Stocks making the biggest moves midday: Sandisk, Applied Materials, AeroVironment, Cisco Systems, Reddit & more
Midday movers included Cisco (shares down 2% after HSBC cut its rating to Hold and price target to $120), Applied Materials (down 5% after Q2 adjusted EPS $3.50 on $9.12B revenue), Reddit (up 12% on S&P 500 inclusion Aug. 18), and Sandisk (up 6% after JPMorgan upgraded to Overweight). Other moves cited upgrades, tariffs, and guidance changes.
How this was made
The 30-second read
Why it matters
The actionable trading signals are the same-day catalysts: HSBC’s CSCO downgrade, Applied Materials’ Q2 reaction, York’s guidance cut, S&P 500 inclusion for Reddit, and JPMorgan’s Sandisk upgrade. Several other names move on upgrades or backlog/earnings-related disclosures.
Market read
Midday price action is driven by discrete, tradable catalysts: analyst target changes, earnings/guidance misses, and index inclusion flows.
What to watch
For index inclusion (RDDT), the magnitude can depend on implementation mechanics and ETF/benchmark flow timing; for downgrades (CSCO, AMAT), the market may already be positioned for deceleration, limiting incremental downside.
Background
This is a CNBC midday market wrap highlighting company-specific movers tied to analyst rating changes, earnings/guidance reactions, index inclusion, and a drone tariff headline.
Ticker impact
Cisco shares slid 2% after HSBC cut its rating to Hold and lowered its price target to $120 from $137.
Near-term downside bias; any rebound likely needs new fundamental catalysts beyond this note.
The article attributes the move directly to HSBC’s downgrade and target cut, with a thesis about decelerating growth and valuation pressure.
AeroVironment jumped 2% as drone stocks rose after President Trump imposed import tariffs on foreign-made drones and parts.
Potential continuation higher while tariff headlines dominate, but magnitude may fade if details/implementation lag.
The article links the move to a broad sector tariff headline, not company-specific guidance or orders.
Intuitive Machines jumped 10% after reporting order backlog expanded to $1.55 billion as of June 30.
Bullish bias for days to weeks if backlog trend holds; volatility likely remains high for space names.
The article provides a concrete backlog figure and notes a Stifel rating upgrade with a $26 target.
Fox Corporation rose 5% after upgrades to overweight from JPMorgan and Wells Fargo, citing its agreement to acquire Roku.
Likely continued relative strength while analysts digest the Roku acquisition synergy case.
The article explicitly ties the upgrades to the Roku acquisition agreement as the driver.
Reddit surged 12% after S&P Dow Jones Indices said it will join the S&P 500 starting Aug. 18.
Supportive into Aug. 18, with potential volatility around index-rebalance execution.
The article provides the specific index change and effective date, which is typically tradable via flows.
Applied Materials fell 5% after posting Q2 results that investors did not find compelling.
Near-term weakness likely until management commentary clarifies demand and order trajectory.
The article includes specific Q2 adjusted EPS and revenue figures and notes the market reaction was negative.
Wayfair gained 1% after Bernstein upgraded its rating to outperform from market perform.
Mild upside bias if investors buy into the growth narrative; likely capped without new hard datapoints.
The article reports the upgrade and qualitative thesis, but no new Wayfair financial print is disclosed here.
Workday was down more than 3% as traders pocketed gains after a prior rally tied to a Reuters report about Silver Lake talks.
Choppy to slightly negative near term as the initial headline fades.
This is framed as traders taking gains after a prior-day report, so the newest fact is more about positioning than a fresh disclosure.
Market effects
Tariff headlines can lift drone and unmanned aircraft names broadly, while semiconductor equipment moves reflect investor sensitivity to results quality.
Primarily US-focused via S&P 500 inclusion mechanics and US-listed semiconductor/tech sentiment.
Import tariffs on drones can affect cross-border supply chains and competitive dynamics for unmanned aircraft globally.
Counterpoint
Some moves may be headline-driven and mean-revert, especially where the article cites broad sector tariff effects or post-rally profit-taking rather than new company fundamentals.
Key entities
- companyCisco Systems
Networking equipment maker whose shares fell after HSBC cut rating and price target.
- companyApplied Materials
Semiconductor manufacturing equipment maker whose shares fell after Q2 results disappointed investors.
- companyAeroVironment
Unmanned aircraft manufacturer that rose on drone import tariff news.
- companyIntuitive Machines
Robotic spacecraft and lander maker that jumped on backlog expansion and analyst upgrade.
- companyYork Space Systems
Mini-satellite maker that slumped after missing EPS and lowering full-year guidance.
