Closing Bell: Tech and M&A Drive Stocks Higher Monday

U.S. stocks were higher on Monday led by technology stock gains. 

The Nasdaq-100 (NDX) rose to a fresh all-time high with a gain of 0.87%. The S&P 500 (SPX) was up 0.66%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average ($DJI) was up 0.18%, and the small-cap Russell 2000 (RUT) rose 0.5%. 

Mag 7 stocks rallied, fueling Monday’s gains, including Tesla (TSLA), up 2.2%; Nvidia (NVDA), up 2.1%; Meta Platforms (META), up 1.9%; and Microsoft (MSFT) with a gain of 1.5%. In the memory chip sector, Seagate (STX) rose 4.4%, and Western Digital (WDC) jumped 6.3%. 

Here are three things to watch from Monday’s market action, as traders and investors prepare for earnings season to begin in earnest next week: 

Treasury Yields Continue to Rise 

As tech stocks rallied, bond yields also rose. The benchmark 10-year Treasury note yield was up over 3 basis points to 5.33% and hit its highest level since 2002. The 30-year rose about 4 basis points and hit 5.7% before pulling back to 5.67%. Multi-year highs in yields reflect trader fear that stubborn inflation may lead the Fed to keep rates higher for longer. Despite this, there is only a 24% probability of a 25-basis-point rate hike at this month’s FOMC meeting, according to the CME FedWatch tool. 

'Don't Pick Up Nickels in Front of a Steamroller:' Warning for Fixed Income Investors 

Three Big Movers: SPCX, PTC, and CHRW 

Shares of SpaceX (SPCX) rose 7.6%, to their highest close since June, on a positive Morgan Stanley report that reiterated an Outperform rating and $300 price target, according to reports. 

Shares of PTC (PTC), an industrial software company, were the biggest gainer in the S&P 500. The stock spiked more than 33% Monday on news that Schneider Electric plans to acquire PTC in a cash-and-stock deal, according to an MT Newswires report. 

C. H. Robinson Worldwide (CHRW), the largest U.S. freight broker, slumped nearly 11%, the biggest decline among SPX stocks, after it announced it will acquire rival RXO. C. H. Robinson is investing in a lower-cost, AI-enabled lean model, according to reports. The combined companies reported gross domestic transportation management revenue last year of $17.4B, or almost 14% of the market, according to Armstrong & Associates and The Wall Street Journal. 

See Mega Cap Highs Mask Cracks Beneath the Surface | Trading 360 

SPX Information Technology EPS Guidance Best Since 2Q2021 

The percentage of companies in the S&P 500 issuing positive third quarter earnings-per-share guidance is the highest it has been since the second quarter of 2021. What’s driving this, ahead of the flood of quarterly reports coming next week, is the S&P Information Technology sector, according to John Butters, senior earnings analyst at FactSet. In a report dated Oct. 5, FactSet notes 116 companies have provided 3Q EPS guidance to Wall Street. Of them, 72, or 62%, have issued positive guidance, and more than half (44) are in IT. The number of companies issuing negative guidance (44) is below the five-year average (62). 

See Hincks: Watch Financial & Energy Stocks into Earnings Season, Brace for Key Headlines 

For this week's economic and earnings calendar, see: Week Ahead: FOMC Minutes Kick Off Final Quarter of 2026 

Also see: Week in Review: 10 Interviews on Markets, Rates, AI, and Volatility

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