Stocks were on the rise for the fourth week in a row thanks to a boffo Friday run that helped put a crappy midweek in the rear-view mirror. Energy and financial stocks were among those shares helping to lead markets forward.
Friday was green in a big way, as the Dow Jones Industrial Average surged 1.28% and the S&P 500 pushed 1.64% higher by the end of the day’s action. And now that we’re heading into Monday, investors and traders will want to start the week by keeping tabs on Ford Motor Compay (NYSE:F), United Continental Holdings Inc (NYSE:UAL) and Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX).
Here’s why:
Ford Motor Company (F)
Ford announced on March 11 that it is expanding its mobility services with the creation of Ford Smart Mobility LLC, which will operate out of Palo Alto, Calif.
The subsidiary will design, build and invest in a number of mobility services such as driver assist technologies and autonomous vehicles. Ford will partner up with other tech companies and startups to develop new products.
Ford CEO Mark Fields said the LLC — which has conducted more than 30 global mobility experiments in the past 14 months — is “joining a booming transportation services market that accounts for $5.4 trillion in annual revenue.”
Friday’s 1%-plus gain wasn’t much, but it did help stem a recent short-term slide for F stock, which is currently battling technical resistance at its 200-day moving average.
United Continental Holdings Inc (UAL)
United Airlines is in the midst of a proxy fight with two investors over its performance. The hedge funds are trying to win seats on the board as CEO Oscar Munoz tries to right the ship after returning from heart transplant surgery.
PAR Capital Management Inc and Altimeter Capital Management LP said the airline’s performance is “inexcusable” and implored shareholders to consider six new directors for the company’s board.
UAL and Munoz have received support from the Air Line Pilots Association, a union that represents United mechanics and flight attendants. “United’s pilots have grave concerns about the sudden attempt by two activist investors to gain effective control of United’s board of directors,” said Todd Insler of the Air Line Pilots Association in a news release.
From their January 2015 peak through their January 2016 bottom, shares had tanked some 40%. However, shares are on a roughly 30% rebound since mid-January, including Friday’s 2% gains.
Chevron Corporation
One of the week’s companies to look out for is Chevron, as the energy major is on the comeback trail in 2016, and several institutional buyers are upping their stakes as a result.
CVX shares are up 20% from their Jan. 20 bottom and actually are 5% in the black for the year-to-date — a relieving showing considering the up-to-45% thrashing shares had taken from their July 2014 peak.
A number of companies have recently reported an increase in their holdings for the fourth quarter, including Sky Investment Group LLC, First Hawaiian Bank, Mizuho Asset Management and McQueen, Ball & Associates.
CVX also received an upped price target from Chevron last week to $96 from $84.
Chevron is currently in great technical shape, as shares have passed through both their 50- and 200-day moving averages, and still boast a strong (but not overbought) Relative Strength Index reading. With CVX trading above $94, the next area of resistance is the November price high just above $98.
