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Nasdaq Falls Sharply As Facebook, Nvidia, Broadcom, Arista Take Hits

The stock market was sharply lower Monday afternoon as a sell-off in FANG name Facebook (FB) fueled negative sentiment.

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The Nasdaq composite took the most heat, falling 2.3%, as Facebook plunged 7%. The former leader is testing longer-term support at the 200-day moving average near 172.50. Shares were weak after reports over the weekend surfaced that Cambridge Analytica, a data mining and analysis firm used by President's Trump's 2016 campaign, collected data on millions of Facebook users without their knowledge.

The Dow Jones industrial average lost 1.7% and the S&P 500 gave back 1.8%. Volume on the Nasdaq was tracking slightly higher than Friday's level, which was elevated due to options expiration. NYSE volume was on pace to be lower. Volume on the NYSE was more than double-average Friday.

The put/call ratio was at 1.07, indicating some fear in the market, but it's not an extreme reading indicating that a bottom could be near.

Other FANG names lagged as shares of Amazon.com (AMZN), Netflix (NFLX) and Alphabet (GOOGL) showed losses ranging from 2.5% to 3.5%.

In the stock market today, Dow component Apple (AAPL) was lower by 2%. A Bloomberg report on Sunday said Apple is developing next-generation MicroLED screens for the iPhone. The news pressured shares of Universal Display (OLED), which has been on a downtrend since mid-January.

Laggards in the Nasdaq 100 included semiconductor names KLA-Tencor (KLAC), Nvidia (NVDA) and Broadcom (AVGO), with losses ranging from  from 4% to 5%.

IBD's computer neworking group lagged badly, falling nearly 5%, mostly due to weakness in market leader Arista Networks (ANET) and Juniper Networks (JNPR). Shares of Arista slumped 6%,  hurt by a Deutsche Bank downgrade to sell from hold. Arista is testing support at the 50-day moving average again. Shares of Juniper were down 4%.

Growth stocks were pressured across the board, with nearly half the names in the IBD 50 down 2% or more.

HealthEquity (HQY) was pressured ahead of its earnings report after the close. Shares lost 3% to 57.61. The fast-growing custodian of health savings accounts is back near the high end of a buy range from a conventional entry at 55.41, but the stock is prone to volatile price swings. It's also not a candidate for a call-option trade ahead of earnings due to a pricey premium.

The two-day Federal Reserve meeting gets underway Tuesday and a decision on interest rates will be out Wednesday at 2 p.m. ET. It's Jerome Powell's first meeting as the new chairman of the Fed. The market is widely expecting the Federal Open Market Committee to raise the federal funds rate to a range of 1.50% to 1.75%.

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