Wall Street stocks ended lower on Tuesday as Oracle shares tumbled more than 13% after a weak forecast and surging oil prices deepened worries about persistent price pressures ahead of crucial inflation readings this week.
Market Snapshot
The S&P 500 declined 0.57% to end the session at 4,461.91 points. The Nasdaq declined 1.04% to 13,773.62 points, while Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 0.05% to 34,645.99 points.
Market Movers
Apple (AAPL) fell 1.7% after the market’s most valuable company hosted its annual fall launch event on Tuesday, unveiling the iPhone 15 with a revamped design, the new high-end Apple Watch Ultra 2, and the Apple Watch Series 9.
Tesla (TSLA) declined 2.2%, a day after shares of the electric-vehicle maker closed with a gain of 10% following an upgrade to the stock from widely followed autos analyst Adam Jonas of Morgan Stanley.
Alphabet (GOOGL) slipped 1.2% as the Justice Department’s long-anticipated antitrust case against Google, which accuses the company of illegally monopolizing the internet search market, began Tuesday in Washington. The case is expected to last until mid-November.
Oracle (ORCL) reported fiscal first-quarter adjusted earnings that were slightly higher than expected and revenue in the period that was in line with estimates. The stock fell 13.5% and was the worst performer in the S&P 500 after Oracle Chief Executive Safra Catz told analysts on a conference call the software company expected second-quarter earnings of $1.30 to $1.34 a share on revenue growth of 5% to 7%, or $12.89 billion to $13.13 billion. Analysts had been forecasting earnings of $1.34 a share on revenue of $13.28 billion.
WeWork (WE) shares soared 87% on Tuesday and have more than doubled in two days, though there doesn't appear to be any news driving the rally. After ending last week at a record low, WE climbed 16% on Monday and surged as much as 119% on Tuesday -- the biggest intraday gain since August 10.
WestRock (WRK) jumped 2.8% to $35 after formally signing an agreement to be acquired by Dublin-based Smurfit Kappa, a deal that creates a paper and packaging company worth about $20 billion. Under the agreement, WestRock shareholders will get one new Smurfit WestRock share and $5 in cash, equivalent to $43.51 a share. Once the merger closes, Smurfit Kappa shareholders will own 50.4% of the combined business with WestRock owning the rest. Smurfit Kappa shares traded in London declined 9.8%.
Acelyrin (SLRN), the Los Angeles-based pharmaceutical company, tumbled 54.1% after the company disclosed that its skin drug candidate’s primary endpoint by week 16 of a Phase 2b/3 trial didn’t meet statistical significance.
Advance Auto Parts (AAP) fell 8.1% after S&P Global Ratings lowered its issuer-credit rating on the auto parts distributor to BB+ from BBB-, saying efforts made by the company to improve its inventory “have languished due to inconsistent execution.”
RTX (RTX), the former Raytheon Technologies, dropped 1.7% after the aerospace and defense company was downgraded to Sector Perform from Outperform at RBC Capital and to Equal Weight from Overweight at Barclays. On Monday, RTX said it would take a charge in the third quarter of about $3 billion to reflect the costs of fixing a “rare condition in powder metal” used to make engine parts on its geared turbofan that powers Airbus A320 jets.
GoDaddy (GDDY) gained 1.3% after activist investor Starboard Value sent a letter to the web-services provider on Tuesday suggesting the company should “remain open-minded about alternative value creation opportunities,” including a potential sale.
Enphase Energy (ENPH) gained 1% even after being downgraded to Hold from Buy at Truist.
Casey’s General Stores (CASY), the convenience-store operator, reported that same-store sales inside its retail locations during its fiscal first quarter rose 5.4%, topping analysts’ estimates. “Inside same-store sales were strong, driven by whole pizza pies and the successful launch of Casey’s Thin Crust Pizza,” the company said in a statement. Shares rose 11.2%.
Market News
Apple unveils iPhone 15 lineup, increases base price on highest-end model for first time
Apple Inc. largely kept iPhone prices the same as it rolled out its newest lineup Tuesday, though it dropped the cheapest configuration of its Pro Max version in an effective price hike on that model.
The iPhone 15 Pro will start at $999 for 128 gigabytes of storage, the same as last year’s model. A 256 GB iPhone 15 Pro Max will cost $1,199, also in line with the comparable iPhone 14 Pro Max, though Apple dropped a 128 GB configuration of its highest-end model that started at a lower price. Apple had maintained a $1,099 base price on the iPhone Pro Max since its introduction in 2019.
Apple previewed the new devices at its annual launch event Tuesday, while highlighting feature improvements. The iPhone 15 Pro line will have a faster chip in Apple’s custom-designed A17 Pro processor, which the company says will enhance mobile gaming and autocorrect.
Arm Is Expected to Price IPO at Top End of Range or Higher
Arm Holdings Ltd. is expecting to price its initial public offering at the top end of its range or even higher, according to people familiar with the matter.
SoftBank Group Corp, which owns Arm, and its advisers are deciding whether to price at the top end, at $51, or whether it could go a dollar or more above that, the people said asking not to be identified because the matter is private. The share sale is expected to take place Wednesday with the shares set to begin trading on the Nasdaq Thursday.
The deal is already oversubscribed by more than 10 times, Bloomberg News previously reported, and bankers stopped taking orders Tuesday.