S&P 500 Edges Higher as Retailers Rally on Walmart, Home Depot Results

By Yasin Ebrahim

Investing.com -- The S&P 500 cut losses Tuesday, led by a jump in retailers as better-than-expected results from Walmart and Home Depot pointed to strength in the consumer.

The S&P 500 was up 0.19%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average 0.68%, or 230 points, and the Nasdaq Composite fell 0.3%.

Walmart Inc (NYSE:WMT) reported second-quarter results that beat recently lowered estimates and forecast earnings to fall less than expected following the retailer’s recent profit warning. Its shares jumped more than 5%.

The retailer said it now expected adjusted earnings per share to decline 9% to 11%, revised from previous outlook of 11% to 13%.  

Home Depot Inc (NYSE:HD) also reported quarterly results that topped Wall Street estimates and the home improvement retailer maintained full-year guidance amid “continued strength in demand for home improvement projects.” Its shares also climbed 4%.

The duo of better-than-expected results triggered a wave of green in other retailers also, with Bath&Body Works Inc. (NYSE:BBWI), Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT) and Best Buy (NYSE:BBY) in the ascendency.

Financials were pushed higher by a rise in regional bank stocks as Treasury yields continue to steady on easing worries about steep U.S. recession.

Regions Financial Corporation (NYSE:RF), SVB Financial (NASDAQ:SIVB), Bank of America Corp (NYSE:BAC) were up more than 1%, while Ally Financial Inc (NYSE:ALLY) jumped more than 4% after Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway revealed, in a regulatory filing, it had tripled its stake in the online bank during Q2.

Tech cut some losses, but weakness in semiconductor stocks weighed as Citi's latest view on the sector continued to flag declines in notebook shipments and said weaker PC demand will continue to impact growth.

Citi reiterated its neutral ratings on Intel (NASDAQ:INTC) and Advanced Micro Devices (NASDAQ:AMD), with the latter trading slightly in the red.

Big tech, meanwhile, traded mostly lower as Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) flirted with gains and losses, while Meta Platforms Inc (NASDAQ:META) fell nearly 1%

Energy was one of the few sectors in the red, pressured by an ongoing slide in oil prices as traders weigh the outcome of talks to revive the Iranian nuclear deal that could lift sanctions on Tehran, paving the way for a fresh supply of crude.

On the economic front, there was dearth of data as investors await the latest retail sales report, due Wednesday, to gauge the strength of the consumer.