Profit Taking May Contribute To Initial Pullback On Wall Street

The major U.S. index futures are currently pointing to a modestly lower open on Monday, with stocks likely to give back ground after turning in a strong performance last week.

Traders may look to cash in on recent strength in the markets, which lifted the Nasdaq and S&P 500 to new record closing highs last Friday.

Overall trading activity may be somewhat subdued, however, as a lack of major U.S. economic data may keep traders on the sidelines ahead of several key events later this week.

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s congressional testimony is likely to be in focus, as investors on Wall Street analyze the central bank chief’s comments for clues about the outlook for interest rates.

Powell is due to testify before the House Financial Services Committee on Wednesday and the Senate Banking Committee on Thursday.

Later in the week, the spotlight will shift to the Labor Department’s report on the employment situation in the month of February.

The report, which is due to be released on Friday, is expected to show employment jumped by 200,000 jobs in February after surging by 353,000 jobs in January.

On Tuesday, the Institute for Supply Management is due to release its report on service sector activity in the month of February.

The ISM’s services PMI is expected to edge down to 53.0 in February from 53.4 in January, although a reading above 50 would still indicate growth.

Reports on factory orders, private sector employment, weekly jobless claims and the U.S. trade deficit are also due to be released this week along with the Fed’s Beige Book.

Stocks showed a strong move to the upside during trading on Friday, adding to the gains posted in Thursday’s session. With the extended upward move, the Nasdaq and S&P 500 once again reached new record closing highs.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq jumped 183.02 points or 1.1 percent to 16,274.94 and the S&P 500 climbed 40.81 points or 0.8 percent to 5,137.08. The narrower Dow posted a more modest gain, rising 90.99 points or 0.2 percent to 39,087.38.

For the week, the Nasdaq shot up by 1.7 percent and the S&P 500 advanced by 1.0 percent, but the Dow edged down by 0.1 percent.

The surge by the Nasdaq partly reflected substantial strength among computer hardware stocks following upbeat results from Dell (NYSE:DELL), with the NYSE Arca Computer Hardware Index soaring by 6.9 percent to a record closing high.

Shares of Dell skyrocketed by 31.6 percent after the computer maker reported fourth quarter results that exceeded analyst estimates on both the top and bottom lines.

The upbeat results from Dell also contributed to significant strength among semiconductor stocks, as reflected by the 4.3 percent spike by the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index. The index also reached a record closing high.

Biotechnology and networking stocks also saw considerable strength, while gold, oil service and pharmaceutical stocks turned in some of the best performances outside the tech sector.

The strength on Wall Street also came following the release of a report from the Institute for Supply Management showing manufacturing activity in the U.S. unexpectedly contracted at an accelerated rate in the month of February.

The ISM said its manufacturing PMI dipped to 47.8 in February from 49.1 in January, with a reading below 50 indicating contraction. Economists had expected the index to inch up to 49.5.

The University of Michigan also released revised data showing consumer sentiment in the U.S. unexpectedly deteriorated in the month of February.

The report said the consumer sentiment index for February was downwardly revised to 76.9 from the previously reported 79.6. Economists had expected the reading to be unrevised.

With the unexpected downward revision, the consumer sentiment index is now below the January reading of 79.0.

The data contributed to a downturn by treasury yields, which added to optimism about the Federal Reserve eventually cutting interest rates.

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