The Dow has erased this morning's losses
Stocks are recovering from steep premarket losses, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) sporting solid gains by midday, while the S&P 500 (SPX) and Nasdaq Composite (IXIC) sit just below fair value. Big Tech earnings are in the spotlight today, alongside January jobs data. The unemployment rate dipped to 3.4% last month -- its lowest level since 1969. For the week, all three major benchmarks are headed for solid wins.
Continue reading for more on today's market, including:
Options traders are targeting soaring Nordstrom Inc (NYSE:JWN) stock, after news that billionaire Ryan Cohen is building a large stake in the retailer. So far, 33,000 calls and 55,000 puts have been exchanged, with overall options volume running at 10 times the intraday average. The March 25 put is the most popular, with new positions being opened there. JWN is up 19.8% to trade at $25.33 at last check, adding to a 55.9% year-to-date gain.
2U Inc (NASDAQ:TWOU) is up 27.7% to trade at $12.62 at last glance, after the online education platform's fourth-quarter results beat expectations. TWOU also received two modest price-target hikes from Piper Sandler and Jefferies. Today's pop has the stock breaking above its 320-day moving average for the first time since August 2021. So far in 2023, 2U stock has added 98.5%.
Bill.com Holdings Inc (NYSE:BILL) is plummeting, down 25.5% at $96.22 at last check, despite the software name's fiscal second-quarter results beat, as a fiscal third-quarter revenue forecast weighs. What's more, BMO downgraded the equity to "market perform" from "outperform," while BTIG slashed its rating to "neutral" from "buy." At least 10 other analysts chimed in with price-target cuts as well. Year-over-year, BILL is down 43.6%.