The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced on Thursday to its fourth record close in the last five sessions, as stronger-than-expected monthly retail sales indicated a robust U.S. consumer and TSMC's upbeat forecast buoyed chipmakers' stocks.
Market Snapshot
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 161.35 points, or 0.37%, to 43,239.05, the S&P 500 lost 1 points, or 0.02%, to 5,841.47 and the Nasdaq Composite rose 6.53 points, or 0.04%, to 18,373.61.
Market Movers
U.S.-listed shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing rose 9.8% after the Taiwanese chip maker reported third-quarter earnings that surged 54% from a year earlier to a record 325.26 billion New Taiwan dollars ($10.1 billion), driven by demand related to artificial intelligence. Taiwan Semiconductor, which is the main producer of chips designed by Nvidia, said revenue in the period soared 39% to a record NT$759.69 billion. Nvidia was up 0.9% to $136.93 and was briefly headed for a record closing high following the release of Taiwan Semi's earnings.
Shares of Netflix rose as much as 4.95% to $722 in after-hours trading. Netflix Inc. added more than 5 million customers in the third quarter and eclipsed Wall Street’s expectations on every major financial metric despite a new programming slate constrained by last year’s strikes in Hollywood. Sales for the period grew 15% to $9.83 billion, the company said in a Thursday, while earnings increased to $5.40 a share. Analysts were predicting Netflix would add 4.52 million subscribers.
Expedia gained 4.8% after a report from the Financial Times said Uber Technologies has explored a possible bid for the online travel company. The report said Uber approached advisers in recent months about a possible bid for Expedia. The FT, citing three people familiar with the process, said Uber's interest was at a very early stage and it was possible that a deal wouldn't take place. Uber shares fell 2.4%.
Lucid Group tumbled 18% after the electric-vehicle maker said in a filing it estimates its third-quarter loss from operations will range between $765 million and $790 million, wider than analysts' estimates for a loss of $752 million. The company said it expects revenue of between $199 million and $200 million, compared with consensus of $196 million. Lucid also announced a public offering of more than 262 million shares.
Travelers jumped 9% after the insurer reported third-quarter earnings that beat analysts' estimates and net earned premiums, a key metric for insurers, hit a record $10.7 billion.
Nokia fell 2.7% in U.S. trading after the Finnish telecom-equipment company said it expects comparable operating profit of between EUR2.3 billion and EUR2.9 billion this year, "tracking within the bottom-half of the range." It previously said it was tracking toward the midpoint or slightly below the midpoint. Nokia said sales in the third quarter of its key mobile networks equipment fell 19% from a year earlier.
Blackstone gained 6.3% after the world's largest private-markets money manager easily beat quarterly profit estimates. The company reported distributable earnings -- profit the company can return to shareholders -- of $1.01 a share, beating Wall Street estimates of 91 cents. Total assets under management reached $1.1 trillion, up 10% from a year earlier.
CSX, the railroad company, reported third-quarter earnings that rose from a year earlier but profit on a per-share basis of 46 cents a share that missed Wall Street estimates of 48 cents. The company also said its fourth quarter would be "more challenging" amid falling fuel prices, weaker coal demand, and the impact of two massive hurricanes in the Southeast. Shares fell 6.7%.
Elevance Health fell 10.6% after the health insurance provider cut its 2024 guidance because of snags in its Medicaid business. The company's third-quarter adjusted earnings also missed analysts' estimates. Peer companies Molina Healthcare and Centene declined 13% and 9.1%, respectively.
Market News
Strong Discretionary Spending Buoys US Retail Sales in September
U.S. retail sales increased solidly in September likely as lower gasoline prices gave consumers more money to spend at restaurants and bars, supporting the view that the economy maintained a strong growth pace in the third quarter.
The slightly stronger-than-expected rise in sales reported by the Commerce Department on Thursday also reflected sharp increases in receipts at clothing store outlets as well as miscellaneous store retailers. Consumers boosted online purchases and spent more at health and personal care stores.
Tesla yet to Receive China Approval for Full Self Driving
Tesla Inc is yet to receive approval from the Chinese government to launch its full self-driving functions in the country, the China Daily reported on Friday, with the company reportedly seeking permission to gather more data.
Tesla’s proposal to roll out the technology is still pending authorization from several Chinese authorities, the China Daily report said, citing “multiple” sources with knowledge of the matter. Data security is a key point of contention.
Tesla had said in September that it will launch its FSD technology in China and Europe by the first quarter of 2025. CEO Elon Musk had said he expected to get Chinese regulatory clearance by end-2024.