Crypto Outshines Traditional Stocks: Salesforce, J.B. Hunt, Hewlett Packard Enterprise Playing Catch-Up

While traditional markets chase single-digit gains, decentralized assets continue rewriting the rulebook.

The Digital Gold Rush

Bitcoin's recent surge past previous resistance levels shows institutional money finally understanding what crypto natives knew years ago - the future of value transfer isn't sitting in legacy systems. Meanwhile, traditional equities like Salesforce and Hewlett Packard Enterprise struggle to maintain relevance in an increasingly tokenized world.

Blockchain Doesn't Take Lunch Breaks

Unlike stock markets that close at 4 PM, digital asset markets operate 24/7 across global networks. The continuous price discovery mechanism makes traditional trading hours look as outdated as fax machines in a Zoom world.

Wall Street's slow dance with blockchain technology continues to amuse those of us who've been earning yield while they've been forming committees. Maybe they'll figure it out before their quarterly earnings reports become permanently encoded on-chain for everyone to see - transparency tends to make traditional finance executives break out in cold sweats.

Key Takeaways

• Major U.S. equities indexes wavered between gains and losses at midday Thursday as investors digested a flurry of corporate earnings reports. 
• Salesforce shares rose after the customer relationship software maker issued a better-than-expected long-term sales outlook.
• Verisk Analytics shares fell after Rothschild Redburn analysts downgraded the stock.

Major U.S. equities indexes wavered between gains and losses at midday Thursday as investors digested a flurry of corporate earnings reports. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 were little changed, while the Nasdaq was slightly higher.

Salesforce (CRM) led Dow gainers after the cloud-based software firm issued a rosy revenue projection.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services (JBHT) was the top-performing stock in the S&P 500 after stronger-than-expected results, with profit easily surpassing analysts' estimates after successful cost-cutting efforts.

Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) was among the worst-performing stocks in the benchmark index after the company issued fiscal 2026 revenue and profit guidance far below analysts' expectations.

The Travelers Cos. (TRV) was the biggest decliner in the Dow even though the insurer's profit and revenue topped expectations.

Verisk Analytics (VRSK) paced Nasdaq decliners after Rothschild Redburn downgraded the stock to "sell" from "neutral" and slashed its price target.

Gold futures rose to a fresh record. Oil futures and the yield on the 10-year Treasury note were little changed. The U.S. dollar lost ground to the euro, pound, and yen. Prices for most major cryptocurrencies were mixed, with Bitcoin trading lower.