Materials stocks underperformed during Thursday’s session, putting pressure on the S&P 500’s gains. The sector declined by 0.7% during morning trading, with Linde PLC, Mosaic Company, and CF Industries Holdings being the biggest laggards, shedding 5% each. Freeport-McMoRan also fell about 2%.
Healthcare stocks also lagged during Thursday’s session, led to the downside by an 8% drop in shares of Baxter International. CVS Health fell more than 4%.
On the other hand, information technology and consumer discretionary stocks outperformed, with each of the S&P 500 sectors advancing about 1%. Mega-caps like Apple, Amazon.com, Nvidia, and Microsoft saw gains, while Meta Platforms was the notable laggard, with shares falling by 1%.
Stocks opened higher on Thursday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average adding 224 points, the S&P 500 climbing about 0.73%, and the Nasdaq Composite increasing by 0.86%.
In premarket trading, Peloton Interactive saw shares climb 15% after announcing CEO Barry McCarthy’s departure and a restructuring plan. Qualcomm shares rose more than 5% after posting better-than-expected earnings, while Wayfair added 5.5% after exceeding analyst estimates.
Overall, the market saw a mix of gains and losses across various sectors, with some companies outperforming expectations and others falling short. Investors will be closely watching for further developments as the trading day progresses.
