Nasdaq Composite heads into Thursday as Alphabet falls, up 72 points

The Nasdaq Composite closed on October 28, 2026 at 26,550 points, up 72 points or 0.3 percent. A 10.5 percent pre-market drop in Alphabet followed disappointing results and renewed concern about AI spending, Reuters via Yahoo Finance reports.

Microsoft rose 3.5 percent before the open after strong cloud growth, offering a counterpoint to Alphabet's weaker results. The Nasdaq Composite also enters Thursday after the Federal Reserve held rates at 3.75 percent to 4 percent, CNBC reports.

AI earnings challenge Nasdaq Composite

Alphabet's revenue shortfall and heavier AI investment pressured technology futures. Nasdaq-100 futures fell 1.3 percent before the open, while Microsoft gained 3.5 percent after its earnings release, Reuters via Yahoo Finance reports.

Winners and losers on October 28

Wednesday's regular-session movers included the following names, based on StockTitan data:

• Vertiv up 16.6 percent: stronger sales and orders lifted its full-year outlook.
• SK hynix up 13.3 percent: its quarterly operating profit rose 632 percent.
• F5 down 20.4 percent: its fiscal 2027 revenue-growth forecast was below the prior year's pace.
• Fortinet down 5.8 percent: quarterly results increased selling pressure.

What comes next for Nasdaq Composite

• October 29, 2026, 8:30 a.m. ET: Third-quarter GDP, September PCE inflation and initial jobless claims are due, with core PCE expected at 0.3 percent month over month, TradingKey reports.
• October 29, 2026, after 4:00 p.m. ET: Amazon and Intel are scheduled to release quarterly results.

Nasdaq Composite price data for October 28, 2026

The Nasdaq Composite closed at 26,550 points on October 28, 2026, up 72 points or 0.3 percent, AP News reports. The previous close was 26,478 points. The index opened at 26,542 points and traded between 26,415 and 26,587 points.

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