The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 150 points while tech stocks tumbled Friday morning as Snap stock plunged more than 33% on weak earnings and sales results.
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Snap reported an adjusted loss of 2 cents a share on revenue of $1.11 billion. Analysts were expecting a loss of 1 cent per share on sales of $1.14 billion. Snapchat’s parent company also declined to provide guidance for the third quarter. It also said it will “significantly slow our hiring rate as well as the growth rate of operating expenses.”
American To express (AXP), Intuitive Surgery (ISRG), Schlumberger (SLB), Twitter (TWTR) and Verizon Communications (VZ) were further important profit drivers after the opening on Friday.
American Express and Verizon shared the Dow Jones Industrials in early trade, with AmEx up 6% and Verizon down nearly 4%. Intuitive Surgical fell 9%. Oilfield services heavyweight Schlumberger was up 8%. Twitter shares fell more than 1% early.
Micron technology (MU) fell nearly 3% after Morgan Stanley downgraded the stock to underweight. Tesla (TSLA) gained 2% early Friday. Elsewhere, the technology leaders from Dow Jones Apple (AAPL) rose 0.3% and Microsoft (MSFT) declined 0.3% after the market open today.
In a volatile uptrend on the stock markets, the Dow Jones is the leader UnitedHealth (UNH) – as well Lantheus (LNTH), Quanta Services (PWR) and Verra mobility (VRRM) – are among the stocks to keep an eye on. Keep in mind that while the market is showing increasing signs of strength, continued volatility is reason to remain cautious.
Lantheus and UnitedHealth are IBD Leaderboard stocks. Verra was featured in this week’s ‘Stocks Near a Buy Zone’ column and was IBD’s Stock of the Day on Monday.
Dow Jones Today: Treasury Yields, Oil Prices
After Friday’s open, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.25%, while the S&P 500 inched higher. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite fell 0.1% in morning trade.
Among exchange-traded funds, Nasdaq 100 tracker Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) was down 0.1%. And the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) was up 0.1%.
The 10-year Treasury yield fell to 2.8% on Friday morning, threatening to extend Thursday’s losses. Meanwhile, US oil prices fell sharply for the second straight day. West Texas Intermediate futures fell nearly 2% to test technical support just above $94 a barrel.
stock market rally
On Thursday, the stock market showed more optimistic action as the tech-heavy Nasdaq led the way, up 1.4%. The S&P 500 followed with a 1% gain, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.5%.
Thursday’s The Big Picture column commented, “After Wednesday’s gains, the Nasdaq has zero pay days. Now the S&P 500 is losing three of its own and is down to one. Payout dates of June 30, July 13 and July 14 have been eliminated due to the 5% advance rule.”
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Dow Jones earnings: American Express, Verizon
American Express gained 6% on Friday morning after the company reported better-than-expected second-quarter results. AXP shares closed 25% below their 52-week high on Thursday.
Verizon stock is building a base with a buy point of 55.61, but the chart is clouded by Thursday’s nearly 3% plunge afterwards AT&T (T) disappointing earnings results. Verizon shares lost another nearly 4% early Friday.
Five Dow Jones stocks to watch right now
Keeping an Eye on Dow Jones Stocks: UnitedHealth
Health insurance giant and IBD leaderboard stock UnitedHealth is just above the buy point of its double bottom with handle basis of 518.80 after gaining 0.6% on Thursday, according to IBD MarketSmith chart analysis. Shares rose 0.6% on Friday.
UNH stock shows a solid 95 out of 99 perfect IBD Composite Ratings according to the IBD Stock Checkup. Investors can use the IBD Composite Rating to easily gauge the quality of a stock’s fundamental and technical metrics.
4 Top Growth Stocks to Watchrightde Stock market rally
Top stocks to watch: Lantheus, Quanta, Verra
IBD leaderboard stock Lantheus is below a buy point of 73.88 after falling 3.1% on Thursday. According to leaderboard commentary, Lantheus has proven to be one of the strongest stocks on the market right now, having bounced out of a double bottom in February. Lantheus shares were up 0.8% early Friday.
Quanta Services puts the finishing touches on a cup-and-handle basis that has a buy point of 138.56, according to chart analysis by IBD MarketSmith. Meanwhile, an early entry at 133.68 is also in play. Shares rose 1.4% in morning trade.
Verra Mobility is poised to reclaim a cup with a buy point of 16.83 after gaining 0.8% on Thursday. The stock’s RS line continues to show tremendous strength as it made another new high this week. Verra shares were up 1.5% on Friday morning.
Join IBD experts as they analyze leading stocks from the current stock market rally on IBD Live
Tesla stock
Tesla shares rose 9.8% on Thursday after strong earnings results, extending a winning streak to seven sessions. The stock hit its highest level since early May.
Shares were up 2% on Friday morning.
Dow Jones Leaders: Apple, Microsoft
Among Dow Jones stocks, Apple stock gained 1.5% on Thursday and is near its 200-day long-term moving average. Stocks have reclaimed their 50-day moving average after bullish action over the past few weeks. Apple earnings are due July 28th. The stock was up 0.3% on Friday morning.
Microsoft was up 1% on Thursday and continued to move above the resistance around its 50-day moving average. The stock closed about 24% below its 52-week high. The software giant is due to release quarterly results on July 26. Microsoft shares lost 0.3% early Friday.
Follow Scott Lehtonen on Twitter at @IBD_SLehtonen for more on growth stocks and the Dow Jones Industrial Average.
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