US close: Stocks pare gains but S&P 500, Nasdaq still hit new records

US stocks on Monday finished well below their highs for the day, though the S&P 500 and Nasdaq still managed to eke out new record highs, as the bull run continues ahead of a busy week for corporate earnings.

With no major economic data on tap during the session, and little newsflow regarding tariff-related developments, the focus was firmly on earnings, with blue chip Verizon lifting sentiment after upgrading its full-year guidance.

The Dow finished down just 0.04%, though the S&P 500 rose 0.14% to a new peak of 6,305.60 and the Nasdaq gained 0.38% to a fresh record of 20,974.17.

"A whirlwind of corporate earnings is set to captivate US markets this week, with tech giants like Alphabet, Tesla, and Intel, joined by defence and telecom heavyweights, ready to unveil their financial prowess. Earnings season has gotten off to a strong start, with over 80% of early reports surpassing profit expectations. Investors are banking on this robust trend to fuel the next leg of this market rally," said Matt Britzman, senior equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown.

"The current momentum train has largely been backed by expanding multiples, which tend to be hard to sustain. A strong earnings season would offer a welcome backbone for this unloved bull run."

Nevertheless, investors were still keeping a close eye on tariff newsflow ahead of the 1 August deadline for duties on imports into the US (from countries that do not already have a trade deal in place with the US).

In recent comments, commerce secretary Howard Lutnick reiterated that 1 August was a "hard deadline", saying: "Nothing stops countries from talking to us after 1 August, but they're going to start paying the tariffs on 1 August."

Verizon raises guidance

Verizon Communications was up 4% after the telecoms giant reported stronger-than-expected second-quarter earnings, driven by continued growth in its wireless and broadband businesses, and raised its full-year guidance for 2025.

The firm posted revenue of $34.5bn for the quarter, a 5.2% increase year-on-year and ahead of analyst estimates of $33.5bn. Net income rose to $5bn, translating to earnings per share of $1.18, or $1.22 on an adjusted basis – also above forecasts.

Domino’s Pizza also beat estimates with its second-quarter sales though shares in the fast-food giant finished lower despite earlier gains. Total revenues rose 4.3% in the three months to June end, to $1.15bn, while same-store domestic sales improved 3.4%, ahead of forecasts for a 2.2% rise.

Broker commentary was helping certain stocks higher: Pinterest gained after Morgan Stanley upgraded the stock to 'overweight'; Dollar Tree was being lifted by a ratings change to 'overweight' by Barclays; while Invesco received a boost from TD Cowen to 'buy'.

Dow Jones - Risers

Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $42.49 4.04%
Nike Inc. (NKE) $74.02 2.14%
Home Depot Inc. (HD) $364.04 1.29%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $23.26 0.69%
Walmart Inc. (WMT) $95.67 0.65%
Apple Inc. (AAPL) $212.48 0.62%
Visa Inc. (V) $350.94 0.54%
Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $164.36 0.40%
Coca-Cola Co. (KO) $70.07 0.31%
Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) $11.52 0.26%

Dow Jones - Fallers

American Express Co. (AXP) $302.97 -1.62%
Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $263.24 -1.03%
Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $410.07 -0.88%
Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $79.31 -0.81%
Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $120.84 -0.48%
McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $295.74 -0.45%
International Business Machines Corporation (CDI) (IBM) $284.71 -0.41%
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $706.00 -0.32%
3M Co. (MMM) $152.82 -0.27%
Chevron Corp. (CVX) $149.68 -0.24%

S&P 500 - Risers

Kohls Corp. (KSS) $10.42 8.77%
Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $42.49 4.04%
Hershey Foods Corp. (HSY) $176.75 3.19%
Ross Stores Inc. (ROST) $134.02 3.14%
Tapestry Inc. (TPR) $106.41 2.89%
Newmont Corporation (NEM) $59.86 2.87%
Alphabet Inc. Class C (GOOG) $191.15 2.80%
Advance Auto Parts (AAP) $62.80 2.73%
Alphabet Inc. Class A (GOOGL) $190.10 2.72%
QUALCOMM Inc. (QCOM) $158.97 2.69%

S&P 500 - Fallers

Coterra Energy Inc. (CTRA) $23.09 -5.33%
United Rentals Inc. (URI) $778.02 -3.72%
ONEOK Inc. (OKE) $80.38 -3.51%
Comerica Inc. (CMA) $63.16 -3.31%
Coty Inc. Class A (COTY) $4.77 -3.05%
Williams Companies Inc. (WMB) $57.68 -2.81%
Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. (CMG) $52.46 -2.73%
Revvity, Inc. (RVTY) $90.72 -2.72%
News Corp Class B (NWS) $33.55 -2.64%
Snap On Inc. (SNA) $328.39 -2.47%

Nasdaq 100 - Risers

Qvc Group Inc Series A (QVCGA) $2.93 4.27%
Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. (CHKP) $222.64 3.32%
Ross Stores Inc. (ROST) $134.02 3.14%
Alphabet Inc. Class C (GOOG) $191.15 2.80%
Alphabet Inc. Class A (GOOGL) $190.10 2.72%
QUALCOMM Inc. (QCOM) $158.97 2.69%
T-Mobile Us, Inc. (TMUS) $232.62 2.38%
Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) $153.39 2.19%
Dollar Tree Inc (DLTR) $112.31 1.99%
Netflix Inc. (NFLX) $1,233.27 1.99%

Nasdaq 100 - Fallers

Asml Holdings N.V. (ASML) $719.68 -2.03%
Biogen Inc (BIIB) $122.68 -1.85%
JD.com, Inc. (JD) $33.40 -1.53%
Mercadolibre Inc. (MELI) $2,379.06 -1.43%
Illumina Inc. (ILMN) $94.79 -1.40%
Biomarin Pharmaceutical Inc. (BMRN) $56.56 -1.27%
Kraft Heinz Co. (KHC) $27.48 -1.22%
Starbucks Corp. (SBUX) $92.66 -1.22%
Micron Technology Inc. (MU) $113.23 -1.01%
Texas Instruments Inc (TXN) $214.57 -0.95%