S&P 500 (^GSPC 1.26%) finished almost flat at 6,921.46, the Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC 1.52%) declined 0.44% to 23,480.02 on tech weakness, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDEX: ^DJI) gained 0.55% to 49,266.11 as defense and staples outperformed.
Market movers
Northrop Grumman (NOC +0.56%) advanced on Trump’s $1.5 trillion defense-budget push and a new $94 million U.S. Navy contract. Lockheed Martin (LMT +0.64%) and RTX (RTX 2.16%) also posted gains. Profit-taking weighed on AI-linked chip and software names including Micron (MU 2.99%) and Zscaler (ZS 2.02%).
What this means for investors
Defense stocks rallied today after President Trump called for a $1.5 trillion defense budget in 2027. Last night's social media post said the military spend next year should increase from $1 trillion, boosting investor interest in major contractors. This bolstered the Dow relative to other indexes.
The Nasdaq dropped for the first time this week as a cautious mood weighed on tech stocks. Goldman Sachs (GS 4.52%) warned some of the tailwinds that drove huge growth in recent years are starting to fade. Analysts predict lower returns in 2026.
Alphabet (GOOGL 1.43%) overtook Apple (AAPL 2.01%) in market cap, making it the second-most-valuable company in the world. Nvidia (NVDA 1.45%) and Meta (META 2.41%) both flagged. High fliers Micron and Sandisk (SNDK 4.89%) also pulled back as soaring interest in AI memory chip demand stalled. That said, in the past five days Sandisk and Micron have both gained around 40% and 15% respectively.
