Dow closes slightly higher and posts longest winning streak since December: Live updates

Here is how the major indexes closed on Tuesday:

— Pia Singh

The rally for stocks tied to China stumbled on Tuesday, with several of the country’s top tech names under pressure.

Shares of JD.com slipped 1.8%, while Alibaba fell nearly 3%. The KraneShares CSI China Internet ETF (KWEB) was down 2.5%, giving back some of its solid year-to-date gains.

The trading action could be a reminder that Chinese stock rallies have proved hard to sustain in the past.

“China ETFs are among the few categories that have seen more net inflows than have current AUM – along with long duration bonds (TLT) and long volatility (VXX). We’d remind investors that the region’s 30-year return is roughly 0%, so timing each side of the trade can be challenging,” Strategas ETF strategist Todd Sohn said in a note to clients Tuesday.

— Jesse Pound

Market-implied growth seen from the megacap technology stocks is good news for the broader market, according to Citi U.S. equity strategist Scott Chronert.

“We got continued strong growth out of the mega-cap growth part of the market. When you look at the ‘Mag 7’ as an example, we continue to see the earnings growth expectations move higher. The other 493 are stabilizing, showing some early signs of improvement,” Chronert said Tuesday on CNBC’s “Squawk on the Street.” “Under the surface, when you look at it at a single stock level, we’re starting to see more and more S&P 500 companies set up for positive growth dynamic as this year unfolds.”

Chronert said the path of first-quarter earnings season still looks strong and that Citi’s year-end estimate of S&P 500 earnings of $245 per share “shouldn’t be a problem” to reach despite consensus estimates being below that level. He noted that there is still “fraying around the edges” particularly when it comes to the lower-end consumer and other weaker pockets of the market, such as debt-laden companies in the S&P 500.

“We have to be careful of how the impact of Fed policy is translating to Main Street as opposed to what we think is happening in Wall Street,” Chronert said.

— Pia Singh

“Sell in May and go away” adages notwithstanding, Strategas market technician Chris Verrone told clients Tuesday that when the S&P 500 starts May in an uptrend — as it is today — stocks have historically produced above-average performance through July. “The opposite is true when beginning this May through July period in a downtrend,” he said.

“As this market continues to gather pace from late-April’s oversold condition and reclaim some key levels (the S&P is back through its 50-day [moving average]), we’d look to seasonality as a tailwind into summer,” Verrone wrote in a note to clients.

Other helpful signs for the market include credit spreads that have narrowed, the VIX Volatility Index returning “to its pre-correction levels,” bank stock indexes at their highest since late March and consumer discretionary stocks doing better relative to consumer staples companies.

— Scott Schnipper

Restaurants have had a rough quarter as weaker traffic has weighed on sales. But there has been one noticeable bright spot — demand for chicken offerings. One factor for its resonance with consumers while they clamp down on spending: Chicken has a lower price point compared to beef.

Chipotle said strong sales and traffic are due in part to the return of its chicken al pastor dish. Wingstop had a banner quarter with a nearly 22% surge in same-store sales. Demand was so strong that the chain’s chicken supplies had difficulty keeping pace. Meanwhile, Restaurant Brands‘ Popeyes chain reported a 6% jump in same-store sales during the latest quarter after it introduced wings to its menu in recent months.

— Kate Rogers, Robert Hum

International Paper climbed as much as 12% intraday Tuesday after a Reuters report that Brazil’s Suzano is preparing a buyout offer for International Paper of $42 a share in cash valued at $15 billion, citing unnamed sources familiar with the matter. The proposed offer price equals a 14% premium to International Paper’s closing price Monday.

Suzano declined to comment to Reuters while International Paper did not immediately respond to its request for comment.

International Paper spun off its Sylvamo pulp and paper business, including large assets in Latin America, in late 2021.

— Scott Schnipper

Liberty Strategic Capital founder Steven Mnuchin said Tuesday that he does not think New York Community Bancorp. will need to raise additional capital after a group of firms injected more than $1 billion in March.

“We think it has more than sufficient capital, and it’s trading at a significant capital to tangible book value. So there’s a lot of opportunity if the management team executes,” Mnuchin told David Faber on “Squawk on the Street.”

Mnuchin said the new management team at NYCB has a three-year plan to restore the bank to “normal” profit levels. He is a member of the bank’s board of directors.

Shares of NYCB are still down more than 60% year to date.

— Jesse Pound

Palantir Technologies sank more than 14% in midday trading and was on pace for its worst day since May 2022.

The defense technology firm issued weaker-than-expected guidance postmarket Monday, although its quarterly revenue topped consensus estimates. Palantir forecast revenue for the year to come in between $2.68 billion and $2.69 billion, below the $2.71 billion expected from analysts polled by LSEG.

— Michelle Fox

Stocks that have been spun off from larger corporate parents stand out as some of this year’s most consistent winners.

So far in 2024, some 15 companies have completed spinoffs, with the General Electric aviation and energy split being among the most notable. Shares of GE Vernova have rallied more than 23% since they started trading in late March. The S&P 500 is higher by almost 9% in 2024 but down a little more than 1% in the second quarter.

Other opportunities for investors to participate in spinoffs will be coming soon. Nineteen more companies are scheduled to complete spinoffs this year, according to Morgan Stanley. 

CNBC Pro subscribers can read more about the trend here.

— Hakyung Kim

The private equity market is starting to thaw after taking a hit in a higher-for-longer interest rate environment, according to Ares Management.

“Private equity as an industry is having a little bit of a difficult time right now. Obviously, there was a significant amount of private equity that was raised and deployed going into the rate hiking cycle. And now given where valuations are in this rate environment, that market is still a little frozen,” Mike Arougheti, CEO of Ares Management, told CNBC’s Sara Eisen at the Milken Institute Global Conference.

“We are beginning to see it unfreeze now that rates have stabilized,” he said. “Obviously, if they start to drift down, that’ll accelerate transaction lines.”

— Sarah Min

U.S.-traded shares of Ferrari headed for their worst day since 2022 as investors parsed the Italian carmaker’s earnings.

Shares slipped about 5% in early afternoon trading. If that holds through session close, it will mark its worst day since June 2022, when the stock dropped about 5.7%.

Ferrari exceeded Wall Street expectations on both lines for the first quarter, according to FactSet. Despite those beats, the company only reaffirmed its guidance for the full year, which could cause concern among traders about what upcoming quarters will bring.

— Alex Harring

Here are some of the stocks on the move during midday trading:

• Walt Disney — The entertainment giant sank 10% after posting fiscal second-quarter results. Walt Disney reported adjusted earnings that beat estimates, but said it expects a loss within its direct-to-consumer entertainment business this quarter.
• Nvidia — Shares slipped about 1%. Billionaire investor Stanley Druckenmiller said on CNBC’s “Squawk Box” that he cut his stake in the chipmaker in late March, saying that artificial intelligence may be a “little overhyped” in the short term.
• Ferrari NV — U.S.-traded shares of the Italian sportscar maker declined nearly 5%. Ferrari surpassed Wall Street’s estimates on the top and bottom lines for the first quarter, per FactSet, but the company reaffirmed previous revenue and earnings per share guidance for the full year.

Read the full list of stocks on the move here.

— Samantha Subin

Minneapolis Federal Reserve President Neel Kashkari said Tuesday that he expects the central bank to sit tight on interest rates for an extended period, and did not rule out the possibility of a hike if the inflation metrics do not cooperate.

“The most likely scenario is where we are right now, which is, just, we stay put for an extended period of time until we get clarity on is disinflation, in fact, continuing, or has it, in fact, stalled out? I don’t think we know the answer to that,” the central bank official said at the Milken Institute Global Conference.

Interest rate cuts could come if inflation starts heading back to the Fed’s 2% goal, though he said that is not his most likely case. Kashkari said he penciled in two rate cuts at the Fed’s March meeting and would be reassessing when the Federal Open Market Committee updates its “dot plot” in June.

The remarks came the same day he published an essay on the Minneapolis Fed site questioning whether the neutral rate of interest is higher than what the Fed and financial markets think. If inflation holds higher than expected, that could bring a rate hike into play.

“The bar for us raising is quite high, but it is not infinite,” said Kashkari, who is not an FOMC voter this year and will not be until 2026.

— Jeff Cox

Disney shed nearly 10% on Tuesday, putting shares of the entertainment giant on pace for their worst day since November 2022.

The decline in shares came on the back of the media company’s fiscal second-quarter results. Disney surpassed earnings estimates and posted better-than-expected core subscriber growth for Disney+.

However, Disney slightly missed revenue estimates and said it expects to report a loss within its direct-to-consumer entertainment business in its fiscal third quarter. Operating income for linear networks also declined 22%.

Disney shares have rallied more than 16% this year. Tuesday’s moves bring the stock to a 5% month-to-date loss.

The Dow is on pace to notch its longest winning streak since the new year began.

The blue-chip index traded higher for a fifth day on Tuesday, adding around 0.2%. If that holds through session close, it will mark the longest positive run since it advanced for nine straight sessions in December.

The Dow has risen every day since the start of May’s trading month in the middle of last week. In total, the 30-stock average is up about 3% compared with the beginning of the month, but is still more than 2% lower than where it kicked off the second quarter.

Disney‘s earnings beat every single estimate on the Street due to overall cost savings and improved streaming plus Florida theme park profits. However, revenues missed for the fourth quarter in a row, albeit a small miss this time. That is the media giant’s longest run of consecutive revenue misses in just more than six years, using figures from earnings data provider LSEG.

Disney’s Entertainment division was the main reason for the revenue miss. Weighing on the unit’s performance were lower-than-expected average revenue per core Disney+ user and a decline in advertising revenue from a year ago at its domestic TV networks.

— Robert Hum

Shares of Peloton Interactive jumped 18% in premarket trading after CNBC reported numerous private equity firms have been considering buying the fitness company.

Peloton has had talks with at least one firm as it considers going private, people familiar with the matter said. Several other firms have also been circling the company. Peloton declined to comment on CNBC’s reporting.

The pandemic darling, which saw interest surge as Americans were stuck at home, recently announced a broad restructuring plan that will reduce its annual run-rate expenses by at least $200 million by the end of fiscal 2025. Its CEO, Barry McCarthy, is also stepping down.

The stock is down nearly 42% year to date and nearly 98% from its January 2021 high.

— Gabrielle Fonrouge, Lillian Rizzo and Michelle Fox

Billionaire investor Stanley Druckenmiller revealed Tuesday that he slashed his big bet in chipmaker Nvidia earlier this year, saying the swift artificial intelligence boom could be overdone in the short run.

“We did cut that and a lot of other positions in late March. I just need a break. We’ve had a hell of a run. A lot of what we recognized has become recognized by the marketplace now,” Druckenmiller said on CNBC’s “Squawk Box.”

Shares of Nvidia fell more than 1% in premarket trading.

For more, read the full story here.

— Yun Li, Tanaya Macheel

Disney posted fiscal second-quarter earnings that beat analysts’ expectations.

The company earned an adjusted $1.21 per share. Analysts polled by LSEG expected a profit of $1.10 per share. Revenue was in line with expectations, coming in at $22.08 billion. Disney’s streaming business was also close to breaking even for the quarter.

“Our results were driven in large part by our Experiences segment as well as our streaming business,” Disney CEO Bob Iger said in a statement. “Importantly, entertainment streaming was profitable for the quarter, and we remain on track to achieve profitability in our combined streaming businesses in Q4.”

Shares were down slightly in the premarket.

— Fred Imbert

Australia’s central bank held its benchmark lending rate at 4.35% for the fourth straight meeting, in line with expectations from economists polls by Reuters.

The central bank said in a statement that recent data has shown that while inflation is easing, it has slowed more than previously expected, adding that it “remains high.”

The Reserve Bank of Australia said it will take some time for inflation to come to its 2% target, and is not ruling anything in or out with regard to monetary actions.

— Lim Hui Jie

Retail sales volumes in Australia fell 0.4% on a seasonally adjusted basis in the March quarter compared with the previous three months, according to government data.

The reading comes after a 0.4% rise in the December quarter. On a year-on-year basis, retail sales volumes were down 1.3% in the March quarter.

“Retail sales volumes fell for the fifth time in the past six quarters as consumers cut back on buying large household items such as furniture and electronic goods,” said Ben Dorber, head of retail statistics at the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

“The only rise in volumes over the past 18 months was the December quarter last year as extensive discounting from Black Friday sales boosted volumes,” Dorber added.

— Shreyashi Sanyal

Japan’s service sector activity expanded in April at its fastest pace since August, according to final figures from S&P Global.

The headline au Jibun Bank Japan Services Business Activity Index came in at 54.3 in April, compared to 54.1 in March, touching an eight-month high.

A figure above 50 signifies expansion.

“Rising business activity has been recorded in each month since September 2022, with the latest expansion reflecting stronger business and consumer spending,” the S&P survey said.

— Shreyashi Sanyal

The European Union approved a $14.9 billion deal for Japan’s Nippon Steel to buy U.S. Steel late on Monday.

Shares of Nippon Steel fell 0.26% in early Tokyo trading, while U.S. Steel shares jumped 4.3% in after-hours U.S. trading on Monday.

“The Commission concluded that the notified transaction would not raise competition concerns, given the companies’ limited market positions resulting from the proposed transaction,” the European Commission said in a statement.

Nippon Steel said it would buy U.S. Steel in December after prevailing in an auction over rivals including Cleveland-Cliffs and ArcelorMittal.

— Shreyashi Sanyal

Carson Group chief market strategist Ryan Detrick believes the stock correction in April is now behind the markets, despite the common “Sell in May and go away” adage.

“Don’t just blindly invest in seasonality, but you tend to get a lot of strength in the summer of an election year,” Detrick told CNBC’s “Closing Bell” on Monday. 

Detrick said he is overweight on cyclical stocks and added more exposure to industrials and financials last month. Mid-cap and some small-cap stocks could also see growth this year, the strategist added.

— Hakyung Kim

Check out the companies making headlines in extended trading:

Palantir Technologies — Shares declined more than 8% after the company issued lighter-than-expected guidance for full-year revenue. First-quarter adjusted earnings were in line with expectations at 8 cents per share, per LSEG. Meanwhile, quarterly revenue of $634 million topped forecasts of $625 million. 

Lucid Group — The electric vehicle maker tumbled around 10% following its first-quarter results. Despite posting a slight revenue beat, per LSEG, the company posted a loss of 30 cents per share, based on generally accepted accounting principles. Lucid also reaffirmed its 2024 production guidance of about 9,000 vehicles.

Hims & Hers Health — The telehealth consultation platform jumped 11.1% postmarket after revenue guidance for the second quarter surpassed analysts’ estimates. Hims & Hers sees revenue ranging between $292 million and $297 million, compared to analysts’ forecasts for $288 million, per LSEG. First-quarter results also came in ahead of Street estimates.

The full list can be found here.

— Hakyung Kim

U.S. stock futures were little changed Monday evening.

Dow Jones Industrial Average futures slipped 8 points, or just 0.02%. S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 futures pulled back less than 0.1% each.

— Hakyung Kim