The worst day for Nvidia's stock since last spring dragged the US market lower on Thursday, even though most stocks on Wall Street rose.
- The Dow added 17 points, or less than 0.1%, to reach 49,499.20.
- The S&P 500 fell 37.27 points, or 0.5%, to 6,908.86, following sharp swings earlier in the week driven by hopes and worries created by the artificial intelligence revolution.
- The Nasdaq sank sank 273.69, or 1.2%, to 22,878.38.
Nvidia, whose chips are helping to power the AI boom, reported another stellar quarter of profit growth that breezed past analysts' expectations, the AP reports. It also gave a forecast for revenue in the current quarter that once again topped Wall Street's estimates. But such blowout performances have become so typical for Nvidia that they're losing their oomph. Its stock sank 5.5% for worst loss since April. "Our customers are racing to invest in AI compute—the factories powering the AI industrial revolution and their future growth," Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said. Worries are nevertheless rising that those customers may curtail their spending on Nvidia's chips and other AI investments amid doubts about whether they can make back their billions of dollars through future gains in productivity.
Warner Bros. Discovery shares edged down 0.3% after the entertainment giant reported a $252 million loss for the fourth quarter. That didn't seem to bother investors, who are likely more interested in which acquisition offer—Netflix or Paramount Skydance—the company and its shareholders ultimately accept. Some of the sharpest swings in financial markets were for oil, where prices swung sharply as the US and Iran held indirect talks about Iran's nuclear program.