Market Summary

Stock Market Today: Dow, S&P 500, Nasdaq Futures Fall After NVDA's Q1 Results— Nebius Group, Intuit In Focus (UPDATED)

Rishabh Mishra — Thu, 21 May 2026 12:52:55 +0000

(Editor’s note: The future prices of benchmark tracking ETFs, the economic data, the lede and the headline were updated in the story.)

U.S. stock futures pared earlier gains to decline on Thursday following Nvidia Corp.’s (NASDAQ:NVDA) first-quarter earnings results released after Wednesday’s higher close.

On the economic front, Thursday’s data presented a mixed macro picture for investors to digest. Seasonally adjusted initial jobless claims for the week ending May 16 ticked down by 3,000 to 209,000.

However, regional manufacturing abruptly lost momentum, as the Philadelphia Fed’s current general activity index for May plunged to -0.4 from April’s 26.7.

The housing sector also sent split signals; April housing starts declined by 2.8% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,465,000, while future construction indicators looked brighter as building permits jumped 5.8% to a rate of 1,442,000.

Not long after Nvidia released its results, SpaceX submitted its S-1 registration statement to the SEC. The filing provided a rare public glimpse into the company's financial health just ahead of its upcoming investor roadshow scheduled for June.

Meanwhile, the 10-year Treasury bond yielded 4.58%, and the two-year bond was at 4.06%. The CME Group's FedWatch tool‘s projections show markets pricing a 96.8% likelihood of the Federal Reserve leaving the current interest rates unchanged during June’s meeting.

Index	Performance (+/-)
Dow Jones	-0.30%
S&P 500	-0.39%
Nasdaq 100	-0.57%
Russell 2000	-0.78%

The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSE:SPY) and Invesco QQQ Trust ETF (NASDAQ:QQQ), which track the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100, respectively, declined in premarket on Thursday. The SPY was down 0.25% at $739.43, while the QQQ was lower by 0.44% to $710.04.

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Stocks In Focus

Nvidia

Nvidia Corp. (NASDAQ:NVDA) rose 0.21% in premarket on Thursday after reporting better-than-expected first-quarter financial results and issuing strong revenue guidance for the second quarter.

Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that NVDA maintains a strong price trend in the long, medium, and short terms, with a poor value score.

Intuit

Full story available on Benzinga.com

Tesla Rival Li Auto's Stock Remains Underpriced As Value Score Rises— Morgan Stanley Sees 61% Upside Potential

Rishabh Mishra — Thu, 21 May 2026 12:15:24 +0000

Shares of Tesla Inc.‘s (NASDAQ:TSLA) Chinese rival Li Auto Inc. (NASDAQ:LI) have seen its Benzinga Edge value score surge to 93.52 percentile, revealing a glaring disconnect between its battered equity price and fundamental worth.

Deep Fundamental Value Amid Market Selloff

While short, medium, and long-term price trends remain heavily pressured, value score expansion comes after a punishing year for the EV manufacturer, with shares tumbling 42.73% over the past 12 months.

Benzinga Edge Stock Rankings' composite value metric—which evaluates a stock’s relative worth by comparing market price to underlying assets, earnings, and operating performance—indicates that the stock has become severely underpriced.

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Morgan Stanley Sees About 61% Upside

Wall Street powerhouse Morgan ...

Full story available on Benzinga.com

Jim Cramer Likes ARM 'Very Much' As Stock Jumps 3% Premarket, But Calls Post-Nvidia Surge 'A Little Silly'

Rishabh Mishra — Thu, 21 May 2026 12:02:22 +0000

Arm Holdings PLC (NASDAQ:ARM) shares rose over 3% in premarket trading on Thursday following Nvidia Corp.‘s (NASDAQ:NVDA) blowout quarterly report, even as CNBC’s Jim Cramer warned that crowning the chip designer as the earnings call’s top beneficiary is overblown.

Market Reaction Deemed ‘Silly’

In a social media post, the Mad Money host revealed that while his charitable trust maintains a significant stake in the company, the immediate sympathy rally felt disconnected from the actual earnings event.

“We have a nice-sized position in ARM, and while I like it very much, it seems ‘a little silly’ that it is last night’s ‘BIGGEST winner’ off of the Nvidia call,” Cramer wrote, urging investors to maintain perspective amid the sector-wide excitement.

We have a nice sized position in ARM and while I like it very much, it seems a little silly that it is last night's BIGGEST winner off of the Nvidia call

— Jim Cramer (@jimcramer) May 21, 2026

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'The Nvidia Way' Author Tae Kim Says Nvidia Is Increasingly Undervalued As Google TPU, Amazon Trainium Threats Remain A 'Rounding Error'

Mohd Haider — Thu, 21 May 2026 10:28:28 +0000

Tae Kim, author of “The Nvidia Way” and founder of Key Context, says Nvidia Corp. (NASDAQ:NVDA) is trading at its cheapest valuation in years despite accelerating fundamentals.

Cheap On Every Metric That Matters

"We're talking about nearly 80% growth on an $80 billion figure in just three months," Kim said during a Wednesday episode of TBPN. He also noted that the stock trades at about 19 times forward earnings, below the S&P 500's multiple, even though the index is growing at only around 10%. “Nvidia is becoming more and more undervalued,” he added.

Separately, Jensen Huang, this week, said Nvidia’s Vera CPU platform targets a “brand new” $200 billion TAM in agentic AI workloads, widening the company’s total addressable market beyond GPUs.

Competition Is A Rounding Error

Kim dismissed Google‘s TPU and Amazon’s (NASDAQ:AMZN) Trainium as material threats. On TPU specifically, he said, “TPU gets headlines, but $5 billion is nothing when you’re comparing it to a trillion dollars.” He noted Nvidia has locked up supply across memory, wafers and optical components, leaving rivals with ...

Full story available on Benzinga.com

Donald Trump Jr.'s VC Firm Jumped From $200 Million To $3.5 Billion In A Year: Inside 1789 Capital's 'Patriotic Capitalism' Boom

Rishabh Mishra — Thu, 21 May 2026 07:23:08 +0000

1789 Capital, the venture capital firm with Donald Trump Jr. as a partner, has seen its assets under management skyrocket from $200 million to $3.5 billion in just one year by leveraging an America-first investment strategy.

Building A Generational Financial Platform

The Palm Beach, Florida-based firm's explosive growth follows a massive dealmaking spree focused on leading privately held companies in artificial intelligence (AI) and defense technology.

The VC is capitalizing on shifting geopolitical dynamics and policies favoring domestic tech manufacturing.

Paul Abrahimzadeh, a partner at 1789 Capital, told Financial Times that the ultimate goal is to scale the fund to $10 billion over the next few years, establishing its footprint well beyond the current political cycle. Abrahimzadeh described the firm’s expansion as building a "generational American financial platform."

Benzinga reached out to 1789 Capital for comment, but did not receive an immediate response.

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Exclusive: Treasury Yields Near 5%—Is This 'Sustainable Regime' Shift Or Will Bonds 'Cool Off' Soon?

Rishabh Mishra — Thu, 21 May 2026 07:00:32 +0000

A selloff in the U.S. Treasury market has pushed long-term yields dangerously close to—and in some cases above—the 5% threshold, igniting an intense ideological battle among Wall Street's top macro minds over whether the global economy is entering a permanent structural shift or a temporary disruption.

The Great Yield Divide

As the 30-year Treasury yield climbs to 5.12% and the 10-year note breaches 4.58%, investors are facing a starkly divided outlook.

On one side of the debate, macro traditionalists argue that the recent spike is an overextension driven by temporary geopolitical and energy shocks. On the other hand, analysts assert that the era of “free money” is officially over, cementing a new reality for global capital.

Louis Navellier, Founder, Chairman of the Board, CIO, and CCO of Navellier & Associates, believes the current panic will be short-lived. “Bond yields will cool off by the fall,” Navellier stated, noting that a recent decline in crude oil prices has already begun to provide relief.

“I expect Kevin Warsh to lobby the FOMC to cut later this year,” Navellier added, dismissing localized fears by pointing out that “the bond vigilantes are more focused on Japan, Britain, and France.”

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Bond ETFs Are Having A Banner Year As Investors Rush To Lock In High Yields

Transitioning To A ‘Sustainable Regime’

Alex Tsepaev, CSO at B2PRIME, a global financial services provider, argues that central bank interventions have fundamentally altered investor behavior, and the market is ...
Full story available on Benzinga.com

Semi Mania Resumes Ahead of Nvidia Earnings On Samsung Woes And Tankers Exiting Hormuz

The Arora Report — Wed, 20 May 2026 18:28:37 +0000

Samsung Strike

Please click here for a chart of Direxion Daily Semiconductor Bull 3X ETF (NYSE:SOXL).

Note the following:

The chart shows yesterday SOXL traded in the range of $135.02 – $160.54 and closed at $151.89. In traditional technical analysis, the fact that the closing was so much higher than the low price is seen as a sign that the semiconductor rally is ready to resume again. No investor should rely solely on technical analysis as it no longer works as well as it used to.

The chart shows this morning semiconductor stocks are rallying.

Semiconductors are rallying for the following reasons:

Samsung Electronics Co Ltd (OTC:SSNLF) is expected to face a strike starting tomorrow. Samsung is the largest memory chip maker in the world. This is especially helping the stocks of Micron Technology Inc (NASDAQ:MU) and SanDisk Corp (NASDAQ:SNDK).

Two fully loaded Chinese tankers and one Korean tanker have exited the Strait of Hormuz. This is giving rise to optimism that oil will start moving through the Strait of Hormuz soon. As a result, oil is pulling back.

As oil pulls back, on the prospect of lower oil prices helping inflation, yields are pulling back and bonds are moving higher.

Vice President Vance is talking up a deal with Iran. Iran is saying it will retaliate beyond the Middle East if the U.S. attacks again. However, as has been the case, the stock market reacts positively to any potentially good news related to Iran but ignores any potential negative news.

This morning, there is optimism that NVIDIA Corp (NASDAQ:NVDA) earnings will exceed ...
Full story available on Benzinga.com

Stock Market Today: Do, S&P 500, Nasdaq Futures Gain Ahead Of NVDA's Q1 Report— CAVA, AMC Entertainment, Roblox In Focus (UPDATED)

Rishabh Mishra — Wed, 20 May 2026 12:32:08 +0000

(Editor’s note: The future prices of benchmark tracking ETFs and the headline were updated in the story.)

U.S. stock futures rose on Wednesday following two consecutive days of lower closes for the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 indices on Tuesday.

Investors are awaiting Nvidia Corp.‘s (NASDAQ:NVDA) first-quarter results scheduled to be released after the closing bell. Analysts are expecting NVDA to report second-quarter earnings of $1.76 per share on revenue of $79.04 billion.

Additionally, the Federal Reserve will be releasing the minutes of the Fed meeting later in the afternoon.

Meanwhile, the 10-year Treasury bond yielded 4.65%, and the two-year bond was at 4.10%. The CME Group's FedWatch tool‘s projections show markets pricing a 96.7% likelihood of the Federal Reserve leaving the current interest rates unchanged during June’s meeting.

Index Performance (+/-)

Dow Jones 0.08%

S&P 500 0.30%

Nasdaq 100 0.68%

Russell 2000 0.36%

The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSE:SPY) and Invesco QQQ Trust ETF (NASDAQ:QQQ), which track the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100, respectively, were higher in premarket on Wednesday. The SPY was up 0.45% at $737.00, while the QQQ was higher by 0.77% to $706.92.

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Nvidia Earnings No Longer About Beating Estimates, But About Whether Jensen Huang Can Prove AI Supercycle Still Has Years Left: Top Analyst

Stocks In Focus

Toll Brothers

Toll Brothers Inc. (NYSE:TOL) rose 2.30% in premarket on Wednesday after reporting upbeat earnings for the first quarter. The company posted quarterly earnings of $2.72 per share, which beat the analyst consensus estimate of $2.60 per share.

Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that TOL maintains a weak price trend in the long, medium, and short terms, with a solid value score.

Full story available on Benzinga.com

Cisco's AI Infrastructure Push Drives Stock Momentum Score Up As Rosenblatt Sees 30% Upside

Rishabh Mishra — Wed, 20 May 2026 12:05:17 +0000

Shares of Cisco Systems Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO) have surged into the top tier of Benzinga Edge momentum rankings following a pivot toward artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure and a bullish forecast from Wall Street.

Momentum Ranking Surges

Cisco's relative strength is accelerating, as evidenced by Benzinga Edge’s Stock Rankings. Over the past week, its momentum score surged from 84.91 to 92.61. This momentum metric evaluates a stock’s relative strength based on price movement patterns and volatility across multiple timeframes.

This technical breakout aligns with Cisco‘s broader market performance. The stock has rallied 80.51% over the past year. The stock’s short, medium, and long-term price trends remain positive, and it also boasts a robust quality score of 84.99, reflecting strong operational efficiency and financial health.

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Nvidia Triggering Dot-Com Crash 2.0? Kevin Gordon Says Stop 'Cherry-Picking' Data, Tech Isn't 'Euphoric'

Rishabh Mishra — Wed, 20 May 2026 11:36:56 +0000

Despite growing fears that the AI stock boom led by giants like Nvidia Corp. (NASDAQ:NVDA) is mirroring the late-1990s dot-com bubble, Charles Schwab's Kevin Gordon argues that today’s market fundamentals tell a much healthier, diversified story.

Stop ‘Cherry-Picking’ Data

While it feels like a top-heavy market driven by a handful of AI titans, Gordon warned investors against “cherry-picking” narrow time horizons to prove a massive concentration risk.

Gordon, in conversation with Phil Rosnen, notes that while Nvidia is currently the top contributor to the S&P 500's return purely due to its massive market cap, sheer contribution does not equal pure performance.

“If you look at its performance, there are almost 90 names in the S&P 500 that are seeing stronger gains this year, you know, in front of Nvidia,” Gordon explained.

He emphasized that there are still meaningful, often ignored pockets of outperformance in the market—such as small-cap tech significantly beating large-cap tech over the past year—if investors are willing to look under the surface.

Record earnings are hiding risks in the stock market right now.

I sat down with @KevRGordon, head of macro research for Charles Schwab, to discuss the top-heavy market and current setup for investors, the Mag 7 and S&P 493 convergence ...
Full story available on Benzinga.com

Exclusive: Trump's White House UFC Match Will Cost TKO $30 Million—Why Bernstein Calls It A 'High-Profile Opportunity'

Rishabh Mishra — Wed, 20 May 2026 10:25:28 +0000

TKO Group Holdings Inc. (NYSE:TKO) is absorbing a $30 million loss to host an ultra-exclusive UFC match on the White House South Lawn curated by President Donald Trump, but Wall Street experts tell Benzinga the political spectacle is a calculated gamble that will pay off for the company’s bottom line.

Ultimate Status Symbol For Washington?

A hand-curated ticket from Trump to the custom-built UFC octagon on the White House South Lawn is currently the ultimate status symbol in Washington. But for TKO Group, the parent company of the UFC and WWE, the spectacle comes with a hefty price tag: an expected $30 million net loss for the upcoming second-quarter UFC Freedom 250 event.

While retail investors might balk at the eight-figure expense, Wall Street analysts are looking past the political flash to the underlying fundamentals.

‘Discretionary, Unique’ Global Stage

For Ian Moore, VP and Research Analyst for U.S. Entertainment at Bernstein, the high-stakes gamble is exactly what TKO needs to execute its long-term strategy. Moore maintains an “Outperform” rating on the stock with a $240 price target, noting that the underlying monetization engine is working so well that TKO can afford to take a hit for the sake of mainstream visibility.

“I think the Freedom 250 event is well understood by the street at this point – $60M loss with $30M recouped primarily via sponsorship,” Moore exclusively told Benzinga.

“Engagement metrics I follow, including US ratings for fights YTD, appear to be soaring already, so my view is that this is more of a discretionary, unique & very high-profile opportunity to promote the UFC on a global stage.”

Moore emphasized that the bulk of TKO’s earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) is locked ...
Full story available on Benzinga.com

Jim Cramer Says Towns Should Demand 'Strict Adherence' From Big Tech Building Data Centers

Rishabh Mishra — Wed, 20 May 2026 07:19:38 +0000

Jim Cramer is calling on local municipalities across the country to leverage their negotiating power against tech giants building data centers, urging towns to demand both environmental protections and significant community investments before allowing construction to begin.

Enforcing Environmental Accountability

As the artificial intelligence (AI) boom and digital transformation drive a massive expansion in technical infrastructure, Cramer took to X to warn communities about the historical ecological toll of these massive facilities.

He pointed out that “many data center builders initially got away with damaging the environment,” signaling an urgent need for a fundamental shift in how local governments handle tech zoning and corporate approvals.

“Each town must be sure to demand strict adherence to pollution rules,” Cramer stated. He empowered locales to hold their ground and walk away from inadequate deals, adding, “Ask for what your town needs. If they won’t give it, then let them go elsewhere.”

Many data center builders initially got away with damaging the environment. Each town must be sure to demand strict adherence to pollution rules. Ask for what your town needs. If they won't give it, then let them go elsewhere.

— Jim Cramer (@jimcramer) May 19, 2026

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Target, Nvidia And 3 Stocks To Watch Heading Into Wednesday

Avi Kapoor — Wed, 20 May 2026 06:45:06 +0000

With U.S. stock futures trading mixed this morning on Wednesday, some of the stocks that may grab investor focus today are as follows:

Wall Street expects Nvidia Corp. (NASDAQ:NVDA) to report quarterly earnings at $1.76 per share on revenue of $79.04 billion after the closing bell, according to data from Benzinga Pro. Nvidia shares gained 0.4% to $221.54 in after-hours trading.

Toll Brothers Inc. (NYSE:TOL) reported upbeat earnings for the first quarter. The company posted quarterly earnings of $2.72 per share, which beat ...
Full story available on Benzinga.com

S&P 500 Falls For Third Straight Session: Investor Sentiment Weakens, Fear Index Remains In 'Greed' Zone

Avi Kapoor — Wed, 20 May 2026 06:40:50 +0000

The CNN Money Fear and Greed index showed a decline in the overall market sentiment, while the index remained in the “Greed” zone on Tuesday.

U.S. stocks settled lower on Tuesday, with the Dow Jones index falling more than 300 points during the session.

Investors are getting impatient over the unresolved U.S.–Iran standoff that has kept oil prices elevated and inflation expectations sticky.

In earnings, Amer Sports Inc. (NYSE:AS) reported better-than-expected first-quarter financial results and raised its FY26 guidance above estimates. The Home Depot Inc. (NYSE:HD) on Tuesday reported upbeat earnings for the first quarter on Tuesday.

On the economic data front, the ADP said US private employers added an average of 42,250 ...
Full story available on Benzinga.com

Ted Oakley Says Wall Street Is Chasing The AI 'Dream' While Ignoring 'Mispriced' Energy Stocks

Rishabh Mishra — Wed, 20 May 2026 06:39:31 +0000

As Wall Street pours billions into artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure, Oxbow Advisors founder Ted Oakley says investors are ignoring the massive energy and commodity demand needed to power the AI boom — creating an opportunity in beaten-down energy stocks.

Investors Missing AI's Energy Demands

Despite major U.S. tech firms committing massive capital to AI data centers this year, Oakley argues that investors are focused on AI's upside while overlooking the infrastructure, energy and commodity inputs required to build and operate data centers.

“I think they’re just looking at the dream side of that,” Oakley said in a recent interview with Kitco NEWS.

“In order to get that outcome, what do you have to put into this data center to make all of that work?” The answer, he argues, is massive amounts of energy and commodities — sectors he believes the market is undervaluing.

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‘Buy Energy First’

Highlighting what he described as a historic market imbalance, Oakley ...
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