Market Close Briefing

🔔 AI Stocks Close — Thursday, August 13, 2026 at 2:15 PM

Closes: SPX 7,798.99 (+0.65%) · NDX 30,084.50 (+1.15%) · DJI 53,839.99 (+0.13%)
Day narrative: A flat PPI reading and crude falling two percent gave the bulls clear runway. The S&P 500 touched 7,800 intraday for the first time ever, closed at a new all-time high, and the Nasdaq-100's 1.15% gain confirmed tech was steering the session while rate-hold bets simultaneously lifted defensives.

Sectors: Best Utilities (+1.57%) · Worst Basic Materials (-1.28%)

Movers:
• MDB +7.87% — Post-earnings follow-through from yesterday's 37% surge; Atlas cloud acceleration and a record first-half haul of AI-native customers keeping buyers engaged
• NET +6.22% — Cloudflare's Q2 blowout: revenue +36% YoY to $696M, guidance raised; AI agent traffic crossed 50% of network, flipping the label from "AI casualty" to "AI infrastructure landlord"
• PLTR +4.66% — AI analytics and defense-contract momentum; no single catalyst, just the tide coming in
• ADBE +4.54% — Oversold bounce after two consecutive down sessions; AI-first ARR tripled and Firefly near $300M — the Q2 story hasn't faded
• MU +4.23% — AI data center memory demand driving above-average volume; stock extends its recent run
• SMCI +4.12% — Q4 EPS crushed it at $1.70 adj. vs. $0.96 expected; revenue slightly light but FY2027 guidance of $65–72B obliterates the $52.5B consensus

After-hours / Earnings:
• SMCI $39.18 (+0.05% AH) — Earnings call underway now; FY27 guidance raise ($65–72B vs. $52.5B expected) is the live number; AH reaction may build as call details surface
• Cerebras reported a Q2 revenue miss and is falling in extended trade — a useful counterpoint to today's broader AI enthusiasm

Watchlist:
• MU $949.83 (+4.23%, +0.80% AH)
• NVDA $225.30 (+0.54%, +0.06% AH)
• MSFT $496.88 (+0.90%, -0.08% AH)
• GOOGL $346.34 (+0.82%, +0.03% AH)
• META $594.97 (+2.78%, +0.01% AH)
• AMZN $265.13 (-0.80%, +0.04% AH)
• AAPL $305.26 (+1.00%, -0.09% AH)
• AMD $483.01 (+0.02%, +0.31% AH)
• TSLA $339.96 (+3.80%, -0.12% AH)
• PLTR $179.01 (+4.66%, -0.37% AH)
• ARM $278.65 (+2.49%, +0.36% AH)
• SMCI $39.16 (+4.12%, +0.05% AH)
• ORCL $156.31 (+1.98%, -0.18% AH)
• SOUN $7.48 (+1.08%, -0.80% AH)
• IONQ $44.98 (-0.49%, -0.33% AH)
• BBAI $3.34 (+2.45%, -0.30% AH)
• AVGO $417.82 (+0.43%, +0.16% AH)
• CRM $201.36 (+4.16%, -0.87% AH)
• ADBE $270.49 (+4.54%, -0.44% AH)
• IBM $237.14 (+0.49%, -0.40% AH)
• SNOW $337.38 (+1.54%, -0.05% AH)
• MDB $472.29 (+7.87%, -0.11% AH)
• NET $330.82 (+6.22%, +0.41% AH)
• CRWD $225.50 (+1.68%, +0.17% AH)
• TSM $430.60 (+0.34%, +0.22% AH)
• ASML $1,847.90 (+2.09%, +0.13% AH)

Macro:
• July PPI flat — soft inflation data locks in the Fed-hold narrative for September
• Oil: Brent -2.1% to $87.07, WTI -2.1% to $81.25; energy sector fell on the session
• Strait of Hormuz disruption continues; Maersk raised FY2026 earnings guidance for the second consecutive time, shares +7%; shipping cost risk remains an active geopolitical variable
• Bond yields declined; rate-sensitive sectors caught a bid
Tomorrow: No major watchlist earnings on the Friday Aug. 14 calendar. The real appointment is Aug. 26 when NVDA kicks off three weeks of Tier-1 AI prints — MRVL follows Aug. 27, AVGO on Sept. 2. Watch for weekly consumer sentiment and any Fed speaker commentary. 🚩 Anthropic (not yet public): reportedly in active IPO roadshow mode targeting a September–October listing at ~$965B valuation following June's $65B Series H; Claude Opus 5 launched July 21. 🚩 OpenAI (not yet public): confidential S-1 filed June 9, ~$920B valuation, company signals listing timing is open-ended; GPT-5.6 launched July 24.