Wall Street Indexes Lacks Direction After Erasing Trump Election Gains

Barry Adams
26 Feb, 2025
New York City

Stock market indexes in New York advanced after falling in four consecutive sessions amid rising worries about the state of the U.S. economy. 

The S&P 500 index advanced 0.4%, and the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.5%, and Nvidia's earnings after the close dominated market sentiment. 

Investors also reviewed the latest earnings from Lowe's, Instacart, Stellantis, TJX, and General Motors. 

On the economic front, investors are looking forward to the release of personal consumption expenditure price index, or the so called PCE on Friday, the Fed's preferred gauge of inflation which understates inflation experienced by most urban families.  

 

U.S. Commodities, Currencies, Indexes, Yields

The S&P 500 index increased 0.4% to 5,982.10, the Nasdaq Composite edged up 0.7% to 19,157.93, and the Russell 2000 index was up 0.5% to 2,181.23.

The yield on 2-year Treasury notes edged higher to 4.12%, 10-year Treasury notes decreased to 4.30%, and 30-year Treasury bonds declined to 4.55%.

WTI crude oil decreased $0.08 to $68.85 a barrel, and natural gas prices edged lower by $0.11 to $4.02 a thermal unit.

Gold decreased by $26.13 to 2,892.21 an ounce, and silver edged down by $0.18 to $31.60.

The dollar index, which weighs the US currency against a basket of foreign currencies, increased 0.25 to 106.56 and traded at a two-year high.

 

U.S. Stock Movers 

Instacart plunged 11.4% to $43.36 despite the online grocery platform reporting a strong increase in gross transaction value and order frequency. 

However, the rise in sales in the latest quarter failed to deliver the expected bump in earnings in the fourth quarter.

Revenue increased to $883 million from $803 million, net income jumped to $148 million from $135 million, and earnings per diluted share rose to 53 cents from 44 cents a year ago.

For the first quarter of 2025, the company estimated gross transaction value between $9.0 billion and $9.15 billion, compared to $8.32 billion in the same quarter in 2024. 

Stellantis NV dropped 4.4% to $13.42 after the parent company of Fiat and Chrysler reported a sharp decline in earnings. 

The vehicle maker held out for higher sales in 2025, and return to profitable growth and positive cash flow. 

TJX Companies increased 3.5% to $127.03, and the parent company of TJ Maxx and Marshalls reported higher than-expected sales and earnings in the holiday quarter. 

Lowe's advanced 4% to $253.37, and the home improvement chain reported better-than-expected results in the latest quarter. 

The company said comparable sales increased 0.2%, reversing declines since the third quarter of 2022. 

The retailer estimated full-year 2025 sales to range between $83.5 billion and $84.5 billion, driven by flat to an increase of 1% in comparable sales, resulting in earnings per share between $12.15 and $12.40.

General Motors advanced 7.5% to $49.97 after the vehicle maker increased its quarterly dividend and launched a $6 billion stock repurchase.