NEW YORK, Aug. 27 -- The Nasdaq Composite ended Tuesday at 19,847, down 0.8% from Monday's close, in a session that had more texture than a single headline number could capture. Call it a pre-earnings rotation: investors selling what could disappoint - semiconductor hardware - and holding what has already delivered - cloud, software, AI applications. The dividing line ran almost exactly where you'd expect it to.

NVIDIA, the index's single largest influence by market capitalization, fell 1% to $210.95. The modest decline belied how much the company dominated the day's attention. NVIDIA reports fiscal second-quarter 2027 earnings after Wednesday's close, with consensus estimates calling for revenue of $92.2 billion, up 97.4% year-over-year...