S&P 500, Nasdaq slip after hitting intraday records as momentum wavers

By Niket Nishant and Sukriti Gupta (Reuters) -The benchmark S&P 500 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq indexes retreated after hitting intraday record highs earlier on Thursday, as investors locked in gains during a data-light stretch with the U.S. government shutdown entering a second day. The swift pullback underscores how fragile market momentum remains, with stretched valuations and uncertainty about the Federal Reserve's lack of visibility into economic data keeping traders on edge. "If the shutdown is going to last longer than a few days, then you could see a little bit more volatility around equities," said Anthony Saglimbene, chief market strategist at Ameriprise Financial. Tesla slipped nearly 2% after initial gains on a strong quarterly deliveries report, as some analysts flagged risks to sales in the upcoming quarters due to the withdrawal of the $7,500 federal tax credit. The S&P 500 healthcare sector also fell 0.4%, on track to break its four-day streak of gains. Additionally, a report from global outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas said U.S. employers announced fewer layoffs in September but hiring plans so far this year were the lowest since 2009. It came a day after a weaker-than-expected ADP National Employment Report on Wednesday. "Both are showing the job market is really drying up," said Joe Mazzola, head trading and derivatives strategist at Charles Schwab. At 11:52 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 71.44 points, or 0.15%, to 46,369.66, the S&P 500 lost 9.54 points, or 0.14%, to 6,701.35 and the Nasdaq Composite gained 25.95 points, or 0.11%, to 22,781.11. Earlier in the session, the S&P and the Nasdaq indexes hit their intraday record highs of 6,731.94 and 22,900.60, respectively. The S&P 500's forward price-to-earnings ratio has climbed to 23.1, its highest since September 2020. The tech sector, up 0.3%, was the biggest boost to the S&P 500. Nvidia rose 1%, while Broadcom and Advanced Micro Devices were up 2% and 3.2%, respectively. The stocks catapulted the broader semiconductor index to a record high, and helped boost the Nasdaq. Consumer discretionary stocks fell 0.7% and were the biggest drag on the S&P 500. In stocks, credit bureaus Equifax and TransUnion fell 9.2% and 12%, respectively, after FICO launched a program that could allow mortgage lenders get access to credit scores without relying on the bureaus. FICO surged 18.9% to top the benchmark index. Occidental Petroleum said it would sell its petrochemical division to Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway for $9.7 billion. Shares of the oil and gas producer fell 5.9%. Declining issues outnumbered advancers by a 1.78-to-1 ratio on the NYSE and by a 1.25-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq. The S&P 500 posted 31 new 52-week highs and 10 new lows while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 108 new highs and 61 new lows. (Reporting by Niket Nishant and Sukriti Gupta in Bengaluru; Editing by Krishna Chandra Eluri)

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