Stocks Gain as Investors Monitor China Trade News, Earnings Results; Oil Futures Surge

Intel Stock Soars as Chipmaker Swings to a Profit

13 hr 32 min ago

Intel is back to being a profitable company.

Shares of the embattled chipmaker surged in extended trading Thursday, after the company swung to a profit that blew past analysts’ estimates.

Intel posted adjusted earnings of 23 cents per share for the third quarter, compared to a loss in the preceding and year-ago quarters, and well above the 2 cents per share analysts expected. Its revenue rose 3% year-over-year to $13.7 billion, also topping projections compiled by Visible Alpha.

CEO Lip-Bu Tan, who took over in March of this year, said the results showed Intel’s “steady progress” in its turnaround, with demand for AI helping create “attractive opportunities” across its portfolio.

“We took meaningful steps this quarter to strengthen our balance sheet, including accelerated funding from the U.S. Government and investments by NVIDIA and SoftBank Group that increase our operational flexibility and demonstrate the critical role we play in the ecosystem,” said CFO David Zinsner, adding he sees demand for Intel’s chips outpacing supply into 2026.

Looking ahead, Intel said it expects adjusted earnings of 8 cents per share in the fourth quarter on revenue of $12.8 billion to $13.8 billion, ahead of analysts’ expectations.

Shares of Intel jumped over 8% in after-hours trading following the release. They were up 90% for 2025 through Thursday’s close after a months-long rally on a flurry of high-profile deals.

-Kara Greenberg

The Biggest S&P 500 Movers on Thursday

13 hr 51 min ago

Advancers:

• Although Dow (DOW) fell short of analysts’ estimates with its third-quarter net sales, the chemical giant reported a narrower-than-expected loss for the period, and its shares climbed 13% Thursday. The company acknowledged pricing and demand challenges but pointed to cost-cutting measures and positive contributions from new assets on the U.S. Gulf Coast as reasons for optimism.
• Las Vegas Sands (LVS) shares soared 12.4% after the casino operator posted better-than-expected revenue and adjusted earnings per share for the third quarter. CEO Robert Goldstein highlighted benefits from recently completed investments in its Macau and Singapore properties. The company also increased its existing stock buyback authorization and boosted its annual dividend.
• Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services (WST) jumped 10.9% in the wake of a strong third-quarter earnings report. The provider of pharmaceutical packaging and delivery systems surpassed top- and bottom-line estimates for the period and boosted its full-year sales and profit outlook, citing strong demand for components used in injectable GLP-1 weight loss and diabetes treatments.
• Oil prices surged after the U.S. imposed sanctions on Russia’s two largest oil companies. Shares of exploration and production firm APA Corp. (APA) jumped 7.6%, leading oil and gas stocks higher.

Decliners:

• Molina Healthcare (MOH) shares plunged 17.5%, the most of any stock in the S&P 500, after the health insurer missed quarterly earnings per share forecasts. Molina’s medical cost ratio—a key metric that reflects the share of premiums that insurers pay out in medical claims—was higher than a year ago, leading the company to lower its annual profit forecast for the third time this year. Cost pressures were especially acute for plans offered through the Affordable Care Act marketplace.
• Shares of Super Micro Computer (SMCI) dropped 8.7% after the AI server specialist cut its sales forecast for its fiscal first quarter of 2026. The company cited a shift in delivery schedules that pushed back some revenue from major AI customers into the following quarter.
• Equipment rental company United Rentals (URI) posted mixed third-quarter results, topping revenue forecasts but missing profit estimates. Inflationary pressure, increased delivery costs, and soft pricing in the market for used equipment weighed on the company’s results. Shares slid 7.8%.

Why Wall Street Is Still Bullish on Gold Despite Recent Volatility

14 hr 14 min ago

The year-long rally in the price of gold paused this week as some investors cashed in and trimmed their exposure to the precious metal. Nevertheless, analysts say the structural demand that has underpinned gold’s surge remains in place.

Gold fell 6% Tuesday, suffering its biggest one-day drop in 12 years and its largest one-day dollar decline ever. It was the first steep decline after months of record highs for the precious metal.

Analysts, though, don’t see this as the end of the bull run that gold and other precious metals have enjoyed this year as more central banks store their reserves in gold and more investors turn to it as a hedge for economic uncertainty. Even after this week’s slide, gold remains up 57% this year, easily surpassing the 15% gain of the benchmark S&P 500 stock index.

J.P. Morgan, in a research note, said gold could dip to technical support territory of $3,944-$4,000 per troy ounce. It reached almost $4,400 Monday before dipping as low as $4,030 Wednesday and rebounding to around $4,160 Thursday afternoon.

Essentially, the firm characterized gold’s pullback this week as investors simply taking a breather after this year’s rally intensified in the past several weeks.

“After a period of heavy inflows and extended momentum, a reversal and digestion is healthy for gold and doesn’t change our multi-year structural bullish view on gold going forward,” J.P. Morgan said, noting it expects central banks and consumers to be “reliable” buyers on price dips. 

In another research note, Goldman Sachs said that the easing of a recent short squeeze in silver supplies in London has led to silver’s decline in the past week and likely spilled over into the gold market. That squeeze had pushed the price of silver early last week to its highest level since 1980. (Silver was up about 1% on Thursday but has declined about 9% over the past week.)

Regardless, Goldman said it maintains its $4,900 end-of-year price target for gold, adding that it sees upside risk for that target because it expects “sticky, structural buying will continue further.”

Such buying would continue benefitting gold miners, whose share prices have soared this year. The Van Eck Gold Miners ETF (GDX) has surged nearly 120% year-to-date. Shares of the world’s largest gold miner, Newmont (NEM), which is due to release quarterly results after Thursday’s market close, have risen 140% this year, making the stock one of the top performers in the S&P 500.

-Lyle Niedens

Oil Futures Soar After Trump Announces New Russia Sanctions

15 hr 32 min ago

Oil futures surged on Thursday after the Trump administration announced new sanctions against Russia’s biggest oil companies. 

Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, soared more than 5% Thursday to trade at about $66/barrel. 

The new sanctions seek to bar foreign countries and companies from doing business with the sanctioned oil producers, Lukoil and Rosneft. The threat of being sanctioned by the U.S. could discourage foreign refiners from accepting Russian crude and prevent foreign financial institutions with U.S. exposure from processing transactions related to the two producers. 

The U.S. imposed similar sanctions shortly after Russia invaded Ukraine in early 2022, but Russian producers have found willing buyers in allies like China and India. The success of President Trump’s sanctions could hinge on the willingness of those countries to abide by the sanctions, and the Trump administration’s diligence enforcing them. 

A slowdown of economic growth has weighed on oil prices this year. Even with Thursday’s advance, oil futures have lost more than 10% of their value since the start of 2025.

-Colin Laidley

IBM Beat Sales and Earnings Estimates. Here’s Why Its Stock Is Falling Anyway

16 hr 46 min ago

The devil is in the details, as they say.

Shares of IBM (IBM) slid Thursday after the tech company’s third-quarter results exceeded expectations on the top and bottom lines, but contained a few tidbits that left Wall Street disappointed. 

IBM reported adjusted earnings of $2.65 per share, up 15% from the year-ago quarter and above the consensus estimate of $2.44. Third-quarter revenue increased 9% to $16.3 billion, also beating expectations. IBM also raised its full-year revenue and free cash flow forecasts.

Nonetheless, IBM shares were down 1.5% in recent trading, after falling as much as 8% earlier in the session, as investors focused on softness in the company’s software business.

Sales growth at IBM’s Hybrid Cloud unit, a division of its software segment, decelerated to 12% in constant currency from 14% in the second quarter. Transaction processing revenue declined for the second consecutive quarter, falling 3%.

Read the full article here.

–Colin Laidley

Intel Stock Faces a Crucial Earnings Test Today. Here’s What You Need To Know

17 hr 29 min ago

Intel could face heightened expectations from investors when it reports third-quarter earnings after the bell, following a torrid rally in recent months on a flurry of high-profile deals.

Though the stock was little changed in early trading Thursday, it’s up over 80% for 2025, with most of the gains coming since August when the federal government took a 10% stake in the struggling chipmaker. A partnership with rival Nvidia (NVDA) followed last month, adding to optimism around the stock and fueling speculation more deals could be on the way.

However, the stock’s rapid rise has also stoked some worries it may have climbed too far, too fast, with pressure now on Intel (INTC) to defend its support with evidence it’s making progress toward a turnaround. That could set the stage for heightened volatility in the stock, with recent options pricing suggesting traders expect it could swing up to 10% in either direction after the results.

Wall Street analysts surveyed by Visible Alpha expect the chipmaker to swing to a slight profit of 2 cents per share, from a loss in the preceding and year-ago quarters. Its revenue is projected to come in at $13.17 billion, which would represent a less than 1% decline from a year earlier.

However, most analysts aren’t convinced Intel’s stock is a “buy” yet, with those surveyed by Visible Alpha largely maintaining neutral ratings while waiting to see more customer commitments to Intel’s manufacturing business. Reports last week suggested Intel may have secured a major new AI customer; Microsoft (MSFT) was floated as a likely name. Announcing a new client along with the earnings could help win over analysts.

–Kara Greenberg

Super Micro Computer Stock Drops on Q1 Revenue Update

17 hr 40 min ago

Less than two weeks before Super Micro Computer (SMCI), or Supermicro, is due to report fiscal 2026 first-quarter results, it gave a revenue update. Investors didn’t like it.

Supermicro shares sank about 7% in recent trading after the company announced that it now expects Q1 revenue of $5 billion, down from its earlier guidance range of $6 billion to $7 billion.

The company, which is set to report quarterly results Nov. 4, attributed the new projection to “design win upgrades” that “pushed some expected Q1’26 revenue to Q2’26.”

Despite the lower Q1 estimates, Supermicro—which touts itself as a “Total IT Solution Provider for AI, Cloud, Storage, and 5G/Edge”—backed its prior outlook for fiscal 2026 revenue of at least $33 billion.

Even with today’s setback, Supermicro stock has risen roughly 60% this year.

The Latest Trump Trade Is Here—And It’s Lifting Quantum Computing Stocks

18 hr 6 min ago

A new White House trade is here.

President Donald Trump’s hands-on approach to publicly-traded companies—sometimes called “state capitalism” or “national capitalism” now reportedly includes quantum computing firms.

The Wall Street Journal reported that the Trump administration is involved in discussions with a handful of companies, promising them federal funding in exchange for equity stakes given to the Commerce Department. The report sent shares of IonQ (IONQ), Rigetti Computing (RGTI), D-Wave Quantum (QBTS), and Quantum Computing (QUBT) sky-high Thursday. Their stocks were up between 5% and 14%. The Defiance Quantum ETF (QTUM), which holds 80-odd stocks, advanced 2%.

In the meantime, investors awaited further details. The White House, Commerce Department and D-Wave did not respond to Investopedia’s queries in time for publication; IonQ and Quantum Computing said they do not comment on rumor or speculation; a spokesperson from Rigetti said that the company was “continuously engaging with the U.S. government on funding opportunities.”

Quantum computing, which promises to enable speedier and more complex problem-solving relative to classical computers, is among the latest industries to be anointed as vital for the future. That has contributed to extreme price action in quantum computing computing stocks—even before the Journal’s report.

The Trump government has made investments in publicly traded companies one of its hallmarks, with quantum technology representing a new direction. The administration has taken stakes in chipmakers, rare earths and mineral stocks, as well as manufacturing giant Nippon Steel.

Read the full article here.

–Crystal Kim

Tesla’s Stock Is Sliding After Earnings. Next Up: A Big Vote on Elon Musk’s Pay

18 hr 42 min ago

Tesla’s monthslong upward run has slowed. That has investors contemplating what’s next for the stock with a vote on a huge new pay package for its chief just around the corner.

Shares of the EV maker and would-be AI giant were recently down 3%, retreating after the company last night turned in third-quarter financial results that included some upbeat news—a return to year-over-year quarterly sales growth, for example—but also earnings per share that came in lower than Wall Street analysts expected. Tesla (TSLA) CEO Elon Musk used the conference call to restate his longer-term vision, but in the immediate term investors are showing signs of wariness.

Today’s slide cuts into the year-to-date gains the stock had managed after climbing off spring lows. Meanwhile, how to think about Tesla—as a carmaker with global ambitions, a trade on Musk’s aspirations, or something in between—is a familiar topic for investors. In the wake of the Q3 results, the takes of bullish and bearish analysts detail the latest subjects in the debate.

At Wedbush, analyst Dan Ives—one of the Street’s big Tesla bulls, with a $600 price target that is nearly 60% above the Visible Alpha average near $378 and roughly 40% higher than Wednesday’s close—says the focus was as much on autonomy, robotaxis, and Optimus robots as car sales. (Musk last night said Tesla’s AI strategy is at an “inflection point.”)

“We continue to believe Tesla could reach a $2 trillion market cap in early 2026 in a bull case scenario and $3 trillion by the end of 2026 as the golden AI chapter takes hold at Tesla,” Wedbush wrote. (Tesla’s current market cap is around $1.4 trillion.)

Read the full article here.

–David Marino-Nachison

Molina Healthcare Shares Tumble on Huge Profit Miss, Outlook Cut

19 hr 23 min ago

Molina Healthcare (MOH) was easily the worst-performing stock in the S&P 500 Thursday, a day after it badly missed analysts’ third-quarter profit projections.

Shares tumbled 20% after the Long Beach, Calif.-based firm reported adjusted earnings of $1.84 per share when analysts surveyed by Visible Alpha had expected $3.79.

In addition, Molina Healthcare slashed its full-year adjusted EPS projection to $14.00 from $19.00, due to what it said was “higher medical cost trend in all segments and, disproportionately, by the unprecedented medical cost trend in Marketplace, which is expected to continue through the end of the year.”

The news also dragged other health insurance stocks, with rival Centene (CNC) down about 6.5%. Shares of both companies are down about 45% this year.

Casino Stocks Rise as Las Vegas Sands Reports Strong Q3 Results

20 hr 3 min ago

Shares of casino operators rose in early trading Tuesday, a day after Las Vegas Sands (LVS) posted better-than-expected third-quarter results.

The company, which does not operate any casinos in its home base of Las Vegas, reported adjusted earnings of $0.78 per share on revenue that rose 24% year-over-year to $3.33 billion. Analysts surveyed by Visible Alpha had expected $0.63 and $3.04 billion, respectively.

Las Vegas Sands shares soared 12% to lead early S&P 500 gainers, while those of rivals Wynn Resorts (WYNN) and MGM Resorts International (MGM) advanced a respective 5% and 2%.

For the year, Wynn Resorts shares easily lead the trio, having added nearly half their value.

Watch These Tesla Price Levels as Stock Skids After Earnings Miss

20 hr 34 min ago

Tesla (TSLA) shares fell Thursday morning after the company’s quarterly profit came in short of analysts’ estimates, even as it returned to revenue growth following two quarters of declines.

The company reported adjusted earnings of 50 cents per share in the period, missing the average Wall Street estimate of 54 cents a share. Lower EV prices and higher operating costs tied to restructuring and AI investments dented the bottom line. CEO Elon Musk told analysts that Tesla is at a “critical inflection point” as it focuses on its next phase of growth, which will center on “real-world” applications of AI, including self-driving cars and smart robots.

Tesla shares were down 5% at around $418 in the opening minutes of Thursday’s session. The stock, which was the top performer among Magnificent Seven stocks in the third quarter, was up 9% for the year through Wednesday’s close.

After hitting their 2025 high earlier this month, Tesla shares have consolidated within a pennant, a chart pattern signaling a continuation of the stock’s recent uptrend.

However, the price looks set to break down below the pattern in Thursday’s trading session following the weaker-than-expected earnings, suggesting waning bullish momentum and the potential for a near-term pullback.

It’s also worth noting that volume has declined during the pennant pattern, indicating a lack of conviction among buyers and sellers ahead of the company’s quarterly results.

Read the full technical analysis piece here.

–Timothy Smith

American Airlines Stock Rises on Better-Than-Expected Q3 Results, Rosy Q4 Profit Forecast

21 hr 21 min ago

American Airlines Group (AAL) shares were up about 4% less than an hour before the opening bell after the carrier reported stronger-than-expected third-quarter results and issued a rosy current-quarter profit projection.

The Fort Worth, Texas-based airline posted an adjusted quarterly loss of $0.17 per share, narrowed from $0.30 per share a year ago, on revenue that increased 0.3% to $13.69 billion. Analysts surveyed by Visible Alpha had expected an adjusted loss of 27 cents per share on revenue of $13.62 billion.

For the fourth quarter, American sees adjusted EPS from $0.45 to $0.75. Visible Alpha consensus is for an adjusted profit of $0.32 per share.

American also named Nathaniel Pieper its new Chief Commercial Officer, effective Nov. 3. Pieper, who currently is CEO of the oneworld alliance American is a member of, replaces Vasu Raja, who left the carrier back in June 2024.

“By the end of this year, the company expects it will have fully restored its share of indirect revenue that was impacted by its former sales strategy,” the carrier said. “American is now shifting focus to expanding its share of indirect revenue beyond historical levels, which, combined with improved distribution capabilities, is expected to produce meaningful value for the airline.”

American Airlines shares entered the day down about 30% this year.

IBM Stock Sinks Before the Bell After Disappointing Software Revenue

22 hr 22 min ago

IBM (IBM) stock appears to be headed for a sharply lower open.

Shares of the Armonk, N.Y.-based tech firm were down about 7% before the bell after it reported third-quarter software revenue that came in below analysts’ estimates.

IBM reported software revenue of $7.21 billion, while analysts surveyed by Visible Alpha had expected $7.24 billion.

The company’s overall revenue of $16.33 billion and adjusted profit of $2.65 per share topped analysts’ projections, and it lifted its full-year guidance for revenue growth and free cash flow.

“Clients globally continue to leverage our technology and domain expertise to drive productivity in their operations and deliver real business value with AI,” CEO Arvind Krishna said. Our AI book of business now stands at more than $9.5 billion.”

IBM shares entered Thursday up 30% this year.

Stock Futures Mixed, Little Changed

23 hr 2 min ago

Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average were down 0.1%.

S&P 500 futures were up fractionally.

Nasdaq 100 futures also were up less than 0.1%.