Nasdaq Surges 1% As Alphabet, Apple Gain: Investor Sentiment Edges Lower, Fear & Greed Index Remains In 'Neutral' Zone
The Nasdaq Composite rose 1% amid mixed U.S. stock performance, with Alphabet and Apple shares gaining significantly. The CNN Money Fear and Greed index showed a slight decline, remaining in the 'Neutral' zone. Macy's stock surged over 20% after strong earnings, while job openings and new orders for manufactured goods fell. The Dow Jones dipped slightly, and investors are awaiting earnings from several companies today.
The CNN Money Fear and Greed index showed a decline in the overall market sentiment, while the index remained in the “Neutral” zone on Wednesday.
U.S. stocks settled mixed on Wednesday, with the Nasdaq Composite gaining 1% during the session.
Shares of Alphabet Inc. GOOGL GOOG jumped over 9% on Wednesday after a U.S. court issued long-awaited remedies in the DOJ antitrust case, which proved less severe than investors had feared. Apple Inc. AAPL gained about 4% as the ruling allows Google to continue paying for default search placement on iOS, preserving a lucrative revenue stream for the iPhone maker.
Shares of Campbell’s Co. CPB gained 7% after the company posted better-than-expected earnings for the fourth quarter on Wednesday. Shares of Macy's Inc. M jumped more than 20% after the company reported second-quarter results above estimates and raised its FY2025 guidance.
On the economic front, U.S. job openings declined by 176,000 to 7.18 million in July 2025, compared to market expectations of 7.4 million. New orders for U.S.-manufactured goods declined by 1.3% month-over-month to $603.6 billion in July following a 4.8% plunge in the prior month.
Most sectors on the S&P 500 closed on a negative note, with industrials, energy and materials stocks recording the biggest losses on Wednesday. However, communication services and information technology stocks bucked the overall market trend, closing the session higher.
The Dow Jones closed lower by around 25 points to 45,271.23 on Wednesday. The S&P 500 rose 0.51% to 6,448.26, while the Nasdaq Composite climbed 1.02% to 21,497.73 during Wednesday's session.
Investors are awaiting earnings results from Science Applications International Corp SAIC, Lululemon Athletica Inc LULU and Broadcom Inc AVGO today.
What is CNN Business Fear & Greed Index?
At a current reading of 52.0, the index remained in the “Neutral” zone on Wednesday, versus a prior reading of 52.2.
The Fear & Greed Index is a measure of the current market sentiment. It is based on the premise that higher fear exerts pressure on stock prices, while higher greed has the opposite effect. The index is calculated based on seven equal-weighted indicators. The index ranges from 0 to 100, where 0 represents maximum fear and 100 signals maximum greediness.
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