Stock Market Update

[BRIEFING.COM] The S&P 500 (-0.1%), Nasdaq Composite (+0.1%), and DJIA (+0.1%) have spent the session drifting near their unchanged levels as the market marks time ahead of several upcoming potential catalysts. 

Market participants eagerly await the earnings results of several "magnificent seven" names after the close today. Mega-cap stocks as a cohort had put together three consecutive solid sessions coming into today's action, though the Vanguard Mega Cap Growth ETF (-0.5%) has taken a step back today. 

The top-weighted information technology sector (+0.2%) held a solid gain early in the session but has since seen most of its gains thinned as Apple (AAPL 254.60, -3.67, -1.42%) and Microsoft (MSFT 478.36, -2.22, -0.46%), which is one of this afternoon's reporters, trade lower. 

Still, the sector remains in positive territory, largely due to a 2.0% gain in the PHLX Semiconductor Index. Seagate Tech (STX 444.89, +73.13, +19.67%) is the best-performing S&P 500 name after topping earnings estimates and delivering upbeat guidance, sending other memory storage names such as Western Digital (WDC 280.79, +28.13, +11.13%) and Micron (MU 432.30, +22.06, +5.38%) higher as well. 

Intel (INTC 48.68, +4.75, +10.82%) is another top mover, rising after Digitimes reported that NVIDIA (NVDA 191.08, +2.56, +1.36%) is looking to shift its 2028 chip production to Intel.

Elsewhere in the sector, Texas Instruments (TXN 214.92, +18.29, +9.30%) makes a sharp move higher due to upbeat guidance despite missing EPS estimates, while Amphenol (APH 144.20, -22.05, -13.26%) moves sharply lower despite topping its own earnings estimates. 

The energy sector (+0.7%) is the only other S&P 500 sector that holds a gain wider than 0.1%, supported by a $0.54 (+0.9%) increase in the price of oil to $62.93 per gallon. 

Losses across the seven S&P 500 sectors that trade lower are also modest, helping to keep things subdued at the index level. 

The health care sector (-0.8%) is once again at the bottom of the leaderboard, though it is not due to a continuation of yesterday's weakness. Insurer names such as Elevance Health (ELV 343.34, +20.42, +6.32%) and UnitedHealth (UNH 291.83, +9.13, +3.23%) are among the sector's strongest components today after facing double-digit retreats yesterday. 

Instead, pharmaceutical and biotech names such as Eli Lilly (LLY 1010.09, -29.42, -2.83%) and AbbVie (ABBV 219.62, -4.31, -1.92%) trade lower. 

Elsewhere, the consumer staples sector (-0.6%) faces losses in a majority of its components. 

The consumer discretionary sector (-0.4%) has faced one of the widest intraday swings after retreating from a nice gain this morning. Amazon (AMZN 242.94, -1.74, -0.71%) adds to today's mega-cap weakness, while Tesla (TSLA 433.39, +2.49, +0.58%) trades modestly higher ahead of its earnings report this afternoon. 

Starbucks (SBUX 97.52, +1.80, +1.89%) holds a decent gain after missing EPS expectations, with investors focusing on an encouraging 4% boost in global comparable store sales. 

While there are plenty of notable stock-specific moves in reaction to earnings, the broader market proceeds cautiously in anticipation of this afternoon's directional drivers. 

At 2:00 p.m. ET, the FOMC will release its January policy decision, with markets widely expecting the Fed to leave the target rate unchanged. Attention will then turn to Fed Chair Powell’s press conference for any signals regarding potential shifts in the policy outlook ahead of a consequential slate of earnings reports after the close. 

Reviewing today's data:

• Weekly MBA Mortgage Applications Index -8.5%; Prior 14.1%