Stock market losses grew in afternoon trading, sending the Nasdaq composite to its lowest level since early November as the technology sector was hit hard.
The Nasdaq closed with a 2.8% loss, and is now just 1% above its 200-day moving average. At 18,544, the tech-weighted composite index marked its worst close since Nov. 5, when it closed at 18,439. The S&P 500 lost 1.6% and is more than 2% below the 50-day moving average, which is flattening.
Headed into Thursday's mauling, the Nasdaq composite showed a miserable Accumulation/Distribution Rating of D- on a scale of A (heavy net institutional buying) to E (heavy net selling). The proprietary IBD rating analyzes 13 weeks' worth of price-and-volume action.
The S&P 500's Accumulation rating was hardly better at D+. A C grade suggests a neutral level of buying vs. selling among pension funds, hedge funds, insurers, banks, mutual funds and large investment advisors.
Keep track of the indexes' Accumulation grade by going to the General Market Indicators PDF page, found in the Stock Market Today landing page. The GMI page is also included as a link at the bottom of each day's IBD Big Picture column.
The Nasdaq now shows a 4% loss since Jan. 1. Down 5.5% for the month with one trading session left in February, the index is poised to snap a three-month winning streak.
Dow Industrials: A 660-Point Bearish Swing Lower
The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped nearly 0.5% and continues to face resistance at the 50-day line. The small-cap Russell 2000 fell 1.6% and is at the lowest point since mid-September.
Volume rose on the Nasdaq and NYSE. Declining stocks topped advancers by 11-to-5 on the NYSE and by 5-to-2 on the Nasdaq, according to FactSet.
Leading growth stocks fared no better, with the Innovator IBD 50 ETF losing more than 2%.
A solid quarterly report from Nvidia failed to inspire bulls. The stock reversed lower and closed down more than 7% in heavy trading. It closed below the 200-day moving average for the first time since Feb. 4.
Nvidia still holds a vaunted 6-fold gain since it cleared a six-week cup with a 18.79 IBD-style buy point during the week ended Jan. 27, 2023. That breakout price is adjusted for a 10-for-1 stock split conducted in June 2024. However, a further slide below the key 200-day moving average could presage a deeper correction ahead.
The Nasdaq 100 closed at session lows, off 2.8% at the close. The Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF slid 3.6%, easily the worst performing S&P sector Thursday. Financials, real estate and energy were the only sectors to rise.
IBD Tech Analysis: Nvidia Q4 Update, Risks Going Forward
3:36 p.m. ET
Palantir Down Again
Indeed, former leaders such as Palantir Technologies continued to weaken.
The AI software innovator slipped more than 3% and challenged support at its still-rising 50-day moving average, currently near 86.13. Volume edged slightly above usual levels as Palantir has now collapsed nearly 32% off its all-time peak of 125.41.
Since late last week, IBD has maintained a recommended investment exposure range of 40%-60%. The stock market today is clearly under pressure.
Learn Key Sell Rules To Lock In Gains, Preserve Profits: Read This Column Each Day
Stock Market Today: Dow Jones Index Movers
At around 3 p.m. ET, only six Dow Jones stocks rose 2 points or more.
They included UnitedHealth, McDonald's, Visa and Travelers — all up more than 2%.
JPMorgan Chase initially added four points, or 1.6%, before cooling 0.4%. UnitedHealth, which got stung Friday by reports that the U.S. government is probing its billing practices in Medicare Advantage health care plans, is a member of IBD Long-Term Leaders.
Their gains offset a 9-point, 3.1% drop by Salesforce, which posted weak sales guidance and whiffed on fiscal fourth-quarter top and bottom line Wall Street estimates.
Is Microsoft Stock A Buy Or Sell Now?
1:57 p.m. ET
These Industries Get Socked
While the Nasdaq remained a laggard, stocks in the solar, department store chain, security and safety, computer hardware, metal products distribution and electric utility power industries got particularly hit hard. All of these industry groups fell 2% or more on a price-weighted basis.
For instance, NYSE-listed Dillard's is on track to drop hard for a fifth straight session. Shares lopped off 4.6% to 416.26 and are testing the 200-day moving average. A breakout attempt past an early entry at 471.48 failed, and the stock triggered the 7% loss stop sell rule.
Fear of higher goods prices due to tariffs, plus sticky inflation near the 3% level, may be dampening sentiment on the consumer.
Target inched higher, but the stock remains supremely weak. Trading beneath its 50- and 200-day lines, the stock also holds a limp 21 Relative Strength Rating.
The market drop came amid a surprise jump in weekly jobless claims to 242,000 in the latest reported week, well above Econoday's estimate of 224,000.
The stock market could move sharply Friday with U.S. personal income and spending figures for January, in addition to the PCE (personal consumption expenditures) index of inflation coming out before the market open Friday.
Economists see inflation rising 2.5% in January vs. a year ago, or a slightly slower pace than 2.6% in December. Core inflation is expected to decelerate to a 2.6% year-over-year increase vs. 2.8% a month ago.
12:21 p.m. ET
A Fresh Tech Breakout In The Cloud Sector
Semiconductor stocks struggled. The iShares Semiconductor ETF slumped 2.2% as it heads for a fourth loss in five sessions. Megacap techs traded mixed. But SPDR S&P Bank ETF rallied almost 1%. It still faces a key test of resistance at the 50-day moving average. The exchange traded fund is also forming a base that for now harbors a 63.74 entry.
Nutanix proved the exception among high-quality tech companies, rising more than 11% and clearing a 72.18 handle entry point on a 2-1/2-month pattern. The expert in cloud-based software virtualization reported earnings rising 22% in the January-ended fiscal fourth quarter to 56 cents a share on a 16% rise in revenue to $654.7 million.
Gross margin improved to 86% in the quarter vs. 85.6%, 84.8% and 85.2% in the prior three quarters.
The stock's relative strength line jetted to a new high since the cup pattern began forming on Nov. 25. Investors could use 75.80, or the high of the cup pattern, as an alternate buy point.
Watch for a potential improvement in Nutanix's Earnings Per Share Rating, currently a 67 on a scale of 1 to 99.
10:40 a.m. ET
Nvidia Stock Action
Nvidia rose as much as 2% to an intraday high of 135.01 before backing off to trade near breakeven. The stock has struggled to make serious headway since the surprise announcement by AI app DeepSeek of China rattled U.S. equities on Jan. 27.
According to IBD Stock Checkup, Nvidia holds a strong 96 Composite Rating, but it actually trails industry peers Broadcom and Rambus in terms of this metric. The Composite Rating combines fundamental, technical and institutional sponsorship factors into a single score to speed up the process of screening for great stocks. In general focus on those carrying a 90 rating or higher.
Also keep an eye on how analysts revise their profit estimates for Nvidia.
Amid a bearish reversal in the stock market today, on the bright side, Snowflake is trying to rebound back above a 186.90 proper buy point after an initial breakout failed. Snowflake dropped 7% from that entry to trigger an IBD loss-cutting sell rule.
Also, database software innovator Snowflake led the upside with a strong gain at one point topping 9% on earnings. Snowflake reported a 27% increase in January fourth-quarter sales to $986.8 million but earnings sank 14% to 30 cents a share.
Early strong gainers included Mastercard, insurance giant Unum and Brazilian jet maker Embraer. Embraer reported a fantastic 123% gain in fourth-quarter profit to 94 cents a share amid a 17% rise in revenue to $2.31 billion.
ERJ has gotten extended past a base holding a 40.34 buy point. The 5% buy zone went up to 42.34.
Outside The Stock Market Today
Elsewhere, crude oil futures jumped more than 1.7% on news that President Donald Trump is willing to postpone hefty 25% tariffs on goods from major trading partners Canada and Mexico until April 2. Gold and silver futures fell 1.2% and 0.7%, respectively.
Nvidia Earnings Soar Again, Show Blackwell Chip Progress; What's Next?
Outside the stock market, bond traders took short-term profits in long-dated Treasurys following reports on jobless claims and a revision on fourth-quarter GDP.
The yield on the benchmark 10-year government bond rose three basis points to 4.27%.
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