m. ET. Economists expect job growth to slow with 170,000 new jobs, with the jobless rate ticking up to 3.8%.
Dow Jones Futures Today
Dow Jones futures edged higher vs. fair value. S&P 500 futures rose 0.55%. Nasdaq 100 futures popped 1%. Apple stock is a Dow Jones, S&P 500 and Nasdaq titan. Meta and Amazon stock also are S&P 500 and Nasdaq heavyweights.
Many other techs, including cloud software plays such as Datadog (DDOG) and Snowflake (SNOW), also rose overnight.
The 10-year Treasury yield climbed a few basis points to 3.89%.
The jobs report is sure to swing Dow futures and Treasury yields, adding to a volatile cocktail of overnight news.
Remember that overnight action in Dow futures and elsewhere doesn’t necessarily translate into actual trading in the next regular stock market session.
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Stock Market Rally
The stock market rally rebounded Thursday, recouping much of Wednesday’s losses in a day two Fed meeting reaction.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 1% in Thursday’s stock market trading, actually setting a record close. The S&P 500 index popped 1.25%. The Nasdaq composite leapt 1.3%, bouncing from the 21-day line, though it was an inside day.
Market breadth was strong, another positive after Wednesday’s broad selling.
The small-cap Russell 2000 rose 1.4%, retaking the 21-day line after rebounding from an intraday drop to the 50-day line. That’s despite concerns about regional banks.
U.S. crude oil prices fell 2.7% to $73.82 a barrel amid reports that an Israel-Hamas cease-fire may be close.
The 10-year Treasury yield tumbled 10 basis points to 3.86%, falling to 3.82% intraday. That was largely due to growing concerns about banks, especially regionals, in the wake of Wednesday’s surprise loss at New York Community Bancorp (NYCB). The 10-year yield has plunged by 29 basis points so far this week.
The stock market had a sharp fall Wednesday, but Thursday’s bounce suggests that was a one-off tumble, or at least not the start of a vertical pullback. The major indexes are all above their 21-day lines. Leading stocks are generally acting well.
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ETFs
Among growth ETFs, the iShares Expanded Tech-Software Sector ETF (IGV) rose 1.4%. The VanEck Vectors Semiconductor ETF (SMH) gained 0.9%.
Reflecting stocks with more speculative stories, ARK Innovation ETF (ARKK) climbed 1.4% and ARK Genomics (ARKG) bounced 2.1%.
The SPDR S&P Metals & Mining ETF (XME) advanced 1.1%, and Global X U.S. Infrastructure Development (PAVE) jumped 2.5%%. U.S. Global Jets (JETS) ascended 1.6%. The SPDR S&P Homebuilders ETF (XHB) rose 2.5%, rebounding on tumbling Treasury yields and strong construction data. The Energy Select SPDR ETF (XLE) ended just below break-even. The Health Care Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLV) rose 1.3%.
The Industrial Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLI) popped 1.7%.
The Financial Select SPDR ETF (XLF) edged up 0.15%, a strong reversal. The SPDR S&P Regional Banking ETF (KRE) slumped 3.1% after plunging 5.85% on Wednesday, but did come well off Thursday’s intraday lows.
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Apple Earnings
Apple earnings and revenue modestly beat fiscal Q1 views. But China sales, which have been a big concern, came in well below views.
The iPhone maker also guided lower on current-quarter sales.
AAPL stock fell 3% overnight. Shares rose 1.3% to 186.86 in Thursday’s regular session, snapping a six-session losing streak. Apple stock has a 196.38 buy point from a cup-with-handle base. However, the relative strength line has deteriorated to a 10-month low.
The Apple Vision Pro mixed-reality headset officially goes on sale in the U.S. on Friday. Many Vision Pro headsets have already been sold, often to developers.
Meta Earnings
Meta earnings and revenue growth accelerated for a fourth straight quarter, to 203% and 25% respectively. The Facebook and Instagram parent guided up on Q1 revenue. Meta also raised capital spending plans for 2024, which is good news for key suppliers such as Arista Networks (ANET). The social media giant reiterated its target for overall expenses.
Meta also announced a first-ever quarterly dividend of 50 cents a share and a $50 billion share buyback.
Meta stock rocketed 15% in extended trade. Shares rose 1.2% to 397.478 on Thursday, just below all-time highs.
Amazon Earnings
Amazon earnings comfortably beat Q4 views, with revenue growth slowly accelerating for a third straight quarter. Amazon Web Services, the company’s cloud-computing arm, saw revenue climb 13%, in line and up from 12% in Q3. Microsoft (MSFT) on Tuesday said its Azure revenue swelled 30% while Google Cloud revenue popped 25%.
Amazon stock rose 7% in late trade. Shares climbed 2.9% on Thursday to 159.67, extended from a late-2023 breakout.
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What To Do Now
The market rally has been weathering a massive week of news, which still has Friday’s jobs report and earnings reactions to contend with.
It hasn’t been a great time to buy stocks, but most leaders have held up well.
Look for those big leaders that didn’t give up much ground Wednesday and are moving back toward highs. They may not offer new buying opportunities right away, but keep them on your radar.
A number of other stocks that aren’t powering higher but have done well could set up again soon. So have your watchlists ready.
Read The Big Picture every day to stay in sync with the market direction and leading stocks and sectors.
Please follow Ed Carson on Threads at @edcarson1971 and X/Twitter at @IBD_ECarson for stock market updates and more.
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