The S&P 500 (SPX) hit an intraday low of 5,505 on Thursday, right at the key 61.8% retracement of the rally from last August until the recent all-time closing high in February. The index rose 2.1% on Friday, with the Nasdaq popping 2.6% and the Nasdaq 100 (QQQ) 2.5%. On the upside for the SPX, a 38.2% retracement of the decline is at 5,750; a 50% take-back comes in at 5,825; and the key 61.8% retracement lies at 5,900. Initial chart resistance comes in at 5,930, while the slowly declining 50-day average is at 5,940. A short-term SPX buy signal was tripped on Wednesday. The VIX closed outside its upper daily Bollinger Band on Monday, fell inside the upper band on Tuesday, and closed lower Wednesday. This three-day sequence gave us a VIX sell signal and the S&P 500 buy signal. We also have seen numerous bullish breadth divergences, but long-term breadth remains a concern. The SPX completed a double top on the weekly chart, which is not common, and a measured move based on the size of the pattern initially targets 5,500 and then 5,400. The index is below the 13-, 26-, and 40-week moving averages for the first time since October 2023 -- which can lead to much deeper downside moves. But to confirm longer-term damage, we need the 13-week to break both the 26- and 40-week and need the 26-week to cross below the 40-week average. The SPX also has (very quickly) broken below its lower weekly Bollinger Band for the first time since October 2023. That sets up the potential for a fairly reliable buy signal if the index can reclaim the lower band. (Mark Arbeter, CMT)

HP (formerly Hewlett-Packard) is a behemoth in the PC and printing markets. It has focused on these markets since it exited IT infrastructure in 2015 with the split from Hewlett Packard Enterprise. HP focuses on the commercial market, but maintains sales of consumer devices and printers. The firm has a broad and global customer base, with only one third of sales coming from the US. HP completely outsources manufacturing and relies heavily on channel partners for its sales and marketing.

IBM looks to be a part of every aspect of an enterprise's IT needs. The company primarily sells software, IT services, consulting, and hardware. IBM operates in 175 countries and employs approximately 300,000 people. The company has a robust roster of business partners to service its clients, which include 95% of all Fortune 500 companies. Primary products include its mainframes, Red Hat software, transaction processing software, and IT consulting.

Johnson & Johnson is the world's largest and most diverse healthcare firm. It has two divisions: pharmaceutical and medical devices. These now represent all of the company's sales following the divestment of the consumer business, Kenvue, in 2023. The drug division focuses on the following therapeutic areas: immunology, oncology, neurology, pulmonary, cardiology, and metabolic diseases. Geographically, just over half of total revenue is generated in the United States.