Welcome back to the U.S. stock analysis channel. I’m lorder.

Our overall stance right now is wait-and-see. The market is broadly soft, with all four major indexes declining together and clear sector divergence. The general mood is cautious; everyone is waiting for more economic data and guidance from company fundamentals.

On today’s economic data, initial jobless claims for the week ending August 15 fell to 206,000, below the 210,000 consensus. Continuing claims came in at 1.799 million, above the 1.79 million expected. Continuing claims have been a little choppy lately, but the four-week average is still roughly 8% below the same period last year.

Two Fed officials spoke today, and their core messages showed some disagreement. 2027 voter Daly said the rise in long-term bond yields is a global issue, which reduces its effectiveness as a Fed policy signal. On inflation, Daly said overall inflationary pressures will ease, but added that further shocks could emerge down the road. She thinks it’s not appropriate to talk about rising inflation risk right now. On the labor market, Daly described current conditions as low hiring, low firing, and reiterated that she does not see the job market causing inflation. We know the biggest source of inflation right now is actually the pass-through from oil prices. The other speaker was 2028 voter Musalem, and his view was different.

Today we’ll focus on Walmart’s sharp drop after its forward guidance missed expectations, and ISRG’s unusual decline with no clear negative news.

First, Walmart, ticker WMT. It fell about 9% after earnings, currently trading around $103. This was a case of forward guidance missing the mark and the high-growth narrative breaking down. Key support sits at $92.8; a break below that could open the door to a deeper correction. The company’s average buyback price is $117.61, and the current price is already below that level. Resistance is the prior high at $121. On WMT, we hold a bearish and cautious view.

Next, ISRG. It dropped 5.84% intraday, trading around the $370s. There was no clear negative news behind this move; it’s presumed to be institutional selling. From a long-term positioning perspective, the $300 to $360 range is seen as an area worth watching. The technical oscillation band has a lower boundary at $240 and an upper boundary at $500. If the stock falls below $310, we would consider adding significantly again. On ISRG, the current view is to wait and watch for an opportunity.

ServiceNow, ticker NOW, currently trading around $130. On the technical pattern, it broke above $120, pulled back to test support, and is now resuming its uptrend. The near-term technical target is the $147 to $159 area, but it must hold trend support at $110 to keep the uptrend intact. On NOW, we hold a technically bullish view.

Finally, SpaceX. It’s facing pressure from a lockup expiration. We’ve observed clear, high-volume buying in the $100 to $120 range, which could form support. Overhead, around $150 is a prior trapped-long zone, presenting significant resistance. It’s currently in a range-bound, observation state.

On the macro front, total U.S. debt has surpassed $40 trillion and is growing at a startling pace, while long-term Treasury yields continue to rise, which could exert persistent pressure on the market. Inflation may prove sticky and difficult to return to the 2% target.

On the policy side, the effectiveness of the Treasury’s intervention in the government bond market is questionable, and the debt ceiling issue will resurface in a few months, potentially triggering market volatility.

For individual stock risks, WMT’s consumer spending resilience could be affected by high inflation and the economic outlook. If key support at $92.8 breaks, it could trigger a significant decline. ISRG’s growth rate has already decelerated, and today’s news-less plunge reveals liquidity or specific selling risk; if the stock breaks below the technical lower boundary at $240, the downside could be substantial. SpaceX faces ongoing selling pressure from the lockup expiration, and with a short public listing history, its technical support levels haven’t been tested multiple times, so price swings could be large.

On market sentiment, overall volume is low and movement is slow, signaling a lack of clear market direction and fewer trading opportunities.

That’s all for today’s market coverage. We’ll see you next time.