Stocks fell on Wednesday as the latest batch of corporate earnings added to concerns about the performance of some of the largest companies as interest rates rose and recession fears mounted.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 280 points, or 0.8%. The Nasdaq Composite fell 1.9 percent and the S&P 500 lost 1.36 percent.
Microsoft fell 3.7% even as its earnings topped analysts’ expectations, despite the lackluster guidance it provided on its earnings call. The news sent tech stocks down, with Alphabet, Salesforce and Apple last down around 2% each. Boeing fell after top- and bottom-line misses.
Investors are set for more high-profile corporate earnings reports this week as recession fears intensify. More than 90 S&P 500 companies have reported fourth-quarter earnings so far, with 68% of them reporting stronger-than-expected results, according to FactSet.
Quincy Krosby, LPL’s chief global strategist, said: “With most of the gains still in front of the market, the question of whether the shift to growth indicated by the recent rally is warranted can be resolved through unexpected surprises. Upside earnings and solid guidance to answer.” Finance.
tesla Companies such as IBM and IBM will release numbers after the close.
Wednesday’s move follows three straight days of gains for the blue-chip Dow. All three major stock indexes were flat to slightly higher for the week.