The Dow Jones Industrial Average inched higher but lagged the other major indexes. Tesla was gaining ahead of its latest earnings report following an Elon Musk boast. Netflix was picking up steam following better-than-expected subscriber figures.
Apple and Walt Disney were among the best blue chips. Breakouts were hard to come by, though Leaderboard stock Lantheus managed to clear a fresh buy point.
Volume was up on both the Nasdaq and the New York Stock Exchange vs. the same time Tuesday.
The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note inched a couple of basis points higher to 3.03%. West Texas Intermediate crude oil slid almost 2% to trade at just under $103 per barrel.
Meanwhile, home sales fell 5.4% in June compared to May, according to a National Association of Realtors report. This came as the median price of an existing home sold in June hit a record $416,000. This was up 13.4% year over year.
Mortgage demand also fell more than 6% last week to the lowest level since 2000, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. Rising rates, as well as spiraling prices, have acted as a drag on demand.
Nasdaq Rises As Tech Stocks Flex
The Nasdaq was shining brightest as tech stocks rallied. While off highs for the day, it remained up more than 1%. Atlassian, a beaten down enterprise software firm, was among the best performers as it jumped more than 12%.
The S&P 500 also inched higher, rising about 0.4%. Power play Generac stood out here as it rose nearly 7%.
The S&P 500 sectors were mixed. Consumer discretionary and technology were making the best gains. Health and utilities were the worst areas.
Small caps were flexing heading into the close, with the Russell 2000 up more than 1%.
The Innovator IBD 50 ETF, a bellwether for growth stocks, saw gains fade. It reversed lower to post a 0.2% loss.
Dow Jones Today: Apple Stock, Disney Impress
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was struggling for momentum but managed to grind out a nominal gain of about 0.1%.
Apple stock was among the best performers as it rose 1.5%. It is pulling away from its 50-day line and closing in on its 200-day moving average, MarketSmith analysis shows.
Walt Disney was given a boost following streaming rival Netflix's better-than-expected earnings. It cleared its 50-day moving average as it rose more than 4%.
But it was Salesforce that was a top performer on the Dow Jones today. It rose over 5% but has plenty of work to do to erase a near-29% loss so far this year.
UnitedHealth Group was the worst laggard. It fell about 3% and was among the health stocks struggling following quarterly results from Elevance, UnitedHealth's industry peer formerly known as Anthem.
Tesla Stock Gains After Elon Musk Issues Boast
Tesla stock managed to rally out of negative territory as the company gets set to post earnings after the close.
Wall Street is expecting the EV maker to post earnings of $1.81 per share. Shanghai shutdowns and the ramp up of its new Texas and Berlin factories are expected to act as a drag on profits.
The company reported 255,000 deliveries in the second quarter. That was at the top end of estimates that were lowered earlier due to Shanghai. Despite headwinds, June was the strongest production month in Tesla's history.
Meanwhile, CEO Musk found time to boast following General Motors' recent announcement it will manufacture Chevy EVs in Mexico.
Musk, who was last year excluded from a White House electric-vehicle summit, tweeted that "Teslas are the most made-in-USA vehicles."
Tesla was off session highs but remained up more than 1%. However, it's down about 38% so far in 2022.
The former Leaderboard stock is holding clear of its 50-day moving average. It is near the lows of a consolidation pattern with a 1,208.10 entry.
Netflix Stock Jumps On Subscriber Figures
Netflix stock gained strength as the session wore on and investors digested the streaming giant's latest earnings report.
The firm posted $3.20 EPS, beating analyst views for $2.96 a share. Revenue of $7.97 billion was below expectations for $8.03 billion.
The key driving the upside move was encouraging subscriber data. Netflix lost 970,000 subscribers in Q2 after previously warning it could lose 2 million.
It also provided guidance for Q3, saying it expects to add around 1 million new subscribers.
NFLX stock was up almost 7%, gapping firmly away from its 50-day moving average. Nevertheless, it remains about 48% below its 200-day line.
Netflix has had a torrid year so far in 2022, sliding about 64%.
Rally Gains Steam, But Still Missing This; Tesla Leads Earnings Movers
Outside Dow Jones: Leaderboard Stock Passes Buy Point
Given the encouraging action overall, now is a time to be tracking breakouts.
Medical diagnostics play Lantheus is currently sitting in its buy zone after earlier clearing a cup-base entry of 73.88.
Lantheus has proved itself one of the strongest stocks in the market after soaring out of a double-bottom base in February.
Two straight quarters of accelerating sales growth indicates strong demand for the company's products. Earnings have also been improving.
Its bullish behavior has won it a spot on the prestigious IBD Leaderboard list of top stocks.
Please follow Michael Larkin on Twitter at @IBD_MLarkin for more analysis of growth stocks.
