The stock market ended a volatile week on a sharply positive note, with a strong rebound across tech names and broad strength propelling the S&P 500 (+2.0%), Nasdaq Composite (+2.2%), and DJIA (+2.5%) higher.

Today's strength saw the DJIA notch fresh record highs, eclipsing and closing above the 50,000 mark for the first time. The S&P 500 reclaimed and closed above its 50-day moving average of 6,884.75. 

Small caps, semiconductors, and high-beta names were among the outperformers in today's rally, with the top-weighted information technology sector (+4.1%) finishing as the best performer across the nine S&P 500 sectors that notched gains.

Chipmaker names rebounded sharply from recent weakness, with the PHLX Semiconductor Index (+5.7%) closing the week with a modest gain following today's strength. Super Micro Computer (SMCI 34.38, +3.53, +11.44%) made back the entirety of yesterday's weakness and then some, while NVIDIA (NVDA 185.41, +13.53, +7.87%) was a mega-cap standout, moving back above its 50-day moving average (183.57). 

Microsoft (MSFT 401.14, +7.47, +1.90%) also garnered some buying interest off of recent lows, and the iShares GS Software ETF (+3.5%) notched a much-needed gain.

While there was certainly a technical element to the tech rebound given the size of this week's pullback, AI infrastructure names received an added tailwind from massive capital expenditure plans outlined by some of the market's largest constituents.

Amazon (AMZN 210.32, -12.37, -5.55%) forecast roughly $200 billion in capital spending for 2026, and while return-on-investment concerns-along with a modest EPS miss-initially weighed on the stock, the scale of the investment is broadly viewed as constructive for the AI ecosystem, particularly across semiconductors and related infrastructure providers. 

Additionally, Alphabet (GOOG 323.10, -8.23, -2.48%) issued a similar forecast of up to $185 billion with its earnings release earlier in the week. While those two names, along with some weakness in Meta Platforms (META 661.46, -8.75, -1.31%), pushed the communication services (-1.5%) and consumer discretionary (-0.7%) sectors lower, strength across the other mega-caps saw the Vanguard Mega Cap Growth ETF (+2.2%) reclaim just under half of this week's losses. 

Strength was not just limited to mega-cap tech, as eight of the nine S&P 500 sectors that closed higher boasted gains wider than 1.0%. 

The industrials sector (+2.8%) was among the top performers, with airline names such as United Airlines (UAL 115.91, +9.82, +9.26%) and Delta Air Lines (DAL 75.30, +5.52, +7.91%) trading sharply higher. 

The financials sector (+1.8%) was supported by a rebound in Robinhood Markets (HOOD 82.82, +10.14, +13.95%) and Coinbase Global (COIN 165.12, +19.00, +13.00%) as Bitcoin prices stabilized and bounced off of recent lows, reclaiming the $70,000 mark. 

The health care sector (+1.8%) finished similarly, with broad strength outweighing Molina Healthcare's (MOH 131.56, -45.28, -25.61%) post-earnings plummet. 

Outside of the S&P 500, the Russell 2000 (+3.6%) and S&P Mid Cap 400 (+3.1%) outperformed amid the resurgence in growth stocks today. 

While improving risk sentiment helped the major averages finish the week on a higher note, it is worth noting that sizable losses earlier in the week left the S&P 500 (-0.1% week-to-date) and Nasdaq Composite (-1.8% week-to-date) with weekly declines. In contrast, the DJIA's (+2.5% week-to-date) push to fresh record highs highlights the ongoing bifurcation between value and growth stocks in early 2026.

Still, today's session underscores how quickly the broader market can advance when mega-cap and technology stocks regain momentum, and suggests they could reassert leadership as investors grow more comfortable with the scale of capital expenditure forecasts coming from mega-cap companies.

U.S. Treasuries had a quiet finish to a week that featured a volatile showing from equities, which contributed to a week of gains in most tenors. The 2-year note yield settled up one basis point to 3.51% (-3 basis points this week), and the 10-year note yield finished unchanged at 4.21% (-3 basis points this week). 

• S&P Mid Cap 400: +8.5% YTD
• Russell 2000: +7.6% YTD
• DJIA: +4.3% YTD
• S&P 500: +1.3% YTD
• Nasdaq Composite: -0.9% YTD

Reviewing today's data:

• February Univ. of Michigan Consumer Sentiment - Prelim 57.3 (Briefing.com consensus 54.3); Prior 56.4
  • The key takeaway from the report is that there was a surge in sentiment among consumers with the largest stock portfolios, whereas it remained at "dismal levels" for consumers without stock holdings. [Note: interviews for this release ended this past Monday, so with steep losses in many tech stocks since then, there is a good chance of a downward revision when the final report is released on February 20, barring a sustained rebound effort.
• Consumer credit increased by $24.0 billion in December (Briefing.com consensus: $8.4 billion) following an upwardly revised $4.7 billion increase (from $4.2 billion) in November.
  • The key takeaway from the report is that there was a healthy expansion in consumer credit in December, driven by solid pickups in both revolving and nonrevolving credit. The December expansion was the biggest since March 2025.