Health care stocks climbed to record highs by midday Tuesday, with defensives and small caps leading a recovery from an early dip as the Nasdaq 100 stalled.
General Motors Co. (NYSE:GM) fell 7.6%, marking the steepest decline among the large-cap names and the stock’s worst day since July 2025. Third-quarter adjusted EPS of $3.70 beat the $3.63 estimate and revenue of $50 billion topped forecasts, but full-year EPS guidance of $12.75-$13.75 sits below the analysts’ $13.41 midpoint.
Oil eased a bit despite Iran’s Revolutionary Guard threatening to target undersea communication cables in the Strait of Hormuz.
Brent crude touched a five-month high above $110 a barrel earlier on Houthi attacks on Saudi infrastructure before reversing lower. West Texas Intermediate crude futures fell about 1.0% to $97.55 a barrel.
Crude’s pullback from overnight highs helped equities find their footing after a softer open.
The S&P 500 advanced 22 points, or 0.3%, to 7,713, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 458 points, or 0.9%, to 52,424. In the Dow, 3M Co. (NYSE:MMM) jumped over 5% after reporting earnings this morning.
The Nasdaq 100 was little changed at 29,532.
In bond markets, the 10-year Treasury yield held near 5.11%, down about 3 basis points, while the 2-year yield stood around 4.76%. Weak housing data helped: September housing starts fell to 1.221 million annually, below the 1.305 million consensus, and pending home sales dropped 7.3% month over month.
Tuesday’s Performance In Major US Indices
According to the Benzinga Pro platform:
- The Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (NYSE:VOO) gained 0.3%.
- The SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF Trust (NYSE:DIA) rose 0.9%.
- The Invesco QQQ Trust (NASDAQ:QQQ) slipped 0.0%.
- The iShares Russell 2000 ETF (NYSE:IWM) rallied 1.3%.
Health Care Stocks Lead Among S&P 500
- The Real Estate Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLRE) gained 1.7%, the Utilities Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLU) rose 1.3% and the Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLF) added 1.1%.
- The Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLY) rose 0.7% and the Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLP) gained 0.5%.
- The VanEck Semiconductor ETF (NASDAQ:SMH) added 0.3% after Monday snapped a nine-day losing streak, the longest in about 20 years.
- Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX) led Russell 1000 gainers, rising 11.4%, after third-quarter revenue growth of 10% year over year matched consensus, even as the company trimmed its 2026 revenue guidance midpoint to $6.661 billion on weak U.S. mortgage activity. TransUnion (NYSE:TRU) gained 7.0%, trading higher alongside its credit-bureau peer.
On the Downside
Mueller Industries Inc. (NYSE:MLI) was the session’s worst Russell 1000 performer, falling 8.8% after adjusted third-quarter EPS of $1.00 missed the $1.05 consensus, even as revenue of $1.42 billion beat the $1.29 billion estimate.
The Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLE) fell 0.4% and the Industrials Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLI) slipped 0.2%, while the Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLK), Communication Services Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLC) and Materials Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLB) were roughly flat.
Looking Ahead
Netflix Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX), Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SPCX) and United Airlines Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:UAL) are scheduled to report after the close, with Netflix expected to post EPS of $0.82 on revenue of $12.88 billion.
Elsewhere, Hasbro Inc. (NASDAQ:HAS) gained 5.8% after a third-quarter revenue beat and a raised annual growth forecast, and Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM) agreed to buy Braze for about $5.66 billion, or $47.50 per share in cash.
Tuesday’s Russell 1000 Top Gainers
Tuesday’s Russell 1000 Top Losers
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