S&P 500 Eyes Best Month Since 2020— And These 3 Chip Stocks Are Leading The Charge

U.S. equities rallied strongly this month, with the benchmark S&P 500 Index heading for its strongest monthly performance since November 2020, surging over 9% so far in April.

SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSE:SPY), which tracks the S&P 500 Index, mirrored the rally and reached new highs. It has gained 9.6% so far this month.

Semiconductor Stocks Lead The Charge

In a Tuesday post on X, The Kobeissi Letter said: "This rally has been driven by semiconductor stocks, which are up 37.2% month-to-date."

The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index notched 18 straight sessions of gains, the longest winning streak on record, last week amid a wave of blowout earnings and analyst upgrades.

The so-called "Magnificent Seven" cohort has also contributed to gains, rising over 16% in April.

The S&P 500 has already notched 10 all-time highs so far in 2026, underscoring how quickly sentiment has flipped from March's slide.

The sharp rally follows a turbulent March that saw the index fall 5.1%, marking its steepest monthly decline since April 2025. The letter highlighted it as "truly a historic run."

"If the index rises by another +1 percentage point, that would make April the second-best month in at least 10 years," the Kobeissi Letter added.

3 Stocks Powering The Rally

While most of the stocks have gained sharply, the following three stocks led the way higher:

Intel

Intel Corp. (NASDAQ:INTC) has been on an incredible run driven by the artificial intelligence (AI) boom. Its blowout first-quarter results and upbeat second-quarter guidance supercharged the stock. CEO Lip-Bu Tan emphasized that the shift towards AI has significantly increased demand for Intel’s wafer and advanced packaging offerings.

Benzinga Edge Stock Rankings indicate that INTC maintains strong pricing trends in the short, medium and long terms, with a strong Momentum score in the 98th percentile.

SanDisk

SanDisk Corp (NASDAQ:SNDK) shares hit a new all-time high on Monday as investors continue to favor AI-driven memory stocks. Strong NAND flash prices and booming demand from AI data centers and its inclusion in the Nasdaq 100 boosted investor confidence in the company's future growth.

Benzinga Edge Stock Rankings indicate that SNDK maintains strong pricing trends in the short, medium and long terms, with a strong Momentum score in the 100th percentile.

Advanced Micro Devices

Strong AI demand is also boosting Advanced Micro Devices Inc (NASDAQ:AMD). Bernstein’s analyst Stacy Rasgon said that demand for computing power continues to exceed supply, with tight availability across chips, optics, and CPUs, alongside rising memory prices and strong revenue growth at AI firms.

Benzinga Edge Stock Rankings indicate that AMD has a Momentum score in the 96th percentile and maintains a strong price trend in the short, medium, and long term.

Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.

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