-- Consumer stocks were lower Friday afternoon, with the State Street Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLP) falling 1.4% and the State Street Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLY) decreasing 0.2%.
In sector news, US consumer sentiment hit the lowest on record this month, reflecting heightened worries about higher prices and the overall economic fallout from the Middle East conflict, University of Michigan's preliminary survey showed Friday. The main sentiment index plunged about 11% to 47.6 in April from March. That's the lowest print on record, BMO Capital Markets said in a note. Wall Street expected a 51.5 print, according to Bloomberg's poll.
In corporate news, Tesla (TSLA) Chief Executive Elon Musk's xAI has filed a lawsuit against the State of Colorado regarding a new AI bill aimed at protecting consumers from "algorithmic discrimination," according to court filings. Tesla shares were down 0.5%.
Simply Good Foods (SMPL) shares fell 10% after Stephens downgraded the company's rating to equal-weight from overweight and cut its price target to $14 from $24.
CarMax (KMX) shares rose 1.7% after it said late Thursday it plans to add William Cobb and James Kessler to its board following "constructive engagement" with activist investor Starboard Value.