US STOCKS-S&P 500, Dow at record highs on Mideast deal hopes; SpaceX, AMD drag
US STOCKS-S&P 500, Dow at record highs on Mideast deal hopes; SpaceX, AMD drag Updates with midday prices
By Johann M Cherian and Shashwat Chauhan
Aug 5 (Reuters) - The S&P 500 and the Dow traded at all-time highs on Wednesday on hopes of a Middle East peace breakthrough, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq struggled to stay afloat, limited by a slide in SpaceX and AMD after the upbeat forecasts issued by the companies failed to impress investors.
Elon Musk-led SpaceX's SPCX.O revenue nearly doubled and operating losses narrowed in its first earnings report since going public, fueled by its booming Starlink satellite communications and AI businesses.
But the rocket company's shares slid 7.3% after executives flagged the spending spree underpinning its lofty ambitions was far from over. Shares could face additional pressure from the expiry of the stock's post-IPO lock-up period starting on Thursday. Musk's other company, Tesla TSLA.O, slipped 1.3%.
"This is the culmination of the story of this entire earnings season. SpaceX beat analysts' expectations on revenue, but spending on AI is getting out of hand, with no signs of slowing down anytime soon," said Nic Puckrin, cross-asset analyst and founder of Coin Bureau.
Advanced Micro Devices AMD.O forecast quarterly revenue above estimates, reflecting strong AI demand. However, shares slipped 6.5%, suggesting investors were looking for a stronger outlook to justify the stock's 142% jump this year.
Rival Nvidia's shares NVDA.O, which have lagged AMD this year, rose 3.7%, also underpinned by SpaceX's plans to use the company's hardware exclusively to build its data centers.
Five of the 11 S&P sectors were trading higher. Materials .SPLRCM led the gains with a 1.5% rise, tracking a 4% jump in gold and silver prices. Energy stocks .SPNY lagged with a near 2.1% fall.
Wednesday's moves built on Wall Street's recent rally that took the benchmark S&P 500 .SPX and the blue-chip Dow .DJI to record highs following strong forecasts from AI-hyperscalers including Microsoft MSFT.O and Amazon AMZN.O in the previous week.
At 11:38 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI rose 435.60 points, or 0.81%, to 54,521.48, the S&P 500 .SPX gained 8.34 points, or 0.11%, to 7,744.86 and the Nasdaq Composite .IXIC lost 10.68 points, or 0.04%, to 26,574.32.
Investors also weighed a slew of earnings from other sectors. Drugmaker Eli Lilly LLY.N was up 2.8% after raising its full-year revenue forecast, while Disney DIS.N rose 2.2% after beating third-quarter profit expectations.
Arista Networks ANET.N jumped 3.8%, as the networking equipment maker forecast third-quarter revenue above estimates. Uber UBER.N lost 6.2% after forecasting current-quarter adjusted earnings below estimates.
On the data front, U.S. private payrolls growth slowed in July, as per the ADP national employment report. The bigger focus will be on the official non-farm payrolls figures on Friday.
Data has broadly reflected robust economic performance, but with Middle East tensions keeping energy costs elevated and the Federal Reserve offering no forecasts on monetary policy, uncertainty persists.
Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari in an interview with CNBC said he believed now is the time to start slowly moving interest rates higher. At least two more top Fed officials are expected to speak later in the day.
Among others, drug developer Charles River Laboratories CRL.N jumped 11.8% after raising its annual profit forecast, while medical device maker Insulet PODD.O tanked 20% after lowering its annual sales growth forecast.
Declining issues outnumbered advancers by a 1.2-to-1 ratio on the NYSE and by a 1.37-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.
The S&P 500 posted 33 new 52-week highs and two new lows, while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 86 new highs and 50 new lows.
(Reporting by Johann M Cherian and Shashwat Chauhan in Bengaluru; Editing by Devika Syamnath and Maju Samuel)
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