Big Tech Earnings Drive the Week, Bears Circle AI Names

Mega-Cap Earnings Dominate

The heaviest earnings stretch of 2026 arrives this week. Microsoft, Alphabet, Amazon, Meta Platforms and Intel all report within days of each other. Options flow reflects the pressure. Micron Technology leads all US stocks for positive options bets over the past seven days. On the other side, CoreWeave carries a short score of 67 and an RSI of 25.75, with bears adding via puts. Its short interest hit 24.8% of free float this past week, up 3.6 points.

Bears Target EV and High-Short Names

Short sellers remain aggressive in electric vehicle names. US plug-in vehicle registrations fell to 21,482 units in July 2026, the smallest July count in four years, per ORTEX Alt Data. That weak demand backdrop keeps bears entrenched in Lucid Group, where SI rose 1.9 points to 64.7% of free float. Wolfspeed sits at 83.8% SI of free float with 9.6 days to cover. Hertz carries 72.3% SI with zero shares available to borrow and a 28% cost to borrow.

European Autos Face a Tough Week

European auto names report into a difficult backdrop. Mercedes-Benz reports Tuesday, with ORTEX Alt Data showing Dutch car registrations running 6% below the same quarter last year, a dataset with a 26-day lead on revenue. Volkswagen and Renault follow Wednesday and Thursday. Austrian registrations are running 6% below last year for Volkswagen's quarter and 6% above for Renault's.

Index Radar: Russell Deadline in Five Days

The Russell 2000 ranking cut-off arrives 30 October. Vaxcyte sits at a market cap of $9.5B, just 0.5% below the Russell 2000 exit line and 0.5% above the Russell 1000 entry line. A close through $62.53 would trigger $430M of forced buying into the Russell 1000. McCormick faces a 77% probability of MSCI World deletion, with $735M of estimated forced selling if it exits in November. The announcement is due 11 November.