The Dow Jones Industrial Average briefly rose 175 points Thursday after the Labor Department's surprise jump in first-time jobless claims. The price of Bitcoin declined 2% Thursday, as crypto bank Silvergate Capital crashed 40% on news that it will shut down operations and liquidate its subsidiary Silvergate Bank.
Initial unemployment claims jumped to 211,000, above Econoday expectations that called for a slight increase to 195,000 vs. 190,000 in the previous week. Low weekly jobless claims continue to demonstrate the sustained strength in the labor market, which is fueling market fears that the Federal Reserve could keep hiking interest rates for longer.
Investors are bracing for a pivotal jobs report from the Labor Department on Friday. Economists expect a rise of 220,000 in February nonfarm payrolls, with an unemployment rate of 3.4%. In January, payrolls surged 517,000, nearly double Econoday's high estimate. Average hourly earnings are expected to grow 0.3%.
On the earnings front, Asana, JD.com and MongoDB were on the move.
Asana soared 13% after reporting strong Q4 earnings results and issuing strong guidance. JD tumbled 5.6% even after handily beating expectations for the fourth quarter. And MDB stock dived 10% after the company issued weak revenue guidance.
Stock Market Today
American Express climbed 2.4% after announcing a 120 million share buyback plan and raised its dividend by 15%. Etsy sold off more than 6% after Jefferies double-downgraded the stock from buy to underperform.
Shares of Silicon Valley banker SVB Financial Group toppled more than 39% after the company launched a $2.25 billion set of offerings after reporting a $1.8 billion loss in its Treasuries and mortgage-backed portfolio investments.
EV giant Tesla reversed from early losses to trade flat Thursday morning. Dow Jones tech giants Apple and Microsoft were higher after the stock market open.
IBD Leaderboard stock Alteryx, Palo Alto Networks, New Relic and Salesforce — as well as Dow Jones stocks American Express and JPMorgan Chase — are among the top stocks to buy and watch, amid a stock market rally trying to shrug off rate hike fears.
Alteryx is an IBD Leaderboard stock. New Relic was recently an IBD Stock Of The Day. And Salesforce was featured in this week's Stocks Near A Buy Zone column.
Dow Jones Today: Oil Prices, Treasury Yields
After Thursday's market open, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.25%, and the S&P 500 was up 0.3%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite moved up 0.5% in morning action, with China-based JD.com and Tesla weighing on early action.
Among U.S. exchange-traded funds, the Nasdaq 100 tracker Invesco QQQ Trust rose 0.6% and the SPDR S&P 500 ETF gained 0.55% early Thursday.
The 10-year U.S. Treasury yield inched higher following Powell's hawkish comments, settling at 3.97%. Then Thursday, the 10-year yield fell to 3.96% after the jobless claims data.
Oil prices flattened after two straight days of losses. West Texas Intermediate futures traded just below $77 a barrel early Thursday.
Stock Market Rally
On Wednesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average ended with a modest 0.2% loss, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq ended slightly higher, with respective gains of 0.1% and 0.4%.
Wednesday's Big Picture column commented, "A surprise rebound in the final half hour of trading on Wednesday saved the stock market from having a real lump on its head. But the pullback, which began in early-afternoon trading Monday, underscored how the current road to a healthy recovery in stocks remains a bumpy one."
Now is an important time to read IBD's The Big Picture column amid the stock market rally.
Five Dow Jones Stocks To Buy And Watch Now
Dow Jones Stocks To Buy And Watch: American Express, JPMorgan
American Express remains near a 182.25 buy point in a giant cup with handle despite Wednesday's 0.3% loss. Bullishly, the stock's relative strength line is holding near its highs, a particularly positive sign ahead of a potential breakout. AXP stock rose 2.4% Thursday morning, looking to snap a three-day losing streak after announcing the new buyback plan.
Banking giant JPMorgan fell further below its 138.76 flat-base buy point during the stock's 0.6% decline Wednesday, according to IBD MarketSmith chart analysis. Shares also moved further below support at their 50-day line, which is a key level to watch. JPM shares traded 0.6% lower early Thursday.
JPM stock shows a 92 out of a perfect 99 IBD Composite Rating, per the IBD Stock Checkup. The Composite Rating is designed to help investors easily find top growth stocks.
4 Top Growth Stocks To Buy And Watch In The Stock Market Rally
Top Stocks To Buy And Watch: Palo Alto, New Relic
Palo Alto Networks continues to trade quietly after the stock's 12.5% surge on Feb. 22 and is close to adding a handle. Shares remain within striking distance of a base's 193.01 buy point. PANW stock traded up 0.2% Thursday morning.
Backstory: On Feb. 21, the cybersecurity giant announced good results for the January-ended quarter that saw earnings hit $1.05 a share, up 81% vs. a year earlier, on a 26% jump in revenue to $1.7 billion.
Recent IBD Stock Of The Day, New Relic, is working on a flat base with a 80.98 buy point in the aftermath of the Feb. 8 earnings-fueled surge. NEWR stock was down 0.3% Thursday.
Backstory: New Relic provides a cloud-based suite of software products that enables organizations to collect, store and analyze massive amounts of data in real time. Customers gain increased visibility into their enterprise software to help make data-driven decisions.
Alteryx, Salesforce Near Latest Buy Points
IBD Leaderboard stock Alteryx continues to struggle after giving up a trendline buy point 66.50 within a handle on an early-stage cup during this week's losses. A conventional entry at 70.73 is also in play. Alteryx was down 0.2% Thursday.
Backstory: The Irvine, Calif., firm created a self-service platform for data analytics. Demand is clearly strong as sales have risen from the low $100 million level per quarter in 2021 to $216 million in the third quarter of 2022, up 75% vs. a year ago, and $301 million in Q4 2022, up 73%. This rapid revenue growth is one reason why Alteryx also posted a profit of 84 cents a share in Q4, likely the biggest quarterly earnings in company history.
Last week, Dow Jones leader Salesforce staged a bullish breakaway gap past a 178.94 buy point on strong fourth-quarter results. But gains are fading a bit amid the four-day losing streak, as shares lost 0.2% Wednesday. The stock is in the 5% buy zone that goes up to 187.89. CRM stock lost 0.3% Thursday.
Backstory: Salesforce sells software under a subscription model. Its software helps businesses organize and handle sales operations and customer relationships. The company has expanded into marketing, customer services and e-commerce. Salesforce said it has disbanded its "M&A committee," implying it will make no more big acquisitions, amid growing pressure from activist investors.
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Stocks To Buy And Watch In Stock Market Rally
These are six top stocks to buy and watch in today's stock market, including two Dow Jones leaders.
| Company Name | Symbol | Correct Buy Point | Type Of Buy Point |
|---|---|---|---|
| New Relic | 80.98 | Flat base | |
| Alteryx | 70.73 | Cup with handle | |
| American Express | 182.25 | Cup with handle | |
| Palo Alto Networks | 193.01 | Consolidation | |
| JPMorgan | 138.76 | Flat base | |
| Salesforce | 178.94 | Cup with handle |
Source: IBD Data As Of March 8, 2023
Join IBD experts as they analyze leading stocks in the current stock market rally on IBD Live
Tesla Stock
Tesla stock skidded another 3% Wednesday, dropping for a third-straight day after the stock received a downgrade. The EV giant also faces an investigation into possible steering wheel problems.
Shares closed Wednesday around 53% off their 52-week high. Aggressive investors can use the Feb. 16 high at 217.65 as a potential entry. However, to be safe, Tesla stock should clear the 200-day line, which is now below 220.
Tesla shares traded flat Thursday morning, looking to bounce back from recent losses.
Dow Jones Leaders: Apple, Microsoft
Among Dow Jones stocks, Apple shares rose 0.8% Wednesday, bouncing back from Tuesday's losses. The stock rose 0.8% early Thursday.
Microsoft shares extended Tuesday's losses, with a 0.2% fall Wednesday. The stock is still around 20% off its 52-week high after recent declines. MSFT stock moved up 1.4% Thursday morning.
Be sure to follow Scott Lehtonen on Twitter at @IBD_SLehtonen for more on growth stocks and the Dow Jones Industrial Average.
