Vanguard S&P 500 ETF Sees Strong Inflows, Steady Gains

Vanguard S&P 500 ETF ( $VOO ) has risen by 0.25% in the past week. It has experienced a 5-day net inflow of $4.4 billion.
This is due, in part, to market sentiment on some of the ETF’s largest holdings. For example:

• Nvidia Corporation remained at the center of the market’s AI story this week, using CES 2026 to showcase how its technology will move beyond data centers into autonomous vehicles and humanoid robots, while Wall Street continues to view it as the pace‑setter in high‑performance AI hardware. The company unveiled Alpamayo, a vision‑language‑action model aimed at solving the toughest “long‑tail” problems in self‑driving, backed by the AlpaSim simulation platform and large open datasets, and highlighted its Isaac GR00T N1.x models for humanoid robots—moves that position Nvidia as a key enabler for automakers and robotics firms that want to close the gap with leaders like Tesla. At the same time, analysts noted that Nvidia’s new AI storage racks (such as VR NVL144) are soaking up huge amounts of NAND memory and reshaping pricing and supply across the semiconductor chain, underscoring the company’s influence well beyond GPUs. Strategically, Nvidia is also professionalizing its go‑to‑market efforts by hiring longtime Google executive Alison Wagonfeld as its first chief marketing officer, a sign it is shifting from a pure chip maker to a full‑stack AI platform company just as it nears a $5 trillion valuation; analyst sentiment remains strongly bullish, with expectations for significant upside as AI infrastructure and “physical AI” deployments expand.
• Apple Inc stayed firmly in Wall Street’s crosshairs as stronger‑than‑expected iPhone 17 demand clashed with rising concerns that the stock’s nearly $4 trillion valuation leaves limited room for outsized gains. Evercore ISI raised its price target to $330 and now projects Apple’s December‑quarter revenue and earnings to beat consensus, citing robust iPhone demand in North America, China, and India, a shift toward higher‑end models, and only modest near‑term pressure from memory costs; this underpins a “healthy” AI‑enabled upgrade cycle after several muted years. However, several voices—including Raymond James’ Melissa Fairbanks and noted investor A.J. Button—argue that Apple’s scale and 36x earnings multiple make “explosive” growth unlikely, especially after high‑profile misfires like the cancelled Apple Car and the disappointing Vision Pro, reinforcing the view of Apple as a great business at a rich price. Adding to the narrative is a developing succession story: hardware engineering chief John Ternus is seen as the leading internal candidate to succeed CEO Tim Cook, who is rumored to be eyeing retirement by 2026 and a move to chairman; for shareholders, that points to continuity in operations and product strategy even as debate continues over whether future AI and services growth can justify today’s premium valuation. Overall, AAPL holds a Moderate Buy rating and mid‑teens percentage upside on Street targets, reflecting respect for its ecosystem and cash generation but tempered expectations for near‑term outperformance.
• Microsoft faced a more nuanced week, with early signs that its heavily promoted “AI PC” vision is not yet resonating with consumers, even as analysts remain broadly convinced about its long‑term AI and gaming opportunity. Key PC partner Dell used CES 2026 to warn that AI‑branded laptops are confusing rather than enticing typical buyers, who can still run many AI tasks from older Windows 10 machines; that softer‑than‑hoped demand has weighed slightly on sentiment and raises questions about how quickly Microsoft can convert its AI investments in Windows into a broad hardware refresh cycle. In response, Microsoft is pushing ahead on strategic initiatives meant to deepen engagement and monetization: it is preparing major updates to the Windows 11 full‑screen experience aimed at making PCs feel more console‑like, and is readying next‑generation Xbox wireless controllers with direct‑to‑WiFi connectivity to cut latency and strengthen its cloud‑gaming ambitions around the platform’s 25th anniversary. The company also moved to shore up confidence by forcefully denying widely circulated rumors of 11,000–22,000 AI‑related layoffs, insisting the reports were “100 percent made up,” which helps support its image of operational stability amid heavy AI spending. Despite the recent share‑price wobble, Wall Street retains a Strong Buy stance on MSFT, with average targets implying more than 30% upside, signaling that investors still see Microsoft as a core long‑term beneficiary of enterprise AI, cloud, and gaming—even if the consumer AI PC cycle takes longer than hoped to fully materialize.