Stocks Slide at Start of Q2 as Treasury Yields Surge, Dow Jones Reports

Wall Street Is Bullish, But Not Euphoric, Says BofA

39 minutes ago

The S&P 500 kicked off 2024 with its best first quarter in five years, but there’s still room for stocks to run, according to Bank of America equities analysts. 

BofA’s Sell Side Indicator (SSI), which tracks strategists’ average recommended allocation to equities, increased 22 basis points to 55% in March, its highest level since May 2022.

Historically, the SSI has acted as a contrarian indicator, meaning that it flashes “Sell” when bullish equity allocations suggest the market is approaching overbought and “Buy” when allocations suggest the opposite. That means the indicator ticking up brings it closer to a “sell” signal. 

However, sentiment is “nowhere near euphoria,” according to BofA analyst Savita Subramanian. The indicator is in neutral territory and currently “indicates gains of +13% over the next 12m.”

Plus, Subramanian expects value and dividend stocks to get a boost from this year’s interest rate cuts. Falling interest rates should lower the yield on bonds and cash. As a result, “trillions of dollars of cash in retirees’ accounts could shift to equity income.”

AT&T Slips After Data Breach Affects Millions of Customers

1 hr 23 min ago

Shares in telecommunications bellwether AT&T Inc. (T) fell in early trading Monday after the company said on Saturday that it’s investigating a data breach two weeks ago that leaked millions of customers’ personal details onto the dark web.

The telecommunication giant’s preliminary analysis of the incident identified that the data contained information from 7.6 million current accounts and 65.4 million former accounts, including names, addresses, phone numbers, dates of birth, and Social Security numbers. AT&T said the compromised data set appears to be from 2019 or earlier and does not contain personal financial information or customers’ call history.

“As of today, this incident has not had a material impact on AT&T’s operations,” the company said in a statement released on Saturday.

Shares of AT&T were down 1.7% at $17.30 on Monday morning. They’re up about 3% so far this year.

–Timothy Smith

UPS Replaces FedEx as USPS’ Primary Air Cargo Provider

2 hr 2 min ago

United Parcel Service (UPS) announced Monday it is becoming the primary air cargo provider of the United States Postal Service (USPS), replacing FedEx (FDX) in the position.

The shipping giant said it will become the primary air carrier, moving the majority of U.S. air cargo, after a “transition period.”

USPS and FedEx negotiated through March 29, before ending negotiations after not being able to reach “mutually agreeable terms,” FedEx said in a statement. The company’s current contract with USPS runs through Sept. 29, after which FedEx said it will “implement adjustments” to its network, and will continue cost-cutting efforts that have improved profitability in recent quarters.

UPS shares fell 0.7% from their Thursday close at $147.59 Monday after the announcement, while FedEx was 2% lower at $284.

–Aaron McDade

Stocks Making the Biggest Moves Premarket

2 hr 50 min ago

Gains:

• Li Auto Inc. (LI): The Chinese electric vehicle maker’s shares rose nearly 4% after it reported better-than-expected deliveries in March. 
• 3M (MMM): Shares of the industrial conglomerate rose about 3% after completing the spin-off of its healthcare business, Solventum. It also announced the approval of a settlement worth up to $12.5 billion, payable over the next 13 years. 
• United Parcel Service (UPS): Shares of the delivery company ticked up about 2% after it said it had reached an agreement to become the U.S. Postal Service’s primary air cargo provider. 

Losses:

• MicroStrategy Inc. (MSTR): Shares of the software company slid about 5% after a regulatory filing showed Executive Chairman Michael Saylor sold almost 4,000 shares last week after a big run-up in the bitcoin bull’s stock. 
• AT&T Inc. (T): Shares fell more than 2% after the telecom said on Saturday it was investigating a data breach that resulted in millions of customers’ data being leaked onto the dark web. 

Stock Futures on Track To Start Q2 Higher

3 hr 33 min ago

Futures contracts connected to the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped sharply in early trading on Monday, but remained 0.1% higher than Thursday’s close about an hour before markets opened.

The S&P 500 was also trading up about 0.1%.

Nasdaq 100 futures were nearly 0.2% higher.