US stocks reach new records despite mixed Nvidia earnings and Fed turmoil

Investors will be relieved that US stocks managed to consolidate the big gains they chalked up on 22 August when Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell opened the door to a near-term interest rate cut.

Major indices hitting new record levels was an impressive show of resilience given the disquiet around the Trump administration’s effort to fire Fed governor Lisa Cook, which raised questions about Fed independence, and a somewhat lukewarm reception for market titan Nvidia’s latest earnings.

Firmly out in the cold with investors was Keurig Dr Pepper as the beverages firm’s announced takeover of Dutch coffee maker JDE Peet’s for €15.7 billion failed to impress, amid concern about the price tag and the overall merits of the transaction.

The deal effectively unwinds 2018’s merger between Dr Pepper Snapple and Keurig Green Mountain which created Keurig Dr Pepper, whose diverse brand portfolio includes the purplish-red canned fizzy drink Dr Pepper.

Once the transaction completes in the first half of 2026, Keurig Dr Pepper plans to split into two separate US-listed companies called Beverage Co and Global Coffee Co, to be led by Keurig’s CEO Tim Cofer and CFO Sudhanshu Priyadarshi respectively.

Nvidia

Investors have come to expect Nvidia to beat forecasts and up guidance as the AI chip tech leader, but it is things outside of its control which give cause for pause.

The outlook on China remains murky, a market where the US company has struggled with export restrictions and pressure from Beijing. This could clear in the future but in the meantime, it is putting a dampener on data centres revenue growth, its largest and most critical division.

This saw the stock limp about 2% lower in after-hours trading directly post the results on 27 August, hardly anything to tremble about given the share price is less than 3% off record highs.

The company said that 33.8 billion dollars of Nvidia’s data centre sales were for Nvidia’s GPU chips, down 1% from the first quarter because of 4 billion dollars fewer H20 sales because it sold none of these chips to China in the quarter.

Relaxation of export controls could see Nvidia sell between 2 billion and 5 billion dollars in H20 chips this quarter, sales not included in revenue guidance of 54 billion dollars for fiscal Q3 2026, but this includes zero H20-related revenue to China.

Spun positively, it implies there’s room for upside to Q3 sales if it gets the green light from Washington.

PVH Corp

PVH Corp fashioned an 8.5% gain to $81.70 after the American clothing company delivered forecast-beating second-quarter results on 26 August and raised its full-year 2025 sales outlook.

Despite difficult market conditions and a margin hit from higher tariffs, the parent of the iconic Calvin Klein and Tommy Hilfiger brands achieved ‘noticeable momentum’ in the quarter, with group revenue up 4% to a better-than-expected 2.17 billion dollars, boosted by double-digit growth in the Americas.

While earnings per share fell 16.3% year-on-year to $2.52, this was ahead of the previously-guided $1.85 to $2 range. Once again, Calvin Klein proved a growth driver for PVH, while a 4% rise in Tommy Hilfiger revenues reflected a strong campaign around summer blockbuster F1 The Movie as well as a partnership with the US SailGP racing team. Continuing to expect 2025 will mark its return to growth, PVH upped its full-year 2025 revenue forecast from flat to slightly up to ‘up low single-digits’.

Kohl’s

Department chain Kohl’s saw its shares jump 24% on 27 August after the retailer revealed better than expected second quarter earnings and raised full year guidance above consensus.

The company reported a comparable net sales decline of 4.2% to 3.35 billion dollars for the three months to 2 August, ahead of analysts’ expectations of 3.32 billion dollars.

Adjusted EPS came in at $0.56, comfortably ahead of consensus forecasts of $0.29, reflecting self-help initiatives.

Interim CEO Michael Bender said: ‘We were able to expand our gross margins, reduce our inventory, and lower our expenses, leading to solid second quarter earnings.’

Kohl’s raised its full year outlook and now expects comparable sales to decline by between 4% to 5% from 4% to 6% previously and sees adjusted EPS between $0.50 and $0.80, up from $0.10 to $0.60.

The shares have rallied 167% since early April but remain down around 18% over the last 12 months.