U.S. markets and stock exchange traded funds were mostly flat Thursday as the technology sector weakened, with the broader Nasdaq Composite retreating led by a plunge in Nvidia (NasdaqGS: NVDA).
The S&P 500 Index, along with related funds including the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (NYSEArca: SPY), iShares Core S&P 500 ETF (NYSEArca: IVV) and Vanguard 500 Index (NYSEArca: VOO), were unchanged mid-Thursday.
Meanwhile, the PowerShares QQQ (NasdaqGM: QQQ), which tracks the Nasdaq-100, fell 0.4 Thursday as NVDA shares declined 9.0%. QQQ includes a hefty 57.2% tilt toward the technology sector.
U.S equities have been on a record-setting streak for the past two weeks after President Donald Trump announced major tax changes in the weeks ahead.
“The outlook for earnings got a bit better, regardless of the election. Then you throw on top of that perhaps a more business-friendly environment and confidence has improved,” Matthew Peron, head of global equities at Northern Trust Asset Management, told the Wall Street Journal.
Nevertheless, investors remained keyed in on the earnings season as a gauge of how fairly or expensively priced the markets are after the recent rally.
With stocks pushing to new highs, companies in the S&P 500 traded at about 22 times their past 12 months of earnings as of Wednesday, compared to their 10-year average of 15.8, according to FactSet data.
“What I like about this market is that (investors) seem to be a little more focused on fundamentals as opposed to looking at the volatility coming from politics,” Omar Aguilar, chief investment officer at Charles Schwab Investment Management, told Reuters.
For more information on the markets and U.S. Stock ETFs, visit our S&P 500 category.