Dow Jones Falls 325 Points On Rising Jobless Claims; PacWest Crashes 49% On Possible Sale

The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 325 points Thursday after the Labor Department’s weekly first-time jobless claims. Regional bank PacWest Bancorp (PACW) crashed 49% after a report that the company was weighing a possible sale. Meanwhile, Apple (AAPL) earnings are due after the close.

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PacWest said in a news release Thursday morning that it is in talks with investors and gave updates on its level of deposits. Banking fears continued, as the SPDR S&P Regional Banking ETF (KRE) sold off 4.3% in Thursday’s early trade. First Horizon (FHN) plunged 37%, while Western Alliance (WAL) and Zions Bancorporation (ZION) dropped 11% and 3%, respectively.

On the economic front this morning, jobless claims rose more than expected, to 242,000 vs. 230,000 in the previous week. They were expected to rise to 238,000.

Key earnings movers Thursday morning include Etsy (ETSY), HubSpot (HUBS), Qualcomm (QCOM) and Shopify (SHOP).

Etsy reported first-quarter earnings and revenue that topped analyst estimates, while the company’s revenue outlook came in below expectations. ETSY stock lost 6% in morning trade.

HubSpot results for the March quarter handily beat Wall Street targets Wednesday as the company’s sales outlook edged by views. HUBS stock advanced more than 8% early.

Wireless-chip leader Qualcomm met expectations for earnings as it beat views for sales in its fiscal second quarter. However, it guided below Wall Street’s targets for the current period. QCOM stock tumbled nearly 8% in early trading.

E-commerce firm Shopify topped analyst estimates. SHOP stock surged 19% as the company announced the sale of its delivery and logistics business to Flexport.

Electric-vehicle giant Tesla traded up nearly 1% Thursday morning. Dow Jones tech giants Apple (AAPL) and Microsoft (MSFT) were mixed after today’s stock market open.

IBD SwingTrader stock Lam Research (LRCX), IBD Leaderboard stock Las Vegas Sands (LVS), Nvidia (NVDA) and Paccar (PCAR) — as well as Dow Jones stocks JPMorgan Chase (JPM), Nike (NKE) and Visa (V) — are among the top stocks to watch in the struggling stock market uptrend.

JPMorgan was featured in this week’s Stocks Near A Buy Zone column. InMode and Nvidia were recent IBD Stock Of The Day topics. Paccar received an IBD Stock Analysis close-up on Thursday.

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Dow Jones Today: Oil Prices, Treasury Yields

After Thursday’s opening bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1%, and the S&P 500 moved down 0.8%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite lost 0.6% in morning action.

Among U.S. exchange-traded funds, the Nasdaq 100 tracker Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) fell 0.5%, while the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) traded down 0.6% early Thursday.

The 10-year U.S. Treasury yield on Thursday traded down to 3.39%, threatening to extend a losing streak to three sessions.

U.S. oil prices were slightly lower after big overnight losses. West Texas Intermediate futures are at their lowest level since March, below $69 barrel — and down sharply for the week.

Stock Market Rally Struggles

On Wednesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.8%, with Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA) one of the big losers. WBA stock tumbled 4%, near its recent lows. The S&P 500 lost 0.7%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite dropped 0.5%.

Wednesday’s Big Picture column commented, “Investors mostly frowned on Wednesday’s decision by the Federal Reserve to push up short-term interest rates by another quarter point for the third time this year. But if recent history indicates anything, the stock market also showed a few silver linings.”

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: JPMorgan, Nike, Visa

JPMorgan shares closed further below a cup-with-handle’s 141.88 buy point, with a 2.1% drop Wednesday, according to IBD MarketSmith pattern recognition. JPM stock was down 0.5% Thursday morning.

Nike shares fell 0.4% Wednesday, finishing further below a cup-with-handle’s 127.59 buy point. NKE stock dropped 0.2% early Thursday.

Visa shares closed further below a 230.15 cup-with-handle buy point after Wednesday’s 0.4% decline. If the stock retakes the entry, the buy range will go up to 241.66. V stock was up 1.3% Thursday.

4 Top Growth Stocks To Watch In The Stock Market Rally

Best Stocks To Buy And Watch: Nvidia, Paccar

Nvidia shares finished Wednesday back below a 280.10 buy point in a short consolidation after the session’s 1.45% drop, according to IBD MarketSmith. NVDA stock was down 0.3% Thursday morning.

Backstory: On Monday, Rosenblatt Securities analyst Hans Mosesmann named Nvidia as 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 gave up its 50-day line Wednesday, falling 1.1%. Shares continue to build a flat base with a 76.82 buy point, and an early entry at 75.83 is also in play. Paccar shares rose 0.1% Thursday 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.

Lam Research, Las Vegas Sands

IBD SwingTrader stock Lam Research remains close to an early entry at 533.19, while forming a flat base with a 548.95 buy point. LRCX stock was up 0.3% Thursday 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 Las Vegas Sands fell back into buy range above a 60.40 buy point in a cup with handle, as LVS stock dropped 3.4% Wednesday. The buy zone tops out at 63.42. Shares inched higher  Thursday.

Backstory: In recent weeks, Las Vegas Sands smashed earnings expectations for the first quarter and signaled a “robust recovery” in China’s Macau gaming hub. The casino stock posted earnings of 28 cents per share, up from a loss of 40 cents per share a year ago. Revenue vaulted nearly 125% to $2.12 billion. On Monday, Macau officials said April gaming revenue surged 450% year over year to hit a three-year high.

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 1, 2023

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

Tesla Stock

Tesla stock inched higher Wednesday, reversing a two-day decline. Still, TSLA stock is holding near its lowest level since Jan. 26. In recent weeks, shares triggered the 7%-8% loss rule from a buy point at 200.76 in a cup with handle. And they are trading sharply below their 50-day line, a key level. The stock closed Wednesday 50% off its 52-week high.

TSLA stock looked to add to Wednesday’s gains, trading up 0.8% early Thursday.

Dow Jones Leaders: Apple Earnings, Microsoft

Among Dow Jones stocks, Apple shares lost 0.65% Wednesday, falling for a third consecutive session. They remain solidly above a 157.48 buy point and out of the buy range that ran up to 165.35. AAPL stock lost 1.5% Thursday. Apple reports its fiscal second-quarter results late Thursday.

Microsoft shares are sharply above a flat base’s 276.86 buy point despite another slight fall Wednesday. The 5% buy area went up from the buy point to 290.70. MSFT stock hit a 52-week high last week. On Thursday morning, MSFT stock gained 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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