Energy led Thursday as chips fell after a lower OpenAI figure

Energy led the sectors on Thursday, and chip shares pulled the S&P 500 fund down on a day most stocks rose. AXLE, the fund of the S&P 500's large energy companies, rose 3.0%. AXLK, which owns the index's large technology companies, fell 1.8%.

ASPY, the fund most people use to own the S&P 500, fell 0.4%. BRSP gives each of those companies the same weight, so a percentage move in the largest counts the same as in the smallest, and it rose 0.6%. The gap was about a percentage point, and the largest chip companies were the reason.

Eight of the eleven sector funds rose, after a Wednesday when only one did. The three that fell on Thursday were technology, health care and utilities. Health care fell 0.4% and utilities fell 0.2%, so the decline that counted was technology.

What lifted oil, and what capped it

Two supply threats pushed oil up. Producers closed the valves on offshore wells in the Gulf of Mexico ahead of Hurricane Isaias, which is headed for the Gulf Coast, so those wells stopped producing. Renewed attacks on tankers around the Strait of Hormuz were the other threat.

Brent crude traded as high as $105.91, more than $5 above Wednesday's close. President Donald Trump said the United States "will not be attacking Iran at any time prior to" the midterm elections on November 3, and oil came off that high after he said it. At 4:25 p.m. ET, Brent was at $103.4, up 3.2% on the day, and US crude was at $90.76, up 2.8%.

AXLE finished about in line with that 3.2% Brent gain. ExxonMobil, about 23% of the fund, rose 2.7%, and Chevron, about 18%, rose 3.1%.

Marathon Petroleum and Valero, the refiners, rose faster, 4.8% and 4.6%, as they did on October 1. Exxon and Chevron still added more to the fund, because they make up so much more of it.

A few chip companies did the pulling

Nvidia, about 16% of AXLK, fell 2.9% and took nearly half a percentage point off the fund. Micron Technology, Broadcom and Advanced Micro Devices each took about a fifth of a percentage point off it. Apple, about 13% of the fund, rose 1.1%, so the drop sat with the chip makers.

AQQQ, the Nasdaq-100 fund, fell 1.3%. ASMH, a fund of semiconductor makers, fell 2.9%, more than AQQQ or AXLK.

Chip shares were already lower before the opening bell. Around 1 p.m. ET, the Financial Times reported that OpenAI has told investors its annualized revenue, the current pace of sales stretched over a year, was approaching $50 billion toward the end of September. That was about $20 billion below a roughly $70 billion figure reported in late September, which the Financial Times said came from investors trying to compare OpenAI with Anthropic.

Dow Jones reported that chip suppliers, including Broadcom and Advanced Micro Devices, fell after that report. Broadcom is arranging more than $50 billion so OpenAI can buy chips the two are developing together, a plan reported on Wednesday.

AXLK is still up 37% since the start of 2026. Thursday left it 2.7% below its highest price in the past twelve months.

The rise was spread across the big names

AXLP, which owns the S&P 500's large food, drink and household-goods companies, rose 2.1%, and the gain was spread across the largest holdings. Philip Morris, 6.6% of the fund, rose 4.1%, and Walmart, about 11%, rose 2.2%. Coca-Cola added about as much to the fund as PepsiCo.

PepsiCo, about 4% of the fund, cut its forecast for full-year core earnings growth to 2.5% to 3.5%, from the low end of a 5% to 7% range. Core earnings, the profit figure that leaves out one-time items, were $2.34 a share, above the $2.29 analysts expected, and the shares still rose 3.7%.

Energy led and household goods were next, but a few chip companies were large enough to pull ASPY down on a day most stocks rose.