Market Loses Steam; S&P 500 Could Snap Weekly Win Streak

Mixed inflation data was in focus this week

Dec 13, 2024 at 2:53 PM

The major indexes pulled back from their recent rallies this week. The Nasdaq Composite (IXIC) and S&P 500 Index (SPX) are looking to close every day but Wednesday lower, as consumer price index (CPI) data gave the market a boost midweek. The former hit a record close following the event, but succumbed to pressure from the producer price index (PPI) on Thursday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) is eyeing a seventh consecutive daily loss, extending its longest losing streak since April. For the week, the Nasdaq is hovering around breakeven, while the the other two indexes head for weekly losses -- the SPX's first in four.

Tech This Week

The tech sector maintained its stranglehold on Wall Street. Options bulls bet big on Nvidia (NVDA) on the last two weeks, while Palantir (PLTR) stock gapped thank to an expanded government contract. Artificial intelligence stock C3.ai (AI) scored a post-earnings bull gap, but software stocks MongoDB (MDB) and Adobe (ADBE) weren’t as lucky.

Keep an eye on quantum computing developments after Alphabet (GOOGL) delivered a big breakthrough earlier this week. Investors' favorite semiconductor stocks battled mid-week headwinds, but the sector continues to outperform. In fact, Broadcom (AVGO) hit a record high on Friday after reporting a better-than-expected quarterly profit.

Flurry of Analyst Notes

Analysts issued several notes this week. Social media stock Reddit (RDDT) scored a lofty bull note and responded accordingly. Language learning stock Duolingo (DUOL) received a downgrade on overvaluation concerns, while energy drink maven Celsius (CELH) was deemed a bounce-back candidate. Fintech stocks received a wave of coverage, and one analyst thinks e-commerce stock eBay (EBAY) is staring down headwinds.

Coming Up

Emerging markets are at a crossroads as "Trump trade" shifts into focus, so we broke down options activity. Keep an eye on Costco (COST) earnings next week, which will also bring retail sales data and the Federal Reserve's highly interest rate decision. It's also worth tracking of the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) open interest levels during standard expiration week, and exploring how low historic volatility may impact SPX performance.

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