Economists at the US banking giant Wells Fargo are suddenly hiking their year-end S&P 500 target.

Wells Fargo is now forecasting the S&P 500 will close out the year at 7,950, up from its previous prediction of 7,300, a nearly 9% increase, reports Reuters.

The bank’s economists site three main factors for the index hike forecast: stronger corporate earnings, the U.S.-Iran interim deal easing macroeconomic risks and a recent market pullback.

Wells Fargo says the recent sell-off in the market has cooled investor sentiment, setting the stage for further upside.

“Sentiment has reset, providing room for upside in the AI trade. Hyperscalers’ race to raise capital is also a big tailwind for semis and infra.”

In a note to investors, the brokerage increased this year’s prediction for the S&P 500 earnings per share (eps) to $340 from $315, a nearly 8% increase. Wells Fargo also raised its eps in 2027 to $390 from $365.

The economists say the significant risk in the market outlook is the general increase in the prices of goods and services.

Says Wells Fargo,

“We continue to see inflation as the biggest risk to stocks, but only if the Fed were to react. A potential ‘run it hot, inflate out’ policy is bullish, and we expect stocks will be the best inflation hedge in that backdrop.”

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The head of US Equity Strategy at Bank of America Securities says broad market gains will be difficult to sustain from current levels.

Appearing on CNBC’s Power Lunch, Savita Subramanian says BofA holds a 7,100 year-end price target for the S&P 500 and remains bearish at the index level.

She says the best single-index buy today is the Russell Large Cap Value Index, pointing to its income-generating profile. Within the broader market, she sees opportunity in value and cyclical names but warns the tailwinds that drove last year’s gains have largely faded.

Subramanian note that 2025 was “essentially the best year on record when it comes to liquidity,” with individual investors, corporate buybacks, privatizations, and government entities all buying U.S. equities simultaneously. That dynamic, she says, is not repeating in 2026.

According to Subramanian:

“The good news is priced in. Typically years where you’ve got great earnings growth and GDP growth are not the best years for equity returns. We are getting a big shift in supply demand. So that’s why we’re bearish at an index level. Within the index, I think there’s a tremendous opportunity to own income value areas of the market that are throwing off capital rather than using it.”

Subramanian also questions how much more earnings can surprise, noting analysts are now forecasting near-record long-term earnings growth rates with strong earnings already anticipated.

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Investors should consider “HALO” stocks for longer-term investments, according to a Goldman Sachs equity strategist.

HALO stands for “Heavy Assets, Low Obsolescence” and is a strategy that involves investing in stocks associated with sectors considered resilient to disruptions from artificial intelligence.

Sharon Bell, a senior European equity strategist at Goldman, says in a new interview that HALO stocks are primed to emerge as “structural winners.”

“And by that, I mean things like utilities, telecoms, industrials, even energy companies that are investing and have good assets and can make return on those assets. And I think Europe has a lot of those. I also like our renewables companies, defense companies, aerospace companies. I think the tech sector in Europe trades at a discount to similar companies elsewhere in the world.”

Bell also says banking stocks could witness gains.

“We think interest rates will be higher for longer and that will help the bank sector.”

The strategist says investors can get positive returns out of European stocks, but she still believes US and Asian equities will outperform.

“So we would have the US outperforming because it’s got big hyperscalers where we’re expecting pretty good returns. And we’re looking for an economy which actually is growing quite nicely in the next couple of years in the US. So we do think the US market continues to outperform Asia as well. We see [it] driven by earnings, driven by the semi stocks and driven by the tech sector.”

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The chief investment strategist at Charles Schwab is warning that oil prices could suddenly soar and send stocks lower.

In a new interview on Bloomberg Television, Liz Ann Sonders says that if the US-Iran conflict keeps the Strait of Hormuz closed for much longer oil prices may quickly reach $150 per barrel.

“I think it was last week that leaders within both Chevron and Exxon came out and said that given how low stockpiles are that without a relatively imminent opening of the Strait of Hormuz and getting that oil flowing again they cited numbers as much as $150 in a matter of a few weeks. We are on the brink of what potentially could be a more significant spike.

We’re still in an inverse correlation territory between oil prices and the stock market… but there has been so many fits and starts in the announcements of an imminent deal, and then we don’t get one… so time is not on the side of the of the economic bulls as it relates to the oil price channel.”

Sonders also warns that stocks may undergo deep corrections as investors rotate funds in reaction to market conditions similar to what occurred in the first quarter of the year.

“The S&P at the index level didn’t have a correction level maximum drawdown this year. Its weakness in February and March hit 9%… But if you go member by member in the S&P 500 and look at their individual maximum drawdowns and then take an average of that, it’s negative 22%. In the case of the Nasdaq, the average member maximum drawdown is negative 38%. You could continue to have whether it’s a correction of valuation excess or a correction of sentiment excess occur via a process of rotation as opposed to a correction happening all at once at the index level.”

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Billionaire investor and legendary hedge fund manager Stanley Druckenmiller is pouring millions of dollars in four stocks that have more than tripled in value in under half a year.

According to SEC filings, Druckenmiller’s family office, Duquesne Family Office, invested approximately $68.15 million in the first quarter in four stocks that have each gone up by between 236% and 623% since the year started.

The four stocks are flash memory and data storage firm SanDisk (NASDAQ: SNDK), data storage company Seagate Technology Holdings (NASDAQ: STX), chip designer Arm Holdings (NASDAQ: ARM) and memory manufacturer Micron Technology (NASDAQ: MU).

SanDisk is trading at $1,716 at time of writing, up by 623% year-to-date. Seagate Technology Holdings is changing hands at $927, up by 236% since the year started.

Arm Holdings is trading at $402 at time of writing, up by 268% year-to-date. Micron Technology is exchanging at $1,064 at time of writing, up by 273% since the beginning of the year.

Amid the millions of dollars of investment in the semiconductor supply-chain stocks, Duquesne Family Office also dumped nearly $200 million worth of stocks in four Fortune 500 companies during the first quarter.

Specifically, Duquesne Family Office offloaded approximately $120.81 million in Google’s parent company Alphabet (NASDAQ: GOOG), $45.17 million in Delta Air Lines (NYSE: DAL), $24.17 million in Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) and $9.81 million in American Airlines (NASDAQ: AAL).

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Fundstrat strategist Mark Newton says declining crude oil prices are helping drive strength in several sectors that have lagged the broader stock market.

In a new interview on the Fundstrat YouTube channel, Newton says the recent improvement in a number of consumer and transportation stocks has coincided with weakness in crude oil, creating opportunities outside of technology.

“A lot of it’s just algorithm based and crude turning down. We’re seeing better strength out of the airlines, which is the biggest beneficiary of a drop in crude [oil].”

The strategist also says several retail stocks that struggled while the broader market pushed to record highs are beginning to stabilize and participate in the rally.

Newton points to companies such as retail giants Nike, Target, Best Buy and Home Depot, noting that they largely failed to keep pace with the market over the last year despite major indices reaching new all-time highs.

“Markets hitting new all-time highs, these stocks just weren’t participating. So now that’s slowly but surely starting to change.”

Newton says the recent strength has emerged over roughly the last week and a half and does not appear to be driven primarily by company-specific fundamentals.

The strategist adds that investors looking to diversify away from technology may want to pay attention to these areas as semiconductor and technology stocks become increasingly extended.

“That’s a very good sign for people looking for alternatives of where [to] put [their] Micron and Seagate [stocks]… technology stocks are getting a bit overbought potentially if you wish to diversify.”

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Below is a visual representation of these performance metrics:

Note: All figures reflect data up to June 17, 2025. Stock performance is subject to change.

Deep Dive on Each Player

D-Wave Quantum (QBTS): The Breakout Star

• Performance: +101.6% YTD

• What’s driving it? D-Wave’s launch of its Advantage2 quantum system has sparked investor optimism, showing early traction with enterprise clients in logistics and optimization sectors.

• Investor sentiment: Bullish momentum, backed by technical developments and strategic partnerships.

Rigetti Computing (RGTI): Struggling With Execution

• Performance: −26.3% YTD

• Pain points: Persistent losses, cash burn, and a lack of clear commercial roadmap have eroded investor confidence.

• Potential upside: Government contracts and collaborations with cloud providers remain a silver lining—if execution improves.

Arqit Quantum (ARQQ): Falling from Grace

• Performance: −34.2% YTD

• Challenges: Arqit’s pivot away from its original quantum encryption model to a more “pragmatic” software focus has left investors uncertain.

• Warning signs: Allegations of misrepresentation in earlier projections continue to cast a shadow.

Benchmark Context: The Russell 2000’s Modest Decline

The Russell 2000 Index, which tracks 2,000 small-cap U.S. stocks, has dropped around 5.8% YTD. This backdrop highlights the headwinds facing early-stage companies more broadly—rising interest rates, tighter liquidity, and cautious institutional capital flows have constrained growth stock momentum.

Against this backdrop, D-Wave’s rally is even more remarkable, while the under performance of Rigetti and Arqit falls more in line with the broader trend.

What It All Means for Investors

Key Takeaways:

• Volatility is the rule, not the exception. Penny stocks—especially those in speculative sectors like quantum computing—can swing dramatically based on single headlines or announcements.

• A long-term horizon is essential. Most quantum applications remain years away from widespread deployment. Betting on winners now requires a deep understanding of the tech and patience.

• Diversification is your ally. A basket approach may reduce the risk of total capital loss. Allocate no more than 1–2% of your portfolio to these plays, and consider pairing them with more stable growth assets.

• Watch the catalysts. Upcoming earnings, funding rounds, government contracts, and research breakthroughs will likely drive the next wave of price action.

Final Thought

Quantum computing is no longer science fiction—but investing in its future requires a tolerance for high risk and ambiguity. In 2025, we’ve already seen fortunes swing wildly among the few publicly traded quantum BoundlessCash Reader stocks.

While D-Wave has delivered a breakout year, others like Rigetti and Arqit remind us just how fragile these moonshot ventures can be. If you’re intrigued by the bleeding edge of technology and willing to stomach the volatility, quantum BoundlessCash Reader stocks may deserve a small place in your speculative portfolio.

Just remember: in the quantum world, uncertainty isn’t just a feature—it’s a fundamental law.

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Binance is making another push to blur the line between digital assets and traditional markets. In an announcement made Monday, the company said its users will soon be able to trade more than 7,000 US stocks and exchange-traded funds (ETFs). 

It also detailed a plan to let customers convert the stocks they hold into tokenized, crypto-style digital assets, as part of what Binance describes as a wider effort to evolve into a “multi-asset financial super app.”

Binance Targets ‘Friction-Free’ Stock Trading

Speaking to Fortune, Binance co-CEO Richard Teng highlighted why the move is aimed particularly at customers outside the United States. The executive said US stocks already account for well over half of the global equity market, but for many overseas investors, buying them can entail high costs and friction. 

Binance’s solution, according to Teng, is to offer zero-commission stock trading for non-US users, along with fractional share purchases starting at $5, lowering both the price barrier and the complexity of participation.

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Operationally, Binance said the new stock trading service will be set up with support from a broker-dealer called Nest Trading. For custody and settlement functions, a New York-based firm, Alpaca, is expected to handle custody and facilitate dividend payments and corporate actions. 

Customers will be able to fund stock purchases using stablecoins such as Circle’s USDC stablecoin or Tether’s USDT, as well as a selection of other digital currencies, including Binance’s BNB.

Binance also introduced a more ambitious concept alongside the trading program: “bStocks.” The company’s position is that bStocks will let users tokenize equities they purchase. 

Hyperliquid Might Feel The Heat

In Teng’s explanation, this would work by creating a synthetic, digital token representation of certain stocks—achieved by converting the equities into tokens on Binance’s BNB blockchain. The company says this functionality is expected to become available in the coming weeks.

While other major platforms have experimented with similar models over the past year, Binance claims its approach could stand out in one important way. 

Competitors such as Kraken and Robinhood have launched offerings in this space, but Binance says its bStocks plan is potentially different because it would allow customers to begin the tokenization process themselves rather than relying solely on the platform’s pre-set conversion paths.

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The exchange’s announcement has also triggered reactions. On X (formerly Twitter), analyst Zero Kyle argued that the development could be negative for decentralized exchange (DEX) Hyperliquid (HYPE). 

Kyle’s view was that while the expanded availability may not necessarily be “24/7 like” Hyperliquid’s trading venues in the way some trading systems are structured, Binance is likely to intensify competition and could create a head-to-head fight for market share. 

The analyst added that the news may not be “bad for HYPE the token” specifically, but it could be “bad for Hyperliquid the exchange” due to increased competition.

Meanwhile, the exchange’s native token, BNB, was trading at $692 at the time of writing. This mirrors the broader crypto market’s retracement on Monday, with a 2.3% drop recorded so far. 

Featured image created with OpenArt; chart from TradingView.com 

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