U.S. Stocks Turning In Mixed Performance On Mixed Earnings News

(RTTNews) - After ending the previous session on opposite sides of the unchanged line, the major U.S. stock indexes are turning in another mixed performance during trading on Thursday.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq has slid firmly into negative territory and the S&P 500 has also moved modestly lower, although the narrower Dow has shown a notable move to the upside.

Currently, the Dow is up 354.71 points or 0.7 percent at 47,986.71, while the S&P 500 is down 16.18 points or 0.2 percent at 6,874.41 and the Nasdaq is down 201.31 points or 0.8 percent at 23,757.16.

The mixed performance by the major averages comes amid a mixed reaction to earnings news from several big-name companies.

A steep drop by shares of Meta Platforms (META) is weighing on the Nasdaq, with the Facebook parent plunging by 12.2 percent after reporting better than expected third quarter results but forecasting an increase in AI spending.

Software giant Microsoft (MSFT) has also tumbled by 3.1 percent after reporting fiscal first quarter results that exceeded estimates but also saying capital spending growth will accelerate this fiscal year.

On the other hand, shares of Alphabet (GOOGL) have surged by 5.2 percent after the Google parent reported third quarter results that beat expectations on both the top and bottom lines.

Drug giant Eli Lilly (LLY) has also jumped by 4.2 percent after reporting better than expected third quarter results and boosting is full-year revenue guidance.

Dow components Salesforce (CRM), Goldman Sachs (GS) and 3M Co. (MM) are also posting strong gains, contributing the advance by the blue chip index.

Meanwhile, traders are also digesting the news out of President Donald Trump's highly anticipated meeting with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping.

The U.S. has agreed to reduce fentanyl-linked tariffs on China to 10 percent from 20 percent, while China has agreed to resume purchases of U.S. soybeans

China will also suspend the implementation of new export controls on rare earths, and in return, the U.S. will suspend its 50 percent penetration rule on export controls.

Sector News

Networking stocks have moved sharply higher on the day, with the NYSE Arca Networking Index spiking by 3.1 percent to a record intraday high.

Substantial strength is also visible among gold stocks, as reflected by the 2.5 percent surge by the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index. The rally by gold stocks comes amid a modest increase by the price of the precious metal.

Transportation, banking and pharmaceutical stocks are also seeing considerable strength, while software and steel stocks have shown significant moves to the downside.

Other Markets

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turned in a mixed performance on Thursday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index closed marginally higher and South Korea's Kospi Inched up by 0.1 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index dipped by 0.2 percent.

Meanwhile, the major European markets have all moved to the downside on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index is down by 0.6 percent, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index is down by 0.1 percent and the German DAX Index is just below the unchanged line.

In the bond market, treasuries are extending the notable downward move seen late in the previous session. As a result, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note which moves opposite of its price, is up by 2.2 basis points at 4.080 percent.