01:30 PM EDT, 07/24/2024 (MT Newswires) -- US equity indexes fell as disappointing quarterly results from heavyweights Tesla (TSLA) and Alphabet (GOOG, GOOGL) called into question the ability of the so-called Magnificent Seven stocks to continue carrying markets.

The Nasdaq sank 2.8% to 17,493.5, with the S&P 500 down 1.7% to 5,460.4 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average 0.8% lower at 40,034.7 after midday on Wednesday. Communication services, consumer discretionary, and technology sectors were standout decliners intraday.

At the close Tuesday, the S&P 500 declined for the fourth time in five sessions, the first such occurrence since April, and following its steepest three-day slide since October at the back end of last week, a research note from Deutsche Bank said. "These choppy markets come as the focus is now squarely on earnings season," according to the note.

Tesla shares fell more than 10% intraday, among the worst performers on the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq, after the electric vehicle manufacturer's Q2 earnings fell short of market expectations, hit by lower vehicle prices and restructuring charges.

Google's ( GOOG ) parent company, Alphabet, reported better-than-expected Q2 results, but its YouTube ( GOOG ) advertising revenue fell short of analysts' projections. Shares dropped more than 4% intraday.

Earnings from Tesla and Alphabet "heightened investor concerns about the dominance of Big Tech stocks that have boosted Wall Street to record highs," a research note from D.A. Davidson said. Mega-cap chipmakers Broadcom ( AVGO ) , Qualcomm ( QCOM ) , Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company ( TSM ) , Nvidia (NVDA), and Advanced Micro Devices ( AMD ) weighed on the technology sector intraday.

Returns from the Magnificent Seven, which also include Apple ( AAPL ) , Meta Platforms ( META ) , and Microsoft ( MSFT ) , have accounted for a big chunk of the gains reported by the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq this year. Quarterly results from all three companies are due next week.

Meanwhile, in economic news, the July flash reading of manufacturing conditions from S&P Global fell to a seven-month low of 49.5 from 51.6 in June, compared with expectations for no change in a survey compiled by Bloomberg. The contraction signaled by the latest print is in line with the Empire State and Richmond Fed manufacturing indexes but in contrast with the Philadelphia Fed manufacturing index that indicated expansion in the regional sector.

US new-home sales fell to a 617,000 annual rate in June from an upwardly revised 621,000 rate in May, compared with the 640,000 rate expected in a survey compiled by Bloomberg. Home sales slid 7.4% from a year ago.

Treasury yields were mixed, with the 10-year down less than one basis point to 4.23%, and the 30-year rate rose 1.9 basis points to 4.49%.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil jumped 1.3% to $77.96 a barrel.

US commercial crude oil stocks, excluding inventories in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, fell by 3.7 million barrels during the week ended July 19, following a 4.9-million-barrel drop in the previous week, a steeper decline than the 2.8-million-barrel slump anticipated in a survey compiled by Bloomberg.

Gold rose 0.6% to $2,421.01 an ounce, and silver climbed 0.2% to $29.38.