Wall Street finished Wednesday on a split note, with investors still nursing wounds from a two-day chip-driven selloff while cautiously awaiting Micron Technology’s closely watched earnings report after the bell. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 managed slim gains, but the Nasdaq Composite slipped further as technology shares failed to fully recover from the prior session’s drubbing. The day’s tone was one of careful repositioning rather than conviction, with traders balancing a cooling AI trade against evidence that demand for memory chips remains red-hot.
What Moved Markets
The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 182.06 points, or 0.35%, to close at 51,848.90. The S&P 500 rose roughly 0.20% to settle near 7,380, while the Nasdaq Composite fell 0.43% to 25,476.64 — extending its losing streak even as futures had pointed to a rebound earlier in the morning.
The primary driver of Wednesday’s cautious mood was the ongoing aftermath of a global semiconductor selloff that had pushed the Nasdaq down 2.21% and the S&P 500 down 1.44% on Tuesday. That rout was sparked by a Bank of America note flagging potential rate hike risks and a tumble in Asian chip stocks that rippled across global markets. On Wednesday, investors proved unwilling to aggressively buy the dip ahead of Micron’s report — the event most expected would either validate or undercut the AI memory thesis. The day also brought fresh geopolitical support for lower oil prices, with Brent crude falling below $76 a barrel amid progress in U.S.-Iran diplomatic talks, easing some inflationary pressure that has kept the Federal Reserve cautious under new Chair Kevin Warsh.
In a notable index development, S&P Dow Jones Indices announced that Alphabet (GOOGL) will join the Dow Jones Industrial Average on June 29, replacing Verizon (VZ). The addition of Google’s parent company deepens the blue-chip benchmark’s exposure to artificial intelligence, cloud computing, and digital advertising — a move that many analysts say is long overdue.
Notable Movers
Micron Technology (MU) — Micron was the stock of the day even before reporting earnings. Shares bounced more than 2.5% during regular trading after plunging over 13% on Tuesday. After the closing bell, Micron delivered a blowout quarterly report: earnings per share came in at $25.11 versus the $20.39 consensus, and the company’s fourth-quarter revenue outlook of $49 billion to $51 billion crushed Wall Street’s $43.2 billion estimate. Adjusted gross margins hit 84.9%, well above expectations. Shares surged more than 6% in after-hours trading on the results, a sign that AI-driven demand for high-bandwidth memory remains far stronger than the bears assumed.
FedEx (FDX) — FedEx fell roughly 7% after guiding for fiscal 2027 earnings per share of $16.90 to $18.10, well below the $19.86 analyst consensus. The company actually beat fourth-quarter estimates, reporting revenue of $25 billion against the $24.04 billion forecast, but investors looked past the near-term beat and sold on the weaker profit outlook. The drop was compounded by the company’s recently completed spinoff of its freight business, which reduces the earnings base going forward.
Cerebras Systems (CBRS) — The AI chipmaker tumbled roughly 14% after its first earnings report as a public company disappointed on margins. Cerebras beat revenue estimates with $193.4 million in quarterly sales, but management guided for 2026 adjusted gross margins of 38% to 41%, well below the 47% posted in the first quarter. The company explained that a severe shortage of data center space is forcing it to lease back equipment from customers and build out its own capacity, squeezing profitability by 10 to 15 percentage points this year. CEO Andrew Feldman later said the margin forecast was “misunderstood,” but that did little to stop the slide.
Wendy’s (WEN) — The fast-food chain was one of the session’s surprising gainers, surging on a combination of Reddit short-squeeze activity and investor optimism over the company’s appointment of a seasoned executive duo from rival Potbelly. The stock had been under pressure after a USDA warning about rising farm production costs, but Wednesday’s buzz provided a temporary lift.
ARM Holdings (ARM) — Shares of the chip designer rose approximately 3% after multiple analysts raised their price targets, citing an improving outlook for ARM’s CPU business tied to expanding AI workloads. The move stood out as a positive signal for the broader chip sector on an otherwise mixed day.
Looking Ahead
Micron’s after-hours surge is likely to set a constructive tone for chip and technology stocks when markets reopen Thursday. The key question is whether the blowout results revive confidence in the broader AI trade after two days of volatility, or whether investors use the pop as a selling opportunity into lingering uncertainty about valuations. Beyond semiconductors, the market’s attention will shift to the May personal consumption expenditures (PCE) index — the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge — due Friday morning. With Chair Warsh keeping rates on hold as energy prices apply upward pressure on inflation, a hotter-than-expected print could quickly dampen whatever enthusiasm Micron generates. Investors will also watch for any further clarity on U.S.-Iran tensions and their impact on crude prices, as falling oil has been one of the few bright spots for consumer sentiment this week.