Opendoor, VF Corp, Ralph Lauren, E.W. Scripps, and fuboTV Stocks Trade Down, What You Need To Know

What Happened?

A number of stocks fell in the afternoon session after worries over worsening trade relations with China were triggered by critical comments from President Donald Trump. 

The President's comments, stating on social media that China has 'become very hostile,' have injected significant volatility into the broader markets. This has particularly affected the leisure industry, which is highly sensitive to economic sentiment and discretionary spending. Leisure stocks, which include companies in travel, entertainment, and hospitality, rely on consumers feeling confident enough to spend on non-essential goods and services. Trump targeted China's tightening controls on rare earth metals, which are vital components in many technology products from electric vehicles to defense systems. The president's tone and the suggestion of canceling a meeting with President Xi caused a rapid sell-off in the market. 

Earlier in the week, China announced new export controls on the critical minerals. Beijing's Commerce Ministry stated that foreign suppliers now need government approval to export products containing certain rare-earth materials. These materials are essential for producing high-tech goods, including computer chips, electric vehicles, and defense technology. Analysts viewed the move as a strategic assertion of China's dominance in the global rare earth supply chain, particularly amid ongoing trade tensions. 

The prospect of escalating tariffs raises concerns about economic headwinds, which could lead to a slowdown in consumer spending. If consumers tighten their budgets in response to economic uncertainty, discretionary purchases are often the first to be cut, directly impacting the revenues of companies in this sector.

The stock market overreacts to news, and big price drops can present good opportunities to buy high-quality stocks.

Among others, the following stocks were impacted:

• Real Estate Services company Opendoor (NASDAQ:OPEN) fell 3.9%. Is now the time to buy Opendoor? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free for active Edge members.
• Apparel and Accessories company VF Corp (NYSE:VFC) fell 4%. Is now the time to buy VF Corp? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free for active Edge members.
• Apparel and Accessories company Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL) fell 3.3%. Is now the time to buy Ralph Lauren? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free for active Edge members.
• Broadcasting company E.W. Scripps (NASDAQ:SSP) fell 3.6%. Is now the time to buy E.W. Scripps? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free for active Edge members.
• Media company fuboTV (NYSE:FUBO) fell 3.2%. Is now the time to buy fuboTV? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free for active Edge members.

Zooming In On VF Corp (VFC)

VF Corp’s shares are extremely volatile and have had 30 moves greater than 5% over the last year. In that context, today’s move indicates the market considers this news meaningful but not something that would fundamentally change its perception of the business.

The previous big move we wrote about was 22 days ago when the stock gained 4.2% on the news that investors scooped up equities, shaking off the initial concerns inferred from the Fed's dot plot, with tech stocks leading the charge. 

As a reminder, the Federal Reserve cut its benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points the previous day and signaled that more reductions could come before year-end and beyond. Initially when the cut was announced and Fed Chair Powell held his press conference, there was a pullback in the market as the Fed's "dot plot" revealed that only one cut was likely for 2026. This was below the three cuts that had been priced into the markets. This was the first interest rate cut of 2025, a move investors had widely anticipated. In response to the decision, stocks rose significantly, positioning major indexes like the S&P 500 and Nasdaq to open at record levels. 

The Fed's decision was influenced by signs of a weakening labor market. Lower interest rates are generally seen as positive for stocks because they reduce borrowing costs for businesses and make fixed-income investments like bonds less attractive by comparison, driving capital into the equity market. While Fed Chair Powell noted the path forward has risks, the prospect of looser monetary policy has fueled optimism on Wall Street.

VF Corp is down 38.4% since the beginning of the year, and at $13.28 per share, it is trading 50.7% below its 52-week high of $26.93 from January 2025. Investors who bought $1,000 worth of VF Corp’s shares 5 years ago would now be looking at an investment worth $170.51.

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