April Webinar RegistrationApril Webinar Registration


Stocks Inch Up At Open: Oil Prices Dive, Arconic, J.B. Hunt Spike

Stock futures stumbled into mixed trade ahead of Monday's open, hurt by falling oil prices as the market dug into the second-quarter reporting season. J.B. Hunt Transportation Services (JBHT) vaulted in early trade, while Bank of America (BAC) posted a moderate gain and BlackRock (BLK) sifted lower after reporting results.

X

Monday kicks off a big news week as President Donald Trump's  tete-a-tete with Russian President Vladimir Putin gets underway in Helsinki, Finland. Boeing (BA), Airbus (EADSY) and aerospace-related stocks — including materials supplier Arconic (ARNC) — will be on the radar as the U.K. launched its Farnsborough Airshow, an important event for big industry deals. Amazon.com (AMZN) rolls out its 36-hour Prime Day shopping Monday afternoon, and Netflix (NFLX) reports earnings after the market closes.

The Dow Jones industrial average ticked up 0.1% at the starting bell. Exxon Mobil (XOM) hung at the bottom of the index, down 1% as oil prices traded sharply lower.

The Nasdaq edged up 0.1%, with J.B. Hunt leading and Tesla (TSLA) lagging among Nasdaq 100 stocks. S&P 500 futures struggled to remain flat, despite powerful early gains from Arconic and J.B. Hunt, and as Alliance Data Systems (ADS) swung to the widest loss on the list.  (For updates on this story and other market coverage, visit the Stock Market Today.)

Across global markets, the leading benchmarks for China's Shanghai and Hong Kong markets ended narrowly mixed on Monday. In Japan, Tokyo's Nikkei 225 was closed on holiday. Europe's markets were under pressure as they entered their afternoon session. London's FTSE 100 fell furthest, down 0.8%.

Dow's Strongest Month Since January

The Dow is coming off a two-week rally that showed increasing strength and left the index above its 50-day line of support as well as the psychologically important 25,000 level. The Dow is up 3% since the start of July, so far its best month since January and well ahead of its July advance in 2017.

The Nasdaq and S&P 500 are also sitting on top of two-week runs. Both are comfortably above support, with the Nasdaq knocking off new highs. Both indexes are also working on their fourth straight up month. The Nasdaq is ahead 4.2% in the first half of July, well above of its July 2017 pace. The S&P 500 has a 3.1% gain, also besting its July 2017 performance.

Deutsche Bank Update, BofA Dividend Hike, Tesla Tumbles

Logistics leader J.B. Hunt notched a 2.5% leap. The Lowell, Ark.-based outfit reported second-quarter earnings and revenue easily above analysts' targets. Load growth of 12% and a 10% improvement in truck productivity helped drive results. The stock is fighting to retake support at its 10-week line, four weeks into a possible base pattern.

Bank of America shares climbed 1.5%. The Charlotte, N.C.-based bank reported above-expectations earnings and a smaller-than-expected dip in its second-quarter revenue. Management said it would hike the bank's quarterly dividend 25% beginning in the third quarter, and would return $26 billion to shareholders over the next 12 month via dividend payouts and share repurchases. BofA shares have been declining, and struggling to retake their 10-week line of support, since March.

Beaten down Deutsche Bank (DB) shares vaulted nearly 8% higher after the bank updated its second-quarter revenue guidance to above analyst consensus views.

Performance-metals maker Arconic spiked 1o% after a Wall Street Journal article reported firms, including Apollo Global Management, were expressing buyout interest. Arconic is the aerospace and automotive materials parent of bauxite miner, aluminum producer Alcoa (AA). The company's mining operation was spun out as a stand-alone company keeping the Alcoa name in a November 2016 IPO. A buyout would probably require a purchase price above $10 billion. No deal is imminent, the report said. Arconic shares are down 38% from a January high.

Tesla dived 3%, possibly as investors grew nervous after a Twitter rant from Chief Executive Elon Musk regarding the rescue of 12 young soccer players and their coach from a cave complex on Thailand. The slip put shares back below support at their converged 10- and 40-week moving averages, five weeks into a possible base pattern.

Oil Prices Slide On Saudi Production, Mnuchin Comment

Oil prices dropped on a combination of supply and demand news. Bloomberg reported Saudi Arabia was offering some buyers increased supply. There was increasing speculation that President Trump planned to ask Russian President Putin to increase the country's oil output during their Helsinki meeting. Trump has been publicly frustrated with the rising price of oil since re-imposing sanctions on Iran, a move that helped send oil prices higher. Russia's Energy Minister said Friday that the country could increase output if needed.

Also on Friday, U.S. Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin told reporters that the U.S. would consider waivers, allowing some buyers to continue to purchase Iranian oil. That extension would ostensibly mean beyond the November deadline set by the administration for zero Iranian oil purchases.

In addition, OilPrice.com reported tighter tax laws taking effect on China's independent refiners could begin to squeeze margins and reduce demand in the coming months. The report also said higher oil pries were having an effect. China is the world's largest importer of oil. The independent "teapot" refineries accounted for 85% of the country's crude oil import growth last year, the report said.

U.S. benchmark West Texas Intermediate shed 2.4% to trade near $69 a barrel. Brent crude fell 3%, to just above $73. WTI prices fell 3.8% last week, their biggest weekly drop since May.

Wildhorse Resource Development (WRD) dropped 2.8% at the open. Marathon Oil (MRO) dropped fell 2.2%.  BP (BP) dropped 2%. Royal Dutch Shell (RDSA) slumped 1.4%.

Get instant access to more trading ideas, exclusive stock lists and IBD proprietary ratings for only $5.

RELATED: 

Big Picture: Stocks Up Second Week In Row Despite The News

Netflix, Microsoft, GE Earnings; Prime Day, Top Airshow: Investing Action Plan

Farnborough Airshow: Will Boeing, Airbus Supercycle Start To Cool Off?

Here's What JPMorgan Says About Recession Risk As Yield Curve Flattens

3 Gene Therapy Companies In Hot Pursuit Of A 'One-And-Done' Cure

Get instant access to more trading ideas, exclusive stock lists and IBD proprietary ratings for only $5.