U.S. Stocks Split Thursday Before Broad Losses Hit Friday

At the 4 p.m. ET close Thursday, Oct. 22, the S&P 500 fell 1.2% and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 2.6%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose less than 0.1%, and the Russell 2000 gained 0.1%, even as most U.S. stocks advanced.

The split reversed Friday, Oct. 23. The S&P 500 fell 0.5%, with nearly three-quarters of its stocks declining. Verizon, up 3.76% Thursday, lost 1.19% Friday. AT&T rose 3.79% Thursday before falling 7.96% the next day.

Figures published Oct. 12 showed that more than 40% of then-current S&P 500 members were down for 2026, while the median constituent was up about 4%. Its calculation excluded 18 companies removed from the index that year. The figures show uneven performance within the index but do not measure money moving into defensive shares.

In an Oct. 22 post outlining a personal investment thesis for 2027, Quoth the Raven described recent relative strength in defensive stocks as an early sign of a possible rotation. “While a couple of weeks certainly doesn’t establish a lasting trend,” the writer said.