U.S. lawmakers successfully avoided a default
The debt ceiling bill kept Wall Street's attention this week, as it successfully passed through Congress, avoiding a potential default. In true Schoolhouse Rock fashion, the bill made its way through the 13-member House Rules Committee on Tuesday, the House of Representatives on Wednesday, and the Senate on Thursday, which in turn generated optimism.
Nvidia (NVDA) stock's extended surge has been quite the storyline to follow, giving the tech-heavy Nasdaq a boost as it crossed the $1 trillion market cap threshold. All three major indexes secured weekly wins, with jobs data giving the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) a boost to end the week, while Wall Street's "fear gauge," the Cboe Volatility Index (VIX), neared two-year lows.
Large-Cap Tech in the Spotlight
Nvidia's market-cap achievement helped boost several artificial intelligence (AI) stocks, and options traders took notice. Schaeffer's own Senior Quantitative Analyst Rocky White took a look at mega caps making mega moves after the event, noting how stocks tend to perform after some of the biggest gains in market capitalization. Plus, Senior Vice President of Research Todd Salamone dove into how the S&P 500 Index (SPX) could react after all of this outperformance for large-cap tech stocks,
More Tech Stocks Making Moves
Not all tech names moved in a positive way this week, with chip stock Ambarella (AMBA) plummeting after its weak second-quarter forecast. Dow member Salesforce (CRM) experienced a post-earnings slide as well, despite better-than-expected first-quarter results. Fintech name SoFi Technologies (SOFI) surged as the debt ceiling bill progressed, as federal student loan and interest payments are expected to resume. Meanwhile, activist investor buzz sent Twilio (TWLO) higher, and options bulls chimed in.