Published on 16 Oct 2023 on Zacks via Yahoo Finance

Beat the Market the Zacks Way: Novo Nordisk, MakeMyTrip, Fastenal in Focus

Two of the three widely followed indexes closed last week with marginally higher, while one closed in the red. The S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 0.5% and 0.8%, respectively, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite lost 0.2%. For the S&P 500, it was a second straight weekly advance, while the Dow snapped two weeks of losses.

The stock market continues to be in a turbulent mode, unable to make up its mind about the direction the economy is taking. While there was visible respite in investor sentiment after the release of the minutes from the Fed September meeting, which showed the central bank taking a dovish stance on policy tightening, higher-than-expected inflation numbers diluted the vibes somewhat. The bond yields also see-sawed through the week, with the 10-year treasury yield coming down from 16-year highs and the 2-year yield continuing to climb northward.

The conflict raging in the Gaza strip kept the investors on tenterhooks while sharply dropping consumer sentiments ensured the week ended on a whimpering note. Investors continue to closely monitor how the oil prices react to the Israel-Palestine tussle and whether the higher-than-expected inflation changes the Fed’s reading of the situation.