The Dow Jones Industrial Average sold off more than 450 points Thursday after a strong monthly employment report. Meanwhile, Cathie Wood's Ark Invest ETFs sold more Tesla stock, while purchasing Meta Platforms shares.
A flood of economic data was hitting the markets Thursday. First, ADP's June National Employment Report showed a surge in jobs by 497,000 vs. estimates for an increase of 235,000. ADP showed a gain of 278,000 jobs in May. ADP's report offers a preview of Friday's June payrolls report from the Labor Department.
But the Labor Department's did reveal first-time claims for unemployment assistance Thursday, showing a rise to 248,000 vs. 239,000 in the previous week.
Elsewhere, the S&P Global Services Purchasing Managers' Index rose to 54.4, above the 54.1 estimate. Further, the June Institute for Supply Management services index climbed to 53.9 vs. the 50.8 estimate.
Finally, the Labor Department's JOLTS report showed that job openings fell to 9.824 million for May vs. April's 10.1 million.
Stock Market Today: Cathie Wood Buys Meta Shares
Electric-vehicle giant Tesla declined 3.2% Thursday, as Cathie Wood's Ark Invest ETFs sold nearly $8 million worth of the Elon Musk-led company's stock, according to Ark's daily trading update.
Meanwhile, META stock lost 0.3%, as Wood on Wednesday purchased shares worth around $1.6 million of the social media giant. Late Wednesday, Meta launched a Twitter rival, called Threads.
Dow Jones tech giants Apple and Microsoft were lower after today's stock market open.
Chipotle Mexican Grill, Dynatrace, MongoDB, Lam Research and Nvidia — as well as Dow Jones stocks JPMorgan Chase, Visa and Salesforce — are among the best stocks to watch in the ongoing stock market advance.
Tesla is an IBD Leaderboard stock, Lam Research remains an IBD SwingTrader stock, while Nvidia this week was featured in the Stocks Near A Buy Zone column. Dynatrace was a recent IBD Stock Of The Day.
Dow Jones Today: Oil Prices, Treasury Yields
After Thursday's opening bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1.3%, while the S&P 500 dropped 1.25%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite moved down 1.4% in morning action.
Among U.S. exchange-traded funds, the Nasdaq 100 tracker Invesco QQQ Trust traded down 1.5%, while the SPDR S&P 500 ETF lost 1.2% early Thursday.
The 10-year U.S. Treasury yield rose to 4.05%, breaking out above its recent highs established in late May. The yield settled higher Monday at 3.94%.
Oil prices were modestly lower Thursday morning, after solid gains on Wednesday. West Texas Intermediate futures traded down around 0.5%, to below $72 a barrel.
Stock Market Action
The main indexes were again quiet Wednesday. The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq composite each slipped around 0.2%. The Nasdaq 100, which represents some of the largest stocks in the composite, was nearly flat.
Meanwhile, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.4%.
Wednesday's Big Picture column commented, "The Russell 2000 fell 1.3% and appears to be hitting resistance around the 1,900 level. Wednesday's loss snapped a six-day win streak for the small-cap benchmark, the longest since January. Strength in the Russell has helped the stock market broaden its advance. So a new downturn for the index may affect market breadth."
Now is an important time to read IBD's The Big Picture column as the stock market holds near this year's highs.
Five Best Dow Jones Stocks To Buy And Watch Now
Dow Jones Stocks To Watch: JPMorgan, Salesforce, Visa
Dow Jones banking leader JPMorgan remains above a 143.37 flat-base buy point despite Wednesday's drop. The 5% buy zone goes up to 150.54. JPM stock fell 1.3% Thursday morning.
Salesforce managed to steady itself after slumping following earnings. It is now testing support at the 50-day line and a decisive rebound would create a new buying opportunity. The megacap tech previously moved past a pair of alternative entries at 194.01 and at 200.10, according to IBD Leaderboard analysis.
In recent weeks, shares reached the 20% profit zone from a 178.94 cup-with-handle entry. CRM stock dropped 0.7% Thursday morning.
Payments leader Visa closed further above a flat base's 235.57 buy point Wednesday, with a gain of 0.6%. The buy range tops out at 247.35. V stock dipped 0.2% early Thursday.
And American Express closed near the 177.04 buy point of a cup-with-handle base.
4 Top Growth Stocks To Buy And Watch In The Stock Market Rally
Best Stocks To Buy And Watch: Chipotle, Dynatrace
IBD Leaderboard watchlist stock Chipotle is trying to break out past flat base's 2,139.88 buy point, according to IBD MarketSmith pattern recognition. An early entry at 2,092.51 was also available due to a trendline. Chipotle was a recent IBD Stock Of The Day. CMG stock fell nearly 1% Thursday morning.
Software maker Dynatrace has formed a three-weeks-tight chart pattern, representing a brief consolidation in which institutional investors pause their buying. Shares are about 3% away from their latest entry at 52.99. DT stock was down 1.5% Thursday morning.
IBD SwingTrader stock Lam Research moved above a 615.80 early buy point and a three-weeks-tight pattern with a 630.72 entry during last week's gains. LRCX stock traded down 1.4% early Thursday.
MongoDB traded tightly after its recent earnings-fueled jump, which offered a new entry. Shares are above the three-weeks-tight formation that showed a buy point at 398.89, while aggressive investors could have used a trendline entry around 386. MDB stock moved down 2.6% Thursday morning.
Following its May 25 earnings-fueled gap-up, Nvidia shares have been trending consistently higher. Amid a pullback since June 20, the stock is offering another opportunity to buy shares. It's formed a trendline entry at 418 after the stock found support at its 21-day exponential moving average. Nvidia is an IBD Leaderboard stock. Shares lost 1.3% Thursday.
Learn How To Time The Market With IBD's ETF Market Strategy
Best Stocks To Buy And Watch In Stock Market Rally
These are four best stocks to buy and watch in today's stock market, including a Dow Jones leader.
| Company Name | Symbol | Correct Buy Point | Type Of Buy Point |
|---|---|---|---|
| ASML | 683.18 | Cup with handle | |
| Salesforce | 200.00 | Consolidation | |
| Cloudflare | 66.20 | Double bottom | |
| Roku | 75.45 | Cup with handle |
Source: IBD Data As Of July 5, 2023
Join IBD experts as they analyze leading stocks in the current stock market rally on IBD Live
Tesla Stock
IBD Leaderboard stock Tesla extended a win streak to six sessions Monday, with a 0.95% rise. Amid the recent gains, Tesla shares remain sharply out of buy range beyond a double-bottom's 207.79 buy point.
TSLA stock threatened to erase Wednesday's gains, skidding more than 3% Thursday.
Dow Jones Leaders: Apple, Microsoft
Among Dow Jones stocks, Apple stock continued to fall away from Friday's record high at 194.48, declining 0.6% Wednesday. Shares continue to hold sharply above a 157.38 buy point. Early Thursday, shares lost 0.6% in morning action.
Microsoft shares inched higher Wednesday, holding about 4% away from their June 16 all-time high at 351.47.
In recent weeks, the stock reached the 20% to 25% profit zone from a 276.76 flat-base buy point, so investors could have taken at least some profits there. And on Thursday morning, Microsoft shares were down 0.1%.
Be sure to follow Scott Lehtonen on Twitter at @IBD_SLehtonen for more on growth stocks and the Dow Jones Industrial Average.
