Trending stocks in the week as Middle East tensions hit stock market
Contributor since / Followers
Pgiam/iStock via Getty Images
U.S. equities ended the week in the red as escalating geopolitical tensions between Israel and Iran unsettled markets. On Friday, the S&P 500 fell 1.1%, the Dow dropped 770 points (1.8%), and the Nasdaq slid 1.3%, erasing earlier weekly gains
Over the full week, the S&P 500 lost 0.4%, the Dow 1%, and Nasdaq Composite 0.8%.
Friday’s sell-off was driven by Israel’s airstrikes on Iran targeting nuclear sites, and Iran’s retaliatory strikes, which sharply heightened geopolitical fears.
Oil prices spiked as investors braced for potential disruptions near the Strait of Hormuz. Treasury yields rose on inflation worries, and investors flocked to safe-haven assets like gold and U.S. bonds.
Looking ahead, traders are eyeing next week’s Federal Reserve meeting, which is expected to hold rates steady, while weighing the impact of oil volatility and ongoing geopolitical uncertainty on future market direction.
Amid the volatility seen this week, these were some of the trending stocks:
Boeing (BA) faced renewed scrutiny after one of its 787 Dreamliners crashed in Ahmedabad, India, on Thursday. The London-bound Air India flight, carrying 242 passengers, went down shortly after takeoff, striking a residential area. The incident has once again raised concerns over the safety of Boeing’s aircraft.
Micron Technology (MU) stock was in focus as the memory chipmaker said it would spend about $200B on U.S. semiconductor manufacturing and research and development, in another example of a big company pledging domestic investments following U.S. President Donald Trump’s return. The new investment will create an estimated 90,000 direct and indirect jobs, the company said.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSM), the primary chip supplier to Nvidia and Apple, reported a 39.6% year-over-year rise in May revenue as clients rushed to stockpile chips amid growing trade tensions.
IBM (IBM) stock was in spotlight after the company unveiled plans to build what it calls the “world’s first large-scale, fault-tolerant quantum computer.” The tech giant plans to deliver the IBM Quantum Starling by 2029 after building it in a new data center in New York. Starling is “expected to perform 20,000 times more operations than today’s quantum computers,” IBM said.
Chewy (CHWY) stock fell despite solid Q1 earnings from the online retailer of pet food, products and supplies. “We delivered topline growth exceeding the high-end of our net sales guidance range, year-over-year growth in active customers, and compelling profitability and free cash flow generation,” top boss Sumit Singh said. The company’s current quarter guidance beat expectations, and its fiscal full-year revenue outlook was unchanged.
Oracle (ORCL) rose on Wednesday after the IT giant reported fiscal fourth-quarter results that topped estimates and offered a robust outlook for fiscal 2026.
GameStop (GME) fell after the company posted mixed FQ1 results, with revenue down 16.9% Y/Y despite swinging to a net income of $44.8M from a loss of $32.3M a year ago. The company also announced plans to offer $1.75 billion aggregate principal amount of 0.00% convertible senior notes due 2032 in a private offering.
Air mobility stocks, including Joby Aviation (JOBY) and Archer Aviation (ACHR), extended gains on Monday after President Donald Trump signed an executive order to boost American development, commercialization, and export of drones. The order establishes an electric Vertical Takeoff and Landing (eVTOL) integration pilot program to accelerate deployment of vertical operations in the U.S., selecting at least five pilot projects for use cases like cargo transport and medical response.
J.M. Smucker (SJM) fell nearly 14% over the week after reporting a mixed FQ4 report, with adjusted gross profit down 9% Y/Y. The company issued a cautious FY2026 outlook, forecasting EPS of $8.50–$9.50 (midpoint $9.00), below the $10.25 consensus, and sales growth of 2%–4%, citing headwinds from tariffs, inflation, regulatory shifts, and changing consumer behaviors.
AST SpaceMobile (ASTS) shares surged to a record high on Friday, continuing a remarkable rally. The stock has skyrocketed 275.4% over the past year and is up 81.8% so far in 2025.
Mastercard (MA) and Visa (V) fell on Friday, following a report that retail giants Amazon and Walmart are exploring stablecoin-based payment systems that could sidestep traditional card networks.