Market Wrap-Up for Sept. 23 (AAPL, AGU, IBM, AEP, more)

Stocks sold off late on Friday, essentially wiping out all the gains seen in the post-FOMC rally. With many fiscal and monetary policy uncertainties on the horizon in the U.S., investors seem to have switched into bear mode and started to take some profits ahead of the potential headwinds. Even today’s bullish movement from Apple (AAPL) shares wasn’t able to sway investors into buy mode, and the major indices continued to retreat into negative territory.

An Apple a Day …

Apple shares closed higher in today’s trading after the company announced that it sold 9 million iPhones this weekend, the first weekend of sales for the new iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c models. Due to these record breaking sales, Apple also raised its revenue guidance, which also added to investors’ bullishness today.

Stocks on the Rise

Aside from Apple, shares of IBM Corp. (IBM) also edged into positive territory, after the company announced that it is investing $17 million in a new data center facility in Bogota, Colombia.

Hot Value Companies To Invest In 2014

Furthermore, due to Wall Street analysts’ upgrades, shares of American Electric Power Co. (AEP), Maxim Integrated Products (MXIM), Sherwin-Williams Company (SHW), and Avago Technologies (AVGO) rallied today.

Stocks on the Decline

Heading into negative territory today were shares of Agrium (AGU), even though the company announced a 50% dividend increase. This is because the company simultaneously issued a weak third quarter outlook due to poor sales volume and soft prices. These contrasting announcements show some of the peculiarities of commodity-based companies, as they are trying to offset some bearish news with some bullish news. While Agrium might be paying out a higher dividend in the short-term, in might not be sustainable for too long if its outlook is already negative. As such, dividend investors should be hesitant in taking a long-term position in the stock.

As well, downgrades of Brady Corp. (BRC) and Rockwood Holdings (ROC) dragged those shares down today.

Be sure to check the Dividend Daily for all the latest earnings reports, analyst moves, and much more.

New Additions to the Dow Today

Today, the Dow Jones Industrial Average welcomed three new members to the 30 stock index. Goldman Sachs (GS), Visa (V), and Nike (NKE