Mid-Day Market Update: Dow Falls 1400 Points; Matador Resources Shares Plunge

Midway through trading Monday, the Dow traded down 5.43% to 24,461 while the NASDAQ fell 4.35% to 8,202.44. The S&P also fell, dropping 5.03% to 2822.74. Coronavirus cases continued to accelerate beyond China. South Korea confirmed 96 new coronavirus cases, while mainland China reported 40 new confirmed cases. Italy reported 133 deaths on Sunday, while there were 49 new deaths in Iran. In total, there are at least 107,000 cases of COVID-19 worldwide with over 3,600 deaths.

Leading and Lagging Sectors

Consumer staples shares slipped by just 2.3% on Monday. Meanwhile, top gainers in the sector included Happiness Biotech Group Limited HAPP, up 6%, and Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc. FDP, up 3%.

In trading on Monday, energy shares tumbled 17%.

Top Headline

Crude oil futures dropped by the most percentage points since the gulf war of 1991, as Saudi Arabia and Russia engaged in a price war.

Saudi Arabia announced that it is cutting the price for April crude oil to all destinations by $6 to $8, as reported by Reuters, causing the oil prices to crash to their worst since early 2016. The move followed Russia's denial to cooperate with the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries' decision to slash oil supply in the wake of reduced demand due to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.

Equities Trading UP

AIM ImmunoTech Inc. AIM shares shot up 70% to $3.56 amid the continued global coronavirus spread. The company's Ampligen is being tested by Japan's National Institute of Infectious Diseases as a potential coronavirus treatment.

Shares of Cocrystal Pharma, Inc. COCP got a boost, shooting 25% to $1.48 after the company announced plans to advance its coronavirus program.

Spherix Incorporated SPEX shares were also up, gaining 157% to $4.21. A new coronavirus play as of Friday, shares continued higher Monday morning. On Friday, the company announced the execution of exclusive option deal with University of Maryland for "Methods of Treating Coronavirus Infection" patent.

Equities Trading DOWN

SM Energy Company SM shares tumbled 62% to $1.47 amid a steep decline in the price of oil after OPEC members failed to reach a production agreement. Saudi Arabia also pledged to cut its oil prices and increase supply.

Shares of Matador Resources Company MTDR were down 61% to $2.54. SunTrust Robinson Humphrey downgraded Matador Resources from Buy to Hold.

Centennial Resource Development, Inc. CDEV was down, falling 59% to $0.63 after dropping 18% on Friday. RBC Capital downgraded Centennial Resource from Outperform to Sector Perform and lowered the price target from $5 to $2.5.

Commodities


In commodity news, oil traded down 18% to $33.84, while gold traded down 0.3% to $1,667.60.

Silver traded down 2% Monday to $16.925, while copper fell 2% to $2.509.

Euro zone

European shares were lower today. The eurozone’s STOXX 600 fell 6.18% the Spanish Ibex Index fell 6.36%, while Italy’s FTSE MIB Index dipped 9.18% Meanwhile, the German DAX dropped 6.52%, and the French CAC 40 fell 6.78% while UK shares fell 6.63%.

Economics

The TD Ameritrade Investor Movement Index for February is scheduled for release at 12:30 p.m. ET.