Stock Market Live March 23, 2026: S&P 500 (SPY) Soars on Trump Announcement

By Ian Cooper Updated Mar 23, 11:10AM EDT · Published Mar 23, 8:22AM EDT

Quick Read

President Trump said he and Iran have held productive talks over the last couple of days. He also said he would halt strikes on Iranian power plants and energy infrastructure.
There are also reports from Iran’s FARS news agency that say there’s no direct, indirect contact with Trump.
Markets are resilient. They’ve come back from far worse. If you panic, you sell. And if you sell, you miss the potential for the recovery rally.

Live Updates

Microsoft is Starting to Bounce

Mar 23, 2026 at 11:09 AM EDT

Keep an eye on oversold shares of Microsoft (MSFT).

After catching strong double bottom support at around $380, it’s starting to pivot higher. It’s also starting to pivot higher from over-extensions on RSI, Williams’ %R, and Full Stochastics.

Helping, analysts at Evercore reiterated a buy rating on the stock with a buy price of $580. “While the analyst remains confident about the company’s fundamentals, he warned that ‘there is no quick fix to the capacity issues facing Microsoft, and as such, Azure acceleration is likely a 2H CY26 event,’” added Tip Ranks.

Better, while investors wait for the recovery, we can collect yield. Most recently, the board of directors declared a quarterly dividend of $0.91 per share. The dividend is payable June 11, 2026, to shareholders of record on May 21, 2026.

CEO Just Bought Nearly 30,000 Shares After Short Report

Mar 23, 2026 at 8:16 AM EDT

After a Muddy Waters short report accused SOFI of being a “financial engineering treadmill,” CEO Anthony Noto bought 28,900 shares for $17.32 a share.

As noted by SOFI:

“The claims made in the Muddy Waters report demonstrate a fundamental lack of understanding of our financial statements and business. We intend to explore potential legal action against Muddy Waters for the factually inaccurate and misleading report they shared about our business today.”

“Muddy Waters is known for producing reports designed to erode shareholder value solely to allow short sellers to profit from a declined stock price. In fact, their report discloses their intent to begin covering a substantial majority, possibly all, of their short positions immediately upon publication, and therefore, they stand to profit from their own misleading report. We have reviewed the full report and believe it is designed to deceive investors.”

After days of red, the major indices are exploding higher.

The S&P 500 is up 2.2%, or by 143 points. The SPDR S&P 500 (SPY | SPY Price Prediction) is up 1.27%, or by $8.24. The Dow is up 2.3%, or by 1,025 points. The Nasdaq is up 2.17%, or by 523 points.

Oil is down $7.50 at $90.75. Gold is down by about $92.55 at $4,396.80. All after President Trump said he and Iran have held productive talks over the last couple of days. He also said he would halt strikes on Iranian power plants and energy infrastructure.

“I am pleased to report that the United States of America, and the country of Iran, have had, over the last two days, very good and productive conversations regarding a complete and total resolution of our hostilities in the Middle East,” wrote Trump in a Truth Social post.

“Based on the tenor and tone of these in-depth, detailed, and constructive conversations, which will continue throughout the week, I have instructed the Department of War to postpone any and all military strikes against Iranian power plants and energy infrastructure for a five-day period, subject to the success of the ongoing meetings and discussions.”

At the same time, there are reports from Iran’s FARS news agency that there’s been no direct, indirect contact with Trump.

In short, it could be a tough day ahead with these conflicting reports.

Take advice from Warren Buffett

Don’t Panic – Stay Calm: Markets are resilient. They’ve come back from far worse. If you panic, you sell. And if you sell, you miss the potential for the recovery rally. We have to remember that markets are resilient and eventually recover, as they have historically.

Have a long-term outlook: Buffett has always advised investors to have a long-term outlook because short-term volatility is typical. Better, just as we noted above, even the most painful recessions are temporary.

Don’t Wait Too Long to Invest: As Warren Buffett has also said, “I haven’t the faintest idea as to whether stocks will be higher or lower a month or a year from now. What is likely, however, is that the market will move higher, perhaps substantially so, well before either sentiment or the economy turns up. So, if you wait for the robins, spring will be over.”

Plus, as he has famously said, “Be fearful when others are greedy, and be greedy when others are fearful.” Sure, there’s plenty of fear out there. But fear won’t last forever. Even the biggest companies in the world will have hiccups, but in 10 or 20 years from now, they should be just fine.