No one has ever accused Wall Street of being rational and today this was quite in evidence with all three indexes plunging despite glowing Q1 reports from the tech giants which, paradoxically, sent each of the stocks down.  And it was all because of “a sense that maybe next quarter (Q2) is as good as it’s going to get.”  303 S&P companies have reported with 87% topping estimates. Consumer spending rebounded in March as American spent their stimulus checks.  The Nasdaq has had six months of consecutive gains, the Dow three.  Volume was 10.7 billion. 

Fri  April 30, 2021  5:42 PM EDT

Wall Street ends lower, weighed down by Apple

Shivani Kumaresan, Noel Randewich

DJ: 34,060.36  +239.98        NAS: 14,082.55  +31.52        S&P: 4,211.47  +28.29     4/29

DJ: 33,874.85  -185.51         NAS: 13,962.68  -119.87       S&P: 4,181.17  -30.30      4/30

Wall Street ended lower on Friday, with Apple, Alphabet and other tech-related companies weighing on the S&P 500 and Nasdaq despite recent strong quarterly earnings reports.  A day after the S&P 500 closed at a record high, Apple (AAPL.O), Google-parent Alphabet (GOOGL.O) and Facebook (FB.O)each gave back gains following upbeat quarterly reports this week.  Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O) was almost unchanged after it posted record profit late on Thursday and signaled that consumers would keep spending in a growing U.S. economy. Amazon had been up over 2% earlier in the session. read more  Twitter Inc (TWTR.N)plunged after it offered a tepid revenue forecast for the second quarter, saying user growth could slow as the boost seen during the pandemic fizzles. read more

While megacap favorites posted largely strong earnings in the first quarter, their shares have struggled to maintain the upward trajectory that many had coming into reporting season.  "There is a sense that maybe next quarter is as good as it's going to get, and we're going to roll over, particularly among the Nasdaq stocks and Big Tech stocks that benefited from the pandemic," said Jack Ablin, chief investment officer at Cresset Wealth Advisors in Palm Beach, Florida.  Most of the 11 major S&P 500 sector indexes fell, with technology (.SPLRCT), materials (.SPLRCM)and energy (.SPNY) among the deepest decliners.

Of the 303 companies in the S&P 500 that have reported so far, 87% have topped analysts' earnings estimates, with Refinitiv IBES data now predicting a 46% jump in profit growth.  Data on Friday showed U.S. consumer spending rebounded in March amid a surge in income as households received additional COVID-19 pandemic relief money from the government. read more  Despite Friday's weakness, the Nasdaq (.IXIC) completed its sixth consecutive month of gains. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI)has now shown monthly gains for the past three months.

Unofficially, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI) fell 0.53% to end at 33,879 points, while the S&P 500 (.SPX) lost 0.72% to 4,181.21.  The Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC) dropped 0.85%, to 13,962.68. 

Chevron Corp (CVX.N) dropped after its first-quarter profit fell 29%, hit by weaker refining margins and production losses. read more  AbbVie Inc (ABBV.N)rose after it reported strong results and raised its 2021 earnings forecast, helped by demand for its rheumatoid arthritis drug in the United States. 

No volume data today but, per the CBOE, 10.7 billion shares were transacted.