The Dow Jones Industrial Average sold off more than 300 points Wednesday after a stronger-than-expected ADP employment report. ADP’s payrolls report previews Friday’s jobs report from the Labor Department. Meanwhile, OPEC+ will meet to reportedly consider a controversial production cut.
Ford Motor (F) was flat Wednesday morning after Morgan Stanley upgraded the stock from equal-weight to overweight. Investment banks Goldman Sachs (GS) and Morgan Stanley (MS) dropped 2.2% and 2.3%, respectively, as Atlantic Equities expects declining investment banking activity.
Electric-vehicle leader Tesla (TSLA) traded almost 4% lower Wednesday. Among the Dow Jones industrials, tech titans Apple (AAPL) and Microsoft (MSFT) were both squarely lower after today’s stock market open.
As the stock market turns up into a rally attempt, Murphy USA (MUSA), Neurocrine Biosciences (NBIX), Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX) and World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) — as well as Dow Jones stock UnitedHealth (UNH) — are among the top stocks to watch. Despite Tuesday’s gains, the market’s status remains “in correction,” and investors should remain on the defensive.
Vertex is a recent addition to IBD Leaderboard. Murphy USA was featured in this week’s Stock Near A Buy Zone column, along with three other top stock ideas. World Wrestling was a Stock Of The Day on Thursday. Neurocrine was a Stock Of The Day on Sept. 26.
Dow Jones Today: Treasury Yields, Oil Prices
After Wednesday’s opening bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 1%, while the S&P 500 lost 1.2%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite declined 1.55%.
Among exchange-traded funds, the Nasdaq 100 tracker Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) was down 1.3%, and the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) lost 1.1%.
The 10-year Treasury yield rebounded to 3.7% Wednesday morning, set to snap a two-day losing streak. Last week, the 10-year Treasury yield briefly topped 4%, which hadn’t been done for more than decade. But it has fallen significantly this week.
Meanwhile, U.S. oil prices extended this week’s gains, inching higher Wednesday, taking West Texas Intermediate futures to around $87 a barrel. Last week, oil fell to its lowest level of the year before rebounding. OPEC+ is widely expected to approve a sizable production cut Wednesday when it meets in Vienna, Austria.
ADP Jobs Report, Economic Data
ADP’s September employment report came out at 8:15 a.m. ET. ADP’s private payrolls rose 208,000, topping ADP estimates that expected growth of 200,000, down from August’s 308,000.
Next, the IHS/Markit U.S. services purchasing managers’ index (PMI) improved to 49.3, slightly better than estimates and up from August’s 43.7 reading. Readings below 50 indicate contraction.
Lastly, the Institute of Supply Management’s services index topped the 56.0 consensus estimate, dipping slightly to 56.7 from August’s 56.9 reading