Weekly recap: S&P 500 gains 1.05% as megacaps split

U.S. equities finished the July 27–31, 2026 week higher, but the headline gain concealed sharp single-stock splits. The S&P 500, Nasdaq Composite and Dow each advanced while consumer discretionary led and utilities lagged. The Federal Reserve held its policy range, Treasury yields steepened, and four large technology companies reported results with very different profit and spending profiles.

The week in 5 points

1. All three broad indexes gained. From the July 24 close to July 31, the Nasdaq Composite rose 1.59%, the S&P 500 gained 1.05% and the Dow added 1.04%.
2. Consumer spending exposure led the sector table. Consumer discretionary gained 6.07%, communication services added 1.80% and financials rose 1.10%. Utilities lost 4.22%, real estate fell 1.96% and materials declined 1.65%.
3. The Federal Reserve held rates with a hawkish dissent. The FOMC kept the federal-funds target at 3.50%–3.75% by a 9–3 vote; three members preferred a 25-basis-point increase.
4. The Treasury curve steepened. The 2-year par yield fell 5 basis points to 4.28%, while the 10-year rose 6 basis points to 4.75%. June PCE inflation was 3.7% year over year, or 3.3% excluding food and energy.
5. Volatility fell at the index level but stayed large in single names. The VIX traded from 15.82 to 20.88 and closed at 15.99, down 13.94% for the week, while tracked stocks moved as much as +21.75% and -23.23%.

Sector scoreboard

Your tickers this week

The tracked universe contains 108 unique tickers: 22 in YieldCove's live watchlist, 28 represented by open option positions, eight open wheel-stock tickers and 88 long-term holding tickers, with overlap removed. Fifty-four U.S.-listed names had both an official July 24 historical close and a July 31 Nasdaq close. Canadian listings and other uncovered instruments stayed in the universe count but were excluded from the ranking rather than approximated.

Notable earnings

Next week

• Monday, August 3: Construction spending and ISM manufacturing at 10:00 a.m. ET; Nasdaq lists PLTR, GRAB and SNAP after the close.
• Tuesday, August 4: The trade balance at 8:30 a.m. ET and JOLTS plus factory orders at 10:00 a.m. ET; CIFR is listed before the open, with AMD, SPCX and ZETA after the close.
• Wednesday, August 5: ADP employment at 8:15 a.m. ET and ISM services at 10:00 a.m. ET; VIAV is among the tracked names listed after the close.
• Thursday, August 6: Initial claims and preliminary productivity and costs at 8:30 a.m. ET; FIVN, SYNA and SHAZ are listed after the close.
• Friday, August 7: The Employment Situation is scheduled for 8:30 a.m. ET. Nasdaq's current tracked-universe pull returned no matching earnings for Friday. Calendar dates and times can change.

The broad-market advance and the lower VIX describe the index backdrop, not a uniform experience across the portfolio universe. The split between shorter and longer Treasury yields, large technology earnings, and next week's labour and activity data can keep stock-specific outcomes distinct from the index. This recap is educational market information, not personalized financial advice or an instruction to trade.