Stocks opened mixed Thursday, as energy sector stocks received boosts from earnings results and rebounding oil prices.
The Dow Jones industrial average and the S&P 500 ticked up 0.1% but the Nasdaq fell nearly 0.2%.
In Motion: Ctrip.com, Jack In The Box, Home Depot, Tesla
In the oil patch, Chevron (CVX) rose 1%. Deepwater drilling contractor Transocean (RIG) popped 4.5% on healthy fourth-quarter results. Gas and oil producer Noble Energy (NBL) jumped 2.7% after laying out a timeline for development of its Leviathan natural gas field off the coast of Israel. Chesapeake Energy (CHK) leapt 2% after reporting its fourth-quarter results.
Tesla (TSLA) shed 3.5% after a mixed fourth-quarter report late Wednesday. The stock remains above a 258.56 cup-with-handle buy point.
Home Depot (HD) traded up 0.3% following a Morgan Stanley upgrade to overweight from equal weight.
China-based Ctrip.com International (CTRP) sailed 3% higher. The travel booking site reported a 191% EPS gain and a 65% rise in revenue for its fourth quarter, both well above estimates. Boosted by its October combination with competitor Qunar Cayman Islands, Ctrip also lifted first-quarter revenue guidance above projections and said gross margins jumped to 78%, from 73%. The stock rose above the 49.72 buy point in a cup base but soon fell back below it.
Ultra Clean Holdings (UCTT) bolted 13% after better-than-expected fourth-quarter results. The chip equipment maker's shares rebounded Wednesday from a test of support at the stock's 50-day moving average. The stock is up 180% over the past 12 months.
Credit card processing device maker Square (SQ) rooted out a 15% gain at the open. Its fourth-quarter report late Wednesday comfortably topped analyst targets and management lifted full-year guidance above consensus views. BTIG Research upgraded the San Francisco-based company to buy from neutral Thursday morning. The stock broke out past a flat base buy point of 15.59.
IBD 50 stock Nvidia (NVDA) dropped 4% after Nomura and BMO Captial downgraded the stock and lowered price targets late Wednesday. Nomura dropped its rating from buy to reduce, cutting its price target to 90, from 100, citing a slowdown in video gaming markets. Nvidia has been fighting to hold support at its 10-week line, after falling below a 120.03 buy point in a flat base.
Among the more sizable early losses, apparel retailer L Brands (LB) crumbled nearly14% at the open after topping fourth-quarter views, but providing weak guidance. Arris International (ARRS) dived 14% after beating fourth-quarter targets but also offering weak guidance. Jack In The Box (JACK) tumbled 9% after a broad fiscal first-quarter miss.
Jobless Claims, Housing Prices Meet Views; Oil Rebound Quickens
Economic news on the stock market today opened with an uptick in initial unemployment claims, to 244,000 in the week ended Feb. 18, according to the Labor Department. That was only slightly above the department's revised figure for the prior week, 242,000, and in line with economist consensus views. The four-week moving average dipped to 241,000, its second decline in three weeks.
Growth in housing prices slowed in December, leaving the Federal Housing Finance Agency's Housing Price Index up 0.4% for the month and in line with economist projections. The agency revised its November estimate higher, to a 0.7% gain, up from 0.5%.
Researcher Markit reports its preliminary services Purchasing Managers Index for February at 9:45 a.m. ET. The Energy Information Administration releases weekly inventory data for natural gas at 10:30 a.m. and for oil at 11 a.m. ET.
Atlanta Federal Reserve Bank President Dennis Lockhart was scheduled to begin a speech at 8:35 a.m.
Oil bounced more than 2%, recovering the ground lost Wednesday and then some, and putting West Texas Intermediate near $55 a barrel. Gold added more than 1% to trade above $1,249 an ounce. The dollar eased and bonds ticked higher trimming the 10-year yield by 2 basis points to 2.39%.
Overseas, Europe's markets were up and down, but trading in a narrow range. China's leading benchmarks dropped less than a half percent Thursday and, In Japan, Tokyo's Nikkei 225 dipped a fraction.
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