Investor Optimism Declines Slightly After US Stocks Settle Lower

The CNN Money Fear and Greed index moved to the "Greed" zone after US stocks closed lower on Wednesday.

Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. CMG shares dropped 5% on Wednesday after the company reported worse-than-expected Q4 results. CVS Health Corporation CVS shares gained 3.5% after the company reported better-than-expected Q4 results.

Alphabet Inc. GOOGL shares fell 7.7% after the company's BARD AI chatbot appeared to give an incorrect answer in a company ad.

The Dow closed lower by around 208 points to 33,949.01 on Wednesday. The S&P 500 fell 1.11% to 4,117.86, while the Nasdaq Composite dropped 1.68% to settle at 11,910.52 in the session.

Investors are awaiting earnings results from PepsiCo, Inc. PEP, Kellogg Company K and PayPal Holdings, Inc. PYPL today.

At a current reading of 73.0, the index moved to the "Greed" zone, compared to a previous reading of 77.0.

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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