Major U.S. stock indexes moved higher in early trading Thursday, with the S&P 500 hitting an all-time intraday high, as shares of chipmakers soared following a strong earnings report from Micron (MU).
The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite were up 0.7% and 1.1%, respectively, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.5%. The S&P 500 and Dow fell on Wednesday after closing at record highs the day before, as a multi-week rally in U.S. stocks stalled. The market has recovered from an early-September selloff as investors remain optimistic that the economy is headed for a soft landing and that the Federal Reserve will continue cutting interest rates.
Micron led the move higher early Thursday, rising 16%, after the chipmaker reported better-than-expected revenue growth and issued a rosy outlook for the current quarter, driven by “robust AI demand.” The iShares Semiconductor ETF (SOXX) was up more than 3%, as Broadcom (AVGO), Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), Applied Materials (AMAT) and other major chip stocks rallied.
AI chipmaker Nvidia (NVDA), which has posted big gains this week, was up nearly 3% to lead mega-cap technology stocks. Meta Platforms (META), which hit a record high Wednesday after the company unveiled new products and AI capabilities at its annual Connect event, was up about 1.5% in early trading. Shares of Alphabet (GOOGL) and Microsoft (MSFT) also moved higher, while Apple (AAPL) and Amazon (AMZN) fell slightly.
Investors were keeping a close eye on economic data releases this morning, notably weekly jobless claims figures, which came in better than expected. Scheduled appearances by several Fed officials, including Chair Jerome Powell, will also be closely monitored. Investors are keeping tabs on economic data as they look for confirmation of the health of the economy and information that could affect the Fed’s future decisions on interest rates, after the central bank cut its benchmark rate last week.
Gold futures were up slightly after rising to a new record high early Thursday, surpassing $2,700 an ounce for the first time. Crude oil futures were down more than 3% following a report in the Financial Times that Saudi Arabia plans to raise output. Bitcoin rose 2% to around $64,500.
Micron’s Post-Earnings Pop Leads Chip Stocks Higher
2 hr 17 min ago
Micron Technology (MU) shares surged Thursday after the memory chip maker’s revenue and outlook blew past expectations, leading Nvidia (NVDA) and other semiconductor stocks higher.
Shares of Micron were up over 16% in early trading, while shares of partner Nvidia gained close to 3%. Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), Broadcom (AVGO), and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSM) and other chipmakers were all solidly higher in the first half hour of Thursday’s session.
Nvidia, Micron, and other chip companies have seen their revenue and stock prices climb amid a boom in demand for infrastructure to support artificial intelligence (AI).
Micron CEO Sanjay Mehrotra said Wednesday the company’s fiscal fourth-quarter sales nearly doubled from a year ago to $7.75 billion, driven by “robust AI demand.” Mehrotra also said the company’s sales are expected to continue growing, projecting current-quarter revenue could reach a record high between $8.5 billion to $8.9 billion.
Meta Price Levels to Watch as Stock Hits Record High
3 hr 28 min ago
Meta Platforms (META) shares are rising in premarket trading after hitting a record high on Wednesday as the tech giant kicked off its annual Connect conference. The company unveiled a lower-cost Quest 3S headset, Orion augmented reality glasses, new artificial intelligence (AI) features, and other tech gadgets at the highly anticipated event.
The stock broke out from a five-month ascending triangle on above-average volume earlier this month, with the share price continuing to track higher into the company’s conference.
The measuring principle forecasts a price target in the stock of $700, while a bars pattern predicts an upside target of around $790.
Investors should also keep an eye on the $535 level, an area on the chart where prior resistance could become future support near the ascending triangle’s upper trendline.
Read the full technical analysis piece here.
Futures Point to Higher Open for Major indexes
4 hr 4 min ago
Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average were up 0.4%.
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S&P 500 futures were up 0.8%.
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Nasdaq 100 futures were up 1.5%.
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