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Live Markets Update: Nasdaq Composite Rises | Russell 2000 Up Big While VIX Falls
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Earnings to Watch After Hours
After the market closes today there are some notable earnings. Here are some stocks to watch:
- Waste Management (NYSE: WM)
- Cadence Design Systems (Nasdaq: CDNS)
- Ford (NYSE: F)
- F5 Networks (Nasdaq: FFIV)
Among that group, Ford will be most closely watched for commentary on the U.S. auto market. Before market open, a key semiconductor supplier to the auto industry – On Semiconductor (Nasdaq: ON) – reported and beat earnings. On Semiconductor’s earnings were another data point that EV demand may once again be ramping up.
Trump Media & Technology Now Valued at the Same Level as Twitter/X
One of the biggest gainers in the market today is Trump Media & Technology (Nasdaq: DJT), which is up 17% in afternoon trading. The stock’s valuation today tipped past $9.2 billion, surpassing the most recent private valuation of X (formerly Twitter), the social media platform that Elon Musk bought in 2022 for $44 billion.
It appears that bullishness around Trump Media & Technology stems from increasing odds Donald Trump will win next week’s election. Betting markets now have Trump favored at between 58% and 65%. Kalshi, which has been widely watched, currently has Trump contracts trading for a 62% chance he wins next Tuesday’s election.
Meta Reducing Search Reliance on Google
The Information reports that Meta (Nasdaq: META) is building an internal search engine to reduce its reliance on Google.
The search engine will power Meta’s chatbot, among other features. The company has been making a major investment in AI, so its not surprising they’d want to remove Google from a strategic area. Both stocks are up today, but Meta’s move represents another strategic threat to Google in the age of AI.
Natural Gas Prices Plummeting
As noted in our initial update, West Texas Intermediate Crude prices are down more than 6% today.
The primary reason energy prices are down is that Israel’s strike on Iran avoided energy targets. This reduces uncertainty in the space as an attack on Iran’s oil and gas plants could have caused shortages and near-term price spikes.
Another resources seeing prices crash today is natural gas. As of 12:40 ET, U.S. natural gas futures are off about 10%. Companies with exposure to natural gas are seeing outsized losses today.
Tech Check-In
Information technology is the second-worst performing S&P 500 sector on the day. Let’s take a look at some how of the largest tech megacaps are performing today:
- NVIDIA: Down .74%
- Apple: Up 1.23%
- Microsoft: Up .07%
- Amazon: Up .91%
- Alphabet: Up .61%
- Meta: Up .65%
In general, most megacaps are doing well with the exception of NVIDIA.
As of noon ET, markets are generally green on Monday. The standout is the Russell 2000, which is up 1.59%. The small cap-focused index is heavily weighted to smaller companies in the industrials, financials, and healthcare sector while having less exposure to technology. Let’s look at index performance:
- Dow Jones Industrial Average: Up 226.80 (+.54%)
- S&P 500: Up 18.41 (+.32%)
- Nasdaq-100: Up 78.45 (+.42%)
- Russell 2000: Up 35.15 (+1.59%)
- VIX: Down .66 (-3.25%)
Top S&P 500 Sectors Today
Sure enough, a look at the S&P 500 today shows that the sectors the Russell 2000 is heavily allocated toward are performing best.
Top Performing Sectors
- Utilities: +1.00%
- Financials: +.86%
Bottom Performing Sectors
- Information Technology: -.01%
- Energy: -1.10%
Energy stocks are lower due to pressure on oil prices. Israel responded to Iran’s ballistic missile attack but focused on military targets rather than Iran’s military infrastructure. Israel not attacking Iran’s oil removes a key piece of uncertainty about future oil demand, and thus prices are dropping today. West Texas Intermediate futures are down 6.26% today alone.
Biggest Stock Gainers and Losers in the Market Today
Winners Today
- Cruise Stocks: Carnival Cruise (NYSE: CCL) and Royal Caribbean (NYSE: RCL) are seeing strong gains today. Carnival is up 4.4% while Royal Caribbean is up 1.3%. The stocks are moving on lower oil prices which reduces their operating expenses in the near term.
Losers Today
- Energy Stocks: Among the 10 largest losers in the S&P 500, you’ll find energy stocks like Diamondback (Nasdaq: FANG) and Halliburton (NYSE: HAL), which are down 3.1% and 1.9%, respectively.
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