The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped on Wednesday afternoon as indexes gave up early gains. Warren Buffett stock BYD fell after Berkshire Hathaway sold some of its stake. Bed Bath & Beyond stock cratered, with fellow meme stocks AMC Entertainment and GameStop also sliding.
Meanwhile, a trio of stocks are showing impressive relative strength as they eye buy points. Burger King parent Restaurant Brands International, Waste Connections and AES are all stalking entries.
Volume is falling on the Nasdaq vs. the same time on Tuesday.
The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note inched up a single basis point to 3.12%. West Texas Intermediate crude oil is off lows for the day, trading at $90.26 per barrel.
The latest ADP employment data indicates that private payrolls grew by 132,000 jobs in August, much lower than the expected 300,000 gain. The miss comes as the Federal Reserve looks for economic softening as it raises interest rates.
Nasdaq Gains Fade; Small Caps Lag
Early Nasdaq composite gains evaporated, dropping the index by 0.3%. The S&P 500 trades lower by the same percentage at this hour.
The S&P 500 sectors are mixed, with energy and communication services faring best. Materials and consumer discretionary are the worst laggards.
Bears are also biting the small caps, with the Russell 2000 down 0.1%.
The Innovator IBD 50 ETF, a bellwether for growth stocks, actually powered off lows but remains down 0.1%.
In other stock market news, CrowdStrike lagged as it dipped nearly 7%. PVH also struggles, falling almost 10%.
Dow Jones Today: Microsoft Gains Fade
The Dow Jones Industrial Average is faring worst of the major indexes, falling 0.5%.
Microsoft was one of the better performers but saw gains disappear. It is trading fractionally negative.
Microsoft stock has fallen below the key 50-day line, after previously being turned away at the 200-day moving average.
Walgreens Boots Alliance is faring best on the Dow Jones, inching up nearly 1%.
Merck, Intel and Salesforce jousted for the dubious honor of being the worst stock on the index. Salesforce is winning the contest so far, down nearly 2%.
Warren Buffett Stock Sells Off After Berkshire Trims
BYD, a component in Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway portfolio, continued to plunge after news that Berkshire Hathaway had sold some of its stake.
The over-the-counter (pink sheet) stock gapped down in sympathy when U.S. markets opened on Tuesday, following a hosing on the Hong Kong stock exchange. It closed down almost 8% in that venue.
BYDDF stock is down almost 5% on the stock market today. It earlier flashed a sell signal by falling below its 200-day line Tuesday. Berkshire jettisoned more than 1 million Hong Kong-listed shares of the electric-vehicle maker last week.
Berkshire made the move as China-based EV makers get ready to report August sales on Thursday.
Elon Musk-led rival EV maker Tesla was down marginally.
BBBY Stock Melts Down Again On New Twist
Meme stock Bed Bath & Beyond saw its losses intensify. It's trading near lows for the day after falling more than 22% in big volume.
BBBY stock is down after the firm filed to sell additional shares in the future, amid ongoing struggles.
The company also revealed ongoing moves to shore up its finances. This includes commitments for more than $500 million in new debt.
It got a shellacking earlier this month after GameStop Chairman Ryan Cohen's RC Ventures sold all its stock in the company.
BBBY stock has already flashed multiple sell signals and fell further below its downward-sloping 200-day moving average.
AMC stock was down more than 4% in sympathy while GameStop, the original meme stock, fell over 3%.
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Outside Dow Jones: 3 Stocks Near Entries Flex Muscles
While the market is choppy, a trio of stocks impressed, with their relative strength lines hitting new highs as they eye buy points.
Burger King parent Restaurant Brands International is trying to close in on a cup-with-handle buy point of 61.19.
The burger chain is in the top 13% of stocks in terms of price performance over the past 12 months. It holds a strong Composite Rating of 93.
Waste Connections has formed its own cup-with-handle base. The potential entry here is 144.56.
The Pollution Control Industry Group has been improving of late. Institutional sentiment is rising, with the stock holding an Accumulation-Distribution Rating of B, on an A+ to E scale with A+ tops.
Utility play AES formed a cup, though a handle has yet to form. As it stands, it's trying to pass a buy point of 26.62.
Please follow Michael Larkin on Twitter at @IBD_MLarkin for more analysis of growth stocks.
