Stock market today: Dow, S&P 500, Nasdaq slipped as Wall Street braced for Nvidia's earnings

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2 days ago

US stocks moved lower Wednesday as investors cautiously counted down to Nvidia's (NVDA) earnings report, seen as a crucial test of hopes for Big Tech amid tariff uncertainty.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) fell around 0.6%, or around 250 points, on the heels of Tuesday's tariff reprieve-driven rebound. The S&P 500 (^GSPC) declined 0.5%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) ticked lower by 0.5%.
After the bell on Wednesday, Nvidia reported better-than-expected first quarter revenue while adding it expects an additional $8 billion charge on losses tied to its H20 chip in the second quarter. Its stock rose in after-hours trading.
On the economic front, minutes from the Federal Reserve's meeting earlier in May revealed officials acknowledged they could face "difficult tradeoffs" as tariffs potentially threaten their dual mandates for price stability and maximum employment.
In trade news, nations are now racing to cut deals with the Trump administration to avoid the planned US tariff hikes, with India reportedly the latest to offer to lower its own tariffs on some American products. Meanwhile, President Trump rejected an emerging notion on Wall Street that he is "chickening out" with his on-again, off-again tariff moves.
Read more: The latest updates on Nvidia's earnings report
Nvidia (NVDA) reported fiscal first quarter earnings and revenue that topped Wall Street's expectations after the bell on Wednesday.
The chipmaker reported adjusted earnings per share of $0.96, just above analyst estimates for $0.93. The adjusted earnings number excludes a $4.5 billion charge related a one-time charge attributed to Nvidia's H20 chips. Meanwhile revenue for the AI giant hit $44.1 billion in the first quarter, above estimates for $43.29 billion. Nvidia's key data center business, which includes its AI chips, produced revenue of $39.1 billion, just short of Wall Street's $39.22 billion estimate.
Nvidia shares were up about 3% after hours.
Read the breakdown of Nvidia's earnings here.
The computing and printing industry has long relied on China to produce various components. That has worked well in the past, but is unlikely to work well in the era of Trump tariffs.
Investors just got a taste of the tariff impact from computing giant HP.
The company missed earnings estimates by a country mile and cut guidance after the close, blaming tariff impacts.
I just hopped off the phone with HP CEO Enrique Lores. Here are three comments from him that stood out:
Lores added that HP has been raising prices to offset the tariffs. He declined to share a percentage amount. But if you are in the market soon for a PC, expect a dose of sticker shock.
US stocks moved lower Wednesday as investors cautiously counted down to Nvidia's (NVDA) earnings report, seen as a crucial test of hopes for Big Tech amid tariff uncertainty.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) fell around 0.6%, or around 250 points, on the heels of Tuesday's tariff reprieve-driven rebound. The S&P 500 (^GSPC) declined 0.5%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) ticked lower by 0.5%.
The Financial Times reported the Trump administration has told US chip designers to cease sales to Chinese groups.
Shares of Cadence (CDNS) and Synopsys (SNPS), which were named in the Financial Times report, quickly sold off on the news.
Read more from the Financial Times here.
Given the outsized weighting in the S&P 500, large swings in shares of Nvidia have become a feature of how even broad market investors are thinking about the direction of stocks. In June 2024, three Wall Street strategists boosted their year-end S&P 500 targets, citing better-than-expected consistent performance among key AI players.
As of May 19, the Magnificent Seven had accounted for about 52% of the S&P 500's gain since Nov. 30, 2022. Nvidia alone had contributed 17.21%, by far the most among the group. The next closest stock, Microsoft, had added about 8.8%.
See more charts that help explain Nvidia's meteoric rise since the launch of ChatGPT in November 2022 here.
Minutes from the Federal Reserve's May meeting released on Tuesday revealed officials are growing concerned that President Trump's tariffs could challenge both the maximum employment and stable price mandates for the central bank.
"Participants noted that the (Federal Open Market) Committee might face difficult tradeoffs if inflation proves to be more persistent while the outlooks for growth and employment weaken," the minutes said. "Participants agreed that uncertainty about the economic outlook had increased further, making it appropriate to take a cautious approach until the net economic effects of the array of changes to government policies become clearer."
Read more from Reuters here.
Investors have been instantly rewarded for buying the dip in 2025 at a level not seen in more than 30 years.
Research from Bespoke Investment Group shows that the S&P 500 is rising an average of 0.36% in the next trading session following a down day for the index. In Bespoke's data back to 1993, the only other time stocks rebounded even close to as aggressively was the 0.32% rise seen after down days during 2020.
As Bespoke wrote on X, the data is proof that the buy-the-dip mentality has been at the forefront of the market narrative in 2025. This played out as recently as Tuesday, when the S&P 500 rose more than 2% in the next session after falling 0.7% to end last week's trading before the holiday weekend.
Crude oil prices rose on Wednesday as concerns over supply disruptions outweighed a looming decision over the possibility of increased production from OPEC+ in July.
West Texas Intermediate (CL=F) futures rallied 2% to hover above $62 per barrel. Brent crude (BZ=F), the international benchmark, also traded above $64 per barrel.
Supply concerns intensified after peace talks between Russia and Ukraine stalled, raising the likelihood of new sanctions on Moscow that could involve restricting Russian oil exports.
Meanwhile, the US granted Chevron (CVX) a new license to maintain minimal operations in Venezuela. However, the company remains barred from exporting oil or expanding its operations in the sanctioned country.
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies (OPEC+) ratified production quotas for 2025 and 2026 ahead of a key meeting this Saturday, where the group will decide whether to raise output in July following increases already set for May and June.
BOK Financial senior vice president Dennis Kissler wrote in a note that 'most analysts feel another hike in output is likely, which will be a fundamental headwind for crude.'
The Utilities (XLU) sector fell more than 1.3%, leading the losses among the 11 S&P 500 (^GSPC) sectors.
Utilities are considered one of the more interest rate-sensitive sectors and have lagged amid the recent rise in Treasury yields. The 10-year Treasury yield (^TNX) was up about 6 basis points and hovered just below 4.5% on Wednesday while the 30-year Treasury yield (^TYX) once again crossed above 5%.
The interest rate-sensitive Russell 2000 Index (^RUT) was also among the laggards on Thursday, falling about 0.8%, far outpacing the 0.2% loss of the S&P 500.
Yahoo Finance's Ines Ferre reports:
Read more here.
Nvidia's (NVDA) earnings and revenue beat Wall Street's expectations nearly every quarter over the past two years.
Over the past eight quarters, Nvidia's earnings per share exceeded Wall Street's projections by an average of 9.8%. Over that same time frame, Nvidia's quarterly revenue beat the Street by an average of 8.9%.
Meanwhile, S&P 500 companies reported earnings and sales roughly 5% and 1.3% above Wall Street's expectations in that time frame, according to Bloomberg data.
Only once in that period — during the second quarter of its fiscal year 2025 — did Nvidia's earnings miss forecasts. Its revenue has exceeded forecasts during each of the past eight quarters.
Read more here.
US stocks moved higher early on Wednesday as investors awaited a critical earnings report from AI bellwether Nvidia (NVDA).
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) rose around 0.1% on the heels of Tuesday's tariff reprieve-driven rebound. The S&P 500 (^GSPC) and tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) each inched up about 0.2%.
Yahoo Finance's Brian Sozzi reports:
Read more here.
Here's a look at some top movers trending ahead of the opening bell:
Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF) stock rocketed 27% higher in premarket trading after the retailer reported better-than-expected first quarter results and forecast strong annual sales. Adjusted earnings came in at $1.59 per share, beating expectations for $1.39 per share, as the company's Hollister brand has been resonating more with younger consumers, Reuters reported.
Trump Media & Technology Group (DJT) shares rose 2% after unveiling plans Tuesday to raise $2.5 billion to create a bitcoin (BTC-USD) treasury. The move will place bitcoin directly on the balance sheet of Trump Media, which owns the Truth Social platform. Bitcoin is hovering near all-time highs.
Okta (OKTA) stock tumbled 12% despite reporting better-than-expected earnings on Wednesday. The identity software company announced it would take a "prudent approach" to its financial outlook and reiterated its guidance, alluding to economic uncertainty.
Macy's (M) stock rose 4% after surpassing Wall Street's earnings expectations. But the company still faces questions about its future as management aims to turn the retailer around.
Joby Aviation (JOBY) shares surged 11% after Toyota (TM) invested $250 million in the electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft maker, becoming its largest shareholder. Joby expects a second tranche of funding from Toyota, completing its $500 million commitment, will land later this year.
Nvidia (NVDA) stock traded slightly higher on Wednesday morning ahead of its earnings report after the closing bell, considered to be the most highly anticipated of the season. You can follow along with our live updates of Nvidia's results here.
Check out more trending tickers on the Yahoo Finance platform here.
GameStop (GME) stock rose early Wednesday as the company revealed a sizable bitcoin (BTC-USD) purchase.
Reuters reports:
As the report notes, the bitcoin play is the latest unorthodox move to draw investor interest to a brick-and-mortar video game seller that vaulted into the public consciousness during the 2021 meme-stock craze. GameStop's stock has been rallying in recent days amid bitcoin's surge to new highs.
GameStop's reveal comes a day after President Trump's media company, Trump Media & Technology Group (DJT), said it is looking to raise some $2.5 billion to buy bitcoin.
Read more here.
Macy's (M) stock gained 3% in premarket trading after the beleaguered retailer cleared a low bar for earnings expectations set by Wall Street.
Revenue fell 5.1% compared to the same period last year, and adjusted earnings per share dropped 40.7%, but both measures topped analyst estimates for the quarter.
Yahoo Finance's Brooke DiPalma reports:
Read more here.
Yahoo Finance's Hamza Shaban reports:
Read more here from today's Morning Brief.
Economic data: MBA Mortgage Applications (week ending May 23); Richmond Fed manufacturing index (May); FOMC meeting minutes (May meeting)
Earnings: Nvidia (NVDA), Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF), BMO (BMO), C3.AI (AI), Dick's Sporting Goods (DKS), e.l.f. Beauty (ELF), Macy's (M), Salesforce (CRM)
Investors are nervously awaiting Nvidia's (NVDA) earnings report on Wednesday, seeing it as an important sign for Big Tech amid unclear times with Trump tariffs.
Here are some of the biggest stories you may have missed overnight and early this morning:
Nvidia suppliers fix Blackwell rack issues in boost to sales
Wall Street braces for Nvidia earnings
Trade truces are clearly bullish — but have a crucial flaw
Tariffs latest: Nations race to cut deals with Trump
Trump: Fannie Mae to keep US guarantee as public firm
YF Senior columnist Rick Newman: Why Trump is waging war on colleges
SpaceX Starship rocket fails to deploy satellites and explodes
Musk criticizes Trump's 'big, beautiful' spending bill
China deflation worries deepen even amid US trade truce
Bloomberg reports:
Read more here.
Okta (OKTA) stock dropped by 12% on Wednesday in premarket trading after the tech company reported its first-quarter earnings the day before.
Despite beating Q1 earnings and revenue estimates, the company reiterated its full-year revenue outlook, factoring in a potential risk related to the uncertain economic environment.
CEO, Todd McKinnon said: "Okta had a solid start to FY26 highlighted by record operating profit and another quarter of robust free cash flow."
"The world's biggest organizations continue to turn to Okta to solve identity security across their workforces, customers, and AI use cases."
McKinnon explained that they would continue a "prudent approach to forward guidance… factoring in potential risks related to the uncertain economic environment for the remainder of FY26."
Nvidia (NVDA) reported fiscal first quarter earnings and revenue that topped Wall Street's expectations after the bell on Wednesday.
The chipmaker reported adjusted earnings per share of $0.96, just above analyst estimates for $0.93. The adjusted earnings number excludes a $4.5 billion charge related a one-time charge attributed to Nvidia's H20 chips. Meanwhile revenue for the AI giant hit $44.1 billion in the first quarter, above estimates for $43.29 billion. Nvidia's key data center business, which includes its AI chips, produced revenue of $39.1 billion, just short of Wall Street's $39.22 billion estimate.
Nvidia shares were up about 3% after hours.
Read the breakdown of Nvidia's earnings here.
The computing and printing industry has long relied on China to produce various components. That has worked well in the past, but is unlikely to work well in the era of Trump tariffs.
Investors just got a taste of the tariff impact from computing giant HP.
The company missed earnings estimates by a country mile and cut guidance after the close, blaming tariff impacts.
I just hopped off the phone with HP CEO Enrique Lores. Here are three comments from him that stood out:
Lores added that HP has been raising prices to offset the tariffs. He declined to share a percentage amount. But if you are in the market soon for a PC, expect a dose of sticker shock.
US stocks moved lower Wednesday as investors cautiously counted down to Nvidia's (NVDA) earnings report, seen as a crucial test of hopes for Big Tech amid tariff uncertainty.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) fell around 0.6%, or around 250 points, on the heels of Tuesday's tariff reprieve-driven rebound. The S&P 500 (^GSPC) declined 0.5%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) ticked lower by 0.5%.
The Financial Times reported the Trump administration has told US chip designers to cease sales to Chinese groups.
Shares of Cadence (CDNS) and Synopsys (SNPS), which were named in the Financial Times report, quickly sold off on the news.
Read more from the Financial Times here.
Given the outsized weighting in the S&P 500, large swings in shares of Nvidia have become a feature of how even broad market investors are thinking about the direction of stocks. In June 2024, three Wall Street strategists boosted their year-end S&P 500 targets, citing better-than-expected consistent performance among key AI players.
As of May 19, the Magnificent Seven had accounted for about 52% of the S&P 500's gain since Nov. 30, 2022. Nvidia alone had contributed 17.21%, by far the most among the group. The next closest stock, Microsoft, had added about 8.8%.
See more charts that help explain Nvidia's meteoric rise since the launch of ChatGPT in November 2022 here.
Minutes from the Federal Reserve's May meeting released on Tuesday revealed officials are growing concerned that President Trump's tariffs could challenge both the maximum employment and stable price mandates for the central bank.
"Participants noted that the (Federal Open Market) Committee might face difficult tradeoffs if inflation proves to be more persistent while the outlooks for growth and employment weaken," the minutes said. "Participants agreed that uncertainty about the economic outlook had increased further, making it appropriate to take a cautious approach until the net economic effects of the array of changes to government policies become clearer."
Read more from Reuters here.
Investors have been instantly rewarded for buying the dip in 2025 at a level not seen in more than 30 years.
Research from Bespoke Investment Group shows that the S&P 500 is rising an average of 0.36% in the next trading session following a down day for the index. In Bespoke's data back to 1993, the only other time stocks rebounded even close to as aggressively was the 0.32% rise seen after down days during 2020.
As Bespoke wrote on X, the data is proof that the buy-the-dip mentality has been at the forefront of the market narrative in 2025. This played out as recently as Tuesday, when the S&P 500 rose more than 2% in the next session after falling 0.7% to end last week's trading before the holiday weekend.
Crude oil prices rose on Wednesday as concerns over supply disruptions outweighed a looming decision over the possibility of increased production from OPEC+ in July.
West Texas Intermediate (CL=F) futures rallied 2% to hover above $62 per barrel. Brent crude (BZ=F), the international benchmark, also traded above $64 per barrel.
Supply concerns intensified after peace talks between Russia and Ukraine stalled, raising the likelihood of new sanctions on Moscow that could involve restricting Russian oil exports.
Meanwhile, the US granted Chevron (CVX) a new license to maintain minimal operations in Venezuela. However, the company remains barred from exporting oil or expanding its operations in the sanctioned country.
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies (OPEC+) ratified production quotas for 2025 and 2026 ahead of a key meeting this Saturday, where the group will decide whether to raise output in July following increases already set for May and June.
BOK Financial senior vice president Dennis Kissler wrote in a note that 'most analysts feel another hike in output is likely, which will be a fundamental headwind for crude.'
The Utilities (XLU) sector fell more than 1.3%, leading the losses among the 11 S&P 500 (^GSPC) sectors.
Utilities are considered one of the more interest rate-sensitive sectors and have lagged amid the recent rise in Treasury yields. The 10-year Treasury yield (^TNX) was up about 6 basis points and hovered just below 4.5% on Wednesday while the 30-year Treasury yield (^TYX) once again crossed above 5%.
The interest rate-sensitive Russell 2000 Index (^RUT) was also among the laggards on Thursday, falling about 0.8%, far outpacing the 0.2% loss of the S&P 500.
Yahoo Finance's Ines Ferre reports:
Read more here.
Nvidia's (NVDA) earnings and revenue beat Wall Street's expectations nearly every quarter over the past two years.
Over the past eight quarters, Nvidia's earnings per share exceeded Wall Street's projections by an average of 9.8%. Over that same time frame, Nvidia's quarterly revenue beat the Street by an average of 8.9%.
Meanwhile, S&P 500 companies reported earnings and sales roughly 5% and 1.3% above Wall Street's expectations in that time frame, according to Bloomberg data.
Only once in that period — during the second quarter of its fiscal year 2025 — did Nvidia's earnings miss forecasts. Its revenue has exceeded forecasts during each of the past eight quarters.
Read more here.
US stocks moved higher early on Wednesday as investors awaited a critical earnings report from AI bellwether Nvidia (NVDA).
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) rose around 0.1% on the heels of Tuesday's tariff reprieve-driven rebound. The S&P 500 (^GSPC) and tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) each inched up about 0.2%.
Yahoo Finance's Brian Sozzi reports:
Read more here.
Here's a look at some top movers trending ahead of the opening bell:
Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF) stock rocketed 27% higher in premarket trading after the retailer reported better-than-expected first quarter results and forecast strong annual sales. Adjusted earnings came in at $1.59 per share, beating expectations for $1.39 per share, as the company's Hollister brand has been resonating more with younger consumers, Reuters reported.
Trump Media & Technology Group (DJT) shares rose 2% after unveiling plans Tuesday to raise $2.5 billion to create a bitcoin (BTC-USD) treasury. The move will place bitcoin directly on the balance sheet of Trump Media, which owns the Truth Social platform. Bitcoin is hovering near all-time highs.
Okta (OKTA) stock tumbled 12% despite reporting better-than-expected earnings on Wednesday. The identity software company announced it would take a "prudent approach" to its financial outlook and reiterated its guidance, alluding to economic uncertainty.
Macy's (M) stock rose 4% after surpassing Wall Street's earnings expectations. But the company still faces questions about its future as management aims to turn the retailer around.
Joby Aviation (JOBY) shares surged 11% after Toyota (TM) invested $250 million in the electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft maker, becoming its largest shareholder. Joby expects a second tranche of funding from Toyota, completing its $500 million commitment, will land later this year.
Nvidia (NVDA) stock traded slightly higher on Wednesday morning ahead of its earnings report after the closing bell, considered to be the most highly anticipated of the season. You can follow along with our live updates of Nvidia's results here.
Check out more trending tickers on the Yahoo Finance platform here.
GameStop (GME) stock rose early Wednesday as the company revealed a sizable bitcoin (BTC-USD) purchase.
Reuters reports:
As the report notes, the bitcoin play is the latest unorthodox move to draw investor interest to a brick-and-mortar video game seller that vaulted into the public consciousness during the 2021 meme-stock craze. GameStop's stock has been rallying in recent days amid bitcoin's surge to new highs.
GameStop's reveal comes a day after President Trump's media company, Trump Media & Technology Group (DJT), said it is looking to raise some $2.5 billion to buy bitcoin.
Read more here.
Macy's (M) stock gained 3% in premarket trading after the beleaguered retailer cleared a low bar for earnings expectations set by Wall Street.
Revenue fell 5.1% compared to the same period last year, and adjusted earnings per share dropped 40.7%, but both measures topped analyst estimates for the quarter.
Yahoo Finance's Brooke DiPalma reports:
Read more here.
Yahoo Finance's Hamza Shaban reports:
Read more here from today's Morning Brief.
Economic data: MBA Mortgage Applications (week ending May 23); Richmond Fed manufacturing index (May); FOMC meeting minutes (May meeting)
Earnings: Nvidia (NVDA), Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF), BMO (BMO), C3.AI (AI), Dick's Sporting Goods (DKS), e.l.f. Beauty (ELF), Macy's (M), Salesforce (CRM)
Investors are nervously awaiting Nvidia's (NVDA) earnings report on Wednesday, seeing it as an important sign for Big Tech amid unclear times with Trump tariffs.
Here are some of the biggest stories you may have missed overnight and early this morning:
Nvidia suppliers fix Blackwell rack issues in boost to sales
Wall Street braces for Nvidia earnings
Trade truces are clearly bullish — but have a crucial flaw
Tariffs latest: Nations race to cut deals with Trump
Trump: Fannie Mae to keep US guarantee as public firm
YF Senior columnist Rick Newman: Why Trump is waging war on colleges
SpaceX Starship rocket fails to deploy satellites and explodes
Musk criticizes Trump's 'big, beautiful' spending bill
China deflation worries deepen even amid US trade truce
Bloomberg reports:
Read more here.
Okta (OKTA) stock dropped by 12% on Wednesday in premarket trading after the tech company reported its first-quarter earnings the day before.
Despite beating Q1 earnings and revenue estimates, the company reiterated its full-year revenue outlook, factoring in a potential risk related to the uncertain economic environment.
CEO, Todd McKinnon said: "Okta had a solid start to FY26 highlighted by record operating profit and another quarter of robust free cash flow."
"The world's biggest organizations continue to turn to Okta to solve identity security across their workforces, customers, and AI use cases."
McKinnon explained that they would continue a "prudent approach to forward guidance… factoring in potential risks related to the uncertain economic environment for the remainder of FY26."