Stocks Soar to Their Best Day of 2025 as Nvidia and Palantir Lead Tech Rally; Major Indexes Still Down for 4th Straight Week

These Were the Big S&P 500 Movers on Friday

7 minutes ago

Advancers

• Ulta Beauty (ULTA) shares surged 13.7%, gaining the most of any S&P 500 stock on Friday after the cosmetics retailer reported better-than-expected earnings per share, net sales, and comparable sales for its crucial holiday quarter. Ulta CEO Kecia Steelman, who took the helm at the beginning of 2025, indicated that the upcoming fiscal year will be critical as the seller of makeup and personal care products invests in growth and business optimization.
• Crown Castle (CCI), a real estate investment trust (REIT) focused on communication infrastructure, agreed to sell its fiber optics business to EQT Active Core Infrastructure Fund and Zayo Group Holdings for a combined total of $8.5 billion. The company intends to use proceeds from the transaction to reduce its debt and initiate a share repurchase program. Shares of Crown Castle soared 10.4%.

• Shares of big data analytics firm Palantir Technologies (PLTR) jumped 8.3% after CEO Alex Carp announced an array of new partnerships with defense manufacturing start-ups, stressing the economic and national security importance of bolstering the domestic industrial base. Some of the companies that will be leveraging Palantir’s AI software include vertical-takeoff aircraft company Archer Aviation and autonomous marine vessel firm Saildrone.

Decliners

• Abbott Laboratories (ABT) shares slipped 2.4%, posting the S&P 500’s weakest daily performance, after a Missouri state judge granted a retrial request in a liability lawsuit related to the company allegedly obscuring possible risks of its premature infant formula. However, Bank of America analysts maintained their “buy” rating on Abbott stock, noting that the retrial decision opens the possibility of additional legal action but does not overturn the original verdict.
• Shares of biopharmaceutical firm Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMY) fell 2.1%. The downturn reversed gains posted by the stock earlier in the week after Bristol-Myers Squibb announced plans to acquire cancer cell therapy maker 2seventy Bio for $286 million in cash. The two companies have previously partnered on a therapy to treat multiple myeloma, a type of blood cancer.
• Kroger (KR), the largest operator of traditional grocery stores in the U.S., announced an undisclosed number of job cuts, including reductions at its consumer insights subsidiary 84.51°. Kroger’s CEO stepped down at the beginning of the month amid a probe into his personal conduct, and analysts have suggested that hiring a former executive from Walmart (WMT) could help Kroger compete with the retail giant. Kroger shares lost 1.5% on Friday.

–Michael Bromberg

S&P 500, Nasdaq Have Fallen 6 of Last 7 Weeks

1 hr 35 min ago

Despite Friday’s huge rally, each of the major indexes posted losses for the week amid growing political and economic concerns.

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite fell 2.3% and 2.4%, respectively, this week. The indexes have lost ground in four consecutive weeks and six of the past seven. The S&P 500, which hit a record high as recently as three weeks ago, has lost 7.6% during the seven-week slump, while the Nasdaq has plunged 11% during that stretch.

The Dow shed 3.1% this week, its worst weekly performance since March 2023. The Dow has fallen in four of the last six weeks, and has slipped into negative territory for the year.

The Dow has lost 2.5% since the start of 2025, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq have declined 4.1% and 8.1%, respectively, over that period.

What to Expect from Nvidia’s GPU Conference Next Week

2 hr 25 min ago

Nvidia (NVDA) is set to kick off its weeklong GPU Technology Conference in San Jose, California on Monday, with a keynote address from CEO Jensen Huang on Tuesday.

Investors and analysts will likely be watching for updates on the company’s latest artificial intelligence chips, upcoming releases, and developments in gaming and robotics.

The AI chipmaker is expected to showcase its Blackwell Ultra GB300 family of chips, which Deutsche Bank analysts said is expected to deliver over 50% more memory capacity and significantly higher performance than its earlier Blackwell offerings. The timing of GB300’s rollout will be a focus, the analysts said, particularly as Nvidia has faced delays in fully ramping up Blackwell production.

Nvidia could also offer more details on its Rubin GPU, the successor to Blackwell expected in 2026, along with its associated Vera CPU, and the Rubin Vera platform. It’s possible Huang’s keynote could offer breadcrumbs at what lies a generation beyond Rubin, analysts said.

GTC comes as Nvidia’s stock has fallen 10% so far in 2025, creating a “compelling valuation” heading into the conference, analysts at Bank of America said. The analysts reiterated a “buy” rating and $200 price target, above the $177 average of analysts surveyed by Visible Alpha.

Nvidia shares were up 5% at around $122 in late trading Friday.

–Andrew Kessel

Rubrik Shares Soar as Cyber Firm’s Subscription Sales Jump

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Rubrik (RBRK) shares soared Friday, a day after the cybersecurity firm posted better-than-expected results and outlook on a big jump in subscription sales.

The company reported a fourth-quarter fiscal 2025 adjusted loss of $0.18 per share, while analysts surveyed by Visible Alpha were looking for an adjusted loss of $0.39 per share. Revenue jumped 47% year-over-year to $258.1 million, also ahead of forecasts. 

Subscription revenue skyrocketed 54% to $243.7 million, and Subscription Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR) jumped 39% to $1.09 billion. As of Jan. 31, Rubrik had 2,246 customers with Subscription ARR of $100,000 or more, a 29% increase. 

The company anticipates a full-year adjusted per-share loss of $1.13 to $1.23 on revenue between $1.15 billion and $1.16 billion. The Visible Alpha estimates were for a per-share loss of $1.25, with revenue at $1.10 billion.

Rubrik shares were up 28% in late trading Friday. The stock has nearly doubled over tha past 12 months.

–Bill McColl

How Worried Should you be About a Recession?

3 hr 27 min ago

The sell-off in stock markets this week brought back recession chatter, but that doesn’t necessarily mean one is coming soon.

A full-blown recession is certainly possible and seems likelier after this week, particularly if spending from more cautious U.S. consumers plummets and prompts employers to lay off workers. But right now, the more likely scenario seems to be weaker growth, according to several economists and market analysts. Rather than firing on all cylinders, the U.S. economy may rise at a lackluster pace instead—which isn’t great news but is far from a panic signal.

“We believe the economy will avoid slipping into recession,” Wells Fargo economists wrote in a research note, pointing to “solid fundamentals” such as healthy household balance sheets as a buffer.

Even so, they noted the economy has already “lost some steam in early 2025,” which, combined with tariff uncertainty and federal government job cuts, could take a toll. 

Meanwhile, a steep drop in stock markets is a “classic recipe for a slower pace of spending by the wealthy, who drive household consumption,” Joe Brusuelas, chief economist at the accounting firm RSM US LLP. When stock markets rise, the so-called wealth effect makes upper-income households feel wealthier and thus spend more, giving a boost to the rest of the economy. 

Lower stock prices have the opposite effect, and wealthier households are likely to tamp down their spending this quarter, Brusuelas said. However, the U.S. economy can absorb some slowing without entering an extended contraction.

Read the full article here.

–Polo Rocha

Why Gold Prices Jumped to Record High This Week

4 hr 24 min ago

Gold futures climbed above $3,000 an ounce for the first time as anxiety about escalating trade wars and U.S. economic growth pushed investors into traditional safe havens. 

Gold rose as high as $3,016/oz in early trading Friday, briefly putting the metal up nearly 4% since the start of the week. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 before Friday was on track to have its worst week in two years. Gold pared its gains and stocks rebounded during Friday’s session.

Gold has advanced this week for the same reason that stocks have slumped. While recent inflation and employment data suggest the economy remains on solid footing, investors are increasingly nervous that President Trump’s unpredictable tariff policies will increase costs for businesses and consumers and slow economic growth. 

Fear that the U.S. is headed toward a period of stagflation—the unlikely pairing of elevated inflation and sluggish growth—has sent investors into safe-haven assets like gold and U.S. Treasurys. Gold is viewed on Wall Street as a reliable store of value, and thus a hedge against inflation and declining asset prices. Heightened uncertainty can contribute to rising gold prices, as it did in the lead-up to November’s presidential election.

Also at play are Treasury yields, which have declined markedly in the last two months, also a byproduct of investors’ flight to safety. Treasury yields are inversely related to Treasury prices, meaning yields fall as demand for U.S. debt—the market’s closest thing to a risk-free asset—increases. Gold has no yield; investors only profit on gold if its price increases. For that reason, the appeal of Treasurys relative to gold decreases as yields fall, which can help to fuel gold’s rise. 

–Colin Laidley

Li Auto Shares Fall as Revenue Outlook Lags Estimates

5 hr 5 min ago

U.S.-listed shares of Li Auto (LI) lost ground Friday after the Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer projected a lower-than-estimated first-quarter sales number.

The company said it expects total revenues to be between 23.4 billion yuan ($3.2 billion) and 24.7 billion yuan, representing a year-over-year decrease of 8.7% to 3.5%. That was below Visible Alpha estimates of 33.5 billion yuan in revenue for the quarter.

During the fourth quarter, Li Auto posted adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of 10.04 yuan ($1.38), versus 11.46 yuan the same period the previous year. Total revenues rose 6.1% to 44.3 billion yuan year-over-year.

The company competes in China against homegrown EV rivals Nio (NIO), BYD, and XPeng (XPEV) as well as Elon Musk’s Tesla (TSLA). The Chinese EV makers have been locked in a price war with its rivals which has weighed on its earnings, according to reporting from Reuters.

Tesla, meanwhile, is looking to produce and sell aless expensive version of its Model Y SUV in China starting next year, according toReuters, as the U.S. company grapples with its loss of market share in the country.

Li Auto shares were down 3% in recent trading and have lost about a quarter of their value in the past year.

–Nisha Gopalan

Crown Castle Jumps as Firm Sells Fiber Optics Unit

5 hr 49 min ago

Crown Castle (CCI) shares surged Friday, a day after the provider of towers and other communication infrastructure sold its fiber optics unit to the EQT Active Core Infrastructure fund and privately held Zayo Group Holdings for a combined $8.5 billion.

The deal has EQT acquiring Crown Castle’s small cells operations, while Zayo picks up the fiber solutions business. The transaction is expected to close in the first half of 2026.

Crown Castle said that it will use the money to “repay existing indebtedness and fund anticipated share repurchases, positioning the company to maintain an investment grade credit rating.” It said the new stock buyback program would be worth approximately $3.0 billion.

The move came after the company announced a strategic and operating review of the unit in December 2023, “with the goal of enhancing shareholder value.”

Along with the sale announcement, Crown Castle reported a fourth-quarter loss of $10.97 per share, while analysts surveyed by Visible Alpha were looking for a gain. Revenue of $1.65 billion was in line with forecasts. In addition, it will be slashing its annual dividend to $4.25 per share in the second quarter from $6.26 per share, and will reset it following the close of the fiber sale.

Crown Castle shares were up 10% in recent trading and were among the biggest S&P 500 gainers today.

–Bill McColl

Peloton Rises as Analyst Says It’s at ‘Turning Point’

6 hr 28 min ago

Peloton (PTON) shares popped Friday after analysts at Canaccord Genuity upgraded the company’s stock to “buy” from “hold.”

The company is the “clear leader in the connected fitness industry,” the analysts said in a note Thursday, with a “loyal member base” that stands 6 million strong. Canaccord Genuity maintained its $10 price target for the stock. By comparison, the analyst consensus price target is $10.59, according to Visible Alpha.

Peloton shares were up 11% at $6.74 in recent trading. The stock is up more than 50% over the past 12 months but has lost roughly a quarter of its value so far in 2025 amid wider market struggles.

The upgrade comes after Peloton posted quarterly results that beat analysts’ expectations last month, even as revenue declined year-over-year. At the time, the stationary bike maker said it has a “steep hill to climb to reach sustained, profitable growth.”

Peloton hasn’t reported an unadjusted quarterly profit since 2021, according to Visible Alpha. However, the company “is at the turning point in its journey where there is meaningful upside potential from current levels,” Canaccord analysts said.

–Andrew Kessel

Semtech Jumps as Chipmaker Swings to Profit

6 hr 55 min ago

Shares of Semtech (SMTC) surged 17% Friday, a day after the semiconductor maker had better-than-anticipated profit and net sales, and operating cash flow more than doubled.

Semtech swung to a fourth-quarter fiscal 2025 adjusted profit of $0.40 per share from an adjusted loss of $0.06 per share a year earlier. Analysts surveyed by Visible Alpha were looking for adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $0.31. Net sales rose 30% year-over-year to $251 million, also above forecasts. 

Cash flow from operating activities was $33.5 million, 141% higher than the prior year. For fiscal 2025, it was $58.0 million, compared to a decline of $93.9 million in 2024. CFO Mark Lin said the jump indicated a “positive inflection in our business and is expected to further benefit from lower cash interest requirements stemming from our debt reduction.”

CEO Hong Hou noted that Semtech had “sequential improvement for each quarter reported in net sales, gross margin, operating margin and earnings per share.”

The company sees current-quarter adjusted EPS with a midpoint of $0.37 and net sales of $250 million, above expectations. 

Despite today’s big gains, Semtech shares are down nearly 40% since the start of 2025.

-Bill McColl

DocuSign Shares Soar as Company’s AI Platform Gains Traction

7 hr 43 min ago

Shares of DocuSign (DOCU) surged Friday morning after the electronic signature company topped analysts’ estimates for the final quarter of fiscal 2025.

On Thursday, DocuSign reported adjusted earnings per share of $0.86, a cent better than expectations, on $776.25 million in revenue, about $15 million above the analyst consensus compiled by Visible Alpha. In the same quarter a year ago, DocuSign recorded adjusted EPS of $0.76 on revenue of $712.39 million.

CEO Allan Thygesen said the company is seeing “rapid traction with customers” with its artificial-intelligence powered Intelligent Agreement Management platform it launched last year. DocuSign announced the product last April, saying it would help customers save time and money by creating, organizing, and analyzing contracts more efficiently.

DocuSign forecasts first-quarter revenue of $745 million to $749 million and full-year revenue of $3.13 billion to $3.14 billion, each below the consensus views of analysts. However, the company’s projected billings revenue of $741 million to $751 million for the first quarter and $3.3 billion to $3.35 billion for the full year were each in line or better than estimates.

Shares of the technology company were up more than 15% Friday morning and have gained around 50% over the last 12 months.

–Aaron McDade

Ulta Beauty Stock Jumps on Strong Results

8 hr 6 min ago

Ulta Beauty (ULTA) shares soared early Friday, a day after the cosmetics retailer reported better-than-expected fourth-quarter results.

Ulta posted earnings per share (EPS) of $8.46 on net sales of $3.49 billion, ahead of Visible Alpha estimates of $7.13 and $3.46 billion, respectively. Comparable sales growth of 1.5% surpassed expectations of a 0.8% increase. 

The company sees 2025 EPS of $22.50 to $22.90, net sales of $11.5 billion to $11.6 billion, and comparable sales between flat and up 1%. All are below expectations.

CEO Kecia Steelman, who took over the role after Dave Kimbell retired in January, said the upcoming fiscal year will be “pivotal,” as the company invests to fuel its growth and seeks to “optimize” its business. 

Ulta shares were up nearly 8% in recent trading. Despite this morning’s surge, the stock is down nearly 23% in 2025.

–Nisha Gopalan

S&P 500, Nasdaq on Pace for 4th Straight Week of Declines

8 hr 52 min ago

The S&P 500 heads into the final trading session of the week on course to post its worst weekly loss since March 2023.

The benchmark index, which dropped into correction on Thursday, is down 4.3% so far this week. It is tracking to finish with weekly losses for the fourth straight week.

The Nasdaq Composite is also on pace for its fourth-consecutive weekly decline, and its fall has been even more precipitous. The tech-heavy index is down 4.9% for the week, its biggest weekly drop since September.

The Dow has lost 4.6% so far this week. If that holds, it would be the worst weekly performance since June 2022.

So far in 2025, the Nasdaq has declined 10.4% as the AI-related optimism that boosted technology stocks has subsided, while the S&P 500 and the Dow are down 6.1% and 4.1%, respectively.

S&P 500 Chart Levels to Watch as Index Slips Into Correction

9 hr 23 min ago

The S&P 500 (SPX) entered a correction Thursday amid concerns that Trump administration policies, notably tariffs, could slow economic growth and reignite inflation.

After the S&P 500 set a new record high three weeks ago, it promptly reversed, setting up a Wyckoff Spring, a chart signal that indicates a market top before a markdown phase.

Indeed, the index has since trended sharply lower, falling below the closely watched 200-day moving average (MA) on its journey into correction territory. 

The relative strength index (RSI) confirms bearish momentum, with the indicator registering its lowest reading since September 2022. However, extreme oversold conditions also raise the possibility of upside price swings.

Investors should watch crucial support levels on the S&P 500’s chart around 5,400 and 5,265, while also monitoring key resistance levels near 5,770 and 6,010.

Read the full technical analysis piece here.

–Timothy Smith

Futures Point to Higher Open for Major Stock Indexes

9 hr 53 min ago

Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average were 0.6% up in recent trading.

S&P 500 futures added 0.9%.

Nasdaq 100 futures jumped 1.2%.