The Federal Reserve hinted Wednesday its full throttle of economic support could start to ease as soon as November (its next policy meeting).

Why it matters: It would be the start of a pivot for the Fed, which unleashed unprecedented measures when the pandemic hit to help rescue the U.S. economy.

Toast, a Boston-based restaurant management platform, raised $870 million in an IPO that values the company at nearly $20 billion. It priced at $40 per share, which was above its original and upwardly-revised ranges, and will list on the NYSE (TOST).

Why it matters: This is whiplash success story. Toast was valued by VCs at $5 billion heading into the pandemic, but in April 2020 laid off nearly half of its employees and furloughed another 12%.

One byproduct of weakened demand for SPAC IPOs has been an uptick in sponsors getting anchor investors for their public offerings, often by offering them more favorable terms such as founder shares.

What’s happening: The trend continues. So far in September, anchor commitments represent more than half of all SPAC capital raised, per data from SPAC Research.

Monday interrupted a stretch of calm amid the historic stock market boom underway since March 2020.

Driving the news: Jitters were apparent nearly everywhere.

Philip Morris International (NYSE: PM) won a shareholder vote to take control of British asthma inhaler maker Vectura Group (LSE: VEC) for £1.1 billion ($1.5 billion), having previously outbid The Carlyle Group.

• Why it matters: The world's largest maker of cigarettes, a major contributor to respiratory disease, will now make products that treat respiratory disease. Some health advocates have asked Britain's competition authority to intervene, asking it to consider what they refer to as "monopolies of harm."

Investors rushed to buy shares this week of running shoes company On in its stock market debut, amid new signs that consumer spending remains resilient.

Why it matters: Apparel sales rebounded earlier this year as the economy reopened — and buying athletic apparel, especially sneakers, is one pandemic habit that’s not dying out.

The S&P 500 is just below its record high. But most stocks in the index are actually down significantly, which has some concerned.

Why it matters: This implies that the gains driving the market index to record highs are not evenly distributed. But, it’s also not an unusual dynamic in the S&P’s recent history.

Here’s a side effect of the going public boom: a heated race to reserve the hottest unique identifier, the ticker symbol.

Why it matters: The insignias companies are choosing to trade under is a reflection of our time — increasingly they want to go list with snappy symbols that catch the eye of a new generation of traders.

Wall Street’s top stock market forecasters are already telling clients what to expect in the stock market in 2022.

Why it matters: The stock market, as measured by the S&P 500, is up an impressive 20% since the beginning of the year. It’s more than doubled from its March 2020 low.

Goldman Sachs has had a great pandemic. Its shares are now trading at almost six times the level they traded at when the bank went public in 1999.

Why it matters: That's not because the banking industry, in general, has done particularly well. Citigroup shares, decimated by the 2008 financial crisis, are trading 80% below their level at the time of the Goldman IPO.