What Happened?

A number of stocks fell in the afternoon session after a combination of hot inflation data and geopolitical turmoil rattled investor confidence. 

The Producer Price Index (PPI) surged 0.7% in February, more than doubling economist estimates of 0.3%. This spike in wholesale costs, driven by rising tariffs and manufacturing inputs, signaled a shift toward structural, "sticky" inflation that may persist longer than anticipated. Anxiety intensified as Brent crude jumped 4% to $108 a barrel following reports that Israel struck a major Iranian gas facility. With Iran threatening retaliatory strikes on Gulf energy infrastructure, Wall Street increasingly priced in a scenario where rising energy costs flow directly to consumers. 

The selloff deepened as the Federal Reserve maintained interest rates at 3.5% to 3.75%, explicitly citing the "uncertain" economic impact of the escalating Middle East conflict. While the Fed signaled one potential cut later in the year, Chair Jerome Powell admitted that progress on inflation had been slower than hoped, dousing dreams of a more aggressive pivot. This hawkish caution, reflected in the Dow's drop and 1% declines in the S&P 500 and Nasdaq, suggests that monetary easing may be delayed deep into the third quarter.

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:

• Terrestrial Telecommunication Services company Lumen (NYSE: LUMN) fell 3%. Is now the time to buy Lumen? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free.
• Traditional Media & Publishing company EchoStar (NASDAQ: SATS) fell 2.9%. Is now the time to buy EchoStar? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free.
• Terrestrial Telecommunication Services company Array (NYSE: AD) fell 3.1%. Is now the time to buy Array? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free.
• Industrial & Environmental Services company Pitney Bowes (NYSE: PBI) fell 4.1%. Is now the time to buy Pitney Bowes? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free.
• Traditional Media & Publishing company IMAX (NYSE: IMAX) fell 3.6%. Is now the time to buy IMAX? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free.

Zooming In On Pitney Bowes (PBI)

Pitney Bowes’s shares are somewhat volatile and have had 10 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 12 days ago when the stock dropped 4.9% on the news that a dismal February jobs report revealed an unexpected drop in employment, fueling concerns about the health of the economy. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported a loss of 92,000 nonfarm payroll jobs, a stark contrast to economists' forecasts which had anticipated a gain. The unemployment rate also edged up to 4.4%. Adding to the bleak picture, employment data for December and January was revised down by a combined 69,000, suggesting the labor market was weaker than previously understood. This report, described by an analyst as a "knock-down blow," indicates that economic weakness is widespread, with job losses occurring in nearly every sector. Such data can signal a potential economic slowdown, which typically leads to lower corporate earnings and reduced consumer spending, rattling investor confidence across the market.

Pitney Bowes is down 4.5% since the beginning of the year, and at $9.86 per share, it is trading 22.9% below its 52-week high of $12.79 from July 2025. Despite the year-to-date decline, investors who bought $1,000 worth of Pitney Bowes’s shares 5 years ago would now be looking at an investment worth $1,045.

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