The European Central Bank will need to increase interest rates in June if there isn’t a significant change in the outlook, according to Bundesbank President Joachim Nagel . “From today’s perspective, the situation is evolving less favorably than in the earlier baseline scenario,” he said in emailed comments on Friday. “This makes it all the more appropriate for the Governing Council to respond in ...
The European Central Bank will need to increase interest rates in June if there isn’t a significant change in the outlook, according to Bundesbank President Joachim Nagel . “From today’s perspective, the situation is evolving less favorably than in the earlier baseline scenario,” he said in emailed comments on Friday. “This makes it all the more appropriate for the Governing Council to respond in June if the outlook does not improve markedly.” The remarks come a day after the ECB kept borrowing costs unchanged, though President Christine Lagarde signaled that a hike will be considered at the next meeting. People familiar with the situation told Bloomberg that ECB officials are likely to raise rates then unless there are positive developments on energy prices and ending the Iran war. Nagel said that the ECB took a “vigilant, wait-and-see approach because we want to gain a clearer view of developments,” adding that “we are aware of the risks to price stability and are ready to act at any time.” When policymakers next meet in June, they will be reexamining their scenarios for growth and inflation. The war in the Middle East is now in its third month and there are no indications that an end is imminent. Nagel stressed that even the ECB’s base case factors in market expectations for rate increases. “Let’s not forget that the baseline scenario already entails a more restrictive monetary policy,” he said. Earlier on Friday, his Estonian colleague Madis Muller was similarly outspoken, saying in a blog post that one needs to be “prepared for the possibility that the ECB Governing Council may still be forced to raise interest rates in the near future .” Muller himself won’t be making that decision as his term ends before the June monetary-policy meeting. Their Austrian counterpart Martin Kocher was more reserved, arguing that Thursday’s hold provides policymakers with more time to assess whether the Middle East crisis triggers prolonged inflation. Economic developments are st...
Earnings Call Insights: NexPoint Real Estate Finance (NREF) Q1 2026 Management View “We have successfully refinanced $180 million of senior unsecured notes that were maturing on May 1,” and “replaced those 5.75% fixed rate notes with a new $242 million total return swap facility priced at SOFR plus 375 basis points with a 3-year term and 1-year extension option,” said (Executive VP of Finance, CFO...
Earnings Call Insights: NexPoint Real Estate Finance (NREF) Q1 2026 Management View “We have successfully refinanced $180 million of senior unsecured notes that were maturing on May 1,” and “replaced those 5.75% fixed rate notes with a new $242 million total return swap facility priced at SOFR plus 375 basis points with a 3-year term and 1-year extension option,” said (Executive VP of Finance, CFO, Assistant Secretary & Treasurer Paul Richards). “This transaction does several things,” including: “it removes the largest near-term liability overhang,” “the floating rate structure aligns with our floating rate asset base,” and “the upside gives us approximately $45 million of incremental capacity to deploy into our pipeline at the double-digit coupons we are seeing today,” said (CFO Richards). “We executed a re-REMIC of our FREMF 2017-K62 B-Piece during the quarter,” and “sold the B-Piece to Mizuho at 92.7, having purchased it at 68.69 in 2021 and reinvested into the HRR tranche of the new structure at an 18.5% yield,” said (CFO Richards). “That single transaction generated $0.46 per share of book value appreciation, reduced repo financing by $75 million and is expected to drive approximately $0.34 per share of annual CAD accretion going forward,” said (CFO Richards). “We reported net income of $0.42 per diluted share,” “earnings available for distribution was $0.43 per diluted share,” and “cash available for distribution was $0.58 per diluted share,” said (CFO Richards). “We paid a regular dividend of $0.50 per share in the first quarter,” and “the Board declared a dividend of $0.50 per share payable for the second quarter of 2026,” said (CFO Richards). “Our portfolio is comprised of 90 investments with a total outstanding balance of $1.1 billion,” and “book value per share decreased slightly by 0.3% from Q4 2025 to $18.96 per diluted share,” said (CFO Richards). “Our Alewife project is now 71% leased,” and “the active pipeline of RFPs, LOIs and leases on the project ...
JHVEPhoto/iStock Editorial via Getty Images Under Armour, Inc. ( UAA ) ( UA ) is in the midst of a turnaround. One of many turnarounds. The company seems to be stuck in a perpetual cycle of turnarounds. The stock price has been beaten down, and the company is looking to regain some of its mojo it once had. I previously reviewed the stock and rated it a buy. It was not so much based upon the strong...
JHVEPhoto/iStock Editorial via Getty Images Under Armour, Inc. ( UAA ) ( UA ) is in the midst of a turnaround. One of many turnarounds. The company seems to be stuck in a perpetual cycle of turnarounds. The stock price has been beaten down, and the company is looking to regain some of its mojo it once had. I previously reviewed the stock and rated it a buy. It was not so much based upon the strong turnaround of the company but more so based upon what I considered to be limited downside from the price at which it was trading. The stock has been trading with a lot of volatility as well. I reviewed the stock at the beginning of the year, and since that time it has seen a low of under $5 a share and a high of over $8 a share. Overall, to start the year, the stock is up around 28%. Seeking Alpha The company had another earnings report where it continued to tell the story of a turnaround. The financials did not necessarily match with the story, at least not yet. The company continues to see the business in a downtrend, although it does appear that is starting to slow down. The company has not made much progress on the turnaround, but also the stock price is still at a price where it is worth a small position. Financials Under Armour management has been telling the story of a turnaround and momentum in the business for a while now. The financials have not matched with that story. At least not as of yet. Under Armour reported their Q3 results, which continued to show a shrinking business. Revenues decreased by 5 percent to $1.33 billion from the prior year. Footwear continues to be the biggest drag on the company, with sales falling by 12 percent from the prior year. I don’t expect this to turn quickly, especially with the Curry brand leaving the company. Gross margins also decline during the quarter, by a significant amount as well, falling 310 basis points to 44.4% for the quarter. This is mostly due to tariffs. There are some questions around tariffs, but as of now the c...
Greg Shearer, JPMorgan base and precious metals research head, discusses the aluminum market and the impact the conflict in the Middle East on prices. "Our outlook in the very near term is still for prices to move up towards $4,000 per metric ton," Shearer tells Bloomberg Television. "There will be demand destruction at those levels," he adds. (Source: Bloomberg)
Greg Shearer, JPMorgan base and precious metals research head, discusses the aluminum market and the impact the conflict in the Middle East on prices. "Our outlook in the very near term is still for prices to move up towards $4,000 per metric ton," Shearer tells Bloomberg Television. "There will be demand destruction at those levels," he adds. (Source: Bloomberg)
Guy Johnson, Tom Mackenzie and Adam Linton break down today's key themes for analysts and investors on "Bloomberg: The Opening Trade." (Source: Bloomberg)
Guy Johnson, Tom Mackenzie and Adam Linton break down today's key themes for analysts and investors on "Bloomberg: The Opening Trade." (Source: Bloomberg)
The Federal Reserve made headlines in April by choosing to hold interest rates steady, extending an ongoing pause. Of course, that pause wasn’t exactly a surprise. Inflation soared in March in the wake of the Iran conflict. The Fed commonly lowers interest rates in response to cooling inflation. Since March’s situation was the opposite, it ... How the Fed’s Interest Rate Decision Will Impact Your ...
The Federal Reserve made headlines in April by choosing to hold interest rates steady, extending an ongoing pause. Of course, that pause wasn’t exactly a surprise. Inflation soared in March in the wake of the Iran conflict. The Fed commonly lowers interest rates in response to cooling inflation. Since March’s situation was the opposite, it ... How the Fed’s Interest Rate Decision Will Impact Your Social Security Checks This Month
UK shares dropped in thin holiday trading as NatWest Group Plc fell more than 3% after reporting net interest income that came in slightly below expectations. The FTSE 100 index was down 0.4% as of 8:30 a.m. in London. Most European markets were closed for Labor Day. Elsewhere, Diageo Plc gained 1.6% after US President Donald Trump said he would be removing some Scotch tariffs following a visit fr...
UK shares dropped in thin holiday trading as NatWest Group Plc fell more than 3% after reporting net interest income that came in slightly below expectations. The FTSE 100 index was down 0.4% as of 8:30 a.m. in London. Most European markets were closed for Labor Day. Elsewhere, Diageo Plc gained 1.6% after US President Donald Trump said he would be removing some Scotch tariffs following a visit from King Charles III. European shares rose 4.8% in April, marking their best monthly performance since January 2025. Even so, the benchmark is 4% below its pre-war levels. The focus remains on geopolitics, with investors monitoring the impact of disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz on energy prices and inflation. The European Central Bank will probably increase borrowing costs if the Iran war persists, according to outgoing Governing Council member Madis Muller. “At some point you reach a point of no return where re-opening of Strait is too late to avoid shifting inflation/interest rate expectations. That is now probably a matter of weeks away,” said Chris Wyllie , chief investment officer at Connor Broadley Ltd. “This realization could provide the pretext for the market to retest its lows.” For more on equity markets: Say Goodbye to Easy Gains That Powered the Market: Taking Stock M&A Watch Europe: UCB, CloserStill Media, United Utilities BlackRock Sees Consolidated Tape Enticing Europe IPOs: ECM Watch Stocks Post a Rally For History Books: S&P 500 Month in Review Whitbread Cuts Back: The London Rush You want more news on this market? Click here for a curated First Word channel of actionable news from Bloomberg and select sources. It can be customized to your preferences by clicking into Actions on the toolbar or hitting the HELP key for assistance. To subscribe to a daily list of European analyst rating changes, click here .
Earnings Call Insights: Merit Medical Systems (MMSI) Q1 2026 Management view "We reported total revenue of $381.9 million, up 7% year-over-year on a GAAP basis and up 5% year-over-year on a constant currency basis," said (President, CEO & Director Martha Aronson), adding that "our non-GAAP operating margin increased 47 basis points year-over-year to 19.7%, representing the highest first quarter op...
Earnings Call Insights: Merit Medical Systems (MMSI) Q1 2026 Management view "We reported total revenue of $381.9 million, up 7% year-over-year on a GAAP basis and up 5% year-over-year on a constant currency basis," said (President, CEO & Director Martha Aronson), adding that "our non-GAAP operating margin increased 47 basis points year-over-year to 19.7%, representing the highest first quarter operating margin in the company's history" and that the company generated "$25 million of free cash flow." "On April 1, building upon our oncology platform, we announced the acquisition of View Point Medical for an aggregate transaction consideration of $140 million, of which $90 million was paid in cash at closing," said (CEO Aronson), describing OneMark as "an expansion of the annual addressable procedure opportunity of approximately 3x for our oncology business" and adding that "the combination of SCOUT and OneMark provides physicians with localization options during the initial diagnostic biopsy." "We are now reporting our revenue in 2 product categories: foundational and therapeutic," said (CEO Aronson), stating that the company plans to report revenue results by those categories while continuing to provide "additional color on the underlying drivers of growth" in the eight internal platforms. "First quarter net income was $56.7 million or $0.94 per share compared to $52.9 million or $0.86 per share in the prior year period," said (CFO & Treasurer Raul Parra), and added that "first quarter net income and EPS exceeded the high end of our guidance range by $3.7 million and $0.07, respectively." Outlook "For the 12 months ending December 31, 2026, we now expect total GAAP net revenue growth in the range of 6.3% to 7.8% year-over-year and 5.6% to 7% year-over-year on a constant currency basis," said (CFO Parra), adding that guidance assumes "sales of foundational products increase in the mid-single digits" and "sales of therapeutic products increase in the high single digits...
Marvell Technology (NasdaqGS:MRVL) has acquired Polariton Technologies, expanding its high speed optical connectivity capabilities for AI data centers. The company is integrating Polariton with Celestial AI solutions and working on custom chips and design wins with several major hyperscalers, including Google. Marvell is also gaining exposure to quantum computing through partnerships and inclusion...
Marvell Technology (NasdaqGS:MRVL) has acquired Polariton Technologies, expanding its high speed optical connectivity capabilities for AI data centers. The company is integrating Polariton with Celestial AI solutions and working on custom chips and design wins with several major hyperscalers, including Google. Marvell is also gaining exposure to quantum computing through partnerships and inclusion in quantum focused ETFs tied to government and enterprise projects. For you as an investor,...