Stock Market Today: Nasdaq Composite Rises, But Why Are Tesla (TSLA) and Apple (AAPL) Plummeting?
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AI Infrastructure Stocks Rallying
AI Infrastructure stocks are rallying today.
- Coherent (Nasdaq: COHR): Up 5.2%
- Vertiv (NYSE: VRT): Up 4.6%
- Celestica (NYSE: CLS): Up 4.6%
- Ciena (Nasdaq: CIEN): Up 4.5%
NVIDIA (Nasdaq: NVDA) is also up 2.6% today as well. Just 9 days ago we published an article named 3 AI Stocks That Could Double in 2025, and the company we were most excited about – Camtek (Nasdaq: CAMT) – is already up 25% from that date.
If you’re looking for more AI stock ideas, don’t forget to grab a copy of our “The Next NVIDIA” report that’s free. It details the war between NVIDIA and one stock that rose 114% in 2024. The report is loaded with research on top AI stocks and its available complementary for a limited time.
Power Generation Stocks on the Move
Earlier we described how an executive order from Donald Trump clearing regulatory hurdles for new power plants could be a major tailwind to power generation stocks.
Late in the day, these stocks have taken another move up. Vistra (NYSE: VST) is now up 8.3% after being up 4% in early trading.
GE Vernova (NYSE: GEV), which manufactures turbines, was down early in trading but is now up 3% midday. Constellation Energy Corp (NYSE: CEG) is another independent power producer which is moving north today, its shares are up 4%.
What Stocks are Moving on Trump Executive Orders?
Earlier we noted that Tesla may be dropping today thanks to an executive order from Donald Trump that could put limits on pro-EV legislation.
On the other end of the spectrum, gains in both Industrials and Utilities today could be thanks to executive orders. For example, an executive order from Donald Trump clears environmental legislation (NEPA) from constructing new power plants.
Stocks like Vistra (NYSE: VST) are rallying today after the executive order was signed. The executive order could also clear a pathway for industries looking for fast construction to fuel the AI boom such as nuclear power.
The big market story today is the return of Donald Trump. After being sworn in yesterday, Trump signed a flurry of executive orders whose impacts are rippling through the market.
In addition, market participants are watching what Trump says about tariffs closely. After Trump referenced 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico by February 1st markets briefly plummeted last night, but have since rebounded. Here’s a look at where markets stand as of 11:10 a.m. ETF:
- Dow Jones Industrial Average: Up 385.43 (+.89%)
- S&P 500: Up 29.81 (+.50%)
- Nasdaq Composite: +37.54 (+.21%)
- Russell 2000: Up 3.63 (+1.35%)
Here are some of today’s biggest storylines.
Dow Jones Leads All Indexes
The Dow Jones leads the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite in today’s trading. What’s driving its outperformance? 3M (NYSE: MMM | MMM Price Prediction) is up nearly 5% after reporting earnings that surpassed expectations.
The company reported earnings per share of $1.68, which beat expectations of $1.66. Looking forward to guidance for next year, 3M is projecting EPS of $7.60 to $7.90, which is slightly below Wall Street expectations at its midpoint. Yet, investors are overlooking this guidance as the stock is performing well today.
Other stocks rising in the Dow include Caterpillar, Boeing, Home Depot, and UnitedHealth. Overall, the Industrial sector is seeing the strongest performance at 1.63% today. The worst performing sectors are Information Technology (-.26%) and Energy (-.56%).
Apple and Tesla Fall
Shares of Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) are getting hammered this morning, down 4.26% as of 11:20 a.m. ET. The other notable loser when looking at megacap stocks is Tesla (Nasdaq: TSLA), which is down around 3%.
What’s weighing on these two stocks today? Data out of China isn’t helping. Both Tesla and Apple rely on Chinese sales for their products in an outsized way. Data from Counterpoint Research shows Apple iPhone sales fell 18% in the holiday season. The company has struggled to keep momentum in China as government mandates have favored local smartphone makers. In addition, Apple may struggle as AI features that will soon become the main selling point in smartphone carry privacy concerns that Apple may have a tough time balancing.
Tesla has been rallying in large part thanks to Elon Musk’s close relationship with Donald Trump, but the company is down 3% today after Trump signed an executive order that directs his administration to consider removing EV subsidies. The executive order doesn’t explicitly remove Federal Rules that favor EV cars, but does challenge state-level policies that restrict gas-powered cars.
Eric Bleeker has been investing for more than 20 years. He began his career working at Microsoft before joining Motley Fool, one of the largest publishers of financial research. In his 15 years at Motley Fool Eric served as the General Manager for Fool.com and led coverage in the Technology & Telecom sector. In addition, he was a featured columnist and has hosted dozens of investing seminars attended by more than a million total investors. Eric has more than 1,000 financial bylines to his name and has been featured in The Wall Street Journal, CNBC, Fox Business, and many other leading publications. He is currently focused on artificial intelligence investing and is a CFA Charterholoder.
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