Dow Jones futures were little changed after hours, along with S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq futures. JP Morgan Chase (JPM), Wells Fargo (WFC) and Citigroup (C) Report early on Friday.
x
Stock markets generally rallied as investors shrugged off a mixed March PPI inflation report after Wednesday’s tepid CPI inflation reading.
The Nasdaq nears a record. Nvidia ( NVDA ) led the way, flashing a buy signal again after Wednesday’s rally.
Companion AI chip and hardware stock Broadcom (AVGO), Astera Labs (ALAB) Arista Networks (ANET) and Super Microcomputer (SMCI) also had a strong session. In the realm of software, Data Dog (DDOG) triggered the initial entry while Microsoft (MSFT) moved up into buy range.
Thursday offered some buying opportunities, but don’t increase exposure too quickly. This could be the start of a new run, but it could be a false signal. Indices, even the Nasdaq, are still in a sideways pattern.
Nvidia stock is on the IBD leaderboard. Nvidia, Microsoft and Broadcom stocks are on SwingTrader. Microsoft stock is on IBD’s long-term leaders. Nvidia, Microsoft, Citigroup and Arista stocks are on the IBD 50. Nvidia, Datadog, Broadcom, Arista, Networks and Super Micro Stock are on the IBD Big Cap 20.
Microsoft was Thursday’s IBD Stock of the Day.
Dow Jones Futures Today
Dow Jones futures rose 0.1 percent versus fair value. S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq 100 futures were roughly flat.
Remember that overnight action in Dow futures and elsewhere does not necessarily translate into actual trading in the next regular stock market session.
Join IBD experts as they analyze leading stocks and market rallies on IBD Live.
Bank income
Early Friday, JPMorgan, Wells Fargo, Citigroup and Black rock (BLK) report, eliminating bank income.
JPMorgan stocks, Wells Fargo and Citigroup are finding support around their 21-day lines after strong advances. Wells Fargo stock, near a test of the 10-week line, has a tight five-week entry of 58.44.
BlackRock stock is falling, missing its 50-day line.
Stock market rally
The stock market rallied on Thursday on relief that the PPI inflation report was not too bad. Investors piled into AI stocks.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed partly lower in stock market trading on Thursday after hitting its worst intraday level in nearly two months. The S&P 500 index climbed 0.7%, trailing its 21-day line. The Nasdaq Composite jumped 1.7 percent to a record close.
Once again, Nvidia led the Nasdaq and the S&P 500, both of which have rebounded from 10-week highs this week.
Among the other AI plays discussed in this article, Google Parents the alphabet (GOOGL) and Amazon.com ( AMZN ) rose 2.1% and 1.7%, respectively, both to new highs and nearing $2 trillion market caps. apple ( AAPL ) rebounded from 2024 lows, rising 4.3 percent as JPMorgan expected an AI-powered iPhone this fall.
But while megacaps and AI plays shined, volume was noticeably lighter on both exchanges versus Wednesday. Market sentiment was positive, but weakened by the Nasdaq’s gains.
The small-cap Russell 2000 climbed 0.7%, just above its 50-day line.
The Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight ETF ( RSP ) fell 0.1% after falling to its 10-week line intraday.
The FirstTrust Nasdaq 100 Equal Weighted Index ETF (QQEW) rose 1%, lagging the Nasdaq 100’s 1.6% gain but only regaining the 50-day.
The Nasdaq Composite cleared a trend line as it set a near record. It is still within the ugly downside of April 4th.
Ideally, this would coincide with wider market participation.
US crude oil prices fell 1.4 percent to $85.02 a barrel.
The 10-year Treasury yield rose 2 basis points to 4.575 percent, a five-month high and up 20 basis points for the week.
ETFs
Among growth ETFs, iShares’ Expanded Tech-Software Sector ETF ( IGV ) gained 0.7%, with Microsoft stock No. 1. The VanEck Vectors Semiconductor ETF ( SMH ) jumped 2.3%, with Nvidia the No. 1 component and Broadcom stock a key member.
Reflecting a more speculative stock story, the ARK Innovation ETF ( ARKK ) climbed 1.5% and the ARK Genomics ETF ( ARKG ) climbed 0.5%.
SPDR S&P Metals & Mining ETF (XME) gained 0.35%. The SPDR S&P Homebuilders ETF ( XHB ) gained 0.4%. The Energy Select SPDR ETF ( XLE ) was down 0.2% and the Healthcare Select Sector SPDR Fund ( XLV ) was down 0.4%.
The Industrial Select Sector SPDR Fund ( XLI ) rose 0.1%. The Financial Select SPDR ETF ( XLF ) fell 0.6%, with stocks from JPMorgan, Wells Fargo and Citigroup all notable holdings.
Time the Market with IBD’s ETF Market Strategy
Nvidia stock
Nvidia stock rose 4.1 percent to 906.16, breaking above a 21-day line and breaking a brief downtrend. It offered an early entry, a day after the rally from the 10-week line. After Friday’s close, NVDA stock is set to have a flat base with a 974 buy point.
Raymond James raised his Nvidia price target to 1,100 from 850 on Thursday.
Other AI stocks
Broadcom’s stock rose 4.5 percent to 1,382.56, bouncing off the 21-day and 10-week lines to its highest close in a month. The chip and software giant is on track to hit a new high after Friday. Investors can use the April 4 high of 1,403.28 as a handle buy point.
Astera Labs rose 6% to 75.59, offering a buy signal for the first time, clearing key resistance at the 75 level. The AI ​​networking chipmaker, which went public in March, has an IPO base of 95.21 with an official buy point. As a brand new IPO, ALAB stock is highly volatile.
Super Micro stock rose 3.2 percent to 937.28, bouncing off the 50-day line on light volume. Investors can use this as a place to initiate a position. Ideally, SMCI stock will reclaim its 21-day line and break the downward sloping trend line, which is currently near the 1,000 level. It is a volatile stock.
Arista Networks stock rose 2.9 percent to 296.58, above the 21-day line and the 292.66 flat-base buy point, according to Market Surge. Shares have traded around this entry for a few weeks.
Datadog stock rose 4% to 130.80, closing above the 50-day line for the first time since early March. It offered early entry into a flat-base, base-on-base pattern.
Microsoft stock rose 1.1 percent to 427.93, bouncing off the 21-day line and clearing some short-term levels.
On Thursday, Morgan Stanley raised its price target to 520 from 465, citing the Dow tech titan’s creative AI leadership. Shares are in the 420.86 buy point range from a short consolidation cleared in mid-March. MSFT stock may be working on a tight three-week pattern with a potential entry of 430.82.
Microsoft reports earnings on April 23, which has big implications for Nvidia, Arista and the entire tech sector.
What should be done now?
There were some encouraging signs on Thursday. Perhaps the market rally is starting to turn the corner and get another leg up. Or it could be another head fake.
Investors should have splurged on some names on Thursday, given strength in well-known stocks such as the Nasdaq and Nvidia.
But be careful about getting too excited and aggressively increasing exposure. Be prepared to pull back if Thursday’s gains don’t hold.
Whether or not you took any action on Thursday, you may want to wait for the Nasdaq to reach an intraday high before making a new purchase. Better overall width would be a big plus.
It’s time to get busy and stay up-to-date with your watchlist. There are a lot of interesting stocks setting up, some of which look viable.
Read The Big Picture every day to stay in tune with market direction and leading stocks and sectors.
Please follow Ed Carson on threads @edcarson1971 and on X/Twitter. @IBD_ECarson For stock market updates and more.
You may also like:
Why the IBD Tool Makes Finding Top Stocks Easy
Best Growth Stocks to Buy and Watch
IBD Digital: Unlock IBD’s premium stock lists, tools and analysis today.