After Hours Report

Updated: 17-Sep-26 17:08 ET
Nucor and Steel Dynamics head lower on Q3 guidance

The major averages finished firmly higher on Thursday, snapping a three-session losing streak as AI and mega-cap stocks returned to the forefront and easing Treasury yields and crude oil prices provided some relief from yesterday's post-FOMC selloff. The S&P 500 (+1.1%) moved back above 7,600 and its 50-day moving average (7,614.9), while the Nasdaq Composite (+1.7%) led and the DJIA (+0.6%) also posted a solid gain.

Buying interest extended beyond the largest technology names, although some of the broader market lost ground relative to the major averages as the session progressed. Advancers still outpaced decliners by roughly 2-to-1 at the NYSE and by more than 2-to-1 at the Nasdaq, while the Russell 2000 (+0.6%) and S&P Mid Cap 400 (+0.6%) finished higher but well behind the Nasdaq.

Technology stocks provided the clearest source of leadership. The information technology sector (+2.2%) finished comfortably atop the sector standings as the PHLX Semiconductor Index surged 3.1%. Intel (INTC 108.80, +7.75, +7.67%) extended yesterday's sharp advance, which followed reports that SK hynix Inc. (SKHY 182.99, +8.12, +4.64%) is in exploratory talks with the company over potential U.S. chip production. Advanced Micro Devices (AMD 545.09, +32.59, +6.36%) and Arm Holdings plc (ARM 264.90, +20.92, +8.57%) were also notable gainers, with ARM supported by CEO Rene Haas's comments that the company is confident it can secure enough supply to meet roughly $2 billion in customer demand. NVIDIA (NVDA 219.34, +5.44, +2.54%) added to the semiconductor strength after CEO Jensen Huang discussed plans to double chip sales at a UK event today, according to CNBC.

Strength was not limited to chipmakers. The iShares GS Software ETF gained 0.8%, with Oracle (ORCL 150.58, +7.42, +5.18%) and Workday (WDAY 199.28, +11.52, +6.14%) among the group's notable outperformers, while all seven Magnificent Seven stocks finished higher and the Vanguard Mega Cap Growth ETF rose 1.6%.

That strength also helped the consumer discretionary sector (+1.4%) outperform, while the decline in Treasury yields offered support to rate-sensitive areas such as homebuilders. The iShares U.S. Home Construction ETF gained 0.5%.

AI infrastructure remained another pocket of pronounced strength. Generac (GNRC 207.20, +32.09, +18.33%) finished among the best-performing S&P 500 components after announcing a long-term agreement to supply Amazon (AMZN 251.19, +5.23, +2.13%) with backup generators for its data centers, along with a warrant allowing Amazon to acquire up to roughly 1.7 million Generac shares.

Super Micro Computer (SMCI 40.35, +3.50, +9.50%) and Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE 61.06, +4.38, +7.73%) also posted outsized gains amid broader strength in AI server and data-center names.

The utilities sector (+0.9%) was another relative outperformer as Treasury yields retreated. The 10-year note yield settled six basis points lower at 4.95%, reversing a portion of the increase that followed Fed Chair Kevin Warsh's press conference yesterday and easing one of the more significant headwinds facing equities in recent sessions. 

Crude oil also moved lower, though it recovered substantially from its intraday low. WTI crude settled $0.38 lower (-0.4%) at $102.03 per barrel after coming under pressure earlier in the session following reports that President Trump is expected to meet with Gulf leaders next week to discuss next steps in the conflict with Iran. The energy sector (+0.6%) nevertheless finished higher alongside the broader market.

Performance was less convincing in a few areas. The communication services sector (+0.6%) benefited from gains in Alphabet (GOOG 343.68, +4.32, +1.27%) and Meta Platforms (META 682.31, +9.00, +1.34%) despite pronounced weakness among several of its other components, while the financials sector (-0.1%) was the only sector to finish lower as banking stocks remained under pressure following yesterday's rate hike.

The consumer staples sector finished unchanged as growth stocks led the market higher today.

Thursday's advance ultimately reversed a meaningful portion of Wednesday afternoon's Fed-driven decline. The FOMC's 25-basis-point rate hike had generated little immediate reaction before Mr. Warsh's emphasis on persistent above-target inflation fueled expectations for additional tightening and sent Treasury yields higher. The retreat in yields and crude oil today removed some of those pressures, while renewed enthusiasm for semiconductors, AI infrastructure, and mega-cap growth stocks helped the S&P 500 reclaim its 50-day moving average and end its three-day losing streak.

U.S. Treasuries climbed on Thursday with the long bond extending its modest post-FOMC advance while the front end recovered a portion of its loss from Wednesday. The 2-year note yield settled down four basis points t0 4.69%, and the 10-year note yield settled down six basis points to 4.95%. 

  • Russell 2000: +15.9% YTD
  • Nasdaq Composite: +13.7% YTD
  • S&P 500: +11.6% YTD
  • S&P Mid Cap 400: +10.8% YTD
  • DJIA: +7.7% YTD

Reviewing today's data:

  • Housing starts declined 2.6% month-over-month in August to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.275 million (Briefing.com consensus: 1.325 million), although single-unit starts were up 7.6%. Building permits declined 2.7% month-over-month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.394 million (Briefing.com consensus: 1.410 million).
    • The key takeaway from the report is that building permits—a leading indicator—were flat to down across all regions for single-unit dwellings.
  • Aug Building Permits 1394K (Briefing.com consensus 1410K; Prior 1433K)
  • Initial jobless claims for the week ending September 12 decreased by 10,000 to 196,000 (Briefing.com consensus: 209,000). Continuing jobless claims for the week ending September 5 decreased by 39,000 to 1.730 million.
    • The key takeaway from the report is the remarkably low level of initial jobless claims, which suggests a low-firing environment.
  • Sep Philadelphia Fed Index 37.8 (Briefing.com consensus 35.0; Prior 47.4)
  • Aug Pending Home Sales 0.3% (Briefing.com consensus 0.5%; Prior -2.6%)
  • 09/12 EIA Natural Gas Inventories +44 bcf (Prior +40 bcf)

Overseas:

  • Europe: DAX +0.8%, FTSE +1.2%, CAC +0.6%
  • Asia: Nikkei +0.3%, Hang Seng -0.4%, Shanghai -0.4%

Commodities:

  • Crude Oil -0.38 @ 102.03
  • Nat Gas +0.01 @ 2.90
  • Gold +11.90 @ 4400.30
  • Silver +1.18 @ 66.11
  • Copper +0.15 @ 6.66

After-Hours Spotlight:

  • Anthropic releases measurements for understanding the pace of AI development inside frontier labs
  • Cooper (COO): Director bought 10,000 shares at $54.93 worth ~$549K...COO flat
  • Disney (DIS) names Adam Smith chairman of direct-to-consumer; Joe Earley shifts to new TV franchise strategy role...DIS +0.1%
  • McDonald's (MCD) increases quarterly cash dividend to $1.93/share from $1.86/share...MCD +0.2%
  • Nucor (NUE) sees Q3 EPS of $5.55-5.65...NUE -3.0%
  • Rexford Industrial Realty (REXR) reaffirms FY26 guidance...REXR flat
  • Steel Dynamics (STLD) issues downside Q3 EPS guidance; Profitability from steel operations expected to be significantly higher than sequential Q2 results...STLD -3.4%
  • Texas Instruments (TXN) increases quarterly cash dividend to $1.52/share from $1.42/share...TXN -0.2%
Today's News Summary:

For a full rundown of today's market and after hours developments, see Live In Play

  • Earnings/Guidance (Full Earnings Calendar):
    • Amer Sports (AS) raises Q3 revenue guidance slightly above expectations
    • Brinker introduces long term financial outlook ahead of Investor Day today (EAT)
    • Fluence (FLNC) lowers FY26 guidance citing supply chain issues affecting its U.S. production
    • Lennar (LEN) misses by $0.05, misses on revs, deliveries decreased 3% to 20,840 homes; Issues Q4 guidance, including Deliveries of 22,000-23,000 homes, lowers FY26 deliveries guidance to 80,000-81,000 homes
    • Salesforce releases Investor Day presentation (CRM) -- sees FY30 revs of $63 bln+
    • YETI lays out 2030 growth framework, reiterates FY26 outlook (YETI)
  • General News
    • President Trump posts on Truth Social that rates should be "1% or less" because the U.S. has "best credit in the world"
    • White House released Fact Sheet yesterday: President Donald J. Trump Restores Reciprocity in Government Procurement
    • White House released Fact Sheet yesterday: President Donald J. Trump Provides Meaningful Water Quality Improvements Through Collaboration and Oversight of Federal Support
    • Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) updated Russia-related designations removals; counter narcotics designation removal
    • Axios reporter Barak Ravid said, 'President Trump is expected to hold a meeting with Gulf leaders on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York next Tuesday to discuss the next steps in the war with Iran'
    • President Trump planning to meet Gulf leaders next week Axios
    • Bidding war for GFL Environmental (GFL, BX, KKR) Bloomberg
    • Bank of England holds Bank Rate at 3.75% in 6-3 vote, sees inflation rising above 4% in early 2027
    • Axsome Therapeutics presents ten posters exemplifying its innovative psychiatry and neurology portfolio at Psych Congress 2026
    • AbCellera to present Phase 2 ABCL635 menopause data at IMS World Congress (ABCL)
    • AGNC Investment CLARIFICATION: AGNC issued a press release today that it will join the S&P MidCap 400 Index prior to the open on Sept. 21; S&P Dow Jones Indices made this announcement on September 4
    • APA Corp. increases share repurchase authorization by 40 mln shares
    • Applied Materials planning India investment (AMAT) Reuters
    • Bayer AG (BAYRY) receives FDA approval for Kerendia in chronic kidney disease associated with type 1 diabetes
    • CACI wins USCENTCOM contract with $1.5 bln ceiling
    • Centrus (LEU) signs multi-year HALEU supply contract with Antares
    • DoorDash, Costco (COST) expand partnership with nationwide U.S. marketplace launch
    • DXC partners with LOXO to scale Level 4 autonomous logistics deployments
    • Exxon Mobil nearing potential oil-field investment deal in Venezuela, according to WSJ (XOM)
    • Exxon Mobil to invest in Venezuela (XOM) WSJ
    • Fennec Pharmaceuticals (FENC) announces the oral presentation of detailed results from the investigator-initiated Phase 2 STS-J01 clinical trial evaluating PEDMARK for the reduction of cisplatin-induced ototoxicity in pediatric and adolescent and young adult patients with non-metastatic solid tumors in Japan
    • First American Financial increases quarterly cash dividend to $0.61/share from $0.55/share (FAF)
    • GFL Environmental CEO says company is open to a potential take-private deal, according to Bloomberg
    • Internal friction at AI companies (MSFT) FT
    • NCR Atleos selected by Bank Pekao to modernize card payment processing infrastructure (NATL)
    • Nuvation Bio says FDA (NUVB) approves IBTROZI label update in ROS1-positive NSCLC
    • RADCOM authorizes $20 mln share repurchase program (RDCM)
    • Roche Hldg: Dualitas Therapeutics (RHHBY) announces proximity biology research collaboration with Roche to discover and develop novel bispecific antibodies for I&I diseases
    • Roche's Lunsumio combination meets primary endpoint in Phase III follicular lymphoma study (RHHBY)
    • Silvercorp Metals renews share repurchase program (SVM)
    • SoftBank's loan from Apollo may be upsized (SFTBY, APO) Bloomberg
    • Unisys transfers about $200 mln of U.S. pension obligations to New York Life via group annuity contract (UIS)
    • USA Rare Earth partners with Pasqal (PSQL) on quantum-driven rare earth separation technology
    • USA Rare Earth, Pasqal partner with Riven on rare earth separation technology (USAR)
    • VersaBank shareholders approve proposed reorganization pursuant to which Versa Bancorp, a new Delaware corporation, will become the direct holding company of the Bank (VBNK)
    • Vital Farms considering strategic alternatives (VITL) Axios
    • Vital Farms weighing options, including potential take-private, according to Axios (VITL)
    • WisdomTree partners with MoonPay to expand U.S. access to tokenized money market fund (WT)
  • Upgrades:
    • Haemonetics (HAE) upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Citigroup, tgt $123
    • HawkEye 360 (HAWK) upgraded to Buy from Neutral at BofA Securities,. tgt $23
    • J.B. Hunt (JBHT) upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at Citizens, tgt $300
    • Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB) upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Goldman, tgt $93
    • Trip.com (TCOM) upgraded to Outperform from Neutral at Macquarie, tgt $53.20
  • Downgrades:
    • Boston Scientific (BSX) downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Citigroup, tgt $50
    • Copart (CPRT) downgraded to Hold from Buy at HSBC, tgt $36
    • Fluence Energy (FLNC) downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Goldman, tgt $9
    • Fluence Energy (FLNC) downgraded to Underperform from Neutral at Robert W. Baird, tgt $3
    • Lyft (LYFT) downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Guggenheim, tgt $16
    • Mueller Water Products (MWA) downgraded to Underperform from Sector Perform at RBC Capital, tgt $21
    • Okta (OKTA) downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at Bernstein, tgt $174
    • Palo Alto Networks (PANW) downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at Bernstein, tgt $351
    • Pegasystems (PEGA) downgraded to Neutral from Overweight at JPMorgan, tgt $47
    • SentinelOne (S) downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at Bernstein, tgt $25
  • Others:
    • Abeona Therapeutics (ABEO) initiated with a Buy at Roth Capital, tgt $17
    • Alpha Teknova (TKNO) initiated with a Buy at Jefferies, tgt $9
    • Applied Digital (APLD) initiated with an Overweight at Wells Fargo, tgt $50
    • Aura Minerals (AUGO) initiated with an Outperform at Scotiabank, tgt $110
    • Celcuity (CELC) initiated with an Overweight at JPMorgan, tgt $157
    • Cipher Mining (CIFR) initiated with an Overweight at Wells Fargo, tgt $25
    • Comstock Resources (CRK) initiated with a Hold at Truist, tgt $16
    • Core Scientific (CORZ) initiated with an Overweight at Wells Fargo, tgt $28
    • Crescent Energy (CRGY) initiated with a Buy at Truist, tgt $19
    • Everpure (P) assumed with a Buy at Needham, tgt $140
    • First Horizon (FHN) initiated with a Market Perform at Hovde Group, tgt $25
    • Grail (GRAL) initiated with a Sector Perform at RBC Capital, tgt $84
    • Herbalife (HLF) initiated with a Buy at Texas Capital, tgt $21
    • Honeywell Aerospace (HONA) initiated with a Positive at Susquehanna, tgt $190
    • iBio (IBIO) initiated with a Buy at H.C. Wainwright, tgt $7
    • Kopin (KOPN) initiated with an Outperform at Oppenheimer, tgt $7
    • Kraft Heinz (KHC) initiated with an Outperform at RBC Capital, tgt $32
    • MediciNova (MNOV) initiated with a Buy at Roth Capital, tgt 46
    • Octave Intelligence (OCTV) initiated with an Equal Weight at Morgan Stanley, tgt $21
    • Paramount Skydance (PSKY) resumed with an Underweight at Barclays, tgt $8
    • Paymentus (PAY) initiated with a Buy at Seaport Research Partners, tgt $42
    • Prenetics (PRE) initiated with a Buy at Craig-Hallum, tgt $40
    • Prelude Therapeutics (PRLD) initiated with an Overweight at JPMorgan, tgt $12
    • Red Violet (RDVT) initiated with an Outperform at Raymond James, tgt $90
    • Roivant Sciences (ROIV) initiated with a Buy at Stifel, tgt $51
    • SiTime (SITM) initiated with an Overweight at Morgan Stanley, tgt $370
    • Soluna Holdings (SLNH) initiated with a Buy at Rosenblatt, tgt $4
    • TeraWulf (WULF) initiated with an Overweight at Wells Fargo, tgt $30
    • Western Midstream (WES) initiated with a Buy at Truist, tgt $55
    • Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) resumed with an Equal Weight at Barclays, tgt $29
  • Econ Data (Friday):
    • 9:15 ET: August Industrial Production (Briefing.com consensus 0.3%; prior 1.1%) and Capacity Utilization (Briefing.com consensus 76.4%; prior 76.3%)
    • 10:00 ET: August Leading Index (Briefing.com consensus 0.2%; prior 0.2%)
  • Earnings:
    • Monday (September 14)
      • Pre-Market: None
      • After-Hours: PLAY
    • Tuesday (September 15)
      • Pre-Market: None
      • After-Hours: TCOM
    • Wednesday (September 16)
      • Pre-Market: None
      • After-Hours: LEN
    • Thursday (September 17)
      • Pre-Market: None
      • After-Hours: None
    • Friday (September 18)
      • Pre-market: None
      • Afternoon: None
Cookie Preferences

Cookie Preferences

Briefing.com uses cookies to operate the site, maintain security, remember preferences, and provide subscription features. These cookies are necessary to use Briefing.com.

We also use optional analytics cookies to understand site usage and improve our services.

View Cookie Policy
Required CookiesAlways On

These cookies are necessary to operate the site and use Briefing.com.

Analytics CookiesOptional

These cookies help us understand site usage and improve our services.

If you decline required cookies, you will not be able to use the site.

Send
Chat Icon