US stocks end down, consolidating recent gains. S&P 500 snaps 6-day winning streak
U.S. stocks ended lower, with the broad S&P 500 snapping its six-day winning streak.
Investors took a breather to consolidate gains made in the last month. Since early April, the S&P 500 has rallied more than 20% and is only about 3% from its record high now. Even Moody's stripping the U.S. of its top AAA rating last week did little to stop stocks from erasing an early loss on May 19 to end higher.
Investors shrugged off the downgrade because it "doesn’t reveal anything new—the US fiscal trajectory has been unsustainable for some time," said Larry Adam, chief investment officer at Raymond James.
However, the blue-chip Dow ended down 0.27%, or 114.83 points, to 42,677.24; the S&P 500 lost 0.39%, or 23.14 points, to 5,940.46; and the tech-heavy Nasdaq shed 0.38%, or 72.75 points, to 19,142.71. The benchmark 10-year Treasury yield rose to 4.479%.
Focus shifts to tax cuts
Though tariff worries may continue to linger, the big focus now is on tax cuts, some economists say.
With the tax cut bill making its way through Congress, "we now need to explicitly include a large middle-class tax cut into our second-half 2025 and 2026 macro forecasts," said Steven Ricchiuto, U.S. chief economist at Mizuho Securities USA. Assuming the tax cut bill is passed by the end of summer, he now expects an economy slowed early in the year by tariffs to return to "above-trend growth later in the year."
Corporate news
Most companies have already reported quarterly results, but there remain a few that investors will keep an eye on.
- Retailer Home Depot's sales topped analysts' expectations and held onto its full-year guidance. Home Depot's chief financial officer said the home improvement chain has no plans to raise prices because of tariffs. That contrasts with Walmart, which last week said it expected its prices to increase soon because of tariffs, prompting President Donald Trump to say Walmart should "eat the tariffs." Home Depot shares slipped 0.61%.
- Amer Sports shares jumped 19% after the company increased its 2025 revenue forecast.
- Viking Holdings' results in the first three months of the year topped analysts' forecasts. However, the company said its fiscal year 2026 is only 37% booked as of the end of the first quarter. That's down two percentage points from the same time last year. Shares of the cruise line dropped 5%.
After the bell, homebuilder Toll Brothers and Palo Alto Networks report their quarterly results. On May 21, big box retailer Target, Lowe's and TJX earnings are due before the market open.
Separately, UnitedHealth shares continued to rise, adding almost 2%, after Securities and Exchange Commission filings recently showed Chief Executive Stephen Hemsley and other insiders bought shares as the stock fell to the lowest level since 2020. Hemsley acquired $25 million worth of company shares at an average of $288.57 a piece on May 16, while the CFO bought $5 million worth.
Tesla Chief Executive Elon Musk said at a conference he will stay atop the company's leadership for five years. Shares of the giant electric vehicle maker rose fractionally.
Eyewear brand Warby Parker shares rallied 15.5% after the company announced a partnership with Google to develop artificial intelligence-powered glasses.
Cyrptocurrency
The Senate advanced landmark cryptocurrency legislation that would create the first-ever U.S. regulatory framework for digital tokens known as stablecoins that are pegged to the value of the dollar.
The Senate voted 66-32 with help from some crypto-friendly Democrats after bipartisan negotiations to clear the 60-vote threshold required to advance the measure.
Bitcoin was last up 1.16% to $106,825.30.
This story was updated with new information.
Medora Lee is a money, markets, and personal finance reporter at Paste BN. You can reach her at mjlee@usatoday.com and subscribe to our free Daily Money newsletter for personal finance tips and business news every Monday through Friday.