Stocks fell on Thursday, leaving the S&P 500 stuck around the flatline for the year, as investors shifted away from financials and monitored simmering tensions between the U.S. and Iran.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average sank 225.11 points to 49,437.55.
The much-broader index moved down 19.87 points to 6,861.44.
The NASDAQ ditched 26.22 points to 22,727.42.
With Thursday’s move, the S&P 500 was up 0.02% for the year, while the 30-stock Dow was higher by more than 2%. The tech-heavy NASDAQ, however, is down more than 2% in 2026.
Investors moved out of private credit stocks after private market and alternative assets manager Blue Owl Capital announced it’s going to tighten investor liquidity following its sale of $1.4 billion in loan assets, spurring worries among investors about losses in the murky private loans area. That stock declined 7%, while others such as Blackstone sank 6% and Apollo Global Management was down 5%.
Alongside asset managers, software was another area under pressure. Salesforce shares were lower by more than 1%, while Intuit shares fell more than 2%. Shares of Cadence Design Systems declined 4%.
The group has become a sore spot for the market lately as investors fear that artificial intelligence will disrupt the industry. In fact, Mistral AI CEO Arthur Mensch told reporters Wednesday that more than 50% of enterprises’ software could be replaced by the technology.
Prices for the 10-year Treasury slid, bringing yields up to 4.08% from Wednesday’s 4.07%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices regained $1.56 Thursday to $66.75 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices gained $9.80 to $5,019.30 U.S. an ounce.
