Wall Street ended a choppy Tuesday session with a decisive upward push in after-hours trading, triggered by a wave of quarterly earnings that split the market. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed up more than 500 points during regular hours, a move heavily anchored by 3M Company. The industrial giant, which holds a 2% weight in the Dow, rallied nearly 5% after posting strong numbers and raising its profit outlook. While the S&P 500 hovered just 0.3% in the green and the Nasdaq finished flat, the post-market action told a very different story.
The real volatility hit when SpaceX released its Q1 2027 results. The company didn't just meet expectations; it crushed them on revenue, profit, and forward guidance. But the biggest bombshell dropped during the earnings call: Elon Musk revealed that both SpaceX and Tesla boards have formed special committees to explore a merger. The news sent SpaceX stock soaring 8% in extended trading. With a 2.82% weight in the Nasdaq 100 post-rebalancing, this single move is acting as a rocket fuel for Nasdaq futures, which are currently up over 200 points.
Super Micro added to the tech-positive momentum. The controversial hardware maker released preliminary figures projecting revenue between $18.5 billion and $19.5 billion, a massive deviation from the street's average estimate of just $15 billion. Margin guidance also came in higher than anticipated. The stock jumped 15% in after-hours, further boosting sentiment around AI infrastructure plays.
Netflix, however, provided the counterweight. The streaming giant reported its third consecutive quarter of slowing revenue growth and guided for a fourth, blaming the ad business for a shortfall of $300 million against internal targets. That miss dragged the stock down 7% in extended trading, a sharp reversal from its recent highs. It’s a stark reminder that even market leaders can stumble when growth narratives shift from 'hyper-growth' to 'steady state.'
Amid the earnings flurry, oil prices took a backseat but remain a wildcard. Brent crude touched an intraday high of $112 a barrel before settling at $109. Bloomberg reported that claims of a near-diplomatic solution between the US and Iran are inaccurate, keeping geopolitical risk premiums in play. Kpler data shows over 18 vessels attacked in the Persian Gulf in two weeks, with trend-following traders now 100% 'maximum long' on both Brent and WTI. A sharp unwind is possible if bearish geopolitical news breaks. Investors should watch the after-bell releases from Meta, Texas Instruments, IBM, and Tesla for the next major catalysts.