Potentially historic drop for Alphabet's stock drags US market lower

New York — A potentially historic drop in Alphabet's stock is causing the U.S. market to slide lower on Thursday, following the tech giant's revelation of weaker summer growth than analysts had anticipated. The disclosure highlights concerns over whether Alphabet's substantial investments in artificial-intelligence technology will yield positive results.

The S&P 500 fell 0.6 percent, marking its first decline in four days, despite most other stocks within the index and across Wall Street trending upward. The Nasdaq composite experienced a more significant drop of 1.6 percent, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 269 points, or 0.5 percent. As one of the most influential stocks on Wall Street, Alphabet's 12.8 percent loss had it on track for its worst day since trading began over two decades ago.

The company had been under pressure to meet analysts' expectations for growth, given the increasing scrutiny over its AI spending. Late Wednesday, Alphabet disclosed that it had depleted more cash during the latest quarter, as measured by free cash flow.