US STOCKS-Wall Street slips with Jackson Hole event in focus; Walmart slides

By Johann M Cherian and Sanchayaita Roy

Aug 21 (Reuters) - Wall Street's main indexes slipped on Thursday, as investors awaited clues on monetary policy from a Federal Reserve conference in Jackson Hole, while big-box retailer Walmart's quarterly results did little to boost sentiment.

Walmart WMT.N raised its fiscal year sales and profit, driven by strong demand from shoppers across all income levels, but missed quarterly profit expectations and flagged higher costs from tariffs.

Shares of the retailer fell 4.3% and pressured the consumer staples sector .SPLRCS, which declined 0.9%.

The "results were actually pretty good...I just think they're landing in a market that has taken on a risk off tone this week," said Art Hogan, chief market strategist at B Riley Wealth.

Reports from other retailers such as Target TGT.N and Home Depot HD.N earlier this week painted a mixed picture, while technology-related stocks such as Meta META.O, Amazon.com AMZN.O and Advanced Micro Devices AMD.O declined sharply.

The selloff signaled investor fears that the equities, which have soared since April lows, are now overvalued, while Washington's growing interference in the sector has also raised alarms.

But according to the Stock Trader's Almanac, the selloff could also be a result of investors paring back their stock exposure during a traditionally rocky period for equities.

At 10:04 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI fell 119.30 points, or 0.27%, to 44,817.87, the S&P 500 .SPX lost 13.98 points, or 0.22%, to 6,381.80 and the Nasdaq Composite .IXIC lost 48.09 points, or 0.23%, to 21,124.77.

Coty COTY.N slumped 20% after the beauty products maker forecast a drop in current-quarter sales on weak U.S. spending.

Traders are now focused on the Fed's annual symposium, where Chair Jerome Powell is scheduled to speak on Friday at 10 a.m. ET. They are looking for any commentary from Powell that would signal an interest rate cut in September following recent job market weakness.

"Investors are looking for assurance from Powell that a rate cut is likely at the September meeting, in order to help prevent any further weakening of the labor market," said Rick Gardner, chief investment officer at RGA Investments.

Data on Thursday added to worries of a labor market slowdown, while a private report showed business activity picked up pace in August, reflecting a complicated environment in which the central bank will have to deliver its verdict next month.

The minutes from the central bank's July meeting indicated that policymakers had struck a cautious tone and plan to stick with it until they can fully gauge the impact of trade uncertainty on the economy.

The caution had traders paring odds of a 25-basis-point interest rate cut in September to 79% from 99.9% last week, according to data compiled by LSEG.

In trade developments, the U.S. and the European Union on Thursday finalized a framework deal they had reached last month.

Declining issues outnumbered advancers by a 1.85-to-1 ratio on the NYSE and by a 1.69-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.

The S&P 500 posted three new 52-week highs and no new lows, while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 30 new highs and 66 new lows.