Netflix and other technology stocks helped the Entrepreneur Index™ post a small gain of 0.22 percent today.
The major stock indexes were also flat, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite indexes posting small gains while the Dow had a small loss.
The four FAANG stocks that are part of the Entrepreneur Index™ were all up smartly on the day, with Netflix, up 4.81 percent, posting the biggest gain on the index. Investors appear to have gotten over the slightly cautious guidance the company issued for the second quarter in its earnings release last week. The stock is up 40.4 percent so far this year.
Other tech stocks posting good gains today included Akamai Technologies (1.79 percent), salesforce.com (1.78 percent) and Facebook (1.77 percent).
The energy sector was also strong today, as the price of oil rallied 2.6 percent to a six-month high. Oil and gas producer Hess Corp. rose 3.07 percent and is now up 67.6 percent for the year. Kinder Morgan also had a good gain, rising 3.3 percent. The pipeline manager recently indicated it was considering building a new natural gas pipeline in the capacity-constrained Permian oil-shale basin. Kinder Morgan’s stock is up 30.2 percent this year.
Alexion Pharmaceuticals, which fell last week as part of a broad sell-off in the healthcare sector, was up 2.34 percent today.
The REIT sector was one of the weakest in the market today, as interest rates were up and concerns about the brick and mortar retail industry continued to weigh on the sector. All nine REITs on the index were down with mall and shopping center operators posting the biggest losses. Macerich Company, down 2.68 percent, set a new 52-week low today and is down 6.8 percent for the year. Simon Property Group (-2.44 percent) and Kimco Realty Corp. (-2.57 percent) also posted sharp losses.
Tesla had the biggest decline on the index today. The shares were down 3.97 percent after a report that one of its cars caught fire and exploded in Shanghai. The company has sent a team to investigate the incident. Tesla will report financial results on Thursday after the market close.
Retailer Bed Bath & Beyond was down 3.96 percent. The company announced the appointment of five new independent directors to the board and the departure of co-founders Leonard Feinstein and Warren Eisenberg from the board. The changes are meant to address the concerns of activist investors who have demanded a wholesale turnover of the board and the ouster of CEO Steven Temares. BBBY stock is up 47.7 percent so far this year.
Two other struggling retailers also had tough days in the market. L Brands, which last week struck an agreement with Barington Capital for the activist hedge fund to become a special advisor to the company, was down 3.19 percent. Gap Inc. declined 2.93 percent and is now down 2.27 percent on the year.
Other notable declines on the index included Wynn Resorts (-1.71 percent), homebuilder D.R. Horton (-1.64 percent) and O’Reilly Auto Parts (-1.54 percent).
