The Dow is down more than 500 points
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) is continuing its backslide today, after this morning's Treasury yield-curve inversion signal flashed -- typically seen as a precursor to a recession. This has investors frantically selling off bank stocks, including Goldman Sachs (GS), which is down 3.7%. The blue-chip index is now down more than 500 points, completely erasing yesterday's gains.
On the global economic front, weakening economic data out of both China and Germany are dampening investor sentiment, with China reporting its slowest industrial output in over 17 years, and Germany's latest gross domestic product (GDP) data showing the country's economy contracted in the second quarter.. The economic gloom and doom has the Nasdaq Composite (IXIC) and the S&P 500 Index (SPX) swimming in red ink today, too, while the Cboe Volatility Index (VIX) -- or Wall Street's "fear gauge" -- is up 25%.
Continue reading for more on today's market, including:
- Why analysts like these 2 drug stocks.
- Bernstein weighs in on the CBS-Viacom merger.
- Plus, bulls bet on more upside for Walmart before earnings; PRPL stock soars on a beat-and-raise; and MYGN stock eyes its worst day ever.
Options traders are betting bullishly ahead of Dow component Walmart Inc's (NYSE:WMT) earnings report tomorrow. So far, about 21,000 calls have exchanged hands, two times what's typically seen at this point. The weekly 8/23 115-strike call is by far the most popular, with positions being bought to open here. This suggests that these traders are speculating on more upside for the stock by the time these contracts expire next Friday, Aug. 23. WMT stock is slightly lower today, down 0.3% at $107.09, following yesterday's tariff-induced spike.
Mattress manufacturer Purple Innovation Inc (NASDAQ:PRPL) is shooting to the top of the Nasdaq today, after announcing second-quarter earnings and revenue that exceeded analysts' expectations. The firm lifted its full-year outlook, too, causing the stock to hit an annual high of $11.04 earlier today. Now, the equity is up 40.7% to trade at $9.18, on course for its best day ever.
A fiscal fourth-quarter profit miss has made Myriad Genetics Inc (NASDAQ:MYGN) one of the worst performers on the Nasdaq today. The company reported worse-than-expected revenue too, citing low reimbursement for its carrier screening test. MYGN stock is now down 38.7% at $27.14, eyeing its worst day on record, and slipping back below its 180-day moving average -- an area of pressure on the charts prior to the equity's UnitedHealth-related spike earlier this month.
