The Dow Jones Index (^DJI) was down 179.71 (-0.36%) points today, closing at 49,310.32. Meanwhile, Dow Futures (YM=F) declined by 173.00 (-0.35%) to 49,495.00. The session on Thursday, April 23rd, 2026, was defined by a stark divergence between traditional industrials and modern tech giants, as investors reevaluated software valuations following cautious earnings reports and revised fiscal year outlooks.
The primary drag on the index came from Salesforce (CRM), which plummeted 8.57% to $173.59, and IBM (IBM), which shed 8.19% to finish at $231.22. These losses were exacerbated by a 3.98% decline in Microsoft (MSFT) at $415.58 and a 5.00% drop for American Express (AXP) at $316.50. Other decliners included Honeywell (HON), down 2.40%, and Nike (NKE), which fell 2.05%. The narrative was dominated by soft enterprise spending forecasts and rising AI infrastructure costs, which pressured growth-oriented portfolios.
Offsetting these losses were strong gains in industrials and consumer staples. Caterpillar (CAT) surged 3.85% to $839.93, while Verizon (VZ) and Coca-Cola (KO) rose 2.91% and 2.63% respectively. Defensive plays remained in favor, with Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) gaining 2.15% to $230.90 and Procter & Gamble (PG) advancing 2.07% to $145.77. Walmart (WMT) also rose 1.83% to $132.35, as investors sought refuge in stable cash-flow companies amidst the heightened market volatility seen in growth stocks.
Ed Liston is a senior contributing editor at TheStockMarketWatch.com. An active market watcher and investor, Ed guides an independent team of experienced analysts and writes for multiple stock trader publications.