U.S. stocks fell on Wednesday as investors weighed strong earnings reports from big-box retailers against lingering inflation concerns.
The Dow Jones Industrials toppled 172.76 points to 35,969.46 by noon hour EST. The Dow was dragged down by a 5% drop in Visa.
The S&P 500 docked 10.76 points to 4,690.14.
The NASDAQ Composite erased 41.15 points to 15,932.70.
Retail giant Target posted beats on the top and bottom lines, but its CEO noted rising costs may have an impact on the company going forward as it plans to absorb those costs rather than pass them onto the customer. Shares slid about 5%.
Home improvement giant Lowe's saw shares rise slightly, however, after the company not only topped estimates from the Street but also raised its full-year sales forecast. And shares of TJX jumped almost 9% after the apparel and home retailer reported a quarterly earnings beat on the top and bottom lines as well as a same-store sales increase of 14% year-over-year.
Investors await more retail earnings Wednesday from Bath & Body Works and Victoria's Secret. Other major companies reporting results include Cisco Systems and Nvidia.
Prices for 10-year Treasurys regained ground, lowering yields to 1.61% from Tuesday's 1.64%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices declined $1.97 to $78.79 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices recovered $14.70 to $1,868.80 U.S. an ounce.