The Russell 2000, which tracks small caps, rallied on Thursday, outpacing large-cap benchmarks as investors piled into interest-rate-sensitive stocks a day after the Federal Reserve cut rates by 25 basis points and signaled more easing ahead.
All three major large-cap indexes hit fresh records: the S&P 500 rose to 6,650, the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed to 46,200, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 jumped 1.3% to 24,550.
Tech stocks led the charge. Intel Corp. (NASDAQ:INTC) skyrocketed 29%—its best single-day gain on record—after Nvidia Corp. (NASDAQ:NVDA) pledged a $5 billion investment to co-develop PC and data center chips.
CrowdStrike Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:CRWD) rallied 10.6% after unveiling long-term AI initiatives and revenue targets, forecasting annual recurring revenue growth above 20% by fiscal 2027.
Sector-wise, technology and industrials outperformed, while consumer staples lagged. Coinbase Global Inc. (NASDAQ:COIN) gained 7% as cryptocurrencies rallied on rate-cut optimism.
Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) rose more than 1% to $118,000, its highest level in a month, while Solana (CRYPTO: SOL) jumped 4.5%, returning to levels last seen in late January 2025.
Small Caps Beat Large Caps
| Major Indices | Price | 1-day %chg |
| Russell 2000 | 2,458.77 | 2.2% |
| Nasdaq 100 | 24,544.27 | 1.3% |
| S&P 500 | 6,647.85 | 0.7% |
| Dow Jones | 46,217.94 | 0.4% |
According to Benzinga Pro data:
- The Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (NYSE:VOO) rose 0.7% to $610.52.
- The SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average (NYSE:DIA) inched 0.5% higher to $463.70.
- The tech-heavy Invesco QQQ Trust Series (NASDAQ:QQQ) rallied 1.3% to $597.50.
- The iShares Russell 2000 ETF (NYSE:IWM) soared 2.3% to $244.27.
- The Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLK) outperformed, up 1.9%; the Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLP) lagged, down 0.7%.
S&P 500’s Top 5 Gainers On Thursday
| Stock Name | % Change |
|---|---|
| Intel Corp. | +28.12% |
| CrowdStrike Holdings | +10.97% |
| Synopsys Inc. (NASDAQ:SNPS) | +10.56% |
| KLA Corp. (NASDAQ:KLAC) | +8.55% |
| Coinbase Global | +8.18% |
S&P 500’s Top 5 Losers On Thursday
| Stock Name | % Change |
|---|---|
| Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) | -8.90% |
| FactSet Research Systems (NYSE:FDS) | -6.48% |
| Nucor Corp. (NYSE:NUE) | -5.10% |
| S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI) | -4.44% |
| MSCI Inc. (NYSE:MSCI) | -2.91% |
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