The Closing Bell
Megacap tech wobbled under the weight of AI-spending anxiety while small caps and bonds caught a bid on soft housing data, leaving the S&P narrowly positive and the Nasdaq in the red at the close.
Housing cracks, bonds rally, small caps lead.
Pending home sales dropped 7.3% month over month even as housing starts and building permits held near prior levels, and the soft read sent Treasurys higher, with the long bond fund (TLT) up 0.8%. That bid for duration coincided with a rotation out of the most expensive mega-cap names and into smaller, more rate-sensitive stocks: the Russell 2000 proxy (IWM) jumped 1.7% while the Nasdaq-100 fund (QQQ) slipped 0.2% and the S&P proxy (SPY) eked out a 0.3% gain. The dollar (UUP) softened and gold (GLD) drifted lower.
AI spending doubts weigh on the majors.
A WSJ report on Anthropic's draft S-1 disclosed an $80.7 billion net loss for the first half of 2026, reviving questions about whether the industry's capital spending is being matched by returns. Alphabet (GOOGL, GOOG) took the brunt of it, down roughly 1.1% to 1.2%, while Microsoft (MSFT) and Nvidia (NVDA) each eased 0.3% and Amazon (AMZN) managed a small gain even as a report flagged the company buying billions in Nvidia AI systems it can't yet deploy. Danny Moses's comparison of CoreWeave to "the WeWork of AI" added to the skeptical tone running through the session.
Braze explodes, then draws skepticism.
Braze (BRZE) was the day's standout, surging 51.7% on takeover chatter that spilled into speculation over whether Klaviyo could be the next billion-dollar target for a larger tech acquirer. The size of the move drew immediate caution from the Street: Wells Fargo cut the stock to equal-weight even while lifting its price target, and Oppenheimer downgraded it to perform, a classic "great move, stretched valuation" response.
Earnings crowd the tape.
3M (MMM) jumped after results beat expectations this morning, part of a packed pre-market earnings slate that also included GM, RTX, GE Aerospace, Verizon, Coca-Cola, Northrop Grumman and Halliburton. Equifax flagged that inflation is squeezing lower-income Americans even as it reported. Elsewhere, deal activity stirred the tape: Qiagen (QGEN) rose on reports EQT is in advanced buyout talks, CBRE (CBRE) agreed to acquire Onnec, Apollo-backed Legendary lifted Lionsgate (LION) with a fresh bid, and Hilton (HLT) said it will move its listing to Nasdaq. Sea (SE) slipped on plans to spin out its Monee financial unit. Crypto stayed firm, with bitcoin near $82,000 and BitMine (BMNR) up 5.8% on ETF-flow optimism, while falling oil prices lifted airline names.
After the bell and tomorrow.
Netflix, Intuitive Surgical, Interactive Brokers, Capital One, United Airlines and Alaska Air all report after tonight's close, setting up a heavy reaction session tomorrow across streaming, airlines and brokerages.
Bottom line: the market is bifurcating, with AI-spending doubts capping the megacaps even as small caps, bonds and a dense earnings calendar keep the broader tape afloat.