The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose at 1:30 p.m. ET in Monday's session. Among Warren Buffett stocks, Apple traded 2% lower while American Express gained. Microsoft continued to hold up in a buy zone. Energy leader Chevron pared some hefty early gains and was up fractionally.
U.S. wholesale inventory rose 0.1% in February, up 12% year over year, according to a monthly Census Bureau report. Sales climbed 0.4% from January, or 1.3% for the year. The inventory-to-sales ratio stood at 1.37 versus 1.24 a year ago.
The S&P 500 fell 0.1% in the afternoon session. Energy stocks Diamondback Energy, EQT and Pioneer Natural Resources rose.
Advanced Micro Devices and Lam Research gained in the Nasdaq while Tesla and China e-commerce giants JD and Baidu fell. Big Tech names fell, including Google parent Alphabet and Meta Platforms.
The Nasdaq lost 0.3% but was off morning lows.
Homebuilder stocks rose.
Pulte Homes rose in a base with a 60.99 entry. D.R. Horton also gained ground. Lennar approached a 106.23 entry. The iShares US Home Construction ETF rallied and is testing its 50-day line.
NYSE volume fell while Nasdaq volume rose compared to the same time on Thursday.
Crude oil rose to $80.74 per barrel.
The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note surged 13 basis points to 3.41%. The economy added 236,000 jobs in March, with little change to the 3.5% unemployment rate. The odds of another 25-basis-point hike in May rose to 71.3%, according to CME FedWatch.
Dow Jones Stock Falls
Apple fell 2% as first-quarter personal computer shipments fell 40% year over year to 56.9 million units. The top Warren Buffett holding is still above its 50-day line. Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway has 39% of its total investments in the tech leader, according to its fourth quarter filing.
Shipments declined and inventories rose at other PC makers, including Dell, HP and Lenovo. IDC Research sees PC inventory staying high into the second quarter.
Taiwan Semiconductor saw a 15% fall in sales in March from a year ago. It is the company's first drop in monthly sales since May 2019.
Berkshire Hathaway sold 86% of its holdings in the company in February after buying $4.1 billion in November. The portfolio still holds around 60 million shares. TSM shares fell over 3.5%, failing a test of the 50-day line.
Exxon rose slightly after news it may acquire Pioneer Natural Resources. XOM shares may carve a handle to a cup base with a possible 117.28 entry.
EV giant Tesla fell after cutting U.S. prices for the third time this year. Models S and X will sell for $5,000 less. It has plans for a new battery factory in Shanghai that will go into production in 2024.
First Republic and Delta will report first quarter earnings on Thursday. FRC shares traded lower after the beleaguered bank said it would suspend its quarterly cash dividend on preferred shares. DAL is testing its 200-day line.
Retail Stock Breaks Out
Five Below broke out of a flat base with a 212.66 buy point.
Magellan Midstream Partners is attempting to break out of a flat base with a 55.23 entry. Based in Tulsa, Oklahoma, the company stores, transports and distributes petroleum products. A strong Composite Rating of 91 supports the performance of the stock. Earnings are due May 4, according to IBD MarketSmith.
Dow Jones components JPMorgan Chase and UnitedHealth are on deck for earnings reports Friday, along with Wells Fargo.
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