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Dow Stocks Turn Red As GE Weighs, Apple Reverses Off Record High

Key market index funds turned negative after paring early gains. The Dow Jones industrial average had a smaller loss as Intel (INTC) held gains but General Electric (GE) weighed.

X SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average (DIA) dipped 0.2%, SPDR S&P 500 (SPY) gave up 0.3% and PowerShares QQQ Trust (QQQ) shed 0.8% in the stock market today.

Homebuilders, retail and health care were among the top sector fund gainers, while energy, technology and banks lagged. UnitedHealth Group (UNH) and Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) advanced 2.2% and 1.5%, respectively, on the Dow. Chips reversed lower as VanEck Vectors Semiconductor (SMH) fell 0.6% and iShares PHLX Semiconductor (SOXX) lost 0.8%.

Intel, up 3% earlier, held a 1% gain. It reversed from a new multiyear high, but remained among the Dow industrials' top gainers. The chip giant got a boost from the blocked Broadcom/Qualcomm deal. Intel may consider making a bid for Broadcom, The Wall Street Journal has reported.

GE was the biggest loser on the Dow, down 4.3%. It's been trading mostly below the 15 level since early February. JPMorgan lowered its price target to 11 from 14. Apple (AAPL), up 1% earlier, reversed off a record high as techs came under pressure. The iPhone maker slipped 0.2%.

Bitcoin was nearly flat at $9,112.32, according to CoinDesk, recovering some ground after falling to $8,860.88 earlier. Bitcoin Investment Trust (GBTC) gave up 2%. It's been trading below its 50-day moving average for nearly the past two months.

Fast Growers

A market-beating equity play topped by the likes of Netflix (NFLX), Nvidia (NVDA) and Amazon (AMZN) is among U.S. equity funds near buy points as the market continues to recover.

Guggenheim S&P 500 Pure Growth (RPG) is in buy range after clearing a 115.49 buy point on Friday. The ETF marked a new closing high on Monday as it extended its win streak for a seventh straight session. Until a drop below the 200-day moving average during last month's market rout, RPG had been advancing along the 50-day line since November 2016.

It was last featured in this ETF column on Aug. 23, as shares tested support at their 50-day moving average.

The $2.5 billion fund, which tracks the S&P 500 Pure Growth Index, marked its 12th anniversary on March 1. The index measures growth across risk factors such as sales growth, earnings change to price, and momentum. It includes stocks with strong growth characteristics, then weights the equities by style and score.

Information technology represented the top sector as of Monday at 41.5% of assets. Next up was health care at nearly 21%, consumer discretionary at 15%, industrials 7.5%, and financials 7%. Real estate, consumer staples and materials accounted for less than 5% each in the 110-stock portfolio.


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Netflix, Nvidia, Applied Materials (AMAT), Adobe Systems (ADBE) and Amazon made up the top five holdings. All five have scored solid double-digit percentage gains this year. Netflix leads with a 67% return, and Amazon is second with a 37% gain. Nvidia, Adobe and Applied Materials follow with advances of 29%, 26% and 19%.

Graphics-chip designer and artificial-intelligence player Nvidia marked a new closing high Monday. Jefferies reiterated a buy rating and 300 price target on Nvidia and cited Steven Spielberg's upcoming virtual-reality-related film, "Ready Player One," as a potential driver.

The ETF's 11.1% year-to-date gain through Monday, according to Morningstar Direct, tops the S&P 500's 4.6% return. The fund's average annual returns over the past three, five and 10 years outpace the S&P 500's for those same periods. RPG carries a 0.35% expense ratio.

Monday's pick, First Trust Nasdaq Bank (FTXO), remains near the top of a potential buy zone from a rebound off the 50-day line. It has formed a flat base with a possible entry at 32.25.

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