Stocks slipped on Wednesday as investors pulled back following the month's strong gains. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost over 100 points, while the S&P 500 Index and Nasdaq Composite declined about 0.4% and 0.6%, respectively.
Here's how the market settled on Wednesday:
S&P 500 Index (NYSE: SPY): -0.38% or -22.89 points to 5,998.74
Dow Jones Industrial Average (NYSE: DIA): -0.31% or -138.25 points to 44,722.06
Nasdaq Composite Index (NASDAQ: QQQ): -0.60% or -115.10 points to 19,060.48
Moving Markets:
Consumer Inflation rose in October, coming in-line with expectations, the Commerce Department reported Wednesday. The personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index increased 0.2% on the month and 2.3% annually, bringing the Federal Reserve's preferred inflation gauge near policymakers' target annual rate of 2%.
Excluding food and energy prices, core PCE rose 0.3% in October and 2.8% year-over-year -- both also coming in-line with expectations.
On the Earnings Front:
Dell Technologies (NYSE: DELL) reported better-than-expected third-quarter earnings late Tuesday, but issued current-quarter outlook below analyst expectations, with Chief Operating Officer Jeff Clark telling analysts that AI growth is expected to change quarter to quarter.
"This business will not be linear, especially as customers navigate an underlying silicon roadmap that is changing," Clark said during the company's earnings call.
For its fourth-quarter, Dell expects between $24 billion and $25 billion in revenue with adjusted earnings per share of $2.50, below analyst estimates for revenue of $25.57 billion with adjusted earnings of $2.65 per share.
Nordstrom (NYSE: JWN) reported strong third-quarter results late Tuesday, driven by increased sales at both its namesake department store and its discount chain. However, the retailer issued lackluster forward guidance ahead of the holiday season, now expecting full-year revenue to range between flat to up 1%, compared to its previous range of 1% decline to 1% growth.
"Our customers have a lot of choices, and our results give us encouragement that we're on the right path," CEO Erik Nordstrom said in a statement. "Looking ahead, we'll continue to improve our shopping experience as we strive to maintain the positive momentum we've worked towards all year."
CrowdStrike (NASDAQ: CRWD) posted an unexpected loss in its third-quarter, impacted by increasing expenses, even as revenue grew 29% annually. The cybersecurity software giant noted that it is still dealing with the ongoing costs stemming from its faulty software update in July that took thousands of Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) Windows systems offline.
Chief Financial Officer Burt Podbere told analysts during the company's earnings call that its quarterly revenue results demonstrated, "a strong finish and quarter-over-quarter increase in pipeline, despite expected headwinds from the July 19 incident."
The company raised its full-year revenue guidance to $3.92 billion to $3.93 billion, from its previous range of $3.89 billion to $3.9 billion.
In the News:
Bank of America analyst Koji Ikeda raised the firm's price target on DataDog (NASDAQ: DDOG) -- which has a Buy rating from BofA -- on Wednesday to $175 per share from its prior $156, implying a 12% upside from Tuesday's close.
"Over the years, we've heard many software companies introduce new products to lots of fanfare that end up fizzling out. This is not the case with DataDog," Ikeda wrote in a note to clients, highlighting on the software company's potential growth related to artificial intelligence.
"If DataDog is anywhere near close to being as successful with its portfolio of 23 offerings as it has been with the three core pillars of observability, we are only at the beginning of the DataDog story," Ikeda added.
Looking Ahead:
Markets will be closed on Thursday in observance of the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday. Trading hours will resume on on Friday, closing early at 1 p.m.