Dow Jones Leads Stock Market Rebound; Moderna Stock Dives Despite Doing This
3 min readThe Dow Jones Industrial Average was leading a broad stock market fight-back amid improving jobless claims data. Cisco Systems (CSCO) and International Business Machines (IBM) were the leading blue chips, while Moderna (MRNA) stock was plunging despite reporting its first-ever profit.
There were also a number of stocks staging breakouts. Cathie Wood’s ETF pick Deere (DE) passed a buy point. So did supermarket play Ingles Markets (IMKTA).
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The Labor Department reported a drop to 498,000 initial jobless claims in the week ended May 1. This beat forecasts for a decline to 533,000 claims.
That was also down from the prior week’s 590,000 claims, and the first week of fewer than 500,000 claims since the start of the pandemic.
Nasdaq, S&P 500 Turn Positive
The Nasdaq briefly rallied out of the red, but was basically flat. Pinduoduo (PDD) was the top performer, rising almost 4%.
The S&P 500 fared better, turning in a gain of around 0.3%. Corn flakes behemoth Kellogg (K) was the big winner here, gaining around 8% as earnings and revenue surpassed estimates.
U.S. Stock Market Today Overview |
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|---|---|---|---|---|
| Index | Symbol | Price | Gain/Loss | % Change |
| Dow Jones | (0DJIA) | 34405.15 | +174.81 | +0.51 |
| S&P 500 | (0S&P5) | 4181.11 | +13.52 | +0.32 |
| Nasdaq | (0NDQC ) | 13574.84 | -7.59 | -0.06 |
| Russell 2000 | (IWM) | 220.80 | -1.60 | -0.72 |
| IBD 50 | (FFTY) | 44.79 | -1.19 | -2.59 |
Last Update: 1:16 PM ET 5/6/2021 |
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The S&P sectors were largely positive. Consumer staples and communication services were leading, while health was the biggest laggard.
Small caps struggled, with the Russell 2000 falling around 0.7% on the stock market today. Growth stocks were faring even worse, with the Innovator IBD 50 ETF (FFTY) down around 2.6%.
Home Depot Stock Helps Dow Jones
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was the leading major index, posting a gain of 0.5%.
Cisco Systems was the best performing component, turning in a gain of around 2.5%. The gain saw Cisco stock break a downtrend.
IBM stock was following closely behind, turning in a gain of around 2%.
Amgen (AMGN) was the biggest laggard, falling around 0.6%.
Moderna Plunges Despite Profit
Moderna stock was battered lower after its first full quarter of Covid vaccine sales lagged forecasts. This overshadowed the fact it managed to post a profit for the first time ever. It has also been plunging on fears the Biden administration could waive patent protection for Covid vaccines.
Moderna posted adjusted EPS of $2.84 per share. That swung from a 35-cent loss in the year-earlier period, and was well clear of analyst views. However $1.94 billion in revenue, including $1.73 billion in sales of its Covid vaccine, was lower than expected. Wall Street was looking for $2.06 billion in sales.
Guidance for 2021 was a bright spot however. The firm expects $19.2 billion in sales this year based on its already-scheduled deliveries. Moderna also boosted its outlook for doses manufactured to 800 million this year. It’s still working to hit 1 billion.
The biotech stock has plunged after nearly reaching a cup-base buy point at 189.36, according to MarketSmith analysis. It is down more than 2% for the day, and has surrendered more than 11% for the week.
Deere Stock Leads Breakouts
Farm equipment maker Deere has passed a cup-with-handle buy point of 386.16, MarketSmith analysis shows.
Deere is a favorite of popular stock picker Cathie Wood. It has won a spot on two of her ARK ETFs, ARK Autonomous Technology & Robotics (ARKQ) and ARK Space Exploration & Innovation (ARKX).
Deere was the IBD 50 Stocks To Watch pick for Wednesday.
North Carolina-based supermarket play Ingles Markets is also in a buy zone after breaking out of a flat base. The ideal entry point here is 65.75. Earnings are this stock’s key strength, with its EPS Rating a strong 93 out of 99.
Please follow Michael Larkin on Twitter at @IBD_MLarkin for more on growth stocks and analysis.
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