Adobe Inc. (NASDAQ:ADBE) stock rose on Thursday, driven by a combination of an analyst upgrade, macroeconomic data, and investor sentiment.
Despite the Thursday morning gains, the software company’s stock remains down 34.04% year to date.
Software-as-a-service (SaaS) equities faced broader selloffs during the first half of the year due to market concerns regarding artificial intelligence disruptions to traditional business models.
The Nasdaq is down 1.97% while the S&P 500 has shed 0.52%.
On Thursday, HSBC upgraded Adobe from its previous Hold rating to a Buy. Along with the rating upgrade, the financial institution raised its price forecast for the technology company to $308 per share.
Labor Market Data Lowers Interest Rate Expectations
On Thursday, slowing U.S. labor market report provided upward momentum for rate-sensitive equities.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the U.S. economy added 57,000 jobs in June, missing economist expectations of 110,000 jobs.
Additionally, the bureau revised previous data to cut a combined 74,000 jobs from the prior two months.
Following the release, the CME FedWatch Tool indicated the probability of a Federal Reserve interest rate hike at the July 29 meeting fell to approximately 20%.
Burry Identifies Software Company as AI Beneficiary
The upward movement follows earlier market context from Scion Asset Management’s Michael Burry.
While Burry highlighted short positions against several semiconductor and technology firms in a Wednesday Substack post, his previous commentary noted exceptions in the software sector.
In a May blog post, Burry specifically named Adobe, Intuit Inc. and Autodesk Inc. as software firms he viewed as structural beneficiaries of artificial intelligence developments.
Adobe Stock: Key Technical Levels To Watch
Adobe is trading 3.1% above its 20-day SMA ($214.10), which is a near-term positive, but the bigger trend remains pressured with the stock 6% below its 50-day SMA ($234.94) and 23.5% below its 200-day SMA ($288.68). Those bearish moving-average crossovers (20-day below 50-day, and 50-day below 200-day) keep rallies vulnerable to selling into overhead supply.
RSI is the cleaner momentum read right now: at 51.21.
- Key Resistance: $259
- Key Support: $190
ADBE Stock Price Activity: Adobe shares were up 4.12% at $219.67 at the time of publication on Thursday, according to Benzinga Pro data.
Adobe | Photo courtesy: Charles-McClintock Wilson / Shutterstock.com