Stock Market Today: S&P 500, Dow Jones Futures Gain as Oil Prices Decline—Intel, Edwards Lifesciences, SAP in Focus

U.S. stock futures were higher on Friday, as the Dow Jones, S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 indices rose, following Thursday’s lower close.

Nasdaq Composite dropped below 25,000 levels on Thursday—as heavy AI spending plans from Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) (NASDAQ:GOOGL) and Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) unnerved investors and Middle East tensions pushed oil above $100. The Roundhill Magnificent Seven ETF (BATS:MAGS), which tracks the seven largest U.S. technology companies, fell 4.63% in its worst session since April 2025. –

However, Brent Crude Futures cooled down on Friday, hovering around the $98 mark as of the publication of this piece. This followed President Donald Trump saying Iranian funds held by the U.S. should be used to pay for any future damage to ships and cargo.

Meanwhile, the 10-year Treasury bond yielded 4.691%, and the two-year bond was at 4.331%. The CME Group’s FedWatch tool’s projections show markets pricing a 70.6% likelihood of the Federal Reserve leaving the current interest rates unchanged during July’s meeting.

The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSE:SPY) and Invesco QQQ Trust ETF (NASDAQ:QQQ), which track the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100, respectively, were higher in premarket on Friday. The SPY was up 0.24% at $739.93, while the QQQ surged by 0.14% to $692.90.

Stocks In Focus

Intel

• Intel Corp. (NASDAQ:INTC) was 3.37% higher in premarket on Friday after it posted its strongest revenue growth in 15 Years at $16.13 billion, beating analyst estimates of $14.42 billion. The company reported second-quarter adjusted earnings of 42 cents per share, doubling estimates of 21 cents per share

• Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that INTC maintains a strong price trend in the long and medium terms but a weak trend in the short term.

Deckers Outdoor

• Deckers Outdoor Corp. (NYSE:DECK) slipped by 3.41% despite posting better-than-expected first-quarter results after Thursday’s closing bell.

• Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that DECK maintains a weak price trend in the short, long, and medium terms, with a strong quality score.

Edwards Lifesciences

• Edwards Lifesciences Corp. (NYSE:EW) advanced by 4.29% after reporting better-than-expected second-quarter financial results and raising its FY26 sales guidance.

• Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that EW maintains a weak price trend in the short and medium terms but a strong trend in the long term, with a solid growth score.

SAP

• SAP SE (NYSE:SAP) jumped 5.88% despite missing analyst estimates on the top and bottom lines. However, its current cloud backlog stood at €22.9 billion, or $26.053 billion.

• Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that SAP maintains a weak price trend in the long, short, and medium terms, with a moderate value score.

Oracle

• Oracle Corp. (NYSE:ORCL) was 2.73% higher following a $7 billion Pentagon deal.

• Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that ORCL maintains a weak price trend in the long, medium, and short term, with a good growth score.

Cues From Last Session

Consumer staples, communication services, and consumer discretionary stocks dragged down the S&P 500 on Thursday as most sectors finished in the red, though industrials and health care managed to buck the trend and close higher.

Insights From Analysts

Brian Rehling, Co-Head of Global Fixed Income and Digital Asset Strategy at Wells Fargo Investment Institute, anticipates that the Federal Reserve will maintain a tight, inflation-focused monetary stance. While expecting the Fed to keep interest rates steady without further hikes this year, Rehling notes that policymakers are “not ready to declare victory.” He emphasizes that if inflation remains stubborn, the Fed could keep policy restrictive for longer.

Regarding economic drivers, Rehling views artificial intelligence investment as a central economic force. He observes that while near-term spending on data centers and equipment may push prices up, technology will eventually enhance corporate productivity. As Rehling explains, “AI may be a little bumpy at first, but it could help the economy run more efficiently down the road.”

Given the macroeconomic backdrop, Rehling favors short-term fixed income assets like Treasuries and money-market funds to earn a steady yield with minimal interest-rate risk, remarking that “sometimes the boring part of the portfolio earns its keep.”

Upcoming Economic Data

Here’s what investors will be keeping an eye on Friday.

• July’s S&P flash U.S. manufacturing and services PMI will be released by 9:45 a.m., and June’s new home sales report will be out by 10:00 a.m. ET.

Commodities, Crypto, And Global Equity Markets

Crude Oil WTI futures were trading lower in the early New York session by 2.23% to hover around $90.13 per barrel.

Gold Spot US Dollar rose 0.03% to hover around $4,050.14 per ounce. The U.S. Dollar Index spot was 0.08% lower at the 101.3600 level.

Meanwhile, Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) was trading 0.33% lower at $65,365.87 per coin over the last 24 hours.

Asian markets closed lower on Friday, as India’s Nifty 50, Australia’s ASX 200, South Korea’s Kospi, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng, China’s CSI 300, and Japan’s Nikkei 225 indices fell. European markets were mostly higher in early trade.

Photo courtesy: Shutterstock