Wall Street Brushes Off Hawkish Fed Comments

Upbeat jobless claims data helped overshadow interest rate hike concerns

Hawkish comments from the Federal Reserve dominated headlines this holiday-shortened week, with U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell emphasizing the central bank’s dedication to lowering inflation through aggressive interest rate hikes. Nevertheless, the major indexes were on track to snap a three-week losing streak at last check. While the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) and S&P 500 Index (SPX) started the week off by turning in their sixth-straight losing session, and the Nasdaq Composite (IXIC) logged its worst losing streak since 2016, the benchmarks managed to turn things around mid-week. Upbeat jobless claims data helped overshadow hawkish Fed comments and kept the momentum going, putting stocks on track to close the week higher.

This Week’s Top Analyst Calls

Analysts were busy this week, issuing a number of notes as volatility gripped Wall Street. Citigroup downgraded FedEx (FDX) to “neutral,” noting the deluge of headwinds the delivery name is facing. Elsewhere, discount airliner Frontier (ULCC) received a downgrade at Raymond James, Stifel named Norwegian Cruise Line (NCLH) one of its top picks, and Wolfe Research upgraded Pinterest (PINS) after highlighting its long-term growth prospects. Plus, Goldman Sachs double-upgraded First Solar (FSLR) after noting the solar concern could catch immediate tailwinds from recently passed legislation. Analysts issued other notable bull notes to Anheuser-Busch Inbev (BUD), RH (RH), and Moderna (MRNA).

Stocks to Keep on Your Radar

A handful of names are flashing historically bullish signals. For one, Morgan Stanley (MS) pulled back to a trendline that could help it reclaim its year-to-date breakeven level. Intuit is in a similar position (INTU), and sports attractively priced premiums at the moment. What’s more, Tyson Foods (TSN) recent rout, combined with low implied volatility (IV) presents the perfect buying opportunity. Lastly, here’s why our analysts recommend a new long position on Peabody Energy (BTU).

Quadruple Witching Week Ahead

Several noteworthy indexes are due out next week, which will gives investors insight into the state of the economy, with a small handful of corporate earnings reports set to trickle in as well. In the meantime, understand what to expect of quadruple witching week, and why this might just be a September to forget for bulls.