Dow Jones futures were little changed after hours, along with S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq futures, with the CPI inflation report on tap. The SEC finally approved the creation of spot Bitcoin ETFs. KB Home (KBH) reported earnings.
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The stock market rally saw modest gains Wednesday, with the major indexes moving back toward 52-week highs.
Microsoft (MSFT), ServiceNow (NOW), Workday (WDAY), MercadoLibre (MELI) and Howmet Aerospace (HWM) all flashed buy signals on Wednesday.
MSFT stock is closing in on overtaking the market cap of fellow Dow titan Apple (AAPL).
Microsoft and NOW stock are on the IBD 50. Microsoft and MELI stock are on SwingTrader. MSFT stock is on the IBD Long-Term Leaders list. ServiceNow, Microsoft, MercadoLibre and WDAY stock are on the IBD 50. Workday, ServiceNow and MELI stock are on the IBD Big Cap 20. Microsoft was Wednesday’s IBD Stock Of The Day.
The video embedded in the article discussed the market action and analyzed Microsoft, ServiceNow stock and GigaCloud Technology (GCT).
SEC OKs Spot Bitcoin ETFs
The Securities and Exchange Commission passed rule changes Wednesday afternoon permitting spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds.
In all, 11 spot bitcoin ETFs will begin trading Thursday.
During Wednesday’s session, CBOE Global Markets (CBOE) approved six bitcoin ETFs to begin trading Thursday. Specifically, the ETFs are the Invesco Galaxy Bitcoin ETF (BTCO), Franklin Bitcoin ETF (EZBC), ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF (ARKB), VanEck Bitcoin Trust (HODL), Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC), and WisdomTree Bitcoin Fund (BTCW).
The spot ETFs are seen drawing in a lot more institutional support for bitcoin.
The price of bitcoin edged higher Wednesday to $45,954.49 as of 5 p.m. ET, but traded near $47,000 overnight, after briefly reaching $47,696.61.
Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase (COIN) and bitcoin miner Marathon Digital (MARA) rose strongly after hours. Both lost a fraction in Wednesday’s session.
Dow Jones Futures Today
Dow Jones futures edged lower vs. fair value. S&P 500 futures were little changed. Nasdaq 100 futures rose 0.1%.
The Labor Department will release the December consumer price index at 8:30 a.m. ET, along with weekly jobless claims. The CPI report is sure to move Dow futures and Treasury yields.
Remember that overnight action in Dow futures and elsewhere doesn’t necessarily translate into actual trading in the next regular stock market session.
KB Home Earnings
KBH stock fell modestly in late trade after KB Home earnings and revenue modestly beat. Shares rose 1.1% to 63.20 in Wednesday’s session, briefly hitting their best levels in nearly 17 years. Housing stocks surged in late 2023 as mortgage rates tumbled. Several cleared short consolidations Wednesday.
CPI Inflation Report
Economists expect the December consumer price index to rise 0.2% vs. November, with the annual CPI inflation rate seen ticking up to 3.2%. Core CPI is forecast to rise 0.2% on the month, with core inflation rate down to 3.8% from 4%. That would be the lowest since May 2021.
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Stock Market Rally
The stock market rally showed modest gains on the major indexes, which closed near session highs. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 0.45% in Wednesday’s stock market trading. The S&P 500 index rose 0.6%. The Nasdaq composite advanced 0.75%.
After a brief pullback to start 2024, the S&P 500 is just below recent peaks and almost at its January 2022 record highs. The Nasdaq is closing in on the 15,000 level, with a two-year high just above that. The Dow Jones is hovering just below its Jan. 2 all-time high.
The small-cap Russell 2000 edged up 0.1%, holding the 21-day line.
Much of the major indexes’ gains reflected tech megacaps such as MSFT stock, ServiceNow, Nvidia (NVDA) and Meta Platforms (META).
The Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight ETF (RSP) and the First Trust Nasdaq 100 Equal Weighted Index ETF (QQEW) both rose 0.2%.
Overall, winners slightly topped losers Wednesday, but market breadth has been somewhat lacking in 2024. Yet investors haven’t had trouble this week finding a significant number of leading stocks flashing buy signals from a variety of sectors.
U.S. crude oil prices fell 1.2% to $71.37 a barrel.
The 10-year Treasury yield rose 1 basis point to 4.03%.
ETFs
Among growth ETFs, the iShares Expanded Tech-Software Sector ETF (IGV) gained 1.4%. Microsoft stock is a huge IGV component, with ServiceNow and Workday also notable holdings. The VanEck Vectors Semiconductor ETF (SMH) edged up 0.1%
Reflecting more-speculative story stocks, ARK Innovation ETF (ARKK) dipped 0.3% and ARK Genomics ETF (ARKG) slipped 0.6%. COIN stock is the No. 1 holding across Ark Invest’s ETFs.
SPDR S&P Metals & Mining ETF (XME) declined 0.9%…
Read More: Dow Jones Futures: Microsoft Leads New Buys, SEC OKs Bitcoin ETFs; Inflation