S&P 500 Edges Higher on Muted Inflation Data; Tech Sector Leads Gains

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite ended in positive territory on Wednesday.

The broad-based index gained 0.26% to reach 7,748.50, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq added 0.54% to end at 26,588.49.

The 30-stock Dow Jones Industrial Average, however, finished just below the flatline, shedding 21.58 points, or 0.04%.

— Sean Conlon

Eight of the 11 S&P 500 sectors were in the green in afternoon trading Wednesday, with information technology leading the charge:

• Information technology: up 1%
• Real estate: up 0.95%
• Consumer staples: up 0.37%
• Utilities: up 0.36%
• Health care: up 0.32%
• Industrials: up 0.25%
• Financials: up 0.22%
• Energy: up 0.21%
• Consumer discretionary: down 1.09%
• Materials: down 0.93%
• Communication services: down 0.77%

— Sean Conlon

Goldman Sachs reiterated its buy ratings on Dell Technologies, Hewlett Packard Enterprise and NetApp, citing that the rise of agentic AI adoption and data center upgrades should continue to drive demand for servers, networking, and storage. 

The analyst maintained a buy rating for Dell Technologies, raising its price target to $510, implying 16% upside from Tuesday's close, and expects strong orders and a growing backlog despite shipment limitations due to supply constraints. 

"We expect the rise of agentic AI will create incremental demand for unified, high-performance enterprise storage platforms to break down data silos and efficiently feed complex AI workflows," analyst Katherine Murphy wrote.

For Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Murphy anticipates continued strong demand for enterprise servers and AI networking. However, due to increased competition, the price target was lowered to $75 from the previous $79.

"Like with DELL, we expect HPE's recent outperformance will create a more challenging trading setup into earnings, though we still see significant opportunity for upside relative to the company's F2026 and F2027 guidance framework," Murphy stated.

NetApp's price target was also raised to $210 from $200, with the analyst suggesting that AI could significantly boost demand for enterprise storage.

 "NetApp's market outperformance in C2Q26 has been driven by investor enthusiasm for enterprise infrastructure spend," according to the analyst.

— Deena Zaidi

Check out the companies making the biggest moves midday:

• Wendy's — The fast-food chain's stock jumped 13% after The Financial Times reported, citing sources, that Nelson Peltz' Trian Fund Management was preparing a bid to take the company private.
• National Vision — Shares of the optical retail company tumbled 6% after full-year guidance failed to impress Wall Street. National Vision projects adjusted earnings in the range of 94 cents to $1.09 per share on revenue of $2.037 billion to $2.076 billion. Analysts polled by FactSet sought 96 cents a share and $2.06 billion.
• Aecom — Shares dropped 6% on weak results for the construction developer's fiscal third quarter. Aecom reported revenue of $3.59 billion, down approximately 14% year over year. Net service revenue in the Americas came in at $808.4 million, below a FactSet forecast of $1.24 billion.

Read here for the full list.

— Sarah Min and Davis Giangiulio

Citizens upgraded Okta to market outperform from market perform Wednesday, citing the necessity of cybersecurity in the face of artificial intelligence threats. Its $170 price target on the identity security provider suggests 13% upside from Tuesday's close. 

Identity remains the most strategically important layer in AI security, according to analyst Rustam Kanga. Okta also benefits from an incumbency advantage, possessing a large installed base, he added. 

"We believe our valuation is warranted based on Okta's leadership in the Access Management space and large installed base, the breadth and neutrality of the identity platform, and the foundational role of an identity provider lends a natural foothold into the AI security opportunity," Kanga wrote in a note to clients. 

Okta is scheduled to announce its second-quarter results on August 26. Shares have seen a 72% increase year to date.

— Michelle Fox

An interest rate hike from the Federal Reserve may not occur until the end of this year, following Wednesday's in-line consumer price index report for July, according to Sage Advisory's Rob Williams.

"I think the combination of CPI and payroll takes September off the table," the chief investment strategist stated. "The markets are gravitating towards December because you need a little space and have a couple more prints of both employment and CPI."

Fed funds futures trading currently prices in a 73% chance the Fed will raise rates in December, per CME Group's FedWatch tool. The odds of a hike in October stand at over 53%.

— Sean Conlon

Fast food chain Wendy's surged over 13% midday Wednesday following a report by the Financial Times indicating that investor Nelson Peltz is preparing a bid to take the company private. 

Citing individuals familiar with the matter, Peltz's Trian Fund Management is reportedly collaborating with co-investors Flynn Group and BlueFive Capital on the bid. The group might submit a bid in the coming weeks, according to the Financial Times, though a definitive timeline has not been set, and the offer is not guaranteed. 

Wendy's stated in a press release that it will fulfill its fiduciary duties and thoroughly review any proposal from Trian. 

Shares were still up over 11%.

— Davis Giangiulio

Daiwa Capital Markets lowered its SpaceX target price to $140 from $175. The target price represents a 0.9% upside from Aug. 10, when the stock was trading at $138.74. 

The analysts cited "faster revenue growth comes at the cost of more capital-intensive business model" as the reason for the valuation adjustment.

Daiwa Capital Markets maintained its neutral rating for the company.

Shares were up 4% in morning trading Wednesday, however, and have surged approximately 28% over the past week.

— Ananya Chetia

The three major averages opened in positive territory on Wednesday morning.

The S&P 500 rose 0.5% shortly after 9:30 a.m. ET, while the Nasdaq Composite traded higher by 0.9%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average moved up 151 points, or 0.3%.

— Sean Conlon

Intel's $20 billion equity raise, while potentially dilutive, is viewed by analysts as a positive indicator of the chipmaker's confidence in the robustness of product demand.

"We view the raise as net positive given foundry scale and customer conviction driving longer term top-line and operational efficiency," wrote Vivek Arya at Bank of America on Tuesday, noting that the additional shares could dilute earnings-per-share by approximately 5%. 

Arya maintains a buy rating on the stock with a target price of $145. Shares closed Tuesday at $97.71.

Analysts at UBS commented in a Tuesday note that the equity raise removes a potential overhang for the stock.

Timothy Arcuri at UBS views the move as an "endorsement of INTC's confidence in its foundry roadmap."

— Tobias Burns

The consumer price index rose 0.1% in July, bringing the annual rate to 3.4%, matching consensus Dow Jones estimates. Core CPI, excluding food and energy, increased 0.2% monthly, with the annual rate at 2.5%.

— Fred Imbert

Check out the companies making the biggest moves premarket:

• Nebius Group — The AI infrastructure stock jumped over 12.5% after reporting better-than-expected EBITDA and revenues compared to analysts polled by FactSet's consensus estimates. Gross margins also exceeded estimates.
• Cava Group — Shares of the Mediterranean fast-casual restaurant chain jumped nearly 12% after reporting second quarter earnings of 19 cents per share, topping the LSEG consensus estimate of 18 cents a share. Revenue of $368.4 million surpassed the anticipated $361 million.
• Super Micro Computer — The data center infrastructure stock rallied over 7.5% after Super Micro Computer issued strong guidance for first quarter earnings and revenue, in addition to exceeding fourth quarter estimates. The company forecasts adjusted earnings in the range of $1.01 to $1.10 per share, significantly above the LSEG consensus estimate of 76 cents per share. Revenue guidance between $14.5 billion and $15.5 billion also exceeded the anticipated $11.68 billion.

Read the full list here.

— Davis Giangiulio

Ahead of the July consumer price index report, Ulrike Hoffmann-Burchardi of UBS anticipates some moderation, particularly in the annual inflation rate for both headline and core measures. 

"Our expectation is that core inflation trends should continue cooling, allowing the Fed to keep interest rates steady for the remainder of this year," the chief investment officer of the Americas and global head of equities wrote in a note. 

"This backdrop is supportive of quality fixed income," she added.

— Sean Conlon

• Stock futures inched higher while Treasury yields were broadly flat ahead of Wednesday's inflation print. 
• July's consumer price index, due at 8:30 a.m. E.T., is expected to show only a slight increase in monthly inflation, with projections of 0.1% for the headline number and 0.2% for the core reading, according to economists polled by Dow Jones. 
• CoreWeave shares jumped nearly 18% in premarket trade after the company's second-quarter adjusted operating income margin of 5% surpassed expectations. 
• The International Energy Agency reported Wednesday that world oil demand is projected to decline further this year than previously anticipated, exacerbated by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. 
• Norway's $2.3 trillion sovereign wealth fund announced a record half-year profit exceeding $182 billion on Wednesday, driven by a rally in Asian technology stocks that contributed to a 9.4% fund return. 

— Joseph Wilkins

U.S. Treasury yields remained largely unchanged Wednesday morning, with Wall Street awaiting crucial inflation data later in the session.

The yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury note, a key benchmark for U.S. government borrowing, was flat at 4.682%. 

The 2-year Treasury note yield, which closely tracks short-term Federal Reserve interest rate policy, also held steady at 4.212%. The longer-dated 30-year Treasury bond yield was unchanged at 5.231%. 

— Joseph Wilkins

Vestas Wind Systems soared to the top of the Stoxx 600 in morning trade, gaining nearly 18%. This surge followed the Danish wind turbine maker's report of adjusted earnings before interest and taxes reaching 446 million euros in the second quarter, more than double the 205 million euros estimated by analysts.

Vestas reported a 26.1% year-on-year increase in revenues to 4.7 billion euros for the second quarter. This strong performance prompted the Copenhagen-listed company to raise its full-year outlook, maintaining revenue expectations between 20-22 billion euros, and increasing the EBIT margin before special items to 7-9%, up from 6-8%.

Wednesday's share price movement positioned Vestas for its best trading day since November 2014.

—Hugh Leask

World oil demand is set to fall further than previously anticipated this year, the International Energy Agency reported Wednesday, as the impact of the closure of the Strait of Hormuz deepens.

The IEA forecasts a drop in demand by 1.6 million barrels a day in 2026, which is 510,000 barrels a day more than its July prediction.

High fuel prices are expected to continue impacting consumption, the agency noted, though demand is projected to rebound through the year and return to growth in the final quarter.

Asia-Pacific markets closed mixed on Tuesday. The Kospi rose 3.68% to 6,579.04, while the small-cap Kosdaq index added 0.12% to finish at 858.91.

Australia's benchmark S&P/ASX 200 lost 0.45% to 9,209.4.

Japan's Nikkei 225 rose 0.83% to close at 67,524.06, and the Topix ended 0.94% higher at 4,139.

Mainland China's CSI 300 gained 0.58% to 4,690.92.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index lost 0.98% in its final hour of trade.

— Lee Ying Shan

Norway's $2.3 trillion sovereign wealth fund reported a record half-year profit of over $182 billion on Wednesday. A rally in Asian technology stocks contributed to the fund's 9.4% return.

The fund's first-half report coincided with the disclosure of a 0.05% stake in SpaceX, valued at just over $1.2 billion. This marks the first time the fund has revealed its exposure to Elon Musk's space technology giant.

The SpaceX holding is significantly smaller than some of its other investments, including a 1.3% stake in Nvidia worth $61.8 billion and a 1.2% ownership of Apple valued at $52.7 billion as of June 30.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 was up 0.16% shortly after 8:05 a.m. in London (3:05 a.m. E.T.). Most sectors and major bourses on the continent began the session in mixed territory.

A majority of regional sectors were positive, with technology advancing nearly 0.8%, followed by construction and basic resources, both up by approximately 0.7%.

Regional bourses showed mixed performance. The Italian FTSE MIB led early gains among the continent's major exchanges, rising 0.33% in Milan. In London, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 was trading just above the flatline, while the German DAX was 0.22% higher in Frankfurt. Meanwhile, the French CAC 40 was down nearly 0.1%.

Shares in Foxconn were approximately 1.1% lower after the Taiwanese contract electronics maker reported a 35% increase in net profits for the second quarter to 59.97 billion Taiwan dollars ($1.86 billion), surpassing analyst estimates of 58.8 billion.

Gross profits at Foxconn, also known as Hon Hai, for the quarter were 6.12%, compared to 6.33% a year earlier.

A key player in the AI infrastructure buildout and a major Nvidia partner, Foxconn stated that AI infrastructure is driving its progress. The company anticipates significant revenue growth in smart consumer electronics for 2026, with computing products expected to lead third-quarter revenues.

— Hugh Leask

European stock markets were poised for a predominantly lower open on Wednesday, influenced by a slight uptick in oil prices during early trading.

Stoxx 50 futures remained flat ahead of the trading session. U.K.'s FTSE 100 was expected to open 0.24% lower. Both the German DAX and the Italian FTSE MIB futures were down nearly 0.1%.

The French CAC 40 hovered around the flatline in premarket trading.

—Hugh Leask

Oil prices increased Wednesday following attacks on vessels in the Red Sea and Gulf of Oman, intensifying concerns over risks to global shipping routes. This occurred even as diplomats reported progress toward reopening the Strait of Hormuz.

Brent crude futures, the international benchmark, climbed approximately 1.24% to $90 per barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures advanced 1.3% to $84.3 per barrel.

The Houthi rebels, reportedly backed by Iran, killed six individuals in an assault on a cargo ship in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait on Tuesday, marking the first reported fatalities from Red Sea shipping attacks in over a year.

Hours later, U.S. forces reported firing missiles at a container ship that allegedly attempted to breach Washington's blockade of Iranian ports in the Gulf of Oman.

—Lee Ying Shan

South Korean cosmetics manufacturer Cosmax experienced a 19.5% surge in its shares on Wednesday in Seoul. This followed a Citi upgrade to 'buy' and an increased 12-month target price to 310,000 Korean won.

The company reported second-quarter revenue of 795 billion won, a 27% increase year-over-year. Operating profit rose 21% to 74 billion won, according to a regulatory filing Tuesday.

Citi described the company's third-quarter guidance as "very positive," attributing the upgrade to accelerating revenue growth in South Korea and a turnaround in its U.S. operations.

—Jenny Lee

South Korean chip stocks experienced a sharp rally on Wednesday, contributing to a rise in the benchmark Kospi as investors returned to major semiconductor players. 

Samsung Electronics increased by over 7%, while competitor memory-chip maker SK Hynix gained 6.6%. Other technology-related stocks also saw advances, with LG Innotek surging 10.93%, Samsung SDI adding 6.09%, and Seoul Semiconductor rising 2.55%.

Japanese tech stocks, conversely, presented a mixed performance. Tokyo Electron rose 1.34% and Advantest gained 0.47%. However, SoftBank Group slipped 0.53%. Japanese memory maker Kioxia traded 3.71% higher. Chip-equipment maker Lasertec fell 2.53% and Renesas Electronics lost 1.31%. Taiwan's TSMC edged 0.42% higher. 

—Lee Ying Shan

Shares of Samsung SDI increased by over 6% in early trading Wednesday in Seoul following the South Korean battery maker's announcement of an agreement with General Motors to jointly develop next-generation battery cells for potential future electric vehicle applications.

Samsung SDI also announced its acquisition of GM's 49.99% stake in SynergyCells, the joint venture established by the two companies in New Carlisle, Indiana. The company attributed the ownership change to shifts in market conditions since the joint venture's inception, including slower-than-anticipated growth in EV demand.

— Jenny Lee

The Japanese yen hovered around 159 against the dollar on Wednesday, nearing the significant 160 mark. This comes after it relinquished roughly half of its gains from recent U.S.-Japan intervention.

Analysts at Crédit Agricole CIB suggest the yen's persistent weakness is not solely attributable to the U.S.-Japan interest-rate differential. They point to an "asymmetry of investment power" between the two economies.

Robust U.S. investment in areas like artificial intelligence, supported by both corporate and government funding, continues to draw capital toward the U.S. Conversely, Japan's planned public-private investment initiatives have yet to fully materialize, they noted in a Wednesday report.

Consequently, simply increasing Japanese interest rates might not be sufficient to sustainably strengthen the currency. "The interest rate differential is only one aspect of the outcome," CA-CIB stated, arguing that the notion that "just raising rates will stop the yen's depreciation" overlooks the underlying structural forces directing capital towards the U.S.

—Lee Ying Shan

Asia-Pacific markets opened mixed Wednesday. South Korea's Kospi gained 1.17%, while the small-cap Kosdaq declined 1.35%.

Australia's benchmark S&P/ASX 200 decreased 0.52%. 

Japan's Nikkei 225 fell 0.17% while the Topix added 0.3%.

— Lee Ying Shan

Asia-Pacific markets were poised for a mixed open Wednesday, with Japanese stocks expected to edge higher as trading resumes following Tuesday's holiday.

Japan's Nikkei 225 Chicago futures contract traded at 67,180, and its Osaka counterpart was last at 67,200 compared to the index's previous close of 67,200.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng index futures traded at 25,533, below the benchmark's closing value of 25,652.82.

In Australia, futures for the S&P/ASX 200 were at 9,147, compared to the index's Tuesday close of 9,250.6.

— Lee Ying Shan

Wednesday's significant inflation report could provide the Federal Reserve with some relief in its ongoing battle against inflation.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics is scheduled to release the consumer price index at 8:30 a.m. ET. Economists polled by Dow Jones expect a modest increase for July, projecting 0.1% for the headline figure and 0.2% for the crucial core reading (excluding volatile food and energy prices). Annual rates are expected at 3.4% and 2.5%, respectively, both down 0.1 percentage point from June.

While these figures would still keep annual inflation rates considerably above the Fed's 2% target, two consecutive muted monthly readings could offer Federal Open Market Committee policymakers a brief respite before deciding on interest rate adjustments.

— Jeff Cox

Check out the companies making headlines after hours:

• Super Micro Computer — The data center infrastructure stock surged over 6% after Super Micro Computer issued strong guidance for first quarter earnings and revenue, surpassing fourth quarter estimates. The company projects adjusted earnings between $1.01 and $1.10 per share, significantly exceeding the LSEG consensus estimate of 76 cents. Revenue guidance ranging from $14.5 billion to $15.5 billion also topped the anticipated $11.68 billion.
• CoreWeave — The artificial intelligence cloud company saw its shares gain approximately 14%. Its second quarter adjusted operating income margin was 5%, compared to the StreetAccount consensus estimate of 2.7%. Revenue of $2.58 billion was up 112% year-over-year and exceeded the $2.56 billion expected, according to the LSEG consensus estimate.

Read the full list here.

— Sarah Min