US stocks mixed as final 2023 Fed decision looms

US stock were a mixed bag on Wednesday, eyeing a bid for fresh 2023 highs, as investors braced for the Federal Reserve’s last interest-rate decision of the year.

The Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) popped about 0.4% while the S&P 500 (^GSPC) and Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) teetered on both sides of the flat line.. The Dow and S&P 500 ended Tuesday at their highest since early 2022with the Dow notching its third highest close ever.

The focus is firmly on the Fed’s policy decision due Wednesday afternoon, with investors on alert for signs of an end to interest-rate hikes in Chair Jerome Powell’s comments.

The central bank is overwhelmingly expected to keep rates on hold — a view that Tuesday’s consumer inflation report did little to change. The debate now centers on whether the Fed believes it has done enough in dampening inflation to start cutting rates before the summer.

Elsewhere, oil rose slightly, coming off the lowest levels since June, as worries about oversupply persisted and the market weighed the COP28 deal to transition away from fossil fuels. West Texas Intermediate (CL=F) and Brent crude futures (BZ=F) both added almost 1%, trading around $69 a barrel and $74 a barrel, respectively.

In individual corporates, Tesla (TSLA) shares edged lower after the EV maker recalled over 2 million cars to fix an Autopilot safety flaw and said some of its Model 3 vehicles will lose a US consumer tax credit.

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Wed, December 13, 2023 at 8:52 AM MST

United States Steel rises as bids to purchase company reach above $40 per share

Further speculation on a deal to buy United States Steel (X) is sending shares higher on Wednesday.

The stock popped more than 3% after CNBC’s David Faber reported that the company’s board is set to meet today to discuss multiple bids to buy United States Steel.

Faber noted that multiple of those bids are at “excess of $40 per share” and one of them is coming from Cleveland Cliffs (CLF).

United States Steel stock has soared since Cleveland Cliffs announced it made an offer to buy US Steel in August.
Wed, December 13, 2023 at 8:36 AM MST

Pfizer shares near COVID lows after guidance cut

Pfizer (PFE) stock has round-tripped from its pandemic-era highs and is threatening its lowest levels since 2020 with Wednesday’s drop.

The company announced on Wednesday it expects full-year 2024 earnings per share to come in at $2.05-$2.45, a full $0.40 per share below its prior forecasts. Pfizer’s effective tax rate is also expected to climb, while offering revenue forecasts below Street estimates.

Pfizer said Wednesday that sales for its COVID-19 vaccine and COVID-19 treatments would total about $8 billion next year. Reuters noted Wednesday that analysts had expected combined sales for this category to reach $13 billion.

The stock was down as much as 9% in early trading on Wednesday, briefly falling below $26 per share. The stock reached a low of $23.39 in March 2020 as markets crashed in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Back out some of the pandemic-induced panic-selling lows reached in March 2020 and you’d have to go back to the fall of 2017 to find Pfizer stock trading near current levels.

Should shares settle near Wednesday morning’s lows on a weekly basis, Pfizer’s lows reached in February 2016 would be in play, according to Yahoo Finance data.

Source: Yahoo Finance
Wed, December 13, 2023 at 8:19 AM MST

Tesla stock slips after autopilot recall

Tesla (TSLA) is recalling more than two million vehicles after a US road safety regulator deemed its autopilot driver-assistance system doesn’t do enough to protect from incidents.

Shares of the EV maker were down more than 1% on the news, which follows a year-long investigation from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

The NHTSA said in the recall notice said then when Autosteer is engaged and the driver isn’t paying attention or is unable to intervene with the Autosteer function there “may be an increased risk of crash.”

This is not the first time Tesla has had to recall cars due to issues with automated self-driving technology. Earlier this year Tesla stock fell more than 5% in a single day after issuing a recall due to issues with its Full-Self Driving beta software.
Wed, December 13, 2023 at 7:31 AM MST

Stocks open roughly flat with most market action expected in the afternoon

Stocks opened Wednesday’s trading day marginally higher as investors awaited the latest policy update from the Federal Reserve.

The Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) popped about 0.1% while the S&P 500 (^GSPC) and Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) teetered on both sides of the flat line.

With the policy update expected at 2 p.m. ET followed by a press conference with Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell at 2:30 p.m. ET, most of the market volatility is expected to come in the final 90 minutes of trading on Wednesday as listen for clues on when the Federal Reserve may cut interest rates.

Analysis from Bespoke Investment Group shows most of the market action during Fed days has come after 2:30 p.m. ET. (Bespoke Investment Group)
Wed, December 13, 2023 at 5:40 AM MST

Investors eye record highs for Dow, S&P 500

The major US stock market indexes have had a stellar year, led by the Nasdaq Composite’s (^IXIC) nearly 40% advance.

But as 2023 wraps up, investors will be keeping a close watch on potential record closes for the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) and the benchmark S&P 500 (^GSPC).

On Tuesday, the Dow notched its third-highest close on recordsettling at 36,577.94. The blue chip index is just about 120 points, or less than 1%, away from its record closing high of 36,799.65 reached on Jan. 4, 2022.

Meanwhile, the S&P 500 closed at 4,643.70 on Tuesday, just over 3% away from its closing record high of 4,796.56 reached on Jan. 3, 2022.

The Nasdaq, for its part, settled at 14,533.40 on Tuesday, closer to 10% away from its record high of 16,057.44 reached in Nov. 2021.

As Yahoo Finance’s Josh Schafer reported Tuesdaythe Federal Reserve holding interest rates steady has been the best environment for stocks when compared to periods just before or after the Fed either raises or lowers rates. And with the Fed expected to remain on hold Wednesday — and possibly into the second or third quarter of 2024 — market history remains on the side of the bulls.
Wed, December 13, 2023 at 5:09 AM MST

All eyes on the Fed on decision day

The Federal Reserve is widely expected to hold interest rates steady this Wednesday at the end of the central bank’s last policy meeting of 2023.

Investors will listen out for any sign that the most aggressive rate-hiking campaign since the 1980s is over when the policy decision comes at 2 p.m. ET.

Fed Chair Jerome Powell (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

Fed Chair Jerome Powell is expected to play down the prospect of a rate cut anytime soon, even as some traders bet on a pivot as early as March.

Read this to find out what market observers are watching from the Fed, from Yahoo Finance’s Jennifer Schonberger.