CNBC.com:
Stocks jumped on Thursday, as investors headed into the final trading days of 2022.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 383 points, or 1.1%. The S&P 500 gained 1.9%, and the Nasdaq Composite climbed 2.6%.
The Dow and S&P are up 0.1% each for the week, while the Nasdaq is down 0.3%.
Louis Navellier, founder and chief investment officer of growth investing firm Navellier & Associates, called it an “abbreviated one-day version of a Santa Rally.”
“We were overdue for a rebound, and a lot of the recent weakness may be explained by further tax loss selling once the Santa Rally didn’t materialize,” he said. “We’ll have further volatility into the new year with plenty of uncertainty about whether a soft landing is possible and if not how much resolve the Fed will have to not pivot if we tip into a serious recession.”
Apple shares rebounded after four consecutive days of losses, rising more than 3%.
The market pushed higher early Thursday after the Labor Department reported an increase in jobless claims from last week, amid Federal Reserve efforts to cool the economy and in particular the labor market.
First-time filings for unemployment benefits totaled 225,000 for the week ended Dec. 24, according to the report. That was an increase of 9,000 from the previous week and slightly above the 223,000 estimate from Dow Jones.
The market action follows a broad selloff during the regular session Wednesday as recession fears weighed on investor sentiment in a losing month and year. The Dow lost 365.85 points, or 1.1%. The S&P 500 fell 1.2%, while the Nasdaq Composite dropped 1.35%.
The major averages are headed toward their worst year since 2008. The Dow has lost 8.8%, while the S&P 500 shed 19.7%. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq is the laggard of the three, down 33.6% as investors dumped growth stocks.
“Investors are anticipating an economic recession to materialize early in 2023, as evidenced by the three quarters of projected S&P 500 earnings declines and continued defensive sector leanings,” said Sam Stovall, chief investment strategist at CFRA Research. “The severity of the recession remains in question. We expect it to be mild.”
2 Hours Ago
CFRA double upgrades Netflix
CFRA gave Netflix a double upgraded after applying a wider risk premium and considering where it stood in relation to competitors.
Analyst Kenneth Leon double-upgraded the stock to buy from sell. He also raised the price target by $85 to $310, which implies an upside of 12% over where the stock closed Wednesday.
“We think it will be difficult for competitors to catch NFLX, one of the few profitable streaming providers with global scale,” Leon said in a note to clients Wednesday.
Netflix Cal-Maine Foods among stocks making the biggest moves midday
These are some of the stocks making the biggest moves during midday trading:
- Netflix — The streaming giant gained 6.3% following a double upgrade to buy from sell by CFRA, saying it will be difficult for competitors to catch up with the company.
- Cal-Maine Foods — Cal-Maine shares shed 15% after reporting earnings that fell short of Wall Street’s expectations even as the egg producer reported record sales.
— Samantha Subin
3 Hours Ago
Communication services, tech sectors help lift stocks midday
All 11 sectors of the S&P 500 were positive in midday trading, but the communications services and information technology sectors were leading the charge. Both were up more than 2% around noon ET.
Notable winners in the communications sector include Netflix and Warner Bros. Discovery, both up more than 6%. Netflix recently received a double upgrade from CFRA Research, rising to buy from sell. The firm also lifted its price target on the streaming giant by $85 to $310. Alphabet shares also popped nearly 3%.
Tech names jumping include Apple, up more than 3% after a streak of negative days, and AMD, also up more than 3%. Shares of Tesla rallied more than 8%.
The rally in tech names comes as bond yields ticked lower. The sector has been bashed by rising interest rates, which hurt the present value of those stocks’ future earnings streams.
–Darla Mercado
4 Hours Ago
VanEck liquidating its Russia ETFs
VanEck is winding down its two Russia ETFs, which have been effectively frozen since March.
Trading of Russia stocks has been largely shut down to western investors and firms since the invasion of Ukraine. Franklin Templeton and BlackRock have made similar announcements about their Russia ETFs.
The VanEck Russia ETF (RSX) began the year with more than $1.3 billion in assets under management.
— Jesse Pound
5 Hours Ago
Morgan Stanley’s Jonas cuts Tesla target but is still bullish
The turmoil around Elon Musk and weakness in the electric vehicle market could limit Tesla’s near-term upside, but the company is still in a strong position, according to Morgan Stanley.
Analyst Adam Jonas cut his price target on the automaker’s stock but maintained his overweight rating, saying that Tesla could “widen its lead” during a period of soft demand for electric vehicles.
— Jesse Pound
5 Hours Ago
Stocks jump at the open
The major averages opened higher on Thursday.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 179 points, or 0.6%. The S&P 500 added 0.7% and the Nasdaq Composite gained 1.1%.
— Tanaya Macheel
6 Hours Ago
Jobless filings rose last week; continuing claims hit highest since February
Jobless claims increased last week amid Federal Reserve efforts to cool the economy and in particular the labor market.
First-time filings for unemployment benefits totaled 225,000 for the week ended Dec. 24, the Labor Department reported Thursday. That was an increase of 9,000 from the previous week and slightly above the 223,000 estimate from Dow Jones.
Longer-term, continuing claims, which run a week behind the headline number, jumped to 1.71 million, an increase of 41,000 to the highest level since early February.
The numbers this time of year are always noisy due to the holidays. Claims not adjusted for seasonal factors surged by 23,146, a 9.3% increase.
—Jeff Cox
7 Hours Ago
Stocks making the biggest moves premarket
These are the stocks making the biggest moves before the bell:
- Tesla – Tesla rallied 4.4% in the premarket after posting its first rise in eight sessions Wednesday, softening the blow to its stock in what will still be the worst year ever for Tesla shares.
- Cal-Maine Foods – Cal-Maine slid 4.9% in premarket trading after its quarterly earnings came in below Wall Street forecasts. Cal-Maine reported record sales for the quarter.
- Apple – Apple is up 1% in premarket trading after closing Wednesday at a 1-1/2 year low. Apple is down 29% for 2022.
Check out the full list for more Thursday early morning movers.
— Peter Schacknow, Tanaya Macheel
7 Hours Ago
New active ETF takes aim at the booming battery market
Electric vehicle stocks may have cooled in 2022, but the options for investors to play the trend are continuing to grow with the arrival of the Element EV, Solar & Battery Materials (Lithium, Nickel, Copper, Cobalt) Futures Strategy ETF.
The fund, which is set to begin trading on Thursday, carries a management fee of 0.95% and will trade on the NYSE Arca under the ticker “CHRG.” The fund will buy and sell futures and related products on minerals and metals that are vital for electric vehicles.
Element Funds was co-founded by Goldman Sachs veteran Will McDonough, and the portfolio management team will include fellow co-founders John Raymond and John Calvert from Energy & Minerals Group, a Houston-based private equity firm with $13 billion in assets.
The fund’s active strategy sets it apart from the the KraneShares Electrification Metals Strategy ETF, which launched in October and tracks the Bloomberg Electrification Metals Index. That fund has performed well so far but has thin trading volume and less than $30 million in assets under management.
“This is not something you can play passively. Battery technology is maturing daily,” McDonough said, adding that the portfolio will be adjusted on a monthly basis.
In addition to lithium futures, the fund will also trade in other metals, with an emphasis on copper, said McDonough, who is also the CEO of Element Funds .
“The demand for copper in any electric vehicle of any kind is over 2x what it is in a traditional car. People want to talk about the lithium story — this is as much a copper story as it is a lithium story,” McDonough said.
Outside of Goldman Sachs, McDonough’s career includes stints at Marc Lasry’s Avenue Capital as a wealth manager for professional athletes, including Tom Brady, and as a blockchain entrepreneur.
— Jesse Pound
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