Major Stock Indexes Close Mixed as Dow Jones Leads the Day
The major stock indexes closed mixed on Wednesday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average leading the way, the Nasdaq lagging behind, and the S&P 500 dipping lower. Despite morning losses, artificial intelligence leader Nvidia (NVDA) managed to trim its losses and regain a key level on the stock market today. Tesla (TSLA) continued to experience losses.
Market Summary
Stocks weakened in afternoon trading, resulting in the Nasdaq closing 0.5% lower. However, the Dow Jones managed to add 0.1% and finish above the 39,000 level after briefly dipping below it in the final hour. The S&P 500 also experienced a decline of 0.2% following its record closing high on Tuesday. On the other hand, the small-cap Russell 2000 climbed 0.3%.
Volume on the New York Stock Exchange increased modestly, while it fell on the Nasdaq compared to the same time on Tuesday, according to preliminary numbers.
The Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) slumped 0.5%. Meanwhile, the Innovator IBD 50 ETF (FFTY) experienced a small bump, rising 0.2%.
The March 13 Investors Intelligence U.S. Advisors Sentiment index showed bullish forecasts rising to 60.9% from 59.4% one week prior. Investors Intelligence states that the last time bullish sentiment reached such high levels was in July 2021, with the index hitting 63.7%. However, high levels of bullish sentiment are considered a warning sign of potential stock market overextension.
Bearish sentiment dropped to 14.5% from the previous week’s reading, reaching the lowest levels since March 2018. Such a decrease further supports the overall confidence among investors.
The 10-year Treasury yield increased by 4 basis points, rising to 4.19%. Additionally, West Texas intermediate crude oil price crossed the $79-a-barrel mark.
The S&P Gold Shares ETF (GLD) managed to gain back 0.7% after experiencing a 1.1% drop on Tuesday. It should be noted that the gold ETF is currently trading at an extended level from a double-bottom base with a 191.36 buy point.
Bitcoin’s price surpassed $73,300. MicroStrategy (MSTR), which owns a significant amount of Bitcoin, witnessed a 10.9% gain on the stock market today, following a 7.4% increase on Tuesday.
Magnificent Seven Stock Action
IBD 50 and Leaderboard stock Nvidia managed to recover from its losses, ending the day down only 1.1%, despite BofA Securities raising its price target to 1,100 from 925 and maintaining its buy rating. Nvidia shares returned above the $900 level after briefly falling below it on Wednesday.
Tesla stock, on the other hand, fell by 4.5% after being downgraded to underweight from equal weight by Wells Fargo, which also lowered its price target to 125 from 200. The Magnificent Seven stock dropped further below its 50-day and 200-day moving averages, and year-to-date, the stock has experienced a loss of around 31%.
Stock Movers Today: Copper Stocks On Fire
Southern Copper (SCCO) surged 10% in heavy volume, breaking out of a flat base with an 88.40 buy point. The stock is currently extended as it reached an all-time high.
Freeport-McMoRan (FCX) also experienced a significant rise, with a 7.8% gap-up and breaking out of a double-bottom base with a 40.99 buy point. This surge in the stock can be attributed to the jump in copper prices following news of production cuts at some Chinese smelters. Freeport-McMoRan ranked as the biggest gainer on the S&P 500 on Wednesday.
Cava Group (CAVA) slid 0.6% after having reached an all-time high. The Leaderboard watchlist stock is currently extended from a cup-with-handle base with a 48.69 buy point.
Owens Corning (OC) broke out of a flat base with a 160.18 buy point and is currently in the 5% buy zone up to 168.19 according to MarketSurge pattern recognition. This building and industrial materials producer has experienced a 16% rally since late February, following a report of better-than-expected fourth-quarter earnings and sales on February 14. The stock is ranked No. 8 out of the 197 industry groups covered by Investors Business Daily, as it belongs to the construction products group.
Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) fell nearly 4% alongside chip leader Nvidia. The semiconductor stock found support at its 21-day exponential moving average. However, AMD reversed its trajectory from an all-time high on March 8.
Williams-Sonoma Catapults Higher
Williams-Sonoma gapped up nearly 18% in heavy volume after reporting fiscal fourth-quarter profit and revenue that surpassed expectations. Additionally, the company announced plans to increase its quarterly dividend by 26% and authorized a $1 billion stock repurchase program.
Conversely, Dollar Tree gapped down more than 14% in heavy volume due to lower-than-expected adjusted fiscal first-quarter earnings and sales. The company also gave a fiscal first-quarter profit outlook that fell below analyst estimates. Furthermore, Dollar Tree announced the closure of 600 Family Dollar Stores in the first half of its 2024 fiscal year, alongside a larger plan to close about 1,000 stores. As a result, Dollar Tree stock sank below its 50-day line and 200-day moving average.
In sympathy with Dollar Tree, Dollar General fell 1.9%. The company is scheduled to report its fourth-quarter results on Thursday before the market opens.
Stock Market Today: Celsius Stock Jumps
GE Healthcare Technologies sank 3.6% after announcing a secondary public offering of 14 million shares.
Texas Roadhouse received a 2.6% lift after Baird upgraded the restaurant chain to outperform from neutral and raised its price target to 175 from 160. The SwingTrader stock broke out of a bullish four-weeks-tight pattern with a 152.55 entry.
Celsius, an IBD 50 stock, climbed 5.5% after Jefferies raised its price target to 105 from 98 and maintained its buy rating on the fitness beverage stock. The MarketSurge chart indicates a power-from-pivot flag, suggesting even greater gains may be on the horizon.
3M continued its rally by adding 5.4% on top of Tuesday’s 5% gain, emerging as the top gainer among the Dow Jones industrials on Wednesday.
Market Resilient, But This Gauge Should Worry You
Follow Kimberley Koenig on Twitter at @IBD_KKoenig for more stock market news.
