Lean hog futures closed with most contracts steady to 90 cents in the green and June down 62 cents. USDA’s national base hog price was reported at $93.64 on Thursday afternoon, down $1 from the day prior. The CME Lean Hog Index was down 12 cents on May 26 at $90.58. USDA’s pork carcass cutout value from the Thursday PM report was up 76 cents at $99.11 per cwt. The rib and belly primals were the on...
Lean hog futures closed with most contracts steady to 90 cents in the green and June down 62 cents. USDA’s national base hog price was reported at $93.64 on Thursday afternoon, down $1 from the day prior. The CME Lean Hog Index was down 12 cents on May 26 at $90.58. USDA’s pork carcass cutout value from the Thursday PM report was up 76 cents at $99.11 per cwt. The rib and belly primals were the only reported lower. USDA estimated federally inspected hog slaughter for Thursday at 476,000 head, with the weekly total at 1.413 million head. That is down 24,837 head from the same holiday week last year. Don’t Miss a Day: Jun 26 Hogs are at $96.975, down $0.625, Jul 26 Hogs are at $102.125, unch, Aug 26 Hogs are at $100.925, up $0.075, More news from Barchart The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
Live cattle futures closed Thursday with contracts 52 cents to $1.67 in the red on the session. Preliminary open interest was down 1,627 contracts. Cash trade has been limited so far, with a few bids of $253. Last week’s cash trade was at $260 to $265 across the country. The Thursday Fed Cattle Exchange online auction showed no sales on the 1,008 head offered, with bids of $253-255. Feeder cattle ...
Live cattle futures closed Thursday with contracts 52 cents to $1.67 in the red on the session. Preliminary open interest was down 1,627 contracts. Cash trade has been limited so far, with a few bids of $253. Last week’s cash trade was at $260 to $265 across the country. The Thursday Fed Cattle Exchange online auction showed no sales on the 1,008 head offered, with bids of $253-255. Feeder cattle futures posted 82 cent to $1.60 losses across the front months on Thursday. The CME Feeder Cattle Index was back up $2.37 on May 27 to $369.63. The Thursday APHIS update on the New World Screwworm showed a total of 2,072 active cases in Mexico as of Wednesday. There were 182 active cases in the bordering state of Tamaulipas, 105 active in Nuevo Leon, and 19 in Coahuila. Don’t Miss a Day: Wholesale Boxed Beef prices were lower in the Thursday PM report, with the Chc/Sel spread at $6.74. Choice boxes were down $2.40 to $392.32, while Select was $3.71 lower at $385.58. USDA estimated federally inspected cattle slaughter for Thursday at 110,000 head, with the weekly total at 329,000 head. That was down 35,066 head from the same post-Memorial Day week last year. Jun 26 Live Cattle are at $249.750, down $1.675, Aug 26 Live Cattle are at $241.000, down $1.500, Oct 26 Live Cattle are at $232.575, down $1.400, Aug 26 Feeder Cattle are at $353.025, down $1.600 Sep 26 Feeder Cattle are at $350.250, down $1.550 Oct 26 Feeder Cattle are at $347.000, down $1.475 More news from Barchart The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
Cotton prices are posing marginal losses of 11 to 15 points so far on Friday, Futures posted gains of 11 to 20 points on Thursday, helped out by the Export Sales release. The outside markets were mixed, as the US dollar index was up 414 points and the highest in over a year. Crude oil futures provided some support, up $1.40/barrel. Export Sales data showed 2024/25 upland cotton bookings totaling 3...
Cotton prices are posing marginal losses of 11 to 15 points so far on Friday, Futures posted gains of 11 to 20 points on Thursday, helped out by the Export Sales release. The outside markets were mixed, as the US dollar index was up 414 points and the highest in over a year. Crude oil futures provided some support, up $1.40/barrel. Export Sales data showed 2024/25 upland cotton bookings totaling 318,516 RB in the week of 11/14, a MY high. Vietnam was the buyer of 141,600 RB, with Pakistan buying 55,300 RB. Another 16,016 RB was sold for 2025/26. Shipments were 148,215 RB, which was the third largest this MY. The largest destination was Vietnam as 26,100 RB was headed their way, with 25,700 RB to Pakistan. The Seam reported 5,442 bales of online sales on November 20 at an average price of 64.93 cents/lb. ICE cotton stocks were unchanged again on Wednesday, at 13,274 bales of certified stocks. The Cotlook A Index was up 25 points on 11/02 at 79.70 cents/lb. The USDA Adjusted World Price (AWP) was lowered by 229 points on Thursday afternoon to 55.91 cents/lb. Mar 25 Cotton closed at 70.43, up 15 points, currently down 12 points May 25 Cotton closed at 71.65, up 14 points, currently down 11 points Jul 25 Cotton closed at 72.8, up 15 points, currently down 15 points More news from Barchart The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
Corn price action is steady to 2 ¼ cents lower across most contracts to start Friday. Futures posted gains on Thursday, with contracts up 3 to 4 cents in most front months, as December was up 6 ¼. Open interest was up 11,560 contracts on Thursday, suggesting new buying interest. The CmdtyView national average Cash Corn price was up 4 cents on the day at $4.02 3/4. Export Sales data for the week of...
Corn price action is steady to 2 ¼ cents lower across most contracts to start Friday. Futures posted gains on Thursday, with contracts up 3 to 4 cents in most front months, as December was up 6 ¼. Open interest was up 11,560 contracts on Thursday, suggesting new buying interest. The CmdtyView national average Cash Corn price was up 4 cents on the day at $4.02 3/4. Export Sales data for the week of October 30 was out on Thursday, with a total of 1.99 MMT of corn sold. That was on the higher side of trade ideas looking for 0.8-2.5 MMT in corn sales during that week. That was back above the week prior and the third largest total for the marketing year. Don’t Miss a Day: Actual Brazilian trade ministry data for November tallied exports at 5.03 MMT, a 6.48% increase from last year but a 22.58% drop from last month. Corn shipments are estimated at 4.99 MMT for December according to ANEC, which would be above the 3.62 MMT from the same period last year. Statistics Canada estimates the 2025 corn production for the country at 14.867 MMT, down 3.1% from the same week last year. Dec 25 Corn closed at $4.37 3/4, up 6 1/4 cents, currently down 2 1/4 cents Nearby Cash was $4.02 3/4, up 4 cents, Mar 26 Corn closed at $4.47 1/4, up 3 3/4 cents, currently down 1 1/4 cents May 26 Corn closed at $4.54 1/2, up 3 3/4 cents, currently down 1 cent More news from Barchart The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
Key Points If you're married, you may qualify for a spousal Social Security benefit as well as a retirement benefit. Coordinating your claiming strategy with your spouse is the best way to maximize your household benefits. In couples with a high income disparity, the lower earner may choose to apply for their own retirement benefit early. The $23,760 Social Security bonus most retirees completely ...
Key Points If you're married, you may qualify for a spousal Social Security benefit as well as a retirement benefit. Coordinating your claiming strategy with your spouse is the best way to maximize your household benefits. In couples with a high income disparity, the lower earner may choose to apply for their own retirement benefit early. The $23,760 Social Security bonus most retirees completely overlook › Most married couples can look forward to two Social Security benefits in retirement. This could help you stretch your savings further, but a lot depends on the strategy you use. If you and your partner both sign up for benefits without communicating with each other, you risk short-changing yourselves. Here's what you need to know to decide when each person should apply for Social Security. 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 » Social Security retirement vs. spousal benefits You'll qualify for Social Security retirement benefits on your own work record if you've worked long enough to claim 40 credits, where one credit is $1,890 in earnings in 2026, and you can earn up to four credits per year. If your partner also qualifies for a retirement benefit, you'll be eligible for a spousal benefit on their work record, too. A spousal benefit is worth up to one-half of the benefit your partner qualifies for at their full retirement age (FRA). This is 67 for most people. Like retirement benefits, you can claim these checks as early as 62, provided your partner is already on Social Security. But you'll get a smaller monthly benefit if you apply early. Spousal Social Security benefits continue growing until you reach your FRA. Retirement benefits can continue to grow until age 70, when you qualify for your maximum checks. How to work with your spouse to maximize your household Social Security bene...
The professional and prosumer audio industry is evolving rapidly. Against this backdrop, Cirrus Logic CRUS has recently introduced a new portfolio of nine audio converters, including analog-to-digital converters (ADCs), digital-to-analog converters (DACs) and CODECs, designed to deliver premium audio quality while maintaining an optimized price-to-performance ratio. The initiative aims to expand C...
The professional and prosumer audio industry is evolving rapidly. Against this backdrop, Cirrus Logic CRUS has recently introduced a new portfolio of nine audio converters, including analog-to-digital converters (ADCs), digital-to-analog converters (DACs) and CODECs, designed to deliver premium audio quality while maintaining an optimized price-to-performance ratio. The initiative aims to expand CRUS’ audio converter portfolio and reinforces its commitment to serving the growing professional and prosumer audio market, estimated to be worth approximately $9 billion globally. A key aspect of the new converter family is the inclusion of enhanced analog capabilities and hybrid gain control technology. Hybrid gain control was previously available in Cirrus' flagship audio converters and has now been extended to this new family of products. The new lineup adds hybrid DAC gain control and a new voltage output driver architecture, giving designers more flexibility to optimize performance across wider audio applications. Premium flagship products often feature top-tier components, while mid-range and entry-level products must balance performance with affordability. Cirrus Logic's expanded converter portfolio addresses this by enabling scalable product development. Manufacturers can now use similar architectural approaches across different product lines while choosing converters that meet specific performance and budget needs. This scalability offers several benefits: faster product development cycles, reduced engineering complexity, a consistent user experience across product tiers and improved cost efficiency. As a result, companies can deliver advanced audio features to a broader audience without sacrificing profitability. While unlikely to drive an immediate revenue surge, the new products strengthen long-term growth by expanding CRUS’ presence in professional audio, content creation and commercial sound systems. The launch broadens its customer base, boosts cross-selling...
Sundry Photography/iStock Editorial via Getty Images MongoDB's ( MDB ) first-quarter results and guidance produced a strong start to fiscal 2027, prompting an array of financial firms to increase their price targets on the stock. During early post-market action on Thursday, MongoDB's shares shot up more than 20%. However, by early market action on Friday, the cloud database company's shares were d...
Sundry Photography/iStock Editorial via Getty Images MongoDB's ( MDB ) first-quarter results and guidance produced a strong start to fiscal 2027, prompting an array of financial firms to increase their price targets on the stock. During early post-market action on Thursday, MongoDB's shares shot up more than 20%. However, by early market action on Friday, the cloud database company's shares were down 2%. "MDB raised its FY27 guidance, which was well above Street estimates across the board as the company looks to capitalize on demand to modernize legacy applications while remaining conservative around Atlas growth into Q4, said Wedbush analysts, led by Dan Ives, in a Friday investor report. "FY27 total revenue is estimated to be in the range of $2.92 billion to $2.96 billion, which was above the Street's $2.90 billion estimate, including Atlas revenue growth of 23% y/y–25% y/y vs. prior guidance of 21% y/y–23% y/y as the company remains conservative given the decreased visibility into future quarters." Wedbush maintained its Outperform rating and increased its price target to $390 from $380. "This was a much-needed strong quarter by MDB following its FY4Q26 misstep as the company continues adding more customers that are in the early stages of infrastructure modernization while scaling out AI workloads with MDB representing the essential database for AI," Ives added. Citi Research retained its Buy rating and inched its hefty price target up to $455 from $450. "The FY27 revenue guide was raised by +$60M, well in excess of the 1Q outperformance (+25M) and modest M&A impact (~$6M), reflecting strong momentum and visibility in Atlas (200 bps raise) and EA," Citi analysts said in a Friday note. "While the Q2 guide is exceptionally strong (5% above consensus and much stronger QoQ Seasonality), EA is a big driver at +20% Y/Y, though we view the Atlas guide of 26% as impressive still given the 3pt tougher compare and continue to see a pathway to 30%+ growth in Q2. Profitabili...
Finance ministers from the EU’s six biggest economies (E6) have agreed a common position on a European Commission proposal for joint capital markets supervision, Germany’s finance ministry said on Friday. The push for financial market players to be supervised at a European Union rather than national level is part of a bid to boost the bloc’s competitiveness as it struggles with weak growth and...
Finance ministers from the EU’s six biggest economies (E6) have agreed a common position on a European Commission proposal for joint capital markets supervision, Germany’s finance ministry said on Friday. The push for financial market players to be supervised at a European Union rather than national level is part of a bid to boost the bloc’s competitiveness as it struggles with weak growth and fierce competition from the United States and China. Supervision of significant market infrastructure will be gradually transferred to the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) in Paris, the finance ministers from Germany, France, Italy, Poland, Spain and the Netherlands agreed after they met in Berlin on Thursday to discuss the issue. Advertisement “The fact that the EU’s six largest economies are prepared to leave national self-interest behind and move forward together is an important signal for the entire European Union,” German Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil said in a statement. The European Commission presented its plan to better integrate EU capital markets in December. 06:24 Munich 2026: Washington warns of ‘civilisational erasure’ as Beijing pitches ‘stability’ ESMA’s governance structure must be set up efficiently: expertise, supervisory and market experience, and geographical balance should play a decisive role, the ministers agreed in a paper seen by Reuters on Friday.
Meta Platforms (META 1.68%) is typically considered one of the four big hyperscalers in the tech sector. These are companies that own and operate massive cloud computing and data storage businesses, and in the AI era, they’re all spending massive amounts on data centers and AI infrastructure. The other three major hyperscalers are Amazon, Microsoft, and Alphabet. Those three companies also represe...
Meta Platforms (META 1.68%) is typically considered one of the four big hyperscalers in the tech sector. These are companies that own and operate massive cloud computing and data storage businesses, and in the AI era, they’re all spending massive amounts on data centers and AI infrastructure. The other three major hyperscalers are Amazon, Microsoft, and Alphabet. Those three companies also represent the biggest cloud computing companies in the world, an industry that is now generating hundreds of billions of dollars in revenue. Meta, despite planning to spend more than $100 billion in capital expenditures this year, does not have its own cloud computing business. However, that could change. Image source: The Motley Fool. Is the Meta Cloud coming? At Meta’s annual shareholders meeting, Zuckerberg was asked about the company potentially launching its own cloud computing services and responded, “It’s definitely on the table.” Zuckerberg said the company has already been approached several times by outside companies asking for cloud computing capacity and services. Right now, a cloud computing service seems to be a backup plan for Meta as Zuckerberg said, “We haven’t done that yet because we think that we have a use for the compute,” as he’s made achieving superintelligence a top goal. However, he sees launching a cloud service as a viable option if the company has too much capacity. Why a Meta Cloud would be a smart move While most of Meta’s big tech peers have diversified into other revenue streams, Meta still makes essentially all of its revenue from advertising. It’s built an incredible ad targeting engine, but its efforts to diversify thus far, including VR headsets, the metaverse, and other reality labs initiatives, have fallen flat. Zuckerberg is motivated by pushing the technological envelope, but borrowing a page from one of its peers and launching a cloud business would make more sense. Amazon, Microsoft, and Alphabet are all reporting accelerating revenue gro...
(Bloomberg) -- Summer events including the FIFA World Cup and America’s 250th anniversary could spur sales of sweet treats, making now a key time to snap up beaten-down shares of Hershey Co., according to the candy and snack maker’s newest Wall Street bull. Most Read from Bloomberg Evercore ISI’s David Palmer raised his recommendation on Hershey this week, boosting it to outperform from in-line wh...
(Bloomberg) -- Summer events including the FIFA World Cup and America’s 250th anniversary could spur sales of sweet treats, making now a key time to snap up beaten-down shares of Hershey Co., according to the candy and snack maker’s newest Wall Street bull. Most Read from Bloomberg Evercore ISI’s David Palmer raised his recommendation on Hershey this week, boosting it to outperform from in-line while maintaining a Street-high $255 price target, implying shares could rally nearly 30% from Thursday’s close over the next 12 months. “There are reasons to expect Hershey’s chocolate consumption to ramp into the summer with merchandising, innovation and tentpole events” including the 250th Anniversary of America and FIFA World Cup, Palmer wrote in a note to clients. He added that a solid Halloween sales season and the upcoming Hershey movie, set for theatrical release in late November, could also lift growth in the second half of the year. Hershey shares slid 2% as of 10:15 a.m. in New York. The call comes after a sustained selloff for Hershey shares, which fell more than 20% over March and April amid broader market weakness stemming from the war with Iran. Though the stock has regained some of its losses in the last few weeks, it’s still 18% below a late-February peak. After the slump, Hershey shares trade at about 19 times 2027 earnings estimates, a key level, according to Palmer. “When Hershey falls under 20x it averages about 20% upside in the following year,” Palmer wrote. While Palmer estimates that Hershey’s chocolate segment has lost some market share in the last 12 weeks amid a shorter-than-usual Easter selling period and increased competition from Dubai Chocolate, Lindt and Ferrero, the rate of decline should improve over the coming year with Hershey expanding its premium offerings. Hershey also has key growth opportunities outside of chocolate in brands including Sour Strips, Jolly Rancher, Lesser Evil, Dot’s Pretzels and SkinnyPop, he said. “The pipeline and in...
Dell Technologies revenue is growing at an accelerating pace as demand soars for hardware that powers artificial intelligence. For the fiscal first-quarter, the PC and server maker reported adjusted earnings of $4.86 per share on revenue of $43.8 billion. In the same period last year, Dell posted adjusted earnings of $1.55 a share on revenue of $23.4 billion.
Dell Technologies revenue is growing at an accelerating pace as demand soars for hardware that powers artificial intelligence. For the fiscal first-quarter, the PC and server maker reported adjusted earnings of $4.86 per share on revenue of $43.8 billion. In the same period last year, Dell posted adjusted earnings of $1.55 a share on revenue of $23.4 billion.
Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) closed at $311 on a split-adjusted basis, reaching an all-time high with a $4.57 trillion market cap, up 54% over one year. Tim Cook never joined the AI hype tour that other Magnificent Seven executives ran through 2024 and 2025, yet the stock is outperforming most of its peers anyway. NVIDIA (NASDAQ: NVDA) dominates financial television as the consensus AI play in 2026, but A...
Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) closed at $311 on a split-adjusted basis, reaching an all-time high with a $4.57 trillion market cap, up 54% over one year. Tim Cook never joined the AI hype tour that other Magnificent Seven executives ran through 2024 and 2025, yet the stock is outperforming most of its peers anyway. NVIDIA (NASDAQ: NVDA) dominates financial television as the consensus AI play in 2026, but Apple has been quietly outrunning it with far less noise. Advanced Micro Devices (NASDAQ: AMD) trades at a trailing price-to-earnings ratio of 170x, with the entire bull case priced for flawless execution, leaving little room for error. Micron Technology (NASDAQ: MU) is up 196% year to date and 871% over twelve months, yet memory is a cyclical business, and cyclicals at parabolic chart tops carry real risk. Apple’s climb has been the opposite of dramatic, with shares rising 55% over the past year and 14.6% year to date, nearly matching NVIDIA’s 56.94% twelve-month gain. Apple is now the third most valuable company on Earth, behind NVIDIA and Microsoft, approaching a $5 trillion valuation that no company has ever reached. March quarter revenue came in at $111.18 billion, up 16.6% year over year, with earnings per share of $2.01 beating a $1.94 consensus, marking the eighth straight quarterly beat. Services revenue hit $30.98 billion, a recurring high-margin stream compounding across a 2.5 billion device installed base, while management authorized a $100 billion buyback and raised the dividend 4%. iPhone revenue of $56.99 billion in the March quarter was driven by what the company described as “extraordinary demand for the iPhone 17 lineup,” a product cycle Cook had no speculative AI promises attached to it. While Sam Altman was promising AGI and Jensen Huang was holding chips above his head on stage, Cook spent two years saying almost nothing about artificial intelligence. Reddit’s wallstreetbets activity on Apple has stayed muted through the entire rally, and when the loudes...
Image source: The Motley Fool. May 27, 2026, 7:00 a.m. ET CALL PARTICIPANTS President & CEO — L. Thomson Group Head and CRO — Shannon McGinnis Group Head, Canadian Banking — Aris Bogdaneris Group Head, International Banking — Francisco Alberto Aristeguieta Silva Group Head, Global Wealth Management — Jacqueline Allard Group Head, Global Banking and Markets — Travis Sanou Group Head and CFO — Rajag...
Image source: The Motley Fool. May 27, 2026, 7:00 a.m. ET CALL PARTICIPANTS President & CEO — L. Thomson Group Head and CRO — Shannon McGinnis Group Head, Canadian Banking — Aris Bogdaneris Group Head, International Banking — Francisco Alberto Aristeguieta Silva Group Head, Global Wealth Management — Jacqueline Allard Group Head, Global Banking and Markets — Travis Sanou Group Head and CFO — Rajagopal Viswanathan Need a quote from a Motley Fool analyst? Email [email protected] TAKEAWAYS Adjusted earnings -- $2.7 billion and $2.02 per share, with pretax pre-provision earnings up 16% year over year, reflecting broad-based revenue growth and cost management. -- $2.7 billion and $2.02 per share, with pretax pre-provision earnings up 16% year over year, reflecting broad-based revenue growth and cost management. Return on equity (ROE) -- 13.2%, up 270 basis points year over year, signaling progress toward the bank's 2027 target ahead of schedule. -- 13.2%, up 270 basis points year over year, signaling progress toward the bank's 2027 target ahead of schedule. CET1 ratio -- 13.3%, achieved after repurchasing 6.4 million shares and reflecting disciplined capital management. -- 13.3%, achieved after repurchasing 6.4 million shares and reflecting disciplined capital management. Dividend increase -- Quarterly dividend raised by $0.04 per share, demonstrating confidence in earnings persistence. -- Quarterly dividend raised by $0.04 per share, demonstrating confidence in earnings persistence. Capital returned to shareholders -- $7.5 billion over 12 months through buybacks and dividends, with ongoing commitment to this level of distribution. -- $7.5 billion over 12 months through buybacks and dividends, with ongoing commitment to this level of distribution. Pretax pre-provision profit -- Up 20% year over year, supported by 13% total revenue growth and 17% noninterest income growth. -- Up 20% year over year, supported by 13% total revenue growth and 17% noninterest income growth. P...
Oracle's share price saw a significant increase, primarily driven by several positive developments around its cloud and artificial intelligence (AI) initiatives. A major catalyst appears to be the recent announcement of a substantial cloud infrastructure agreement with the US government. This multi-billion dollar deal positions Oracle as a critical provider of AI computing capacity for national se...
Oracle's share price saw a significant increase, primarily driven by several positive developments around its cloud and artificial intelligence (AI) initiatives. A major catalyst appears to be the recent announcement of a substantial cloud infrastructure agreement with the US government. This multi-billion dollar deal positions Oracle as a critical provider of AI computing capacity for national security and defense, signaling strong demand for its Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI) services. Accompanying this significant contract, the company provided an optimistic financial outlook. Management recently raised its revenue guidance for fiscal year 2027 and reiterated strong targets for fiscal year 2026. This upward revision reflects the robust demand for Oracle's AI infrastructure and cloud offerings, highlighted by a massive and growing backlog of remaining performance obligations. This backlog, much of which is either prepaid or backed by customer-supplied GPUs, provides a clear roadmap for sustained revenue growth. Further supporting the upward trend is a generally positive sentiment from financial analysts. Multiple firms have maintained or upgraded their ratings on Oracle, citing its strong AI cloud backlog, attractive valuation relative to peers, and growing confidence in its long-term revenue potential driven by AI. Institutional investors have also shown increased confidence in the company, with several firms significantly boosting their holdings during the previous quarter, indicating a belief in Oracle's strategic direction and growth prospects. The market appears to be re-rating Oracle's stock higher based on its expanding role in mission-critical workloads, particularly in government cloud, AI infrastructure, and integrated analytics for large enterprises. The company's ongoing innovation in AI-driven applications and database capabilities further reinforces its position as a key player in the evolving technological landscape.
3DSculptor/iStock via Getty Images Space technology stocks tumble in early trading Friday after a rocket being tested by Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin exploded in a massive fireball on a launchpad at Florida's Cape Canaveral. Potentially adding to the gloom was a Bloomberg report saying that SpaceX ( SPCX ) is targeting a valuation of $1.8T , down from a $2T valuation reported in April. AST SpaceMobile ...
3DSculptor/iStock via Getty Images Space technology stocks tumble in early trading Friday after a rocket being tested by Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin exploded in a massive fireball on a launchpad at Florida's Cape Canaveral. Potentially adding to the gloom was a Bloomberg report saying that SpaceX ( SPCX ) is targeting a valuation of $1.8T , down from a $2T valuation reported in April. AST SpaceMobile ( ASTS ), which uses Blue Origin to place communications satellites in space, down 18.5% in early trading. Deutsche Bank downgrades AST SpaceMobile ( ASTS ) to Hold from Buy with a $106 price target following the New Glenn rocket explosion, saying ASTS will be unable to meet its launch target of ~45 satellites in orbit by the end of 2026 without Blue Origin; the bank had been estimating that 26 ASTS satellites would be launched via New Glenn this year. "It's difficult to gauge at this time just how delayed ASTS launch plans will be, but we think it would be very optimistic to expect any New Glenn launches in the next three months and unrealistic that ASTS would have access to the four New Glenn launches we had been estimating for 2026," Deutsche Bank says in a note. While New Glenn could be back to the launchpad within six months, there will inevitably be fewer launches this year spread across Blue Origin's major customers, including Amazon ( AMZN ) and the U.S. government, the bank says. Shares of other U.S. space-related stocks—which have been running hot ahead of the massive SpaceX IPO—trade sharply lower, including Rocket Lab ( RKLB ) down 5.4%, Intuitive Machines ( LUNR ) down 12.3%, Redwire ( RDW ) down 9.6%, Planet Labs ( PL ) down 9.2%, Voyager Technologies ( VOYG ) down 9.3%, Karman Holdings ( KRMN ) down 8%, Firefly Aerospace ( FLY ) down 5.3%, Satellogic ( SATL ) down 6.5%, Momentus ( MNTS ) down 9.3% , MDA Space ( MDA ) down 7.5%, Sidus Space ( SIDU ) down 12.4%, York Space Systems ( YSS ) down 10.1 %, Echostar ( SATS ) down 4.8%, Blacksky Technology ( BKSY ) do...
Microsoft's stock experienced significant upward movement, coupled with intraday volatility, largely driven by several positive developments around its artificial intelligence (AI) initiatives and strong analyst sentiment. A key catalyst appears to be recent reports indicating Microsoft's strategic push towards developing in-house AI models. The company is reportedly planning to unveil a suite of ...
Microsoft's stock experienced significant upward movement, coupled with intraday volatility, largely driven by several positive developments around its artificial intelligence (AI) initiatives and strong analyst sentiment. A key catalyst appears to be recent reports indicating Microsoft's strategic push towards developing in-house AI models. The company is reportedly planning to unveil a suite of new AI models, including a coding model, at its upcoming Build developer conference, aiming to reduce its reliance on external AI partners like OpenAI and Anthropic. This move is seen as a way to lower costs and strengthen its competitive position in the rapidly evolving AI landscape. These internal AI developments are particularly important given that Microsoft's agreement with OpenAI for receiving models at no cost is set to expire in 2032. Furthermore, positive analyst coverage has significantly contributed to the upward momentum. Numerous analysts have reiterated "Buy" or "Strong Buy" ratings for MSFT, with several increasing their price targets, citing Microsoft's strong position in AI and cloud computing markets. For instance, Morgan Stanley recently provided a bullish forecast for Microsoft's cloud infrastructure business, anticipating rapid expansion of data center capacity and increased monetization as new systems come online. HSBC analysts have also projected substantial annual Azure revenue growth by 2030, partly due to Microsoft's partnership with Anthropic. Microsoft's ongoing investments in AI and cloud infrastructure, coupled with its strategic partnerships, are reinforcing its market leadership. The company's AI business has already surpassed $37 billion in annualized revenue, demonstrating significant year-over-year growth. Its Microsoft 365 Copilot paid seats have also seen substantial increases, indicating strong adoption of its AI-powered productivity tools. The sentiment from market analysts suggests that investors might be underestimating Microsoft's a...
Broadcom's stock experienced significant upward movement, driven by a confluence of positive developments surrounding its artificial intelligence (AI) and connectivity portfolios. Investor enthusiasm was bolstered by several recent product announcements and strategic collaborations that underscore the company's expanding presence in high-growth technology sectors. Specifically, Broadcom unveiled n...
Broadcom's stock experienced significant upward movement, driven by a confluence of positive developments surrounding its artificial intelligence (AI) and connectivity portfolios. Investor enthusiasm was bolstered by several recent product announcements and strategic collaborations that underscore the company's expanding presence in high-growth technology sectors. Specifically, Broadcom unveiled new Wi-Fi 8 systems-on-chip for routers and mesh networks, a 50G PON home gateway system-on-chip with integrated on-device AI and security features, and a global fixed wireless access reference design in partnership with Samsung. The company also announced a collaboration with FuriosaAI to co-develop third-generation AI accelerators and rack-scale inference platforms, strategically broadening its reach across both home broadband and data center infrastructure. These product launches and partnerships demonstrate Broadcom's commitment to innovation in critical areas like AI and advanced networking. Further contributing to the positive sentiment is the strong financial outlook for Broadcom's AI semiconductor business. While the official second-quarter 2026 earnings report is anticipated next week, prior guidance indicated robust growth, with AI semiconductor revenue expected to accelerate significantly in the second quarter. Management has also provided projections for annual AI chip sales, suggesting substantial future revenue potential from this segment. This forward-looking guidance is playing a pivotal role in shaping investor expectations. Analyst community endorsements also provided a tailwind. Multiple investment firms have recently reiterated "Buy" or "Overweight" ratings and increased their price targets for Broadcom, reflecting strong conviction in the company's prospects, particularly its opportunities within the AI infrastructure market. This sustained analyst confidence, coupled with the company's strategic advancements in AI and connectivity, continues to fuel inv...
TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 returns October 13–15 to Moscone West in San Francisco — and applications to speak are open for just a few more hours. We’re inviting founders, investors, operators, and technology experts to apply for a chance to take the stage at one of the most influential tech events of the year. More than 10,000 startup and VC leaders will gather at Disrupt 2026 to explore what’s next ...
TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 returns October 13–15 to Moscone West in San Francisco — and applications to speak are open for just a few more hours. We’re inviting founders, investors, operators, and technology experts to apply for a chance to take the stage at one of the most influential tech events of the year. More than 10,000 startup and VC leaders will gather at Disrupt 2026 to explore what’s next in AI, scaling, fintech, infrastructure, robotics, and the future of innovation. Applications close tonight at 11:59 p.m. PT. Apply now to share your expertise and help shape the conversations defining the tech industry. Pick your session format We’re looking for high-impact speakers to lead one of two session types: Breakout Sessions — A 30-minute talk (up to 4 speakers, including a moderator) with a 20-minute audience Q&A. Capacity: 100 attendees. Roundtables — A 30-minute speaker-led group discussion, designed for up to 40 participants. No slides or AV — just insight and conversation. Image Credits:Slava Blazer Photography How the application process works Each application will be carefully reviewed by our editorial team. Finalists will be selected for the Audience Choice vote — where TechCrunch readers choose which sessions make it to the Disrupt stage. Learn more about speaking on Disrupt’s Call for Content page. Lead the conversation at Disrupt 2026 If you have actionable insights, real-world experience, and a desire to contribute meaningfully to the tech ecosystem — we want to hear from you. Submit your application before today’s deadline.
Usually, tech stocks are the best place to put your money, right? Not always. International dividend stocks have been strong lately. Until mid-April, the Vanguard International High Dividend Yield ETF (VYMI +0.02%) had outperformed the Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ +0.02%), which tracks the tech-heavy Nasdaq-100 index, for about the previous 11 months. Even though the Nasdaq-100 has recently rallied, thi...
Usually, tech stocks are the best place to put your money, right? Not always. International dividend stocks have been strong lately. Until mid-April, the Vanguard International High Dividend Yield ETF (VYMI +0.02%) had outperformed the Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ +0.02%), which tracks the tech-heavy Nasdaq-100 index, for about the previous 11 months. Even though the Nasdaq-100 has recently rallied, this is a good reminder that growth stocks don't always beat value stocks. These two ETFs have quite different investment goals and portfolios. But for some investors, buying the Vanguard International High Dividend Yield ETF could be a good move -- even compared with tech stocks. Let's look at these two stock ETFs and see how to decide whether to add them to your portfolio. Vanguard International High Dividend Yield ETF: Reliably profitable companies from 45 countries The Vanguard International High Dividend Yield ETF holds a total of 1,582 international stocks that are expected to deliver higher-than-average dividends. Forty-five countries are represented in this fund. The top holdings are in developed markets like Japan and Western Europe, but the fund also has smaller holdings of stocks from emerging markets, including Brazil, India, and South Africa. This is a well-diversified fund that lets you "buy the world" beyond the U.S. market. It's delivered average annual returns of 21% over the past three years and 13.2% over the past five years. And its expense ratio is quite low -- only 0.07%. Expand NASDAQ : VYMI Vanguard International High Dividend Yield ETF Today's Change ( 0.02 %) $ 0.02 Current Price $ 100.07 Key Data Points Day's Range $ 100.04 - $ 100.35 52wk Range $ 77.46 - $ 101.71 Volume 3.8K A big part of that success comes from the fund's strong focus on high-yield dividend stocks. Top holdings include major financial stocks like HSBC Holdings (1.7% of the fund), big pharma stocks like Roche Holding AG (1.54%), global energy leader Shell (1.4%), consumer staples gi...
The rapid rise of autonomous AI agents is creating favorable demand for cloud infrastructure, and few companies are better positioned to benefit than CoreWeave, Inc. CRWV. As enterprises move beyond traditional AI chatbots toward autonomous systems capable of reasoning, planning and executing tasks independently, the computing requirements behind these applications are expanding dramatically. Reco...
The rapid rise of autonomous AI agents is creating favorable demand for cloud infrastructure, and few companies are better positioned to benefit than CoreWeave, Inc. CRWV. As enterprises move beyond traditional AI chatbots toward autonomous systems capable of reasoning, planning and executing tasks independently, the computing requirements behind these applications are expanding dramatically. Recognizing this trend, CRWV has unveiled a unified set of agentic AI capabilities designed to create a continuous feedback loop between training and inference. Until recently, AI agents followed a fixed cycle: train, test offline, deploy, monitor and retrain when problems appeared. But this approach struggles with modern agentic applications because offline evaluations cannot capture every real-world scenario, causing failures after deployment. As AI agents take on critical roles in customer support, coding, research and automation, companies need systems that improve continuously from live interactions. CoreWeave aims to address this challenge with a new platform designed for real-time learning and continuous improvement. Furthermore, CRWV introduced an agentic AI platform built around four key pillars: serverless reinforcement learning, production-ready inference, agent observability and autonomous improvement. Its Serverless RL service enables enterprises to post-train large language models with lower costs, faster training speeds, automatic scaling and no infrastructure management. The platform’s inference layer is designed for reliable production performance with monitoring for latency, throughput and scaling. Through Weights & Biases’ Weave platform, organizations gain deep visibility into agent behavior, failure modes and multi-agent workflows, helping improve reliability over time. CoreWeave also introduced autonomous improvement capabilities using W&B Skills and MCP servers, allowing AI agents to run experiments, analyze production data and generate optimizations with...
Stocks are hovering near highs to close out the week. Crude oil is dipping, while gold and silver are mixed. The dollar and Treasuries are flatlining. From semiconductor stocks to the entire South Korean stock market, the AI boom has been sending select assets higher. Today, Dell Technologies Inc. (DELL) is capturing the spotlight! Dell stock is soaring another 38% – on top of a 150% year-to-date ...
Stocks are hovering near highs to close out the week. Crude oil is dipping, while gold and silver are mixed. The dollar and Treasuries are flatlining. From semiconductor stocks to the entire South Korean stock market, the AI boom has been sending select assets higher. Today, Dell Technologies Inc. (DELL) is capturing the spotlight! Dell stock is soaring another 38% – on top of a 150% year-to-date rally – amid surging sales for AI servers. The firm boosted its full-year revenue target by $27 billion to $167 billion, with CEO Jeff Clarke saying, “The AI opportunity shows no signs of slowing.” To get your FREE copy of the complete MoneyShow 2026 Top Picks Report, click here. DELL, GOOGL, AVGO (YTD % Change) chart Data by YCharts Speaking of AI, the private equity and credit titans Apollo Global Management Inc. (APO) and Blackstone Inc. (BX) are reportedly trying to arrange a massive $36 billion AI infrastructure deal. They’re lining up investors to raise money to buy Alphabet Inc. (GOOGL) Tensor Processing Units (TPUs), which the Claude maker Anthropic PBC would lease to ensure it has adequate computing power. Broadcom Inc. (AVGO) would provide a payment backstop to help facilitate the transaction. Meanwhile, Brent crude oil futures are on track for their biggest monthly drop since the pandemic in 2020. The decline of more than 18% to around $90 a barrel stems from optimism about an extended ceasefire deal between the US and Iran. One is allegedly close, though similar reports have emerged for weeks – and ultimately come to naught. See also: MoneyMasters Podcast 5/28/26: US-China Relations and the Race for Innovation The relief couldn’t come fast enough for American families. The US personal savings rate plunged to 2.6% last month from 5.8% a year earlier as higher costs pressured wallets and pocketbooks. That was the lowest the savings rate has been since mid-2022, and before that, the mid-2000s. More From MoneyShow.com:
Vanguard Target Maturity 2036 Corporate Bond ETF ( VBCJ ) - $0.3163 . 30-Day SEC Yield of 5.35% as of May 26. Payable Jun 03; for shareholders of record Jun 01; ex-div Jun 01. More on Vanguard Target Maturity 2036 Corporate Bond ETF Dividend scorecard for Vanguard Target Maturity 2036 Corporate Bond ETF
Vanguard Target Maturity 2036 Corporate Bond ETF ( VBCJ ) - $0.3163 . 30-Day SEC Yield of 5.35% as of May 26. Payable Jun 03; for shareholders of record Jun 01; ex-div Jun 01. More on Vanguard Target Maturity 2036 Corporate Bond ETF Dividend scorecard for Vanguard Target Maturity 2036 Corporate Bond ETF
Microsoft (MSFT) stock has declined roughly 12% over the last six months and currently trades around $425, well off its October 2025 peak of $542. Investors are worried, and the concern is legitimate: rising capital expenditure is compressing near-term returns. But does that make the stock a sell? We don’t think so. Here is why. Is the valuation actually stretched? Against the S&P 500, yes. MSFT t...
Microsoft (MSFT) stock has declined roughly 12% over the last six months and currently trades around $425, well off its October 2025 peak of $542. Investors are worried, and the concern is legitimate: rising capital expenditure is compressing near-term returns. But does that make the stock a sell? We don’t think so. Here is why. Is the valuation actually stretched? Against the S&P 500, yes. MSFT trades at a P/S of 10.1 vs. 3.2 for the index, a P/FCF of 44.0 vs. 19.6, and a P/E of 25.6 vs. 23.7. On those numbers, the stock looks expensive. See Microsoft’s valuation metrics. But compared to its own history, the picture changes. MSFT’s three-year average P/E is 36.3. At 25.6 today, the stock is trading at a meaningful discount to where the market has historically been willing to price it. That gap matters. While Microsoft’s valuation shows a discount to its historical average, the broader software sector presents other intriguing pricing anomalies. For a look at another major player, see our analysis: Is Salesforce Stock Deeply Undervalued At $175? Does the business justify a premium valuation? The numbers say yes, clearly. Revenue has grown at an average of 15.3% annually over three years, nearly three times the S&P 500’s 5.8%. In the most recent quarter alone, revenues grew 18.3% year-on-year to $83 billion. The metrics suggest the market may be pricing accelerating growth at a historical discount. Profitability is where Microsoft genuinely separates itself. The operating margin stands at 46.8% vs. 18.4% for the S&P 500. Net income margin is 39.3% vs. 12.9%. Operating cash flow margin is 53.5% vs. 21.1%. See how Microsoft’s margins compare with its peers, including Alphabet (GOOGL) and Amazon (AMZN). These are not slight advantages. A business generating $170 billion in operating cash flow annually has considerable room to absorb elevated capex without structural damage to its financials. Is the balance sheet a concern? No. Debt stands at just $57 billion against a $...