Visa 's (NYSE: V) fiscal second-quarter 2026 adjusted earnings per share rose 20% year over year, while revenue grew 17%. That's a good quarter. But investors shouldn't focus solely on revenue and earnings when looking at Visa, since there are key metrics beneath those high-level numbers that offer deeper insight into the company's business and the broader economy. Visa processes payments, helping...
Visa 's (NYSE: V) fiscal second-quarter 2026 adjusted earnings per share rose 20% year over year, while revenue grew 17%. That's a good quarter. But investors shouldn't focus solely on revenue and earnings when looking at Visa, since there are key metrics beneath those high-level numbers that offer deeper insight into the company's business and the broader economy. Visa processes payments, helping to safely facilitate transactions between retailers and customers. It charges a small fee per transaction, but those small numbers add up because it processes a huge number of transactions. The company's growth has been driven by the ongoing shift from cash to card payments. The growth of e-commerce suggests there is plenty of room for further expansion, since cash isn't an option when customers buy online. Image source: Getty Images. Continue reading
alexsl/iStock via Getty Images It has been more than a year since I provided an update for Block, Inc. ( XYZ ) and so I believe now is the time to provide a fresh analysis for readers. My previous article was a technical analysis focused piece but nonetheless I found an attractive fundamental setup. I expressed my view that investors shouldn't have lost faith in the stock and since then there has ...
alexsl/iStock via Getty Images It has been more than a year since I provided an update for Block, Inc. ( XYZ ) and so I believe now is the time to provide a fresh analysis for readers. My previous article was a technical analysis focused piece but nonetheless I found an attractive fundamental setup. I expressed my view that investors shouldn't have lost faith in the stock and since then there has been respectable gains of nearly 20% as of this writing. Block reported their 2026 Q1 earnings results just yesterday (May 7th) and so this is an opportune time for me to resume coverage on this fintech leader. Seeking Alpha Below, it is shown that Block's Q1 was impressive as a whole. Growth is accelerating and business efficiency initiatives seems to be working as margins expand. Looking forward, the company's Neighborhood is picking up steam and they also revised their full year outlook higher for key metrics. With the forward P/E for the company currently below 20 and much nearer to multiyear lows than highs, it seems that the market is under-appreciating the fundamentals and outlook. Therefore, I believe Block is currently a buy. Growth Continues To Accelerate Block Q1 Presentation For the company as a whole, there are encouraging signs coming from their gross profit results in Q1. Firstly, growth in the first quarter was 27% YoY which is yet another acceleration in growth. This suggests strong momentum even though the spending environment is generally weaker than desired in key global markets including the United States. As you can see above, both Financial Solutions and Commerce Enablement saw gross profit growth but the Bitcoin Ecosystem has been a drag on performance. With the cryptocurrency having had a tough first few months of 2026, it is not a major surprise that there has been some weakness in that category. We'll go into a bit more depth regarding their Cash App and Square segments in a little bit but overall it seems that their business activity is robust an...
Robert vt Hoenderdaal/iStock Editorial via Getty Images Ahold Delhaize ( ADRNY ) is a company that I have successfully invested in, and rotated when the stock became too expensive - which it did a few months ago - and which was when I sold the last I had, except a watchlist position (less than 1% of my original position remains). Other analysts have considered the company to be attractive here, an...
Robert vt Hoenderdaal/iStock Editorial via Getty Images Ahold Delhaize ( ADRNY ) is a company that I have successfully invested in, and rotated when the stock became too expensive - which it did a few months ago - and which was when I sold the last I had, except a watchlist position (less than 1% of my original position remains). Other analysts have considered the company to be attractive here, an investment at a good level. I say no. I say that this is very clear based on the fact that the total return, despite a relatively good bounce, is meaningfully less than the SPY since my last article. You can find that article here - and see the returns below. Seeking Alpha Ahold Delhaize RoR From this, I will now work in this article to establish what I believe to be the continued, relevant thesis and price target for Ahold Delhaize based on a conservative forward set of expectations. I'm of the opinion that it's very dangerous to overvalue Ahold Delhaize or similar grocers. There are a few reasons for this - which mostly have to do with the company's business model, not its fundamentals. it's fundamentals are beyond solid. The company is BBB+ rated, never really misses its estimates (either beats or hits them), has a 3.2% yield and comes with a 12 year dividend tradition. But would it surprise you to learn that when I invested, the yield was close to 5%? Would it then further surprise you that my RoR has been well over 50%, by investing in a "simple grocer"? This, dear readers, is the power of valuation-oriented, or value investing. It's why I cover such stocks, and why I give members of my IG the opportunity to buy such companies cheaply (in that I send alerts when the companies are indeed cheap). Thus, in my IG, Wolf of Value , I cover other companies similar to Ahold Delhaize that I consider to be more attractive than this one - as well as other interesting investments for both conservative income-oriented investors, as well as more growth-oriented investors. I offer a...
Actor, director and producer Daniel Dae Kim joins David Gura and Christina Ruffini on Bloomberg This Weekend to discuss "K-Everything" his new docuseries that explores the explosion of Korean culture on the global scene. (Source: Bloomberg)
Actor, director and producer Daniel Dae Kim joins David Gura and Christina Ruffini on Bloomberg This Weekend to discuss "K-Everything" his new docuseries that explores the explosion of Korean culture on the global scene. (Source: Bloomberg)
The Most Important Part of These 3 Big Pharma Earnings Reports Wasn’t the BeatAbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) told shareholders at its annual meeting that 2025 was “another excellent year” for the company, citing record sales, stronger-than-expected revenue and continued investment in its dru
The Most Important Part of These 3 Big Pharma Earnings Reports Wasn’t the BeatAbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) told shareholders at its annual meeting that 2025 was “another excellent year” for the company, citing record sales, stronger-than-expected revenue and continued investment in its dru
3 Under-the-Radar AI Infrastructure Stocks Powering the Next BuildoutBlack Hills (NYSE:BKH) executives said the utility remained on track to meet its 2026 earnings targets despite unusually warm winter weather that weighed on first-quarter demand, while also outlining progress on
3 Under-the-Radar AI Infrastructure Stocks Powering the Next BuildoutBlack Hills (NYSE:BKH) executives said the utility remained on track to meet its 2026 earnings targets despite unusually warm winter weather that weighed on first-quarter demand, while also outlining progress on
Warren Buffett built his fortune on a simple idea. Find sturdy businesses that print cash, leave them alone for decades, and let compound interest do the heavy lifting. That patience is why Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) became the kind of holding company that owns a railroad, an insurer, a battery ...
Warren Buffett built his fortune on a simple idea. Find sturdy businesses that print cash, leave them alone for decades, and let compound interest do the heavy lifting. That patience is why Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) became the kind of holding company that owns a railroad, an insurer, a battery ...
The S&P 500 ( SP500 ) closed in the green on Friday, boosted by a stronger-than-expected jobs report. Wall Street had a slew of upgrades and downgrades from analysts. Here are some of the major calls for the week: Palantir upgraded by Argus after 'stellar' Q1 Palantir Technologies ( PLTR ) was upgraded to Buy at Argus after it reported what the investment firm called a “stellar” first quarter. “Pa...
The S&P 500 ( SP500 ) closed in the green on Friday, boosted by a stronger-than-expected jobs report. Wall Street had a slew of upgrades and downgrades from analysts. Here are some of the major calls for the week: Palantir upgraded by Argus after 'stellar' Q1 Palantir Technologies ( PLTR ) was upgraded to Buy at Argus after it reported what the investment firm called a “stellar” first quarter. “Palantir had another stellar quarter in 1Q and is both accelerating revenue and expanding margin as its core U.S. government business is reaccelerating and as it continues expansion into the U.S. commercial market,” analyst Joseph Bonner wrote, adding that “Palantir's strong upward guidance revision in just the first quarter of 2026, as well as its actual results, provide a disconnect to the market's view—which we think can be exploited.” Bonner, who also raised his estimates on Palantir and put a $190 price target on the stock, said the expansion in the commercial market is likely to be a “key growth driver” over the following years. GlobalFoundries upgraded after strong results, outlook GlobalFoundries ( GFS ) was upgraded at Susquehanna to Positive from Neutral after the semiconductor foundry reported better-than-expected results and offered up a strong outlook for the second quarter. The brokerage also raised his price target on GlobalFoundries to $100 from $50. Susquehanna analyst Mehdi Hosseini said rationale for the upgrade includes: “(1) Smartphone-related revenue (1/3 of total) marked a bottom in 1Q26. (2) Comm Infrastructure bottomed in 2Q25. At that trough, SiPh accounted for 23% of the Comm Infrastructure mix and less than 3% of total company revenue. (3) Forecasting Comm Infrastructure revenue to grow at 35% CAGR (2025-2028) assuming GFS maintains its 20% market share.” Hosseini also sees $4 of annualized EPS by 2028 for the company. Devon Energy upgraded at Raymond James Devon Energy ( DVN ) was upgraded to Strong Buy from Outperform by Raymond James analyst Joh...
Shares of Tower Semiconductor (NASDAQ: TSEM) rallied 26% in April, according to data from S&P Global Market Intelligence . Tower Semiconductor is a "lagging edge," or specialty semiconductor manufacturing company, which means it doesn't produce the most leading-edge chips in the world. However, Tower still differentiates itself through intellectual property in important chip types and materials, s...
Shares of Tower Semiconductor (NASDAQ: TSEM) rallied 26% in April, according to data from S&P Global Market Intelligence . Tower Semiconductor is a "lagging edge," or specialty semiconductor manufacturing company, which means it doesn't produce the most leading-edge chips in the world. However, Tower still differentiates itself through intellectual property in important chip types and materials, such as silicon photonics. "SiPho" is seen as the future of AI networking, and Tower Semi's stock has taken off over the past year as a result. In April, Tower climbed another 26%, even with minimal company-specific news. The company noted a new product partnership to produce chips for the U.S. defense industry, which may have further strengthened Tower's bona fides. Additionally, positive earnings reports from leading chipmakers likely lifted sentiment for Tower as well. Continue reading
About 41,000 New Zealanders moved to Australia in 2025, the most in 12 years, drawn by a more robust jobs market. When even former Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern left, it made international headlines. Net citizen migration is at its lowest since records began, and unlike in past waves, people aren't coming home. Former PM John Key, Cambridge Provost Gillian Tett, and a young lawyer who says he doub...
About 41,000 New Zealanders moved to Australia in 2025, the most in 12 years, drawn by a more robust jobs market. When even former Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern left, it made international headlines. Net citizen migration is at its lowest since records began, and unlike in past waves, people aren't coming home. Former PM John Key, Cambridge Provost Gillian Tett, and a young lawyer who says he doubled his salary by leaving explain what's gone wrong and what it would take to reverse it. (Source: Bloomberg)
A man walks past a banner depicting Iran's current supreme leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei along a street Tehran on May 6, 2026. AFP | Getty Images A state of relative calm prevailed around the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday, after days of sporadic flare-ups, as the United States waited for Iran's response to its latest proposals to end more than two months of fighting and begin peace talks. U.S. ...
A man walks past a banner depicting Iran's current supreme leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei along a street Tehran on May 6, 2026. AFP | Getty Images A state of relative calm prevailed around the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday, after days of sporadic flare-ups, as the United States waited for Iran's response to its latest proposals to end more than two months of fighting and begin peace talks. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Friday that Washington expected a response within hours. But a day later, there was no sign of movement from Tehran on the proposal, which would formally end the war before talks on more contentious issues, including Iran's nuclear program. With U.S. President Donald Trump due to begin a long-awaited visit to China next week, there has been mounting pressure to draw a line under the conflict, which has thrown energy markets into turmoil and posed a growing threat to the world economy. Recent days have seen the biggest flare-ups in fighting in and around the Strait of Hormuz since a ceasefire began a month ago, and the United Arab Emirates came under renewed attack on Friday. Clashes test ceasefire On Friday, there were sporadic clashes between Iranian forces and U.S. vessels in the strait, Iran's semi-official Fars news agency reported. The Tasnim news agency later cited an Iranian military source saying the situation had calmed but warning more clashes were possible. The U.S. military said it struck two Iran-linked vessels attempting to enter an Iranian port, with a U.S. fighter jet hitting their smokestacks and forcing them to turn back. Tehran has largely blocked non-Iranian shipping through the strait since the war began with U.S.-Israeli airstrikes across Iran on Feb. 28. Before the war, one-fifth of the world's oil supply passed through the narrow waterway. The U.S. imposed a blockade on Iranian vessels last month. But a CIA assessment indicated Iran would not suffer severe economic pressure from a U.S. blockade of Iranian ports ...