The Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDEX: ^DJI) finished the day down after a report from the National Association of Realtors said that U.S. existing-home sales fell 0.9% to a seasonally adjusted 4.59 million. However, some stocks did much better than the Dow as a whole.
Source: Google Finance.
Today's Top 3
- Today's leader was Home Depot (NYSE: HD), up 0.83% to $49.79. The stock is up for a second day in a row, after the Department of Housing and Urban Development reported that building permits rose 5% month-over-month in February to a seasonally adjusted 717,000. That's up 34% from last February's 534,000. Fool analyst Sean Williams recently called Home Depot a great dividend stock you could buy right now. He believes Home Depot will do well no matter which way housing numbers go, as any activity in the housing market is good for the company.
- Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO) was second behind Home Depot today, finishing up 0.75% [$0.53] to end the day at $71.12. The only news to report today is that the company is adding Chinese-language ads to the courtside signs at Madison Square Garden to cash in on Linsanity. The stock has been slowly moving upward the past week and has now risen 2.32% in the past five days. While there is no specific news, Fool analyst Austin Smith believes Coca-Cola is a dividend stock your kids will thank you for.
- Verizon (NYSE: VZ) took third for the day, up 0.38% [$0.15] to end at $39.78, after a positive Senate hearing before the Judiciary Committee's Subcommittee on Antitrust, Competition Policy, and Consumer Rights on its deal for spectrum with cable providers Comcast and Time Warner Cable. Congressional support is important for the deal to win regulator approval. Last year, subcommittee Chairman Sen. Herb Kohl (D-Wis.) argued against AT&T's failed purchase of T-Mobile.
The best approach
Watching the broad market each day is exciting, gut-wrenching, and stressful, but investing doesn't have to be. If you're in the mood to pick up a few great companies to buy for the long term, The Motley Fool has created a brand-new free report: "3 Stocks That Will Help You Retire Rich." It features three stocks to help you build a smarter retirement portfolio. Get access to the report and find out the name of these three companies. The report is free but won't be forever, so check it out today.
