The Dow Jones Industrial Average squeezed out a slight gain as stocks struggled. New Cathie Wood buy Twilio (TWLO) soared after the firm announced a staff cull. Coinbase (COIN) and Riot Blockchain (RIOT) were mixed as Bitcoin fell under a key level. Starbucks (SBUX) popped.

Meanwhile a trio of energy stocks flashed bullish signals. Devon Energy (DVN), ConocoPhillips (COP) and Northern Oil & Gas (NOG) all offered buying opportunities.

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Volume was lower on the Nasdaq and the New York Stock Exchange according to early data.

The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note fell one basis point to 3.41%. West Texas Intermediate crude oil rose nearly 2% to trade at nearly $89 per barrel.

Stocks in general struggled to make decisive gains following new inflation data. The PPI, which measures wholesale inflation, showed producer prices fell 0.1% in August vs. the previous month. This was in-line with expectations. Wholesale inflation rose 8.7% from a year ago, down from July’s 9.8% surge and matched Econoday estimates.

Nasdaq Up As IBD 50 Shines

The Nasdaq, which was walloped Tuesday, fared best out of the major indexes. It reversed higher but closed off session highs as it gained 0.7%. Moderna (MRNA) was a top performer as it gained 6.2%.

The S&P 500 also staged a comeback as it ended the day up 0.3%. Nucor (NUE) plunged 11.3% on disappointing guidance.

The S&P 500 sectors were mixed, with energy and consumer discretionary the best performers. Real estate lagged most.

Small caps whipsawed, but the Russell 2000 ultimately managed to squeeze out a 0.3% gain.

The Innovator IBD 50 ETF (FFTY) did well due to solid energy exposure. It closed the day up 2.2%.

Dow Jones Today: Chevron Stock, JNJ Lead

The Dow Jones Industrial Average ceded some gains but closed off lows as it rose 0.1%.

Chevron (CVX) was the best performer as energy stocks fared well. CVX stock ended the session up 2.4%.

It just held off Johnson & Johnson (JNJ), which turned in a gain of 2.1%. It was boosted after the firm announced it will buy back up to $5 billion of stock.

Honeywell International (HON) was faring worst. The aerospace play was near session lows as it fell 2.7%.

Cathie Wood: Twilio Stock Jumps On Cull

Cathie Wood was active in the stock market on Tuesday, adding shares to the holdings of ARK Innovation ETF (ARKK) even as other investors headed to the exits.

Among the moves, she snapped up just over 47,000 shares in Twilio, a purchase which immediately paid off after the stock popped 10% today.

TWLO stock rocketed after the firm disclosed in an SEC filing that it is laying off 11% of its workforce. The news was cheered by investors.

With the new additional shares, ARKK now holds a total of 4,321,544 shares of Twilio stock.

Wood also added to her holdings of TuSimple (TSP) and DraftKings (DKNG), with both jumping around 6%.

Not all of the famous investor’s Tuesday buys were making such bullish moves however.

Roku (ROKU) and UiPath (PATH) managed to rally out of the red but squeezed out marginal gains. Both stocks remain mired below their major moving averages.

The ARK Innovation ETF, which is the signature fund for Cathie Wood, remains down more than 55% so far this year.

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What To Do Now As Market Tries To Bounce Back

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Starbucks Stock Boils Over Key Level On Guidance

Starbucks stock surged after the firm raised its guidance late Tuesday. It ended the session up 5.5%, near its highs for the day.

SBUX was boosted after departing CEO Howard Schultz said the firm expects double-digit growth for revenue and EPS.

It expects earnings per share to grow 15% to 20% annually over the next three years. This was up from previous guidance. It also offered an improved outlook for global and U.S. same-store sales growth.

Starbucks stock came to the boil nicely on the news, once again clearing the key 200-day moving average.

Nevertheless, SBUX has much work to do recoup its 2022 losses as it remains down more than 20% for the year.

Coinbase Stock Gains As Bitcoin Reverses

Coinbase managed to finish the session strongly. It held most of its gains as it rose 4.6%. Volume was lower though.

The stock, which slashed its full-year forecast last month, pulled further away from its moving 50-day moving average. COIN shares are down more than 69% since the start of 2022.

Bitcoin fell below the key $20,000 mark after reversing lower. It was down nearly 2% in the past 24 hours, according to CoinDesk.

Other cryptocurrency plays fell. Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) dipped 2%, while Bitcoin mining play Riot Blockchain (RIOT) lost 0.9%.

Outside Dow Jones: Three Energy Stocks Flash Buy Signals

A trio of impressive energy stocks made bullish moves on Wednesday.

Devon Energy offered a buying opportunity after it cleared an early entry as well as Monday’s high of 71.57. It is also eyeing a 75.37 cup-with-handle buy point.

In four of the last five quarters, Devon has produced triple-digit revenue growth. Over the last three years, the company has generated annual average sales growth of 26%.

DVN saw exposure raised on the prestigious IBD Leaderboard list today. Devon Energy is also a favorite of celebrity investing guru Jim Cramer.

ConocoPhillips is also actionable after it cleared a cup-with-handle entry of 115.57.

Strong all-around performance is reflected in an IBD Composite Rating of 99. But this is a later, fourth-stage base, which means additional caution is required.

Northern Oil & Gas is also in a buy zone above a cup-with-handle entry of 33.60.

The stock is in the top 4% of stocks in terms of price performance over the past 12 months.

Please follow Michael Larkin on Twitter at @IBD_MLarkin for more analysis of growth stocks.

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