Dow Nabs New Record as Tech, Nasdaq Cool Off

There's finally some movement from stocks today, after several sessions of rangebound price action. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) is up almost 80 points and nabbed a record high earlier, buoyed by a positive post-earnings reaction from Home Depot (HD). The S&P 500 Index (SPX) is more muted, while the Nasdaq Composite (IXIC) was last seen down triple digits, as semiconductor stock -- namely Nvidia (NVDA) and Advanced Micro Devices (AMD)  -- profit-taking grips the broader tech sector.

Continue reading for more on today's market, including:

• Another Dow stock making big moves today.
• Substack: 3 charts you should know about.
• Plus, options traders blitz biotech; Intel's latest lifeline; and PLTR's pullback.

Viking Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:VKTX) is on fire in the options pits today. At last check, over 114,000 contracts have changed hands, volume that's 9 times the average intraday amount. Most action surrounds the January 2026 60-strike call, a LEAPS contract. Viking stock is down 43.9% to trade at $23.60, after the biotech's mid-stage trial for an experimental obesity drug showed upbeat results, but higher-than-expected patient exits due to side effects. This is poised to be VKTX's biggest one-day drop on record, and puts the shares into the red for the year. 

Intel Corp (NASDAQ:INTC) stock is trying to keep tech stocks afloat today, last seen up 8% to trade at $25.55. Japanese investment conglomerate SoftBank will invest $2 billion in the buzzing chipmaker, a roughly 2% stake in the company. INTC is trading at its highest level since March, and is now up 28% in August alone, a monthly pop that has the shares reclaiming their year-to-date breakeven level.   

Palantir Technologies Inc (NASDAQ:PLTR) is a major part of the tech sector slide today, down 6.8% to trade at $162.05. The controversial data-mining software stock is heading for a fifth-straight loss, a sharp pullback from its Aug. 12 record high of $190. PLTR remains up 113% year to date, and support could be stepping up from a channel of higher highs carved out from an April bottom.