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Despite the firm selloff in the major indexes from record highs Thursday, the Arms Index, used to measure buying or selling intensity, suggests investors are in a buying mood. On big down days, the Arms tends to rise above 1.000, as the ratio of down volume to up volume rises relative to the ratio of declining stocks to rising stocks. But the NYSE Arms has slipped to 0.615 and the Nasdaq Arms is at 0.761, a sign that buyers on the dip have been more aggressive than sellers. The Nasdaq Composite Index is threatening to fall the most since August, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 are on track to fall by the most in more than two months. Those moves came as the CBOE Volatility Index , a measure of implied volatility, jumped 16% to trade at 11.35, still far below its historically average at around 19.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

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From:: Stock Market News

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was trading firmly lower Thursday as investors sold stocks amid doubts about tax reform occurring soon, but the biggest weight on the benchmark were shares of McDonald’s Corp. Shares of the fast-food chain were cutting more than 25 points from the price-weighted Dow . McDonald’s stock was down 2.3%, or $3.87, in recent trade. A $1 move in any one of the Dow’s components equates to a swing of 6.89 points. The slide in McDonald’s, along with a decline shares of United Technologies Corp. 3M Co. and Boeing Co. were combining to push the Dow down the most in a single day, down 250 points, or 1.1%, at 23,315, since August, and snap a seven-session climb in the blue-chip gauge. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 index retreated 1% at 2,567, threatening its worst slump in more than two months and the Nasdaq Composite Index was off 1.5% at 6.688.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

…read more

From:: Stock Market News

Despite the firm selloff in the major indexes from record highs Thursday, the Arms Index, used to measure buying or selling intensity, suggests investors are in a buying mood. On big down days, the Arms tends to rise above 1.000, as the ratio of down volume to up volume rises relative to the ratio of declining stocks to rising stocks. But the NYSE Arms has slipped to 0.617 and the Nasdaq Arms is at 0.777 a sign that buyers on the dip have been slightly more aggressive than sellers. The Nasdaq Composite Index is threatening to fall the most since August, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 are on track to fall by the most in more than two months. Those moves came as the CBOE Volatility Index , a measure of implied volatility, jumped 16% to trade at 11.35, still far below its historically average at around 19.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

…read more

From:: Stock Market News

A popular measure of volatility spiked the most in two months on Thursday as U.S. equity benchmarks retreated following news that a Senate tax bill proposes a delay in corporate tax cuts until 2019. The CBOE Volatility Index was up more than 16%, marking its sharpest climb since Sept. 5, the last time the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 index experienced a pronounced slide. The so-called VIX, which tends to climb when stocks fall, measures options bets on the S&P 500 index 30-days in the future and is viewed as a gauge of expectations for a market fall because prices tend to fall faster than they rise. The measure of implied volatility has been mostly muted, with trades far below its historic average around 19. Still, Thursday’s spike brings it to a reading of 11.36, considered relatively subdued. Most recently, the Dow was down more than 200 points at 23,354, the S&P 500 was down 0.9% at 2,571, while the Nasdaq Composite Index slumped 1.2% at 6,710.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

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From:: Stock Market News

The Senate’s tax proposal is expected to delay a cut in the corporate rate until 2019, Politico reported Thursday. That is a change from the House’s bill, which would cut the rate to 20% from 35% next year. Details about the Senate’s bill are expected to be unveiled later Thursday.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

…read more

From:: Stock Market News

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was trading firmly lower Thursday as investors sold stocks amid doubts about tax reform occurring soon, but the biggest weight on the benchmark were shares of McDonald’s Corp. Shares of the fast-food chain were cutting more than 20 points from the price-weighted Dow . McDonald’s stock was down 1.8%, or $3.10, in recent trade. A $1 move in any one of the Dow’s components translates to a swing of 6.89 points. The slide in McDonald’s, along with shares of United Technologies Corp. 3M Co. and Boeing Co. were combining to push the Dow down the most in a single day, down 160 points, or 0.7%, at 23,405, since Sept. 5 and snap a seven-session climb in the blue-chip gauge. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 index retreated 0.7% at 2,577, threatening its worst slump in two months and the Nasdaq Composite Index was off 0.9% at 6.725.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

…read more

From:: Stock Market News

The latest two companies to make their trading debut this week were enjoying initial stock gains Thursday. Apellis Pharmaceuticals Inc. , a clinical-stage biotech, was trading up 1.4% after pricing at the midpoint of their range. The company sold 10.7 million shares to raise about $150 million. Apellis shares are trading on Nasdaq under the ticker symbol “APLS”. Separately, Chinese search engine Sogou Inc. saw its shares gain 5% in early trade. The company priced its IPO at $13 a share, the top end of its $11 to $13 range. The company sold 45 million shares to raise $585 million. Shares are listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol “SOGO”. The S&P 500 was last down 0.5%.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

…read more

From:: Stock Market News

Despite the firm selloff in the major indexes from record highs Thursday, the Arms Index, used to measure buying or selling intensity, suggests investors are in a buying mood. On big down days, the Arms tends to rise above 1.000, as the ratio of down volume to up volume rises relative to the ratio of declining stocks to rising stocks. But the NYSE Arms has slipped to 0.645 and the Nasdaq Arms is at 0.859 a sign that buyers on the dip have been slightly more aggressive than sellers. The Nasdaq Composite Index earlier was threatening to fall the most since Aug. 17, but has since pared that earlier slide, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 are on track to fall by the most since Sept. 5. Those moves came as the CBOE Volatility Index , a measure of implied volatility, jumped 7.3% in morning trade at 10.49, still far below its historically average at around 19.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

…read more

From:: Stock Market News

Shares of Oracle Corp. shed 1.8% in morning trade Thursday, after the software company was downgraded at UBS, which cited concerns over valuation has the company pivots from its dominant position on premise to the highly competitive cloud market. Analyst Jennifer Swanson Lowe assumed coverage of Oracle with a neutral rating and a $55 stock price target, down from a previous rating of buy and a price target of $57. While “pushing hard into the cloud is the right move for Oracle’s future,” the stock’s current premium valuation “leaves little room for error, and [Wall] Street estimates do not seem to fully reflect the near-term risk to margins or growth as the model shifts,” Lowe wrote in a note to clients. The stock has rallied 29% year to date, while the SPDR Technology Select Sector ETF has climbed 31% and the S&P 500 has gained 15%.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

…read more

From:: Stock Market News