Why Did SpaceX (TSX:SPCX), Shopify (TSX:SHOP) and Three Other Canadian-Listed NASDAQ Stocks Rally as the Nasdaq Hit a Record High?

Five growth stocks advanced on Monday as the Nasdaq (NASSAQ:NDAQ) reached a record high, led by Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (TSX:SPCX) and Shopify Inc. (TSX:SHOP). Western Digital Corp. (TSX:WDC), AppLovin Corp. (TSX:APPS) and Xanadu Quantum Technologies (TSX:XNDU) also rebounded from depressed levels.

Gains ranged from roughly 5% to more than 7%. Analyst commentary drove three of the moves, softer U.S. labour data helped a fourth, and the fifth was a bounce after heavy forced selling. Most of the names are Canadian depository receipts, which give investors in Canada exposure to U.S. companies through Canadian trading, while Shopify is the group’s domestic heavyweight.

Record Nasdaq and Softer Data Set the Tone

The backdrop mattered as much as company news. A softer U.S. labour report eased concerns that borrowing costs could rise further, which tends to help growth stocks whose valuations depend on earnings far in the future. The Nasdaq’s record high pulled technology shares up together, and software names received a separate boost from Schneider Electric’s takeover of PTC. For Canadian investors, that means part of Monday’s gains reflects market-wide risk appetite rather than any single company’s fundamentals, and such moves can reverse quickly if economic data or rate expectations shift.

SpaceX (TSX:SPCX): Morgan Stanley Urges Buying Before Starship Flight 15

Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (TSX:SPCX) led the group, rising more than 7% to close at $171.09. About 134 million shares changed hands, well above the 93 million average, or roughly 1.4 times normal, a sign of broad participation. Morgan Stanley reiterated its Overweight rating and $300 price target in a note titled “Cheap and Getting Cheaper,” advising clients to build positions ahead of the next Starship test flight. The target sits about 75% above Monday’s close, based on a simple calculation.

Other headlines added fuel. Elon Musk plans to rename the company’s artificial intelligence unit SpaceXSI, Bloomberg reported on a proposed natural gas pipeline in Florida to supply Starship fuel, and the company completed three launches in under 13 hours last week. The shares edged higher after hours and outpaced space peers Rocket Lab and AST SpaceMobile. Valuation, upcoming lockup expirations and Starship execution remain the main risks.

Shopify (TSX:SHOP): Piper Sandler Points to Agentic Commerce

Shopify Inc. (TSX:SHOP) gained nearly 6% to close at $160.11, near the session high, after Piper Sandler reiterated an Overweight rating and a $180 target. The firm cited rising merchant migrations to the platform and demand linked to agentic shopping tools, in which artificial intelligence software helps consumers find and buy products.

Piper sees a path to 32% revenue growth by 2027, compared with a consensus estimate near 26%. Recent product launches, including the Canvas AI design tool, supported sentiment, as did a lift across software stocks after Schneider Electric’s agreement to buy PTC. The shares now trade about 8.5% above the median analyst target of roughly $147.50, which raises the bar for further estimate increases.

Western Digital (TSX:WDC): Analysts Call Toshiba Fears Overdone

Western Digital Corp. (TSX:WDC) rose 6.34% on above-average volume, recovering part of Friday’s drop of roughly 10%. That selloff followed a Nikkei Asia report that Toshiba will invest about $380 million to nearly double its hard disk drive capacity by fiscal 2027.

Analysts pushed back. Bernstein called the reaction a “storm in a teacup,” while Citi and Morgan Stanley said hard drive supply should stay tight through 2028 and that Toshiba lacks heat-assisted magnetic recording technology and leading-edge capacity. The stock remains well below its June high near $800. A new proxy filing also shows estimated pay for Chief Executive Officer Irving Tan rose about 35%.

AppLovin (TSX:APPS): Relief After a Nine-Session Slide

AppLovin Corp. (TSX:APPS) climbed about 5% after nine straight losing sessions pushed it to fresh 52-week lows. Softer labour data eased fears of further interest-rate increases and lifted growth software broadly, and the PTC takeover bid added support for the group.

Overhangs remain. A court denied AppLovin’s request for a restraining order in its data dispute with Unity, securities class actions are pending, and Wells Fargo has questioned how quickly e-commerce customers will adopt the company’s Pixel product. HSBC cut its target to $409 from $450 while keeping a Buy rating. The shares are still close to the 52-week low of $266.84 and far below the average target near $497, suggesting valuation has compressed sharply.

Xanadu (TSX:XNDU): A Rebound Off the Lows

Xanadu Quantum Technologies (TSX:XNDU) closed up about 5.1% at $4.52 after touching a new 52-week low of $4.25 earlier in the day. Volume was heavy at roughly 6.3 million shares, and the company made no announcement. The move looks like a rebound after forced selling, not a new catalyst.

The stock fell about 56% in September and is down roughly 53% over the past month. It trades about 89% below its April high near $42. The six-month lockup expired around September 22, and early holders and the chief executive sold into a thin float, which drove most of the decline.

The business backdrop is more constructive than the chart. Xanadu announced a partnership with Bluefors on modular cryogenics on September 29, following earlier work with ASML on lithography and with AMD on photonic loss and classical-quantum integration. Ottawa has also committed about C$195 million toward a photonics facility. RBC initiated coverage at Outperform with a $16 target on September 29, and published average targets sit near $29. Even so, the company is pre-revenue, and the path to commercial fault-tolerant machines is long.

What Canadian Investors Should Watch

The rally rests on different foundations for each name. SpaceX depends on Starship execution and the lockup calendar. Shopify must justify a price already above the median target. Western Digital needs the supply-tightness argument to hold. AppLovin must resolve its legal disputes, and Xanadu must show that dilution and lockup pressure have run their course.

Volatility is the common thread. Single-session moves of 5% to 8% are large for companies of this size, and several of these shares have swung sharply in both directions in recent weeks. Canadian investors should also confirm whether the price on their screen reflects the Canadian-dollar receipt or the underlying U.S. listing, since the two can differ.

Price figures above are as reported in market data and may reflect the underlying U.S. listings rather than Canadian-dollar prices of the depository receipts. This article is for informational purposes only and is not investment advice. Investors should consult a licensed adviser before making