Stocks Close Moderately Higher on Strength in Tech Stocks

What you need to know…

The S&P 500 Index ($SPX) (SPY) on Monday closed up +0.96%, the Dow Jones Industrials Index ($DOWI) (DIA) closed up +1.31%, and the Nasdaq 100 Index ($IUXX) (QQQ) closed up +1.10%.  U.S. stock indexes Monday posted moderate gains on strength in technology stocks.  A rally of more than +6% in Meta Platforms was positive for the overall market.  Also, M&A activity gave the S&P 500 a boost after Viatris agreed to buy Oyster Point and Famy Life Sciences.  On the negative side for stocks were higher T-note yields, as the 10-year T-note yield rose +5.1 bp at 4.209%.

Technology stocks Monday moved higher as Meta Platforms climbed more than +6% after the Wall Street Journal reported the company would begin laying off thousands of workers this week, thus reducing expenses and boosting profits.  Also, Okta closed up more than +5% after Guggenheim Securities upgraded the stock to buy. 

Monday’s U.S. economic news was slightly bearish for stocks after Sep consumer credit rose +$24.976 billion, weaker than expectations of +$30.00 billion.

Today’s stock movers…

Viatris (VTRS) closed up more than +13% Monday to lead gainers in the S&P 500 after it agreed to buy Oyster Point and Famy Life Sciences, both of which are expected to boost Viatris’s sales. 

EQT Corp (EQT) rallied more than +7% after natural gas prices Monday jumped more than +8%.  EQT Corp is the largest U.S. supplier of natural gas. 

Meta Platforms (META) closed up more than +6% to lead gainers in the Nasdaq 100 after the Wall Street Journal reported the company is planning to start cutting thousands of workers this week. 

Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA) closed up more than +4% to lead gainers in the Dow Jones Industrials after it said it would invest $3.5 billion to support VillageMD’s acquisition of Summit Health-CityMD.  As a result, Walgreens is raising its U.S. Healthcare fiscal year 2025 sales goal to $14.5 billion-$16.0 billion from a previous estimate of $11 billion-$12 billion.

Okta (OKTA) closed up more than +5% after Guggenheim Securities upgraded the stock to buy, citing a “compelling” valuation.

Dominion Energy (D) closed down more than -6% to lead losers in the S&P 500 after Credit Suisse downgraded the stock to neutral from outperform.

Tesla (TSLA) closed down more than -5% Monday at a 16-month low to lead losers in the Nasdaq 100.  Tesla has been under pressure since CEO Musk closed his purchase of Twitter last week, fueling speculation Musk is spreading himself too thin among several high-profile ventures and that Tesla might suffer from neglect. 

NiSource (NI) closed down more than -5% after reporting Q3 adjusted EPS of 10 cents, below the consensus of 11 cents

Atlassian Corp (TEAM) closed down more than -3% at a 2-1/2 year low as the company extended last Friday’s -30% plunge after it forecasted Q2 revenue weaker than the consensus. 

Expedia Group (EXPE) closed down more than -3% after Susquehanna Financial cut its price target on the stock to $100 from $115. 

Across the markets…

Dec 10-year T-notes (ZNZ22) on Monday closed down -13 ticks, and the 10-year T-note yield rose +5.1 bp to 4.209%.  A rally in stocks Monday undercut T-note prices. Also, a jump in European government bond yields weighed on T-note prices after the 10-year German bund yield rose to a 2-week high of 2.354% and the UK 10-year gilt yield climbed to a 1-1/2 week high of 3.651%.

Supply pressures were another bearish factor for T-notes as fifteen companies raised capital in the U.S. investment-grade primary bond market Monday, the most in two months. In addition, the November refunding will raise supply pressures as the Treasury will auction $96 billion of T-notes and T-bonds this week, starting with a $40 billion auction of 3-year T-notes on Tuesday.

• Bumble (BMBL) Sparks Unusual Options Activity for the Wrong Reasons
• Tech Stocks Valuations Still High Despite Stock Price Weakness
• The Brazilian Election Results and the Future for the Leading South American Economy
• Stocks Mixed on as Meta and Apple Head in Different Directions