US stocks in rally mode as Microsoft and Alphabet impress on earnings stage Investing.com

Investing.com– The S&P 500 surged Friday as stronger-than-expected earnings from Microsoft and Alphabet revived bullish investment in technology stocks.

It gained 230 points, or 0.60%, at 13:52 ET (17:52 GMT), up 1.3%, while the tech-heavy stock rose 2.3%.

Microsoft soars, Alphabet hits record highs thanks to strong first quarter performance; Intel stumbled.

Google parent Alphabet (NASDAQ:) rose 10% to a record high after reporting stronger-than-expected first-quarter results due to strong demand for new AI products. Alphabet also declared its first-ever dividend of 20 cents per share.

Quarterly results show Google has “more than overcome GenAI concerns,” RBC said in a note, keeping the stock in a core holding bucket for investors.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:) shares rose more than 2% as strong demand for its AI products helped the company report stronger-than-expected first-quarter results.

“MSFT remains the top pick for GenAI as each of its key growth drivers, particularly Azure and Gaming, continue to perform well,” Macquarie said in a note Friday.

In chip stocks, Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:) fell more than 9% after weak second-quarter guidance raised concerns that the chipmaker will lag rivals in the race to cash in on artificial intelligence.

The Fed’s preferred inflation gauge appears as expected.

Data released Friday morning showed the personal consumption expenditures price index rose 0.3% in March, as expected. In the 12 months to March, PCE inflation rose 2.7% compared to expectations of 2.6%.

Excluding the volatile food and energy components, the PCE price index last month rose 0.3% as expected, up 2.8% on an annual basis from the forecast 2.7%.

The Fed’s favorite measure of inflation has come in well ahead of expectations, fueling concerns that a rate cut this year will be more unlikely, largely due to hawkish comments from Fed officials.

Snap Pop on solid performance; roku, ExxonMobil Stumble at the performance stage

Snap (NYSE:) shares rose nearly 30% after the social media company reported stronger-than-expected first-quarter results and offered an optimistic outlook.

year Inc (NASDAQ:) fell more than 8% after the streaming device maker said it was “difficult to compare year-over-year growth rates given past price increases.”

Exxon Mobil Corp (NYSE:) rose more than 3% after reporting first-quarter results that missed expectations due to lower refining margins and lower prices.

(Peter Nurse and Ambar Warrick contributed to this article.)