S&P 500 adds 1.05% as Microsoft and Amazon reverse a Fed-day loss
S&P 500 week close: 7,489.72 (+1.05%) Nasdaq Friday close: 25,373.85 (+1.00%) Sentiment: mixed
The week on Wall Street
The S&P 500 closed the week to 31 July 2026 at 7,489.72, up 1.05%, with the entire gain arriving on Thursday and Friday as results from the four largest cloud operators reversed a 1.52% Fed-day loss on Wednesday. Microsoft (MSFT.US) rose 21.75% across the week, including a 15.51% Thursday session, after Azure revenue grew 43% and passed $100bn for the fiscal year. The FOMC held at 3.50% to 3.75% on 29 July with three dissents calling for a hike, while WTI crude fell 5.20% to $84.67 and unwound the late-July supply scare that had lifted hike pricing.
The index gain sat on a narrow base. The Nasdaq rose 1.59% to 25,373.85 and the Dow 1.04% to 52,485.03, but the Russell 2000 finished at 2,931.34, up 0.05% for the week and down 0.50% on Friday itself. Seven of the eleven S&P sectors closed the five sessions lower. The VIX ended at 15.99, down 13.94%, after touching 20.66 intraday on Wednesday.
The month behind those numbers was weaker than the week. July finished with the S&P 500 down 0.13% and the Nasdaq down 3.20%. Only the Dow gained, adding 0.32% for a fourth consecutive monthly rise.
Sector scorecard (5-day)
- Best: Consumer Discretionary +6.11%, carried by Amazon's 17.00% week
- Worst: Utilities -4.19%
- Dispersion (best minus worst): 10.30 points
- Communication Services +1.83% and Financials +1.12% were the only other sectors to clear 1%
- Technology ended at -0.30% despite Microsoft's 21.75% gain, held down by semiconductor names: Amkor -23.23%, Sandisk -15.43% and AMD -8.77%
- Real Estate -1.92%, Materials -1.62% and Industrials -1.54% all fell alongside the rise in long-end Treasury yields
Top movers, week ending 31 July 2026
| Ticker | Week | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| BHC.US | +55.5% | Q2 EPS $1.26 against $1.03 expected; FY26 revenue guidance lifted to $10.8bn-$11.0bn |
| MKTX.US | +39.1% | ICE agreed to buy the bond trading venue for about $6bn at $167 a share in cash |
| CBZ.US | +29.2% | Grant Thornton Advisors agreed to acquire CBIZ for about $5.0bn at $55 a share |
| NEOG.US | +28.1% | Q4 revenue $225.3m against $212.5m expected; food safety growth at a three-year high |
| ARXS.US | +28.1% | Q2 revenue $501m, up 25%; FY26 revenue view raised to $1.96bn-$1.98bn |
| RBLX.US | -25.1% | Guided Q3 bookings down 14% to 18% and withdrew full-year guidance |
| PSN.US | -24.7% | Q2 adjusted loss of $0.06 against a $0.76 profit expected, with $118m of charges |
| ALNY.US | -24.4% | Cut FY26 ATTR revenue guidance by $200m to $4.2bn-$4.5bn as Amvuttra demand normalized |
| ALHC.US | -23.6% | Reinvestment plan leaves only about 30% of FY adjusted EBITDA in the second half |
| AMKR.US | -23.2% | Q3 sales guidance came in below estimates despite a Q2 earnings beat |
Friday US session
- S&P 500: 7,489.72 (+0.70%)
- Nasdaq: 25,373.85 (+1.00%)
- Dow: 52,485.03 (+0.53%)
- VIX: 15.99 (-6.44%)
- Russell 2000: 2,931.34 (-0.50%)
Amazon (AMZN.US) reported after Thursday's close and rose 15.32% to $271.58 on cloud and AI revenue strength. Apple (AAPL.US) reported the same evening and fell 7.35% to $308.91 on softer Services revenue and weaker China sales. Alphabet (GOOGL.US) added 6.73% to $356.13, three sessions after a Q2 report showing Google Cloud revenue up 82% to $24.8bn against a 64% forecast. Reddit (RDDT.US) fell 20.99% and Roblox (RBLX.US) fell 26.85%, its worst session on record.
The index still closed higher while the average stock did not. The Russell 2000 fell 0.50% on the same day the Nasdaq rose 1.00%, and the 10-year Treasury yield added 1.76% to 4.745%.
Macro themes that played out
The FOMC held the federal funds rate at 3.50% to 3.75% on 29 July, a fifth consecutive hold, on a 9-3 vote. Beth Hammack, Neel Kashkari and Lorie Logan each dissented in favor of a quarter-point increase. The statement described activity as expanding at a solid pace and flagged elevated uncertainty tied in part to the Middle East conflict. The S&P 500 fell 1.52% that afternoon and the Dow lost 1,153 points, or 2.19%.
The growth data undercut that language. The first estimate of Q2 GDP came in at 1.5% annualized, below expectations. June personal income rose 0.2% and personal spending rose 0.3%, both under forecast and both well down on May. The June PCE deflator eased, helped by lower energy prices.
Crude gave back the July spike. WTI ended at $84.67, down 5.20% from $89.31 a week earlier, after trading near $100 in late July on Iran-related supply fears. Cheaper crude pulls against those three hike dissents, and both landed in the same five sessions.
The long end of the curve rose regardless. The 10-year yield closed at 4.745%, up 6.6 basis points on the week, and the 30-year at 5.275%, up 11.3 basis points and its highest since July 2007. The dollar moved the opposite way, with the dollar index ending at 99.80, down 1.64% and back below 100, on the Fed's stance and suspected Japanese intervention to support the yen. Gold added 0.97% to $4,107.
Capital spending ran through all four of the week's large technology results. Microsoft, Amazon, Alphabet and Meta now guide to a combined $720bn to $745bn of capital projects in 2026. The three that paired that outlay with accelerating cloud revenue rose: Microsoft 21.75%, Amazon 17.00% and Alphabet 11.38%. Meta (META.US) fell 6.47% after reporting a drop in free cash flow. Apple fell 7.24% on Services revenue and China sales rather than on spending plans.
Week ahead, Mon to Fri (ET)
- Mon 3 Aug - ISM Manufacturing PMI and S&P Global Manufacturing PMI, plus June construction spending
- Tue 4 Aug - JOLTS job openings for June; SpaceX files its first quarterly report since listing
- Wed 5 Aug - ADP employment and ISM Services PMI; Eli Lilly (LLY.US) and Walt Disney (DIS.US) both report before the open
- Thu 6 Aug - Weekly initial jobless claims at 8:30am ET
- Fri 7 Aug - July employment report at 8:30am ET, with consensus near 87,500 nonfarm payrolls
More than a quarter of the S&P 500 reports across the week, including AMD (AMD.US), Caterpillar (CAT.US), Palantir (PLTR.US), Merck (MRK.US), McDonald's (MCD.US) and Costco (COST.US). July ended with the S&P 500 down 0.13% and the Nasdaq down 3.20%, and Friday's payrolls print lands with three FOMC members already voting for a hike.
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