Investors looked ready to start the weekend early on Friday, as the Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC -2.05%) moved lower by more than 1% as of 11 a.m. ET. The Nasdaq and other indexes fell after the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported strong jobs growth for the month of November, raising fears that the Fed wouldn't loosen its monetary policy stance as quickly as some had begun hoping.
Some Nasdaq stocks posted even sharper losses. Marvell Technology (MRVL -4.77%) was down significantly after the semiconductor company reported its latest financial results, while the declines for restaurant favorite Cracker Barrel Old Country Store (CBRL 4.12%) were even steeper. Read on to learn more about both stocks and why investors are looking at them closely on Friday.
Marvell deals with a semiconductor slowdown
Shares of Marvell Technology fell 6% in late morning trading on Friday. The semiconductor company's third-quarter financial report for the period ending Oct. 29 left investors worried that the industry's slowdown could be worse than previously expected.
Marvell's numbers for the quarter didn't seem to justify a big decline in the stock price. Revenue of $1.54 billion was up 27% year over year, with the company pointing to its cloud computing, 5G wireless network upgrade, and automotive sector products in leading growth. However, the figure was at the lower end of the guidance that Marvell had given back in August, and CEO Matt Murphy noted that its customers took the opportunity to reduce their inventory levels during the quarter. That hit near-term results, despite the company seeing adjusted net income of $492 million for the period, or $0.57 per share.
Investors also had to digest fiscal fourth-quarter guidance from Marvell. The company expects sales to fall back to between $1.33 billion and $1.47 billion, with adjusted earnings of between $0.41 and $0.51 per share. Those figures would be considerably below what most of those following Marvell had anticipated seeing to close the current fiscal year.
Marvell's stock has lost roughly half its value since the beginning of 2022, as investors across the semiconductor industry fear that economic headwinds will cause a cyclical downturn for the business. Marvell will have to outpace its downbeat guidance in order to reassure shareholders of its ability to weather tough conditions and come out a long-term winner.
Cracker Barrel stock gets pegged
Shares of Cracker Barrel Old Country Store didn't look too appetizing on Friday, with the price slumping 11%. The restaurant chain saw its profits fall substantially, and investors weren't pleased with a downbeat forecast for the near future, either.
Cracker Barrel reported $839.5 million in revenue in the fiscal first quarter ending Oct. 28, which was 7% higher from year-ago levels. The restaurant side of the business outperformed its retail operations, with restaurant comps rising 7.1% and retail comps up 4.3% year over year. However, inflation took its toll on Cracker Barrel's expenses, as the company said that higher wage and commodity costs hurt its operating income. Adjusted earnings came in at $0.99 per share, down 35% from the same period a year ago.
Moreover, Cracker Barrel sees challenging conditions continuing throughout fiscal 2023. The company adjusted its outlook to expect revenue growth of 6% to 8%, with commodity inflation remaining between 8% and 9% and wage inflation of 5% to 6%. That won't stop Cracker Barrel from investing in new stores and business model improvements, but it nevertheless paints a grim picture for what the macroeconomic climate might look like well into 2023.
Cracker Barrel has also had its stock come under pressure in 2022. If it can succeed in efforts to broaden its customer base, though, then it might be able to get itself moving back in the right direction.
