Stock Market Live July 2, 2026: S&P 500 (SPY) Flat with New Jobs Data

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Robinhood Will Soar, Say Analysts at Mizuho

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Robinhood shares could have more room to run, say analysts at Mizuho.

In fact, the firm, which has an outperform rating on Robinhood, raised its price target to $130 from $115. The firm argues the stock could rally as it moves closer to becoming the first hyperscaler brokerage, as noted by CNBC.

“Unlike cloud computing, social media, or internet search, the online brokerage space is still highly fragmented and geographically dispersed,” said the firm. “HOOD has a chance to become the first true global ‘hyperscaler’ of online brokerages.”

Wall Street is digesting the soft June jobs report this morning, giving investors evidence that the U.S. labor market is showing signs of slowing. With the latest news, the S&P 500 is up about 0.14%, or by 10 points. The SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) is up by 0.41%, or by $3.10. The Dow is up by 0.16%, or by 82 points. The Nasdaq is up by 0.22%, or by 65 points. Oil is now at $67.20.

The Labor Department reported that employers added 57,000 jobs in June, well below economists’ expectations of roughly 110,000 to 115,000 new positions. At the same time, the unemployment rate edged down to 4.2% from 4.3%, while average hourly earnings increased 0.3% during the month and 3.5% over the past year. Previous payroll estimates for April and May were also revised lower by a combined 74,000 jobs.

Hiring remained strongest in professional and business services, healthcare, and social assistance, while leisure and hospitality posted notable job losses. Labor force participation also slipped to 61.5%, suggesting fewer Americans were actively looking for work.

What It Means for the Federal Reserve 

For the Federal Reserve, the June employment report is unlikely to settle the debate over the next move in interest rates. On one hand, slower hiring supports the argument that tighter monetary policy is cooling the economy. On the other hand, unemployment remains relatively low and wage growth continues to outpace inflation targets, suggesting labor market conditions are still firm enough to keep policymakers cautious.

Investors will now turn their attention to upcoming inflation data and the corporate earnings season for additional clues about the economy’s trajectory during the second half of the year.

What Investors Are Watching Today 

Aside from the jobs report, Wall Street will be monitoring several key themes throughout today’s session: (1) Whether Treasury yields decline on expectations that the softer labor market could reduce pressure for additional Federal Reserve tightening; (2) Continued volatility in semiconductor and AI-related technology stocks; (3) Any signs that today’s weaker payroll number changes expectations for monetary policy later this summer.

Market Movers: Palantir is a buy, says D.A. Davidson 

According to analysts at D.A. Davidson, investors may want to pick up shares of Palantir (NASDAQ: PLTR | PLTR Price Prediction), given its attractive valuation. The firm upgraded the stock to a buy with a price target of $175, up from $165.

As noted by CNBC, “Palantir has struggled in 2026, dropping more than 29% as investors fear companies will increasingly turn to AI models from OpenAI and Anthropic for their software needs. However, Luria thinks tensions between Anthropic and the U.S. government ‘illustrate precisely why customers will use Palantir as a way to orchestrate AI models.’”

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