Closing Recap
Tuesday, August 11, 2026
Index | Up/Down | % | Last |
DJ Industrials | -184.01 | 0.34% | 53,791 |
S&P 500 | -25.02 | 0.32% | 7,7728 |
Nasdaq | -159.91 | 0.60% | 26,445 |
Russell 2000 | 9.74 | 0.32% | 3,027 |
US equity futures managed small overnight gains with no major Iran headlines and no market-moving earnings out last night. Sellers quickly stepped in to push both the S&P and Nasdaq briefly into the red. By mid-morning, equities were effectively moving sideways with brief stints of gains and losses. Early breadth favored advancers by 5:3 as small caps outperformed with IWM (+0.34%) versus SPY (-0.04%) and QQQ (-0.09%). SPY breadth favored advancers by 6:5, while QQQ breadth remained neutral. Sector performance saw Energy (+1.06%), Industrials (+0.70%) and Utilities (+0.34%) outperforming while Health Care (-0.23%), Real Estate (-0.53%) and Consumer Staples (-0.69%) paced the underperformers with 7 sectors gaining versus 4 declining.
In sentiment today, the Fear & Greed Index registered 63/100 (Greed) versus 59 (Greed) last week, 46 (Neutral) last month and 57 (Greed) at this time last year. Earnings continue to provide a boost, with 87% of reporting companies thus far having beaten EPS estimates by an average of 14% and average earnings growth of 25% (median growth 14%). Some big names have yet to report, but that’s a solid showing thus far.
Heading into the final hour of trading today, the day looked to finish lower. That said, per @schaeffers, every six-day losing streak in the QQQ in their recent study has been followed by a positive three-month return with an average of +7.98%. Twelve six-day losing streaks followed by twelve three-month positive returns. The latest losing streak restarted the three-month window on July 29, so perhaps a down day here and there is just a blip in the new uptrend.
All eyes on inflation data tomorrow as the July consumer price index (CPI) is forecast to rise 0.1% in July from a 0.4% fall in June, while the year-over-year figure is expected at 3.4% from 3.5% the previous month, according to a Reuters poll. The core CPI forecast was for a 0.1% rise (vs. prior M/M) while the year-on-year number was seen at 2.5% (vs. prior 2.6%). Then Thursday we get the July headline U.S. producer price index is seen rising 0.2% in July after a 0.3% decline. Year-over-year, PPI is expected to rise 4.9% after advancing 5.5% in June.
Economic Data
- July Existing Home Sales fell (-1.7%) vs June -1.4% to a 4.06M unit rate (consensus 4.05M), vs June 4.13M; the median home price for existing homes $434,100, +2.0% from July 2025; U.S. July inventory of homes for sale 1.54M units, 4.6 months' worth.
- NFIB Small Business Optimism jumped 2.4 pts to 99.8 (highest since Aug 2025, above 52-yr avg of 98.0). Hiring plans surged +9 pts to net 20%.
Commodities, Currencies & Treasuries
- Gold futures extended yesterday’s move with an overnight gain. Safe-haven buying amidst Iran uncertainty and upcoming CPI data have driven prices back to 2-month highs. Last week’s disappointing employment data kicked off the recent rally, and some investors are looking to the CPI report for confirmation that the Fed may remain on hold. December gold settled +$21.40/oz, or +0.48%, at $4,441.10.
- WTI crude gained modestly overnight but was quick to reverse as headlines noted comments out of Pakistan indicating the US and Iran situation is moving toward peace. Both WTI and Brent turned the 1-2% overnight gains into modest declines before another round of headlines soured the mood with commentary indicating the Strait of Hormuz would not be reopened until Iran’s conditions are met. Uno reversal card played, oil back to gains on the day with the September WTI crude contract eventually settling +$1.07/bbl, or +1.30%, at $83.20.
Macro | Up/Down | Last |
WTI Crude | 1.07 | 83.20 |
Brent | 1.19 | 88.91 |
Gold | 21.40 | 4,441.10 |
EUR/USD | -0.0001 | 1.1541 |
JPY/USD | -0.03 | 159.27 |
10-Year Note | -0.013 | 4.684% |
Sector News Breakdown
Retail, Consumer Staples & Restaurants:
- Apparel Retail: Barclays with a few changes as they upgraded ANF to Equal Weight from Underweight (tgt to $114 from $78) citing reduced tariff pressure and its improving promotion channel checks full price selling improves/Hollister stabilizes; they downgraded GAP to EW from overweight (tgt to $20 from $26) as believes the stock's risk/reward at current levels is less attractive on a competitive landscape and continued pressure on lower household income and downgraded UAA to Underweight citing the company's delayed brand recovery in a competitive athletic sector while also fasces "macro-related consumer malaise."
- Footwear sector: ONON shares tumbled after earnings results disappointed as Q2 total revenues rising 21.6%-below projections of 24% and 23%-despite direct-to-consumer (DTC) sales performing well, up 34.3% while a surprising slowdown in wholesale growth, up only 12.7%, raised concerns about channel management and future sales. ONON has revised down its 2026 revenue outlook from at least +23% to low 20% growth in constant currency.
- Mattress retailers: PRPL Q2 results were below expectations given ongoing industry softness, while the company lowered its 2026 revenue guidance to $420M-$440M from $465M-$485M (est. $466.9M) given soft Q2 results and the outlook for 2H, though narrowed its adj. EBITDA guidance.
- Electronic Retail: BBY was upgraded to Buy from Hold at Truist and raise tgt to $95 from $81 based on positive Q2 Truist Card reads (raising Q2 Dom comp to +2.5%E vs Street/guide of +1%) and its view that the mkt will likely extrapolate Q2 trends/stacks to 2H expectations.
- Auto sector: ACVA posted mixed Q2 results as revenue $213.9Mm missed the est $214.89Mm while adj. EBITDA $21Mm vs. est. $18.9Mm and Q3 adj. EBITDA guidance $21Mm-$24Mm vs est $23.78Mm; shares fell as much as -15% overnight post results but rebounded this morning after Bloomberg reported the co is said to explore sale amid takeover interest.
Energy
- Oil & Gas sector: VG missed analysts' estimates for Q2 revenue (rose 48% y/y to $4.58B vs. est. $4.66B) and adjusted core profit, as lower LNG prices at its Calcasieu Pass facility and higher operating costs (expenses rose 15.9% to $2.39B and interest expense +58% to $489M) weighed.
- Power & Equipment: BW shares rise signed an agreement with Siemens Energy to begin work on 20 steam turbine generator sets, each providing 50 MW, totaling 1 GW of generating capacity. PLUG delivered better-than-expected Q2 results with gross margins reaching near break-even levels along with modestly improved revenue outlook for FY 2026 and reiterated positive Q4 adj. EBITDA target, but unrestricted cash fell to $162MM in Q2.
- Refiner sector: PSX, DINO and KMI have finalized a joint venture agreement and decided to proceed with the proposed $5 billion Western Gateway Pipeline system. Phillips 66 will own 49.9% of the joint venture, Kinder Morgan 35.1% and HF Sinclair 15%, they added.
Banks, Brokers, Asset Managers:
- Brokers & Exchanges: ETOR posted mixed results as Q2 EPS exceeded expectations ($0.68 vs. est. $0.63) while revs and income fell to $1.59B from $2.09B a year ago on the back of an ~30% decline in revenue from crypto assets. Revenue from crypto assets declined to $1.35B from $1.91B. Assets under administration grew 10% y/y to $19.2B, modestly below estimate of $19.92B.
- FinTech sector: OPFI shares slumped after lowering its total revenue forecast to $600M-$625M from prior view of $650M-$657M and adj net income forecast cut to $115M-$130M from prior $153M-$160M after posting Q2 adj EPS $0.33 missing the $0.45 estimate.
- Insurance sector: ALL was downgraded to Sell at Citigroup as valuation likely to trend lower with ROEs. In addition, headline risk related to homeowners' affordability (as opposed to Auto) could be increasing. ROOT downgraded to Hold from Buy and lower tgt to $58 from $78 saying does not think current environment growth performance invalidates the long term thesis, but it does make the near term setup less attractive.
Biotech & Pharma:
- ACIU receives FDA fast track designation for anti-alpha-synuclein active immunotherapy, Aci-7104, to treat early Parkinson’s disease; drug is currently in mid-stage testing, with trial results expected to be announced in the second half of 2026.
- BBIO reported Q2 total revenues and Attruby net product revenue both coming in ahead of consensus, while all three near-term NDAs are now filed, in active regulatory review, and the first PDUFA date for BBP-418 in LGMD2I/R9 set for November 27, 2026.
- BHVN reported narrower Q2 EPS loss on lower R&D and preclinical spending; said expects topline results from Phase 2/3 RISE3 epilepsy trial in 2H 2026 and plans to initiate pivotal Phase 3 study for BHV-1400 in IgAN in 2H 2026.
- CCCC Q2 revenue rose slightly, beating analyst expectations while Q2 net loss per share was $0.18, better than analyst estimates; said revenue growth driven by new Roche collaboration; expenses declined on lower personnel costs.
- Medical Distributors: CAH shares rise as Q4 adjusted EPS of $2.91 tops the $2.42 estimate on revenue of $63.7B, issuing FY adjusted EPS guidance of $12.40–$12.60 above the $12.00 consensus, while its board approved a $5.0B incremental share repurchase authorization
- Healthcare Services: HIMS reported Q2 revenue, subscribers, and EBITDA all exceeding Street expectations, though updated guidance was mixed pressuring shares early; beat in Q2, raised 2026 revenue guidance mostly on the Eucalyptus acquisition and lowered EBITDA guidance by 4%.
- Cannabis sector: Curaleaf (CURLF) announces intention to launch take-over bid for Aurora Cannabis (ACB) to solidify its position as the global Cannabis industry leader offering values Aurora at US$4.00 per share which includes 0.3463 Curaleaf shares plus US$0.75 cash.
- Medical Equipment: ALC beat and raise as Q2 adj EPS $0.84/$2.782B tops est. $0.75/$2.769B; raises FY26 EPS growth view to 12%-15% from 10%-13% while affirms FY26 revenue growth view of 5%-8%, saying the outlook assumes aggregated markets grow approximately 3% to 4%.
Industrials & Materials
- Metals & Mining: in aluminum (AA, CENX), prices jumped as Benchmark three-month aluminium on the LME was up 1.7% at $3,373 a metric Ton after hitting $3,384.5, its highest since June 22; Aluminium is up 6% so far in August, having broken above its 200-day moving average last week. Move in prices amid concerns over supply from the Gulf coinciding with Norsk Hydro's announcement of reduced feedstock production at its Brazilian plant.
Aerospace & Defense
- Space sector: ASTS Q2 results were largely inconsequential/generally in-line, save for an expanding contracted backlog of $1.3B and reinforcement of 2026/27 financial targets ($150-200M and approaching $1B in sales, respectively)/ continues to track towards an early 2027 Constellation commercialization. RKLB shares fell despite delivering a beat and raise, with Q2's results exceeding expectations on revenue, margins, and EBITDA; signed 26 new Electron/HASTE missions, increased total launch backlog to more than 90 missions, and grew overall backlog to approximately $2.4B, with an additional ~$800M of bookings added after quarter-end…but the company pushed the first Neutron rocket launch pad target to Q4 rather than a full launch.
- Defense: BA was upgraded to Buy from Hold at Argus with a $265 price target saying the company is poised for a meaningful ramp in production amid approval to step-up monthly manufacturing limits and the receipt of long-awaited flight certifications for two airplane models. Argus expects strong order backlogs, solid revenue growth, and margin improvement to continue. PSN awarded $40M Electronic warfare National Security contract with one base year and more option years.
- eVTOL sector: JOBY will acquire Resonant Sciences for approximately $500M, adding a Defense technology business with more than $100M in trailing-12-month revenue, ~40% YoY growth and high-teens Adj. EBITDA margins. Resonant will become Joby’s dedicated Defense business. ACHR reported Q2 adj EPS loss (-$177.1M) vs. est. loss (-$187.6M); Q2 net loss widens to (-$45.5M); Q2 revs $5M vs. est. $1.96Ml guides Q3 adj Ebitda (-$200M-$170M).
AI, Internet, Media & Telecom
- Data Centers: RIOT shares jumped after better Q2 results with revs +14% y/y to $174.2Mm above the consensus est. $152.1Mm, and Bitcoin mining revenue $113.7Mm; Data Center revenue $23.2Mm; Engineering revenue $37.3Mm. Also said executes 20-year, 191 mw data center lease with Frontier Ai lab for $9.10B revenue and says data center lease extensions could increase total contract value to $16.10B (Bloomberg reported it was Anthropic that struck the $9.1B deal). FRMI shares jumped after signs first binding 15-year TensorWave lease worth $6.5B for 222MW Ai Data Center, with expansion rights to more than 650MW.
- Computer Hardware: Everpure (P) shares rose announces Design win and supply agreement with second top five hyperscaler; said expects design win to contribute to revenue starting in FY2028. Citigroup upgraded Everpure to Buy from Neutral with a price target of $118, up from $90; IBM and Together AI sign $240M multi-year deal for NVIDIA-Powered AI Infrastructure. IBM will deploy a large cluster of NVIDIA HGX B300 systems on IBM Cloud under a $240 million multi-year agreement with Together AI, with availability targeted for Q1 2027.
- Online/Internet: SE shares jumped after Q2 revenue $7.79B, +48.1% y/y vs. est. $7.06B; Q2 gross profit $3.55B, +47.3% y/y, net income $458.1M, +10.6% y/y and adj. EBITDA $917.2M, +10.6% y/y; Q2 Shopee GMV rose 28.4% y/y to $38.3B, gross orders increased 27.5% to 4.2B.
Hardware & Software movers:
- EMS Sector: JBL was upgraded from Neutral to Buy at UBS with $430 PT tgt on a multiyear growth Cycle fueled by Ai investment from Amazon, Meta, and Google, rising Healthcare demand as capacity comes online, and scaling automation and Robotics markets. CLS resumed coverage with Outperform and $500 tgt at Scotiabank given its role as a co-design partner, rather than a traditional contract manufacturer, and its growing exposure to Ethernet-based AI fabrics.
- Security Software: RPD delivered Q2 results ahead of expectations, w/ARR decelerating 1pt Q/Q to -2% Y/Y as NNARR was negative $8.1M while Q3 ARR guidance calls for a $12M Q/Q decline, consistent w/ Q2 guidance reflect continued growth pressures. OKTA tgt raised to $170 from $125 at Oppenheimer saying based on their checks, believe Okta can deliver ~2pts of upside to 2QFY27 revenue guidance midpoint.
- Gaming Software: APP was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Bank America saying risks to AppLovin's articulated 30% y/y long-term revenue growth forecast have increased and innovations in support of 30% growth are also riskier.
- Quantum compute: QUBT Q2 EPS ($0.05) vs. est. ($0.04), miss; revenue $5.6Mm vs. est. $5.15Mm, up from $0.1Mm YoY; Photonics product sales drove revenue; operating loss $23.0Mm; operating expenses $21.8Mm.
Semiconductors:
- INTC 210.5M share Secondary priced at $95.00 as the deal size was upsized to $20B in common stock from $15B in common stock.
- NVDA is doubling down on its open-source efforts, pouring investment into an ambitious new in-house Ai model that it hopes will drive demand for its hardware—but that could also compete with customers and Partners. Nvidia is aiming for the new model, the biggest of a Family that it is calling Nemotron 4, to be on par in its performance with the best open-source Ai models in the world, according to several people who work on Nemotron – The Information reported.
- TSM and SONY said they will form a $4.69B joint venture to develop and make next-generation image sensors in southern Japan, with volume production expected to start in 2029. Sony will be the controlling shareholder and invest 465B yen ($2.92B), while TSMC will invest 282B yen.
- Semi Equipment sector: Bernstein raises AMAT PT to $675 from $525, LRCX to $385 from $265 and KLAC to $250 from $225 to align with Bernstein's new WFE updates and take target prices up for all three with increasing conviction that the current upcycle in Equipment spending has legs. Bernstein significantly lift its 2026 WFE to $148B (+26.3% YoY) from 141B (+21.4%), 2027 WFE to $204B (+32.6% YoY) from $175B (+18.2%), and 2028 WFE to 259B (+27% YoY) from $198B (+13%), based on outlook on a broad-based increase in investment.