The tech sector was on the mend this week, despite Fed hawkishness and rising bond yields
Short-lived rallies and fakeouts made for a volatile week on Wall Street. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) marked five lossesin six sessions before scoring a triple-digit pop, but its worst single-session drop since March 22 followed. The Nasdaq Composite (IXIC) snapped a four-day losing streak and nabbed its best daily percentage win since late July earlier in the week, and even rattled off three-straight wins before another run lower. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 Index (SPX) registered its best daily percentage pop since June, but eventually dipped as well.
Investors also weighed a busy week of retail earnings, while Treasury yields climbed to 16-year highs and the tech sector demonstrated renewed strength. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell’s speech at the Jackson Hole Symposium in Wyoming had Wall Street struggling for direction at the end of the week, after he noted the central bank remains uncomfortable with the current state of inflation. The Dow was the only benchmark pacing for a weekly loss at last check — its third out of the past four.
Earnings Season’s Final Reports
Semiconductor stock Nvidia (NVDA) gave the broader tech sector a boost following the chipmaker’s blowout second-quarter results. Home improvement retail giant Lowe’s (LOW) also announced better-than-expected quarterly profits, but retail peers Dick’s Sports Goods (DKS) and Macy’s (M) took a step back following their respective results. Bulls doubled down on apparel retailer Gap (GPS) before its report, and Lululemon Athletica (LULU) boasted a solid year-to-date lead ahead of its own earnings call.
The Latest in Tech
Meta Platforms (META) was in focus this week amid reports of a planned launch of the web version of its microblogging app Threads. Meanwhile, Broadcom (AVGO) popped after the U.K. competition regulator cleared its buyout of VMware (VMW) for $61 billion, and options bulls blasted Palo Alto Networks (PANW). Tesla (TSLA) surged after Baird added the electric vehicle (EV) concern to its “best ideas” list, and Workday (WDAY) drew a slew of bull notes.
Final Week of August Ahead
The final week of August brings a highly anticipated ADP employment report, a gross domestic product (GDP) update, and a handful of notable earnings reports. Before then, dig into Senior Quantitative Analyst Rocky White’s nine stocks to watch right now, and Senior Vice President of Research Todd Salamone’s advice on this messy month of trading.
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