News about Wall Street

Bloom Energy (BE) shares rose more than 4% premarket on Monday as the company entered earnings week, with its Thursday report expected to highlight growth in AI data-center power. The stock had fallen 21% the previous week, its worst weekly performance in nearly four months, amid a broader selloff in semiconductor and AI stocks and concerns over competition from CXMT's next-generation memory plans. Truist raised its price target to $240 from $218 but kept a 'Hold' rating, expecting strong third-quarter demand, and analysts expect revenue to rise about 104% to $1.06 billion. The stock is up 155% year to date, and retail sentiment on Stocktwits has been bullish, though some users warned that elevated expectations could lead to a sell-the-news reaction.

U.S. stock futures were trending higher early Monday, shrugging off “Black Monday” crash fears circulating on social media. Wall Street is bracing for a pivotal week of mega-cap tech earnings while geopolitical tensions in the Middle East continue.

Asian stocks mostly fell on Monday, tracking a tech-heavy selloff on Wall Street driven by worries over the AI investment boom. Chipmakers and AI-linked firms remain under pressure over inflation, rising costs and when the huge sums invested in the sector will pay off. CoreWeave's stock has fallen around 30 percent this month as yields on some of its bonds surged, and the Nasdaq dropped more than two percent in the latest Wall Street session. Tokyo, Seoul, Taipei, Shanghai, Sydney, Singapore and Wellington all slipped while Hong Kong was closed, and China's third-quarter GDP grew 4.5 percent, slightly above forecasts. Oil held above $100 after surging more than three percent on Friday.

U.S. stock futures rose late Sunday, signaling a rebound from Friday's slide in the Nasdaq Composite, even as calls for a 'Black Monday' crash trended. The Kobeissi Letter called selloff worries 'overdone,' noting the S&P 500 has climbed from about 5,500 to around 7,650 since May 2025. It argues the index is in a 'stealth' bear market within a bull market, with 84% of its stocks at least 10% below record highs and just 10 stocks driving 70% of gains since the March low. S&P 500 futures rose 0.72% to 7,760 after the index closed 1.09% lower on Friday, while the Nasdaq Composite closed 2.14% lower. Polymarket priced a 7% chance of a U.S. recession by the end of 2026, while David Rosenberg said he sees better-than-even odds of a recession within a year.

Japanese stocks fell sharply on Monday, reversing part of the previous session's gains after weak cues from Wall Street. The Nikkei 225 dropped 900.46 points (1.38%) to 64,423.83 after touching a low of 63,831.78, led by heavyweights and technology stocks, with Taiyo Yuden plunging more than 7% and SoftBank down more than 4%. On Wall Street, the Nasdaq fell 572.99 points (2.1%) to 26,140.03, the S&P 500 lost 84.62 points (1.1%) to 7,659.44, and the Dow slipped 175.28 points (0.3%) to 52,002.41. European markets rose, with Germany's DAX up 1%, the FTSE 100 up 0.4% and the CAC 40 up 0.3%. WTI crude for November delivery rose $3.33 (3.4%) to $101.30 a barrel, topping $100 for the first time in a month as Iran re-escalated attacks in the Strait of Hormuz.

The S&P/ASX Small Ordinaries Index gained 68.80 points (2.20%) to 3,189.20 on Friday, though it remained down 111.90 points (3.39%) over the past five trading days. Noble Helium applied for an exploration permit covering about 7,760 square kilometres in Western Australia's Southern Carnarvon Basin, following sampling that showed elevated helium and hydrogen readings. NewPeak Metals has secured a drill rig and full funding for a minimum 1,000-metre second phase of diamond drilling at its Las Opeñas Gold Project in Argentina, scheduled to begin in mid-October 2026. Medallion Metals is targeting first gold production and sales in November, with processing at its Cosmic Boy Concentrator set to begin in October. Orion Minerals' US$40 million Tranche A financing from Glencore has become unconditional, clearing the way for development of the Uppers Mine at its Prieska Copper Zinc Mine in South Africa.

A broad sell-off in technology stocks pushed Wall Street lower, with the S&P 500 down 1.1% and the Nasdaq down 2.1%, leaving the S&P 500 about 2% lower for the week and erasing last week's record gains. Chipmakers including Micron, AMD, Broadcom and Intel led the declines amid doubts about how long the AI spending boom can last, as tech giants that rely on debt may struggle to keep borrowing while bond yields climb. The 10-year Treasury yield eased to 5.09% but had topped 5.30% earlier this month, its highest since 2002, and traders now see a 74.3% chance of a Fed rate hike in December, up from 50.2% a month ago. Brent crude jumped 3.7% to $109.86 a barrel as the Iran war continues without a U.S.-Iran deal. The Australian sharemarket was set to edge lower, with futures pointing to a loss of 11 points (0.1%).

A broad sell-off in tech stocks pushed Wall Street lower, with the S&P 500 down 1.1% and the Nasdaq down 2.1%, marking the market's worst week since late June. Chipmakers including Micron, AMD, Broadcom and Intel fell as investors questioned how long the AI spending boom could last, while Netflix dropped 2.9% after a management change. The 10-year Treasury yield eased to 5.09% from 5.10%, after touching its highest level since 2002 earlier this month, and traders put the odds of a Fed rate hike in December at 74.3%. Brent crude jumped 3.7% to $US109.86 a barrel amid the Iran war and Strait of Hormuz supply concerns. The ASX was set to open slightly lower.

Wall Street closed lower as a broad tech sell-off pushed the S&P 500 down 1.1%, the Nasdaq down 2.1% and the Dow down 0.3%. The S&P 500 lost about 2% for the week, erasing the gains it made last week when it set an all-time high. Chipmakers including Micron, AMD, Broadcom and Intel led the declines amid worries that the AI spending boom may not last and that big tech may struggle to keep borrowing as bond yields climb. The 10-year Treasury yield eased to 5.09% but had topped 5.30% earlier this month, while CME Group data showed the odds of a Fed rate hike in December jumping to 74.3%. Brent crude rose 3.7% to $109.86 a barrel as there is still no U.S.–Iran deal to end the war.

Wall Street's AI rally faces a test as investors await earnings from Meta, Tesla, chipmakers Lam Research and Texas Instruments, and SpaceX. Recent declines in AI, chip and hardware stocks such as Dell Technologies have raised doubts about whether the rally can continue. LSEG IBES data show S&P 500 earnings are expected to rise more than 30% in the third quarter, but investors want proof that heavy AI spending will pay off. Goldman Sachs expects five hyperscalers to lift combined capital spending to around $1.2 trillion next year. The S&P 500 posted its biggest weekly fall since June but remained only about 2% below its record high.

Wall Street has spent recent years rewarding nearly every company tied to AI, including hyperscalers, chipmakers, memory providers, cloud firms and equipment makers. A Columbia University estimate puts cumulative AI infrastructure investment and spending at about $9 trillion over 2025–2032, and says the sector would need more than $3.5 trillion in annual revenue by 2032 just to break even. The article argues that, as with the late-1990s telecom fiber build-out and 19th-century railroads, the biggest winners may be the businesses that use the infrastructure rather than those that build it, since builders often face overcapacity and weak returns. It points to industrial companies using AI for tasks such as predictive maintenance and logistics as potential beneficiaries, and presents the Industrial Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLI) as a complementary holding with a small allocation.

MarketBeat's stock screener lists seven bank stocks to watch on October 18th: Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo, Citigroup, Charles Schwab, U.S. Bancorp and Bank of New York Mellon. These companies had the highest dollar trading volume among bank stocks over the past several days. The article notes that bank shares can offer share-price gains and dividends but carry risks tied to interest rates, loan losses, economic conditions and regulation. It also briefly describes each company's business, such as Citigroup's Treasury and Trade Solutions unit and BNY's securities services.

The VIX jumped 21.5% to 19.99 on Friday as the S&P 500 fell 1.09% amid worries over AI stocks and geopolitical tensions, its biggest one-day rise since June 5. In 32 earlier Friday spikes of 20% or more since January 1990, the VIX fell the following Monday 25 times and rose only seven times. Bitcoin stayed above $80,000 over the weekend, and its volatility index BVIV was just under 40%, showing no sign of market stress. However, the article notes nothing guarantees a calm Monday: the VIX kept climbing sharply on Monday in seven of those 32 cases, and it remains under 20 today.

Technology stocks fell this week as financing concerns mounted, pulling the S&P 500 and Nasdaq into negative territory. CoreWeave (CRWV) and Nebius (NBIS) each closed the week down more than 25%, and Baird's Ted Mortonson placed Oracle (ORCL) near the bottom of tech on free cash flow, citing a higher cost of capital and scrutiny of circular finance. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang voiced optimism about CoreWeave, in which Nvidia holds roughly a 10% stake. Patrick Moorhead (Moor Insights & Strategy) called the sell-off another scare, while Dan Ives (Wedbush Securities) pointed to CoreWeave's revenue backlog of roughly $104 billion at the end of the second quarter. UBS described the volatility as a recalibration of expectations rather than a fundamental break, urging investors to watch whether AI spending turns into sustainable earnings growth.

Wall Street faces a tug-of-war as booming earnings for technology and energy firms collide with a relentless rise in bond yields, which have reached their highest levels in decades. Analysts expect earnings to keep soaring on AI data center build-outs, while oil prices, pushed into triple-digit territory by the war with Iran, add pressure on consumers. The market has split into AI and non-AI stocks, and AI stocks sold off last week as Treasury yields fell and investors questioned the AI-driven growth story. Valuations have slumped: the S&P 500 trades at 19 times expected earnings, below its five-year and 10-year averages, according to FactSet. Fidelity's Jurrien Timmer said earnings growth and the rising cost of capital are in a race to determine stock prices.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average, S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite have hit several record closing highs over the past four years, driven by AI infrastructure spending, record-breaking IPOs and better-than-expected earnings. The article highlights outstanding margin debt, reported monthly by FINRA, as a measure of investor risk-taking, since borrowing can magnify both gains and losses. Since 1997, margin debt has surged at least 65% over a short period four times, and the three earlier episodes preceded major bear markets, including the dot-com crash, the financial crisis and the 2022 downturn. From April 2025 to June 2026, margin debt rose 77% to an all-time high of $1.502 trillion, which the article says could foreshadow trouble for stocks, though long-term investors have historically benefited.

The article notes the US stock market has rallied for roughly four years, with the Dow Jones, S&P 500 and Nasdaq posting several record closes, driven by AI infrastructure spending, record IPOs and better-than-expected earnings. It focuses on outstanding margin debt, the money investors borrow from brokers to buy or short-sell securities, which FINRA reports monthly as a gauge of risk-taking. Since 1997, margin debt has jumped at least 65% over a short period four times, and the previous three were followed by major bear markets, including the dot-com crash, the financial crisis and the 2022 downturn. The latest episode, from April 2025 to June 2026, lifted margin debt 77% to a record 1.502 trillion USD. While the article warns of short-term risks, it also notes stocks have historically delivered higher average annual returns than other asset classes, so long-term investors may view the picture differently.

Fears about the AI trade and higher oil prices are weighing on global markets, but analysts tracked by TipRanks still see growth potential in three stocks. Morgan Stanley's Erin Wright reiterated a buy on UnitedHealth with a $529 price target after a Q3 2026 beat and raise, lifting her 2026 EPS estimate to $20.65 and 2027 to $23.24. Guggenheim's Michael Morris kept a buy on Meta and raised his target to $850 from $700, citing Muse reaching 1.3 million daily active users in five weeks, though this is under 0.05% of Meta's 3.6 billion daily active users. Stifel's Tore Svanberg reiterated a buy on Marvell with a $370 target after its Investor Day raised its TAM estimate to $400 billion by 2030 and pointed to a $30 billion FY31 Custom revenue target. Svanberg expects Marvell's XPU Attach business to grow substantially, leading to a more balanced XPU and XPU Attach revenue mix.