US stocks climbed on Wednesday, February 18, 2026, led by AI bellwethers after Nvidia said it struck a multi‑year deal to supply chips to Meta; the S&P 500 moved back toward record territory as AI jitters eased. ([local10.com](https://www.local10.com/business/2026/02/18/nvidia-leads-the-us-stock-market-higher/?utm_source=openai))
Earnings were the main catalyst: Global Payments spiked on an upbeat 2026 outlook; Garmin surged on a Q4 beat and guidance above forecasts; chip design names and analog semis (e.g., Cadence, Analog Devices) also gained after strong results. ([barrons.com](https://www.barrons.com/articles/stock-movers-726553ad?utm_source=openai))
Cybersecurity lagged as Palo Alto Networks fell after cutting its full‑year profit outlook due to integration costs tied to recent acquisitions. ([finance.yahoo.com](https://finance.yahoo.com/news/palo-alto-shares-fall-deal-121933246.html/?utm_source=openai))
Nvidia’s latest 13F showed exits from several AI‑linked holdings (including Applied Digital and Recursion), pressuring those stocks. ([barrons.com](https://www.barrons.com/articles/applied-digital-stock-price-recursion-pharmaceuticals-nvidia-024f9b3a?utm_source=openai))
Broader sentiment got a lift from the Fed’s latest meeting minutes, which didn’t alter the policy path and helped stabilize risk appetite. ([barrons.com](https://www.barrons.com/articles/stock-movers-726553ad?utm_source=openai))