Wall Street stocks ended slightly lower on Friday in choppy trading after stronger-than-expected U.S. jobs data pointed to a robust economy but prompted worries the Federal Reserve may wait longer to cut interest rates than many investors had hoped.
Market Snapshot
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 87.18 points, or 0.22%, to 38,798.99, the S&P 500 lost 5.97 points, or 0.11%, to 5,346.99 and the Nasdaq Composite lost 39.99 points, or 0.23%, to 17,133.13.
Market Movers
Shares of videogame retailer GameStop and movie-theater chain AMC Entertainment Holdings dropped 39% and 15%, respectively, after a YouTube channel livestream by investor Keith Gill, also known as Roaring Kitty, failed to push the stock higher. GameStop trading was halted several times Friday afternoon due to volatility. GameStop also reported disappointing quarterly results and said in a filing that it is selling up to 75 million shares of its stock.
Semtech tumbled 18% after the semiconductor supplier disclosed that President and CEO Paul Pickle was terminated and it has appointed Hong Hou as a successor. The company also reaffirmed its second-quarter guidance provided June 5.
Oddity Tech soared 21% after the beauty-products company’s board approved a $150 million share-buyback program. It also raised guidance for adjusted second-quarter earnings to 69 cents per share from a prior range of 61 cents to 64 cents.
Samsara dropped 12% despite the asset-tracking software provider reporting better-than-expected quarterly earnings and guidance.
Vail Resorts fell 10% following the mountain-resort operator’s earnings report that missed quarterly estimates. The firm also slashed its full-year outlook.
DocuSign slid 4.7% even after electronic-signature company posted April-quarter earnings that edged Street estimates and inched up its full-year guidance.
Market News
GameStop Tanks Almost 40% as “Roaring Kitty” Fails to Spark Enthusiasm
Stock influencer Keith Gill's first livestream in three years failed to spark enough investor enthusiasm in GameStop on Friday to reverse a nearly 40% slump in the shopping mall retailer's stock after it unveiled a share sale to raise up to $3 billion.
On a livestream with more than 600,000 viewers, Gill, the key figure behind an eye-popping rally in the struggling company's stock in 2021, joked about memes and interspersed his discussion of GameStop with various disclaimers.
Known on YouTube as "Roaring Kitty," he warned viewers they could “lose it all” and that his “aggressive style of investing, it is almost certainly not suitable for you all.”
KKR, CrowdStrike and GoDaddy to Join S&P 500 as Index Rebalances
KKR & Co. Inc., CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. and GoDaddy Inc. will join the S&P 500 as part of its latest quarterly weighting change.
The companies will replace Robert Half Inc., Comerica Inc., and Illumina Inc, according to a press release from S&P Dow Jones Indices Friday. The changes are set to go into effect prior to the open of trading on Monday, June 24.
New York-based KKR’s inclusion underscores the massive growth of the private investment business in recent years. KKR, founded in 1976 by Henry Kravis, Jerome Kohlberg and George Roberts, recently laid out a plan to reach at least $1 trillion of assets under management in five years, in part by courting retirees and individuals. Famous for its private equity moves, the firm has expanded across strategies from buyouts and credit to infrastructure, real estate and insurance.
Shares of KKR rose 8%, CrowdStrike rose 5% and GoDaddy rose 3% in after-hours trading Friday.
Microsoft Beefs Up Security of Windows AI Tool After Outcry
Microsoft Corp. says a key new feature in an upcoming line of artificial intelligence-branded PCs will be shipped in the “off” position after cybersecurity experts said the tool created an alluring target for hackers.
Recall, a Windows feature unveiled last month, creates a record of everything users do on their PCs, making it easier to sort through one’s emails, browsing history or files. The feature does that by periodically taking screenshots that can be read and analyzed by Microsoft algorithms.
Recall immediately set off alarm bells for security researchers, already wary of Microsoft’s security practices following a number of high-profile hacks. Some quickly set out to demonstrate that bad actors could indeed access and scoop up records that are gathered by the tool and stored locally on a user’s PC. The new vulnerability cast doubt on Chief Executive Officer Satya Nadella’s pledge to put cybersecurity before product development.