Wall Street on Thursday: Value stronger than tech – Apple, Cisco, UnitedHealth, Walmart in focus

After a cautious start, the New York Stock Exchange finally found its way back into positive territory on Thursday. New economic data fueled confidence that the U.S. Federal Reserve might cut interest rates in the foreseeable future. Accordingly, bond yields declined, leading to rising stock prices.

The Dow Jones Industrial, which had been weak the previous two days, gained 0.6 percent to approximately 42,300 points shortly before the end of trading. The broad-based S&P 500 rose 0.42 percent to 5,917 points. The technology-heavy Nasdaq 100 initially reached a new high since the end of February, but was unable to hold on to its gains and ended the day trading around the zero line.

A series of fresh economic data provided momentum. Retail sales rose slightly in April, although experts had previously expected stagnation. Industrial production remained at the previous month's level, but a slight increase had also been expected. Particularly relevant for interest rate expectations: producer prices rose more slowly than forecast, indicating a slowdown in inflation.

Health insurer UnitedHealth once again made negative headlines. Its stock fell another 11.1 percent. According to a report in the Wall Street Journal, U.S. authorities are investigating possible fraud cases related to the government Medicare program. The company had already caused uncertainty by suspending its annual targets and an abrupt change in leadership.

Walmart was able to largely contain its initial losses after releasing its quarterly results. The figures exceeded expectations, but the retail giant warned that if tariffs increase and the economy deteriorates, it will not be able to keep prices stable in the long term.

Cisco Systems impressed with strong order intake, particularly in the area of ​​artificial intelligence infrastructure. The company raised its annual forecasts, prompting a 4.7 percent rise in the share price.

Foot Locker's share price skyrocketed: The sporting goods retailer's shares soared by 85 percent to $23.80. The reason was a takeover offer from competitor Dick's Sporting Goods, which offered $24 per share or, alternatively, its own shares in return. Dick's shares fell by around 15 percent in response.

Weak figures, however, came from China: Shares of internet giant Alibaba, which are traded in the United States, lost 8 percent as sales growth in the last quarter fell short of expectations.

German sandal manufacturer Birkenstock was also on the winning side. The company raised its profit forecast for the current year – the management cited continued high demand for its own products as the reason. The share price subsequently rose by more than 6.6 percent.

Contains material from dpa-AFX