(CercleFinance.com) – Wall Street moved without much trend on Friday after setting new records the day before following the upward movement triggered by hopes of future monetary easing by the Fed.
At midday, the Dow Jones fell 0.4% to 39,610.5 points, while the Nasdaq Composite was stable, around 16,407.5 points.
The major New York indices had all recorded intraday and closing highs on Thursday in the wake of reassuring statements from the American Federal Reserve, which confirmed on Wednesday the preferred scenario of three rate cuts this year.
But the disappointing forecasts communicated last night by Nike on the sidelines of the publication of its quarterly results are now raising some questions and encouraging investors to be cautious.
The title of the manufacturer of sporting goods dropped more than 7% and suffered the biggest drop in the Dow Jones index after reporting an outlook lower than market expectations.
‘Nike’s brand image still needs to regain momentum,’ say the UBS teams.
‘Its best-selling shoes are no longer sought after by consumers as much as in the past and the group must release more new products in order to revitalize its growth,’ the analysts point out.
On the upside, Fedex climbed 8% after, on the contrary, exceeding Wall Street estimates, thanks to cost reductions undertaken as part of its ‘Drive’ strategic plan.
Alphabet is also on an upward trend (+2%) and is returning towards its all-time highs thanks to a favorable recommendation from Wedbush, which added the stock to its list of ‘best investment ideas’.
Investors also fear that the scarcity of indicators and major economic events over the coming week will deprive buyers of reasons to maintain the upward movement.
According to Pictet AM, the stock markets still contain interesting upside potential, but the continuation of the ‘rally’ will depend a lot on the performance of the stock market locomotive Nvidia.
The title gained another 1.8% today and marked one of the biggest increases in the S&P 500 index, while UBS raised its price target from 800 to 1100 euros, hailing ‘the only manufacturer of chips capable of creating its own market’.
The S&P 500 is currently up nearly 2.4% for the week as a whole and is therefore heading towards its first positive weekly performance after two weeks of consolidation.
Over the week as a whole, the Dow Jones rose by 2.3% and the Nasdaq by 2.7%.
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