Shares of software companies fell on Thursday, in the latest example of the group slumping amid concerns about disruption from artificial intelligence services. The iShares Expanded Tech-Software Sector ETF fell 3.6%, extending the previous session’s 0.9% decline. The fund is on track for its lowest close since November 2023, having dropped almost 28% this year. An index of software-as-a-service s...
Shares of software companies fell on Thursday, in the latest example of the group slumping amid concerns about disruption from artificial intelligence services. The iShares Expanded Tech-Software Sector ETF fell 3.6%, extending the previous session’s 0.9% decline. The fund is on track for its lowest close since November 2023, having dropped almost 28% this year. An index of software-as-a-service stocks shed 5.5%, bringing its week-to-date decline to nearly 10% and its 2026 drop to almost 40%. The year’s selloff stems from investor concern that AI offerings will sap demand for services from legacy providers, weighing on their growth and pricing power going forward. The proliferation of so-called AI agents, designed to complete multi-step processes without human interference, has been viewed as a particular challenge for software-as-a-service stocks. “We have a threat in the environment that wasn’t there before, and expectations for growth going forward have been dashed on the rocks,” said Kevin Caron, co-chief investment officer at Washington Crossing Advisors. “Pre-AI, the idea that someone could come along and develop some kind of replacement software just wasn’t something anyone had to worry about. Now we have to reassess everyone’s competitive moats.” Read more: Private Markets’ Software Pain Is About to Get a Lot Worse The latest concerns on Wednesday arose after Anthropic launched Claude Managed Agents and Meta Platforms Inc. unveiled a new AI model. Among notable decliners, Microsoft Corp. fell 1.5%, Palantir Technologies Inc. sank 7%, Oracle Corp. dropped 2.8%, Salesforce Inc. shed 3.9%, ServiceNow Inc. slumped 6.4%, and Workday Inc. dropped 6%. So far, concerns about AI disrupting growth are more about sentiment than financial results. According to data from Bloomberg Intelligence, the software sector is expected to post earnings growth of 16.5% in 2027, a consensus that has risen in recent weeks; in late February, the consensus was for 15.7% growth. A simil...
Police say case highlights online dangers to children after Carlo Tritta pleads guilty to making indecent images A man who obsessively groomed a 14-year-old girl he met through the online gaming platform Roblox has been jailed for 28 months. Carlo Tritta, now 19, kept indecent images of the girl and travelled hundreds of miles from his home in Eastleigh, Hampshire in order to turn up, uninvited, a...
Police say case highlights online dangers to children after Carlo Tritta pleads guilty to making indecent images A man who obsessively groomed a 14-year-old girl he met through the online gaming platform Roblox has been jailed for 28 months. Carlo Tritta, now 19, kept indecent images of the girl and travelled hundreds of miles from his home in Eastleigh, Hampshire in order to turn up, uninvited, at her home in Manchester. Continue reading...
Technology stocks have had a rough stretch. Goldman Sachs thinks that is exactly the point. In a research note published April 7, Goldman Sachs strategists led by Chief Global Equity Strategist Peter Oppenheimer, argued that the sell-off in tech has pushed valuations to levels not seen in decades, ...
Technology stocks have had a rough stretch. Goldman Sachs thinks that is exactly the point. In a research note published April 7, Goldman Sachs strategists led by Chief Global Equity Strategist Peter Oppenheimer, argued that the sell-off in tech has pushed valuations to levels not seen in decades, ...
Keir Starmer and the UK government are scrabbling to keep up with Trump’s fast-changing position on Iran and the Middle East. While a two-week ceasefire is in place, how long will it hold for? Peter Walker and Alexandra Topping look at what happens now. And, with the local election campaign under way, how are the different parties responding to the conflict? Guardian Live: Can Labour come back fro...
Keir Starmer and the UK government are scrabbling to keep up with Trump’s fast-changing position on Iran and the Middle East. While a two-week ceasefire is in place, how long will it hold for? Peter Walker and Alexandra Topping look at what happens now. And, with the local election campaign under way, how are the different parties responding to the conflict? Guardian Live: Can Labour come back from the brink? With a difficult set of May elections approaching, Labour under threat from both the Green party and Reform, and Keir Starmer’s popularity in freefall, can he survive as leader of the Labour party? The Guardian’s Gaby Hinsliff will chair our panel of Guardian columnists including Polly Toynbee, Rafael Behr and Zoe Williams. Join us as they discuss Starmer, Labour and the upcoming May byelections. They will also be answering your own questions. Get your tickets here Continue reading...
An official confirmed the Justice Department has begun an investigation into whether the pro football league has been involved in anticompetitive behavior.
An official confirmed the Justice Department has begun an investigation into whether the pro football league has been involved in anticompetitive behavior.
While attention is dominated by fragile ceasefire in the Middle East, it can be difficult to keep one’s eye on the ball — or rather, on other balls, even when they’re related to the main event. Vladimir Putin hoped to take advantage of such distraction, according to Defence Secretary John Healey, with Russian submarines spending recent weeks lurking in British waters. “To President Putin, I say, ‘...
While attention is dominated by fragile ceasefire in the Middle East, it can be difficult to keep one’s eye on the ball — or rather, on other balls, even when they’re related to the main event. Vladimir Putin hoped to take advantage of such distraction, according to Defence Secretary John Healey, with Russian submarines spending recent weeks lurking in British waters. “To President Putin, I say, ‘We see you,’” Healey retorted at a Downing Street press conference today. “‘We see your activity over our cables and our pipelines. And you should know that any attempt to damage them will not be tolerated and will have serious consequences.’” The submarines have now been fended off, Healey said, adding that Russian aggression toward Europe remains the biggest security threat to the UK and to Nato as a whole; a comment that could easily be seen as another small step in the Labour government’s increasing distance from Donald Trump’s White House. Talking of which, Trump’s team is gearing up for crucial talks in Pakistan on Saturday as the US ceasefire with Iran confronts reality. As I’ve been writing these paragraphs, WTI (the American oil benchmark, to describe it crudely) rose back above $100 a barrel for the first time since the ceasefire was announced, while Brent (the more global equivalent) also climbed above $99. They then dropped again on news of Israel-Lebanon peace talks, but the volatility still made me think of a few other R-words, aside from Russia, that have slipped slightly out of focus this week: refueling, remortgaging and rates, to be specific. The world’s optimists (also known as equity traders) may have seen the ceasefire as opening the way to some kind of normality, but this prospect is pretty remote when it comes to the UK economy. The price of petrol and diesel both rose again today, with the Road Haulage Association calling the cost “unsustainable.” There was brighter news on mortgage rates this morning, as the average two- and five-year fixes both dip...
The Strait of Hormuz remains essentially closed, with more than 800 ships still stranded in the Persian Gulf and only eight vessels, mostly dry-bulk vessels, passing through since the tenuous cease-fire between the U.S., Israel and Iran was announced earlier this week.
The Strait of Hormuz remains essentially closed, with more than 800 ships still stranded in the Persian Gulf and only eight vessels, mostly dry-bulk vessels, passing through since the tenuous cease-fire between the U.S., Israel and Iran was announced earlier this week.
monticelllo Brown-Forman (BF. A) (BF. B) rose 12% after a report that Sazerac recently approached the maker of Jack Daniels about a potential acquisition, according to a WSJ report on Thursday, which cited people familiar with the matter. The report comes after a Bloomberg report late last month that Pernod Ricard SA ( PDRDF) was weighing a potential purchase of Brown-Forman ( BF.B). Brown-Forman ...
monticelllo Brown-Forman (BF. A) (BF. B) rose 12% after a report that Sazerac recently approached the maker of Jack Daniels about a potential acquisition, according to a WSJ report on Thursday, which cited people familiar with the matter. The report comes after a Bloomberg report late last month that Pernod Ricard SA ( PDRDF) was weighing a potential purchase of Brown-Forman ( BF.B). Brown-Forman ( BF.A ) ( BF.B ) confirmed the company is engaged in discussions with Pernod Ricard. Closely held Sazerac has 550 brands including Buffalo Trace bourbon, Fireball Cinnamon Whisky and BuzzBallz ready-to-drink cocktails. More on Brown-Forman, Pernod Ricard Brown-Forman: A Deal With Pernod Ricard Could Be A Game Changer Brown-Forman: There's Enough Reason To Turn Neutral (Rating Upgrade) Brown-Forman Corporation (BF.B) Presents at UBS Global Consumer and Retail Conference Transcript Most and least shorted large-cap consumer staples at March end High spirits: Analysts weigh in on Brown-Forman's potential deal with Pernod Ricard
J Studios/DigitalVision via Getty Images Mortgage rates inched down after five consecutive weeks of rising, according to the latest Freddie Mac ( FMCC ) Primary Mortgage Survey. 30-year fixed-rate mortgages averaged 6.37% as of April 9, down from 6.46% last week and 6.62% in the same period a year ago. 15-year fixed-rate mortgages averaged 5.74%, down from 5.77% a week ago and 5.82% a year ago. "T...
J Studios/DigitalVision via Getty Images Mortgage rates inched down after five consecutive weeks of rising, according to the latest Freddie Mac ( FMCC ) Primary Mortgage Survey. 30-year fixed-rate mortgages averaged 6.37% as of April 9, down from 6.46% last week and 6.62% in the same period a year ago. 15-year fixed-rate mortgages averaged 5.74%, down from 5.77% a week ago and 5.82% a year ago. "The decrease in rates represents a positive development for prospective homebuyers and could spark a more favorable spring homebuying season than last year," said Sam Khater, chief economist at Freddie Mac. More on Mortgages Mortgage demand down overall, but purchase applications are gaining traction Rocket Companies, First American Financial upgraded at Barclays on mortgage volumes
Von der Leyen urged to take action about alleged disinformation and intimidation on behalf of Orbán’s party The European Commission is being urged to investigate whether Hungary’s elections are being undermined by Russian manipulation, intimidation of journalists and voter coercion by the ruling party. Three days before decisive parliamentary elections that threaten the 16-year grip on power of th...
Von der Leyen urged to take action about alleged disinformation and intimidation on behalf of Orbán’s party The European Commission is being urged to investigate whether Hungary’s elections are being undermined by Russian manipulation, intimidation of journalists and voter coercion by the ruling party. Three days before decisive parliamentary elections that threaten the 16-year grip on power of the prime minister, Viktor Orbán, a group of MEPs have written to the European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, and the commissioner responsible for the rule of law, Michael McGrath, calling for action. Continue reading...
zhengzaishuru/iStock via Getty Images For better or worse, the key question with RPM International Inc. ( RPM ) remains what it has long been – how much of a premium should investors pay for a company that offers above-average quality, but arguably not as quality as commonly thought. RPM has strong brands and an enviable track record of consistency, but metrics like tangible book value growth, ROI...
zhengzaishuru/iStock via Getty Images For better or worse, the key question with RPM International Inc. ( RPM ) remains what it has long been – how much of a premium should investors pay for a company that offers above-average quality, but arguably not as quality as commonly thought. RPM has strong brands and an enviable track record of consistency, but metrics like tangible book value growth, ROIC, and FCF conversion don’t stand out as particularly special, particularly in light of a multiple that has expanded relative to its peers over the last two decades. RPM shares are up a bit since my last update , thanks to a strong rally after fiscal third quarter earnings. Even with that pop, though, the shares have lagged the broader industrial space, as well as peers like Sherwin-Williams ( SHW ) and PPG Industries ( PPG ), while Sika ( SXYAY ) has continued to perform poorly. I’m reluctant to overpay for RPM, but I do think the story is improving. RPM has shown it can generate better organic growth than many peers despite a difficult market environment, and I like the company’s ongoing pivot toward value-added “solutions” (vs. discrete products), as well as ongoing margin and capital efficiency efforts. I can argue for 10% to 15% near-term upside, but I’m still cautious about paying a high premium for a company that has lagged the S&P 500 ( SP500 ) over the long term and not shown sustained improvement in key quality metrics. A Strong Rebound In Fiscal Q3 While RPM did underperform in fiscal Q2, as I previewed in that earlier piece, the third quarter saw a nice rebound with real evidence of positive incremental margins and organic growth despite modest pricing activity. Revenue rose 3% in organic terms, with pricing contributing about a point. This was good for a 4% beat versus Street expectations. The Consumer business saw about 2% organic contraction, a small beat, with a weak DIY market and ongoing product rationalizations weighing on results. The Construction segmen...
Here are the names making headlines in midday trading. Simply Good Foods — The maker of Atkins diet meals tumbled 19% after reported fiscal second quarter revenue and adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, and fiscal third quarter guidance for revenue and EBITDA, fell far short of Wall Street consensus estimates, according to FactSet data. Brown-Forman — The maker...
Here are the names making headlines in midday trading. Simply Good Foods — The maker of Atkins diet meals tumbled 19% after reported fiscal second quarter revenue and adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, and fiscal third quarter guidance for revenue and EBITDA, fell far short of Wall Street consensus estimates, according to FactSet data. Brown-Forman — The maker of Jack Daniel's whiskey surged 12% after The Wall Street Journal reported that Sazerac approached the spirits company for a potential deal. The report comes two weeks after Brown-Forman confirmed it was in talks with Pernod Ricard about a merger of equals. GitLab — The digital workshop for building software slid nearly 7%. GitLab was cut to neutral from buy at Guggenheim, which highlighted AI risk, a lack of near-term catalysts, and slower net revenue retention, according to FactSet. Software stocks — Software stocks suffered declines for a second day on the heels of Anthropic's rollout of Claude Managed Agents, a platform for deploying AI agents. The iShares Expanded Tech-Software Sector ETF (IGV) dropped nearly 4%. Cloudflare tumbled 11%, while Okta shed more than 7%. CrowdStrike fell 5%. Marvell Technology — The semiconductor maker jumped 5% and reached a 52-week high after Barclays upgraded Marvell to overweight from equal weight. The bank also raised its price target on the stock to $150 from $105, suggesting gains of 31% from Wednesday's close. Meta Platforms — The tech giant saw shares rising 4% after its first major new AI model in over a year landed this week. Meanwhile Meta has committed to spending an additional $21 billion on AI cloud infrastructure from CoreWeave, which comes on top of a prior arrangement of $14.2 billion. Amazon — Shares jumped 5% after the e-commerce giant announced its pharmacy division will distribute Eli Lilly's oral GLP-1 pill Foundayo via its same-day delivery service in more than 3,000 cities. Amazon said it expects that total to grow...