Afternoon stock movers included New York Community Bancorp (NYCB), Dexcom (DXCM) and a gold ETF.
Regional bank New York Community Bancorp stock tumbled more than 40% then rebounded to a nearly 7.5% gain Wednesday afternoon. The stock sold off early on news it is considering a stock sale to raise capital. But the bank reported Wednesday afternoon it is getting a $1 billion lifeline from former Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin’s investment firm. Shares dipped below 2 a share earlier today and are closed around 3, but down from over 10 in January.
The S&P Gold Shares ETF (GLD) broke out of a double-bottom base with a 191.36 buy point March 1 in heavy volume. Shares are in a 5% buy zone reaching to 200.93. Soaring gold prices have lifted gold ETFs with a handful of gold ETFs breaking out of bases in March.
Dexcom spiked 9.8% and broke out of a flat base in heavy volume after hitting the 132.03 buy point. Shares are in the buy zone stretching to 138.63. The medical device stock reclaimed its 50-day moving average after three days hovering around the line. The jump came following news that the Food and Drug Administration approved its newest body-worn glucose monitor for people who don’t require insulin treatment.
Powell told the House Financial Services Committee it was too soon for interest-rate cuts, but added they are likely “at some point” this year. He indicated there’s a sweet spot between cutting rates too soon — and by too much — and waiting too long to ease policy. He said waiting too long could unduly weaken economic activity and employment.
Markets now expect Fed rate cuts to begin in June, with a 57.1% probability, according to the CME FedWatch Tool.
The Nasdaq trimmed gains to nearly 0.6% in Wednesday’s action. Meanwhile, the Dow closed with a 0.2% rise, while the S&P 500 added 0.5%. The small-cap Russell 2000 climbed 0.7%.
Volume rose on the New York Stock Exchange and fell on the Nasdaq compared with the same time on Tuesday in preliminary numbers.
The 10-year Treasury yield shed 3 basis points to 4.11% and fell to a one-month low after Powell’s remarks. West Texas Intermediate crude oil jumped 1.2% to around $79 a barrel.
Meanwhile, bitcoin’s price stood just under $67,000. Crypto-related stocks such as MicroStrategy (MSTR), Coinbase (COIN) and Marathon Digital (MARA) all climbed Wednesday.
Chinese online retailer JD.com (JD) gapped up more than 16% following a beat on its fourth-quarter profit and revenue projections and after it announced a stock buyback program up to $3 billion.
Foot Locker (FL) plummeted more than 29% in heavy trading even after the footwear retailer topped fourth-quarter profit and revenue estimates. The stock sank more than 28% below its cup base entry and slid deep below its 50-day line, triggering sell signals.
IBD 50 name CrowdStrike (CRWD) gapped up more than 10% in heavy volume after the cybersecurity firm topped its January-ended quarter earnings and sales estimates. It also reached an all-time high Wednesday.
Palantir Technologies (PLTR) jumped nearly 10% after the data analytics software maker announced it won a $178 million U.S. Army contract for Project Titan, a battlefield system using artificial intelligence.
