US Stock Trends (October 27): Anthropic Files for IPO, Meta Plans to Raise Up to $95 Billion

Written by: Chaoxiang Research

Anthropic released its IPO prospectus, and Meta announced an equity financing plan of up to $95 billion, driving a rebound in US stocks on Monday. Stocks related to chips and data centers strengthened, with the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index rising 2.82%. However, Meta itself closed lower, as investors remain concerned about dilution from new share issuances and the return on AI investments. International oil prices retreated, and US durable goods orders and consumer confidence data will be released later tonight.

S&P 500 Rises 0.70%, Tesla Gains Over 5%

On Monday, the S&P 500 rose 0.70% to close at 7,676.77; the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.82% to 26,169.38; and the Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 0.28% to 52,361.58. The VIX fell 5.45% to 18.39.

On the day, among S&P sector ETFs, Information Technology rose 1.69%, Industrials gained 1.42%, and Consumer Discretionary increased 1.03%, while Real Estate, Energy, Financials, and Materials also advanced; Healthcare was roughly flat, and Utilities, Consumer Staples, and Communication Services declined.

Among the Magnificent Seven, Tesla rose 5.21%, Nvidia gained 2.39%, Microsoft climbed 1.54%, and Amazon advanced 0.44%; Alphabet A fell 1.06%, Apple dropped 1.10%, and Meta declined 1.88%. Barclays upgraded Tesla's rating from Hold to Buy, boosting its stock price.

The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index rose 2.82%, with all constituents closing higher. Arm gained 6.19%, Texas Instruments rose 4.72%, Intel advanced 4.04%, and Broadcom climbed 2.33%. Memory stocks collectively rebounded, with SK Hynix up 4.09%, Western Digital rose 3.63%, Micron advanced 2.98%, and Seagate gained 2.18%. Optoelectronics companies Lumentum rose 8.19%, and Coherent gained 5.83%.

The Nasdaq Golden Dragon China Index rose approximately 0.6% to close at 5,506.84. Futu rose 2.17%, Baidu gained 0.84%, and Alibaba advanced 0.61%; Pinduoduo fell 1.15%, and JD.com dropped 0.47%.

In late trading on Wall Street, the yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury stood at approximately 4.99%, and the 2-year yielded around 4.72%. Spot gold recovered to about $4,017 per ounce. At proofreading time this morning, Bitcoin traded near $80,200, and Ethereum hovered around $2,325.

Anthropic Files IPO Application, Discloses Revenue and Computing Power Costs

Anthropic filed its IPO application with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday, planning to list on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol ANT, with neither the offering price nor the capital raise size disclosed yet.

The company reported revenue of approximately $16.3 billion for the first half of the year, with a net loss of around $80.7 billion. The substantial loss primarily stemmed from non-cash expenses arising from fair value changes in financing instruments such as convertible bonds, and does not indicate that an equivalent amount of cash was actually consumed during the period.

Its enterprise customer business has reached a certain scale. As of the end of September, over 1,900 clients contributed at least $1 million in revenue over the trailing 12 months, including approximately 250 clients generating at least $10 million each.

The prospectus also disclosed that since the end of 2025, the company has signed new computing power agreements with minimum committed amounts totaling approximately $417 billion, some spanning up to 20 years. These payments will be made over multiple future years according to contract terms rather than current-period expenses, but such massive long-term commitments still require subsequent revenue and financing to support them.

Over the past few weeks, the market has expressed concerns over the sustainability of AI infrastructure investment. Anthropic's push for an IPO adds fresh financing expectations to the industry, also driving a rebound in chip stocks.

Meta Launches $35 Billion Offering, Plans Additional $60 Billion Stock Sale

Meta launched a public offering of approximately $35 billion on Monday, comprising $22.5 billion in Class A common stock and about $12.5 billion in mandatory convertible preferred stock.

The company also plans to launch an exchange stock sale program of up to $60 billion after the newly created voting-free Class C shares begin trading. Combined, the two arrangements cap potential fundraising at $95 billion, though not all have been completed yet.

Nvidia, AMD, and Broadcom stated they intend to collectively subscribe to up to $5 billion in Class A common stock. Chip suppliers participating in client financing helps support future procurement but also tightens capital flows within the AI supply chain.

Equity financing can ease Meta's funding pressure for infrastructure expansion, while also diluting existing shareholders' equity. The company's stock fluctuated throughout the session before finally falling 1.88%, failing to rise alongside the tech sector.

SpaceX Signs $40 Billion Equipment Financing Agreement

SpaceX disclosed that it has signed an equipment finance lease agreement worth approximately $40 billion with Apollo Global Management to fund chip purchases for its AI business.

The agreement is yet to be priced, and the final fixed interest rate remains to be determined. The transaction is expected to be completed by the end of this year, with the leasing arrangement anticipated to take effect in the first half of 2027.

While securing financing for SpaceX, Musk warned that emerging cloud service providers lacking revenue streams beyond AI data centers are facing tighter funding channels. He anticipates industry consolidation and elimination. Investor scrutiny of these companies is shifting from compute demand to whether revenue can cover interest and equipment costs.

Meanwhile, Microsoft is reducing labor costs by opening a voluntary departure program to approximately 60,000 eligible employees. The figure of 60,000 represents the number covered by the program, not the confirmed number of leavers; positions in data centers, sales, cybersecurity, and other areas are excluded.

Regional Mediations Continue, Oil Prices Retract

On Monday, WTI crude December contracts fell 1.46% to close at $101.76/barrel; Brent crude December contracts declined 0.78% to $115.81/barrel.

Officials from Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, and Turkey traveled to Tehran for mediation efforts, seeking diplomatic avenues to prevent conflict escalation. Oil prices pulled back from last week's highs, but transit risks through the Strait of Hormuz remain unresolved, and no new comprehensive ceasefire arrangement has been reached among the parties.

Today's Watch

All times are Beijing Standard Time.

20:30: U.S. Initial Orders for Durable Goods in September. In addition to total orders, keep an eye on orders for non-defense capital goods excluding aircraft to gauge corporate equipment investment demand.

22:00: Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index for October. Employment perceptions and future income expectations will help assess consumer willingness amid high oil prices.