US close: Stocks mixed amid sector rotation, looming mega‑cap earnings

28th Jul 2026 22:32

(Sharecast News) - Major indices delivered a mixed performance on Tuesday amid a rotation out of semiconductor stocks into more cyclical and occasionally rate-sensitive sectors as market participants geared up for a heavy week of mega‑cap earnings and a closely watched Federal Reserve decision.

At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 1.03% at 52,747.32, while the S&P 500 advanced 0.21% to 7,428.78, and the Nasdaq Composite saw out the session 0.22% lower at 24,876.91.

The Dow closed 537.24 points higher on Tuesday, extending gains recorded in the previous session.

Tuesday's moves came as traders were looking ahead to quarterly earnings from Amazon, Meta, Microsoft and Apple later in the week, with markets focused on whether hyperscaler spending can keep supporting the chip trade even as some of the tech giants show signs of slowing.

In Tuesday's corporate news, Coca‑Cola topped earnings forecasts and lifted its full-year guidance, helped by stronger demand for lower‑calorie trademark Coke products such as Coke Zero and Diet Coke. Global unit case volume rose 5%, ahead of both the prior quarter's 3% gain and Wall Street's 2.5% expectation, with North America up 3%.

Boeing posted a wider‑than‑expected second‑quarter loss as additional charges on its long‑delayed Air Force One programme weighed on results, with the aircraft manufacturer booking a $280m loss on the project to deliver two next‑generation 747s to the US government, while UPS reported second‑quarter results that came in ahead of market expectations, with revenues rising 7.4% year‑on‑year to $22.8bn, beating analyst estimates of $21.87bn, while adjusted earnings per share were $1.76, around 5.8% above consensus.

Investors were also keeping an eye on moves in oil and bonds, with Brent crude slipping 5.19% to $83.77 a barrel and West Texas Intermediate dropping 4.06% to $79.26 a barrel amid a pause in US-Iran hostilities as Tehran discussed the Strait of Hormuz with Saudi Arabia and Oman, and the yield on the benchmark US 10‑year Treasury note easing almost five basis points to 4.611%.

On the macro front, America's goods trade deficit narrowed in June, while wholesale inventories continued to rise, according to preliminary figures from the Census Bureau, offering a mixed picture of underlying demand and supply‑chain conditions across the US economy. Preliminary figures showed the goods trade gap shrinking to $101.5bn from a 14‑month high of $105.9bn in May. Exports fell 1.8% to $204.7bn, marking a second consecutive monthly decline, with lower shipments of industrial supplies, foods and beverages, and capital goods, while imports dropped more sharply, down 2.6% to $306.2bn, with purchases falling across all major categories including consumer goods, vehicles and non-durables.

Elsewhere, the Census Bureau said wholesale inventories rose 0.3% month‑on‑month in June to $945.9bn, matching May's upwardly revised increase and coming in ahead of expectations. Durable goods stocks climbed 0.7%, while non-durables, on the other hand, slipped 0.4% month-on-month, leaving inventories 4.4% higher year-on-year.

On another note, US house prices edged higher in May, according to the latest seasonally adjusted figures from the Federal Housing Finance Agency. The FHFA's monthly house price index showed a 0.3% rise from April, with prices up 2.2% on the year. The previously reported 0.1% decline for April was left unrevised. Across the nine census divisions, monthly changes ranged from a 0.6% fall in the Pacific region to a 1.4% increase in the East South Central division. Over the year, prices were down 0.3% in the Pacific but up 4.5% in the Middle Atlantic.

Still on data, US consumer confidence dipped in July, according to the Conference Board, with households reporting a weaker view of current business and labour market conditions. The headline index fell 1.4 points to 90.8, down from an upwardly revised 92.2 in June. The present situation index dropped for a third straight month, easing 3.6 points to 114.9, while the expectations index was unchanged at 74.7.

Finally, manufacturing activity in the Richmond Fed's Fifth District was broadly flat in July, with the composite index edging up to 5 from 4 as modest gains in shipments and employment offset a slight dip in new orders. Shipments rose to 8 from 4, employment improved to 2 from ‑1, and new orders eased to 5 from 8, while expectations for future shipments and orders remained firmly positive and the employment outlook was unchanged at 15. Local business conditions strengthened notably, rising to 10 from ‑1, though the forward‑looking index slipped to 19 from 22. Price pressures continued to cool, with the average growth rate of prices paid falling to 6.08% from 6.99%, and prices received easing to 3.96% from 4.57%, with firms expecting further moderation ahead.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com

Dow Jones - Risers

International Business Machines Corporation (CDI) (IBM) $227.55 5.21%

Coca-Cola Co. (KO) $88.27 5.00%

Boeing Co. (BA) $221.56 4.76%

Salesforce.Com Inc. (CRM) $181.50 4.55%

Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $393.10 3.73%

Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $428.79 2.67%

Home Depot Inc. (HD) $344.47 2.49%

3M Co. (MMM) $182.48 2.38%

Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $98.89 2.32%

Nike Inc. (NKE) $43.05 2.16%

Dow Jones - Fallers

Intel Corp. (INTC) $86.30 -6.58%

Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $840.85 -3.71%

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $1,033.34 -1.42%

Chevron Corp. (CVX) $187.58 -1.27%

Dowdupont Inc. (DWDP) $0.00 0.00%

Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) $0.00 0.00%

Walmart Inc. (WMT) $0.00 0.00%

Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) $148.88 0.17%

Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $266.73 0.29%

JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $357.31 0.31%

S&P 500 - Risers

IQVIA Holdings Inc. (IQV) $242.94 13.94%

Charter Communications Inc. (CHTR) $139.97 11.40%

Autodesk Inc. (ADSK) $237.38 10.33%

Expedia Group Inc. (EXPE) $295.79 9.92%

Booking Holdings Inc. (BKNG) $199.31 9.18%

Incyte Corp. (INCY) $129.93 8.58%

Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp. (CTSH) $50.31 8.43%

Sherwin-Williams Co. (SHW) $354.27 8.25%

Hasbro Inc (HAS) $96.34 8.16%

HCA Healthcare Inc (HCA) $418.19 7.33%

S&P 500 - Fallers

Corning Inc. (GLW) $126.01 -12.10%

Seagate Technology Plc (STX) $747.30 -11.76%

Micron Technology Inc. (MU) $820.53 -10.99%

Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (AMD) $454.62 -10.37%

Western Digital Corp. (WDC) $463.51 -9.88%

Applied Materials Inc. (AMAT) $476.46 -8.95%

Lam Research Corp. (LRCX) $269.61 -8.84%

Coterra Energy Inc. (CTRA) $32.56 -8.62%

KLA-Tencor Corp. (KLAC) $190.80 -7.72%

Ipg Photonics Corp. (IPGP) $84.02 -7.65%

Nasdaq 100 - Risers

Workday, Inc. (WDAY) $159.69 11.66%