US stocks end lower after Fed minutes

4 min read | August 18, 2021 03:04 PM PDT | By Sanjeeb Baruah

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Benchmark US indices closed lower on Wednesday, August 18, amid concerns over the pace of economic recovery as delta virus spread rapidly.

The S&P 500 was down 1.07% to 4,400.27. The Dow Jones fell 1.08% to 34,960.69. The NASDAQ Composite dropped 0.89% to 14,525.91, and the small-cap Russell 2000 shed 0.84% to 2,158.78.

Investors took cues from the Fed's July meeting minutes on Wednesday. The officials noted the current jobs rate may allow a rollback of the covid era polices by the year end. The central bank had kept the rates near-zero and launched the bond buy program to ensure liquidity in the market.

On Wednesday’ session, consumer discretionary and communication segments topped the S&P 500. Seven sectors of the index stayed in the red. Real estate and energy stocks were the bottom movers.

Lowe's Companies Inc. (LOW) shares surged 10.28% in intraday trading after the company reported strong quarterly earnings. In addition, the company raised its sales forecast.

Lowe's net sales in Q2 came in at US$27.57 billion compared to US$27.30 billion in the year-ago quarter. Its earnings per share were US$4.25.

Target Corporation’s (TGT) revenue in Q2 rose 9.4% YoY to US$25.16 billion. Its net income was around US$1.8 billion, or US$3.65 per diluted share. Despite strong results, the stock fell 1.63%.

Shares of TJX Companies Inc. (TJX) surged 6.36% after reporting a better-than-expected Q2 earnings. Its net sales rose 23% to US$12.1 billion YoY. Its total segment profit surged 29% YoY to US$1.5 billion, while its diluted earnings per share came in at US$0.64.

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In the consumer discretionary sector, The Kroger Co. (KR) increased by 1.82%, Beyond Meat Inc. (BYND) rose 1.79%, and Dollar Tree Inc. (DLTR) surged 1.25%. Constellation Brands Inc. (STZ) and Chegg Inc. (CHGG) advanced 0.63% and 0.51%, respectively.

In the energy sector, Exxon Mobil Corporation (XOM) dropped 1.05%, Chevron Corporation (CVX) decreased by 1.58%, and TotalEnergies SE (TTE) slipped 0.70%. TC Energy Corporation (TRP) and Kinder Morgan Inc. (KMI) ticked down 1.34% and 2.06%, respectively.

In real estate stocks, American Tower Corporation (AMT) declined 0.74%, Prologis Inc. (PLD) decreased by 0.92%, and Crown Castle International Corp. (CCI) plunged 1.05%. SBA Communications Corporation (SBAC) and Digital Realty Trust Inc. (DLR) fell 1.67% and 1.09%.

Also Read: Why is Warren Buffett doubling down on Kroger?

Also Read: Top 5 mining stocks to watch amid economic recovery

Top Gainers

Top performers on S&P 500 included Lowe's Companies Inc (9.59%), TJX Companies Inc (5.57%), ViacomCBS Inc (3.69%), Tesla Inc (3.50%). On NASDAQ, top performers were PharmaCyte Biotech Inc (189.47%), SGOCO Group Ltd (67.44%), Virpax Pharmaceuticals Inc (49.19%), AzurRx BioPharma Inc (31.71%). On Dow Jones, Salesforce.Com Inc (1.71%), Home Depot Inc (0.25%), Travelers Companies Inc (-0.11%), Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc (-0.24%) were the leaders.

Top Losers

Top laggards on S&P 500 included Organon & Co (-5.06%), Steris plc (-4.22%), Chevron Corp (-4.00%), Advanced Micro Devices Inc (-3.83%). On NASDAQ, America's CAR-MART Inc (-18.60%), Vaxcyte Inc (-14.76%), Sesen Bio Inc (-13.25%), Eco Wave Power Global AB (publ) (-12.72%). On Dow Jones, Chevron Corp (-4.00%), Apple Inc (-2.55%), International Business Machines Corp (-2.07%), Amgen Inc (-1.89%) were the laggards.

Volume Movers

Top volume movers were Apple Inc (17.14M), Pfizer Inc (16.98M), Bank of America Corp (12.13M), Advanced Micro Devices Inc (10.85M), Ford Motor Co (9.17M), Microsoft Corp (7.46M), PharmaCyte Biotech Inc (30.26M), AzurRx BioPharma Inc (18.66M), Virpax Pharmaceuticals Inc (9.41M), SGOCO Group Ltd (8.01M), Sesen Bio Inc (7.99M).

Also Read: Check out these fastest-growing small-cap healthcare stocks

Futures & Commodities

Gold futures were up 0.13% to US$1,790.05 per ounce. Silver decreased by 0.74% to US$23.483 per ounce, while copper fell 2.22% to US$4.1128.

Brent oil futures decreased by 2.35% to US$67.41 per barrel and WTI crude was down 3.03% to US$64.33.

Bond Market

The 30-year Treasury bond yields was down 1.00% to 1.900, while the 10-year bond yields trade flat at 1.258.

US Dollar Futures Index increased by 0.03% to US$93.175.

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