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Opening Bell
9:35 am — NVDA +1.9%, AMD +0.4%, MU +4.6%
The Dow retreated Wednesday as a shocking 1.4% jump in April’s producer price index sent Treasury yields to a 10-month high. While wholesale inflation soared 6% annually, the Nasdaq found refuge in a semiconductor rally. Nvidia (NVDA +1.47%), Advanced Micro Devices (AMD 1.19%), and Micron Technology (MU +4.46%) all traded higher following news that Jensen Huang accompanied President Trump to China. This high-stakes diplomacy has reignited hopes for a breakthrough regarding H200 chip exports, even as broader sectors like banking and retail buckle under the weight of energy-driven costs from the ongoing Iran conflict.
- Inflationary Ripple Effect: Economists warn that the massive spike in producer costs–the largest since 2022–will inevitably bleed into consumer prices, complicating the Federal Reserve’s interest rate path regardless of leadership changes.
- Geopolitical Alpha: The presence of the world’s most influential tech CEO on a presidential trip suggests that silicon diplomacy is now a primary driver of market sentiment.
Today’s Take: Crash-Proof Stocks
8:00 am — AMZN +0.17% in pre-market trading
Here’s a sneak preview, but head to the article to reveal the stocks you’d feel comfortable holding through a market crash, or to submit questions to any of the featured analysts today!
By Yasser El-Shimy
Team Rule Breakers
Ideally, all stocks in my well-diversified portfolio should be stocks I am prepared to hold through a crash. But if I were to name one, it would have to be Amazon (AMZN 0.03%). This is a company that nearly touches all different facets of our life: shopping, cloud computing, semiconductors, entertainment, groceries, and even AI (through its stake in Anthropic). Amazon has over the past two decades laid the foundations of sustainable competitive advantages by investing in logistics, warehouses, data centers, and automation. I have held shares of Amazon through thick and for nearly 15 years, and it is the kind of business that I can sleep well at night owning during a market crash.
This Morning’s Breakfast News
7:30 am — WIX -12.36% in pre-market trading
Wix.com (WIX 29.48%) reported a 14% rise in first-quarter revenue year over year (YoY) this morning, to reach $541 million, while bookings grew 15% YoY. Despite a growing threat to the website builder from AI competition, management still expects 2026 to deliver mid-teens percentage growth in bookings and revenue. The company repurchased approximately 30% of its outstanding shares in April, on the back of a weak stock price – which dipped over 10% in an early response to this update.
- “Innovation in the web and app building space has accelerated”: CEO and co-founder Avishai Abraham also told us, “We recently built our own proprietary LLM that is now powering [website editor] Wix Harmony.” Coding platform Base44 is pitched as “a leader in AI-powered innovation,” including superagents and a native AI assistant.
- Anthropic “formally announced the rollout of Claude Design”: Earlier this month, Fool contributing analyst Eric Volkman probed Wix.com’s share price weakness, noting Claude Design’s claimed ability “to create polished visual work like designs, prototypes, slides, one-pagers, and more” is similar to some Wix offerings.
McDonald’s Park Coming to Chicago in 2028
6:45 am — MCD +0.17% in pre-market trading
McDonald’s (MCD +0.63%) is deepening its Chicago roots by securing naming rights for the Chicago Fire’s new $750 million soccer-specific stadium. Scheduled to open in 2028 at “The 78” riverfront development, the 22,000-seat “McDonald’s Park” marks the fast-food giant’s first major professional stadium partnership in the U.S. The deal includes a 20,000-square-foot flagship restaurant open year-round and integrated digital fundraising for the Ronald McDonald House.
- Local Economic Anchor: As Chicago’s largest public company by market cap, McDonald’s is utilizing this 14-year deal to lock in prime real estate and year-round foot traffic within a burgeoning mixed-use district.
- Global Brand Synergy: The partnership aligns with the company’s broader push into international sports, following its sponsorship of the FIFA World Cup 2026, which aims to drive digital app engagement through live event integration.
Today’s Change
(0.63%) $1.72
Current Price
$276.56
Key Data Points
Market Cap
$195B
Day’s Range
$273.25 – $277.40
52wk Range
$271.98 – $341.75
Volume
17K
Avg Vol
3.5M
Gross Margin
57.31%
Dividend Yield
2.64%
ICYMI: Tuesday’s Scoreboard
5:45 am — GLOB +2.02% in pre-market trading
Globant (GLOB 3.81%) was the subject of the latest Scoreboard video.
Walmart Consolidates Tech Under New AI Chief
5:30 am — WMT -0.25% in pre-market trading
Walmart (WMT +1.57%) is cutting or relocating approximately 1,000 corporate roles as it integrates its global technology and product teams. Led by new AI chief Daniel Danker and tech head Suresh Kumar, the restructuring aims to eliminate redundant workflows and centralize staff in Bentonville and Northern California. While the company insists these moves are structural rather than a direct replacement of humans with AI, the shift follows a pattern of streamlining seen at tech giants like Meta (META +0.02%) and Amazon (AMZN 0.03%). The nation’s largest employer is betting that a unified tech platform will significantly lower marginal costs as it scales its digital and advertising businesses.
- Efficiency Multiplier: By merging platforms across Sam’s Club and international units, Walmart aims to accelerate software deployment to better compete with the logistics speed of Target (TGT 0.50%).
- Margin Expansion Play: This consolidation is a tactical move to pivot away from low-margin retail sales toward high-margin services, mirroring the cloud-and-ad success seen at Alphabet (GOOG +0.98%).
Today’s Change
(1.57%) $2.04
Current Price
$132.39
Key Data Points
Market Cap
$1.0T
Day’s Range
$128.80 – $132.50
52wk Range
$91.89 – $134.69
Volume
143K
Avg Vol
20M
Gross Margin
23.41%
Dividend Yield
0.74%
Cerebras Eyes $4.8B in Biggest IPO of 2026
4:15 am
Cerebras is poised to price its initial public offering above its heightened $150 to $160 range this Wednesday as investor appetite reaches a fever pitch. The 30-million-share offering, set to raise $4.8 billion, has reportedly drawn orders exceeding supply by more than 20 times. This debut marks the largest U.S. IPO of 2026, fueled by a dramatic financial turnaround where the company swung from a $484.8 million loss to $87.9 million in net income. As the AI hardware race intensifies, the market is eager to see if this newcomer can chip away at the dominance of Nvidia (NVDA +1.47%).
- Growth Trajectory Ignition: Revenue surged to $510 million in 2025, signaling that Cerebras is successfully converting AI hype into tangible scale against legacy players like Intel (INTC 1.93%).
- Capital War Chest: The multibillion-dollar windfall provides the liquidity needed to challenge the R&D spending of Advanced Micro Devices (AMD 1.19%) in the high-end data center market.
Before the Opening Bell
4:00 am
Stock futures climbed as investors navigated a complex landscape of rising costs and geopolitical strife. Tuesday’s trading ended lower after April’s 3.8% inflation reading reinforced expectations that the Federal Reserve will maintain current interest rates. Markets now eye Wednesday’s wholesale inflation data and the Senate confirmation of Kevin Warsh as Federal Reserve chair.
This article was created using Large Language Models (LLMs) based on The Motley Fool’s insights and investing approach. It has been reviewed by our AI quality control systems. Since LLMs cannot (currently) own stocks, it has no positions in any of the stocks mentioned. Yasser El-Shimy, PhD, MBA has positions in Amazon and Nvidia. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Advanced Micro Devices, Alphabet, Amazon, Globant, Intel, Meta Platforms, Micron Technology, Nvidia, Target, Walmart, and Wix.com. The Motley Fool recommends the following options: long January 2028 $320 calls on McDonald’s and short January 2028 $340 calls on McDonald’s. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
