Stocks closed mostly lower on Wall Street Monday, dragged down by losses in several Big Tech companies, including Apple.
The S&P 500 gave up 0.8%, its fifth straight decline. Traders are still keeping a close eye on Washington and the next big round of stimulus that’s making its way through Congress.
On Monday:
The S&P 500 fell 30.21 points, or 0.8%, to 3,876.50.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 27.37 points, or 0.1%, to 31,521.69.
The Nasdaq fell 341.41 points, or 2.5%, to 13,533.05.
The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies fell 15.62 points, or 0.7%, to 2,251.07.
For the year:
The S&P 500 is up 120.43 points, or 3.2%.
The Dow is up 915.21 points, or 3%.
The Nasdaq is up 644.77 points, or 5%.
The Russell 2000 is up 276.22 points, or 14%.
Featured Article: What is an economic bubble?
7 Bellwether Stocks Signaling a Return to NormalBellwether stocks are considered to be leading indicators about the direction of the overall economy, a specific sector, or the broader market. They are predictive stocks in that investors can use the company’s earnings reports to gauge economic strength or weakness.
The traditional definition of bellwether stocks brings to mind established, blue-chip companies. They are the home of mature brands with consumer loyalty. These may be stocks that aren’t associated with exceptional growth; some may be dividend stocks.
But there’s something different about normal this time around. If it’s true (and I think it is) that the old rules no longer apply, investors need to change the way they think about bellwether stocks. Plus, let’s face it, many stocks that we might consider to be bellwether stocks have already had a bit of a vaccine rally. That means that the easy gains are gone.
With that in mind, we’ve put together this special presentation that highlights seven of what may be termed the new bellwether stocks. These are stocks that investors should be paying attention to as the economy continues to reopen.
One quality of many of these stocks is that they are either negative for 2021 or underperforming the broader market. And that means that they are likely to have a strong upside as the economy grows.
View the "7 Bellwether Stocks Signaling a Return to Normal".
