Nasdaq Leads Tuesday as Hedges Turn to Options to Catch Tech Rally

MARKETS TODAY May 30th, 2023 (Vica Partners)

Last Friday, US Markets finished broadly higher, S&P 500 +1.30%, DOW +1.00 and the Nasdaq +2.19%. 8 of 11 of the S&P 500 sectors higher: Information Technology +2.68% outperformed/ Energy -0.37% lagged. Gold, Oil and the Bloomberg Commodity Index gained. In economic news, multiple releases points to resilience of overall economic activity.

Overnight/ US Premarket, Asian markets finished higher, , Japan’s Nikkei 225 +0.30%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng +0.24% and China's Shanghai Composite +0.09%. US futures were trading at 0.3% above fair value. European markets finished lower today, London's FTSE 100 -1.38%, France's CAC 40 -1.29% and Germany's DAX -0.27%.

Today US Markets finished mixed, S&P 500 +0.00%, DOW -0.15% and the Nasdaq +0.32%. 7 of 11 of the S&P 500 sectors lower: Consumer Staples -1.08% underperforms/ Consumer Discretionary +0.76% outperforms. On the upside, FANG+, Gold, Oil and Bitcoin. In economic news, S&P Case-Shiller April home price index narrowly beat forecast, Consumer Confidence Index misses forecast and declines to 6 month low.

Takeaways

• Hedges and Traders options to better cover Tech rally
• Economic news reflects cooling
• NYSE Fang+ ^NYFANG+ >+1.5%
• 7 of 11 of the S&P 500 sectors lower: Consumer Staples -1.08% underperforms/ Consumer Discretionary +0.76% outperforms
• Gold, Bitcoin and Oil up
• HP Inc (HPQ) and Hewlett Packard (HPE) earning misses

Pro Tip: The "last trading day of the month window dressing effect" is a tendency for stock prices to experience higher-than-average returns on the last trading day of the month. This is where fund managers adjust their portfolios at the end of the month to present a more opportunistic picture/ as they sell underperforming stocks and buying outperforming stocks.

Now back to the BIG story...

?Sectors/ Commodities/ Treasuries?????????

Key Indexes (50d, 100d, 200d)

S&P Sectors

• 7 of 11 of the S&P 500 sectors lower: Consumer Staples -1.08%, Energy -0.94% underperform/ Consumer Discretionary +0.76%, Information Technology +0.63% outperform.

Commodities

Factors (YTD)

US Treasuries

Notable Earnings Today?

• +Beat: Box Inc (BOX), Ambarella (AMBA)
• - Miss: Singapore Telecommunications PK (SGAPY), HP Inc (HPQ), Hewlett Packard (HPE), U-Haul Holding (UHAL), Skyline (SKY)
• * Strong support – NVIDIA (NVDA), Meta Platforms (META), Microsoft (MSFT), Alphabet (GOOG,GOOGL), Amazon (AMZN), Apple (AAPL), Tesla (TSLA), Taiwan Semi (TSM), ASML Holding NV (ASML)

Economic Data

US

• S&P Case-Shiller home price Index YOY; period April, act -1.1%, fc -1.6%, prev. 0.4%
• Consumer confidence; period May, act 102.3, fc 103.7, prev. 103.7

News

Company News

• Once Mighty Intel Struggles to Escape ‘Mud Hole’ - WSJ
• Ford Hands Tesla a Big Win in VHS Versus Betamax-Like Battle - Bloomberg

Energy/ Materials

• Saudi Arabia, Russia Ties Under Strain Over Oil-Production Cuts - WSJ
• Oil Holds Deep Slump on Weak Demand Signals Ahead of OPEC+ Meet - Bloomberg

Central Banks/Inflation/Labor Market

• Fed’s Barkin Says He’s Seeking Evidence Demand Is Coming Down - Bloomberg
• US CONSUMER CONFIDENCE - Conference- Board

China

• China’s Fading Recovery Reveals Deeper Economic Struggles - WSJ