U.S. equities finished mixed in trading on Monday, with all the excitement centered on Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) and Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) as the two tech giants pushed the Nasdaq Composite to another new record high. This was the 13th gain for the index out of the 15 trading days so far this month — a melt-up on a scale not seen since February.
What will be interesting to see is what happens tomorrow. Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG, NASDAQ:GOOGL) shares are down roughly 3% in Monday’s after-market trade despite a Street-beating second-quarter earnings report. Between both GOOGL and GOOG shares, Alphabet makes up roughly 9% of the PowerShares QQQ Trust (NASDAQ:QQQ), which tracks the Nasdaq-100.
In the end, the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 0.3%, the S&P 500 lost 0.1%, the Nasdaqgained 0.4% and the Russell 2000 gained 0.2%. Treasury bonds weakened, the dollar was stronger, gold lost a touch, and crude oil gained 1.2% on bullish headlines out of an OPEC meeting in St. Petersburg.
Guide: Red = 200-day moving average, Blue = 50-day moving average
Breadth was negative on the New York Stock Exchange, with 1.3 decliners for every advancer with volume at 96.5% of the 30-day average. Financials led the way with a 0.3% gain while telecoms were the laggards, down 1%.
Beleaguered meal kit IPO name Blue Apron Holdings Inc (NYSE:APRN) surged 13.1% after a number of positive sell-side analyst initiations. Canaccord Genuity is looking for a $14 price target, which would be worth nearly a double from here. Barclays is only looking for $7, near current prices.
Toymaker Hasbro, Inc. (NASDAQ:HAS) fell 9.4% after Q2 earnings beat but revenues and gross margins missed estimates.
Conclusion
The gain in energy prices was a little underwhelming, to be honest, after the big pullback seen on Friday. OPEC and non-OPEC officials meeting in Russia did their best to jawbone prices higher: Saudi Arabia said they would limit exports to 6.6 million barrels per day, around a million barrels lower than the production cap agreed to last year.
Saudi energy minister Khalid al-Falih reiterated that pact members were ready to take additional production cut measures if necessary to help the global energy market rebalance.
The reality? This represents a forfeiture of market share against vs. U.S. shale producers.
For at least a day, though, the market is taking a backseat to a single stock. AMZN is soaring to new highs, closing at $1,038 today despite ongoing antitrust rumblings. The breakout from the stock’s two-month consolidation range greatly increases the stakes for CEO Jeff Bezos at the upcoming earnings release on July 27 after the close. Analysts are looking for earnings of $1.39 per share on revenues of $37.18 billion.
Guide: Red = 200-day moving average, Blue = 50-day moving average
That’s a lot of major news catalysts for this tranquil, volatility-free market to digest. As a reminder, stocks haven’t suffered a significant pullback — in terms of a touch of the Dow Jones Industrial Average’s 200-day moving average — in more than a year.
Guide: Red = 200-day moving average, Blue = 50-day moving average
That’s not a guarantee that a pullback is imminent, but it’s a risk that investors must weigh with every trade and longer-term position they enter at the moment.
Looking ahead to Tuesday, on the economic front we’ll get an update on home prices and consumer confidence. Industrials titans Caterpillar Incc (NYSE:CAT), United Technologies Corporation (NYSE:UTX), and 3M Co (NYSE:MMM) will report results before the bell along with General Motors Company (NYSE:GM).
After the close, notable reporters include Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMD), AT&T (NYSE:T), and Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (NYSE:CMG) which was recently in the headlines again for sickened customers.
Check out Serge Berger’s Trade of the Day for July 25.
Today’s Trading Landscape
To see a list of the companies reporting earnings today, click here.
For a list of this week’s economic reports due out, click here.
Anthony Mirhaydari is founder of the Edge (ETFs) and Edge Pro (Options) investment advisory newsletters. Free two- and four-week trial offers have been extended to InvestorPlace readers.
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