Wall Street concluded Tuesday's regular session at fresh all-time highs, propelled by a surge in artificial intelligence hardware stocks, yet after-hours trading remained largely subdued as traders adopted a cautious stance.
The S&P 500 edged up 9.94 points, or 0.13%, to 7,609.90. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 228.91 points, or 0.45%, to 51,307.79. The Nasdaq Composite managed a modest gain of 7.09 points, or 0.03%, closing at 27,093.90. The Philadelphia SE Semiconductor Index posted a standout performance, jumping 5.9%, while the software and services sector fell 3.3%, underscoring a sharp divergence within the technology space.
“It’s muted at the surface level,” said Mike Dickson, head of portfolio management at Horizon Investments. “There’s a lot going on under the hood.” This split performance is drawing attention as the broader market continues its upward trajectory, but growth stocks are not moving in unison.
After-hours trading saw minimal movement, a typical pattern for the session following the 4 p.m. New York close. By around 8 p.m. Eastern, the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) ticked up 0.04%, the Invesco QQQ (QQQ) added 0.03%, while the SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF (DIA) slipped 0.02%. The small-cap Russell 2000 tracker IWM dropped 0.23%.
Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) shares climbed after reporting a strong quarter that puts the server maker on track to achieve its long-term financial targets two years ahead of schedule. The positive move also lifted sentiment for Dell and Super Micro Computer, both key players in the AI server demand trade. Marvell Technology (MRVL) surged after Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, speaking at Computex in Taipei, hailed it as the next “trillion-dollar company.” Marvell, which specializes in custom AI chips and data-center interconnects, received a $2 billion investment from Nvidia earlier this year.
Alphabet (GOOGL) slipped during the regular session after announcing plans to raise $80 billion in equity, including $10 billion from Berkshire Hathaway, to fund AI infrastructure. “Berkshire is the kind of shareholder that companies like to have,” noted Steven Check, president and chief investment officer at Check Capital Management.
Broadcom (AVGO) gained 2.8% in after-hours trading, while Nvidia (NVDA) was off 0.4%. Tesla (TSLA) dropped 0.5%, and Palo Alto Networks (PANW) showed a 3.2% loss in late action, though these thin moves can change quickly. Palo Alto Networks boosted its annual outlook after the close, now forecasting fiscal 2026 revenue between $11.415 billion and $11.425 billion, above its earlier guidance, citing higher demand for cloud, identity, and AI security products. Third-quarter revenue jumped 31% to $3 billion, beating LSEG estimates.
On the economic front, the Labor Department’s JOLTS report showed job openings surged by 731,000 to 7.618 million in April, the highest since May 2024. However, hiring slipped. Matthew Martin, senior U.S. economist at Oxford Economics, warned that higher oil prices might “crimp real incomes” and cause businesses to slow hiring. Brent crude closed near $96 per barrel, adding to inflation concerns. Cleveland Fed President Beth Hammack cautioned that rates could rise further if inflation stays hot, calling the inflation outlook “not encouraging.”
Friday’s payroll report is the next major hurdle for markets. A miss could reignite fears of slowing hiring, while a strong reading might revive rate-hike anxieties. The current rally is broader than before, but big tech and AI themes continue to do most of the heavy lifting.
