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Yiwen Lu

Stocks move little as uncertainty over Middle East looms

The S&P 500 finished Wednesday flat. Nasdaq 100 advanced 0.2%, while the Russell 2000 declined 0.1%.

The US job openings and labor turnover survey showed that more jobs openings were posted in August than expected. Those looking for the next updates on the job market don’t have to wait long: initial jobless claims are on deck for Thursday morning, while September’s non-farm payrolls report is slated for release on Friday. Treasury yields rose, while the dollar gained. 

Oil extended a rally from Tuesday on tensions in the Middle East, though prices were off their highs of the day. The WTI crude for November delivery finished 0.4% higher, while the Brent crude for December rose 0.5%. Gold prices were slightly down.

More than half of the 11 major S&P sectors retreated. The consumer staples and consumer discretionary sector ETFs were both down 0.9%. The energy sector rose in the last hour of trading, finishing the day up 1%.

Humana was the biggest S&P 500 laggard of the day, down 11.8%. Shares of the health insurer fell more than 20% in early trading, after the company disclosed lower ratings for its Medicare Advantage plans.

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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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