Power Rallied | Strategy Bought Back Its Preferred | NYSE Picked Avalanche

Money stayed in AI on Monday. It just left the leader.

The S&P 500 rose 2.4%, the Nasdaq 2.7%, and the VIX fell 22% to near 19.9.

Nvidia (NVDA) fell 4.3% to $178.67. It was the first session since its board opened an independent investigation into reports that Jensen Huang was targeted by a foreign intelligence effort. The board said it has confidence in Huang and no reason to believe national security or company secrets were compromised.

Sunday-night trading on Hyperliquid and after-hours venues priced Nvidia about 3.4% lower. The stock opened 7.3% down, twice as far.

AMD (AMD) rose 13.3% to $508.58 after an Oppenheimer upgrade with a $600 target. Broadcom (AVGO) gained 8.8%, Marvell (MRVL) 9.5% and Applied Materials (AMAT) 11.4%. Polymarket's contract on Huang's resignation or removal by year-end edged up to about 15.5 cents.

One Name, Not the Trade

Investors sold Nvidia and bought nearly everything around it. A gap of nearly 18 points between AMD and Nvidia says the AI bid is intact but no longer automatic for its leader. Earnings on Nov. 17 arrive with the board's review still open.

Stocks bounced hard. Bitcoin sat still.

Bitcoin traded just under $75,000, little changed on the day. The iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), which also reflects the coin's Sunday slide, slipped 1.3%.

Strategy (MSTR) bought 1,036 bitcoin last week for $81.9 million. It spent $188.3 million, 2.3 times as much, buying back its STRC preferred stock. The week before followed the same pattern. Bitcoin sits just under Strategy's $75,456 average cost. The shares fell 2.6% to $125.59, and MSCI says Wednesday whether Strategy stays in its indexes.

The New York Stock Exchange chose Avalanche as the core ledger for the clearing firm behind its planned 24/7 tokenized-stock venue, pending regulatory approval. NYSE said it wanted a ledger that lets it control who takes part. Avalanche's token rose about 9%, though Schwab (SCHW) also added it to its retail menu the same day.

Coinbase (COIN) won final approval for a national trust bank that can't take deposits or lend. PNC (PNC) began a pilot letting corporate clients receive USDC, converted to dollars on arrival.

The Plumbing Got the Money

Wall Street adopted crypto's rails on its own terms, with a ledger NYSE controls and USDC that PNC turns into dollars on arrival. Strategy put more into its preferred than into coins for a second straight week. Bitcoin went nowhere.

Oil fell further as the diplomacy got worse.

Brent hit a two-month low and was down more than 5% late in the day.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio called Iran's demands "outrageous and ridiculous." Tehran insisted that U.S. sanctions and the naval blockade be lifted before negotiations start. A senior UAE official said to prepare for a long period of uncertainty.

A fading war premium and a surplus of physical barrels both fit the tape. One bank said physical Brent cargoes now trade below futures.

Power went the other way. Constellation Energy (CEG) jumped 10.5% after earning $5.06 a share against forecasts near $3.90 and raising its 2026 range to $12.50 to $12.80. NRG (NRG) rose 10.3% after beating forecasts and setting its first 2027 targets.

Barrels Down, Power Up

A price that falls while the talks worsen can't be a bet on peace alone. Power producers rose on beats and higher guidance. Monday paid for earnings in hand and marked down barrels.

Cheaper oil didn't buy cheaper money.

The 10-year Treasury yield barely moved, and the five-year edged higher, even with crude down more than 5%.

Two Fed presidents pointed to costs that cheaper oil doesn't touch. Chicago's Austan Goolsbee said the Fed must face a "failure in the mandate" on inflation. Richmond's Tom Barkin said firms are trying to pass on costs they had absorbed. Neither called for a December hike.

Households see it differently. Their one-year inflation expectations held at 3.9% in October. The odds they put on higher unemployment rose to 45.3%, the highest since April 2020.

Kalshi's December hike contract rose to about 81 cents from 77. Consumer prices land Tuesday, with no 12-month headline rate, because October 2025 prices were never collected. Forecasts sit near 0.3% for the month.

Cheaper Oil, Same Fed

The Fed is watching prices that oil doesn't touch. Households are watching their jobs. A mild print could help bonds more than it moves the hike bet, which already sits near four in five.

Public markets argued with private prices.

Surgery Partners (SGRY) agreed to a raised buyout price of $25 in cash, up from $23.50. Its special committee judged a non-binding $28 proposal from an unnamed party slower and riskier. The stock closed at $26.45, up 14% and above the deal it just signed. A ticking fee lifts the payout to as much as $26.61 if closing slips toward October 2027. Bain Capital, with about 39%, rolls its stake.

In Dublin, Barings made a firm offer for Irish Residential Properties REIT that values it at about €731 million, exactly its reported net tangible assets. Before the approach, the shares sat 23.5% below that value.

KKR (KKR) posted record adjusted earnings of $1.78 a share, above forecasts near $1.58. Fee-related earnings rose 27%, and it expects to return more than $40 billion to clients this year. The shares rose 1.7%, less than the market.

The Bid Above the Deal

Barings offered book value and no more. Surgery Partners holders are pricing a bid above the one the company accepted. KKR is returning record cash, and its stock barely moved.

Monday sold the leader and bought the field.

Chips, power stocks and a buyout target repriced within hours, while oil slid and bitcoin sat still. Rep. Thomas Massie filed to impeach Hegseth, and Polymarket put impeachment near 78 cents. Consumer prices land Tuesday, and MSCI rules on Strategy Wednesday.