U.S. stocks closed with slight gains on Tuesday, sending the S&P 500 and Nasdaq to record levels, as investors assessed the latest comments from Federal Reserve officials for clues on the timing of a rate cut while quarterly earnings from Nvidia drew closer.
Market Snapshot
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 66.22 points, or 0.17%, to 39,872.99, the S&P 500 gained 13.28 points, or 0.25%, to 5,321.41 and the Nasdaq Composite rose 37.75 points, or 0.22%, to 16,832.63.
Market Movers
Tesla provided a significant update Monday on its long-in-the-tooth project to develop electric semi trucks, which has experienced a series of delays since CEO Elon Musk debuted the rig back in 2017.
The company confirmed its Tesla Semi remains on for production-spec deliveries to customers by 2026 while offering more details on range and payload capacity for the EV truck.
More News: Tesla Reveals New Details, Deliveries for Its Semi-Truck Program
Palo Alto Networks reported fiscal third-quarter adjusted profit of $1.32 a share, better than analysts’ expectations of $1.25, but shares fell 3.7% after the cybersecurity company issued a fourth-quarter forecast that underwhelmed investors. Palo Alto forecast revenue of $2.15 billion to $2.17 billion and billings of $3.43 billion to $3.48 billion. Wall Street was predicting revenue of $2.16 billion and billings of $3.45 billion.
U.S.-listed shares of XPeng jumped 5.9% after the Chinese electric-vehicle maker posted a first-quarter loss that narrowed from a year earlier and said it expects second-quarter vehicle deliveries to rise 25% to 38% to 29,000 to 32,000 vehicles.
Peloton Interactive declined 16%. The at-home fitness company plans to offer $275 million in convertible senior notes due 2029 in a private offering. The company also will enter a $1 billion five-year term loan facility and a $100 million five-year revolving credit facility.
Keysight Technologies fell 8.4% after the test equipment manufacturer said it expects fiscal third-quarter adjusted earnings of between $1.30 and $1.36 a share on revenue of $1.18 billion to $1.2 billion, below analysts’ profit projections of $1.45 a share and revenue estimates of $1.21 billion.
VinFast Auto fell 19% after the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said it had opened an investigation into a fatal crash in April of a VinFast VF8 SUV.
First Solar was up 8% to $212.11 after analysts at UBS and Piper Sandler raised their price targets on shares of the country’s largest solar manufacturer. UBS lifted its target to $270 from $252, and Piper Sandler raised its target to $219 from $195.
Nordson, which makes dispensing equipment for adhesives and coatings, cut its fiscal-year guidance on still-weak end markets for electronics. The stock tumbled 9.4%.
Lowe’s reported first-quarter earnings of $3.06 a share, higher than analysts’ estimates of $2.95. Revenue of $21.4 billion topped estimates of $21.1 billion. Same-store sales in the period fell 4.1%. Shares declined 1.9% after rising following the release of the report.
Shares of Macy’s were up 5.1% after the retailer posted first-quarter earnings that beat analysts’ forecasts and slightly raised its guidance for the fiscal year ending in January. “Although early days, our investments in product, presentation and experience are gaining traction and reinforce our belief that longer term, Macy’s, Inc. can return to sustainable, profitable growth,” said CEO Tony Spring.
Lam Research rose 2.3%. The chip-making equipment provider said its board authorized a buyback program of $10 billion and a 10-for-1 stock split that will take place in October.
Market News
Microsoft Launches Team Copilot To Boost Workplace Collaboration
Microsoft Corp. has unveiled a new version of its Copilot assistant, designed to enhance team collaboration.
The move is part of the company's broader strategy to integrate artificial intelligence across its product line.
This AI assistant is Named Team Copilot and is designed to facilitate meetings by taking notes, summarizing key points, and managing deadlines.
Google Set to Bring Ads in Search AI Overviews
Google will start testing search and shopping ads in its AI-generated answers in the U.S., the Alphabet-owned company said on Tuesday, days after it rolled out the AI Overviews feature widely at its annual I/O conference.
Ads will appear in a 'sponsored' section within AI Overview based on the query's relevance and information, , the company said in a blog post. Google has been looking to extend its dominance beyond traditional search advertising to emerging generative AI tech.
Apple Says US Antitrust Lawsuit Should Be Dismissed
Apple said on Tuesday it plans to ask a U.S. judge to dismiss a lawsuit filed by the Justice Department and 15 states in March that alleged the iPhone maker monopolized the smartphone market, hurt smaller rivals and drove up prices.
In a letter to U.S. District Judge Julien X. Neals in New Jersey, Apple said "far from being a monopolist, Apple faces fierce competition from well-established rivals, and the complaint fails to allege that Apple has the ability to charge supra-competitive prices or restrict output in the alleged smartphone markets."
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