Despite Trade War Uncertainty, Ralph Lauren Is Today's Big Winner on the Entrepreneur Index™ The clothing company was up more than 4 percent on the day.
By Andrew Osterland •
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The stock market fought valiantly to shake off last week's bearish sentiment, but a late session sell-off left the Entrepreneur Index™ down 0.86 percent to 161.15 for the day.
Once again, technology stocks posted some of the biggest declines, while domestic market-oriented real estate investment trust (REIT) companies and food manufacturers had some of the biggest gains.
Among the biggest REIT gainers on the index were Apartment Investment and Management Co. (1.41 percent), Boston Properties (1.1 percent), and Essex Property Trust (0.85 percent). Food manufacturers Tyson Foods and J.M. Smucker Company were up 1.36 percent and 0.74 percent respectively.
The top gainer on the index today was Ralph Lauren, which surged 4.19 percent after getting a ratings upgrade from a JP MorganChase analyst. The company's stock has been seesawing of late because of worries about the trade war with China. The Chinese market has become much more important to luxury goods makers like Ralph Lauren, and if the trade picture continues to deteriorate, it may suffer.
Other stocks posting strong gains included Bed, Bath and Beyond (3.03 percent), Ford (1.97 percent), and asset manager Franklin Resources (1.47 percent).
Technology stocks posted the biggest drops on the day, with most tech components on the Entrepreneur Index™ closing lower. The three biggest declines on the index were posted by NVIDIA Corp. -4.53 percent). Adobe Systems (-4.36 percent), and salesforce.com (-3.26 percent). Twitter bucked trend, rising 2.22 percent on the day. Netflix was down 1.89 percent today. The market is eagerly awaiting the video streaming business' third quarter earnings after it disappointed in the second quarter. It will report at the end of day tomorrow.
This week of earnings reports should provide a nice distraction for investors after the volatility of last week. By virtually all estimates, they will be very good given the strength of the U.S. economy. Booming profits, however, may be overshadowed by geopolitical risks and by growing anxiety about the pace of interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve Board.
Related: Entrepreneurial Stocks Bounce Back, But Is It Just a Lull in the Storm?
Chief among the political concerns is now Saudi Arabia. The world's biggest oil exporter has made ambiguous threats of retaliation for any international sanctions or condemnation for the alleged murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. With sanctions on Iran kicking in next month, any further shocks to supply because of the Saudi Arabia situation could send oil prices skyrocketing, That will likely mean further volatility in the stock market.
The Entrepreneur Index™ collects the top 60 publicly traded companies founded and run by entrepreneurs. The entrepreneurial spirit is a valuable asset for any business, and this index recognizes its importance, no matter how much a company has grown. These inspirational businesses can be tracked in real time on Entrepreneur.com.
