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Target ( TGT ) falls over 20% after muted holiday-quarter sales

forecast

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Nvidia ( NVDA ) falls over 2% before results due after market close

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Indexes down: Dow 0.30%, S&P 500 0.69%, Nasdaq 0.97%

(Updates with mid-session trading)

By Abigail Summerville and Lisa Pauline Mattackal

Nov 20 (Reuters) - Wall Street's main indexes dipped on

Wednesday, taking a break from the prior session's rally as

investors worried about escalation of Russia-Ukraine tensions

and weak results from Target ( TGT ), while awaiting earnings from

megacap Nvidia ( NVDA ).

Stocks fell after a report said Ukraine fired long-range

British Storm Shadow missiles into Russian territory. On

Tuesday, Ukraine launched U.S.-made ATACMS missiles into Russia,

and Russia announced it had lowered the threshold for nuclear

action.

Wall Street's "fear gauge" jumped to 18.79 before

easing to 18.04, still at its highest since the Nov. 5 U.S.

presidential election.

"It's gotten a little more defensive today after a

strong rally yesterday from growth stocks and the tech sector,"

said James Regan, Director of Wealth Management Research at D.A.

Davidson

"Maybe there's a conservative view ahead of Nvidia ( NVDA )

earnings or a broader reaction from Target's ( TGT ) earnings which is a

consumer bellwether. There are also more geopolitical concerns

with tensions in Ukraine and Russia and the U.S. evacuating

embassies," Regan said.

AI leader Nvidia ( NVDA ) fell 2.2% ahead of its results

that are scheduled for after the bell. The index heavyweight

dragged the Information Technology sector down 1.15%,

as well as the tech-heavy Nasdaq.

Target ( TGT ) plunged 20.7% after the retailer forecast

holiday-quarter comparable sales and profit below Wall Street

expectations following a third-quarter estimate miss.

The consumer discretionary index was the

biggest sectoral decliner, falling 1.3%.

Growth stocks like Tesla and Amazon.com ( AMZN )

shed 1.5% and 1.6%, respectively.

All eyes remained on Nvidia ( NVDA ), which has nearly tripled in

value this year, accounting for about 20% of the S&P 500's

returns over the last 12 months, according to BofA Global

Research.

However, given the lofty earnings expectations, the company

could struggle to impress investors. Options traders are primed

for a nearly $300-billion swing in Nvidia's ( NVDA ) market value after

the results.

"We're starting to see commentary from larger companies

that have been deploying capital in the AI, tech spend space

talking about examples of how that spend is converting to either

higher revenue or cost savings. That bodes well for companies

like Nvidia ( NVDA ) that are on the picks and shovels side of that tech,

AI spend trade," said Bill Merz, head of Capital Markets

Research for U.S. Bank's asset management group.

At 2:10 p.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average

fell 131.56 points, or 0.30%, to 43,137.38, the S&P 500

lost 40.45 points, or 0.69%, to 5,876.53 and the Nasdaq

Composite lost 183.64 points, or 0.97%, to 18,803.83.

Cryptocurrency stocks ticked higher as bitcoin jumped above

$94,000, with MicroStrategy ( MSTR ) and MARA Holdings ( MARA )

up 14.5% and 17.7%%, respectively.

Traders have increased bets on the U.S. central bank leaving

interest rates unchanged at its December meeting in the wake of

strong economic data and signs of persistent inflation.

Declining issues outnumbered advancers by a 2.17-to-1 ratio

on the NYSE and a 1.74-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.

The S&P 500 posted 28 new 52-week highs and 12 new lows

while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 81 new highs and 138 new

lows.