U.S. stocks rose on Tuesday, following Monday’s advances. Futures of the major benchmark indices were higher ahead of President Donald Trump‘s deadline to destroy Iran’s energy and civilian infrastructure if it failed to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
Meanwhile, Iran has submitted a 10-point response to the U.S. peace proposals, which a U.S. official described as "maximalist", citing the Iranian state news agency IRNA.
Over the weekend, Trump had said in a Truth Social post that “Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one, in Iran. There will be nothing like it!!! Open the Strait, you crazy **, or you’ll be living in Hell – JUST WATCH!”
Meanwhile, the 10-year Treasury bond yielded 4.33%, and the two-year bond was at 3.85%. The CME Group's FedWatch tool‘s projections show markets pricing a 99.5% likelihood of the Federal Reserve leaving the current interest rates unchanged in its April meeting.
| Index | Performance (+/-) |
| Dow Jones | 0.17% |
| S&P 500 | 0.08% |
| Nasdaq 100 | 0.04% |
| Russell 2000 | 0.05% |
The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSE:SPY) and Invesco QQQ Trust ETF (NASDAQ:QQQ), which track the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100, respectively, were higher in premarket on Tuesday. The SPY was down 0.053% at $659.28, while the QQQ advanced 0.041% to $588.74.
Stocks In Focus
UnitedHealth Group
- UnitedHealth Group Inc. (NYSE:UNH) jumped 6.86% after the Trump administration finalized a better-than-feared Medicare Advantage payment rate by 2.48%, boosting the health insurer’s stock.
- Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that UNH maintains a weak price trend in the short, medium, and long terms, with a poor growth score.
Silo Pharma
- Silo Pharma Inc. (NASDAQ:SILO) surged 45.31% following a key intellectual property update tied to its PTSD treatment pipeline. It said the European Patent Office issued a Rule 71(3) communication indicating its intent to grant a patent covering a novel preventative therapy targeting the serotonin 4 (5-HT4) receptor pathway.
- Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that SILO maintains a weak trend in the long, short, and medium terms.
Phillips 66
- Phillips 66 (NYSE:PSX) was 0.75% lower after Reuters reported that it faces a $900 million loss amid the Iran war lifting oil prices.
- Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that PSX maintains a strong price trend in the long, short, and medium terms, with a solid value score.
Levi Strauss
- Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) was 0.25% higher as Wall Street expects it to report quarterly earnings of 37 cents per share on revenue of $1.65 billion, after the closing bell.
- Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that LEVI maintains a weak price trend over the long, short, and medium terms, with a good quality score.
Mach Natural Resources
- Mach Natural Resources LP (NYSE:MNR) fell 1.41% after pricing its secondary public offering of 9 million common units at $13.05 per unit.
- Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that MNR maintains a strong price trend in the short, medium, and long terms, with a solid value score.
Cues From Last Session
Consumer discretionary, energy, and consumer staples stocks posted the largest gains on Monday as most S&P 500 sectors finished positively. Conversely, health care and utilities shares defied the broader market rally, ending the trading session in negative territory.
| Index | Performance (+/-) | Value |
| Dow Jones | 0.36% | 46,669.88 |
| S&P 500 | 0.44% | 6,611.83 |
| Nasdaq Composite | 0.54% | 21,996.34 |
| Russell 2000 | 0.42% | 2,540.64 |
Insights From Analysts
Despite the ongoing geopolitical turbulence, LPL Financial maintains a generally optimistic outlook for the U.S. stock market and economy. The firm stresses that recent market drawdowns are completely normal and emphasizes that “history shows stocks often recover quickly from wars and other military engagements.”
Consequently, LPL Financial retains confidence that the broad equity market will finish 2026 higher. They currently project a year-end fair value target range for the S&P 500 between 7,300 and 7,400.
This positive expectation is heavily anchored in corporate profitability. The firm points out that “fundamentals support double-digit growth in S&P 500 EPS in 2026,” which helps cushion the broader economic blow of higher oil prices and rising interest rates.
Regarding energy markets, LPL expects that if the Strait of Hormuz reopens, oil prices will fall, though they warn “the price floor is likely higher than February levels in the $50s.”
For now, LPL Financial advises a measured approach, noting that “the best course of action for investors is to be patient and wait for a better entry point to add equity risk.”
Upcoming Economic Data
Here's what investors will be keeping an eye on this Tuesday.
- February’s durable-goods orders and durable-goods minus transportation data will be out by 8:30 a.m. ET.
- Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee will speak at 12:35 p.m., February’s consumer credit data will be released by 3:00 p.m., and Fed Vice Chair Philip Jefferson will speak at 5:50 p.m. ET.
Commodities, Crypto, And Global Equity Markets
Crude oil futures were trading lower in the early New York session by 0.91% to hover around $113.43 per barrel.
Gold Spot US Dollar rose 0.68% to hover around $4,682.01 per ounce. Its last record high stood at $5,595.46 per ounce. The U.S. Dollar Index spot was 0.09% lower at the 99.8940 level.
Meanwhile, Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) was trading 0.62% lower at $68,772.64 per coin, as per the last 24 hours.
Asian markets closed mixed on Tuesday, as Hong Kong's Hang Seng index fell, China’s CSI 300 index was unchanged, and Australia's ASX 200, India’s Nifty 50, South Korea's Kospi, and Japan's Nikkei 225 indices rose. European markets were mostly higher in early trade.
Photo courtesy: Shutterstock
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