It took almost the entire month, but we finally squeezed some weekly profits out of August 2019.
The major indices didn’t do much today, but they didn’t have to. Stocks came into Friday’s session with solid gains over the previous four days… and that’s just how they left it.
The Dow rose 0.16% (or about 41 points) on Friday to 26,403.28, which gave it a nice weekly gain of 3%.
The S&P improved 0.06% to 2926.46 while the NASDAQ slipped 0.13% (or a little more than 10 points) to 7962.88, giving these indices advances of 2.8% and 2.7%, respectively, for the week.
So the four-week losing streak is over!
Stocks started the session sharply higher but couldn’t hold on. Still, it’s a much better result than last Friday when a trade-induced selloff spoiled a good chance to break the skid.
This week’s rally makes August’s totals look a lot better. Oh, it’s still down sharply, but it could have been much worse.
The NASDAQ slipped 2.7% this month, while the S&P was down 1.8% and the Dow was off 1.7%.
Trade issues impacted the entire month with no real progress on ending the conflict. However, both sides seem to have pulled back on the rhetoric of late after last Friday’s volleys.
Today’s encouraging buzzwords were “effective communication”, which came from China’s Foreign Ministry. Let’s see how long this lasts as new tariffs are scheduled for Sunday.
Another big factor this month was the bond yield inversion, which is considered a signal for recession. While stocks violently sold off when it first happened, the market has been taking it in stride recently on hopes that its just a result of negative yields around the globe. Plus, the U.S. consumer is still feeling pretty good.
This three-day weekend couldn’t have come at a better time! This month felt a lot worse than it actually was.
Who knows what headlines September has in store for us? Nobody! We do know that there’ll be some big economic news next week, including ISM Manufacturing and the Government Employment Situation result.
So let’s rest up and get ready to do it all over again, but hopefully with cooler heads and better results…
Today's Portfolio Highlights:
Surprise Trader: Talk about good timing! Dave added GMS (GMS) on Wednesday, which was the eve of its fiscal first quarter report. Well, this distributor of wallboard and suspended ceilings systems didn’t disappoint as it beat Zacks Consensus Estimates on both the top and bottom lines. Shares soared by double-digits yesterday and another 6.8% today. Therefore, GMS has been the best performing stock among all ZU names for two consecutive sessions.
Have a Happy Labor Day Weekend!
Jim Giaquinto
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