Stocks Plunge as Nvidia Earnings Spark Tech Sell-Off, Investors Digest Latest News on Tariffs

Biggest S&P 500 Movers on Thursday

14 minutes ago

Decliners

Teleflex (TFX) shares plummeted 21.7% to lead the S&P 500 lower after the medical device maker announced plans to split itself into two companies. 
Super Micro Computer (SMCI) fell 16% to return some of its recent gains as the server maker declined following reports that two of the company’s officers had filed to sell shares in the company. It comes after the company met a deadline to file its delayed annual report, which sparked a rally earlier in the week.
Viatris (VTRS) stock fell 15.2% after the pharmaceutical firm issued weaker-than-expected earnings and a disappointing outlook. The company said that regulatory action associated with an overseas production facility had cut into quarterly profits. 
Shares of Vistra Corp. (VST) fell 12.3% despite better-than-expected earnings. The Texas-based energy provider has seen demand for its nuclear power increase on power needs for new AI data centers. Its decline came as other stocks expected to benefit from demand for AI lost ground.

Advancers

Invitation Homes (INVH) stock rose 5.5% after the real estate investment trust reported quarterly revenue and net income that beat analyst estimates. The company that focuses on leasing single-family homes reported higher same-store net income. 
Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) shares gained 4.7% after the company reported weaker-than-expected earnings, but delivered an upbeat streaming outlook. The entertainment giant laid out an expansion plan that will see its Max streaming service reach more countries on its path to acquiring at least 150 million global subscribers by the end of 2026.
Shares of Allstate (ALL) rose 3.5% after its announcement that it would raise its dividend to $1 per share and commence a $1.5 billion share buyback program. 
Universal Health Services (UHS) rose 3.3% after it reported better-than-expected earnings and a revenue outlook that pushed past estimates. The hospital operator reported continued growth in admissions and higher patient days, those expenses were also higher.

-Terry Lane

Analysts Still Bullish on Nvidia’s AI-Driven Growth

51 minutes ago

For Nvidia (NVDA), it’s become commonplace to post huge revenue and profit growth only to have Wall Street wanting more. The stock’s big decline today provided the latest evidence that the AI investor favorite is priced for perfection.

Analysts still see reason for optimism.

Better-than-expected results have become “routine” for Nvidia, Morgan Stanley analysts said, with expectations climbing ahead of the company’s report. However, “everything improves from here,” the analysts said, and raised their price target to $162 from $152, pointing to Nvidia’s strong outlook and “language around ‘amazing’ levels of Blackwell demand.”

Nvidia shares dropped 8.5% to close Thursday’s session at around $120.

Bank of America analysts called the stock a “top pick on AI dominance” and raised their price target to $200 from $190. Nvidia’s data center segment, which delivered record quarterly revenue, “potentially faces strong, long-term demand dynamics,” the analysts added.

Several of Nvidia’s Big Tech buyers, including Microsoft (MSFT), Meta (META), Amazon (AMZN) and Google parent Alphabet (GOOGL), recently announced plans to raise their capital expenditures to fuel their AI ambitions. 

Wedbush analysis said the results showed “few (if any) blemishes” with “seemingly only good news ahead.”

Nvidia’s annual GPU Technology Conference is in March, and CEO Jensen Huang told analysts on the company’s earnings call to expect “exciting things to come” including what’s next after its Blackwell line of chips. Wedbush maintained its price target of $175 and “outperform” rating.

Nvidia reported $11 billion in quarterly revenue from Blackwell, which CFO Colette Kress said was the company’s fastest-ever product ramp, according to an earnings call transcript provided by AlphaSense.

Going forward, Jefferies analysts said “the supply chain should continue to improve, and we see no signs of demand issues.” The analysts posted a price target of $185.

-Andrew Kessel

Major Indexes on Pace for Steep Monthly Declines

1 hr 36 min ago

The Dow, S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite will enter the final day of February on track to post big losses for the month. Just over a week ago, the S&P 500 was hitting all-time highs, while the Dow and Nasdaq Composite weren’t far away from records of their own.

The Nasdaq Composite, which came into February on a three-month winning streak, is down 5.5% this month. If that holds, it would be the worst month for the tech-heavy index since a 5.8% decline in September 2023.

The S&P 500 is down 3% in February, its worst performance since last April. The Dow’s 2.9% decline so far this month, while noteworthy, pales in comparison to its 5.3% decline in December. The Dow and S&P 500 both rose in January after losing ground in the final month of 2023.

The AI Trade Falters on Thursday

2 hr 1 min ago

Thursday’s selloff implied that Nvidia’s results were good, but not quite good enough for investors, as concerns about excessive AI spending and economic conditions have taken the wind out of the AI trade’s sails in recent weeks. Investors have sold off richly-priced AI stocks in the last week, a trend that continued at a rapid clip during Thursday’s selloff. 

Shares of Super Micro Computer (SMCI), which soared yesterday after the AI server maker narrowly met a deadline to avoid having its stock removed from the Nasdaq, fell more than 16%. Nuclear power provider Vistra (VST), which rose more than 200% last year, dropped 12% as the broader AI slump overshadowed its own better-than-expected earnings report. Palantir (PLTR), another of Wall Street’s favorite AI plays, slid 5%.

Heading into the release of Nvidia’s earnings, market participants on Wednesday afternoon were preparing for a big post-earnings stock move, with options pricing predicting shares would rise or fall 8% by the end of this week. Thursday’s decline put Nvidia stock well on its way to doing just that. 

-Colin Laidley

EBay Stock Sinks on Weak Results, Outlook

3 hr 35 min ago

Shares of eBay (EBAY) tumbled Thursday, a day after the e-commerce marketplace issued a weaker-than-expected outlook.

The San Jose, Calif.-based firm reported fourth-quarter adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $1.25, ahead of the analyst consensus compiled by Visible Alpha and its own forecast range of $1.17 to $1.22. Revenue rose less than 1% to $2.58 billion, in line with analysts’ expectations and mostly above eBay’s outlook of $2.53 billion to $2.59 billion.

For the first quarter, eBay expects to generate revenue of $2.52 billion to $2.56 billion, below analysts’ projections of $2.60 billion. It also sees GMV of $18.3 billion to $18.6 billion, while analysts were looking for $18.86 billion.

“We are continuing to operate in quite a challenged macro environment, particularly in Europe,” eBay CFO Steve Priest said on the company’s earnings call, according to a transcript provided by AlphaSense. “And now, more recently, we’re facing the uncertainty around U.S. tariffs and de minimis changes.”

Shares in the company were down 7% in late trading Thursday. Even with today’s decline, the stock has gained 45% over the past 12 months.

-Aaron Rennie

Snowflake Levels to Watch as Stock Surges After Earnings

4 hr 19 min ago

Snowflake (SNOW) posted fourth-quarter results and an annual product revenue outlook that sailed past Wall Street estimates, sending shares in the cloud-based data storage provider sharply higher on Thursday.

Snowflake shares carved out a cup and handle pattern between February last year and this month before encountering selling pressure near the formation’s top trendline last week. A pullback into the company quarterly results coincided with the relative strength index (RSI) falling to its lowest level since September last year, paving the way for today’s post-earnings rebound.

Investors should watch important overhead areas on Snowflake’s chart around $190, $212, $236, and $275, while also monitoring a key support level near $153.

The stock was up 8% at around $180 in mid-afternoon trading Thursday.

Read the full technical analysis piece here.

-Timothy Smith

Bath & Body Works Slides on Warning About Impact of Tariffs

6 hr 1 min ago

Bath & Body Works (BBWI) shares plunged Thursday as the personal care and home fragrance retailer warned that new tariffs and soft consumer spending would hurt future results.

The company sees full-year earnings per share between $3.25 and $3.60, with net sales growth of 1% to 3%. Analysts surveyed by Visible Alpha were looking for EPS of $3.66 and a sales increase of 3%.

Bath & Body Works noted that the guidance “reflects the impact of recently enacted tariffs on goods imported from China and excludes potential impacts from other possible tariff changes.”

The outlook offset strong fourth-quarter results. Bath & Body Works posted EPS of $2.09 on sales of $2.79 billion that fell more than 4% but also exceeded forecasts.

CEO Gina Boswell said that despite “complex challenges facing the broader retail sector, we ended the second half of the year strong.”

Bath & Body Works shares were down 13% in recent trading. The stock has lost about a quarter of its value over the past 12 months.

-Bill McColl

Trump Says Mexico, Canada Tariffs to Take Effect Next Week

6 hr 53 min ago

Tariffs against products from Canada and Mexico will go into effect March 4, President Donald Trump said Thursday, while announcing the doubling of the existing tariff on goods from China.

Starting on that date, importers will have to pay a 25% tax on products from Canada and Mexico, and a lower 10% tariff on Canadian oil, Trump posted on social media. On top of that, Trump said he would put an additional 10% tariff on products from China, adding to a 10% tariff he already imposed in early February.

The social media post cleared up some confusion around the start date of the Canada/Mexico tariffs—Trump had made comments at a cabinet meeting Wednesday raising doubts about when they would go into effect.

Trump said the tariffs against Canada and Mexico would stay in place until fentanyl smuggling was stopped or seriously limited.

“Drugs are still pouring into our Country from Mexico and Canada at very high and unacceptable levels,” he said in the social media post Thursday. “A large percentage of these Drugs, much of them in the form of Fentanyl, are made in, and supplied by, China.”

The White House, which has announced plans to impose tariffs far and wide, also believes they will bring manufacturing jobs to the U.S. and that the revenue generated will help balance the budget.

Economists worry that steep new tariffs will push up prices on a wide range of products, possibly stoking inflation and slowing down the economy. Consumer expectations of future inflation spiked earlier this month because of concerns about the tariffs, according to the University of Michigan’s survey of consumers.

-Diccon Hyatt

Warner Bros. Discovery Jumps on Upbeat Outlook

7 hr 30 min ago

Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) shares jumped Thursday morning as the company’s upbeat streaming outlook offset weaker-than-expected fourth-quarter results.

The entertainment giant reported a net loss of $0.20 per share on revenue of $10.03 billion. Analysts polled by Visible Alpha had expected a profit of $0.02 per share and revenue of $10.22 billion.

In its annual letter to shareholders, the company said its plans to continue expanding its Max streaming service to more countries and sees “a clear path to reach at least 150 million global subscribers by the end of 2026, with corresponding strong (Direct-to-Consumer) revenue and Adjusted EBITDA growth.” The company had 116.9 million DTC subscribers at the end of the fourth quarter.

The report comes amid a shift in Warner Bros. Discovery’s strategy. In December, it said it planned to split its operations into two segments, one for its television networks like CNN, TBS, and TNT, and another for its film studios and Max. The company said in the shareholder letter that it expects to complete the restructuring in the second quarter.

Warner Bros. Discovery shares were up more than 9% and leading S&P 500 gainers this morning. The stock is up 31% over the past 12 months, handily outpacing the benchmark index during that stretch.

-Aaron McDade

Nvidia Levels to Watch After Earnings

8 hr 29 min ago

Nvidia (NVDA) shares fell in early trading after the AI investor favorite posted better-than-expected quarterly results and issued a strong outlook amid booming demand for its advanced AI chips.

After forming a bullish engulfing pattern at the 50-period moving average, Nvidia shares moved higher the following week before entering a consolidation phase ahead of the chipmaker’s quarterly results.

Meanwhile, the relative strength index gives a reading of around 50 to indicate neutral conditions, while declining trading volumes in recent weeks suggest that larger market participants remained on the sidelines ahead of the release of the earnings report after yesterday’s closing bell.

Investors should watch key support levels near $130, $113, and $96, while also monitoring crucial overhead areas at $153 and $255.

The stock was down 3% at $127 in recent trading. The stock is down slightly so far in 2025 but is up about 65% over the past 12 months.

Read the full technical analysis piece here.

-Timothy Smith

Futures Point to Higher Open for Major Indexes

9 hr 52 min ago

Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average were up 0.2%.

S&P 500 futures rose 0.5%.

Nasdaq 100 futures added 0.7%.