Stocks posted solid gains on Wednesday, sending major benchmarks higher by as much as 1.2%. The good news came largely from bullishness regarding the release of the Trump administration's tax proposal, which would reduce the number of individual tax brackets and lower tax rates on corporations. Investors expect those measures to improve corporate profits and potentially spur greater consolidation through mergers and acquisitions. In addition, some company-specific news bolstered stocks, and HubSpot (HUBS 5.83%), Overstock.com (OSTK 4.79%), and Applied Materials (AMAT 0.28%) were among the best performers on the day. Below, we'll look more closely at these stocks to tell you why they did so well.
HubSpot sees a better tomorrow
Shares of HubSpot gained 11% after the provider of promotional market strategies boosted its guidance for the current quarter. The company now believes that revenue will be about $3 million (or just over 3%) higher than previously expected, and that should help HubSpot cut its expected loss by more than half. Stock analysts were equally upbeat about the company's prospects, and many now believe that a healthy environment for small businesses could be particularly valuable in helping HubSpot build up its business even more quickly in the years to come. Given the stock's already impressive move higher, HubSpot will need to follow through in capitalizing on its opportunity to keep investors happy.
Image source: HubSpot.
Overstock climbs on subsidiary's blockchain moves
Overstock.com stock gained 23.5% on optimism about a move from one of its subsidiaries. Overstock's tZERO said that it will enter into a joint venture with partners RenGen and Argon Group to start up a trading system for blockchain-based digital tokens. Overstock has already gained a reputation for being ahead of the curve with respect to cryptocurrencies, and it's unclear whether the company will keep tZERO under its broader corporate umbrella or spin off the business into a separately traded company. With investors excited about the rise of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, Overstock finds itself in the right place at the right time.
Applied Materials rides chip excitement higher
Finally, shares of Applied Materials rose 6%. The entire semiconductor chip sector got a boost from favorable earnings from a key industry player, which boded well not just for that company but for Applied Materials and other peers as well. Investors have been bullish on Applied Materials for a while, arguing that new emphasis areas like organic LEDs stand to supplement existing capacity in memory chips to maximize the company's relevance going forward. Shareholders will have to wait until mid-November to see if Applied Materials' quarterly results stand up to the competition, but today's move shows how optimistic they are overall.
