AI, logistics and defense headlines move major US stocks

US stocks advanced Thursday afternoon, with the S&P 500 up nearly 1% and the Nasdaq Composite more than 1% higher, according to CNBC. The move came as investors looked past concerns about an escalation in the US-Iran military conflict, while bond yields and oil prices declined, two conditions that have recently helped equities.

Company news drove several large-cap moves across artificial intelligence, health-care logistics, parcel delivery, defense and enterprise software. The developments touched Meta Platforms, Cardinal Health, FedEx, Amazon, Honeywell Aerospace, Starbucks, Microsoft and IBM, with investors weighing capital spending, competition and cost savings.

Meta pushes AI platform ambitions

Meta Platforms initially traded lower after Reuters reported that a leaked internal document showed plans for a sharp increase in AI computing capacity next year. CNBC said the stock later turned higher during the session.

The move reflected the market’s mixed view of Meta’s AI spending plans. Investors have responded positively to potential revenue streams such as AI models and public cloud services, while also scrutinizing the capital required to build the infrastructure behind them.

Meta said Thursday it introduced Muse Park 1.1, describing it as its strongest model so far for agentic and coding work, according to CNBC. The company is also making an application programming interface available through a developer portal. APIs allow separate software systems to exchange instructions and data, so developers can connect external applications to Meta’s proprietary model. CNBC said that step puts Meta more directly against OpenAI and Anthropic in commercial AI tools.

Health-care distribution meets new logistics competition

Cowen raised its price target on Cardinal Health to $275 a share from $255 in a second-quarter preview for drug and medical distributors, CNBC reported. The firm expects Cardinal Health to guide fiscal 2027 earnings per share above the current FactSet consensus of $12.04 when it reports fiscal fourth-quarter results.

Cardinal Health shares touched $240 earlier Thursday before falling with other health-care names as investors rotated back toward technology stocks, according to CNBC. The stock also moved after FedEx announced FedEx Life Sciences, a dedicated unit for transporting pharmaceuticals, medical devices, biologics and other critical health-care shipments. FedEx has said it aims to build FedEx Healthcare into a $10 billion business.

The new FedEx unit could overlap with parts of Cardinal Health’s distribution activity. CNBC noted, however, that Cardinal Health also provides inventory management, data reporting, product-launch support and other services beyond transport.

FedEx weighs Amazon pricing pressure

FedEx shares also fell after Supply Chain Dive reported that Amazon was offering lower shipping rates to prospective delivery customers than FedEx and United Parcel Service. Amazon’s delivery push affects about 2% of FedEx revenue, FedEx Chief Executive Raj Subramaniam told Jim Cramer in Memphis, according to CNBC.

CNBC reported that Amazon’s current service is best suited to lighter, lower-cost products. FedEx has been emphasizing sectors such as health care, automotive, aerospace and data centers, as well as shipments above 50 pounds or goods with higher value, where customers may pay more for speed, tracking, security and reliability.

Honeywell Aerospace targets Europe

Honeywell Aerospace is preparing to expand its overseas defense offering, Reuters reported. The company is expected to introduce more defense products for Europe that would not require US export-control approval, with a possible announcement at the Farnborough Airshow in Britain later this month.

The initiative comes as European governments increase military spending. NATO allies recently agreed to more than double their defense-spending target by 2035, according to CNBC. Defense and Space accounts for about 40% of Honeywell Aerospace revenue, CNBC reported. Honeywell Aerospace was spun off from Honeywell late last month.

Starbucks looks at internal AI tools

Starbucks shares rose more than 2.5% after Bloomberg reported that the company is exploring the use of AI to build internal software tools that could replace systems it currently buys from Microsoft and IBM. Jim Cramer said the report showed how investors may respond when companies identify ways to reduce reliance on costly software providers, according to CNBC.

No major earnings were scheduled after Thursday’s closing bell, CNBC reported. Delta Air Lines is due to report before Friday’s open, and no major US economic data releases are scheduled for the final trading day of the week.

This story draws on original reporting from CNBC.