US equity indexes and government bond yields exhibited a mixed performance in midday trading on Friday, with crude oil futures experiencing a significant decline. The Nasdaq Composite dipped by 0.1% to reach 19,251.2. In contrast, the S&P 500 saw an increase of 0.3%, climbing to 5,991.3, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average achieved a gain of 0.6%, settling at 43,969.1.
Notably, sectors such as real estate, utilities, and consumer discretionary drove the intraday gains, whereas the materials sector led the decliners. In the realm of US Treasury yields, the 10-year note showed a decline of 2.9 basis points, landing at 4.31%. Meanwhile, the two-year rate moved up by 1.7 basis points, reaching 4.24%. Turning to economic indicators, the University of Michigan's preliminary consumer sentiment index showed an uptick, rising to 73.0 in November from 70.5 in October, surpassing expectations which anticipated an increase to 71.0 based on a survey conducted by Bloomberg.
Survey respondents indicated their one-year inflation expectations decreased to 2.6%, down from 2.7% in October, while five-year inflation expectations rose to 3.1% from 3%. In corporate news, Axon Enterprise reported a significant increase in its Q3 adjusted earnings and sales figures, subsequently raising its revenue outlook for 2024.
The company's shares surged by 21% intraday, making it the leading performer on the S&P 500. Conversely, Akamai Technologies saw its shares plummet by 13% intraday, marking it as the most significant decliner on the S&P 500. This decline followed the company's Q4 non-GAAP earnings and sales guidance falling short of expectations, compounded by a reduction in its full-year earnings forecast. West Texas Intermediate crude oil fell by 3%, trading at $70.13 per barrel..