S&P 500, Nasdaq close lower Wednesday, Nvidia tumbles before earnings: Live updates (2024)

All three major averages ended Wednesday's session lower ahead of Nvidia's widely anticipated earnings.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite ended the day 1.12% lower, settling at 17,556.03. The lost 0.6% and closed at 5,592.18. The Dow Jones Industrial Average posted a 0.39% decline and finished at 41,091.42.

— Lisa Kailai Han

Trading volume remains light this week ahead of Labor Day weekend. With this in mind, earnings reports from Nvidia and other big names could create volatility, according to Piper Sandler analyst Craig Johnson.

"Most stocks traded in a tight range on light volume yesterday as the equity market's upward momentum wanes ahead of several key earnings reports," Johnson wrote in a Tuesday note.

The analyst remains bullish and believes market growth will diversify headed into the end of the year.

"Overall, the glass appears half-full for the remainder of the year as the market broadens into SMID-caps. Based on our relative strength sector charts, we recommend SMID-caps in Industrials, Financials, Technology, and select parts of Healthcare," added Johnson.

— Hakyung Kim

Apple could see slower sales in the near term ahead of its iPhone 16 launch in September, according to UBS.

These potential losses could exacerbate the share loss already seen for Apple in July. While iPhone units increased 3.4% year over year in July, the company still lost market share on the whole. What's more, the iPhone maker is unlikely to turn this trend around right away.

"Seasonally, the month of August is typically the lowest point in a year for share as consumers pause purchases ahead of a new launch," UBS wrote. "With the iPhone 16 launch scheduled for September 9th, consistent with prior year launches, iPhone share in Aug-24 should fall below the 15% share captured in July-24."

— Lisa Kailai Han

There is a lot to be optimistic about when it comes to the semiconductor industry, according to Citi.

"We remain bullish on semis and reiterate Micron as our top pick given the DRAM upturn," wrote Christopher Danely ahead of the firm's annual tech conference. "Other Buy-rated names include ADI, AMD, AVGO, MCHP, and TXN."

The analyst expects commentary to suggest ongoing weakness in auto end markets, but positive commentary remarks on data center and industrial end markets.

— Samantha Subin

Regardless of the market's reaction to Nvidia's earnings or Friday's personal consumption expenditures price index reading, Art Hogan believes the Federal Reserve will go ahead with a rate cut in September.

"They've turned the page on that for us already and made it pretty clear with Chair Powell's speech at Jackson Hole," the chief market strategist at B. Riley Wealth Management told CNBC in a recent interview. "So to the extent that the market continues to grind higher but inflation continues to grind lower, we're pretty confident the Fed's going to cut rates on September 18th and probably continue to do so for the next 18 months."

— Lisa Kailai Han

Nvidia's earnings report is likely to spike heavy trading volume, both for the stock itself and for a relatively new breed of exchange-traded funds that aim to give investors leveraged daily returns of the chipmaker.

Single-stock funds that track Nvidia have been a highlight for several ETF issuers and have continued to grow even in a sleepy summer for Wall Street. The biggest of the funds is theGraniteShares 2x Long Daily Nvidia ETF (NVDL), whichhas attracted more than $500 million of inflows over the past month and is now over $5 billion in total assets, according to FactSet.

"Nvidia is the most important stock in the world right now, so therefore it stands to reason that … there's going to be big demand. That's just the zeitgeist of 2024. But yes, it does surprise me in terms of the strength of inflows, just from a business perspective," said Will Rhind, CEO at GraniteShares.

The funds can help strategic traders amplify a postearnings pop for Nvidia, but the leveraged long ETFs could also see heavy losses if Nvidia falls and are not designed to be held for long periods of time.

— Jesse Pound

Shares of Chinese electric vehicle maker Li Auto tumbled around 16% after the company more than halved its net income for the second quarter compared to the same period a year ago.

This puts the stock on pace for its largest percentage decrease since Oct. 24, 2022, when it fell more than 17%. Shares are down more than 52% this year.

Li Auto, 1-day

Here are the stocks on the move midday:

• Super Micro Computer— Shares shed 26% after the artificial intelligence server company said it would postpone filing itsannual 10-K formfor thefiscal yearthat ended June 30. Super Micro Computer said its management requires more time to "complete its assessment of the design and operating effectiveness of its internal controls over financial reporting." Hindenburg Researchrevealed a short positionin the stock Tuesday.
• Neurocrine Biosciences— The biopharmaceutical stock plummeted 19%. The companyreported positive top-line Phase 2 datafor its drug targeting schizophrenia in adults, but investors were concerned over whether the results can be replicated in other trials. Stifel stated in a Wednesday note that "these data are clearly messier than hoped."
• — The retailer fell 17% after CEO Fran Horowitz warned of an "increasingly uncertain environment," suggesting the company is bracing for a tumultuous second half of 2024. Separately, the company'sfiscal second-quarter resultssurpassed estimates, and Abercrombie raised its full-year sales outlook.

Read the full list here.

— Sean Conlon

During Wednesday's trading session, Walgreens Boots Alliance was the only stock to reach a 52-week low.

On the other hand, 69 stocks were trading at their 52-week highs. These included:

• Texas Instruments
• BlackRock
• Progressive
• Boston Scientific
• Coca-Cola
• The TJX Companies
• Lockheed Martin
• Universal Health
• Realty Income

— Lisa Kailai Han, Gina Francolla

Nvidia earnings are still the most important of the season, as no other S&P 500 stock has a bigger effect on the index's earnings growth.

But Nvidia's effect has been shrinking, just as the overall "Magnificent Seven" influence has been diminishing with earnings growth broadening out this season.

Last season, Nvidia was responsible for a little more than one-third of the S&P 500's 8% first-quarter earnings growth. This season, though, it is expected to make up just 16% of the index's nearly 13% growth.

Still, the chipmaker is a behemoth in the S&P 500. With a $3.1 billion market cap, it is battling Microsoft as the second-largest stock. Nvidia makes up nearly 7% of the S&P 500. That is a bigger weighting than five of the index's 11 sectors:

— Bob Pisani & Robert Hum

Shares of Super Micro Computer shed more than 25%, putting the artificial intelligence server company on pace for its worst day since 2018.

If shares close at this level, Super Micro would notch its worst session since Oct. 4, 2018, when shares slumped more than 41%. A decline of this magnitude would bring the company to its second worst day on record.

The drop in Super Micro Computer shares come after management said it would delay the release of its annual form 10-K. The company said it needs additional time to "complete its assessment of the design and operating effectiveness of its internal controls over financial reporting."

Shares head for second worst day on record

Tuesday's trading session was the lightest in nearly two months as investors geared up for the long holiday weekend, Nvidia earnings and July's personal consumption expenditures reading.

Tuesday "saw the lowest market volume since July 3rd as everyone eagerly awaits NVDA's results [Wednesday] after the close, the tech sector in particular, as semis, the MAG7 and AI related names continue to peel off," Wolfe Research wrote in a note.

— Lisa Kailai Han

Bitcoin is currently down 8.5% this month, putting it on track for its worst month since April, when the cryptocurrency posted a 15.79% decline.

Similarly, ether is on track to post a 22.67% decline this month, which would mark its worst month since June 2022.

On Wednesday morning, bitcoin hit a low of 58,080.87 — its lowest level since Aug. 19. Ether traded at 2,400.48, or its lowest level since Aug. 8.

— Lisa Kailai Han

Nvidia shares declined about 1% Wednesday as Wall Street readied for the chip giant's earnings report after the bell.

Analysts are closely watching the report from the bellwether, which could determine where the market goes from here. Wall Street will also keep a close eye on guidance and commentary on Nvidia's Blackwell chips as concerns rise over the sustainability of megacap spending on artificial intelligence, and reports of production delays surface.

Other chip stocks declined in morning trading, with Micron Technology falling nearly 3%. Cadence Design Systems lost about 2%, while Advanced Micro Devices, Intel and Lam Research dipped about 1% each.

— Samantha Subin

Shares of the artificial intelligence server stock tumbled more than 11% after the company said it would delay its 10-K filing for the 2024 fiscal year that ended June 30.

Super Micro Computer said its management requires more time to "complete its assessment of the design and operating effectiveness of its internal controls over financial reporting."

The news comes a day after Hindenburg Research revealed a short position in the company, alleging "accounting manipulation." There were no indications that the delay was related to the report.

Super Micro Computer sinks on 10-K delay

Stocks opened little changed ahead of Nvidia's latest earnings report.

All three major indexes were trading just around the flatline Wednesday morning.

— Lisa Kailai Han

Check out the companies making headlines before the bell:

• — Shares of the retailer, which owns the Abercrombie and Hollister banners, fell more than 9% after it reported a 21%increase in its revenue during its fiscal second quarterand issued bullish guidance for the current period. Abercrombie posted earnings of $2.50 per share on revenue of $1.13 billion, surpassing earnings expectations of $2.22 per share on $1.10 billion in revenue, per analysts polled by LSEG.
• Nordstrom— Stock in the retailer climbed more than 1% aftersecond-quarter earnings beat estimates, while the company raised the low end of its full-year outlook. Nordstrom expects fiscal 2024 earnings in the range of $1.75 to $2.95 per share, compared to a previous estimate of $1.65 to $2.05.
• J.M. Smucker— The consumer foods company slipped about 4% after it lowered its full-year guidance and posted quarterly revenue of $2.13 billion, in line with analysts' estimates, according to FactSet. Earnings of $2.44 per share beat expectations, however, as analysts had called for earnings of $2.17 for the period.

For the full list, read here.

— Pia Singh

Traders are expecting Wednesday's Nvidia earnings report to move the stock more than normal, according to analysis of options market data by Goldman Sachs.

"NVDA options are implying a +/- 10% move following earnings, higher than its four quarter average of 7%," John Marshall of the firm's derivatives research team said in a note to clients.

Additionally, the options traders do not seem to be collectively picking a side on how the report will play out.

"Both volumes and skew suggest balanced positioning from investors ahead of earnings. NVDA options account for 20% of all single stock options volumes over the past month; while this is below volumes ahead of the May quarter, it remains one of the top stocks by dollar options volume," the note said.

Shares of the chipmaker were up less than 1% in premarket trading.

— Jesse Pound

Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway resumed selling Bank of America shares once again.

The Omaha-based conglomerate sold about 24.7 million shares of the bank in separate sales for $981.9 million on Friday, Monday and Tuesday, according to a regulatory filing.

Berkshire's stake in Bank of America falls to 11.6% after the latest round of sales. The conglomerate has offloaded more than $5 billion worth of the bank stock in a selling spree that started in mid-July.

Buffett famously bought $5 billion worth of BofA's preferred stock and warrants in 2011 in the aftermath of the financial crisis, shoring up confidence in the embattled lender struggling with losses tied to subprime mortgages. He converted those warrants in 2017, making Berkshire the largest shareholder in BofA, vowing that it would be a"long, long time"before he would sell.

Shares of the Charlotte-based bank are up nearly 18% this year, in line with the S&P 500's return.

— Yun Li

Nvidia has already registered an impressive comeback rally off the August lows, but it could post another sharp move after its latest earnings results, according to UBS.

The artificial intelligence beneficiary is up roughly 30% after the sell-off earlier this month, the firm's Solita Marcelli noted. However, current options pricing shows another spike of 10% is possible on the back of the results set to release Wednesday after the close.

Marcelli is bullish on the long-term potential of AI, but noted that global tech stocks could see "more gradual" gains after the comeback of the past month.

"We have said that future gains in global tech stocks should be more gradual after the quick rebound over the past three weeks, with potential headwinds from US macroeconomic data and further news on semiconductor export controls likely contributing to rising volatility," Marcelli wrote.

— Sarah Min

Shares of Super Micro Computer ended Tuesday's trading session nearly 3% lower after Hindenburg Research alleged that the artificial intelligence server maker had engaged in "accounting manipulation." At the same time, Hindenburg also disclosed a short position in the company.

But in a Tuesday report, JPMorgan said the Hindenburg report had provided "limited evidence of accounting mistreatments."

"Net-net, we see the report as largely void of details around alleged wrong doings from the company that change the medium-term outlook, and largely revisiting the already known areas for improvement in relation to corporate governance and transparency," JPMorgan wrote. "It is not surprising that the company has areas for improvement to further refine governance, transparency, and communication with investors, which would be more appropriate for a company of its size following its recent spurt of growth in conjunction with AI server demand; however, the lack thereof does not immediately suggest wrongdoing by the company, in our view."

— Lisa Kailai Han

Shares of Foot Locker were down more than 5% in the premarket after the company reported lackluster second-quarter results.

The company lost an adjusted 5 cents per share on revenue of $1.9 billion. Analysts polled by LSEG expected a loss of 7 cents per share on revenue of $1.89 billion. The company also reiterated its full-year earnings guidance.

The retailer posted same-store sales growth for the first time in six quarters.

FL falls

Traders on Interactive Brokers have been busy positioning ahead of Nvidia's upcoming quarterly figures.

Data from the brokerage shows more than 460,000 orders were put on shares Tuesday. Of those, 246,273 were buys and 214,969 were sales. Retail traders on the platform were also making moves in the options space, with more than 125,000 trades on that front being placed.

"In case you harbor any doubts about the broader market impact of tomorrow's NVDA earnings, see [the data]," chief strategist Steve Sosnick wrote. "We've gotten quite used to seeing NVDA atop the leaderboard most weeks, cementing its key role in investor psychology. Looking beyond that, it is quite clear that the company plays a crucial role affecting a wide range of other popular investment vehicles."

— Fred Imbert

Nvidia's upcoming quarterly results are "pretty important," according to Citi's Scott Chronert.

"There's no question from a basic index weighting perspective the importance of Nvidia is very clear on this," the firm's U.S. equity strategist told CNBC's "Squawk on the Street," citing the artificial intelligence darling's influence on the midyear gains of the . In June, Nvidia's weighting in the broad market index had reached 6.6%, per FactSet.

In terms of whether an AI spending and AI productivity enhancing tailwind is taking place, Chronert believes more evidence is needed. "It won't be the earnings result per se as much as it is what we're talking to in terms of guidance going forward," he added.

Nvidia is set to report its second-quarter earnings for fiscal 2025 after market close on Wednesday. Shares of the company have surged 159% this year.

Nvidia, year-to-date

All the talk about consumers hunting for value, but improved full-priced selling led to two big retail earnings beats this afternoon.

Shares of Nordstrom are rallying after earnings beat by 25 cents. Its gross margin improved more than Wall Street expected as a result of "strong regular price sales." The company also noted that "active, women's apparel, beauty and kids had the strongest growth versus 2023."

Earnings for Tommy Hilfiger and Calvin Klein parent PVH beat by 72 cents. CEO Stefan Larsson noted that "significant gross margin expansion" was fueled by "more full-priced selling and less end-of-season clearance sales."

— Robert Hum

Despite a light-volume trading week, investors should continue to stay on their toes ahead of expected earnings releases, according to Piper Sandler.

"A light volume trading week is expected ahead of the Labor Day weekend; however, several key earnings reports could increase market volatility," the investment firm wrote in a Tuesday report.

Artificial intelligence darling Nvidia is expected to report earnings Wednesday afternoon after the market close. Salesforce and CrowdStrike are also expected to post earnings this week.

— Lisa Kailai Han

Check out the companies making headlines in extended trading:

• Nordstrom— Shares jumped about 7% after the company'ssecond-quarter earningstopped analysts' estimates. The retailer reported adjusted earnings of 96 cents per share, topping consensus forecasts of 71 cents per share, according to LSEG. Meanwhile, revenue of $3.89 billion missed the estimate for $3.90 billion.
• Ambarella— The semiconductor developer surged 20% after posting upbeat revenue guidance for thefiscal third quarter. Ambarella sees third-quarter revenue ranging from $77 million to $81 million, while analysts polled by LSEG called for $69 million. The company also beat the Street's estimates on the top and bottom lines in the second quarter.
• Box— The cloud storage company advanced 4.3% after reporting a top- and bottom-line beat for the second quarter. Box reported adjusted earnings of 44 cents per share on $270 million in revenue. Analysts surveyed by LSEG had estimated earnings of 40 cents per share on $269 million in revenue.

The full list can be found here.

— Hakyung Kim

U.S. stock futures traded near the flatline Tuesday night.

Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average were marginally higher. and Nasdaq 100 futures were less than 0.1% lower.

— Hakyung Kim