US STOCKS-Nasdaq, S&P 500 edge up ahead of Nvidia earnings; Dow down

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq edged higher in volatile trading on Wednesday as technology stocks rose ahead of Nvidia's quarterly results, while the Dow eased. On the Nasdaq, 1,574 stocks rose and 3,006 fell as declining issues outnumbered advancers by a 1.91-to-1 ratio.

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq edged higher in volatile trading on Wednesday as technology stocks rose ahead of Nvidia's quarterly results, while the Dow eased. Indexes pared gains after minutes from the last Federal Reserve meeting showed policymakers cautioned that lower borrowing costs could undermine the fight against inflation. The Fed cut rates by a quarter of a percentage point at each of its meetings in September and October. Worries about a cooling labor market persisted ahead of Thursday's release of the September U.S. jobs report following the record-long U.S. government shutdown. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics said it will not publish the October employment report, but will instead combine nonfarm payrolls for that month with November's report. "A lot has changed since the Fed last met, but it seems as though the biggest disagreement among Fed officials was the timing of the next move, not the magnitude or direction," said Brian Jacobsen, chief economist at Annex Wealth Management in Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin. Shares of Nvidia were up 1.7%, with its earnings seen as a test for the artificial intelligence-driven rally that has pushed the market to record highs this year.

The stock is "almost guaranteed to be volatile," following the report, said Tim Ghriskey, senior portfolio strategist at Ingalls & Snyder in New York. "When you're the biggest company out there, you're sort of in the headlights, and it often does not make sense how the stock reacts in the short term," he said.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 53.77 points, or 0.12%, to 46,038.42, the S&P 500 gained 14.54 points, or 0.22%, to 6,631.86 and the Nasdaq Composite gained 95.36 points, or 0.42%, to 22,527.61. Investors have worried about how companies will be able to make money from their huge investments in AI.

Options data from analytics firm Option Research & Technology Services (ORATS) showed an implied move of about 7% for Nvidia's stock in either direction after its results. Among decliners, Target shares slipped after the retailer reported a bigger-than-expected drop in quarterly sales with cash-strapped U.S. consumers pulling back on discretionary spending.

Declining issues outnumbered advancers by a 2.03-to-1 ratio on the NYSE, where there were 52 new highs and 186 new lows. On the Nasdaq, 1,574 stocks rose and 3,006 fell as declining issues outnumbered advancers by a 1.91-to-1 ratio.

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