Economy

Stocks fluctuate after key data with Micron falling

Pamela Lowe
Stocks fluctuate after key data with Micron falling

US stocks were little changed on Thursday after chipmaker Micron’s (MU) forecast dampened tech rally hopes as investors weighed new economic data ahead of the Federal Reserve’s key inflation reading.

The S&P 500 (^GSPC) embraced the flat line after rising on Wednesday to close near a new all-time high. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) rose 0.2%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) oscillated between positive and negative territory.

Shares are struggling in the wake of Micron’s sales forecast for the current quarter, which met expectations but failed to satisfy investors looking for stellar outperformance from AI-related companies.

The bullish trend around artificial intelligence has helped lift the S&P 500 to a 15% gain this year. But concerns are growing that the rally could be in jeopardy if the group of technology companies driving most of these gains stops beating already high expectations.

Shares of memory maker Micron fell more than 6% in early trading. Nvidia (NVDA) stock fell more than 2%, reviving fears of a return to the sell-off that rocked markets last week.

Investors were weighing a new batch of economic data ahead of Friday’s PCE inflation reading that will influence the Federal Reserve’s thinking on the timing of interest rate cuts.

The initial weekly unemployment claims reading came in at 233,000, a decrease of 6,000 from the previous week. according to Ministry of Labor data. The printing came in below the consensus forecast of 235,000. But recurring unemployment claims rose to their highest levels since late 2021, suggesting that the unemployed are taking longer to find a job.

Real GDP growth at 1.4% annual rate in Q1 2024 Third estimate It was issued by the Office of Economic Development Thursday morning. The reading was slightly higher than the previous estimate of 1.3%.

Inflation could also loom large in the first debate between President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump on Thursday night.

On the corporate front, shares of Levi Strauss ( LEVI ) fell more than 15% in the wake of a drop in second-quarter revenue for the jeans seller. Investors will look to Nike’s (NKE) quarterly results after the bell for further signs of consumer resilience.

He lives7 updates

  • Purdue Pharma ruling makes it harder for owners of bankrupt companies to avoid liability

    Yahoo Finance’s Alexis Keenan reports:

    New Supreme Court to rule That upended a $6 billion opioid settlement, making it difficult for a company’s owners to use federal bankruptcy proceedings to protect themselves from legal risks.

    Conflict – Harrington v. Bordeaux – It involved the bankrupt OxyContin manufacturer Purdue Pharma and members of the Sackler family, the company’s billionaire owners.

    A key question in the case was whether Purdue’s bankruptcy proceedings could be used to protect the Sacklers’ personal fortunes from future liabilities related to opioids.

    In the 5-4 decision, the court said there was no provision in the US Bankruptcy Code that allowed the type of agreement that the Sacklers and the company attempted to reach.

    Read more here.

  • With only a few years until retirement, 55-year-olds haven’t saved nearly enough

    Kerry Hannon, senior columnist at Yahoo Finance, says:

    Fifty-five-year-old Americans have an average retirement savings of less than $50,000.

    That’s grim news for older Gen

    “A lot of people are falling behind, and that has important long-term implications for retirement.” David BlanchettHead of Retirement Research at PGIM DC Solutions told Yahoo Finance. “It’s not easy. We can always find things we’d rather spend money on today than save for that thing that’s going to happen in 10, 20, or 30 years.”

    It’s not just the future that looks bleak. They’re just squeaking about for now: More than a third of 55-year-olds say they’d have a hard time coming up with $400 for emergency expenses, compared with 19% of 65-year-olds and 15% of 75-year-olds. year, according to Survey from Prudential Financial.

    Read more here.

  • Pending home sales decline in May

    Rising home prices and higher mortgages keep potential buyers away from the housing market.

    Pending home sales — a forward-looking indicator of home sales based on contracts being signed — fell 2.1% in May from the previous month, according to data from the National Association of Realtors. Data released on Thursday showed that it fell year-on-year by 6.6%.

    The Midwest and South reported lower contract signings in May compared to the previous month. The Northeast and West reported gains. All regions across the country reported losses in activity on a year-over-year basis.

    “The market is in an interesting phase with rising inventory and falling demand,” NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun said in a statement. “Supply and demand movements point to a decline in home price appreciation in the coming months. More inventory in the economy that creates jobs is bound to lead to increased home buying, especially when mortgage rates decline.

    Mortgage rates are holding at their lowest average in three months, but that’s still not enough to lure buyers. About 95% of mortgage borrowers have interest rates below current market rates, and about 80% have rates that are less than 2 percentage points below market rates, according to Goldman Sachs data.

    Looking ahead, Yoon expects “moderately lower mortgage rates, higher home sales, and stable home prices.”

  • Walgreens declines 24% with lower guidance due to ‘challenging’ pharmacy trends and consumer weakness

    Walgreens stock fell 24% to touch its lowest level since 1997 after the drugstore chain cut its fiscal 2024 earnings guidance, citing “challenging pharmacy industry trends and a worse-than-expected U.S. consumer environment.”

    “Our customers have become increasingly selective and price-sensitive in their purchases,” Tim Wentworth, CEO of Walgreens Boots Alliance, said during the company’s earnings call Thursday morning.

    Management indicated that 25% of the company’s stores are not currently contributing to the long-term strategy and that “changes are imminent.”

    Walgreens said it plans to close a “significant portion” of its underperforming stores over the next three years.

    It expects adjusted earnings per share for the year to be in the range of $2.80 to $2.95, down from its previous forecast of $3.20 to $3.35.

  • Netflix and Meta are helping push the Nasdaq into the green

    Telecom stocks boosted the Nasdaq Composite Index (^IXIC) into positive territory with a 0.3% rise shortly after the market opened on Thursday.

    Netflix (NFLX) and Meta (META) both advanced more than 1%, helping lift a tech-heavy gauge that had dipped just below the flat line.

    The S&P 500 (^GSPC) rose 0.2% while the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) was little changed.

    Meanwhile, shares of chip giant Nvidia ( NVDA ) fell slightly after Micron ( MU ) sales forecasts failed to galvanize investors over the AI ​​craze that has fueled the broader market’s rally this year.

  • Stocks fluctuate at open as investors weigh economic data, Micron puts cap on tech rally

    Stocks opened slightly lower on Thursday as investors weighed economic data released before the bell.

    The S&P 500 (^GSPC) was little changed, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) fell 0.1%. The Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) fell just below the flat line.

    Real GDP growth at an annual rate of 1.4% in the first quarter of 2024 Third estimate It was issued by the Office of Economic Development Thursday morning. The reading was slightly higher than the previous reading of 1.3% but still showed the slowest growth since 2022.

    The initial weekly unemployment claims reading came in at 233,000, a decrease of 6,000 from the previous week. according to Ministry of Labor data.

    On the corporate front, chipmaker Micron’s (MU) sales forecast for the current quarter met expectations but failed to satisfy investors looking for stellar outperformance from AI-related companies. The stock fell about 4% in early trading. AI chip giant Nvidia (NVDA) was also down nearly 1% at the open.

  • Why does Levi’s neighborhood bother me?

    Levi’s ( LEVI ) shares were down 15% in the pre-market after earnings.

    I think it’s worth it for two reasons.

    First, sales in China fell by 10% from the previous year. I’ve been talking to a large number of people who have recently visited China. One theme is that Chinese consumers are feeling the gloomy side and are not spending as much as in years past. This mood is impacting demand for Levi’s jeans, Starbucks (SBUX) coffee, and — according to General Mills’ (GIS) earnings call yesterday — Häagen-Dazs ice cream.

    It is difficult to see the turning point in China.

    The same goes for Levi’s wholesale business, or the business that sells in department stores. Sales fell 4% from the previous year. The company’s comment indicates that bulk order may not continue until 2025.

    I plan to raise some of my concerns with Levi CFO Harmit Singh today at 10:30 AM ET on Yahoo Finance. Tune in!

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