Look, we all know the stock market can be about as predictable as your friend who says they’ll “definitely be there in 10 minutes” and shows up an hour later. But this week? Some stocks actually decided to behave like the grown-ups in the room.
The Fed finally did what everyone saw coming from a mile away – they cut rates by 0.25%. Cue the collective “finally!” from investors everywhere. Small caps led the charge with the Russell 2000 jumping 2.5%, which makes sense because small companies love cheap money like college students love free pizza.
The Nasdaq climbed 1.9%, the S&P 500 and Dow each gained about 1%. Not exactly fireworks, but hey, green is green, right?
The Week’s Biggest Winners (And Why They Won)
89Bio (NASDAQ: ETNB) – Up 85%
This biotech company hit the jackpot when Swiss pharma giant Roche decided to buy them for $3.5 billion at $14.50 per share. That’s what we call a “nice problem to have.” 89Bio focuses on liver and heart-related diseases, which apparently Roche found very attractive. Sometimes it really is that simple – big company wants what you have, stock goes boom.
New Fortress Energy (NASDAQ: NFE) – Up 81%
This natural gas company struck gold (or should we say gas?) with a long-term deal to supply Puerto Rico. At $2.34 per share, it’s technically a penny stock, but one that just had a very good week. Energy infrastructure deals can be massive, and this one clearly got investors excited about steady, long-term revenue.
Oklo (NYSE: OKLO) – Up 58%
Nuclear power is having a moment, and Oklo makes small modular reactors (think nuclear power, but in bite-sized pieces). The stock jumped 24% on Friday alone after the US and UK announced they’re teaming up to fast-track nuclear energy development. Other nuclear stocks joined the party too – NuScale Power gained 26% for the week. Apparently, clean energy that doesn’t depend on the weather is back in style.
Intel (NASDAQ: INTC) – Up 24%
Poor Intel has been having a rough time lately, but this week brought some much-needed good news. Nvidia – yes, that Nvidia – decided to invest $5 billion in Intel and partner up on data center and PC products. It’s like the cool kid in school suddenly wanting to be your lab partner. This comes after the US government also threw Intel a $8.9 billion lifeline recently. Sometimes you need friends in high places.
The Bigger Picture
What’s interesting is how diverse these winners are – biotech, energy, nuclear, and semiconductors. No single theme dominated, which suggests the market is feeling pretty optimistic across different sectors.
The rate cut is just the beginning. Small caps and growth stocks typically do well when borrowing gets cheaper, so keep an eye on those sectors. But remember, past performance doesn’t guarantee future results – that’s not just legal boilerplate, it’s actually true.
The market’s up about 13% this year on the S&P 500, which isn’t too shabby. Sometimes the best investment strategy is simply not panicking when everyone else is.