The market is firing on all cylinders, as exhibited Friday when each sector finished higher. I continue to marvel and applaud leadership this year, and just how widespread this rally has been. 

This is an ideal rally with all sectors in the mix (Industrial and Energy) setting the pace.

Market breadth continues to augur for this market to move higher, as it certainly underscores the greater passion among market bulls.

NYSE

• Advancing: 2,293
• Decliners: 656
• Up Volume: 2.9 billion
• Down Volume: 575.5 million
• New Highs: 112
• New Lows: 2

NASDAQ

• Advancers: 2,210
• Decliners: 855
• Up Volume: 1.5 billion
• Down Volume: 714.3 million
• New Highs: 96
• New Lows: 19

The last 20 minutes of trading on Friday saw a remarkable surge in volume that added another 50 points to the Dow Jones Industrial Average, which finished the session at the high of the day, up 443 points.  That kind of rally is unusual for any Friday session, but ahead of a three-day weekend it is almost unheard of.

There is no doubt that panic buying kicked in, and now we have to wonder about all that money sloshing around on the sidelines. All those fund managers are tormented by having missed the rally, and possibly missing even more.

Dow Jones Industrial Average

American Consumers In-Depth

As earnings season winds down, there are still important names left to report, including Walmart (WMT), which has struggled after posting financial results over the past year. The stock has been hammered in three of the last four earnings releases, and the lone time shares rallied. They were lower in one week than the initial first-day reaction.

It’s not that the company has missed Wall Street consensus, but the problem has been guidance and reaction to the Internet growing pangs. 

In the third quarter, the company posted revenues of $124.9 billion, +1.4% as same-store sales at Walmart stores climbed 3.4%, and Sam’s Club, 3.2%; E-commerce improved just 32%.

In the aftermath of a horrendous Consumer Confidence Report, all eyes will be on Walmart. It’s not just to see how the brick-and-mortar giant is faring against Amazon, but it’s also a proxy for the health of the American consumer.

Note: Amazon (AMZN) shares have somewhat recovered.  The volume in WMT is slowing as it approaches earnings day. The stock is still well below the high of $108 back in January 2018.

Today’s Session

Walmart beat the street with impressive results allowing the company to hike its dividend for the 46th consecutive year. The results are huge but management only reiterated full year guidance, which could cause some investors to pause and others to sell.  No matter what the stock does, this report, especially pricing power at Walmart US stores, points to a robust consumer. 

Ecommerce sales +43%

Revenue $138.79 billion consensus $138.65

Earnings $1.41 consensus $1.33