Paramount Skydance Rallies On Hostile Bid, Netflix Tumbles: What's Moving Markets Monday?

U.S. stocks kicked off the week in a mixed pattern, with sentiment turning cautious as traders consider a Fed rate cut all but fully baked into current valuations. CME FedWatch tool currently assigns a 90% likelihood to a quarter-point reduction at the Dec. 10 meeting.

Yet the odds of a follow-up move in January fell to 20%, signaling rising skepticism that the Fed will sustain its recent easing pace.

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Small caps led once again, with the Russell 2000 advancing 0.2% and hitting fresh record levels. The broader tone was softer: the S&P 500 slipped 0.4%, the Nasdaq 100 declined 0.4% and the Dow Jones shed 0.5%.

In the bond market, yields continued to climb. The 10-year Treasury yield advanced for a third straight session, reaching 4.18%, its highest level since late September.

Pressure continues to come from abroad, where rising Japanese bond yields remain a key driver. The 10-year Japanese government bond approached the 2% threshold, a level not seen since June 2007, triggering global bond volatility.

Media stocks were in focus. The bidding war for Warner Bros. Discovery Inc. (NASDAQ:WBD) intensified after Paramount Skydance Corp. (NASDAQ:PSKY) unveiled a $30-per-share cash offer, implying a valuation near $108.4 billion and overtaking Netflix's $27.75 cash-and-stock bid from last week.

Paramount gained 6% on expectations it now holds the stronger hand, while Netflix fell 5%. Shares of Warner Bros. added almost 4% as traders positioned for a higher eventual takeover price.

Elsewhere, Confluent Inc. (NASDAQ:CFLT) jumped 29% after reports that International Business Machines Corp. (NYSE:IBM) is evaluating a potential acquisition. Carvana Co. (NYSE:CVNA) gained more than 10% as its inclusion in the S&P 500 continued to draw inflows. Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) slipped 3% after a downgrade from Morgan Stanley weighed on sentiment.

In commodities, oil hovered flat near $59, while gold edged 0.2% lower to $4,150 per ounce.

Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) traded around $90,000, down 0.4%, while Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) advanced 1.6%.

Monday's Performance In Major U.S. Indices, ETFs

According to Benzinga Pro data:

• The Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (NYSE:VOO) slipped 0.4% to $627.84.
• The SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average (NYSE:DIA) moved 0.4% lower to $477.99.
• The tech-heavy Invesco QQQ Trust (NASDAQ:QQQ) eased 0.40% to $623.10.
• The iShares Russell 2000 ETF (NYSE:IWM) traded 0.2% higher to $251.23.
• The Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLK) outperformed, up 0.5%; the Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLY) lagged, down 1.5%.

Russell 1000's Top 5 Gainers and Losers On Monday

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