U.S. stocks ended higher on Thursday as investors cheered NVIDIA’s quarterly results, reaffirming their faith in the ongoing spending on artificial intelligence and the enthusiasm surrounding it. All three major indexes ended in positive territory.

How Did The Benchmarks Perform?

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) gained 0.2% or 71.67 points, to end at 45,636.90 points, to hit a new all-time closing high.

The S&P 500 advanced 0.3% to close at 6,501.86 points, to hit a fresh all-time closing high. This is the first time the index crossed the 6,500 mark. Energy and tech stocks were the best performers.

The Energy Select Sector SPDR (XLE) and the Technology Select Sector SPDR (XLK) each rose 0.8%. The Communication Services Select Sector SPDR (XLC) added 0.4%. Six of the 11 sectors of the benchmark index ended in positive territory.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq jumped 0.5% to finish at 21,705.16 points.

The fear gauge CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) was down 2.83% to 14.43. Advancers outnumbered decliners on the S&P 500 by a 1.2-to-1 ratio. On the S&P 500, there were 28 new highs and five new lows.

On the Nasdaq, there were 117 new highs and 52 new lows.

A total of 13.8 billion shares were traded on Thursday, lower than the last 20-session average of 16.7 billion.

Investors Cheer NVIDIA’s Quarterly Results

Wall Street had been eagerly awaiting NVIDIA Corporation’s ((NVDA Quick QuoteNVDA - Free Report) ) quarterly report, this week’s most important event. The semiconductor giant reported its second-quarter results on Wednesday after the bell.

Investors returned, cheering NVIDIA’s results on Thursday, as the AI-chipmaker beat both earnings and revenue estimates. NVIDIA reported second-quarter 2025 earnings of $1.05 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1 per share. The company reported revenues of $46.74 billion for the quarter, a year-over-year surge of 56%.   

NVIDIA accounts for roughly 8% of the S&P 500 and has the largest weight on the index. However, its shares ended 0.8% lower after the company’s data center business missed its revenue estimates. NVIDIA has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Also, trade uncertainties between the United States and China led the company to exclude its China sales from its forecast.

However, the solid jump in revenues lifted investors' sentiment, reaffirming that demand for AI chips, which has been driving the tech rally over the past couple of years, remains robust. Other semiconductor manufacturers also gained on Thursday. Shares of Broadcom Inc. ((AVGO Quick QuoteAVGO - Free Report) ) jumped 2.8%.

Market sentiment has remained bullish for most of the week and has set aside the initial concerns over the independence of the central bank triggered by President Donald Trump. Earlier this week, the President said that he plans to fire Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook from the board.

Economic Data

The Commerce Department reported Thursday that the nation’s gross domestic product (GDP) grew 3.3% in the second quarter, higher than the 3% growth reported initially.

The Labor Department reported that jobless claims totaled 229,000 for the week ending Aug. 23, a decrease of 5,000 from the previous week. The four-week moving average was 228,500, an increase of 2,500 from the previous week’s revised average of 226,000.

Continuing claims came in at 1,954,000, a decrease of 7,000 from the previous week’s revised level of 1,961,000. The 4-week moving average was 1,956,250, an increase of 4,500 from the previous week's revised average of 1,951,750.

The National Association of Realtors reported that pending home sales declined 0.4% sequentially in July. Year over year, pending home sales increased 0.7%.