. The largest U.S. meat supplier by sales has been under pressure as it grapples with higher costs across its business. Its stock is down 2.7% this year.to a range between 5% and 5.25%, a 16-year high, while signaling it could be done lifting rates after that. The decision marked its 10th consecutive rate increase aimed at battling inflation in moves that took time to ripple through the economy.
This time could prove to be different, but that might not be enough to break stocks out of their lull. Stocks still look expensive historically. The S&P 500 is trading at about 18 times its projected earnings over the next 12 months, higher than the 10-year average of 17.3, according to FactSet.