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Top Midday Stories: Stocks Fall After Stronger-Than-Expected August Jobs Report; Lululemon Q2 Revenue Miss, Guidance Cut
All three major US stock indexes were down on Friday after a strong August jobs report increased expectations that the Federal Reserve could raise interest rates at the next Federal Open Market Committee meeting.Nonfarm payrolls jumped by 162,000, above the 55,000-job increase expected in a survey compiled by Bloomberg as of 7:15 am ET, while July payrolls were revised upward to a 21,000-job increase and June payrolls were revised upward to a 31,000-job increase. The unemployment rate remained at 4.1%, as expected, while the labor force participation rate rose to 61.6% from 61.4% in July.In company news, Lululemon Athletica (LULU) reported fiscal Q2 earnings late Thursday of $2.92 per diluted share, down from $3.10 a year earlier but above the FactSet consensus analyst estimate of $1.79. Fiscal Q2 revenue was $2.42 billion, down from $2.53 billion a year ago and below the FactSet consensus of $2.46 billion. For Q3, the company expects EPS of $0.93 to $0.98 on revenue of $2.29 billion to $2.32 billion. Analysts polled by FactSet expect $2.40 and $2.53 billion, respectively. For fiscal 2026, the retailer expects EPS of $9.48 to $9.73 on revenue of $10.35 billion to $10.50 billion, below its previous guidance calling for EPS of $10.95 to $11.15 and revenue of $11 billion to $11.15 billion. Analysts expect $10.84 and $11.03 billion, respectively. Lululemon shares were down 17.9% around midday.Jason Mehring was appointed as chief executive and chair of BlackRock (BLK) Private Credit Fund, BlackRock Direct Lending and BlackRock TCP Capital, starting Sept. 2, following the resignation of Philip Tseng from the posts on Aug. 31, the company said Friday in a regulatory filing. Mehring previously served as president of the direct lending division and TCP Capital, the filing said. In addition, Dan Worrell was appointed as president of the private credit fund after previously serving as co-chief investment officer, the filing said. BlackRock shares were down 0.4%.Tesla (TSLA) Cybercab is under investigation over its process to claim compliance with federal vehicle safety standards, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Thursday. Tesla began commercial use of a small number of Cybercabs in Austin, Texas, but the vehicles lack permanently attached conventional manual controls, the agency said. Tesla shares were down 6.4%.Equifax (EFX), Experian and TransUnion (TRU) "have been overcharging Americans for far too long," Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte said late Thursday on X, adding that his agency is considering solutions to prevent the companies from taking advantage of American consumers. Equifax and TransUnion shares were down 6.8% and 7.5%, respectively.Price: $99.94, Change: $-21.83, Percent Change: -17.92%
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