US stocks weekly: Mixed messages
24/04/2026 21:53
** S&P 500 .SPX up 4th consecutive week, advances 0.5% as investors monitor geopolitics, corporate earnings .N ** Dow .DJI dips 0.4%, while tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite .IXIC rises 1.5% ** Records all around, but the Dow RSVP's 'No'; ends Fri still 1.9% below record closing high, but small names, big gains: Small caps take the lead in 2026 ** And after its biggest burst since 2020, can the S&P 500 push higher? ** U.S. 10-Year Treasury yield US10YT=RR rises to 4.31% area, coiling like a spring as traders brace for a breakout US/ ** In the end, just a minority of sectors show conviction to the upside: Energy and Technology most certain, while Healthcare dubious ** Energy .SPNY gains 3.2%. Group rises, tracking crude prices, on fears of US-Iran ceasefire collapse O/R ** Tech .SPLRCT tacks on 3.1%. Intel INTC.O soars to all-time high after upbeat Q2 rev forecast on strong demand for its CPUs amid AI boom, fuels surge in Advanced Micro Devices AMD.O, chip stocks Texas Instruments TXN.O leaps on bright Q2 outlook powered by robust data center chip demand Semiconductor index .SOX rockets 10%. Too far, too fast? SOX stretch raises red flags, but through Fri, index on record-setting 18-day win streak Apple AAPL.O turns to hardware veteran John Ternus as CEO to succeed Tim Cook On a negative note, IBM IBM.N drops as software growth slows and AI concerns rise, and ServiceNow's NOW.N tumble after citing Middle East deal delays for Q1 rev hit, spark software stock selloff ** Consumer Discretionary .SPLRCD inches down 0.3%. Tesla TSLA.O falls as higher 2026 spending plan of >$25 bln overshadows upbeat Q1 results Lululemon LULU.O slides after former Nike NKE.N executive named next CEO Though Amazon.com AMZN.O climbs after $25 bln deal pledge to Anthropic for AI growth ** Industrials .SPLRCI slip 0.6%. Airline stocks fall as low-cost carrier Spirit nears Trump administration rescue deal NYSE Arca Airline index .XAL descends 10% Conversely, United Rentals URI.N jumps after annual sales forecast hike, Q1 beat fueled by large projects Boeing BA.N rises on much smaller-than-expected loss as recovery gains traction ** Communication Services .SPLRCL loses 0.8%. Charter Communications CHTR.O stumbles as it sheds more broadband customers than expected Netflix NFLX.O boosts stock buyback plan by $25 bln, but NFLX retreats 5% on the week ** Healthcare .SPXHC sags 3.1%. Hospital operator HCA Healthcare HCA.N falls after dip in flu season volume ** Meanwhile, individual investor bulls charge, and car rental firm Avis Budget CAR.O, that's been driving the Dow Transports .DJT, crashes after record rally, triggered by a massive short squeeze ** SPX performance YTD:
| Energy | 26.6% |
| Materials | 14.1% |
| Industrials | 11.2% |
| Real Estate | 9.3% |
| Staples | 8.8% |
| Utils | 8.2% |
| Tech | 8.0% |
| Comm Svcs | 5.2% |
| SPX | 4.7% |
| Discretionary | 1.4% |
| Financials | -6.1% |
| Healthcare | -6.9% |