Stock Market Update

[BRIEFING.COM] Today's trade features a mostly positive bias on below-average volume at the NYSE and at the Nasdaq. Advancers lead decliners by a 5-to-2 margin at the NYSE and by a 3-to-2 margin at the Nasdaq. 

The sharp move higher in shares of Target (TGT 161.66, +18.45, +13.0%) after reporting earnings and raising its full-year earnings outlook has contributed to the upside bias. TJX (TJX 120.25, +6.94, +6.1%) also trades higher after reporting earnings and raising its full-year comparable sales guidance.

TGT and TJX are some of the top performing stocks in the S&P 500. This price action has boosted the consumer staples (+0.6%) and consumer discretionary (+0.9%) sectors.

Fellow retailer, but not an S&P 500 component, Macy's (M 15.54, -2.19, -12.4%) sports a sharp decline after reporting earnings and lowering its full-year sales and comparable sales guidance.

The price action at the index level has been relatively muted despite outsized moves in some individual names. The market-cap weighted S&P 500 trades 0.2% higher and the equal-weighted S&P 500 sports a 0.5% gain.

The lackluster action is due to light participation attributed to vacation schedules, along with some hesitation in front of the $16 billion 20-yr bond auction at 1:00 p.m. ET and the release of the Minutes for the July 30-31 FOMC meeting at 2:00 p.m. ET.

This morning's release of revisions to nonfarm payrolls for the April 2023-March 2024 period showed that there were 818,000 fewer nonfarm payroll positions than previously thought, creating some concern that the labor market has been softening for a longer period than previously thought.

The stock and bond markets had muted responses, though. The 10-yr note yield is down four basis points to 3.78% and the 2-yr note yield is down seven basis points to 3.93%. 

Reviewing today's economic data:

• Weekly MBA Mortgage Applications Index -10.1%; Prior 16.8%