For Immediate Release
Chicago, IL – July 6, 2026 – Zacks.com announces the list of stocks featured in the Analyst Blog. Every day the Zacks Equity Research analysts discuss the latest news and events impacting stocks and the financial markets. Stocks recently featured in the blog include: First Trust RBA American Industrial Renaissance ETF AIRR, State Street Industrial Select Sector SPDR ETF XLI, VanEck Semiconductor ETF SMH, iShares Semiconductor ETF SOXX and iShares U.S. Aerospace & Defense ETF ITA.
Here are highlights from Thursday’s Analyst Blog:
Celebrating America's 250th Birthday with U.S.-Based ETFs
The U.S. stock market wrapped up the first half of 2026 on a strong note.The Dow Jones advanced 8.9% during the first six months of the year, marking its best first-half performance since 2021, when it gained 12.7%. The S&P 500 rose 9.6%, while the Nasdaq outperformed with a gain of more than 12%.
Small-cap stocks also enjoyed a standout period. The Russell 2000 jumped nearly 22%, recording its strongest first-half performance since 1991, as quoted on CNBC.
Volatile Start Gives Way to a Powerful Recovery
The first half of the year was marked by significant volatility. Markets reached record highs despite sharp fluctuations in energy prices caused by the Iran conflict and ongoing concerns about whether AI-related spending could remain sustainable.
However, solid U.S. corporate earnings remained the key market driver. Total S&P 500 earnings are expected to increase by 23.7% in the June quarter of 2026 from the same period last year, on 11.4% higher revenues.
America-Focused ETFs Showing Fireworks
While there are winners in many corners of the market, we have highlighted a few themes and ETFs that have been seeing fireworks lately. These areas are purely American investment stories.
The Great American Reshoring Wave Gains Momentum
The U.S. manufacturing sector remains in expansion territory in 2026, even after easing from a four-year high reached earlier this year. Fourteen manufacturing industries reported growth in June, highlighting resilience despite inflation and geopolitical uncertainties, per Reuters.
The ISM said its manufacturing PMI slipped to 53.3 last month from 54.0 in May, which ???was the highest reading since May 2022, as per the same Reuters article. Still, manufacturing has grown for six successive months as the AI spending spree has helped offset some of the hit to factories from the conflict.
Major investment announcements include Apple's $600 billion U.S. investment program, NVIDIA's commitment to build AI chips and infrastructure domestically and large pharmaceutical manufacturing projects from Johnson & Johnson and other firms.
In this context, investors should focus on the likes of First Trust RBA American Industrial Renaissance ETF and State Street Industrial Select Sector SPDR ETF. AIRR is up 55% and XLI has gained about 24% over the past year.
America's AI Leadership
The AI revolution continues to reshape the U.S. economy. Federal AI spending remains heavily concentrated in defense and innovation programs, while private-sector investment in data centers and computing infrastructure is accelerating rapidly.
iShares Semiconductor ETF offers exposure to leading chipmakers and equipment providers benefiting from AI infrastructure spending. VanEck Semiconductor ETF remains one of the most popular ways to gain exposure to AI-driven semiconductor leaders. SOXX has surged about 147% while SMH has jumped about 120% over the past year.
Defense and Aerospace: Another Pillar of American Leadership
The defense and aerospace sector is a strategic area of national strength for any country. Rising geopolitical tensions, higher military budgets, and growing investments in next-generation systems support long-term growth prospects.
The convergence of AI, autonomous systems, cybersecurity, and space technologies is further strengthening the sector's investment case. iShares U.S. Aerospace & Defense ETF thus hogs attention. The ETF is up about 30% over the past year.
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Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Inherent in any investment is the potential for loss. This material is being provided for informational purposes only and nothing herein constitutes investment, legal, accounting or tax advice, or a recommendation to buy, sell or hold a security. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. It should not be assumed that any investments in securities, companies, sectors or markets identified and described were or will be profitable. All information is current as of the date of herein and is subject to change without notice. Any views or opinions expressed may not reflect those of the firm as a whole. Zacks Investment Research does not engage in investment banking, market making or asset management activities of any securities. These returns are from hypothetical portfolios consisting of stocks with Zacks Rank = 1 that were rebalanced monthly with zero transaction costs. These are not the returns of actual portfolios of stocks. The S&P 500 is an unmanaged index. Visit https://www.zacks.com/performance for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release.
Zacks' Research Chief Names "Stock Most Likely to Double"
Our team of experts has just released the 5 stocks with the greatest probability of gaining +100% or more in the coming months. Of those 5, Director of Research Sheraz Mian highlights the one stock set to climb highest.
This top pick is a little-known satellite-based communications firm. Space is projected to become a trillion dollar industry, and this company's customer base is growing fast. Analysts have forecasted a major revenue breakout in 2025. Of course, all our elite picks aren't winners but this one could far surpass earlier Zacks' Stocks Set to Double like Hims & Hers Health, which shot up +209%.
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State Street Industrial Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLI): ETF Research Reports
VanEck Semiconductor ETF (SMH): ETF Research Reports
iShares Semiconductor ETF (SOXX): ETF Research Reports
iShares U.S. Aerospace & Defense ETF (ITA): ETF Research Reports
First Trust RBA American Industrial Renaissance ETF (AIRR): ETF Research Reports
This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).