Stocks fell on choppy trade on Thursday as investors weighed the potential that the Federal Reserve's aggressive actions to combat inflation amid mixed economic data could trigger a recession. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell nearly 175 points, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite slipped 1% and 1.4%, respectively.

Here's how the market settled on Thursday:

S&P 500 Index (SPY  ): -1.13% or -44.66 points to 3,901.35

Dow Jones Industrial Average (DIA  ): -0.56% or -173.27 points to 30,961.82

Nasdaq Composite Index (QQQ  ): -1.43% or -167.32 points to 11,552.36

In the headlines, Ethereum completed its highly-anticipated "merge" to a more energy-efficient method to how the cryptocurrency is minted. The move will cause the digital currency to consume about 99.9% less energy, or the equivalent of Finland turning off its entire power grid.

For stocks, Adobe (ADBE  ) announced it plans to purchase rival design platform Figma for $20 billion in cash and stock. Following the announcement, Adobe stock sank 17%, marking its biggest plunge since 2010.

"Adobe's greatness has been rooted in our ability to create new categories and deliver cutting-edge technologies through organic innovation and inorganic acquisitions," said Adobe CEO Shantanu Narayen. "The combination of Adobe and Figma is transformational and will accelerate our vision for collaborative creativity."

Elsewhere, so-call "buy now, pay later" companies came under scrutiny on Thursday on news that the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) will begin regulating the industry over concerns their offerings financially harm consumers. Shares of Affirm (AFRM  ) closed down over 1%.

On the economic front, the Commerce Department released data showing consumer kept spending in August despite rising prices. Retail sales increased 0.3% last month, making an unexpected jump after July's downwardly revised decline of 0.4%.

However, excluding autos, sales decreased 0.3% for the month, below estimates for a 0.1% increase.

Separately, initial jobless claims fell for a fifth-straight week to the data's lowest reading since May for the week ended September 10. First-time filings for unemployment insurance totaled 213,000 last week, down from the previous week's print of 222,000.

Investors are still weighing the potential outcomes from August's red-hot consumer price index (CPI) reading, which registered a 8.3% increase over last year. Heading towards the Federal Reserve's next policy-setting meeting next week, Wall Street's actions will continue to reflect concerns that stem from that report.

On Wednesday, Bank of America (BAC  ) economists said in a note that the central bank is likely to warn Wall Street of the risks of a potential hard landing for inflation are rising as they continue to take aggressive actions to stabilize prices.

"This will likely come through projections that show less growth, higher unemployment, and a more restrictive policy rate stance," BofA strategists led by Michael Gapen said. "While the Fed is still likely to view a soft landing as a modal outcome, the window appears to be narrowing."