The Wall Street stocks Stocks traded mixed on Friday as investors gauged a Fedex crash and the expectations of further Federal Reserve rate cutsfollowing the central bank’s significant rate cut earlier this week.
In this context, the index Dow Jones of Industrialists went up 0.1% to 42,063.36 points; the S&P500 lost a 0.2% to 5,702.55 points and the Nasdaq Composite depreciated a 0.4% up to the 17,948.32 points.
Wall Street hit new all-time highs
He Dow Jones and the S&P 500 closed at record highs on Thursdaywith purchases driven largely by optimism over lower interest rates following the Federal Reserve’s decision to begin a rate-cutting cycle last Wednesday.
“Historically, stocks have performed well in periods when the Fed is cutting rates while the US economy is still growing. Markets now seem to be expecting this outcome,” analysts at UBS Investment Banking in a note. “This marks a turnaround from concerns in early August, when weak U.S. jobs data fueled worries that the Fed had waited too long before cutting rates.”
The Fed cut rates by 50 basis points earlier this week and kicked off an easing cycle that is expected to see rates fall a total of 125 basis points by the end of the year. Still, the Fed’s medium- and long-term outlook for rates appeared less dovish. President Donald Trump Jerome Powell He said the central bank had no intention of enacting ultra-low rates and that the neutral rate would likely be much higher than seen in the past.
The logistics and delivery giant’s shares FedEx They fell almost a 15% after posting substantially weaker-than-expected quarterly earnings. The company was hit by customers switching to cheaper, slower options, while industrial demand was also weaker than desired.
FedEx It is considered a bellwether for the global economy, given its heavy exposure to trade. Its weak quarterly earnings also raise questions about a possible slowdown in activity.
The actions of Nike rose 7% after the sportswear firm announced that Chief Executive John Donahoe will step down next month. Elliott Hill, who previously spent more than three decades at Nike in various senior leadership roles, will succeed Donahoe.
The leadership change “will inject a much-needed sense of urgency, focusing on product innovation, storytelling/merchandising and rebuilding wholesale partnerships – areas that suffered under previous leadership, resulting in materially underperforming in terms of profitability and shareholder returns,” he said. Deutsche Bank.
Meanwhile, American Airlines Group fell 0.7% and is in talks to partner with Citigroupas its exclusive credit card issuer, abandoning the rival issuer Barclaysreported CNBC, a television channel dedicated to news related to the economy.
Wall Street: S&P 500 targets raised
BMO Capital raised the goal of the S&P 500 to a new consensus high of 6,100 points in a note this week, marking a 9% increase from its previous estimate of 5,600 points.
Despite a rocky start in September, when the index lost more than 4%, recent gains have nearly erased those losses. BMO Capital is optimistic that the market will end the year higher, even if it retests recent lows.
“We continue to be surprised by the strength of market earnings and once again decided that more than an incremental adjustment was warranted,” the BMO analysts said.
Its revised target now represents the highest forecast for 2024 among strategists tracked by Bloomberg.
BMO Financial Group cited historical patterns, noting “years with strong gains through the third quarter typically have stronger-than-average fourth quarters. In the eight years since 1950, when the S&P 500 gained 15% to 20% through the first three quarters, the average fourth-quarter return was 6% — about 50% higher than the average for all years.” Another key factor supporting BMO’s bullish stance is rising market share.
They said that earlier in the year, gains were largely driven by big tech stocks, but in recent months, the rest of the index has shown “vastly improved trends.”
The firm believes broader participation should support continued market gains even if Big Tech’s performance slows.
With solid macroeconomic and fundamental foundations, BMO Financial Group expects the S&P 500 to continue its upward momentum through the end of the year.
Source: Ambito
I am an author and journalist who has worked in the entertainment industry for over a decade. I currently work as a news editor at a major news website, and my focus is on covering the latest trends in entertainment. I also write occasional pieces for other outlets, and have authored two books about the entertainment industry.
