In the stock market, the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed higher despite the poor performance of 3M and the gains made by Apple. Former President Donald Trump has put pressure on Republicans to trigger a government shutdown, causing House Speaker Kevin McCarthy to face a difficult balancing act. Some conservative members of the House want McCarthy to use budget negotiations to push through measures on immigration and spending cuts. If an agreement is not reached by October 1st, the government will shut down. The looming threat of a government shutdown, along with worries about inflation and rising oil prices, are currently weighing on investors.
In terms of individual stocks, the tech-heavy Nasdaq saw the best performance, ending its four-session losing streak with a 0.5% increase. GE Healthcare Technologies stood out as one of the top performers, rising over 3%. The S&P 500 also broke its losing streak with a 0.4% gain, with Sealed Air leading the way with a 3.6% increase. The materials and energy sectors fared the best, while utilities and consumer staples lagged behind. Small caps saw some gains fade towards the end of the day, with the Russell 2000 rising 0.3%, and the Innovator IBD 50 ETF, which focuses on growth stocks, gaining 0.6%.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average saw a late reversal, closing with a 0.1% increase, although it still lagged behind the other major indexes. Apple stock performed well on the index, gaining 0.7%. Dow Inc. was the best performer of the day, rising 1.7%, while 3M was the worst laggard, falling 2.3%. Tesla stock managed to gain despite negative commentary on its deliveries, ending the session with a 0.9% increase. Analysts expect lower delivery numbers for the third quarter, but still believe it will be sufficient to draw down inventory. Rival electric vehicle stock Li Auto, on the other hand, saw a significant decline of 10% after Huawei, a competitor, teased its first sedan and a new high-end SUV.
Outside of the Dow Jones, three noteworthy stocks, Encompass Health, Unum, and Nov, are showing promising action. Encompass Health has formed a flat base with a buy point of 72.06, while Unum is near a flat base buy point of 51.15. Energy stock Nov is hanging just below a buy point of 20.98. These stocks have strong performance and ratings, making them potential buys in the current market conditions.
