Shares in Robinhood Markets surged by 7.7% during pre-market trading on Monday following the announcement that the trading platform will be included in the S&P 500 index. This decision, made by S&P Dow Jones Indices, is effective prior to market opening on September 22, coinciding with the quarterly index rebalancing.
Alongside Robinhood, AppLovin and Emcor Group will also join the prestigious index, replacing MarketAxess Holdings, Caesars Entertainment, and Enphase Energy. Robinhood’s stock has seen impressive growth, climbing nearly 172% year-to-date, largely attributed to an increase in retail investor activity.
In the electric vehicle sector, Tesla attracted attention as it disclosed a proposed pay package for CEO Elon Musk that could be worth up to $1 trillion, contingent on hitting certain performance targets over the next decade. During pre-market trading on Monday, Tesla’s shares rose by 1%, building on a 3.6% increase from Friday. Musk’s potential compensation could include shares equating to 12% of the company, contingent on performance metrics detailed in a regulatory filing.
Investment analyst Dan Coatsworth from AJ Bell remarked on the staggering pay proposal, noting that shareholders will ultimately judge whether Musk deserves such a deal. He emphasized that achieving the targets necessary for this compensation would require extraordinary performance from Tesla. Coatsworth also cautioned that this proposal might influence corporate remuneration standards across the industry, highlighting concerns regarding corporate governance.
Meanwhile, in Hong Kong, tech giants Alibaba and Baidu saw their shares rise significantly. Alibaba’s stock increased by 4.5%, while Baidu surged by 11%. Reports indicated that Chinese investors had purchased a substantial amount of Alibaba shares, spending HK$13.5 billion (£1.28 billion) through stock trading links with the mainland, marking the highest investment in a single stock. This investor interest followed Alibaba’s announcement of robust growth in AI-related revenue in its cloud business.
On the London Stock Exchange, shares of BP and Shell both experienced a nearly 1% uptick after OPEC+ agreed to a more modest production increase. Brent crude futures rose by 1.6% to $66.54 per barrel, following relief over the OPEC+ decision that will see eight member countries raise production by 137,000 barrels per day starting in October—a significant reduction from the previous monthly increases.
In retail, Marks & Spencer emerged as the largest gainer on the FTSE 100 index, climbing 2.3% following an upgrade from Citigroup analysts to a “buy” rating with a new target price set at £4.40 per share. This rise was attributed to the company’s underlying momentum, with suggestions from the analysts that M&S is gaining traction with younger consumers. They noted that the firm is benefiting from a shift in consumer behavior, leading to larger basket sizes as customers move away from dining out.
Richard Hunter, head of markets at Interactive Investor, provided additional context, pointing out that although Marks & Spencer has faced challenges from cyberattacks in the past, current trends indicate potential for outperformance amidst broader economic uncertainties in the UK.
