Wall Street searched for stability Tuesday, with a couple of the major indexes able to muster some gains ahead of a vital inflation reading tomorrow.
The 10-year Treasury note, after touching 3.2% yesterday, pulled back below the 3% threshold to as low as 2.94%. This retreat in interest rates removed some pressure from growthier stocks (which had been pummeled Monday), with technology (+1.5%) firms leading the session’s relief rally. Semiconductor stocks such as Nvidia (NVDA, +3.8%), Broadcom (AVGO, +3.3%) and NXP Semiconductor (NXPI, +3.2%) were among the day’s notable risers.
It wasn’t all roses, though. Investors continued to punish once-hot companies showing any signs of weakness.
For instance, artificial-intelligence lending-platform maker Upstart Holdings (UPST) plunged 56.4% to trade around all-time lows. While it beat Street estimates for first-quarter earnings, the company reduced full-year revenue forecasts to $1.25 billion from $1.4 billion previously.
Work-from-home darling Peloton Interactive (PTON, -8.7%) continued its fall from grace after reporting a 15% year-over-year decline in sales, a $757 million net loss and a dwindling cash pile that CEO Barry McCarthy said left the company “thinly capitalized.”
Even AMC Entertainment (AMC, -5.4%) was knocked lower despite a pretty encouraging report in which Batman and Spider-Man films helped the theater company to report a narrower-than-expected quarterly loss.
Still, the major indexes showed some strength. The Nasdaq Composite rebounded 1.0% to 11,737, while the S&P 500 improved 0.3% to 4,001. The Dow Jones Industrial Average brought up the rear, declining 0.3% to 32,160.
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“Markets are clearly confused about what the Fed will do this year and just how aggressive it will get. That can be seen in the volatility in expectations for where the Fed funds rate will be at the end of 2022, as seen in Fed funds futures,” says Invesco Chief Global Market Strategist Kristina Hooper. “And it is reflected in stock market volatility, with the VIX above 30.”
The big story to watch tomorrow is the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ consumer price index (CPI) report for April. BlackRock, for one, expects 8.1% headline CPI growth and 6.0% core growth following 8.5% and 6.5% increases in March.
“A weaker-than-expected CPI report later this week could help turn the tide and see investors embrace risk assets once again,” says Brian Price, head of investment management for independent broker-dealer Commonwealth Financial Network.
Other news in the stock market today:
- The small-cap Russell 2000 slipped marginally …….
Source: https://www.kiplinger.com/investing/stocks/604661/stock-market-today-051022