Major stock market indexes remained mixed Tuesday afternoon, with the Nasdaq clinging to gains after a morning reversal. Meanwhile, Apple is back near a milestone in value.
A Dow Jones component, Apple was up 2% and on pace toward a $3 trillion market capitalization at the close. The Magnificent Seven stock led the Dow Jones Industrial Average on Tuesday. AAPL is in the buy zone of a 192.93 handle entry within a longer base with an official 198.23 buy point.
Apple may have gotten a boost from a note by a BofA Securities analyst that said the company's App Store revenue is up about 11% in its first fiscal quarter, according to a Barron's article.
Apple also might have benefited from a positive report issued by one of its suppliers, Foxconn. The Taiwan-based company said sales in the first two months of the fourth quarter were slightly better than expected. Foxconn is the leader maker of Apple iPhones.
Economic Data And Major Indexes
Two key business surveys were among the economic reports released Tuesday morning. One was the November S&P Global U.S. Services Purchasing Managers' Index, which came in at the expected 50.8. Also, the November Institute for Supply Management Index rose to 52.7 vs. the 52.4 estimate from economists. A reading above 50 for both indexes means expansion, while below 50 is contraction.
Further, the Labor Department's October Job Openings And Labor Turnover Survey showed that available job openings dropped to 8.733 million, coming in below estimates for 9.4 million. The department's closely watched jobs report is scheduled for Friday, and is the last such filing due before the Federal Reserve's mid-December meeting.
While the Nasdaq climbed 0.1%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 0.3%. The S&P 500 trimmed 0.1% in the stock market today.
All three major indexes remained solidly above their 50-day moving averages. The small-cap Russell 2000 showed weakness and slid 1.3%, but held above its 200-day moving average.
Volume fell on the New York Stock Exchange and the Nasdaq vs. the same time on Monday.
The Invesco QQQ Trust, which tracks the Nasdaq 100, improved from earlier losses, and inched higher 0.1% in recent action. The Innovator IBD 50 ETF fell 0.6%. And the 10-year Treasury yield shed 10 basis points to 4.18%.
Stock Market Movers: Dow Stock PG Sinks
On the losing end of the Dow, Procter & Gamble fell around 3% after the consumer goods giant said it expects to take more than $2 billion in charges related to its 2005 Gillette acquisition. In addition, Procter sees another $1 billion to $1.5 billion in after-tax restructuring charges in its enterprise markets, including Argentina and Nigeria. PG undercut its 50-day and 200-day lines on Tuesday.
Sphere Entertainment tumbled around 13% in huge volume on news it plans an offering of $225 million in convertible senior notes. SPHR stock gapped below its 200-day line and triggered a sell signal. Sphere is a live media and entertainment company.
ArcBest plunged nearly 9% in heavy volume on the stock market after the trucking and transportation company missed third-quarter earnings and sales estimates. Quarterly earnings dropped 39% on a 12% sales decline. The earnings fall was the company's fourth-consecutive declining quarter. In addition, sales fell for three back-to-back quarters. Shares fell back below the 121.85 buy point of a cup-with-handle base.
IBD 50 stock GitLab gapped up in heavy volume and broke out of an irregular base with a 54.38 buy point. Shares of the project planning software stock are above the 5% buy zone, reaching to 57.10.
The move followed the software company's surprise October-quarter profit of 9 cents per share vs. the 1-cent loss expected on higher sales, late Thursday. GitLab also gave a fourth-quarter and full-year fiscal 2024 outlook on earnings and revenue that exceeded analyst estimates.
Apple Hits Buy Zone And $3 Trillion Valuation As Megacaps Rebound
Retail Stock Sinks 30% After Earnings
Designer Brands lost around one-third of its value after the shoe and apparel retailer drastically missed its October-quarter profit and sales estimates. The company also sharply cut its full-year fiscal 2024 earnings and revenue forecasts. DBI stock tumbled below its 50-day and 200-day lines and triggered a sell signal.
Take-Two Interactive dropped 1.4% after the company published its trailer for the Grand Theft Auto VI game on YouTube. The trailer was leaked on X, formerly known as Twitter, a move that pushed the company to officially release its trailer early. The video game is expected to be released in 2025. TTWO is in the buy zone of an undefined base with a 153.84 buy point.
CVS Health gained nearly 4% after the pharmacy retailer gave a fiscal 2024 revenue outlook that was above analyst expectations, though its earnings forecast was just shy of estimates. CVS also spelled out two drug pricing and reimbursement plans to be rolled out in 2025 and raised its dividend by 10%.
Other Stock Market Action: EV Stock Pops
Nio rallied following the company's smaller-than-expected loss during its third quarter, though revenue came in short of views. Deliveries increased by more than 75% over last year's quarter while gross margin fell.
The Chinese electric-vehicle maker expects fourth-quarter revenue to grow as much as 4% with vehicle deliveries rising ranging from 17.3% to 22.3% over last year's quarter. NIO stock is finding resistance at its 50-day line.
Meanwhile, Tesla gained more than 2% and is in a double-bottom base with a 278.98 buy point.
IBD 50 component XP rebounded more than 4% in heavy trading and recovered from Monday's 5.1% drop. JPMorgan upgraded the Brazilian brokerage stock to overweight from neutral and raised its price target to 30 from 27. XP stock is in a cuplike base with a 26.97 buy point.
Signet Jewelers soared more than 4% and is above the buy zone of a long consolidation with an 83.42 buy point. The jewelry retailer reported higher-than-expected third-quarter earnings and sales that were in line.
Follow Kimberley Koenig for more stock market news on X/Twitter @IBD_KKoenig.
