Stock Market Summary – May 14, 2025

The stock market today saw mixed performance. Nvidia experienced a notable surge, climbing into positive territory for the year. It observed more than 4% growth in today’s session, raising its weekly gain to over 15%, marking a 0.7% increase for the year. This rise comes after an announced deal with Saudi Arabia to sell over 18,000 AI chips, which could potentially offset any hit from shipping constraints on goods going to China. Alongside Nvidia, Meta Platforms and Microsoft are in the green for 2025 with a year-to-date performance of 12.7% and 7.2% respectively.

The S&P 500 showed muted activity, with investors monitoring ongoing trade relations with China and significant trade agreements in the Middle East, particularly concerning artificial intelligence infrastructure. The aerospace and defense sectors noted considerable gains, with companies like Boeing and GE Aerospace sealing notable deals with Qatar Airways. Honeywell’s quantum computing company, Quantinuum, also finalized a joint venture with a Qatari firm, which might support its future plans to go public.

Capital One is facing a lawsuit from the New York Attorney General, accusing the bank of misleading customers about interest rates on savings accounts. However, this lawsuit is not expected to impact the upcoming merger with Discover Financial, scheduled for completion on May 18.

Truist suggests investing in dividend-paying regional bank stocks, despite the advantages of larger banks. The SPDR S&P Regional Banking ETF has seen gains for four consecutive weeks, with a 5% increase this week, albeit it is still down nearly 2% year-to-date.

The 2024 Sohn Investment Conference held in New York presented multiple investment opportunities. Alexandra Engler of Arene Capital pitched chemical company Celanese as top pick primed for gains. Kristov Paulus from Kultura Capital Management recommended Robinhood, banking on its growth catalysts. Connie Lee of Felis Advantage suggested nCino, a fintech company that provides cloud-based software for banks and financial institutions. Joseph Talia from VictoryArc Holdings proposed the Tel-Aviv Stock Exchange as a potentially valuable under-the-radar investment.

The performance of industrial stocks Honeywell and Dover has significantly improved since the recent easing of trade tensions between the U.S. and China. The companies anticipate reduced tariff exposure due to the temporary reduction in duty rates. Honeywell expects the net impact of tariffs to remain zero after offsetting the imposed tariffs with price escalations and supply chain modifications. Meanwhile, Dover maintains a beneficial position due to its large manufacturing footprint in North America and domestic sales. The company also plans to re-shore a product line made in China by the year-end.

Microsoft is reducing 3% of its workforce, leading to 6,000 layoffs across various departments and levels. It is the company’s largest round of layoffs since 2023. The layoffs are not performance-related; rather, they aim to decrease managerial levels at Microsoft.

In the fintech sector, Chime, a digital banking firm has initiated the process to go public on the Nasdaq and has clarified that it is a technology company, not a bank. The company reported $518.7 million in revenue with 8.6 million active members in the first quarter. It plans to go public under the ticker symbol “CHYM”. Meanwhile, shares of brokerage platform eToro saw a 30% increase in their Nasdaq debut. The Israel-based company raised nearly $310 million from its IPO, shooting its market cap up to $5.6 billion.

In stocks, Incyte, KKR, and Chipotle all present strong bottoming patterns, indicating potential for higher growth despite recent under-performance. As per CNBC’s Pro contributors, it is an indication of expected broad participation in the market and possible sustainable rallies.

And finally, GE Vernova, the recent addition to Jim Cramer’s Charitable Trust’s portfolio saw an almost 4% rise since its addition. The shares of the company are expected to be bought on a downward price movement, as per Jim Cramer. The club has also got its eye on Capital One’s deal with Discover, expected to close on May 19.