Nasdaq Falls 1.2% at Midday as ServiceNow and Fortinet Lead a Software Selloff While Russell 2000 Gains 1.1%

U.S. stocks were lower at midday on Thursday, October 29, 2026, as a selloff in software and artificial-intelligence-linked shares weighed on the technology-heavy Nasdaq, while small-cap stocks moved higher and investors digested a heavy slate of economic data a day after the Federal Reserve held interest rates steady.

Where the indexes stood

As of about 12:09 p.m. ET, according to Yahoo Finance quote data:

• The S&P 500 was down about 0.29% at 7,721.78, after closing at 7,743.98 on Wednesday.
• The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down about 0.26%, or roughly 137 points, at 52,337.72.
• The Nasdaq Composite was down about 1.2% at 26,227.15, with a session low of 26,053.16.
• The small-cap Russell 2000 was up about 1.1% at 2,862.95 as of 11:54 a.m. ET.
• The Cboe Volatility Index was at 16.46, down from 16.91.

At the open, the Dow fell 389 points, or 0.74%, to 52,086.13, and the Nasdaq dropped 1.31%, Proactive Investors reported. The 10-year Treasury yield was about 4.995% as of 11:54 a.m. ET, down from 5.045% at the prior close, according to Yahoo Finance data.

Growth beats forecasts as inflation stays elevated

The Commerce Department reported that gross domestic product grew at a seasonally adjusted annualized pace of 3.4% in the third quarter, better than the 3.1% estimate and up from 2.2% in the second quarter, according to CNBC. Consumer spending rose 3.8% in the quarter, and gross private domestic investment rose 19.4%.

The personal consumption expenditures price index, the Fed's preferred inflation gauge, rose 0.5% in September for an annual rate of 3.6%. Core PCE, which excludes food and energy, rose 0.3% on the month and 3.1% from a year earlier, in line with consensus, CNBC said. A separate Labor Department report showed initial jobless claims of 194,000 for the week ended October 24, below the estimate of 200,000.

The Fed on Wednesday held its benchmark rate at 3.75% to 4% following September's quarter-point hike, Sharecast News noted. Chris Rupkey, chief economist at Fwdbonds, told CNBC: "Net, net, economic growth is powering ahead despite the uncertainty of geopolitical risks and the damage posed to many sectors of the economy by higher energy costs."

Software and AI-linked shares slide

Software stocks were among the steepest decliners, Yahoo Finance reported. ServiceNow was down about 25% at $112.52 as of 12:09 p.m. ET, and Fortinet was down about 21% at $137.16. Yahoo Finance said Fortinet lowered its full-year service revenue forecast to $5.15 billion to $5.17 billion from previous guidance of $5.18 billion to $5.22 billion.

Alphabet, whose quarterly results had been reported after Wednesday's close, was down about 11.9% at $286.31, and Amazon, which reports after Thursday's close, was down about 3%. Marvell Technology was down about 11.6% after Bloomberg reported it was in advanced talks to buy optical parts maker Lumentum, Yahoo Finance said; Lumentum shares were up about 3.8%. The iShares Semiconductor ETF was down about 1.1%.

Earnings movers on both sides

• Caterpillar was down about 7.8% at $657.73. Yahoo Finance said the company reported adjusted earnings of $7.20 a share and revenue of $20.68 billion, and forecast moderate fourth-quarter sales growth; its order backlog reached a record $78 billion.
• Sprouts Farmers Market was down about 21.9% after the grocery chain cut its profit outlook and announced price cuts, according to Yahoo Finance.
• Eli Lilly was up about 6.3% at $1,369.29. Sharecast reported adjusted earnings of $7.48 a share against $6.26 expected and revenue of $24.40 billion, and said Lilly raised its 2026 sales outlook to $91 billion to $92 billion from $85 billion to $87 billion.
• Carvana was up about 15.7% after reporting a 42.4% rise in third-quarter revenue to $8.04 billion and retail vehicle sales of 217,385 units, Yahoo Finance said.
• DoorDash was up about 4.4% after announcing a deal to acquire Instacart for $17 billion, or $65 per Instacart share; Instacart shares were down about 2%.
• Mastercard was up about 4%, Meta Platforms about 2.9% and Apple about 1.6%.

Europe higher

European markets were firmer as the European Central Bank kept its deposit rate at 2.5%. Germany's DAX was up about 1.4% and the Euro Stoxx 50 about 0.8% as of 11:54 a.m. ET, according to Yahoo Finance data, while Reuters, in a report carried by Euronext, said the STOXX 600 was 1% stronger after the decision.

All prices are intraday figures and may change before the 4 p.m. ET close.