U.S. stocks traded lower midway through trading, with the Nasdaq Composite falling over 150 points on Thursday.

The Dow traded down 0.39% to 50,978.59 while the NASDAQ declined 0.61% to 27,371.84. The S&P 500 also fell, dropping, 0.37% to 7,772.65.

Leading and Lagging Sectors

Energy shares jumped by 3% on Thursday.

In trading on Thursday, health care stocks fell by 2%.

Top Headline

PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) stock rose in Thursday’s premarket trading after the company reported better-than-expected third-quarter earnings and revenue.

However, PepsiCo lowered its fiscal 2026 earnings outlook as its North American operations continued to face margin pressure.

PepsiCo’s third-quarter net revenue rose 5.6% year over year to $25.27 billion, beating analysts’ estimate of $24.96 billion. Core earnings per share increased 2% to $2.34, topping the $2.29 consensus estimate.

Equities Trading UP
           

  • Pacira BioSciences, Inc.  (NASDAQ:PCRX) shares shot up 44% to $36.31 after the company announced it will be acquired by Viatris.
  • Shares of Hallador Energy Company (NASDAQ:HNRG) got a boost, surging 7% to $14.58 after the company announced that its subsidiary, Hallador Power Company, executed six-year capacity and energy agreements with an investment-grade MISO Zone 6 utility covering deliveries from the Merom Generating Station from June 1, 2029, through May 31, 2035.
  • Helen of Troy Limited (NASDAQ:HELE) shares were also up, gaining 11% to $28.44 after the company reported better-than-expected second-quarter adjusted EPS results and raised its FY27 GAAP EPS guidance.

Equities Trading DOWN

  • argenx SE (NASDAQ:ARGX) shares dipped 12% to $817.39 after the company delivered mixed clinical updates, announcing positive Phase 2 trial results for one experimental pipeline candidate alongside the failure of a Phase 3 study for another therapy.
  • Shares of Sunshine Biopharma Inc (NASDAQ:SBFM) were down 37% to $0.44 after the company announced the pricing of its $6 million offering of 10,909,083 units at $0.55 per unit.
  • AngioDynamics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ANGO) was down, falling 19% to $11.53 after the company reported first-quarter results and named Eric Honroth as president and CEO.

Commodities

In commodity news, oil traded up 5.1% to $92.74 while gold traded up 0.2% at $4,148.90.

Silver traded down 1.4% to $59.425 on Thursday, while copper fell 0.7% to $6.6015.

Euro zone

European shares were mostly lower today. The eurozone’s STOXX 600 fell 0.4%, while Spain’s IBEX 35 Index dipped 0.3%, London’s FTSE 100 rose 0.2%, Germany’s DAX declined 0.7%, while France’s CAC 40 slipped 0.3%.

Asia Pacific Markets

Asian markets closed lower on Thursday, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 falling 1.42%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index declining 1.43%, China’s SSE Composite Index dropping 0.79% and India’s BSE Sensex dropping 1.44%.

Economics

U.S. initial jobless claims fell by 2,000 to 197,000 in the week ending Oct. 3, compared to market estimates of 200,000.

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