Stocks endured a massive selling spree on Friday, as strong jobs data raised the specter of ongoing interest rate increases from the Federal Reserve. The S&P 500 dropped 2.8% but remained higher for the week, conserving some of the sharp gains posted on Monday and Tuesday.
Megacap names were among the victims of Friday's decline. Tesla ( TSLA ), Microsoft ( MSFT ), Amazon ( AMZN ), Apple ( AAPL ) and Alphabet ( GOOG )( GOOGL ) all finished notably lower on the session.
The general market slide also contributed to an ongoing fall in Generac Holdings ( NYSE: GNRC ), which established a new 52-week low. Tilray ( TLRY ) represented another standout decliner. Weak quarterly results sent the stock tumbling.
Earnings news had the opposite impact Aehr Test Systems ( AEHR ). The stock expanded its value by nearly a quarter following the release of its Street-beating figures.
Sector In Focus
The general slide in the overall markets included a retreat in the high-profile megacap names.
Dwindling hope that the Fed will back off its aggressive rate-hiking campaign put pressure on stocks as a whole. Meanwhile, consumer discretionary and technology names, the market segments that contain the world's largest companies by market cap, were among the areas hardest hit by the selling.
In this environment, Tesla ( TSLA ) fell 6%, the worst performance among the megacaps. Microsoft ( MSFT ) and Amazon ( AMZN ) both declined by around 5%. Apple ( AAPL ) posted a slide of around 4%.
Alphabet ( GOOG )( GOOGL ) held up better than the other names in the group. However, shares of the internet search giant still retreated nearly 3%
Standout Gainer
The release of strong quarterly results prompted a surge of buying in Aehr Test Systems ( AEHR ). Shares jumped 24% on the news.
The semiconductor equipment maker easily exceeded projections with its Q1 earnings. Meanwhile, revenue soared 89% from last year.
AEHR also reiterated its full-year revenue guidance of at least $60M to $70M. Analysts are looking for a figure of around $62M.
Inspired by the results, AEHR finished the session at $17.19, an advance of $3.32. With the gains, shares recorded their highest close since August.
Standout Decliner
Tilray ( TLRY ) dropped in the wake of its quarterly report. Disappointing results sent shares of the cannabis company lower by nearly 19%.
The firm revealed a wider-than-expected Q1 loss and reported revenue that fell 9% from last year. The top-line retreat was led by a 17% decline in net cannabis revenue.
The cannabis sector received a boost earlier this week on news that the Biden administration was planning reforms to the way marijuana is handled by federal officials. The momentum from these headlines gave brief support to TLRY following its earnings release, but the stock eventually succumbed to selling pressure.
TLRY finished Friday at $3.17, a decline of 73 cents on the day. Even with the sharp decline, however, the stock only retraced a portion of the 32% jump it experienced on Thursday.
Notable New Low
Generac Holdings ( GNRC ) suffered another day of losses on Friday, adding to a multi-month downtrend, spurred recently by rising concerns about the firm's order backlog. With the latest dip, the stock reached a new 52-week low.
GNRC dropped $14.51 to close at $154.26. During the session, shares also reached an intraday 52-week low of $153.49.
Friday's decline represented its third consecutive day of losses. Shares dropped nearly 6% on Thursday after Bank of America lowered its rating on the stock to Neutral to Buy.
In making the downgrade , B of A cited channel checks that indicated that order backlogs had eroded for the maker of backup power generation products.
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Hot Stocks: Megacaps fall; TLRY drops on earnings; AEHR surges; GNRC sets 52-week low