Stocks fell on Thursday as hotter-than-expected inflation data pressured the broader market. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost over 135 points, while the S&P 500 Index and Nasdaq Composite each lost about 0.3%.

Here's how the market settled on Thursday:

S&P 500 Index (SPY  ): -0.29% or -14.83 points to 5,150.48

Dow Jones Industrial Average (DIA  ): -0.35% or -137.66 points to 38,905.66

Nasdaq Composite Index (QQQ  ): -0.30% or -49.24 points to 16,128.53

Moving Markets: February's producer price index (PPI) rose 0.6% on the month and 1.6% year-over-year -- its biggest jump since September 2023 -- the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Thursday. The monthly gain was also higher than the 0.3% expected by Dow Jones and January's increase of 0.3%.

Excluding food and energy prices, core PPI also topped estimates, rising 0.3%, while excluding food, energy and trade services rose 0.4% on the month.

February's U.S. retail sales rose 0.6% month-to-month and 1.5% annually, the Commerce Department reported Thursday, rebounding on the month from January's 1.1% decline. Excluding auto and gas sales, February sales came in-line with estimates at a gain of 0.3%.

"The retail sales report this month supports our view that the economy is strong but cooling," wrote Ellen Zentner, chief U.S. economist at Morgan Stanley, in a note to clients. "There is no reason for the Fed to rush the next move in rates. We expect the Fed to first cut the funds rate in June, once the Fed has enough data to feel confident that inflation is moving sustainably towards the 2% target."

On the Earnings Front: Dollar General (DG  ) reported stronger-than-expected fourth-quarter results on Thursday, with the discount retailer now expecting 2024 sales to grow between 6.0% and 6.7% with annual earnings per share in the range of $6.80 and $7.55.

"With customer traffic growth and market share gains during the quarter, we believe our actions are resonating with customers," said CEO Todd Vasos in a statement. Those actions include more employee presence at stores, increased customer engagement and expansion of private-label brands as inflation-impacted consumers are buying groceries and other essentials.

In Single-Stock News: JPMorgan Chase (JPM  ) was fined $348.2 million by the Federal Reserve and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency over the bank's failure to properly monitor firm and client trading activities for misconduct, the central bank said Thursday.

Barclays equity strategists led by Venu Krishna wrote in a note to clients Thursday that as much as 20% of the S&P 500's rise in 2024 have been due to Nvidia's (NVDA  ) growth, leaving the index "more exposed than normal to gyrations from a single stock."

"In other words, the number of mega-cap tech names holding up the broader index has narrowed further this year," Barclays wrote. "A market that is already up sharply (the S&P has risen 25% from its October 2023 lows) does make us worry a bit more."

For Friday: Market participants will react to March's preliminary consumer sentiment reading, alongside earnings reports from companies including Adobe (ADBE  ) and Ulta Beauty (ULTA  ).