MW Here's what wild single-stock price swings may signal for your index fund
By Philip van Doorn
Also in Weekend Reads: The latest on SpaceX and other IPOs, a raw deal for Alphabet's non-Berkshire shareholders and advice from the Moneyist
Individual stocks have been unusually volatile over the past week.
On Thursday, the S&P 500 rose 0.4%, which was not a large change for one trading session, but the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.7%. That was an unusual mismatch in daily changes for the indexes. Then again, the Dow is made up of only 30 stocks, and on Thursday, three of its components were up 5% apiece: UnitedHealth Group, Goldman Sachs and Merck.
On Thursday, 72% of stocks in the S&P 500 SPX - which is weighted by companies' market capitalization - rose for the session. One development that held the S&P 500 back that day was a 13% decline for Broadcom $(AVGO)$, which is the seventh-largest component of the index by market cap. Broadcom had reported record quarterly results that were pretty much in line with what analysts had expected. But the company's own sales estimate for its current quarter came in below what analysts were expecting.
This is a fickle market, considering that Broadcom reported a 48% increase in sales for its fiscal second quarter from the year-earlier quarter, along with an 85% increase in earnings per share. And for its fiscal third quarter, the company expects sales nearly to double from those in the same quarter of 2025.
Another example of the increasing day-to-day volatility was provided by Dell Technologies $(DELL)$. The stock rose 33% on May 29 following an earnings report that included an incredible increase in server revenue. Then the stock rose another 11% on Monday, fell 7% on Tuesday and declined another 3% on Wednesday.
Tomi Kilgore dug into the "dispersion trade" and explained what rising volatility for individual stocks might signal for the broad market.
From Christine Idzelis:
-- Investors are piling into bullish options bets - another sign that the stock market is getting overheated
-- The S&P 500 has only risen this quickly four times since WWII. Once, a historic stock-market crash followed.
Varying opinions covered in the Need to Know column:
-- The stock market is at its frothiest since the global financial crisis, proclaims Citi. Why dip buyers shouldn't bail yet.
-- Bulls declare victory in AI debate, but two classic signs of a market top are looming
SpaceX and other IPO developments
SpaceX's stock is expected to begin trading on June 11. The initial public offering is so large that 23 investment banks are serving as underwriters.
SpaceX $(SPCX)$ amended its S-1 initial public offering filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday to set the IPO price at $135 a share, as part of its plan to raise as much as $85.7 billion. That would value the entire company at close to $1.75 trillion. In the S-1, SpaceX said that during the first quarter, its revenue totaled $4.694 billion and its quarterly net loss from operations was $1.943.
Based on the first-quarter revenue number, annualized, and a $1.75 trillion valuation, SpaceX's stock at the IPO would have a trailing price/sales ratio of 93.2. That would compare with trailing price/sales ratios of 3.6 for the S&P 500 and 11.2 for the index's information technology sector, according to data provided by FactSet.
Here's an updated look at the valuations for two other stocks that have traded high to trailing sales:
-- Tesla's TSLA trailing P/S is 15.1, and it peaked at 34.6 in February 2021. Tesla went public in June 2010. FactSet's earliest available trailing price/sales ratio for Tesla was 13.2 in July 2010.
-- Palantir's PLTR trailing P/S is 69.7, and it peaked at 154.3 in November 2025. Palantir went public in September 2020, and FactSet's earliest trailing price/sales ratio for the company was 19.4 in November 2020.
Mark Hulbert dug further into the SpaceX valuation and what it might mean for long-term investors.
William Gavin: Elon Musk needs the cultish support of everyday investors to pull off the massive SpaceX IPO
SpaceX's stock is expected to begin trading on June 12. You can follow daily coverage of initial public offerings in the IPO Report column.
More coverage of SpaceX and recent IPOs:
-- In 'wild' twist, SpaceX won't be allowed early entry to the S&P 500 after all
-- Here's how SpaceX is pitching its IPO to everyday investors
-- Looking to buy into the SpaceX IPO? This scary chart might make you think twice.
-- The IPO of this power generator for data centers quietly outshines Quantinuum
-- Quantinuum's buzzy IPO ends with a whimper as stock gives back early gains
How Berkshire's discounted purchase of Alphabet shares hurt the Google holding company's other shareholders
Berkshire Hathaway was able to scoop up $80 billion in newly issued shares of Alphabet $(GOOGL)$ at a fat discount to Monday's closing price. Tomi Kilgore and Emily Bary explained how unlovely the deal was for Alphabet's non-Berkshire shareholders.
More tech coverage:
-- Amazon, Microsoft and Google are quietly morphing their businesses - and Wall Street is missing the big picture
-- Why the most important company enabling AI isn't Nvidia, according to this fund manager
-- Microsoft's stock chart just flashed a bullish signal for a software comeback
Social Security spousal and survivor benefits
In the Help Me Retire column, Alessandra Malito answered questions from a 79-year-old woman whose husband died at the age of 82. Both had started to receive Social Security benefits at the age of 62. This is what the widow should do next, along with an explanation of how spousal and survivor Social Security benefits work.
More from Alessandra Malito: Are you financially fulfilled? If not, your retirement plans are in danger.
Get a job
Don't Short Yourself - MarketWatch's new weekly newsletter - offers smart tips to help you earn and grow your money.
If you have completed your university education, you might be frustrated if you haven't yet found a job related to your field of study. In this week's Don't Short Yourself newsletter, Aditi Shrikant shared her own experience when in that situation and provided practical advice for recent graduates.
Do you think you are smarter than the market? Or have you experienced beginner's luck?
Gordon Gottsegen explained new regulatory and industry rules on trading securities and shared statistics that are important for novice day traders.
More from Gordon Gottsegen: Emerging markets and AI stocks
Investment management
It would be logical to expect an AI-enabled investment strategy to outperform traditional strategies. But what if the AI strategies become predominant? Mark Hulbert shared the results of a long-term study on investment performance of AI-based strategies, and you might be surprised at the results.
Here are two profiles of investment strategies, featuring interviews with portfolio managers and performance comparisons against peers and indexes:
-- This winning high-yield bond strategy limits risk while seeking under-the-radar opportunities
-- This investing strategy digs deeper to find hidden stocks riding the AI wave
Advice from your Moneyist
Quentin Fottrell is the Moneyist.
This week Quentin Fottrell - the Moneyist - answered a question from a woman who plans to give $20,000 to her son to help with a down payment for a home. Does she need to report this gift to the Internal Revenue Service?
More from the Moneyist:
-- My husband and I are 75. We have $1.5 million in stocks and $425,000 in savings. Is that too much cash?
-- I want to give my brother and his children $5,000 each. My financial adviser is reluctant. Who's right?
-- 'This would be a one-time event': How can I take extra money from my 401(k) without triggering higher Medicare premiums?
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-Philip van Doorn
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June 05, 2026 11:49 ET (15:49 GMT)
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