Stock market indexes are mixed on Thursday morning, consolidating Wednesday's post-Fed gains. Advance GDP for the second quarter missed estimates by a country mile, contracting 0.9% compared to a broad consensus for a 0.5% gain.
Stunned buyers stepped in after the news, which could take pressure off the Federal Reserve in coming months, but indexes have made little progress through the first 90 minutes.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average is trading higher by 0.1% at this hour, while the S&P 500 is up 0.2%. The Nasdaq composite is bringing up the rear, still down 0.4%.
Morning volume has surged compared to Wednesday, up 34% on the NYSE and 26% on the Nasdaq.
Commodities rose for the second day in a row, with strong advances in crude oil, copper, gold and wheat. Bonds added to post-Fed gains, dropping the 10-year Treasury yield to a three-month low at 2.67%.
U.S. Stock Market Today Overview |
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|---|---|---|---|---|
| Index | Symbol | Price | Gain/Loss | % Change |
| Dow Jones | (0DJIA) | 32015.83 | -181.76 | -0.56 |
| S&P 500 | (0S&P5) | 3996.67 | -26.94 | -0.67 |
| Nasdaq | (0NDQC ) | 11909.51 | -122.91 | -1.02 |
| Russell 2000 | 182.19 | -1.22 | -0.67 | |
| IBD 50 | 27.75 | +0.06 | +0.22 | |
Last Update: 10:16 AM ET 7/28/2022 |
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Facebook parent Meta Platforms fell 7.7% in the first 45 minutes after reporting a Q2 profit of $2.55 per share, $0.09 lower than estimates. It also posted the first quarterly drop in revenue since the company came public in May 2012. Adding to woes, META lowered Q3 revenue and 2022 expense guidance below consensus.
Solar stocks soared in Wednesday's post-market after Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) announced an agreement with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) to support broad-ranging energy legislation. The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 proposes, among other thing, investment in all fuel types, including fossil fuels.
Invesco solar ETF is adding to gains this morning, up more than 5.6%.
The U.S. Senate finally passed the $52 billion semiconductor bill on Wednesday. The House is expected to pass the bill later this week. The Philadelphia semiconductor index is trading lower by 1.3% so far on Thursday, after posting strong Wednesday gains.
Powell Comments Cheer Stock Market
The Fed raised interest rates by 75 basis points on Wednesday afternoon, as expected. The rally took flight after Chairman Jerome Powell said that future rate hikes were "data dependent."
Market watchers are viewing this comment as dovish because most expected the central bank to issue a strong signal for another 75 basis point hike in September. Even so, he insisted the Fed's goal was to bring inflation down to 2.0%, which seems unattainable in the coming months, given current 6% to 8% levels. Fed futures now expect a 50 basis point hike in September, down from 75.
Stock market watchers appear evenly split about the future, with some calling Wednesday's advance overdone and unjustified, while others are calling the bottom and start of a new bull advance. The best path for investors may lie somewhere in-between, with increasing optimism, along with a healthy dose of caution.
Market Rally Extends Momentum As Apple Pops, Amazon Soars
Apple And Amazon Earnings On Tap
Tech's big earnings week wraps up this evening, with eagerly awaited reports from Dow component Appleand Amazon.com.
As usual, iPhone's sales and outlook will be closely evaluated, looking for evidence of resilience or a slowdown. Apple may also comment on supply chain disruptions that have impacted results all across the tech universe in the second quarter. Current FactSet consensus is looking for a profit of $1.16 per share.
Amazon earnings revolve around two big businesses: retail sales and cloud services. Rivals reported slowdowns in both units during their confessionals earlier this week. Main rival Walmart issued a warning about shrinking margins while Microsoft reported a continuing slowdown in the Azure cloud division. Investors hope that strong cloud growth cancel out retail weakness, but that won't happen if the company reports similar headwinds. FactSet estimates are low, at just 12 cents per share.
Stock Market Highlights
ELF Beauty is trading about 2% below a 33.54 buy point in a cup with handle following a recent skid. The RS line hit a new high last week, which is a sign of strong stock market outperformance.
ELF shares were trading lower by 0.6% early Thursday.
Quanta Services has rallied into the 138.56 buy point of a cup-with-handle base, according to IBD MarketSmith chart analysis.
This solar stock is trading higher by 2.6% in the first hour, benefiting from the Manchin-Schumer deal.
