As Government Shutdown Looms; Nvidia, Ralph Lauren, Pagaya In Focus .All three indexes booked monthly gains. The Dow finished September 1.9% higher and the S&P 500 added 3.5% during its fifth continuous month of gains. The Nasdaq added 5.6% in September to finish six consecutive monthly wins.
Volume on the New York Stock Exchange and on the Nasdaq was higher compared with the same time on Monday. Breadth was mixed with decliners outnumbering advancers on the Nasdaq whereas they lagged advancers on the NYSE.
Meanwhile, West Texas Intermediate futures fell more than 1% to $62.57 a barrel. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note edged up one basis point to 4.15%.
3:52 p.m. ET
Data Center Plans Debut Amid AI Boom
Fermi was poised to price its initial public offering on Tuesday. The company has an upsized offering of 32.5 million shares, up from 25 million shares, with a possible initial price of $18-22 a share. Shares are set to start trading on the Nasdaq under the ticker “FRMI” on Wednesday. Fermi is an energy infrastructure play for data centers that run powerful artificial intelligence tasks.
Elsewhere, Spotify (SPOT) fell more than 4% after the company said its founder and Chief Executive Daniel Ek plans to step down and transition to the role of executive chairman.
Alex Norstrom and Gustav Soderstrom, Spotify’s co-presidents, will become CEOs of the streaming giant from Jan. 1. Shares remain in a cup-with-handle base with a buy point of 748.30. Shares are testing support at their 50-day moving average.
Market Rises As Shutdown Looms; Nvidia Breaks Out
2:47 p.m. ET
Pfizer Jumps On Trump Deal
Pfizer (PFE) soared on a deal that gave the pharmaceutical company a three-year reprieve from President Donald Trump’s tariffs. The company said it will sell some drugs at a 50% average discount on a direct-to-consumer website called TrumpRx. The website allows Americans to buy prescription drugs at discounts the government is able to offer through negotiations.
The tariff exemption depends on onshoring manufacturing and research. Pfizer plans on a $70 billion investment to onshore drug production and research, CNBC reported.
Pfizer shares topped the S&P 500, rising more than 5% and clearing their 50-day moving average in a flat base with a buy point of 26.11. But Pfizer’s Relative Strength Rating shows its underperformance, lagging at 19.
Other leading stocks in the S&P 500 Tuesday included Merck (MRK), Danaher (DHR) and Charles River Laboratories (CRL).
Consumer Confidence Weakens
The Conference Board’s widely watched consumer confidence index fell to 94.2 in September. That was below estimates of 96 and marked the lowest reading since April. Consumers had a “much less positive” outlook on business conditions in September while their appraisal of current job availability hit a multiyear low, The Conference Board said. Its August reading was revised up to 97.8 from 97.4.
Last week, the government’s Personal Consumption and Expenditure report for August showed consumer spending rose more than expected to 0.6% month on month.
While stocks sagged in the daily session, the major indexes were headed for monthly gains as September trade wraps up. The Dow Jones Industrial Average looked set to add more than 1.5% and the Nasdaq was on track to rise about 5%. The S&P 500 will likely finish the month 3% higher.
In the bond market, the 10-year Treasury yield fell one basis point to 4.13%. In other economic data, the Labor Department’s job openings and labor turnover survey, or JOLTS, showed little month-on-month change for August. Job openings rose to 7.227 million vs. consensus views of 7.1 million and was unchanged from July’s revised numbers. Hires and separations were little changed from July.
Stock Market Today: Wolfspeed Exits Bankruptcy
In stocks, shares of Wolfspeed (WOLF) extended gains on Tuesday. The silicon carbide chipmaker is exiting a bankruptcy filing with reduced debt. Shares soared on Monday and rebounded from their 50-day moving average before heading higher Tuesday.
Shares of EchoStar (SATS) also gained amid news that the wireless communication company may sell some of its 5G spectrum to Dow Jones leader Verizon Communications (VZ). Earlier, the company sold some of its spectrum to SpaceX and AT&T (T). Shares rose more than 1% and are working on a base with a buy point of 85.37.
12:06 p.m. ET
Nvidia Breaks Out To All-Time High
Nvidia stock broke out of a flat base at a buy point of 184.48 and hit an all-time high Tuesday. It was one of two top gainers in the Dow, the other being Merck (MRK). Nvidia has an ideal Earnings Per Share Rating and Composite Rating of 99. According to IBD MarketSurge, the stock has outperformed 87% of the 11,200 stocks in the Investor’s Business Daily database over the past 52 weeks.
Earnings movers include Jefferies Financial Group (JEF). Third-quarter earnings of $1.01 per share beat Wall Street’s view of 80 cents. Revenue of $2.05 billion also topped estimates of $1.9 billion. After heading higher in early trade, the stock reversed 2% lower in the stock market today.
Elsewhere, Vail Resorts (MTN) fell more than 3% amid an early sell-off on a wider-than-expected loss. The ski resort operator reported a loss of $5.08 per share vs. estimates of $4.72. Sales of $271.3 million also missed views of $274.4 million. Shares remain in a consolidation with a buy point of 199.45. But the stock pared some of its losses and traded less than 1% lower.
Speaker Johnson Urges Spending Bill To Avert Government Shutdown
House Speaker Mike Johnson told CNBC on Tuesday that Democrats should “do the right thing,” and vote for a stopgap spending bill that would avert a partial government shutdown. A shutdown will go into effect early Wednesday if a deal is not reached. But Democrats are demanding an extension of Affordable Care Act tax credits that are set to expire at the end of the year.
“A government shutdown, all but confirmed by Vice President JD Vance after President Donald Trump’s meeting with Democrats, now looks certain,” David Morrison, senior market analyst at Trade Nation, said in a note. Concerns are rising about a delay of Friday’s U.S. payroll data ahead of the data-dependent Federal Reserve’s October meeting, he said.
“So, despite a strong September, risks remain elevated. Market participants are weighing whether record valuations can withstand the dual pressures of weaker labor conditions and the growing threat of a shutdown,” Morrison said.
Stock Market Today: Boeing Base At Risk
Among stocks, Dow Jones constituent Boeing (BA) fell after The Wall Street Journal reported that the company has started working on a replacement for its single-aisle aircraft, the 737 Max. The new aircraft is in an early stage of development and marks a shift for Boeing which has been navigating safety problems and regulatory investigations, the report said.
Boeing shares are below their 50-day moving average in a flat base with a buy point of 242.69 but are at risk of undercutting the base.
9:56 a.m. ET
Dow Jones Movers: IBM, Nike, Chevron
Inside the blue chip index, IBM (IBM) and Nike (NKE) rallied 0.7% and 0.6%, respectively, making them some of the best Dow Jones stocks in morning trading. IBM stock is forming a cup base with a 296.16 buy point.
On the downside, energy giant Chevron (CVX) lost nearly 1%, threatening to extend a losing streak to three sessions.
9:21 a.m. ET
Housing Data
Early Tuesday, the Case-Shiller home price index slipped 0.1% in July compared with estimates of a 0.2% fall. The index rose 1.8% year over year, just above the 1.7% Econoday estimate.
Meanwhile, the FHFA house price index eased 0.1% in July, with a 2.3% year-over-year rise.
Stock Market Today: Core Weave Surges On Deal With Meta
CoreWeave (CRWV) stock surged more than 10% premarket Tuesday after the company signed a $14 billion deal with Meta Platforms (META) to supply computing power, Bloomberg reported.
CoreWeave stock closed Monday more than 34% off its 52-week high.
Nvidia Stock Rises On Price Target Hike
Nvidia stock gained 0.3% Tuesday premarket after Citi raised its price target from 200 to 210, citing continued expansion in the AI infrastructure market and the recent OpenAI investment. Citi maintained its buy rating.
Shares of the artificial intelligence leader rallied 2.1% Monday, closing just 1% away from a flat base’s 184.48 buy point, per IBD MarketSurge.
Stock Market Today: Economic Data
On the economic front, the Case-Shiller home price index and the Federal Housing Finance Agency house price index are both set for arrival ahead of the market open.
The Case-Shiller index, due out at 9 a.m. ET, is seen up 1.7% year over year in July vs. 2.1% in June. The index is expected down 0.2% on the month, per Econoday. And the FHFA index is also due out at 9 a.m. ET.
Later in the morning, at 10 a.m. ET, the Labor Department’s Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, or JOLTS, is set for release. Job openings are expected down again at 7.1 million rate in August vs. 7.181 million in July and 7.357 million in June.
Meanwhile, The Conference Board’s consumer confidence survey is expected to decline to 96 in September from 97.4 in August as sentiment remains gloomy on inflation and employment worries.
Government Shutdown Odds Increase
A partial government shutdown could start after Tuesday, which could suspend the release of the jobs report and other economic data. The odds aren’t looking great, with a 78% chance of a government shutdown when the new fiscal year begins on Oct. 1, according to the Polymarket prediction market.
Usually markets aren’t that affected by a shutdown initially, but it could weigh on stocks and bonds if it persists.
