U.S. Stocks fell Wednesday as investors weighed a batch of corporate earnings from major technology names and geared up for the Federal Reserve’s latest interest rate decision.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 54 points, or 0.2%. The S&P 500 dipped 0.1%, and the Nasdaq Composite pulled back by 0.2%.
Google-parent Alphabet rose more than 7% as cloud revenue growth helped propel the company to a better-than-expected quarter. On the other hand, Microsoft slid more than 3% after reporting slowing cloud revenue growth.
Outside of Big Tech, Snap tumbled 17% after giving weak guidance for current-quarter performance.
Elsewhere, Dow components Boeing and Coca-Cola rose after reporting earnings beats. Boeing gained more than 3% after reporting a second-quarter beat following a rise in commercial aircraft deliveries. Coca-Cola added more than 1% after the soft drink company raised its full-year outlook. AT&T gained more than 1% after beating second-quarter free cash flow estimates.
A slate of recent data suggesting easing inflation has investors riding a wave of optimism the Federal Reserve will be done hiking rates after its July meeting. The CME Group’s FedWatch Tool is showing a 98% likelihood policymakers will raise rates by a quarter percentage point at the conclusion of their Wednesday meeting. However, some market participants urge caution against the view the central bank is “one and done.”
″[Investors] should beware of becoming too optimistic that today will mark the end of the rate-hiking cycle, in our view,” UBS’ Solita Marcelli said in a Wednesday note.
Wall Street notched a winning day Tuesday. After eking out a gain just shy of 0.1%, the Dow clinched its 12th-straight winning session, a streak not seen for the blue-chip average since February 2017. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite finished about 0.3% and 0.6% higher, respectively.
Beyond the interest rate decision, investors will continue following the latest corporate financial releases on Wednesday. Meta, Chipotle and Mattel’s earnings are slated to drop after the market closes.
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