Stocks moved mixed in midday trading as stronger earnings from several blue-chip names, a rally in crypto-linked equities, and a slide in energy prices weighed on different corners of the market. According to CNBC, CarMax slumped about 15% after posting fourth-quarter results that beat on adjusted earnings and revenue but still reflected declines from the year-ago period, and the retailer paused its share-repurchase program for the quarter. Bitcoin-linked stocks led the upside in crypto-adjacent plays, with bitcoin trading above $75,000 and the sector broadly higher; Robinhood rose about 10%, while Coinbase and Strategy rose roughly 6%.
The session also featured a mixed batch of corporate reports and headlines that rippled through the tape. Dell and HP were weaker after Nvidia denied an unconfirmed report that it was weighing a deal for a large PC-focused company, sending Dell down more than 3% and HP down about 2%. In the crypto space, the risk-on tone helped lift a tranche of related equities even as broader market volatility persisted.
Energy markets bore the brunt of the day’s price moves, with oil prices sliding after the White House described ongoing discussions with Iran as exploratory but not yet scheduled. West Texas Intermediate crude futures were down more than 6%, while Brent fell about 4%. The energy sector within the S&P 500 declined more than 2%, with APA down more than 5% and Occidental Petroleum off around 4.7%.
Travel-related stocks also moved higher as energy price pressure eased expectations for consumer and corporate travel demand. Carnival and Royal Caribbean climbed about 4% and 1%, respectively, while Southwest Airlines rose close to 6% and Delta Air Lines gained around 7%.
Novo Nordisk joined the session’s notable movers after its U.S.-listed shares rose about 3% on news of a partnership with OpenAI. The company framed the collaboration as a platform to leverage artificial intelligence to enhance its operations and data analysis capabilities.
More widely, JPMorgan Chase posted first-quarter results that surpassed expectations, with earnings of $5.94 per share on revenue of $50.54 billion, according to LSEG data. Analysts had anticipated about $5.45 per share on revenue of $49.17 billion. Yet the stock moderated its initial gains after the bank lowered its net interest income guidance for the period.
Wells Fargo shares fell almost 5% after reporting first-quarter results that came in below some expectations on revenue, though the per-share figure included a tax-related benefit. Revenue was $21.45 billion, slightly shy of consensus.
Johnson & Johnson posted a modest beat with adjusted earnings of $2.70 per share on revenue of $24.06 billion, enough to lift the stock by about 1% and push full-year guidance a touch higher than consensus estimates.
BlackRock advanced about 4% after first-quarter earnings and revenue that topped Street expectations. The asset manager reported adjusted earnings of $12.53 per share on revenue of $6.7 billion, versus a consensus estimate of roughly $11.54 per share on $6.46 billion in revenue, per LSEG data.
In the airline and corporate-relationship headlines, United Airlines rose roughly 4% after reports that CEO Scott Kirby had pitched a merger with American Airlines in a meeting with President Donald Trump. American Airlines jumped nearly 9% on the same set of headlines.
Ford Motor gained around 4% after UBS upgraded the stock to buy from neutral, arguing that the company’s earnings power may be underappreciated and that Ford can weather headwinds from higher aluminum and gas prices tied to geopolitical developments in the region.
Globalstar climbed almost 11% after Amazon announced it would acquire the satellite operator for $11.57 billion as part of an effort to challenge Elon Musk’s Starlink. Amazon’s stock rose about 3.6% on the news.
Credo Technology surged about 18% after the company said it would acquire DustPhotonics, a developer of optical transceiver technology, in a deal valued at $750 million in cash and 920,000 shares of Credo stock.
Bloom Energy and Oracle also moved higher after Bloom said it would expand its partnership with Oracle to advance AI and cloud computing capabilities. Bloom Energy shares rose about 23%, while Oracle gained roughly 5%.
Key takeaways
- CarMax fell about 15% after quarterly results that beat on adjusted earnings and revenue but reflected declines versus a year earlier; the company also paused its share-repurchase program.
- Crypto-linked and fintech names advanced as Bitcoin traded above $75,000 and risk-on sentiment persisted; Robinhood led the group higher, with Coinbase and Strategy rising about 6%.
- Big-bank earnings mix provided clarity on earnings momentum but raised questions about net interest income guidance in coming quarters; JPMorgan beat on both earnings and revenue, while Wells Fargo lagged expectations on the top line.
- Energy sector and macro headlines slumped amid Iran-talk headlines and lower oil prices, pressuring the energy sector; travel names benefited from softer energy costs and improving demand signals.
- Strategic deals and partnerships broadened exposure in tech and infrastructure, with Novo Nordisk, Globalstar, Credo, and Bloom Energy all acting as catalysts for specific stocks in the session.
What drove the move
Several forces collided to shape today’s session. Corporate earnings provided the largest immediate impulse: JPMorgan’s stronger-than-expected quarterly performance contrasted with Wells Fargo’s softer showing, creating a dichotomy within the financials group and underscoring divergence in banks’ ability to translate rate environments into net interest income. Johnson & Johnson’s slightly ahead-of-consensus results supported the defensives complex, while BlackRock’s number beat pushed asset managers’ shares higher on the back of stronger revenue momentum, reflecting investors’ appetite for large-cap financials and asset managers as a stabilizing pillar in the market.
In parallel, a chorus of headlines kept market psychology anchored to geopolitics and supply dynamics. The White House described ongoing Iran-related discussions as exploratory and not scheduled, sending energy prices lower and lifting travel-related equities as speculative oil exposure became more palatable for consumers and businesses alike. The energy pullback contributed to a broad-based rotation that favored cyclicals and risk-on names, including travel and tech-adjacent plays.
Beyond earnings, strategic moves captured attention: Amazon’s planned acquisition of Globalstar signals a push into satellite connectivity to compete with established and new players in the space, while Credo’s cash-and-stock deal for DustPhotonics highlighted ongoing consolidation in the optics and data-communications arena. Novo Nordisk’s OpenAI partnership underscored ongoing integration of artificial intelligence across sectors, a theme dominating several technology and health-care discussions this year.
Market reaction
The session’s price action painted a nuanced picture. The heavy underperformer was CarMax, with a double-digit percentage decline reflecting the quarter’s earnings mix and the pause in buybacks. In contrast, risk assets linked to technology and growth—such as crypto-related equities and select AI-adjacent plays—found support as bitcoin traded near multi-year highs and investors rotated into higher-growth opportunities. The travel group benefited as energy prices declined, while traditional energy names and producers remained under pressure.
Within the mega-cap territory, JPMorgan’s outperformance on earnings did not translate into a clean directional move for the stock as investors weighed the updated net interest income guidance against the beat on the top and bottom lines. The contrast between the bank’s result and Wells Fargo’s miss or softer top-line performance underscored a broader diversification in investor expectations for financials as higher-for-longer rates influence margins and growth trajectories differently across institutions.
In the corporate-news frontier, the open-architecture moves—Globalstar’s sale to Amazon, Credo’s acquisition, and Bloom Energy’s expansion with Oracle—represented how investors are pricing strategic shifts as potential catalysts for longer-term revenue growth and market reach. The housing of these signals in a single session added to the sense that cross-asset opportunities were becoming more pronounced, even as immediate macro guidance remained uncertain.
Bigger picture
Taken together, today’s price action mirrors a market balancing act as investors parse earnings, macro signals, and idiosyncratic corporate developments. The mood remains sensitive to macro triggers around inflation and rate expectations, while idiosyncratic tech and AI stories continue to attract capital and shape relative performance. The energy backdrop—characterized by lower oil prices on Iran-talk headlines—adds a near-term risk-on dimension to consumer discretionary and travel names, even as energy equities retain their own volatility linked to geopolitical dynamics and supply considerations.
Looking ahead, investors will be monitoring the rest of earnings season for a clearer read on net interest income dynamics and corporate pricing power, as well as any fresh developments in geopolitical tensions that could shift commodity markets. The upcoming slate of earnings, data releases, and central-bank commentary will help define the path for risk appetite and sector leadership in the near term.
What to watch next: more quarterly results, particularly from financials and consumer-oriented companies, along with any new guidance updates that could recalibrate expectations for interest income, consumer demand, and capital expenditure. Additionally, investors will be focused on the evolving stance from policymakers on rates and inflation, as well as any fresh developments in energy diplomacy and supply constraints that could influence oil markets and related equities.
