Stocks ended higher on Wednesday as Wall Street awaited the latest quarterly figures from Nvidia, the high-flying chipmaker that's been bolstered by the artificial intelligence craze on Wall Street. A decline in yields also buoyed sentiment among investors.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 184.15 points higher, or 0.5% at 34,472.98. The S&P 500 gained 1.1% to end the day at 4,436.01, its best daily performance since June 30. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite climbed 1.6% to 13,721.03, making for three straight days of gains.

Nvidia is slated to report second-quarter earnings after the bell. Analysts polled by Refinitiv expect the company to report sharp year-over-year spikes in profit and revenue. Nvidia is the best-performing S&P 500 stock of 2023, up more than 200%, as investors cheer the company's AI-related prospects.

Investors will look to the report for signs that the AI trend has more momentum. If not, it's possible the August downturn will be prolonged. Shares closed 3% higher ahead of the release.

"I think almost nothing matters right now to market direction over the short term outside of these Nvidia earnings because, obviously, the whole narrative with weakening manufacturing and still a somewhat puzzlingly strong consumer doesn't necessarily jive with market direction at the moment because multiples have expanded," said Todd Jones, chief investment officer at Gratus Capital.

Although Nvidia is the largest position in the firm's equity strategy, Jones said he is trimming back on other technology holdings, saying that "the valuation tells you there's not a lot of room for margin for error."

Traders cheered a decline in yields. The benchmark 10-year Treasury yield, which hit its highest level since 2007 on Monday, reaching 4.35%, dropped more than 11 basis points to 4.21% on Wednesday.

Athletic apparel stocks bucked the broader market's positive trend, falling amid concern over inflation and slowing demand.

Nike fell for a 10th straight day, its longest slide on record, losing 2.7%. Foot Locker shares 28.3% after reporting shrinking sales and lowering its forecast for the second time this year. The stock is on track for its biggest one-day drop, according to FactSet. Those moves come a day after Dick's Sporting Goods suffered its worst day ever.

Investors also looked ahead to the start of a two-day Federal Reserve symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, beginning Thursday. Fed Chair Jerome Powell is expected to deliver remarks Friday.

Stock indexes advance across the board Wednesday

The broad-based S&P 500 ended the day up 1.11%, or 48.5 points higher. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 184.15 points, or 0.54%.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite climbed on Wednesday, gaining 215.16 points, or 1.59%.

— Pia Singh

AI financial firm earns SEC registration

The artificial intelligence boom continues to seep into the financial industry, including the advisor business.

Global Predictions announced Wednesday that its AI-powered PortfolioPilot product is now a registered investment advisor with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The company says this is the first AI program to receive this registration.

The PortfolioPilot is targeted at self-directed investors and is designed to help customers research ways to change their portfolios, including finding ways to lower the fees they pay for different investments. Global Predictions said the platform now has more than 13,000 customers.

"With it being so scalable, we can give very good, very personalized advice for a fraction of the cost of human financial advisors," Global Predictions CEO Alexander Harmsen told CNBC.

— Jesse Pound

Amazon shares could rally nearly 50% from here, Loop Capital says

A stronger-than-expected retail recovery and bounce back in AWS growth could boost shares of Amazon in the near term, according to Loop Capital.

The firm lifted its price target on the e-commerce giant to $200, reflecting about 49% upside from Tuesday's close.

"The retail margin recovery is playing out with meaningful headroom," wrote Rob Sanderson in a Tuesday note to client.

He added that Wall Street is likely "mismodeling the growth recovery" within the company's AWS segment and failing to account for the "resilience of gross revenue as the business absorbs meaningful revenue attrition on cost-down efforts."

Amazon shares have rallied more than 60% year to date. The stock gained 0.7% on Wednesday.

— Samantha Subin

Another indicator is flashing a bullish signal for stocks, Bank of America says

The percentage of stocks where consensus earnings estimates have risen is advancing relative to the number where estimates have fallen, and that's a postive signal for stocks and, specifically, companies that are closely tied to economic cycles, Bank of America said Wednesday.

BofA compiles its own Global Earnings Revision Ratio, which climbed to 0.90 in August from 0.77 "to reach the highest level in 18 months. The Ratio improved in all regions and most global sectors," but most notably in the U.S. and Japan, the bank said. "The Ratio for the Risk style (1.13) jumped above 1.00 as upgrades outnumbered downgrades for cyclical stocks."

Historically, "when the three-month Global Ratio was near current levels and improving, global equities averaged 9.8% in the next 12 months," analysts led by Nigel Tupper wrote.

The earnings revision ratio improved in 11 of 16 global business sectors in August, and is highest in insurance (1.16), consumer discretionary (1.15) and industrial stocks (1.09), BofA said. Materials stocks have the lowest ration, at 0.57.

— Scott Schnipper, Michael Bloom

Goldman issues buy rating on REIT company Safehold

Real estate investment trust Safehold is trading at attractive levels, according to Goldman Sachs. 

Analyst Caitlin Burrows initiated coverage on the stock with a buy rating in a Wednesday note.

"Over time (as restructuring activity picks up in the near term, and as refinancing and transaction activity recovers over the medium term), we expect SAFE's earnings and value growth will be driven by investment volumes (and yield)," Burrows said.

To read more about her call, click here.

— Hakyung Kim

AI won't save U.S. from recession, JPMorgan strategist says

The advances in artificial intelligence will not be enough to help the U.S. economy avoid a recession, according to Dubravko Lakos-Bujas, JPMorgan's head of U.S. equity and quantitative strategy.

"In terms of AI driving massive productivity gains for the broader economy, yes, but like 3 years from now, 4 years from now. Not in the next 12 months. We have so many other macro headwinds to worry about," Lakos-Bujas said on CNBC's "Halftime Report."

Watch the full interview with Lakos-Bujas on CNBC Pro.

— Jesse Pound

Small-cap index heads for best day this month

The Russell 2000 is on pace for its best day this month.

The small-cap index added 1.2% as of Wednesday afternoon. It last broke the 1% mark on July 31, when it finished 1.1% up. And the index last finished higher on July 28, when it advanced 1.4%.

Abercrombie & Fitch, Arcus Biosciences and ScanSource were among the biggest gainers in the index on Wednesday, with all rallying more than 15% in the session.

— Alex Harring, Gina Francolla

Tech shares lead Wednesday's gains

The technology sector is leading the broad market index's gains Wednesday. The S&P 500 is up 1%.

The Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund is up 1.7% as of Wednesday afternoon, ahead of Nvidia's earnings release after the bell. Monolithic Power Systems, Cadence Design Systems and SolarEdge Technologies are up more than 3% for the day.

Energy is the only sector negative during Wednesday's trading session. The Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund is down 0.5%, with EQT, Occidental Petroleum and Valero Energy among the top decliners.

— Hakyung Kim

Morgan Stanley issues double upgrade on Brown-Forman shares

It's time to buy spirits stock Brown-Forman, according to Morgan Stanley. 

Analyst Eric Serotta double upgraded shares to overweight from underweight.

The firm's previous underweight call was based on limited visibility around gross margin recovery, the company's full valuation and slower U.S. spirits industry growth. However, Serotta now expects meaningful upside for the stock. 

Shares jumped more than 3% on Wednesday.

More about his call can be found here.

— Hakyung Kim

Kyle Bass says investing China is a bad idea right now

Kyle Bass of Hayman Capital Management said investing in China is not a good idea right now as Beijing tightens party control.

"They're allocating resources to state-owned enterprises, moving away from a market-based approach and moving to a party-based approach than they have been in the past," Bass said on CNBC's "Squawk Box." "All the profits are going to management and the party. It's not going to westerners."

President Joe Biden signed an executive order this month aimed at restricting new U.S. investments and expertise that supports Chinese development of sensitive technologies.

— Yun Li

Here's what investors are saying about Nvidia ahead of earnings:

• "In the very short term, it's a difficult call given the stock's significant move, and high expectations. But the CY24/CY25 trend is much clearer, and we don't see any scenario that would change that view tonight. Given the multi-year trend in front of NVDA, we're simply afraid to not own it, and we're confident that if the stock were down tomorrow, we would be buying that pullback." — Chris Caso, Wolfe Research Managing Director
• "This could help serve as the catalyst this market needs to confirm the legitimacy of AI's prominence within the tech sector, but also provide optimism for markets in general." — Quincy Krosby, Chief Global Strategist for LPL Financial
• "I do think there are people getting a little overexcited about the promise of AI, just like fiber optic in 2000, that has yet to really see some economic impact," Jones said. "We definitely want to be careful ahead of the Nvidia earnings, but also really any other tech earnings right now." — Todd Jones, chief investment officer at Gratus Capital
• "I think the odds are against an investor trying to trade it because a lot of the upside, maybe it's already priced in this one. However, it is pretty unique because the business trends are so strong…it's important for them to put up a big number, so if there's any softness at all, then it could be very disappointing for the market." — James Ragan, Director of Wealth Management Research at D.A. Davidson

— Pia Singh

Bank of America downgrades Dick's Sporting Goods

Things aren't looking good for Dick's Sporting Goods, according to Bank of America. The firm downgraded shares to neutral from buy in a Wednesday note.

The stock plunged 24.1% on Tuesday — its biggest one-day drop on record — on weaker-than-expected second-quarter results. Dick's also cut its guidance for the year amid a rise in retail theft and sluggish sales in its outdoor segment. 

"Post 2Q results, we see increased risks to DKS sales & margin outlook," analyst Robert Ohmes said, adding that there are "risk[s] of further inventory action in 2H."

The stock lost 1.7% Wednesday in afternoon trading.

More about the downgrade can be found here.

— Hakyung Kim

Super Micro Computer shares rise more than 9% ahead of Nvidia earnings

Super Micro Computer could see upside if Wall Street reacts favorably to Nvidia's highly anticipated earnings release, according to Loop Capital.

Analyst Ananda Baruah reiterated his buy rating on SMCI shares ahead of Nvidia's second-quarter earnings announcement Wednesday after the bell.

"SMCI stock could act favorably if NVDA provides constructive Oct Q guidance and a healthy H100 supply narrative," Baruah wrote in a Tuesday note.

Earlier in August, SMCI shares lost more than 20% in a single trading session even after posting an earnings and revenue beat. Analysts were disappointed by the company's outlook for the 2024 fiscal year, which came in more conservative than expected.

However, Baruah said reports of the company's demise "have been greatly exaggerated."

Shares jumped 9.5% as of Wednesday afternoon.

CNBC Pro subscribers can read the full story here.

— Hakyung Kim

Nike on pace to extend record-setting losing streak

Nike's loss of more than 3.5% in Wednesday's session put the retailer on track for a 10th losing day, extending its historic slide.

On Tuesday, the stock finished its ninth straight session down with a 1.4% slide. That officially marked its longest losing streak ever.

— Alex Harring

See the stocks making the biggest moves midday

These are some of the stocks making the biggest moves midday:

• Nvidia — The chipmaker climbed 1.8% ahead of its quarterly report set for release after the bell.
• Peloton — The fitness company plummeted more than 22% after reporting a wider-than-expected loss for its fiscal fourth quarter and a drop in new subscribers as it deals with the fallout of a recent recall.
• Foot Locker — The athletic retailer plunged 33% after cutting its outlook again for the year and suspending its quarterly dividend. Elsewhere, the company's quarterly earnings were mixed.

See the full list here.

— Alex Harring

Analog Devices recovers after disappointing quarter, guidance

Shares of Analog Devices gained 0.6% on Wednesday, recovering from its more than 5% premarket slump after the company reported fiscal third-quarter results that fell short of estimates and issued disappointing guidance for the current period.

The semiconductor company reported adjusted earnings of $2.49 per share on revenues totaling $3.08 billion. That fell short of the $2.52 per share and $3.10 billion in sales expected by analysts polled by Refinitiv.

Guidance also fell short of expectations, with Analog Devices saying that it expects revenues of $2.7 billion in its fourth fiscal quarter, versus the $3 billion expected by Wall Street. The company also anticipates adjusted earnings to come in at $2.00 per share instead of the estimated $2.39.

— Samantha Subin

Wells Fargo's Mayo dials back estimates for big banks

Wells Fargo analyst Mike Mayo trimmed price targets and earnings estimates for several large banks.

"We lower ests. due to less-than-expected est. loan and capital markets growth, as well as less buybacks due to reg changes which, for the group, makes us more cautious short term," Mayo wrote in a note to clients.

The changes included lowering the price target for Bank of America to $40 per share from $43, and Citigroup's to $55 per share from $60

Wells Fargo kept JPMorgan's target at $180 per share, though Mayo did trim earnings estimates for the third quarter and 2024 for the bank.

— Jesse Pound

Abercrombie & Fitch soars after retailer flies past earnings expectations

Abercrombie & Fitch shares popped nearly 25% on Wednesday after the retailer blew past earnings estimates and raised its guidance. In the fiscal second quarter, Abercrombie reported earnings per share of $1.10, surpassing the 17 cents expected from analysts surveyed by Refinitiv. The retailer posted $935.3 million in revenue, while analysts expected $842.4 million.

Abercrombie's retailer said that the chain—which has reinvented itself to serve a broader audience—will continue to open stores and invest in its digital experience. 

The stock is up more than 120% so far this year.

— Pia Singh

New home sales in July stronger than expected

Newly constructed homes sold briskly in July despite surging interest rates for mortgages, the Commerce Department reported Wednesday.

Sales of new homes totaled 714,000 at a seasonally adjusted rate, the Census Bureau said, a total that was well above the 704,000 estimate. That equated to a 4.4% increase from the downwardly revised figure for June and 31.5% above the rate of a year ago.

Available homes totaled 437,000, a 7.3-month supply level, which was more than double the rate for existing homes. New homes sold prior to construction fell to 93,000, a decline of 20,000 and the lowest total all year, suggesting that builders are working through inventory.

—Jeff Cox

Stocks open higher Wednesday

The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite began Wednesday's trading session higher. The broad-based index and the tech-heavy Nasdaq both advanced 0.4%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average opened nearly 0.2% higher, adding 49 points.

— Pia Singh

West Texas Intermediate crude touches lowest level in almost a month

U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude fell to its lowest point in almost a month after some global manufacturing data showed weakness in the sector around the world.

WTI on Wednesday touched a low of 78.21. That's the lowest level in about a month going back to July 24 when WTI traded as low as 76.44.

Meanwhile, Brent crude hit a low of 82.62, or its lowest level since August 3 when it traded as low as 82.36. RBOB Gas touched a low of 2.7235, also the lowest since August 3. It also dipped below its 50-day moving average level of 2.7247 on an intraday basis, trading below for the first time since July 7.

The Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund is trading lower in the premarket, on pace for its third straight losing day. Shares of Marathon, Devon and APA were all down about 1% in early trading.

— Sarah Min. Gina Francolla

Now is the time to buy the dip in Schwab shares, says Deutsche

The recent dip in Charles Schwab shares provides a promising entry point for investors, according to Deutsche Bank.

The brokerage firm's shares lost about 5% Tuesday on news the company sold more than $2 billion in debt. While this news likely rekindled worries about Schwab's client cash sorting, liquidity and capital levels, Deutsche analyst Brian Bedell thinks these concerns are "overblown." 

"Tuesday['s] sell-off provides even more attractive risk/reward," Bedell said in a note written on the same day. "We would use the sell off as a buying opportunity and reiterate our Buy rating."

Shares declined 0.1% Wednesday before the bell. CNBC Pro subscribers can read the full story here.

— Hakyung Kim

Stocks making the biggest moves premarket

Check out some of the companies making headlines in premarket trading.

Peloton -- Stock in the exercise bike stock plummeted more than 27% after posting quarterly results. Peloton reported an adjusted loss of 68 cents per share on $642.1 million in revenue, while analysts polled by Refinitiv had forecasted a 38-cent loss and $639 million.

Novavax — Shares rose 2.1% in early trading. The move higher comes one day after the biotech company said its new Covid vaccine is effective against the Eris variant of the virus. On Tuesday, the stock surged more than 13%

Kohl's -- The stock added 1.5% after beating expectations for the second quarter. The company reported adjusted earnings of 52 cents per share, while analysts polled by Refinitiv expected 22 cents. Revenue came in slightly lower, however, with the company reporting $3.68 billion against a forecast of $3.69 billion.

Read the full list here.

— Brian Evans

Kohl's rises on earnings beat

Shares of Kohl's added more than 2% in premarket trading after the retailer beat Wall Street's earnings expectations.

The company reported adjusted earnings of 52 cents per share, while analysts polled by Refinitiv expected 22 cents. Revenue came in slightly lower, however, with Kohl's reporting $3.68 billion against a forecast of $3.69 billion. The company's CEO, who mentioned Kohl's maintained its strong sales momentum in Sephora during the quarter, also reaffirmed the chain's 2023 guidance. 

— Pia Singh

Peloton tumbles on wider-than-expected loss, disappointing guidance

Shares of Peloton Interactive slumped more than 16% in the premarket after the fitness company reported a wider-than-expected loss and offered disappointing revenue guidance for its fiscal first quarter.

The company reported a loss of 68 cents per share, versus the 38-cent loss per share expected by analysts surveyed by Refinitiv. Revenues came in at $642.1 million, slightly ahead of the $639.9 million expected.

For its fiscal first quarter, Peloton said its expected revenues to range between $580 million to $600 million, versus the $656 million guided by Wall Street. Connected fitness subscription guidance also came in below estimates.

Peloton also said that the costs of its recently recalled bikes "substantially exceeded" expectations, and that it expects additional related expenses ahead.

— Samantha Subin

Foot Locker tumbles on sales decline and dividend pause

Foot Locker shares dropped 18% in the premarket after the retailer reported a year-over-year sales decline of nearly 10% for the second quarter. The company also suspended its quarterly dividend.

"We did see a softening in trends in July and are adjusting our 2023 outlook to allow us to best compete for price-sensitive consumers, while still leaning into the strategic investments that drive our Lace Up plan," CEO Mary Dillon said in a statement. 

— Fred Imbert, Gabrielle Fonrouge

How Nvidia shares could trade

Ben Emons of NewEdge Wealth noted the options market implies a 3% move on Nvidia shares Wednesday, with the chipmaker slated to report earnings after the bell.

"The EPS estimates meanwhile keep rising with HSBC and Jeffries upping the ante to $550 to $750/share. ... Yet, the implied volatility for NVDA has fallen despite the pop of $27 in the stock today," he wrote in a note Tuesday evening.

"But the semantics of the NVDA stock tells a bigger story," Emons added. "The company is the bellwether of AI capital expenditure that boosts economy-wide productivity. In the bond market, a surge of AI expectations is especially priced into real yields because those best reflect real GDP growth and productivity."

— Fred Imbert, Michael Bloom

Europe stocks open higher

European stocks opened Wednesday higher, with the regional Stoxx 600 up by 0.46% at 8:15 a.m. BST.

France's CAC 40 and Germany's DAX both climbed 0.5% as the U.K.'s FTSE 100 traded 0.4% higher.

— Jenni Reid

Nvidia, retailers set to report earnings on Wednesday

A group of big-name stocks are all slated to report Wednesday, including closely followed Nvidia.

Retailers Peloton, Foot Locker, Kohl's and Abercrombie & Fitch are due before the bell.

Artificial intelligence stock Nvidia, along with fellow technology company Snowflake, are expected after the market closes. Nvidia was the biggest laggard on the technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite in Tuesday's session as investors prepared for the report. Despite the nearly 3% fall in Tuesday's session, the stock is up more than 212% this year.

It has been a better-than-forecasted earnings season thus far. Of the more than 95% of S&P 500 companies that have already posted results, about four-fifths have surpassed analyst expectations.

— Alex Harring

Sports retailers made record-setting moves on Tuesday

Athletic retail stocks Dick's Sporting Goods and Nike notched notable losses in Tuesday's session.

For Dick's, Tuesday's tumble of more than 24% marked its worst performance in a session since the athletic retailer went public more than two decades ago. The sell-off followed the company's poor earnings report.

Nike's 1.4% slide marked its ninth straight down day. That's the longest losing streak the company has ever seen.

— Alex Harring

Urban Outfitters, La-Z-Boy diverge after hours following earnings reports

Some consumer-facing stocks moved in extended trading as investors responded to their earnings reports.

Urban Outfitters rose almost 6% after results came in ahead of where analysts expected.

On the other hand, La-Z-Boy dropped nearly 2%. It appeared that management commentary noting furniture sales will remain challenged pulled overshadowed the company's strong quarterly numbers.

— Alex Harring

Stock futures are near flat

Stock futures were little changed shortly after 6 p.m. ET, with futures tied to the Dow, S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 all within 0.1% of their respective flatlines.

— Alex Harring