Dow falls 234 points but Nasdaq battles even with higher bond yields

U.S. equity markets finished mixed Friday as the Nasdaq rebounded while the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 lost ground.

Ticker	Security	Last	Change	Change %
I:DJI	DOW JONES AVERAGES	44296.51	+426.16	+0.97%
SP500	S&P 500	5969.34	+20.63	+0.35%
I:COMP	NASDAQ COMPOSITE INDEX	19003.651134	+31.23	+0.16%

The Nasdaq rose 0.76%, recouping a portion of Thursday's 3% decline. The tech-heavy index gains as the 10-year yield held at 1.73%, its highest since January 2020. The Dow and the S&P 500, meanwhile, fell 0.71% and 0.07%, respectively.

The Dow finished below the 33,000 level after crossing the milestone for the first time earlier in the week.

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In stocks, Dow components JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lagged after the Federal Reserve told big banks it will end easier capital requirements imposed during the pandemic at the end of the month. The rule change says banks' holdings of Treasurys and central bank deposits will no longer be excluded from capital requirement ratios.

Ticker	Security	Last	Change	Change %
JPM	JPMORGAN CHASE & CO.	248.55	+3.79	+1.55%
GS	THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP INC.	602.79	+6.74	+1.13%

CHUBB CHASES THE HARTFORD WITH $23B OFFER

In M&A news, Chubb offered The Hartford Group a deal valued at around $23 billion.

"This proposal would value The Hartford at $65.00 per share and represents a premium of 26% based on its unaffected 20-day volume weighted average share price of $51.70 as of March 10, 2021. The consideration represents a mix of stock with the majority in cash" Chubb outlined in the offer announcement.

Ticker	Security	Last	Change	Change %
HIG	THE HARTFORD FINANCIAL SERVICES GROUP INC.	120.72	+1.08	+0.90%
CB	CHUBB LTD.	285.17	+0.07	+0.02%

Elsewhere, Amazon.com Inc., CBSViacom, Walt Disney Co., Comcast Corp. and Fox Corp., the parent company of Fox News and FOX Business, all reached deals for broadcast rights of National Football League games through the 2033 season. The agreements will pay the NFL in excess of $100 billion.

Ticker	Security	Last	Change	Change %
FOXA	FOX CORP.	46.85	+0.21	+0.45%
AMZN	AMAZON.COM INC.	197.12	-1.26	-0.64%
VIAC	NO DATA AVAILABLE	-	-	-
DIS	THE WALT DISNEY CO.	115.67	+0.94	+0.82%
CMCSA	COMCAST CORP.	43.47	-0.03	-0.07%

In earnings, Nike Inc. reported mixed quarterly results as congestion at U.S. ports led to inventory delays and a 10% drop in North American revenue. The sneaker giant expects fiscal year 2021 revenue to rise by a low-to-mid-teens percentage versus last year compared with the 15.9% growth that analysts surveyed by Refinitiv were expecting.

Ticker	Security	Last	Change	Change %
NKE	NIKE INC.	77.39	+2.29	+3.06%
FDX	FEDEX CORP.	299.90	+4.58	+1.55%

FedEx Corp. said quarterly net income nearly tripled despite winter storms snarling delivery operations and denting profits by $350 million. The logistics giant issued fiscal fourth-quarter earnings-per-share guidance that exceeded forecasts.

Meanwhile, Ford Motor Co. announced it would make F-150 and Edge SUVs without certain parts due to the global chip shortage. General Motors is also suffering from the same supply problems.

Ticker	Security	Last	Change	Change %
FM	ISHARES INC FRONTIER AND SELECT EM ETF	27.70	+0.02	+0.07%
GM	GENERAL MOTORS CO.	58.53	+2.85	+5.12%

Chipmakers Advanced Micro Devices Inc., Intel Corp. and Nvidia Corp. all traded higher.

Ticker	Security	Last	Change	Change %
AMD	ADVANCED MICRO DEVICES INC.	138.35	+0.86	+0.63%
INTC	INTEL CORP.	24.50	+0.06	+0.25%
NVDA	NVIDIA CORP.	141.95	-4.72	-3.22%

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In commodities, West Texas Intermediate crude oil rose $1.42 to $61.42 per barrel and gold edged up $9.20 to $1,741.40 an ounce.

In Europe, Britain’s FTSE 100 traded down 1.05%, Germany’s DAX 30 lost 1.05% and France’s CAC 40 declined 1.07%.

Asian markets were hit hard with China’s Shanghai Composite falling 1.69% while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index and Japan’s Nikkei 225 both lost 1.41%.