Stock futures are pointing to a mixed start as investors ponder the 10th straight, and perhaps final, Federal Reserve interest-hike. A European Central Bank meeting, data, earnings from Apple and others, and more bank stress make up a frenetic Thursday.<\/p>\n
A few tomatoes are being lobbed at the Fed Chairman Jerome Powell for his \u201csound and resilient,\u201d description of the U.S. banking system, followed by a collapse in PacWest shares. (More below) Hedge fund boss Bill Ackman was practically apoplectic, while bond-trader Jeffrey Gundlach said bank stress won\u2019t stop until rate cuts start.<\/p>\n
Elsewhere, JonesTrading\u2019s chief market strategist Mike O\u2019Rourke said he\u2019s \u201cstunned\u201d that Powell has now \u201chiked twice in the face of sizable bank failures. While we would agree these challenges are far less severe than 2008, we also believe discretion is still the better part of valor,\u201d he told clients. <\/p>\n
\u201cNonetheless, here we are on the cusp of a 4th bank failure and the S&P 500 Read: <\/strong>Why stock-market bulls can\u2019t celebrate as Fed hints at pause in rate hikes<\/p>\n Onto our call of the day<\/strong>, which offers more cheer in the face of fear, as trader Kevin Muir of the Macro Tourist blog walks us through what markets did after final Fed hikes, with some surprising stock winners.<\/p>\n Muir looked at total returns from the day of the last Fed increase, representing average returns from tightening campaigns between 1984 and 2018. \u201cOn average, on the first day after the last hike, stock markets decline. The next day it gets worse. And on the third day, it declines a little more,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n But on the fourth day, markets stop falling and two weeks later stocks are up, meaning investors just take a few days to digest the rate hike and start to move on. <\/p>\n Moving even further out, things also don\u2019t look shabby at all, as his chart shows:<\/p>\n The big takeaway here, says Muir, is that investors should not rush out to buy right away, but hold their fire for a couple of weeks, if things go to script. He also looked at bonds and found things bullish across the boards with falling yields, but only on week 3 and 4 after the last hike. <\/p>\n As for stocks, he did this rundown of major sectors from the first week to 90 days later:<\/p>\n In the first week, he finds everything losing but financials, then he scans further out, where tech stocks are in the lead after 90 days.<\/p>\n \u201cLooking at the next winners, we have financials and real estate. Holy smokes, talk about a scary duo to own right now \u2013 but maybe that\u2019s why they might work? The sentiment in these two sectors is so downtrodden, we could see a massive short covering rally,\u201d said Muir.<\/p>\n Read:<\/strong> SVB and First Republic are just the first of many U.S. banks that will fail \u2014 if you believe 800 years of history<\/p>\n U.S. stock futures\u00a0 YM00, NQ00, Next central bank on tap \u2014 the European Central Bank, where a 25 basis-point hike is expected on Thursday. <\/p>\n For more market updates plus actionable trade ideas for stocks, options and crypto,\u00a0subscribe to\u00a0MarketDiem by Investor\u2019s Business Daily.<\/strong><\/p>\n PacWest First Horizon stock There\u2019s also this:<\/p>\n Loaded with consumer brands including Tylenol, Johnson & Johnson\u2019s Kenvue spinoff Arconic Bud Light problem? Anheuser Busch ABI, Read: <\/strong>Apple is about to rain billions more on investors alongside earnings<\/p>\n Lemonade stock First-quarter productivity and unit-labor costs are due at 8:30, alongside the March trade deficit and weekly jobless claims, which come a day ahead of the April payrolls report.<\/p>\n Read:<\/strong> Why the economics profession didn\u2019t forecast the surge in inflation \u2014 and why prices can cool without the economy tanking<\/p>\n It\u2019s time to find out why Warren Buffett again bet big on oil<\/p>\n My weekend with an emotional support A.I. companion<\/p>\n These were the top-searched tickers on MarketWatch as of 6 a.m. Eastern:<\/p>\n Satanists double their membership.<\/p>\n Glutenous mystery. Hundreds of pounds of pasta dumped in the woods. <\/p>\n What day is it?<\/p>\n
\n SPX,
\n
\n is 2.5% higher than where it closed the last day SVB traded, before it was placed in receivership. Maybe the Fed Chairman is taking his signal from the equity market as both have expressed a low level of regard for risk,\u201d said O\u2019Rourke. <\/p>\nThe markets<\/h6>\n
\n ES00,
\n
\n
\n
\n are bouncing around after Wednesday\u2019s post-Fed decision decline, and Treasury yields
\n TMUBMUSD02Y,
\n
\n continue to tumble, with the 10-year note
\n TMUBMUSD10Y,
\n
\n at 3.36%. Crude-oil futures\u00a0
\n CL.1,
\n
\n are higher, just below $70 per barrel. The dollar\u00a0
\n DXY,
\n
\n is flat and gold
\n GC00,
\n
\n and silver
\n SI00,
\n
\n are higher.<\/p>\nThe buzz<\/h6>\n
\n PACW,
\n
\n shares are down 38%. The lender issued a statement saying deposits are rising and confirmed it\u2019s in talks with potential investors or partners. A late plunge in shares came Wednesday on a Bloomberg News report of a possible sale. Western Alliance Bancorp\u00a0
\n WAL,
\n
\n and Zions Bancorp
\n ZION,
\n
\n are down 17% and 9%, respectively. <\/p>\n
\n FHN,
\n
\n is down 45% after the bank said it has mutually agreed with TD Bank Group
\n TD,
\n
\n to terminate their merger deal.<\/p>\n
\n KVUE,
\n
\n heads for the biggest IPO in over a year on Thursday, with shares priced at $22 each.<\/p>\n
\n ARNC,
\n
\n stock is up 26% on a report private-equity firm Apollo Global Management is reportedly nearing a deal to acquire the industrial-parts maker.<\/p>\n
\n BUD,
\n
\n
\n reported a jump in profits. Moderna
\n MRNA,
\n
\n Peloton
\n PTON,
\n
\n Cardinal Health, Stanley Black & Decker
\n SWK,
\n
\n also report results. Then it\u2019s a huge after-hours lineup, with Apple
\n AAPL,
\n
\n DoorDash
\n DASH,
\n
\n Lyft
\n LYFT,
\n
\n Shopify
\n SHOP,
\n
\n Coinbase
\n COIN,
\n
\n DraftKings
\n DKNG,
\n
\n AIG
\n AIG,
\n
\n Bumble
\n BMBL,
\n
\n GoDaddy
\n GDDY,
\n
\n and Fortinet
\n FTNT,
\n
\n to name a few.<\/p>\n
\n LMND,
\n
\n is up 12% after upbeat results from the online insurance group. Zillow
\n Z,
\n
\n reported forecast-beating earnings, despite wobbles in residential real estate.<\/p>\nThe best of the web<\/h6>\n
The chart<\/h6>\n
The tickers<\/h6>\n
\n
\n \n Ticker<\/p>\n<\/td>\n \n Security name<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n \n TSLA,
\n \n Tesla<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n \n MULN,
\n \n Mullen Automotive<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n \n PACW,
\n \n PacWest Bancorp<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n \n AMC,
\n \n AMC Entertainment<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n \n GME,
\n \n GameStop<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n \n AAPL,
\n \n Apple<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n \n BUD,
\n \n Anheuser-Busch<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n \n NIO,
\n \n NIO<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n \n AMZN,
\n \n Amazon.com<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n \n WAL,
\n \n Western Alliance Bancorp.<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n Random reads<\/h6>\n