U.S. stocks advanced by midday Friday, with the Nasdaq 100 recovering from losses triggered by concerns regarding OpenAI’s revenue performance. The broader market was also influenced by news that SpaceX acquired a nationwide 800 MHz spectrum portfolio from Grain Management for $8 billion in cash, a deal pending Federal Communications Commission approval. This development reportedly impacted wireless carriers significantly.
Wireless carriers experienced sharp declines following the news. T-Mobile US Inc. fell 12.2%, AT&T Inc. dropped 11.2%, and Verizon Communications Inc. lost 11.1%. Charter Communications Inc. fell 5.9%, and Comcast Corp. dropped 3.0%. Other affected companies included Millicom International Cellular S.A., which slid 6.7%, and AST SpaceMobile Inc., which plunged 14.6%. Conversely, tower infrastructure companies saw gains, with Crown Castle Inc. jumping 13.5%, American Tower Corp. gaining 7.6%, and SBA Communications Corp. rising 6.0%.
In other market movements, the S&P 500 rose about 0.5% to 7,801, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 318 points, or 0.6%, to 51,550. The Nasdaq 100 gained approximately 0.4% to 30,844. The Russell 2000 rose 0.4% to 2,804. Oil prices held steady, with West Texas Intermediate crude trading flat near $91 per barrel, while the 10-year Treasury yield edged up about 2 basis points to 5.26%.
Commodity markets showed strength, with SPDR Gold Shares gaining 1.5% as spot gold futures rose to roughly $4,190 per ounce. The iShares Silver Trust advanced 3.0%. Bitcoin bounced 1.9% over 24 hours to about $82,900. In corporate news, Humana Inc. surged 12.2% after stating that 95% of its Medicare Advantage members will be in plans rated four stars or higher in 2027, up from 20% in 2026. Moderna Inc. rose 9.0% to $216.95 intraday, driven by its return to the Nasdaq-100 and index-fund buying interest.
