The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite closed at all-time highs on Thursday.

The broader index gained 0.58% to 7,563.63, while the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.91% to 26,917.47. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was higher by 0.05% at 50,668.97.

— Sarah Min

Small caps have reached all-time highs, but the technical setup points to further gains from here, according to Wolfe Research.

The Russell 2000 has outperformed the S&P 500 year to date. But unlike their large cap peers, small caps are not yet overbought, and momentum is inflecting positive. That could mean 3,000 is in play for the small cap index. It was last at around 2,930.

"From a pure technical perspective, if we had to own one here, our money is on Small Caps," Wolfe Research's Rob Ginsberg wrote on Wednesday.

— Sarah Min

Memory stocks outperformed Thursday. The Roundhill Memory ETF (DRAM) rallied 3.8%, as of midday trading. U.S. based leaders such as Sandisk were higher by more than 6%.

— Sarah Min

At noon, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite rallied to their highs of the session, up 0.6% and 0.8%, respectively.

— Sarah Min

Apple is on pace for a 10th straight weekly advance for the first time since 2009. Its longest win streak on record goes back to 2004, when the iPhone maker notched 12 straight winning weeks.

Shares of the iPhone maker was last up 0.5% week to date.

— Nick Wells, Tom Rotunno, Sarah Min

If a bull market has to climb a proverbial wall of worry, the current rally is right on track.

The percentage of individual investors who described themselves as bearish toward stocks over the next six months in the latest weekly survey by the American Association of Individual Investors stayed above the historical average for a 16th straight week, at 41.9% vs an average of 31.0%.

The last time bearishness dropped below the historical average was the week of Feb. 4, when only 29.0% of investors were pessimistic.

Conversely, bullish investors, while rising to 35.6% of the total from 31.7% last week, nonetheless stayed below the historical average of 37.5% for a second consecutive week. Investors who described themselves as neutral on stocks — neither bullish nor bearish — dipped to 22.6% from 24.7% in the latest week.

— Scott Schnipper

The S&P 500 had advanced by 0.4% in midday trading, but a peek into the index showed breadth was about evenly split between gainers and decliners. As of the 11 o'clock hour, there were 259 S&P 500 stocks that were in positive territory.

Six out of 11 sectors in the broader index were in positive territory. Health care and information technology were the biggest gainers, each up by more than 1%.

Utilities and consumer staples were the laggards.

— Sarah Min

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite rose to fresh intraday highs on Wednesday, following a report that negotiators have reached a deal to extend the Iran ceasefire.

Stocks reached their highs of the session after Axios reported that U.S. and Iranian negotiators agreed on a 60-day memorandum of understanding to extend the ceasefire and open negotiations on Iran's nuclear program, citing two U.S. officials and a regional source. However, the outlet added that this is still pending President Donald Trump's final approval.

— Lisa Kailai Han, Sarah Min and Nick Wells

The U.S. and Iran have agreed to deal to extend the ceasefire for 60 days and begin negotiations on Iran's nuclear program, according to an Axios report. However, the proposal is awaiting President Donald Trump's approval.

Oil prices initially fell on the news and turned negative on the session, after previously rising following new U.S. strikes in Iran. Western Texas Intermediate crude futures were now flat at about just under $89 per barrel. Before the report, prices were near $91 per barrel.

Stocks also jumped after the report, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq entering positive territory and the Dow flat.

— Davis Giangiulio

St. Louis Federal Reserve President Alberto Musalem expressed doubt Thursday that artificial intelligence will prove disinflationary anytime soon and said policymakers would be better off focusing on the more immediate threat from persistently high prices.

In a speech that counters key arguments from new Fed Chair Kevin Warsh, Musalem also expressed skepticism about comparisons to the 1995 Fed under then-Chair Alan Greenspan. Warsh and some White House officials often have cited Greenspan's decision not to tighten policy and cut off a hot economy, believing that rising productivity would prove disinflationary.

Speaking in Reykjavik, Iceland, Musalem added that he thinks it would be "risky to
rely on the prospect of higher productivity growth in the future to solve our inflation problem today."

"I'm prepared to adjust my position if the evidence becomes clear that higher productivity growth is pushing inflation lower to target," he said. "But for now, I believe a vigilant focus on returning inflation to target will best ensure success in achieving both maximum employment and price stability for the American people."

Warsh, who took office last Friday, has argued that a productivity boom could allow the Fed to lower benchmark interest rates despite inflation currently running well above the central bank's 2% target.

—Jeff Cox

Drone stocks are rallying Thursday after The Wall Street Journal reported that the Trump administration was looking to invest in the industry, citing people familiar with the matter.

Shares of drone-parts maker Unusual Machines, which counts Donald Trump Jr. among its shareholders and advisory board, jumped more than 30%. Also trading higher were Kratos Defense and Security Solutions, which added 12%; AeroVironment, which rose 10%; and the Defiance Drone and Modern Warfare ETF (JEDI), which climbed 5%.

Also Thursday, Oppenheimer analyst Timothy Horan said he was doubling his 2027 estimate for the total size of the drone market to $140 billion from $70 billion, and tripling his long-term estimates after attending two industry conferences.

"We believe that machine-to-machine (M2M) warfare and commercial Physical AI are entering hockey-stick growth," Horan wrote in a note to clients that cites a number of recent events to support this thesis, including strong government support of the technology.

"The holy grail in defense remains swarm technology, which we see as a new geopolitical arms race and critical to defending against hostile autonomous attacks," the analyst said. He also believes there are strong use cases for both first responders and commercial uses such as drone and robotic delivery.

— Christina Cheddar Berk

The S&P 500 opened flat Thursday.

The broader index and the Nasdaq Composite were each little changed. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 264 points, or 0.5%.

— Sarah Min

Crypto is falling on a combination of renewed hostilities in the US-Iran war and some fragile macroeconomic conditions.

Bitcoin Coin Metrics hit $72,625 on Thursday – its lowest level since April 13. 

Ether Coin Metrics dropped to $1,964.50, the lowest mark since March 30. Solana Coin Metrics dropped to its lowest point since April 7 at $79.94.

Amid ongoing talks, Iran launched a missile toward Kuwait on Wednesday night that was intercepted by Kuwaiti defenses, U.S. Central Command said Thursday morning. Centcom described the move as a "ceasefire violation."

Global benchmark Brent crude oil has fallen beneath $100 per barrel, though it's still up more than 35% percent since the war started at the end of February.

– Tobias Burns

Measure of CEO Confidence dropped from 59 to 47 in the second quarter, with large firm leaders having lower optimism on the economy, according to The Conference Board. The board measures the economy based off of surveying U.S. chief executives, who provide perspectives of the present and future business and industry conditions. 

"CEO confidence fell back into negative territory in Q2 2026, reversing the surge in optimism in the first quarter," said Dana Peterson, chief economist at The Conference Board. "CEOs reported that the economy is materially worse now than it was six months ago and expected economic conditions to weaken further over the next six months. Regarding their own industries, CEO assessments about current conditions and expectations in six months deteriorated since last quarter."

The survey showed CEOs see increase in capital spending plans in the next 12 months. Meanwhile, plans of increasing workforce have decreased and not much change in planning to increase wages, according to  Roger W. Ferguson, Jr., vice chairman of the Business Council and chair emeritus of The Conference Board.

"Among top business risks impacting their industries, CEOs became more worried about cyber risks, with nearly two thirds ranking it a top risk in Q2. Geopolitical and AI & new technology risks also remained top concerns. Risks associated with supply chains and energy rose in importance and intensity in Q2," Ferguson added. 

— Ananya Chetia

Despite a beat in quarterly earnings reported Wednesday and some traction with artificial intelligence, growth prospects for Salesforce are a cause for concern on Wall Street as AI pulls the rug out from under the software sector.

Multiple analysts were sounding grim about future revenue streams after the call.

"Most troubling is the lack of upside in the current remaining performance obligation metrics," analyst Keith Weiss at Morgan Stanley wrote in a Thursday note. "Our calculation … suggests a deceleration to mid-single-digit booking growth in the quarter, a trend mimicked in the billings growth trend the company reports."

Tal Llanl at Bank of America called the quarterly performance "largely uninspiring."

"Results do not yet point to meaningful rea-acceleration," wrote in a Thursday note to clients.

Analysts said they liked what they were seeing with some of the company's AI initiatives.

"Agentforce key performance indicators ramped well in Q1," Morgan Stanley's Weiss wrote, maintaining an overweight rating on the stock, which was down in premarket trading on Thursday. "Strong positioning to benefit from the expanded capabilities of GenAI remains unappreciated."

– Tobias Burns

Shares of Snowflake popped Thursday morning after the artificial intelligence data cloud company issued an upbeat outlook.

Shares were last up about 37%.

Snowflake forecast a fiscal second-quarter adjusted operating margin of 12.5% on $1.415 billion to $1.420 billion in product revenue. Analysts polled by StreetAccount sought margin of 11.9% and $1.37 billion in product revenue.

The company also raised its product revenue guidance for the full year, calling for $5.84 billion, up from its earlier call for $5.66 billion. The company also lifted its outlook for adjusted operating margin for the period, calling for 13.5% versus its prior guidance for 12.5%.

The strong guidance is in addition to a solid fourth-quarter beat on the top and bottom lines, with adjusted earnings coming in at 39 cents a share on revenue of $1.39 billion. The LSEG consensus sought 32 cents per share and $1.32 billion in revenue.

—Darla Mercado

Electronics retailer Best Buy was up more than 5% in premarket trading on Thursday following quarterly earnings that showed higher-than-expected profits and sales.

The company reported adjusted earnings-per-share of $1.28 versus $1.23 expected and revenue of $8.94 billion versus $8.83 billion expected.

Biggest sales growth drivers were gaming, computing, mobile phones and services, the company said, while noting a decline in appliance sales. 

Current chief product officer Jason Bonfig is expected to replace current CEO Corie Barry at the end of the third quarter this year as the company prepares for a leadership transition.

Bonfig said in the Thursday earnings release that he's focusing on developing the company's media, advertising and technology segment along with boosting the company's overall reach.

– Tobias Burns

The personal consumption expenditures price index increased a seasonally adjusted 0.4% for the month, putting the 12-month inflation rate at 3.8%, the Commerce Department reported. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones had been looking for respective readings of 0.5% and 3.8%.

Excluding food and energy, core prices rose 0.2% for the month and 3.3% for the year, against estimates of 0.3% and 3.3%.

— Jeff Cox

Kohl's surged more than 9% after the retailer said its comparable store sales — a key metric — fell 1.1% in the first quarter. That's an improvement from the 2.8% slide seen in the previous year.

If that gain holds, it will mark Kohl's' best day since Nov. 25, when it skyrocketed more than 42%.

Read more here.

— Fred Imbert

Caesars Entertainment shares rose less than 2% in premarket trading after the casino operator said it would be bought out by a Tilman Fertitta-owned firm in a $17.6 billion deal.

The deal, which includes about $11.9 billion in assumed debt, had been discussed for some time. The offer price of about $31 per share is a 50% premium to where shares closed prior to the first report of a deal in February.

Fertitta Entertainment already operates the Golden Nugget Hotel and Casinos and this deal would add one of the Las Vegas Strip's most prized casino operators into the fold as well as more than 50 casinos throughout North America.

—Christina Cheddar Berk

Check out the companies making the biggest moves premarket:

Best Buy — The stock was up almost 8% after an earnings and revenue beat for the first quarter. Comparable sales were up 2% year-over-year, with gaming, computing, mobile phones and services leading the way. The company also reaffirmed its full-year guidance.

Dollar Tree — The discount retailer surged more than 11% after the company reported adjusted earnings of $1.74 per share in the first quarter. Analysts polled by FactSet expected earnings of $1.53 per share. Revenue also came in above expectations, as did current quarter and full-year guidance. The company also announced a partnership with DoorDash to bring on-demand delivery from its stores to consumers.

Kohl's — Shares were up almost 11% after the retailer reported a narrower-than-expected loss in the first quarter. Kohl's lost 13 cents per share, compared to analysts polled by FactSet's expectations for a loss of 19 cents. Revenue came in as expected.

Read the full list here.

— Davis Giangiulio

Asia-Pacific markets closed lower Thursday as tensions in the Middle East escalated after fresh U.S. strikes in Iran overnight.

West Texas Intermediate futures for July were 2.22% higher at $90.65 per barrel as of 5:38 a.m. ET. Brent crude futures for July rose 2.12% to $96.29 per barrel.

South Korea's Kospi ended Thursday's session at 0.53% lower at 8,185.29, while the small-cap Kosdaq dropped 2.54% to 1,104.36.

Japan's Nikkei 225 fell 0.47% at 64,693.12, while the Topix declined 0.41% at 3,902.01. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 was 1.43% lower at 8,592.90.

China's CSI 300 gave up early losses to gain 0.12% at 4,914.21, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng dropped 1.27%.

India's Nifty 50 was flat, while the BSE Sensex was down 0.19%.

— Justina Lee, Lee Ying Shan

European shares were broadly lower on Thursday morning, as investors continued to monitor developments in the U.S.-Iran war.

By 4:45 a.m. ET, the pan-European Stoxx 600 was 0.5% lower, with most sectors and major bourses in negative territory.

Read more here.

— Chloe Taylor

Shares of Chinese electric carmaker Nio jumped as much as 10.45% in Hong Kong trading on Thursday after the company officially launched its ES9 SUV a day earlier.

Its U.S.-listed stock closed 9.32% higher overnight, extending gains for 2026.

Nio said the ES9 SUV would start at 390,000 yuan ($57,470) under its battery subscription model, which separates the cost of the vehicle from battery payments made monthly.

The pricing underscores intensifying competition in China's electric vehicle market, despite Beijing's attempts to rein in excessive price wars, commonly referred to in China as involution.

Nio delivered 83,465 cars in the first quarter, nearly twice as many as a year ago, but a 33% drop from the fourth quarter. 

Read the full story here.

— Evelyn Cheng

Shares of LG Energy Solution surged as much as 16.56% Thursday after its U.S. unit secured a deal to supply battery cells for DTE Energy's storage projects in Michigan.

The eight projects will deliver 1.5 gigawatts of battery storage, or 6 gigawatt-hours, allowing electricity to be stored when excess power is generated and distributed to customers as needed, the company's unit, LG Energy Solution Vertech, said in a press release.

The deal is worth $1.6 billion, according to a Yonhap report.

Read the full story here.

—Justina Lee

Asia-Pacific markets opened lower Thursday as investors continue to assess mixed signals from the ongoing Iran-U.S. negotiations amid a fragile ceasefire.

South Korea's Kospi dipped 0.36%, while the small-cap Kosdaq extended early losses, falling 2.61%.

Japan's Nikkei 225 was marginally lower, while the Topix declined 0.23%. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 was 0.79% lower.

China's CSI 300 slipped 0.38%, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng dropped 0.69%.

—Justina Lee

Minneapolis Federal Reserve President Neel Kashkari said that lowering inflation in the U.S. is still his top priority.

"I am focusing heavily on inflation. I'm not ignoring at all the labor market," he told CNBC's Kaori Enjoji at the Bank of Japan-IMES conference overnight Wednesday. "We need to pay attention to both sides, but the labor market is in decent shape right now, while inflation is simply much too high."

Kashkari's comments follow remarks from Fed Governor Lisa Cook, who said on Wednesday that inflation is "clearly moving in the wrong direction."

After five years of above-target inflation, I am particularly attuned to the risk that elevated inflation will become embedded in price- and wage-setting behavior," she said in prepared remarks for a speaking engagement at Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research.

"As such, I am prepared to raise rates, if the expected disinflation does not appear in a timely manner," she said.

The Fed officials comments arrive ahead of a key inflation indicator due Thursday morning, the personal consumption expenditures price index.

Read more here on Kashkari's comments from CNBC's Lim Hui Jie.

—Darla Mercado

These are the stocks moving the most in extended-hours trading:

• Snowflake — The cloud-based data platform soared 37% in extended trading. Snowflake has inked a plan to spend $6 billion on Amazon Web Services over five years.
• Marvell Technology — The semiconductor company slipped more than 1% even after posting a rosy outlook for the current quarter.
• Agilent Technologies — Shares popped almost 8% after the healthcare equipment provider raised its full-year adjusted earnings guidance to between $6 and $6.10 per share, higher than previous estimates of between $5.90 to $6.04 a share.

Read the full list of stocks moving here.

— Lisa Kailai Han

FedEx spin-off FedEx Freight is set to replace EPAM Systems in the S&P 500, effective prior to the opening of trading on Tuesday, June 2. EPAM Systems will then replace Shutterstock in the S&P SmallCap 600 on the same day.

FedEx is spinning FedEx Freight off in a transaction expected to be completed June 1. FedEx Freight will also replace American Airlines Group in the Dow Jones Transportation Average effective prior to the open of trading on Monday, June 1.

FedEx Freight is slated to start trading Monday on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker "FDXF."

Meanwhile, Dave will replace American Woodmark in the S&P SmallCap 600 effective prior to the opening of trading on Monday, June 1. MasterBrand is acquiring American Woodmark in a deal expected to close on May 29.

— Lisa Kailai Han

Wolfe Research analysts found Burger King's Mandalorian kids meal is catching momentum and helping the company's performance. The meal launched on April 28, nearly a month ahead of the Star Wars franchise release date.

"We view this as an incremental tailwind for Burger King within the family occasion, which carries a higher average ticket than other dayparts," the analysts wrote in their Wednesday report.

Wolfe analysts also said that higher gas prices may be weighing on lower income consumers and affecting the cohort's performance at restaurants.

"We suspect higher gas prices may be the real culprit — with prime tax refund season now behind us, the prolonged impact of elevated gas prices appears to be further stretching an already pressured consumer base," the report said.

— Ananya Chetia

Stock futures ticked higher on Wednesday night.

Shortly after 6 p.m. ET, futures tied to the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average added around 0.2%. Nasdaq 100 futures gained 0.3%.

— Lisa Kailai Han