Stock Market Today, Aug. 4, 2026: S&P 500 and Dow Close at Records

The S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at record highs on Tuesday, Aug. 4, 2026. Earnings beats from Palantir Technologies and Caterpillar lifted technology and industrial shares, and oil fell further. The Nasdaq Composite rose 2.6%, the largest gain of the three major indexes. The S&P 500 climbed 1.8%, and the Dow added 1.7%, a gain of more than 900 points.

The second driver was crude. Oil fell sharply after Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the U.S. and Iran might reach a deal “today or tomorrow” to open the Strait of Hormuz. Gains were concentrated in a few groups. Through the early afternoon only four of the 11 S&P 500 sectors were in positive territory, and energy shares fell with crude.

The Dow’s record was its second closing high of the week, following Monday’s. The blue-chip index rose 1.5% at the opening bell as Caterpillar surged, and Caterpillar finished as the top performer among Dow components. Palantir jumped nearly 30%, the best performance in both the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq. Chipmakers and memory companies posted double-digit gains ahead of Advanced Micro Devices’ quarterly report after the bell. Space Exploration Technologies, known as SpaceX, rose more than 9% in the regular session before its first report as a public company. Amazon led Dow decliners after a filing showed founder Jeff Bezos planned to sell shares.

Several other companies traded on their latest quarterly reports. McDonald’s (MCD) and Pfizer (PFE) each rose between 1% and 1.5% after reporting results. Spotify Technology (SPOT) slipped about 1.5% after its report. BP fell even though its results were solid. Away from earnings, Chipotle Mexican Grill dropped on a food-safety report and Oppenheimer downgraded Walmart.

Tuesday’s leadership was close to the reverse of the July 2 session, when the Dow jumped 600 points to a record as tech sold off. For the index level, chart and recent performance, see the S&P 500 index quote page.

Palantir Posts Its Best Day in More Than a Year

Palantir (PLTR) shares climbed nearly 30% on Tuesday, the largest gain in both the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq. The software maker reported better-than-expected results after Monday’s close and raised its outlook.

By midday the shares were up 22%, and the stock was already on track for its best session since February of last year. In that earlier session the shares rose 24% after a strong fourth-quarter report. Tuesday’s close went well beyond the midday level and beyond that February gain.

The company beat Wall Street’s estimates for the quarter and raised its forecast. Analysts disagreed on what the report means for the stock.

Analyst Reactions

William Blair said Palantir’s “stellar performance defies concerns” about competition from OpenAI and Anthropic for business customers. The firm wrote that there is “no public software company or defense contractor with this combination of revenue growth and profitability.”

Morgan Stanley pointed to Palantir’s run of accelerating revenue growth, which has continued every quarter for three years, and called the streak a “remarkable achievement.” The firm said demand looked “extraordinary” and that sales appeared poised to accelerate for a 13th straight quarter.

Jefferies was more cautious. Its analysts wrote after the report that they still preferred other AI and software names, including Microsoft (MSFT), Amazon (AMZN) and Snowflake (SNOW). They flagged concerns about Palantir’s international growth. They also said the stock’s valuation “leaves little room for a normalization in growth or execution slippage.”

Where the Stock Stood

Palantir came into Monday’s report down about 30% for the year. The shares had fallen on concerns that AI tools could disrupt the software industry and that the previous year’s rally had left the company overvalued. At the midday mark on Tuesday, with the stock up 22%, the shares were still roughly 15% below where they started 2026.

Palantir led the information technology sector along with Zebra Technologies (ZBRA). In early afternoon trading, Palantir was up 28% and Zebra was up 22%. Ten other technology stocks were up 9% or more at that point in the session.

Caterpillar Beats Estimates on Data-Center Demand

Caterpillar (CAT), the construction and power-equipment maker based in Irving, Texas, reported second-quarter results before the open. Profit and revenue both came in far above analysts’ estimates.

Adjusted earnings came to $8.17 per share. Revenue rose 24% from a year earlier to a record $20.54 billion. Analysts surveyed by Visible Alpha had expected $6.10 per share and $18.95 billion in revenue.

The company tied much of the strength to large technology companies building new data centers. Those projects use both Caterpillar’s construction machinery and its power-generation equipment. Chief Executive Joe Creed said the company’s “strong order rates and a growing backlog reflect broadening momentum across all three of our primary segments.”

The Share Move

Caterpillar entered Tuesday just above $830 per share, among the highest prices in the Dow. It surged about 10% in early trading to roughly $916. That move helped lift the Dow 1.5% at the opening bell. At the early high, Caterpillar shares were up nearly 60% for the year.

The stock pulled back from its morning high and closed about 5.5% higher. That gain still led all Dow components for the session, and Caterpillar’s report also supported the industrials sector, one of the four S&P 500 sectors higher in early afternoon trading.

Chip Stocks Extend the AI Rally

Semiconductor and memory stocks posted some of the session’s largest gains ahead of Advanced Micro Devices’ after-the-bell report. The Roundhill Memory ETF (DRAM) rose 7.3%. The broader iShares Semiconductor ETF (SOXX) climbed 6.8%.

Individual AI-linked chip names moved by double digits. Arm Holdings (ARM), Marvell Technology (MRVL) and Sandisk (SNDK) gained between 11% and 17%.

Most of the Magnificent Seven mega-cap technology stocks finished higher. Nvidia (NVDA) led the group with a 2.5% gain. Amazon was the exception, falling after the Bezos filing.

The Nasdaq Composite’s 2.6% gain outpaced both the S&P 500 and the Dow on a day led by chips and software.

AMD Rallies Ahead of Its Report

Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) climbed more than 8% during the session and closed up more than 7%. The gain put it among the Nasdaq’s biggest gainers on a day when stocks rose amid growing optimism about a peace deal between the U.S. and Iran. AMD’s quarterly results were due after the bell.

According to estimates compiled by Visible Alpha, analysts expected adjusted earnings of $1.61 per share. They expected revenue of $11.34 billion, an increase of nearly 50% from a year earlier. Morgan Stanley said in a note earlier in the week that it expected “another strong set” of results from the Nvidia rival, citing strong demand for its data-center products.

Analyst ratings going into the report were largely positive. Of the nine analysts Visible Alpha tracks, seven rated AMD a buy and two were neutral. Their average price target of about $582 implied roughly 20% upside from Monday’s close.

AMD shares had already more than doubled in value this year despite a recent pullback.

SpaceX Beats in First Quarter as a Public Company

Space Exploration Technologies (SPCX) released its first quarterly results since going public in mid-June. Its IPO was the largest in history, and the company is valued at more than $1 trillion. SpaceX beat expectations on both revenue and earnings for the second quarter. The shares still fell after hours.

Chief Executive Elon Musk was scheduled to discuss the results with investors on Tuesday evening, his first such appearance since the listing. The company’s stated ambitions under Musk include orbital data centers, interplanetary commerce and, in the company’s words, “extend[ing] the light of consciousness to the stars.”

The Stock Going In

The shares have swung widely in less than two months of trading. SpaceX sold stock to the public at $135. The shares opened trading at $150 and peaked above $225. They then fell to post-IPO lows before recovering somewhat, and closed Monday at $114.53. That price was roughly half the all-time high and below the offering price.

Over the weekend, a social media user posted the post-IPO chart and said it would look like an “insane opportunity in retrospect.” Musk replied, “I think so.”

Wall Street price targets were widely dispersed. Those tracked by Visible Alpha ranged from $170 to $800, and the mean target implied the stock could more than double. Some targets outside that service were more bearish. The company combines a launch business, a satellite internet business and a large AI operation.

The shares rose 9% during Tuesday’s regular session. It was the stock’s best day since June 16, a few days after the IPO. At the session’s high, the shares touched their highest level in more than a week.

The Results

SpaceX reported the following figures for the second quarter:

• Earnings: an adjusted loss of 9 cents per share, narrower than the 15-cent loss analysts expected.
• Revenue: $7.8 billion, up 92% from a year earlier and above the $6.82 billion consensus from Visible Alpha.
• Cash: $100 billion in cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities at the end of the quarter, the period in which the IPO was completed.

Chief Financial Officer Bret Johnsen said in a statement that “the second quarter demonstrated the true power of SpaceX.” He said revenue growth accelerated in all three business segments: space, connectivity and AI.

Spending and Segment Results

Capital expenditures rose across the company, and the increase was far larger in AI than in the other segments. AI capital spending reached $15.8 billion in the second quarter, more than double the first-quarter figure. The space segment spent $1.2 billion and connectivity spent $1.4 billion.

The AI unit also produced most of the quarter’s loss, with an operating loss of $1.26 billion. The space segment posted an operating loss of $542 million. Connectivity, the satellite internet business, earned an operating profit of $1.66 billion and was the only one of the three segments in the black.

After-Hours Trading

SpaceX shares were down 8% in after-hours trading shortly after the release, roughly erasing the regular-session gain. Wednesday’s trading is covered in the Aug. 5 market recap.

Oil Falls on Hormuz Deal Signals

U.S. benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude futures fell 5.8% to $75.70 a barrel as of 4 p.m. ET. Global benchmark Brent crude futures dropped 5.3% to $79.35. Earlier in the afternoon, WTI had been trading just over $76.

The decline extended a selloff that began Monday, when President Donald Trump said he was holding off on an attack on Iran. Disruption in the Strait of Hormuz during the conflict with Iran had pushed crude sharply higher in recent weeks.

On Tuesday morning, Bessent said in a televised CNBC interview that the U.S. and Iran “may have a deal today or tomorrow to open the Strait [of Hormuz] and move towards a more normalized position in this conflict.” Iran had not confirmed that any talks with the U.S. were taking place that week. The price drop reflected an expected deal; no agreement had been completed by the close.

Energy Stocks Slide

Energy shares fell with crude and were the weakest group in the market. NRG Energy (NRG) dropped about 16% at one point in the session. Diamondback Energy (FANG) fell about 3%. Both were among the S&P 500’s biggest decliners while the broader market gained.

Chevron (CVX) and ExxonMobil (XOM) each slipped about 1%. BP (BP) fell 4% even though it reported solid earnings that morning.

The decline followed a strong run for the sector. Bank of America analysts wrote Monday that energy stocks rose 12.5% in July, the best performance of any sector on Wall Street, as Middle East tensions and supply disruptions lifted oil prices.

Also on Monday, Trump criticized the energy industry. He said companies had raised prices too much amid the disruptions caused by the Iran war.

Four Sectors Carry the Gains

The record closes came from a narrow group of stocks. In early afternoon trading, only four of the S&P 500’s 11 sectors were higher: information technology, materials, industrials and financials.

Information technology was up 3.7% at that point, and its gain was enough to power the S&P 500 to a 1.5% advance at the time. Palantir, Zebra and the chipmakers led the sector, with 10 other technology stocks up 9% or more. Industrials drew support from Caterpillar’s report.

Energy was the clearest laggard as oil fell. The sector count is from early afternoon, before the S&P 500 extended its gain to 1.8% at the close.

Amazon Leads Dow Decliners on Bezos Share Sale

Amazon (AMZN) fell more than 2% on Tuesday and led the Dow’s decliners. During the session the stock was down as much as 2.5%. The drop came one day after Amazon hit a record high and joined the $3 trillion market-cap club for the first time. On Monday, the shares reached $287.20 intraday and closed at $284.02.

Tuesday’s decline followed a Form 144 filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission showing that Bezos intended to sell 15 million shares, worth more than $4.07 billion.

The pullback came after a run-up on quarterly results. Amazon shares had climbed after the company reported better-than-expected profit and revenue. Amazon Web Services sales grew 37% year over year to $42.2 billion, nearly $2 billion above estimates.

Even after Tuesday’s decline, Amazon shares were up about 20% for the year. Jefferies, in its note on Palantir, listed Amazon among the AI and software names it preferred.

Chipotle Falls on Salmonella Report

Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG) shares fell about 9% in Tuesday afternoon trading. The decline followed a news report that the chain had temporarily pulled jalapeños tied to a salmonella outbreak in Minnesota. The drop pushed the stock into negative territory for 2026.

The Health Department’s Findings

The Minnesota Department of Health identified 110 cases. Investigators reached 84 people for interviews, and 75 of them said they had eaten at Chipotle, with meal dates between June 14 and July 14.

Carlota Medus, senior epidemiologist supervisor in the department’s foodborne diseases unit, said in a statement that the cases who had not eaten at Chipotle had eaten at a variety of other Mexican-style restaurants. She said that, based on the evidence so far, the food that made people sick had been served at other restaurants as well.

Medus said it was too soon for the department to know whether the outbreak was ongoing. Given the measures Chipotle had put in place, she said, the department was not concerned about the chain itself. The outbreak could still be ongoing if the contaminated food item was being served elsewhere. She also said the department expected the case count to rise even for illnesses that occurred a couple of weeks earlier, because it takes time to detect cases through surveillance.

Chipotle’s Response

Laurie Schalow, Chipotle’s chief corporate affairs and food safety officer, said the company has a “robust” ingredient traceability system. She said Chipotle learned of a potential salmonella outbreak in the supply chain that affected several food-service retailers. The company then identified jalapeños from a common lot as a potential shared ingredient. It removed the jalapeños from the restaurants that had received them and replaced them with product from different growers.

Oppenheimer Downgrades Walmart

Oppenheimer downgraded Walmart (WMT) to a neutral “perform” rating on Tuesday and withdrew its $140 price target. That target had represented a 26% premium to Monday’s close of about $111 and was roughly in line with the Visible Alpha mean.

The analysts said they now saw a “less compelling outperformance case” for the stock and gave three reasons:

• Revenue headwinds in the U.S. pharmacy business that could weigh on same-store sales.
• A valuation they described as “peakish.”
• Wall Street forecasts that they characterized as “well ahead” of the company’s own guidance.

Oppenheimer said it remained positive on the retailer over the longer run. “Although we are stepping to the sidelines, we still remain very upbeat on [Walmart’s] longer-term prospects,” the analysts wrote.

Walmart shares pointed lower in premarket trading after the downgrade. The stock started 2026 strong but has since cooled and was slightly below flat for the year.

Bonds, the Dollar, Gold and Bitcoin

The 10-year Treasury yield was near 4.63%, down five basis points from Monday’s close. The yield had reached its highest level since January 2025 on Friday. Tuesday’s dip came alongside the drop in oil prices.

The U.S. dollar index was little changed at 99.87. The dollar rose 0.4% against the Japanese yen after falling Monday. On Monday, the U.S. and Japan carried out a coordinated intervention to support the yen after it hit a 40-year low against the dollar, and Tuesday’s move partly reversed the dollar’s drop.

Gold futures rose 1.2% to $4,140 an ounce. Bitcoin traded around $64,300, up slightly over 24 hours.

What Comes Next

Futures tied to the Dow pointed 0.5% higher in evening trading after Tuesday’s record close. The contracts were trading after the SpaceX release and with AMD’s results due after the bell.

Two major reports were due Wednesday morning, and options markets were pricing sizable moves in both stocks through the end of the week.

Disney

The Walt Disney Company (DIS) was scheduled to report before Wednesday’s open. Options pricing implied a move of up to 5% by the end of the week. From Tuesday afternoon’s level near $98, that range runs from above $103 to below $94.

Disney shares were down nearly 14% for the year on concerns that higher fuel prices and inflation tied to the Iran war could slow theme-park attendance. UBS raised its price target to $138 from $133 ahead of the report. Its analysts expected profit growth to accelerate in the second half of Disney’s fiscal year, helped by revenue gains in the Experiences segment, which includes the parks.

Eli Lilly

Eli Lilly (LLY) was also set to report Wednesday morning. Options implied a swing of up to 6% by the end of the week. From Monday’s close, that range runs from about $1,191 on the upside, just short of last month’s all-time high, to below $1,052 on the downside. A move to the low end would put the shares in negative territory for 2026.

Lilly was up about 4% for the year after pulling back from its record close. Sales of its weight-loss drugs have powered strong results in recent quarters, and competition in that market remains a source of uncertainty for the company. UBS wrote that there “might be some natural pullback” in the stock in the near term after its recent rally. The firm still expected long-term gains and predicted an earnings beat and a raised forecast on Wednesday.

Walmart

Walmart reports its next quarterly results on Aug. 20, its first report since Oppenheimer’s downgrade.