Stocks fell Friday after a record-setting session a day earlier, with stocks taking a pause after strong earnings results and more encouraging economic data helped fuel the latest leg higher in risk assets.
The S&P 500 dropped about 0.6% shortly after market open, after the index closed at an all-time high of more than 4,200 on Thursday. The Dow and Nasdaq each also retreated
Shares Amazon (AMZN) bucked the trend and jumped in after reporting first-quarter results and current-quarter guidance that exceeded expectations, with online shopping still booming even as more in-person businesses reopen. Shares of Twitter (TWTR), on the other hand, sank after its current-quarter revenue guidance fell short of estimates, disappointing investors who had hoped to see a stronger pick-up in the company's ad sales to match trends seen at peer social media companies like Snap (SNAP) and Facebook (FB). Overall, companies comprising about two-thirds of the S&P 500 market capitalization have so far reported results, and 84% of these have topped estimates, according to data from Credit Suisse analyst Jonathan Golub.
Equities have climbed to new highs this week amid these signs of rebounding corporate profits and economic activity, and after more dovish messaging from the Federal Reserve. A new report Thursday showed U.S. gross domestic product increased at a 6.4% annualized rate in the first quarter, bringing overall output within striking distance of its pre-pandemic levels.