Retail investors made SK Hynix (SKHY) one of their biggest buys on Friday, according to the latest data from VandaTrack. By Monday, the stock had fallen as much as 9% as South Korea’s KOSPI (^KS11) plunged nearly 9%.
That kind of whiplash is becoming familiar. Retail traders are cashing out of Apple (AAPL), Tesla (TSLA), Nvidia (NVDA), and chip stocks while chasing newer stories. The broader market is not following them lower.
VandaTrack data shows Sandisk (SNDK), Apple, Tesla, and Nvidia among the biggest sources of retail selling last week. Western Digital (WDC), Meta (META), and American Airlines (AAL) also made the list.
The flow pattern looks “more consistent with rotation than outright de-risking,” Vanda wrote Monday. Retail trading activity remains near records, but investors are selling nearly as much as they buy.
The “Magnificent Seven” is no longer one retail position. Microsoft and Nvidia attracted net buying over Vanda’s 10-day window, while Apple and Tesla became sources of cash.
“Retail aren’t buying the Mag 7 anymore,” Vanda wrote. “They’re picking winners.”
But while the retail crowd changes seats, participation across the S&P 500 (^GSPC) continues to expand.
The index’s advance-decline line — a running total that adds the number of advancing stocks and subtracts the number declining each day — reached a record on Friday and pushed higher again on Monday.
That marks a sharp reversal from the breadth divergence flagged this spring, when the S&P 500 was climbing without confirmation from the average stock. The divergence disappeared last week, even as semiconductor stocks continued to lag.
The chip trade is still under pressure, but the PHLX Semiconductor Index (^SOX) has held the key 12,000 area tested during last week’s sell-off. Since the June 25 pivot, the Magnificent Seven tech complex is up about 10%, while the SOX is down roughly 10% — keeping the market’s recent leadership pattern intact and helping to maintain balance at the index level.
That makes earnings season the next test.
Analysts have raised rather than lowered their forecasts heading into the second quarter reports, leaving companies with a higher bar to clear.
In a Monday earnings preview, JPMorgan argued that resilient profits could continue supporting the broader market, writing that “rotation and broadening in leadership is underway” and “will likely have legs.”
The firm added that volatility should not become a prolonged sell-off “especially if [the] earnings backdrop remains resilient.”
Jared Blikre is the global markets and data editor for Yahoo Finance. Follow him on X at @SPYJared or email him at jaredblikre@yahooinc.com.
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