Market Review: May 06, 2026

Closing Recap

Wednesday, May 06, 2026

What a day it was!!! U.S. stocks got a trifecta of good news today, leading the S&P 500, Nasdaq, Russell 2000 and other sub sectors all to fresh record highs and on track for a 6^th straight week of advances as investor optimism remains sky-high. First, an apparent improved situation in the Middle East as the U.S. drafted a one-page, 14-point framework to launch a month of renewed talks with Iran, potentially starting next week in Islamabad. Key issues—uranium enrichment limits, sanctions relief, and control of the Strait of Hormuz—remain unresolved. The plan includes easing tensions during negotiations, but major sticking points could complicate any deal. Iran said it was reviewing the new US proposal. Second, better jobs data as the ADP private payroll report came in much stronger than expected this morning (ahead of the Friday nonfarm payroll report). Lastly, earnings, most notably tech earnings, that fueled this stock market euphoria the last 5 weeks as AMD was the latest chip giant to beat and raise with massive guidance, along with news/AI related deals for the likes of GLW in the optical sector and FLEX in the EMS sector, while memory names sky rocket day after day (MU), leading the S&P 500 gains this year after being leaders in 2025 on growing demand. Just how much momentum is in the memory/DRAM sector? @EricBalchunas noted on X that, $DRAM is the 9th most traded ETF today, it traded over $1b each of past two days, absolutely unheard of for a newborn theme ETF. For context, the largest theme ETF in world is $PAVE, and it’s all time biggest volume day in 9yrs of life is $300m.” This comes after shares of MU, SNDK, WDC, STX were among S&P leaders in 2025 and again in 2026 in non-stop buying momentum due to rising memory prices from demand in Ai world. The market rally was again broad based with only Energy (XLE) falling on oil prices and Utilities (XLU) falling on lower Treasury yields, with tech leading along with industrials (power needs), materials and healthcare. Semis (SOX) remain the big story in tech, up 8% this month already, 60% YTD after rising 40% in 2025.

• Supply chain pressures in April hit their highest level since July 2022, as the Middle East war heavily impacted firms’ ability to move goods around the world freely, data from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York released. The April Global Supply Chain Pressures index moved up sharply to 1.82 in April, from March’s 0.68.

• Gas prices in the U.S. have topped more than $4.50 a gallon, the highest they have been since July 2022, according to data from AAA. The national average for regular gasoline is now nearly $4.54, AAA said Wednesday-a sharp rise from $4.30 a week ago. It is roughly 50 cents away from the July 2022 high of $5.01 a gallon. Overall, the price for regular gasoline in the U.S. is up 50% since the Iran war began in late February.
• June gold settles +$125.80/oz, or +2.75%, at $4,694.30 while July settles +$3.72/oz, or +5.06%, at $77.30 an ounce. Gold prices hit their highest in more than a week on Wednesday following reports that the U.S. and Iran may be nearing a peace deal, cooling fears of higher inflation and an extended period of elevated interest rates.

• Apparel Retailers: ANF downgraded to Underweight at Barclays as believes risk-reward has turned asymmetric versus peer AEO. Barclays notes a promotional inflection at Hollister from “Flat” to “Deeper,” while Abercrombie remained Flat." AEO was upgraded to Equal Weight from Underweight based on: big jump in promo score driven by "near-perfect" Aerie quarter; expected positive sales-to-inventory inflection in 1Q26E; 2H26 leverage of brand investments; and underlying brand heat at Aerie / Offline. CRI a mover on earnings. VFC was upgraded to Buy at BTIG saying after ~5 years of downward earnings revisions, estimates now appear appropriate with potential to move up as Vans returns to growth after years of rightsizing, and TNF momentum continues.
• In Footwear: DECK was upgraded to Market Perform from Underperform at Bernstein noting Hoka growth has slowed from 24% in FY25 to mid-teens (FY26 guide) and Ugg from 13% in FY25 to MSD% FY26 guide, margins have compressed, and the multiple has shrunk from high teens to 14x..but now sees the business as more stable over the medium term, with both brands relatively mature in the US but growing internationally.

• Gig Sector: UBER shares surge as guidance offsets Q1; Q1 revs rose 14% y/y to $13.2B vs. est. $13.28B; and adj EPS $0.72 vs. est. $0.70 on bookings $53.72B vs. est. $52.84B; guides Q2 bookings $56.25B-$57.75B vs. est. $56B and adj Ebitda $2.7-$2.8B above consensus $2.64B; said for Q1, 20% y/r increase in trips and 25% y/y rise in gross bookings, driven by higher monthly active platform consumers and more trips per user. CART falls Q1 revs $1.02B vs est. $1.01B though EPS missed $0.57 vs. est. $0.60, sending shares lower.
• Media: DIS Q2 revs rose 5% to $25.17B topping the $24.87B consensus on adj EPS $1.57, above $1.45 Y/y and consensus of $1.49; now expects adjusted per-share earnings growth of about 12% for the fiscal year; Q2 Experiences division, which includes parks, cruise ships and consumer products, reported a 5% increase in operating Income for the just-ended quarter; Entertainment unit, operating Income rose by 6% to $1.34B as boost came partly from higher subscription and advertising revenue from streaming services including Disney+; sports division, home of ESPN, posted a 5% decrease in operating Income to $652M.
• Leisure sector: SEAT was upgraded to Neutral at Bank America saying while Vivid Seats continues to face competition from larger platforms & macro uncertainties, Q1 results suggest early signs of progress in SEAT’s app-based strategy, contributing to q/q improvement in the company’s relative positioning. LYV reported 1Q revenue +12% y/y, 6% above the consensus estimate, with all three segments growing by double-digits on strong concert demand, while reiterating DD AOI where Event/Ticketing deferred revenue is +22%/29% y/y.

• Nuclear/power sector: NNE shares rise after announced it has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with SMCI, focused on exploring the integration of NANO Nuclear’s advanced microreactor systems with Supermicro’s industry-leading AI server and data center platforms; LEU results as Q1 revs $76.7M vs. est. $79.5M (and above $73.1M y/y); raising full year 2026 revenue guidance to $450M-$500M from prior view $425M-$475M based on commercial progress; backlog across both segments is $3.9B; TLN also reported earnings. Terrestrial Energy and RIOT launch collaboration to develop nuclear-powered large-scale data center projects.
• Utilities (CEG, VST, NRG, TLN, AWK, FE, EXC, PPL, NI): PJM Interconnection, the largest U.S. power grid operator, said today it is considering market changes that could reshape how electricity is bought and sold across its system, which faces the risk of shortages from data centers outstripping energy supplies. PJM’s wholesale markets, spanning 13 Mid-Atlantic and Midwest states, help determine electricity prices for roughly one in five Americans and influence power plant investment and grid reliability in the nation’s largest data center hub. The grid operator is considering reforms after a record price rise in its capacity market that was driven primarily by new requests to connect data centers to the grid.

• Insurance Brokers AJG, BRO, MRSH and WTW were all upgrade to Buy from Neutral at Citigroup on valuation as it believes there is a systemic return opportunity in the sector. The firm said this is a consequence of three factors: (1) each stock now offers at least 15% potential upside to Citi’s 12-month targets; (2) the worst of cyclical growth pressures are likely to abate in the next 2-3 quarters; and (3) the stocks are now trading at multiples in-line with pre-COVID averages. Citi’s highest conviction idea is Aon, with Ryan offering the most asymmetric risk/reward.
• In Insurance: PRU Q1 adj EPS $3.61 vs. consensus $3.11; said Higher asset management fees and strong investment performance drove PGIM’s income growth, partly offset by higher expenses from growth initiatives; Q1 net income fell y/y to $597M; VOYA also reported earnings.
• FinTech: DAVE reported Q1 revenue of $158M (+47% y/y), above consensus of $151M, driven by continued momentum in Service-based Revenue of $148M up 51% y/y and better earnings while operating expenses were $99M (+36% y/y), and adjusted EBITDA was $69M (+57% y/y), above its estimate of $60M. UPST shares fell on Q1 net loss of $6.6M vs. $2.4M y/y while adj EBITDA declined y/y; Q1 total originations rose 61% y/y, driving higher revenue to $277.6M; reiterated full-year 2026 revenue and adjusted EBITDA outlook.
• Real Estate Services: COMP shares surged after the real-estate developer reported a surprise Q1 profit as revenue surged 99% from a year ago to $2.7B thanks to the company’s merger with its rival Anywhere; Revenue +7% y/y PF vs. 4Q +12% and guided to +11% PF, a 1pt slowdown on 2-year basis.

• EXEL maintained its FY26 guidance, while overall market share and script trends across the Cabometyx franchise remain directionally positive, with market share increasing from 44% to 47% y/y as well as a 14% increase in TRx within the same period.

• Healthcare Tech/Insurance: OSCR Q1 EPS $2.07 vs. consensus $1.10; Q1 revs $4.65B vs. consensus $4.92B as Revenue growth was driven by increased membership and rate hikes, partially offset by higher net risk adjustment transfer accrual; reaffirmed full-year 2026 guidance and expects margin expansion.
• Medical Research; TEM reported Q1 adj EPS loss (-$0.13) vs. est. loss (-$0.20); Q1 revs $348.1M vs. est. $345.44M; raises FY26 revenue view to $1.59B-$1.6B from $1.59B (consensus $1.59B) and reaffirms FY26 adj EBITDA view roughly $65M; guides FY adj Ebitda $65M vs. est. $70M; TECH shares tumbled after Q1 rev miss earlier ($311.4M vs. est. $317.1M); Sales at TECH’s largest protein Sciences unit fell 1% to $226.2M.
• Medical Equipment: TMDX shares fell on results as Q1 adj EPS $0.30 misses the consensus $0.61; Q1 revs rose 21% y/y to $173.9M in-line with consensus; Q1 Gross margin declined to 58%; reaffirms FY26 revenue view $727M-$757M vs. consensus $739.04M. COR Q2 revenue $78.4B misses estimates of $81.09B and EPS also miss though raises annual EPS to $17.65-$17.90 from $17.45-$17.75 expected previously.
• Animal Health: ELAN raises guidance sees 2026 revs to $5.01B-$5.09B from prior $4.95B-$5.02B and boosted year EPS view to $1.03-$1.09 from $1.00-$1.06 expected previously.

• In Aerospace & Defense: PLTR was upgraded to Buy from Hold at Argus with a $190 price target after its Q1 results noting the company’s revenue growth has accelerated and operating margin has vaulted and stocks now trades at an attractive entry point after selloff. JOBY shares jumped following quarterly results last night.
• Building Products: BLD was downgraded to neutral at both Davidson and Loop noting Q1 results were largely in line with forecasts and consensus, highlighted by a sequential rebound in GM, but more challenging Installation segment pricing (-3% Y/y) and elevated same branch decremental margins (also in process being bought by QXO)
• Transports: sector got a boost today from lower oil prices, though Major U.S. airlines spent just over $5 billion on jet fuel in March, up 56% and $1.8 billion over February costs, the U.S. Transportation Department said. The cost per gallon of fuel in March was $3.13, up 74 cents, and 31% over February. Fuel use rose 20% in March. Note transport index overall has fallen recently due to AMZN saying it would be supporting “third-party Logistics for businesses” and “providing supply chain services.”

• Gold and silver miners saw outperformance behind a bounce in silver and gold prices, as oil prices tumbles, reducing inflation fears, along with a decline in the dollar and Treasury yields; shares of HL advanced on results and the overall rally in miners with AG, AEM, B, PAAS, WPM all higher; CDE also rallies ahead of results tonight.

• AI headlines: Anthropic said Claude Code is getting higher limits. The company is doubling Claude Code’s 5-hour rate limits, removing peak-hour limit reductions, and raising API rate limits for Claude Opus models, giving heavier users more room before hitting caps. Also, SpaceX AI signs agreement with Anthropic to access Colossus 1. Anthropic plans to use extra computing power to directly enhance capacity for Claude Pro and Claude Max subs. GOOGL shares add to record gains early after reports Anthropic plans to spend about $200B on Google’s cloud and chips over five years, representing more than 40% of the "revenue backlog" Google disclosed last week.
• Networking & Communications: ANET shares declined as raised its revenue guidance to ~28% growth (from 25%), now to $11.5B, with upside continuing to be driven from Ai ($3.5B vs. 3.25B previously), but Keybanc noted supply chain constraints are likely to act as a limiting factor on near term growth and, to a lesser extent, margins.
• EMS Sector: FLEX shares surge after reported 4Q EPS of $0.93 vs. consensus of $0.87 and announced its intention to spin its DC biz into a separate public company and introduced its FY27 EPS guide 19% higher than consensus.
• Optical sector: LITE reported Q1 revenue ($808.4M) that came in slightly below the Street’s $810M forecast, but Cloud and Ai business drove total company revenue up >90%; components revenue was up to $533M, +20% Q/Q, driven by exceptional strength in EML and DCI components; systems also grew to $275M, +24% Q/Q, led by company record Cloud transceiver shipments, which grew over 40% Q/Q. GLW announced multiyear commercial and technology partnership with NVDA to dramatically expand U.S.-based manufacturing of the advanced optical connectivity solutions needed to power next-generation AI infrastructure (GLW receives $500M investment)
• Software space continues to lag the semiconductor sector by wide margin – pressure again today after Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei says software-as-a-service (SaaS) companies that don’t evolve with AI could face ruin. Amodei made his comments as part of a conversation with journalist Andrew Ross Sorkin and JPMorgan (JPM) CEO Jamie Dimon during Anthropic’s The Briefing: Financial Services event. KVYO shares fell Q1 rev lighter beat (2.9% vs 4.5% avg since the IPO), the statement that guidance would be "closer to the pin", commentary that KVYO will absorb telco Carrier fees rather than pass these on to customers and announced CFO will step down in August.

• AMD posted strong Q1 results and Q2 guidance, which easily exceeded expectations, mostly driven by Client and DC to a lesser extent, while Q2 upside is mostly being driven by server CPU, which grew +50% Y/y in Q1 and expected +70% Y/y in Q2. AMD now sees the server CPU TAM at $120B by 2030 vs $60B prior. Ai GPUs missed expectations and declined in Q1 q/ q due to the decline in China revs but expected to grow +DD% q/q in Q2; sees Q2 revenue $10.9B-$11.5B, vs. consensus $10.52B.
• ALAB reported a solid quarter driven by GenAI demand and new product ramps as Scorpio-P switch revenue surpassed 20% of sales with two additional customers scheduled to ramp later in the year and said Scorpio-X scale-up switch (at AWS) is on track for 2H26 volume ramp; Q1 revs rose 93% Y/y to $308.4M vs. est. $292.2M; Q1 adj gross margin 76.4% and adj net Income $110.1M vs. est. $97.5M.
• SMCI shares jump as guidance offsets weak quarter; Q3 sales $10.24B vs. est. $12.33B; Q3 adj EPS $0.84 vs. est. $0.62; guides Q4 EPS $0.65-$0.79 above consensus $0.55 and sales $11B-$12.5B vs. consensus $11.07B; said are exceptionally well-positioned to meet the massive demand for various AI and enterprise verticals.
• SWKS posted strong FQ2 results and FQ3 guidance, which were solidly above expectations as upside was driven by strong iPhone sell-through and Broad Markets to a lesser extent. Key takes include: 1) new Design wins on Android through 2030 est at $1B in revs; 2) expects QRVO acquisition to close 2H26 vs early ’27; and 3) reiterate expectations for flat iPhone 18 content and normal seasonality in 2H26 despite concerns of a staggered launch.
• WOLF shares slumped as Q3 revs $150.2M misses est. $195M; posted negative adjusted gross margin and significant net loss for the quarter; Q4 revs seen $140M-$160M; said expects operating expenses to be about flat with Q3 2026 and gross margins to remain negative Q4