The Dow Jones Industrial Average rallied as U.S. troops were put on alert amid the deepening crisis in Ukraine. Small caps impressed most of all. Meanwhile, Tesla and Nvidia climbed off the canvas after steep intraday drops. Apple was among the worst performing blue chips.
Kohl's attempted an unlikely breakout amid takeover talk, while Universal, Enterprise Products Partners and Cigna showed strength as they hold near buy points.
Ukraine Tensions Mount; U.S. Makes This Move
It emerged Monday that several hundred U.S. troops have been put on standby to potentially deploy to Eastern Europe as tensions mount over Ukraine.
It comes as NATO musters its forces ahead of a potential Russian invasion of its neighbor.
"Prepare to deploy orders" have been issued to troops at several U.S.-based installations, officials told the Wall Street Journal.
While the Pentagon has yet to say under what circumstances American troops would be deployed, it sends a signal to the Russians that the U.S. stands behind its NATO allies.
Russia has deployed tens of thousands of troops at its border with Ukraine but continues to deny planning a new military offensive.
Perhaps more crucial to the fortunes of stocks is this week's Federal Reserve meeting. Its Open Market Committee is expected to divulge more details Wednesday of its plans to fight surging inflation.
Nasdaq Reverses Higher, Small Caps Outperform
The bulls overpowered the bears late as the Nasdaq recovered from being down 5% early to close up 0.6%. Datadog was one of the top performers in the Nasdaq 100, rising 8.4%.
The S&P 500 also managed to fight back well, closing the day up 0.3%. Gap was the star here, rising around 8%.
U.S. Stock Market Today Overview |
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|---|---|---|---|---|
| Index | Symbol | Price | Gain/Loss | % Change |
| Dow Jones | (0DJIA) | 34366.67 | +101.30 | +0.30 |
| S&P 500 | (0S&P5) | 4410.50 | +12.56 | +0.29 |
| Nasdaq | (0NDQC ) | 13855.13 | +86.21 | +0.63 |
| Russell 2000 | 201.69 | +4.70 | +2.39 | |
| IBD 50 | 37.86 | +0.27 | +0.72 | |
Last Update: 4:12 PM ET 1/24/2022 |
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The S&P sectors closed mostly higher. Consumer discretionary and energy made the best gains. Consumer staples and utilities fell the most.
But it was small caps that impressed most of all. The Russell 2000 closed up 2.4%.
Growth stocks also managed to give the bears a bloody nose. The Innovator IBD 50 ETF, a bellwether for growth stocks, rose 0.7%.
Dow Jones Rebounds As Apple Stock Lags
The Dow Jones Industrial Average also managed to turn a sizable midsession loss into a gain of 0.3% by the end of the session. It closed the day up around 100 points.
Apple stock was one of the worst laggards, but closed off lows as shares fell 0.6%. The stock remains below its 10-week moving average amid broad negative action.
Nevertheless, AAPL stock is worth putting on your watchlist as it looks to be forming a new base. The potential buy point here would be 182.23, according to MarketSmith analysis.
Visa was the worst laggard, giving up 2%. Home Depot led the upside as it turned in a gain of 4.2%. The home improvements retailer is looking to rebound off its 200-day moving average.
Tesla Stock Charges Back
Tesla fought back well after taking an early session pounding. It managed to close down 1.5%.
TSLA has hit the skids after a breakout past a double-bottom base and a buy point of 1,202.05 failed.
Tesla stock has also given up all its gains and more after clearing a trendline entry.
Tesla earnings are due Wednesday after the close. If it can post healthy top-and-bottom-line growth, that could be an impetus to recover some of its stock losses.
Nvidia also finished the session well off lows as it surrendered 2%. The chip giant is making a stand so far at its 200-day moving average.
Both Tesla and Nvidia are members of the prestigious IBD Leaderboard list of leading growth stocks.
Kohl's Stock Explodes; These Stocks Show Strength
Kohl's stock exploded above a cup base's entry point of 62.60 amid news the firm is fielding takeover offers from at least two parties. It closed the day in buy range.
Shares gapped through the 50-day and 200-day moving averages. The relative strength line also spiked.
KSS stock's earnings and market performance are far from ideal though. Private equity firm Sycamore is reportedly offering at least $65 per share while Acacia Research is said to have offered $64.
While the stock market is in a correction it is a good idea to looks for stocks showing strength despite wider woes.
Tobacco play Universal is seeing its RS line spike as it eyes a saucer-with-handle buy point of 57.93. Both market and earnings performance are strong.
Oil and gas transportation stock Enterprise Products Partners also held up well. It remains close to a double-bottom base entry of 24.86. Earnings are imminent though, which adds risk.
Cigna is also near its entry point after closing flat for the day. It has formed a cup-with-handle base with a buy point of 244.78.
Please follow Michael Larkin on Twitter at @IBD_MLarkin for more on growth stocks and analysis.
