Dow and S&P clear 50-day MA's

Bulls Take a Breather

February 6, 2019 By: Todd Mitchell

U.S. markets were choppy throughout Wednesday’s action following President Trump’s State of the Union Address delivered Tuesday night. A heavy dose of mixed earnings weighed on sentiment while a positive spin on China trade talks by Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin helped limit losses.

Mnuchin confirmed reports that he, USTR’s Lighthizer and others will head to Beijing next week to continue high level talks after progress on enforcement issues. Mnuchin also added stated that the dinner with Trump, Powell and Clarida was very productive and engaged in a wide range of topics.The Nasdaq fell 0.5% after testing an opening low of 7,346. Upper support at 7,350-7,300 was tripped but held with a close below the latter signaling a possible near-term top.The Russell 2000 was lower by 0.2% following the morning dip to 1,511. Fresh and upper support at 1,510-1,500 held with a move below the latter opening up risk towards 1,485-1,475.The S&P 500 also slipped 0.2% after trading to a low of 2,724 shortly after the opening bell. Current and upper support at 2,725-2,700 was breached but held.The Dow declined 0.1% following intraday pullback to 25,312. Fresh and upper support at 25,250-25,000 easily held with a close below the latter and the 200-day moving average being a slightly bearish development.Healthcare and Technology showed sector strength after rising 0.5% and 0.3%, respectively. Industrials and Consumer Staples edged up 0.03% and 0.02% to round out the winners.Communications Services sank 2.2% to easily pace sector weakness. Real Estate and Energy fell 0.8% and 0.7%.

ANALYST UPGRADES/DOWNGRADES

BP (BP) upgraded to Buy from Hold at DZ BankSnap (SNAP) upgraded to Market Perform from Underperform at Raymond JamesVodafone (VOD) upgraded to Buy from Neutral at BofA/MerrillEstee Lauder (EL) downgraded to Hold from Buy at BerenbergPayPal (PYPL) downgraded to Neutral from Buy at GuggenheimVanda Pharmaceuticals (VNDA) downgraded to Neutral from Overweight at Cantor Fitzgerald

EARNINGS Thursday Before the Open (EST):Arrow Electronics (ARW), CDW (CDW), Dunkin’ Brands Group (DNKN), GrubHub (GRUB), HanesBrands (HBI), Kellogg (K), Masco (MAS), Old Dominion Freight (ODFL), Philip Morris (PM), Sealed Air (SEE), T-Mobile (TMUS), Twitter (TWTR), Yum Brands (YUM)Thursday After the Close (EST): Black Hills (BKH), Columbia Sportswear (COLM), Expedia (EXPE), Fiserv (FISV), Hub Group (HUBG), Knowles (KN), Mattel (MAT), Nuance Communications (NUAN), Primerica (PRI), Rapid7 (RPD), Sketchers (SKX), TrueBlue (TBI), VeriSign (VRSN), Western Union (WU)