Dow Jones falls after jobless data; Alibaba jumps on revenue
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell Thursday morning after initial jobless claims data. Investors are now waiting for Friday’s long-awaited July jobs report.
X
Key earnings moves on Thursday include Albemarle (ALB), Ali Baba (BABA) and WHAT (TFO). IBD Leaderboard stocks were also on the move Cheniere energy (LNG), Quanta services (PWR), ELF beauty (ALV), eBay (EBAY) and Fortinet (FTNT).
Albemarle shares rose nearly 4% on strong earnings results. Alibaba rose 6 percent. APA shares fell 3.5%. Chenière lost 1%. Quanta shares fell more than 1 percent. The ELF share rose more than 4%. eBay fell 4%. Fortinet fell more than 10%.
Tesla ( TSLA ) traded up about 1% early Thursday. Elsewhere, Dow Jones tech leaders apple (AAPL) and Microsoft (MSFT) was slightly lower flat before today’s market opening. And Walmart ( WMT ) lost a fraction after the Wall Street Journal reported that the company is laying off hundreds of workers in a restructuring due to falling profits.
In a strengthened stock market environment, Dow Jones stocks Chevron (CVX) and UnitedHealth (UNH) — as well as Equinor (EQNR), Exxon Mobil (XOM) and Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX) — is among the stocks you should watch. Remember, ongoing volatility in the stock market is a reason to stay more conservative despite recent signs of strength.
Quanta, UnitedHealth and Vertex are IBD Leaderboard stocks. Chevron and Exxon were featured in this week’s Stocks Near a Buy Zone column. Exxon Mobil was Friday’s IBD Stock Of The Day.
Dow Jones Today: Treasury Yields, Oil Prices, Jobless Claims
The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 0.1%, while the S&P 500 edged higher. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite rose 0.3% in morning trade.
Among exchange-traded funds, Nasdaq 100 tracker Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) rose 0.3%. And the SPDR S&P 500 ETF ( SPY ) lost less than 0.1%.
The 10-year Treasury yield ticked down to 2.71% on Thursday morning, snapping a two-day winning streak. The 10-year government yield is trying to recover after hitting its lowest level since early April. Meanwhile, US oil prices fell, as West Texas Intermediate futures traded below $90 a barrel.
The first jobless claims came out at 8:30 a.m. ET. Initial jobless claims rose to 260,000 from 256,000 last week, in line with Econoday estimates. Friday morning, the Department of Labor’s July jobs report is set for release. The US economy is expected to have added 250,000 jobs in July with the unemployment rate at 3.6%.
Stock market rally
Wednesday’s bullish rally lifted the Nasdaq 2.6%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average 1.3%, the Russell 2000 1.4% and the S&P 500 large-cap 1.6%.
Wednesday’s The Big Picture column commented: “Volume swelled 19% higher on the Nasdaq compared to the previous day. That’s bullish. You’ll see institutions rallying stocks with abandon, especially on strong days like Wednesday.”
If you are new to IBD, consider taking a look at the stock trading system and CAN SLIM basics. Recognizing chart patterns is a key to investment guidelines. IBD offers a wide variety of growth stock lists, such as Leaderboard and SwingTrader.
Investors can also create watch lists, find companies nearing a buy point, or develop custom screens at IBD MarketSmith.
Five Dow Jones stocks to watch now
Dow Jones stocks to watch: Chevron, UnitedHealth
Dow Jones energy giant Chevron is building the right side of a cup base that has a buy point of 182.50. Be on the lookout for a potential handle to offer a lower entry. Chevron shares fell 0.2 percent on Thursday.
Health insurance giant and IBD Leaderboard stock UnitedHealth remains in buy territory above its double-bottom-with-handle base 518.80 buy point amid Wednesday’s 1% rise, according to IBD MarketSmith chart analysis. The stock fell on Thursday.
UNH stock scores a solid 94 out of a perfect 99 IBD Composite Rating, according to IBD Stock Checkup. Investors can use the IBD Composite Rating to easily measure the quality of a stock’s fundamental and technical metrics.
4 top growth stocks to watch right nowra stock market rally
Top stocks to watch: Equinor, Exxon, Vertex
IBD Leaderboard Watchlist stock Equinor is trading just shy of a double-bottom 38.80 buy point after Wednesday’s 1.9% decline. The stock fell 2% on Thursday morning.
Friday’s IBD Stock Of The Day Exxon Mobil retook the 50-day line last week and topped an aggressive early entry around 93.24. But the energy giant gave up on those two key levels on Wednesday, falling 3.2%. Meanwhile, a cup base entry of 105.67 is also in play. XOM stock was down 1% early Thursday.
Vertex Pharmaceuticals continues to trade below its cup-with-handle 279.23 buy point and 50-day line within a recent slide. The company will report earnings late Thursday. Vertex shares rose 1% early.
Join IBD experts as they analyze leading stocks in the current stock market rally on IBD Live
Tesla shares
Tesla shares rose another 2.3% on Wednesday, extending a winning streak to six sessions. Shares are at their highest level since early May, but are still trying to clear resistance around the 200-day line, which is a key level to watch.
The stock rose around 1% on Thursday morning.
Dow Jones Leaders: Apple, Microsoft
Among the Dow Jones stocks, Apple shares rose 3.8% on Wednesday, moving further to the right of a new base. The stock fell 0.2 percent on Thursday morning.
Microsoft gained 2.8% on Wednesday, as the stock recovered from two straight days of losses. The software giant remains below its long-term 200-day line. The stock closed about 20% off its 52-week high. Microsoft was down 0.4% early Thursday.
Be sure to follow Scott Lehtonen on Twitter at @IBD_SLehtonen for more on growth stocks and the Dow Jones Industrial Average.
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE:
Top Growth Stocks to Buy and Watch
Learn how to time the market with IBD’s ETF Market Strategy
Find the best long-term investments with long-term IBD managers
MarketSmith: Research, charts, data and coaching in one place
How to research growth stocks: Why this IBD tool simplifies the search for top stocks
