Chip stocks helped lift the Nasdaq on Tuesday, while Apple dragged on the Dow, leaving the major U.S. indexes split by the close. After the bell, Advanced Micro Devices posted stronger-than-expected third-quarter results and a fourth-quarter revenue outlook above consensus, but the tone in futures later weakened as U.S. midterm vote counting began and prediction markets shifted toward a Democratic sweep of Congress.
Chip rebound lifts Nasdaq while the S&P 500 snaps a three-day losing streak
The S&P 500 rose 0.36% to 7568.92 on Tuesday, ending a three-session losing streak. The Nasdaq gained 0.83% to 25372.01, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.38% to 51786.72.
The Nasdaq 100 added 0.68% to 28180.26 and remained about 10% below its recent high, leaving it in correction territory. The Russell 2000 rose 0.23% to 2812.45. The VIX fell 1.51% to 20.83.
Gains were concentrated in a small group of large-cap technology names. The VanEck Semiconductor ETF (SMH) climbed 2.01%, the Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLK) rose 1.31%, and the Communication Services Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLC) gained 1.18%. Consumer staples (XLP) fell 2.07% and materials (XLB) dropped 2.01%. Seven of the 11 S&P sectors finished lower. The Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight ETF (RSP) slipped 0.33%.
Among individual stocks, AMD rose 3.65% to $483.90, Broadcom gained 3.07%, Microsoft added 2.74%, and Nvidia rose 2.29%. CoreWeave climbed more than 5% intraday, though it was still down about 41% over the past month.
AMD tops estimates and guides Q4 revenue to about $17 billion
AMD reported third-quarter revenue of $13.38 billion, up 45% from a year earlier and above the $13.09 billion expected by LSEG. Adjusted earnings per share came in at $2.09, ahead of the $1.95 consensus.
Its data center segment posted record revenue of $8.5 billion, up 97% year over year, driven mainly by EPYC server processors and MI450 series GPUs. Client and gaming revenue was $3.7 billion, down 8%, with gaming revenue down 40%.
For the fourth quarter, AMD forecast revenue of about $17 billion, plus or minus 3%. At the midpoint, that implies about 66% year-over-year growth and roughly 27% sequential growth, above the market expectation of $16.23 billion. Chief Executive Officer Lisa Su said on the earnings call that she expects server revenue to double year over year in 2027.
AMD shares rose as much as 9% in after-hours trading before trimming gains to about 4% as index futures turned lower.
Elsewhere after the close, Super Micro Computer reported preliminary first-quarter revenue of $19.9 billion, above the expected $16.26 billion, and raised its fiscal 2027 revenue outlook to $72 billion to $82 billion. Its shares rose more than 9% after hours. Arista Networks guided fourth-quarter revenue to $3.9 billion to $4.0 billion, above the $3.6 billion expected by the market, and its stock rose about 12%.
Skyworks fell about 15% after hours after issuing weaker-than-expected guidance for next quarter. Booking slipped about 2% after reporting revenue below expectations.
Apple’s margin outlook weighs on the Dow
Apple fell about 1.9% to $331.82 and was the main drag on the Dow.
For the September quarter, Apple reported revenue of $114.48 billion and earnings per share of $2.10, both above expectations. But the company said gross margin for the December quarter would be 45% to 46%, below analysts’ expectations of about 46.7% to 47.5%. The report said higher memory chip prices and spending on Siri AI features were the main pressures. iPad revenue of $6.23 billion also missed expectations.
Apple said December-quarter revenue should grow 7% to 10%, while services revenue growth is expected to slow to 8% to 9%. Morgan Stanley cut its price target on Apple to $350 from $355, and JPMorgan lowered its target to $355 from $360.
Shopify dropped 8.74% after third-quarter revenue of $3.74 billion came in slightly below expectations, with subscription gross profit and GMV also missing estimates. Gartner fell 13.19% to $204.22 after third-quarter contract value grew only 2.5% and revenue declined 1.3%. Coinbase rose about 8% intraday after falling 15% over the previous three trading sessions.
Futures reverse lower as midterm vote counting starts
Voting in the U.S. midterm elections took place on Tuesday. Democrats need a net gain of four seats in the Senate and three seats in the House to take control of both chambers. The Associated Press called its first Senate race for Democratic Senator Mark Warner of Virginia, who won re-election.
As polls closed across states, prediction markets moved toward a Democratic victory. As of 08:48 Beijing time, Kalshi showed the probability of Democrats controlling the Senate at about 90% and the House at 97%. Major media outlets were still counting key races.
Index futures then turned lower. At the same time stamp, S&P 500 futures were down 0.6%, Nasdaq 100 futures were down 0.5%, and Dow futures were lower by 252 points. Microsoft and Amazon traded lower after hours, while the Invesco Solar ETF (TAN) continued to rise in after-hours trading.
JPMorgan had said earlier that a Democratic sweep could weigh on the broader market on Wednesday, with AI stocks under particular pressure. If Republicans held the Senate or both chambers, the bank said, that could support a short-term rally.
In early Asia trading, South Korea’s KOSPI opened 2.95% higher. The KOSPI and Taiwan Weighted Index had both fallen 3.59% on Tuesday.
Oil holds near recent losses as Treasury yields rise
WTI crude fell 0.38% to settle at $96.09 a barrel, while Brent crude dropped 1.12% to $103.60 a barrel. Both benchmarks had fallen about 7% on Monday and did not rebound on Tuesday.
According to the report, U.S. forces struck Iran’s Qeshm Island, and Iran said it would respond “forcefully” (「强力」), briefly pushing oil higher overnight. Prices later came back down as speculation resurfaced that U.S.-Iran talks could make progress.
Treasury yields moved higher. The 10-year yield rose 5.8 basis points to 4.951%, its biggest increase since Sept. 28. The 2-year yield rose 3.1 basis points to 4.612%, and the 30-year yield climbed 5.5 basis points to 5.323%. The U.S. dollar index added 0.11% to 101.86.
On the data front, September JOLTS job openings came in at 7.52 million, up 333,000 from the prior month and above the 7.15 million expected. Quits rose to 3.36 million, the highest since March 2025, while layoffs fell to 1.64 million. September factory orders increased 1.8% month over month, above the 1.3% expected.
Bitcoin traded above $77,000.
What markets are watching next
All times below are Beijing time.
- All day: Midterm vote counting. Control of both chambers is the biggest variable for U.S. equities today, and counting in some key races could last several days.
- 21:15: U.S. October ADP employment report. Private payrolls increased by 90,000 in September.
- 23:00: U.S. October ISM non-manufacturing PMI. The September reading was 54.9.
- Before the U.S. open tonight: Uber, CVS Health, McDonald’s, and Datadog report earnings. The Wall Street Journal reported that CVS plans to separate its retail pharmacy business, and the stock edged higher after hours.
- Thursday morning Beijing time, after the U.S. close: Qualcomm, Arm, and AppLovin report earnings. Market expectations are for Qualcomm revenue of $10.12 billion and EPS of $2.16; Arm is expected to report revenue of $1.38 billion and EPS of $0.47.
- Friday 21:30: U.S. October nonfarm payrolls report. The market expects 59,000 jobs added and an unchanged unemployment rate of 4.2%. September payroll growth was only 29,000.
