Stocks opened in negative territory and have remained there throughout the session. The market had a phenomenal move since the end of December and finally appears to be tired. The averages drifted during the opening hour but lost ground following comments from economic advisor Larry Kudlow, who said the trade talks with China have "a sizable distance" to go. The comment put the sellers firmly in control and pushed the averages to losses of more than 1%. Adding additional pressure was another report that claimed President Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are "highly unlikely" to meet before the trade deadline of March 1.
ECONOMIC EVENTS: In the U.S., initial jobless claims fell 19,000 to 234,000 in the week ended February 2.
In Europe, The European Commission said it now sees the euro-area economy expanding 1.3% this year, down from the 1.9% growth it projected in November. For 2020, the EC sees growth of 1.6%, down from 1.7% it forecast previously.
COMPANY NEWS: In M&A news, SunTrust Banks (STI) and BB&T (BBT) announced a definitive agreement to combine in an all-stock merger of equals valued at approximately $66B. Following the deal, which represents the largest bank tie-up in a decade, BB&T shareholders will own approximately 57% and SunTrust shareholders will own approximately 43% of the combined company, expected to be the sixth-largest U.S. bank based on assets and deposits.
Shares of Twitter (TWTR) have dropped more than 10% after the social media platform operator reported better than expected results for the holiday quarter but gave lower than expected revenue guidance for the coming quarter. Additionally, Twitter said it plans to stop reporting average monthly active users, or MAUs, after Q1 in favor of reporting monetizable daily average users, citing the view that "mDAU, and its related growth, are the best ways to measure our success."
Chipotle (CMG) shares are reacting better to earnings, rising 14% after the burrito chain reported comparable restaurant sales increased 6.1% in the fourth quarter.
Shares of Sangamo Therapeutics (SGMO) have plunged 31% after the company presented interim data from the Phase 1/2 EMPOWERS Study evaluating the SB-318 zinc finger nuclease in vivo genome editing product candidate in patients with MPS II, also known as Hunter syndrome. Crispr Therapeutics (CRSP), Editas Medicine (EDIT) and Intellia Therapeutics (NTLA), which are all publicly-traded companies investigating using genome editing technology for disease treatments, are also sliding in the wake of Sangamo's data presentation.
MAJOR MOVERS: Among the noteworthy gainers was Edgewell Personal Care (EPC), which rose 9% after it reported quarterly results and announced that CEO David Hatfield will retire. Also higher were HanesBrands (HBI) and iRobot (IRBT), which gained a respective 18% and 10% after reporting quarterly results.
Among the noteworthy losers was Solid Biosciences (SLDB), which plunged 65% after announcing preliminary findings from its trial evaluating the safety and efficacy of SGT-001 microdystrophin gene transfer for the treatment of Duchenne muscular dystrophy, or DMD. Also lower was USA Technologies (USAT), which dropped 51% after it disclosed that its auditor has resigned and that it will restate its financial statements from fiscal 2017 and fiscal 2018. In addition, FireEye (FEYE) and Fiat Chrysler (FCAU) fell 13% and 12%, respectively, after reporting quarterly results.
INDEXES: Near midday, the Dow was down 354.97, or 1.4%, to 25,035.33, the Nasdaq was down 122.15, or 1.62%, to 7,253.13, and the S&P 500 was down 40.14, or 1.47%, to 2,691.47.
Merged to become TFC
+1 (+2.06%)
Solidion
+4.65 (+7.92%)
-3.58 (-10.48%)
Chipotle
+76.27 (+14.51%)
Sangamo
-4.67 (-38.92%)
Crispr Therapeutics
-2.44 (-7.48%)
Editas Medicine
-1.43 (-6.77%)
Intellia Therapeutics
-0.99 (-7.13%)
Edgewell Personal Care
+3.74 (+9.40%)
Hanesbrands
+2.61 (+16.75%)
iRobot
+8.65 (+9.72%)
Solid Biosciences
-14.47 (-65.00%)
Changed to CTLP
-3.565 (-51.82%)
Changed symbol to MDNT
-2.33 (-12.68%)
Ticker changed to STLA
-2.11 (-12.16%)