Midday Fly By: Delta reports Q1 beat, Bed Bath & Beyond to buy F9 Brands

The major averages were sharply higher near noon in a relief rally as a geopolitical pivot has flipped sentiment. The announcement of a two-week ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran before a key escalation deadline has triggered a broad risk-on move across global assets. Crude oil is down over 15%, falling to roughly $95 per barrel, effectively reversing the inflation shock that had been tightening financial conditions throughout March and early April.

However, this rally is built on a temporary ceasefire and not a permanent resolution. The Strait of Hormuz is only partially reopening, and structural supply disruptions haven’t fully cleared. Any breakdown in talks could quickly reintroduce volatility, but for now the VIX has moved to recent lows.

Get caught up quickly on the top news and calls moving stocks with these five Top Five lists. 

1. STOCK NEWS:

• Delta (DAL) reported better-than-expected Q1 results, with the company noting that it expects Q2 non-fuel unit costs growth similar to Q1
• Levi Strauss (LEVI) provided a “beat and raise” report for Q1
• Bed Bath & Beyond (BBBY) agreed to acquire substantially all assets of F9 Brands for $150M
• Shell (SHEL) provided downbeat Q1 earning guidance, citing uncertainty around the “ongoing situation” in the Middle East
• Following the announcement of a (UAL) and Royal Caribbean (RCL) rose while energy stocks like Chevron (CVX) and Occidental (OXY) fell

2. WALL STREET CALLS:

• Coinbase (COIN) downgraded to Underweight at Barclays
• Freshpet (FRPT) upgraded to Buy at TD Cowen
• T-Mobile (TMUS) upgraded to Buy at MoffettNathanson
• General Dynamics (GD) downgraded to Hold at Deutsche Bank
• Seaport says Broadcom (AVGO) “still in the pack,” downgrades to Neutral

3. AROUND THE WEB:

• Stellantis (STLA) is in discussions with Leapmotor to jointly develop an Opel-branded SUV that would use Leapmotor’s technology while being produced at Stellantis’ Zaragoza plant in Spain, Reuters reports
• A pro-Iranian cybercrime outfit has claimed responsibility for hacks of Chime (CHYM) and Pinterest (PINS) that forced the websites of both companies offline, Bloomberg says
• The Trump administration has rejected requests from Ford Motor (F) and other U.S. automakers for relief from the tariffs on aluminum after two fires at the Novelis aluminum plant in Oswego, New York took the facility out of commission until at least this June, WSJ reports
• Greece will prohibit access to social media for children under the age of 15 starting January 1, 2027 due to rising anxiety, sleep issues and the addictive design of the sites, Reuters says
• TikTok, whose U.S. business counts Oracle (ORCL) as an investor, intends to invest $1.16B to build a second data center in Finland as it moves data storage for European users to the continent, Reuters reports

4. MOVERS:

• Applied Materials (AMAT) higher after introducing two chipmaking systems
• Richtech Robotics (RR) increases after announcing a distribution agreement with NewConsultancy
• Oscar Health (OSCR) gains after its CEO bought 1M shares
• SM Energy (SM) lower after Roth Capital downgraded the stock to Neutral
• Exxon Mobil (XOM) falls after announcing it sees 6% of upstream production disrupted by the Middle East in Q1

5. EARNINGS/GUIDANCE:

• Sealsq (LAES) provided guidance for Q1 and backed its guidance for FY26
• RPM (RPM) reported Q3 results, with EPS and revenue beating consensus
• Kura Sushi (KRUS) reported Q2 results and raised its guidance for FY26
• Nurix Therapeutics (NRIX) reported Q1 results, with EPS missing consensus
• Aehr Test Systems (AEHR) reported Q3 results and backed its guidance for the second half of the year

INDEXES:

Near midday, the Dow was up 2.72%, or 1,265.18, to 47,849.64, the Nasdaq was up 2.96%, or 651.55, to 22,669.40, and the S&P 500 was up 2.47%, or 163.69, to 6,780.54.