Stock market week in review, Oct 26–30: Big Tech stumbles

The three biggest cloud companies reported this week, and the stock market split along their spending bills. Alphabet (GOOGL) fell 12.6% on Thursday, the session after its report, which Yahoo Finance called its worst day since it went public in 2004. Microsoft (MSFT) barely moved that day. On Friday, Intel (INTC) fell 28.6% after a weak fourth-quarter outlook, and other chipmakers fell too, while Amazon (AMZN) slipped 1.4%. Yet most stocks held up. Over the week SPY fell 0.6%, while RSP, the equal-weight S&P 500 fund, rose 0.8%, and nine of the 11 sector funds finished higher.

Around the earnings, the Federal Reserve left rates unchanged on Wednesday with two officials voting for a hike, and Thursday's data showed the economy growing at a 3.4% annual rate in the third quarter with inflation at 3.6% over the year to September. Friday, the last trading day of October and the Russell rank day, was the roughest session: SPY fell 1.8% and QQQ 3.5%, and CNN reported that the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite each had their worst day since June. For the whole week QQQ lost 2.0%, while the small-cap fund IWM gained 1.3%.

All price moves below are calculated by MoverTape from StockFit's official daily closes, unadjusted (price return), and refer to the funds, not the index levels. Times are US Eastern.

How stocks and sectors moved this week

The table compares each fund's close on Friday, Oct 23 with its close on Friday, Oct 30; the percentage change over the week comes first. It also shows Thursday's move (Oct 29), the day the gap between the biggest companies and everyone else was widest, and Friday's (Oct 30), the week's biggest sell-off.

Fund	Tracks	Week	Thu	Fri	Oct 23	Oct 30
SPY	S&P 500	−0.6%	−0.4%	−1.8%	$759.97	$755.72
RSP	S&P 500 equal weight	+0.8%	+1.2%	−0.8%	$216.54	$218.31
QQQ	Nasdaq-100	−2.0%	−1.4%	−3.5%	$704.40	$690.49
DIA	Dow Jones Industrials	−0.8%	−0.4%	−1.1%	$521.37	$517.13
IWM	Russell 2000	+1.3%	+1.0%	−1.6%	$275.75	$279.33
XLK	Technology	−2.0%	−1.2%	−4.9%	$183.23	$179.51
XLC	Communication services	−5.3%	−1.9%	−1.3%	$105.51	$99.90
XLY	Consumer discretionary	+2.0%	+0.8%	−0.7%	$113.10	$115.38
XLP	Consumer staples	+1.3%	+1.5%	+1.4%	$88.26	$89.42
XLE	Energy	+1.0%	+0.4%	+1.9%	$69.33	$70.02
XLF	Financials	+1.1%	+1.4%	−0.8%	$55.90	$56.51
XLV	Health care	+3.1%	+2.4%	+0.5%	$179.28	$184.87
XLI	Industrials	+1.7%	+1.0%	−1.6%	$164.62	$167.40
XLB	Materials	+2.8%	+1.3%	+0.4%	$51.31	$52.74
XLRE	Real estate	+1.4%	+2.2%	+0.3%	$42.57	$43.17
XLU	Utilities	+2.0%	+1.5%	+0.7%	$42.56	$43.43
TLT	20+ year Treasury bonds	+0.6%	+0.6%	+0.4%	$81.34	$81.84
GLD	Gold	−3.0%	−1.3%	−3.5%	$366.61	$355.78
USO	Crude oil futures	−0.4%	—	—	$169.53	$168.83

Source: StockFit daily closes, unadjusted, as of the Oct 30 close. Percentages are MoverTape calculations from those closes. "—" means no Oct 29 close was available for USO, so neither of its daily moves can be calculated.

Over the full week the split held, though on a smaller scale than on Thursday. RSP finished 0.8% higher and SPY 0.6% lower, a gap of 1.4 percentage points. Nine of the 11 sector funds rose, led by health care (XLV, +3.1%), materials (XLB, +2.8%), and consumer discretionary and utilities (XLY and XLU, +2.0% each). The two that fell hold the largest tech platforms: communication services (XLC, −5.3%), where Alphabet is one of the largest holdings, and technology (XLK, −2.0%). Small companies beat big tech, with IWM up 1.3% and QQQ down 2.0%. Gold (GLD) lost 3.0%, all of it on Friday (−3.5%), after a small gain through Thursday.

For October as a whole, from the Sep 30 close to the Oct 30 close, SPY fell 0.9% and QQQ 6.7%, while RSP rose 4.9%. CNN reported that it was the Nasdaq Composite's worst month since March 2025 (CNN).

Why did Alphabet fall while Microsoft held steady?

Both reported after the close on Wednesday, Oct 28, and both showed fast cloud growth. Where their releases differed most was in what that growth is costing.

Microsoft reported revenue of $92.3 billion for its fiscal first quarter (July–September 2026), up 19%, and operating income of $45.9 billion, up 21% (Microsoft). Microsoft Cloud revenue was $63.9 billion, up 30%, and Azure revenue grew 48%. Its commercial remaining performance obligation, contracted revenue not yet recognized, rose 73% to $677 billion. GAAP EPS was $4.92, and non-GAAP EPS, which excludes the impact of Microsoft's investments in OpenAI, was $4.89. The stock closed down 0.2% on Thursday, at $530.14, and slipped 1.6% to $521.91 in Friday's sell-off. Our Microsoft Q1 FY2027 earnings recap covers Azure, the capex and the cash flow.

Alphabet reported revenue of $127.6 billion, up 25%, and Google Cloud revenue of $30.7 billion, up 103%, with Cloud operating income of $11.1 billion against $3.6 billion a year earlier (8-K). Two other numbers in the same release pointed the other way:

Free cash flow was −$9.1 billion, after $51.4 billion of purchases of property and equipment. It was −$5.9 billion in the second quarter. Over the trailing twelve months it is still +$19.7 billion.
GAAP EPS was $2.12, against $2.87 a year earlier. A loss of $8.7 billion on equity securities lowered it by $0.55, according to Alphabet.

Revenue and earnings both came in below the LSEG consensus, the first time in nearly four years, CNBC reported: revenue of $127.58 billion against $128.22 billion expected (CNBC). Alphabet kept its 2026 capital spending forecast at $195 to $205 billion, and finance chief Anat Ashkenazi told analysts: "We continue to expect our capex to increase significantly in 2027." The stock fell from $324.89 to $283.82 on Thursday, −12.6%, on volume of about 139 million shares (StockFit). It fell another 1.4% on Friday to $279.84, ending the week 12.6% lower, and CNN said the shares capped their worst month on record. Our Alphabet Q3 2026 earnings recap covers Cloud, Search, the capex and the cash flow in detail.

Amazon reported on Thursday after the close. AWS revenue grew 39% to $46.0 billion, and operating income of $28.1 billion came in above the top of Amazon's own $22.5 to $26.5 billion range. Diluted EPS fell to $1.89 from $1.95, and free cash flow over the trailing twelve months was −$42.4 billion. Amazon kept its expectation of about $220 billion in cash capital expenditures for 2026 (8-K). The shares had already fallen 4.2% in Thursday's regular session, before the release, to $243.79. On Friday they opened at $232.53, down 4.6%, and recovered most of that early loss, closing at $240.35, down 1.4% on the day and 3.1% for the week. Our Amazon Q3 2026 earnings recap breaks down the segments, the capex and the cash flow.

The thread tying the three together is the bill for data centers and chips. At Alphabet and Amazon it now exceeds the cash the business brings in, measured as free cash flow; Microsoft's stayed positive at $18.6 billion for the quarter, down from $25.7 billion a year earlier, according to our Microsoft recap. CNBC described investors as "growing nervous about the massive AI spending from the tech giants and whether their investments will pay off" (CNBC). Our preview of the week set out each company's capex and free cash flow before the reports; how to read an earnings report explains why GAAP EPS, adjusted EPS and operating income can tell different stories.

Most stocks rose on Alphabet's worst day

Thursday is the clearest example of the week's split. SPY, which weights companies by market value, fell 0.4%. RSP, which holds the same 500 companies in equal amounts, rose 1.2%, a gap of 1.6 percentage points. The small-cap fund IWM rose 1.0%.

Nine of the 11 sector SPDRs closed higher on Thursday. Health care (XLV) led with +2.4%, followed by real estate (XLRE, +2.2%) and consumer staples and utilities (XLP and XLU, +1.5% each). The two that fell were communication services (XLC, −1.9%), where Alphabet is one of the largest holdings, and technology (XLK, −1.2%).

When a handful of companies make up a large share of an index, a bad day for one of them can pull a market-value-weighted fund down even while most of its members gain. Comparing RSP with SPY is a simple way to see that.

What did the Fed decide on Oct 28?

The Federal Open Market Committee kept the federal funds target range at 3¾ to 4% by a 10–2 vote (Fed statement). Lisa D. Cook and Beth M. Hammack dissented: they preferred to raise the range by a quarter point. At the previous meeting, on Sep 16, the committee had raised rates by a quarter point, 12–0 (Sep 16 statement).

Two wording changes from September stand out:

Economic activity is now "expanding at a strong pace", where September said "solid".
September's "Today's policy action will support a timelier return to the Committee's 2 percent goal" gave way to: "The accumulation of more information will help the Committee determine the policy stance appropriate to ensure a timely return of inflation to the Committee's 2 percent goal."

"Inflation remains elevated" stayed in. Before the meeting, futures implied a less than 10% chance of a hike, according to CME Group's FedWatch tool, and afterwards they indicated "a strong possibility of another hike at the next FOMC meeting in December", CNBC reported (CNBC). At his press conference, Chair Kevin Warsh said that in 2027 one of the eight meetings will be devoted to strategy, "with neither a vote on the federal funds rate nor a policy statement anticipated."

The next decision is due Wednesday, Dec 9, with new economic projections (Fed calendar). The minutes of this meeting come out on Nov 18.

GDP grew 3.4%; PCE inflation was 3.6% over the year

Two reports from the Bureau of Economic Analysis came out at 8:30 am on Thursday. They measure inflation over different periods, so the two inflation numbers below are both correct.

Third-quarter GDP (advance estimate): real GDP grew at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.4%, up from 2.2% in the second quarter (BEA). Investment, consumer spending and government spending added to growth, partly offset by lower exports. BEA said the rise in investment mainly reflected inventories and equipment. Real final sales to private domestic purchasers, a measure of underlying private demand, grew at a 4.9% rate. The PCE price index rose at a 2.1% annual rate in the quarter, down from 5.0% in the second.

September personal income and outlays: the PCE price index rose 0.5% from August and 3.6% from a year earlier. Excluding food and energy it rose 0.3% on the month and 3.1% on the year (BEA). Inflation-adjusted consumer spending was flat in September after rising 0.5% in August, real disposable income fell 0.3%, and the saving rate was 3.8%.

The quarterly 2.1% is an annualized change from the second quarter to the third; the 3.6% compares September with September 2025. PCE is the measure the Fed's 2% goal is written in. Our guide to CPI vs PCE explains how it differs from the consumer price index.

Friday: Intel's plunge, a chip sell-off and new highs for Exxon and Chevron

Friday was the week's worst session for the big funds. SPY fell 1.8%, QQQ 3.5% and the technology fund XLK 4.9%. The equal-weight RSP fell only 0.8%, though, and six of the 11 sector funds rose, led by energy (XLE, +1.9%), consumer staples (XLP, +1.4%) and utilities (XLU, +0.7%). Long-dated Treasuries (TLT) gained 0.4%. CNN described investors moving into "defensive parts of the market, like the consumer staples sector and government bonds" (CNN).

Intel reported on Thursday after the close. For the fourth quarter it guided to adjusted EPS of $0.25 on revenue of $15 to $16 billion. Analysts polled by LSEG had expected $0.43 and $17.1 billion, CNBC reported (CNBC). "We see the PC slowdown continuing at least through the first half of next year," finance chief David Zinsner said. CNBC added that an explosion at an Intel fab in Israel earlier this month will cost about $600 million in lost revenue over two quarters, according to Zinsner. The shares had risen about 150% this year before the report, per CNBC. On Friday they closed at $65.76, down 28.6% from Thursday's $92.07, on about 451 million shares (StockFit). CNN called it Intel's worst day since 1974 and its second-worst on record, and noted the stock is still up 78% for the year. Other chipmakers fell too: Nvidia (NVDA) lost 4.2% to $204.64, Broadcom (AVGO) 5.5% to $326.08, and Qualcomm (QCOM), which reports next week, 11.1% to $164.79. CNN said a closely watched index of chipmakers fell 7.2%.

Exxon Mobil (XOM) and Chevron (CVX) reported before Friday's open. Exxon's profit doubled to $15.4 billion, or $3.72 a share, from $7.5 billion, or $1.76, a year earlier; adjusted EPS was $4.23. Chevron earned $9.9 billion, or $5.06 a share, and $5.28 on an adjusted basis against an LSEG consensus of $4.89; its refining earnings rose to $4.9 billion from $1.1 billion (CNBC). CNBC tied the refining profits to high diesel prices after attacks by Ukraine and Iran on refineries in Russia and the Middle East cut global capacity. Exxon rose 2.2% on Friday to $187.25 and Chevron 1.8% to $235.52. Both were the highest closes in StockFit's daily data, above Exxon's previous high of $184.54 on Oct 26 and Chevron's $233.21 on Oct 23.

Russell rank day and the end of October

Friday, Oct 30 was rank day for the Russell US indexes. FTSE Russell measures companies' market values at Friday's close to decide which ones join, leave or move between the Russell 1000 and Russell 2000. This is the first Russell reconstitution in December, under the new twice-a-year schedule (FTSE Russell). Nothing changes in the indexes yet: preliminary lists come out on Nov 13, with updates on Nov 20, Nov 27 and Dec 4, and the changes take effect after the close on Friday, Dec 11.

What's next: the week of Nov 2–6

Sun, Nov 1: US clocks go back. From Monday, the regular session runs 9:30 am to 4:00 pm EST, which is 14:30 to 21:00 UTC. Our stock market holidays guide has every session in UTC.
Mon, Nov 2, after the close: Apple (AAPL) reports its fiscal fourth quarter, and Palantir (PLTR) reports.
Tue, Nov 3: Election Day. The NYSE is open as usual (NYSE). The September job openings report (JOLTS) is due, and Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) reports after the close.
Wed, Nov 4, after the close: Qualcomm and Arm report.
Thu, Nov 5: third-quarter productivity and costs.
Fri, Nov 6, 8:30 am: the October jobs report (BLS). Next Friday's review leads with it.
The week after: October CPI on Tue, Nov 10.

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