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Payments firm Block falls as Q4 profit misses estimates

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UnitedHealth ( UNH ) drops after report of DOJ investigation

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Indexes down: Dow 0.86%, S&P 500 0.37%, Nasdaq 0.22%

(Updates for market open)

By Shashwat Chauhan and Sukriti Gupta

Feb 21 (Reuters) - Wall Street's main indexes moved

lower on Friday, as investors assessed latest economic data

including a weak consumer sentiment reading, while the blue-chip

Dow suffered its steepest loss on a drag by UnitedHealth ( UNH ).

UnitedHealth ( UNH ) dropped 9.2% after the Wall Street

Journal reported that the U.S. Justice Department has launched

an investigation into the company's Medicare billing practices

in recent months.

Shares of other health insurers were also hit, with CVS

Health ( CVS ) down 1.4% and Humana losing 5.3%.

On the data front, U.S. business activity nearly stalled

in February amid mounting fears over tariffs on imports and deep

cuts in federal government spending.

Separately, the University of Michigan's final estimate on

consumer sentiment came in at 64.7, compared to a forecast of

67.8.

All three main indexes are set for weekly declines

despite the S&P 500 hitting record highs twice earlier

this week.

Walmart's ( WMT ) dour forecast, along with jitters around

President Donald Trump's tariff threats and uncertainty over the

Federal Reserve's interest rate outlook, led to declines in all

three indexes on Thursday.

"As long as the economy is strong, job market is strong and

consumers stay resilient, then many of the president's policies

will probably not be deleterious on the economy," said Jamie

Cox, managing partner for Harris Financial Group.

"But if the consumer starts to falter, then it

multiplies the difficulties of a tariff regime."

Earlier this week, Trump said he will announce fresh

tariffs over the next month or sooner, adding lumber and forest

products to previously announced plans to impose duties on

imported cars, semiconductors and pharmaceuticals.

The Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) reading, the

Fed's preferred gauge for inflation, would be on the radar next

week after consumer and producer prices reading earlier this

month painted a mixed picture.

Several Fed officials on Thursday signaled they still feel

that cooling U.S. inflation will in time allow the U.S. central

bank to deliver further interest rate cuts.

Comments from Fed Vice Chair Philip Jefferson are due later

in the day.

At 10:16 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average

fell 381.79 points, or 0.86%, to 43,798.28, the S&P 500

lost 22.88 points, or 0.37%, to 6,094.64 and the Nasdaq

Composite lost 45.55 points, or 0.22%, to 19,918.27.

Nine of the S&P 500's 11 sectors traded lower, with

industrials leading declines with a 1.1% fall, while

healthcare stocks dropped 0.7%.

Block slid 15.5% after the payment firm's

fourth-quarter profit fell short of estimates.

Akamai Technologies ( AKAM ) dropped 15.6% as the

cybersecurity company forecast annual 2025 revenue below

estimates.

Declining issues outnumbered advancers by a 1.23-to-1 ratio

on the NYSE and by a 1.18-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.

The S&P 500 posted nine new 52-week highs and five new

lows, while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 53 new highs and 47

new lows.