Dow slides 100 points on Friday, S&P 500 and Nasdaq post worst weeks since March after Fed update: Live updates

Citi analyst Christopher Allen said in a note to clients that he is sticking with his buy rating on Charles Schwab even if a rebound for the company appears to be getting pushed further into the future.

"While the near-term remains choppy, we continue to like the longer-term story here given solid underlying organic [net new asset] trends, SCHW's scale/positioning, expense leverage with ~$1B coming out of the run-rate in 2H23-2024," the note said.

Allen cut his earnings estimates for Schwab for 2024 and 2025. Allen did slightly adjust the third-quarter 2023 earnings estimate up to 75 cents per share from 74 cents.

— Jesse Pound

Following a massive selloff earlier this year, this lidar stock leader could see upside potential of over 40%, according to Bank of America.

The firm initiated coverage of the stock with a buy rating and a price target of $14.80, corresponding to a potential upside of 45% from the stock's Thursday close.

Since the stock's debut in February, shares have fallen over 46%. But analyst Jessie Lo still believes the company "deserves a valuation premium against peers, given its leading position in market share, shipment, order gain, margin, breakeven timeline, and balance sheet/cash flow management."

CNBC Pro subscribers can read the full story here.

— Lisa Kailai Han

The U.S. and Eurozone central banks are very close to being done with their hiking cycles, according to Citi, amid a stronger-than-expected U.S. economy and a weaker European economy. The bank has lowered its GDP outlook for the Eurozone accordingly.

"From a central bank cycle point of view, duration is attractive as rate hiking cycles are coming to a quick end. Valuation is also interesting, especially in the US," analyst Dirk Willer said in a Thursday note.

"However, central banks have not been given the all clear yet, as either growth is still surprisingly strong (the US), or inflation surprisingly stubborn (EU, UK). And quickly rising oil prices are typically a strong headwind for duration," he added.

The analyst remains long on the "cheap cyclical" Latin American market, while shorting the defensive U.K. market, which he believes should benefit from a weaker Pound.

— Hakyung Kim

Friday's move higher brings some relief to a market that has struggled mightily this week. However, Goldman Sachs's Scott Rubner thinks traders should stay away from it.

"It is not the time to buy this cover bid rally. For today, a short squeeze is probable into a long weekend for many," Rubner wrote.

"We are in the middle of the worst seasonal equity period of the year right now for the market to close out Q3. Since 1928, the median SPX return for the last 10 out of 11 days in September is negative. In addition, Monday is holiday and potential long weekend (lower volumes). This dynamic improves as we move in October, see NDX for example," Rubner added.

— Fred Imbert, Michael Bloom

BTIG analyst Jake Fuller initiated coverage of Instacart with a neutral rating, saying in a note to clients that the company's valuation already looks fair.

"There are positives here with a strong market position, low category penetration, ancillary opportunities and healthy margins, but modest growth, ramping competition and valuation lead us to a Neutral rating," the note said.

The grocery delivery company's growth trajectory than other app-based companies like Uber and Door Dash, Fuller said.

"Online penetration is low in grocery, but we expect post-pandemic adoption to be more of a grind than we are seeing in the restaurant category," the note said.

— Jesse Pound

HSBC initiated coverage of Mondelez and Procter & Gamble with buy ratings, naming the former its top pick in packaged food and the latter as its preferred name in household and personal care companies.

Mondelez has reached an inflection point where it has demonstrated its market leadership and shown strong initiative in identifying new brand opportunities, analyst Alejandro Zamacona wrote in a recent note.

Meanwhile, Procter & Gamble has successfully defended its market-share leadership across several categories through innovation, he said.

"We believe it has delivered impressive results with decent pricing power, a focus on profitability, strong FCF conversion, and the strongest balance sheet of the household companies under our coverage," Zamacona added.

His $84 price target on Mondelez implies nearly 19% upside, while his $179 price target on Procter & Gamble suggests almost 18% upside.

— Michelle Fox

Headwinds are piling up for the market heading into the final week of the month, as September lives up to its reputation as a horrible month for Wall Street.

All three major averages are headed for losses this month, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite sliding by more than 5% — though the index does remain 26% higher this year. The S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average are also down 3.9% and 2%, respectively.

However, market participants worry that stocks have further to fall. Wolfe Research's Rob Ginsberg pointed out in a note this week that the CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) doesn't suggest much fear in markets.

CNBC Pro subscribers can read the full story here.

— Sarah Min

The market kicked off its final hour of both the trading session and week.

For the session, the Dow was down 0.2%. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite both traded around flat.

All three were on pace for weekly losses. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite lost 2.8% and 3.5%, respectively. If that performance holds, it would mark the third straight losing week and worst weekly performance since March for both.

Meanwhile, the Dow was set to lose 1.8% on the week. That would mark its first week since July.

— Alex Harring

Shares of First Solar are poised for a potential windfall ahead, according to Morgan Stanley.

Following the release of the solar panel maker's updated guidance targets, the investment bank lifted its price target to $226 per share from $206. That implies an upside of nearly 36% from First Solar's Thursday close of $166.24.

"First Solar is adding to its existing manufacturing footprint to reach ~14 GW of domestic U.S.- based capacity over the next few years, providing meaningful near-term benefits to margin and cash flow," analyst Andrew Percoco wrote.

He added that he also increased First Solar's 2025 revenue estimate by $153 million, or 3%, and 2026 revenue estimate by $328 million, or 5%, based on the company's updated production targets.

— Lisa Kailai Han, Michael Bloom

Bitcoin is on pace for its first three-week win streak since March, while ether is on pace for back-to-back weekly losses and its fifth weekly loss in six weeks. Both crypto assets were flat on Friday afternoon. Bitcoin was last trading at $26,559.43, while ether traded at $1,591.20.

The Federal Reserve's hold on the bitcoin price may be back in play following the central bank's latest policy update. Last year's crypto winter was unlike others before it in that the central bank and its inflation fighting rate hiking campaign had perhaps the biggest influence over bitcoin's price action.

For more read our full story here.

— Tanaya Macheel, Nick Wells

The latest surge in oil prices may have a lot further to run, according to JPMorgan.

Analyst Christyan Malek upgraded the entire global energy sector to an overweight rating in a research note on Friday, saying that an energy "supercycle" could eventually drive up Brent crude prices as high as $150 a barrel.

Read more on JPMorgan's outlook for the oil industry here.

— Samantha Subin

Intel's drop of more than 9% this week has helped pull the Dow more than 1% lower.

The chip stock has struggled this week amid as investors weighed management commentary around gross margins. American Express and Dow, Inc., were also among the biggest laggards, with both down more than 6%.

Just five of the 30 stocks in the blue-chip index were on pace to finish the week higher. Notably, UnitedHealth was poised for a gain of around 4%, while Travelers and Amgen both added more than 2% on the week.

The Dow also lagged in Friday's session, due in part to slides of more than 1% in Intel and Dow, Inc., as well as Disney and Walgreens.

— Alex Harring

Shares of Ralph Lauren are trading below fair value against the backdrop of a strong growth outlook, according to Raymond James.

The firm initiated coverage of Ralph Lauren with an outperform rating accompanied by a price target of $135.

"Over the past few years through COVID, RL has worked to create a stronger foundation to generate growth from a healthier base," analyst Rick Patel wrote. "This has entailed elevating its iconic brand, right-sizing its wholesale distribution, fortifying its digital capabilities, and right-sizing inventory."

CNBC Pro subscribers can read the full story here.

— Lisa Kailai Han

Banks appear to be retaining their cash and fighting against deposit outflows due to concerns over their liquidity, according to Bank of America global research. 

• Data shows that since the start of the Fed's quantitative tightening in June 2022, banks have grown their balance sheets by nearly $300 billion and have dropped their reserve balances.
• Loans and cash have grown, while banks—both large and small domestic—have seen substantial small deposit outflows on the liability side. Banks have substituted these outflows with large deposits and higher borrowings, according to the research.

"We thought banks would allow for some reduction of cash holdings to facilitate deposit outflows and allow for balance sheets to shrink," strategist Mark Cabana wrote in a Friday note. "It is expensive to maintain deposits but banks appear willing to pay the price."

— Pia Singh

San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly noted that more data is still needed to determine whether the central bank needs to further tighten monetary policy.

"The thing that would be a problem is if we decided that we wanted to call it done we'd say we're done, we say definitely one more, when we actually don't know," Daly said in an event. "Patience is a prudent strategy."

— Fred Imbert

Quality control issues have dealt yet another blow for Boeing, according to CFRA.

The firm downgraded shares of the aircraft maker to hold from buy. But looking towards the future, analyst Stewart Glickman remains optimistic.

"We still believe in the long-term story for aircraft demand and estimate that about 76% of the 2022 global fleet is likely to need replacement by 2042, which is a strong opportunity for BA," he said.

CNBC Pro subscribers can read the full story here.

— Lisa Kailai Han

Treasury yields pushed higher this week, putting pressure on some popular growth stocks and technology names.

For the week, the Nasdaq is on pace to finish about 3% lower. Some of the biggest losers include Moderna and Lucid Group, down about 13% and 12%, respectively. Intel, PayPal, Illumina and Align Technology have slumped more than 8% each.

Other big losers include Tesla and Amazon. Both stocks are on track for losses exceeding 6.5%. Other popular technology stocks Microsoft, Alphabet and Netflix have pulled back at least 4%. Artificial intelligence winner Nvidia's lost 4%.

— Samantha Subin

These are some of the companies making headlines in midday trading:

• Squarespace — The website builder popped about 5% after UBS initiated coverage of the stock at a buy. UBS said the company has a solid product suite and growing brand awareness.
• Scholastic — The publishing and media company stock plummeted more than 14% after reporting an earnings miss on the top and bottom line. Scholastic reported an adjusted loss of $2.20 per share on $228.5 million in revenue, while analysts polled by FactSet forecast a loss of $1.35 per share and $268.79 million in revenue.
• Arm Holdings — The recently listed chip design stock lost 2.3% during Friday's trading session after Susquehanna initiated a neutral rating on the company in a Friday note. Shares popped nearly 25% during its Nasdaq debut on Sept. 14 but are now trading just above the stock's $51 initial public offering price.

Read the full list here.

— Brian Evans

A tough August and September can give way to a strong October for stocks, historical data shows.

The S&P 500 is on track to end September nearly 4% lower, extending losses after dropping 1.8% in August. But after the index has ended at least 1% lower in both August and September, it has finished October up nine of the past 10 times, according to Ryan Detrick, chief market strategist at Carson Group.

And the past three instances show sizable legs up. In 2022, October brought an 8% rally following the sides in the two prior months. October 2015 saw an 8.3% climb, while the index jumped 10.8% in October 2011.

"As bad as things feel, don't lose faith just yet," Detrick wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.

— Alex Harring

UBS analyst Jay Sole gave Burlington and Ross Stores a sell rating on Friday, saying a tough macroeconomic environment will have a larger-than-anticipated impact on off-price retailers' core customers. 

While Sole expects TJX Companies to be relatively more resilient, he rated the company neutral, thinking the company will have a hard time reaching past the market's growth expectations. 

Still, UBS said department stores have a more challenged inventory situation compared to off-price retailers. "Our conversations with investors suggest the market expects off-price sales and profits to grow much faster than those of department stores over the next twelve months," Sole said. 

Off-price retailers' outperformance is more priced in compared to department stores, he said, however. UBS doubts the stocks will outperform the broader softlines retail group.

— Pia Singh

Despite Friday's bounce, all 11 S&P 500 sectors remained on track to end the week down.

The broad index is poised to end the week more than 2% lower. A chunk of that downward pressure came from consumer discretionary and real estate stocks, with both sectors in the S&P 500 slated for losses of more than 4%.

Casino stocks Caesars Entertainment and MGM Resorts led the consumer discretionary slide with both stocks down more than 10% this week. Alexandra Real Estate Equities, the worst performer of real estate names in the index, dragged on the sector with a drop of around 10% on the week.

Health care was the only of the 11 sectors on track to end the week down less than 1%. The sector was buoyed by Humana's 5% rally this week, in addition to McKesson and Cencora, which both climbed more than 4%.

— Alex Harring

The Dollar Index remained positive this morning after spiking to a high of $105.78, its highest level since March 8. For the week, the DXY is up 0.14%, on pace for its 10th weekly gain in a row.

— Yun Li, Nick Wells

Squarespace rose more than 5% after UBS said shares could soar on the back of expanding margins and growing revenues.

The investment bank initiated coverage of the stock with a buy rating.

"We think Squarespace is taking the right steps to position itself for durable revenue growth of at least mid-teens through FY25 as they expand deeper into international markets and sell more higher-priced subscriptions which should create a path for shares to work higher through positive estimate revisions," analyst Chris Kuntarich wrote.

CNBC Pro subscribers can read the full story here.

— Lisa Kailai Han

Boston Federal Reserve President Susan Collins expressed support for keeping interest rates high on Friday.

"I expect rates may have to stay higher, and for longer, than previous projections had suggested, and further tightening is certainly not off the table," Collins said in prepared remarks in Maine. "Policymakers will stay the course to achieve the Fed's mandate."

Meanwhile, Fed Governor Michelle Bowman gave a more pointed speech in Colorado.

"I continue to expect that further rate hikes will likely be needed to return inflation to 2% in a timely way," she said.

— Jeff Cox

The U.S. economy is seeing sluggish growth in September, according to a preliminary report released Friday by S&P Global.

The flash composite purchasing managers index for the U.S. ticked down to 50.1 from 50.2 in the prior month. PMI numbers above 50 are considered expansionary.

Manufacturing PMI came in at 48.9, up from 47.9 previously, while services PMI ticked down to 50.2 from 50.5 last month. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones were looking for readings of 48.2 on manufacturing and 50.7 on services.

— Jesse Pound

The United Auto Workers union and Ford are reportedly making progress on negotiations as strikes at the automobile company press on, CNBC reported, citing a source familiar with the matter.

UAW President Shawn Fain is expected to indicate that there is real progress in the union's talks with Ford when he address the state of negotiations later this morning, according to the source.

Ford shares were last up more than 2%.

— Samantha Subin

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite traded around 0.2% and 0.4% higher, respectively, shortly after Friday's opening bell. The Dow lagged, trading marginally below flat.

All three indexes remained on track for weekly losses as of Friday's open.

— Alex Harring

Oil prices climbed again on Friday, set to pressure stocks' attempt to bounce from this week's losses.

West Texas Intermediate crude (WTI) gained 1.4%, or $1.23, at $90.92, trading back above the $90 threshold. Brent crude rose 1% to $94.26.

 Rising oil prices are already translating into higher gasoline prices at a time when the economy is trying to stave off a recession and the Fed is fighting inflation.

— Yun Li

Charter's capital structure and growing sports segments make it the best bet in the recovering cable industry, according to Wells Fargo.

The firm upgraded Charter stock to overweight from equal weight in a Friday note, lifting its price target to $550 a share. Shares were up 1.6% in premarket trading.

""Overall we find CHTR to be the most compelling grower in Cable as it's above peers in passings growth, which should mean more sub growth longer-term," analyst Steven Cahall said.

CNBC Pro subscribers can read the full story here.

— Lisa Kailai Han

Drinkware and cooler maker Yeti is still leading the pack, even as Stanley gains favor on TikTok, according to Jefferies.

Analyst Randal Konik said Yeti was still a buy after analyzing drinkware companies' web traffic to gauge the impact of increased competition if the space. Those brands include Stanley, an apparent favorite of users on social media platform TikTok, and Hydroflask.

He said growing interest from consumers in drinkware more generally is good news for the Yeti, as "all roads lead back" to the company in particular.

"As more consumers are made aware of hydration, the market for drinkware expands and YETI is the best-in-class favorite," Konik said in a note to clients Friday.

— Alex Harring

These are some of the stocks making big moves before the bell:

• AstraZeneca — Shares of the British pharmaceutical company gained more than 2.7% in premarket trading after the company reported positive results for its drug Dato-DXd in a trial for treating a common type of breast cancer.
• Wayfair — Shares gained more than 2% after Bernstein upgraded home merchandiser to market perform from underperform. The firm cited improving revenue growth and margin commentary.
• Chinese e-commerce stocks  —  U.S. listed shares of Alibaba and PDD Holdings added nearly 4% in premarket trading, while JD.com rose 3.3%. Bloomberg reported that China is considering easing rules that cap foreign investment in domestic publicly traded companies.  

The full list can be found here.

— Hakyung Kim

With just Friday left in the trading week, the three major indexes are on track for losses.

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite have dropped 2.7% and 3.5%, respectively, this week. Both are on pace to see their worst weekly performances since March. It was also mark the third straight week of losses for both

The Dow has slipped 1.6% so far this week. If that holds, it would mark the worst weekly performance since mid August.

— Alex Harring

Wells Fargo's Christopher Harvey said that, despite the recent market turmoil, losses could be kept in check thanks to resiliency in two key metrics.

"We continue to watch two key metrics for signs of an economic downturn: weekly claims (201k this week vs. 225k consensus; lowest since January) and IG spreads (now 1.16%, -3bps w/w and only slightly above the recent 1.12% low)," he said. "These two data points remain very well-behaved, suggesting to us limited near-term downside of 3-4% (at worst), or an SPX of ~4190 (the 200-DMA)."

The S&P 500 closed Thursday's session at 4,330.

— Fred Imbert, Michael Bloom

Japan's central bank made no changes to its benchmark lending rate and yield curve control policy following its latest monetary policy meeting.

The central bank kept rates at -0.1%, and capped the 10-year Japanese government bond yield around zero.

At the last policy meeting in July, the Bank of Japan loosened its yield curve control to allow longer-term rates to move more in tandem with rising inflation. It was Ueda's first policy change since assuming office in April.

Read the full story here.

— Lim Hui Jie, Clement Tan

Japan's private sector activity expanded at its slowest pace since February, flash estimates from au Jibun bank show.

The flash composite purchasing managers index for Japan in September stood at 51.8, down from August's figure of 52.6.

Manufacturing PMI showed a faster contraction, at 48.6 compared with 48.9 in August while services PMI came in at 53.3 for September, a softer expansion than the 54.3 in the month before.

A PMI reading above 50 indicates expansion in the sector, while a reading below 50 indicates contraction.

— Lim Hui Jie

Japan's headline inflation rate came in at 3.2% for August, slightly slower than the 3.3% seen in July and the 17th straight month that inflation has went above the Bank of Japan's 2% target.

The core inflation rate, which strips out prices of fresh food stood at 3.1%, unchanged from the July figure and slightly higher than the 3% expected by economists polled by Reuters.

The so-called "core-core" inflation rate, which excludes prices of both fresh food and energy and is used by the BOJ in its monetary policy considerations, was at 4.3%, unchanged from July.

— Lim Hui Jie

Bullish sentiment toward the six-month outlook for stocks dropped to a 16-week low of 31.3% from 34.4% previously in the latest weekly survey from the American Association of Individual Investors. Optimism has stood below the historical average of 37.5% for five of the past six weeks.

Bearish opinion climbed to 34.6% — the highest in a month — from 29.2% last week, and above the historical average of 31.0%.

Neutral sentiment of 34.1% was down from 36.4% last week and above the historical average of 31.5% for a second straight week.

Contrarian investors like to see bullish opinion decline and negative views increase, the idea being that optimists have already bought stocks and have less cash on the sidelines available to push prices higher, while bears have yet to buy and are holding dry powder they can eventually put to work in the market.

— Scott Schnipper

Consider adding longer-dated Treasury exposure as bond yields turn higher, says Josh Brown, CEO of Ritholtz Wealth Management.

"What's changed over the last couple of weeks is we've made the decision that all things being equal, you don't have as much daylight anymore between let's say a 3- or 6-month T-bill versus a 3- to 7-year Treasury bond ETF," said Brown, speaking on CNBC's "Halftime Report" Thursday. He added that he has made that shift for clients, noting that "we do want to lock in the current relatively high yields."

Duration refers to a bond's price sensitivity to changes in rate policy. Issues with longer maturities tend to have greater duration. Bond prices and yields also have an inverse relationship.

"It's not because we think we're at the end of the hiking cycle," Brown said. "We are comfortable locking in these rates and not having to worry about eventual rate cuts, whether they start in mid '24, late '24 or beyond."

-Darla Mercado

When Oprah Winfrey talks about dieting, people listen.

During an online panel Wednesday that included obesity doctors, Winfrey admited that she considered taking popular weight loss drugs Ozempic and Wegovy, but opted not to because she thought it would be the "easy way out."

Winfrey is a board member and shareholder of WW International, and shares of the Weight Watchers parent slid slightly in extended trading Thursday. During the regular session, the stock lost nearly 16% of its value.

Although Weight Watchers still operates its traditional weight loss program, the company recently purchased telehealth company Sequence, which offers new GLP-1 obesity drugs that have shown to help people shed 15% or more of their weight. Those on these medications report they have fewer food cravings and feel full longer when they do eat. WW stock has gained more than 150% since the start of the year, but still about 28% below its 52-week high.

—Christina Cheddar Berk

All three major averages suffered a negative session Thursday, adding to their week-to-date losses.

• The Dow fell 1.1%, suffering its worst daily performance since Aug. 24 and third negative session in a row.
• The Dow is down 1.6% week to date, on pace for its worst weekly performance since Aug.18 and second negative week in three.
• The S&P 500 fell 1.6%, posting its worst daily performance since March 22 and third negative session in a row.
• The S&P is down 2.7% week to date, on pace for its worst weekly performance since March 10 and third negative week in a row.   
• The Nasdaq Composite fell 1.8%, posting its worst daily performance since Aug. 24 and third negative session in a row.
• The Nasdaq Composite is down 3.5% week to date, on pace for its worst weekly performance since March 10 and third negative week in a row.

— Yun Li, Christopher Hayes