Wall Street ends higher on revived AI momentum

On Tuesday, Wall Street witnessed a tech-driven rally, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq leading the gains. This AI-fueled rally came as the third-quarter reporting season intensified, as nearly half of the S&P 500 companies reported stronger-than-expected results. Out of the companies that reported, 83% exceeded analysts' expectations.

Anthropic's impending initial public offering contributed to the AI surge, particularly benefiting chip stocks, which had been struggling this month due to concerns over debt-funded spending. Meta increased its largest-ever equity fundraising to $97.5 billion, causing a 1.6% dip in its shares. However, Meta's news seemed to provide a relief rally for the AI stocks, particularly the semis.

Economic data revealed a rise in new orders for computers and peripheral equipment, further supporting strong AI-related spending. Boeing and Xylem experienced declines, with the former falling 10.7% following a larger-than-expected loss, and the latter sliding 14.2% after reducing full-year forecasts. UPS advanced 5.8% after raising its annual revenue and profit forecasts, while Sherwin-Williams saw a 2.7% drop after missing quarterly profit expectations.

Royal Caribbean gained 5.5% after raising its full-year profit forecast. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, S&P 500, and Nasdaq Composite all ended the day higher, with the Dow gaining 0.03%, S&P 500 up 0.60%, and Nasdaq climbing 1.18%. Technology led the gains, while energy shares suffered the steepest percentage decline due to falling crude prices and Middle East peace negotiations.

There was a 1.83-to-1 ratio of advancing issues to decliners on the NYSE and a 1.86-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq. The S&P 500 posted 11 new 52-week highs and six new lows, while the Nasdaq Composite had 62 new highs and 239 new lows. Trading volume on US exchanges reached 16.10 billion shares, compared to the 17.18 billion average for the session over the past 20 trading days.