Stock Market Update

[BRIEFING.COM] The S&P 500 (+0.33%) is firmly in second place on Wednesday afternoon.

Briefly, S&P 500 constituents Albemarle (ALB 68.03, +5.13, +8.16%), First Solar (FSLR 175.62, +12.66, +7.77%), and Moderna (MRNA 30.38, +1.69, +5.89%) pepper the top of the standings. FSLR rallies after the Senate removed a controversial excise tax from the GOP's sweeping tax package, a provision that had threatened clean energy economics. For its part, MRNA hit a three-month high after the company reported strong Phase 3 results for its experimental mRNA flu vaccine, showing significantly higher efficacy than currently approved options in older adults. Investor optimism also grew around the potential for a future flu-COVID combo shot, despite regulatory uncertainty under HHS Secretary RFK Jr.

Meanwhile, Molina Healthcare (MOH 245.27, -61.02, -19.92%) is down hard, a likely spillover effect from Centene's (CNC 34.51, -22.14, -39.08%) surprise guidance withdrawal, which reignited fears about structural profitability issues in the ACA and Medicaid segments -- both core to Molina's revenue base.