The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) couldn't do much to make up for Friday's slide today, as many bulls opted to stay home. "Jitters ahead of tonight's kick-off to earnings season pushed us lower," said Schaeffer's Senior Technical Strategist Ryan Detrick. "Volume wasn't too high, though, so we didn't see any big sellers on the day. Given that overall expectations are extremely low for second-quarter earnings, any good news could potentially spark a nice rally."

Click through to see what else was on our radar today:

• Bernie Schaeffer examined how sentiment helped steer the action in the homebuilders ETF.
• Could the recent bounce in oil spawn a downturn for the airlines sector?
• Plus, two signs that up the chances for a summertime upswing.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI – 12,736.29) was off nearly 86 points at its session low of 12,686.57, but was able to pare some of its losses and close down 36.2 points, or 0.3%. Half of the 30 blue chips tripped lower today, as DuPont (NYSE:DD) paced the underperforming components with a 2.9% decline. Merck (NYSE:MRK) led the fifteen wining issues with a 1.5% jump.

The S&P 500 Index (SPX – 1,352.46) also suffered a defeat, falling 2.2 points, or 0.2%. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq Composite (COMP – 2,931.77) dropped 5.6 points, or 0.2%.

The CBOE Market Volatility Index (VIX – 17.98) notched a win today, climbing 5.2%, and settling below its session high of 18.32.

Today's highlight: "I loved seeing two buyouts for significant premiums," smiled Detrick. "Both FX Alliance (NYSE:FX) and AMERIGROUP (NYSE:AGP) were acquired for approximately 40% more than their closing prices on Friday. Mergers and acquisitions news is always a bullish sign, and should we continue to see this trend -- especially coupled with a better-than-expected second-quarter earnings season -- it could bode well for the second half of the year."

Turning to today's major market stories...

• Bernie Schaeffer On Charts: Two Valuable Investing Lessons from the Homebuilders ETF
• Options Trends: Coinstar (NASDAQ:CSTR), Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL), and U.S. Steel (NYSE:X).
• Will familiar technical support switch roles to act as resistance for Chesapeake Energy (NYSE:CHK)?
• Amerigroup (NYSE:AGP) and Juniper Networks (NYSE:JNPR) were among the equities making record-breaking runs today.
• Analysts adjusted their positions on Wells Fargo (NYSE:WFC) and Visa (NYSE:V) today.
• A short iron condor was implemented on Google (NASDAQ:GOOG).
• Out-of-the-money put selling ramped up on Zynga (NASDAQ:ZNGA).
• Call volume continued to rise on Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:EA), Shaw Group (NYSE:SHAW), and Sirius XM Radio (SIRI).
• Schaeffer's Equities Analyst Bryan Sapp investigated how oil's recent uptrend could affect transportation stocks.

For today's activity in commodities, options, and more, head to page 2.