Stocks fell Friday as the bank sector came under pressure once again as concerns remained over the health of the U.S. banking sector. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell over 380 points, while the S&P 500 Index and Nasdaq Composite declined about 1% and 0.7%, respectively.
Here's how the market settled to close out the week:
S&P 500 Index (NYSE: SPY): -1.10% or -43.64 points to 3,916.64
Dow Jones Industrial Average (NYSE: DIA): -1.19% or -384.57 points to 31,861.98
Nasdaq Composite Index (NASDAQ: QQQ): -0.74% or -86.76 points to 11,630.51
Despite the negative session, the Dow was the only major average to end the week in the red, with the 30-stock index closing at a loss of 0.2%. Meanwhile, the S&P rose 1.4% for the week and the Nasdaq gained 4.4%.
In focus on Friday, shares of First Republic Bank (NYSE: FRC) dropped nearly 33% to end the week down over 70%. The session's decline followed Thursday's relief bounce after a group of 11 big banks led by JPMorgan Chase (NYSE: JPM), Bank of America (NYSE: BAC), Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS), Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) and Citigroup (NYSE: C) injected $30 billion into the bank to help stabilize the banking system.
"This action by America's largest banks reflects their confidence in First Republic and in banks of all sizes, and it demonstrates their overall commitment to helping banks service their customers and communities," the group said in a statement.
On the economic front, University of Michigan's preliminary consumer sentiment index reading fell to 63.4 in March from 67 in February as consumers remain concerned over inflation. This was also the first time in four months that the index fell.
"Year-ahead inflation expectations receded from 4.1% in February to 3.8%, the lowest reading since April 2021, but remain well above the 2.3-3.0% range seen in the two years prior to the pandemic," said Joanne Hsu, director of Surveys of Consumers, in a statement. "With ongoing turbulence in the financial sector and uncertainty over the Fed's possible policy response, inflation expectations are likely to be volatile in the months ahead."
For earnings, FedEx (NYSE: FDX) shares rose nearly 8% after the delivery giant posted strong third-quarter earnings on Friday. The company also raised its full-year earnings guidance.
"We've continued to move with urgency to improve efficiency, and our cost actions are taking hold, driving an improved outlook for the current fiscal year," CEO Raj Subramaniam said in a statement.
Elsewhere, the S&P 500 is reclassifying stocks in the index into new sectors at close on Friday. Notable changes include Target (NYSE: TGT), Dollar General (NYSE: DG) and Dollar Tree (NASDAQ: DLTR) will move from Consumer Discretionary (NYSE: XLY) to Consumer Staples (NYSE: XLP), while Visa (NYSE: V), Mastercard (NYSE: MA) and PayPal (NASDAQ: PYPL) will move from Technology (NYSE: XLK) to Financials (NYSE: XLF).
Looking ahead, investors will focus on the Federal Reserve's next policy decision due out Wednesday afternoon. Analysts believe there is an 80% chance the Fed to deliver a 0.25% rate hike despite concerns over the financial sector, according to data from the CME Group.