New York, May 27, 2026, 11:03 EDT
U.S. stocks traded mixed late Wednesday morning. The Dow gained, the S&P 500 hovered near flat, and the Nasdaq dipped as investors paused after setting new highs. Cheaper oil and uncertainty in the Middle East factored in. Reuters data from LSEG showed the S&P 500 at 7,521.43, up 0.03%, the Dow at 50,718.64, up 0.51%, and the Nasdaq at 26,638.26, down 0.07%. All values were delayed at least 15 minutes.
Wall Street took a breather after the S&P 500 and Nasdaq set new records on Tuesday. AI demand and a surge in chip stocks drove those gains, with Micron hitting $1 trillion in market cap after UBS raised its price target. The market had been stretched, but not broken.
Goldman Sachs raised its 2026 year-end S&P 500 target to 8,000 from 7,600, citing gains driven by “earnings growth” so far this year. The firm also bumped up its S&P 500 earnings-per-share outlook for 2026 and 2027. Reuters
Oil eased a bit today. Brent crude dropped 3.35% to $96.24. The 10-year Treasury yield also edged lower to 4.465%. Cheaper yields can support stocks, since lower rates tend to favor growth names.
Cheaper oil gave a lift to names with big fuel costs. Norwegian Cruise Line and United Airlines traded higher in early action Wednesday on falling crude, the Associated Press said. Energy stocks, including Exxon Mobil and Chevron, lost ground.
The market’s internals looked mixed. Reuters said consumer discretionary shares led the way, but energy stocks fell 1.5%. Technology edged down 0.2% after a record high the previous day. Micron was up 3.8%; Western Digital climbed 2.5% and Seagate rose 3.2%. Nvidia dropped 1.7%, and the Philadelphia semiconductor index ended down 0.7%.
Zscaler weighed on software stocks, dropping after the cloud-security firm set its fourth-quarter revenue outlook below consensus, even as it topped earnings and sales views for the quarter. Barron’s said Zscaler put revenue guidance at $875 million to $878 million—just under the $878.6 million analysts expected.
Retail names got a lift from Bath & Body Works. Shares climbed when the company topped first-quarter sales and earnings estimates. Demand for what Bath & Body Works calls “affordable luxury”—including candles and personal-care products—helped boost results. Reuters
Market may “test” after earnings season wraps up, Nancy Tengler of Laffer Tengler Investments said. Tengler, who is chief executive and chief investment officer, said the focus could move back to the Fed and the Middle East. Traders are also eyeing Thursday’s personal consumption expenditures index, or PCE, which is the Fed’s preferred inflation measure. Reuters
S&P 500 to end year near current levels, poll showsA Reuters survey of 47 strategists, analysts and portfolio managers puts the S&P 500’s median year-end target at 7,620, just 1.3% above where it closed Tuesday. Anthony Saglimbene, Ameriprise’s chief market strategist, called out strong momentum from AI but noted headwinds from “higher energy prices” and rising rates. Chris Zaccarelli at Northlight Asset Management said the AI “arms race” could push stocks up for now. Reuters
The risk is clear enough. A hotter PCE read, a new spike in oil, or Middle East talks going nowhere could lift yields again and take the air out of record-high prices for earnings growth. The U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis sets the April Personal Income and Outlays data, which brings PCE numbers, for release on May 28 at 8:30 a.m. EDT.
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