This pick list highlights constituents of the Morningstar US Large Cap Index that we believe offer investors the best risk-adjusted return prospects. Stocks of large-cap companies where neither growth nor value characteristics predominate. Stocks in the top 70% of the capitalization of the U.S. equity market are defined as large cap.

For a second week, we have a bearish pop in the insider-sentiment data from Vickers Stock Research. The short-term data was particularly bearish on the NYSE, with the Vickers NYSE One-Week Sell/Buy Ratio coming in at 11.87, up from 8.68 last week and representing its highest one-week reading since February 2023. Meanwhile, transaction volume remains very low because of earnings-season restrictions and stock indices are still in the area of all-time highs. But volatility is on the upswing (the VIX has moved higher by about 30% in the past few weeks), with political thunderbolts, technology meltdowns, ongoing military conflicts, non-stop interest-rate drama, and now August just ahead (the slowest trading month of the year, but when illiquid markets can add to volatility). Who can blame any investor -- an insider or a 'normal' trader - from taking a cautious stance? But we will keep an eye on the now two-week bearish burst from insiders, with particular interest in how the trend develops/diminishes as earnings season moves towards completion. On a sector basis, selling by insiders last week was greatest in Financials, with shares valued at $837 million sold versus less than $5 million bought, followed by Healthcare ($30 million sold). Selling was also evident in Industrials, Energy, and Real Estate. Meanwhile, buying outpaced selling in Consumer Staples and Information Technology. This week, analysts at Vickers highlighted insider transactions of interest at Schlumberger Limited (NYSE: SLB) and Bank of America Corp. (NYSE: BAC).

Rapidly rising inflation in 2022 knocked stocks into a bear market. While growth strategies suffered the most, value strategies also declined. Even bond prices were lower that year. Stocks have recovered and a new bull market has started, but gains have been largely driven by only a handful of high-tech companies. Inflation remains an issue and the Federal Reserve has yet to lower rates. Is a recession in the offing? With all the uncertainty, what's a potential equity strategy for investors amid all the uncertainty? Argus believes that Min Vol is an all-weather strategy that is timely in any investing climate. Academic literature and, more to the point, returns history, indicate that Min Vol can deliver market-matching returns on an absolute basis and superior returns on a risk-adjusted basis over various time periods.

Rapidly rising inflation in 2022 knocked stocks into a bear market. While growth strategies suffered the most, value strategies also declined. Even bond prices were lower that year. Stocks have recovered and a new bull market has started, but gains have been largely driven by only a handful of high-tech companies. Inflation remains an issue and the Federal Reserve has yet to lower rates. Is a recession in the offing? With all the uncertainty, what's a potential equity strategy for investors amid all the uncertainty? Argus believes that Min Vol is an all-weather strategy that is timely in any investing climate. Academic literature and, more to the point, returns history, indicate that Min Vol can deliver market-matching returns on an absolute basis and superior returns on a risk-adjusted basis over various time periods.

This pick list highlights constituents of the Morningstar US Large Cap Index that we believe offer investors the best risk-adjusted return prospects. Stocks of large-cap companies where neither growth nor value characteristics predominate. Stocks in the top 70% of the capitalization of the U.S. equity market are defined as large cap.

AI is being used as a tool to make Financial sector companies more profitable. The sector is using AI for financial planning, underwriting, trading, and fraud protection, among other areas, allowing professionals to reduce time working on mundane tasks and instead focus on core tasks that drive their businesses. Financial advisors are using AI to draft financial plans and portfolios for clients, identifying patterns in spending and savings habits. In trading, AI allows algorithms to analyze large sums of data and historical trends in order to recognize patterns and movements in markets. Since it uses an algorithm, AI can digest and analyze huge sums of information in order to make trades faster, smarter, and more accurate. AI also is used in underwriting. By scanning a company's historical data and identifying trends, "AI-driven underwriting systems" can automate risk assessment, such as optimal loan-to-value and debt-to-income ratios. But artificial intelligence may be the most impactful in identifying and combating credit-card fraud. Card companies use AI models that analyze data patterns and customer spending habits almost instantly. As a result, suspicious payments or transactions are flagged immediately -- and the amount of time it takes for both the company and the customer to identify suspicious activity is decreased significantly. We believe that the use of AI will continue to grow and will help Financial sector companies be more successful. Here is a list of Argus BUY-rated stocks in the Financial sector that are leaders in the use AI.

Dividend income is often overlooked amid gyrations in the stock market. But dividends are an important element of return. Dividend income accounted for 42% of the total return of the S&P 500 between 1930 and 2012, according to Hartford Funds. And that's just the average. In some of those decades, dividends accounted for more than 50% of total returns and even 100% of returns. More recently, dividends have accounted for a smaller portion of returns, at around 15%-20%. Not all dividends are created equal, though, and it is important to understand the difference between the two main categories: high-yield stocks and dividend-growth stocks. High-yield stocks typically have dividends that pay out in the 5%-8% range. Though the income appears attractive, the share prices of high-yield stocks may be at risk. Dividend-growth stocks typically have lower yields, often in the 1.0%-2.5% range. But the lower-yielding dividends are not likely to be a huge component of cash flow, leaving management teams with other value-additive options for deploying cash. Further, while the yields are not as high, management teams may be more likely to boost the payouts over time, as earnings grow.

Dividend income is often overlooked amid gyrations in the stock market. But dividends are an important element of return. Dividend income accounted for 42% of the total return of the S&P 500 between 1930 and 2012, according to Hartford Funds. And that's just the average. In some of those decades, dividends accounted for more than 50% of total returns and even 100% of returns. More recently, dividends have accounted for a smaller portion of returns, at around 15%-20%. Not all dividends are created equal, though, and it is important to understand the difference between the two main categories: high-yield stocks and dividend-growth stocks. High-yield stocks typically have dividends that pay out in the 5%-8% range. Though the income appears attractive, the share prices of high-yield stocks may be at risk. Dividend-growth stocks typically have lower yields, often in the 1.0%-2.5% range. But the lower-yielding dividends are not likely to be a huge component of cash flow, leaving management teams with other value-additive options for deploying cash. Further, while the yields are not as high, management teams may be more likely to boost the payouts over time, as earnings grow.

This pick list highlights constituents of the Morningstar US Large Cap Index that we believe offer investors the best risk-adjusted return prospects. Stocks of large-cap companies where neither growth nor value characteristics predominate. Stocks in the top 70% of the capitalization of the U.S. equity market are defined as large cap.

Across-the-board enthusiasm that was evident before the open today has turned to mixed results at midday. As of this writing, the S&P is down slightly, the DJIA is up a bit, and gold remains higher (notably leading the pack and up more than 1%). But the Nasdaq Composite has turned lower (slightly) and the Russell 2000 is also in the red (by about 0.69%). Equities have been impacted by new data that suggests consumer sentiment in the U.S. is weakening and by Fedspeak that supports the mantra of 'deliberate' action on interest rates in the face of stubborn inflation.

This pick list highlights constituents of the Morningstar US Large Cap Index that we believe offer investors the best risk-adjusted return prospects. Stocks of large-cap companies where neither growth nor value characteristics predominate. Stocks in the top 70% of the capitalization of the U.S. equity market are defined as large cap.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

This pick list highlights constituents of the Morningstar US Large Cap Index that we believe offer investors the best risk-adjusted return prospects. Stocks of large-cap companies where neither growth nor value characteristics predominate. Stocks in the top 70% of the capitalization of the U.S. equity market are defined as large cap.

This pick list highlights constituents of the Morningstar US Large Cap Index that we believe offer investors the best risk-adjusted return prospects. Stocks of large-cap companies where neither growth nor value characteristics predominate. Stocks in the top 70% of the capitalization of the U.S. equity market are defined as large cap.

Make it 16 out of 18 weeks to the upside, as the S&P 500 (SPX), Nasdaq, and Nasdaq 100 (QQQ) continued to witness relentless buying in the week ended March 1. Stocks were flat until the final two days of that week, when inflation worries were squashed by the January PCE report. It wasn't just stocks that reacted, as metals, oil, and bonds all popped on March 1. Bitcoin surged 21%.

This pick list highlights constituents of the Morningstar US Large Cap Index that we believe offer investors the best risk-adjusted return prospects. Stocks of large-cap companies where neither growth nor value characteristics predominate. Stocks in the top 70% of the capitalization of the U.S. equity market are defined as large cap.

Rapidly rising inflation in 2022 knocked stocks into a bear market. While growth strategies suffered the most, value strategies also declined. Even bond prices were lower last year. Stocks have recovered thus far in 2023, but gains have been largely driven by only a handful of high-tech companies. Inflation remains high and the Fed continues to raise rates. Is a recession in the offing? With all the uncertainty, is it time for investors to cash in their chips? We note that investors exit the stock market at their own peril, as long-term returns from equities consistently have outpaced long-term returns from other asset classes, such as fixed income and cash. Argus believes that Min Vol is an all-weather strategy that is timely in any investing climate. Academic literature and, more to the point, returns history, indicate that Min Vol can deliver market-matching returns on an absolute basis and superior returns on a risk-adjusted basis over various time periods.

This pick list highlights constituents of the Morningstar US Large Cap Index that we believe offer investors the best risk-adjusted return prospects. Stocks of large-cap companies where neither growth nor value characteristics predominate. Stocks in the top 70% of the capitalization of the U.S. equity market are defined as large cap.

Dividend income is often overlooked amid gyrations in the stock market. But dividends are an important element of return. Dividend income accounted for 42% of the total return of the S&P 500 between 1930 and 2012, according to Hartford Funds. And that's just the average. In some of those decades, dividends accounted for more than 50% of total returns and even 100% of returns. More recently, dividends have accounted for a smaller portion of returns, at around 15%-20%. Not all dividends are created equal, though, and it is important to understand the difference between the two main categories: high-yield stocks and dividend-growth stocks. High-yield stocks typically have dividends that pay out in the 5%-8% range. Though the income appears attractive, the share prices of high-yield stocks may be at risk. Dividend-growth stocks typically have lower yields, often in the 1.0%-2.5% range. But the lower-yielding dividends are not likely to be a huge component of cash flow, leaving management teams with other value-additive options for deploying cash. Further, while the yields are not as high, management teams may be more likely to boost the payouts over time, as earnings grow.

Sustainable Impact Investing, or ESG investing, is gaining traction not only with Argus Research clients but also with the global investment community. BlackRock CEO Lawrence Fink, who oversees approximately $9 trillion in assets, announced in January 2020 that his firm would be investing in companies that are making progress on sustainability. He doubled down in his January 2021 letter, calling on company managements to disclose their plans for making their businesses "compatible with a net-zero economy" by 2050. As assets have flowed in over the past 40 years, Sustainable Impact Investing has evolved. The discipline, originally known as Socially Responsible Investing, focused at first on excluding companies that conducted business in South Africa, or participated in industries such as tobacco, alcohol, and firearms. Performance of these initial strategies lagged, and the approach has been modified. Now, instead of merely identifying industries to avoid, the discipline promotes "sustainable" business practices across all industries that can have an "impact" on global issues such as climate, hunger, poverty, disease, shelter, and workers' rights.

Sustainable Impact Investing, or ESG investing, is gaining traction not only with Argus Research clients but also with the global investment community. BlackRock CEO Lawrence Fink, who oversees approximately $9 trillion in assets, announced in January 2020 that his firm would be investing in companies that are making progress on sustainability. He doubled down in his January 2021 letter, calling on company managements to disclose their plans for making their businesses "compatible with a net-zero economy" by 2050. As assets have flowed in over the past 40 years, Sustainable Impact Investing has evolved. The discipline, originally known as Socially Responsible Investing, focused at first on excluding companies that conducted business in South Africa, or participated in industries such as tobacco, alcohol, and firearms. Performance of these initial strategies lagged, and the approach has been modified. Now, instead of merely identifying industries to avoid, the discipline promotes "sustainable" business practices across all industries that can have an "impact" on global issues such as climate, hunger, poverty, disease, shelter, and workers' rights.

The stock market took a breather on Monday ahead of this morning's October CPI and Wednesday's PPI and Retail Sales reports. There is also a plethora of Federal Reserve speakers this week, with the end result probably being mass confusion.

Stocks were little changed on Tuesday morning following more 3Q earnings reports and new housing market and consumer confidence data. The Federal Housing Finance Agency said that U.S. home prices rose 5.6% from the prior year in August, up from 4.6% in July. The reading marked the third straight monthly increase. The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller home price index also reported a 2.6% year-over-year increase in August, accelerating from 1% in July. Meanwhile, The Conference Board said that its consumer confidence index fell to 102.6 in October, down from 104.3 in September but above the Reuters consensus forecast of 100. The Dow was flat, the S&P rose 0.2%, and the Nasdaq fell 0.1%. Crude oil rose to $83 per barrel, while gold traded near $2004 per ounce.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

With the stock market having a pretty good day on Tuesday, and an onslaught of earnings reports from some of the largest mega-cap technology companies (GOOGL & MSFT), the biggest gainers on the S&P 500 (SPX) looked like a who's who of severely beaten-down stocks. Sometimes, stock charts get so technically ugly that they are actually bullish. We can't say for sure if that's the case for many of these issues, but the pump is primed for some mean reversion. In the world of momentum investing, money stays with stocks providing alpha and won't ever be spent buying losers.

The equity markets were smoked again on Tuesday, bonds continue their steep descent, perma-bulls still see a fourth-quarter rally, and perma-bears are out in force pumping their fists. The S&P 500 (SPX) fell to a new pullback low, dropping 1.4%. The index is off almost 8% from its July 31 closing high. The Nasdaq fell 1.9% and made a slightly lower low, while the Nasdaq 100 (QQQ) dropped 1.8% but did not make a new low.

As we've said, this week (and maybe the next couple of weeks) is very important for stocks, bonds, and the U.S. Dollar Index (USD). But we would be remiss to ignore the precious metals, especially gold futures. The yellow metal is approaching a very important support area -- and a break could lead to a quick downside flush.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

The big winners in 2023 had another tough day on Wednesday, so there may be something to this mean reversion. The Nasdaq fell 1.2%, the Nasdaq 100 gave up 1%, and the S&P 500 fell 0.7%; meanwhile, the more-diversified NYSE lost only 0.3%. The three weakest sectors on Wednesday are all leaders in the year-to-date, with Technology (XLK) off 1.3% for the session, Consumer Discretionary (XLY) down 1.2%, and Communication Services (XLC) down 1.1%. XLK was the only one of the leading sectors to lose its 50-day average for the first time since March, when the big move higher kicked into gear.

Rapidly rising inflation in 2022 knocked stocks into a bear market. While growth strategies suffered the most, value strategies also declined. Even bond prices were lower last year. Stocks have recovered thus far in 2023, but gains have been largely driven by only a handful of high-tech companies. Inflation remains high and the Fed continues to raise rates. Is a recession in the offing? With all the uncertainty, is it time for investors to cash in their chips? We note that investors exit the stock market at their own peril, as long-term returns from equities consistently have outpaced long-term returns from other asset classes, such as fixed income and cash. Argus believes that Min Vol is an all-weather strategy that is timely in any investing climate. Academic literature and, more to the point, returns history, indicate that Min Vol can deliver market-matching returns on an absolute basis and superior returns on a risk-adjusted basis over various time periods.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

Stocks rallied on Friday morning following new signs of moderating inflation. The Commerce Department said that its personal consumption expenditures price index (PCE) rose 3.0% on an annualized basis in June, down from 3.8% in May and the smallest increase since March 2021. Excluding food and energy costs, the core PCE rose 4.1% from the prior year, down from 4.6% growth in May and slightly below the Reuters consensus forecast of 4.2%. Growth in labor costs also slowed. The Labor Department said that its employment cost index rose 4.5% on an annualized basis in 2Q, down from 4.8% growth in the first quarter. The Dow rose 0.5%, the S&P 0.8%, and the Nasdaq 1.5%. Crude oil fell slightly to $80 per barrel, while gold traded near $1959 per ounce.

Stocks rallied on Friday morning following new signs of moderating inflation. The Commerce Department said that its personal consumption expenditures price index (PCE) rose 3.0% on an annualized basis in June, down from 3.8% in May and the smallest increase since March 2021. Excluding food and energy costs, the core PCE rose 4.1% from the prior year, down from 4.6% growth in May and slightly below the Reuters consensus forecast of 4.2%. Growth in labor costs also slowed. The Labor Department said that its employment cost index rose 4.5% on an annualized basis in 2Q, down from 4.8% growth in the first quarter. The Dow rose 0.5%, the S&P 0.8%, and the Nasdaq 1.5%. Crude oil fell slightly to $80 per barrel, while gold traded near $1959 per ounce.

Rapidly rising inflation in 2022 knocked stocks into a bear market. While growth strategies suffered the most, value strategies also declined. Even bond prices were lower last year. Stocks have recovered so far in 2023, but gains have been driven largely by only a handful of high-tech companies. Inflation remains high and the Fed continues to raise interest rates. Is a recession in the offing? With all the uncertainty, is it time for investors to cash in their chips? Perhaps not yet. We note that investors exit the stock market at their own peril, as long-term returns from equities consistently have outpaced long-term returns from other asset classes, such as fixed income and cash. As well, those returns are from eras when the 10-year Treasury bond yield was much higher than the current 3.8% level. So what's a potential equity strategy for investors amid all the uncertainty? Argus believes that Min Vol is an all-weather strategy that is timely in any investing climate. Academic literature and, more to the point, returns history indicate that Min Vol can deliver market-matching returns on an absolute basis and superior returns on a risk-adjusted basis over various time periods. We have designed a portfolio of companies followed by Argus Research analysts that are BUY-rated and have impressive Min Vol characteristics of low beta, high yield, high market cap, strong balance sheets, and low risk profiles. Some of the stocks featured in the portfolio are listed below.

This pick list highlights constituents of the Morningstar US Large Cap Index that we believe offer investors the best risk-adjusted return prospects. Stocks of large-cap companies where neither growth nor value characteristics predominate. Stocks in the top 70% of the capitalization of the U.S. equity market are defined as large cap.

This was one of our 10 Investment Themes for 2023 and remains relevant, as the S&P 500 is up 13% year-to-date. The long-term trend in the U.S. stock market has been higher; since 1980, stocks have turned in a positive performance almost 80% of the time. The average annual gain has been 13%. That was not so in 2022. Yes, the S&P 500 set an all-time record. But it peaked on January 3 and the rest of the year was downhill. The stock market entered a bear market in June 2022. Bond returns weren't much better, as spiking inflation pushed long-term interest rates higher and the Fed raised short-term rates to try to bring inflation down. The turmoil posed a challenge for Wall Street firms, as investment returns were dismal, the IPO market dried up, and M&A activity disappeared. By year-end, Wall Street firms such as Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley were announcing layoffs. We are more optimistic for the financial markets in 2023. Equity valuations are lower in the wake of the selloff in 2022. There is pent-up demand for IPOs and M&A once the environment improves. Finally, consensus expectations call for weak earnings and investment returns in 2023, setting markets up for a positive surprise. As the outlook improves, we think that investor demand will pick up for investment banks, exchange operators, and money-management firms. We recently raised our sector rating on Financial Services to Over-Weight. Stocks in our coverage universe that we believe are positioned to benefit include the following.

Several weeks ago, with insider-transaction volume at cyclical lows because of trading restrictions in place during earnings season, we noted more insider selling than buying. But we also noted that the majority of the selling was the result of prescheduled sales by insiders, and not 'spur of the moment' reactions to market developments.

As Earnings Fade, Bonds Lead Stocks Lower

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

The long-term trend in the U.S. stock market has been higher. Since 1980, stocks have turned in positive performances almost 80% of the time. The average annual gain has been 13%. That was not the case in 2022. Sure, the S&P 500 set an all-time record. But it peaked on January 3, and the rest of the year was downhill. The stock market technically entered a bear market in June. Bond returns weren't much better, as spiking inflation pushed long-term interest rates higher and the Federal Reserve raised short-term rates to try to bring inflation under control. The turmoil in the marketplace posed a challenge for Wall Street firms, as investment returns were dismal, the IPO market dried up, and M&A activity disappeared. By year-end, Wall Street firms such as Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley were announcing layoffs. Looking ahead, we are more optimistic for stocks in 2023. For one thing, equity valuations are lower in the wake of the sharp sell-off in 2022. For another, there is pent-up demand for IPOs and M&A, once the environment improves. Finally, consensus expectations call for weak 2023 earnings and investment returns, setting the markets up for a positive surprise. As the outlook for financial firms improves, we think investor demand will pick-up for investment banks, exchanges, and money management firms. Stocks in our Universe of Coverage that are in position to benefit include the following.

Stocks fell on Wednesday morning amid uncertainty about the outcome of the midterm elections, as the Republicans' 'red wave' in Congress failed to materialize. Disney shares dropped nearly 12% after the company reported disappointing fiscal 4Q earnings, driven in part by sharp losses in its video streaming services. The Dow fell 0.8%, the S&P 0.8%, and the Nasdaq 1.1%. Crude oil fell more than 2% to $87 per barrel, while gold traded at $1716 per ounce.

The U.S. 10-year note has been on the rise since last week's more-hawkish comments from Fed Chairman Powell and other Fed governors. It is currently yielding 3.11%, near the midpoint of the recent trading range. After the Federal Reserve's 75-basis-point rate hike in June, the 10-year rose to a 52-week high of 3.48%, and trended lower until bottoming at 2.60% on August 1 (from mounting fears of recession and stalling economic growth).

The major indices turned on the afterburners in July following a difficult June. The S&P 500 soared 9%, regaining all its losses from June. The Nasdaq and the Nasdaq 100 both exploded over 12%, recapturing their June declines and then some. The S&P MidCap 400 and the Russell 2000 rocketed almost 11%. It was the largest 20-day rate-of-change (ROC) for the '500,' the '400,' and the '2000' since late 2020/early 2021. The Nasdaq and the QQQs saw a better 20-day ROC in early April, which, as we now know, was a bear-market rally.

Looking for a Bottom

While the pandemic and the prospect of higher interest rates remain the long-term drivers for stocks these days, the Russia/Ukraine situation has captured near-term trading sentiment as the world waits to see what happens. Meanwhile, corporate insiders also seem to be in wait-and-see mode. Following weeks of steady improvement, the overall Insider Index from Vickers Stock Research (which looks at six months of trading activity) has stopped dead in its tracks at -15.30, just short the neutral reading of -14.00. Nonetheless, volumes have continued to grow, with over 1,400 insider buy and sell orders placed across all exchanges over the last week, although we note that this value continues to fall short of historical volumes usually seen at this point in the earnings-release cycle

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

The S&P 500 failed miserably at the end of the week, getting hammered on Thursday and Friday. The two-day loss was 3.7%, the worst since October 2020. Interestingly, the index fell 9.6% in 2020 while the current decline is 9.8%. But this time, the index has broken below its 200-day and 21-week exponential averages (EMA); back in 2020, we remained above the 200-day and the 21-week EMA acted as support.

The S&P 500 tested its 200-day average on Friday, but failed as more late-day selling hit the tape. This follows the breaking of a cluster of support near 4,570. This is the first 200-day test/break from above since February 2020, back when the pandemic was just getting started.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

The stock market moved higher last week during the busiest days of earnings season. Tech stocks far outperformed blue chips, though a portion of the outperformance was attributable to Tesla, as its stock is included in the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite, but not the DJIA. During Friday's session, the Dow Jones Industrial Average increased 89 points, or 0.25%. The S&P 500 was up 0.19%, and the Nasdaq Composite was up 0.33%. For the week, the DJIA was up 143 points, or 0.40%, the S&P 500 was up 1.33%, and the Nasdaq Composite was up 2.70%. For the YTD, the DJIA is up 17.03%, the S&P 500 is up 22.61%, and the Nasdaq Composite is up 20.25%.

Stocks fell on Friday morning amid earnings from a range of major companies and new consumer spending data. The Commerce Department said that U.S. consumer spending rose 1.0% in June, up from a 0.1% decline in May and above the Reuters consensus forecast calling for 0.7% growth. The core personal consumption expenditures price index (PCE) rose 3.5% from the prior year in June, up from 3.4% in May but below the consensus forecast of 3.7%. Amazon shares fell more than 7%, despite strong earnings, on weaker-than-expected 2Q revenue and disappointing sales guidance for the current third quarter. The Dow fell 0.4%, the S&P 0.6%, and the Nasdaq 0.8%. Crude oil traded near $74 per barrel, while gold fell $11 to $1825 per ounce.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.