The Dow Jones shed 44 points Thursday. The cause? Falling oil prices and the ongoing impasse over Greece's debt.
Today's Scorecard:
Dow Jones: 17,985.77, -44.08, -0.24%
S&P 500: 2,097.45, -2.23, -0.11%
Nasdaq: 4,924.70, +18.34, +0.37%
Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE: WMT) was the Dow's biggest loser today, falling 3.21%. The company slashed its sales outlook, blaming a stronger dollar for potential weakness.
Priceline Group Inc. (Nasdaq: PCLN) jumped 8.46% this afternoon, making the stock the largest percentage gainer on the Nasdaq and S&P 500 today.
What Moved the Markets Today: On the international front, "caution" remains the watchword for the markets as uncertainty remains over Greece's ability to reach a compromise over its debt. The German finance ministry rejected a Greek proposal to extend its international bailout program.
Oil prices fell again today due to oversupply concerns after data revealed another huge glut from weekly crude inventories. Brent slipped 0.5% on the day to hover near $60 per barrel, while WTI slipped more than 1.5% to hit $51.29 per barrel.
Now, check out the other top market stories - plus get our new profit tip for investors:
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Money Morning Tip of the Day: Cybersecurity stocks are volatile now, but offer huge upside potential when held over the long run. The best way to play them today is the new cybersecurity ETF.
Today's tip comes from Money Morning Executive Editor Bill Patalon:
Cybercrime has grown into a full-fledged global security crisis - one that costs the global economy more than $575 billion per year.
Just look at these recent developments:
This underscores that cybersecurity is a high-growth business.
Cybersecurity investments feature the same short-run risks as other high-growth-rate businesses. In other words, they can be volatile. But if held over the long term, cybersecurity stocks can pay off handsomely.
Another way investors can profit from the cybersecurity market without the near-term volatility is to buy shares of the PureFunds ISE Cyber Security ETF (NYSE: HACK).
This exchange-traded fund debuted in November and benchmarks the ISE Cyber Security Index. HACK lets you invest in a basket of about two dozen stocks, most of which are small-cap firms with high growth potential.
For a closer look at the $575 billion cybersecurity market and why HACK is a great investment to make today, check out yesterday's "Private Briefing": The One Stock to Buy - If You Can't Afford to Spend a Million Bucks a Day...