US open: Major indices search for direction following PCE data

(Sharecast News) - Wall Street stocks turned in a mixed showing on Friday as indices searched for direction in the wake of key inflation data. At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 1.12% at 32,417.59 and the S&P500 was 0.48% weaker at 4,117.37, while the Nasdaq Composite saw out the session 0.38% firmer at 12,643.01.

The Dow closed 366.71 points lower on Friday, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq tried to bounce back from disappointing results from heavyweights Alphabet and Meta Platforms over recent days, with results from retail titan Amazon and tech group Intel providing a lift.

In focus throughout much of the session, the US Federal Reserve's preferred inflation gauge eased in September, according to figures released on Friday by the Commerce Department, with the core personal consumption expenditure price index up 3.7% on an annual basis, down from a downwardly revised 3.8% a month earlier and in line with expectations.

Oxford Economics said the small decline "reflects the stickiness of core services inflation, which is still too strong to be consistent with inflation falling back to the Fed's 2% target". However, market expectations for the Fed to still keep interest rates steady when it meets next week.

In other economic data, personal incomes rose 0.3% in September after 0.4% growth in August, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis, slightly missing the 0.4% forecast. Personal spending growth, however, picked up to 0.7% from 0.4%, ahead of consensus estimates for a reading of 0.5%.

In the corporate space, shares in Chevron dived 5% after the US oil and gas giant missed expectations with third-quarter profits, as the bottom line shrunk by 42% year-on-year. The California-based company reported total earnings of $6.53bn for the three months to 30 September, down from $11.23bn a year earlier, which it said was due to lower upstream realisations and lower margins on refined product sales. Adjusted earnings per share fell to $3.05, down from $5.56 previously and significantly below the $3.70 expected by the market.

Natural gas giant ExxonMobil saw profits fall in the three months ended 30 September but still opted to raise its interim dividend amid heightened crude prices. ExxonMobil earned $9.07bn, or $2.25 per share in the period, down from the record-breaking $19.66bn, or $4.68 per share it pulled in a year earlier. Removing certain items, earnings came in at $2.27 per share but were still short of expectations for $2.36 per share.

However, Amazon impressed the market with earnings ahead of expectations, with profits trebling to $9.9bn, on revenues that rose 13% to $143.1bn. What's more, the e-commerce giant said fourth-quarter net sales would likely be between $160.0bn and $167.0bn.

Elsewhere, Intel shares were up nearly 10% after beating third-quarter forecasts and guiding to a better outturn for the fourth quarter. Earnings fell 31% year-on-year to $0.41 a share but still smashed the $0.22 consensus estimate.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com

Dow Jones - Risers

Intel Corp. (INTC) $35.54 9.29% Apple Inc. (AAPL) $168.22 0.80% Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $329.81 0.59% Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $51.56 0.37% Boeing Co. (BA) $179.69 0.34% Dow Chemical Co. (DOW) $48.11 0.19% Salesforce.Com Inc. (CRM) $196.57 0.16% Dowdupont Inc. (DWDP) $0.00 0.00% McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $255.76 -0.03% Walmart Inc. (WMT) $161.17 -0.37%

Dow Jones - Fallers

Chevron Corp. (CVX) $144.35 -6.72% JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $135.69 -3.60% Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $261.57 -3.02% Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $33.44 -2.99% Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $102.82 -2.59% Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) $21.14 -2.58% Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $289.91 -2.38% Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $160.68 -2.30% Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $145.60 -2.28% Nike Inc. (NKE) $97.98 -2.04%

S&P 500 - Risers

Intel Corp. (INTC) $35.54 9.29% Capital One Financial Corp. (COF) $97.79 9.19% Amazon.Com Inc. (AMZN) $127.74 6.83% Stanley Black & Decker Inc. (SWK) $82.03 6.22% Juniper Networks Inc. (JNPR) $26.61 6.10% Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. (CMG) $1,887.59 4.49% Newmont Corporation (NEM) $38.97 3.98% Arista Networks Inc. (ANET) $176.20 3.75% Seagate Technology Plc (STX) $68.25 3.58% Eastman Chemical Co. (EMN) $72.58 3.54%

S&P 500 - Fallers

Ford Motor Co. (F) $9.96 -12.25% Under Armour Inc. Class A (UAA) $6.57 -9.75% Charter Communications Inc. (CHTR) $372.00 -9.65% Under Armour, Inc. (UA) $6.16 -8.47% Estee Lauder Co. Inc. (EL) $124.53 -7.23% Chevron Corp. (CVX) $144.35 -6.72% Hess Corp. (HES) $143.29 -6.46% United Domin Rlty Trust (UDR) $31.56 -6.04% VeriSign Inc. (VRSN) $192.63 -5.82% Perrigo Company plc (PRGO) $26.98 -5.53%

Nasdaq 100 - Risers

Intel Corp. (INTC) $35.54 9.29% Amazon.Com Inc. (AMZN) $127.74 6.83% Seagate Technology Plc (STX) $68.25 3.58% Meta Platforms Inc. (META) $296.73 2.91% Mercadolibre Inc. (MELI) $1,200.45 2.17% Western Digital Corp. (WDC) $38.97 1.86% Micron Technology Inc. (MU) $65.65 1.74% NetEase Inc. Ads (NTES) $106.78 1.62% Broadcom Inc. (AVGO) $838.36 1.40% Comcast Corp. (CMCSA) $39.64 1.25%

Nasdaq 100 - Fallers

Charter Communications Inc. (CHTR) $372.00 -9.65% Qurate Retail Inc. (QRTEA) $0.42 -5.64% Hasbro Inc (HAS) $45.84 -5.23% Dish Network Corp. (DISH) $4.68 -3.70% Incyte Corp. (INCY) $52.54 -3.19% Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $261.57 -3.02% Biogen Inc (BIIB) $234.52 -2.72% Paypal Holdings Inc (PYPL) $50.39 -2.63% Sirius XM Holdings Inc (SIRI) $4.12 -2.60% Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) $21.14 -2.58%