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Dow Jones Extends Win Streak As These 5 Blue Chip Stocks Rally

The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed off session highs but still extended its win streak to four by holding small gains in the stock market today.

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The Dow Jones industrials climbed 0.1%, the S&P 500 closed flat and the Nasdaq dipped less than 0.2%. Small caps tracked by the Russell 2000 rallied, up 1.2%. Volume was higher on the NYSE and Nasdaq vs. Friday, according to early data.

The three key indexes gapped up at the open but quickly pared gains and headed south. They were coming off of nice gains last week; up 3% for the Dow Jones and 1.8% each for the S&P 500 and Nasdaq. All three remain above their 50-day moving average lines.

Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA) led the Dow Jones index with a 5.8% jump to reclaim its 50-day line. The stock is still hard at work forming a bottoming baseCaterpillar (CAT) weighed in with a 3.7% gain, while Dow (DOW), Goldman Sachs (GS) and JPMorgan (JPM) added more than 2% apiece.

Also among Dow Jones stocks, Apple (AAPL) edged 0.4% higher, ahead of its fall iPhone launch event Tuesday. Shares are 3% below a 221.47 buy point of a new flat base. Analysts don't appear to expect much from the event. Susquehanna Financial Group called the new iPhones "boring" in a recent report.

Oil and gas, retail and bank stocks led the upside among IBD's 197 industry groups. Oil ETFs, boosted by a 2.6% jump in crude oil prices to $58 a barrel, rallied.

Oil, Banks Lead ETF Winners

VanEck Vectors Oil Services (OIH) and SPDR S&P Oil & Gas Exploration & Production (XOP) surged a respective 6.3% and 5.7%. Both funds are trying to break above their downward trending 50-day lines.

SPDR S&P Regional Banking (KRE) and SPDR S&P Bank (KBE) rose more than 3% each. Both ETFs regained their 50-day lines, which have been trending lower too.

But solar, software and advertising plays lagged. The latter two groups weighed on the IBD 50. Online ad platform Trade Desk (TTD) plunged 8% to a three-month low in more than twice normal trade.

Software Leaders Smacked

Enterprise software makers Paylocity (PCTY), Paycom Software (PAYC) and HubSpot (HUBS) tumbled more than 7% each, falling below their 50-day lines in heavy trade to trigger a defensive sell signal. Atlassian (TEAM) shed 4% after halving its earlier loss.

Brazil-based payment firm PagSeguro Digital (PAGS) slumped 9% to test support at its 50-day line. Volume was flat.

IBD 50 stocks avoiding the sell-off included Boot Barn Holdings (BOOT), up 7.2% and recent IPO InMode (INMD), up 7.9%. Financial stocks Essent Group (ESNT), Discover Financial Services (DFS) and Synchrony Financial (SYF) rose more than 2% apiece.

But winners couldn't offset the big losers. As such, the Innovator IBD 50 ETF (FFTY) fell almost 3% in the stock market today.

Follow Nancy Gondo on Twitter at @IBD_NGondo

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