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Dow, S&P 500 Futures Turn Lower: These 3 FANG+ Stocks Are In Buy Range

X Futures for the Dow Jones industrial average and S&P 500 index erased overnight gains to turn slightly lower Thursday morning. The Nasdaq 100 was close to an all-time high following a rally of leading big-cap techs such as Apple (AAPL), Amazon (AMZN), Google parent Alphabet (GOOGL) and Netflix (NFLX). They joined a rebound in beaten-down retailers such as Macy's (M).

Dow industrials and S&P 500 futures were nearly 0.1% below vs. fair value. Futures for the small-cap Russell 2000 were just above fair value. So were Nasdaq 100 futures.

On Wednesday, the Nasdaq 100 climbed 0.4% to 5430.27, setting a record closing high. That's just nine points, or less than 0.2% from its record intraday peak of 5439.58 set on March 21. Meanwhile, the Dow Jones industrial average fell 0.2% as Dow financials and UnitedHealth (UNH) lagged. The S&P 500 index rose 0.1%. The small-cap Russell 2000 advanced 0.3%, but is still below its 50-day line. The Nasdaq composite climbed 0.4%.


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Retailers and other bottom-feeder groups were Wednesday's big winners, buoyed by the 15% post-earnings spike by home furnishings chain RH (RH), formerly Restoration Hardware. Macy's rose 2.5%, Dillards (DDS) 7% but IBD's Retail-Department Stores group is ranked No. 196 out of 197. Not a single top-25 industry group rose 1% or more Wednesday.

It's unclear if the retail optimism will continue Thursday, with Lululemon Athletica (LULU) reporting weaker-than-expected earnings and giving weak guidance for the current quarter and fiscal year. Lululemon fell 18% in late trading Wednesday.

But several mega-cap techs fared well, including the FANG internets and Apple, helped by Barclays initiating Amazon, Facebook (FB) and Alphabet at buy. Three of these FANG+ stocks are in buy range.

Amazon

Amazon climbed 2.1% to 874.32 in Wednesday stock market trading, clearing an 860.72 buy point from a four-weeks-tight pattern. Barclays cited e-commerce and Amazon Web Services growth, along with mobile ads and other new markets.

Alphabet, Facebook

Alphabet and Facebook were hailed by Barclays for its ad prospects. Alphabet rose 1.1% on Wednesday, moving back above its 50-day moving average. The Google parent's stock tumbled more than 4% last week as big advertisers suspended YouTube ads due to placements against offensive videos.

Facebook, for its part, advanced 0.6%, hitting a new all-time high.

Netflix

Netflix rose 0.9% to 146.47 on Wednesday, hitting a new closing high. Shares are up 3.1% so far this week, rebounding from their 50-day moving average. Netflix's recent rallies from the 50-day and 10-week lines created a secondary entry around 140, putting the stock at edge of that chase zone.

Apple

Apple, meanwhile, edged up just 0.2%, but as a member of the Dow industrials, S&P 500 index and Nasdaq it was a broad-based contributor. Apple hit a new record 144.49, closing at 144.12, still in range from a three-weeks-tight buy point of 141.12.

Overseas Markets

Most Asian markets were in the red Thursday. Japan's Nikkei 225 fell 0.8%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng index 0.4% and China's Shanghai composite 1%.

In European morning trading, the U.K.'s FTSE rose about 0.1%, Germany's Dax climbed 0.2% and France's CAC was just above break-even.

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