Dow Jones Today: Dow, S&P 500 Advance as Nvidia Continues To Slide

Alnylam Stock Soars on Strong Results in Heart Drug Study

6 minutes ago

Shares of Alnylam Pharmaceuticals (ALNY) skyrocketed after the biopharma firm announced strong results from a late-stage study of its RNA interference drug for a rare heart condition.

The company reported a Phase-3 trial of its vutrisiran showed “a statistically significant reduction in the composite of all-cause mortality and recurrent cardiovascular (CV) events” in patients suffering from transthyretin amyloidosis with cardiomyopathy, or ATTR-CM. That’s a condition which causes the heart to stiffen and reduces its ability to pump blood. Alnylam added that vutrisiran also produced significant improvements across all secondary endpoints for those treated.

Alnylam said it would be moving ahead with submissions to health officials starting later this year, including asking the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for a Priority Review Voucher.

Vutrisiran, which goes under the brand name Amvuttra, has already been approved to treat nerve damage in those with hereditary transthyretin amyloidosis.

Alnylam shares jumped 38%, bringing their year-to-date gain to 20%.

–Bill McColl

Apple and Meta in Focus After Reportedly Discussing Generative AI Partnership

59 minutes ago

iPhone maker Apple (AAPL) has held discussions with its big tech rival Meta Platforms (META) to integrate the Facebook parent’s generative artificial intelligence (AI) model into its recently announced personalized AI system, Apple Intelligence, The Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday.

Such a deal would allow Meta to leverage Apple’s vast distribution of users through its iPhones, similar to how software companies gain exposure to millions of potential customers through the tech behemoth’s App Store.

Apple, which recently partnered with ChatGPT owner OpenAI and said it wants to integrate with Google’s Gemini, has also discussed adding generative AI technology developed by startups Anthropic and Perplexity into Apple Intelligence, people familiar with the discussion told the Journal, adding that talks held with Meta haven’t been finalized and could fall through.

While the 50-day moving average crossed above the 200-day MA to form a bullish golden cross pattern around the same time Apple shares broke out to a new record high earlier this month, the price has recently retraced, increasing the likelihood for further weakness this week.

Looking ahead, investors should monitor the key $197 level, an area where the price finds support from a horizontal line linking several prominent peaks over the past eleven months.

Since gapping more than 10% lower after issuing weak revenue guidance in late April, Meta shares have continued to trend mostly higher, closing the gap and climbing back above the 50-day MA. 

If the stock moves lower, investors should keep an eye on the $446 level, an area where the price may find buying interest around a multi-month horizontal line. Conversely, an upside move may run into selling pressure near the stock’s all-time high (ATH) set in early April at $531.49.

Apple shares rose almost 2% and are up around 10% this year; Meta’s stock is 1% higher, bringing its year-to-date gain to more than 40%.

–Tim Smith

RXO Surges After Buying Coyote Logistics Unit From UPS for More Than $1 Billion

1 hr 30 min ago

RXO (RXO) shares soared in intraday trading Monday, a day after the package delivery firm purchased Coyote Logistics, the third-party asset-light freight brokerage unit of United Parcel Service (UPS), for $1.025 billion in cash. 

RXO said the addition of Coyote will create the third-largest provider of brokered transportation in North America. The company noted that the deal will be “immediately and significantly accretive to RXO’s adjusted diluted earnings per share and adjusted free cash flow.”

Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Drew Wilkerson explained that the acquisition “will increase the number of customers that do more than $1 million in business with us by approximately 80%.” He added that RXO would get “both immediate and long-term opportunities for revenue and earnings growth.”

The transaction is expected to be completed by the end of the year.

The news sent shares of RXO up more than 18%, although they are just up 3% in 2024. UPS shares rose 1%.

–Bill McColl

Nvidia Stock in Spotlight After Drop From Record High

2 hr 16 min ago

Artificial intelligence (AI) chipmaker Nvidia (NVDA) remains in the spotlight after shares dropped from their record high on Thursday.

Despite little in the way of company-specific announcements late last week, investors may have used a rare moment of broad market weakness for profit-taking following the stock’s meteoric rise this year amid the AI boom.

Since finding support around the 50-day moving average in April last year, Nvidia shares have tracked sharply higher, with investors viewing any dips as buying opportunities. However, Thursday’s intraday reversal from their all-time high (ATH) created a bearish engulfing pattern, a candlestick formation that warns of a potential downside reversal, especially after a significant price advance.

If Nvidia’s price continues to retrace this week amid a shift in sentiment, investors may keep an eye on chart levels around $119 and $110, both areas where the stock could find support from minor pullbacks over the past three weeks. A failure to hold these key regions could see the shares revisit a horizontal line near $97 that connects several prior record highs.

Nvidia shares fell almost 4% in early trading on Monday, but remain up more than 145% so far this year.

–Tim Smith

Stock Futures Mixed in Premarket Trading

2 hr 55 min ago

Futures contracts connected to the Dow Jones Industrial Average were up 0.2% in premarket trading on Monday.

S&P 500 futures were little changed.

Nasdaq 100 futures fell 0.2%.