Stock market today: Nasdaq leads stock declines while oil spikes on Iran attack

Tue, October 1, 2024 at 8:30 PM GMT+1

Nike (NKE) is set to report its fiscal first quarter earnings after the bell on Tuesday

Yahoo Finance's Josh Schafer has a preview of what to expect:

Nike's Q1 earnings will be the first report since the company announced a CEO change amid lackluster sales growth.

Elliott Hill, a former Nike executive who retired in 2020, will replace John Donahoe as CEO on Oct. 14. The news initially sent Nike stock up as much as 10%.

"Long-time NKE veteran Elliott Hill returning as CEO and its implications on NKE’s turnaround strategy is likely to dominate the narrative of the 1Q print," Citi analyst Paul Lejuez wrote in a note to clients previewing the earnings.

Nike stock has slumped this year, falling more than 25% prior to the CEO changeup announcement on Sept. 19 amid concerns over slowing sales growth and pressure from rising competitors in the space like On (ONON) and Deckers' (DECK) Hoka brand.

Nike has reported single-digit revenue growth, or worse, for five straight quarters and Wall Street analysts don't expect that trend to change much in the company's fiscal first quarter.

Consensus expectations are for the sports apparel brand to report quarterly revenue of $11.65 billion with earnings per share of $0.52. Both metrics would represent year-over-year declines from the same quarter a year ago.

Tue, October 1, 2024 at 7:55 PM GMT+1

Workers are becomingincreasingly wary of searching for new jobs amid a slowing labor market.

New data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics released Tuesday showed that the quits rate, a sign of confidence among workers, ticked down to 1.9% in August from July's 2%, marking the slowest pace since June 2020. Excluding the pandemic, the quits rate is at its lowest level since 2015.

Meanwhile the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) showed 5.31 million hires were made during the month, down from the 5.41 from July. The hiring rate hit 3.3% in August down from the 3.4% in July. Excluding the pandemic, the hiring rate was at its lowest level since 2013 in August.

As seen in our chart of the day, both hiring and quits have declined significantly over the past year, marking a labor market that's a far cry from the days of "quiet quitting"when hefty wage increases were being flaunted at workers who switched their jobs. Notably, the metrics aren't at the levels seen during the doldrums of 2008 and 2009, but they are still providing a clear image about the current state of the labor market.

"It's a really tough time to find a job," Guy Berger, the director of economic research at The Burning Glass Institute, a research center that studies labor data, wrote in a thread on X Tuesday.

Tue, October 1, 2024 at 7:05 PM GMT+1

Super Micro Computer (SMCI) fell more than 3% on Tuesday after the company underwent a 10-for-1 stock split after the market close on Monday.

Stock splits, which increase the number of shares in circulation (therefore reducing the overall price per share), have risen in popularity as companies seek to increase accessibility to attract a wider crop of investors.

Other megacap stocks, including chipmaker Nvidia (NVDA) and retailer Walmart (WMT), have also implemented this strategy.

Tuesday's move to the downside comes after the AI server maker sank double digits last week after the Wall Street Journal reported that the US Department of Justice is investigating the company for potential accounting violations.

Tue, October 1, 2024 at 6:22 PM GMT+1

Oil prices spiked on Tuesday after Iran fired over 100 ballistic missiles against Israel, pushing prices to the highest level in nearly one year.

West Texas Intermediate (CL=F) rose more than 5% to trade just below $72 per barrel. Brent (BZ=F), the international benchmark price, also climbed roughly 5% to hover firmly above $75 per barrel.

One concern around the crude market's rise is the impact it could have on inflation, as higher energy prices over the longterm can often increase input costs for goods and services. This could potentially lead to more price increases across the board, including non-energy categories.

James Reilly, senior markets economist at Capital Economics wrote on Tuesday that "much remains uncertain" in response to Tuesday's spike in prices.

He argued a key issue will be the attack's "size and whether it inflicts significant damage, particularly in civilian areas. A major escalation by Iran risks bringing the US into the war, which Tehran will presumably seek to avoid."

"In any event, the impact on oil prices will remain the key channel of transmission to the global economy," the economist added, noting Iran accounts for about 4% of global oil output. "An important consideration will be whether Saudi Arabia increases production if Iranian supplies were disrupted."

Reilly said, as a rule of thumb, a 5% increase in oil prices adds about 0.1%-points to headline inflation in advanced economies like the United States.

"As such, we think that it would take a much larger (and sustained) increase in oil prices to have a bearing on central bank policy."

Tue, October 1, 2024 at 5:35 PM GMT+1

Energy (XLE) and tilities (XLU) led Tuesday's sector action, up about 1.8% and 0.4%, respectively.

Energy saw a significant boost after crude oil (CL=F) jumped about 4% to trade just under $71 a barrel after headlines circulated Tuesday morning that Iran is preparing a missile strike against Israel. Brent (BZ=F), the international benchmark price, also rose to hover north of $74.

Meanwhile, the utilities sector, one of the most defensive segments of the economy, has seen a boost in recent months amid the artificial intelligence boom. It's also been viewed as a hedge against a possible economic downturn.

Technology (XLK) was the day's biggest laggard, with the Nasdaq Composite down nearly 2% in afternoon trading. Within tech, Apple (AAPL) and Nvidia (NVDA) were two of the biggest losers. Both stocks shed more than 3%.

Tue, October 1, 2024 at 4:41 PM GMT+1

A strike by dockworkers began on the East and Gulf Coasts early Tuesday, threatening to halt the flow of half the US's ocean shipping and potentially cost the economy billions of dollars per day.

"If it lasts for more than a few days or more than a week, you're going to get massive cascading effects," Flexport founder and CEO Ryan Petersen saidon Yahoo Finance's Market Domination prior to the start of the strike.

He noted that 15% of the world's container ships could be taken offline, resulting in "a huge reduction in capacity" and potentially creating a supply chain disruption "much worse" than what the US economy experienced during the pandemic.

But Raymond James chief economist Eugenio Aleman predicts the strike will not fuel inflation, a top concern as the stoppage officially gets underway.

"While the strike will impact ~40% of US container volumes and comes at a poor time ahead of the crucial holiday shopping season and elections, it should not materially fuel inflation, like port shutdowns did in 2021-2022," Aleman said in a new note on Tuesday.

"The reason: softening consumer demand. Slower job growth, a more discerning consumer, and an expected cooling in shelter costs should limit the upside impact."

Read about the strike and what it could mean for the economy, politics, and more here.

Tue, October 1, 2024 at 3:51 PM GMT+1

Oil prices pushed higher following headlines Tuesday morning that Iran is preparing a missile strike against Israel.

West Texas Intermediate (CL=F) rose about 3% to trade above $70 per barrel. Brent (BZ=F), the international benchmark price, also climbed roughly 2% to hover just below $74 per barrel.

"The United States has indications that Iran is preparing to imminently launch a ballistic missile attack against Israel," a senior White House official said in a statement cited by multiple outlets. "We are actively supporting defensive preparations to defend Israel against this attack. A direct military attack from Iran against Israel will carry severe consequences for Iran."

Tensions in the Middle East have escalated in recent days after Israel launched ground raids in southern Lebanon, targeting Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah.

The possible missile strike, along with mixed jobs and economic data released earlier Tuesday, led stocks to the downside, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq leading the declines.

Tue, October 1, 2024 at 3:04 PM GMT+1

Job openings surprisingly increased in August, furthering the narrative that while the labor market is cooling, it's not rapidly slowing.

New data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics released Tuesday showed there were 8.04 million jobs open at the end of August, an increase from the 7.71 million seen in July. Economists surveyed by Bloomberg had expected the report to show job openings ticked up slightly to 7.67 million in August.

July's figure was revised higher from the 7.67 million open jobs initially reported.

The Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) also showed 5.31 million hires were made during the month, down from 5.41 million in July. The hiring rate hit 3.3% in August, down from 3.4% in July. Also in Tuesday's report, the quits rate, a sign of confidence among workers, tumbled to 1.9%, its lowest level since June 2020.

Tue, October 1, 2024 at 2:34 PM GMT+1

US stocks opened lower on Tuesday to kick off the first trading day of October and the fourth quarter.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) slid roughly 0.4%, while the S&P 500 (^GSPC) fell about 0.3% after both major indexessecured a fresh record close on Monday. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) also moved to the downside, dropping around 0.3%.

Tue, October 1, 2024 at 2:19 PM GMT+1

Jeep-maker Stellantis (STLA) edged down 1% in premarket trading Tuesday after issuing a recall for over 150,000 hybrid Jeep SUVs over a "potential fire risk."

The drop in Stellantis shares comes just a day after the stock plummeted 12.5% in reaction to the automaker's gloomy outlook for its North American operations. Stellantis — which also manufactures Dodge and Ram cars — said it expects to record profit margins of 5.5% to 7% for the full year, rather than its previous double-digit guidance. To weather deteriorating conditions in the global auto industry, the automaker has planned cost-cutting measures and discounts, Yahoo Finance reporter Pras Subramanian explained on Market Domination.

Meanwhile, the newly issued recall affects 2020-2024 Jeep Wrangler 4xe and 2022-2024 Jeep Cherokee 4xe SUVs. The company said it found 13 fires linked to the issue in an internal investigation, but it estimates that only 5% of recalled vehicles exhibit the fire risk.

Tue, October 1, 2024 at 1:47 PM GMT+1

Barclays analyst Tim Long dropped the mic on Apple (AAPL) this morning in a new note, calling out weak demand for the iPhone 16.

Here's what Long had to say:

Long reiterated an Underweight rating on Apple (Sell equivalent).