CNBC Business News Update - Market Close: Stocks Lower, Dow Drops 450 Points, Walmart Issues Profit Warning 2/20/25

Episode Date: February 20, 2025

From Wall Street to Main Street, the latest on the markets and what it means for your money. Updated regularly on weekdays, featuring CNBC expert analysis and sound from top business newsmakers. Anchored by CNBC's Jessica Ettinger.

I'm Jessica Edinger, CNBC. Wall Street opens Friday morning after an ugly Thursday for stocks. The market sold off, although recovered a bit before the close. The Dow down 450 points, 1% led lower by shares of Walmart, which were down more than 6%. The S&P 500 index was only down 26 points at the close, 4 tenths of a percent. The S&P 500 index was only down 26 points at the close, four-tenths of a percent. The NASDAQ down 93 points. That was just about a half percent. Bent a little bit, did not break. Each of the last eight trading days, there has been an afternoon rally, meaning we've closed a good deal higher than a midday or a morning low. CNBC's Mike Santoli. Some investors not worried about the

sell-off at all. Yeah, I wouldn't get too concerned with the sell-off today. Different sectors are moving in different directions depending on what Trump says or their individual earnings or whatever else. The S&P itself really isn't moving too much. That's Susquehanna's Chris Murphy on CNBC. Companies who shares hit fresh all-time highs on Thursday include Philip Morris, Choice Hotels International, U.S. Foods, Capital One, and KFC and Taco Bell parent Yum! Brands. Slightly more Americans applied for unemployment benefits last week than the week before, and the number was more than expected.

Economists are waiting to see if any government firings show up in the big monthly Labor Department employment report as the Department of Government Efficiency slashes thousands. We obviously won't see it in the next employment report because these layoffs happened very smartly right after the reference week. That's a very clever way to try to keep these things out of those monthly reports we see. As long as people find a job before the next month's reference week, before the week of March 12th that contains the 12th, they won't show up at all. The University of Michigan's Betsy Stevenson on CNBC. Walmart shares dragged that Dow lower Thursday on a soft outlook for the year. Some investors think America's biggest retailers warning that the Trump tariff agenda will hit profits.

Walmart also continues to lure in wealthier shoppers with inflation up now four months in a row. Walmart continues to gain share across all incomes, but specifically higher income. This is a new Walmart. And we've gotten so much better at managing inventory. Look at Walmart. Their inventory is up 3% and Stiles are up 5%. So by nature, they're controlling the controllables. They are not allowing for these big discounts. SW Retail Advisors Principal Stacey Widlitz on CNBC. CEO confidence at a three-year high. The latest Business Council survey shows 73% of CEOs plan to maintain or increase their staff this year, but many CEOs see a lot of the Trump administration. You know, when we ask the CEOs what are some of the risks they're worried about, you know, one of them is around tariffs. And so there are lots of businesses that put tariffs down as a risk factor. And the other thing, obviously, is

immigration, which again, you know, is a double-edged sword depending on how you run your company. Business Council Vice Chairman Roger Ferguson on CNBC. On Friday's watch list, we get existing home sales numbers for January. Wendy's has teamed up with the Girl Scouts. And Thin Mint Frosties will be on menus Friday. The Grapefruit League season begins Friday afternoon when the Yankees host the Rays. That's in Tampa. New in theaters, Neon's horror film, The Monkey. Jessica Ettinger, CNBC.

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