U.S. stocks ended mixed on Friday, with the Nasdaq hitting a record closing high, as investors looked forward to the Federal Reserve’s upcoming policy meeting, wherein it is expected to cut interest rates to counter the weakening jobs market.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) lost 0.6% or 273.78 points, to end at 45,834.22 points.
The S&P 500 ended almost flat, losing less than 0.5%, to end at 6,584.29 points. Healthcare, materials and industrial stocks were the worst performers.
The Health Care Select Sector SPDR (XLV) fell 1.2%. The Materials Select Sector SPDR (XLB) and the Industrials Select Sector SPDR (XLI) declined 0.8% and 1%, respectively. Eight of the 11 sectors of the benchmark index ended in negative territory.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq jumped 0.4% to close at 22,141.10 points, hitting an all-time closing high.
The fear gauge CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) was up 0.34% to 14.76. Decliners outnumbered advancers on the S&P 500 by a 3.3-to-1 ratio.
On the Nasdaq, there were 106 new highs and 43 new lows. On the S&P 500, there were 22 new highs and three new lows.
Friday saw a choppy trading session, with the Dow ending lower and the S&P 500 finishing nearly flat. However, investor sentiment remained upbeat ahead of the Federal Reserve’s policy meeting next week.
All three major indexes had an impressive week, with the Dow and the S&P 500 closing at record highs on Thursday. The Dow surpassed the 46,000 mark for the first time in the previous session.
The Nasdaq recorded its second straight day of gains on Friday, fueled by a rally in Tesla, Inc. (TSLA) stock. Shares of Tesla jumped 7.4%. Also, shares of Microsoft Corporation (MSFT) rose 1.8%. Microsoft has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
The upbeat sentiment comes ahead of the Federal Reserve policy meeting next week. The Federal Reserve is likely to cut interest rates at the end of the two-day meeting on Sept. 17, after data showed a weakening jobs market and easing worries over inflation. Markets are pricing in a 94.2% chance of a 25-basis-point rate cut this month, according to the CME FedWatch tool.
In economic data released on Friday, U.S. consumer sentiment fell to 55.4 in September for the second straight month, according to the University of Michigan Survey of Consumers. This is the lowest reading since May and is sharply lower than August’s final reading of 58.2.
