Nasdaq Index: Oracle, Broadcom Drag Tech Stocks Lower – US Indices Forecast Today

Nasdaq Slips as Tech Sellers Stay in Control

The Nasdaq Composite is under pressure at mid-session after failing to clear the 50-day moving average at 23,124.62 — now acting as fresh resistance.

Sellers pushed the index through the intermediate 50% level at 22,959.14, and it’s now sitting on the short-term 50% retracement at 22,798.61. That level is doing some heavy lifting, but if it gives way, the door opens for a deeper move toward the 22,290.08–21,881.82 zone.

Tech weakness is the driver, and the tape is acting like buyers aren’t ready to defend much here.

Are Tech Sellers Tightening Their Grip?

Big tech is dragging the broader market lower again. The Nasdaq is off 1.1%, the S&P 500 is down 0.7%, and the Dow is softer by 0.2%. The selling is concentrated in the same AI-heavy names that have been bleeding all month.

Oracle and Broadcom — already hit hard in September with 11% and 19% declines month to date — are each down another 5%. Nvidia is off more than 3%. Traders aren’t stepping in yet; they’re rotating out and letting sellers press their advantage.

The message is pretty simple: the market still wants less tech exposure when these leaders can’t find a bid.

Is the Rotation Into Defensives and Cyclicals Getting Traction?

Sector performance is split, and you can see where money is hiding. Energy leads with a 1.25% gain as crude strength keeps pulling buyers in. Health care, financials, materials, and consumer staples are inching higher — classic spots when traders want stability.

Meanwhile, technology is down nearly 2%, and industrials and communication services are also leaning lower. It’s not a full-blown flight to safety, but you can feel traders reallocating. A little at a time.

What’s Behind the Weakness in Defense Stocks?

Defense names caught another wave of selling after reports that the Trump administration is weighing an executive order limiting buybacks, dividends, and executive compensation.

Lockheed Martin, Huntington Ingalls, L3Harris, and RTX all traded lower on the headlines. Analysts aren’t thrilled: Wolfe Research warned the approach could backfire by pushing suppliers out of the sector, while Morgan Stanley noted that caps on capital returns could curb investment and discourage new entrants.

Traders treated the headlines as one more reason to lighten exposure.

Where Are Traders Finding Winners?

Outside of tech, a few bright spots are helping stabilize the broader market.

Solstice Advanced Materials, Trade Desk, Shopify, Airbnb, Adobe, Diamondback Energy, and Atlassian are all catching bids — mostly stock-specific stories, not a broad theme.

On the downside, chip stocks are getting hit hardest. Broadcom, Palantir, ASML, Arm, Lam Research, Nvidia, AMD, PDD, KLA, Applied Materials, and CrowdStrike are all deep in the red.

Bottom Line: Does the Market Have the Energy for a Bounce?

The Nasdaq’s inability to reclaim the 50-day is keeping dip-buyers cautious. If 22,798.61 breaks, sellers could get the follow-through they’ve been pushing for.

Traders will be watching whether buyers show up at that retracement zone below — because if they don’t, the rotation out of tech may run longer than bulls would like.

More Information in our Economic Calendar.