Trending stocks this week as tech selloff deepens, volatility surges

Wall Street ended the week mixed as tech weakness drove a sharp rise in volatility, while investors assessed hotter September inflation data and Q3 bank earnings.

CPI rose 3.7% year over year, matching expectations but accelerating from 3.4% in August. The VIX surged about 30% Friday to above 21, its highest level in more than four months.

Investors also digested results from major lenders, including Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, Citigroup, and Wells Fargo, as earnings season began.

For the week, the blue-chip Dow (DJI) added +0.67%, the benchmark S&P (SP500) lost -1.95%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (COMP:IND) plunged -4.48%.

Here's what caught investor attention this week:

Tesla (TSLA) shares rose on Friday after the company unveiled its long-delayed Roadster sports car, featuring thrusters designed to enable short flights. The Roadster isn’t expected to start production until 2028.

CoreWeave (CRWV) fell more than 15% on Wednesday after a report emerged that the company was seeking insurance-industry capital to finance additional AI infrastructure. This renewed investor concerns about the company's balance sheet and capital structure. Separately, Gartner's prediction that rising costs and limited differentiation will lead more than 80% of neocloud providers to cease independent operations by 2030 further weighed on the stock.

Netflix (NFLX) is reportedly cutting approximately 1,000 jobs, or 6% of its global workforce. The reductions primarily affected product, technology, legal, and human resources teams. The company cited organizational changes and a need to prioritize resources amid slowing user engagement and intensifying competition.

Bumble (BMBL), the publicly traded company behind Bumble and Badoo, announced an agreement to be acquired by Ithaca Holdings in an all-cash deal valued at $1.3B. Word of the deal, which calls for shareholders to receive $6.05 per share, caused BMBL shares to more than double over the course of two sessions early this week.

Six Flags (FUN) shares fell approximately 14% after a fatal incident at Six Flags Over Georgia, in which a man died after being ejected from the Goliath roller coaster. Several other people were injured. The company temporarily closed nine similar rides across its parks while the incident was investigated.

Apple (AAPL) closed above $5T in market capitalization for the first time on Oct. 14, becoming the second company to reach the milestone after briefly surpassing it for the first time in July. The iPhone maker’s shares ended at a record high, lifting its market value into an exclusive club previously occupied only by chip giant Nvidia.

Rocket Lab (RKLB) shares fell after the space launch company pushed the inaugural flight of its Neutron rocket into 2027, citing manufacturing problems involving a carbon-composite component of the vehicle's first-stage propellant tank. The delay adds to investor concerns about the development timeline for the larger rocket, which is central to Rocket Lab's efforts to expand its launch business.

Bending Spoons (BSP) stock surged 41% on Wednesday trading after Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) (BRK.B) agreed to invest $330M in the parent of AOL, Eventbrite, and other digital businesses, bringing its total stake to 4% of BSP stock.

Bank of America (BAC) shares suffered their steepest daily decline since April 2025 on Oct 14, as a regulatory settlement charge weighed on third-quarter earnings. The Charlotte, North Carolina-based bank (BAC) was hit by a $1.2B fine from the U.S. Department of the Treasury related to anti-money laundering and sanctions laws violations. The settlement charge reduced the bank’s earnings per share by $0.17.

UnitedHealth Group (UNH) reported better-than-expected third-quarter results and raised its full-year 2026 earnings guidance for the third time this year. The firm now expects a full-year adjusted earnings outlook of at least $20.50 per share, above the consensus estimate of $19.87 and up from a previous range of $19.50 to $20.

JPMorgan Chase (JPM) reported an unexpected decline in third-quarter fixed-income trading revenue, its first drop in more than two years. The bank now expects full-year net interest income of about $106.2B, up from its July forecast of roughly $105.5B.