Dow Jones Sinks While Nasdaq Continues Higher; Two FANG Stocks Traded Near Buy Zones

The Dow Jones Industrial Average moved lower in today’s stock market, but closed off its lows of the day. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq rose modestly as the tech sector outperformed. The S&P 500 pared its afternoon gains and closed near break-even.
X
Stock Market Today
The Nasdaq rose 0.2%. The Dow Jones closed with a loss of 0.2%. The Russell 2000 index led the downside with a 0.5% decline. Preliminary data showed lower volume on the NYSE and on the Nasdaq.
Stocks were mixed and made minor moves despite a big miss on the August jobs report. Early Friday, the Labor Department reported that nonfarm payrolls in August increased by 235,000. This was a fraction of the 720,000 new hires expected by economists.
“There’s no question the delta variant is why today’s job report isn’t stronger,” President Biden said at the White House. “Too many have not gotten vaccinated, and it’s creating a lot of unease in our economy and around our kitchen tables.”
The Nasdaq is closing out the week with a year-to-date gain of roughly 19%. The S&P 500 has risen around 21% while the Dow is lagging with a gain of around 16% for the year.
Among the S&P sectors on Friday, technology and communication services were among the few that rose. Energy and financials underperformed. The Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLE) lost 0.6% after Thursday’s strong gains of over 2%. U.S. crude prices sank around 1% to a price of around $69 a barrel.
Technology stocks continue to outperform as shares of Facebook (FB) and Netflix (NFLX) both closed just below key buy zones after scoring breakouts earlier this week. Facebook closed less than 1% below a flat base 377.65 entry, while Netflix traded around 1% below a 593.39 consolidation buy point. Shares of both stocks were up roughly 0.2% in afternoon trading.
Growth Stocks To Watch
As for top growth stocks in the stock market, the Innovator IBD 50 ETF (FFTY) outperformed with a gain of 1.2%, continuing further past its February highs. The ETF is also trading above a 50.06 buy point. Stocks outperforming in the index included software security stock SentinelOne (S) and Asana (ASAN), which gained roughly 6% each.
Asana, an app that helps teams track and manage their work, is continuing to power higher after a 15% surge on Thursday. The move came after the project management software company reported earnings this week with a loss for the July quarter, but a strong acceleration in sales.
Notable stocks from the MarketSmith Growth 250 breaking out on Friday included Deere & Co. (DE). The stock traded above a 388.62 buy point of a cup with handle base.
Deere stock currently boasts solid overall performance, with triple-digit earnings increases for the last three quarters. It also currently ranks No. 2 in the farm machinery industry group. Deere stock is up around 45% so far in 2021. This far exceeds the S&P 500’s gain around 20%.
Dow Jones Today
Inside the Dow Jones, tech leaders Apple (AAPL) and Salesforce.com (CRM) held gains of 0.4% and 1.1%, respectively. Apple stock continued to coast above support at its 21-day exponential moving average with a gain of 0.4% Friday and almost 4% for the week.
Shares of Salesforce.com led the upside with a gain of over 1%.
American Express (AXP) was among stocks leading on the downside. Shares fell 1.7% but are tracing a flat base with a 179.77 buy point, according to IBD MarketSmith chart analysis. The stock is below the key 50-day moving average line, which is a sign of weakness for the time being.
Financial stocks are pulling back after solid August gains. American Express was the No. 2 performer on the Dow Jones last month, rising more than 37%. Goldman Sachs (GS) was the top performer with a 56.9% climb.
Follow Rachel Fox on Twitter at @foxonstocks for more Dow Jones and market commentary.
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE:
MarketSmith: Research, Charts, Data And Coaching All In One Place
Track Daily Stock Market Action With The Big Picture
Here’s How To Get A Free Trial Of IBD Leaderboard
Vertical Violations: Why You Should Recognize This Bear Market Indicator
Why The Market Rally Is So Strong; Tesla Stock Defies Bad News