Dow Jones and S&P 500 hit record highs; 5 New Buys in Stock Picker Market

Dow Jones futures will open on Sunday evening, along with S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq futures.

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The stock market rally was largely spared by a huge week of earnings and economic news. The Dow Jones and S&P 500 hit all-time highs on Friday while the Nasdaq rebounded to a two-year high thanks to… Meta platforms (dead) And Amazon.com (Amzn).

Big Tech earnings this week were mixed but generally positive, supporting the sector.

Market breadth was weak, with small caps struggling. Tesla (TSLA) broke a weekly losing streak, but leads S&P 500 losers in 2024.

It's a stock picker's market, for sure. But despite the weak breadth, there were plenty of stocks to choose from.

Adobe (ADBE), Exxon Corporation (Axon), MongoDB (MDB) And summary (Snaps) Buy signals flashed on Friday.

SNPS stock is on IBD Long-Term Leaders. Synopsys, Samsara and MDB shares are in Bahraini dinar 50. Synopsys and Axon stocks are on IBD Big Cap 20. Axon was IBD Stock of the Day on Friday.

The video embedded in this article discussed the market action in depth and analyzed MongoDB, Axon, and SNPS stocks.

Earnings will remain heavy next week, however Larva (cat), Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG), Eli Lilly (LLY), Dwarf beauty (dwarf), Holding arm (arm) And Pinterest (Pins) is among many prominent companies reporting.

Dow jones futures today

Dow Jones futures open at 6pm EST on Sunday, along with S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq 100 futures.

Remember, an overnight move in Dow futures and elsewhere does not necessarily translate into actual trading in the next regular stock market session.

Join IBD experts as they analyze leading stocks and the market on IBD Live

Stock market pool

The stock market rally ran into difficulties midweek, with Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell largely ruling out a March rate cut, and parent company Google. the alphabet (Google) Weighing on technology. But the major indexes then rose strongly.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 rose 1.4% in stock market trading last week, both hitting record highs. The Nasdaq Composite Index rose 1.1%, supported by gains of more than 1% on Thursday and Friday.

Meta platforms (dead) And Amazon.com (Amzn) were huge winners while, in the end, Microsoft (MSFT) Its results increased. These have made up for the tough weeks for parent company Google the alphabet (Google) And apple (Camel).

These huge technology gains, direction and – most importantly – capital spending plans have also been good news for peers, partners and suppliers, especially Nvidia (NVDA) but also stocks like MongoDB.

However, market breadth weakened. Even as major indexes rose to record highs, losers outweighed winners on Friday.

The Russell 2000 small-cap index fell 0.8% on the week, falling below the 21-day line but holding support at the 50-day level.

Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight Fund (RSP) and the First Trust Nasdaq 100 Equal Weighted Index ETF (QQEW) Both rose 0.4%, significantly lagging the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100. But the RSP and QQEW are close to their 52-week highs.

The Nasdaq closed Friday 5.4% above its 50-day moving average, while the S&P 500 rose 4.9%. The Nasdaq 100 rose 6% above its 50-day mark. Those are starting to expand again or almost there.

The 10-year Treasury yield fell 13 basis points to 4.03%, despite Friday's 17 basis point jump after the hot jobs report. Regional bank concerns weighed on long-term Treasury yields. But the two-year Treasury yield, which is more closely tied to Fed policy, was little changed.

US crude oil futures fell 7.35% to $72.28 a barrel last week amid concerns about demand and hopes for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.

ETFs

Among the growth ETFs is the iShares Expanded Technology Software Sector ETF (IGV) rose 1.4%, hitting a two-year high on Monday, with Adobe shares in a large holding and Samsara also in the ETF. VanEck Vectors Semiconductor ETF (Trait) advanced by 1.6%. SNPS inventory is present in both IGV and SMH.

Reflecting more speculative stocks, the ARK Innovation ETF (Ark) by 1.6%, ending a losing streak that lasted five weeks. ARK Genomics ETF (Arkj) rose by 0.2%. Tesla stock remains a major holding across Ark Invest's ETFs.

Global X US Infrastructure Development Foundation (ETF)cradle(Jumped by 3.4% and SPDR Industrial Sector Fund)forty-first) rose 1.9%, both hitting record levels. Healthcare Select Sector SPDR Fund (Forty-fifth) by approximately 2%, outpacing long consolidation.

SPDR S&P Metals and Mining Fund (XME) advanced 0.5% last week. US Global Jets ETF (Planes) rose by 0.2%. SPDR S&P Homebuilders ETF (XHB) by 1.7%. Energy Select SPDR ETF (XLE) decreased by 0.9%.

Financial Select SPDR ETF (XLF) rose 0.85% but the SPDR S&P Regional Banking Fund (ETF)Cree) fell 7.2% due to new lending concerns.

Move over, Gorgeous 7. Make room for these fabulous 5.

Stocks are in buy zones

MongoDB stock jumped 6.6% to 436.01 on Friday, surpassing the handle buy level of 425.51 in a two-month consolidation. This consolidation is adjacent to a failed cup-with-handle base, so clearing the November 30 high at 442.84 is a big test for MDB stock as well. The database software company, with AI aspirations, was a beneficiary of Amazon's strong fourth-quarter results.

Axon Enterprise stock rose 1.7% to 256.99 on Friday, extending Thursday's move from the 10-week line and providing an early entry. The law enforcement products company is now expanding body cameras for retail and healthcare workers.

Adobe stock rose 1.1% to 634.76 on Friday, just above a flat buy point of 633.89. Shares rose 3.4% this week, their fourth consecutive weekly gain.

Synopsys stock rose 2.2% on Friday to 552.05. The maker of chip and electronics design software had a buy point of 554.57 from a cup-with-handle base, but Friday's move offered an early entry. Shares rose 4.5% on the week, rebounding from both the 50-day and 10-week lines. The 50-day line is a good place to start a position in a long-term leader position.

Samsara (The Internet of things) The stock rose 2.8% to 32.51 on Friday, reclaiming the 21-day and 50-day moving averages and clearing a narrow trend line. IOT stock has a consolidated buy point of 36.91, according to MarketSmith. Investors can use Friday's movement as an early entry. Crucially clearing Friday's high of 32.98 would also mean crossing the 10-week line.

This IoT software company, an AI play, is vulnerable to counterfeiting. Friday's low may be a place to exit.

Tesla shares

Tesla shares rose 2.5% to 187.91, ending a six-week losing week. But it is down 24.4% in 2024, making it the worst performer on the S&P 500 yet. TSLA stock has not touched its 10-day low line in 2024.

The electric car giant now has a market cap of $597 billion, less than half of any of the other Magnificent Seven stocks. But it still boasts, by far, the highest forward price-earnings ratio among these giants.

After Tesla's weak fourth-quarter earnings and warning of growth in 2024, Wall Street analysts now see this year's earnings holding steady versus a 2023 decline to $3.12 per share.

Tesla has already cut prices in China and Europe, with Model Y stock cuts of more than 10% in the US, all against the backdrop of slowing demand for electric vehicles around the world and intense competition in China.

Time the market with IBD's ETF market strategy

What are you doing now

The stock market continues to rise. The weak amplitude is something to note. However, leadership remains strong, even if many of the biggest winners are in the AI ​​space.

Investors had a few buying opportunities late in the week, while more stocks are being prepared. But many leaders overextend, often dramatically.

The Nasdaq extending again is a reason to be cautious about new purchases. But investors must have significant or heavy exposure.

Keep working on those watch lists.

The weekend is also a good time to review your portfolio. Are there people who are late to pruning? With big winners, are you looking to take profits or trying to find places to add shares? The answers will depend largely on your investment style.

Read The Big Picture every day to stay on top of market trend and leading stocks and sectors.

Please follow Ed Carson on topics at @edcarson1971x/Twitter at @IBD_ECarson And Bluesky V @edcarson.bsky.social For stock market updates and more.

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