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NEWS
Stocks Just Cannot Be Stopped

Source: Tenor.com

Titles like this always make people nervous, but we don’t know how else to describe our current environment. Don’t shoot the messenger here, folks. Post-earnings strength drove software stocks higher, and semiconductors rebounded too, pushing the Nasdaq 100 and S&P 500 tech sector to new all-time highs. Lastly, Bitcoin is taking its latest shot at $100,000, while altcoins remain all the rage. 👀

Today’s issue covers the tech sector’s fresh breakout, Bitcoin’s potential to (eventually) flip the bond market, and other noteworthy pops and drops. 📰

Here’s the S&P 500 heatmap. 4 of 11 sectors closed green, with technology (+1.83%) leading and energy (-2.41%) lagging.

Source: Finviz.com

And here are the closing prices: 

Most bullish/bearish symbols on Stocktwits at the close: 📈 $PW, $SMX, $CXM, $VRNT, $CCRN 📉 $AEO, $SNPS, $UNH, $BASE, $APTO*

*If you’re a business and want to access this data via our API, email us.

STOCKS
A Fresh Breakout For Tech Stocks 🥳 

The S&P 500 hit its 56th record high this year, with the U.S. stock market ballooning to 63% of global market cap. That’s up from 60.5% this year, and the next biggest market is Japan…at 5.6%. Needless to say, U.S. stocks are the global leader in risk assets right now. 🌎️ 

Part of the driving force behind that is the U.S. tech sector, which is the largest weighting in the major indexes and the best performer by far since the great financial crisis. And low and behold, the sector is breaking out again to all-time highs.

Below is a roughly one-year chart showing the sector ETF $XLK’s clean breakout above its July highs, as strength in stocks like Apple continues to lead. 📈 

Source: TradingView.com

In addition to owning the leaders, traders and investors are targeting stocks like Square, which are just beginning to participate in the bull market of the last two years. Improving business fundamentals is one factor. However, many of these are catching a bid simply because fund managers are running out of “attractive” things to buy at current levels. 💳️ 

Source; TradingView.com

It seems like the bull case can be made for just about any stock or risk asset these days, as investors expect the Trump administration’s pro-business push and continued economic strength in the U.S. to drive prices even higher. Time will tell, but for now, the bulls just keep on buying. 🛍️ 

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STOCKS
Other Noteworthy Pops & Drops 📋

Roku (+10%): Needham analyst Laura Martin cited the streaming equipment maker as a buyout target. She raised the possibility of the stock being acquired for a hefty premium in 2025 as Republican-controlled regulatory agencies clear the path for more M&A activity. 📺️ 

Foot Locker (-9%): The footwear and apparel retailer’s earnings and revenue missed analyst estimates, with management citing softer consumer spending following the back-to-school season. 👟 

American Eagle Outfitters (-13%): The apparel retailer cut its full-year sales forecast and issued holiday guidance below expectations. It’s the latest retailer to experience strong demand during back-to-school shopping, followed by consumers pulling back between major events and promotions. 🛍️ 

KULR Technology (-17%): The energy management platform fell after announcing it will follow MicroStrategy and other companies in adding Bitcoin to its balance sheet. It will use a significant portion of its $12 million in cash on the purchase, raising investor concerns about the company’s underlying fundamental business plans. 🪙 

Eli Lilly (+2%): The pharmaceutical giant unveiled promising results from a clinical trial comparing its popular weight-loss drug against Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy. 💉 

Intuitive Machines (-7%): The space exploration, infrastructure, and services company announced the pricing of an upsized $110 million offering. It expects to raise net proceeds of $104.25 million, which it will use to fund general operations, research and development, and potential mergers and acquisitions. 💰️ 

General Motors (-1%): The U.S. automaker forecasted a roughly $5 billion financial impact linked to its China business, which was once a major profit center but has turned into a major headache due to shifting tides in the global auto market. 😬 

Dollar Tree (+2%): The discount retailer posted better-than-expected earnings and revenue, with enterprise same-store sales rising 1.8% YoY. Roughly 1.6% of that was driven by traffic increases, compared to a 0.2% increase in average ticket size. 💵 

Daktronics (+16%): The large signs and displays manufacturer saw increases in sales and record cash flow, helping drive better-than-expected earnings results. Strong demand in the Commercial, Live Events, and Transportation business units offset weaker sales in the High School Park and Recreation and International sectors. 🪧 

UnitedHealth (+1%): Brian Thompson, CEO of the company’s insurance division, UnitedHealthcare, was fatally shot in New York City ahead of the company’s annual investor meeting. Despite the tragedy, shares of the company actually rose, likely due to management’s upbeat 2025 guidance update. 📰 

CRYPTO
Bitcoin Approaches $100k, What’s Next? 🤔 

The altcoin market continues to soar, recently hitting a total market cap of $1.15 trillion, despite Ethereum’s underperformance. Speaking of Ethereum, it made its own move today, jumping above $3,800, with many expecting it to hit its 2024 highs by the end of the year.

Still, all eyes remain on Bitcoin as it makes another attempt at the $100,000 milestone. Stocktwits sentiment has pushed back into ‘bullish’ territory amid the recent ramp, with many looking for new highs in the coming hours (or days). 🐂 

Source: Stocktwits.com

This week the “Trends With Friends” crew was joined by Anthony Pompliano and Armando Gonzalez to discuss the future of crypto. They broke into a heated debate about the industry’s long-term potential relative to traditional markets like bonds. You don’t want to miss this. 👇️ 

We threw the key question asked during the debate out to the Stocktwits community…and the results were interesting, to say the least.

About 69% of the 3,200 people who voted believe that Bitcoin’s market cap ($1.9 trillion) will eventually eclipse the global bond market’s size of roughly $141 trillion. A preposterous claim to many, but still a few vocal industry proponents because that’s where things are headed…it’s just a matter of when. 👑 

Source: Stocktwits.com

The Stocktwits community is not only long-term optimistic about Bitcoin but also bullish in the short term. Over half of our current poll participants believe Bitcoin will rally to $115,000 quickly once $100,000 is broken. 🤯 

Source: Stocktwits.com

Many users are pointing to the recent breakouts in Coinbase, Robinhood, and other crypto-linked stocks as signs of an imminent breakout. Others see Trump’s nomination of cryptocurrency advocate Paul Atkins as SEC Chair as a major catalyst that will pave the way for industry progress in 2025 and beyond.

No matter how you slice it, people are very bullish about crypto right now. 🤑 

WHAT’S ON DECK
Tomorrow’s Top Things 📋

Economic data: Balance Of Trade (8:30 am ET), Initial/Continuing Jobless Claims (8:30 am ET), Fed Barkin Speech (11:30 am ET). 📊

Pre-Market Earnings: Kroger ($KR), Dollar General ($DG), TD Bank ($TD), Bank of Montreal ($BMO), Build A Bear Workshop ($BBW). 🛏️

After-Hour Earnings: Lululemon ($LULU), Ulta Beauty ($ULTA), Petco ($WOOF), Victoria Secret ($VSCO), UiPath ($PATH), DocuSign ($DOCU), Hewlett Packard ($HPE), Asana ($ASAN), Veeva Systems ($VEEV). 🎧

P.S. You can listen to all of these earnings calls and more straight from the Stocktwits app or website. You’ll find them on the calendar page and individual symbol pages once they’re set to begin! We’ll see you there. 👍

Links That Don’t Suck 🌐

⚡️ Meta joins the nuclear-powered AI fray

🛡️ OpenAI, Anduril partner on AI drone-defense plan

⚠️ At least 8 U.S. telcos compromised in Chinese hack, White House says

🗞️ Nearly 500 journalists walk out at ‘The Guardian’ and its sister paper

❌ Texas judge blocks anti-money laundering law’s enforcement nationwide

📦️ District of Columbia says Amazon secretly stopped fast deliveries to 2 predominantly Black ZIP codes

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