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The Dow led US stocks lower on Thursday after disappointing Walmart (WMT) earnings and hotter-than-expected jobless claims data, as focus tightened on the Federal Reserve’s closely watched gathering at Jackson Hole.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) fell 0.3%, while the S&P 500 (^GSPC) moved down more than 0.2%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) also dropped 0.2%.
A continued slide in Big Tech stocks is still a worry, even after the Nasdaq on Wednesday showed signs of a reprieve, coming firmly off session lows as buyers jumped in. Short sellers have reaped over $5 billion from bets against techs as AI fears rippled through markets.
Dimmed rate-cut hopes are also weighing on minds after minutes from the Fed’s July meeting signaled that sticky inflation rather than a faltering labor market is the main concern for policymakers. There was broad support for holding rates steady, despite a growing divide at the Fed.
Amid that rate debate, jobless claims for the week ending Aug. 15 rose to 235,000, versus expectations for 225,000. Continuing claims jumped to 1.97 million, a notch above the 1.96 million anticipated by economists.
Meanwhile, manufacturing activity rose to its highest level in three years in August. S&P Global’s flash US composite PMI survey, which captures activity in both the services and manufacturing sectors, increased to 55.4 from 55.1 in July, marking another month of expansion in the sector.
Earlier, Walmart (WMT) capped the week’s earnings from retail giants, raising its full-year forecast for sales and profit after second quarter results showed a low-price push is drawing in shoppers. But its quarterly profit fell short of high expectations, and its shares slipped.
The Fed kicks off its Jackson Hole symposium of central bankers from around the world later on Thursday, with the countdown on to Chair Jerome Powell’s highly anticipated speech on Friday. The gathering is taking place as President Trump puts public pressure on the Fed, most recently calling for Fed Governor Lisa Cook to resign. Cook has said she won’t be “bullied to step down“.
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Cracker Barrel stock drops 11% amid conservative backlash over logo change
Cracker Barrel (CBRL) shares fell as much as 11% Thursday morning as news outlets reported on the company’s decision to drop the barrel from its logo, the first big brand makeover in nearly 50 years.
The move was part of a broader redesign under new CEO Julie Masino, who joined the company in 2023. The logo change drew the ire of conservatives, including President Trump’s son, Donald Trump Jr.
That wasn’t the first time Cracker Barrel sparked conservative backlash: A legal group led by Trump aide Stephen Miller in July called for a federal investigation into the restaurant chain for its equity-related policies — part of the administration’s broader attack on corporate DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion).
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Intel stock extends losses, reversing earlier gains
Intel (INTC) shares fell nearly 2% Thursday morning after sinking 7% in Wednesday’s trading session.
The chipmaker’s declines reversed gains earlier in the week after the announcement of a $2 billion investment from SoftBank and news that the Trump administration was exploring taking a 10% stake in the company. The stock’s jump came even as Wall Street voiced concerns that those votes of confidence wouldn’t be enough to fix Intel’s problems.
Shares fell Wednesday as CNBC reported that Intel was in talks with other large investors to get an equity infusion at a discounted price.
Intel stock is down nearly 8% over the past six months but up 7% from a year ago.
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Manufacturing activity hits a more than three-year high in August
US economic output hit an eight-month high in August while activity in the manufacturing sector reached its highest level in more than three years.
S&P Global’s flash US composite PMI survey, which captures activity in both the services and manufacturing sectors, came in at 55.4 in August, up from 55.1 in July.
Increased factory activity drove the gains: The preliminary manufacturing PMI reading rose to 53.3, its highest level in 39 months. Meanwhile, the service PMI reading declined to 55.4 in August, down slightly from 55.7 and marking a two-month low for the index.
“A strong flash PMI reading for August adds to signs that US businesses have enjoyed a strong third quarter so far,” S&P Global Market Intelligence chief business economist Chris Williamson said in the release. “The data are consistent with the economy expanding at a 2.5% annualized rate, up from the average 1.3% expansion seen over the first two quarters of the year.”
The gains didn’t come without hiccups, though. Both the services and manufacturing sectors saw their second-largest monthly input price increase since January 2023.
“The resulting rise in selling prices for goods and services suggests that consumer price inflation will rise further above the Fed’s 2% target in the coming months,” Williamson said.
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The Dow leads stocks down at the open
US stocks fell on Thursday after Walmart (WMT) earnings came in below expectations and weekly jobless claims came in higher than expected to hit the highest level since June.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) dropped nearly 0.6%, while the S&P 500 (^GSPC) moved down more than 0.4%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) also backed off about 0.4%.
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US weekly jobless claims rise to highest since June
Americans filing claims for jobless benefits rose to 235,000 for the week of Aug. 15, the largest increase since late May. Economists expected 225,000 jobless claims to be filed.
Meanwhile, continuing claims jumped to 1.97 million, greater than the 1.96 million anticipated, in a sign that Americans without jobs are finding it difficult to get a new one.
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Boeing stock rises on potential sale of 500 jets to China
Boeing (BA) stock rose 1.5% in premarket trading after Bloomberg reported the company is in talks to sell up to 500 jets to China.
The potential sale would mark China’s largest purchase of Boeing aircraft since President Trump’s visit to the country in 2017. But it’s contingent on trade tensions between the US and China abating.
Earlier this year, Boeing was caught in the center of the trade war between the US and China. In April, China banned deliveries of the company’s planes during the height of tariff escalation but removed the ban in May.
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Disney’s new ESPN streaming service has arrived, ushering in new era for sports and the cable bundle
Yahoo Finance’s Allie Canal reports:
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The tech trade hits pause ahead of Nvidia earnings
Tech stocks remain on shaky ground after concerns about the AI trade caused them to slip again on Wednesday. And while the tech pullback wasn’t anywhere close to a DeepSeek moment, Yahoo Finance’s Hamza Shaban writes, Wall Street did seem alarmed by a handful of pessimistic headlines.
Hamza explains the Street’s discontent with tech in today’s Morning Brief:
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Walmart stock falls after earnings miss forecasts as US sales, 2025 outlook rise
Walmart (WMT) stock slid after the big-box retailer’s Q2 earnings fell shy of Wall Street’s expectations, even after its US sales growth beat forecasts as shoppers embraced its low prices.
Yahoo Finance’s Brooke DiPalma reports:
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Good morning. Here’s what’s happening today.
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Premarket trending tickers: Palantir, Nordson and Coty
Here’s a look at some of the top stocks trending in premarket trading:
Hewlett Packard Enterprise Company (HPE) stock rose 3% before the bell
Palantir (PLTR) stock edged higher on Thursday before the bell after closing in the red on Wednesday for the sixth consecutive trading session.
Nordson Corporation (NDSN) stock rose more than 5% premarket after Q2 results beat Wall Street estimates.
Coty Inc. (COTY) shares slumped 20% in premarket trading on Thursday after reporting results that exceeded market revenue expectations, but the beauty company reported a drop in sales by 8.1% year on year.
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Short sellers reap over $5 billion on Big Tech bets as AI fears roil market
Short sellers betting against some of the market’s leading AI stocks potentially made billions as markets slid this week and investors moved away from some of the year’s hottest tech trades.
Yahoo Finance’s Jake Conley and Laura Bratton report:
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Oil prices stay up with crude stockpiles on decline
Bloomberg reports:
