Credit: Shutterstock photoRemember, the latest episode of the Zacks Ultimate Strategy Session will be available for viewing no later than this Wednesday, June 6. Sheraz Mian, Tracey Ryniec, David Bartosiak and Kevin Cook will cover the investment landscape from most every angle in this informative event.
Don't miss your chance to hear:
• Sheraz and Kevin Agree to Disagree on how impactful the 3 biggest threats to the economy and stock market will be
• Sheraz answers your questions in Zacks Mailbag
• Sheraz and Kevin choose one portfolio to give feedback for improvement
• And much more
So be sure to mark your calendar then log on to Zacks.com and bookmark this page.
Move over Russell 2000…you've finally got company at the all-time highs.
The NASDAQ closed at a new record on Monday for the first time since March. The index advanced 0.69% to 7606.5, soaring past its previous closing high at 7588.3 on March 12. It's now just a little more than 30 points away from its intraday apex.
New highs were actually contagious in the technology sector today. Giants like Microsoft, Amazon, Netflix and Apple all closed with records. Apple unveiled its new iOS 12 mobile operating system at its annual Worldwide Developers Conference, as the stock continues its trek toward $1 trillion.
The other major indices also enjoyed positive sessions, as the market spent another day appreciating last Friday's jobs report and ignoring ongoing concerns with trade. The Dow climbed 0.72% to 24,813.7 and the S&P was up 0.45% to 2746.9. The small-cap focused Russell 2000 had been making new highs while its larger counterparts were just stumbling around, and that continued today with its advance of 0.33% to 1653.4.
"What happened today is just the beginning of a larger move higher. The volume is low, the VIX is low and I can feel a summer drift higher in stocks. A drift might make things boring, but we all know there will be some headlines to keep things interesting," said Jeremy in Counterstrike .
In the portfolios, Healthcare Innovators took advantage of a massive selloff in a biopharma company that the editor thinks is an overreaction. Also, Options Trader swapped a series of bull call spreads to get more time in a holding that has recently turned around. Learn more about these moves and more in the highlights section below:
Today's Portfolio Highlights:
Healthcare Innovators: Shares of Nektar Therapeutics (NKTR) plunged 40% this morning after the biopharma company released some soft data at the ASCO (American Society of Clinical Oncology) conference. Very generally, the combination of NKTR's NKTR-214 with Bristol-Myers Squibb's Opdivo for treatment of several tumor types was not as positive as investors would like to see. However, Kevin takes a longer term look on such things and believes today's sharp drop is an overreaction. Therefore, it is also a buying opportunity. He added shares of NKTR on Monday in expectation of better days ahead. Get a lot more specifics on this buy in the complete commentary.
Options Trader: Shares of CME Group (CME) snapped back above $170 recently after having slipped to around $155. Therefore, the portfolio's June call spreads are now positive…but there's only about 11 days left until expiration. Kevin wants more staying power, so he sold the above-mentioned spreads for a return of nearly 71%. He then repositioned into September by buying to open 3 Sept 170.00 Calls AND selling to open 3 Sept 175.00 Calls. Learn more about these moves in the complete commentary.
Black Box Trader: Three positions were changed in this week's adjustment. The stocks that were sold include:
• Dollar General (DG)
• Terex Corp (TEX)
• Huntsman Corp (HUN)
The new buys that replaced these names are:
• Chemours Co (CC)
• Cigna Corp (CI)
• Fedex Corp (FDX)
Read the Black Box Trader's Guide to learn more about this computer-driven service designed to take the emotion out of investing.
Surprise Trader: The portfolio is "moving the furniture a little bit" to make room for additions later in the week. First of all, Booz Allen Hamilton (BAH) reported another double-digit earnings surprise in its recent report, and now Dave wants to take profit on this provider of management and technology consulting services. He sold BAH today for a return of nearly 10% in less than 2 weeks. The editor also sold Brady Corp (BRC) for a gain of 3.2% in less than a month. By the way, Dave also sold Mellanox (MLNX) for a return of about 9.4% in Momentum Trader .
Zacks Confidential: The war on cancer has included a lot of breakthroughs in recent years and we're likely to see a lot more in the future. Whether revolutionary or disappointing, the annual ASCO (American Society of Clinical Oncology) conference is where the public (and investors) get an update on the new drugs and treatments. The conference is happening right now in Chicago, so you can bet that Healthcare Innovators editor Kevin Cook is paying close attention. In this week's Zacks Confidential, Kevin Matras has asked Cooker to explain what he's seeing at the gathering. Learn about some big ASCO news and four stock recommendations by clicking: Cancer - Fighting Winners & Losers at ASCO.
Insider Trader:"There's a fear that this market is being driven completely by FANG and the high growth large cap names.
"If investors were ONLY piling into the FANG, then that would be a worry. At the end of bull markets, the leadership becomes very narrow.
"But the new records in the micro and small cap indexes would refute that argument. In May, the Russell 2000 index ETFs saw the most money flow into them since the month after the election, when small caps broke out.
"That's a good sign." -- Tracey Ryniec
All the Best,
Jim Giaquinto
Recommendations from Zacks' Private Portfolios:
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The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
