The S&P 500 (+0.1%), Nasdaq Composite (+0.2%), and DJIA (-0.1%) spent the session in a tight range near their unchanged levels amid a lack of notable developments today. 

Tight breadth figures (decliners outpaced advancers by a roughly 7-to-6 margin on the NYSE while advancers held a roughly 3-to-2 advantage on the Nasdaq) and nearly even sector strength culminated in a sideways drift for the major averages today. 

The health care sector (-0.7%) finished tied for the widest loss today, highlighting the modesty of today's moves at both the sector and the index level. 

The consumer staples sector (-0.7%) also lagged despite Dollar General (DG 125.21, +15.32, +13.94%) finishing as the best-performing S&P 500 name after a strong beat-and-raise Q3 earnings report, while a 0.2% loss in the utilities sector rounds out a weak day for defensive sectors.

Meanwhile, the consumer discretionary sector (-0.5%) faced pressure in its homebuilder names, which saw the iShares U.S. Home Construction ETF (-2.1%) give back yesterday's gain, while Amazon (AMZN 229.11, -3.27, -1.41%) was a laggard across mega-cap stocks.

The mega-cap cohort saw some notable stock-specific moves, both higher and lower, which ultimately canceled each other out to a flattish finish for the Vanguard Mega Cap Growth ETF (+0.1%).

Meta Platforms (META 661.53, +21.93, +3.43%) was a standout, trading higher after Bloomberg reported that the company is considering slashing its budget for its metaverse group by up to 30% next year. The potential budget cuts signal a strategic pivot, freeing up billions to reinvest in higher-ROI AI projects that are proving more effective at driving revenue and profits.

Despite Meta's advance, a loss in Alphabet (GOOG 318.39, -2.23, -0.70%) kept gains modest in the communication services sector (+0.4%), though it still finished near the top of today's underwhelming leaderboard.

The information technology sector (+0.4%) also managed a modest gain despite mixed performances across its mega-cap components. Apple (AAPL 280.70, -3.45, -1.21%) finished lower, while NVIDIA (NVDA 183.46, +3.87, +2.15%) notched a solid gain despite relative weakness across chipmakers.

The PHLX Semiconductor Index (-0.9%) hit session lows late in the afternoon after Reuters reported that bipartisan senators have introduced a bill that will block the Trump administration from removing chip export restrictions to China. Intel (INTC 40.50, -3.26, -7.45%) was the worst-performing S&P 500 name today. 

Elsewhere in the sector, Salesforce (CRM 247.65, +8.93, +3.74%) traded higher after topping earnings expectations and issuing upbeat guidance, while Sandisk (SNDK 213.31, +18.93, +9.74%) recaptured some of its losses from recent sessions. 

Outside of the S&P 500, the Russell 2000 (+0.7%) continued its run of outperformance this week as the market remains expectant that the Fed will deliver a rate cut at next week's FOMC meeting. 

With that backdrop, the major averages are maintaining their modest week-to-date gains heading into Friday's session. Attention now turns to tomorrow's release of the September PCE Price Index (Briefing.com consensus 0.3%), though it's unlikely to sway sentiment in a meaningful way given that expectations for a rate cut at next week's FOMC meeting are already almost fully priced in. However, the data could influence the expected policy path for early 2026, as the market largely anticipates a "hawkish cut" next week that would dampen expectations for an additional move in January.

U.S. Treasuries retreated on Thursday, lifting yields back to their highest levels of the week. The 2-year note yield settled up four basis points to 3.53%, and the 10-year note yield settled up five basis points to 4.11%.

• Nasdaq Composite: +21.7% YTD
• S&P 500: +16.6% YTD
• Russell 2000: +13.5% YTD
• DJIA: +12.5% YTD
• S&P Mid Cap 400: +6.3% YTD

Reviewing today's data:

• Weekly Continuing Claims 1.939 mln; Prior was revised to 1.943 mln from 1.960 mln, Weekly Initial Claims 191K (Briefing.com consensus 220K); Prior was revised to 218K from 216K
  • The key takeaway from the report is initial claims dropped to their lowest level in nearly two years, which is an encouraging sign about the health of a labor market at a time when visibility remains reduced due to some missing Employment Situation reports from the BLS.
• October Trade Balance DELAYED (Briefing.com consensus -$61.3 bln); Prior -$59.6 bln
• September Factory Orders 0.2%; Prior was revised to 1.3% from 1.4%
  • The key takeaway from the report is that orders increased again in September despite a big jump in August with new orders for nondefense capital goods excluding aircraft, which is a proxy for business spending, jumping 0.9% for the second month in a row.