News:
Markets continued their sideways trend on Wednesday.
New data revealed that Q3 GDP gained more than initially estimated. The advance estimate put annualized growth at 4.9%. Yesterday’s release raised it to 5.2%
Markets showed little reaction to the news.
The indexes opened green and faded into the close…
- Dow Jones +0.0%
- Nasdaq -0.2%
- S&P 500 -0.1%
- Russell 2000 +0.6%
Sector Round Up
The sectors failed to produce gains (or losses) of more than 1% for the sixth day in a row.
6 of the 11 sectors closed Wednesday’s session higher.
At the top…
- Real Estate (XLRE) +0.8%
- Financials (XLF) +0.7%
- Materials (XLB) +0.5%
At the bottom…
- Energy (XLE) -0.7%
- Utilities (XLU) -0.8%
- Consumer Staples (XLP) -0.8%
Tech Take Off
As “smaller” tech companies report earnings, some of their shares are making outsize gains. Here are a few of the names and trends to watch…
Shares of cloud service provider NetApp (NTAP) soared 15% on upbeat guidance led by AI applications.
- The CEO said it’s turning “disruption into opportunity”
- The gains added $2.4 billion in market cap
Cyber-security firm CrowdStrike (CRWD) popped 10% on strong demand and growing forecasts.
- High-profile breaches are driving larger investments in threat prevention
- Buyers added $4.9 billion to the company’s market cap
HR software company Workday (WDAY) gained 11% on its earnings beat and raised guidance.
- The CEO credited “our AI innovation” for the growing demand
- The pop in share price represents $5.3 billion in new market cap
Technicals:
The trend for fear remains low.
Sure, the VIX has breached the bullish channel marked on the chart above. But it hasn’t maintained any significant amount of fear for more than a few weeks.
As long as the VIX remains low, the market is clear to move higher.
Your latest readout…
- RSI levels for the big three indexes remain overbought
- The put-to-call ratio is neutral
Timing:
This morning at 8:30 AM, the Fed-preferred measure of inflation will drop in the form of the CPE report.
The last four reports showed price increases near 3.4%.
Bulls could go wild if the figure comes in below 3%. As always, the market’s reaction is more important than the data itself.
Watchlist:
*Low Float
^Open Position
*DRCT support at $10, resistance at $12.50
*GYRE on watch
*SHOT support at $4, resistance at $5
*EJH support at $4.50, resistance at $5
*MYO support at $3.20, resistance at $3.50
HRTG support at $8
Secondary watchlist—float about 100 million
NMRK support at $8
GPS on watch
AFRM on watch
SID support at $3.20