Stocks weakened in the final hour of Friday's session as the major indexes threw in the towel and posted losses for the day, feeling the pressure from a hotter-than-expected February jobs report. A key stock that added to the gloomy mood was artificial intelligence leader Nvidia, which finally took a break and retreated from an all-time high on the stock market today.
Before the market open, the Labor Department said February nonfarm payrolls increased 275,000 vs. the 190,000 expected. It also exceeded the revised 229,000 increase in January. Private payrolls rose 223,000 vs. the 150,000 projected, while manufacturing payrolls decreased by 4,000, counter to an expected increase of 10,000. The unemployment rate rose to 3.9% vs. forecasts for 3.7%.
The report dimmed prospects for interest rate reductions in the near future, so the Nasdaq pulled back from record highs and lost 1.2% in Friday's action. The Dow Jones Industrial Average wavered between positive and negative ground, ultimately falling 0.2%, while the S&P 500 also eased from all-time highs and dipped 0.7%. The small-cap Russell 2000 slid 0.1%.
Volume rose on both the New York Stock Exchange and the Nasdaq compared with the same time on Thursday, in preliminary numbers.
The Invesco QQQ Trust exchange traded fund skidded 1.4%. The Innovator IBD 50 ETF gave back 0.6% on the stock market today.
The 10-year Treasury yield dipped to 4.08%, while West Texas intermediate crude oil dropped 1.3% to just under $78 a barrel.
Gold ETF Tops Buy Zone
In other asset classes, gold stocks and exchange traded funds a have rallied as the price of gold hits new highs.
S&P Gold Shares ETF eased from larger gains and increased 0.9% on the day. The gold stock is extended from the 5% buy zone of a double-bottom base with a 191.36 buy point. The ETF has gained more than 6% in March so far.
Meanwhile, bitcoin's price stood at more than $69,000. Crypto-related stocks such as MicroStrategy, Coinbase and Marathon Digital all climbed around between 5% and 10% on Friday.
Stock Market Today: Darlings Super Micro And Nvidia Stumble
Super Micro Computer reversed after topping an all-time high of 1,229 and retreated to close down 1.7%. Shares have risen nearly 40% this month so far.
IBD 50 name Nvidia reversed course and slid 5.6% after reaching a record high of 974 earlier in the session. The stock had its largest one-day percentage decrease since Oct. 17, 2023, when it fell 4.68%, according to Dow Jones Market Data.
Online auto retailer Carvana surged 7.3% higher after RBC Capital Markets upgraded the stock to sector perform from underperform and doubled its price target to 90 from 45. The stock formed a power-from-pivot flag on its chart. The flag appears after a stock has advanced at least 20% from a buy point in 15 trading days. Carvana stock reached a 52-week high on Friday.
Apple stopped the bleeding and rose 1% Friday after a seven-day sell-off. Apple stock was a big gainer on the Dow Jones index.
Samsara gapped up 14% in heavy volume after the company reported better-than-expected adjusted fourth-quarter earnings and sales late Thursday. It also gave a revenue outlook for the current quarter that was above analyst views.
Samsara stock broke out of an undefined base with a 36.91 buy point. Shares reached a 52-week high on the stock market today. Its relative strength line also reached a 52-week high as shown by the blue dot on the weekly MarketSurge chart.
Nvidia-Led Reversal Is Wake-Up Call; What To Do Now
Costco Stock Worst In The S&P 500
MongoDB gapped down 6.9% in heavy trading, after the database platform operator beat quarterly profit and revenue estimates for its January-ended quarter, but gave an outlook for earnings and sales that was below analyst forecasts. The stock sank further below its 50-day line and undercut its 200-day moving average.
Marvell Technology plummeted 11.4% after the company's fiscal fourth-quarter earnings met views and sales topped estimates. Investors, however, focused on the company's weak outlook for earnings and sales in the current quarter. Shares pulled back from a 52-week high reached on Thursday.
DocuSign gapped up 4.5% after the company topped fourth-quarter profit and sales views. Several analysts raised their price targets on the e-document specialist.
Costco tumbled more than 7% after the club warehouse company reported a mixed fiscal second-quarter report. Earnings beat estimates while sales fell short.
The stock hit an all-time high on Thursday, but it was the biggest S&P 500 loser on the stock market today.
Follow Kimberley Koenig for more stock market news on X/Twitter @IBD_KKoenig.
