Stocks on the New York Stock Exchange opened lower on Wednesday after the corporate earnings season got off to a disappointing start. The benchmark S&P 500 slumped by 1.4%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite index plummeted 2.1% lower. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.9% lower.
Google holding company Alphabet Inc. and electric vehicle maker Tesla were the first of the “Magnificent 7” megacap tech companies to report their earnings, with both falling short of analysts’ expectations. Tesla’s stocks fell by over 12% following their earnings release, while Alphabet shares were down by roughly 4%.
Tesla’s revenue for the second quarter was $25.05 billion, beating expectations of a $24.63 billion revenue as per Bloomberg consensus. Still, the company’s earnings per share of $0.52 fell short of expectations of $0.60 per share.
Now, investors are bracing for the next wave of corporate earnings to come in. Chipotle, Ford, and IBM are all set to release their latest quarterly results after the bell on Wednesday.
Looking ahead at the rest of the week, GDP data for the second quarter is set to be released on Thursday, while Friday marks the release of the June PCE inflation report; the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge.