Nasdaq, S&P 500 Gain as Stocks Rebound After Losing Week; Safe-Haven Gold Hits Record Ahead of Government Shutdown Deadline

Hard Drive Stocks Are Surging. These Analysts Think the Good Times Can Continue

31 minutes ago

It’s been a good year for investors in data storage stocks. Morgan Stanley analysts say artificial intelligence could make it even better.

The bank’s analysts over the weekend boosted their price targets and forecasts for hard drive makers Western Digital (WDC) and Seagate Technology (STX), anticipating “stronger for longer” demand driven by cloud infrastructure spending and growing data retention needs to support AI.

Western Digital, which Morgan Stanley said remains a “top pick” after recent discussions with management, were up over 9% around $116 in recent trading, on track to close at an all-time high. Shares of Seagate were up about 5% around $227, less than 1% off last week’s record close.

Both stocks have more than doubled in value since the start of the year, propelling them into the ranks of the best-performing stocks in the S&P 500 for 2025.

Morgan Stanley sees further gains ahead, lifting its target for Western Digital to a new Street high of $171 from $99, and Seagate’s to $265 from $168, suggesting upside of 60% and 22% from Friday’s closing levels, respectively.

–Bill McColl

Social Security Is Modernizing. Here’s How The Latest Changes Could Affect Users

1 hr 1 min ago

The Social Security Administration is implementing changes to its service it says will improve efficiency and strengthen the program. Some advocates worry that beneficiaries will be left behind.

The changes prioritize a digital approach, including ending physical benefits checks, redirecting field office staff to help support the agency’s 800 number, enabling digital Social Security number access, and adding a chatbot to answer questions. The Social Security Administration says its changes will make the SSA easier to access, faster to respond, and better prepared to “meet the challenges of tomorrow.”

Advocates, however, worry that the changes will instead make the agency—on which more than 70 million people rely for its benefits each month—inaccessible for those who lack computer skills or reliable internet. Modernization, they argue might not be practical for older beneficiaries who have accessed their benefits and asked questions the same way for years.

Advocates’ concerns are less about the need for or benefits of modernization than the worry that changes will happen too fast for the people who rely on Social Security to keep up. Nonpartisan seniors group The Senior Citizens League, or TSCL, estimates that nearly 22 million seniors live solely off their Social Security benefits.

“Baby steps are needed,” said Shannon Benton, TSCL’s executive director. “Too many seniors are scared right now.”

Read the full article here.

–Jordyn Bradley

Robinhood Paces S&P 500 as CEO Says Company Crossed 4B Event Contracts Threshold

1 hr 46 min ago

Robinhood Markets (HOOD) shares are continuing on their upward trajectory Monday.

The stock was up nearly 9% in early afternoon trading to pace the S&P 500 after after CEO Vlad Tenev wrote in an X post that “Robinhood Prediction Markets just crossed 4 billion event contracts traded all-time, with over 2 billion in Q3 alone.”

Robinhood shares have surged 27% this month and more than 250% this year, even though they were negative for 2025 through early April.

CSX Stock Rises as Rail Transportation Company Replaces CEO

3 hr 19 min ago

CSX (CSX) was one of the top-performing stocks in the S&P 500 and Nasdaq in late-morning trading after the rail transportation company named a new CEO.

The Jacksonville, Fla.-based firm said Steve Angel had replaced Joe Hinrichs, effective yesterday. Angel served as CEO of Praxair from 2007-2018, then became CEO of the combined company with Linde for four years after they merged in 2018, CSX said. Angel, who was named the firm’s Chair in 2022, intends to retire from Linde’s board in January 2026.

Shares advanced 3% but have gained just 9% year-to-date, trailing the S&P’s 13% rise and the Nasdaq’s 17% advance.

Some Student Loan Borrowers Could Face Giant Tax Bill if Govt. Doesn’t Take Action Soon

3 hr 44 min ago

Some federal student loan borrowers could face a surprisingly large 2026 tax bill if they don’t receive their loan forgiveness by the end of this year.

Several months ago, the Department of Education temporarily paused loan forgiveness under all income-driven repayment plans to comply with a court ruling from earlier this year. Borrowers who should have received their forgiveness this year anxiously await its resumption, hoping it will come before they are taxed on it.

Typically, student loan borrowers can get the remainder of their loans discharged after 20 or 25 years of qualifying payments under an income-driven repayment plan. This year, however, many borrowers have not received their forgiveness, although they have already met the required number of payments.

Borrowers are running out of time, because a temporary tax rule created by former President Joe Biden allowing forgiveness to be tax-free is set to end after 2025.

The way the tax rule is currently written, borrowers whose forgiveness is processed in 2026 or later—even if they reached their required payments in 2025—will have to pay taxes on the amount that was forgiven.

Read the full article here.

–Elizabeth Guevara

Electronic Arts Is Going Private in a $55 Billion Deal

4 hr 5 min ago

One of the biggest video-game companies around is going private.

Shares of Electronic Arts (EA) jumped in morning trading after the video game maker agreed to be purchased by a consortium for $55 billion in cash. The company said the buyers, the Saudi Public Investment Fund and private equity firms Silver Lake and Jared Kushner’s Affinity Partners, will pay $210 per share, an 8.6% premium from Friday’s closing price. The transaction is expected to close in the spring. 

Shares of EA had been rising lately following a report last week that the company would be sold, which sent shares up nearly 15% on Friday. The stock was recently up nearly 5% to around $203.

The deal takes another big video-game stock out of the arcade known as the stock market. Microsoft (MSFT) acquired Activision Blizzard in late 2023 after overcoming regulatory hurdles. Take-Two Interactive (TTWO), known for the “Grand Theft Auto” series, remains public; its shares were up a big less than 1% in recent trading.

Read the full article here.

–Bill McColl

Intel Levels to Watch After Stock Surged 20% Last Week

4 hr 23 min ago

Intel (INTC) shares remain in the spotlight after soaring last week amid investor optimism that the embattled chipmaker could secure additional investments.

The stock gained 20% last week and has risen more than 40% since the start of the month, boosted recently by reports that the chipmaker is soliciting investments from Apple (AAPL) and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSM). Intel earlier this month receiving a $5 billion pledge from AI Favorite Nvidia (NVDA), which came not long after the U.S. government announced it had taken a 10% stake in the company.

Analysts say they anticipate new developments on the investment front spurring more gains for the stock in the near term, though cautioned they still have concerns about the company’s fundamentals. Intel shares were down 4% at around $34 in the opening minutes of Monday’s session.

Since breaking out above a multi-month trading range earlier this month, Intel shares have continued to trend sharply higher and closed above the closely watched 200-week moving average last week. 

Importantly, the stock’s recent advance has occurred on above-average trading volume, raising the prospect of follow-through buying.

Meanwhile, the relative strength index confirms bullish price momentum, though the indicator sits in overbought territory near a reading that marked local tops in the stock in January 2020 and December 2023.

Read the full technical analysis piece here.

–Timothy Smith

Why So Many Americans Are Looking for a Side Gig Right Now

5 hr 6 min ago

Household budgets are strained, and many Americans are considering second jobs to keep up.

Prices have been rising for years, pushed higher by inflation. More recently, tariffs are lifting prices even further. To cope, almost two-thirds of currently employed Americans are looking to get a second job in the next year, according to a survey of 2,000 adults conducted by the American Staffing Association.

Parents in particular are more likely to branch out and seek a second job, the survey found. Three-quarters of parents with minor children say they are likely to get a side gig in the next year, compared to 55% of adults without.

“A side hustle can be a good way to build savings, pay off debt, find a new job, or change careers,” said Richard Wahlquist, chief executive officer at the American Staffing Association, in a press release. “For others, a side hustle means having enough money to make ends meet.”

Read the full article here.

–Elizabeth Guevara

Next Fed Meeting: When It Is In October And What To Expect

6 hr 17 min ago

The Federal Reserve’s policy committee meets next on Oct. 28 and 29, and policymakers are widely expected to cut the central bank’s key interest rate to lower borrowing costs and prevent the shaky job market from collapsing.

What To Expect From The October Meeting

Investors expect the Federal Open Market Committee to reduce the fed funds rate by a quarter of a percentage point to a range of 3.75% to 4%, according to the CME Group’s FedWatch tool, which forecasts rate changes based on fed funds futures trading data. That would mark the lowest level for the fed funds rate since December 2022. The Fed cut the key rate in September for the first time since December.

Fed officials have said they’re cutting interest rates to boost the economy and prevent a surge of unemployment. Job growth nearly came to a halt this summer as tariffs have pushed up prices and squeezed consumer budgets.

What Are The Fed’s Major Considerations?

The Fed is tasked by Congress with a “dual mandate” to keep inflation low and employment high using the fed funds rate, which is the interest rate banks charge to borrow money from one another. The fed funds rate affects borrowing costs on short-term loans like credit cards and car loans, and indirectly influences longer-term loans like 30-year mortgages.

When inflation is high, the Fed raises the rate to discourage borrowing and cool down the economy, allowing supply and demand to rebalance. When the job market weakens, the Fed cuts interest rates to encourage business and give a boost to hiring.

Currently, the economy is facing a rare situation where inflation and the job market are worsening at the same time, posing a dilemma for the Fed as to which problem to tackle first. Officials have been split on what approach to take. Some have advocated for further rate cuts in the coming months, while others view inflation as a greater threat and would like to keep rates higher for longer.

Read the full article here.

–Diccon Hyatt

Stock Futures Rise to Begin Week

7 hr 12 min ago

Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average were up 0.4%.

S&P 500 futures were 0.5% higher.

Nasdaq 100 futures rose 0.6%.