The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell Friday after economic data fell short of expectations, as the index’s winning streak was in jeopardy. Meanwhile, Costco stock rallied after the retailer reported strong earnings results and announced a special dividend.
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Three key reports came out Friday morning, mostly falling below projections: the Empire State manufacturing index, a purchasing managers’ index from S&P and the Federal Reserve’s industrial production report.
The Fed said industrial production increased 0.2% in November, slightly below the forecast for a 0.3% rise and up from October’s 0.6% drop.
Meanwhile, the December Empire State manufacturing index tumbled to -14.5, sharply below estimates for a fall to 3.7 after November’s 9.1 reading. That report came from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
Finally, the S&P Global U.S. Purchasing Managers’ Index for the manufacturing and services sectors also was released Friday. The manufacturing PMI fell to 48.2, below the 49.2 estimate, while the services PMI rose to 51.3, above estimates for a 50.6 reading.
In Friday’s market, key earnings movers included Costco Wholesale (COST) and homebuilder Lennar (LEN).
COST stock raced nearly 3% higher after the company beat expectations for its fiscal first-quarter earnings and the retailer’s board declared a special $15 a share dividend. Lennar shares dived 5% in morning action.
Dow Jones Today: Oil Prices, Treasury Yields
After Friday’s opening bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.2%, while the S&P 500 lost 0.1%. And the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite climbed 0.4% in morning trades.
Among U.S. exchange traded fundsthe Nasdaq 100 tracker Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) moved up 0.3%, while the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) fell 0.2% early Friday.
The yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury bond ticked further below the 4% mark, at 3.91% Friday morning. On Thursday, the benchmark tumbled to 3.93%, its lowest level since late July.
Oil prices looked to rebound for a third day Friday, as West Texas Intermediate futures rose nearly 1%. WTI moved above $72 a barrel. Earlier this week, WTI hit its lowest level since late June before bouncing.
Stock Market Rally
The stock market rose modestly Thursday, but the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 0.4% to hit another all-time high. The S&P 500 gained 0.3%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite moved up 0.2%, as they both notched fresh 2023 highs.
One notable divergence was the fall of nearly 0.2% in the Nasdaq 100. That indicated underperformance among megacap tech stocks.
Thursday’s Big Picture column commented, “Meanwhile, more leading stocks are breaking out. And a great resource for daily breakouts is IBD MarketSmith’s ‘Breaking Out Today’ list. It shows MarketSmith Growth 250 stocks topping buy points. In Thursday’s list, there were 18 new breakouts, including Builders FirstSource (BLDR) and Trex (TREX).”
Now is an important time to read IBD’s The Big Picture column amid the continuing stock market rally. Be sure to read how to invest during the ongoing stock market uptrend.
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Stock Market Today: Best Stocks To Buy And Watch
Chip giant Applied Materials (HUGE), IBD Leaderboard stock Arm (ARM), IBD SwingTrader issue Netflix (NFLX) and Snowflake (SNOW) — along with Dow Jones stocks Boeing (BA), JPMorgan Chase (JPM) and Visa (V) — are among the best stocks to buy and watch in the current market rally.
Apple and Snowflake are featured in this Stocks Near A Buy Zone column.
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Dow Jones Stocks To Watch: JPMorgan Breaks Out
Aerospace stock Boeing moved out of buy range past a cup base’s 243.10 buy point Thursday, with a 2.1% rise. The 5% buy zone topped out at 255.26. BA stock gained 0.7% Friday.
Banking giant JPMorgan is breaking out and in buy range past a 159.38 buy point in a cup base, rallying 1.8% Thursday. JPM stock fell 0.3% Friday.
Payments leader Visa reversed sharply lower Thursday, still in the buy range above a 250.06 buy point in a cup base, according to IBD MarketSmith pattern recognition. V stock extended those losses, down nearly 1% Friday.
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Stocks To Buy And Watch: NFLX Eyes Buy Point
Chip giant and recent IBD Stock Of The Day Applied Materials rallied 3% Thursday, hitting a fresh 52-week high. Shares are extended past a 148.40 double-bottom entry, but they are in buy range past an alternate buy point at 157.76. AMAT stock moved up 1.3% early Friday.
IBD Leaderboard stock Arm is breaking out past a 64.92 buy point in a cup with handle, according to IBD MarketSmith. The 5% buy area went up to 68.17. ARM stock declined 1.1% Friday.
IBD SwingTrader stock Netflix slid 2.1% Thursday, ending a five-day win streak. The streaming giant is nearing a 482.70 buy point in a cup with handle. NFLX stock moved up a fraction Friday morning.
Artificial intelligence leader Snowflake is breaking out past a cup-with-handle’s 192.66 buy point. SNOW stock climbed 2.2% Thursday, closing further above the buy trigger and extending a win streak to six sessions. SNOW stock lost 1.1% early Friday.
Best Stocks In Today’s Stock Market Action
These are four best stocks to watch in today’s stock market, including a Dow Jones leader.
| Company Name | Symbol | Correct Buy Point | Type Of Buy Point |
|---|---|---|---|
| Applied Materials | (HUGE) | 145.86 | Alternate entry |
| JPMorgan | (JPM) | 159.38 | Cup base |
| Netflix | (NFLX) | 482.70 | Cup with handle |
| Snowflake | (SNOW) | 192.66 | Cup with handle |
Source: IBD Data As Of Dec. 14, 2023
Join IBD experts as they analyze leading stocks in the current stock market rally on IBD Live
Magnificent Seven Stocks: Nvidia, Tesla
Among the so-called “Magnificent Seven” stocks, Tesla (TSLA) moved up 0.4% early Friday, while Nvidia (NVDA) rose 1.2%.
Graphics-chip giant Nvidia moved up 0.55% Thursday, still in buy range above a 476.09 double-bottom entry.
Tesla stock rallied nearly 5% Thursday, briefly topping an early entry at 252.75 before closing below it. The stock’s big double-bottom pattern has a 278.98 buy point.
Dow Jones Leaders: Apple, Microsoft
Two Dow Jones stocks in the Magnificent Seven, Apple (AAPL) and Microsoft (MSFT), traded mixed after today’s stock market open.
Apple stock moved up 0.1% Thursday, as its breakout move continues to gain traction. Shares are in a buy range above a cup-with-handle entry at 192.93. Apple shares rose 0.1% Friday.
Microsoft stock gave up its 366.78 cup-base buy point during Thursday’s 2.25% slide. And the software giant was up 1.1% Friday morning.
Be sure to follow Scott Lehtonen on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @IBD_SLehtonen for more on growth stocks and the Dow Jones Industrial Average.
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