The Dow Jones Industrial Average slid 150 points Friday, as major stock indexes extended Thursday's losses. Meanwhile, Elon Musk-led SpaceX sold the entirety of its stake in Bitcoin, sparking a sell-off in the cryptocurrency.
On Thursday, the Wall Street Journal reported that privately held SpaceX made $55 million in profit on $1.5 billion in revenue during the first quarter of 2023. The report also said SpaceX wrote down the value of Bitcoin it owns by a total of $373 million last year. Further, in 2021, SpaceX exited its position in the cryptocurrency.
The price of Bitcoin has plunged nearly 8% over the last 24 hours, per CoinDesk. Bitcoin traded around $26,250 in early trade Friday. The cryptocurrency topped out around $31,400 in mid-July.
Elsewhere, key earnings movers early Friday included Applied Materials, Deere, Estee Lauder, Keysight Technologies, Ross Stores and Xpeng Motors.
Applied Materials slipped more than 1% in early action, while Deere shares sold off 3%. Estee Lauder tumbled more than 7%, as Keysight shares plunged 15%. Ross Stores jumped 4.5% in morning trade.
Finally, Xpeng skidded more than 6% in morning trading.
Stock Market Today
Electric-vehicle giant Tesla traded down 1.7% Friday morning. Dow Jones tech icons Apple and Microsoft were lower after today's stock market open.
Other stock market leaders include Alphabet, Meta Platforms and Nvidia. GOOGL stock traded down 1%, while Meta shares lost 2.5% in early trade. Finally, Nvidia shares shed 1.5% ahead of next week's earnings results.
Costco Wholesale, Lululemon, SLB and Oracle — as well as Dow Jones stocks Boeing and Visa — are among the best stocks to watch in the ongoing stock market weakness.
Tesla and Costco are IBD Leaderboard stocks, while Boeing and SLB were recent IBD Stock Of The Day picks. Costco was featured in this Stocks Near A Buy Zone column. Oracle is an IBD SwingTrader stock.
Dow Jones Today: Oil Prices, Treasury Yields
After Friday's opening bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.3%, while the S&P 500 lost 0.5%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite tumbled 1% in morning action.
Among U.S. exchange-traded funds, the Nasdaq 100 tracker Invesco QQQ Trust was down 1%, while the SPDR S&P 500 ETF slipped 0.6% early Friday.
Early Friday, the 10-year U.S. Treasury yield ticked lower to 4.26%, after settling at 4.30% Thursday, its highest level since 2007.
West Texas Intermediate oil prices extended their recent losses, dropping nearly 1% Friday. WTI futures hovered right around the $80 a barrel level in morning trade.
Stock Market Action
On Thursday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 0.8%, closing below its 50-day moving average for the first time since June 1. The S&P 500 lost 0.8%.
Meanwhile, the Nasdaq composite moved down 1.2% Thursday, its third straight decline of more than 1%. The last time the index fell at least 1% for three straight days was Oct. 11, according to Dow Jones Market Data.
Thursday's Big Picture column commented, "During market corrections, investors should be focusing on the next round of potential market leaders. One way to do this is by using the relative strength line. The RS line measures a stock's price performance vs. the S&P 500. Look for stock charts in which the line is trending upward, which means the stock is outperforming the S&P."
Now is an important time to read IBD's The Big Picture column as the stock market continues to pull back from this year's highs.
Five Best Dow Jones Stocks To Buy And Watch Now
Dow Jones Stocks: Boeing, Visa
Aerospace giant Boeing broke out in recent weeks, topping a 223.91 flat-base entry. Shares are testing their buy point, and were just above it after Thursday's 2.35% decline. BA stock moved down 0.9% Friday morning.
And Dow Jones payments leader Visa continues to hold in buy range past a 235.57 flat-base buy point, according to IBD MarketSmith pattern recognition. V stock was off 0.6% early Friday.
4 Top Growth Stocks To Buy And Watch In The Stock Market Rally
Stocks To Watch: SLB, Lululemon, Costco, Oracle
Energy giant SLB, formerly known as Schlumberger, remains below its 58.70 buy point in a cup with handle with a 0.2% rise Thursday, according to IBD MarketSmith. SLB stock dipped 0.5% early Friday.
Lululemon has seen continued support around its 50-day line in recent weeks, even after a breakout past a 389.06 buy point sputtered. LULU's RS line is at its highest level since June, according to IBD MarketSmith. LULU stock lost 0.2% Friday morning.
On the IBD Leaderboard, Costco was added as a half-size position last week. The megacap retailer is just shy of a handle entry at 571.16, and back below a mini-trendline near 559-560. On Friday morning, Costco stock edged lower.
Oracle continues to trace a flat base with a 127.54 buy point. An early entry at 121.36 is also in play, as the software leader tries to maintain support around the 50-day line. ORCL stock moved down 0.4% early Friday.
Learn How To Time The Market With IBD's ETF Market Strategy
Best Stocks In Stock Market Rally
These are four best stocks to buy and watch in today's stock market, including a Dow Jones leader.
| Company Name | Symbol | Correct Buy Point | Type Of Buy Point |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oracle | 127.54 | Flat base | |
| Visa | 235.57 | Flat base | |
| SLB | 58.70 | Cup with handle | |
| Costco | 571.16 | Cup with handle |
Source: IBD Data As Of Aug. 16, 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 another 2.8% Thursday, closing further below its 50-day line and extending a losing streak to five sessions. Amid the unabated selling, it's clear that the stock requires more time to consolidate before a new entry.
The electric-vehicle giant threatened to extend Thursday's losses, moving down 1.7% early Friday.
Dow Jones Leaders: Apple, Microsoft
Among Dow Jones stocks, Apple stock dropped 1.5% Thursday, hitting a recent low. The stock remains squarely below the 50-day line following sharp losses in recent weeks. Shares traded down 0.8% Friday.
Microsoft shares also trade below their 50-day line and at recent lows, signs the stock needs more time to consolidate before a new buy point emerges. And on Friday morning, the stock declined 1.2%.
Be sure to follow Scott Lehtonen on Twitter at @IBD_SLehtonen for more on growth stocks and the Dow Jones Industrial Average.
