US Stock Market: Multiple States Investigate Apple, Disney Delays Major Film Releases, Fear Gauge Rises

Thursday’s U.S. stock market losses led to investors seeking protection in options and Treasurys. This drove the Cboe Volatility Index (VIX) – seen by Wall Street as the market’s best “fear gauge” – to 26 and benchmark 10-year Treasury yields to 0.57%.

Some of the volatility was fueled late in the session by extreme “whipsaw” action. The wild, two-sided trade that steepened the late session selloff was triggered by a report from a watchdog group that said Apple Inc faces consumer protection investigations in multiple states. Apple traded 4.5% lower after the report.

Apple Faces Deceptive Trade Practices Probe by Multiple U.S. States:  Axios

Multiple U.S. states are investigating Apple Inc for potentially deceiving consumers, according to a March document obtained by a tech watchdog group, Reuters reported.

The Texas attorney general may sue Apple for violating the state’s deceptive trade practices law in connection with the multi-state investigation, according to the document, which was obtained by the Tech Transparency Project.

The document did not provide additional details.

The office of the Texas attorney general declined to comment. Apple did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

Apple has faced class-action lawsuits from consumers alleging that it deceived them about slowing the performance of iPhones with aging batteries. The company agreed to pay up to $500 million to settle one such lawsuit earlier this year.

Apple is also facing lawsuits alleging that it knew and concealed how the “butterfly” keyboards on its MacBook laptops were prone to failure.

Treasury Yields Fall Slightly After Jobless Claims Come in Worse Than Expected

Treasury yields dipped on Thursday after data showed U.S. jobless claims rose more than expected last week. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note fell one basis point to 0.584% and the yield on the 30-year Treasury bond were also lower at 1.274%. Yields more inversely to prices.

US Companies Making Headlines After Thursday’s Bell

Intel’s stock dropped 8% in extended trading after the company offered disappointing third-quarter guidance. Intel released its second quarter earnings, beating predictions of analysts surveyed by Refinitiv.

After Intel said the company’s 7mm-based CPU product timing is delayed, shares of Advanced Micro Devices climbed 7% in after hours.

Moderna’s stock dropped 2% in extended trading after falling 9.49% earlier in the day. The drop comes after the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office ruled Moderna does not have a claim to a patent held by a rival company.

The ruling could potentially delay Moderna’s race to produce a coronavirus vaccine. Shares of BioNTech jumped 2% while Novavax’s stock fell 1% in after hours.

Disney’s stock fell 1% after the closing bell. The company announced Thursday afternoon that its movie “Mulan” is delayed indefinitely and all Star Wars films and Avatar sequels have been pushed back a year due to theater closures and production shutdowns spurred by the coronavirus pandemic.

For a look at all of today’s economic events, check out our economic calendar.