03:49 PM EDT, 04/25/2024 (MT Newswires) -- US benchmark equity indexes were lower ahead of Thursday's close, with the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite weighed down by a post-earnings selloff in Meta Platforms' ( META ) stock, while first-quarter economic growth fell short of Wall Street's views.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.9% at 38,111.9, while the Nasdaq Composite fell 0.5% to 15,628.4. The S&P 500 lost 0.4% to 5,052.1. Among sectors, communication services plunged 4%, the steepest decline. Materials paced the gainers.

Meta was the worst performer on the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq, down 11%. The Facebook and Instagram parent late Wednesday projected higher capital spending this year than previously expected as its first-quarter financial results exceeded the Street's estimates.

The US two-year yield rose 5.6 basis points to 4.99%, while the 10-year rate added 4.8 basis points to 4.7%.

US real gross domestic product grew at an annual rate of 1.6% in the March quarter, while consumer spending growth eased sequentially amid rising inflationary pressures, according to an advance estimate by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. The consensus was for a 2.5% real GDP gain in a survey compiled by Bloomberg.

Microsoft ( MSFT ) and Google ( GOOG ) parent Alphabet (GOOG, GOOGL) are scheduled to post their latest financial results after the closing bell, along with other major names such as wireless carrier T-Mobile US ( TMUS ) and chipmaker Intel ( INTC ) .

West Texas Intermediate crude oil rose 1.2% to $83.79 per barrel.