Stock futures remained at record highs on Friday as the Dow Jones Industrial Average continues to flirt with the 40,000 mark. Advanced micro devices (AMD) showed up after a report about a deal with software titan Microsoft (MSFT). And GameStop (GME) fell on the stock market today after announcing preliminary results and a stock offering.
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During premarket action, Dow Jones futures and S&P 500 futures rose less than 0.1% from fair value. Tech-focused Nasdaq 100 futures rose 0.2% in morning action.
Early Friday, the yield on ten-year government bonds was higher at 4.4%. Further, oil prices rose, with West Texas Intermediate futures trading around $79.70 per barrel.
Among U.S. exchange-traded funds, the Nasdaq 100 tracker Invesco QQQ Trust ETF (QQQ) rose 0.2%, while the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) rose less than 0.1%.
The Meme stock mania faded further on Friday, as shares of GameStop plunged another 22% in the morning action. Early Friday, the company said it expects first-quarter revenue to decline from a year ago, with revenue expected to range from $872 million to $892 million. That was well below estimates of $1.05 billion. GameStop also said it will sell up to 45 million shares of Class A common stock in an at-the-market offering.
Meanwhile, chip giant AMD rose 3.7% premarket on Friday following news that Microsoft will offer cloud computing customers the option to use AMD artificial intelligence chips instead Nvidia (NVDA) AI processors.
Be sure to learn how to adapt to changing market conditions, with IBD’s new exposure levels.
Stock market today: Dow Jones is above 40,000
On Thursday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average made history, crossing the 40,000 point mark for the first time ever. Walmart (WMT) recovered thanks to strong results. But the Dow Jones fell back below that threshold near the end, and all three major indexes fell that day.
Investor’s Business Daily’s Big Picture column said Thursday: “Thursday’s higher Nasdaq volume meant the composite’s loss resulted in a distribution day. It came just one day after the major indexes climbed to new highs. The S&P 500 also has one day of institutional sales, a maternity day on May 7.”
During Thursday’s IBD Live show, the IBD Live team discussed current trading conditions. The team noted that a key feature of this market is the large number of purchasing opportunities from an increasing number of industry groups. This is another green light for investors to increase their exposure to this strong market
This is an important time to read The Big Picture column amid the continued action in the stock market. Also learn how to adapt to changing market conditions, with IBD’s new exposure levels.
Learn how to time the stock market with IBD’s ETF market strategy
Stock market today: the best stocks to watch
NetApp (NTAP), PDD (PDD), Taiwanese semiconductor production (TSM) and Tradeweb Markets (TW) – plus Dow Jones components JPMorgan Chase (JPM) and Merck (MRK) – are among the best companies to watch in the stock market today.
JPMorgan and Taiwan Semi are listed in this Stocks Near a Buy Zone column.
An essential resource for everyday breakouts is IBD MarketSurge’s “Breaking Out Today” list. It shows MarketSurge Growth 250 stocks breaking past new buy points. Remarkable, Trade Bureau (TTD) broke into a consolidation past a buy point of 94. Check out the MarketSurge “Near Pivot” list for more stocks approaching their buy points in the base.
For more stock ideas, check out IBD stock lists such as IBD 50, Big Cap 20, and Stocks Near a Buy Zone. These features identify bullish patterns and buy points and can be checked every day.
Get real-time buy and sell alerts on stock market leaders with the IBD Leaderboards
Dow Jones: JPMorgan, Merck
JPMorgan breaks past the 200.94 position on a flat base, after strong gains in recent weeks. Shares headed higher in the stock market today.
Meanwhile, drug giant Merck is rapidly approaching the 133.10 mark on a flat basis. Merck shares rose 0.4% on Friday.
4 top growth stocks to watch Fair today
Outside of the Dow Jones Index, NetApp is trading in a buy range above a 108.82 buy point in a double bottom, according to IBD MarketSurge. NetApp shares rose 0.2% ahead of the open on Friday.
Temu parent PDD breaks past the 142.32 buy point of a cup-with-handle after Thursday’s 1.5% rally. Shares rose 0.9% on Friday.
Chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor is in buy range above a 148.43 buy point in a double-bottom base following strong recent gains. The stock gained 0.5% on Friday.
Tradeweb is at the top of its buy range, past the 108.04 buy point on a flat basis despite falling 0.2% Thursday. The stock remained unchanged on Friday.
Find the best stocks to buy and watch with IBD Stock Screener and IBD Screen of the Day
Stock market today: companies to watch
These are four stocks in or near buy zones in today’s stock market.
| Company Name | Symbol | Correct purchase point | Purchase point type |
|---|---|---|---|
| American Express | (AXP) | 231.69 | Consolidation |
| Texas Roadhouse | (TXRH) | 157.12 | Flat base |
| Chipotle | (CMG) | 3,023.98 | Consolidation |
| Tradeweb Markets | (TW) | 108.04 | Flat base |
Source: IBD data as of May 6, 2024
Join IBD experts as they analyze the top stocks in the stock market today on IBD Live
Beautiful seven stocks: Nvidia, Tesla
Of the Magnificent Seven shares, Nvidia rose 0.3% Tesla (TSLA) fell 0.3% Friday morning.
Nvidia shares traded 0.3% lower on Thursday, remaining above 922.20. The leader in artificial intelligence is an IBD Leaderboard stock.
Tesla shares rose 0.5% on Thursday, finding support at the 50-day line. Shares remain more than 40% off their 52-week high.
Dow Jones Leaders: Apple, Microsoft
Among the Dow Jones stocks in the Magnificent Seven, Apple (AAPL) and Microsoft (MSFT) was trading higher ahead of Friday’s stock market open.
Apple shares rose Thursday, holding off their recent highs. The stock forms a cup base with a buy point of 199.62, but watch for a possible handle to provide a lower entry. The stock was flat on Friday morning.
Microsoft shares lost 0.5% on Thursday, within striking distance of the software giant’s flat base of 430.82 buy point. And Microsoft shares rose 0.4% on Friday.
Make sure you follow Scott Lehtonen on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @IBD_SLehtonen to learn more about growth stocks, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, and the current stock market.
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