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* J&J COVID-19 vaccine 72% effective in the US, 66% worldwide
* GameStop plays compliant as breaks reduce restrictions
* Common long mega-cap positions take effect
* Fell 1.84%, S&P 500 down 1.85%, Nasdaq down 2.05% (Mid-afternoon updates, online changes)
NEW YORK, Jan 29 (Reuters) – U.S. stock indices fell Friday when investors measured Johnson & Johnson’s COVID-19 vaccine effectiveness data, while a standoff between Wall Street hedge funds and small investors sent sales to move.
Johnson & Johnson fell 3.67% as one of the biggest weights on both the Dow and S & P500 after the drug dealer claimed his one-dose vaccine was 72% effective in preventing COVID-19 in the United States, with a lower rate of 66% seen worldwide.
The results compare to the high bar set by two authorized vaccines from Pfizer Inc / BioNTech SE and Moderna Inc, which were approximately 95% effective in preventing symptomatic illness in key trials when given in two doses. Moderna shares climbed 7.97% while Pfizer Shares remained little changed.
Short-term concerns that began earlier in the week were sparked after an army of retail investors returned to trading stocks in stocks such as GameStop Corp and Koss Corp., which fired higher after brokers broke down. Robinhood introduced some of the restrictions they placed on reducing trade.
“Until we see volatility coming down tell us that there is still a lot of pressure in the system just from vacating some of these positions,” said Rob Haworth, senior investment expert at US Bank Wealth Management there. in Seattle.
“It is clear that the catalyst has been under pressure throughout the system as we think about the variability and pressure on some of the hedge funds to start last week and some have continued. , and we do not have large catalysts for our higher direction yet. ”
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission said it was keeping a close eye on any potential crime, both for breaches and social media traders.
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 563.08 points, or 1.84%, to 30,040.28, the S&P 500 lost 70.25 points, or 1.85%, to 3,717.13 and the Nasdaq Composite fell 273.62 points, or 2.05%, to 13,063.54.
All three major indices were tracking their biggest weekly fall since the end of October and both the Dow and S&P have fallen below their 50-day moving averages, seen as a level of technical support.
Market participants have speculated that volatility caused by the short bursts has led to investor options taking Apple Inc. under pressure as hedge funds sell to lose billions of dollars.
Apple shares lost 4.03% while Microsoft fell 2.46%.
Still, while concerns about COVID-19 cases and the release of a lumpy vaccine have kept investors uneasy about withdrawal and rising volatility in the short term, the start of quarterly earnings has reduced some concerns about valuation stretched stock.
Of the 184 companies in the S&P 500 that have reported earnings through Friday morning, 84.2% have exceeded analysts’ expectations, well above the 75.5% blow rate for the first four quarters. gone, according to Refinitiv data.
Honeywell International fell 3.5% after posting a 13% fall in quarterly profit.
The first known U.S. cases of the South African COVID-19 variant, which were partially detected against conventional vaccines and antibody treatment, were discovered in South Carolina on Thursday.
Data showed that U.S. labor costs rose more than expected in the fourth quarter amid a jump in wages, supporting views that inflation could accelerate this year, while another report showed that spending fell U.S. consumers for a second straight month in December.
Cases that are declining higher than those of those on the NYSE with a 3.73-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 2.95-to-1 ratio favored rejection.
The S&P 500 posted 7 new 52-week highs and no new levels; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 59 new heights and 13 new lights.
Reciting with Chuck Mikolajczak; edited by Diane Craft