Stock Market Summary – May 22, 2025

Billionaire investor Ray Dalio warned about the risks of the government bond market due to rising U.S. debt and deficits, pushing the national debt past $36 trillion. Despite concerns, House members approved legislation potentially increasing the national debt with lower taxes and extra military spending. Amid fiscal tension, the 30-year Treasury yield traded at levels not observed since 2023, around 5.14%.

The Trump administration acted to prevent Harvard University from enrolling and retaining international students, citing anti-American, pro-terrorist activity at the campus. As a response, Harvard has called the action “unlawful” and has committed to supporting their international students and scholars. A federal judge has issued an injunction against President Donald Trump and DHS Secretary Kristi Noem from terminating the legal status of current international students.

Jim Cramer’s stock market recommendations include watching President Donald Trump’s tax bill, monitoring the performance of Solar stocks due to lack of tax credits, considering downsizing in Walmart, and attention to Marvell’s potential loss of shares to Broadcom. Other observations included Urban Outfitters showing strong results, Citi lowering its price target on Target, and the investing potential in off-price retailer TJX.

OpenAI’s acquisition of Jony Ive’s AI devices startup io for $6.4 billion may be indicative of a new tech trend. Meanwhile, Nike is resuming direct sales of its products to Amazon in the U.S., and raising prices on various goods. Hinge Health’s opening share price was $39.25 in their IPO on the NYSE after selling 8.52 million shares, raising about $273 million.

U.S. mergers and acquisitions could rebound, following a turbulent period due to the Trump administration’s tariff policies, with the total value of U.S. deals jumping to more than $227 billion in March 2024. Investor Josh Brown suggests that the bond market sell-off may help address some of the stock market’s excesses, with a sharp rise in U.S. Treasury yields expected to impact only the most speculative areas.

Shares of Advance Auto Parts saw significant gains, climbing 55% after a better-than-expected Q3 report. Urban Outfitters also gained 22% after a strong Q1 earnings report. The biggest midday losers were solar stocks, including Sunrun, SolarEdge, and Enphase, who suffered following the passing of the House Republican tax bill which imposes harsher regulations on green energy work.

House Republicans have advanced a multi-trillion-dollar tax and spending bill which could extend Donald Trump’s 2017 tax cuts and overhaul student borrowing, health savings accounts, and car ownership. The legislation may allow higher deductions for state and local taxes, expand child tax credits, provide additional deductions for older adults, establish new accounts for children’s savings funded by the federal government, and create a tax deduction for car owners who pay interest on an auto loan – for the years 2025 to 2028.

Snowflake saw shares jump 12% after reporting better-than-expected Q1 2026 results, with revenue reaching $1.04 billion – marking the first time the company has recorded over $1 billion in sales in a quarter. The recent additions of artificial intelligence services into its data analytics platform have reportedly led to an increase in its customer base, which now stands at 11,000.