What Happened?
A number of stocks jumped in the morning session after markets rebounded following a sharp sell-off in the previous trading session as weaker-than-expected U.S. jobs data fueled investor hopes for a potential interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve.
The July Nonfarm Payrolls report revealed a gain of only 73,000 jobs, significantly below the 110,000 expected. Compounding the news, prior months' figures were revised downward by over 250,000 jobs. This data, indicating a cooling labor market, has led investors to dramatically increase bets on a September interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve, with the probability jumping to over 80% according to the CME FedWatch Tool. The prospect of lower borrowing costs typically stimulates economic activity and boosts consumer spending on non-essential goods and services, which directly benefits companies in the consumer discretionary space.
The stock market overreacts to news, and big price drops can present good opportunities to buy high-quality stocks.
Among others, the following stocks were impacted:
- Consumer Electronics company Sonos (NASDAQ:SONO) jumped 3.1%. Is now the time to buy Sonos? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free.
- Education Services company Lincoln Educational (NASDAQ:LINC) jumped 3%. Is now the time to buy Lincoln Educational? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free.
- Footwear company Wolverine Worldwide (NYSE:WWW) jumped 5.6%. Is now the time to buy Wolverine Worldwide? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free.
- Home Furnishings company Lovesac (NASDAQ:LOVE) jumped 4.1%. Is now the time to buy Lovesac? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free.
- Leisure Facilities company Xponential Fitness (NYSE:XPOF) jumped 4.2%. Is now the time to buy Xponential Fitness? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free.
Zooming In On Wolverine Worldwide (WWW)
Wolverine Worldwide’s shares are very volatile and have had 25 moves greater than 5% over the last year. In that context, today’s move indicates the market considers this news meaningful but not something that would fundamentally change its perception of the business.
The previous big move we wrote about was 6 days ago when the stock dropped 3.4% on the news that the latest U.S. consumer confidence report revealed underlying weakness despite a headline increase, raising concerns about future spending. While the Conference Board's headline Consumer Confidence Index rose to 97.2 in July, the details painted a more cautious picture for investors. The Present Situation Index, a measure of consumers' assessment of current business and labor market conditions, actually fell. More telling for the sector, the report showed a decline in buying intentions for major discretionary items such as homes, cars, and most appliances. This combination of factors signals potential weakness in future consumer spending, casting a shadow over companies that rely on non-essential purchases.
Wolverine Worldwide is up 0.9% since the beginning of the year, and at $22.81 per share, it is trading close to its 52-week high of $24.25 from December 2024. Investors who bought $1,000 worth of Wolverine Worldwide’s shares 5 years ago would now be looking at an investment worth $972.29.
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