In this photo provided by the New York Stock Exchange, trader Colby Nelson works on the trading floor, Monday, Feb. 7, 2022. Several big companies are on deck this week to report their results, including Pfizer on Tuesday and Walt Disney on Wednesday. Twitter and Coca-Cola will report on Thursday. (Allie Joseph/New York Stock Exchange via AP)
By Damian J. Troise and Alex Veiga
Another wobbly day on Wall Street ended Monday with an uneven finish for the major stock indexes as losses by communication and technology companies kept gains elsewhere in the market in check.
The S&P 500 fell 0.4%, giving back some of its recent gains. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was little changed after wavering between a gain of 0.7% and a loss of 0.3%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite fell 0.6%.
The uncertain trading follows weeks of volatility for major indexes as traders try to figure out how stock valuations will be affected by the interest rate hikes looming on the horizon as the Federal Reserves moves to tame inflation.
Wall Street is coming off of two weeks of gains following a January stumble that served partially as a “pressure relief valve,” said Mark Hackett, chief of investment research at Nationwide.
“Some of the emotion that we’ve been dealing with in the first several weeks of the year has started to ease,” he said. “You almost needed that; the expectations had been so high.”
The S&P 500 slipped 16.66 points to 4,483.87. The benchmark index is now 6.5% below the all-time high it set on Jan. 3.
The Dow was essentially flat after inching up 1.39 points to 35,091.13.. The Nasdaq fell 82.34 points to 14,015.67.
Small-company stocks outpaced the broader market. The Russell 2000 rose 10.24 points, or 0.5%, to 2,012.60.
Communication and technology companies were the biggest drag on the S&P 500. Facebook’s parent, Meta, fell 5.1% and Google’s parent company Alphabet fell 2.9%. Microsoft fell 1.6%.
Energy and financial companies made solid gains. Chevron rose 2% and insurer Allstate rose 2.2%.
Travel-related companies also gained ground. Carnival rose 7.8%, Royal Caribbean gained 8.4% and American Airlines added 5%.
Treasury yields were broadly lower. The yield on the 10-year Treasury slipped to 1.92% from 1.93% late Friday.
Investors are still gauging the impact of rising inflation on businesses and consumers while remaining cautious about the Federal Reserve’s plan to fight inflation. Wall Street will get another key update on inflation Thursday with the Labor Department’s report on consumer prices for January.
The Fed plans to raise interest rates to fight inflation. Investors expect the first hikes in March and are wary about the pace and quantity of rate increases in 2022.
Investors have another busy week reviewing the latest corporate report cards. Meat producer Tyson Foods rose 12.2% after reporting strong results.
Several big companies are on deck this week to report their results, including Pfizer on Tuesday and Walt Disney on Wednesday. Twitter and Coca-Cola will report on Thursday.
Outside of earnings, several companies gained ground on buyout news Monday. Spirit Airlines jumped 17.2% after Frontier Airlines’ parent company agreed to buy the carrier in a deal worth $2.9 billion.
Peloton rose 20.9% following reports that the exercise bike and treadmill company is a buyout target for companies including Nike and Amazon. The company has been on a roller-coaster ride since the pandemic began. Its stock surged more than 400% in 2020 as COVID-19 forced lockdowns and shifted the workout trend from the gym to home. It spend 2021 giving back nearly all of those gains as businesses reopened and people started heading back to gyms.
Shares have been choppy this year for Peloton, especially following reports in January that its was temporarily halting production of its connected fitness products amid waning consumer demand. Activist investor Blackwells Capital asked the company to remove CEO John Foley and consider selling the company just a few days after those reports.
Chris Williamson, Chief Business Economist at S&P Global, breaks down September’s CPI print and inflation trends, explaining what it means for markets.
A big-screen adaptation of the anime “Chainsaw Man” has topped the North American box office, beating a Springsteen biopic and “Black Phone 2.” The movie earned $17.25 million in the U.S. and Canada this weekend. “Black Phone 2” fell to second place with $13 million. Two new releases, the rom-com “Regretting You” and “Springsteen — Deliver Me From Nowhere,” earned $12.85 million and $9.1 million, respectively. “Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc” is based on the manga series about a demon hunter. It's another win for Sony-owned Crunchyroll, which also released a “Demon Slayer” film last month that debuted to a record $70 million.
The Federal Aviation Administration says flights departing for Los Angeles International Airport were halted briefly due to a staffing shortage at a Southern California air traffic facility. The FAA issued a temporary ground stop at one of the world’s busiest airports on Sunday morning soon after U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy predicted that travelers would see more flights delayed as the nation’s air traffic controllers work without pay during the federal government shutdown. The hold on planes taking off for LAX lasted an hour and 45 minutes and didn't appear to cause continued problems. The FAA said staffing shortages also delayed planes headed to Washington, Chicago and Newark, New Jersey on Sunday.
Boeing workers at three Midwest plants where military aircraft and weapons are developed have voted to reject the company’s latest contract offer and to continue a strike that started almost three months ago. The strike by about 3,200 machinists at the plants in the Missouri cities of St. Louis and St. Charles, and in Mascoutah, Illinois, is smaller in scale than a walkout last year by 33,000 Boeing workers who assemble commercial jetliners. The president of the International Association of Machinists says Sunday's outcome shows Boeing hasn't adequately addressed wages and retirement benefits. Boeing says Sunday's vote was close with 51% of union members opposing the revised offer.
The stunning indictment that led to the arrest of more than 30 people — including Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier and other NBA figures — has drawn new scrutiny of the booming business of sports betting in the U.S. The multibillion-dollar industry has made it easy for sports fans — and even some players — to wager on everything from the outcome of games to that of a single play with just a few taps of a cellphone. But regulating the rapidly-growing industry has proven to be a challenge. Professional sports leagues’ own role in promoting gambling has also raised eyebrows.
Tesla, the car company run by Elon Musk, reported Wednesday that it sold more vehicles in the past three months after boycotts hit hard earlier this year, but profits still fell sharply. Third-quarter earnings fell to $1.4 billion, from $2.2 billion a year earlier. Excluding charges, per share profit of 50 cents came in below analysts' estimate. Tesla shares fell 3.5% in after-hours trading. Musk said the company's robotaxi service, which is available in Austin, Texas, and San Francisco, will roll out to as many as 10 other metro areas by the end of the year.
