U.S. stocks were mixed on Thursday, with the major averages looking to build on the previous day's gains as investors assessed another round of latest data on major bank earnings and retail sales.
The S&P 500 (^GSPC), the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) were all slightly above flat in early trading.
Markets are still enjoying some relief after an unexpected slowdown in consumer inflation raised questions about whether this year's rate cuts were priced in too much. Stocks rose on Wednesday on data and stellar earnings from major U.S. banks.
Traders are now ramping up bets that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates by July, reversing a sell-off triggered by a stronger-than-expected jobs report in December.
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Retail sales rose 0.4% in December, compared with expectations of 0.6%. The monthly gain slowed down from 0.7% in November. Weekly jobless claims rose to 217,000, higher than expected, compared with an upward revision of 203,000 the previous week.
Meanwhile, Bank of America Corp's (BAC) results showed fourth-quarter profit more than doubled as the lender benefited from a recovery in Wall Street trading that also boosted earnings at its rivals. Its shares rose slightly in early trading. Morgan Stanley (MS) shares also rose after reporting a sharp jump in quarterly profit before the bell.
In other earnings, UnitedHealth Group's fourth-quarter revenue fell short of expectations, hurt by weakness in its health insurance unit. The stock fell in early trading.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.'s (TSM, 2330.TW) upbeat sales outlook has boosted optimism about demand for artificial intelligence hardware this year. Major chip suppliers Nvidia (NVDA) and Apple (AAPL) saw net profit rise 57% on Thursday, setting a quarterly record. After the financial report was released, TSMC's stock price rose by more than 5%, and Nvidia's stock price rose by 1%.
live 5 updates Stocks open mixed as more earnings continue to roll in
U.S. stocks were mixed on Thursday following the S&P 500's (^GSPC) best day since November and strong quarterly bank earnings.
The broad-based index gained more than 0.1%, while the Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) gained about 0.3%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) is hovering near the flat line.
Investors are eyeing a continuation of Thursday's performance, with stocks rising on better-than-expected inflation data and strong quarterly bank earnings.
Traders have been assessing how many rate cuts the Fed will implement this year after a better-than-expected jobs report on Friday but cooling inflation data on Wednesday.
Goldman Sachs analysts said in a recent note that they "now forecast two 25 basis point rate cuts in June and December this year (following three cuts in March, June and September), followed by a further 25 basis points in 2026." rate cut again in June.”
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Retail sales grew less than expected in December, sales revised to higher in November
Yahoo Finance's Josh Schafer reports:
Retail sales grew at a slower pace than Wall Street expected in December as investors closely watched the pace of economic growth and doubted the speed of the Federal Reserve's interest rate cuts.
Retail sales increased 0.4% in December. Economists had expected spending to rise 0.6%, according to Bloomberg data. Meanwhile, November retail sales were revised up to a 0.8% increase from the previous 0.7% increase, according to the Census Bureau.
Read more here.
Retail interest in Mag 7 deals increases
The chart produced by the Vanda Research team provides a good look at the Mag 7 traffic coming from the retail trading community.
You can see a slowdown in activity in January, with companies like Nvidia coming under pressure.
Dare I say, it's refreshing to see traders cannibalizing the other 493 stocks in the S&P 500!
Good morning. That's what happened today.
Not sold in Target's pre-launch deal
Target (TGT) shares are up premarket this morning after reporting holiday sales results.
Not sure why Target didn't blow me away!
Sales barely grew, and the company reiterated its earnings-per-share forecast -- with the top estimate 20 cents below the current sell-side consensus.
Bottom line: This was another quarter in which Target Corp. showed it continues to lose market share to Walmart (WMT). Here's what Walmart CEO Doug McMillon told me when he accepted the 2024 Company of the Year award.
PS: I love Walmart’s new blue logo color, which ties in with founder Sam Walton’s iconic trucker hat.
