By Mackenzie Tatananni

The S&P 500 sank Thursday on the heels of President Donald Trump's latest tariff announcement, but some stocks traded higher while the rest of Wall Street swooned.

Lamb Weston Holdings, the maker of frozen potato products, was the S&P 500's top performer, rising 8%. The sharp gains came after Lamb Weston reported better-than-expected earnings for the fiscal third quarter. The S&P 500, by comparison, was down 4.1%.

SBA Communications, American Tower, and Crown Castle, three real estate investment trusts, were up 4.3%, 4%, and 3.7%, respectively. While REITs aren't always considered defensive investments, the key is in the details: all three specialize in wireless communications infrastructures.

Other gainers included First Solar, the largest solar panel manufacturer in the U.S., which rose 6.4%. CEO Mark Widmar previously voiced his support for import taxes on solar components, arguing such levies would support efforts to build a domestic manufacturing base.

Kroger, one of the largest grocery chains in the U.S., was rising 4%, while pharmaceutical distributor McKesson was up 3.4%. In addition to healthcare's reputation as a defensive sector, McKesson has a leg up on competitors as the largest drug distributor in the nation.

Options exchange Cboe Global Markets and fixed-income trading platform MarketAxess Holdings each were up 3.4%. Rounding out the top 10 was American Water Works, the biggest wastewater utility company in the U.S., which rose 2.8%.

Trump's "Liberation Day" announcement jolted Wall Street as the levies on U.S. trading partners turned out to be higher than anticipated, stoking recession fears. All three major indexes were in the red on Thursday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average falling 3.7% and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite diving 4.9%.

Write to Mackenzie Tatananni at mackenzie.tatananni@barrons.com

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April 03, 2025 10:28 ET (14:28 GMT)

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