U.S. stocks retreat after setting record highs

NEW YORK, Feb. 20 (Xinhua) -- U.S. stocks ended lower on Thursday, as investors focused on Walmart's weaker-than-expected sales guidance for the coming year and locked gains following record highs with the S&P 500 Index in the previous two sessions.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 450.94 points, or 1.01 percent, to 44,176.65, while the S&P 500 declined 26.63 points, or 0.43 percent, to 6,117.52. The Nasdaq Composite slipped 93.89 points, or 0.47 percent, to 19,962.36.

Seven of the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors closed lower, with financials and consumer discretionary leading losses, down 1.55 percent and 1.10 percent, respectively. On the upside, energy and real estate gained 0.97 percent and 0.69 percent, respectively.

Walmart shares tumbled 6.5 percent after the retailer forecast sales growth of 3 percent to 4 percent in fiscal year 2026 which starts from Feb. 1, 2025, while its fiscal 2026 earnings outlook fell short of analyst expectations. The weak guidance overshadowed strong fiscal fourth-quarter earnings, which beat estimates.

"Wallets are still stretched," said Walmart Chief Financial Officer John David Rainey.

However, the forecast "raised another red flag just as mounting trade tensions threaten to drive up the cost of goods," said José Torres, senior economist at Interactive Brokers.

"If Walmart is giving bad guidance, you should be paying attention to it," said Tom Fitzpatrick, managing director at R.J. O'Brien &Associates. "Perhaps this is suggesting that the general consumer is tapped out."

Meanwhile, despite concerns over federal job cuts and spending reductions under U.S. President Donald Trump's administration, the latest Labor Department report on Thursday showed no clear signs of these measures affecting the broader economy.

Initial jobless claims increased by 5,000 to a seasonally adjusted 219,000 for the week ending Feb. 15, slightly above economists' expectations of 215,000. So far this year, claims have fluctuated between 203,000 and 223,000.

"Most employees seem to have only received their layoff notices on Thursday or Friday," said Oliver Allen, senior U.S. economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics. "Many laid-off federal employees likely will file for claims in the coming weeks."