US STOCKS-Wall Street stocks fall as weak GDP growth spreads rate-cut gloom

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Alphabet, Microsoft and Intel report their results

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IBM drops after HashiCorp deal, disappointing Q1 revenue

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Caterpillar falls on downbeat Q2 sales forecast

(Updates to 4 PM ET)

By Chibuike Oguh

NEW YORK, April 25 (Reuters) - Wall Street stocks closed lower on Thursday as markets were stunned by data showing slower-than-expected U.S. economic growth and persistent inflation, coupled with a sell-off in large cap stocks triggered by disappointing results from Meta Platforms.

Data on Thursday showed that the U.S. economy grew at its slowest pace in nearly two years in the first quarter while inflation accelerated, dampening hopes that the Federal Reserve would begin cutting interest rates this year.

Disappointing results from Meta, whose shares plunged, also weighed on market sentiment. Three other Magnificent Seven stocks, including Alphabet, Amazon.com and Microsoft, finished lower. "The GDP numbers definitely puts a ding in the paradigm that markets were hanging onto for equities in terms of high growth; and if you don't have high growth that will translate to lower-than-expected earnings," said James St. Aubin, chief investment officer at Sierra Mutual Funds in California.

According to preliminary data, the S&P 500 lost 22.30 points, or 0.44%, to end at 5,049.33 points, while the Nasdaq Composite lost 97.83 points, or 0.63%, to 15,611.74. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 372.17 points, or 0.96%, to 38,091.87.

Money markets are pricing in just about 36 basis points of rate cuts from the Fed this year, down from about 150 bps seen at the start of the year, according to LSEG data.

Separately, the number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits unexpectedly fell last week, pointing to still tight labor market conditions. The March Personal Consumption expenditures (PCE) index, the Fed's preferred inflation gauge, is due on Friday.

"The double whammy was also the inflation number that came in stronger than expected so there wasn't really a silver lining in that report; it's still positive in absolute terms but relative to high expectations it was disappointing," St. Aubin added.

International Business Machines fell after it announced a $6.4 billion deal to buy HashiCorp alongside its first-quarter results, in which revenue missed estimates.

Southwest Airlines slid as the carrier slashed its projections for new aircraft deliveries from Boeing in 2024 for the third time.

Caterpillar lost ground after it cut second quarter sales forecasts as demand for its construction equipment eases from last year's boom.

Rising gold prices helped Newmont, the world's largest bullion miner, to report first quarter profit that beat estimates. Its shares closed higher.

(Reporting by Chibuike Oguh in New York; additional reporting by Shristi Achar A and Shashwat Chauhan in Bengaluru; Editing by Aurora Ellis)