Friday morning brought the kind of indecisive market action that makes you wonder if investors are still processing everything that happened this week. U.S. stock futures swung between gains and losses, unable to pick a direction after Thursday's mixed close that saw the Dow surge while tech stocks took a breather.

The Dow Jones futures managed to climb 0.17%, suggesting industrials and blue chips might extend their Thursday rally. But the Nasdaq 100 futures told a different story, sliding 0.54% as tech stocks continued their rotation. S&P 500 futures split the difference with a 0.19% decline, while Russell 2000 futures edged up 0.06%.

Thursday's session was all about rotation. Investors moved money out of expensive tech names and into sectors that have been waiting for their moment. The result? The Dow rocketed more than 600 points while tech-heavy indices struggled. Risk appetite stayed solid overall, buoyed by the Federal Reserve's third consecutive interest rate cut delivered Wednesday.

Adding another layer to the mix, President Donald Trump signed a sweeping executive order aimed at creating a single national framework for artificial intelligence. The order moves to sideline state-level AI regulations, which Trump argued were hindering America's ability to maintain its leadership in this increasingly critical space. It's the kind of policy move that sounds important but might take months or years to fully understand the implications.

In the bond market, the 10-year Treasury yield held at 4.17%, while the two-year sat at 3.53%. According to the CME Group's FedWatch tool, markets are pricing in a 73.4% likelihood that the Federal Reserve will leave interest rates unchanged at its next meeting. Translation: investors think the Fed is done cutting for now.

The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) and Invesco QQQ Trust ETF (QQQ), which track the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 respectively, were both lower in premarket trading on Friday. SPY declined 0.13% to $688.30, while QQQ dropped 0.45% to $622.78.

Companies Making Moves

Costco Wholesale

Costco Wholesale Corp. (COST) fell 0.52% in premarket trading despite reporting better-than-expected financial results for the first quarter of fiscal 2026 after Thursday's closing bell. Sometimes even good news isn't enough to satisfy investors who might have been expecting great news.

The wholesale giant maintains a weaker price trend over the short, medium, and long terms, with a moderate value ranking according to market data analysis.

Broadcom

Here's where things got ugly. Broadcom Inc. (AVGO) dropped 5.18% after delivering disappointing guidance about shrinking gross margins and a sharply higher tax rate for fiscal 2026. The semiconductor and infrastructure software company has been riding the AI wave, but this guidance suggests the path might get bumpier.

Despite the selloff, market analysis shows that AVGO maintains a stronger price trend over the short, medium, and long terms, with a solid quality ranking. One bad guidance doesn't erase the underlying strength, but it definitely hurts.

Lululemon Athletica

While Broadcom stumbled, Lululemon Athletica Inc. (LULU) had itself a day. The athletic apparel company jumped 9.49% after posting better-than-expected results for the third quarter and raising its full-year guidance. As if that wasn't enough good news, Lululemon also announced a CEO succession plan and authorized an increase to its share buyback program.

The company maintains a weaker price trend over the long term but shows strong momentum in the medium and short terms, with a strong growth ranking. Sometimes a company just needs to execute, and Lululemon appears to be doing exactly that.

RH

RH (RH), the luxury home furnishings company formerly known as Restoration Hardware, climbed 4.26% despite posting mixed results for the third quarter. The company reported earnings of $1.71 per share, missing the analyst estimate of $2.16 by a substantial 20.87%. But revenue came in at $883.81 million, barely beating the Street estimate of $883.69 million.

Why did the stock rise on an earnings miss? Markets are weird sometimes, and forward-looking investors might be seeing something in the guidance or commentary that suggests better days ahead. Market analysis shows that RH maintains a weaker price trend over the short, long, and medium terms, with a poor value score.

Tilray Brands

The cannabis sector got some excitement as Tilray Brands Inc. (TLRY) absolutely rocketed 28.11% higher following the company's announcement of its Amped Live Resin Liquid Diamond product line. That's the kind of move that makes cannabis stocks famous for their volatility.

TLRY maintains a stronger price trend over the long term but shows weakness in the short and medium terms, with a poor growth ranking. The product announcement clearly got investors excited about near-term prospects.

Thursday's Market Action

To understand Friday's hesitation, it helps to look at what happened Thursday. The session featured clear sector rotation, with industrials, materials, and financials leading the gains. Meanwhile, communication services and information technology stocks bucked the trend and closed lower.

The Nasdaq Composite declined 0.25% to finish at 23,593.86. The S&P 500 managed a 0.21% gain to close at 6,901.00. But the real star was the Dow Jones, which surged 1.34% to reach 48,704.01. The Russell 2000, which tracks small-cap stocks, also performed well with a 1.21% gain to 2,590.61.

What the Strategists Are Saying

Scott Wren, Senior Global Market Strategist at Wells Fargo Investment Institute, maintains what he calls a "40,000-foot view" of the U.S. economy that anticipates "moderate growth and easing price pressures" heading into 2026. That's strategist-speak for cautiously optimistic.

Wren expects GDP growth to improve and inflation to moderate compared to 2025, creating an environment where "risk assets should do well, particularly equities." He projects S&P 500 earnings growth of slightly more than 11%, supported by key trends such as AI infrastructure spending, deregulation, and significant tax refunds.

But here's the important part: Despite this optimism, Wren advises active management, stating that "now is not the time to put portfolios on autopilot." He recommends rotating funds from Communication Services and Information Technology—both recently downgraded to neutral—into sectors with more upside potential.

Specifically, Wren highlights Financials, Industrials, and Utilities as favored sectors. He notes that opportunity in the latter two is "largely tied to AI capex spending" and the necessary upgrades to the electrical grid to support data centers. Even the AI revolution needs boring old infrastructure.

What's Coming

Investors will be watching several Fed speakers on Friday. Philadelphia Fed President Anna Paulson will speak at 8:00 a.m., while Cleveland Fed President Beth Hammack will speak at 8:30 a.m. ET. September's wholesale inventories data will be released by 10:00 a.m. ET.

Commodities and Crypto Update

Crude oil futures were trading slightly higher in the early New York session, up 0.09% to hover around $57.66 per barrel. That's still relatively subdued compared to historical levels.

Gold continued its march higher, rising 0.75% to hover around $4,311.82 per ounce. The precious metal's last record high stood at $4,381.60 per ounce, suggesting it's knocking on the door of another milestone. The U.S. Dollar Index spot was 0.10% higher at the 98.4480 level.

Bitcoin (BTC) was trading 1.99% higher at $92,179.17 per coin, continuing its volatile dance that cryptocurrency investors have come to expect.

Global Markets

Asian markets closed higher across the board on Friday. India's NIFTY 50, Australia's ASX 200, Hong Kong's Hang Seng, China's CSI 300, South Korea's Kospi, and Japan's Nikkei 225 indices all rose. European markets were also trading higher in early sessions, suggesting global risk appetite remains reasonably healthy despite the mixed signals from U.S. futures.