Though the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI), S&P 500 Index (SPX), and Nasdaq Composite Index (IXIC) all posted strong monthly gains on Thursday, they're all headed for firm weekly losses. The Dow is on track for its fifth consecutive daily drop, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq move further from their earlier-week record highs.
This week brought a stampede of corporate earnings reports and economic data, including gross domestic product (GDP), personal consumption expenditures (PCE) data, and several rounds of jobs data. On Wednesday, the Federal Reserve announced the decision to keep interest rates unchanged, with dovish commentary from Fed Chair Jerome Powell. Investors also unpacked tariff updates throughout the week, including several new trade deals.
Big-Time Earnings Reports
Four of the "Magnificent Seven" reported earnings this week. With help from artificial intelligence (AI) spending, Meta Platforms (META) and Microsoft (MSFT) both soared to record highs after their results, the latter becoming the second company to hit the $4 trillion market cap. Amazon (AMZN), on the other hand, fell sharply despite a second-quarter earnings and revenue beat, while Apple (AAPL) stock is volatile after the tech giant reported its biggest revenue growth since 2021. Meanwhile, Dow stocks UnitedHealth (UNH) and Boeing (BA) both made interesting moves after their reports, while Procter & Gamble (PG) entered the earnings confessional this week as well.
More Earnings
Reddit (RDDT) and Schaeffer's top 2025 pick, LendingClub (LC), both soared after their strong second-quarter results, while Robinhood (HOOD) enjoyed a post-earnings pop as well. Elsewhere, Ozempic maker Novo Nordisk (NVO) marked its worst in nearly 40 years after a lowered sales outlook, and fintech stocks SoFi Technologies (SOFI) and PayPal (PYPL) moved in opposite directions after their reports.
Coming Up
The first full week of August will be fairly quiet in terms of economic data, but there will still be plenty of earnings to unpack, including reports from Caterpillar (CAT), Eli Lilly (LLY), and McDonald's (MCD). Though August and September are historically bearish months, they might not be as bad as they've been in the past, per data compiled by Schaeffer's Senior Quantitative Analyst Rocky White. In the meantime, Schaeffer's Senior V.P. of Research, Todd Salamone, dives into the S&P 500's recent sentiment and technical backdrop.
