November was the best month of the year for Wall Street
Wall Street started out the week by unpacking spending data amid the Black Friday and Cyber Monday retail traditions. While stocks faltered following the events, Tuesday saw the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI), S&P 500 Index (SPX), and Nasdaq Composite (IXIC) correct themselves amid strong consumer confidence data. By midweek, a trifecta of positive economic updates got failed to lift the major benchmarks highs, though Wall Street still managed to close out its best month of the year with a bang. As of this writing, and with December underway, the blue-chip index and SPX are heading for their fifth-straight weekly wins.
Stocks to Watch This Month
Holiday seasonality is something to keep an eye on, as retail stocks see volatility amid an uptick in consumer spending. These two shipping stocks, for example, typically face serious holiday headwinds. Meanwhile, chip stock Broadcom (AVGO) has a history of outperformance during the final month of the year, as does gold mining concern Newmont (NEM). Elsewhere, a bull signal is flashing for PulteGroup (PHM), while American Eagle Outfitters (AEO) is primed for put traders' speculation.
Jobs Data, Earnings Kick Off December
Alongside a host of jobs data, there's a slew of major earnings reports set to kick off December, including results from Chewy (CHWY), Dollar General (DG), GameStop (GME). Plus, this is how options traders should play the Santa Claus rally, and why buying opportunities can be found in SPX pullbacks.