Wall Street futures were largely unchanged on Friday, as investors caught their breath after record closes for the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq and looked for clarity on U.S. trade talks before the August 1 tariff deadline.

Computer-driven hedge funds like Qube and Point72's Cubist have posted losses. Executives and experts have theories on why.

Beaten-down stocks such as Kohl’s, Krispy Kreme and Opendoor Technologies have taken off recently, as individual investors pile into heavily shorted equities. The stocks’ cult followings and their outsized gains mirror the performance of GameStop and AMC Entertainment during the original pandemic-era meme-stock frenzy.

You can invest in stocks through a full-service brokerage, financial technology company, robo-adviser or retirement account, all of which have pros and cons.

Investor enthusiasm faded for the latest meme stocks on Wednesday, with shares in heavily shorted Krispy Kreme and GoPro closing well below their session highs, while Tuesday's investor darling - department store Kohl's - finished sharply lower.

Intel stock falls after the chip maker reports a wider loss in the second quarter, while Centene rises even as it posts a surprise quarterly loss.

Wall Street climbed Wednesday after President Donald Trump reached a trade deal with Japan and hopes rose for more agreements by August 1.

Edwards Lifesciences rose 5.5% after likewise topping Wall Street’s expectations for profit in the latest quarter. It said it saw strength across all its product groups, and it expects profit for the full year to come in at the high end of the forecasted range it had given earlier.

A 15% U.S.-Japan trade deal and reports of a similar U.S.-EU deal have fueled a market resurgence. Seize the moment with 3 opportunistic stocks under $10.