S&P 500 Falls For Third Day Amid Iran-Israel Conflict: Investor Sentiment Improves Slightly, But Fear & Greed Index Remains In 'Neutral' Zone

The CNN Money Fear and Greed index showed a slight improvement in the overall market sentiment, while the index remained in the “Neutral” zone on Friday.

U.S. stocks settled mixed on Friday, with the S&P 500 falling for the third straight session amid escalating Iran-Israel conflict. For the week, the S&P 500 fell around 0.2%, while the 30-stock Dow gained 0.02%.

Darden Restaurants Inc. DRI reported better-than-expected fourth-quarter financial results. Accenture plc ACN shares fell around 7% on Friday following the release of its third-quarter results.

On the economic front, the Philadelphia Fed Manufacturing Index came in unchanged at -4.0 in June, versus market estimates of -1.

Most sectors on the S&P 500 closed on a negative note, with health care, materials and communication services stocks recording the biggest losses on Friday. However, energy and consumer staples stocks bucked the overall market trend, closing the session higher.

The Dow Jones closed higher by over 35 points to 42,206.82 on Friday. The S&P 500 fell 0.22% to 5,967.84, while the Nasdaq Composite dipped 0.51% at 19,447.41 during Friday's session.

Investors are awaiting earnings results from FactSet Research Systems Inc. FDS, Commercial Metals Co. CMC and KB Home KBH today.

What is CNN Business Fear & Greed Index?

At a current reading of 55.4, the index remained in the “Neutral” zone on Friday, versus a prior reading of 55.1.

The Fear & Greed Index is a measure of the current market sentiment. It is based on the premise that higher fear exerts pressure on stock prices, while higher greed has the opposite effect. The index is calculated based on seven equal-weighted indicators. The index ranges from 0 to 100, where 0 represents maximum fear and 100 signals maximum greediness.

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