Wall Street strategists still think stocks will recover by the end of 2025 — just not as dramatically as they had once predicted.

Most U.S. stocks are climbing Thursday, but the worst drop for UnitedHealth Group in a quarter of a century is keeping Wall Street in check. The S&P 500 was 0.5% higher in late trading, as 6 out of every 7 stocks within the index climbed in the final day of trading for a holiday-shortened week.

U.S. stocks are holding steadier in the final day of trading for their holiday-shortened week. The S&P 500 rose 0.2% Thursday.

S&P, Nasdaq open higher as US-Japan tariff talks begin; UnitedHealth drags Dow down 1.5% At 9:30 p.m. (EDT), the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 462.72 points, or 1.17%, to 39,206.67. The S&P 500 rose 29.

U.S. stocks opened unevenly Thursday as Wall Street digested fresh earnings, continuing tension over chips, and fallout from a sharp selloff the day before.