Stocks Rise on M&A News; Gold Hits Record Highs

Stocks are trading up near noon following a flurry of M&A news to kick off the holiday-shortened week. Traders are holding onto hopes for a year-end "Santa Claus rally" and anticipating softer monetary policy in the new year. Investors are also positioning ahead of key U.S. economic data releases expected later in the week, including GDP and consumer confidence figures that may influence early-2026 market direction.Gold, silver and other precious metals have climbed to record highs, supported by expectations of further rate cuts and safe-haven demand, a dynamic that has played into commodity-linked equity strength, particularly for mining stocks. Meanwhile, oil prices have rallied as short-term supply risks pick up against the background of mounting tensions between the U.S. and Venezuela and no firm sign of progress on efforts to end Russia's war with Ukraine.Markets this week are operating in a thin-liquidity environment, typical of the end of December, which can amplify price swings and volatility around any fresh news or geopolitical developments.Get caught up quickly on the top news and calls moving stocks with these five Top Five lists.1. STOCK NEWS:Paramount Skydanceamended its $30 per share all-cash offer for Warner Bros. Discovery, for which Larryof $40.4B of the equity financingCintassubmitted a new, $275 per shareUniFirstJanus Hendersonto befor $49 per shareClearwater Analyticsagreed to be-led investor group for $24.55 per share in cashHoneywelllowered its Q4 andas a result of the reclassification of Advanced Materials to discontinued operations2. WALL STREET CALLS:Cumminsupgraded at Raymond James, markingLoopOllie's Bargain Outletto Buy after store tourRaymond JamesSealed Airto Market Perform from Strong BuyBNPLamb Westonon lack of earnings bottomWells FargoArcellxat Overweight on multiple myeloma potential3. AROUND THE WEB:AMD'sChina-compliant AI accelerator is nearing commercial rollout, with Chinese tech companies and cloud-service providers mulling orders,Nvidiahas told Chinese customers it plans to begin shipping its second-most powerful AI chips to China before the mid-February Lunar New Year,Uberand Lyftare partnering with Baiduto test out driverless taxis in the U.K. in 2026,In October, YouTubeTV viewers streamed over 700M hours of podcasts on their living room devices, nearly doubling the amount of time in the same period last year,As part of an investigation into the risk of electric door handles, Bloomberg found at least 15 deaths in a dozen incidents over the last 10 years where the occupants or rescuers were unable to open the doors of a Teslavehicle that had crashed and ignited,4. MOVERS:Velo3Dincreases after entering into anwith the U.S. Department of War's Defense Innovation UnitAdeiagains after entering a long-termwith Disneyand raised its guidance for FY25BlackSkyhigher after Jefferiesof the stock with a Buy ratingStellantisfalls in New York afterCEO Antonio Filosa has warned Brussels failed to deliver a "clear roadmap for growth" in its revised climate policyFastenallower after announcing CEO Danielfrom his role5. EARNINGS/GUIDANCE:Honeywellfor Q4 and FY261933 Industries, with revenue lower year-over-yearEnnis, with CEO Keith Walters commenting, "Our performance for the quarter met our expectations"Sempra Energyfor FY26 and provided guidance for FY25Amen Properties (AMEN), with revenue lower year-over-yearINDEXES:Near midday, the Dow was up 0.48%, or 233.41, to 48,368.30, the Nasdaq was up 0.57%, or 133.33, to 23,440.95, and the S&P 500 was up 0.59%, or 40.00, to 6,874.50.