3/12/25

3/12/25

Tech revival powers US stocks higher

The S&P 500 rose 0.5%, the Russell 2000 edged up 0.1%, and the Nasdaq 100 powered 1.1% higher in a tech-driven rally.

As was the case on Tuesday, investors dumped safe stocks that had been doing well while beaten-down parts of the market caught a bid. Tech was the best-performing S&P 500 sector ETF, while consumer staples was at the bottom of the leaderboard with a sharp retreat.

The AI trade was back in force, with energy and infrastructure companies like Vistra and GE Vernova soaring while chip designer Nvidia also booked a huge gain.

Other roughed-up momentum names that led the S&P 500’s charge higher included Tesla (even as more analysts cut their delivery targets) and Palantir.

Intel also surged on reports that TSMC, long rumored to be interested in buying the US chipmaker’s foundry business, approached a host of other chipmakers about a joint venture to do just that.

Apple slumped after Morgan Stanley lowered its estimates for iPhone sales, citing delays in delivering a more useful Siri, and cut its earnings forecast, citing tariffs.

Walmart is learning that no one wants to bear the cost of tariffs: after pushing suppliers to lower their prices, executives were reportedly called upon by Chinese officials who voiced displeasure at this tactic.

Crocs jumped after Loop Capital upgraded the stock.

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Luke Kawa, Nia Warfield

S&P 500’s losing streak extends to three

The longest run in the red for the benchmark US stock index in over a month.

Bears awaken from hibernation at the zoo in Thale

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Retail traders are dumping Bloom Energy after near 300% rally, says JPMorgan

Retail traders are swarming for the exits in fuel cell company Bloom Energy, causing what was once a near 300% year-to-date rally to sour.

JPMorgan strategists led by Arun Jain flagged that Bloom’s net imbalance — the balance of buying versus selling among retail traders — was exceptionally negative as of 11 a.m. ET, even worse than during its double-digit drop on Wednesday.

JPM retail BE

The fuel cell company, which counts Oracle among its customers, eclipsed a market cap in excess of $20 billion earlier this week despite generating less than $2 billion in sales over the past year.

Wall Street began to sound some alarm bells about the extent of Bloom’s run this week, with Jefferies downgrading its rating for the stock to “underperform” from “hold” on Wednesday while Bank of America analysts wrote, “We are still not buying into BE’s AI hype.”

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We spoke to ATB Capital Markets analyst Frederico Gomes about why institutional investors are growing bullish on cannabis.

J. Edward Moreno6h

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Matt Phillips7h

Duolingo rises as executives talk up China opportunity

Duolingo posted a solid gain Thursday, the latest in a series of relatively light-on-news moves in the stock this month as it has regained some attention among options-trading retail investors.

There was a story in China’s official China Daily where executives laid out their plans for the language-learning app’s push into the People’s Republic, which has been a focus of Wall Street analysts on recent post-earnings conference calls.

China, where the company began doing business in 2018, is Duolingo’s fastest-growing market for its language-learning app. It’s also the largest source of test takers for its Duolingo English Test proficiency exam business, a recent focus for management spotlighted in its recent Duocon product announcements.

It’s hard to say if the China Daily story is the reason for today’s upswing in the stock, but given the necessities of working within a country controlled by the Chinese Communist Party, a relatively favorable story appearing in its international propaganda organ suggests a relatively healthy working relationship is developing there.

Duolingo to expand local team, products

Duolingo to expand local team, products

China, where the company began doing business in 2018, is Duolingo’s fastest-growing market for its language-learning app. It’s also the largest source of test takers for its Duolingo English Test proficiency exam business, a recent focus for management spotlighted in its recent Duocon product announcements.

It’s hard to say if the China Daily story is the reason for today’s upswing in the stock, but given the necessities of working within a country controlled by the Chinese Communist Party, a relatively favorable story appearing in its international propaganda organ suggests a relatively healthy working relationship is developing there.

markets

Matt Phillips9h

Oklo dives after insider sale

Oklo dove Thursday after an SEC filing showed company director Michael Klein sold some $6.7 million in stock in transactions that, importantly, were not part of a pre-set insider sales plan.

Wall Street analysts forecast that the nuclear power startup will make losses for years to come. But the company’s ties to OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, who served as Oklo’s chairman until April, have helped make the stock a favorite of retail traders and a popular momentum play.

Even after today’s stumble, it’s up more than 400% this year and nearly 1,300% over the past 12 months.

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