The Dow Jones Industrial Average turned lower Wednesday, as Advanced Micro Devices and Alphabet surged on strong earnings results. PayPal plunged on an earnings miss. And Meta Platforms, Qualcomm and Spotify are set to report after the close Wednesday.
Among the Dow Jones leaders, Apple lost 0.4% Wednesday, while Microsoft gained 0.3% in today's stock market. American Express, a Dow Jones stock to watch, is nearing a new buy point.
Electric-vehicle leader Tesla dropped more than 1% Wednesday, set to add to Tuesday's fall.
Among Wednesday's top stocks to buy and watch, Baker Hughes, CF Industries, UPS and Vertex Pharmaceuticals are in or near new buy zones.
CF Industries, Microsoft and Tesla are IBD Leaderboard stocks. Vertex was featured in this week's Stocks Near A Buy Zone column.
Dow Jones Today: Jobs Data
After the stock market open Wednesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average moved down 0.1%, while the S&P 500 gained 0.3%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite cut gains to 0.4% in morning trade. Among exchange traded funds, the Nasdaq 100 tracker Invesco QQQ Trust rose 0.8%, and the SPDR S&P 500 ETF traded up 0.4% after Wednesday's open.
The 10-year Treasury yield ticked slightly lower Wednesday morning. The 10-year Treasury yield closed at 1.8% Tuesday.
The National Employment Report from ADP, released before Wednesday's open, began the ramp up to Friday's January payrolls report from the U.S. Department of Labor. For the ADP report, companies unexpectedly cut 301,000 jobs in January. Estimates called for 225,000 jobs added during the month, according to Econoday, down from 807,000 new hires in December.
Stock Market Rally
The stock market posted more solid gains Tuesday, a positive session in the wake of Monday's follow-through day. Amid the recent strength, now is an important time to read IBD's The Big Picture column.
Tuesday's The Big Picture commented, "The tech-heavy Nasdaq enjoyed another positive day, closing up 0.7%. Indexes reversed higher, and the fact that they managed to avoid a distribution day so soon after Monday's follow-through rally confirmation was positive."
If you're new to IBD, consider taking a look at its stock trading system and CAN SLIM basics. Recognizing chart patterns is one key to the investment guidelines. IBD offers a broad range of growth stock lists, such as Leaderboard.
Investors also can create watchlists, find companies nearing a buy point, or develop custom screens at IBD MarketSmith.
Five Dow Jones Stocks To Watch Now
Stock Market Earnings: AMD, Alphabet, PayPal
AMD, Alphabet and PayPal reported after the close Tuesday.
Advanced Micro Devices easily topped Wall Street's targets for the fourth quarter. It also guided higher for the current quarter and full year. AMD shares surged 10% early Wednesday.
FANG stock Alphabet reported December-quarter earnings and revenue that topped analyst estimates and announced a 20-for-1 stock split. Google stock soared 8.5% in morning trade, briefly breaking out a 3,019.43 buy point and hitting all-time highs.
Payments leader PayPal reported fourth-quarter earnings that fell short of expectations while total payment volume also came in below estimates. PayPal shares plunged 21% in morning trade Wednesday.
Meanwhile, Meta Platforms, Qualcomm and Spotify are set to report after the close Wednesday.
Meta Platforms, formerly Facebook, is expected to earn $3.85 a share on sales of $33.35 billion. FB shares closed Tuesday below their 50- and 200-day moving average lines.
Wall Street expects Qualcomm to earn $3.01 per share on revenue of $10.44 billion. QCOM shares are just below their 50-day line.
Spotify is expected to lose 56 cents per share on sales of $2.95 billion. SPOT shares are nearly 50% off their 52-week high.
Dow Jones Stocks To Watch: American Express
American Express decisively regained its 10-week moving average last week with an 11.5% advance. AXP shares are moving up the right side of a new base with a 189.13 buy point, according to IBD MarketSmith chart analysis. Be on the lookout for a potential handle to offer a more risk-optimal entry. Shares were down 0.5% Wednesday following Tuesday's 2.1% advance.
Bullishly, the stock's relative strength line is just shy of new highs following last week's sharp ascent. A strong RS line, particularly during a volatile general market, highlights American Express as a stock to watch.
Four Top Growth Stocks To Watch In The Current Stock Market Rally
Stocks To Watch: Baker, CF Industries, UPS, Vertex
Oilfield equipment leader Baker Hughes is just below a 27.76 cup-base buy point after Tuesday's 0.2% gain. Shares were down 0.8% Wednesday.
Fertilizer producer CF Industries continues to trace an ascending base with a 74.87 buy point. Bullishly, the stock's RS line is close to new highs, indicating strong stock market outperformance. CF stock boasts a perfect 99 IBD Composite Rating, per the IBD Stock Checkup. The stock is right below the new entry following Tuesday's 8.1% advance. Shares fell almost 2% Wednesday. Learn more about what's driving investor interest in CF Industries in IBD's New America.
Shipping leader UPS surged past a 219.55 buy point in a double bottom Tuesday after the company's earnings results. Shares finished just past the 5% buy area that ran up to 230.53. UPS stock was down 0.5% Wednesday.
New IBD Leaderboard stock Vertex Pharmaceuticals broke out past a 234.68 buy point Friday with a 6.5% surge, according to IBD MarketSmith chart analysis. Shares are gaining traction above the buy point and are nearly extended. The 5% buy range runs up to 246.41. Shares lost 1% Wednesday.
Join IBD experts as they analyze leading stocks in the current stock market rally on IBD Live
Tesla Stock
Tesla stock dropped more than 1% Wednesday, on pace to add to Tuesday's 0.6% loss. The stock found much-needed support at its long-term 200-day moving average in recent sessions. But Tesla shares remain sharply below their 50-day line and there is no proper entry in sight.
The stock traded as high as 1,243.49 on Nov. 4, but ended Tuesday about 25% off that 52-week high.
Dow Jones Leaders: Apple, Microsoft
Among Dow Jones stocks, Apple stock lost 0.1% Tuesday, but remains above the key 50-day line after Monday's solid advance. Shares are again about 14% past a 153.27 buy point out of a cup-with-handle base, according to IBD MarketSmith chart analysis. A new base is likely forming, but it is slightly too early for a new buy point. Apple shares lost 0.4% Wednesday.
Software leader Microsoft fell 0.7% Tuesday, as the top Dow Jones stock snapped a four-day win streak. MSFT shares found support at the 200-day line last week. Shares gained 0.3% Wednesday.
Be sure to follow Scott Lehtonen on Twitter at @IBD_SLehtonen for more on growth stocks and the Dow Jones Industrial Average.
