U.S. Equities Respond to AI Sector Dynamics, Tariff Ruling, and Elevated Job Cuts
## Market Overview: AI Rebound and Tariff Expectations Drive Gains Amid Job Market Concerns
U.S. equities closed with mixed sentiment, as a rebound in artificial intelligence (AI) related stocks and shifting expectations surrounding a pivotal Supreme Court hearing on tariffs influenced investor behavior. Despite these upward pressures, a significant increase in U.S. job cuts for October introduced a cautionary note regarding the broader economic landscape.
## The Week in Detail: Corporate Earnings, M&A, and Judicial Influence
The technology sector, a dominant force in recent market performance, experienced varied movements. **Advanced Micro Devices** (**AMD**) shares advanced over 2% following robust third-quarter results, contributing to gains in peer companies such as **Broadcom** (**AVGO**), which rose 2%, and **Micron Technology** (**MU**), which saw an increase of approximately 9%. **Nvidia** (**NVDA**) also recorded an over 1% rise in premarket trading. Conversely, **Qualcomm** (**QCOM**) shares dipped by 2% despite exceeding earnings expectations, primarily due to cautious forward guidance. Other tech companies saw sharp reversals; **Super Micro Devices** (**SMCI**) plunged 11% on disappointing first-quarter results, and **Palantir** (**PLTR**) extended losses, declining over 1% amidst persistent valuation concerns. **Arista Networks** (**ANET**) also finished lower, down 9%.
Corporate earnings and strategic announcements further shaped individual stock performance. **e.l.f. Beauty** (**ELF**) shares tumbled 20% after the cosmetics company reported second-quarter revenue below analyst estimates and issued significantly weaker-than-expected fiscal year earnings guidance. In contrast, **Snap Inc.** (**SNAP**) surged 26% following the announcement of a $500 million share repurchase program and robust fourth-quarter revenue guidance. In M&A news, **Forge Global Holdings Inc.** (**FRGE**) saw its shares soar 64% after **Charles Schwab Corp.** (**SCHW**) announced an agreement to acquire the private markets trading platform. **Marvell Technology** (**MRVL**) climbed 8% in premarket trading on reports that **SoftBank** had considered a potential takeover of the chipmaker earlier in the year. **Datadog** (**DDOG**) also gained significantly, rising 16.4% after surpassing third-quarter estimates and raising its full-year 2025 revenue outlook.
A significant non-corporate event influencing markets was the Supreme Court
