What Happened?
A number of stocks fell in the afternoon session after a confluence of negative economic data pointed to a weak economy.
The latest Survey of Consumer Expectations from the New York Fed revealed that households' short-term inflation expectations rose, while their outlook on the labor market deteriorated. Consumers expressed greater concern about potential job losses and expected lower earnings growth, factors that directly impact discretionary spending. Adding to the unease, Chief Economist at Moody’s Analytics, Mark Zandi, warned that 22 states demonstrated clear signs of a recession, placing the broader U.S. economy in a precarious position. The U.S. government shutdown further dampened sentiment, threatening to weigh on incomes and purchasing power.
The stock market overreacts to news, and big price drops can present good opportunities to buy high-quality stocks.
Among others, the following stocks were impacted:
- Real Estate Services company Opendoor (NASDAQ: OPEN) fell 3.8%. Is now the time to buy Opendoor? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free for active Edge members.
- Consumer Electronics company GoPro (NASDAQ: GPRO) fell 4.4%. Is now the time to buy GoPro? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free for active Edge members.
- Real Estate Services company Offerpad (NYSE: OPAD) fell 7.6%. Is now the time to buy Offerpad? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free for active Edge members.
- Home Furnishings company Purple (NASDAQ: PRPL) fell 2.9%. Is now the time to buy Purple? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free for active Edge members.
- Leisure Facilities company Topgolf Callaway (NYSE: MODG) fell 3.2%. Is now the time to buy Topgolf Callaway? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free for active Edge members.
Zooming In On Offerpad (OPAD)
Offerpad’s shares are extremely volatile and have had 94 moves greater than 5% over the last year. In that context, today’s move indicates the market considers this news meaningful but not something that would fundamentally change its perception of the business.
The previous big move we wrote about was 7 days ago when the stock dropped 8.2% on the news that fresh economic data revealed a significant drop in consumer confidence, stoking fears of a slowdown in household spending.
The pivotal event influencing market sentiment was the release of the Conference Board's September Consumer Confidence Index, which fell to 94.2, its lowest reading since April. This drop was primarily driven by growing pessimism among Americans regarding the job market and persistent inflation concerns. Economists noted that this erosion in confidence could directly translate into reduced spending on non-essential items. Compounding the negative sentiment, the housing market showed further signs of cooling, with home price growth slowing. Furthermore, the looming threat of a U.S. government shutdown added another layer of uncertainty, prompting investors to pull back from sectors reliant on robust consumer spending.
Offerpad is up 42.2% since the beginning of the year, but at $3.81 per share, it is still trading 38.8% below its 52-week high of $6.23 from August 2025. Investors who bought $1,000 worth of Offerpad’s shares at the IPO in December 2020 would now be looking at an investment worth $24.95.
Here at StockStory, we certainly understand the potential of thematic investing. Diverse winners from Microsoft (MSFT) to Alphabet (GOOG), Coca-Cola (KO) to Monster Beverage (MNST) could all have been identified as promising growth stories with a megatrend driving the growth. So, in that spirit, we’ve identified a relatively under-the-radar profitable growth stock benefiting from the rise of AI, available to you FREE via this link.
