Sunday, August 2

Today's Brief

Everything that moved markets today — one 5-minute read.

1Economy

Feds Big Decision on 4 Big Techatrons

The Fed's interest rate decision arrived the same week that Microsoft, Meta, Amazon, and Apple all reported quarterly results — a rare collision of major market-moving events.
Roughly a third of S&P 500 companies were scheduled to report during this single week, marking the peak of the second-quarter earnings season.
Analysts said a hawkish tone from the Fed could offset even strong earnings beats by pressuring the valuations that have supported this year's tech rally.

2Company News

Tesla reported adjusted earnings of 33 cents per share, well short of the 51 cents Wall Street expected, while revenue beat estimates at $28.24 billion versus $25.71 billion expected.
Shares fell about 4% in extended trading following the report.
Capital expenditures soared 142% year-over-year to $5.79 billion, and the company said 2026 capex would top $25 billion as it builds out AI compute, batteries, and semiconductor manufacturing.

3Stocks

Tesla stock is down about 17% so far in 2026, even as the broader Nasdaq has climbed.
The stock has fallen roughly 11% in the past month alone, marking its steepest slump since 2022.
Some analysts argue the "buy the dip" case has weakened given stagnating core fundamentals in the automotive business.

4Company News

Apple and Meta were the two decliners among the six megacap tech companies that reported results this earnings season.
Apple shares tumbled on Friday even as the company reported results, following a week where AI spending scrutiny weighed on sentiment.
Meta's stock had already dropped sharply earlier in the week after investors questioned whether its AI investment strategy was paying off.

5Company News

JPMorgan Chase reported its highest quarterly profit ever, driven partly by a stock-trading haul that blew past analyst estimates.
Equities trading revenue climbed 86% year-over-year to $6.03 billion, pushing total trading revenue to $12.1 billion — a new all-time high.
The bank also booked a $4.6 billion gain from tendering 18.6 million shares tied to a long-held Visa stake dating back nearly 20 years.

6Markets

Microsoft, Amazon, and Alphabet added a combined $1.5 trillion in market value this week after reporting quarterly results.
Microsoft alone gained more than $600 billion in market cap, with Amazon and Alphabet each adding over $400 billion.
Nearly $2 trillion has moved in or out of the six megacap stocks that have reported so far this earnings season.

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