Nasdaq Shines Amid Upbeat Week on Wall Street

Wall Street is heading for a solid weekly win

While things got off to a good start on Monday, with the major indexes building on Friday’s rally, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) and S&P 500 Index (SPX) pivoted lower at the tail end of the session. By the next day, Wall Street managed a win, even after Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell dodged the topic of economic policy in his latest address. Things really picked up for the Nasdaq Composite (IXIC), which logged its first four-day win streak since September, as bond yields cooled.

An encouraging consumer price index (CPI) reading rolled in on Thursday, and the Nasdaq went on to score its fifth-straight win for the first time since July. Against the improving backdrop, Wall Street’s “fear gauge,” the Cboe Volatility Index (VIX), was all over the place. Today, the VIX is heading for its worst week since October, while the major benchmarks pace for solid weekly wins despite a dire warning from JPMorgan Chase (JPM). 

Schaeffer’s Top Picks for 2023

Last week, we mentioned that our top picks for the year are rolling out, and we kicked things off by highlighting drugmaker AbbVie (ABBV). Well, we’ve got even more stocks for you to watch.

Retail name Macy’s (M) sports a low price/earnings ratio and attractive dividend yield, and has largely brushed off recession headwinds, making it a prospective buy-and-hold for 2023. Cloud stock MongoDB (MDB) has plenty of support in place, as it trades at more than six times its initial public offering (IPO) level. Elsewhere, it looks like semiconductor company ASML Holding (ASML) might have a monopoly on EUV lithography, while Aehr Test Systems’ (AEHR) 2023 rally is showing no signs of slowing down.

Biggest Analyst Calls of the Week

Logitech (LOGI) shared its preliminary third-quarter results, and J.P. Morgan Securities downgraded the stock after the numbers missed expectations. Meanwhile, Jefferies downgraded these two streaming stocks, while KeyBanc Capital Markets upgraded Bumble (BMBL) on a host of resilient data. Elsewhere, Piper Sandler issued a bull note for Uber Technologies (UBER), after noting the positive impact higher car prices could have on the rideshare stock.

Holiday-Shortened Week Features Fed Updates, Earnings

Next week will be short, as markets are closed on Monday in observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, but there’s no shortage of Fed updates and earnings reports on the docket. Plus, here’s a look at how the third year of a Presidential cycle typically plays out for the stock market.