Investor Sentiment Falls Following Jobs Data, Dow Records Weekly Loss

The CNN Money Fear and Greed index showed a decline in the overall market sentiment, with the index remaining in the "Greed" zone on Friday.

U.S. stocks closed lower on Friday, following the release of jobs data for the month of February. All three major indices closed the week lower, with the S&P 500 falling 0.26% and the blue-chip Dow declining 0.93%.

Nonfarm payrolls beat economist estimates, coming at 275,000 in February compared to the expected 200,000. The unemployment rate rose from 3.7% to 3.9%, surprising estimates of 3.7%. Average hourly wages grew at a 0.1% monthly pace in February, easing from the downwardly revised 0.5% growth in January, and below the expected 0.3%.

Shares of AerSale Corporation ASLE fell around 26% on Friday after the company reported worse-than-expected fourth-quarter financial results. Willdan Group, Inc. WLDN jumped over 24% after the company reported better-than-expected fourth-quarter financial results and issued FY24 guidance above estimates. Also, the company secured a contract worth approximately $30 million to $50 million over three years.

Most sectors on the S&P 500 closed on a negative note, with information technology, consumer staples and materials stocks recording the biggest losses on Friday. However, energy and real estate stocks bucked the overall market trend, closing the session higher.

The Dow Jones closed lower by around 69 points to 38,722.69 on Friday. The S&P 500 fell 0.65% at 5,123.69, while the Nasdaq Composite fell 1.16% at 16,085.11 during Friday’s session.

Investors are awaiting earnings results from Calavo Growers, Inc. CVGW, Casey's General Stores, Inc. CASY and Oracle Corporation ORCL today.

At a current reading of 71.4, the index remained in the "Greed" zone on Friday, versus a prior reading of 74.

What is CNN Business Fear & Greed Index?

The Fear & Greed Index is a measure of the current market sentiment. It is based on the premise that higher fear exerts pressure on stock prices, while higher greed has the opposite effect. The index is calculated based on seven equal-weighted indicators. The index ranges from 0 to 100, where 0 represents maximum fear and 100 signals maximum greediness.

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