The Nasdaq Composite and S&P 500 fell Thursday as shares of big tech companies and airlines tumbled, wh𓃲ile shares of other sectors that stand to benefit from lower interest rates rose on growing expectations that the Federal Reserve could soon cut its benchmark rate.
The decline—the Nasdaq ended 2% lower and the S&P 500 shed 0.9%—ended a seven-session winning streak for the two major indexes, which have hit a series of record highs since the start of the month. The Dow Jones Industrial Average adไded 0.1% Thursday.
In sharp contrast, the Russ𓄧ell 2000 index of smaller companies rose 3.7%.
The recent rally for major indexes has been fueled by the strong performance of tech stocks and hopes the Fed will cut its influential fed funds rate as soon a🎃s September.
On Thursday, however, tech stocks led the S&P 500 and Nasdaq lower. AI investor darling Nvidia (NVDA) fell 5.6%, and shares of Meta Platforms (META), Apple (AAPL) and Intel (INTC) also lost ground.
Tesla (TSLA), which coming into Thursday had ended higher in 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:11 consecutive sessions, was the biggest S&P 500 decliner. The stock fell 8.4% following a Bloomberg report that said the EV maker would delay its eagerly awaited robotaxi deb🌊ut event to Octobe🎉r from August.
Airlines fell sharply after Delta (DAL) reported weaker-than-expected earnings and lowered its guidance. Shares of United (UAL), American (AAL) and other carriers declined as well.
The major indexes had moved higher early in Thursday's session after a government report showed that 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:consumer prices surprisingly fell in June from the previous month, adding to expectations that the Fed will start cutting the federal funds rꦆate soon. The Fed has said it's waiting for more evidence that inflation is under control before easing ൲policy, and Thursday's report likely falls into that category.
Traders are now pricing in about a 93% chance that the Fed will start cutting interest rates in September, according to the CME Group’s FedWatch tool, which forecasts rate movements based on fed funds futures trading data. That's up from a 73% likelihood of a cut that was being priced in yesterday.
While tech stocks slid, several sectors were on the rise thanks to the rate-cut optimism, notably homebuilders and real-estate companies. Big gainers included D.R. Horton (DHI), PulteGroup (PHM), Lennar (LEN) and Alexandria Real Estate Equities (ARE).
The yield on 10-year Treasurys fell to below 4.2% after the CPI release, down from near 4.3% before the report and at the lowest level since March. Gold rose to around $2,420, trading at its highest levels since March.
Top S&P Movers on Thursday
Decliners
- Tesla (TSLA) shares suffered the steepest losses of any S&P 500 constituent, plummeting 8.4% following reports that the carmaker will postpone the unveiling of its robotaxi. The company previously indicated it would hold an event to introduce the autonomous transportation solution on Aug. 8, but Bloomberg reported the presentation has been 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:pushed back to October. The decline for Tesla shares ended a string of 11 consecutive winning sessions.
- Losses mounted for large-cap tech shares, as investors appeared to rotate away from stocks that have soared in 2024 into laggards that could be positioned for gains amid greater certainty that lower rates are forthcoming. In particular, stocks in the semiconductor industry came under heavy pressure. Shares of chip fabrication equipment suppliers Lam Research (LRCX) and Applied Materials (AMAT) fell 6% and 5.4%, respectively. Semiconductor behemoth Nvidia (NVDA) dropped 5.6%.
- Airline stocks lost altitude after Delta Air Lines (DAL) reported 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:lower-than-expected profits, citing increasing fuel costs and other fees. Delta shares sank 4% on the day, while shares of rival carriers also moved lower.
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Andrew Harnik /Getty Images
Advancers
- Shares of SBA Communications (SBAC), which owns and operates cellular towers and other wireless communications infrastructure, notched Thursday's top performance in the S&P 500, jumping 7.5%. The gains came after the firm announced a shakeup of its executive leadership, with Saul Kredi stepping into the role of vice president and chief accounting officer. Kredi's past experience includes leadership positions in the infrastructure and management consulting industries.
- The drop in consumer inflation helped lift stocks across the housing industry, with firmer rate-cut expectations boosting optimism that mortgage rates could be headed downward. Shares of building products distributor Builders FirstSource (BLDR) jumped 7.4%, as did shares of flooring manufacturer Mohawk Industries (MHK).
- In addition to construction suppliers, home builders benefitted from the expected decline in borrowing costs. D.R. Horton (DHI) shares added 7.3%, while Lennar (LEN) shares gained 6.9%.
Homebuilder Stocks Rise on Rate-Cut Hopes
澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Homebuilder stocks jumped 🧔Thursday on ꦏhopes that mortgage rates will start to significantly do👍wnshift this year.
A 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:cooler-than-expected inf🌌lation report for June raised investors' hopes that the Federal Reserve will cut rates as soon as Septe🍎mber.
If the Fed does cut its influential rate, homebuyers who have chosen to stay on the sidelines may be more likely to enter the housing market🐬—boostin♑g investor confidence in the outlook for homebuilders.
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Travis Dove / Bloomberg / Getty Images
The Fed has held its key ra🌱te at a 23-year high for nearly 12 months in order to tame inflation by making borrowing more expensive.
That has been a double whammy for homebuilders, who not only face higher borrowing costs themselves but also see weakened demand. Potential homebuyers have been sitting out of the market as rising 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:mortgage rates and home prices make buying a house less affordable.
Shares of D.R. Horton (DHI), Toll Brothers (TOL), PulteGroup (PHM), Lennar (LEN) and KB Home (KBH) all surged on Thursday.
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Tesla Tanks on Report of Delayed Robotaxi Event
Tesla (TSLA) shares 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:slumped Thursday after a report that the the unveiling of EV maker's much-awaited self-☂driving robotaxi has bee✨n delayed by two months.
Bloomberg said Tesla's 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:planned Aug. 8 event has been bumped to October to give the teams working❀ on the project more time to build additional prototypes. The news organization reported people familiar with the decision said that the postponement was communicated to workers internally.
Tesla Chief Executive Officer (CEO) 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Elon Musk announced the August debut da💦te on social media in April, and has touted the self-driving robotaxi as a technology that would make other vehicles obsolete.
Tesla shares entered Thursday on an 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:11-session winning streak during which it gained 44%, fueled by its better-than-expected second quarter 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:deliveries report. The stock▨ was down ꦿmore than 7% in late trading Thursday.
Russell 2000 Surges as Investors Rotate Into Small Caps
As Nvidia (NVDA), Microsoft (MSFT), Apple (AAPL) and other large-cap tech stocks tumbled Thursday, investors 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:rotated into small-cap stocks amid h🅰opes they could get a boost from Federal Reserve rate cuts.
The 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Russell 2000 was up more than 3% after the Labor Department’s latest inflation report showed consumer prices 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:unexpectedly fell in June, raising hopes the Fed will h🗹ave the confidence to cut interest rates this year.
澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Rate cuts by the Fed would lower the costs of taking on debt for borrowers, and small-cap stocks could potentially stand to get a bigger boost from𝔍 Fed rate cuts as many small and mid-caps companies have more floating debt than their larger counterparts.
Bank of America analysts also suggested earlier this week that second-quarter earnings could show growth finally starting to 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:broaden beyond𒈔 the biggest tech stocks, wh🧸ich dominated earniܫngs gains and returns for the index so far this year.
Microstrategy Rises After Stock-Split Announcement
MicroStrategy (MSTR), one of the world's largest holders of bitcoin (BTC), said Thursday澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: it is planning a 10-for-1 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:stock split, making it the🐬 latest company to announce a split.
Shares of MicroStrategy were up more than 3% in🐷 late-morning trading Thursdꦜay, bucking a broader downturn for stocks.
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Shares will be split for both MicroStrategy's class A and class B shares for holders of record as of Aug. 1, with investors set to receive nine additional shares after markets close on Aug. 7 for each share they owned previously. The first day of MicroStrategy's split-adjusted trading will be on Aug. 8.
While the split will not change the overall value of investors' MicroStrategy holdings, by lowering the price of each MicroStrategy share, the split could help make the stock more accessible to investors and stimulate demand.
Shares in the company have more than doubled in value this year after the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:approval of spot bitcoin ETFs in January turbocharged the token's pri☂ces.
However, some of the excitement around bitcoin, which 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:rose above $73,000 in March, has ebbed recently. The t☂oken is currently trading aꦿt a tight range below $60,000.
Delta Tumbles on Weak Earnings; Other Airlines Take a Hit
Delta Air Lines shares fell sharply in early trading Thursday after 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:the airline reported second-quarter profit that fell well short of estimate🅠s and lowered its guidance for the t💮hird quarter.
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Total revenue rose 7% from last year's second quarter to a record $16.7 billion, which was better than the $16.2 billion analysts had projected, according to estimates compiled by Visible Alpha. However, Delta's per-share profit of $2.01 sank 29% year-over-year, falling well short of the $2.39 expectation.
The company said that debt reduction remains Delta's "top financial priority" heading into the second half of the year after spending $1.4 billion to pay down debts in the second quarter. Delta affirmed its full-year adjusted 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:earnings per share (EPS) guidance of between $6 and $7 but forecast lower-than-expected adjusted earnings of $1.70 to $2.0ꩲ0 in the thirdꦓ quarter.
Shares of airline rivals United (UAL), American (AAL) and Southwest (LUV) also tumbled in early trading Thursday.
Stock Futures Lower Ahead of CPI Inflation Report
Futures contracts connected to the Dow Jones Industrial Average were down 0.2% about half an hour 𝓀before the release of the clos☂ely watched inflation data.
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S&P 500 futures slipped 0.1%.
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Nasdaq 100 futures were also off 0.1%.
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