Midday trading turned into a stock-picking market, with earnings results, guidance changes and company-specific news driving outsized moves across sectors. From automotive suppliers and semiconductor names to enterprise software, industrials and consumer brands, investors focused on revisions to outlooks and quarter-to-quarter performance—often reacting more to guidance than headline earnings.
Key takeaways
- Aptiv shares fell about 17% after the company said it would reduce its 2026 revenue guidance.
- Gartner gained nearly 18% on an earnings and revenue beat alongside a higher 2026 adjusted earnings outlook.
- Zebra Technologies jumped about 22% after raising full-year guidance, with second-quarter results also exceeding expectations.
- Palantir surged around 29% following blowout results, including a sharp rise in U.S. commercial revenue.
- Semiconductor and memory names led gains, supporting a broader tech rally as several major players prepared to report results after the bell.
What drove the biggest winners and losers
Aptiv was among the largest decliners. The automotive technology supplier “tanked 17%” after management indicated it will cut its 2026 guidance. According to the report, Aptiv’s 2026 revenue forecast midpoint is around $12.7 billion, down from the prior midpoint of roughly $13 billion. Investors appeared to focus on the direction of the outlook revision rather than the quarter alone.
Gartner ran in the opposite direction. The IT consulting company rose about 18% after it posted a second-quarter earnings and revenue beat and raised its full-year outlook. Gartner now expects adjusted earnings for 2026 of $14 per share, compared with its prior forecast of $13.25 and a FactSet consensus estimate of $13.69.
Zebra Technologies added momentum with a guidance increase. The barcode scanner maker surged about 22% after boosting its full-year outlook. Adjusted earnings are expected to range from $20.75 to $21.25 per share, up from an earlier call for $18.30 to $18.70 per share. The company’s updated range also exceeded a FactSet consensus estimate of $18.57, while second-quarter results beat on both the top and bottom lines.
Palantir was another standout winner. Shares rallied roughly 29% on “blowout” second-quarter results, driven in part by a nearly 150% jump in U.S. commercial revenue, according to the report.
In industrials, Caterpillar climbed about 6% after the company said it expects 2026 sales and revenue growth in the mid- to high-teens, compared with an earlier outlook calling for an increase in the low double digits. The report said Caterpillar’s second-quarter results also beat expectations, with adjusted earnings of $8.17 per share on revenue of $20.54 billion, versus LSEG estimates of $6.20 per share on revenue of $19.34 billion.
Semiconductors, AI hardware and the earnings calendar
Semiconductor stocks were a key driver of the broader move. According to the report, the VanEck Semiconductor ETF added about 5% and was on track for a fourth straight winning day as investors looked ahead to results from major chip companies scheduled to report after the bell. AMD rose about 8%, while Astera Labs gained roughly 11% ahead of its afternoon report.
AI infrastructure names also found support after Reuters reported, citing people familiar with the matter, that the Trump administration is drafting a ban on Chinese data center components. The report said this sparked buying in several companies, including Applied Optoelectronics (up about 21%), Coherent (up about 16%) and Lumentum (up nearly 10%), alongside Fabrinet, which rose about 18%. Investors appeared to be weighing potential demand reallocation and supply chain shifts tied to potential export or import restrictions.
Memory stocks also turned higher with the tech rally. The report said the Roundhill Memory ETF added more than 7%, while SanDisk jumped about 10% and Micron Technology rose nearly 8%. Seagate Technology advanced about 3%.
Company-specific catalysts beyond the chip complex
On the consumer side, McDonald’s gained around 1% after posting second-quarter results that beat earnings expectations. According to the report, McDonald’s posted adjusted earnings of $3.38 per share versus an LSEG consensus of $3.32 per share. Revenue of $7.1 billion was slightly below an anticipated $7.13 billion, suggesting investors were more focused on profit durability than sales.
Whirlpool surged about 12% despite reporting a larger-than-expected adjusted loss for the quarter. The report said Whirlpool lost an adjusted 21 cents per share, compared with analysts’ expectations for a loss of 5 cents, and revenue of $3.52 billion came in below estimates. It also said Whirlpool lowered its full-year earnings guidance, yet the stock still rallied—pointing to investor interpretation that the updated outlook may be more than already priced in, or that investors saw room for improvement relative to expectations.
Wayfair was among the biggest gainers on guidance. Shares jumped nearly 32% after the company called for current-quarter revenue growth in the high single digits, while the FactSet consensus sought about 4.9% growth. Wayfair also delivered second-quarter results above estimates, with earnings of 95 cents per share on revenue of $3.52 billion, compared with LSEG expectations of 89 cents per share on revenue of $3.47 billion.
In cloud and e-commerce, Amazon slipped more than 2% after Jeff Bezos filed plans to sell about 15 million shares valued at roughly $4.1 billion. The report noted the filing came after a strong stretch for Amazon—three straight winning sessions propelled by quarterly results that helped the stock reach an all-time high on Monday—adding a supply-related overhang to an otherwise positive run.
Financial markets were also watching SpaceX, which rose more than 6% as the company’s first quarterly report since its public market debut approached. According to the report, earnings are due after the bell Tuesday, and analysts anticipate revenue of roughly $6.93 billion. Investors also focused on the expiration of key lockup provisions set for Thursday.
In pharma, Pfizer gained about 2% after second-quarter results beat expectations. The report said Pfizer earned an adjusted 77 cents per share on revenue of $15.03 billion, versus LSEG estimates of 68 cents per share on revenue of $14.41 billion. It also said Pfizer increased the low end of its full-year revenue outlook.
Meanwhile, Snap climbed more than 14% after reporting second-quarter results. The report said revenue was $1.6 billion, above an LSEG consensus of $1.54 billion, and that both global daily active users and average revenue per user exceeded expectations.
What to watch next
With multiple companies scheduled to report later today, investors will likely keep parsing whether guidance changes are conservative resets or signals of stronger demand. Key near-term catalysts include additional semiconductor results after the bell, SpaceX’s first post-IPO quarterly report and follow-through from AI-related headlines tied to potential restrictions on Chinese data center components.
