Markets
Nia Warfield, Luke Kawa
5/1/25

S&P 500 matches longest winning streak since 2023 on strong megacap tech earnings

US stocks surged out of the gate thanks to stellar earnings reports from megacap giants after the close on Wednesday and were poised for another day of massive gains, but gave back about half their advance for seemingly no reason late in the session.

The S&P 500 and Russell 2000 gained 0.6%, while the the Nasdaq 100 outperformed with a rise of 1.1%.

That marks eight straight positive days for the benchmark US stock index, tying a streak last seen in November 2023.

Tech was the best-performing S&P 500 sector ETF by far, while investors exited defensive sectors like consumer staples and healthcare.

Microsoft shares were still flying high (helping prop up the S&P 500) after topping earnings expectations Wednesday. Now the tech giant is hiking the price of its Xbox Series X console by $100 in the US — blame “market conditions.”

Meta also beat expectations on the top and bottom lines, fueling a 4% rise.

These solid reports from two so-called AI hyperscalers rejuvenated the AI trade in a big way: Nvidia, notably, rose 2.5% on a wave of investor enthusiasm.

Some more bright spots:

Roblox gained 3% after the gaming giant topped Q1 estimates and said daily active users soared.

Kohl’s shares jumped nearly 8% after the retailer ousted its CEO, saying he made company vendor deals tied to personal connections.

CVS jumped after the pharmacy chain reported an earnings beat and raised its full-year guidance.

Meanwhile, Eli Lilly and Qualcomm were some of the worst performers on the day, despite both posting earnings beats. Speaking of…

Shares of pharma giant Moderna also slipped despite topping Wall Street estimates, as sales for its COVID-19 vaccine (its biggest revenue driver) have slowed.

GM shares shed all their premarket gains Thursday after the automaker issued full-year guidance that showed tariffs could cost it between $4 billion and $5 billion this year.

Robinhood Markets shares fell as analysts dug into its latest earnings results, which beat on the top and bottom lines, but investors weren’t thrilled with its EBITDA guidance. (Full disclosure: Sherwood Media is an editorially independent subsidiary of Robinhood Markets Inc.)

McDonald’s slipped nearly 2% after the Big Mac maker beat profit estimates, but missed on revenue and posted its worst same-store sales decline since 2020.

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Nia Warfield, Luke Kawa
8h
S&P 500 goes nowhere, Nasdaq 100 hits another record, small-caps tumble

Warner Bros. Discovery led gains for the second day in a row, and only three S&P 500 sector ETFs finished in the green.

Horse Ranch In Zhangye
markets
Matt Phillips
8h

Rocket lab soars to new record close amid rally for retail faves

Rocket Lab ripped by roughly 10% Friday to close at a new all-time high, riding an upturn of retail enthusiasm for a coterie of tech-themed favorites, even as the broader market was more or less flat on the day.

Goldman Sachs’ basket of “retail favorites” — its heaviest weights are Reddit, AppLovin, and Tempus AI — was the second-biggest gainer among the company’s flagship US equity baskets on Friday, rising about 1.6%. The S&P was almost dead flat.

It’s not Rocket Lab’s first retail rodeo, as the money-losing company has more than doubled this year and is up nearly 700% over the last 12 months.

Oracle Wall Street Revisions

Analysts revise up anything and everything they thought about Oracle

After the company’s bombshell earnings this week, Wall Street thinks Oracle’s trajectory has changed.

Matt Phillips10h
markets
Nia Warfield
11h

Six Flags pops after reiterating its guidance as theme park attendance rebounds

Six Flags shares rose more than 7% today after the company reported a rebound in attendance and early season pass sales heading into the fall. The nine-week period ended August 31 saw 17.8 million guests, up about 2% from the same stretch last year, with stronger momentum in the final four weeks. 

More importantly, Six Flags reaffirmed its full-year adjusted EBITDA guidance of $860 million to $910 million, showing confidence that its cost and operations strategy can stay strong for the duration of the year. Riding that wave, Six Flags also said early 2026 season pass unit sales are pacing ahead of last year, and average season pass prices are up about 3%.

The good vibes come despite a drop in in-park per-capita spending, especially from admissions, where promotions and changes to attendance mix (which parks or days guests visit) have weighed. Earlier this week, the amusement giant signed a new agreement that extended its position as the exclusive amusement park partner for Peanuts™ in North America through 2030.

Despite the rally, Six Flags shares are down about 52% year to date.

markets
Max Knoblauch
12h

Rivian turns red on the year, squeezed by a recall and the looming end of the EV tax credit

Shares of EV maker Rivian are down more than 5% on Friday following the company’s recall of 24,214 vehicles due to a software issue. The stock move erases Rivian’s year-to-date gain and turns the company negative on the year.

Rivian’s 2025 model year R1S and R1T are affected by the defect, which was identified after a vehicle’s hands-free highway assist software failed to identify another vehicle on the road, causing a low-speed collision. Rivian said it’s released an over-the-air update to fix the issue.

The recall marks Rivian’s fifth this year, affecting nearly 70,000 of its vehicles.

Rivian’s shares are down more than 20% from their 2025 high, which came prior to the passage of President Trump’s “big, beautiful bill.” Through the legislation, the $7,500 EV tax credit is set to expire at the end of the month.

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