The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up Monday even as Nvidia fell on new chip export restrictions. Trump Media & Technology rocketed a week ahead of President-elect Donald Trump's inauguration. And Howard Hughes surged on the stock market today after billionaire investor Bill Ackman made an offer for the company.
Indexes ended the day well off lows. The Dow outperformed by rising 358 points, or 0.7%. UnitedHealth fared best on the Dow as it jumped 4%. Caterpillar and Amgen each rose more than 3%.
Outside of Nvidia, Apple and Walmart lagged the most on the Dow Jones today as both skidded more than 1%.
The Nasdaq composite fared the worst among the major indexes as it fell 0.4%, though it was well off session lows. The index, which was down 1.5% in morning trade, lost further ground on the important 50-day moving average.
Constellation Energy and Micron Technology were laggards on the tech-heavy index, falling nearly 9% and more than 4%, respectively. Constellation has slipped back below a 288.75 entry, MarketSurge analysis shows.
Stock Market Today: Energy Rallies, Tech Lags
The S&P 500 managed to get out of the hole and make up slight ground on its 50-day line as it added 0.2%. Humana was a bright spot as it gained nearly 7%, though it remains in a downtrend. CVS Health jumped more than 7% while fertilizer firm Mosaic rose 8%.
A majority of the S&P 500 sectors were positive on the stock market today. Energy and materials were the strongest, while technology and utilities lagged the most. Oil-and-gas drilling equipment supplier Baker Hughes shined with a gain of 3.6% and is near a 45.17 buy point.
Small caps battled back well, but the Russell 2000 still had a marginal loss. Bears were feasting on growth stocks, with the Innovator IBD 50 exchange traded fund falling nearly 2%.
Volume was lower on both the Nasdaq and the New York Stock Exchange compared with the same time Friday. There were slightly more advancers on the NYSE but decliners led the Nasdaq by roughly 3-2.
The 10-year Treasury note rose two basis points to 4.79%.
3:27 p.m. ET
Donald Trump Stock Soars
Trump Media & Technology has been trading tightly in recent weeks but soared on the stock market today. It has now surged almost 25% above its 50-day moving average, which means it is extended.
It is rallying a week ahead of Trump's Inauguration, set for Jan. 20. It remains below its recent high of 54.68, which it reached on Oct. 29, just days before the presidential election.
Overall performance is patchy for the social media stock, which is the parent of conservative Truth Social, an alternative to X. This is reflected in its IBD Composite Rating of 66 out of 99. In addition, Truth Social posted a full-year loss of 43 cents per share in 2023 and posted losses in each quarter of fiscal 2024 reported so far.
In its favor, it is among the top 7% of issues in terms of price performance over the past 12 months. It now holds a gain of more than 23% so far in 2025.
The fact it is losing money makes it a risky investment, however. Investing in companies with strong earnings performance is a key part of the IBD Methodology.
Quantum Computing Equities Rocked
One thing investors should be mindful of is hopping aboard a fad amid overenthusiastic action.
A slew of speculative names had big runups amid excitement over Google-parent Alphabet's Willow chip, a quantum computing prototype that dramatically reduces computation times.
But stocks fell sharply Monday after Meta Platforms Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg became the latest to pour cold water on the idea we are on the brink of the quantum computing age.
"I'm not really an expert on quantum computing, but my understanding is that it's still quite a ways off from being a truly practical paradigm," he said during an appearance on "The Joe Rogan Experience" podcast.
D-Wave Quantum skidded more than 30%, undercutting its 50-day line in the process, while Rigetti Computing gapped below the key technical benchmark amid a decline of more than 30%.
Quantum Computing lost about a quarter of its value while IonQ fell sharply.
Nvidia Chief Executive Jensen Huang previously said that "useful quantum computers" are decades away.
2:00 p.m. ET
Bitcoin Melts, Tests $92,000
It has been a roller-coaster ride for investors since Donald Trump won the presidential election in November. And bitcoin was adding to recent losses, falling roughly 3% near the $92,000 level, according to CoinDesk.
The iShares Bitcoin exchange traded fund and the ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF each dropped about 3%.
MicroStrategy fell nearly 4%, though it was off session lows. It has now fallen nearly 9% below its 50-day moving average. However, it remains nearly 60% above its rising 200-day line. The firm is expected to post losses in both 2024 and 2025, according to MarketSurge.
Other cryptocurrency stocks were also struggling. Coinbase Global was off around 4%. Miner Hut 8, which has fallen from the IBD 50 list, fell more than 3%.
Rival bitcoin mining play Riot Platforms skidded around 5%, while Mara, formerly known as Marathon Digital, lost 6%.
Stock Market Today: More Stocks Flash Sell Signals
A number of equities were flashing sell signals amid the broadly bearish action.
Restaurant chain Shake Shack triggered a sell rule by undercutting its 50-day moving average in strong volume. It remains in positive territory from a 111.17 entry, so this could be taken as an opportunity to lock in profits.
Wireless technology stock InterDigital fell below its own 50-day line amid a decline of around 3%. Volume was also above average here.
The stock remains up more than 28% from a flat-base entry of 140.60. Overall strong performance is reflected in its IBD Composite Rating of 95.
Medical products play Inspire Medical Systems crumbled beneath its 50-day and 200-day moving averages in high volume, a distinctly bearish look.
The firm, which sells minimally invasive treatments for obstructive sleep apnea, is now trading near consolidation lows amid a steep decline in the stock market today.
Moderna, which has been mired in a long downtrend, plunged sharply. It skidded after it lowered its 2025 sales forecast by $1 billion. It now expects revenue of between $1.5 billion and $2.5 billion.
California utility Edison International was down more than 11%, and is on pace for a third straight drop of more than 6%. It is being investigated over a possible link to the Hurst Fire, one of the wildfires currently hitting the Los Angeles area. It has fallen almost 30% below its 50-day line.
12:18 p.m. ET
2024 Winner Abercrombie Gets Slammed
One of the big winners last year was Abercrombie & Fitch. While it ended 2024 with a gain of 69.4%, at its peak its gain for the year had been as high as 123.3%.
Those who decided to hold the stock through recent sideways action paid the price Monday, as it fell nearly 20% on the stock market today.
It slumped below its 200-day moving average in massive volume, a sell signal. It had been testing the buyers at the benchmark for months.
The stock sold off even though the clothing retailer raised its holiday-quarter sales guidance. While it hiked sales growth expectations for the period from 5%-to-7% to a range of 7%-to-8%, the guidance was well shy of last year's growth of 21%.
Meanwhile, Lululemon Athletica saw early gains fade after initially popping after it hiked its own revenue and earnings guidance. It was up fractionally. The stock is forming a flat base with a 420.21 buy point.
The firm expects sales for its fiscal fourth quarter to rise 11% to 12%, or to $3.56 billion to $3.58 billion vs. its previous outlook of $3.48 billion to $3.51 billion. It also forecast earnings of $5.81-to-$5.85 per share, compared to its prior outlook for $5.56 to $5.64 per share.
Analysts had been expecting earnings of $5.66 a share on $3.473 billion in sales.
10:42 a.m. ET
Dow Jones Today: Nvidia Hit Amid Biden AI Curbs
Nvidia was under pressure Monday after the Biden administration unveiled tough new proposed rules on artificial intelligence exports to China.
They will cap the number of advanced AI chips that can be exported as well as require a license to export the data needed for the most sophisticated AI systems, The Wall Street Journal reported.
The move will strengthen restrictions on adversaries such as China and Iran. However, a group of 18 countries, including key U.S. allies such as the U.K. and Germany, are exempted.
Nvidia said in a blog post that the new rules were "drafted in secret and without proper legislative review" and labeled it "sweeping overreach." It also said the "Biden Administration's new rule threatens to squander America's hard-won technological advantage."
There will be a 120-day comment period on the rules due to their complexity, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said.
The Leaderboard stock lost ground on its 50-day moving average. It is about 10% below a 146.54 buy point.
The broader chip space was also lower, with the VanEck Semiconductor ETF skidding nearly 2%.
Bill Ackman Makes Howard Hughes Offer
Texas-based real estate development firm Howard Hughes jumped on the stock market today after it emerged that Ackman's Pershing Square has made an offer to snap up a majority interest in the firm.
The Pershing Square chief has long been involved with Howard Hughes, stepping down from the firm's board after serving as its chairman since 2010.
Pershing Square currently own 18.85 million shares in Howard Hughes, which are worth around $1.5 billion.
Ackman said in a letter to the Howard Hughes board that the deal could see the company become a "modern-day Berkshire Hathaway that would acquire controlling interests in operating companies." He also said in the letter that he has been "displeased with the company's stock price performance."
The proposed deal values Howard Hughes at about $85 per share. Howard Hughes stock rallied more than 9% on the stock market today. While it bounded away from its 200-day line, it remains stuck below its 50-day moving average.
Stock Market Today: Boot Barn Tests Entry
Breakouts are tough to find amid the current challenging market conditions.
But that did not stop Boot Barn testing a weekly chart cup with handle with a buy point of 163.04, MarketSurge analysis shows. While it has slipped back below this level it is in the buy zone of a daily chart cup-with-handle entry of 156.42.
Boot Barn was walking taller after it guided for December-quarter earnings of $2.43 a share, which was better than analyst expectations. Revenue guidance for $608.2 million was also above views.
Overall performance for the Western and workwear play is stout, netting it an IBD Composite Rating of 92.
Both earnings and price performance are solid. Full-year EPS is seen rising 17% this year and popping a further 19% in 2026, according to FactSet.
Please follow Michael Larkin on X at @IBD_MLarkin for more analysis of growth stocks.
