US close: Stocks deliver mixed performance following GDP beat

Wall Street stocks delivered a mixed performance on Wednesday following the release of US GDP figures that came in ahead of expectations,

At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.04% at 35,430.42, while the S&P 500 lost 0.09% to 4,550.58 and the Nasdaq Composite saw out the session 0.16% weaker at 14,353.79.

The Dow closed 13.44 points higher on Wednesday, narrowly extending gains recorded in the previous session.

Comments from Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller were still in focus on Wednesday after he seemed to indicate that he thinks current monetary policy appears to be sufficiently restrictive to cool inflation back down to the central bank's 2% target. On the back of the news, the yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note fell below 4.3% for the first time since September.

However, Wednesday's primary focus was news that the US economy grew more than initially estimated in the third quarter, according to the Commerce Department. GDP grew 5.2% in the three months to September, ahead of the initial estimate of 4.9% growth. On the other hand, the figures also showed that consumer spending rose 3.6% from July to September, a downward revision on a previous estimate of 4%.

Elsewhere on the macro front, the US trade deficit in goods widened to $89.8bn in October, according to an advance estimate from the Census Bureau, up from a revised $86.8bn reading for the previous month. Exports declined by 1.7% to $170.8bn, while imports remained unchanged at $260.7bn.

On another note, wholesale inventories fell 0.2% month-on-month in October, according to the Census Bureau, following a downwardly revised 0.1% rise in September and falling short of market estimates for a 0.1% increase. Non-durable stocks fell 0.6% and durable inventories increased 0.1%.

Finally, US mortgage applications edged 0.3% higher on the week ending 24 November, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association, marking the fourth consecutive rise in mortgage applications since hitting a 28-year low in late October. Applications for new homes rose by 4.7% month-on-month, offsetting an 8.9% decline in applications to refinance a home. The increase comes as the average rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage with conforming loan balances fell to a ten-week low of 7.37%

In the corporate space, automotive giant General Motors revealed on Wednesday that it will return a "significant" amount of capital to shareholders and hike its quarterly dividend as it looks to put recent strikes behind it, while sporting goods retailer Foot Locker beat earnings expectations with its latest earnings and guided to better-than-estimated sales in the pivotal fourth quarter.

Hormel Foods delivered full-year profits that came in below estimates, reflecting weak markets for turkey products and lower branded export volumes, and lower sales in China, while discount retailer Dollar Tree trimmed its annual sales forecasts and placed its Family Dollar business under review.

After the bell, Salesforce shares were higher in after-hours trading on the back of better-than-expected quarterly earnings, with revenues up 11%.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com

Dow Jones - Risers

Salesforce.Com Inc. (CRM) $230.35 2.41%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $44.94 1.61%
Nike Inc. (NKE) $110.37 1.49%
American Express Co. (AXP) $167.43 1.07%
Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $101.13 0.95%
Boeing Co. (BA) $224.43 0.93%
Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $249.45 0.79%
Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $37.76 0.77%
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $340.26 0.77%
Visa Inc. (V) $254.23 0.51%

Dow Jones - Fallers

Walmart Inc. (WMT) $156.08 -1.61%
Chevron Corp. (CVX) $143.91 -1.10%
Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $534.98 -1.03%
Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $378.85 -1.01%
Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) $151.13 -0.76%
Home Depot Inc. (HD) $311.02 -0.74%
Dow Chemical Co. (DOW) $51.33 -0.70%
McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $280.38 -0.61%
Coca-Cola Co. (KO) $58.23 -0.60%
Apple Inc. (AAPL) $189.37 -0.54%

S&P 500 - Risers

Foot Locker Inc. (FL) $27.67 16.07%
NetApp Inc. (NTAP) $89.54 14.63%
CenturyLink Inc. (LUMN) $1.35 14.41%
Nektar Therapeutics (NKTR) $0.47 10.24%
Charles Schwab Corp. (SCHW) $59.61 6.81%
Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) $16.52 6.44%
Illumina Inc. (ILMN) $101.57 5.21%
Macy's Inc. (M) $15.64 4.55%
International Paper Co. (IP) $35.79 4.47%
United Rentals Inc. (URI) $476.22 4.46%

S&P 500 - Fallers

CIGNA Corp. (CI) $262.87 -8.11%
Humana Inc. (HUM) $482.41 -5.49%
Hormel Foods Corp. (HRL) $30.47 -4.63%
Hess Corp. (HES) $139.56 -4.15%
Hanesbrands Inc. (HBI) $3.71 -3.89%
TripAdvisor Inc. (TRIP) $17.91 -3.66%
CVS Health Corp (CVS) $66.90 -3.49%
Centene Corp. (CNC) $70.48 -3.40%
Western Union Co. (WU) $11.71 -3.38%
Pioneer Natural Resources Co. (PXD) $229.88 -2.64%

Nasdaq 100 - Risers

Workday, Inc. (WDAY) $263.49 11.02%
Qurate Retail Inc. (QRTEA) $0.95 8.01%
Illumina Inc. (ILMN) $101.57 5.21%
Dollar Tree Inc (DLTR) $121.12 4.38%
Autodesk Inc. (ADSK) $213.85 3.12%
Dish Network Corp. (DISH) $3.64 2.82%
Biomarin Pharmaceutical Inc. (BMRN) $89.74 2.26%
Intuit Inc. (INTU) $577.23 2.15%
Gen Digital Inc. (GEN) $21.77 2.06%
Biogen Inc (BIIB) $232.06 2.04%

Nasdaq 100 - Fallers

Trip.com Group Limited (TCOM) $34.47 -2.63%
JD.com, Inc. (JD) $27.44 -2.56%
Meta Platforms Inc. (META) $332.20 -2.00%
Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp. (CTSH) $70.13 -1.64%
Alphabet Inc. Class A (GOOGL) $134.99 -1.61%
Alphabet Inc. Class C (GOOG) $136.40 -1.60%
Wynn Resorts Ltd. (WYNN) $83.67 -1.50%
Mondelez International Inc. (MDLZ) $70.44 -1.39%
Baidu Inc. (BIDU) $118.03 -1.34%
Starbucks Corp. (SBUX) $99.85 -1.31%