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October 18 Market Report: Executive Mosaic’s GovCon Index Flashed Red, Stocks Fall as Bond Yield Hit New High

October 18 Market Report: Executive Mosaic’s GovCon Index Flashed Red, Stocks Fall as Bond Yield Hit New High

Executive Mosaic’s GovCon Index slipped into red territory, losing 0.89% to close at an average of $142.17. Major indexes, from the Dow Jones Industrial Average (-0.98%) to the S&P 500 (-1.34%), and the Nasdaq Composite (-1.62%), registered losses. The rise in long-term bond yields triggered the market selloff.

The benchmark ten-year U.S. Treasury yield rose and closed above 4.9%, a fresh 16-year high. A bank strategist warns that stocks could be in trouble if yields rise above 5% for an extended time. Oil prices also moved higher as the Israel-Hamas conflict escalated following the explosion at a Gaza hospital and the rising death toll.

Besides the earnings drop of Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) and United Airlines (Nasdaq: UAL), leading AI stock NVIDIA (Nasdaq: NVDA) fell 3.96% after hitting a roadblock. The U.S. government will halt shipments of select AI chips by American companies to China. Nvidia lowered its sales forecasts for the next two fiscal years (2025 and 2026) because obtaining export licenses is doubtful due to the latest restrictions.

On the GovCon Index, only six constituents advanced for the session. Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) and L3Harris Technologies led the advancers, while CAE (NYSE: CAE) and Fluor Corporation (NYSE: FLR) declined by more than 4.5%.

The silver lining for the stock market so far is strong fundamentals. According to FactSet, only 10% of the S&P 500 companies have reported quarterly results, although about 78% beat earnings estimates.

Market Summary

IndexPriceNet Change% Change
GovCon Index Daily Average142.17-1.27-0.89%
Dow Jones Industrial Average33,665.08-332.57-0.98%
S&P 5004,314.60-58.60-1.34%
NASDAQ13,314.30-219.45-1.62%

Top 5 GovCon Index Daily Percentage Performers

SymbolPriceNet Change% Change
LMT446.074.941.12%
LHX179.551.250.70%
RTX74.240.350.47%
NOC490.761.760.36%
BA185.690.090.05%

Top 5 GovCon Index Daily Net Performers

SymbolPriceNet Change% Change
LMT446.074.941.12%
NOC490.761.760.36%
LHX179.551.250.70%
RTX74.240.350.47%
BA185.690.090.05%

Top 5 GovCon Index Daily Percentage Decliners

SymbolPriceNet Change% Change
CAE21.51-1.17-5.16%
FLR35.81-1.77-4.71%
CG28.94-1.14-3.79%
PLTR17.2-0.64-3.59%
J135.17-4.48-3.21%

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