Key Takeaways
- The S&P 500 edged 0.4% higher on Tuesday, April 1, a day ahead of the Trump administration’s anticipated rollout of new tariffs.
- Shares of companies in the fashion industry moved higher following a strong earnings report from Calvin Klein parent PVH.
- Johnson & Johnson said it failed to reach a settlement in liability cases related to its baby powder. Shares of the health care giant tumbled.
Major U.S. equities indexes finished the first trading day of the second quarter mixed.
A vacillating Tuesday session occurred a day before President Donald Trump’s scheduled announcement of global tariffs aimed at trade reciprocity—and with uncertainties remaining about the specifics of the levies the U.S. will impose.
After fluctuating for much of the day, the S&P 500 ended with a gain of 0.4%. The Nasdaq added 0.9%, while the Dow ended with a loss of less than 0.1%.
Shares of Vistra (VST), the power generator that has drawn attention for its opportunity to provide electricity for energy-intensive artificial intelligence data centers, rose 4.1%, notching the top daily performance in the S&P 500. The gains for Vistra marked a reversal from steep losses posted last week amid concerns about a possible AI data center bubble and a price target cut from analysts at JPMorgan, who cited an uncertain regulatory outlook.
Fashion-industry stocks got a boost after PVH Corp. (PVH), parent company of Calvin Klein and Tommy Hilfiger, posted better-than-expected quarterly sales and profits. PVH shares soared 18%. Ralph Lauren (RL) shares added 3.7% following the stock’s inclusion in Bank of America’s list of its top 10 ideas for the second quarter of 2025, while shares of Coach parent Tapestry (TPR) gained 3.5%.
Tesla (TSLA) shares rose 3.6% a day ahead of the electric vehicle maker’s expected first-quarter delivery update. Although protests against CEO Elon Musk have mounted and the company reportedly faces sales pressure in European markets, a report released Tuesday indicated that Tesla’s Model Y was among the top-selling vehicles in China in March 2025.
Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) shares fell 7.6%, the most of any S&P 500 stock, as the company said that a judge denied its plan to settle thousands of legal claims alleging that its baby powder and other talc products cause ovarian cancer. The rejected proposal involved using a “prepackaged bankruptcy plan” for a subsidiary. The health care company said that it will now return to the tort system as it aims to defeat the claims.
Airline stocks came under pressure after analysts at Jefferies downgraded their ratings on three of the four major U.S. carriers, citing soft consumer sentiment and uncertainty over tariffs. Southwest Airlines (LUV) shares dropped 5.9% after the investment firm lowered its view on the stock to “underperform.” Earlier this month, Southwest announced that it would shift toward a paid baggage policy, stepping away from a longstanding perk that distinguished the airline from competitors. Jefferies also downgraded Delta Air Lines (DAL) and American Airlines (AAL) to “hold,” and their shares sank 2.7% and 2.4%, respectively.
Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) shares slipped 4.8%. The entertainment giant named Anton Levy, an advisory director at private equity firm General Atlantic, an independent member of its expanded board of directors. The move came as the company navigates struggles for its film studio and engages in a restructuring that involves separating its cable TV properties from its streaming and studio businesses.