U.S. stocks closed higher on Wednesday, with the S&P 500 up 0.26% and the Nasdaq 100 up 0.74%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.04%. Gains were driven by strength in AI and chip stocks after CoreWeave and Super Micro Computer reported better-than-expected earnings, and by a favorable July CPI report that reduced the odds of a rate hike at the next FOMC meeting to 40% from 51% on Tuesday. The July CPI rose 3.4% year-over-year, down from 3.5% in June, while core CPI eased to 2.5% from 2.6%. CoreWeave rallied more than 19% after guiding third-quarter revenue to $3.45-3.60 billion and raising full-year revenue guidance to $12.4-13.2 billion, while Super Micro Computer jumped over 18% on strong revenue guidance. Chip stocks broadly advanced, with Micron Technology, Lam Research, GlobalFoundries, and Applied Materials all up more than 4%, and the iShares Semiconductor ETF gained 2.3%. The Magnificent Seven struggled, with six of seven stocks lower, led by a more than 3% drop in Meta and a more than 2% decline in Microsoft, while Nvidia rose 3%. H&R Block rallied 16% after positive fiscal fourth-quarter results and stronger-than-expected full-year guidance.
