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Stock Markets March 12, 2026

Widespread Sector Pressure Sees Big Names Slip While Select Small Caps Rally

Mega-cap financials and chipmakers weigh on indices as fertilizer and select small-cap stocks post strong gains

By Jordan Park GE MS GS INTC
Widespread Sector Pressure Sees Big Names Slip While Select Small Caps Rally
GE MS GS INTC

Stocks moved unevenly on Thursday, with several mega-cap names and technology suppliers posting notable declines while a handful of large- and small-cap companies registered sizable gains. General Electric fell after news of an expanded defense partnership, broad declines hit financial and chipmaking groups, and CF Industries led gains among large-caps. Small-cap momentum was driven by partnerships and quarterly beats in select names.

Key Points

  • Mega-cap financials and semiconductor suppliers posted widespread declines, with GE falling after an expanded defense partnership announcement and several banks down more than 2.5%.
  • CF Industries and Dow Chemical were among the largest large-cap winners, while small-cap names including Lightwave Logic, Bumble and Pet Acquisition saw double-digit gains driven by partnerships, earnings beats or analyst upgrades.
  • Mid-cap volatility was pronounced: Netskope plunged following a lockup expiry despite beating earnings, while Fly Leasing and Evolution Metals Tech registered strong gains.

Equities experienced varied activity on Thursday as corporate announcements and analyst actions influenced a wide cross-section of names. Mega-cap industrials, banks and semiconductor suppliers were among the hardest hit, while a number of large- and small-cap companies moved higher on company-specific developments.

Below are the most prominent stock movers of the day, organized by market-cap tiers and reflecting the percentage moves reported during the session.

Mega-cap movers (market cap $200 billion or higher)

  • General Electric (GE): -5.48% - GE Aerospace expanded its partnership with Palantir for military aviation.
  • Morgan Stanley (MS): -4.13%.
  • Goldman Sachs Group (GS): -4.07%.
  • Intel Corp (INTC): -4.1%.
  • Micron Technology (MU): -3.87% - reporting followed news that India plans a new $11 billion fund to support local chipmaking, according to Bloomberg.
  • Applied Materials Inc (AMAT): -3.93%.
  • Lam Research Corp (LRCX): -3.77%.
  • Bank Of America (BAC): -3.23%.
  • JP Morgan Chase (JPM): -2.87%.
  • Palantir Technologies Inc (PLTR): +1.25% - Palantir and LG CNS expanded their AI partnership across LG Group.

Large-cap movers (market cap $10 billion to $200 billion)

  • CF Industries (CF): +10.29%.
  • Dow Chemical (DOW): +7.94%.
  • Qnity Electronics (Q): -6.95% - Qnity opened a 385,000-square-foot semiconductor facility in Delaware.
  • Dollar General Corp (DG): -7.49%.
  • Allegheny Tech (ATI): -6.4%.
  • Carnival Corp-Exch (CCL): -6.41%.
  • Xp Inc (XP): -6.22%.
  • Royal Caribbean (RCL): -5.95%.
  • Generac Holdings (GNRC): -5.47%.
  • MercadoLibre (MELI): -5.45% - JPMorgan downgraded MercadoLibre on competition concerns.

Mid-cap movers (market cap $2 billion to $10 billion)

  • Netskope Inc (NTSK): -24.36% - shares tumbled despite an earnings beat after a lockup period expiry.
  • Ligand Pharmaceuticals (LGND): -11.32%.
  • Applied Opt (AAOI): -12.05%.
  • Forgent Power Solutions Inc (FPS): -9.79%.
  • VEON Ltd (VEON): -8.8%.
  • Lucid Group Inc (LCID): -8.43%.
  • Remitly Global (RELY): -7.77%.
  • Fly Leasing Ltd (FLY): +15.97%.
  • Evolution Metals Tech (EMAT): +6.84%.
  • Cohen Circle Acquisition I (KYIV): -9.43%.

Small-cap movers (market cap $300 million to $2 billion)

  • Lightwave Logic Inc (LWLG): +35.06% - Lightwave Logic announced a partnership with Tower Semiconductor on modulators.
  • Bumble (BMBL): +33.98% - Bumble surged after reporting a top-line beat in the fourth quarter.
  • Pet Acquisition LLC (WOOF): +34.58% - Jefferies upgraded Petco stock to buy on growth initiatives.
  • Himax Tech (HIMX): +26.4%.
  • Profrac Holding (ACDC): +20.48%.
  • Halcon (BATL): +22.78%.
  • Acuren (TIC): -17.99% - TIC Solutions stock fell after a fourth-quarter earnings miss.
  • Frequency Electro (FEIM): -12.5%.
  • RELM Wireless (BKTI): -13.05%.
  • G-III Apparel Group (GIII): -14.14% - G-III Apparel tumbled on weak earnings and guidance.

The session highlighted a divergence between large-cap pressure in financials and chip equipment suppliers and pockets of strength among fertilizer, chemicals and several small-cap names driven by partnerships, upgrades, or quarterly revenue outperformance. Several of the largest declines were clustered in banks and technology suppliers, while notable upside was concentrated in a few commodity- and consumer-related stocks as well as partnership-driven small caps.

Risks

  • Lockup expiries can trigger sharp share price drops even after positive earnings, as demonstrated by Netskope; this risk primarily affects mid-cap and recently public technology companies.
  • Analyst downgrades and competitive concerns can weigh on large-cap tech and marketplace stocks, illustrated by MercadoLibre's decline after a downgrade.
  • Earnings misses and weak guidance can produce steep declines for small-cap and apparel companies, as seen with G-III Apparel and TIC Solutions.

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