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Luke Kawa1/8/26

Retail traders are starting off 2026 with another AI shopping spree

It’s a new year, and retail traders have an appetite for the same main course.

“Retail investors quickly refocused their attention to their trading portfolios as the New Year began, leading to the second-highest weekly buying levels in nearly eight months and daily purchases consistently exceeding the 85th percentile [relative to its one-year average] since January 2,” JPMorgan strategist Arun Jain wrote.

JPM early 2026 retail

While retail investors continued to buy into ETFs over individual equities overall, so far in 2026, most of traders’ single-stock money is going into names retail investors took a shining to in 2025: the AI beneficiaries.

Per Jain, Tesla, Nvidia, Amazon, Palantir Technologies, Advanced Micro Devices, and Micron are the most purchased stocks by retail so far this year. The cohort has also made some big purchases of Halliburton and Chevron after the US ousted Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.

“After earning more than $20 billion in options on our platform over the course of the year, retail investors enter January armed with capital to deploy,” added Scott Rubner, Citadel Securities’ head of equity derivatives strategy. “This demand remains a steady source of upside pressure, amplifying early-year flows and contributing to January momentum.”

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United Airlines rallies after Q4 earnings and Q1 profit guidance top estimates

Shares of United Airlines are rising after the bell on Tuesday, following the release of the carrier’s fourth-quarter and full-year earnings report.

United posted adjusted earnings per share of $3.10 in Q4, above the $2.92 per share expected by Wall Street analysts polled by Bloomberg. Sales of $15.4 billion were roughly in line with the consensus estimate.

The airline also:

Forecast full-year earnings per share between $12 and $14, bracketing Wall Street’s call for $13.04. For Q1, management sees EPS between $1.00 and $1.50, the midpoint of which is above the $1.16 expected by Wall Street.
Booked $13.93 billion in passenger revenue on the quarter, up nearly 5% year over year.

“Strong revenue momentum has continued into 2026,” according the company’s press release. “The week ending January 4th was the highest flown revenue week in United history, and the week ending January 11th was the highest ticketing week and the highest week for business sales in United history.”

UAL’s premium ticket revenue climbed 9% compared to a 7% increase in basic economy revenue. The “K-shaped economy” has become increasingly visible in travel trends at major US airlines. Last week, Delta’s revenue from first-class and business passengers eclipsed its main cabin revenue for the first time.

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POET Technologies nears multiyear high on strong call demand after flagship product wins award

POET Technologies is surging on heavy volumes and high call demand after announcing that it won a Product Innovation Award at China’s Infostone awards.

The honor went to the optical communications company’s flagship product, the Teralight, which uses light to move data between chips.

“Unveiled less than a year ago at the 2025 OFC Conference, POET Teralight has driven commercial interest in the Company because of its highly integrated design and complete optical system-on-chip architecture that simplifies module development,” per the press release.

This award may be the latest excuse to buy the stock, which is up over 40% year to date.

Call activity is elevated, with nearly 37,000 having changed hands as of 10:55 a.m. ET, well above the 20-day average of 28,030 for a full session. Shares are approaching their multi-year high of $9.41.

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