Major Averages Slightly Lower as Investors Track Middle East Tensions
Written by Emily J. Thompson, Senior Investment Analyst
Updated: Apr 21 2026
0mins
The major averages are marginally lower near noon as investors continue to track Middle East tensions ahead of a ceasefire deadline. Sentiment has been supported by hopes around potential Iran-related talks despite uncertainty over the conflict's next phase. Meanwhile, oil was higher once again, though the price remains below $100 per barrel.Get caught up quickly on the top news and calls moving stocks with these five Top Five lists.1. STOCK NEWS:Applesaid that John Ternus willof the company, with Tim Cook transitioning to executive chairmanAmazonannounced an additionalUnitedHealthprovided areport for Q1GE Aerospacereportedand reiterated its FY26 guidance3Mreportedand reiterated its FY26 outlook2. WALL STREET CALLS:HSBCIntelto Buy on server CPU shipment growthKeyBancCrowdStriketo Overweight on AI tailwindsExxon Mobilto Peer Perform at Wolfe ResearchGraphic Packagingto Underperform at Raymond JamesNorthcoastCava Groupat Sell on "lofty' valuation3. AROUND THE WEB:Magnum Ice Cream'sshort interest in Europe has increased to 19% of shares available for trading, Bloomberg reportsMatch GroupCEO Spencer Rascoff's "primary focus" is winning over women, hoping this will arrest years of falling numbers and turn around Tinder's trajectory, FT saysA U.S. jury has found Uberliable for a sexual assault by a driver in 2019, handing Uber a second consecutive defeat in its first trials of more than 3,000 pending lawsuits, NY Times saysSalesforceCEO Marc Benioff dismissed the idea of vibe coded CRM replacing SaaS companies, saying data security and compliance make Salesforce indispensable, WSJ reportsDozens of allegations of customer financial fraud by former employees of Gibraltar Life Insurance, a Prudential Groupsubsidiary, have surfaced, Nikkei Asia reports4. MOVERS:Velo3Dhigher after announcing it willas an official sponsor and additive manufacturing technology provider for two 2026 IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge eventsVaalco Energyincreases after providingfrom its Gabon drilling program and well results from its Etame 14H wellLucidgains after Uberin the companyHycroft Miningfalls after engaging with an engineering firm toAXT Inc. (AXTI) lower after announcing an5. EARNINGS/GUIDANCE:Genuine Partsand reaffirmed its guidance for FY26RTX, with CEO Chris Calio commenting, "RTX delivered a very strong start to 2026"Quest Diagnosticsand raised its guidance for FY26D.R. Hortonand narrowed its guidance for FY26, with CEO David Auld commenting, "The D.R. Horton team delivered a solid second quarter"Synchrony, with EPS beating consensusINDEXES:Near midday, the Dow was down 0.18%, or 86.83, to 49,355.73, the Nasdaq was down 0.18%, or 42.93, to 24,361.47, and the S&P 500 was down 0.27%, or 18.95, to 7,090.19.
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Analyst Views on INTC
Wall Street analysts forecast INTC stock price to fall
29 Analyst Rating
5 Buy
19 Hold
5 Sell
Hold
Current: 122.200
Low
20.00
Averages
39.30
High
52.00
Current: 122.200
Low
20.00
Averages
39.30
High
52.00
About INTC
Intel Corporation is a global designer and manufacturer of semiconductor products. The Company's segments include Intel Products, Intel Foundry, and All Other. Its Intel Products comprise Client Computing Group (CCG) and Data Center and AI (DCAI). CCG delivers platforms and processors that power PCs and edge devices, enabling enhanced performance, connectivity and user experience for consumer and commercial markets with capabilities that also support retail, industrial robotics and AI ecosystems at the edge. DCAI delivers workload-optimized solutions based upon its x86 architecture for data centers, including CPUs, AI accelerators, NICs, IPUs and custom ASICs, enabling performance and scalability for cloud, enterprise, telecommunication and HPC environments. The Intel Foundry segment comprises technology development, manufacturing and foundry services, developing new semiconductor process technologies and advanced packaging technologies. All Other segments include Mobileye and Other.
About the author
Emily J. Thompson
Emily J. Thompson, a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) with 12 years in investment research, graduated with honors from the Wharton School. Specializing in industrial and technology stocks, she provides in-depth analysis for Intellectia’s earnings and market brief reports.
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- Investor Backing: The funding round was led by General Atlantic, with support from Intel's venture arm, indicating significant trust and interest from major tech companies in SambaNova's future development.
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- Partnerships: JPMorgan Chase has selected SambaNova as its inference infrastructure partner, deploying its SN40 and SN50 systems to enable secure on-premises AI inference, further validating SambaNova's significance in the industry.
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- Market Positioning: Focused on inference chips and on-premise AI deployments, SambaNova's latest SN50 chip can be deployed in data centers, contrasting sharply with Nvidia's GPU architecture, aiming to meet enterprise demands for fast and cost-effective AI model execution.
- Corporate Collaboration: JPMorgan Chase announced it will deploy SambaNova's systems for on-prem inference to meet its enterprise AI workload needs, a move that not only enhances AI security but also accelerates response times, thereby boosting corporate competitiveness.
- Industry Outlook: The successful financing of SambaNova reflects the strong demand for AI infrastructure in the booming semiconductor industry, particularly in the inference chip sector, which is expected to drive further investment and innovation among startups.
See More
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- Massive Funding Round: SambaNova Systems has raised $1 billion in its latest funding round, bringing its valuation to $11 billion, with General Atlantic leading the investment, indicating strong investor confidence in the AI chip market.
- Strategic Partnerships: Earlier this year, SambaNova secured over $350 million in funding and announced a partnership with Intel, further solidifying its position in the AI inference chip sector.
- Clear Market Positioning: The SN50 chip from SambaNova is designed for data centers to efficiently run large AI models, focusing on on-premise deployments that offer faster and more secure AI solutions, addressing enterprises' data security needs.
- Optimistic Industry Outlook: The successful funding round reflects the growing demand for AI chips in the booming semiconductor industry, particularly as enterprise AI workloads continue to increase.
See More
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- Market Pullback: Following a red-hot rally in the semiconductor sector, investors are booking profits, with Intel's stock dropping 9.7% on Tuesday, marking the largest decline in the S&P 500 index, indicating a shift in market sentiment.
- Strong Samsung Results but Stock Decline: Despite Samsung Electronics reporting a staggering 19-fold increase in expected second-quarter operating profit to 89.4 trillion won ($58.44 billion) and a 129% revenue increase to 171 trillion won, its shares fell nearly 7% in Seoul, impacting SK Hynix and the broader Kospi index.
- Broad Chip Stock Decline: In the U.S., Intel and AMD saw their stocks drop 9.7% and 6.5%, respectively, while Western Digital and SanDisk each fell over 7%, reflecting investor concerns over the AI trade losing momentum and potential broader downturns in the market.
- Analyst Insights: Despite the pullback, Daniel Newman, CEO of Futurum Group, asserts that the AI trade remains intact with demand significantly outpacing supply, suggesting that profit-taking after parabolic moves is a healthy market behavior.
See More
Semiconductor Stocks Retreat as Investors Take Profits
- Intel Stock Plunge: Intel's stock dropped 9.7% on Tuesday, marking its steepest decline in a month and making it the biggest loser in the S&P 500, indicating that investors are booking profits after a strong rally in the semiconductor sector, which may impact the company's short-term stock performance.
- Samsung's Strong Earnings but Stock Decline: Despite Samsung Electronics reporting a staggering 19-fold increase in expected second-quarter operating profit to 89.4 trillion won ($58.44 billion) and a 129% revenue increase to 171 trillion won, its shares fell nearly 7%, reflecting market concerns over elevated valuations.
- Broad Chip Stock Retreat: In the U.S. market, AMD shares fell 6.5%, while Western Digital and SanDisk dropped over 7% each, and Micron declined 4.7%, suggesting that investor confidence in the AI trade is waning, potentially signaling a broader market pullback.
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See More
