Sometimes one earnings report does the work of an entire Federal Reserve meeting. On Wednesday, that report belonged to Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SPCX), which jumped 10% after a third quarter that blew past forecasts, reviving the artificial intelligence trade and lifting the Nasdaq 100 1.3% by midday, while the broader S&P 500 gained 0.5%.
SpaceX reported third-quarter revenue of $14.6 billion, up 161% from a year earlier, and adjusted EBITDA of $8.8 billion. Its Super Intelligence unit, formerly the AI division, brought in $7.56 billion, up 830%.
The company guided first-quarter 2027 revenue to $33 billion to $37 billion, against Wall Street estimates near $23 billion.
SpaceX's gain was its biggest one-day move since Aug. 7, when the stock climbed 15.8%, and added roughly $200 billion in market value in a single session. JPMorgan more than doubled its price target to $500 from $240.
The S&P 500 rose 0.5% to 7,753 points. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 151 points, or 0.3%, to 52,647.
The Nasdaq 100 climbed 1.3% to 29,863. Within Magnificent Seven stocks Tesla Inc. (TSLA) gained 3.5% ahead of its results after the close, Meta Platforms Inc. (META) rose 2.4%, Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) advanced 1.9% and Apple Inc. (AAPL) added 1.3%. Alphabet Inc. (GOOGL) fell 2.2%, while Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) and Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN) were flat.
The small-cap Russell 2000 rose 0.2% to 2,783.
Bonds Hold Steady, Crude Falls Despite Bigger-Than-Expected Inventory Draw
Treasury yields barely moved. The 10-year yield was little changed at 5.11%, the 2-year yield rose 2 basis points to 4.80% and the 30-year yield eased 1 basis point to 5.42%.
Oil slipped despite a bigger-than-expected drop in U.S. stockpiles. The Energy Information Administration reported a 3.06-million-barrel draw in crude inventories last week, against the 800,000-barrel decline expected, and a 2.95-million-barrel drop in gasoline stocks.
West Texas Intermediate crude fell 1.1% to $96.79 a barrel, and Brent eased 0.4% to $108.34. Natural gas dropped 4.5% to $2.83 per million British thermal units.
Gold edged up 0.2% to $4,150 an ounce, while silver slipped 0.6% to $57.67. Bitcoin (BTC) rose 1.9% to about $84,475.
Wednesday's Performance in Major U.S. Indices
According to market data:
- The Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO) gained 0.5%.
- The SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF Trust (DIA) edged up 0.2%.
- The Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) climbed 1.1%.
- The iShares Russell 2000 ETF (IWM) rose 0.3%.
Tech Leads As SpaceX Rewires The AI Trade
The Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLK) led the S&P 500 sectors with a 1.5% gain, as SpaceX and Super Micro pulled AI hardware names higher. The VanEck Semiconductor ETF (SMH) rose 1.8%, and the iShares Expanded Tech-Software Sector ETF (IGV) added 1.9%.
The Communication Services Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLC) lagged, down 0.8%, weighed by Netflix, Alphabet and AT&T. The Health Care Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLV) fell by the same margin after Abbott Laboratories (ABT) dropped 3.5%: its third-quarter adjusted EPS of $1.42 matched estimates, but it cut its full-year comparable sales growth outlook to about 6% and announced plans to spin off its nutrition business.
Industrials, financials and utilities rose between 0.5% and 0.8%, while consumer staples and real estate slipped about 0.6%. Among industry funds, the VanEck Oil Services ETF (OIH) rose 1.8% and the U.S. Global Jets ETF (JETS) gained 1.8% as crude eased.
Super Micro Computer Inc. (SMCI) rallied 9.6% after lifting its fiscal first-quarter revenue outlook to $18.5 billion to $19.5 billion, from $14.5 billion to $15.5 billion, well above the $15.23 billion consensus. It also raised its gross margin forecast to 12.0% to 12.5%.
Not every earnings print found buyers.
Netflix Inc. (NFLX) fell 5% even though third-quarter adjusted EPS of 87 cents beat the 82-cent estimate, as fourth-quarter revenue guidance of $13.4 billion came in just below the $13.5 billion consensus. Needham downgraded the stock to Hold, and JPMorgan trimmed its target to $81 from $85.
SpaceX's ambitions also cut the other way.
AT&T Inc. (T) slid 6.3% despite third-quarter revenue of $32.32 billion, ahead of the $31.67 billion estimate, and a higher full-year adjusted EPS outlook of about $2.40, as investors focused on the competitive threat from Starlink.
EchoStar Corp. (ECHO), which holds a stake in SpaceX, rose 8.1% in tandem with the rocket maker.
Galaxy Digital Inc. (GLXY) rallied 8% as Bitcoin climbed, a day after Citi upgraded the stock. Strategy Inc (MSTR) rose 7.4%.
Charles River Laboratories International Inc. (CRL) jumped 7.9% to a 52-week high as drug development and life science tools names rallied together. Medpace Holdings Inc. (MEDP) gained 6.4%, while Illumina Inc. (ILMN) and Bruker Corp. (BRKR) each added 6.1%.
On the downside, Wingstop Inc. (WING) fell 6.6% a week before its third-quarter report, after StoneX cut its price target to $185 from $245 on Tuesday, citing a difficult quarter for fast-food chains. Restaurant peers Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. (CMG) and Dutch Bros Inc. (BROS) lost 4.4% and 3.7%, respectively.
DexCom Inc. (DXCM) dropped 5.9% after Abbott, its main rival in glucose monitors, lowered its diabetes care outlook to low-to-mid single-digit growth from high single digits.
Dycom Industries Inc. (DY) fell 4.8% with no company-specific news.
Looking Ahead
Tesla reports after the close, with analysts expecting adjusted EPS of 45 cents on revenue of $28.06 billion.
International Business Machines Corp. (IBM) ($2.85, $16.82 billion), Lam Research Corp. (LRCX) ($2.18, $8.14 billion) and Texas Instruments Inc. (TXN) ($2.44, $5.94 billion) also report.
Wednesday's Russell 1000 Top Gainers
Wednesday's Russell 1000 Top Losers
