Today: 7 February 2026
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Defense and space stocks rally, but Trump’s buyback-dividend squeeze is the next test
7 February 2026
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Defense and space stocks rally, but Trump’s buyback-dividend squeeze is the next test

New York, Feb 7, 2026, 12:51 EST — Market closed. U.S.-listed space and defense stocks closed higher on Friday, but the next catalyst is not an earnings call or a new missile order. Investors are now bracing for a Pentagon list that could put limits on share buybacks and dividends at contractors deemed to be falling short on delivery. Why it matters now: those payouts — buybacks, when companies repurchase their own shares, and dividends, cash paid to shareholders — have been a big part of the investment case for legacy defense names. A hard line from Washington risks turning
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Ucore Rare Metals stock price jumps as ‘Project Vault’ keeps rare earths on traders’ screens
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Ucore Rare Metals stock price jumps as ‘Project Vault’ keeps rare earths on traders’ screens

Ucore Rare Metals shares jumped 14.7% to C$7.97 on Toronto’s TSX Venture Exchange Friday, rebounding after a steep drop as investors responded to U.S. critical-minerals policy moves. The U.S. Export-Import Bank described Project Vault as a $10 billion public-private stockpiling plan. Neodymium prices climbed 1.27% to 997,500 yuan a tonne on Feb. 6. Investors await details on Project Vault’s purchasing plans next week.
7 February 2026
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Semiconductor stocks surge as AI capex stays high; Nvidia and AMD lead into next week

Semiconductor stocks surge as AI capex stays high; Nvidia and AMD lead into next week

The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index jumped 5.7% to 8,048.6 on Friday, with Nvidia up 7.87% and AMD rising 8.28%. The surge followed new forecasts showing global chip sales could hit $1 trillion in 2026. Amazon expects a 50% increase in capital spending this year, fueling demand for chips. The Dow Jones crossed 50,000, helped by gains in chipmakers.
7 February 2026
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Natural gas price heads into next week under pressure as warm forecasts, rising rigs crowd the trade

Natural gas price heads into next week under pressure as warm forecasts, rising rigs crowd the trade

U.S. natural gas futures fell 2.5% Friday, settling at $3.422 per mmBtu as warmer weather forecasts and increased drilling weighed on prices. The latest EIA report showed a record 360 Bcf weekly storage withdrawal, leaving inventories 1.1% below the five-year average. Traders are watching mid-February weather models and the next storage update.
7 February 2026
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Amazon stock (AMZN) slides on $200 billion AI capex plan — what Wall Street watches next week

Amazon stock (AMZN) slides on $200 billion AI capex plan — what Wall Street watches next week

Amazon shares fell 5.6% to $210.32 on Friday after the company forecast 2026 capital spending would jump to $200 billion, up more than 50% from 2025. The drop came as the Dow closed above 50,000 for the first time. Amazon reported fourth-quarter net sales up 14% to $213.4 billion and operating income at $25 billion. Trading in Amazon was volatile, with 179 million shares changing hands.
7 February 2026
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Nvidia stock jumps 8% as AI chip stocks rebound on Big Tech spending — what to watch next week

Nvidia stock jumps 8% as AI chip stocks rebound on Big Tech spending — what to watch next week

Nvidia jumped 7.8% Friday, AMD rose 8.3%, and Broadcom gained 7.1%, lifting the Philadelphia semiconductor index 5.7%. Amazon dropped 5.6% after warning of a more than 50% increase in AI-related capital spending. Investors await next week’s delayed U.S. payrolls report and January CPI, key data for rate-sensitive AI stocks.
7 February 2026
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Bitcoin price wobbles below $69,000 on weekend — what matters before Monday’s reopen

Bitcoin price wobbles below $69,000 on weekend — what matters before Monday’s reopen

Bitcoin fell 1.1% to $68,917 Saturday after volatile trading, while Ether held near $2,036. U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs saw $330.7 million in net inflows on Feb. 6, reversing outflows the previous day. Strategy shares rebounded after hitting a low of $111.27 Thursday. Traders are watching Monday’s U.S. market open and the upcoming inflation report for direction.
7 February 2026
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XRP price today slips near $1.42 as thin weekend liquidity keeps traders on edge

XRP price today slips near $1.42 as thin weekend liquidity keeps traders on edge

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7 February 2026
XRP fell about 5% Saturday to $1.42, extending a 22% weekly drop as thin liquidity and macro jitters drove sharp swings. Bitcoin rebounded above $70,000 after a brief plunge, while ether surged 12%. Ripple outlined plans for an “Institutional DeFi” roadmap, including a new lending protocol and permissioned DEX. The Federal Reserve held rates steady last week, with officials signaling caution on inflation.
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AbbVie stock price: ABBV ends week near $223 after earnings swing — what to watch next

AbbVie stock price: ABBV ends week near $223 after earnings swing — what to watch next

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7 February 2026
AbbVie shares rose 2% to $223.43 Friday, capping a volatile week marked by earnings and drug sales scrutiny. Moody’s upgraded AbbVie’s credit rating to A2, citing strong performance in immunology and neuroscience. Investors remain focused on Skyrizi and Rinvoq growth amid rising competition and recent regulatory filings. Trading volume stayed below average, with the stock still 9% off its 52-week high.
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Bank of America stock jumps 3% into the weekend — what to watch before Monday’s trade

Bank of America stock jumps 3% into the weekend — what to watch before Monday’s trade

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7 February 2026
Bank of America shares rose 2.89% Friday to $56.53, tracking a rally in U.S. financial stocks as the Dow closed above 50,000. The bank will redeem its Series DD preferred stock and related depositary shares on March 10 at $1,000 per share. CEO Brian Moynihan donated 100,000 shares on Feb. 4, a regulatory filing showed. Key U.S. jobs and inflation data are due next week after delays.
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Oracle stock rebounds from eight-day skid as $20 billion share-sale plan looms

Oracle stock rebounds from eight-day skid as $20 billion share-sale plan looms

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7 February 2026
Oracle shares jumped 4.65% to $142.82 Friday, ending an eight-day slide but remaining down 22% since Jan. 27. The company has set up a $20 billion at-the-market stock program and completed a $25 billion senior notes sale to fund cloud expansion. Oracle’s liabilities stood at $174.5 billion as of Nov. 30, 2025, before the new financing. Investors remain focused on dilution risks and the pace of capacity growth.
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ASML stock price snaps back as AI spending bets return, with ex-dividend date next

ASML stock price snaps back as AI spending bets return, with ex-dividend date next

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7 February 2026
ASML shares rose 3.84% Friday in Amsterdam to 1,193.80 euros, rebounding with global chip stocks after Amazon signaled a sharp increase in AI-related capital spending. The stock goes ex-dividend Feb. 9 ahead of a 1.60-euro interim payout. ASML’s Nasdaq shares climbed 4.64% to $1,413.01. Despite Friday’s gains, the Amsterdam listing finished the week about 2.5% lower.
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Micron stock jumps into the weekend: UBS lifts target to $450 as Nvidia HBM4 doubts surface

Micron stock jumps into the weekend: UBS lifts target to $450 as Nvidia HBM4 doubts surface

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7 February 2026
Micron shares closed up 3.1% at $394.69 Friday after UBS raised its price target to $450, citing stronger DRAM and NAND pricing. Semianalysis cut its forecast for Micron’s share of Nvidia’s next-gen HBM4 supply to zero, citing performance concerns. The stock traded between $372.87 and $396.65 during the session. U.S. markets are closed for the weekend.
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Johnson & Johnson stock price: What to watch after talc-case law firm ouster and new AFib data

Johnson & Johnson stock price: What to watch after talc-case law firm ouster and new AFib data

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7 February 2026
Johnson & Johnson shares rose 0.9% to $239.99 Friday after a New Jersey appeals court disqualified Beasley Allen from state talc cases, citing improper coordination with a former J&J attorney. The ruling affects about 3,600 state lawsuits, while a related federal motion is pending. J&J also reported early 12-month pilot data for its investigational AFib device at a cardiology meeting.
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Why Tencent stock fell: an OpenClaw AI warning, chip shortages — and what’s next for 0700.HK

Why Tencent stock fell: an OpenClaw AI warning, chip shortages — and what’s next for 0700.HK

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7 February 2026
Tencent shares fell 2% to HK$547.50 in Hong Kong on Friday, tracking a 1.1% drop in the Hang Seng TECH index. China warned of security risks tied to the OpenClaw AI agent, which Tencent Cloud offers, while Intel and AMD flagged longer waits and higher prices for server CPUs in China.
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Visa stock price closes higher as $100 million small-business push hits tape — what to watch next week

Visa stock price closes higher as $100 million small-business push hits tape — what to watch next week

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7 February 2026
Visa shares closed up 0.74% at $331.58 Friday, trading between $327.10 and $335.13. The company launched “Visa & Main,” a small-business platform with a $100 million working-capital facility through Lendistry. Mastercard fell 0.6%, while American Express and PayPal each rose about 1.3%. Investors await next week’s U.S. jobs and inflation data.
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Samsung Electronics stock price slips to 158,600 won as tech selloff bites; Monday in focus

Samsung Electronics stock price slips to 158,600 won as tech selloff bites; Monday in focus

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7 February 2026
Samsung Electronics shares closed down 0.44% at 158,600 won Friday, with 36 million shares traded as the Kospi fell 1.4%. Investors are watching chip demand and AI-related trades after Samsung gained 32% year-to-date. Samsung secured partial occupancy for its Taylor, Texas chip plant. Next trading is Monday, ahead of a Feb. 10 investor event.
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Applied Digital stock jumps 25% as AI data-center names rebound — what’s next for APLD

Applied Digital stock jumps 25% as AI data-center names rebound — what’s next for APLD

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7 February 2026
Applied Digital Corporation shares jumped 25.52% Friday to $34.95, then slipped to $34.60 after hours. The company reported fiscal Q2 revenue up 250% to $126.6 million and signed leases for 600 MW of data center capacity in North Dakota. Applied Digital broke ground on a new 430‑MW campus in the southern U.S. in January. Financing includes a $100 million promissory note with 8% interest, paid in kind.
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Eli Lilly stock pops as FDA targets cheap weight-loss copycats — what to know before Monday

Eli Lilly stock pops as FDA targets cheap weight-loss copycats — what to know before Monday

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7 February 2026
Eli Lilly shares rose 3.7% to $1,058.18 Friday after the FDA said it would act against telehealth firm Hims & Hers for marketing a $49 compounded weight-loss pill. The move followed a sharp selloff Thursday when Hims announced plans to sell a version of Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy. Investors remain uncertain how aggressively regulators will police copycat drugs and pricing in the obesity drug market.
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Lumen stock surges 29% after CEO’s $500,000 buy; S&P debt upgrade adds to Monday watchlist

Lumen stock surges 29% after CEO’s $500,000 buy; S&P debt upgrade adds to Monday watchlist

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7 February 2026
Lumen Technologies shares surged 29.4% to $8.06 Friday after CEO Kathleen E. Johnson bought 78,685 shares at around $6.35, according to an SEC filing. S&P raised its rating on Lumen’s $1.35 billion senior unsecured notes to “B” from “CCC” after the AT&T fiber sale. Volume exceeded 32.5 million shares. Investors await Lumen’s Feb. 25 investor day.
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Saudi Aramco share price set for Sunday test after Tadawul ends market-making deal

Saudi Aramco share price set for Sunday test after Tadawul ends market-making deal

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7 February 2026
Saudi Exchange approved Merrill Lynch KSA’s exit as market maker for Saudi Aramco, effective Feb. 8. Aramco shares closed at 25.60 riyals Thursday, down 0.06, with 22.1 million traded. The Tadawul index fell 1.3% as Brent crude dropped to $67.93. Aramco set March official selling prices at $2.10 above Argus for North America and $0.65 above ICE Brent for Western Europe.
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Meta stock ends week down about 6% as Wall Street fixates on $135 billion AI capex

Meta stock ends week down about 6% as Wall Street fixates on $135 billion AI capex

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7 February 2026
Meta closed down 1.3% Friday at $661.46, capping a 6.4% weekly drop as investors questioned heavy AI spending. Amazon and Alphabet also fell after outlining major capital outlays. Meta’s Instagram suffered a brief outage this week. Legal risks persist, with trials involving Meta set for next week in Los Angeles and New Mexico.
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