Dow Jones Futures Rise. Occidental Drops On Warren Buffett Comments.

Dow Jones futures rose modestly in a tightly mixed overall market early Monday. Key inflation data and Disney earnings are on tap for this week. Embattled regional bank PacWest (PACW) soared after cutting its dividend. And Occidental Petroleum (OXY) cut its losses after Warren Buffett said Berkshire Hathaway (BRKB) is not seeking full control of the energy group.

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Regional banks looked to add to Friday’s gains, as the SPDR S&P Regional Bank ETF (KRE) climbed 2.2% early Monday. Late Friday, PacWest announced it was cutting its dividend in order to protect its balance sheet. Shares surged more than 35% Monday. Western Alliance (WAL) rallied 11% in morning trade.

On the economic front this week, the consumer price index for April is out at 8:30 a.m. ET on Wednesday. Inflation data will be keenly watched throughout May, after the Federal Reserve last week hinted at a possible pause, in June, to the rate-hike regimen that is slowing inflation but aggravating financial sector instability. Regulators said they “will closely monitor incoming information and assess the implications for monetary policy.”

Key earnings reporters this week include Skyworks Solutions (SWKS), Trade Desk (TTD), Walt Disney (DIS) and Wynn Resorts (WYNN).

Lam Research (LRCX), IBD Leaderboard stock HubSpot (HUBS), Nvidia (NVDA) and Paccar (PCAR) — as well as Dow Jones stocks Nike (NKE) and Visa (V) — are among the best stocks to watch in the struggling stock market uptrend.

Nvidia was a recent IBD Stock Of The Day topic. Nike received an IBD Stock Analysis last week, while Paccar also got an IBD Stock Analysis treatment recently.

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Dow Jones Today: Oil Prices, Treasury Yields

Ahead of Monday’s opening bell, Dow Jones futures rose 0.2% vs. fair value, and S&P 500 futures moved up 0.2%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 futures fell 0.2% in morning action.

Among U.S. exchange-traded funds, the Nasdaq 100 tracker Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) rose less than 0.1%, while the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) traded up 0.2% early Monday.

The 10-year U.S. Treasury yield on Monday traded up to 3.48%, looking to add to Friday’s gains.

U.S. oil prices rebounded another 3% Monday morning, as West Texas Intermediate futures moved back above $73 a barrel. Last week, WTI futures briefly dived below $64 a barrel on Thursday before bouncing.

Stock Market Rally Still Under Pressure

On Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rallied 1.65%, while the S&P 500 advanced 1.85%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite surged 2.25%.

Friday’s Big Picture column commented, “It is important to stay defensive after one impressive session, especially amid a flurry of distribution days. For now at least, the stock market uptrend remains under pressure and exposure should still be limited to 20% to 40%.”

Now is an important time to read IBD’s The Big Picture column with the stock market still struggling to maintain its uptrend.

Five Best Dow Jones Stocks To Buy And Watch Now

Dow Jones Stocks To Buy And Watch: Nike, Visa

Nike shares rallied 2.4% Friday, just below a cup-with-handle’s 127.59 buy point, according to IBD MarketSmith pattern recognition. NKE stock gained 0.1% early Monday.

Visa shares bullishly reclaimed a 230.15 cup-with-handle buy point during Friday’s 2.7% gain. The buy range goes up to 241.66. V stock was up 0.2% Monday.

4 Top Growth Stocks To Watch In The Stock Market Rally

Best Stocks To Buy And Watch: Nvidia, Paccar

Nvidia shares finished Friday back above a 280.10 buy point in a short consolidation after the session’s 4.1% jump, according to IBD MarketSmith. NVDA stock was down 0.3% Monday morning.

Backstory: Last week,, Rosenblatt Securities analyst Hans Mosesmann named Nvidia one of seven semiconductor stocks likely to benefit from the surge in spending by tech companies around artificial intelligence. Nvidia sells graphics processing units, accelerators, software tools and other offerings for AI projects.

Paccar snapped a three-day day skid Friday, rising 2.45%. Shares are back above their 50-day line and continue to build a flat base with a 76.82 buy point, with an early entry at 75.83. Paccar shares rose 0.2% Monday morning.

Backstory: The producer of heavy-duty semi-trucks topped first-quarter estimates on April 25, reporting a 96% earnings spike. At CES 2022, Paccar exhibited connected and autonomous trucks. The company behind the Kenworth, Peterbilt and DAF nameplates showcased three vehicles.

HubSpot, Lam Research

Lam Research remains close to an early entry at 533.19, while forming a flat base with a 548.95 buy point. LRCX stock edged lower Monday morning.

Backstory: Lam Research supplies wafer fabrication equipment to the semiconductor industry. It is one of just three companies involved in etching and deposition for chip production. Lam also makes equipment used in NAND flash memory modules. These account for roughly half of total sales.

IBD Leaderboard stock HubSpot advanced 5.5% last week amid strong first-quarter earnings results. The earnings gap up on Thursday displays an alternate entry near 455.68, the high of the first 5-minute bar during the session’s action. HUBS stock was flat in Monday morning trade.

Backstory: The Cambridge, Mass., firm specializes in helping businesses automate marketing and sales operations. Its cloud-based platform also assists clients in social media, search engine optimization and website content management. Earnings and sales have grown sharply over most of the past eight quarters. In the first quarter, profit growth accelerated for the third straight period, up 122%. Revenue increased 27% to $501.6 million.

Learn How To Time The Market With IBD’s ETF Market Strategy

Best Stocks To Buy And Watch In Stock Market Rally

These are four best stocks to buy and watch in today’s stock market, including three Dow Jones leaders.

Source: IBD Data As Of May 8, 2023

Join IBD experts as they analyze leading stocks in the current stock market rally on IBD Live

Tesla Stock

Tesla stock raced 5.5% higher Friday, rebounding from its recent lows. Shares remain below their 50-day line, as they look to build a new base. The stock closed Friday 47% off its 52-week high.

TSLA stock looked to add to Friday’s gains, trading up 2.5% early Monday.

Dow Jones Leaders: Apple, Microsoft

Among Dow Jones stocks, Apple shares surged 4.7% Friday after the company’s strong earnings report. They closed just off their 52-week highs, which were set back in mid-August. The stock continues to add to gains above a 157.48 buy point and it is out of the buy range that ran up to 165.35. AAPL stock fell 0.2% premarket Monday

Microsoft shares are sharply above a flat base’s 276.86 buy point, as they hit a new 52-week high Friday with a 1.7% gain. The 5% buy area went up from the buy point to 290.70. On Monday morning, MSFT stock lost 0.4%.

Be sure to follow Scott Lehtonen on Twitter at @IBD_SLehtonen for more on growth stocks and the Dow Jones Industrial Average.

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