Stock Market Today: Dow ekes out gain as energy, tech rise; Fed meeting eyed

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Investing.com -- The Dow eked out a win Monday, as gains in tech and energy helped offset Tesla-led weakness in consumer stocks just a day ahead of the Federal Reserve's two-day meeting. 

The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.02%, 6 points, the Nasdaq was flat with gains of 0.01%, while S&P 500 ended up 0.1%. 

Apple leads big tech higher as Wall Street debates iPhone 15 demand

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) rose more than 1% as some Wall Street cheered signs of stronger demand for the tech giant’s newly launched iPhone 15, particularly for the higher-priced iPhone Pro and Pro Max models, compared with initial demand for the iPhone 14.

“iPhone 15 pre-orders began this Friday and so far (as of Sunday pm) are tracking much stronger than we and the Street expected and up roughly 10%-12% from iPhone 14 based on our analysis,” Wedbush said in a recent note.

But not everyone on Wall Street is waxing lyrically about the strength of the iPhone 15 launch. Barclays said that early pre-order data pointed to a difficult iPhone 15 cycle in China, with demand trending toward the lower-priced iPhone 15.

Energy stocks continue march higher as oil prices hit November highs

Energy stocks, which are up about 20% since July, continued to add to recent gains underpinned by a climb in oil prices to November 2022 highs amid ongoing optimism following recent supply cuts extensions by Saudi Arabia and Russia. 

Arm Holdings slips following strong debut last week; Micron gets Wall St. backing

Arm Holdings (NASDAQ:ARM) fell more than 4% as the chip designer lost some momentum following its stock market debut last week.

Despite the slip, shares of ARM remained well above its IPO price of $51 following a 25% on its debut on Nasdaq on Sept. 15.

In other chip news, Micron Technology Inc (NASDAQ:MU) ended up 1% after Deutsche Bank upgraded its rating on the stock to buy from hold amid optimism that AI-fueled demand for higher performing artificial intelligence services will spur the need for high-bandwidth memory.

PayPal, Tesla Receive Thumbs Down on Wall Street

PayPal Holdings (NASDAQ:PYPL), down 2%, came under pressure after MoffetNathanson downgraded its rating on the payments platform to market perform from outperform on worries about growth amid intense competition. 

Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA), meanwhile, also received the thumbs down from Wall Street after Goldman Sachs cut its expectations on the company's earnings on concerns that further price cuts would hurt margins. The stocks was down nearly 3%.

"We slightly lower our 2023/2024 EPS estimates (including SBC) to $2.90/$4.15 from $3.00/$4.25, primarily on lower average selling prices.." Goldman Sachs said. 

Clorox warns cyber hack to ‘materially’ dent growth

Clorox Co (NYSE:CLX) fell 2% after the company said the cybersecurity attack last month --  which damaged portions of its IT infrastructure and caused widespread disruption of operations -- was expected to have a material impact on its fiscal first quarter results.

Treasury yields retreat after testing recent highs as countdown to Fed meeting begins

The 10-Year Treasury yield briefly tested recent highs of around 4.4% before giving up gains, ahead the Federal Reserve's two-day meeting on Tuesday, that many expected will end in a decision to hold rates steady.

Beyond the decision, the Fed’s will deliver fresh projections on economic outlook including inflation and unemployment as well as guidance on the rate outlook.

The Fed has previously projected that rates will likely peak at a 5.50% to 5.75% range, suggesting one more hike still to be delivered, but recent signs of slowing inflation have raised hopes that the central bank may choose to hold rates higher for longer rather than deliver an additional hike.

With a skip for September almost fully priced in, many will be watching the projections and commentary from Fed chairman Jerome Powell for clues on the Fed’s next move after the September meeting.