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Adobe drops after forecasting 2025 revenue below estimates

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Centene ( CNC ) rises after guiding 2025 profit above expectations

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Indexes: Dow up 0.09%, S&P 500 down 0.26%, Nasdaq down

0.48%

(Updates after markets open)

By Purvi Agarwal and Shashwat Chauhan

Dec 12 (Reuters) -

The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq slipped on Thursday after ending

the previous session on a positive note, while investors

assessed some of the last economic datasets ahead of the Federal

Reserve's meeting.

The Nasdaq soared past the 20,000 mark for the first time on

Wednesday as the technology rally showed no signs of a halt,

while the S&P 500 closed at its highest in nearly a week after

an in-line inflation reading locked in a 25 basis point cut by

the Fed at its Dec. 17-18 meeting.

Meanwhile, data showed U.S. producer prices rose more than

expected in November amid a surge in the cost of food, but a

moderation in the prices of services offered hope that the

disinflationary trend remains in place.

"Those numbers are a little bit hotter than expectations and

(are) on the heels of CPI," said Thomas Martin, senior portfolio

manager at Globalt Investments.

"(The Fed) is going to (cut rates) because it wants to stay

on that path and would like to have rates be lower, but there's

this risk about inflation."

Separately, data showed the number of Americans filing new

applications for unemployment benefits rose unexpectedly to

242,000 for the week ended Dec. 7, above estimates of 220,000.

Trader bets on the cut next week stand at over 98%,

according to CME's FedWatch Tool. They had risen after a jobs

report on Friday that showed unemployment rose last month

despite a surge in jobs growth.

However, bets also indicate expectations of a pause in

January after several Fed officials last week urged caution over

the pace of monetary policy easing as the economy remained

resilient.

At 9:37 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average

rose 40.06 points, or 0.09%, to 44,188.62, the S&P 500

lost 15.55 points, or 0.26%, to 6,068.64 and the Nasdaq

Composite lost 95.17 points, or 0.48%, to 19,939.73.

Seven of the 11 major S&P sub-sectors were trading

lower, with information technology leading losses,

down 0.6%.

Most megacap and growth stocks trended lower early on, with

Nvidia ( NVDA ) down over 1%.

Wall Street's main indexes have set new record highs

multiple times this year, thanks to a rally driven by

heavyweight tech stocks that have exploited the euphoria around

artificial intelligence and the Fed's interest rate cuts.

U.S. equities capped off a remarkable November after Donald

Trump's victory in the presidential election on the prospects of

business-friendly policies adding to corporate profits, and have

kicked off December on a broadly positive note.

Among significant movers, Adobe slid 11.2% after

the Photoshop maker forecast fiscal 2025 revenue below Wall

Street expectations on Wednesday.

Nordson ( NDSN ) lost 3.6% as the dispensing equipment maker

forecast fiscal 2025 revenue below Wall Street estimates.

Centene ( CNC ) gained 1.4% following the health insurer's

forecast of its 2025 profit above estimates.

Declining issues outnumbered advancers by a 1.62-to-1

ratio on the NYSE and by a 1.4-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.

The S&P 500 posted five new 52-week highs and three new

lows, while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 23 new highs and 44

new lows.