The Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 closed lower on Wednesday, pulling back from recent record highs driven by China's sweeping stimulus package, as investors awaited economic indicators and signals on upcoming interest rate cuts.
Market Snapshot
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 293.47 points, or 0.70%, to 41,914.75. The S&P 500 lost 10.67 points, or 0.19%, at 5,722.26 and the Nasdaq Composite gained 7.68 points, or 0.04%, at 18,082.21. Nvidia rose 2.2%.
Market Movers
Tesla Motors rose 1.1%. Coming into Wednesday, shares of the electric-vehicle maker have risen nearly 12% since the Federal Reserve cut interest rates last week. Baird analyst Ben Kallo said he expects Tesla to deliver 480,000 vehicles in the third quarter, higher than Wall Street estimates of 460,000.
KB Home fell 5.4% after the home builder reported fiscal third-quarter profit of $2.04 a share, rising from a year earlier but missing Wall Street estimates of $2.06. Revenue rose 10% to $1.75 billion and beat estimates of $1.73 billion. The average selling price in the period rose 3% to $480,900, and homes delivered were up 8%. KB Home said it expects fiscal-year housing revenue of $6.85 billion to $6.95 billion, up from prior guidance of $6.7 billion to $6.9 billion, as demand has begun strengthening amid a recent decline in mortgage rates.
Forward was down 4.1% and General Motors declined 4.9% after shares of both auto makers were downgraded by analysts at Morgan Stanley. Ford was cut to Equal Weight from Overweight and GM was cut to Underweight from Equal Weight. also was downgraded to Equal Weight. Analyst Adam Jonas also reduced his outlook for the U.S. auto industry to "in-line" from "attractive," meaning investors shouldn't overweight auto stocks in their portfolios anymore.
Third-quarter earnings at Progress topped analysts' estimates and the company raised its profit and revenue outlook for the fiscal year. Progress Software said it expects adjusted earnings per share of $4.75 to $4.85 for the fiscal year on revenue of $745 million to $755 million. The company previously forecast adjusted earnings per share of $4.70 to $4.80 on revenue of $725 million to $735 million. The stock jumped 12%.
Stitch Fix Inc. dropped 39% after the personal-styling company reported a wider-than-expected fiscal-fourth-quarter loss as revenue sank to $319.6 million from $364.7 million a year earlier. Stitch Fix said it ended the quarter with active clients of 2.51 million, a decrease of 20% from a year earlier.
Hewlett Packard Enterprise was rising 5.1% to $19.85 after shares of the information technology hardware and services company were upgraded to Overweight from Equal Weight by Barclays and the price target on the stock was boosted to $24 from $20.
Market News
Fed's Kugler Strongly Supported Half-Percentage-Point Rate Cut
Federal Reserve Governor Adriana Kugler said on Wednesday that she "strongly supported" the U.S. central bank's decision to cut interest rates by half a percentage point as part of an emerging focus on the job market.
"The labor market remains resilient, but the (Federal Open Market Committee) now needs to balance its focus so we can continue making progress on disinflation while avoiding unnecessary pain and weakness in the economy," Kugler said in remarks prepared for delivery at a Harvard Kennedy School event. "I strongly supported last week's decision and, if progress on inflation continues as I expect, I will support additional cuts."
Micron Soars After AI Computing Demand Bolsters Forecast
Micron Technology, the largest US maker of computer memory chips, surged 15% in late trading after giving surprisingly strong sales and profit forecasts, helped by demand for artificial intelligence gear.
Fiscal first-quarter revenue will be about $8.7 billion, the company said in a statement Wednesday. That compares with an average analyst estimate of $8.32 billion. Profit will be about $1.74 a share, minus certain items, versus a projection of $1.52.
OpenAI Considers Transition to For-Profit Model; CTO Exits
OpenAI is considering becoming a for-profit company and giving Chief Executive Officer Sam Altman equity in the artificial intelligence startup for the first time, according to people familiar with the matter.
OpenAI is mulling these changes against the backdrop of an an exodus of senior managers. Mira Murati said on Wednesday she is leaving the company, a surprise move that marks the latest high-profile departure from the startup.
Pfizer Withdraws Sickle Cell Disease Treatment from All Markets
U.S. drugmaker Pfizer said on Wednesday it is withdrawing its sickle cell disease therapy Oxbryta in all markets where it is approved and discontinuing all studies and access programs related to the treatment.
The decision is based on the totality of clinical data, which now indicates that the benefit of Oxbryta no longer outweighs the risks associated with its use, Pfizer said.
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