Rate Cuts, Curves and Chips: How the Fed’s Quarter-Point Trim Reshaped Wednesday’s Tape - December 10, 2025 -( $AAPL $ABVX $AVGO $DV $EPRX $INTC $INTG $LLY $NOK $PLTR $RIO $TSLA $TSM Rise!) - Vista Partners LLC

Markets leaned into the Fed’s latest cut with the kind of cautious enthusiasm usually reserved for a long‑overdue bonus.

Major indexes

U.S. stocks spent Wednesday strutting rather than sprinting, as the S&P 500 rose about 0.7% to roughly 6,887, just shy of its record, while the Dow climbed about 1% to around 48,058, the Nasdaq added roughly 0.3%, and the small‑cap Russell 2000 advanced about 1.3%, hinting that the “kids’ table” of the market may finally have been invited into the year‑end rally. The day’s tone was risk‑on but disciplined, with investors rotating toward cyclicals and small caps without fully abandoning the mega‑cap growth engines that powered much of 2025.

Macro and Fed

The macro backdrop was dominated by the Federal Reserve’s decision to trim its policy rate by another quarter point and signal that, barring surprises, this likely closes out the 2025 cutting campaign, a move that nudged the 10‑year Treasury yield lower to 4.155% and the 2-year to 3.553%, and modestly steepened a curve still recovering from years of distortion. With no major data shocks on the tape and the government‑shutdown cloud beginning to lift as Washington edges toward reopening and restoring the regular flow of statistics, markets spent more time gaming the timing and pace of 2026 cuts than worrying about whether the lights would stay on at the data agencies.

Big tech and AI complex

In the AI‑chip arena, Nvidia (NCA) drifted lower by .64% to $183.78 rather than dazzled as the broader Nasdaq lagged the Dow, even as derivatives desks stayed busy across NVDA and its mega‑cap peers; Taiwan Semiconductor (TSM, $310.14, +2.22%) and Intel (INTC, $40.78, +.69%) traded as quiet barometers of the semiconductor supply chain, with yields and Fed guidance doing more of the talking than any single headline. Apple (AAPL, $278.78, +.58%) and Tesla (TSLA, $451.45, +1.39%) both central to the AI‑and‑EV narrative, saw active options flow but only modest price moves as investors weighed cheaper money against questions around device upgrade cycles, EV pricing pressure and the persistent tariff overhang on global supply chains.

Pharma, industrials and cyclicals

Eli Lilly (LLY) finally broke a nine‑session losing streak, closing about 1.16% higher near 994 as fresh analyst target hikes toward 1,200 and renewed enthusiasm for its obesity and oncology franchises steadied sentiment, while speculation that Lilly could be eyeing French biotech Abivax (ABVX, $127.53, +3.65% and 1,642.21% YTD) added a cross‑border M&A flavor to the tape. McDonald’s moved lower by .08% to $310.53 as investors leaned on its global scale and pricing power as a defensive anchor in portfolios that are otherwise tilting toward growth, while Rio Tinto (RIO, $76.24, +2.47%) traded mostly as a levered play on global‑growth and China expectations rather than on any single headline.

Software, semis and communications

Broadcom (AVGO, $412.97, +1.64%) and Oracle (ORCL, $223.01, +.67%) sat near the center of the earnings‑watch narrative, with traders positioning around Oracle’s post‑close report and Broadcom’s AI‑heavy update later in the week, effectively turning the pair into a referendum on whether the capex boom in AI infrastructure can keep defying gravity. However, after the bell Oracle reported disappointing analysts as its revenues fell short of projections coming in at $16.06B and shares have sold off by around 10%. Meta moved lower by 1.04% to $650.13, while Nokia’s more utilitarian networking story remained largely background noise despite its leverage to 5G and cloud rollouts and closed at $6.22, +.65%.

Palantir, OKLO, Opendoor and high‑beta plays

OKLO remained a small but symbolically important part of the advanced‑nuclear and energy‑transition story, with its share price still reflecting long regulatory lead times more than any near‑term revenue, bt today it fell 3.20% to $100.60. Opendoor traded as a high‑beta expression of the housing‑and‑rates trade—each tick in Treasury yields and each nuance in Fed language subtly reshaping sentiment toward its asset‑light model—but today it fell 5.41% to $7, while Palantir (PLTR, $187.91, +3.34%) stayed in the thick of AI‑and‑defense chatter as options activity clustered around PLTR alongside Tesla, Nvidia, Apple and Meta.

Deals, IPOs and M&A

Deal‑making showed signs of life if not exuberance, with Daedalus Special Acquisition Corp. recently pricing on Nasdaq and today’s calendar featuring Cardinal Infrastructure and JM Group, part of a week that also includes SFIDA X and Wealthfront among the more recognizable names testing investor appetite before the holiday lull. Beyond SPACs and new listings, the rumor mill fixated on the possibility of an Eli Lilly–Abivax tie‑up, underscoring how big‑pharma balance sheets and a lower‑rate environment remain a potent combination for biotech takeout speculation even as signed megadeals stayed scarce.

Tariffs, shutdown and policy risk

Tariff headlines remained just noisy enough to matter, with markets still parsing the fate of the Trump administration’s broad tariff architecture and the idea of a “tariff dividend,” a framework that continues to shape both corporate supply‑chain planning and investor views on globally exposed sectors. The U.S. shutdown saga showed early signs of resolution as policymakers in Washington moved closer to reopening and restoring full government operations, easing one source of macro anxiety even as debates over spending and debt levels kept longer‑term fiscal concerns very much alive.

Gold, silver, oil and bitcoin

Gold ($4,258.30/oz) and silver ($61.53/oz), already buoyed by concerns over U.S. debt and the earlier shutdown scare, rose .52% and 2.26% respectively as lower real yields and lingering fiscal worries gave investors few reasons to abandon their hedges. Oil prices chopped sideways in a tug‑of‑war between optimism that easier financial conditions will support demand and worries that supply discipline and geopolitics could still inject volatility, while bitcoin traded more as a barometer of speculative sentiment than a pure macro hedge as traders digested the Fed’s move and fretted over the potential balance‑sheet “surprises” highlighted in recent commentary.

Vista Partners Watchlist Updates

Modular Medical, Inc. (Nasdaq: MODD., $.3140), a leader in innovative insulin delivery technology targeting the $3 billion adult “almost-pumpers” diabetes market with user-friendly, affordable patch pumps, today announced that it has priced an underwritten public offering (the “offering”) of 12,173,000 shares of its common stock and accompanying warrants to purchase 6,086,500 shares of its common stock. Each two shares of common stock are being offered and sold together with one accompanying warrant at a combined offering at a price of $0.77, yielding an effective price of $0.38 per share and $0.01 per warrant. The warrants will have an exercise price of $0.45 per share, are exercisable immediately upon issuance and will expire five years following the date of issuance. In connection with the offering, Modular Medical has granted the underwriter a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 15% of common shares and/or warrants at the public offering price, less underwriting discounts and commissions. The over-allotment option may be elected with respect to, at the underwriter’s sole discretion, shares and warrants together, solely shares, solely warrants, or any combination thereof. Newbridge Securities Corporation is acting as the sole bookrunner for the offering. Assuming no exercise of the over-allotment option, the gross proceeds to the Company from the offering are expected to be approximately $4.68 million, before deducting underwriting discounts, commissions, and estimated offering expenses payable by the Company. The Company intends to use the net proceeds from the offering to fund operations and for working capital and general corporate purposes, including capital expenditures.

On Nov. 17, Modular announced Institutional Review Board (“IRB”) approval to conduct an in-house study of its next-generation Pivot™ insulin delivery system using insulin on people with diabetes (the “Study”). Pursuant to U.S. Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) regulations, an IRB is a group that has been formally designated to review and monitor biomedical research involving human subjects. The Study will simulate real-world conditions by delivering insulin to adult participants to gather critical data on device function and usability and obtain user feedback. Modular Medical’s Pivot tubeless patch pump aims to enhance accessibility for underserved patients with diabetes and drive market penetration and expansion.

On Nov. 14, Modular Medical announced the 510(k) premarket submission of its next generation Pivot™ tubeless patch pump to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (the “FDA”). The Company expects to commence the commercial launch of its Pivot pump in Q1 2026. On Nov. 3, Modular Medical the successful validation of its Pivot controller line, a critical milestone in preparing for the commercial launch of its Pivot patch pump targeted for Q1 2026. The Pivot controller line validation further demonstrates manufacturing readiness for high-volume production, positioning Modular Medical to meet the growing demand in the diabetes treatment market for advanced technology.

Eupraxia Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: EPRX, $6.30, +5.53%), a clinical-stage biotechnology company leveraging its proprietary Diffusphere™ technology to optimize local, controlled drug delivery for diseases with significant unmet need, announced (Nov. 13) the second set of 52-week follow up data from its ongoing Phase 1b/2a RESOLVE trial evaluating a single administration EP-104GI for the treatment of eosinophilic esophagitis (“EoE”). James A. Helliwell, Chief Executive Officer of Eupraxia stated,“These data further highlight the strong durability and tolerability profile of EP-104GI, reinforcing its potential to become a convenient, once-a-year treatment that fits seamlessly into routine disease management by aligning with annual patient endoscopies. The Cohorts 5 & 6 patients – the only groups to have reached 52 weeks in the trial – are demonstrating levels of symptom relief that is durable and clinically meaningful – we are very encouraged by this outcome. We’re also pleased that our previously announced 52-week data were presented as a late-breaking presentation at the American College of Gastroenterology Annual Scientific Meeting (ACG). These new results build on that momentum. Given that current EoE therapies often struggle with long-term adherence, we believe a durable, once-yearly treatment could meaningfully improve patient outcomes and establish EP-104GI as a preferred option for both physicians and their patients.”

GeoVax Labs, Inc. (Nasdaq: GOVX, $.3958), a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing multi-antigen vaccines and immunotherapies for infectious diseases and cancer, today announced that to help close the gap between ambition and execution, GeoVax has expanded its Scientific Advisory Board with a cluster of internationally recognized specialists whose day jobs read like the acknowledgments section of a pandemic playbook. The newly highlighted lineup features Professor Teresa Lambe, Calleva Head of Vaccine Immunology at the Oxford Vaccine Group and a principal architect of the Oxford/AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine; Dr. Alessandro Sette of the La Jolla Institute for Immunology, a leading T‑cell and immune-correlates researcher; Professor Lance Turtle of the University of Liverpool, a clinician-scientist in viral pathogenesis and long-term immunity; Professor Thushan I. de Silva of the University of Sheffield, an authority on viral evolution and population-level vaccine responses; and Dr. Joshua A. Hill of the University of Washington and Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center, a specialist in infectious diseases and vaccine performance in immunocompromised and transplant patients. For a company that still trades like a niche microcap, the SAB now looks suspiciously like a global advisory panel on “how to keep the world from falling apart, immunologically speaking.”

On Dec. 9, GeoVax announced the issuance of U.S. Patent No. 12,453,760, titled “Enhanced Therapeutic Usage of a Purine Nucleoside Phosphorylase or Nucleoside Hydrolase Prodrug”, by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). The patent provides composition-of-matter and method-of-use protection for GeoVax’s Gedeptin(R) platform in combination with targeted delivery approaches for solid tumors, including head and neck cancer.

On Dec. 8, GeoVax announced the publication of a peer-reviewed article in JCO Oncology Advances, the American Society of Clinical Oncology’s (ASCO) open-access journal. The manuscript, titled “A Phase 1/2 Study of Intratumoral Ad/PNP (Gedeptin) with Fludarabine Phosphate in Subjects with Recurrent Head and Neck Cancer”, reports findings from a multi-center clinical trial evaluating repeated cycles of Gedeptin(R), a gene-directed enzyme prodrug therapy (GDEPT), administered via intratumoral injection followed by systemic fludarabine.

Volato Group, Inc. (NYSE American: SOAR, $1.23) and M2i Global, Inc. (MTWO, $.08), a company specializing in the development and execution of a complete global value supply chain for critical minerals, announced on Nov. 19 that Nimy Resources (“Nimy”) and M2i will collaborate with the aim of forming commercially binding contract terms for the respective sale and purchase of gallium production. They also announced (Oct. 16) the next phase of development of the digital and commercial infrastructure underpinning the U.S. Strategic Mineral Reserve (SMR). M2i initiated the SMR framework and technical specifications earlier this year. Volato is now applying its proven enterprise-software expertise to build and operationalize the secure technology backbone that will support critical mineral traceability, contracting, and compliance across the United States and allied nations. This infrastructure is being developed to serve as the market-facing layer of the U.S. Strategic Mineral Reserve initiative, providing miners, refiners, recyclers, manufacturers, and government entities with a trusted environment for physical critical mineral transactions—with verified provenance, end-to-end custody visibility, and regulatory compliance at its core.

Serina Therapeutics (NYSE American: SER, $3.21), Alabama-based biotech is betting its proprietary POZ platform and reimagined approach to apomorphine delivery may redefine the treatment paradigm for patients who have exhausted standard oral therapies. Today, after the close, Serina announced that it has submitted a complete response to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (“FDA”) clinical hold letter for SER-252, the Company’s lead program for advanced Parkinson’s disease. As previously disclosed, the FDA placed the Company’s Investigational New Drug (“IND”) application for SER-252 on clinical hold pending additional information related to a commonly used formulation excipient. On November 25, 2025, the FDA issued a formal full clinical hold letter specifying the information required to permit initiation of the planned Phase 1b registrational study, SER-252-1b. The issues identified by the FDA do not relate to the apomorphine active drug substance, its mechanism of action, the use of the enFuse device (Enable Injections) or the broader 505(b)(2) NDA development pathway previously discussed with the Agency.

The InterGroup Corporation (NASDAQ: INTG, $29.15, +2.97%) reported (Nov. 17) results for the three months ended September 30, 2025. John V. Winfield, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, said: “We continue to observe signs of stabilization and recovery across the San Francisco hospitality market, including improving convention calendars, tourism indicators, and business travel activity. On the investment side, our marketable securities activity remained modest with a small net gain, consistent with our emphasis on liquidity and risk discipline.”

DoubleVerify Holdings Inc. (DV) closed at $11.18, +2.29%. DoubleVerify, which built its franchise on media verification and ad performance analytics, is now the first badged TikTok Marketing Partner focused specifically on attention measurement, tapping impression-level signals from the platform. Brands gain a granular view of how exposure and user interaction come together across TikTok formats, ad sets, creatives, and objectives, effectively treating every swipe as a tiny A/B test.

Rate Cuts, Curves and Chips: How the Fed’s Quarter-Point Trim Reshaped Wednesday’s Tape – December 10, 2025 -( $AAPL $ABVX $AVGO $DV $EPRX $INTC $INTG $LLY $NOK $PLTR $RIO $TSLA $TSM Rise!)

Major indexes

Macro and Fed

Big tech and AI complex

Pharma, industrials and cyclicals

Software, semis and communications

Palantir, OKLO, Opendoor and high‑beta plays

Deals, IPOs and M&A

Tariffs, shutdown and policy risk

Gold, silver, oil and bitcoin

Vista Partners Watchlist Updates

Sources

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