Benzinga examined the prospects for many investors’ favorite stocks over the last week — here’s a look at some of our top stories.
U.S. stocks finished a volatile week lower as an escalating selloff in artificial intelligence and semiconductor shares overshadowed encouraging inflation data. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite posted weekly losses, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average also retreated as investors questioned whether the market’s AI-driven rally had become overextended. Although June inflation came in cooler than expected, easing some concerns about price pressures, it was not enough to offset mounting worries over lofty technology valuations and slowing momentum in the chip sector.
Technology stocks bore the brunt of the selling, with semiconductor shares suffering their steepest weekly decline in more than a year as investors reassessed AI spending expectations and growing competition in the industry. The weakness spread across the broader tech sector, dragging down many of the market’s biggest winners despite continued optimism about long-term artificial intelligence demand.
Despite the market’s weakness, signs of easing inflation helped reinforce expectations that the Federal Reserve may avoid additional near-term tightening, providing some support for risk assets. However, rising oil prices tied to the conflict in Iran and the start of earnings season kept investors cautious heading into the following week.
Benzinga provides daily reports on the stocks most popular with investors. Here are a few of this past week’s most bullish and bearish posts that are worth another look.
The Bulls
"PayPal Stock’s Best Day Ever: +17% On $53B Stripe-Advent Bid," by Piero Cingari, reports that PayPal Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL) posted the largest single-day gain in its history, soaring 17.2% after reports that Stripe and private equity firm Advent International submitted a $53 billion joint takeover proposal valuing the payments company at $60.50 per share, a roughly 28% premium to its prior closing price. Despite the historic rally, PayPal remained well below its 2021 peak valuation.
"UnitedHealth Hits 15-Month High: Congressional Trades That Suddenly Look Brilliant," by Chris Katje, reports that UnitedHealth Group Inc. (NYSE:UNH) climbed to a 15-month high after a strong earnings report and raised full-year guidance, prompting renewed attention to a series of well-timed stock purchases by members of Congress, many of whom bought shares during the stock’s selloff earlier in 2026 and have since seen gains ranging from roughly 8% to more than 60%, fueling fresh debate over congressional stock trading as UnitedHealth continues to recover from regulatory and earnings-related headwinds.
"TSMC’s 68% Sales Surge Validates Lewis Sanders’ $9.5 Billion Bet," by Piero Cingari, reports that Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (NYSE:TSM) posted a 67.9% year-over-year increase in June revenue to a record level, reinforcing billionaire investor Lewis Sanders’ conviction after he built a $9.5 billion position in the world’s largest contract chipmaker, making it the biggest holding in his portfolio. Sanders’ wager reflects confidence in TSMC’s dominant role in the AI semiconductor supply chain.
For additional bullish calls of the past week, check out the following:
CleanSpark Stock Continues To Climb: What’s Happening?
Schmid Stock Surges After The Close: Here’s Why
Why Is jet.ai Stock Soaring on Wednesday?
The Bears
"Netflix Q2 Highlights: Stock Dives On Guidance—What Investors Should Know," by Adam Eckert, reports that Netflix Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX) posted mixed second-quarter results, beating earnings expectations but narrowly missing revenue estimates, while issuing third-quarter guidance that fell short of Wall Street forecasts, sending the stock sharply lower. The streaming giant reported earnings of 80 cents per share on $12.56 billion in revenue, generated $1.5 billion in free cash flow, and said it expects third-quarter revenue of about $12.86 billion with earnings of 82 cents per share, both below analyst expectations.
"IBM’s 25% Drop: Worst Day Ever? Wall Street Says History Points To A Rebound," by Piero Cingari, reports that International Business Machines Corp. (NYSE:IBM) suffered the largest single-day decline in its history, plunging 25% after issuing a surprise preliminary earnings warning, but several Wall Street analysts argued the selloff may have been overdone based on both historical trading patterns and the company’s long-term fundamentals.
"SpaceX, Tesla Are The Biggest Capital Misallocation In History, Analyst Says," by Piero Cingari, reports that hedge fund manager Jim Chanos argued that SpaceX and Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) represent one of the greatest capital misallocations in market history, contending that investors have poured enormous sums into Elon Musk’s companies based on overly optimistic assumptions about long-term growth and profitability. Chanos questioned the economic rationale behind SpaceX’s post-IPO valuation and its increasingly intertwined relationship with Tesla and xAI, warning that enthusiasm for Musk’s broader ecosystem has pushed valuations far beyond fundamentals.
For more bearish takes, be sure to see these posts:
AST SpaceMobile Stock Tumbles on $1 Billion Offering
Penguin Solutions Stock Tumbles On Proposed Private Offering
Squeeze Watch: 10 Stocks Bears Love to Hate Most Right Now
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