MW Consumer and tech brands top 20 worst-performing S&P 500 stocks Thursday as tariffs rattle markets

By Philip van Doorn

President Trump announced new tariffs on goods from dozens of countries on Wednesday, heightening investors' concerns about the economy

President Donald Trump waited until after the market close on Wednesday to announce a new round of tariffs on goods imported from dozens of countries. On Thursday, investors showed their uncertainty over how the blossoming trade conflicts would affect the economy.

Steve Goldstein looked into some of the math behind the Trump administration's announced tariff policies.

Gregg Robb covered the reaction of economists to Trump's tariff announcements and what may lie ahead during a period of economic disruption.

More coverage from the MarketWatch team:

-- What investors should do now after Trump's 'liberation day' tariff shock, says this top strategist

-- Trump's tariffs are having a surprising impact on the U.S. dollar. Here's how investors can benefit.

-- Apple's stock is getting pounded on tariff news. Don't freak out just yet.

The S&P 500 SPX was down 3.9% in midmorning trading. Here is how the 11 sectors of the large-cap benchmark index were performing (all price changes in this article exclude dividends). The tables also include price changes for the past few calendar years and from the end of 2021 through Thursday morning, to reflect the broad market decline in 2022 that was followed by two years of stellar returns in 2023 and 2024. You might need to scroll the table to see all of the information.

   Sector or index           April 3 price change  2025 price change  2024 price change  2023 price change  2022 price change  Price change since end of 2021 
   Consumer Discretionary                   -6.1%             -16.7%              29.1%              41.0%             -37.6%                           -5.3% 
   Energy                                   -5.5%               4.0%               2.3%              -4.8%              59.0%                           61.0% 
   Information Technology                   -5.4%             -16.2%              35.7%              56.4%             -28.9%                           26.4% 
   Financials                               -4.3%              -0.6%              28.4%               9.9%             -12.4%                           23.1% 
   Industrials                              -4.2%              -3.3%              15.6%              16.0%              -7.1%                           20.6% 
   Communication Services                   -3.7%              -9.1%              38.9%              54.4%             -40.4%                           16.2% 
   Materials                                -3.3%               0.0%              -1.8%              10.2%             -14.1%                           -7.0% 
   Real Estate                              -2.3%               0.9%               1.7%               8.3%             -28.4%                          -20.5% 
   Healthcare                               -0.5%               4.4%               0.9%               0.3%              -3.6%                            1.9% 
   Utilities                                -0.3%               4.6%              19.6%             -10.2%              -1.4%                           10.7% 
   Consumer Staples                          0.9%               5.7%              12.0%              -2.2%              -3.2%                           12.1% 
   S&P 500                                  -3.9%              -7.3%              23.3%              24.2%             -19.4%                           14.4% 
                                                                                                                                              Source: FactSet 

The consumer discretionary sector was the worst performer Thursday morning, with a 6.1% decline. This sector includes Amazon.com Inc. $(AMZN)$, which was down 7.4% for the session and showed a 17.3% decline for 2025. Tesla Inc. $(TSLA)$ is another consumer discretionary stock - it was down 5% Thursday morning, with a year-to-date decline of 33.5%, but was only the 13th worst-performer for 2025, while Deckers Outdoor Corp. $(DECK)$ tacked on a decline of 16.7% Thursday morning, for a 51.6% decline for 2025.

The energy sector's decline was an obvious sign of worries over economic growth and energy commodity prices. Shares of the largest company in the sector - Exxon Mobil Corp. $(XOM)$ - were down 3.8% Thursday morning but were still up 6.1% for 2025.

The information technology sector was down 5.4% Thursday morning. Shares of Apple Inc. $(AAPL)$, the largest company in the tech sector (and in the full S&P 500) by market capitalization, were down 8.7% for the trading session and down 18.4% for 2025.

These 20 stocks in the S&P 500 showed the largest price declines Thursday morning:

   Company                              Ticker    April 3 price change  2025 price change  2024 price change  2023 price change  2022 price change  Price change since end of 2021 
   HP Inc.                              HPQ                     -17.5%             -29.5%                 8%                12%               -29%                            -39% 
   Williams-Sonoma Inc.                 WSM                     -17.3%             -26.3%                84%                76%               -32%                             61% 
   Deckers Outdoor Corp.                DECK                    -16.7%             -51.6%                82%                67%                 9%                             61% 
   Ralph Lauren Corp. Class A           RL                      -16.4%             -14.5%                60%                36%               -11%                             66% 
   Dell Technologies Inc. Class C       DELL                    -16.1%             -30.6%                51%                90%               -28%                             42% 
   Best Buy Co.                         BBY                     -16.1%             -25.9%                10%                -2%               -21%                            -37% 
   Garmin Ltd.                          GRMN                    -15.0%             -10.1%                60%                39%               -32%                             36% 
   KKR & Co.                            KKR                     -13.7%             -29.4%                79%                78%               -38%                             40% 
   Synchrony Financial                  SYF                     -13.6%             -26.8%                70%                16%               -29%                              3% 
   Zebra Technologies Corp. Class A     ZBRA                    -13.3%             -35.5%                41%                 7%               -57%                            -58% 
   Tapestry Inc.                        TPR                     -13.2%              -0.7%                77%                -3%                -6%                             60% 
   Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd.  NCLH                    -13.2%             -34.2%                28%                64%               -41%                            -18% 
   Discover Financial Services          DFS                     -13.0%             -11.6%                54%                15%               -15%                             32% 
   Nike Inc. Class B                    NKE                     -12.9%             -25.2%               -30%                -7%               -30%                            -66% 
   Carnival Corp.                       CCL                     -12.9%             -30.0%                34%               130%               -60%                            -13% 
   United Airlines Holdings Inc.        UAL                     -12.8%             -35.9%               135%                 9%               -14%                             42% 
   Hasbro Inc.                          HAS                     -12.7%              -2.1%                 9%               -16%               -40%                            -46% 
   Seagate Technology Holdings PLC      STX                     -12.5%             -13.3%                 1%                62%               -53%                            -34% 
   Apollo Global Management Inc.        APO                     -12.5%             -25.0%                77%                46%               -12%                             71% 
   Lululemon Athletica Inc.             LULU                    -12.2%             -35.1%               -25%                60%               -18%                            -37% 
                                                                                                                                                                   Source: FactSet 

Click on the tickers for more about each company.

Read: Tomi Kilgore's detailed guide to the information available on the MarketWatch quote page

Don't miss: These ETF strategies can help lower your investment risk as tariffs ramp up stock-market uncertainty

-Philip van Doorn

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April 03, 2025 11:24 ET (15:24 GMT)

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