David McNew/Getty Images News Scientists at Exxon Mobil ( XOM ) told one of the company’s top strategic planning executives in early 2020 that a $500M algae biofuels program was falling well short of its stated goals, The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday. A week later, Exxon ( XOM ) told investors that algae could become a more prolific source of biofuel in the near term than agricultural prod...
David McNew/Getty Images News Scientists at Exxon Mobil ( XOM ) told one of the company’s top strategic planning executives in early 2020 that a $500M algae biofuels program was falling well short of its stated goals, The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday. A week later, Exxon ( XOM ) told investors that algae could become a more prolific source of biofuel in the near term than agricultural products such as sugarcane and palm, which alarmed the scientists who did not agree with the way the data was presented to investors, according to the report . WSJ said it reviewed an internal presentation made in early 2020 by Exxon’s ( XOM ) scientists and examined other documents related to the company's efforts on algae; some of the documents—none of which have been reported—show executives knew the algae research project was not meeting its goals outside the lab, even as they continued to promote it to investors as a potential boon. Members of Exxon's investor relations team and researchers exchanged a flurry of communications discussing algae's low productivity outside the lab and how to highlight the program to investors in the days ahead of the presentation, the documents reportedly show. "Our communications reflected the science as it was understood at the time, and when it became clear the technology would not scale commercially, we ended the program. Any suggestion otherwise is a lie," an Exxon ( XOM ) spokesperson told WSJ in response to the report. More on Exxon Mobil Exxon Mobil: Boosted By Powerful Pricing And Volume Tailwinds Exxon Mobil: Iran War Creates Earnings Upside Exxon Mobil: Avoid Being The Latecomer To The Energy Party (Downgrade)
Earnings Call Insights: Purple Innovation (PRPL) Q4 2025 Management View Robert DeMartini (CEO & Director) said Q4 2025 was “an important inflection point,” citing “Revenue increased approximately 9% year-over-year,” “adjusted EBITDA of approximately $8.8 million,” and that Purple “finished the year profitable,” attributing the change to cost actions, “a full quarter of expanded Mattress Firm dist...
Earnings Call Insights: Purple Innovation (PRPL) Q4 2025 Management View Robert DeMartini (CEO & Director) said Q4 2025 was “an important inflection point,” citing “Revenue increased approximately 9% year-over-year,” “adjusted EBITDA of approximately $8.8 million,” and that Purple “finished the year profitable,” attributing the change to cost actions, “a full quarter of expanded Mattress Firm distribution and a significant expansion of our Costco program.” DeMartini said the company is shifting priorities: “It marks a clear shift from defense to offense,” and described 2026 priorities as “deepening our understanding of the consumer, delivering better sleep through product experience and expanded distribution and executing with financial discipline across the business.” DeMartini highlighted channel and product mix trends, including “Comparable sales in our showrooms increased 8.8%” and “Rejuvenate 2.0 represented over 50% of showroom mattress revenue during the quarter,” while also noting “E-commerce performance was mixed during the year and declined in the fourth quarter.” DeMartini detailed wholesale/distribution expansion, including that Costco expanded to “approximately 450 clubs bringing us to nearly nationwide distribution,” and that Mattress Firm’s Purple Royale launch was “originally planned for over 2,800 slots bringing us to a total of 12,000 slots across Mattress Firm's 2,200 stores,” adding that “Mattress Firm is adding incremental slots as the product launches.” Todd Vogensen (CFO & Treasurer) said, “Net revenue for the fourth quarter was $140.7 million,” and added, “Our fourth quarter adjusted loss per share was $0.02,” while “Adjusted EBITDA in the fourth quarter was $8.8 million.” DeMartini said the company’s Form 10-K included “a going concern qualification,” adding, “we want to provide clear context why the decisive, transformative actions we've already taken are expected to continue stabilizing our financial position,” and later stated, “We expect...
Regulator cites enforcement gaps in first compliance report, begins evidence gathering, with potential fines up to A$49.5 million and decisions expected by mid-year.
Regulator cites enforcement gaps in first compliance report, begins evidence gathering, with potential fines up to A$49.5 million and decisions expected by mid-year.
The S&P 500 Index ($SPX ) (SPY ) today is up +1.33%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average ($DOWI ) (DIA ) is up +1.10%, and the Nasdaq 100 Index ($IUXX ) (QQQ ) is up +1.45%. June E-mini S&P futures (ESM26 ) are up +1.48%, and June E-mini Nasdaq futures...
The S&P 500 Index ($SPX ) (SPY ) today is up +1.33%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average ($DOWI ) (DIA ) is up +1.10%, and the Nasdaq 100 Index ($IUXX ) (QQQ ) is up +1.45%. June E-mini S&P futures (ESM26 ) are up +1.48%, and June E-mini Nasdaq futures...
MF3d Bank of America’s global research team highlighted a sharp shift in institutional positioning, with artificial intelligence–linked names driving the largest gains in ownership breadth across the S&P 500 ( SP500 ) over the past year. The data, based on the percentage of funds holding each stock, underscores how investors have increasingly concentrated exposure in companies tied to AI infrastru...
MF3d Bank of America’s global research team highlighted a sharp shift in institutional positioning, with artificial intelligence–linked names driving the largest gains in ownership breadth across the S&P 500 ( SP500 ) over the past year. The data, based on the percentage of funds holding each stock, underscores how investors have increasingly concentrated exposure in companies tied to AI infrastructure, semiconductors, and data ecosystems. Leading the trend is Palantir Technologies ( PLTR ), which saw ownership breadth jump by 24 percentage points year over year. Industrial player GE Vernova ( GEV ) followed with a 15-point increase, reflecting rising interest in electrification themes tied to AI demand. Semiconductor and hardware-related firms—including Broadcom ( AVGO ), Advanced Micro Devices ( AMD ), and Arista Networks ( ANET )—also ranked prominently. The full list of stocks by BofA showing the largest increase in ownership breadth includes Palantir Technologies ( PLTR ), GE Vernova ( GEV ), Amphenol Corp ( APH ), Western Digital ( WDC ), Broadcom ( AVGO ), Gilead Sciences ( GILD ), Meta Platforms ( META ), Advanced Micro Devices ( AMD ), Arista Networks ( ANET ), and McKesson Corp ( MCK ). Notably, while technology dominates the rankings, healthcare names like Gilead Sciences and McKesson Corp. also saw meaningful accumulation. Overall, the findings reflect a market increasingly tilted toward companies viewed as core beneficiaries of long-term AI adoption and digital infrastructure expansion. S&P 500 Funds: ( SPY ), ( VOO ), ( IVV ), ( RSP ), ( SSO ), ( UPRO ), ( SH ), ( SDS ), ( SPXU ), ( FXAIX ), ( VFIAX ), ( VFFSX ), and ( SWPPX ). More on markets Treasury yields surge in March, posting the biggest monthly jump since 2024 Wells Fargo lowers its year-end S&P 500 target from 7,800 to 7,300 S&P 500 is on pace for its worst month since 2022 as broad selloff deepens Selling pressure intensifies as now nearly 300 of the S&P 500 names trade lower in 2026 Recessio...
Earnings Call Insights: AlTi Global, Inc. (ALTI) Q4 2025 Management View CEO Michael Tiedemann positioned AlTi as a scaled ultra-high net worth platform, saying the firm operates in 19 cities across 9 countries and that since listing it has grown wealth platform AUM by 70% while maintaining client retention rates above 95%, with clients averaging assets in excess of $50 million. CEO Michael Tiedem...
Earnings Call Insights: AlTi Global, Inc. (ALTI) Q4 2025 Management View CEO Michael Tiedemann positioned AlTi as a scaled ultra-high net worth platform, saying the firm operates in 19 cities across 9 countries and that since listing it has grown wealth platform AUM by 70% while maintaining client retention rates above 95%, with clients averaging assets in excess of $50 million. CEO Michael Tiedemann announced a leadership change: "After more than 25 years leading the company, I will be stepping down as CEO and Nancy Curtin, our Global Chief Investment Officer, will become Interim CEO." He added, "I am confident the company is in capable hands and will continue to be supporting Nancy to ensure a smooth transition." Interim CEO Nancy Curtin emphasized focus on core wealth and institutional management, describing the endowment and foundation business as having grown to more than $8 billion in AUM at year-end 2025 and calling it a natural extension of the wealth business. Interim CEO Curtin said AlTi generated over $9 billion of projected billable assets over the past 3 years, including nearly $4 billion added in 2025, and said a strategic assessment drove an exit of the noncore international real estate business in 2025, which she said eliminated future costs and obligations. CFO Michael Harrington highlighted scale and mix shifts, stating, "Total assets under management reached $50 billion at year-end, up 10% year-over-year, driven by strong investment performance and the acquisition of Kontora," and also said Q4 revenue included "$29 million contribution from incentive fees" tied to the arbitrage strategy. Outlook The call did not include formal quantitative guidance (management explicitly avoided guidance in the prior quarter, and no 2026 revenue or EPS targets were provided in Q4). Interim CEO Nancy Curtin updated the strategic review announced in December: "To date, the special committee has not received a proposal that it believes encapsulates the long-term valu...
Thapana Onphalai/iStock via Getty Images Investment Thesis Shares of Marvell Technology, Inc. ( MRVL ) are ratcheting higher after Nvidia ( NVDA ) announced a $2B investment in the AI communications company. For Nvidia, this is part of their emerging AI playbook in the post-AI inference era to secure supply chains of critical components and products that the GPU platform company believes are essen...
Thapana Onphalai/iStock via Getty Images Investment Thesis Shares of Marvell Technology, Inc. ( MRVL ) are ratcheting higher after Nvidia ( NVDA ) announced a $2B investment in the AI communications company. For Nvidia, this is part of their emerging AI playbook in the post-AI inference era to secure supply chains of critical components and products that the GPU platform company believes are essential to their vision of becoming the platform for their "AI factory" vision. For Marvell, the $2B investment by Nvidia completely changes the growth story of Marvell and should center the focus on Marvell’s transformational inflection into a solid AI connectivity business with bright prospects ahead. I am reiterating my bullish outlook on Marvell and believe Nvidia’s investment in Marvell should accelerate the latter's growth outlook ahead. What Nvidia’s Investment Does to Marvell As a Marvell investor, I couldn’t be happier. After being neutral on Marvell’s outlook through H1 of last year, I saw early signs of an inflection coming in October last year and proceeded to upgrade Marvell's shares last year , noting that “some serious inflection flexing” is coming. What has really impressed me so far about Marvell’s strategy to reorient their growth trajectories was the pivotal transformations management made by investing in two emerging areas of scale-up networks—the memory controller area, which I explained in early January, and management’s rapid advancements in the optical networking solutions market for scale-up. The issue last year for Marvell, as I explained , was that the company’s XPU business was facing headwinds after its largest XPU customer, Amazon ( AMZN ), began diversifying its XPU vendor base. Amazon’s AWS is the only large and active customer for Marvell, essentially Marvell’s only ticket to competing in the XPU market, which was anyway tough on gross margins, as I explained here . For Marvell, competing in the XPU business was actually like pulling deadweight...