The S&P 500 ended a volatile session with a 0.3% gain Thursday, as indexes closed well off session lows but the market outlook remained uncertain. Meanwhile, a popular retail sector ETF hit a six-year low.
XThe S&P 500 index was down as much as 0.5% and up as much as 0.6% before settling in the upper part of its daily price range.
The Nasdaq composite — hobbling along with some retail, networking and telecom stocks — fell 0.1% after losing a small gain late in the day.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average, which had its worst day of 2019 yesterday, climbed 0.4% despite the drag from Cisco Systems' (CSCO) 8.6% plunge on disappointing guidance.
Walmart (WMT) led the Dow, after the retailer's earnings topped expectations thanks in part to strong online sales. Walmart shares gapped back above the 50-day moving average in heavy volume.
Beaten-up Boeing (BA) also contributed with a 2.4% increase. Bloomberg reported that the Federal Aviation Administration is leaning toward not requiring new simulator training before the 737 Max can return to operations. But Boeing suffered a setback with its 777X program, announcing that an extra-long range version of the wide-body jet will be delayed.
Volume fell on the Nasdaq and edged higher on the NYSE, according to preliminary data.
Small caps lagged. The Russell 2000 lost 0.4%, much of it from weakness in energy small caps.
IBD 50 Matches S&P 500
Leading stocks made little headway, with the Innovator IBD 50 ETF up 0.3% after suffering a 3.4% drubbing on Wednesday. StoneCo (STNE) cost the IBD 50 quite a bit when the Brazilian payments company plunged on its earnings report. StoneCo shares fell below the 50-day moving average in heavy volume and triggered a loss-cutting sell signal.
The market maintained a defensive tilt. Consumer staples, real estate and utilities were the best-performing S&P sectors. Transportation, energy, industrial and consumer discretionary were among the weakest sectors.
The price of U.S. crude oil was quoted at $55.33 a barrel late Thursday, down 1%. Treasury yields continued their downward march. The 10-year note fell 5 basis points to 1.53%. The inflation-adjusted yield on the 30-year fell to the lowest closing since April 2013, according to Tradeweb. That's hurting some financial stocks.
Retail stocks remained a laggard, despite a strong report on the nation's retailers. U.S. retail sales rose 0.7% in July, much better than expected. Sales excluding autos and gasoline climbed 0.9%.
The SPDR S&P Retail ETF (XRT) fell 1.6%, dropping to the lowest level since June 2013. Consumer electronics, jewelry, direct-order and auto dealer industry groups were some of the worst performing in the retail sector.
Juan Carlos Arancibia is the Markets Editor of IBD and oversees our market coverage. Follow him at @IBD_jarancibia
YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE:
After Hours: 5 Key Stocks Moving On News
Get Free IBD Newsletters: Market Prep | Tech Report | How To Invest
When Is A Double-Bottom Base Something Else? Knowing Determines When To Buy
Get Notifications For Live IBD Videos By Subscribing On YouTube
