Stock Market Today: Nasdaq Leads Indexes Lower as Alphabet Stock Slips; Caterpillar Weighs on Dow; Oil Prices Fall

Tech stocks fell Thursday morning as shares of Google parent Alphabet sold off and investors prepared for another busy day of financial results.

The Nasdaq Composite was recently down 1.3%, while the S&P 500 was 0.4%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was also down 0.4%, pulled lower by a nearly 8% drop in shares of Caterpillar (CAT).

Yesterday, the benchmark S&P 500, tech-focused Nasdaq Composite, and blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average finished incrementally higher after the Federal Reserve voted in favor of standing pat on interest rates. Traders now see an 84% likelihood that the Fed will raise rates at least a quarter-percentage point at its December meeting, per CME FedWatch.

Technology stocks, which had led all three major leading U.S. stock indexes to gains in the first three sessions this week after Claude maker Anthropic filed its go-public paperwork on Monday, are mostly selling off Thursday. The Nasdaq 100 index was recently off 1.3%.

Shares of Alphabet (GOOGL), which reported disappointing results late yesterday, were 12% lower. Those of fellow Magnificent Seven mega-cap tech stock Microsoft (MSFT) were down 1.4% even as cloud demand drove strong results.

The Roundhill “MAGS” ETF, which tracks the septet, was almost 2% lower in early trading. Amazon (AMZN), which is set to report results Thursday afternoon, was down more than 3%.

Memory and other AI-tied stocks pointed lower after recording sharp gains each of the first three trading days this week. Roundhill’s Memory ETF (DRAM) was down mroe than 3% after jumping 7% yesterday, Heavily weighted component Samsung Electronics ended 4% lower in South Korean trading today. The broader iShares Semiconductor ETF (SOXX) was down 2% in U.S. trading Thursday.

Shares of SOXX component Marvell Technology (MRVL) dropped 13% following a Bloomberg report that the semiconductor maker is in advanced talks to acquire optical products maker Lumentum Holdings (LITE). Lumentum shares rose 1.4%.

In post-earnings stock moves, Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG) jumped almost 7%, eBay (EBAY) rose 4%, Eli Lilly (LLY) added more than 6%, Shell (SHEL) advanced 2.6%, and Merck (MRK) gained 5%. ServiceNow (NOW) plunged 25%. Intel (INTC) is among those slated to report after the closing bell.

DoorDash (DASH) shares gained 6% on news it was buying food-delivery rival Instacart for $17 billion in cash and stock. Shares of Instacart—officially Maplebear (CART)—were down less than 1%.

Oil prices pulled back after The Wall Street Journal reported that Vice President JD Vance sent a letter to Iranian Security Council chief Mohsen Rezaei in hopes of restarting peace negotiations. U.S. benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude futures declined 2.2% to $100.47 a barrel. Brent crude futures, the international benchmark, slipped 1.9% to $109.56.

The 10-year Treasury yield was around 4.98%, down from late Wednesday. Bitcoin was trading near $80,000, down from overnight highs around $81,700. The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the value of the greenback against a basket of foreign currencies, was up slightly to at 102.31. Gold futures slipped 0.4% to $4,035 an ounce.

OCTOBER 29, 2026 AT 12:02 PM GMT

Here’s How Much Intel Stock Is Expected to Move After Earnings

Intel is set to report earnings after the closing bell today, with traders looking for a sizable swing in the chipmaker’s stock.

Current options pricing indicates Intel (INTC) is seen swinging up to about 8% by the end of the week. A move of that size from Wednesday’s close could lift the shares as high as $103, or drag them below $88.

Intel shares are up roughly 160% for the year, but have pulled back from their June record in recent months. Solid results driven by AI demand sent the stock surging earlier this year, but worries about the sustainability of client spending and Intel’s fundraising plans have pressured shares more recently.

Bank of America analysts told clients recently that they expect Intel to top Street estimates with its results and raise its outlook, though sentiment could be influenced by concerns around “whether AI demand can sustain both higher units and [average selling prices] over time.”

Read the full article here.

–Aaron McDade

OCTOBER 29, 2026 AT 10:49 AM GMT

Nasdaq Futures Plunge as Alphabet Leads Tech Shares Lower

Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average ticked 0.1% higher.

S&P 500 futures declined 0.3%.

Nasdaq 100 futures sank 1%.

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