Good MorningMarkets carried a wait-and-see tone last week as two familiar forces competed for control: resilient earnings momentum against a persistent oil-and-inflation overhang. Crude held near its hard ceiling with price action resembling a bull flag, keeping energy-driven input costs elevated and reinforcing margin pressure across the supply chain. Breadth remained narrow, with AI leadership doing the heavy lifting while the broader tape struggled to find conviction.
The macro picture tilted toward caution. Import prices came in hotter than expected, feeding concerns that upcoming CPI and PCE prints could push back above 3%. Rate cut expectations have essentially evaporated for 2026, with the Fed likely frozen in place as oil-linked inflation limits its options. Jobless claims stayed healthy near 210,000, and Friday's NFP report may show steady employment, but rising wages in a sticky-inflation backdrop only complicate the policy calculus.
On the corporate tape, NVIDIA and Micron continued anchoring AI-driven earnings revision strength, with full-year S&P 500 growth estimates climbing again. Nike heads into Wednesday's report with weakening expectations and new lows. Exxon Mobil reports Thursday, positioned to benefit from elevated crude but vulnerable to a sell-the-news fade. Traders are watching Friday's jobs number and next week's inflation data for signals on whether the Fed's holding pattern can survive the summer. Featured: A trading plan built hours before the opening bell (Ad) 
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Finance | |
Blue Owl Capital Inc. (NYSE: OWL), an alternative investment asset management group, has been making headlines for all the wrong reasons lately.
Shares are currently trading around $9, down more than 65% from their highs last year and over 40% since the start of this year alone. It’s not ... Read the Full Story |
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From Our Partners | | Marc Chaikin, founder of Chaikin Analytics, is flagging a little-known company that just secured a partnership with Nvidia - one he believes positions it ahead of Tesla in the autonomous vehicle race.
With a market-moving announcement expected on July 31st, Chaikin is urging investors to swap overpriced AI stocks for this under-the-radar name before markets open. He's also releasing a free Hotlist and Hitlist of buy and sell ideas for the second half of 2026. | | Get the ticker symbol and full details at no charge today |
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Basic Materials | |
Commercial Metals' (NYSE: CMC) stock price is down at the end of Q1 2026 amid macroeconomic concerns and potential disruption not reflected in its results. The move has the market overextended near a six-month low, poised to snap back and potentially with vigor. The technical setup suggests market... Read the Full Story |
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Construction | |
It’s helpful to remember that many of today’s top mega-cap companies started as speculative small-cap stocks. But no matter the size of the company, the best stocks are the ones that continue to grow revenue and earnings.
Investors do have to deal with more volatility with small-cap ... Read the Full Story |
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From Our Partners | | Elon Musk's new banking platform is paying up to 15 times the national average interest rate while insuring deposits up to $250,000 - just like a traditional bank. It moved $1 billion in a matter of days.
Senior Investment Analyst Luke Lango says this is the first sign of a much bigger financial shift - one with real profit potential for investors who position early. JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon has already warned banks to be 'scared' of exactly this kind of disruption. | | See how it works and how to position yourself for the opportunity |
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Finance | |
Capital One Financial (NYSE: COF) has a lot to prove this year. The lender and payments company reported higher-than-expected revenue at the end of last year and is digesting its $35 billion acquisition of Discover Financial. At the same time, its fourth-quarter earnings missed estimates, and it&r... Read the Full Story |
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Medical | |
The healthcare industry is notoriously volatile—company fortunes can be made or broken on the success of a single product or the results of a clinical trial, and it's not uncommon for stocks in this sector to see some of the wildest spikes (and drops) across the market. Investors keen to acc... Read the Full Story |
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From Our Partners | | Marc Chaikin - the analyst who called Nvidia before its historic run - says a tech firm labeled 'the unseen winner of the AI race' may soon split into three separate companies in an event known as a starburst.
Investors who buy shares before the announcement could automatically receive equal shares in each spinoff. In GE's 2021 starburst, one position became three, unlocking $184 billion for shareholders. Chaikin believes this AI starburst could be significantly larger. | | Get the full details on this rare AI opportunity before it goes public |
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Markets | |
If you spoke with market analysts and investment advisors on the eve of President Donald Trump’s second inauguration, you would have been hard-pressed to find anyone who was bearish on financials.
Most experts agreed that banks, insurance providers, mortgage lenders, and other financial ... Read the Full Story |
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Technology | |
If you’ve ever split a purchase into separate payments at checkout, there’s a good chance you’ve been a customer of Affirm Holdings (NASDAQ: AFRM). The company sits at the center of the buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) boom. And after years of prioritizing growth over profits, it’s... Read the Full Story |
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Basic Materials | |
What’s going on with gold? After surging above $5,000, gold has fallen back about 20%. That’s not surprising after such a strong move, but it does beg the question of why? The conventional wisdom is that the dollar is stronger because, while the U.S. economy has its own debt problem (m... Read the Full Story |
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Consumer Staples | |
Dividend stocks shine when markets get choppy. These stocks aren’t going to deliver flashy growth like big tech stocks or speculative small-cap stocks. But they have a purpose, and the best names in the sector deliver on that purpose on a regular basis.
The best of the best names are given... Read the Full Story |
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Business Services | |
Cintas Corporation (NASDAQ: CTAS) is a deep-value opportunity no one is talking about, perhaps because of its humdrum business. Cintas Corporation delivers uniforms, laundry services, first-aid supplies, and other services to businesses across industries and verticals. The critical detail is that ... Read the Full Story |
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Monday's Early Bird Stock Of The Day Dow, Inc. is a materials science company, which engages in the development of innovative solutions. It operates through the following segments: Packaging and Specialty Plastics, Industrial Intermediates and Infrastructure, and Performance Materials and Coatings. The Packaging and Specialty Plastics segment consists of hydrocarbons and energy and packaging and specialty plastics. The Industrial Intermediates and Infrastructure segment covers the industrial solutions and polyurethanes and construction chemicals. The Performance Materials and Coatings segment includes coatings and performance monomers and consumer solutions. The company was founded in 1897 and is headquartered in Midland, MI. | Should I Buy DOW Stock? DOW Bull and Bear Case Explained
These insights were generated using artificial intelligence. They are based on proprietary MarketBeat data, news articles, and custom LLM A.I. algorithms. This analysis of DOW was last updated on Thursday, July 16, 2026 at 7:24 PM.
DOW Bull Case -
Dow Inc. has a competitive advantage due to its use of low-cost natural gas liquids as feedstocks, which helps maintain stable production costs compared to international competitors reliant on more expensive crude oil-derived inputs.
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The current stock price is around $40, reflecting a strong upward trend supported by recent upgrades from major analysts, indicating positive market sentiment.
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Analysts have raised their price targets for Dow Inc., with some estimates reaching as high as $45, suggesting potential for further capital appreciation.
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Dow Inc. offers a reliable dividend yield of approximately 3.88%, providing investors with a steady income stream while they wait for capital gains.
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Recent supply disruptions in the global market are expected to significantly boost earnings, positioning Dow Inc. favorably for profit margin expansion.
DOW Bear Case -
While Dow Inc. has a strong market position, the overall market uncertainty and geopolitical risks could impact stock performance negatively.
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Increased short interest in Dow Inc. may indicate that some investors are betting against the stock, which could lead to volatility in the short term.
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Recent insider sales may raise concerns about the confidence of company executives in the stock's future performance, although this can also be seen as profit-taking.
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Dependence on the North American market for feedstocks could expose Dow Inc. to regional economic downturns, affecting its overall performance.
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Potential fluctuations in natural gas prices could impact production costs, although currently, they remain favorable compared to competitors.
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