The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose Wednesday ahead of a highly anticipated Federal Reserve decision on interest rate hikes and Fed Chair Jerome Powell's comments. Meanwhile, leading chipmaker Advanced Micro Devices took a dive after issuing weak sales guidance.
The Fed's two-day policy meeting wraps up with an interest rate decision Wednesday afternoon at 2 p.m. ET. Fed chief Powell will speak at 2:30 p.m. As of Wednesday morning, investor expectations for a quarter-point hike stood at 88%, according to the CME FedWatch Tool.
Markets may celebrate — at least briefly — if the ongoing banking crisis and indications of a softening economy and job market lead the Fed to forgo a rate hike. A hike and announcement of a pause on further hikes also could generate a relief rally. On the other hand, hiking and keeping an additional June increase on the table would likely not go down well with Wall Street.
On the economic front this morning, ADP's National Employment Report showed payroll growth of 296,000 in April, far above the expected 143,000 figure and up sharply from March's 145,000 figure.
Further, S&P Global's U.S. Services Purchasing Managers' Index for April measured 53.4, below expectations for a 53.7 reading. Finally, the Institute for Supply Management's April services index improved to 51.9, vs. last month's 51.2 reading.
Earnings Movers: AMD, Starbucks
Key earnings movers Wednesday morning include Advanced Micro Devices, Ford Motor, Starbucks and Super Micro Computer.
AMD stock plunged more than 7% in early trade after the chipmaker beat expectations for the first quarter but came up short on its sales forecast for the second quarter.
Ford Motors maintained its 2023 outlook after crushing first-quarter earnings estimates late Tuesday. F stock rose 1% early Wednesday.
Starbucks stock tumbled more than 4% early Wednesday, even as analysts raised price targets following a stronger-than-expected report for the company's fiscal second quarter delivered late Tuesday.
Super Micro missed Wall Street's lowered targets for its fiscal third quarter but guided much higher than views for the current period. SMCI stock surged nearly 13% in morning trading.
Stock Market Today
Electric-vehicle giant Tesla traded up 2% Wednesday morning. Dow Jones tech giants Apple and Microsoft were modestly higher after today's stock market open.
IBD SwingTrader stock Lam Research, IBD Leaderboard stock Las Vegas Sands, Nvidia and Paccar — as well as Dow Jones stocks JPMorgan Chase, Nike and Visa — are among the top stocks to watch in the struggling stock market uptrend.
JPMorgan was featured in this week's Stocks Near A Buy Zone column. InMode and Nvidia were recent IBD Stock Of The Day topics. Paccar received an IBD Stock Analysis close-up on Thursday.
Dow Jones Today: Oil Prices, Treasury Yields
After Wednesday's opening bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.1%, held back by Chevron, which leaned more than 1% lower. The S&P 500 moved up 0.3%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite climbed 0.5% in morning action.
Among U.S. exchange-traded funds, the Nasdaq 100 tracker Invesco QQQ Trust gained 0.3%, while the SPDR S&P 500 ETF traded up 0.25% early Wednesday.
The 10-year U.S. Treasury yield on Wednesday traded down to 3.39%, threatening to extend Tuesday's sharp losses. It remains solidly off its early-April lows.
U.S. oil prices continued to unravel, dragging to their lowest levels since March. West Texas Intermediate futures slumped nearly 3%, to below $70 a barrel — and down more than 9% for the week, ahead of the Energy Information Administration's weekly inventory report.
Stock Market Rally Struggles
On Tuesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1.1%, with Chevron one of the big losers. CVX stock tumbled 4.3% to break down below its 50-day line. The S&P 500 sold off 1.2%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite lost 1.1%.
Tuesday's Big Picture column commented, "Stock market indexes spent most of April in the doldrums, rarely gaining or losing more than 1% on any given day. But that's changed in the past week. The Nasdaq has moved 0.4% to 2% in five of the past six sessions. The S&P has moved more than 0.8% in five of the past six sessions."
Now is an important time to read IBD's The Big Picture column with the stock market still struggling to maintain its uptrend.
Five Best Dow Jones Stocks To Buy And Watch Now
Dow Jones Stocks To Buy And Watch: JPMorgan, Nike, Visa
JPMorgan shares closed further below a cup-with-handle's 141.88 buy point, with a 1.6% drop Tuesday, according to IBD MarketSmith pattern recognition. JPM stock was down 0.6% Wednesday morning.
Nike shares fell 0.5% Tuesday, finishing just below a cup-with-handle's 127.59 buy point. NKE stock dropped 1.6% early Wednesday.
Visa shares gave up a 230.15 cup-with-handle buy point during Tuesday's 2.4% decline. If the stock retakes the entry, the buy range will go up to 241.66. V stock was down slightly Wednesday.
4 Top Growth Stocks To Watch In The Stock Market Rally
Best Stocks To Buy And Watch: Nvidia, Paccar
Nvidia shares finished Tuesday just above a 280.10 buy point in a short consolidation after the session's 2.4% drop, according to IBD MarketSmith. NVDA stock was down 0.9% Wednesday morning.
Backstory: On Monday, Rosenblatt Securities analyst Hans Mosesmann named Nvidia as one of seven semiconductor stocks likely to benefit from the surge in spending by tech companies around artificial intelligence. Nvidia sells graphics processing units, accelerators, software tools and other offerings for AI projects.
Paccar snapped a three-day win streak Tuesday, skidding 3.2%. Shares finished right at their 50-day line. The stock is approaching a flat base's 76.82 buy point, with an early entry at 75.83 also in play. Paccar shares rose 0.5% Wednesday morning.
Backstory: The producer of heavy-duty semi-trucks topped first-quarter estimates on April 25, reporting a 96% earnings spike. At CES 2022, Paccar exhibited connected and autonomous trucks. The company behind the Kenworth, Peterbilt and DAF nameplates showcased three vehicles.
Lam Research, Las Vegas Sands
IBD SwingTrader stock Lam Research is moving closer to an early entry at 533.19, while forming a flat base with a 548.95 buy point. LRCX stock was down 0.1% Wednesday morning.
Backstory: Lam Research supplies wafer fabrication equipment to the semiconductor industry. It is one of just three companies involved in etching and deposition for chip production. Lam also makes equipment used in NAND flash memory modules. These account for roughly half of total sales.
IBD Leaderboard stock Las Vegas Sands remains just out of the 5% buy range above a 60.40 buy point in a cup with handle, as LVS stock dropped 1.9% Tuesday. The buy zone topped out at 63.42. Shares dipped 1.8% Wednesday.
Backstory: In recent weeks, Las Vegas Sands smashed earnings expectations for the first quarter and signaled a "robust recovery" in China's Macau gaming hub. The casino stock posted earnings of 28 cents per share, up from a loss of 40 cents per share a year ago. Revenue vaulted nearly 125% to $2.12 billion. On Monday, Macau officials said April gaming revenue surged 450% year over year to hit a three-year high.
Learn How To Time The Market With IBD's ETF Market Strategy
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 three Dow Jones leaders.
| Company Name | Symbol | Correct Buy Point | Type Of Buy Point |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nvidia | 280.10 | Consolidation | |
| Nike | 127.59 | Cup with handle | |
| Visa | 230.15 | Cup with handle | |
| JPMorgan | 141.88 | Cup with handle |
Source: IBD Data As Of May 1, 2023
Join IBD experts as they analyze leading stocks in the current stock market rally on IBD Live
Tesla Stock
Tesla stock slid another 0.9% Tuesday, holding near its lowest level since Jan. 26. In recent weeks, shares triggered the 7%-8% loss rule from a buy point at 200.76 in a cup with handle. And they are trading sharply below their 50-day line, a key level. The stock closed Monday 50% off its 52-week high.
TSLA stock looked to bounce back from Tuesday's losses, trading up 2% early Wednesday.
Dow Jones Leaders: Apple, Microsoft
Among Dow Jones stocks, Apple shares lost 0.6% Tuesday, falling for a second consecutive session. They remain solidly above a 157.48 buy point and out of the buy range that ran up to 165.35. AAPL stock rose 0.8% early. Apple reports its fiscal second-quarter results on Thursday.
Microsoft shares are sharply above a flat base's 276.86 buy point despite a 0.1% drop Tuesday. The 5% buy area went up from the buy point to 290.70. MSFT stock hit a 52-week high last week. On Wednesday morning, MSFT stock gained 0.2%.
Be sure to follow Scott Lehtonen on Twitter at @IBD_SLehtonen for more on growth stocks and the Dow Jones Industrial Average.
