HSBC Holdings Plc is selling the first major-currency Additional Tier 1 bonds since the Iran conflict began, reopening this risky corner of the credit market. The lender is looking to raise at least $1 billion through two perpetual notes first callable in 5.5 years and 10 years, according to a person familiar with the matter, who asked not to be identified. They are initially marketed at levels of...
HSBC Holdings Plc is selling the first major-currency Additional Tier 1 bonds since the Iran conflict began, reopening this risky corner of the credit market. The lender is looking to raise at least $1 billion through two perpetual notes first callable in 5.5 years and 10 years, according to a person familiar with the matter, who asked not to be identified. They are initially marketed at levels of around 7.25% and 7.5% respectively, the person said. New issues of AT1s have ground to a halt in recent weeks as the dual concerns of the war in the Middle East and banks’ exposure to private credit have shaken the financial sector. Issuance started the year at a brisk pace but the last offering was recorded right before hostilities started in late February. Existing AT1 debt has been spared the worst of the selloff seen in the credit market, despite its risky nature that would typically mean bigger moves in times of trouble. Investors are hanging on to these bonds for fear of missing out on getting hold of them again at an acceptable price when the market calms down. Read more: AT1 Hoarding Is Shielding Market From a Global Risk Selloff HSBC has a £1 billion ($1.33 billion) AT1 bond that is due to hit its first call date in September, based on data compiled by Bloomberg. It is the largest issuer of AT1s globally with more than $23 billion of deeply subordinated bonds outstanding.
An independent committee set up to investigate Hong Kong’s deadliest fire in decades has named 14 members of Wang Fuk Court’s former owners’ corporation management group and seven residents as “involved parties” to give evidence at its hearings. The seven were among a list of 37 involved parties published on Tuesday by the committee ahead of the first of eight hearings by the body for listening to...
An independent committee set up to investigate Hong Kong’s deadliest fire in decades has named 14 members of Wang Fuk Court’s former owners’ corporation management group and seven residents as “involved parties” to give evidence at its hearings. The seven were among a list of 37 involved parties published on Tuesday by the committee ahead of the first of eight hearings by the body for listening to evidence about the tragedy. The first hearing will take place on Thursday, while the last is scheduled for April 2. Advertisement “The committee will also invite witnesses who are not involved parties to give verbal evidence at the evidential hearings,” it said, adding that it would release the list of witnesses on each hearing date. The government established the independent body to investigate the cause of the fire at Wang Fuk Court last November and identify any systemic problems related to large-scale building maintenance and renovation works. Advertisement The blaze killed 168 people and displaced nearly 5,000 residents.
Sundry Photography/iStock Editorial via Getty Images By Anthony Goh, Senior Investment Research Analyst @ Khaveen Investments In our previous analysis , we believed Qualcomm ( QCOM ) could absorb a potential Apple ( AAPL ) modem exit even if it ultimately reached about $7.7 billion of revenue impact by FY2028, because Qualcomm would still retain leadership and scale with non-Apple handset customer...
Sundry Photography/iStock Editorial via Getty Images By Anthony Goh, Senior Investment Research Analyst @ Khaveen Investments In our previous analysis , we believed Qualcomm ( QCOM ) could absorb a potential Apple ( AAPL ) modem exit even if it ultimately reached about $7.7 billion of revenue impact by FY2028, because Qualcomm would still retain leadership and scale with non-Apple handset customers while its mix shift toward IoT and Automotive would do the heavy lifting, with Handsets still the largest segment at the time but expected to grow modestly given smartphone maturity and competition, and with IoT and Automotive positioned as faster-growth offset engines that we projected to compound at roughly 26.6% and 28.1% and rise to about 49% of revenue by FY2028, supported by expansion across automotive design wins and ADAS, IoT connectivity and edge, and adjacent bets like Snapdragon PCs, Wi-Fi, and XR. In this analysis, we cover the company again as despite registering growth of 13% for FY2025, which was slightly above our previous estimate of 9.6%, its stock price this year is down by 17% since the last time we covered it, and down by 18% YTD following its recent earnings release, where management provided weak guidance for Q2 FY2026 of -2.86% based on a $10.6 billion midpoint revenue, particularly due to memory shortage impacting the smartphone market. Further, Qualcomm’s handset segment growth guidance for Q2 2026 is projected to be approximately -13% YoY. We thus examine how the company will be impacted in the near term with the ongoing memory shortage for smartphones and also whether it can continue to sustain long-term competitiveness in the smartphone AP chipset market and whether the automotive and IoT segments could offset some of the weakness. Near-Term Smartphone Weakness Driven by Memory Shortage We first examine the Handset segment which is Qualcomm’s largest and is expected to perform the worst in Q2. According to Qualcomm’s Q1 FY2026 earnings call tr...
Sundry Photography/iStock Editorial via Getty Images By Anthony Goh, Senior Investment Research Analyst @ Khaveen Investments In our previous analysis , we believed Qualcomm ( QCOM ) could absorb a potential Apple ( AAPL ) modem exit even if it ultimately reached about $7.7 billion of revenue impact by FY2028, because Qualcomm would still retain leadership and scale with non-Apple handset customer...
Sundry Photography/iStock Editorial via Getty Images By Anthony Goh, Senior Investment Research Analyst @ Khaveen Investments In our previous analysis , we believed Qualcomm ( QCOM ) could absorb a potential Apple ( AAPL ) modem exit even if it ultimately reached about $7.7 billion of revenue impact by FY2028, because Qualcomm would still retain leadership and scale with non-Apple handset customers while its mix shift toward IoT and Automotive would do the heavy lifting, with Handsets still the largest segment at the time but expected to grow modestly given smartphone maturity and competition, and with IoT and Automotive positioned as faster-growth offset engines that we projected to compound at roughly 26.6% and 28.1% and rise to about 49% of revenue by FY2028, supported by expansion across automotive design wins and ADAS, IoT connectivity and edge, and adjacent bets like Snapdragon PCs, Wi-Fi, and XR. In this analysis, we cover the company again as despite registering growth of 13% for FY2025, which was slightly above our previous estimate of 9.6%, its stock price this year is down by 17% since the last time we covered it, and down by 18% YTD following its recent earnings release, where management provided weak guidance for Q2 FY2026 of -2.86% based on a $10.6 billion midpoint revenue, particularly due to memory shortage impacting the smartphone market. Further, Qualcomm’s handset segment growth guidance for Q2 2026 is projected to be approximately -13% YoY. We thus examine how the company will be impacted in the near term with the ongoing memory shortage for smartphones and also whether it can continue to sustain long-term competitiveness in the smartphone AP chipset market and whether the automotive and IoT segments could offset some of the weakness. Near-Term Smartphone Weakness Driven by Memory Shortage We first examine the Handset segment which is Qualcomm’s largest and is expected to perform the worst in Q2. According to Qualcomm’s Q1 FY2026 earnings call tr...
"I think of his family now who have to carry on this fight. As well as dealing with the death of a husband, a father, they've now got to deal with the Post Office scandal, to try and carry on that fight, to get him, his estate, the justice that he deserves."
"I think of his family now who have to carry on this fight. As well as dealing with the death of a husband, a father, they've now got to deal with the Post Office scandal, to try and carry on that fight, to get him, his estate, the justice that he deserves."
Key Points XRP was created as a bridge currency to help standardize instant cross-border transactions in the Ripple Payments network. Bitcoin is the world's largest cryptocurrency, and it draws most of its value from investors who consider it to be a legitimate store of value. XRP and Bitcoin both have flaws, but one appears to have a better chance of producing long-term upside than the other. 10 ...
Key Points XRP was created as a bridge currency to help standardize instant cross-border transactions in the Ripple Payments network. Bitcoin is the world's largest cryptocurrency, and it draws most of its value from investors who consider it to be a legitimate store of value. XRP and Bitcoin both have flaws, but one appears to have a better chance of producing long-term upside than the other. 10 stocks we like better than XRP › The XRP (CRYPTO: XRP) and Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) cryptocurrencies both set new record highs during 2025. But the last several months haven't been very fruitful, with XRP losing 62% of its peak value, and Bitcoin plunging by 44%. Investors are trimming their exposure to speculative assets like cryptocurrency amid heightened political and economic turmoil, but XRP and Bitcoin possess unique qualities that could create value during the long term. Yet, I think one is a better buy than the other. Will AI create the world's first trillionaire? Our team just released a report on the one little-known company, called an "Indispensable Monopoly" providing the critical technology Nvidia and Intel both need. Continue » The case for XRP Ripple is the creator of a unique payments network called Ripple Payments, which lets banks settle cross-border transactions with one another directly, regardless of what existing infrastructure they use. It eliminates the need for financial intermediaries, so transfers land almost instantly, at negligible cost. Ripple created XRP to standardize transactions through Ripple Payments. A U.S. bank can send XRP to an Italian bank rather than sending U.S. dollars for conversion into euros, cutting out costly foreign exchange fees. Typically, a transfer using XRP costs just 0.00001 tokens, or a fraction of one U.S. cent. In theory, demand for XRP should increase as more banks use Ripple Payments, thus increasing its value. But there are some structural issues to consider. First, bridge currencies aren't designed to be held for t...
Silicon Motion Technology (SIMO) is a $4 billion leading developer of microcontroller integrated circuits for NAND flash storage devices. The company is benefiting from the rising shortage of memory hardware for the AI buildout as they shift from a cyclical consumer electronics supplier to a structural AI beneficiary. In early February, SIMO reported strong year-over-year revenue growth for their ...
Silicon Motion Technology (SIMO) is a $4 billion leading developer of microcontroller integrated circuits for NAND flash storage devices. The company is benefiting from the rising shortage of memory hardware for the AI buildout as they shift from a cyclical consumer electronics supplier to a structural AI beneficiary. In early February, SIMO reported strong year-over-year revenue growth for their December quarter driven by solid PCIe 5 SSD demand, market share gains in Embedded Multi-Media Card and Universal Flash Storage, rising automotive sales, and early enterprise demand. EPS lagged expectations due to higher R&D and operating costs, product mix pressures and competitive pricing. But analysts liked the outlook and raised full-year estimates 19% from $4.88 to $5.80, representing 63% growth. And the 2027 EPS consensus among five analysts surged 20.5% from $6.54 to $7.88, for a projected 35.7% annual advance. Revenue Ramp Dec quarter revenues increased to $278.5 million from the year-ago quarter’s tally of $191.2 million. The top line beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $261.2 million. For 2025, revenues increased to $885.6 million from $803.6 million in 2024. Management noted that in the fourth quarter of 2025, sales of SSD controllers increased 35-40% year over year on strong demand trends. Embedded Multi-Media Card + Universal Flash Storage (eMMC+UFS) sales increased 50-55% while revenues in SSD solutions were up 110-115% year over year. After management raised Q1'26 non-GAAP revenue guidance to a range of $292-$306 million, analysts moved the full-year 2026 consensus up to $1.27 billion, representing 43% growth. Who is SIMO and Will They Win in the Memory Wars? Silicon Motion has a unique history as a "trans-Pacific" company, essentially born from a merger of American design and Taiwanese manufacturing prowess. This global company has a dual-headquarters structure. Global/Operations Headquarters: Zhubei City, Hsinchu County, Taiwan (located in the heart of Tai...
Silicon Motion Technology (SIMO) is a $4 billion leading developer of microcontroller integrated circuits for NAND flash storage devices. The company is benefiting from the rising shortage of memory hardware for the AI buildout as they shift from a cyclical consumer electronics supplier to a structural AI beneficiary. In early February, SIMO reported strong year-over-year revenue growth for their ...
Silicon Motion Technology (SIMO) is a $4 billion leading developer of microcontroller integrated circuits for NAND flash storage devices. The company is benefiting from the rising shortage of memory hardware for the AI buildout as they shift from a cyclical consumer electronics supplier to a structural AI beneficiary. In early February, SIMO reported strong year-over-year revenue growth for their December quarter driven by solid PCIe 5 SSD demand, market share gains in Embedded Multi-Media Card and Universal Flash Storage, rising automotive sales, and early enterprise demand. EPS lagged expectations due to higher R&D and operating costs, product mix pressures and competitive pricing. But analysts liked the outlook and raised full-year estimates 19% from $4.88 to $5.80, representing 63% growth. And the 2027 EPS consensus among five analysts surged 20.5% from $6.54 to $7.88, for a projected 35.7% annual advance. Revenue Ramp Dec quarter revenues increased to $278.5 million from the year-ago quarter’s tally of $191.2 million. The top line beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $261.2 million. For 2025, revenues increased to $885.6 million from $803.6 million in 2024. Management noted that in the fourth quarter of 2025, sales of SSD controllers increased 35-40% year over year on strong demand trends. Embedded Multi-Media Card + Universal Flash Storage (eMMC+UFS) sales increased 50-55% while revenues in SSD solutions were up 110-115% year over year. After management raised Q1'26 non-GAAP revenue guidance to a range of $292-$306 million, analysts moved the full-year 2026 consensus up to $1.27 billion, representing 43% growth. Who is SIMO and Will They Win in the Memory Wars? Silicon Motion has a unique history as a "trans-Pacific" company, essentially born from a merger of American design and Taiwanese manufacturing prowess. This global company has a dual-headquarters structure. Global/Operations Headquarters: Zhubei City, Hsinchu County, Taiwan (located in the heart of Tai...
tunnay Playboy’s ( PLBY ) stock climbed 13.5% in Tuesday's premarket trading after the company posted a strong quarterly performance. CEO Ben Kohn emphasized the completion of a strategic transformation, highlighting four consecutive quarters of positive adjusted EBITDA, a $58 million debt reduction since Q3 2024, and a clear plan to cut nearly $52 million more in debt through the UTG China deal. ...
tunnay Playboy’s ( PLBY ) stock climbed 13.5% in Tuesday's premarket trading after the company posted a strong quarterly performance. CEO Ben Kohn emphasized the completion of a strategic transformation, highlighting four consecutive quarters of positive adjusted EBITDA, a $58 million debt reduction since Q3 2024, and a clear plan to cut nearly $52 million more in debt through the UTG China deal. Kohn stressed investments in content, media, digital, and hospitality, and noted the UTG China partnership, expected to close imminently, would “further accelerate our deleveraging and provide flexibility to invest in growth.” He also outlined progress in each pillar, notably a relaunch of the company’s website for a subscription-based model, the magazine’s successful relaunch with high-profile talent, and robust engagement through initiatives like the Playmate Search and paid voting, which he described as “a scalable recurring revenue mechanism with multimillion-dollar potential.” When asked about the website rebuild and monetization focus, Kohn responded, “Our single one goal on the website is brand. Second goal is monetization, which will be a short follow from that… We will look to expand that membership offering moving forward, meaning we'll continue to add utility or more opportunities with that membership, including the opportunity to participate in Playboy events.” However, the management highlighted transaction expenses ($1.2 million) and additional brand marketing expenses ($2.1 million) as burdens on Q4 operating expenses. Shares of Playboy ( PLBY ) are down 6% YTD. More on Playboy Playboy, Inc. (PLBY) Q4 2025 Earnings Call Transcript Playboy: Asset-Light Pivot Drives Upside Playboy: Love The Brand, Like The Stock Playboy outlines $52M debt reduction and new subscription growth model as transformation continues Playboy GAAP EPS of $0.03 beats by $0.02, revenue of $34.9M beats by $1.38M
MTN is considering expanding its operations in East Africa over the next five years. CEO Ralph Mupita speaks to Bloomberg's Jennifer Zabasajja about the wireless carrier's ambitions including investment plans for AI. (Source: Bloomberg)
MTN is considering expanding its operations in East Africa over the next five years. CEO Ralph Mupita speaks to Bloomberg's Jennifer Zabasajja about the wireless carrier's ambitions including investment plans for AI. (Source: Bloomberg)
Shares of electric-vehicle and energy specialist Tesla (TSLA +1.16%) boast a staggering market capitalization of about $1.5 trillion as of this writing. The growth stock's extraordinarily high valuation is fascinating -- especially considering the company's core automotive business is currently shrinking. So, what gives? Why are investors paying a price tag of about 360 times earnings as of this w...
Shares of electric-vehicle and energy specialist Tesla (TSLA +1.16%) boast a staggering market capitalization of about $1.5 trillion as of this writing. The growth stock's extraordinarily high valuation is fascinating -- especially considering the company's core automotive business is currently shrinking. So, what gives? Why are investors paying a price tag of about 360 times earnings as of this writing? And, more importantly, is the stock a buy, sell, or hold? With the company's 2025 results in the rearview mirror, let's look at the underlying business and the stock's valuation to help investors think through how they want to approach the stock. A business in transition Tesla's recent financial results highlighted a company leaning heavily on its secondary businesses to offset weakness in its primary one. Vehicle deliveries fell 16% year over year in Q4 to about 418,000 units. But looking at just the back half of the year can be slightly misleading. Tesla experienced some unusual factors impacting its third and fourth quarters due to the timing of the expiration of an electric vehicle credit, which pulled some demand forward into Q3, leaving Q4 unusually weak. Because of this noise, a look at full-year trends for vehicle deliveries does a better job of telling investors what's actually going on. Unfortunately, that full-year picture still shows a business under pressure. Total vehicle deliveries in 2025 totaled roughly 1.64 million, a decline of about 9% from 2024. This broader volume decline weighed heavily on the company's top line, with total automotive revenue for the year dropping 10% to roughly $69.5 billion. Fortunately, the company's fast-growing energy generation and storage business helped offset some of this pain. Energy revenue climbed 27% year over year to nearly $12.8 billion for the full year. This surging segment helped keep total company revenue at $94.8 billion -- down just 3% from the prior year. But profits are still moving in the wrong directio...
If you believe Elon Musk, Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) is not an automaker anymore, it's an artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics company. That makes it much harder to assess the potential and value of the stock because there's very little in AI or robotics revenue at Tesla today. Where is Tesla going, and should investors buy the stock? Let's break it down into components. The EV business isn't what ...
If you believe Elon Musk, Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) is not an automaker anymore, it's an artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics company. That makes it much harder to assess the potential and value of the stock because there's very little in AI or robotics revenue at Tesla today. Where is Tesla going, and should investors buy the stock? Let's break it down into components. The EV business isn't what it once was Tesla's business today is primarily selling electric vehicles (EVs) with an adjacent energy storage business. For the purpose of this article, I'm going to combine those two businesses and treat them as one. You can see that free cash flow is in decline and so is net income if you pull out the $5.9 billion benefit from deferred tax assets recorded in the fourth quarter of 2024. The reason net income is declining is pretty simple. Tesla was able to raise prices -- and, in turn, its margins -- during the pandemic when the entire industry was in short supply, but it has had to cut prices over the past two years. That will show up in lower margins. Margins are falling, and you can see below that they are now only slightly better than GM (NYSE: GM) and Ford (NYSE: F), despite the EV maker's stock trading for 30 times more on the basis of its price-to-sales ratio (P/S). And remember: Tesla's deliveries and revenue are falling, too. So the market must be putting a lot of value on AI and robotics. AI and Tesla's FSD strategy We know Tesla has been selling Autopilot since 2014 and its Full Self-Driving (FSD) feature -- automated driving that requires human supervision -- since 2020. What we don't know is the adoption rate or anything about the option's margins. For now, it's folded into the auto business. Third-party estimates have the rate of adoption at 2%, although Elon Musk said it was "much higher," without elaborating. If we assume the adoption rate is 5% on 2 million vehicles sold per year, it could add $120 million per year in incremental revenue at the current p...