The S&P 500 Index and Nasdaq Composite slipped lower on Thursday as investors rotated out of growth stocks following several sessions of gains. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, in turn, added to its previous session rally.
Here's how the market settled on Thursday:
S&P 500 Index (NYSE: SPY): -0.88% or -49.37 points to 5,584.54
Dow Jones Industrial Average (NYSE: DIA): +0.08% or +32.39 points to 39,753.75
Nasdaq Composite Index (NASDAQ: QQQ): -1.95% or -364.04 points to 18,283.41
Moving Markets:
Price Inflation ticked lower in June as prices for gasoline and other consumer goods eased across the economy, the Labor Department reported Thursday.
The consumer price index (CPI) fell 0.1% month-to-month and rose 3% year-over-year in June, both declining from May's annual increase of 3.3%. Core CPI, which excludes food and energy prices, increased 0.1% monthly and 3.3% from a year ago, with both readings coming in below expectations. The annual increase for core CPI was also the smallest since April 2021.
Expectations for an interest rate cut at the Federal Reserve's upcoming September meeting rose following the inflation report. Investors are currently projecting a greater than 80% chance policymakers will reduce its target rate to a range of 5.00% to 5.25% from its current level of 5.25% to 5.50%, according to CME Group's FedWatch Tool.
In Earnings News:
Delta Air Lines (NYSE: DAL) shares came under pressure Thursday even as the airline reported record revenue in its second quarter as its net income fell 30%. For its current quarter, Delta expects sales to rise no more than 4% with adjusted earnings per share of $1.70 to $2; both estimates are below analyst expectations.
"The second quarter was a really strong performance," CEO Ed Bastian said in an interview with CNBC. "What you see happening is the impact in the domestic marketplace to the lower fare discounting that's been going on this quarter."
PepsiCo (NASDAQ: PEP) reported mixed results for its fiscal second quarter as demand for its drinks and snacks waned in North America. The company also narrowed its full-year revenue outlook, now expecting organic revenue growth of about 4%, from its previous outlook for at least 4%.
"During the second quarter, our business delivered net revenue growth, strong gross and operating margin expansion and double-digit EPS growth, remaining agile despite facing difficult net revenue growth comparisons versus the prior year, subdued category performance within North America convenient foods and the impacts associated with certain product recalls at Quaker Foods North America," CEO Ramon Laguarta said in a statement.
In the News:
Costco (NASDAQ: COST) announced Wednesday it will increase its membership fee by $5 in the United States and Canada as of Sept. 1, bringing its cost of annual membership to $65. The warehouse club's "Executive Membership," will also include to $130 from $120 per year. This is Costco's first membership hike since June 2017.
Wells Fargo projects that BJ's Wholesale Club (NYSE: BJ) could follow Costco and raise its membership fees next year.
"Now that COST has raised its fee, investor attention is likely to turn to BJ," the firm said in a Wednesday note. "The company has had good membership performance and may not want to risk upsetting momentum in the near term."
MicroStrategy (NASDAQ: MSTR) announced a 10-for-1 stock split on Thursday, with its shares being split into class A common stock and class B common stock "to make MicroStrategy's stock more accessible to investors and employees," the company said. The stock will begin trading on a post-split basis on Aug. 8.
The company, which is the largest corporate holder of Bitcoin, also plans to pay a dividend to shareholders on Aug. 1, which will given them an additional nine shares for every one they hold, paid out after market close on Aug. 7.
For Friday:
Market participants will turn their attention to June's producer price index (PPI) due out Friday morning for more clues on the health of the U.S. economy.