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The Dow Jones Industrial Average came out of the Christmas holiday slightly higher Tuesday as investors digested a slew of data on housing and economic indicators. Meanwhile, Google parent Alphabet (GOOGL) led eight stocks to buy and watch heading into the end of the year.
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After the opening bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.2%, while the S&P 500 moved up 0.3%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite gained 0.4% in morning action.
Among U.S. exchange traded funds, the Nasdaq 100 tracker Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) moved up 0.4%, while the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) added 0.25% early Tuesday.
The yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury bond held steady at 3.9% in morning trading. On Friday, the benchmark moved up to 3.9%, though it remained near its lowest level since late July.
Oil prices looked to continue their recent rebounds, as West Texas Intermediate futures rose nearly 1% Tuesday morning. WTI moved above $74 a barrel. On Dec. 13, WTI briefly traded below $68 a barrel.
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Housing Indexes, Fed Data
Early Tuesday, two housing indexes and one Federal Reserve gauge were out for investors to monitor. Another Fed report was due later in the morning.
On the housing front, the S&P Corelogic Case-Shiller home price index rose 0.6% in October vs. September’s 0.7% increase, in line with Econoday estimates. The annual rate rose from 3.9% to 4.8%, just below the estimate for an increase to 5%.
Meanwhile, the House Price Index from the Federal Housing Finance Agency rose 0.3% in October, below the 0.5% estimate. Year over year, the index jumped 6.3%.
Further, the Chicago Fed national activity index rose to 0.03 in November vs. -0.49 in October. The Chicago index is a monthly report that tracks overall activity and inflationary pressures.
At 10:30 a.m., the Dallas Fed manufacturing index is expected to show factories remain in a contraction, as economists polled by Econoday see a reading of -20.5 for December vs. -19.9 in November.
Dow Jones Holds Near Highs
Heading into the Christmas weekend, the S&P 500 was up nearly 0.6% during Friday’s session but it ended the day only 0.2% higher. Still, the index’s eight-week win streak is the longest in six years.
The Nasdaq composite, which also reduced Friday’s gain to 0.2%, matched an April-June weekly win streak.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average also climbed for an eighth consecutive week, the longest streak since a nine-week run in early 2019, according to Dow Jones Market Data.
Friday’s Big Picture column commented, “The stock market is wrapping up a strong 2023 with seemingly everything going its way. Indexes are rising with participation from small caps, growth, financials and other sectors. Economic reports point to a soft landing. Treasury yields are in decline. Seasonal factors — the Santa Claus rally, in particular — are another positive.”
Now is an important time to read IBD’s The Big Picture column amid the continuing stock market gains. Be sure to read how to invest during the ongoing uptrend.
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Best Stocks To Buy And Watch
Magnificent Seven stock Alphabet, IBD Leaderboard stock Datadog (DDOG), Monday.com (MNDY), IBD SwingTrader issue Netflix (NFLX) and Snowflake (SNOW) — along with Dow Jones components Amgen (AMGN), Caterpillar (CAT) and Visa (V) — are among the best stocks to buy and watch in the current market rally.
Datadog is featured in this Stocks Near A Buy Zone column.
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Dow Jones: AMGN Eyes Buy Point
Drug leader Amgen is nearing a 288.46 official buy point in a flat base. Meanwhile, shares rose above an early entry at 282.73 during Friday’s 1.7% rally. AMGN stock inched higher early Tuesday.
Heavy machinery giant Caterpillar is trying to break out past a 293.88 buy trigger, but closed below the entry despite a slight rise Friday. CAT stock moved up 0.5% Tuesday morning.
Payments leader Visa remains in buy range above a 250.06 entry in a cup base, according to IBD MarketSmith pattern recognition. V stock added a fraction Tuesday.
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Alphabet In Buy Range
Alphabet is in buy range past a 139.42 buy point in a cup with handle following last week’s breakout move. GOOGL stock rose 0.5% early Tuesday.
IBD SwingTrader stock Netflix ranks among the best stocks to buy and watch, even as it fell 1% Friday. The streaming giant broke out past a 482.70 buy point in a cup with handle last week. NFLX stock added 0.3% Tuesday morning.
IBD Leaderboard stock Datadog is breaking out past an alternate handle buy trigger at 120.26 after big gains in recent weeks. DDOG stock rose 0.4% Tuesday.
Monday.com barely regained its 185.81 buy point in a cup with handle in the wake of Friday’s 0.7% rise, according to IBD MarketSmith. MNDY stock was up 0.5% Tuesday.
Artificial intelligence leader Snowflake is in buy range past a cup-with-handle’s 192.66 buy point. SNOW stock lost 0.7% Tuesday, about 2% above the buy trigger.
Best Bets In Today’s Action
These are four best stocks to watch in today’s stock market, including a Dow Jones leader.
| Company Name | Symbol | Correct Buy Point | Type Of Buy Point |
|---|---|---|---|
| Applied Materials | (AMAT) | 145.86 | Alternate entry |
| Caterpillar | (CAT) | 293.88 | Cup base |
| Netflix | (NFLX) | 482.70 | Cup with handle |
| Snowflake | (SNOW) | 192.66 | Cup with handle |
Source: IBD Data As Of Dec. 26, 2023
Join IBD experts as they analyze leading stocks in the current stock market rally on IBD Live
Magnificent Seven: Nvidia, Tesla
Among the so-called “Magnificent Seven” stocks, Tesla (TSLA) moved up 1.25% early Tuesday, while Nvidia (NVDA) gained 1.2%.
Graphics-chip giant Nvidia had fallen 0.3% Friday, but remained in a buy zone above a 476.09 double-bottom entry.
Tesla stock dropped 0.8% Friday, right back below an early entry at 252.75. The stock’s big double-bottom pattern has a 278.98 buy point.
Dow Jones Leaders: Apple, Microsoft
Two Dow Jones stocks in the Magnificent Seven, Apple (AAPL) and Microsoft (MSFT), traded mixed after today’s stock market open.
Apple stock moved down 0.55% Friday, extending a losing streak to three sessions. Shares are barely above a cup-with-handle entry of 192.93. Apple shares were down 0.3% Tuesday.
Microsoft stock rose 0.3% Friday, adding to Thursday’s gains. Shares remain above a 366.78 cup-base buy point. And the software giant was up 0.1% Tuesday morning.
Be sure to follow Scott Lehtonen on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @IBD_SLehtonen for more on growth stocks and the Dow Jones Industrial Average.
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