Major benchmarks gave up early gains on Thursday morning, as investors remained of two minds with respect to the potential for a recovery from the coronavirus pandemic's economic ill effects. Stocks in the Nasdaq Composite (NASDAQINDEX: ^IXIC) were down slightly more than broader-based indexes, with the Composite dropping almost 1% shortly after 11:45 a.m. EDT. The Nasdaq 100 Index was similarly down by nearly 1%.
Among notable stocks in the Nasdaq 100, Ross Stores (NASDAQ: ROST) saw a nice gain as investors hoped that the discount apparel retailer would be able to follow in the footsteps of one of its closest industry peers. For Expedia Group (NASDAQ: EXPE), however, the news wasn't nearly as good, with the online travel company's latest quarterly report raising at least as many new questions as it answered.
Ross Stores saw its shares gain 4% Thursday morning, falling back from as much as a 10% advance early in the session. The retailer won't report its latest earnings until after the market closes this afternoon, but investors are getting a head start on placing their bets after having seen the results from a close competitor.