McDonald’s Earnings Put Consumer Trends in Focus 07/05/2026

 HOT stories for today

Market wrap:

• U.S. stocks extended their record run Wednesday as hopes for a potential U.S.-Iran deal lifted risk sentiment and cooled oil prices. The S&P 500 rose 1.5%, while the Nasdaq Composite jumped 2%, with both indexes notching fresh intraday and closing highs. The Dow Jones Industrial Average surged 612.34 points, or 1.2%. The rally followed an Axios report that the U.S. and Iran are nearing a framework deal to end the war and open the door to more detailed nuclear talks. Gains faded from session highs after President Donald Trump said no agreement had been finalized and warned that military strikes could resume at a higher intensity if Iran rejects the proposal.Iran’s foreign ministry told CNBC it is reviewing the U.S. plan. 
• After the bell, DoorDash jumped 10% after issuing upbeat second-quarter order guidance, while Fortinet climbed 16% after raising its full-year billings outlook. The momentum carried into Asia, where Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose more than 5% Thursday and topped 62,000 for the first time as regional markets rallied despite lingering Middle East tensions. Investors now turn to a busy Thursday slate. McDonald’s, Shake Shack, Shell, Planet Fitness, Tapestry, Datadog, Peloton, Tripadvisor, Papa John’s, Unity Software and Valvoline are due to report before the open. On the data front, traders will watch construction spending, consumer credit, weekly jobless claims, and preliminary first-quarter readings on productivity and unit labor costs.

Dow’s Old-Economy AI Trade Takes Off

• The Dow Jones Industrial Average exited correction territory Wednesday, highlighting how the AI boom is spreading beyond the megacap tech names and into the industrial economy. The blue-chip index climbed 612 points, or 1.2%, to close at 49,910, recovering from a 10.2% drop that began during the Iran-war selloff. The move brought the Dow back within reach of the 50,000 level. Caterpillar (CAT) was a key driver of the rebound. The industrial giant has become a major beneficiary of the AI infrastructure buildout, as data centers require massive investment in power, construction and equipment. AI-related spending is expected to reach $765 billion this year and could rise to $1.6 trillion annually by 2031, according to Goldman Sachs. The recovery shows that the AI trade is no longer just about hyperscalers and chipmakers.
• Companies tied to construction, energy, logistics and infrastructure are increasingly being pulled into the theme. Manufacturing data added to the momentum, with U.S. factory activity expanding in April for a fourth straight month. Still, risks remain. Higher gasoline prices and a falling savings rate suggest consumers are leaning more heavily on wealth gains to keep spending. Costco (COST), Walmart (WMT), Coca-Cola (KO), Amazon (AMZN) and Nvidia (NVDA) also helped fuel the Dow’s recovery, reinforcing a broader rebound across both old- and new-economy leaders.

Stocks on the move:

• Arm Holdings (ARM): Shares reversed earlier gains and fell 7% after the chip designer issued guidance that failed to impress investors. Arm also said growth in its mobile market unit would be flat or slightly negative in fiscal 2027.
• DoorDash (DASH): Shares jumped 12% after the food delivery company gave upbeat second-quarter order guidance. First-quarter earnings also topped LSEG estimates.
• Zillow Group (ZG): Shares dropped 6% after first-quarter residential revenue missed expectations, even as the company beat overall earnings and revenue estimates.
• Fortinet (FTNT): Shares climbed 17% after the cybersecurity company raised its full-year billings outlook and issued stronger-than-expected earnings and revenue guidance.
• Flutter Entertainment (FLUT): Shares rose nearly 3% after first-quarter adjusted earnings and revenue edged past Wall Street expectations.
• Coherent (COHR): Shares slipped 8% after fourth-quarter margin guidance failed to excite investors, despite a narrow third-quarter earnings beat.

Watchlist: FTNT, ARM, COHR, ZG, DASH, MCD, MU, NVDA, META

Key Economic Events Today:

EST time

08:30 am: USD Unemployment Claims
10:00 am: USD Construction Spending
02:05 pm: USD FOMC Member Kashkari Speaks
03:30 pm: USD FOMC Member Williams Speaks


Earnings

BMC (Before Market Open): Shell Plc (SHEL), McDonald’s Corp. (MCD), Howmet Aerospace (HWM)

AMC (After Market Close): Gilead Sciences (GILD), McKesson Corp. (MCK), MercadoLibre (MELI), Cloudflare (NET), Airbnb (ABNB)



The TEFS Analyst team wishes you a successful day!