Stock Markets May 21, 2026 10:32 AM

Major Cap Winners and Losers: Arm, IBM Rally as Wal-Mart Slides in Active Session

Tech names and chip-related plays lead gains while some retail and large-cap stocks retreat amid varied news flow

By Ajmal Hussain ARM IBM MU QCOM SNDK

Trading on Thursday produced notable swings across market-cap segments. Chip-related and quantum-related stocks led several rallies, including Arm and IBM among mega-caps, while retail giant Wal-Mart recorded one of the larger declines. The session featured a mix of corporate announcements and CHIPS Act-linked funding developments that appeared to drive moves across semiconductor and quantum computing names.

Major Cap Winners and Losers: Arm, IBM Rally as Wal-Mart Slides in Active Session
ARM IBM MU QCOM SNDK

Key Points

  • Chip and quantum-related companies led gains, with several firms moving higher after announcements tied to CHIPS Act funding, facility leases or new manufacturing initiatives.
  • Mega-cap tech names such as Arm and IBM logged notable rallies while some retail giants, notably Wal-mart and Costco, declined.
  • Activity spanned market-cap segments, with strong percentage moves seen in mid- and small-cap stocks alongside large-cap momentum.

Thursday's session delivered a wide range of outcomes across the market-cap spectrum, with positive momentum concentrated among chip, quantum and related technology equities, while select retail and large-cap consumer names lagged.

Mega-cap highlights

  • Arm (ARM) climbed 9.15%.
  • IBM (IBM) rose 7.09% - IBM to establish quantum chip foundry with $1B CHIPS funding.
  • Micron Tech (MU) gained 3.04%.
  • Qualcomm Inc (QCOM) moved up 2.22%.
  • SanDisk Corp-Exch (SNDK) increased 5.0%.
  • Alibaba-exch (BABA) fell 3.78%.
  • Costco Whsl Corp New (COST) declined 2.57%.
  • Wal-mart Stores (WMT) dropped 7.02%.

Large-cap movers

  • Applied Blockchain (APLD) jumped 20.02% - Applied Digital secures $7.5B hyperscaler lease for 300MW facility.
  • Yandex (NBIS) added 17.25% - Nebius partners with Bloom Energy for 328 MW fuel cell project.
  • dMY Technology Group III (IONQ) rose 10.31%.
  • Globalfoundries (GFS) climbed 10.4% - GlobalFoundries launches quantum manufacturing business.
  • Polo Ralph Laur (RL) jumped 10.43%.
  • Bloom Energy Corp (BE) increased 10.74%.
  • Lumentum Holdings Inc (LITE) rose 8.78%.
  • Applied Opt (AAOI) added 6.33%.
  • Intuit (INTU) slipped 19.23%.

Mid-cap action

  • Churchill Capital (INFQ) surged 31.4% - Infleqtion signs letter of intent for $100M CHIPS funding.
  • Rigetti Computing Inc (RGTI) climbed 23.5% - Rigetti Computing signs letter of intent for $100m CHIPS Act funding.
  • DPCM Capital (QBTS) rose 22.64% - D-Wave signs letter of intent for $100M CHIPS Act funding.
  • Birkenstock Holding ltd (BIRK) gained 16.8%.
  • Advance Auto Parts (AAP) added 17.36%.
  • Quantum Computing OTC (QUBT) increased 13.91%.
  • Relay Therapeutics Inc (RLAY) was up 11.6% - Relay Therapeutics prices $275M stock offering at $12/share.
  • Cree Inc. (WOLF) climbed 10.28%.
  • SNXX (SNXX) moved 11.68% higher.

Small-cap and extended movers

The day's small-cap and other listings reflected a mix of large percentage moves, both up and down. Highlights include multiple appearances for several names as they registered intraday swings in different data feeds:

  • WMT -6.89%, QCOM +1.65%, SNDK +5.86%, COST -2.22%, INTU -19.55%.
  • RL +10.13%, IBM +7.75%, MU +2.34%, WOLF +14.93%.
  • OFIX -11.93%, AAP +17.95%, AAOI +6.41%, BABA -3.97%, LITE +9.27%.
  • BE +12.54%, BORR -14.97%, RLAY +10.98%, QUBT +17.52%, IONQ +12.67%.
  • QBTS +25.7%, GFS +9.82%, RGTI +24.91%, APLD +19.32%, LAES +13.67%.
  • ARM +9.17%, BIRK +18.32%, ALMU +10.84%, IONX +25.16%, SNXX +11.97%.
  • LITX +18.43%, AAOX +13.15%, IONX (IONX) +20.28%, LITX (LITX) +18.14%.
  • Omnilit Acquisition (OPTX) +14.41%, Aeluma (ALMU) +13.84%, AAOX (AAOX) +12.28%, Sealsq (LAES) +9.65%.
  • Orthofix Internat (OFIX) -11.73%, Borr Drilling Ltd (BORR) -16.26%, Guggenheim China SMLCap (HAO) -16.88%.

What drove the moves

Market participants reacted to a combination of company-specific announcements and letters of intent tied to CHIPS Act funding or partnerships. Several technology and quantum-focused companies recorded strong gains following statements about CHIPS-related funding, facility leases and manufacturing initiatives. By contrast, some large retail and consumer names, including Wal-mart Stores (WMT) and Costco (COST), posted declines.

Session takeaway

Thursday's trading highlighted the continued sensitivity of semiconductor, quantum and infrastructure-led names to funding and partnership news. The intraday performance also underscored divergent performance across sectors: technology and specialty industrials led advances, while certain consumer and retail names underperformed.

Risks

  • Funding-related announcements and letters of intent, such as those tied to the CHIPS Act, may introduce uncertainty around execution and timing for technology and quantum firms - impacts primarily on semiconductor and quantum sectors.
  • Sharp intraday moves in small- and mid-cap stocks indicate elevated volatility, which can affect liquidity and price stability for investors in those segments - impacts on small- and mid-cap markets.
  • Significant declines in select large-cap consumer names suggest sector-specific pressure that could reflect near-term demand or sentiment shifts - impacts on retail and consumer sectors.

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