Nvidia, Shell, Micron, Bumble and H&M

Shares in chipmaker Nvidia (NVDA) rose more than 4% on Wednesday to close the session at a fresh record high of $154.31 (£122.11) and overtake Microsoft once again to become the world's most valuable company, with a market cap of $3.76tn.

Nvidia has surged more than 14% since its first quarter earnings on 28 May, well ahead of the S&P 500's (^GSPC) 3.4% gain in that time.

The stock has seen a marked turnaround since January, when the release of a cheaper artificial intelligence (AI) model by Chinese startup DeepSeek raised questions about the amount spent on the technology by major US tech firms.

Nvidia, along with other chip stocks, also plunged in April when US president Donald Trump announced sweeping tariffs. In addition, Trump enacted a ban on sales of Nvidia’s H20 chips to China, costing the chipmaker $2.5bn in lost revenue in the first quarter and a projected $8bn loss in the second quarter.

However, in its first quarter results last month, Nvidia posted revenue that beat Wall Street estimates, showing the company continued to perform despite the export controls on its chips to China.

Ahead of those results, Nvidia also announced deals with Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates to supply them with hundreds of thousands of its AI chips.

The latest rise in Nvidia shares comes as investors pile back into tech stocks. Bank of America analysts said in a note Tuesday that tech inflows hit their highest level last week since June 2024.

On the London market, Shell (SHEL.L) was in the spotlight on Thursday morning, after the oil major denied that it is talks to buy rival BP (BP.L).

In a statement to markets on Thursday, Shell said it “has not been actively considering making an offer for BP and confirms it has not made an approach to, and no talks have taken place with, BP with regards to a possible offer.”

The company added that it had “no intention of making an offer for BP”.

Both Shell and BP shares were little changed on Thursday morning on the back of the statement. The two stocks have fluctuated over the past week with the sharp movements in oil prices due to concerns about disruption to supply, as investors watched developments around the Iran-Israel conflict.

Derren Nathan, head of equity research at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: “Structurally lower oil prices are causing the majors to look at their options, but given Shell's superior asset quality and balance sheet, any combination may be difficult for its shareholders to stomach.

“Cherry picking some flagship assets could be another option, but that's unlikely to satisfy BP investors. For now, the focus for Shell is likely to remain on buying back its own shares.”

Another US chip stock in focus is Micron Technology (MU), following the release of its third quarter results after the market close on Wednesday.

Shares were up less than 1% in pre-market trading on Thursday morning, despite the company easily beating expectations on both the top and bottom lines.

Adjusted revenue for the quarter came in at $9.3bn versus estimates of $8.85bn, while adjusted earnings of $1.91 per share topped expectations of $1.60.

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For the fourth quarter, Micron said it expects revenue to come in at $10.7bn, plus or minus $300m, while it forecast diluted earnings per share of $2.50, plus or minus $0.15.

Ben Barringer, global technology analyst at Quilter Cheviot, said: “The standout performer was the data centre segment, where revenues doubled year-on-year thanks to strong demand for high bandwidth memory, particularly in AI applications.

“Outside the data centre, growth in smartphones and PCs remains subdued, though there are signs of bottoming in the industrial and auto markets. Given memory is a fundamental component across all tech sectors, this is a good read-through for the broader semiconductor market.

“While companies like Nvidia (NVDA) and TSMC (2330.TW, TSM) may capture more headlines, Micron’s performance reinforces the strength of underlying demand in AI and the critical role memory will continue to play.”

Shares in Bumble (BMBL) surged 25% on Wednesday, after the dating app said it would lay off nearly a third of its staff.

In a market filing on Wednesday, Bumble said its board had approved plans to reduce its global workforce by approximately 240 roles, representing around 30% of the company's employees.

Bumble said the planned job cuts come as it “realigns its operating structure to optimise execution on its strategic priorities”.

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As a result of the changes, Bumble said it expected to incur $13m to $18m of non-recurring charges, primarily in the third and fourth quarters of 2025. However, the company expected the cuts would result in up to $40m annual cost savings, with plans to reinvest the funds in areas such as product and technology development.

In addition, Bumble raised its second-quarter revenue forecast to a range of between $244m and $249m, up from previous guidance of $235m to $243.

Despite the surge in Bumble shares on Wednesday, the stock has slid since it listed in New York in 2021, as dating apps have struggled to hold on to users.

In Europe, shares in high street clothing retailer H&M (HM-B.ST) jumped 7% on Thursday morning, after the company's second-quarter profit beat expectations.

H&M posted an operating profit of 5.91 billion Swedish krona (£455m), which was ahead of analyst expectations of 5.88 billion krona, according to a Reuters report. However, sales of 56.7 billion krona fell short of analyst estimates of 57 billion krona.

Earnings per share of 2.48 Swedish krona for the second quarter also slightly beat a consensus estimate of 2.43 krona, according to a Deutsche Bank note published on Thursday.

Deutsche Bank analysts, which had a “hold” rating on the stock, said that “this is a small beat for 2Q and the 3Q is outlook is at the weaker end of expectations but certainly within the expected range of investor outcomes.”

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