Software and technology shares led U.S. equities higher on Thursday, with mega-cap and large-cap stocks posting the most significant gains as corporate earnings and guidance supported investor sentiment.
Palantir Technologies advanced 4.72%, outpacing the broader market, while Intel and Broadcom also climbed 2.76% and 3.47%, respectively. Alibaba was the notable laggard among mega-caps, falling 3.76%.
Large-cap software names dominated the upside, with Okta surging 28.51% after reporting second-quarter results that exceeded revenue and earnings estimates and providing upbeat fiscal-year guidance. Salesforce followed with a 21.73% gain, while CrowdStrike rose 19.1% and Veeva Systems climbed 16.35% on strong quarterly performance and raised annual forecasts. MicroStrategy, JFrog, Rubrik, and Synopsys also posted double-digit percentage gains, with Baird upgrading Synopsys on growth prospects.
Mid-cap movers included NVDL, which rose 17.06%, and Tenable Holdings, up 13.46%. Healthequity and Nexa Resources were among the decliners, falling 12.2% and 10.78%, respectively.
In small-caps, MSTU led with a 23.51% gain, followed by Hyperliquid Strategies at 18.69% and Ooma at 16.66%. Ooma’s advance came after a second-quarter earnings beat and optimistic guidance. Build-A-Bear Workshop was a notable decliner, dropping 28.95% despite an earnings beat, while SMJ International Holdings fell 87.42%.
The session reflected broad-based strength in technology and software sectors, driven by corporate outperformance and positive forward-looking commentary.
