The market may be trading in a tight range, but some stocks are breaking out of the sideways action to the upside, according to a closely watched technical indicator. A conflicting macroeconomic outlook and uncertainty over when to expect an end to the Federal Reserve’s aggressive rate-hiking cycle has made for choppy trading in 2023, with the S & P 500 moving between a low of about 3808 and a high of 4180 so far this year. Some stocks, however, are bucking this trend, and showing some momentum to the upside by closing above their 50-day moving averages. The 50-day is simply a measurement tracking the average close of a security over the past 50 days and is commonly used by investors to gauge a security’s short-term momentum. Looking at the stocks that have moved above their 50-day for the first time in at least a month, traders can identify short-term momentum trends. A breakout to the upside could foreshadow a further uptrend is in store, while closing below the threshold could signal a possible pullback. To root out these companies, CNBC Pro screened for stocks that closed last week above their 50-day moving average for the first time in at least a month. These are some the S & P 500 names that met the criteria. Cruise stocks dominated the list of names that punched above their 50-day averages last week. That included Royal Caribbean, which popped 15.6% for the week and closed above its 50-day moving average of $65.32. Shares surged after the company surpassed expectations in the latest quarter and posted a smaller-than-expected loss per share. Royal Caribbean also shared a better-than-expected outlook for the second quarter and full year. Other cruise and entertainment stocks also closed above their 50-day last week, including Norwegian Cruise Line , Carnival Cruise and Live Nation Entertainment . All three stocks gaining at least 5.8%, with Live Nation soaring nearly 14%. RCL 1M mountain Shares over the last month Cognizant Technology Solutions and Hormel Foods also made the cut. The stocks gained 6% and 1.9% for the week to close above their 50-day moving averages of $60.24 and $40.20, respectively. — CNBC’s Nick Wells contributed to this report
