Billionaire hedge fund manager Bill Ackman said his firm has taken a new position in Microsoft backing the company to be an artificial-intelligence winner. Ackman, who runs investment management firm Pershing Square Inc., said he had started building the position in Microsoft in February after the software giant fell in the wake of its earnings. “In our 13F which we will file later today, we will ...
Billionaire hedge fund manager Bill Ackman said his firm has taken a new position in Microsoft backing the company to be an artificial-intelligence winner. Ackman, who runs investment management firm Pershing Square Inc., said he had started building the position in Microsoft in February after the software giant fell in the wake of its earnings. “In our 13F which we will file later today, we will disclose a new position in Microsoft, a company we have followed for many years now offered at a highly compelling valuation,” Ackman wrote on social-media platform X on Friday.
It was nice while it lasted. The scorching rally in stocks hit the brakes on Friday on concern stubbornly higher oil prices will fuel inflation and force central banks to raise interest rates. A gauge of Asian stocks slumped 2.2%, the most since March, with AI favorite Korea’s benchmark tumbling more than 6%. Nasdaq 100 futures slid 1.5%. Bonds sold off as Brent crude climbed past $109 a barrel. T...
It was nice while it lasted. The scorching rally in stocks hit the brakes on Friday on concern stubbornly higher oil prices will fuel inflation and force central banks to raise interest rates. A gauge of Asian stocks slumped 2.2%, the most since March, with AI favorite Korea’s benchmark tumbling more than 6%. Nasdaq 100 futures slid 1.5%. Bonds sold off as Brent crude climbed past $109 a barrel. The yield on two-year Treasuries increased to 4.06%, a level not seen since March 2025, while Japan’s 20-year rate rose to its highest since 1996. Political upheaval in the UK added to the selloff in gilts , with the 10-year yield surging 10 basis points to 5.10%. With little of substance coming out of the summit between Donald Trump and Xi Jinping in relation to resuming flows through the Strait of Hormuz, investors have been focusing on data from US, China and Japan showing producer prices jumping by the most since at least 2022 . On Thursday, US Federal Reserve Governor Michael Barr said inflation is the overwhelming risk facing the economy. Traders are pricing in an almost two-thirds chance the Fed will hike interest rates in December, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. A gauge of the greenback’s strength surged 0.5% in a fifth day of gains, while the Australian and New Zealand dollars plunged more than 1%. Enthusiasm over the AI boom and the continuing ceasefire had left investors feeling sanguine about the risks to the global economy posed by the virtual shutdown of the vital strait. Whether today’s selloff signals is a more lasting shift away from chasing gains or just short-term profit-taking is not known, but the global bond market is typically a better indicator of inflation risk. And right now, it’s flashing a clear red. What You Need to Know Today The United Arab Emirates tried to persuade neighboring states including Saudi Arabia and Qatar to take part in a coordinated military response to Iran’s airstrikes and was left frustrated when they refused, accord...
Getty Images By Dina Ting, CFA Head of Global Index Portfolio Management, Franklin Templeton ETFs US equities continue to march higher in 2026 despite geopolitical uncertainties, supported by resilient economic data and strong corporate earnings. Much of the market narrative remains focused on mega-cap technology and artificial intelligence (AI). Yet increasingly uneven performance across sectors ...
Getty Images By Dina Ting, CFA Head of Global Index Portfolio Management, Franklin Templeton ETFs US equities continue to march higher in 2026 despite geopolitical uncertainties, supported by resilient economic data and strong corporate earnings. Much of the market narrative remains focused on mega-cap technology and artificial intelligence (AI). Yet increasingly uneven performance across sectors suggests that the opportunity set is wider and more complex than the headline index return may imply. Looking beyond broad market exposure, investors are increasingly attracted to sector strategies as a complement to their core US equity allocations or to better align portfolios with the macroeconomic forces shaping returns. US labor market data recently exceeded expectations, while unemployment held steady, reinforcing a risk-on tone. That, in turn, has helped drive one of the S&P 500 Index’s strongest monthly gains in recent years. Some uncertainty may reflect a familiar disconnect, however, between headlines and fundamentals, Main Street and Wall Street. US consumer confidence recently hit record lows even as spending remains somewhat resilient and markets have climbed. This gap highlights a key dynamic in today’s environment—one where differences beneath the surface are playing a larger role in shaping outcomes. A market defined by dispersion, not direction Rather than moving in lockstep, sectors have recently diverged in response to economic forces. In fact, sector dispersion—the spread between the best- and worst-performing sectors—has widened meaningfully in recent years and remains elevated. The widening reflects the uneven impact of higher interest rates, shifting consumption patterns and rapid technological change and highlights how much sector positioning can influence outcomes. S&P 500 Sector Return Spread May 2006 to April 2026 Note: S&P 500 Index sectors: energy, materials, industrials, consumer discretionary, consumer staples, health care, financials, informa...
In this article PSUS MSFT Follow your favorite stocks CREATE FREE ACCOUNT Bill Ackman, chief executive officer of Pershing Square Capital Management LP, center, during the company's initial public offering (IPO) on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, US, on Wednesday, April 29, 2026. Michael Nagle | Bloomberg | Getty Images Bill Ackman's hedge fund Pershing Square will dis...
In this article PSUS MSFT Follow your favorite stocks CREATE FREE ACCOUNT Bill Ackman, chief executive officer of Pershing Square Capital Management LP, center, during the company's initial public offering (IPO) on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, US, on Wednesday, April 29, 2026. Michael Nagle | Bloomberg | Getty Images Bill Ackman's hedge fund Pershing Square will disclose a new position in Microsoft later in the day, the billionaire investor said on Friday, arguing that the tech giant sits at a "highly compelling valuation". Ackman's new closed-end fund Pershing Square USA , which debuted on the NYSE last month, has also recently made Microsoft a core holding, he said in a post on social media platform X. Pershing's bet on Microsoft comes amid Ackman's growing appetite for tech holdings. In February, he said Pershing had bought shares in Meta Platforms, betting the Facebook parent will benefit from artificial intelligence. Last year, he made a new investment in Amazon and the firm previously invested in Alphabet in late 2022. Microsoft shares have fallen more than 15% so far this year, as investors worry that the company's early-mover advantage in the AI race is losing ground as Google and Amazon make strong progress in their own AI efforts. Choose CNBC as your preferred source on Google and never miss a moment from the most trusted name in business news.
The death toll included three children, Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelenskyy said In other news, let’s catch up with the last night’s second semi-final of the Eurovision song contest, which saw Australia ( checks notes; looks sceptically at the map of Europe ) through to the grand final on Saturday. The Guardian’s Eilish Gilligan said that heading into the competition as an early favourite behi...
The death toll included three children, Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelenskyy said In other news, let’s catch up with the last night’s second semi-final of the Eurovision song contest, which saw Australia ( checks notes; looks sceptically at the map of Europe ) through to the grand final on Saturday. The Guardian’s Eilish Gilligan said that heading into the competition as an early favourite behind Eurovision heavy-hitters Denmark and Finland, Australia’s 2026 Eurovision hopeful Delta Goodrem delivered a note-perfect rendition of her power-ballad entry, Eclipse. Continue reading...
India’s gold imports are slowing to a trickle as banks and bullion traders grapple with new restrictions aimed at shoring up a weak rupee battered by the Middle East war. An increased import duty and a curb on volumes have strained gold flows into the world’s second biggest bullion consumer. Domestic prices do not currently reflect the additional costs as some speculators offload their existing st...
India’s gold imports are slowing to a trickle as banks and bullion traders grapple with new restrictions aimed at shoring up a weak rupee battered by the Middle East war. An increased import duty and a curb on volumes have strained gold flows into the world’s second biggest bullion consumer. Domestic prices do not currently reflect the additional costs as some speculators offload their existing stockpiles into the marketplace. However, immediate demand is likely to stay low, according to analysts and traders. The duty increase dwarfs a 4 to 6% increase in local prices. That means it is not currently viable to import and sell — though the gap between the import cost and local prices will reduce over time, said Sunil Kashyap, managing director of FinMet Pte Ltd. India, the world’s third-largest oil importer, more than doubled gold and silver tariffs to 15% on Wednesday, as part of a swathe of austerity measures to cushion the economy from the inflationary shock caused by energy disruptions in the Persian Gulf. The nation further tightened rules on Thursday, requiring bullion imports by jewelers and manufacturers under tax-exempted status to be capped to a maximum of 100 kilograms per license. Subsequent imports would be issued only after 50% is exported. Six traders and dealers told Bloomberg that they are either pausing imports or not receiving fresh orders. They asked to remain anonymous as they are not authorized to speak to the media. A spokesperson for the trade ministry did not immediately reply to a request for comment. Read More: Why Modi Wants Indians to Stop Buying Gold: Explainer While banks are still able to import gold, the volume depends on the end-customer demand, which is subdued, said Kashyap. Investment demand, digital gold, and ETFs will absorb displaced physical volumes, maintaining India’s aggregate gold consumption trajectory above 700 tons annually, according to Renisha Chainani, head of research at Mumbai-based gold trading platform Augmont Ent...
buradaki/iStock via Getty Images Intuitive Machines ( LUNR ) is gaining strong momentum across defense, civil, and commercial services through its robust portfolio designed to support autonomous operations on the moon, space-to-ground satcom infrastructure, and thermal management and power propulsion for satellite data center operations. With an increasing cadence of launches expected to commence ...
buradaki/iStock via Getty Images Intuitive Machines ( LUNR ) is gaining strong momentum across defense, civil, and commercial services through its robust portfolio designed to support autonomous operations on the moon, space-to-ground satcom infrastructure, and thermal management and power propulsion for satellite data center operations. With an increasing cadence of launches expected to commence in 2027 through NASA’s Artemis program to develop the support infrastructure on the surface of the moon, LUNR may be in a strong position to leverage its expanded manufacturing capacity for satellites and rovers, setting the stage for a major uplift in growth over the next decade. With a robust outlook across multiple space domains, I am recommending shares with a Buy rating with a price target of $38.81/share at 5.86x eFY28 price/sales. Intuitive Machines Operational Update LUNR experienced a mixed quarter, with earnings falling below analyst estimates while the long-term outlook significantly improved. Through a number of contract awards in the quarter, LUNR grew its backlog from $213mm in q4’25 to $1.055b in q1’26, up nearly 400%. Accordingly, 60-65% of the backlog is expected to convert to revenue throughout eFY26, setting LUNR up for robust operational performance. Within the quarter, LUNR secured an indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity [IDIQ] contract with the US Space Force Systems Command, a development agreement with L3Harris ( LHX ), and an expansion of its NASA CLPS award, all in addition to the backlog brought in through the acquisition of Lanteris . Corporate Filings The US Space Force Andromeda IDIQ contract is a 10-year agreement with a $6.24b ceiling, providing LUNR the ability to compete for the next design for advanced systems for tracking and characterizing objects in geosynchronous orbit. Accordingly, the US Space Force has awarded $1.843b under the program to 14 companies to develop the orbital surveillance systems designed to detect, track, and att...