Mid-Morning Look: May 14, 2026

Mid-Morning Look

Thursday, May 14, 2026

Coming off new record highs for the S&P 500 and Nasdaq on Wednesday, despite another negative inflation report as PPI prices jumped notably in April, U.S. stocks continue their upward march led by another round of positive AI related headlines and optimism on China/U.S. Trump/Xi meeting taking place today and tomorrow in Beijing. The S&P 500 jumps another +0.5% approaching 7,500 for the first time and the Nasdaq up over +0.6% as overnight, Reuters reported citing sources that the U.S. has cleared about 10 Chinese firms to buy NVDA’s second-most powerful AI chip, the H200. Meanwhile, CSCO shares soared 15% after saying they would cut nearly 4,000 jobs as part of a restructuring and raised its annual revenue forecast after a surge in hyperscaler orders. Also helping the AI story, chip company Cerebras (CBRS) priced its 30M share IPO (up from 28M shares), at $185, well above the latest range of $150-$160 and up from the initial $115-$125 range showing the increased appetite for AI related stock plays. Treasuries advance, pushing US 10-year yields lower, the dollar is flat along with oil and metals. Nothing particularly meaningful out of the Trump-Xi summit thus far as expectations continue to revolve around an extension of the fragile trade truce, China purchases of aircraft, soybeans and energy. Some potential for a loosening of export restrictions on rare earths and advanced chips, though neither side expected to give any meaningful ground on their key points of leverage. While biggest positive from a market perspective would be China agreeing to help reopen Strait of Hormuz, that is seen as a longshot. The momentum in tech remains non-stop buying as @KobeissiLetter notes on X, “S&P 500 futures surge to a fresh record high, now on track for the 7th-straight weekly gain. The S&P 500 is nearing a gain of +$11 trillion in market cap in 7 weeks.”

• Import prices increased 1.9% last month (vs. est. +1%) after an upwardly revised 0.9% rise in March. In the 12 months through April, import prices vaulted 4.2%, the largest y/y rise since October 2022, and followed a 2.3% increase in March while export prices rose +8.8%. Prices of imported fuel jumped 16.3% last month, the largest advance since March 2022, after rising 10.0% in March. Prices of imported food increased 0.9%.
• March Business Inventories +0.9% (vs/ consensus +0.8%) vs Feb +0.4% (prev +0.4%); March inventory/sales ratio 1.32 months’ worth vs Feb 1.33 months; U.S. March business sales +2.1% vs Feb +1.8% (prev +1.7%); U.S. March retail inventories ex-autos revised to +0.4% (prev +0.5%).

• In Restaurants: JACK delivered better-than-anticipated bottom-line results—aided by lower G&A—even as comp store sales, restaurant-level, and franchise-level margins each missed expectations; FY26 guidance was lowered across a number of key metrics and announced a CEO transition alongside earnings results. CAKE was upgraded to Neutral at JP Morgan saying Q126/April comments highlight the importance of experience-oriented dining even if absolute price points can trend high. SBUX upgraded to Buy from Hold saying the company has numerous tangible drivers to drive positive sales revisions in a strong category backdrop. DIN board approves share repurchase plan up to $100M.
• In Transports: @FreightAlley noted on X, “Truckload spot rates on the daily chart have exploded to $3.50/mile. This is $.41/mile higher than a week ago and a new cycle high, moving close to all-time highs ($3.68/mile). While this relates to Roadcheck week, the message is clear: capacity is at its tightest levels in year.” Shares of JBHT, ODFL, KNX, WERN, SNDR are among truckload carriers that may benefit. Benchmark lowered its ests and tgt to $42 on HUBG following continued filing delays, to reflect the accounting errors first disclosed in early February.

• KLAR +12%; as Q1 revs $1B topped consensus of $943.8M and operating profit of $17M also above consensus and reported 119M active consumers, while guided Q2 revs $960M-$1B) which was below the $1.06B consensus.
• ONDS +14%; as Q1 revs $50.1M topped consensus $39.3M and said expects continued strong momentum in 2026 and is raising its revenue target for the full year to at least $390M (vs. est. $379M), which represents a 670% y/y; said growth is expected to be broad based across Ondas’ product portfolio and is supported by $457M in backlog.
• POET +27%; signed a supply and joint development deal with Lumilens for AI optics, including an initial $50M order for optical engines. The partnership could scale to $500M over five years, with samples expected in late 2026 and production ramp planned for 2027.
• SN +3%; to replace FLO in the S&P MidCap 400, and Flowers Foods will replace CSGS in the S&P SmallCap 600 effective prior to the opening of trading on Monday, May 18
• STAA +18%; shares jumped after Q1 results were consistent with Q1 pre-announcement and beat expectations on both the top and bottom-line. The China business was especially strong with revenue of $47.4M driven by underlying demand
• VIK +7%; reported Q1 revenue and yields that topped expectations while adjusted Ebitda for the period trailed and named a new CFO; Q1 revenue $1.05B, vs. consensus $1.01B; said operating capacity is 7% higher for the 2026 season compared to the 2025 season and 15% higher for the 2027 season compared to the 2026 season

• CSIQ -11%; reported Q1 EPS loss (-$0.71) vs. est. loss (-$1.03); Q1 revs $1.08B vs. consensus $1.02B and sees Q2 revenue $1B-$1.2B, below consensus $1.57B; Q2 gross margin is expected to be between 13% and 15%.
• DOCS -23%; shares tumbled after reported an in-line quarter and issued Q1 revenue guidance slightly below consensus and FY27 revenue guidance of ~4% y/y growth (at the midpoint), below current consensus of ~8% growth driven by soft market conditions with shorter-term planning Horizons resulting in limited visibility (shares were downgraded at BTIG, Wells Fargo, Keybanc and Jefferies).
• ENVX -15%; shares fell after Q1 results beat but forecast Q2 revenue in $8B-$9B, the midpoint is below the $8.69B consensus estimate and midpoint of Q2 adj EPS loss of ($0.13-$0.17) was in-line with ests) as growth in firm’s key smartphone segment remains delayed
• OKLO -4%; shares dipped after announced up to $1 bln ATM (at the market) stock offering saying it intends to use net offering proceeds from any sales for general corporate purposes, working capital and capex, and potential future investments, per the prospectus.
• PBH -15%; on weak results as Q4 adj EPS $1.23 vs. est. $1.39; Q4 revs $281.6M vs. est. $293.7M; Announces agreement to buy Lacorium Health for $150M in cash; guides FY revs $1.1B-$1.12B vs. est. $1.159B
• RGNX -33%; safety concerns hit shares; said top-line results showed it met its primary endpoint in a Phase 3 study of its RGX-202 gene therapy for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. The trial met its primary endpoint with high statistical significance, with 93% of participants reaching at least 10% microdystrophin expression. Two SAE’s were reported, a case of subacute myocarditis and a case of asymptomatic liver injury.

• BXDC (Blackstone Digital) 87.5M share IPO, priced at $20.00.
• EROK (EagleRock) 17.3M share IPO, priced at $18.50 (range was $17 – $20).
• MWC (Micware) 2.85M share IPO, priced at $8.00.
• NP 9.84M share (up from 8.36M shares) Secondary, priced at $27.50.
• BELKB 1.5M share Spot Secondary, priced at $266.00.
• KGS 10.56M share Spot Secondary, priced at $71.00.
• PDFS 4.6M share Spot Secondary, priced at $44.00.