Stock market today: Live updates

Consumers are showing higher signs of confidence heading into the end of the year.

The Conference Board said Wednesday that its consumer confidence index climbed to 110.7 in December, an uptick compared to the downwardly revised 101 a month earlier. The index is a barometer for what Americans think of present economic conditions as well as their six-month outlook.

“December’s write-in responses revealed the top issue affecting consumers remains rising prices in general, while politics, interest rates, and global conflicts all saw downticks as top concerns,” Conference Board chief economist Dana Peterson said.

Consumers’ view of current business and labor market conditions also ticked higher to 148.5 in December, up from 136.5 in November.

— Brian Evans

The major averages opened lower Wednesday.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 76 points, or 0.2%. The S&P 500 fell 0.2%, while the Nasdaq Composite shed 0.1%.

— Sarah Min

Lowe’s, Floor & Decor and Hayward Holdings all fell fell roughly 1.5% premarket Wednesday following a downgrade to hold from buy at Stifel by analyst W. Andrew Carter.

“We are taking a more cautious view of our home improvement names balancing healthy long-term category dynamics against tepid near-term trends with valuations now sporting limited room for error given the outperformance following the October CPI release,” Carter wrote Tuesday. “Growing confidence around easing rates has driven the outperformance, but the easing rates fall short of driving a meaningful improvement in our home improvement category outlook.”

As a result, Stifel argues that any 2024 housing recovery will be “tepid” and see only “sluggish” improvement in housing sales as buyers and sellers grow accustomed to higher interest rates. Interest rates need to fall much further to encourage housing sales and refinancings, and that’s unlikely unless unemployment rises, the firm said.

— Scott Schnipper

The 10-year U.S. Treasury yield fell Wednesday to its lowest level since July as traders assessed the path of future rate cuts from the Federal Reserve.

The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note was last down around 4 basis points to 3.879%. Earlier in the session, it hit a low of 3.871%, or its lowest level since July 27 when the 10-year yielded as low as 3.839%.

— Sarah Min, Gina Francolla

FedEx is the story of the morning on Wall Street, with the delivery stock falling 10% before the bell after a disappointing second quarter report.

Here are some other notable premarket movers:

General Mills — Shares of the food products company fell 3% after General Mills reported revenue for its fiscal second quarter that was light of expectations and said organic net set sales were down 2% year over despite stronger pricing.

Salesforce — The tech stock declined 1.3% after Wells Fargo downgraded Salesforce to equal weight from overweight.

Check out the full list here.

— Jesse Pound

Mortgage demand fell last week compared to the previous week, despite a continued drop in rates, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association‘s seasonally adjusted index. 

The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($726,200 or less) decreased to 6.83% from 7.07%, with points increasing to 0.60 from 0.59 (including the origination fee) for loans with a 20% down payment, the group said Wednesday. Even with the recent decline, rates are still much higher than they were at the start of the Covid pandemic.

— Lisa Rizzolo

FedEx shares have taken a dramatic slide after the company lowered its full-year sales outlook as weaker demand hit sales. The packaging company’s adjusted earnings per share and revenue also came out lower than estimates, driving shares lower by 9% after market close on Tuesday.

The stock continued to plunge on Wednesday morning, losing more than 12% in premarket trading. Here’s what some analysts are saying about the company:

• Bank of America: Analyst Ken Hoexter maintained his buy rating and lowered his price target to $313, which implies 11.8% potential upside from the stock’s latest close. Although margin expansion was weak, and the company sees thinner margins next year as well, the analyst said he sees strength in FedEx’s ‘DRIVE’ program, which is focused on cutting expenses by improving operational efficiency.
• Wells Fargo: Analyst Allison Poliniak-Cusic expects FedEx’s earnings results to pressure shares, but similarly said that progress in its cost-cutting initiatives continue to support the company’s fiscal year 2024 outlook. Once the transformation is complete, Wells Fargo expects a “strong cash flow profile” with greater confidence potentially leading to a higher valuation. The firm kept its equal-weight rating on the stock.
• Barclays: Analyst Brandon Oglenski kept his overweight rating and reduced his price target to $310, noting especially poor performance in the company’s Express unit, which is its largest, after being hit with lower demand and customers gravitating towards cheaper services. Margin improvement would take a 20% to 30% reduction in capacity from current operations, which the analyst said “just does not seem to be in the cards with current management plans.”

— Pia Singh

FedEx‘s stock sank 9% after the package-delivery company posted disappointing quarterly results and trimmed its revenue outlook.

Adjusted earnings came in at $3.99 per share, falling short of the $4.18 expected by analysts polled by LSEG. The company reported $22.17 billion in revenue, versus the $22.41 billion estimated.

FedEx also said it expects revenues to decline in the low single digits for the fiscal year. That’s down from the flat year-over-year sales previously forecasted.

— Samantha Subin, Leslie Josephs