Micron (NASDAQ: MU) stock rose in Tuesday's trading. The memory technologies company's share price climbed 4.7% in the daily session. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC) gained 1.1%, and the Nasdaq Composite (NASDAQINDEX: ^IXIC) climbed 1.4%. Micron's valuation got a boost today as macroeconomic and geopolitical developments pointed to a more favorable backdrop for investors. Excitement surro...
Micron (NASDAQ: MU) stock rose in Tuesday's trading. The memory technologies company's share price climbed 4.7% in the daily session. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC) gained 1.1%, and the Nasdaq Composite (NASDAQINDEX: ^IXIC) climbed 1.4%. Micron's valuation got a boost today as macroeconomic and geopolitical developments pointed to a more favorable backdrop for investors. Excitement surrounding the company's quarterly report tomorrow may have also factored into the valuation move. Where to invest $1,000 right now? Our analyst team just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks to buy right now. Learn More » Micron stock rises on more favorable macroeconomic and geopolitical outlook Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said today that the central bank would continue to monitor tariff and inflation dynamics before committing to cutting interest rates, but he also left the door open for a rate reduction next month. Along with other recent comment from Fed officials, Powell's statements today bolstered investor hopes for a rate cut next month and helped send the broader market higher. Investors were also relieved to see the announcement of a ceasefire in the war between Israel and Iran. In addition to being a potential source of outcomes that could drive inflation higher, investors have shown signs of concern that military actions between the two countries could spiral into a much wider conflict that would destabilize markets. With a ceasefire now in place, Micron and other stock stocks received valuation boosts as buyers became less risk-averse. What's next for Micron? After market close tomorrow, Micron will publish results for the third quarter of its current fiscal year, which concluded May 30. The average Wall Street analyst estimate calls for the business to report non-GAAP (generally accepted accounting principles) adjusted earnings per share of $1.61 on sales of $8.85 billion. With the last update from Micron, the company guided for adjusted earn...
Following recent sell-offs, Micron (NASDAQ: MU) stock saw a day of strong rebound trading on Wednesday. The company's share closed out the day up 4.8% and had been up as much as 5.3% earlier in the session. The S&P 500 index's level ended the day up 1%, and the Nasdaq Composite closed out the day up 1.5%. On the heels of bearish pressures for the broader market, stocks saw a strong rebound in toda...
Following recent sell-offs, Micron (NASDAQ: MU) stock saw a day of strong rebound trading on Wednesday. The company's share closed out the day up 4.8% and had been up as much as 5.3% earlier in the session. The S&P 500 index's level ended the day up 1%, and the Nasdaq Composite closed out the day up 1.5%. On the heels of bearish pressures for the broader market, stocks saw a strong rebound in today's trading. Bullish momentum for the semiconductor trade resumed today, and Micron's share price climbed in conjunction with general market trends. Will AI create the world's first trillionaire? Our team just released a report on a little-known company, called an "Indispensable Monopoly," providing the critical technology Nvidia and Intel both need. Continue » Image source: Getty Images. Micron regains ground Semiconductor stocks have been at the center of the broader market's bullish momentum over the last couple of months. While bullish momentum for chip stocks has wavered in recent sessions, investors bought back into top chip stocks in today's session. To put things in perspective, Micron is up roughly 156% year to date -- but it's still down 9% from its lifetime high. What's next for Micron? As the strongest player in the high-performance memory chip market, Micron has become one of the most important tech stocks when it comes to shaping momentum for the broader market. The demand outlook for the company's high-bandwidth-memory (HBM) chips for use in conjunction with AI processors remains very promising, but investors should understand that the chip specialist's valuation could face pressures if bullish momentum in the broader chip space falters. Should you buy stock in Micron Technology right now? Before you buy stock in Micron Technology, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Micron Technology wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce mo...
Key Points OpenAI just closed a $122 billion private financing round in March. However, the company may want the ability to conduct an IPO while AI valuations are still very high, given the demand for IPOs. When evaluating the OpenAI IPO, investors should ask several questions. These 10 stocks could mint the next wave of millionaires › IPO season is kicking into high gear. Recently, the artificial...
Key Points OpenAI just closed a $122 billion private financing round in March. However, the company may want the ability to conduct an IPO while AI valuations are still very high, given the demand for IPOs. When evaluating the OpenAI IPO, investors should ask several questions. These 10 stocks could mint the next wave of millionaires › IPO season is kicking into high gear. Recently, the artificial intelligence semiconductor company Cerebras went public and skyrocketed out of the gate. SpaceX just released its preliminary prospectus, with the company reportedly targeting a June 12 IPO. Will AI create the world's first trillionaire? Our team just released a report on the one little-known company, called an "Indispensable Monopoly" providing the critical technology Nvidia and Intel both need. Continue » Now, OpenAI, the parent company of ChatGPT, could confidentially file for an IPO as soon as Friday, according to The Wall Street Journal, which cited "people familiar with the matter." The Journal didn't say that OpenAI would file on Friday; it just said it could. Sources the publication spoke with said that OpenAI and its CEO, Sam Altman, want the company to be ready to go public as early as September of this year. The news comes after a federal jury ruled in Altman's favor in a hotly contested lawsuit filed by Elon Musk, who alleged that OpenAI improperly transitioned from a nonprofit to a for-profit entity after Musk donated $38 million to OpenAI between 2015 and 2017. Musk, who sued the company for $150 billion, sought to remove Altman from the board of directors and revert the company back to its original nonprofit status. Ultimately, the jury dismissed the lawsuit on the grounds that Musk waited too long to file the suit. Removing the overhang of the lawsuit makes OpenAI's path to an IPO easier, although many questions remain. Here's what investors need to know. Why OpenAI may want to do an IPO sooner rather than later The release of ChatGPT four years ago officia...
Note: The following is an excerpt from this week’s Earnings Trends report. You can access the full report that contains detailed historical actual and estimates for the current and following periods, please click here>>> Here are the key points: The Q1 earnings season has come to an end for 9 of the 16 Zacks sectors, with results from 462 S&P 500, or 92.4% of the index’s membership, already out. M...
Note: The following is an excerpt from this week’s Earnings Trends report. You can access the full report that contains detailed historical actual and estimates for the current and following periods, please click here>>> Here are the key points: The Q1 earnings season has come to an end for 9 of the 16 Zacks sectors, with results from 462 S&P 500, or 92.4% of the index’s membership, already out. Most of the still-to-come reports are from the Retail, Tech, and Industrial Products sectors. Total Q1 earnings for the 462 S&P 500 companies that have already reported results are up +21.1% from the same period last year on +10.4% higher revenues, with 79.9% beating EPS estimates and 78.6% beating revenue estimates. This is a better showing from these companies relative to other recent periods. The aggregate earnings total for Q1 is on track to be a new all-time quarterly record at $689.8 billion, surpassing the record set in the preceding quarter at $655.4 billion. The Q1 earnings season showed continued strength and momentum, with companies not only comfortably beating consensus estimates but also providing a reassuring read on the economy despite elevated energy costs and other risks. The momentum is particularly notable on the revenues side, both in terms of the growth pace as well as the beats percentage. We are also seeing positive momentum on the revisions front, with estimates for the current and upcoming quarters rising. The Revisions Trend Remains Positive The overall earnings picture continues to be of all-around strength and a steadily improving outlook. This favorable earnings backdrop is evident in the revisions trend, as seen in how expectations for 2026 Q2 have evolved in recent weeks. Image Source: Zacks Investment Research We should note that Q2 estimates have modestly come down in recent days, even though the overall revisions trend remains positive. The sectors enjoying positive estimate revisions since the start of April include Energy, Tech, Basic Mate...
West Virginia Has America's Highest Gas-Price Burden Americans are still paying elevated prices at the pump in 2026, but the biggest financial burden is falling on states with lower household incomes rather than the highest fuel prices. This map, via Visual Capitalist's Bruno Venditti, shows where gasoline is least affordable by comparing the cost of a standard 15-gallon fill-up against median wee...
West Virginia Has America's Highest Gas-Price Burden Americans are still paying elevated prices at the pump in 2026, but the biggest financial burden is falling on states with lower household incomes rather than the highest fuel prices. This map, via Visual Capitalist's Bruno Venditti, shows where gasoline is least affordable by comparing the cost of a standard 15-gallon fill-up against median weekly household income across all 50 states. The data comes from SmartAsset and AAA , as of May 2026. The Highest Gas Burdens Aren’t in California West Virginia ranks as the state where gas prices hit the hardest, with a 15-gallon fill-up consuming 5.2% of median weekly household income. West Virginia’s fuel prices are not especially high by national standards. Instead, lower household incomes mean a routine fill-up consumes a larger share of weekly earnings. State Gas price Median weekly income Price of fill-up (% of median weekly income) Price of fill-up (% of weekly minimum wage) West Virginia $4.30 $1,233 5.2% 18.43% Ohio $4.89 $1,465 5.0% 16.65% Michigan $4.87 $1,468 5.0% 13.30% Indiana $4.83 $1,459 5.0% 24.97% Mississippi $3.88 $1,199 4.9% 20.08% Kentucky $4.22 $1,309 4.8% 21.82% Louisiana $3.90 $1,237 4.7% 20.16% Nevada $5.17 $1,646 4.7% 16.15% Arkansas $3.88 $1,260 4.6% 13.23% Oregon $5.25 $1,728 4.6% 13.09% New Mexico $4.16 $1,375 4.5% 13.01% California $6.10 $2,031 4.5% 13.54% Alabama $3.96 $1,352 4.4% 20.48% Illinois $4.93 $1,688 4.4% 12.33% Oklahoma $3.89 $1,342 4.3% 20.10% Pennsylvania $4.52 $1,573 4.3% 23.38% Arizona $4.74 $1,653 4.3% 11.73% Maine $4.40 $1,550 4.3% 10.93% Montana $4.32 $1,528 4.2% 14.94% Washington $5.67 $2,016 4.2% 12.40% Wyoming $4.30 $1,532 4.2% 22.23% Wisconsin $4.37 $1,572 4.2% 22.61% Hawaii $5.63 $2,043 4.1% 13.20% Florida $4.34 $1,577 4.1% 11.63% Missouri $3.97 $1,452 4.1% 9.93% Tennessee $3.99 $1,460 4.1% 20.66% South Carolina $4.00 $1,467 4.1% 20.70% North Carolina $4.08 $1,500 4.1% 21.09% Idaho $4.46 $1,646 4.1% 23.04% Vermont $4.42 $1...
Wednesday, May 20th, 2026 Market indexes advanced strongly off a slightly higher open this morning, with news that a deal to end the war in Iran may be within reach. A “letter of intent” to end the war following 30 days of negotiations has sent a surge of positive sentiment through the stock market. The Dow gained +645 points, +1.31%, the S&P 500 grew by +79 points, +1.08%, the Nasdaq +399, +1.54%...
Wednesday, May 20th, 2026 Market indexes advanced strongly off a slightly higher open this morning, with news that a deal to end the war in Iran may be within reach. A “letter of intent” to end the war following 30 days of negotiations has sent a surge of positive sentiment through the stock market. The Dow gained +645 points, +1.31%, the S&P 500 grew by +79 points, +1.08%, the Nasdaq +399, +1.54%, and the small-cap Russell 2000 +70 points, a gaudy +2.56%. Time will tell how this all transpires, and last we heard there are some real disagreements regarding uranium enrichment, the Strait of Hormuz, etc. that may well be sticking points somewhere within the 30 days. But this war, which dates back to late February, would be happily ended by both the U.S. and Iran at this stage. NVIDIA Reports Another Record Revenue Quarter The world’s largest company by market cap ($5.38 Trillion and counting), NVIDIA NVDA once again outperformed its lofty expectations for Q1 after today’s close. Earnings of $1.87 per share surpassed estimates by a solid dime, and up +140% year over year from $0.81 in the year-ago quarter. Revenues surged to a new record: $81.6 billion in the first three months of the year, +85% from Q1 last year. The AI infrastructure business, one might say, was booming last quarter. Data Center grew by +92% year over year to $75.2 billion, with Compute revenue +77% to $60.4 billion, +18% quarter over quarter. Data Center Networking rose +199% from a year ago to $14.8 billion, +35% quarter over quarter. The company also announced an $80 billion share repurchase program, and upped their dividend a penny to $0.25 per share. CEO Jensen Huang called this “the largest infrastructure expansion in human history,” and by dollar amount he’s probably right. Next-quarter revenues are expected to jump to $91.0 billion (the Zacks consensus had been for $84.1 billion), and this doesn’t include whatever data center compute revenues they may obtain from China in the quarter. To quot...
Google held its annual developer conference last week and unveiled Gemini 3.5 Pro, new AI search integrations, and a product lineup that BofA called evidence of "accelerating velocity of AI innovation." The stock barely moved. That is the strange position Google finds itself in heading into the ...
Google held its annual developer conference last week and unveiled Gemini 3.5 Pro, new AI search integrations, and a product lineup that BofA called evidence of "accelerating velocity of AI innovation." The stock barely moved. That is the strange position Google finds itself in heading into the ...
Kalshi Inc. raised an additional $200 million from two new investors, broadening a funding round that had already brought in $1 billion, according to a person familiar with the situation. Layer Global, led by Anton Levy, and Baillie Gifford are both joining Kalshi as investors for the first time, said the person, who asked not to be named discussing private negotiations. Kalshi declined to comment...
Kalshi Inc. raised an additional $200 million from two new investors, broadening a funding round that had already brought in $1 billion, according to a person familiar with the situation. Layer Global, led by Anton Levy, and Baillie Gifford are both joining Kalshi as investors for the first time, said the person, who asked not to be named discussing private negotiations. Kalshi declined to comment. Layer Global and Baillie Gifford did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Kalshi announced earlier this month that it raised $1 billion in a Series-F round led by Coatue Management at a valuation of $22 billion. Even with the additional money, the company’s valuation will remain the same, the person said. Other investors who participated in the recent round include Sequoia Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, IVP, Paradigm, Morgan Stanley and ARK Invest. Kalshi offers financial contracts tied to the outcome of a wide array of real-world events. It was founded in 2018 but exploded in popularity after a court allowed it to offer trading on the outcome of the 2024 election. Recently, the exchange has drawn most of its trading volume from wagers on sports. Monthly trading volume on Kalshi surpassed $14 billion in April, tripling what it was last October, according to user-compiled data on Dune Analytics. Kalshi’s annualized revenue — or annual run rate — is more than $1.5 billion. Kalshi’s biggest rival, Polymarket, has grown at a somewhat slower pace as it has struggled to get its US business up and running. Polymarket was recently valued at $15 billion when it received a fresh $600 million investment from ICE, Bloomberg recently reported.
Note: The following is an excerpt from this week’s Earnings Trends report. You can access the full report that contains detailed historical actual and estimates for the current and following periods, please click here>>> Here are the key points: The Q1 earnings season has come to an end for 9 of the 16 Zacks sectors, with results from 462 S&P 500, or 92.4% of the index’s membership, already out. M...
Note: The following is an excerpt from this week’s Earnings Trends report. You can access the full report that contains detailed historical actual and estimates for the current and following periods, please click here>>> Here are the key points: The Q1 earnings season has come to an end for 9 of the 16 Zacks sectors, with results from 462 S&P 500, or 92.4% of the index’s membership, already out. Most of the still-to-come reports are from the Retail, Tech, and Industrial Products sectors. Total Q1 earnings for the 462 S&P 500 companies that have already reported results are up +21.1% from the same period last year on +10.4% higher revenues, with 79.9% beating EPS estimates and 78.6% beating revenue estimates. This is a better showing from these companies relative to other recent periods. The aggregate earnings total for Q1 is on track to be a new all-time quarterly record at $689.8 billion, surpassing the record set in the preceding quarter at $655.4 billion. The Q1 earnings season showed continued strength and momentum, with companies not only comfortably beating consensus estimates but also providing a reassuring read on the economy despite elevated energy costs and other risks. The momentum is particularly notable on the revenues side, both in terms of the growth pace as well as the beats percentage. We are also seeing positive momentum on the revisions front, with estimates for the current and upcoming quarters rising. The Revisions Trend Remains Positive The overall earnings picture continues to be of all-around strength and a steadily improving outlook. This favorable earnings backdrop is evident in the revisions trend, as seen in how expectations for 2026 Q2 have evolved in recent weeks. Image Source: Zacks Investment Research We should note that Q2 estimates have modestly come down in recent days, even though the overall revisions trend remains positive. The sectors enjoying positive estimate revisions since the start of April include Energy, Tech, Basic Mate...
Antonio Bordunovi/iStock Editorial via Getty Images The Numbers Don't Lie Nvidia ( NVDA ) reported its Q1 2027 results today and the results were very good. Again, the results exceeded market expectations . Revenues were $81.62 billion, +85% yoy and +20% qoq. More importantly, revenues beat consensus by about $2.72 billion. Earnings per share on an adjusted basis were $1.87, beating the range of $...
Antonio Bordunovi/iStock Editorial via Getty Images The Numbers Don't Lie Nvidia ( NVDA ) reported its Q1 2027 results today and the results were very good. Again, the results exceeded market expectations . Revenues were $81.62 billion, +85% yoy and +20% qoq. More importantly, revenues beat consensus by about $2.72 billion. Earnings per share on an adjusted basis were $1.87, beating the range of $1.76 – $1.77 provided last week by the Street. For the 14th consecutive time, NVDA beat earnings estimates. In some cases, beating earnings estimates can stop becoming a surprise and start becoming a requirement. However, the magnitude of the numbers continues to be impressive. In many ways, NVDA gave investors what they wanted, however, the immediate response in the stock price continued to be hesitant. The stock dropped as low as -3% before recovering all of the loss in the aftermarket prior to the conference call. The fundamental picture remains excellent. In fact, it may have become so good that investors cannot get excited enough. Yahoo At this point, the market does not ask that NVDA simply meet or beat analysts' estimates. Rather, the market expects each quarter that NVDA will show that the AI cycle is larger than currently reflected in its valuation . The most interesting number in my view, is not Blackwell. Instead, I think the most interesting number is the growing breadth of demand. The Data Center segment of the company generated $75.2 billion in revenue, but more importantly, it is almost evenly split between Hyperscalers ($37.9 billion), and ACIE (AI Clouds, Industrial & Enterprise, $37.4 billion). This weakens the bearish theory that Nvidia is just a few large cloud providers aggressively and temporarily buying GPUs. Margins also remain key. The market was looking for cracks in memory costs, supply chain, Blackwell/Rubin complexity, and competitive pressure. They did not see any of those things. On a non-GAAP basis, gross margin remained at 75%. Furthermore, ...
The local dining scene is bound for change after applications opened this week for restaurants to welcome dog owners with their pets from July. The pet-friendly scheme , foreshadowed in the chief executive’s policy address last year, is limited to 1,000 or 5 per cent of the city’s restaurants – but the quota was largely filled by about 700 applications on the first day. How it turns out, especiall...
The local dining scene is bound for change after applications opened this week for restaurants to welcome dog owners with their pets from July. The pet-friendly scheme , foreshadowed in the chief executive’s policy address last year, is limited to 1,000 or 5 per cent of the city’s restaurants – but the quota was largely filled by about 700 applications on the first day. How it turns out, especially during busy times like weekends, will have a big impact on how widely the change will be ultimately adopted. That makes the initial licensing rules important. Food hygiene officials have laid down clear requirements . Dog and restaurant owners alike must comply with them if the pet-friendly concept is to be accepted in the wider community. For example, dogs must be kept on leads no longer than 1.5 metres (4.9 feet), remain under the control of an adult, and be kept at least 1.5 metres away from food preparation areas, including bar counters and salad bars. Dog-licensed restaurants will not be permitted to cook or heat food on dining tables or permit patrons to allow pets to touch utensils intended for customers. A food hygiene official said dogs must maintain the 1.5-metre buffer from all food preparation areas. Advertisement Restaurants might need to rethink their menu or layout. Director of Food and Environmental Hygiene Donald Ng Man-kit cited the example of the single-serve hotpot. “The restaurant will have to change its menu to ensure safety,” he said. “They need to think about arrangements like insurance, staff training, whether to separate the restaurants into pet-friendly zones, or service periods,” he said. The authorities are training 90 officers to assist and inspect applicant restaurants. A government spokesman said the scheme would be introduced “step by step”. Advertisement Attitudes towards pets are changing with the times. Despite Hong Kong’s small flats, crowded streets and many pet restrictions, the number of pets has soared to more than 400,000 cats and...