NEW YORK (AP) โ Stocks fell on Wall Street Wednesday as weakness in technology companies continued to drag down the market.
The S&P 500 fell 0.3% in morning trading. The tech-heavy Nasdaq gave up 0.6% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 120 points, or 0.3% as of 9:59 a.m. ET.
Palo Alto Networks was a big loser and a particularly heavyweight for the technology sector. The network security company lost a quarter of its value after making future billing forecasts well below what analysts expected. Its rival, Fortinet, fell 7.3%.
Amazon rose 1.6% after the announcement that it would be added to the Dow Jones. Walgreens Boots Alliance, which leaves the Dow Jones, falls 3.4%
Bond yields remained relatively stable. The 10-year Treasury yield fell to 4.27% from 4.28% late Tuesday.
Markets were mostly higher in Europe and mixed in Asia.
Earnings continued to be the big focus for Wall Street. Nvidia will report its long-awaited results later in the day. The chipmaker has tripled over the past year thanks to a surge in investor enthusiasm for artificial intelligence.
Several other companies made big moves following the release of their financial results. Electronic measurement technology company Keysight Technologies fell 9.4% after its profit forecast missed analysts' expectations. Garmin, which makes personal navigation devices, rose 8.7% after beating earnings forecasts.
Toll Brothers rose 5.6% after giving investors an encouraging financial update as it sees strong demand. That helped support gains across the homebuilding sector.
Energy companies gained ground as natural gas prices rose 11%. Exxon Mobil rose 1.3%.
Later on Wednesday, the federal reserve will publish the minutes of its most recent meeting, in which it opted to leave its benchmark interest rate intact for the fourth consecutive time. Investors have all but given up hope that the central bank will cut rates at its March meeting and expect the first rate cut to come in June.
Investors will have to wait until next week for another key update on inflation. That's when the government will release its monthly report on personal consumption and spending, the Federal Reserve's preferred measure of inflation.
