Thursday, July 23, 2026 was an ugly session for the broader market. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 506.93 points (-0.97%) to 51,711.65, the S&P 500 dropped 1.21% to 7,408.30. The Nasdaq Composite sank 2.15% to 25,137.69 as Alphabet and Tesla earnings rattled tech investors. Brent crude spiked above $102 a barrel on Middle East tanker attacks. Yet a handful of individual names bucked the trend hard, some by double digits. Here are top stock gainers today and exactly why they moved.

1. Lockheed Martin Corporation (NYSE: LMT) — Up Roughly 11%

• Shares jumped about 10.9%–11.2% to close near $570, one of the single best days for the defense giant this year.
• Q2 2026 adjusted EPS came in at $7.94 versus roughly $7.23 expected, on revenue of $20.1 billion, up 11% year over year.
• Backlog surged 38.3% year over year to a record $230.4 billion, boosted by a fresh $35 billion THAAD interceptor agreement with the U.S. Missile Defense Agency.
• Why it’s trending: Management raised full-year 2026 EPS guidance to $29.95–$30.65 and lifted revenue guidance to $79.75–$81.75 billion, citing accelerating global rearmament demand from Iran to Ukraine.
• Fundamentals: Free cash flow guidance was also lifted, to $7.0–$7.2 billion, even as Wells Fargo and TD Cowen trimmed price targets — the Street consensus still sits well above current levels near $611.

2. RTX Corporation (NYSE: RTX) — Up About 7.7%

• RTX’s backlog rose 22% year over year to $289 billion, split between $170 billion in commercial aerospace orders and $119 billion in defense.
• Catalyst: Like Lockheed, RTX beat and raised on the same day the Pentagon signaled it needs contractors to restock depleted weapons inventories tied to the Iran and Ukraine conflicts.

3. Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ: WDC) — Up 12.5%

• Shares surged to roughly $548 as memory and storage stocks rebounded broadly and reports resurfaced of renewed Kioxia merger talks.
• Hard-disk-drive production is reportedly sold out through the remainder of 2026.
• Analyst sentiment: Cantor Fitzgerald has a $900 price target on the stock; Citi sits at $800. Western Digital’s next earnings report is scheduled for August 5.

4. Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. (NYSE: CLF) — Up 14%–18%

• The steelmaker’s stock spiked as its Q2 2026 print showed adjusted EBITDA nearly tripling to $286 million from $95 million in Q1, with guidance for roughly $575 million of EBITDA in Q3.
• A new five-year Defense Logistics Agency contract worth up to $400 million for grain-oriented electrical steel added a second catalyst on the same day.
• Fundamentals: Free cash flow flipped positive, and the domestic steel-pricing backdrop remains firm — Steel Dynamics also posted a strong quarter with record shipments last week.
• Caveat: JPMorgan and BofA both trimmed price targets (to $10 and $11.50, respectively) even as the stock rallied, underscoring how far expectations had fallen heading into the print.

5. United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE: URI) — Up 10.11%

• Shares hit all-time highs Thursday, adding $104.65 to close at $1,139.71.
• Why it’s trending: Strong institutional demand and robust industrial-equipment rental metrics gave the stock a powerful cushion against the broader macro sell-off, positioning it as a rare industrial bright spot.

6. Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE: UNP) — Up 4.5%

• Q2 2026 adjusted diluted EPS of $3.41 beat the $3.24 estimate, while operating revenue rose 12% to a record $6.864 billion.
• Freight revenue hit a record $6.518 billion, with carload volume up 2%.
• Catalyst: Union Pacific also settled competitive-concern issues with Canadian National Railway tied to its pending merger with Norfolk Southern, and management raised full-year guidance to high-single-digit EPS growth.
• Fundamentals: Net income rose 6% to a record $1.993 billion, with management affirming a $3.3 billion capital plan and continued annual dividend increases.

7. Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE: MRK) — Up 2.36%

• Shares climbed to fresh 52-week highs, adding $3.01 to close at $130.48.
• Why it’s trending: As investors rotated out of high-beta tech and growth names following the Alphabet and Tesla earnings shock, defensive pharmaceutical stalwarts like Merck attracted safe-haven capital thanks to steady cash flows and a defensive business model.

8. Occidental Petroleum Corporation (NYSE: OXY) — Up 1.8%

• Gained alongside the broader energy complex as Brent crude spiked toward $102 a barrel following Houthi attacks on two Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea.
• Catalyst: U.S. commercial crude inventories rose by 2 million barrels for the week ended July 17, but the geopolitical risk premium overwhelmed that bearish supply signal.

9. ExxonMobil Corporation (NYSE: XOM) — Up 1.8%

• Moved in lockstep with Occidental as energy stocks captured the “war premium” building into crude prices.
• Fundamentals: Both OXY and XOM carry a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) currently, reflecting a balanced fundamental picture even as short-term price action turned favorable on the oil spike.

10. Intel Corporation (NASDAQ: INTC) — After-Hours Gainer, Up to 12%

• While Intel traded largely flat into Thursday’s close ahead of its report. Shares spiked as much as 12% in after-hours trading once Q2 2026 results crossed the wire. Revenue of $16.13 billion (+25% YoY) against $14.42 billion expected, and adjusted EPS of $0.42 versus roughly $0.21 consensus.
• Why it’s trending: The magnitude of the beat, plus Q3 guidance of $15.8–$16.8 billion in revenue, reinforced the turnaround narrative built around Intel’s 18A foundry node and rising AI-server demand.

Sector Sentiment Snapshot

• Defense and aerospace: Clear sector leader today, driven by Lockheed and RTX’s beat-and-raise quarters plus rising expectations for a record $1.5 trillion fiscal 2027 Pentagon budget request.
• Energy: Broad tailwind from the Brent crude spike past $100. Though gains in mega-cap oil names were modest (1.8%) compared to double-digit moves in defense and industrials.
• Technology and storage: Selective strength in Western Digital and Intel contrasted sharply with steep losses in Alphabet and Tesla. Showing a bifurcated tape rather than a uniform tech sell-off.

Forecast and What Comes Next

• Volatility risk: The 10-year Treasury yield pushing above 4.70%. And Brent crude near two-month highs both point to a market still digesting inflation risk from the Middle East conflict.
• Earnings season continues: Friday, July 24 brings another dense slate of reports, including American Express, NextEra Energy, and Verizon. Which will help confirm whether today’s rotation into defensive and defense-linked names has staying power.

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Disclaimer: This publication is entirely for informational and journalistic purposes and does not constitute formal financial, investment, or legal advice. All market investments carry inherent risks of capital loss. Always complete independent due diligence prior to executing equity trades.

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Kasia Davis

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