US stocks rise, S&P 500 misses out on fresh records by a whisker

Both monetary and trade policy appear to be evolving in a favorable direction for stocks: traders are pricing in over 65 basis points of easing by the Federal Reserve through year-end (versus about 50 basis points for most of the past month or so), and the White House said its July 9 deadline before reciprocal tariffs would be ramped up wasn't really a hard deadline.

Your Evening Briefing June 26, 2025 US stocks rise, S&P 500 misses out on fresh records by a whisker The S&P 500 came tantalizingly close to both an intraday and closing record but ultimately got neither, closing up 0.8%. The Nasdaq 100 gained about 1% while the Russell 2000 bounced back with a strong 1.7% advance. Both monetary and trade policy appear to be evolving in a favorable direction for stocks: traders are pricing in over 65 basis points of easing by the Federal Reserve through year-end (versus about 50 basis points for most of the past month or so), and the White House said its July 9 deadline before reciprocal tariffs would be ramped up wasn't really a hard deadline. Most S&P 500 sector ETFs rose, with consumer staples and real estate the exceptions. Energy, communication services, industrials, and materials all gained 1%. Enphase Energy led gains on the day, up nearly 13% on reports that Congress may not slash federal tax incentives for residential rooftop solar installations. Data center company Equinix was the worst performer, down about 10%. Meanwhile... Core Scientific surged 33% in afternoon trading after The Wall Street Journal reported that CoreWeave is in talks to acquire the company. McCormick jumped more than 5% after the spice giant posted a surprise Q2 earnings beat and reaffirmed its full-year outlook. Avis shares climbed 2% as hedge fund Pentwater Capital disclosed it had more than tripled its stake in the rental car company. Cyngn, a tiny industrial robotics firm, surged more than 170% after highlighting its relationship with Nvidia. Shares of autonomous vehicle company Pony.ai jumped 12% after The New York Times reported that Uber is in talks with former CEO Travis Kalanick to help fund a potential acquisition. Kratos Defense dropped more than 2% after announcing plans to sell ~13 million new shares at $38.50 each in a stock offering worth just over $480 million. — Luke Kawa, Markets Editor & Nia Warfield, Markets Writer Super Micro is ramping on waves of bullish option demand There's a big desire to buy the dip from Monday's convertible note offering. Read more. Deregulatory push has made financial stocks like JPMorgan into lowkey market winners Jamie Dimon appreciates this runup. Read more. TODAY'S BIG MOVE Composite-structure development for Rocket Lab's Neutron vehicle (Rocket Lab) Rocket Lab roars to a record on deal with European Space Agency Pure-play commercial space company Rocket Lab surged to a record high Thursday, after saying it secured a first-ever launch contract with the European Space Agency. Shares of the company — which has positioned itself as a reliable alternative to Tesla CEO Elon Musk's SpaceX — have soared more than 11% today. Read more. UBS hikes Meta price target from $683 to $812 UBS analysts raised their Meta price target about 19% to $812, saying the company will benefit from both consumer and advertiser demand for AI.  JPM lowers Apple price target due to reflect tariff purchases and unexciting iPhone 17 Analysts led by Samik Chatterjee lowered their price target for the iPhone maker from $245 to $230. Novo pairs up with Weight Watchers after dumping Hims The deal could also be a lifeline for Weight Watchers, which just filed for bankruptcy last month. Nike slips following Q4 sales beat Nike dipped in after-hours trading Thursday despite the sneaker giant topping Q4 sales estimates. How to track the flurry of copyright battles as AI creates a legal quagmire A flurry of action in the courts has led to some significant decisions with huge implications for AI companies. The rapidly evolving AI field finds the rights of copyright holders in uncharted territory as the courts examine the issue. MARA Holdings CFO on the race to mine and stockpile bitcoin CFO Salman Khan of MARA Holdings also answered our questions on the threats of quantum computing to crypto. Metaplanet passes Tesla in bitcoin holdings as Pompliano's ProCap overtakes GameStop Metaplanet is now the seventh-largest corporate bitcoin holder. Rivian is reportedly laying off some of its manufacturing team The cuts have reportedly been underway at Rivian since Wednesday. Glastonbury, one of the world's biggest festivals, is back this week The British event has seen revenue and profit boom in recent years. Was this email forwarded to you? Don't miss out on future stories — subscribe to The Wrap and get your daily dose of financial news straight to your inbox.  Craving more insights in your inbox? Subscribe to Chartr and Snacks for quality reads. We care what you think! If you have any feedback or comments, feel free to reply and let us know your thoughts!  Sherwood Media, LLC produces fresh and unique perspectives on topical financial news and is a fully owned subsidiary of Robinhood Markets, Inc., and any views expressed here do not necessarily reflect the views of any other Robinhood affiliate... See more Sherwood Terms and Conditions Our Editorial Standards Contact Us Advertise With Us Unsubscribe Privacy Policy