S&P 500, Nasdaq End Higher As Chipmakers Rally, While Dow Posts Best First Half In Five Years — LUNR, AMZN, PLTR, XYZ, AVAV In Focus

• The S&P 500 rose 0.8%, while the Nasdaq 100 jumped 1.7% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.3%.
• S&P 500 and Nasdaq posted their best quarterly performances since 2020, while the Dow recorded its strongest first half in five years. 
• Visa Inc., Stripe Inc., and Bank of New York Mellon Corp. are among dozens of financial firms joining forces to launch a stablecoin. 

U.S. stock indices ended higher on Tuesday, tracking gains in chipmaker stocks, while the Dow Jones ended its best first half in five years.

The S&P 500 rose 0.8%, the Nasdaq 100 gained 1.7% and the Dow Jones rose 0.3%. The Russell 2000, which tracks stocks with small market capitalizations, rose 0.7%. 

Among ETFs tracking benchmark indexes, the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) rose 0.6% and Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) ended Tuesday around 1.6% higher, while the SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF Trust (DIA) ended flat. 

Meanwhile, the VanEck Semiconductor ETF (SMH) jumped 3.7%. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index hit its best quarter on record. 

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

US Market Drivers

In a tech-led advance, the Nasdaq 100 climbed 1.7% while a gauge of semiconductor firms notched the best quarter ever. Moreover, easing Treasuries and oil prices in hopes for a permanent deal to end the Iran war also added support to stocks. 

Chipmakers were the highlight, with the VanEck Semiconductor ETF (SMH) climbing more than 3%, putting its year-to-date gain at 82%. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index as well as the iShares Semiconductor ETF, recorded their best quarter since inception as investors continue to focus on the AI capex buildout and AI trade. 

“The markets have proven to be the ultimate grinder as they keep crushing it despite a lot of hand-wringing that has gone along with this incredible rally that has endured deep selloffs, the Iran war and a number of other outside influences,” JJ Kinahan from Cboe Global Markets told Bloomberg.

Trending Stocks To Watch 

Intuitive Machines (LUNR) and FireFly Aerospace (FLY): National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) awarded the space companies lunar lander contracts for the Artemis moon base project.

Amazon (AMZN): Amazon Web Services (AWS) announced on Tuesday a $1 billion investment to establish a specialized engineering division to embed top-tier artificial intelligence experts directly within client organizations. 

Block (XYZ): Piper Sandler double-upgraded the payments company to ‘Overweight’ from ‘Underweight’ following a transfer of coverage and raised its price target to $100 from $58, implying around 28% upside from Monday’s close. 

Palantir (PLTR): Japan is considering adopting the firm’s AI defense systems for the command-and-control infrastructure of its Self-Defense Forces.  

AeroVironment (AVAV):  shares were on track for their best single-day gains in more than two years, following strong Q4 results. 

Visa Inc. (V) Stripe Inc. and Bank of New York Mellon Corp. (BNY) are among dozens of financial firms joining forces to launch a stablecoin. 

Read More: NKE Stock Falls After-Hours — 12% China Sales Decline Overshadows Q4 Earnings Beat

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