Stocks were little changed Thursday as investors cautiously awaited the Labor Department's jobs report for September that could determine the Federal Reserve's next interest rate decision. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 10 points, while the S&P 500 Index and Nasdaq Composite lost about 0.1% each.
Here's how the market settled on Thursday:
S&P 500 Index (NYSE: SPY): -0.13% or -5.56 points to 4,258.19
Dow Jones Industrial Average (NYSE: DIA): -0.03% or -10.05 points to 33,119.50
Nasdaq Composite Index (NASDAQ: QQQ): -0.12% or -16.18 points to 13,219.83
In economic news, initial jobless claims came in line with expectations Thursday. The Labor Department reported unemployment filings totaled 207,000 for the week ended Sept. 30, up 2,000 from the prior week. While the data met Wall Street estimates, it showed that the labor market is still resilient despite inflationary pressures and high interest rates, signaling that the Fed may issue another rate hike in November.
Market participants are looking ahead towards the Labor Department's monthly jobs report for more clues on the central bank's next moves as Wall Street enters the fourth quarter. Economists polled by Dow Jones expect September to have added 170,000 new non-farm payrolls, marking a decline from August's print of 187,000.
On the earnings front, Clorox (NYSE: CLX) shares declined after the household cleaning products company issued weaker-than-expected guidance for its fiscal first quarter, citing a cybersecurity attack in August that widely disrupted operations. The company now expects an adjusted loss ranging from $0.40 to $0.00 per share and its gross margin to fall compared to the prior year.
Also for Thursday, Rivian (NASDAQ: RIVN) shares tumbled lower after the electric truck maker announced a plan to sell $1.5 billion of convertible notes. The company said it expected revenue to be between $1.29 billion and $1.33 billion for the quarter ended Sept. 30, marking a slowdown in quarter-to-quarter growth compared to earlier this year. Rivian also said its cash and cash-like assets on its balance sheet decreased to $9.1 billion from $10.2 billion in the most recent quarter.