US stocks set more records as Verizon begins a big week for profit
reports with a beat
[July 22, 2025] By
STAN CHOE
NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stock indexes inched their way to more records on
Monday to kick off a week full of profit updates from big U.S.
companies.
The S&P 500 rose 0.1% and squeaked past its prior all-time high set on
Thursday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average edged down by 19 points, or
less than 0.1%, and the Nasdaq composite added 0.4% to its own record.
Verizon Communications helped lead the way and rose 4%. The telecom
giant reported a stronger profit for the latest quarter than analysts
expected, along with higher revenue than forecast. Following the
better-than-expected performance, Verizon raised its forecasts for
profit and other financial measures for the full year.
That helped offset a 5.4% drop for Sarepta Therapeutics, which continued
to fall after the Food and Drug Administration said on Friday that it
asked the company to voluntarily stop all shipments of Elevidys, its
gene therapy for Duchenne muscular dystrophy, due to safety concerns.
Block, Jack Dorsey’s company behind Square, Cash App and other tech
brands climbed 7.6% in its first trading after learning it will join the
widely followed and imitated S&P 500 index. It will take the place of
Hess, which Chevron bought, before trading begins on Wednesday.
Cleveland-Cliffs rallied 12.4% after the steel producer reported a
smaller loss for the spring than analysts expected. It shipped a record
4.3 million net tons of steel during the quarter, and CEO Lourenco
Goncalves said the company has begun to see “the positive impact that
tariffs have on domestic manufacturing” and other things.
It’s a major supplier to the auto industry, and President Donald Trump’s
tariffs steer companies hoping to sell cars in the United States toward
steel made in the country.
Other U.S. companies, though, are navigating the downsides and
complications of tariffs, which raise prices on all kinds of things
imported to the United States. That includes General Motors, which will
report its latest profit results later this week, along with such market
heavyweights as Alphabet, Coca-Cola and Tesla.
Many of Trump’s stiff proposed tariffs are currently on pause after
Trump extended the deadline for talks with other countries in order to
give more time to reach potential trade deals that could lower the tax
rates. The next big deadline, at least for now, is Aug. 1.
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 It’s still early days in this
earnings reporting season, but most big U.S. companies have been
topping analysts’ expectations, as is usually the case.
Some encouraging undertones may already be
emerging. An upward inflection in demand for travel that United
Airlines said it’s seen recently, combined with better-than-expected
data on U.S. retail sales, may indicate that U.S. consumers remain
in decent health, Bank of America strategist Savita Subramanian said
in a BofA Global Research report. That could offer a strong source
of support for the economy.
Companies will need to keep delivering solid profit growth to tamp
down criticism that the U.S. stock market may be looking expensive
again after prices reached records despite potential worries about
tariffs and the economy.
All told, the S&P 500 rose 8.81 points to 6,305.60. The Dow Jones
Industrial Average slipped 19.12 to 44,323.07, and the Nasdaq
composite rose 78.52 to 20,974.17.
In the bond market, Treasury yields eased. The yield on the 10-year
Treasury fell to 4.38% from 4.44% late Friday.
In stock markets abroad, indexes were mixed in Europe after
finishing modestly higher in much of Asia.
Markets were closed for a holiday in Japan, where the ruling Liberal
Democrats lost their coalition majorities in both houses of
parliament for the first time since 1955 following Sunday’s upper
house election and the loss of their lower house majority in
October.
A grim Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba has vowed to stay on after the
drubbing by voters frustrated over rising prices and political
instability. Analysts said they expect his weakened government to
crank up spending, adding to Japan’s huge debt burden.
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AP Business Writers Matt Ott and Elaine Kurtenbach contributed.
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