Stock Futures Rise as July Winds Down

All three major indexes are headed for a monthly win

Deputy Editor
Jul 31, 2023 at 9:06 AM
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Stock futures are modestly higher this morning, looking to extend last week's gains, with three major indexes heading for a winning July. Investors are looking ahead to a busy week of corporate earnings, as well as Friday's jobs report. Meanwhile, gold prices are on track for their biggest monthly gain since March. 

Continue reading for more on today's market, including: 

  • The top 25 stocks to own in August, historically. 
  • Which Dow stocks played a part in the win streak? 
  • Plus, two stocks moving higher on upgrades; and chipmaker readies for earnings. 

Futures July31

5 Things You Need to Know Today

  1. The Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE) saw more than 2.2 million call contracts and over 1.5 million put contacts exchanged on Friday. The single-session equity put/call ratio rose to 0.71 and the 21-day moving average stayed at 0.65.
  2. Goldman Sachs upgraded Chevron Corp (NYSE:CVX) stock to "buy" from "neutral," with a price-target hike to $187 from $166, while Truist lifted its price target by $2 to $165. Up 1.7% premarket, the oil stock has lost 11.5% in 2023. 
  3. GoodRx Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:GDRX) is up 9.3% in electronic trading, after Cowen and Company upgraded the stock to "outperform" from "market perform." The firm cited new pharmacy benefit management (PBM) partnerships. Since the start of the year, GDRX is up 44.8%. 
  4. The shares of ON Semiconductor Corp (NASDAQ:ON) are up 4.7% before the bell, after its strong second-quarter results and profit forecast. Should these gains hold, the chip stock will topple pressure at the $105 level and hit new record highs. 
  5. See what economic data is due out this week

Buzz 0731

Europe Announces Preliminary Inflation Data

Asian markets were higher on Monday, brushing off China’s factory activity for July, which contracted for a fourth consecutive month. Meanwhile, the country’s non-manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) expanded at a slower rate compared to June. Japan’s Nikkei led the gainers with a 1.3% pop, on the heels of better-than-expected industrial output for last month. Elsewhere, South Korea’s Kospi rose 0.9%, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng and China’s Shanghai Composite added 0.8% and 0.5%, respectively.

European markets are also mostly higher, after the preliminary data for the euro zone’s headline inflation showed a 5.3% dip in July, ahead of the Bank of England’s (BoE) interest rate decision on Thursday. Investors are also eyeing the earnings docket, with Pearson and Heineken expected to announce results today. France’s CAC 40 was last seen up 0.5%, while the German DAX is up 0.2%, and London’s FTSE 100 is flat.

 

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