Session brief · Thursday, May 21, 2026 close
Stocks edged higher. 2,840 rose, 1,963 fell — but energy lagged.
8 of 11 sectors finished higher. Materials led at +1.31%; Energy lagged at -1.18%.
The biggest liquid gainer was D-Wave Quantum (QBTS), up 33.4% in technology.
Among benchmarks, IWM (Russell 2000) did best at +0.94% and QQQ (Nasdaq-100) did worst at +0.19%.
Market breadth
4,936 common stocks · previous-session close▲ 2,840 advancing (57.5%)133 unchanged▼ 1,963 declining (39.8%)
Sectors, cap-weighted
| Sector | Change | Rising | Falling |
|---|---|---|---|
| Materials | +1.31% | 146 | 89 |
| Healthcare | +0.85% | 534 | 289 |
| Communication Services | +0.69% | 80 | 40 |
| Utilities | +0.45% | 75 | 39 |
| Technology | +0.28% | 320 | 269 |
| Financials | +0.22% | 444 | 260 |
| Real Estate | +0.17% | 135 | 82 |
| Consumer Staples | +0.12% | 70 | 43 |
| Industrials | −0.12% | 226 | 170 |
| Consumer Discretionary | −0.17% | 361 | 178 |
| Energy | −1.18% | 28 | 92 |
Top gainers
Top losers
Most active
Common stocks · $2+ · 500K+ shares · $100M+ market cap · previous-session close. Changes compare the May 21, 2026 close with May 20, 2026; stocks with unexplained price jumps are excluded.