We just published a list of the 10 Worst Dow Stocks To Buy and Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ ) ranked 6th on this list.
Yahoo Finance reported on November 5 that the Dow Jones Industrial Average tumbled 3.4%, or more than 1,800 points, while the S&P 500 fell 4.4% and the Nasdaq Composite sank 5.5% into correction territory. Chip stocks took the brunt of the damage, as the leading AI chipmaker fell 9% to pace Dow decliners and another chip designer plunged 17%, the outlet reported.
The slide erased the gains from a day earlier, when the Dow had jumped nearly 1,600 points after Democrats won control of both chambers of Congress, Yahoo Finance wrote on November 4. Even so, the blue-chip index finished Thursday just 1.9% below its record closing high of 54,349 from early August, according to Yahoo Finance .
The Dow's Safe-Haven Run Cracks
For most of the week the Dow had looked like the sheltered corner of the market. Yahoo Finance reported on November 2 that the Dow edged up 0.4% while the Nasdaq dropped roughly 1% as investors rotated out of technology names and into consumer cyclical and financial services shares. One household consumer brand has divided opinion lately, and we covered why a well-known TV host is staying away from the sneaker maker after losing money on it .
On Thursday that cushion gave way, as the focus turned to what a Democratic Congress could mean for the AI buildout, and for the data centers driving it in particular, according to Yahoo Finance . Data center power and infrastructure stocks fell by double digits, and the Nasdaq 100 was recently more than 10% below its October closing high.
The reversal was fast. Shay Boloor, chief market strategist at an equity research firm, pointed out that the VIX volatility index posted its biggest one-day jump in more than two years, Yahoo Finance reported on November 5. It took the Nasdaq just six minutes to erase its entire post-election rally.
A Jobs Report Steadies the Tape
Friday brought a partial rebound. Yahoo Finance reported on November 6 that the U.S. added 165,000 jobs in October, and the Nasdaq gained 1.9% while the S&P 500 rose 1% and the Dow added 0.1%. You might also be interested in reading our piece on why a billionaire money manager and a TV host both still like the iPhone maker .
The stronger jobs data lifted Treasury yields and kept Federal Reserve policy at the center of market attention, Reuters reported on November 6, as the price-weighted index of 30 major U.S. companies held roughly flat.
Johnson & Johnson's average upside potential, based on analysts' average price target, is 3%. It has a short interest of 0.70% and had 117 hedge fund holders as of Q2 2026.
Management at Johnson & Johnson now sees a clearer path to double-digit growth by the end of the decade, and the third quarter gave it a reason to say so. Sales rose 5.9%, and the company raised its 2026 outlook to reported sales of about $101.2 billion and adjusted earnings of $11.10 per share at the midpoint.
The pipeline is supplying the momentum. Positive Phase 3 results in multiple myeloma arrived during the quarter, approval came for Imaavy in warm autoimmune hemolytic anemia, and Rybrevant Faspro won priority review. Each adds a possible growth leg beyond the medicines that already sell, and the company said its focused portfolio is gathering momentum. It also added to the pipeline through the acquisition of Firefly Bio and a collaboration with Sail Biomedicines.
Medical devices have their own catalyst. Ottava, billed as the world's first soft-tissue surgical robot built into the operating table, received market authorization. Chief Executive Joaquin Duato described it as one of the company's most transformative medtech innovations, and he said the quarter showed sequential growth picking up from the previous one.
You can read our analysis on Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) here: Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) Drugs Lift Guidance, but Is 23 Times Earnings Fair?
While we acknowledge the risk and potential of JNJ as an investment, we believe certain AI infrastructure stocks offer far stronger long-term potential at a much more attractive entry point. If you are looking for an AI stock more promising than JNJ that operates as a critical AI tollbooth and stands as the most important company in the world, check out our report about this must-own AI stock .
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This article is originally published at Insider Monkey .
