S&P 500, Dow Gain As Earnings Season Sets In, While SpaceX Aids Nasdaq After-Hours — SPCX, BA, MMM, NFLX, QCOM In Focus

SpaceX reported solid earnings fueled by a big jump in its artificial-intelligence business.

• The S&P 500 ended Tuesday 0.3% higher, the Nasdaq 100 slipped 0.1%, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 1%.
• SpaceX posted $4.4 billion in net income for the quarter ending September. 
• 3M beat earnings expectations for the September quarter and raised its full-year guidance.

The S&P 500 and Dow Jones index ended higher on Tuesday as investors braced for the start of earnings season, with 3M shares helping the Dow and strong SpaceX earnings pushing the Nasdaq after hours after a robust earnings print.

The S&P 500 ended Tuesday 0.3% higher, the Nasdaq 100 slipped 0.1%, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 1%. The Russell 2000, which tracks small-cap stocks, ended 1.7% higher.

Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.1%. S&P 500 futures gained 0.4% and Nasdaq-100 futures added nearly 1%.

The SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) rose 0.6%, and the SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF (DIA) added 1%. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq-100 tracking Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) eased 0.1% on Tuesday.  

Meanwhile, the VanEck Semiconductor ETF (SMH) and the iShares Semiconductor ETF slipped about 0.4% on Tuesday amid weakness in Micron Tech (MU), Nvidia (NVDA), Broadcom (AVGO), and most other silicon makers. The broader Vanguard Information Technology ETF (VGT) dropped 0.1%.

However, all the above tech and semiconductor ETFs recovered after-hours.

Retail sentiment on Stocktwits for SPY and DIA was ‘bearish’ with ‘high’ message volumes, while sentiment improved to ‘neutral’ from ‘bearish’ for the QQQ.

US Market Drivers

Index	Move	Close
Dow Jones Industrial Average	1%	52,495.88
S&P 500	0.3%	7,712.57
Nasdaq 100	-0.1%	29,490.28

The Dow Jones Industrial Average pushed higher behind impressive quarterly reports. Shares of conglomerate 3M advanced over 5% after topping Wall Street estimates and lifting its full-year outlook. Defense contractor Northrop Grumman climbed more than 4% following a quarter that surpassed expectations.

At the same time, crude prices retreated, lifting market mood. Domestic West Texas Intermediate futures eased 1.8% to close at $101.79 per barrel, whereas Brent crude futures
dipped 0.7% to $108.79, also aiding the Dow.

Meanwhile, SpaceX reported third-quarter revenue of $14.58 billion, compared to an estimated $13 billion, and earnings of $0.35 a share, against an expected $0.13. Furthermore, SpaceX and Tesla formed special committees of independent directors to explore a potential combination, CEO of both companies Elon Musk said on Tuesday during SpaceX’s third-quarter earnings call amid heightened market speculation.  

The rocket maker’s strong earnings helped push the Nasdaq up 1% after-hours.

The key question is whether recent growth rates can be sustained as comparisons become more demanding and macroeconomic risks persist, according to Ulrike Hoffmann-Burchardi at UBS Chief Investment Office.

“We expect a strong third-quarter tech earnings season from a fundamental perspective, but elevated expectations may lead to company-specific volatility,” Burchardi told Bloomberg.

Key Trending Stocks

Claude maker Anthropic is gearing up for a blockbuster initial public offering that could value the firm at up to $2 trillion, according to confidential draft prospectus documents viewed by The Wall Street Journal.  

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) on Tuesday certified Boeing’s (BA) 737 MAX 10, clearing the largest version of the jet family for production and delivery after years of delays and safety concerns.

Netflix Inc.(NFLX) on Tuesday reported third-quarter earnings that beat Wall Street expectations, but its shares fell 5% in after-hours trading after the streaming firm issued a soft revenue outlook for the fourth quarter, setting it up for the fourth consecutive period of decelerating sales growth.

Kroger Co.(KR) is committing $5 billion to sharpen its value proposition, slash everyday grocery costs, and capture a larger share of the household budget.

Qualcomm (QCOM) is preparing to downsize its global workforce through a performance-focused reduction strategy, Reuters reported on Tuesday.

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