Intel’s data center and AI business revenue beat market expectations in the third quarter of 2026, while its PC business was hit by rising memory prices. Evercore ISI is positive on AI-driven demand for server CPUs, but lowered its revenue forecasts for the next two years.
Gold failed to gain support from a weaker dollar and falling yields. HSBC believes expectations of a December rate hike may already be largely priced into gold, but another sharp rise in oil prices could push gold below 4000 dollars; silver and platinum-group metals are also being weighed down by market sentiment.
HSBC believes institutional constraints will limit major legislative changes, and that elections will affect US equities more through news events and sector rotation. The bank maintains its year-end target of 8100 points for the S&P 500 Index, while keeping a wary eye on rising oil prices and yields.
AI networking and enterprise campus demand drove Arista’s third-quarter revenue up 58.5% year over year. The company expects total revenue growth of 38%–40% in 2027, but Goldman Sachs flagged a sequential decline in deferred revenue and slower Bookings growth as areas of concern.
Adjusted pretax profit from investment and savings products exceeded market consensus, and net inflows were also well above expectations; term life profit and agent productivity were below expectations.
Excluding gains from assumption changes, Aflac’s third-quarter earnings per share fell short of expectations; a cybersecurity incident weighed on expenses and sales in Japan, while the U.S. business exceeded Morgan Stanley’s forecast.
Nomura believes a federal-level pause in construction is unlikely, but permitting policies in some states could delay projects scheduled to come online in 2028. Higher utilization of existing facilities by tech companies, procurement of already-permitted projects, and supply adjustments by memory manufacturers could cushion the impact.
China’s consumer staples costs are moving in different directions: soybean and palm oil prices, among others, fell month over month, while packaging PET remains high. Goldman Sachs expects raw milk supply and demand to improve, but recent production and import data point in different directions.
Sony’s second-quarter operating profit from continuing operations grew 45% year over year, with gaming engagement and box-office performance driving results above expectations. The company raised its full-year guidance, and Goldman Sachs also increased its earnings forecasts and price target.
Goldman Sachs expects nonfarm employment growth in October to exceed the market consensus and the average of the previous three months, but employment measures in employer surveys have weakened, and a composite labor-market slack measure also indicates that the labor market is weaker than the unemployment rate suggests.
US nonfarm labor productivity grew at an annualized quarter-on-quarter rate of 3.6%, while unit labor costs fell 0.7%; initial jobless claims remained low, while continuing claims rose.
Third-quarter revenue rose 8% year over year, and operating profit turned from a loss to a profit; however, revenue for the first three quarters was still down 6%. Goldman Sachs believes that project delivery and acceptance in the fourth quarter will determine the full-year revenue trend.
Fositek’s third-quarter revenue came in 22% below Goldman Sachs’ expectations, but a higher share of server business drove gross margin above expectations. Goldman Sachs expects the ramp-up of next-generation AI servers to drive further growth in revenue and gross margin in the fourth quarter.
The six preclinical assets were licensed in a deal with a total value of $7 billion, including $358 million in upfront payments. The company remains responsible for development until completion of global Phase I trials, with the first program expected to complete Phase I by the end of 2028.
Morgan Stanley maintains its base case of the S&P 500 Index reaching 8000 points at year-end, but wants further confirmation from sentiment indicators; earnings growth breadth, liquidity and valuation will jointly shape the market’s subsequent trajectory.
Nevada and California rate decisions together add approximately 80 million dollars in annual revenue; the Arizona rate case and Great Basin pipeline project are key to future growth.
Hedge fund long exposure rose from June-end levels of 172% to July-end levels of 259%, but allocations shifted markedly toward industrials, cyclical stocks and small- and mid-cap stocks. Apple became the largest net short, while Amazon became the largest long.
After Brazil’s election, rate-sensitive and small-cap stocks led the declines; meanwhile, the tracked year-over-year growth rate in emerging-market third-quarter earnings per share fell from its level at the start of the earnings season. Goldman Sachs maintains its overweight rating on Brazil but is watching outflows, cabinet appointments and fiscal policy.
S&P 500 third-quarter earnings per share are expected to grow 33% year over year, unchanged from the second quarter; cloud revenue continues to accelerate, but growth in capital spending and AI infrastructure earnings is facing a slowdown.
Intel’s server and PC businesses diverged, with supply constraints and rising inventories coexisting. Evercore ISI believes AI investment can extend the demand cycle, but earnings upgrades can only partly offset valuation contraction.
