- SEC investigates NYSE opening bell disruption
- 3M slips on weak Q1 forecast
- J&J Gets Sell Warning; GE after weak earnings outlook
- Microsoft will report quarterly earnings after the market close
- Indices: Dow up 0.18%, S&P 500 down 0.13%, Nasdaq down 0.25%
NEW YORK, Jan 24 (Portal) – Wall Street was mixed on Tuesday as a series of mixed gains took some of the wind out of the recent rally.
The session got off to a rocky start when a tide of NYSE-listed stocks was halted due to an apparent technical glitch at the opening bell, causing initial price confusion and sparking an investigation by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
More than 80 stocks were affected by the glitch, which caused sharp swings in the opening prices of stocks, including Walmart Inc (WMT.N) and Nike Inc (NKE.N).
“It looks like the NYSE started doing this very early on,” said Joseph Sroka, chief investment officer at NovaPoint in Atlanta. “Now they’re trying to figure out what the opening prices were.”
“Everyone involved in trade execution is going to have a busy day today.”
All three indices stuttered near the start line, with little apparent momentum either way.
Fourth quarter earnings season is in full swing with 72 of the S&P 500 companies reporting. Of those, 65% have beaten the consensus, just a hair below the long-term average of 66%, according to Refinitiv.
Overall, analysts now expect S&P 500 gains to come in 2.9% down from the year-ago quarter, according to Refinitiv, compared to the 1.6% year-over-year decline on Jan. 1.
“The gains are not yet a bull or bear argument for the market, but investors are worried about staying long after the Fed is done raising rates,” Sroka added. “We are entering a ramp in the earnings cycle and by next week we will have a lot more information on the direction of the market.”
Economic data showed a smaller-than-expected contraction in manufacturing and services for the first few weeks of the year, suggesting that the US Federal Reserve’s tight interest rates are dampening demand.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI) was up 60.69 points, or 0.18%, to 33,690.25, the S&P 500 (.SPX) was down 5.36 points, or 0.13%, to 4,014.45 and the Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC) fell 28.39 points, or 0.25%, to 11,336.03.
Of the 11 major sectors in the S&P 500, industrials fell the most.
Intercontinental Exchange Inc (ICE.N), owner of the New York Stock Exchange, fell 2.5% as SEC investigators looked into the cause of the confusion at Tuesday’s opening bell.
Alphabet Inc (GOOGL.O) shares fell 1.8% after the Justice Department filed a lawsuit against Google for abusing its dominance in the digital advertising business.
Johnson & Johnson (JNJ.N) earnings guidance came in ahead of analysts’ expectations. Even so, the stock fell 0.3%.
Industrial conglomerates 3M Co (MMM.N) and General Electric Co (GE.N) both provided disappointing guidance for the future on inflationary headwinds.
Shares of 3M fell 5.1% while General Electric was slightly lower.
Aerospace/defense companies Lockheed Martin Corp (LMT.N) and Raytheon Technologies Corp (RTX.N) were a contrasting study, with the former providing disappointing earnings guidance and the latter beating estimates on solid travel demand.
Lockheed Martin and Raytheon were up 1.5% and 2.5%, respectively.
Rail operator Union Pacific Corp missed earnings estimates as labor shortages and severe weather delayed shipments. Its shares lost 2.7%.
Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O) will report after the bell.
Rising issues predominated on the NYSE at a 1.16 to 1 ratio; on the Nasdaq, a 1.06-to-1 ratio favored relegators.
The S&P 500 posted 27 new 52-week highs and 10 new lows; the Nasdaq Composite posted 69 new highs and 21 new lows.
Reporting by Stephen Culp; Additional reporting by Shreyashi Sanyal and Johann M Cherian in Bengaluru; Editing by Aurora Ellis
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