U.S. stocks fell on Friday, led by technology-related megacaps that have propelled this year's rally, while investors weighed the interest rate outlook ahead of next week's Federal Reserve meeting.
Market Snapshot
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 190.89 points, or 0.49%, to 38,714.77. The S&P 500 lost 33.39 points, or 0.65%, at 5,117.09 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 155.35 points, or 0.96%, to 15,973.17.
Market Movers
An index of semiconductors $(SOX)$ was down 0.5% on Friday and registered its biggest weekly percentage decline since early January. The Nvidia GTC developer conference scheduled for March 18 to 21 will be watched closely for AI-related announcements.
Jabil lost 16% after the contract manufacturer shared financial guidance that was lower than analysts expected. For its current quarter, it expects adjusted per-share earnings of $1.65 to $2.05, below Wall Street’s call for $2.12. For fiscal 2024, it is calling for earnings of $8.40, lower than analysts’ forecast of $8.99.
Blink Charging shed 15% after the provider of electric-vehicle charging equipment offered weak guidance. For the full year 2024, it expects revenue between $165 million and $175 million, while analysts expected $170 million.
Adobe fell 14% after the provider of creative software tools posted solid results for its February quarter but issued a weaker-than-expected outlook.
Madrigal Pharmaceuticals soared 11% after Rezdiffra—its drug for an obesity-driven liver disease—received accelerated approval from the Food and Drug Administration.
Real estate stocks fell after the National Association of Realtors has announced an agreement to settle a wave of commission lawsuits brought by home sellers. Zillow Group and Redfin, and Opendoor dropped 13% and 4.9%, respectively.
PagerDuty slid 7.3% to after the provider of software for help desks posted better financial results than expected but issued financial forecasts that fell short of Wall Street’s expectations.
Smartsheet tumbled 7% after the cloud work-management platform called for a slowdown in revenue growth. For fiscal 2025, Smartsheet expects total revenue to grow 16% to 17% year over year , while it saw revenue jump 25% in fiscal 2024.
Ulta Beauty dropped 5.2% after the beauty retailer issued weaker financial guidance than expected. For fiscal 2024, it expects per-share earnings between $26.20 and $27. The consensus call among analysts surveyed by FactSet was for $27.01 as of Feb. 29.
Rivian Automotive gained 3.3% after Piper Sandler analyst Alexander Potter upgraded shares of the electric-vehicle maker to the equivalent of Buy from Hold. He increased his price target to $21 from $15.
Market News
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Meta Wins Court Order Overturning Ruling to Stop Using Name in Brazil
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