Dow Jones Falls; Tesla Steady After Elon Musk Issues Challenge; These Stocks Hit After Russia Attack

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell despite an encouraging jobs report. Uranium stocks were punished after Russia attacked a Ukraine nuclear plant. Tesla (TSLA) held up after CEO Elon Musk issued a challenge. Rivian (RIVN) plunged.

A trio of stocks managed to make bullish moves despite the challenging action. Public Storage (PSA), SandRidge Energy (SD) and CMS Energy (CMS) tested buy points.

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Volatility was up, with the Cboe Volatility Index, or VIX, spiking more than 9%. Volume was running higher on both the New York Stock Exchange and the Nasdaq vs. the same time Thursday, a negative on a down day.

Meanwhile, the yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note fell about 12 basis points to 1.73%. Oil was gushing higher, though, with West Texas Intermediate crude rising more than 7%.

Stocks were having a torrid time despite a much better than expected jobs report. The U.S. economy added 678,000 jobs in February, easily beating Econoday estimates that called for the addition of 390,000 jobs. The unemployment rate fell to 3.8%.

Nasdaq Falls As Tech Stocks Reverse

The Nasdaq was near session lows as it dipped about 2%. Micron Technology (MU) was the worst performer, giving up nearly 10%.

The S&P 500 was down 1.3%. Apparel giant PVH (PVH) was being slammed here, falling more than 11%.

The S&P sectors were mixed. Energy and utilities were faring best while technology and financials were the worst performers.

Small caps were being mauled by the bears, with the Russell 2000 falling nearly 2%.

Growth stocks were actually holding up reasonably well. The Innovator IBD 50 ETF (FFTY), a bellwether for growth stocks, was down 0.7%.

Dow Jones Slips As American Express Stock Lags

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fared best out of the major indexes, dropping 1.2%.

American Express (AXP) was once again one of the worst laggards, falling nearly 5%. The stock is now below its 50-day moving average.

AXP stock has fallen more than 11% for the week as financial stocks come under pressure.

Boeing (BA) was also struggling, dropping just over 5%. It is below both the 50-day and 200-day lines.

Walmart (WMT) was the top performer on the upside as it squeezed out a gain of just over 2%.

These Uranium Stocks Struggle After Russia Nuclear Plant Attack

A slew of uranium stocks were being hit after the Russian attack on Europe’s largest nuclear plant, located in Ukraine.

While international monitors say the plant is safe and that radioactive material did not escape, the attack raised doubts about the safety of nuclear power.

“By the grace of God, the world narrowly averted a nuclear catastrophe last night,” U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield told the United Nations.

Meanwhile, Russia said it is “untrue” that the plant was fired upon. It claimed the fire was caused by Ukrainian saboteurs.

Cameco (CCJ) was down almost 5%, NexGen Energy (NXE) fell more than 3%. Australia-based Paladin Energy fell more than 11%.

Among exchange traded funds, the Global X Uranium ETF (URA) fell more than 3% and the North Shore Global Uranium Mining (URNM) ETF slipped nearly 6%. They still have healthy gains of more than 10% for the month though,

Tesla Stock Holds Up After Elon Musk Issues Challenge

Tesla stock spent much of the session in the green and was giving up less than 1% heading into the close gain after CEO Elon Musk took on a powerful union via Twitter.

Musk seemed unafraid as he dared the United Auto Workers (UAW) labor union to try and unionize his factory in California.

“I’d like hereby to invite UAW to hold a union vote at their convenience. Tesla will do nothing to stop them,” he said.

The stock may have been boosted by the fact that Tesla’s Germany plant has been granted a final permit by regional authorities.

But Tesla still must provide some documents before production can kick off.

Tesla stock is a member of the prestigious IBD Leaderboard list of leading growth stocks.

Rivian stock was having a much worse day after Baird lowered its price target from 150 to 100 despite reiterating an outperform rating on the stock. The company earlier hiked prices, angering many customers.

It was trading near session lows as it fell nearly 8%, losing further ground on its 50-day line in the process.

These Stocks Test Buy Points

Public Storage is in a buy zone after passing a flat-base buy point of 377.46, MarketSmith analysis shows.

The stock boasts solid all-around performance, with its exploits in the stock market over the last 12 months a particular highlight.

SandRidge Energy is also actionable after breaking out of a cup base with no handle. The proper buy point here is 15.09.

It is in the top 1% of stocks in terms of market performance over the last year and big money has been piling into the stock of late.

Utility stock CMS Energy moved out of a long base that has the elements of a saucer. The entry is 65.89. The stock had been trading tightly before the breakout, but earnings are a big Achilles heel for CMS.

Investors should bear in mind that, with the market still in the grip of a correction since Feb. 23, any buys carry much more risk.

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

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