S&P 500 Nears Record High as SK Hynix Debut Fuels Tech Rally Ahead of Earnings

U.S. stocks closed higher on Friday, with the S&P 500 ending just short of a record high as investors drew confidence from the blockbuster Nasdaq debut of chipmaker SK Hynix and turned their attention to the upcoming second-quarter earnings season.

SK Hynix Debut Bolsters Tech Sentiment

The artificial intelligence trade returned to the forefront after South Korea’s SK Hynix saw its American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) close 13% above their offering price at $170. The high-profile U.S. listing successfully raised over $26 billion for the semiconductor company, fueling optimism for memory-chip makers and the broader tech sector.

Reflecting the positive sentiment, the information technology sector led gains among S&P 500 industry groups, rising 1.65%. The PHLX semiconductor index edged up 0.06% for its third consecutive day of gains, while Meta Platforms jumped nearly 6% to its highest level since April.

Market Focus Shifts to Earnings

Investors are now looking ahead to the start of the Q2 earnings season next week, with reports from major U.S. banks set to provide an early look at the economy's health. According to LSEG I/B/E/S data, analysts expect S&P 500 earnings to have surged 24% from the year-ago period, with technology firms anticipated to be major drivers of that growth.

Ad

"This is a high-bar quarter with a narrow margin of error," said Terry Sandven, chief equity strategist at U.S. Bank Wealth Management, in a comment to Reuters. "The banks will give us a good read on the underlying economic strength and what consumers and businesses are doing." Despite trading near record highs, the S&P 500's forward price-to-earnings multiple is approximately 20, down from 21 in late May, due to rising corporate profit estimates.

Friday's Market Performance

All three major U.S. stock indexes finished the day in positive territory, though on relatively light trading volume of 14.5 billion shares, compared to the 20-session average of 22.4 billion.

• The S&P 500 climbed 0.42% to end at 7,575.39 points.
• The Nasdaq Composite gained 0.29% to 26,281.61 points.
• The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.29% to 52,637.01 points.

For the week, the S&P 500 added 1.2% and the Nasdaq climbed 1.7%, while the Dow registered a weekly loss of 0.5%. Notable individual movers included Moderna, which tumbled almost 11%, and Delta Air Lines, which fell 1.8% despite a strong profit forecast.