About 320 shares in the S&P 500 rose. “The magnitude, persistence, and breadth of buying activity have materially exceeded prior peaks,” said Scott Rubner, the firm’s head of equity and equity derivatives strategy. The S&P 500 rose to around 6,880. Despite Wednesday’s equity gains, the S&P 500 has been struggling to breach the 7,000 level since it first made its push toward that level back in October. “We view the stock market as currently being in a ‘shaken, not stirred’ state,” said Craig Johnson at Piper Sandler.

Source: The Edge Markets February 18, 2026 23:02 UTC