Benzinga Bulls And Bears: Nvidia, Intel, Oracle — And Markets Gain In Shortened Trading Week

Benzinga examined the prospects for many investors’ favorite stocks over the last week — here’s a look at some of our top stories.

Major U.S. stock indexes ended the holiday-shortened week with solid gains as the S&P 500 notched fresh record highs and all three benchmarks — the S&P 500, Dow Jones Industrial Average and Nasdaq — posted weekly advances amid light trading volumes. Investors shrugged off quiet post-Christmas sessions to push the S&P 500 toward its third straight year of double-digit returns and near milestone levels, with the benchmark up roughly 18% in 2025. Precious metals also drew attention, with silver and gold reaching new highs on strong demand and supply constraints.

Technology and growth stocks continued to shape the market narrative. Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA) led tech gains, bolstered by a major licensing agreement with AI-chip start-up Groq that analysts say deepens its competitive moat, while Micron (NASDAQ:MU) extended a year-long rally that put it among the S&P 500's top performers in 2025. Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) CEO Tim Cook's disclosure of a personal Nike (NYSE:NKE) stock purchase lifted shares in the apparel maker, though overall trading was characterized by sector rotation as financials and cyclicals also attracted interest.

Elsewhere, market breadth was mixed but resilient. After calm trading on Friday, weekly gains were logged across the major indices, and commodities traders saw metals climb to multi-decade peaks. Meanwhile, light volumes and thin holiday trading underscored the cautious yet optimistic investor posture as 2025 comes to a close, with many eyes now on the coming year's economic drivers, including Federal Reserve policy and earnings momentum across key sectors.

Benzinga provides daily reports on the stocks most popular with investors. Here are a few of this past week’s most bullish and bearish posts that are worth another look.

The Bulls

"D-Wave, Rigetti, IonQ Stocks Climb in Retail-Fueled Santa Rally", by Erica Kollmann, reports that D-Wave Quantum, Inc. (NYSE:QBTS), Rigetti Computing, Inc. (NASDAQ:RGTI) and IonQ, Inc. (NYSE:IONQ) saw their shares rise in the final trading weeks of 2025 as a classic "Santa Rally" took hold, driven by retail investor momentum while institutional desks thinned for the holidays. The surge was fueled by strategic year-end catalysts, bullish analyst coverage, and heavy retail trading volume, with D-Wave's stock jumping nearly 20% after its Advantage2 system was confirmed for a CES 2026 showcase, Rigetti riding social-media sentiment around its 2026 roadmap, and IonQ gaining from broader sector enthusiasm and recent Buy ratings.

"Nvidia Shares Rise To Start The Week: What's Going On With The AI Chip Stock", by Adam Eckert, reports that Nvidia Corp (NASDAQ:NVDA) shares were trading higher Monday as investors reacted to emerging catalysts, including the company's plans to begin shipping H200 AI chips to China by mid-February — a move that could reopen a major market previously constrained by export restrictions. Tuesday's early session gains came alongside broader strength in tech names and followed optimism around expanded production capacity for Nvidia's high-end AI processors, which analysts say could bolster demand in data centers and international markets.

"Trump Sends Space Stocks To The Moon (Literally)", by Erica Kollmann, reports that several space-related stocks rallied after President Donald Trump signed the "Ensuring American Space Superiority" executive order, a policy aimed at cementing U.S. dominance in space and accelerating lunar and commercial space infrastructure efforts. The directive is structured around ambitious goals including returning to the Moon by 2028, and has buoyed optimism for companies positioned to benefit from the shift to commercially-driven space activity. Among the publicly traded firms catching investor attention were Sidus Space, Inc. (NASDAQ:SIDU), AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTS), Intuitive Machines, Inc. (NASDAQ:LUNR), Planet Labs PBC (NYSE:PL), Redwire Corp. (NYSE:RDW) and Rocket Lab Corp. (NASDAQ:RKLB), with traders interpreting the order as a catalyst for long-term growth in the space sector and a multi-decade revenue runway for commercial space stocks.

For additional bullish calls of the past week, check out the following:

Trump Sends Space Stocks To The Moon (Literally)

UiPath Stock Is Rising After The Bell: Here’s Why

ZIM Integrated Shipping Services Stock Surges: What’s Driving The Rally?

The Bears

"Intel Stock Slips After Report Says Nvidia Halted AI Chip Testing", by Anusuya Lahiri, reports that Intel Corp. (NASDAQ:INTC) shares ticked lower after a report said Nvidia Corp. (NASDAQ:NVDA) paused testing of whether it would manufacture its advanced AI chips using Intel's 18A production process — a development viewed as a setback for Intel's foundry push as it tries to win major external customers and compete with leading contract manufacturers. The report added pressure on Intel's stock in premarket trading, despite the company's broader narrative of progress on next-generation manufacturing technologies and ongoing interest from potential customers.

"China Sanctions Boeing, Northrop, Anduril Founder", by Anusuya Lahiri, reports that Boeing Co. (NYSE:BA), Northrop Grumman Corp. (NYSE:NOC), L3Harris Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:LHX) and the founder of Anduril Industries were among 20 U.S. defense companies and 10 executives sanctioned by China as tensions with Washington escalate over Taiwan, with Beijing freezing assets, barring business in China and blocking travel to mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau for the affected individuals. The retaliatory measures follow approval of a roughly $11 billion U.S. arms sale to Taiwan, drawing sharp condemnation from Chinese officials who argue the deal violates the "one‑China principle" and crosses a core red line in bilateral relations.

"Why Oracle's AI Spending Spree Is Spooking Wall Street", by Anusuya Lahiri, reports that Oracle Corp. (NYSE:ORCL) shares have dropped roughly 30% this quarter as investors grow wary of the company's aggressive AI infrastructure spending. The stock decline comes despite adjusted earnings beating forecasts, co‑CEOs Clay Magouyrk and Mike Sicilia steering the strategy, and ongoing deals sourcing Nvidia Corp. (NASDAQ:NVDA) GPUs to meet AI demand. Analysts cite heavy capital commitments, mixed fiscal results, and uncertainties around potential partnerships as key factors fueling concern, highlighting Wall Street's caution over Oracle's ability to balance rapid AI expansion with profitability.

For more bearish takes, be sure to see these posts:

$8 Billion Mistake: Wall Street Underprices Bitcoin Miners By 28%, JPMorgan Says

EXCLUSIVE: China Is ‘Light Years Ahead’ On Minerals — Why US Copper Miners Are Worried

Russia’s New Soyuz 5 Rocket Grounded Over Last-Minute Checks

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Image created using artificial intelligence via Midjourney.