4:12pm: New record for Nasdaq
US stocks finished Friday’s trading session mixed with the Nasdaq adding 0.4% to close at a record high 20,026 points.
The S&P 500 was flat at 6,114 points while the Dow Jones fell 0.4% to 44,546 points.
1:15pm: Stocks on the move
Roku Inc (NASDAQ:ROKU) delivered a standout fourth-quarter earnings report, sending the company’s stock nearly 13% on Friday as investors responded to its strong financial performance and optimistic guidance.
Moderna Inc (NASDAQ:MRNA, ETR:0QF) stock moved 5.5% higher after the pharmaceutical firm posted mixed results for the fourth quarter, reporting a wider-than-expected loss per share of $2.91, compared to estimates of a loss per share of $2.73.
On the downside, Palo Alto Networks Inc (NYSE:PANW, ETR:5AP) shares fell 5.4% on Friday after the provider of enterprise cybersecurity solutions’ earnings outlook for the fiscal third quarter fell short of expectations.
And Applied Materials Inc (NASDAQ:AMAT, ETR:AP2) shares dropped 5.9% on weaker-than-expected guidance despite strong first-quarter earnings.
12:20pm: Dow dips amid profit-taking
Wall Street is mixed in midday trading on Friday. The Dow is down 0.3%, while the S&P 500 has slipped 0.1%. The Nasdaq Composite is flat, showing no change.
The Dow's decline comes after a strong session on Thursday, where it closed more than 300 points higher. Today's pullback may be attributed to profit-taking and a slight increase in bond yields, with the 30-year Treasury yield approaching 5%.
Tech stocks are showing mixed performance, with some leaders like Nvidia experiencing premarket declines. However, the overall tech sector seems to be holding steady, as evidenced by the Nasdaq's flat performance.
Investors continue to digest recent inflation data and monitor potential policy changes, including President Trump's decision to delay the implementation of new reciprocal tariffs. Trump’s decision had contributed to yesterday's market rally but seems to have a muted effect on today's trading.
10:55am: Mixed data
US economic data has been mixed this week.
Kathleen Brooks of XTB noted the hotter-than-expected CPI but weak retail sales, partly due to LA fires. This has led to volatility in interest rate expectations, Brooks wrote.
"Earlier this week there was a small chance of a rate hike priced in for the Fed by year end. After the weaker retail sales, this chance has been priced out," Brooks noted.
"This highlights how sensitive interest rate markets are to monthly economic data reports, and we expect this to continue."
Brooks also suggests the dollar may be entering a weakening cycle, which could allow the pound and euro to recover. This trend could support commodities, with oil prices rising, while gold weakens as safe-haven demand eases amid Ukraine-Russia negotiations.
9:55am: Consumer data adds to caution
Markets are hovering near their previous closing levels, with slight movements in different directions.
Wall Street’s cautious start comes after yesterday's rally, which saw the S&P 500 close just shy of an all-time high.
The S&P 500 edged up 0.1% or 7 points to 6,122 in early trading, while the Nasdaq gained 0.2% or 35 points to 19,981, and the Dow showed little movement opening at 44,707.
The mixed performance comes after yesterday's rally, which saw the S&P 500 reach a new all-time high above 5,700.
The market's cautious stance today may be influenced by recent economic data and ongoing analysis of the Federal Reserve's latest policy decisions.
“Retail sales pulled back more than expected in January, yet the data may say more about the end of last year than the start of this one,” Wells Fargo analysts commented Friday.
“The drop in sales came with upward revisions to December and was after solid gains across retailers at year-end. The January data position for weak sales growth in Q1, but consumer fundamentals are still solid.”
8:45am: Futures take a breather as retail sales disappoint
US stock futures dipped on Friday morning as investors digested a busy week of inflation data, tariff updates, and corporate earnings, with fresh retail sales figures adding to the market’s cautious tone.
Dow Jones futures declined 0.3%, while S&P 500 futures were down 0.2%. Nasdaq 100 futures also slipped 0.2%, pulling back after Thursday’s strong gains. Despite the pre-market losses, major indexes remain on track for solid weekly gains, with the S&P 500 closing just shy of a record high on Thursday.
The latest retail sales report added to economic uncertainty. January retail sales fell 0.9% month over month, far exceeding the 0.2% decline economists had expected, according to Bloomberg data. This marked the steepest drop since January 2024. However, December’s sales figures were revised higher to a 0.7% increase from an earlier 0.4% estimate, partially offsetting the weaker January data.
Among pre-market movers, Airbnb surged after the company posted better-than-expected earnings. GameStop (GME) shares rallied on speculation that the video game retailer may expand into bitcoin. Meanwhile, Moderna shares fell after the vaccine maker reported a larger-than-expected quarterly loss.
Investors continue to assess the impact of US tariff measures, which will not take effect until April, allowing time for adjustments. Ipek Ozkardeskaya, Senior Analyst at Swissquote Bank, noted that the market reaction suggests some relief despite broader concerns.
“I don’t know if you could call it good news, but the markets’ reaction suggests that the latter has been perceived as good news and helped keep appetite afloat yesterday,” Ozkardeskaya said.
“One of the reasons that could explain the weakness of the yields and the dollar on normally dollar-supportive inflation and tariff news is the fact that some of the components in that PPI report that feed into the PCE index – the Federal Reserve’s favorite gauge of inflation – pointed at weakness.”