Market Update

Investing.com– The S&P 500 and Nasdaq clinched closing record highs for the second-straight day on Tuesday, ahead of a speech from Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell and monthly jobs data due later this week.

At 4:00 p.m. ET (21:00 GMT), the S&P 500 rose 0.04% to close at a record of 6,049.50, while the NASDAQ Composite rose 0.4% to a closing record of 19,478.89. However, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.2%.

Jobs Data Continue to Roll Ahead of Payrolls

U.S. job openings, a gauge of labor demand, rose in October to 7.7 million, up from 7.4 million in September, topping economists' estimates of 7.5 million.

The better-than-expected jobs data indicates underlying health in the labor market just days ahead of November's nonfarm payrolls report due Friday.

Several Fed members continue to stress the importance of monitoring incoming economic data to gauge the pace of rate cuts. Fed Governor Christopher Waller indicated on Monday he is leaning toward backing a rate cut in December but cautioned that any upside surprise in the economic data would influence his decision. Chair Jerome Powell is set to speak on Wednesday.

While markets maintain expectations for a December rate cut, the longer-term outlook is uncertain, especially regarding potential inflationary policies under a Trump administration.

Company Updates

Tesla Falls as Delaware Court Blocks Musk's $56B Pay Package

Tesla Inc (NASDAQ: TSLA) dropped more than 1% after a Delaware court upheld a decision to invalidate Elon Musk’s $56 billion compensation package. This ruling follows a shareholder vote to reinstate the package, which the court deemed excessive after previously striking it down in January.

Zscaler Slumps on Softer Guidance

Zscaler Inc (NASDAQ: ZS) fell more than 4% after delivering softer current-quarter guidance that overshadowed better-than-expected fiscal first-quarter results and a boost to its annual guidance.

AT&T’s Strong Guidance

AT&T Inc (NYSE: T) rose over 4% after unveiling better-than-expected guidance for 2025. The telecom giant expects profits to accelerate in 2027 and announced a $20 billion stock buyback program.

Credo Technology Surges

Credo Technology Group Holding Ltd (NASDAQ: CRDO) skyrocketed nearly 48% after reporting Q3 results that exceeded Wall Street estimates.

FedEx Downgraded

FedEx Corporation (NYSE: FDX) fell more than 4% after Bernstein downgraded its rating on the company to market-perform from buy, citing execution, event, and policy risks.

(Ambar Warrick and Navamya Acharya contributed to this article)