Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange during morning trading on Aug. 5, 2026 in New York City.
Michael M. Santiago | Getty Images
The S&P 500 fell on Thursday as traders kept an eye on the Middle East, with a deal to reopen the key Strait of Hormuz in the works, and weighed a slew of corporate earnings releases.
The broad market index lost 0.18% to end at 7,709.96, while the Nasdaq Composite declined 0.06% to 26,348.35. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 464.02 points, or 0.85%, to close at 53,885. The 30-stock index was weighed down by a 3% drop in shares of Salesforce after the company announced a leadership shuffle.
Sandisk shares dropped more than 6%. The memory name posted fiscal fourth-quarter results that failed to impress investors.
Additionally, AppLovin tumbled nearly 20% on mixed quarterly results, and Western Digital shed 13% as the company’s first-quarter forecast disappointed investors. Its fourth-quarter results topped expectations, however.
“The markets seem to be mostly taking a breather after an active period of trading prompted by earnings results,” said JJ Kinahan, Cboe’s head of retail expansion and alternative investment products. “Better-than-expected profits and sales don’t always pump stocks’ prices when coupled with soft guidance.”
“Some profit-taking could also be in play,” he also said, noting that both Sandisk and Western Digital have skyrocketed in the last year. Over the past 12 months, Sandisk has soared almost 3,000%, while Western Digital has surged more than 500%.
Monitoring the Middle East
Oil prices rose after Iranian state news, citing a member of the country’s parliament, reported that a draft plan regarding ship traffic conditions in the Strait of Hormuz would supposedly ban U.S. and Israeli ships from moving through the key passageway. The plan is currently being reviewed by an Iranian parliamentary committee, state news agency Fars said.
Explosions were also recently heard off the coast of Oman by a tanker transiting the strait.
West Texas Intermediate crude futures rose about 2.8% to settle at $77.29 a barrel, while international Brent futures gained 3.8% to end at $82.48 per barrel.
Still, Iran and Oman drew closer to reaching a deal that would reopen Hormuz. Shipping through the passageway would not be subject to fees or tolls under a temporary agreement, an Iranian government official told MS NOW.
“Markets have seen plenty of false dawns throughout this conflict, and while the detail is becoming more concrete, attention is now shifting from whether an agreement can be reached to what the final arrangements will look like, including unresolved questions around whether Iran will eventually be permitted to levy tolls on vessels using the Strait,” Deutsche Bank strategist Jim Reid wrote.
— CNBC’s Jeff Cox contributed reporting.
