The Dow is fresh off its worst week since October of 2020
Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) futures are up over 220 points this morning, looking to stage a rebound from the blue-chip index's worst weekly loss since October 2020. S&P 500 (SPX) and Nasdaq-100 Index (NDX) futures are also eyeing a comfortable open higher, as investors shake off inflation and interest rate concerns. Meanwhile, the Chicago Fed National Activity Index increased to 0.29 in May from negative 0.09 in April, though still below expectations. Bitcoin (BTC) is in focus this morning too, after China vowed to ramp up cryptocurrency mining crackdowns.
Continue reading for more on today's market, including:
- Founder and CEO Bernie Schaeffer revisits a top stock pick of 2021.
- Unpacking this gun stock's Friday surge and bullish options volume.
- Plus, new coverage for ZIP; "Prime Day" kicks off; and RAVN soars on M&A news.
5 Things You Need to Know Today
- The Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE) saw more than 2.4 million call contracts traded on Thursday, and over 1.3 million put contracts. The single-session equity put/call ratio rose to 0.56 and the 21-day moving average stayed at 0.46.
- Four analysts initiated coverage on Ziprecruiter Inc (NYSE:ZIP) this morning. William Blair and Evercore ISI started with strong "outperform" ratings, Raymond James began with a "strong buy," and Goldman Sachs rated it a "neutral." ZIP is up 4.8% pre-market.
- Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN) just kicked off its two-day "Prime Day" event, and plenty of other big-time retailers are holding competing sales despite global supply chain disruptions. AMZN is flat ahead of the bell however, down 0.1%.
- Raven Industries Inc (NASDAQ:RAVN) is soaring in electronic trading, up 48.8% at last check, after news that CNH Industrial (CNHI) will acquire the company for $58 per share, or $2.1 billion.
- There is no more economic data to report today.
Automakers Weighed on Nikkei
Asian markets were mostly lower on Monday, led by the Nikkei in Japan, which dropped as much as 4% during its session, before settling with a 3.3% loss. The index was weighed down by weakening shares of automakers such as Honda, as well as several financial names. Over in China, investors are poring over an announcement that the country will keep its one-year Loan Prime Rate (LPR) steady at 3.86%, as well as its five-year LPR at 4.65%, which fell in line with expectations. The Shanghai Composite rose 0.1%, while the Hang Seng in Hong Kong shed 1.1%, and the South Korean Kospi took a 0.8% haircut.
European markets are slightly higher after a volatile morning, as the bourses closely monitor last week’s interest rate updates from the U.S. Federal Reserve. At last check, the French CAC 40 is up 0.3%, the London FTSE 100 is 0.2% higher, and the German DAX has added 0.7%.