For months, the stock market’s biggest indexes have been taking turns at the podium. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq kept printing new highs while the Dow sat in the corner, arms crossed, refusing to participate.
The numbers behind the milestone
On May 26, the S&P 500 closed at 7,519.12, up 0.61%, and the Nasdaq finished at 26,656.18, a 1.19% gain. The Dow, meanwhile, dropped 118 points to close at 50,461.68, a decline of 0.23%.
The Nasdaq first crossed above the 25,000 level on May 1, closing at 25,114.44. On that same day, the Dow closed lower.
April 2026 was the strongest month for both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq since 2020, with multiple record closes stacking up as corporate earnings exceeded expectations and geopolitical headwinds briefly eased. By mid-April, the S&P 500 had already reached around 7,022.95 during what analysts were characterizing as an ongoing AI-driven rally.
