The stock market ended firmer on Wednesday, with all major indices finishing in the green territory as investors weighed news of President Donald Trump’s imposition of a new round of tariffs while digesting minutes of the Federal Reserve.
The Dow Jones rose by 0.16 percent, the S&P 500 increased by 0.24 percent, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq eked out a 0.07 percent gain.
Ten companies bucked a broader market optimism, posting heavy losses, mostly due to disappointing earnings performance last year.
To come up with Wednesday’s worst performers, we considered only the stocks with $2 billion in market capitalization and $5 million in daily trading volume.
Stock market reports printed on a sheet of paper. Photo by RDNE Stock Project on Pexels
10. Cadence Design Systems, Inc (NASDAQ:CDNS)
Cadence Design Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CDNS) fell by 8.78 percent on Wednesday to end at $274.04 apiece as investors unloaded portfolios after the company reported mixed earnings results.
In a statement, CDNS said it registered net income of $1.05 billion last year, flat from the $1.04 billion registered in 2023. Meanwhile, net profit for the fourth quarter rose by 5 percent to $340 million from $324 million year-on-year.
Revenues in the fourth quarter, however, were higher by 27 percent at $1.35 billion from $1.07 billion year-on-year, while revenues for the full year were up by 13.4 percent to $4.64 billion from $4.09 billion in 2023.
For this year, CDNS expects revenues to settle between $5.14 billion and $5.22 billion, which aligns with the $5.19 billion expected by analysts.
9. Etsy, Inc. (NASDAQ:ETSY)
Shares of Etsy, Inc. (NASDAQ:ETSY) declined by 10.05 percent on Wednesday to finish at $51.53 apiece as investors sold off positions following lower gross merchandise sales (GMS) and number of active buyers for the fourth quarter of 2024.
In its earnings release, ETSY said consolidated GMS declined by 6.8 percent to $3.7 billion, while GMS from its marketplace dropped 8.6 percent to $3.3 billion as a result of pressures on consumer discretionary product spending, challenging year-over-year comparisons in a shortened holiday season, category mix, and a highly promotional and competitive retail environment.
In particular, ETSY marketplace GMS was weak on a year-on-year basis in October and November but saw a notable pickup in December.
The number of active buyers also dropped 2.6 percent year-on-year, while the active seller count decreased 10 percent year-on-year.
Net income increased by 56 percent during the period at $129.9 million from $83 million year-on-year, while revenues inched up by 1.2 percent to $852 million from $842 million.
8. Palantir Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ:PLTR)
Palantir Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ:PLTR) shares fell by 10.08 percent on Wednesday to close at $112.06 apiece as investors unloaded portfolios after the Pentagon announced cuts to its budget, triggering concerns about its impact on the company, being one of the government agency’s major contractors.
On Wednesday, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered Pentagon officials to slash the defense budget by 8 percent annually over the next five years.
The move took a toll on PLTR, which sources 40 percent of its revenues from US government agencies, including the US Army.
Apart from PLTR, other government contractors also saw share prices drop, including Northrop Grumman, Booz Allen Hamilton, and L3 Harris.
Additionally, PLTR CEO Alex Karp said late Tuesday that the company has adopted a new trading plan to sell up to 9.98 million shares until September 12.
7. Oklo Inc. (NYSE:OKLO)
Shares of Oklo Inc. (NYSE:OKLO) fell for a third straight day on Wednesday, losing another 10.10 percent to end at $45.12 apiece as investors unloaded portfolios over the lack of catalysts to spark buying appetite.
OKLO, a nuclear technology company riding the wave of the booming Artificial Intelligence industry, traded lower in line with counterparts riding the wave of the AI industry over the potential threats of China’s AI platform, DeepSeek.
Earlier this year, nuclear energy firms were heavily hit by the emergence of DeepSeek, which suggested that the AI industry might not require as much energy as previously anticipated.
Concerns were triggered further for the US AI sector after DeepSeek announced a major breakthrough that could accelerate the development of AI applications, raising concerns about China’s dominance in the field.
6. Parsons Corporation (NYSE:PSN)
Parsons Corporation (NYSE:PSN) retreated on Wednesday, losing 11.46 percent to finish at $65.08 apiece as investors sold off positions after disappointing earnings results.
In its earnings release, Parsons announced earnings per share of $0.78, lower by 14 percent than the $0.91 as expected by analysts.
PSN, however, posted robust earnings, with net income attributable to the company growing 20.7 percent to $54.18 million from $44.9 million recorded in the same period last year, with revenues increasing 16 percent to $1.7 billion from $1.49 billion year-on-year.
Revenues for the full year improved by 24 percent to $6.75 billion from $5.44 billion in 2023.
For this year, PSN expects revenues to settle between $7 billion to $7.5 billion.
5. Cinemark Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CNK)
Shares of Cinemark Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CNK) declined by 13.58 percent on Wednesday to finish at $28.57 each as investor sentiment was dampened by missed earnings estimates.
In its earnings release, CNK said earnings per share for the fourth quarter of 2024 stood at $0.33, lower by 19 percent than the $0.41 as estimated by analysts.
However, CNK swung to a net income attributable to the company of $51.3 million from a net loss of $18 million in the same period a year earlier, as revenues increased by 27.5 percent to $814.3 million from $638.9 million year-on-year.
For the full year 2024, net income attributable to the company was at $309.7 million, a 64.55-percent surge from a net income of $188.2 million in 2023. Diluted earnings per share last year was $2.06 compared with diluted earnings per share of $1.34 in 2023.
4. Hudbay Minerals Inc. (NYSE:HBM)
Hudbay Minerals Inc. (NYSE:HBM) dropped for a second day on Wednesday, losing 13.62 percent to finish at $7.74 apiece following mixed earnings results last year, coupled with weak outlook guidance for 2025.
In its earnings release, HBM said attributable net income declined by 30.9 percent to $21.2 million in the fourth quarter of 2024 from $30.7 million in the same period last year, as revenues dipped 2.87 percent to $584.9 million from $602.2 million.
However, attributable net income for full-year 2024 increased by 15.5 percent to $76.7 million from $66.4 million in 2023, as revenues grew by 19.6 percent to $2.02 billion from $1.69 billion.
For this year, HBM said it expects consolidated copper production to remain stable with 2024 levels at 133,000 tons, but consolidated gold production would be lower than in 2024.
3. Shift4 Payments, Inc. (NYSE:FOUR)
Shift4 Payments, Inc. (NYSE:FOUR) fell 17.48 percent on Wednesday to close at $103.7 apiece as investors shunned twin news of improved earnings performance and its acquisition of a Swiss financial payments firm and instead focused on concerns over its CEO’s looming departure.
On Wednesday, FOUR announced that its CEO, Jared Isaacman, is set to leave the company to join and lead the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, at a time when the company recently acquired Global Blue.
The board of directors unanimously approved the merger, which is expected to be completed by the third quarter of the year.
On his return to the White House, President Donald Trump announced tapping Isaacman to lead NASA who is expected to drive NASA’s mission of discovery and inspiration, “paving the way for groundbreaking achievements in Space science, technology, and exploration.”
2. Global-E Online Ltd. (NASDAQ:GLBE)
Global-E Online Ltd. (NASDAQ:GLBE) fell by 17.77 percent on Wednesday to finish at $50.90 apiece as investor sentiment was dampened by dismal outlook guidance for 2025.
In its earnings release, GLBE anticipates revenue growth to grow at a slower pace due to expected impacts from tariffs coupled with a shift towards multi-local strategies by merchants.
In the fourth quarter of 2024, GLBE swung to a net income of $1.5 million in the fourth quarter of the year, reversing a net loss of $22.1 million in the same period a year earlier, as revenues jumped by 41.8 percent to $262.9 million from $185.4 million.
For the full year, net loss narrowed by 43.5 percent to $75.5 million from $133.8 million in 2023, as revenues increased by 32 percent to $752 million from $569 million year-on-year.
1. Celanese Corporation (NYSE:CE)
Celanese Corporation (NYSE:CE) fell to a new all-time low on Wednesday as investors unloaded portfolios following a dismal earnings performance last year.
At intra-day trading, CE dropped to its lowest of $52.97 apiece before gaining momentum to end just 21.46 percent lower at $54.91 each.
In the fourth quarter of 2024, CE swung to a net loss of $1.9 billion from a $701 million net income in the same period a year earlier, as net sales dipped 7.4 percent to $2.37 billion from $2.56 billion.
The company also booked a net loss of $1.5 billion in full-year 2024, reversing a $1.96-billion net income in 2023, as net sales dipped 6 percent to $10.28 billion from $10.94 billion.
While we acknowledge the potential of CE as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and doing so within a shorter timeframe. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than CE but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
READ NEXT: 20 Best AI Stocks To Buy Now and Complete List of 59 AI Companies Under $2 Billion in Market Cap.
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