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The Week That Was: Ups and Downs on the Nasdaq
Last week, the Nasdaq Stock Market closed out one of its most eventful stretches in months. Heading into Friday, traders saw big swings first up, then down thanks to a storm of company changes, shifting economic signals, and some heavy moves from investors. By the final bell on November 13, 2026, the Nasdaq Composite and the Nasdaq-100 Index had pulled back sharply during the day, but still managed to finish the week with strong overall gains. That snapped a four-week losing streak and gave both indexes their best weekly showing since early August.
Friday’s Action: How the Numbers Fell
Let’s start with the basics. On Friday, the Nasdaq Composite Index dropped 229.82 points (down 0.91%) to land at 25,136.27. That’s the biggest single-day drop since November 5 and the second day in a row the market finished lower. Things started off cautiously optimistic: the index opened at 25,408.00, hit a high of 25,423.09 early on, then crashed over 550 points to touch 24,872.41 before noon. Still, buyers stepped in, and the market clawed back into positive territory before closing.
The Nasdaq-100 Index, which focuses on the top 100 tech-heavy giants, took it even harder. It fell 345.45 points, losing 1.22% on the day to close at 27,943.74. It began strong opened at 28,265.54, reached 28,295.80 but tumbled fast. By late morning it touched a low of 27,609.71 before some late-in-the-day buying helped it recover a good chunk of those losses.
Bright Spots in a Tough Session
For all the one-day pain, the week as a whole was a lot better. The Nasdaq Composite finished up 556.85 points (2.27%), and the Nasdaq-100 added 953.75 points (a 3.53% jump).
The day’s fast-paced action was driven by some pretty big news and major market developments. Here’s why things moved:
- Major executive changes at Nvidia put a chill on all semiconductor-related stocks. When word hit that CEO Jensen Huang was stepping down, investors pulled back from not just Nvidia, but rival companies too worried any shake-up could slow progress on new AI chips.
- A rush to cash out after quarterly earnings took a bite out of names like Applied Materials and Cisco, even though both companies beat the market’s forecasts.
- Surging US Treasury yields now above 5.10% meant investors got nervous about what higher interest rates might do to fast-growing tech companies.
Despite a stormy Friday, the Nasdaq managed to shake off weeks of struggle and post a solid rally for anyone hanging in through all the noise.
What Drove the Action? Key Stories Behind the Moves
Market action rarely happens for just one reason. On Friday, it was a combination of specific company news, big-picture economic trends, and some plain old profit-taking by traders.
Nvidia’s Sudden Change and Its Ripple Effect
Let’s face it: Nvidia is the original big player in the AI chip world. Late Thursday, word broke that founder and CEO Jensen Huang was stepping down, handing the reins to finance chief Colette Kress for now. That shook up the whole sector. Investors hate uncertainty, especially when it comes to the leaders steering the ship at companies driving entire industries. The fear was clear: If Nvidia stumbles maybe slowing new AI chip releases or delaying key partnerships every other semiconductor company feels it.
By Friday, semiconductor stocks were deep in the red. AMD fell 8.63%. Arm dropped 6.20%. Astera Labs and Broadcom were close behind with losses over 5%. Traders sold off positions quickly, pocketing profits from earlier this year and waiting to see if Nvidia’s transition goes smoothly.
Quarterly Earnings: Good News, Tough Crowd
Even companies that hit their earnings targets didn’t get much love. Investors tend not to stick around when they see red flags about future spending. CoreWeave tumbled more than 11% as traders grew wary of how much the company would have to spend to keep growing its cloud business. Applied Materials dropped almost 5%. Cisco, long considered a steady old hand in tech, fell too even after exceeding expectations. It’s a reminder that in a nervous market, any sign of long-term costs can send stocks sliding.
Yields Jump, Fed Talks Tough
Hard to ignore: 10-year US Treasury yields surged to 5.13%–5.15% on Friday, a level not seen in a long time. What’s causing the spike? Federal Reserve leaders spoke openly about the possibility of a bigger interest rate hike maybe half a percent in December. Rate futures quickly adjusted, and with borrowing costs looking set to climb higher, investors decided to get more cautious, especially with high-growth tech names that are sensitive to rising discount rates.
Rotation Into Defensive Plays
Not everyone suffered. As money poured out of more speculative stocks, some classic safe havens benefited. Apple gained nearly 1%. Costco ticked up almost as much. AppLovin, a big name in ad tech software, rose 2.62%. Biotech name Alnylam Pharmaceuticals soared over 6.5%. Digital banking play Nu Holdings exploded for double-digit gains as well. When nerves rattle the markets, these kinds of steady, reliable stories bring in the buyers.
Market Benchmarks and Milestone Levels
Here’s how the major indexes finished and what those numbers really mean.
- Nasdaq Composite: Closed at 25,136.27, still almost 9% below its all-time high from early October, but about 21% above its low for the year. It’s up almost 10% versus where it was a year ago and up over 8% this year, despite some rough patches in November.
- Nasdaq-100: Ended at 27,943.74, swinging inside its usual 52-week range. Friday’s loss didn’t knock it off its long-term uptrend analysts still expect strong third-quarter earnings growth.
- S&P 500: Closed at 7,561.67, down a little for the day, but up a healthy 2.5% for the week showing the rally wasn’t limited to just the Nasdaq.
- Dow Jones: Actually managed to climb slightly, finishing at 52,347.55 and booking its own strong week.
- US Treasury Yields: 10-year at 5.13%–5.15%, 2-year at 4.88%, both at multi-month highs thanks to those Fed rumblings.
- US Dollar Index: At a 19-month high, helped along by surging yields. Strong currency often weighs down commodities, and that was the story with oil and gold.
Breakdown: How Individual Stocks Fared
The day’s wild action showed up in some huge moves both up and down on single stocks:
- Nu Holdings (fintech): Jumped nearly 11–12% thanks to strong earnings and customer growth.
- Alnylam Pharmaceuticals (biotech): Up more than 6%, as investors looked for defensive growth names.
- AppLovin (software): Rose about 2.6% as its ad tech business continued to impress.
- CoreWeave (AI cloud): Sank over 11% on earnings, mainly because of high capital spending concerns.
- AMD, Arm, Astera Labs, Broadcom (semiconductors): Each down 5–9% as part of the wider chip selloff tied to Nvidia’s executive shakeup.
- Applied Materials and Cisco: Both down nearly 5% proving that even winners can get dumped when nerves are high.
Still, many of those big-name stocks, including AMD and Broadcom, finished the week with strong gains despite Friday’s whiplash.
Chart Watch: Key Support and Where the Market Could Go Next
A lot of traders watch so-called support and resistance levels points where big money might step in to buy or sell. On Friday, the Nasdaq Composite dipped just below the 25,000 “psych” level, hitting its 200-day moving average near 24,850 before rebounding sharply. That’s a classic sign that longer-term buyers are willing to jump in when things get too cheap.
The next battlefronts? If the Nasdaq Composite can push back above 25,650 and, from there, retest the 26,048 level, the path opens up for a real shot at breaking its October highs. Fall too far say, below 24,850 and many expect the selling to heat up again fast.
Looking Ahead: Three Big Things to Watch Next Week
So, where do we go from here? Starting Monday, November 16, the focus shifts to three main events:
- Nvidia’s earnings and future plans: After the leadership shakeup, everyone’s watching to see what the new management will say and how the numbers look. This will likely set the tone for all tech and AI-related names for the next several weeks.
- The Federal Reserve’s next steps: More signals (or surprises) on rate hikes could trigger more wild swings especially in growth stocks.
- Any more waves from Middle East politics or rising interest rates: These could shift money out of risky growth names and into old-school safe havens so volatility is likely to stick around.
After a wild Friday, the Nasdaq ended the week on a high note overall not bad for a market grappling with huge headlines, nervous investors, and some rapid-fire swings. But with another slate of big announcements and fresh data on the way, nobody’s expecting next week to be quiet. If history is any guide, buckle up. The rollercoaster isn’t done yet.
