Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) during Pershing Square Capital Management LP’s initial public offering (IPO) in New York, US, on Wednesday, April 29, 2026.
Michael Nagle | Bloomberg | Getty Images
The S&P 500 was relatively unchanged on Thursday, though it was still headed for its best monthly performance in more than five years, as traders parsed through the latest batch of corporate earnings, while oil prices declined slightly.
The broad market index gained 0.1%, while the Nasdaq Composite fell 0.3%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 414 points, or 0.8%.
Thursday marks the final trading day of April, a month that has seen a surge for tech names. The S&P 500 has risen more than 9% month to date, putting the index on pace for its best month since November 2020. The Nasdaq is heading for a 14% jump, tracking for its best month since April 2020. The Dow is set to end April with a more than 6% gain — its strongest monthly performance since November 2024.
Caterpillar shares popped 9% on Thursday after the company better-than-expected quarterly figures, boosting the Dow.
To be sure, Meta Platforms and Microsoft lost 8% and 2%, respectively, weighing on the S&P 500 and Nasdaq. Meta shares were weighed by the company’s latest capital expenditures guidance, while user growth disappointed. Microsoft pulled after it said spending will reach $190 billion due to high memory costs.
Oil prices reversed course Thursday, with Brent crude futures losing 3% to trade above $114 a barrel and West Texas Intermediate futures falling 2% to trade above $104. Crude prices rose Wednesday as overseas tensions remained high between the U.S. and Iran. The Wall Street Journal, citing U.S. officials, reported that President Donald Trump told his aides to prepare for an extended blockade of Iran.
Wall Street is coming off a mixed session following the Federal Reserve voting to hold interest rates steady in the range of 3.5% to 3.75%, as investors had largely expected, although the 8-4 vote marked the first time four Fed officials have dissented since 1992.
Sonu Varghese, global macro strategist with Carson Group, believes that more obstacles are appearing in the path to cut rates.
“The Fed held rates unchanged and we expect that to continue for the rest of this year. Several FOMC members are clearly uncomfortable with rising inflation and want to signal that the next move may not be a cut,” he said in a Wednesday email. “With Powell choosing to stay on as a Fed governor, those in favor of cuts, including incoming Chair Kevin Warsh, are in the minority. Warsh is going to have a hard time convincing a majority to cut rates.”
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