Stocks Lower After Jobless Claims; Powell Speech Later

The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped Thursday, as investors digested initial jobless claims data. Fed Chair Jerome Powell began his monetary policy report to the Senate Banking Committee. Meanwhile, Tesla stock reversed higher after another analyst downgrade.

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First-time jobless claims rose to 264,000, above estimates. They were expected to ease to 261,000 vs. 262,000 in the previous week, per Econoday estimates. Further, May existing home sales numbers from the National Association of Realtors unexpectedly rose to 4.3 million. They were anticipated to dip slightly to an annualized rate of 4.25 million vs. April’s 4.28 million.

The Senate calendar called for Powell’s testimony to begin at 10 a.m. ET. On Wednesday, Powell reiterated that more interest rate increases are likely to bring down inflation, saying “Nearly all FOMC participants expect that it will be appropriate to raise interest rates somewhat further by the end of the year.”

Investors see a more-than-76% chance of a quarter-point hike at the Fed’s July meeting, per the CME FedWatch Tool. That’s up from 60% one week ago.

Meanwhile, the Bank of England raised its key interest rate by a half-percentage point, upping the lending rate to 5%, its highest level since April 2008.

On the earnings front, Darden Restaurants (DRI) and KB Home (KBH) were key earnings movers Thursday morning. Darden shares sold off 3% in morning trade, while KBH stock declined almost 2%.

Stock Market Today

EV giant Tesla (TSLA) reversed higher Thursday. Morgan Stanley downgraded shares to equal weight, from overweight, and boosted the price target to 250, from 200. Dow Jones tech giants Apple (AAPL) and Microsoft (MSFT) were higher after today’s stock market open.

Dexcom (DXCM), Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG), McKesson (MCK) and Roku (ROKU) — as well as Dow Jones stocks Boeing (BA), JPMorgan Chase (JPM) and Salesforce (CRM) — are among the best stocks to buy or watch in the stock market uptrend.

Tesla is an IBD Leaderboard stock. McKesson is an IBD SwingTrader stock, while Chipotle was featured as Wednesday’s Stock Of The Day as well as in this week’s Stocks Near A Buy Zone column.

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Dow Jones Today: Oil Prices, Treasury Yields

After Thursday’s opening bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.1%, while the S&P 500 gained 0.1%. And the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite rose 0.5% in morning action.

Among U.S. exchange-traded funds, the Nasdaq 100 tracker Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) traded up 0.2%, while the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) moved down 0.25% early Thursday.

On Thursday, the 10-year U.S. Treasury yield ticked higher to 3.72%. The yield has recently been bobbing in a range between 3.57% and 3.85%, settling slightly lower Wednesday at 3.72%.

Oil prices backed off sharply Thursday morning. West Texas Intermediate futures fell almost 2%, holding at around $71 a barrel ahead of Thursday’s weekly oil inventory report from the Energy Information Administration.

Stock Market Action

On Wednesday, the S&P 500 gave back 0.5%, while small caps held up even better. The Russell 2000 edged 0.2% lower. The Dow Jones Industrial Average eased 0.3%.

Wednesday’s Big Picture column commented, “After falling shy of testing the 14,000 level on Friday, the Nasdaq composite continued its biggest pullback in more than two months. A 1.2% drop on Wednesday marked a third straight decline. That hadn’t happened since a four-day drop from May 1-4.”

Now is an important time to read IBD’s The Big Picture column amid the ongoing stock market uptrend.

Five Best Dow Jones Stocks To Buy And Watch Now

Dow Jones Stocks To Buy And Watch: Boeing, JPMorgan, Salesforce

Dow Jones aerospace giant Boeing saw its breakout attempt falter further Wednesday, with a 0.1% slip. Shares are now 4% below their latest buy trigger. BA stock dropped another 3.1% Thursday, as supplier Spirit AeroSystems (SPR) closed factory operations due to its striking workers.

Dow Jones banking leader JPMorgan is just below a 143.37 flat-base buy point after Wednesday’s 0.15% drop. JPM stock rose 0.1% early Thursday.

Salesforce managed to steady itself after slumping following earnings. It is now testing support at the 21-day exponential moving average. The megacap tech previously moved past a pair of new alternative entries at 194.01 and at 200.10, according to IBD Leaderboard analysis.

In recent weeks, shares reached the 20% profit-taking zone from a 178.94 cup-with-handle entry, and are now trying to bounce from support at the 10-week line. CRM stock gained 0.8% Thursday morning.

4 Top Growth Stocks To Buy And Watch In The Stock Market Rally

Best Stocks To Buy And Watch: Dexcom, Chipotle, McKesson, Roku

Dexcom remains in buy range past a flat base’s 126.44 buy point, despite a three-day losing streak as of Wednesday, according to IBD MarketSmith pattern recognition. The 5% buy area goes up to 132.76. DXCM stock inched lower Thursday.

IBD Leaderboard watchlist stock Chipotle is trading tightly after a big advance, creating another entry at 2,139.88. Meanwhile, the stock is also pulling back to its 10-week line, where it appears to be finding support. A decisive rebound from that level would also create a buying opportunity. CMG stock lost 0.4% Thursday morning.

IBD SwingTrader stock McKesson is in buy range past a 401.53 cup-with-handle entry amid a four-day win streak. The buy zone tops out at 421.61. Shares were slightly lower early Thursday.

Streaming giant Roku is building a cup-with-handle base with a 75.45 buy point, even as the stock extended a losing streak to five sessions Wednesday. Roku stock lost 0.4% early Thursday.

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Best Stocks To Buy And Watch In Stock Market Rally

These are four best stocks to buy and watch in today’s stock market, including a Dow Jones leader.

Source: IBD Data As Of June 20, 2023

Join IBD experts as they analyze leading stocks in the current stock market rally on IBD Live

Tesla Stock

IBD Leaderboard stock Tesla skidded 5.5% Wednesday after a Barclays downgrade, reversing lower after hitting a new 2023 high. Shares remain sharply extended above a double-bottom base’s 207.79 buy point. They closed Wednesday 18% off their 52-week high.

TSLA stock threatened to add to Wednesday’s losses, but turned higher, up 0.5% in morning trade Thursday after the Morgan Stanley downgrade and price target hike.

Dow Jones Leaders: Apple, Microsoft

Among Dow Jones stocks, Apple stock fell further from its all-time highs Wednesday, moving 0.6% lower in the session. Last week, shares traded as high as 186.99. The stock continues to hold sharply above a 157.38 buy point. Early Thursday, AAPL stock was up 1.1%.

Microsoft shares dropped another 1.3% Wednesday, falling sharply for a third-straight session. Last week, the stock hit a record high at 351.47. Despite the recent losses, MSFT stock remains in the 20%-25% profit-taking zone from a 276.76 flat-base buy point, so investors can take at least some profits. And on Thursday morning, Microsoft shares were 1% higher.

Be sure to follow Scott Lehtonen on Twitter at @IBD_SLehtonen for more on growth stocks and the Dow Jones Industrial Average.

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