On Wednesday, NVIDIA (NVDA) was the top trader on US stock exchanges, closing 3.43% higher with a trading volume of $342.56 billion. This marked the stock's fifth consecutive day of gains, pushing it to a two-month high. After a brief sector pullback, the computing leader's strong rebound has significantly boosted sentiment across the global AI hardware supply chain. Elon Musk stated on Wednesday that SpaceX will exclusively use NVIDIA processors when building its AI computing infrastructure in the future. During the SpaceX earnings call, he noted that NVIDIA has the "best AI computers" and added, "We only choose NVIDIA." Analysts attribute NVIDIA's recent sustained strength to four key factors. First, the long-term demand for AI computing remains robust, with global cloud providers and tech companies continuing to increase AI infrastructure investments, keeping GPU orders full and the push for high-end graphics cards in large-scale AI deployment strong. Second, risk-averse capital is flowing back; the chip sector panic triggered by AMD's earnings has fully dissipated, prompting funds to return to the computing leader with the strongest earnings certainty. Third, ongoing technological advancements, such as new GPUs, optical interconnects, and AI acceleration solutions, are raising valuation expectations and prompting institutions to upgrade long-term revenue forecasts. Fourth, a favorable macro environment in the US stock market, with indices hitting new highs and ample liquidity, provides a supportive backdrop for tech growth stocks. Overall, NVIDIA's strong performance is a result of the convergence of fundamentals, capital flows, industry trends, and macro conditions, with short-term volatility not altering the long-term upward trajectory.
The second-largest trader was Micron Technology (MU), which closed 0.06% higher with a volume of $304.16 billion. Renowned investor and short seller Michael Burry stated on Wednesday that he continues to hold short positions in the iShares Semiconductor ETF (SOXX), Micron, NVIDIA, Caterpillar, Palantir, Tesla, and Applied Materials. He expressed confidence in the long-term prospects of these positions.
Third was Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), which fell 7.04% with a volume of $236.19 billion. Despite AMD's latest financial data showing overall improvement, it failed to fully meet the market's extremely high expectations for explosive growth in the AI sector. The data showed AMD expects third-quarter revenue of approximately $130 billion, above analysts' consensus estimate of $125.2 billion. Its core data center business revenue doubled to $67.2 billion, surpassing market expectations. Multiple financial research institutions noted that the strong market sentiment and significant price run-up ahead of earnings had set an exceptionally high bar, preventing the objectively good results from boosting the stock. On the competitive front, Elon Musk's decision to exclusively use NVIDIA chips for SpaceX's computing infrastructure further pressured AMD's stock.
Fourth was SpaceX (SPCX), which dropped 13.61% with a volume of $225.38 billion. The rocket company released its first quarterly report since its June listing. SpaceX reported that its second-quarter capital expenditure surged sixfold to $184 billion, exceeding analyst expectations, with the majority of the spending directed toward AI.
Fifth was SanDisk (WDC), which fell 5.40% with a volume of $198.91 billion. SanDisk reported its fiscal 2026 Q4 earnings after Wednesday's close: revenue of $89.6 billion, up 372% year-over-year, beating the market estimate of $83.94 billion, compared to $19.01 billion in the same period last year. The company guided for fiscal 2027 Q1 revenue of $103 billion to $108 billion, against a market consensus of $108 billion.
Sixth was Alphabet Inc. (GOOGL), which closed 4.03% lower with a volume of $169.92 billion. The company announced a restructuring of its AI division, with Chief Scientist Jeff Dean departing after 27 years. According to a memo from CEO Sundar Pichai, Demis Hassabis, CEO of Google DeepMind, will transition to lead the division as Chairman and also serve as Chief Scientist for parent company Alphabet. Dean, a pioneer in AI who achieved some of Google's most significant technical breakthroughs, will co-found his own company with Google Senior Fellow Sanjay Ghemawat. A representative said the departure was amicable, and Google will invest in his startup.
Eleventh was Palantir Technologies (PLTR), which fell 2.60% with a volume of $98.15 billion. Palantir recently reported second-quarter sales that significantly exceeded Wall Street expectations and raised its full-year revenue and profit forecasts. The CEO described the company's performance as "unusual," stating that the strong growth momentum would last at least another 18 months, and refuted concerns that AI startups would replace its business. The company reported Q2 revenue of $19.35 billion, a 93% year-over-year surge; net profit of $10.62 billion, up 55%; and diluted EPS of $0.41, above the market estimate of $0.35.
Fifteenth was Eli Lilly and Company (LLY), which rose 4.86% with a volume of $74.74 billion. Eli Lilly raised its 2026 sales guidance in its latest earnings report, as its weight-loss drug business performed exceptionally well in the second quarter, alleviating investor concerns about a cooling "weight-loss drug frenzy." Eli Lilly said Wednesday it expects full-year 2026 sales to be between $850 billion and $870 billion, above previous expectations. The company's adjusted second-quarter earnings and revenue also beat Wall Street estimates. The diabetes drug Mounjaro exceeded all expectations for the quarter, with sales surging 91% year-over-year as it expanded into more global markets. The weight-loss drug Zepbound also beat Wall Street estimates, and the newly launched oral weight-loss drug Foundayo had a strong start.
Seventeenth was Shopify Inc. (SHOP), which surged 16.98% with a volume of $59.41 billion. The company's third-quarter revenue outlook exceeded market expectations. Shopify said it expects revenue growth "in the low 30% range," which is higher than the Wall Street consensus of 27% and would mark the sixth consecutive quarter of revenue growth exceeding 30%. Analyst Anurag Rana noted in a report that rising AI costs were expected to compress margins going into the quarter. Shopify had previously stated in its May earnings call that over half of its code is generated by AI.
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