Major Averages Decline Amid Stalled US-Iran Peace Talks
The major averages were broadly lower amid stalled peace negotiations between the U.S. and Iran as well as new escalation in the Strait of Hormuz. Investors are also balancing continued strength in corporate earnings and AI-driven optimism with rising geopolitical tension and macro uncertainty.The collapse of U.S-Iran peace talks has pushed oil prices higher, raising fresh concerns about inflation and global growth. Of note, Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesperson has said that no meeting between the U.S. and Iran is currently planned.Get caught up quickly on the top news and calls moving stocks with these five Top Five lists.1. STOCK NEWS:Verizonprovided areport for Q1Domino's Pizzareportedand announced an additional $1B share repurchase programShellARC Resourcesfor C$32.80 per shareSun PharmaOrganonfor $14 per share in an all-cash transactionChina has blocked Meta's2. WALL STREET CALLS:Snapto Buy at Rothschild & Co RedburnRothschildPinterestto Neutral from BuyMizuhoAdobeon intensifying competition from AIMizuhoCrowdStrike, citing "numerous exciting growth avenues"Campbell'sto Market Perform at Bernstein3. AROUND THE WEB:Samsungplans to withdraw from China's home appliance and television market this year, Nikkei Asia reportsAmazonhas entered a multiyear licensing deal with Oprah Winfrey, NY Times reportsBig tech companies are preparing to spend hundreds of billions of dollars on AI infrastructure, with most of their plans dependent on ASML, WSJ saysSouth Korea and Googlehave agreed to establish an AI campus in Seoul to strengthen collaboration with local engineers and startups, Reuters reportsBayeris hoping the U.S. Supreme Court can reduce or simplify the lawsuits over its Roundup weedkiller and potentially corral litigation that has cost the company over $10B, Bloomberg says4. MOVERS:Veradermicsgains after announcing its Phase 2/3 trial of VDPHL01 met allRE/MAX Holdingsincreases after announcing it will befor $13.80 per shareNokia (NOK) higher in New York after Argusthe stock to Buy from HoldCompass Therapeuticslower afterfrom its COMPANION-002 studyPoet Technologiesfalls after announcing thepurchase orders5. EARNINGS/GUIDANCE:Lakeland Financial, with CEO David Findlay commenting, "We started 2026 with robust, record net income for the second consecutive quarter"HBT Financial, with EPS and revenue beating consensusRepay Holdingsand reaffirmed its guidance for FY26WWreaffirmed itsand FY26 financial guidanceGold RoyaltyINDEXES:Near midday, the Dow was down 0.25%, or 123.57, to 49,107.14, the Nasdaq was down 0.28%, or 68.97, to 24,767.63, and the S&P 500 was down 0.14%, or 9.68, to 7,155.40.