Consumer stocks were lower Thursday afternoon, with the Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLP) falling 1.1% and the Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLY) down 1%.

In corporate news, Walmart (WMT) shares fell nearly 5% after the retailer reported lower-than-expected fiscal Q2 adjusted earnings.

Tesla (TSLA) is facing a US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's audit query over delays in reporting crashes that took place "several months" or more before the dates of the reports, the regulator said in a report. Tesla shares were down more than 1%.

Coty (COTY) shares dropped 22% after the company reported overnight a wider quarterly loss and a year-over-year decline in sales.