Dow Surges Nearly 400 Points as Coke Hits Record High; Semiconductor Rout Drags Nasdaq Down Over 1%

U.S. stocks closed mixed on July 28, with the three major indexes taking divergent paths. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rallied roughly 400 points, or nearly 1%, buoyed by strong earnings from consumer blue chips led by Coca-Cola. The Nasdaq Composite tumbled more than 1%, weighed down by a semiconductor rout, while the S&P 500 edged marginally lower. Markets exhibited pronounced sector rotation ahead of the Federal Reserve's policy meeting and earnings from tech giants Microsoft and Meta, as capital migrated from high-valuation technology names into defensive consumer staples.

Semiconductor Sector Slumps Broadly — Micron Down Nearly 9%, Intel Off Nearly 6%

At the close, Micron Technology (MU) plunged 8.85% to $820.53; Intel (INTC) tumbled 5.86% to $86.30 on market-leading volume of 149 million shares; AMD shed 2.68% to $138.68; while Nvidia (NVDA) inched up 0.25% to $197.01 on 132 million shares traded.

On the news front, market sentiment toward AI chip demand is increasingly divided. Google's shares tumbled 7% after the company sharply raised its 2026 capex guidance, triggering investor concerns about valuation pressures across the semiconductor space. Nvidia's credit default swaps (CDS) spiked to an all-time high, reflecting growing unease over the debt risk stemming from the company's large-scale financing guarantees provided to clients such as OpenAI. Meanwhile, TSMC reported that its Kumamoto plant in Japan is gradually resuming operations following an earthquake, with construction projects unaffected.

Consumer Sector Powers Ahead — Coca-Cola Hits All-Time High

At the close, Coca-Cola (KO) surged roughly 7%, hitting an intraday record high; Comcast (CMCSA) advanced 6.10% to $24.19; JetBlue Airways (JBLU) soared 10.50% to $6.00; American Airlines (AAL) rose 2.74% to $15.36; and Pfizer (PFE) gained 2.35% to $25.25.

Coca-Cola reported second-quarter results that beat across the board, raising its full-year guidance for the second time. The company now expects adjusted EPS growth of 9%–10%, with reported revenue of $13.4 billion surpassing consensus estimates. Product innovation emerged as a growth engine: Mr. Pibb, featuring added caffeine, saw sales jump over 20%, helping drive a 5% increase in global unit case volume. Barclays, UBS, Citi, and Bank of America all subsequently raised their price targets, maintaining an upbeat outlook on the stock.

AI-Related Plays Mixed — Miners and Data Center Stocks Extend Losses

At the close, Palantir (PLTR) dropped 6.08% to $123.53; IREN fell 6.50% to $33.93; Terawulf (WULF) lost 4.95% to $17.09; Mara Holdings (MARA) declined 3.31% to $11.38; and SoundHound AI slipped 2.65% to $6.24.

Skepticism over the return on AI capital expenditures continued to weigh on sentiment. Google's 7% plunge following its elevated capex forecast rippled through the AI concept space. Investors turned cautious ahead of earnings from Microsoft and Meta, with market attention squarely focused on the 合理性 of AI infrastructure spending and free cash flow profiles. Microsoft received a reiterated "Outperform" rating from Citizens Securities with a $550 price target, with analysts citing bullish prospects for Azure growth and Copilot adoption.

Big Tech Mixed — Apple Briefly Tops $5 Trillion Market Cap

At the close, Apple (AAPL) added 0.94% to $340.08, reaching an intraday high of $342.89, which briefly pushed its market capitalization past the $5 trillion mark — becoming only the second company after Nvidia to hit that milestone. Microsoft (MSFT) rose 0.63% to $428.29; Meta (META) gained 1.23% to $562.45; Netflix (NFLX) climbed 2.83% to $72.39; while Tesla (TSLA) slipped 0.58% to $307.44.

Apple is scheduled to report fiscal third-quarter results on July 30, with Wall Street projecting EPS of $1.89 on revenue of $108.58 billion. The company's steady subscription revenue and relatively restrained AI spending strategy have continued to attract safe-haven inflows. Microsoft, Meta, and Starbucks are set to report after Wednesday's close, with options markets pricing in a potential market-cap swing of roughly $189 billion for Microsoft post-earnings. Consensus estimates call for Meta to deliver second-quarter revenue of $60.22 billion and EPS of $7.14, with attention centered on AI-driven advertising performance and capex guidance.

EV Sector Diverges — Lucid Surges Over 21%

At the close, Lucid Group (LCID) skyrocketed 21.54% to $7.90 on 39.38 million shares traded, emerging as the standout performer among EV stocks on the day. Ford Motor (F) edged up 1.91% to $14.96. In the options market, large put option activity in Tesla drew attention from some investors. Plug Power (PLUG) dropped 4.85% to $1.96.

In other notable movers, solar stock SunPower (SPWR) collapsed 40% to $0.29; T1 Energy (TE) tumbled 15.31% to $4.15; Snap (SNAP) rallied 5.53% to $4.77; and the Nvidia-linked SpaceX concept fund SPCX rose 2.63% to $116.49.

Top 10 by Trading Volume

Intel (INTC): $86.30, down 5.86%, 149M shares, ~$12.9B
Nvidia (NVDA): $197.01, up 0.25%, 132M shares, ~$26.0B
Nokia (NOK): $8.93, down 3.30%, 108M shares, ~$960M
American Airlines (AAL): $15.36, up 2.74%, 86.21M shares, ~$1.32B
JetBlue Airways (JBLU): $6.00, up 10.50%, 85.9M shares, ~$520M
Plug Power (PLUG): $1.96, down 4.85%, 82.26M shares, ~$160M
SoFi Technologies (SOFI): $16.74, down 0.83%, 81.43M shares, ~$1.36B
SPCX: $116.49, up 2.63%, 80.99M shares, ~$9.44B
Ford Motor (F): $14.96, up 1.91%, 71.59M shares, ~$1.07B
Mara Holdings (MARA): $11.38, down 3.31%, 61.9M shares, ~$700M