Dow Jones futures rose Thursday, while the other major stock indexes fell, as Wall Street reacted to a stronger-than-expected fourth-quarter GDP reading. Meanwhile, tech titan Apple (AAPL) dropped on the stock market today after an analyst downgrade.
X
Dow Jones futures moved up less than 0.1% vs. fair value in morning action, while S&P 500 futures edged down 0.1%. Tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 futures fell 0.2% before the opening bell.
The 10-year Treasury yield ticked higher to 4.22%. Further, oil prices gained 1.3%, as West Texas Intermediate futures traded around $82.40 a barrel.
Among U.S. exchange traded funds, the Nasdaq 100 tracker Invesco QQQ Trust ETF (QQQ) was down 0.2%, while the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) inched lower.
Apple stock moved down 0.6% Thursday morning after DZ Bank downgraded the iPhone maker from buy to hold, lowering the price target from 210 to 180. Shares remain sharply below their long-term 200-day moving average.
Stock Market Today And Q1 Performance
Set to wrap up the first quarter of 2024 Thursday, the S&P 500 is up about 10%, on pace for its best Q1 gain since 2019. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 5.5% for the period, heading for its strongest first-quarter performance since 2021. Finally, the Nasdaq is up 9.3% since Jan. 1.
Economic data due Thursday could play a role in how the quarter finishes. The Commerce Department’s third estimate of fourth-quarter GDP rose to 3.4%, stronger than the 3.2% Econoday estimate.
Further, first-time jobless claims from the Labor Department were unchanged at 210,000. They were expected to rise to 213,000 vs. 210,000 in the previous week.
Lastly, consumer sentiment numbers from the University of Michigan are expected out at 10 a.m. Economists expect the index to remain unchanged at 76.5. They see year-ahead inflation expectations remaining steady at 3.0%.
Meanwhile, key earnings movers Thursday include Braze (BRZE), Jefferies (JEF), RH (RH) and Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA).
Braze shares tumbled more than 2%, while Jefferies stock edged lower. RH jumped more than 9%. And Walgreens shares declined 1.6% in premarket trading.
Be sure to read how to adjust to changing market conditions, with IBD’s new exposure levels.
Dow Jones Rallies
On Wednesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rallied 1.2% and the S&P 500 gained 0.9%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite climbed 0.5%.
Wednesday’s Big Picture column commented, “The Nasdaq, the clear leader in 2023’s huge stock market rebound, is not so clear a leader among equity indexes today. Yet for the long investor, the confirmed market uptrend, while slowing in its pace, remains intact.”
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 adjust to changing market conditions, with IBD’s new exposure levels.
Learn How To Time The Stock Market With IBD’s ETF Market Strategy
Best Stocks To Watch On Stock Market Today
Alphabet (GOOGL), Arista Networks (ANET), DraftKings (DKNG) and ServiceNow (NOW) — plus Dow Jones components Disney (DIS), IBM (IBM) and Verizon Communications (VZ) — are among the best companies to watch on the stock market today.
Google and DraftKings were featured in this Stocks Near A Buy Zone column.
An essential resource for daily breakouts is IBD MarketSurge’s “Breaking Out Today” list. It shows MarketSurge Growth 250 stocks that are breaking out past new buy points. There were three new breakouts Wednesday, including Forestar (FOR). Shares topped a 38.29 cup-with-handle buy point, and added another 1.1% Thursday morning.
Meanwhile, the MarketSurge “Near Pivot” list shows stocks nearing buy points in bases.
Get Real-Time Buy And Sell Alerts On Stock Market Leaders With IBD Leaderboard
Dow Jones: Disney, IBM, Verizon
Disney is extended past a big cup-with-handle base’s 112.92 buy point, according to IBD MarketSurge chart analysis. And shares closed further out of buy range, with a 0.9% gain Wednesday. Shares dipped less than 0.1% Thursday morning.
IBM stock remains below a flat base’s 196.90 buy point, despite a 1.2% gain Wednesday. Shares were flat in Thursday’s premarket trading.
Telecom giant Verizon is building a flat base with a 43.21 entry, as the stock rebounds from support at its key 50-day moving average. Verizon shares were flat Thursday.
4 Top Growth Stocks To Watch In The Stock Market Rally
Stock Market Today: Google Nears Breakout
Google-parent Alphabet is rapidly nearing a consolidation’s 153.78 buy point, as the stock gained 0.1% Wednesday. Google stock rose 0.1% Thursday.
Arista shares declined 3.2% Wednesday, falling below a 292.66 flat-base buy point, according to MarketSurge charts. Wait for a decisive retake of that entry before considering a purchase. And Arista stock was a…
Read More: Stock Market Today: Dow Jones Rises On Surprise GDP; Apple Falls On Downgrade