Stocks ended the day mixed Wednesday after a key Federal Reserve report showed concerns by its board of governors over recession risks. Meanwhile, investors awaited earnings news from artificial intelligence titan Nvidia, due after the market close on the stock market today.
Stocks on the Dow Jones Industrial Average were turned away from their 200-day moving average, which has been a level of resistance since early April, as blue chips fell 0.6%, or nearly 245 points. After rebounding more than 2% amid Tuesday's tariff relief news, the benchmark S&P 500 also dropped 0.6% while the Nasdaq sank 0.5%.
Small caps on the Russell 2000 paused after a 2.5% gain on Tuesday and fell 1.1%. Volume on both the Nasdaq and New York Stock Exchange was lower compared with Tuesday. Breadth was negative with decliners outnumbering advancers 3-to-1 on the NYSE and 2-to-1 on the Nasdaq.
The Innovator IBD 50 exchange traded fund fell 0.4% following Tuesday's impressive performance, when the ETF surged more than 2%. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note rose four basis points to 4.47%.
Among stocks with heavy declines, Synopsys and Cadence Design Systems both tumbled after President Donald Trump announced a ban on China sales late Wednesday for the chip design software makers. Cadence plunged nearly 11% while Synopsys fell nearly 10% in heavy volume.
3:41 p.m. ET
Wood Buys Nvidia, Sells Tesla
Meanwhile, Cathie Wood bought $2.9 million of Nvidia stock and sold $9.7 million of Tesla, according to a website that tracks trades in the Ark Invest exchange traded funds.
Nvidia lost 0.5% ahead of earnings while Tesla slipped after rising 7% on Tuesday.
Futures: Nvidia Jumps On Earnings; Tesla Robotaxi Date Set?
2:39 p.m. ET
Fed Is Concerned About Recession
Minutes of the Federal Reserve's meeting earlier this month showed that the committee was concerned about recession.
"Risks to real activity were seen as skewed to the downside, and the staff viewed the possibility that the economy would enter a recession to be almost as likely as the baseline forecast," the minutes said.
The minutes also said respondents to the Open Market Desk's Survey of Market Expectations had materially lowered their gross domestic product forecasts and raised their inflation forecasts for this year. They also significantly increased the probability they placed on a recession occurring within the next six months.
The Fed maintained interest rates in a range of 4.25% to 4.5% on May 7.
1.47 p.m. ET
Europe Trade Commissioner Looks For A Deal
Meanwhile, European Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic was reported to be probing possible trade agreements with the U.S. for the aerospace, steel, semiconductors and critical minerals sectors. Talks reportedly are being held every other day in search of a deal.
On Wednesday, shares of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac soared after President Donald Trump posted that "the U.S. Government will keep its implicit GUARANTEES" amid a move to take the two companies public. Shares had cleared bases on Thursday and are extended. Both have been under government conservatorship since the 2008 financial crisis and trade on over-the-counter markets.
In cryptocurrency news, GameStop announced that it had bought 4,710 bitcoins. GameStop stock plunged more than 5%.
Trump Media & Tech rose but reversed lower after selling off on Tuesday amid news the company plans to raise $2.5 billion to buy bitcoin through a new offering of stocks and convertible notes. Shares are testing their 50-day moving average.
The move comes as the Bitcoin 2025 conference got underway Tuesday. The offering will dilute Trump's stake in the media entity to below 50% for the first time, according to reports.
12:26 p.m. ET
Stock Market Today: Nvidia Reports
Nvidia is due to report first-quarter results after the market close. Analysts are calling for the Dow Jones component to report earnings of 73 cents a share on revenue of $43.3 billion. Shares are in an early-stage consolidation with a buy point of 153.13, though there is an earlier entry at 143.44.
Estimates for the current quarter sit at $45.9 billion in sales and $1 in earnings per share.
Among other Dow Jones components, Salesforce also is due to report after the market close. Analysts anticipate sales of $9.8 billion with earnings of $2.55 per share. Shares of the software titan are below a buy point at 290.45 and also face resistance at their 200-day moving average.
Artificial Intelligence News And AI Stocks To Watch
Also on the Dow, UnitedHealth was among a handful of stocks lifting the index while Walt Disney, Nike and 3M lagged.
Among other Magnificent Seven stocks in the Dow, Apple reversed higher and Amazon slid in a cup with handle with a buy point at 214.84.
Wednesday's breakouts in the IBD MarketSurge Growth 250 included Aramark which topped a buy point of 39.87 in a cup with handle base. Bank of Montreal rose above a buy point of 106 from a cup base. The relative strength is at a new high, as seen in the blue dot on IBD MarketSurge.
10:43 a.m. ET
Box Breaks Out, Soars On Earnings
Among earnings movers, Box soared more than 17% higher after beating estimates and raising its outlook for the full year. The software database play delivered earnings of 30 cents per share on sales of $276 million, above estimates of 26 cents a share on $275 million in sales.
Box's outlook for fiscal 2026 increased to $1.168 billion in sales from $1.158 billion at the midpoint. Shares have broken out of a double bottom base with a buy point of 35.45.
Are These Magnificent Seven Stocks A Buy Now?
Alphabet | Amazon | Apple | Meta | Microsoft | Nvidia | Tesla
Stock Market Today: Okta Takes A Round Trip
Software security stock Okta got a poor reception on its outlook though it delivered a sales and earnings beat for its first quarter.
Analysts expected 77 cents in earnings per share on revenue of $680.3 million. Okta announced 86 cents in per-share earnings and sales of $688 million.
Despite offering a higher sales estimate of $711 million at the midpoint — compared with estimates of $709 million for the current quarter — the company mentioned an "uncertain economic environment" that could affect bookings for the rest of the year.
Shares plunged and erased a gain from a buy point of 114.50. Okta stock also triggered a round-trip sell signal on Wednesday.
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