Markets
Luke Kawa

US stocks creep higher; small caps get their day in the sun


The S&P 500 crawled 0.1% higher on Thursday with small caps enjoying a rare day of standout performance.

The Russell 2000 of small-cap US companies bested the S&P 500 by 90 basis points, its biggest outperformance of the month.

Breadth was also positive, ending the streak of sessions where the S&P 500 went one way and the advance-decline line went in the opposite direction. The weirdness of this five-session streak, which tied a record from April 1999, is now over.

Real estate, consumer discretionary, and communication services were the best-performing S&P sector ETFs; consumer staples and materials lagged. Amazon continued its strong run of form with a 2.2% gain, while Meta closed up 1.3%.

Micron fell 7.1% despite reporting better than expected quarterly results, as its guidance was merely in line with, rather than above, analysts’ expectations. Demand for its HBM chips (which support the AI data center build out) is solid, sold out through August 2025, while the outlook for semiconductors for the PC and mobile markets are considerably less rosy. 

Walgreens had its worst day since at least 1980, plummeting 22% after cutting its guidance and announcing tons of store closures would be in the offing.

Chewy spiked as much as 34% after Keith Gill, aka Roaring Kitty, tweeted a picture of a dog. However, the move reversed sharply, with the stock ending down 0.3%.

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SpaceX gets a wave of bullish ratings from Wall Street analysts

SpaceX received more than a dozen positive analyst calls on Tuesday — including from major Wall Street banks — as they initiate coverage on Elon Musk’s space and AI company.

SpaceX went public on June 12 at a $2.2 trillion valuation, the largest debut in history. While the company hasn’t yet posted a profit, it seems to have convinced Wall Street that it will get there and grow its valuation on the way.

Of the at least 17 analysts that gave a rating on Tuesday, all but one gave it a “buy” or “outperform” rating. MoffettNathanson was "neutral."

The ratings come as SpaceX joined the Nasdaq 100 index, a benchmark tech-heavy basket of companies that underpins millions of portfolios. The inclusion adds built-in demand for the stock from index funds and ETFs.

Still, SpaceX fell more than 5% on Tuesday amid a broader sell-off, and is currently effectively flat from its opening price of $150 a share.

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Nike sinks to lowest level since 2014 after warning of “challenged” sales environment in Q4 report

Did Nike do it?

Investors had a mixed reaction after the global sports apparel company reported its fourth quarter earnings on Tuesday after the bell. Shares initially rose 5% as Nike beat out Wall Street expectations amid a hefty tariff refund bonus. However, the stock then sank to its lowest level since August 2014 in postmarket trading.

Here are the Q4 numbers:

  • Revenue of $11.0 billion (estimate: $10.8 billion).

  • Adjusted earnings per share of $0.20 (estimate: $0.12).

Ahead of this report, Nike warned that results would be flattered by a one-time tariff refund (now estimated at roughly $0.52 per share for the bottom line). That gave the company an extra cushion in snapping its streak of seven quarters of year-over-year profit declines.

Over the past year, the company had been punished by tariffs on imported goods, stagnant consumer spending, and increasing competition from other footwear brands like New Balance, Adidas, and Hoka.

Outgoing CFO Matthew Friend deemed it an “increasingly challenging operating environment, where sell-through remains challenged.”

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