US indexes mixed as Black Friday approaches

Major US stock markets sent mixed signals in the past days, possibly an indication that traders may be having different options for the time being. Market participants are perhaps in anticipation of the Black Friday which can act as a major source of energy for markets. The events can also allow the markets to receive information on consumer trends and preferences but also on economic challenges like supply bottleneck impacts. This report will be overviewing some stocks that stood out in our opinion in the past days and could remain in focus in the upcoming sessions. Our closure will consist of a technical analysis presenting important price levels for one of the stocks mentioned in the fundamental part.

Financials head the gainers list

Goldman Sachs (#GS) was at the top of the Dow Jones winners on Tuesday, after gaining +2.57% and closing the session at $396.16. At the moment, GS is up +54.09% on a year to date basis and its 52 week price range is between $225.73 and $426.14. According to the Wall Street Journal and other sources, global financial regulators have increased capital requirements for some of the major banks like JPMorgan Chase & Co.(#JPM) , Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (#GS) and BNP Paribas SA. Analysts argue that this is a measure aimed at strengthening the financial position of these banks, as they carry significant economic risk and could possibly expose the global system. Even though the new capital requirements may result in giving the banks a more challenging time allocating resources and setting enough funds by side to satisfy the regulations, the move tends to be positive for the banks as it implies they will reduce the risk of collapse. In the past decade, as in the case of the 2008 crisis, reckless bank operations threatened to bring down the US economy and destabilized the global economic system. The new regulations could be seen as a requirement set in place to avoid previous mistakes and misperceptions of the banking system.

Is Disney’s content in question?

Disney was also in the market’s focus on Tuesday as it headed the list of the stocks moving lower for the Dow, leaving behind -2.03% closing the session at $151.03. At the moment Disney is down -16.64% on a year to date basis, while its 52 week price range is between $141.70 and $203.02. Some pessimistic headlines may have concerned investors in the previous days, possibly leaving the stock in red territory. According to various sources Comcast Corp.’s, NBC Universal could be moving much of its content from Hulu to its own Peacock platform. Hulu is an American online video streaming service majority owned by Walt Disney. If this was to actually take place then a considerable part of the content currently available through Hulu would be removed perhaps leaving its subscribers unhappy in the short term. According to Disney’s official Q4 earnings report, Hulu’s performance was improved due to subscription revenue growth and higher advertising revenue. This is evidence that Disney’s overall performance is affected by Hulu’s sales and demand. Finally it’s worth noting that some of Disney’s losses were countered with the gains derived from Hulu’s performance.

Merck in positive territory on optimistic pill review

Merck & Co., Inc. (#MRK) the American multinational pharmaceutical company gained +1.42% and closed the session at $82.80 on Tuesday. Updates surrounding Merck’s promising oral antiviral Molnupiravir which is said to cut the risk of hospitalization or death by approximately 50 percent are looming in the media, as the health regulatory bodies around the world are said to intensify their review of the pill and make a decision soon. Many reports imply the FDA may approve sooner than later, while the European Union’s drug regulator EMA is also studying the pill. The same applies for Pfizer’s oral antiviral candidate, PAXLOVID™ which is estimated to cut deaths and hospitalizations by 89%. In the meantime, Merck’s share price has been moving with intense volatility for the past 6 months gaining 9.67% according to Reuters. Volatility may have increased further after Merck’s prospect pill had come into review by the FDA. Thus any decision by the FDA or EMA can put Merck and Pfizer in the epicenter of the market’s attention. In our opinion, an approval of the pill could push stock prices of their respected companies higher and the opposite.  At the moment Merck’s share price range for the past 52 weeks has been between $68.38 and $91.40.

#GS H1

We make a start with the very obvious upward trend line highlighted with yellow on our chart that started since the 19  of November. At the moment the RSI indicator has reached the 68 level confirming the bulls ended the previous session on a high note. If the trend continues upwards then the first resistance level to be met could be the (R1) 408.95 and even higher the (R2) 413.20 line. If both these levels are breached then the road could be set for the (R3) 419.30 resistance to be met. In the opposite direction, a possible move to the downside could make room for the (S1) 402.70 support to be tested. Even lower the (S2) 397.85 support is imminent and could be used as a barometer for further selling interest. The lowest level in our view is the (S3) 392.40 support that was last tested on the 22^nd of November. Finally, we must note that in November, #GS is trading lower compared to where it started.

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