S&P 500 (^GSPC 0.70%) slipped 0.01% to 6,978.03 today in muted post-Fed trading. The Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC 1.00%) rose 0.17% to 23,857.45 near record territory, and Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI 0.84%) inched up 0.02% to 49,015.60.
Market movers
Earnings disappointment hit industrials as water solutions and software company Badger Meter (BMI +1.07%) dropped 11.00% to $146.32 after a revenue miss. Megacap earnings are in the spotlight, with results from Meta (META 2.96%), Microsoft (MSFT 0.74%), and Tesla (TSLA +4.18%) today. Tesla reported after market close, beating estimates but with a decline in revenues.
Meanwhile RBC reiterated its “Outperform” rating on Intuit (INTU 0.73%), suggesting its recent pullback could be a buying opportunity. C3.ai (AI 9.87%) rose 4.21% to $13.13 on merger headlines.
What this means for investors
As expected, the Federal Reserve did not cut interest rates today, holding the benchmark at a range of 3.5%-3.75%. Speaking after the decision, Fed Chair Jerome Powell pointed to an improving economic outlook and a stabilizing unemployment rate. CME FedWatch now estimates there will be two rate cuts this year, with analysts leaning toward a first cut in June.
Nasdaq rose slightly ahead of this week’s artificial intelligence (AI) and megacap earnings. Meta surged in after-hours trading after beating analyst expectations. Microsoft slipped in spite of better-than-expected results, potentially because of investor concerns about high AI spending. Apple (AAPL 0.57%) will report tomorrow.
Results from top tech companies will give investors a better understanding of how the AI market is developing, particularly as fears of elevated prices spark talk of a 2026 correction.
