Stocks hit records on Iran deal hopes, AMD and ADP

U.S. stocks closed at fresh records Wednesday after reports the White House was nearing a one-page memorandum of understanding with Iran, Advanced Micro Devices raised its AI chip guidance and ADP reported stronger-than-expected private payrolls.

The S&P 500 rose 1.14% to 7,341.93, the Nasdaq Composite gained 1.51% to 25,707.5 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average increased 1.10% to 49,839.3.

Reports described terms of the proposed MOU that would pause uranium enrichment, allow U.N. inspections, limit underground nuclear activities, open a 30-day window for further negotiations and include eased U.S. sanctions plus the release of frozen Iranian assets. Iran was given about 48 hours to respond. Brent crude eased and the Energy sector fell 3.74%.

Exxon Mobil declined 4.72% and Chevron fell 4.58%.

AMD reported adjusted first-quarter earnings per share of $1.37 on $10.25 billion in revenue, a 38% year-over-year increase that the company attributed to strong data-center AI demand. AMD rose 16.29% to a record high after raising its second-quarter outlook.

Semiconductor peers advanced: Super Micro Computer climbed 15.25%, Nvidia rose 4.31%, Lam Research gained 7.17%, Micron added 2.77% and Intel increased 2.40%.

The April ADP private payrolls report showed 109,000 jobs added, above the 84,000 consensus. ADP Chief Economist Nela Richardson described the data as “We’re starting to see green shoots in different sectors every single month.”

Market breadth was positive, with advancing issues at 60.3% versus 36.3% declining and new highs outpacing new lows. Basic Materials led sector gains at 3.68%, Technology rose 2.08%, Industrials added 1.93% with General Electric up 6.04%, Communication Services advanced 1.63%, Real Estate gained 1.53% and Consumer Cyclical rose 1.41%. Utilities fell 0.73%.

Market participants are watching whether Iran responds within the 48-hour window and monitoring upcoming economic data and corporate reports for further direction.