Stocks advanced Monday, with Wall Street building on the previous session's strong gains as traders lifted Federal Reserve rate cut expectations.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 176.59 points, or 0.46%, to close at 38,852.27. It was the fourth consecutive winning session for the 30-stock index. The S&P 500 advanced 1.03% to end at 5,180.74, and the Nasdaq Composite gained 1.19% to reach 16,349.25.

An announcement from Hamas on Monday that it accepted an Egyptian-Qatari cease-fire proposal to end the war with Israel gave stocks a boost in early afternoon trading.

Wall Street is coming off a winning session after fresh nonfarm payrolls data on Friday showed fewer-than-expected jobs were added in April along with an increase in unemployment, easing fears of an overheating economy.

"It's good that we're getting some sort of a continuation, because it seems as if the market is saying that the pullback is over and we'll just work our way back up," CFRA chief investment strategist Sam Stovall said, adding that Monday's momentum is a reaction to Fed Chair Jerome Powell's statement last week that ruled out a rate hike as the central bank's next move. That "made investors breathe a sigh of relief," Stovall said.

While the peak of the first-quarter earnings season has passed, investors are still watching key companies set to report this week, including Dow member Disney on Tuesday and Uber on Wednesday. On Saturday, Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway reported a nearly 40% surge in year-over-year operating earnings for the first quarter. Berkshire also held its annual shareholders meeting.

Micron gained 4.7% after Baird upgraded the stock to outperform from neutral and said it sees "meaningful opportunities ahead" for the chipmaker. American Airlines and Super Micro Computer were also among the top-performing S&P 500 stocks, gaining about 5.8% and 6.1%, respectively.  

Correction: A previous version misstated when Fed Chair Jerome Powell spoke.

'Magnificent Seven' fueling all the earnings growth in the S&P 500

More than three-quarters of the way through earnings season, and it is another strong showing for the "Magnificent Seven." Of the six that have already reported, only Tesla has missed estimates.

According to earnings data provider LSEG, aggregate earnings for the Magnificent Seven are expected to soar 49% year over year. In contrast, the other 493 S&P 500 stocks are on pace to see just flat earnings growth this season, up 0.4%.

The Magnificent Seven's strong growth has been fueled by particularly robust performance from Meta Platforms, Alphabet and Amazon over the past couple of weeks.

But no stock will have more of an effect than Nvidia, which reports results on May 22. The chipmaker's earnings are expected to surge more than five times last year's levels. Nvidia alone is expected to make up more than one-third of the 7% earnings growth the entire S&P 500 is now seeing this season.

— Robert Hum

Stocks end the day higher

Here is how the major indexes closed on Monday:

• The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 176.59 points, or 0.46%, to settle at 38,852.27.
• The S&P 500 advanced 1.03% to finish at 5,180.74.
• The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite gained 1.19% to close at 16,349.25.

— Pia Singh

Ken Griffin says AI has 'transformed the mindset of corporate America'

Citadel CEO Ken Griffin told CNBC's Sarah Eisen that developments in artificial intelligence could help improve the everyday lives of Americans and the economy.

"AI has really transformed the mindset of corporate America towards using technology again to really try to jumpstart productivity. And corporate America is rising to that moment," Ken Griffin said on "Power Lunch."

— Jesse Pound

Platinum may have relative value against gold, Deutsche Bank says

Some investors may have sniffed out a buy-the-dip opportunity in precious metals, according to Deutsche Bank.

Analyst Michael Hsueh said in a note to clients Monday that platinum funds have seen a recent uptick in inflows after platinum prices have drifted well below that of gold.

"Platinum is one step closer to gold compared with palladium from an investment standpoint. One piece of the argument may depend on a relative value rationale versus gold; XPTXAU reached a new record low in April," Hsueh said.

The Abrdn Physical Platinum Shares ETF (PPLT) has seen about $34 million in flows over the past month, according to FactSet. Its price has fallen 3.9% this year, compared to a gain of 11.4% for SPDR Gold Shares (GLD).

— Jesse Pound

Don't ignore China momentum, says Strategas

Strategas' sentiment toward the China market has made a marked pivot from "no way" last year, to "this may be more of a strategic turn," according to Strategas' head of macro research and technical strategy Chris Verrone.

"Time will reveal all, but the big momentum in the China indices is not to be ignored and is spilling to the EEM which has been among the first of the bellwether global indices to break out (along with the U.K. FTSE 100)," Verrone said in a Monday note.

An upturn in China could further strengthen the bull case for industrial metals, particularly copper, Verrone added.

The benchmark Shanghai Shenzhen CSI 300 Index is up around 1.5% in May.

— Hakyung Kim

Small-cap stocks outperform

Small-cap names saw outsized gains on Monday.

The small-cap focused Russell 2000 rose around 1.3% in afternoon trading. By comparison, the broad S&P 500 added less than 1%.

That offers a bright spot amid a rough patch for the index. The Russell 2000 has fallen nearly 3% in the second quarter, bringing its 2024 gain to under 2%. The S&P 500 has slipped less than 2% in the quarter, and is still up more than 8% on the year.

— Alex Harring

2024 is about earnings growth, not valuation expansion, strategist says

Earnings growth will drive upside for the S&P 500 this year, one strategist said.

"Clearly last year was the story of valuation expansion," Mona Mahajan, senior investment strategist at Edward Jones, told CNBC's "Squawk on the Street." "We think this year if S&P returns positive, it will be because earnings growth is positive."

The strategist expects earnings growth to expand to about 10% this year, compared to 0% to 1% last year. Importantly, she expects earnings growth will be driven by the broader market in the back half of 2024, as opposed to the few megacap tech stocks that defined the first part of the year.

"First quarter, if you take out the Mag Seven, the S&P 493, not very impressive, probably flattish earnings growth, but in the back half of the year 5050," Mahajan said. "So even if you take out the Mag Seven, we're still looking at a nice 5% to 7% earnings growth for the rest of the market. And we think that's really the story."

The strategist expects that could unlock value in cyclical parts of the market, and finds midcaps especially attractive.

— Sarah Min

What Wall Street expects from Disney's earnings

Walt Disney is expected to report earnings before the bell Tuesday.

Analysts polled by LSEG expect the theme park operator to post earnings of $1.10 per share and revenues totaling roughly $22.11 billion for its fiscal second quarter.

Read more on the other key metrics analysts are watching here.

— Samantha Subin

Stocks making the biggest moves midday

These are the companies making the biggest moves in midday trading:

• Spirit Airlines — The discount carrier slid 9% after posting a loss of $1.46 per share in the first quarter, wider than a FactSet consensus estimate from analysts of a $1.45 loss per share. Spirit Airlines forecast second-quarter revenue between $1.2 billion and $1.34 billion, below a FactSet estimate of $1.46 billion.
• Medical Properties Trust — Shares dropped nearly 7% after a major tenant of the company's, the physician-owned hospital operator Steward Health Care, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
• Micron Technology — The Boise, Idaho-based semiconductor company jumped 4.5% following an upgrade from Baird to outperform from neutral.

For more, see our full list here.

— Tanaya Macheel

Buffett 'is as bearish as he ever gets,' Bill Smead says

Warren Buffett's commentary during the Berkshire Hathaway annual meeting should indicate that he does not see much opportunity in the current market, according to Bill Smead, investing chief at Smead Capital Management.

"If you look at what he's doing, he is as bearish as he ever gets," Smead told CNBC's "The Exchange."

With record levels of cash and a trimmed Apple position, Smead said it is clear that Buffett is "nibbling on something below the surface" that has yet to be announced. But he also said it appears that Berkshire, at its current state, does not see many areas to put money to work.

"Basically, he is waiting until the next 40% decline in the stock market to apply massive amounts of capital at bargain prices to things that are large enough to be meaningful to this company at the size it is now," he said.

— Alex Harring

Oil prices steady amid confusion over status of Gaza cease-fire proposal

Crude oil futures were steady as the market tried to understand the status of a Gaza cease-fire proposal.

Ismail Haniyeh, the head of Hamas' political bureau, said in a statement the militant group informed Egypt and Qatar of its "approval of their proposal regarding a cease-fire agreement." Israel has not yet released an official statement on the matter.

But an Israeli official told Reuters that Hamas had approved a softened Egyptian proposal that is not acceptable to Israel.

The West Texas Intermediate contract for June was up 16 cents, or 0.2%, at $78.27 a barrel. Brent futures for July were 18 cents, or 0.22%, higher at $83.14 a barrel.

— Spencer Kimball

Fed's Barkin says policymakers can be patient on policy

Richmond Federal Reserve President Thomas Barkin on Monday said policymakers can afford to be patient as they look for inflation to come down.

Citing recent economic data, Barkin acknowledged that inflation has not made much progress this year but noted that growth remains strong and the labor market also is holding in.

"The recent data whiplash has only confirmed the value of the Fed being deliberate," the central bank official said during a speech in Columbia, South Carolina. "The economy is moving toward better balance, but no one wants inflation to reemerge. We have said we want to gain greater confidence that inflation is moving sustainably toward our 2 percent target. And given a strong labor market, we have time to gain that confidence."

— Jeff Cox

Ex-CEO Howard Schultz says Starbucks needs 'maniacal focus' on customer experience

Former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz no longer has a role at the coffee chain, but he has plenty of thoughts about the company's disappointing quarterly report.

Schultz wrote in a LinkedIn post Sunday that the company needs to improve its mobile order experience and reevaluate how it creates new products. He also said company management should spend more time with people who work in its stores.

"The company's fix needs to begin at home: U.S. operations are the primary reason for the company's fall from grace. The stores require a maniacal focus on the customer experience, through the eyes of a merchant. The answer does not lie in data, but in the stores," Schultz said.

Shares of Starbucks were up less than 1% on Monday.

— Jesse Pound

Kentucky Derby gambling rises 11% year over year

High interest in Saturday's Kentucky Derby could translate into a better-than-expected quarter for Churchill Downs, according to Deutsche Bank.

"In a weekend packed with significant sporting events, including the Miami Grand Prix and Real Madrid winning La Liga, Churchill Downs reported a strong performance at the 150th Kentucky Derby. CHDN reported that wagering from all sources on the Kentucky Derby Day program increased to $320.5 million (+11% versus $288.7 million in 2023), with all-sources wagering on the Kentucky Derby race coming at $210.7 million (+11.7% versus $188.7 million in 2023)," analyst Ricardo Chinchilla said in a note to clients Sunday.

The television audience for the Kentucky Derby was the largest since 1989, according to NBC Sports. NBC and CNBC are both part of NBC Universal.

Shares of Churchill Downs were up 1.5% Monday.

— Jesse Pound

Silver funds rally

Two exchange-traded funds tied to silver jumped in Monday morning trading.

The iShares Silver Trust (SLV) and the Global X Silver Miners ETF (SIL) each climbed more than 3%. At those levels, both are on track to see their best days since early April.

The iShares fund track's the metal's price, which touched its highest level in more than a week on Monday. The Global X ETF was led higher by Endeavour Silver, Coeur Mining and First Majestic Silver, which all popped at least 5%.

— Alex Harring, Gina Francolla

Stocks open higher on Monday

Stocks kicked the week off on a positive note. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 173 points, or 0.5%. The S&P 500 added 0.4%, while the Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.3%.

— Pia Singh

See the stocks making premarket moves

Here are some of the stocks making notable moves before the bell:

• Berkshire Hathaway — Class A shares rose 1.2% following the latest financial report and annual shareholders meeting over the week. Berkshire saw operating profit jump 39% year over year, while cash holding swelled to a record level.
• Tyson Foods — Shares gained 2.1% after Tyson posted earnings per share for the second fiscal quarter that beat expectations. Revenue, on the other hand, came in lower than Wall Street anticipated.
• Paramount — Shares popped 2.4% following a report that the media giant began formal acquisition negotiations with a group led by Sony Pictures Entertainment and Apollo. Over the weekend, Warren Buffett said all of Berkshire's stake in the stock was sold.

See the full list here.

— Alex Harring

Foxconn shares spike almost 7% after April sales soar almost 20%

Shares of iPhone manufacturer Foxconn spiked as much as 6.73% after the company reported a 19.03% year-on-year rise in April revenue.

Foxconn, which trades as Hon Hai Precision Industry in Taiwan, recorded 510.9 billion New Taiwan dollars, or $15.83 billion, in revenue in April, compared to the NT$447.54 billion recorded in March.

The company said its component business, as well as its cloud and networking products, "delivered strong growth," while its smart consumer electronics and computing products segment "showed significant year on year growth in revenue."

— Lim Hui Jie

Yen to face resistance at 150 against the dollar: SMBC

The Japanese yen will face upside resistance against the U.S. dollar at the 150 level despite two rounds of suspected intervention by Japanese authorities last week, says SMBC economist Ryota Abe.

The yen abruptly strengthened on April 29 and May 2, leading analysts to believe that Japan's finance ministry bought yen to stem the currency's slide.

Abe also noted that Japan's authorities are unlikely to intervene unless the yen weakens again. But he also said the rate differential between the U.S. and Japan will remain as such if both central banks keep their monetary policies unchanged.

The yen was trading at 153.64 at 11:18 a.m. Tokyo time.

— Lim Hui Jie

Caixin China services PMI comes in at 52.5 in April

A private survey showed the expansion in China's services activity slowed slightly in April from March.

The Caixin/S&P Global services purchasing managers' index came in at 52.5 in April, ticking down from 52.7 in March.

"Although slightly softer, growth was again solid and has now been sustained for 16 consecutive months," the survey read.

A PMI reading above 50 indicates an expansion in activity, while a reading below that level points to a contraction.

— Shreyashi Sanyal

Hong Kong's private sector expands at slower pace in April

Business activity in Hong Kong's private sector expanded at a slower pace in April, according to S&P Global.

The purchasing managers' index for the city slipped to 50.6 from March's 50.9.

Jingyi Pan, Economics Associate Director at S&P Global Market Intelligence, said the reading signaled another improvement in business conditions at the start of the second quarter.

However, Pan said the growth appears to be on "shaky ground," highlighting that forward-looking indicators, such as the decline in new business orders in April, hinted at softening conditions.

— Lim Hui Jie

Berkshire Hathaway cut Paramount exposure entirely

Warren Buffett revealed that he dumped Berkshire Hathaway's entire Paramount stake at a loss.

"I was 100% responsible for the Paramount decision," Buffett said at Berkshire's annual shareholder meeting on Saturday. "We've sold it all and we lost quite a bit of money."

The Omaha-based conglomerate first bought a nonvoting stake in Paramount's class B shares in the first quarter of 2022. Since then, the media company has had a tough ride, experiencing a dividend cut, earnings miss and a CEO exit. The stock is down nearly 24% in 2024.

CNBC Pro subscribers can read the full story here.

— Hakyung Kim, Yun Li

Stock futures slightly higher Sunday night

U.S. stock futures were in the green Sunday evening.

Dow Jones Industrial Average futures rose 55 points, or 0.1%. S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100 futures added 0.2% each.

— Hakyung Kim