The major stock market indexes are mixed in the first half of Tuesday's session, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average leading the upside. Meme stock Bed, Bath & Beyond skyrocketed nearly 70%.
The Nasdaq composite is down 0.1% so far while the S&P has gained 0.3%%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is positive by 0.7%.
The Nasdaq 100-tracking ETF Invesco QQQ Trust is showing weakness, dropping 0.1%. The iShares Russell 2000 small-cap ETF is higher by 0.1%.
The SPDR Select Energy ETF is positive by 0.2% even though the crude oil futures contract is trading lower by 2.4%, to $87.27 per barrel. U.S. natural gas futures are showing strength, up 5.9% and over $9, approaching 14-year highs.
The FTSE 100 Index rose 0.4%, the CAC 40 Index 0.3% and the DAX Index 0.2% in the European session.
Bitcoin futures have fallen 1% to $23,888.
NYSE and Nasdaq volume are higher by 8%, compared to the same time on Monday.
Economic Reports Beat Expectations
The stock market evaluated a fresh batch of economic data.
Housing Starts for July came in at an annual rate of 1.45 million units, under the 1.54 million consensus, pointing to continued housing weakness. Permits rose to an annual rate of 1.67 million units, slightly beating 1.65 million consensus.
July Industrial Production rose 0.6%, double the expected 0.3%. This metric covers manufacturing, mining, and electric and gas utilities.
Last month's Manufacturing Output lifted 0.7%, better than 0.2% expectations, while the Capacity Utilization Rate narrowly beat consensus with an 80.3% reading.
Yield on the 10-year Treasury note slipped to 2.79%.
Walmart Up On Earnings
Dow Jones component Walmart is up 5.7% after reporting better than expected Q2 sales and earnings. The company said it is benefiting from more grocery purchases and more frequent trips to the store. Walmart is also seeing higher income shoppers, especially those earning over $100,000, as food and gasoline inflation continues.
Tencent, a Chinese online music platform, is up 3.5% after beating analysts expectations on Q2 earnings per share, but missing sales consensus. The stock is above the 50-day moving average.
ZipRecruiter, an online jobs website, is off 6.4% after announcing its Q2 earnings result, with a beat on sales but lower full-year guidance.
CEO Ian Siegel of ZipRecruiter said "In response to softening demand we are lowering our 2022 revenue outlook, which at the midpoint would demonstrate growth of 20% over 2021."
He said in June they were seeing a cooling hiring environment.
Stock Market Movers To Start The Day
Chevron is trading flat after a filing that disclosed Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway bought nearly 5 million shares in the second quarter. The energy giant is one of Berkshire's top five holdings.
Chevron stock is in a sideways trending base, with a buy point of 182.50. Share price is holding above its 21-day exponential moving average and 50-day moving average. CVX stock boasts a lofty a 95 Composite Rating.
Snap added 2.4% after yesterday's gain, when it reported that Snapchat+ paid subscriptions topped 1 million members. The program is designed to reduce reliance on purely advertising revenue.
Oil Company Breaks Out
Oil and gas explorer EQT is up 5.1% in heavy volume, breaking out of a cup-with-handle base and hitting the 46.81 buy point on the MarketSmith chart.
Science and tech company KBR is down slightly after breaking out of a cup-with-handle base and hitting the 53.57 buy point.
Finally, transportation stock Hub Group is up 2.5% on heavy volume, breaking out of a choppy base and hitting the 86.55 buy point.
Breakouts And Meme Stocks In Play
Penske Automotive Group, an auto and truck retailer, is trading higher by 7.9% after breaking out of a cup-with-handle base and hitting the 121.55 buy point. It's trading in the 5% buy zone.
AutoNation, an auto retailer, is up 9.4% after breaking out of a undefined choppy base, hitting the 133.58 buy point.
Financial data provider FactSet Research Systems has gained 0.5% following a double-bottom breakout that hit the 448.69 buy point. The stock is in the 5% buy zone, also hitting a new high on the weekly relative strength line.
FactSet has strong fundamentals, including a 98 Composite rating, 93 Earnings Per Share Rating and increased mutual fund ownership. The company is ranked No. 1 in the Commercial Services-Market Research IBD group.
Meme stock Bed Bath & Beyond has skyrocketed 70% on extremely heavy volume and momentum, triggering a temporary trading halt.
Today's Stock Market: IBD 50 Stocks Moving Today
The IBD 50 ETF, a measure of growth stocks, is off 1.1%.
Comstock Resources, an oil and gas exploration company, is up 5.2% and holding above the 21-day exponential moving average.
Dynavax Technologies, a vaccine maker, is down by 8.0% on heavy volume, dropping below the 21-day exponential moving average.
