In a week dominated by two major events – the first Federal Reserve meeting under chair Kevin Warsh and the US-Iran peace deal – US markets made positive progress.
It wasn’t without its ups and downs though, largely thanks to the Fed – of which more later.
Memory chip stocks, which had seen their surge interrupted of late, were significantly higher after comments from Apple CEO Tim Cook that suggested the supply and demand dynamics for this market remain highly favourable.
On the flipside, Fox Corp shares slumped as the company announced a $22 billion takeover of streaming outfit Roku which many investors seemed to find too rich.
Lower revenue guidance from professional services business Accenture put the share price under significant pressure as it exacerbated concerns about AI disruption.
New era at the Fed
All eyes were on the new Federal Reserve chair Kevin Warsh this week for clues on future interest rate policy. Surprisingly, the message was hawkish with Warsh doubling down on delivering the Fed’s 2% inflation target alongside radical change at the 112-year-old institution.
Bond markets responded accordingly with short-term yields rising to reflect the hawkish statement while long-term yields fell as markets took Warsh at his word that he would keep a lid on inflation.
Stock markets fell during the press conference as investors digested a higher for longer interest rate outlook.
Warsh outlined a full reform agenda which included dropping forward guidance. He suggested press conferences may not always happen and questioned the usefulness of Fed members providing quarterly economic projections.
Warsh has assembled five task forces covering communication, the balance sheet, alternative data collection services, productivity and AI, and the inflation framework. The task forces are expected to report back by the end of the year.
Record quarter expected for Micron
The AI-memory chip maker is scheduled to reveal fiscal third quarter earnings after the market close on 24 June.
The shares have rocketed 300% in 2026 in anticipation of soaring revenue growth and expanding margins driven by the AI industry’s insatiable appetite for Micron’s specialist high bandwidth memory chips.
CEO Sanjay Mehrotra recently said: “In the AI era, memory has become a strategic asset for our customers.”
Anything short of record revenue growth and profits will likely be seen as a disappointment, with analysts almost falling over themselves to raise their respective share price targets.
Consensus earnings per share estimates for the fiscal year to the end of August 2026 have increased by around 80% since December 2025, while fiscal 2027 consensus estimates are around 165% higher at $111. For context Micron reported just $7.7 of earnings per share in 2025.
Kroger plumbs new 12-month lows
The value-focused grocer slightly missed analysts’ profit estimates in the first quarter and reiterated full year guidance, reflecting cautious consumer spending amid sticky inflation.
The shares, which have struggled so far in 2026, fell as much as 8% to a new 12-month low.
Kroger expects annual same-store sales to increase between 1% and 2% and adjusted earnings per share in a range of $5.1 to $5.3, compared with consensus estimates which sit at the top end of the range.
Earlier in the year the company said it was preparing to cut prices on thousands of items, partly funded by cost reductions, to regain market share from rivals Walmart and Costco.
One bright spot was digital with ecommerce sales jumping 20% and Kroger Precision Marketing profits growing more than 20% year-on-year. KPM is Kroger’s advertising platform which enables consumer brands to target specific shopper segments, based on consumer data insights.
The company said it was on track to complete its $2 billion share buyback programme by the end of fiscal 2026, which ends in January 2027.
Martin Gamble: Shares and Markets Writer
Martin Gamble is Shares and Markets writer at AJ Bell. He was previously the Education Editor of Shares Magazine. He has been with the business since 2019.
Martin graduated from the University of Kent in...
