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SCOTT LEHTONEN

Dow Jones Rises Ahead Of Powell Speech; Warren Buffett Boosts Stake In Occidental

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose Friday ahead of Fed Chair Jerome Powell's speech in Washington. Meanwhile, Occidental Petroleum moved higher after Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway boosted its stake in the energy giant.

Fed chief Powell is set to speak at 11:00 a.m. ET at the Thomas Lauback Research Conference. Per the Federal Reserve's website, "This year's conference will highlight key issues in monetary policy and the economy and facilitate discussions on the challenges faced by monetary policymakers." The conference will be webcast at www.federalreserve.gov and www.youtube.com/federalreserve.

Occidental shares rallied 3% after Warren Buffett-led Berkshire Hathaway bought nearly 3.5 million shares in the energy company worth about $200 million, per SEC filings, in recent days. The new purchases lifted Buffett's stake in Occidental to $12.7 billion, or nearly 25% of the company.

Key earnings movers Friday morning include Applied Materials, Deere, Foot Locker and Ross Stores.

Applied Materials dropped 3% in morning trade, while Deere shares advanced nearly 5% on a solid earnings beat.

Foot Locker stock plunged 26% on weak first-quarter earnings and sales results. Finally, Ross Stores dropped 0.9% after the market open.

Stock Market Today

Electric-vehicle giant Tesla rose 1.1% Friday morning. Dow Jones tech giants Apple and Microsoft were mixed after today's stock market open.

Advanced Micro Devices, IBD Leaderboard stock ASML, IBD SwingTrader stock Lam Research and Netflix — as well as Dow Jones stocks Boeing, Salesforce and Visa — are among the best stocks to buy and watch in the ongoing stock market uptrend.

Lam Research and Netflix were recent IBD Stock Of The Day topics.

IBD's latest newsletter MarketDiem gives you actionable ideas for stocks, options and crypto right in your inbox

Dow Jones Today: Oil Prices, Treasury Yields

After Friday's opening bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.2%, with Nike dragging at the bottom of the list as footwear stocks sagged following the Foot Locker report.

The S&P 500 gained 0.3%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite climbed 0.15% in morning action.

Among U.S. exchange-traded funds, the Nasdaq 100 tracker Invesco QQQ Trust fell 0.1%, while the SPDR S&P 500 ETF traded up 0.2% early Friday.

The 10-year U.S. Treasury yield on Friday traded up to 3.7%, on pace to extend a five-day win streak that saw it rebound to its highest level since mid-March.

U.S. oil prices continued to bob between $70 and $73 a barrel. West Texas Intermediate futures were up more than 1% Friday morning, holding just below $73 a barrel.

Stock Market Action

On Thursday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.3%, adding to Wednesday's climb that saw the index retake its 50-day line. The S&P 500 moved up 0.9% on Thursday, also making a new 2023 high. And the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite advanced 1.5%. The small-cap Russell 2000 gained 0.6%.

Thursday's Big Picture column commented, "Wednesday's bullish action on the Nasdaq prompted IBD to raised its recommended market exposure to 40%-60%. With more new highs Thursday, no distribution days on the Nasdaq and a growing number of high-profile breakouts, it makes sense for investors to raise their exposure to remain in sync with the market action."

Now is an important time to read IBD's The Big Picture column after last week's bullish change in the market's outlook.

Five Best Dow Jones Stocks To Buy And Watch Now

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

Dow Jones aerospace giant Boeing inched higher Thursday, holding above its 50-day line and moving closer to a flat base's 221.43 buy point, according to IBD MarketSmith pattern recognition. BA stock moved down 0.2% early Friday.

IBD Leaderboard stock Salesforce rallied past alternative entries at 194.01 and 200.10 in recent sessions, according to Leaderboard analysis. Meanwhile, the RS line hit a new high this week, a bullish signal. CRM stock fell 1.5% Friday morning.

Visa shares remain in buy range above a 230.15 cup-with-handle buy point, after rising 0.4% Thursday. The buy range goes up to 241.66. V stock lost 0.2% Friday.

4 Top Growth Stocks To Watch In The Stock Market Rally

Best Stocks To Buy And Watch: AMD, ASML, Lam, Netflix

Chip leader Advanced Micro Devices is just out of buy range beyond a cup base's 102.53 buy point, according to IBD MarketSmith pattern recognition, with a 4% rally Thursday. The 5% buy area went up to 107.66. Last week's advance saw AMD stock climb above an early trendline entry, using May 4's high of 91.64 as the buy point. AMD shares fell 2.6% Friday.

IBD Leaderboard stock ASML broke above a 683.28 buy point in a cup with handle Thursday. The 5% buy zone tops out at 717.44. ASML moved up 0.2% Friday.

Lam Research stock broke out of a flat base with a buy point of 548.95 Monday and added to those gains Thursday, moving out of buy range. LRCX stock was down 1.2% Friday.

Streaming giant Netflix broke out past a buy point at 349.90 out of a cup-with-handle base, with a 9.2% surge Thursday after Netflix said its ad-supported plan has close to 5 million monthly active users worldwide. NFLX stock moved down 1.1% Friday morning.

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 two Dow Jones leaders.

Company Name Symbol Correct Buy Point Type Of Buy Point
Lam Research 548.95 Flat base
Salesforce 200.10 Consolidation
Visa 230.15 Cup with handle
Advanced Micro Devices 102.53 Cup base
Source: IBD Data As Of May 19, 2023

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

Tesla Stock

Tesla stock rallied 1.7% Thursday, making another run at its 50-day line. Shares are poised to push back above their 10-week moving average as the stock looks to build a new base. Shares closed Thursday 47% off their 52-week high.

TSLA stock looked to add to Thursday's gains, moving up 1.1% Friday morning.

Dow Jones Leaders: Apple, Microsoft

Among Dow Jones stocks, Apple shares advanced 1.4% Thursday, closing at their highest level since April 5, 2022. The stock continues to add to gains above a 157.48 buy point and is out of the buy range that ran up to 165.35. AAPL stock was up 0.5% Friday, nearing a new 52-week high.

Microsoft shares rose 1.4% Thursday, hitting a new 52-week high at 319.04. MSFT stock continues to add to gains above a 276.86 flat-base buy point. On Friday morning, MSFT stock fell 0.3%.

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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