The stock market started October in pretty good fashion, but had a somewhat rough finish in the notoriously volatile month. For the past few months, stocks have wobbled but not broken in what could turn out to be a sideways consolidation with little technical damage. The S&P 500 lost 2.8% in October, with the Nasdaq falling 2.3% and the Nasdaq 100 off by 3%. Smaller stocks fared better, with the S&P MidCap 400 and Russell 2000 both up 2.2%.