S&P 500, Dow Snap Three-Day Losses, Nasdaq Ends Best Day In Three Weeks As Earnings Take Centerstage — GOOGL, AAPL, AMD, TSLA, DIS In Focus

• The S&P 500 ended 0.9% higher, while the Nasdaq 100 gained 1.9% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.7%.
• 3M shares jumped more than 7% after the industrial giant’s second-quarter earnings came in better than expected.
• Apple is set to launch Apple Upgrade, a leasing program for iPhones, iPads and Mac.

U.S. stock indices ended higher on Tuesday, as a surge in chipmaker stocks and a strong set of earnings reports boosted investor sentiment.

The S&P 500 ended 0.9% higher, while the Nasdaq 100 gained 1.9% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.7%. The Russell 2000, which tracks stocks with small market capitalizations, gained 1.5%.

Among ETFs tracking benchmark indexes, the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) rose 0.8% and Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) ended Monday 1.9% higher, while the SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF Trust (DIA) gained 0.6%. 

Meanwhile, the VanEck Semiconductor ETF (SMH) rallied 4.7%, aided by strength in Nvidia (NVDA), Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), Micron Technology (MU) and Broadcom (AVGO) shares. The broader Vanguard Information Technology ETF (VGT) gained about 2.4%, taking support from strength in Tesla (TSLA), SpaceX (SPCX) and Intel (INTC).

Retail sentiment on Stocktwits for SPY was ‘bearish’, while sentiment for QQQ and DIA were in ‘bullish’ zones with ‘normal’ to ‘high’ message volumes.

A user highlighted that staying bearish on semiconductor stocks could be a dangerous move. 

US Market Drivers

Kicking off the earnings season for the quarter ending June 2026, 3M (MMM) and General Motors (GM) beat analysts’ top- and bottom-line estimates. Of the roughly 66 S&P 500 names that have reported, nearly 88% have topped bottom-line estimates, per FactSet.

“The next two weeks will be a defining stretch for earnings, and not just for tech,” Bret Kenwell, U.S. investment analyst at eToro told CNBC in an interview. “The broader message is already clear: companies that fail to clear Wall Street’s elevated bar are being punished.”  

All eyes remain on earnings from semiconductor and mega-cap tech stocks, and investors look to assess the depth and breadth of AI demand and the profitability metrics behind bloated capital expenditures. 

Alphabet (GOOG, GOOGL), Tesla (TSLA) and IBM (IBM) are scheduled to report earnings after the bell on Wednesday.

“The long-term AI backdrop appears to be intact,” Adam Turnquist at LPL Financial told Bloomberg. “The recent correction appears more consistent with a healthy reset following a parabolic advance than a fundamental breakdown in the AI investment theme.” 

Trending Stocks To Watch 

Alphabet (GOOG, GOOGL): Alphabet introduced Gemini 3.6 Flash, Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite and Gemini 3.5 Flash Cyber, expanding its family of AI models with a focus on faster, cheaper and more efficient agentic AI applications. 

Apple (AAPL): Apple is preparing to launch a new leasing program called Apple Upgrade on July 28, backed by Klarna.

Advanced Micro Devices (AMD): GF Securities projects AMD's upcoming MI450X will narrow the hardware gap with Nvidia.

Tesla (TSLA): Cybercabs will rely on SpaceX’s (SPCX) Starlink integration for purposes besides safety, company AI chief Ashok Elluswamy said. 

Walt Disney (DIS): The company is reportedly laying off employees across its different brands, including ESPN and Pixar, as part of ongoing efforts to streamline operations across its entertainment divisions. 

Read More: OpenAI Expands Board With Fintech, Banking Leaders Ahead Of Potential IPO — Launches ChatGPT Program For Small Businesses

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