Alphabet’s stock just triggered a ‘death cross.’ Could the worst of the selloff be over?

NEW YORK — A potentially historic drop for Alphabet's stock is sending the U.S. market into decline on Thursday. This follows the tech giant, responsible for Google and YouTube, reporting weaker growth for the summer than analysts anticipated. The report has heightened concerns over whether Alphabet's substantial investments in artificial intelligence technology will yield positive results.

The S&P 500 experienced a drop of 0.6 percent, marking its first loss in four days, despite the majority of stocks within the index and across Wall Street trading higher. The Nasdaq composite fell by 1.6 percent, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 269 points, or 0.5 percent. Alphabet, being one of the most influential stocks on Wall Street due to its large size, witnessed a 12.8 percent loss, putting it on track for its worst day since beginning trading over 20 years ago.

The company had been under pressure to meet or exceed analysts' expectations for growth, given the substantial investments it's making in AI. Late Wednesday, Alphabet disclosed that it had depleted more cash during the latest quarter, according to a metric known as free cash flow, according to a source.