Markets
Yiwen Lu

S&P 500 falls for the third straight session

The S&P 500 closed down 0.3% on Thursday. The tech-focused Nasdaq 100 ended virtually unchanged, while the Russell 2000 lost 0.6%.

Investors are eyeing Friday's job report, which will give a clue about the labor market and the magnitude of rate cuts. Traders are pricing in over 100 basis points in Fed easing in 2024.

The market downturn was in spite of the rally in a few key big tech stocks: All Magnificent Seven stocks except for Microsoft advanced, with Tesla jumping 4.9% on plans to roll out Full Self-Driving capabilities in China and Europe next year. 

Most of the rest of the stock market fell, with all the lion’s share of S&P 500 sector ETFs retreating. Consumer discretionary was the biggest gainer and closed up 1.1%, thanks to Tesla and Amazon. Communication services was the only other sector that gained on the day.

The Invesco S&P 500 Low Volatility ETF snapped a streak of 16 sessions without a loss, down 0.7% on the day.

Treasury yields declined slightly, while the US dollar fell. 

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SpaceX gets a wave of bullish ratings from Wall Street analysts

SpaceX received more than a dozen positive analyst calls on Tuesday — including from major Wall Street banks — as they initiate coverage on Elon Musk’s space and AI company.

SpaceX went public on June 12 at a $2.2 trillion valuation, the largest debut in history. While the company hasn’t yet posted a profit, it seems to have convinced Wall Street that it will get there and grow its valuation on the way.

Of the at least 17 analysts that gave a rating on Tuesday, all but one gave it a “buy” or “outperform” rating. MoffettNathanson was "neutral."

The ratings come as SpaceX joined the Nasdaq 100 index, a benchmark tech-heavy basket of companies that underpins millions of portfolios. The inclusion adds built-in demand for the stock from index funds and ETFs.

Still, SpaceX fell more than 5% on Tuesday amid a broader sell-off, and is currently effectively flat from its opening price of $150 a share.

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Nike sinks to lowest level since 2014 after warning of “challenged” sales environment in Q4 report

Did Nike do it?

Investors had a mixed reaction after the global sports apparel company reported its fourth quarter earnings on Tuesday after the bell. Shares initially rose 5% as Nike beat out Wall Street expectations amid a hefty tariff refund bonus. However, the stock then sank to its lowest level since August 2014 in postmarket trading.

Here are the Q4 numbers:

  • Revenue of $11.0 billion (estimate: $10.8 billion).

  • Adjusted earnings per share of $0.20 (estimate: $0.12).

Ahead of this report, Nike warned that results would be flattered by a one-time tariff refund (now estimated at roughly $0.52 per share for the bottom line). That gave the company an extra cushion in snapping its streak of seven quarters of year-over-year profit declines.

Over the past year, the company had been punished by tariffs on imported goods, stagnant consumer spending, and increasing competition from other footwear brands like New Balance, Adidas, and Hoka.

Outgoing CFO Matthew Friend deemed it an “increasingly challenging operating environment, where sell-through remains challenged.”

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