The S&P 500 closed at an all-time high of 6,501.86 amid investor concern over Nvidia's earnings and doubts about the AI boom. The index has gained about 10% year-to-date despite inflation fears, rising Treasury yields, and geopolitical tensions. The Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO) tracks the index and reflects the advance. Four stocks—Nvidia, Microsoft, Apple, and Alphabet—account for a disproportionate share of the index's gains, creating concentrated market influence. Nvidia carries an 8.1% weighting, climbed 171% in 2024, and reported fiscal Q2 2026 revenue of $46.7 billion, with margins converting over half of sales to net income. Nvidia faced a recent share dip but remained central to the rally.
The S&P 500 etched its name in history yesterday, closing at a new all-time high of 6,501.86, despite investor concern about Nvidia's ( NASDAQ:NVDA ) earnings and doubts about the ongoing AI boom. It's been a rollercoaster year marked by fears of inflation, rising Treasury yields, and geopolitical tensions, yet the index has scaled a "wall of worry," defying skeptics with a 10% gain so far this year.
Nvidia's meteoric rise has been the S&P 500's beating heart, with its 8.1% weighting in the index. The chipmaker's stock soared 171% in 2024, driven by insatiable demand for its GPUs, pivotal for artificial intelligence, machine learning, and data centers. Nvidia's fiscal Q2 2026 revenue surged 56% year-over-year to $46.7 billion, slightly exceeding analyst expectations, while its high margins - converting over half its sales to net income - cemented its status as a cash-flow juggernaut.
As companies like Microsoft and Amazon ( NASDAQ:AMZN ) pour billions into AI infrastructure, Nvidia's chips remain the gold standard, fueling projections of $3 trillion to $4 trillion in AI spending by decade's end. Despite a recent dip after its earnings, (shares are down another 3.6% today) Nvidia's innovation and market dominance keep it a cornerstone of the S&P 500's ascent.
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