Love Employee/iStock via Getty Images Market Update U.S. equities were mostly lower in the first quarter of 2026. The Russell 3000 declined 4%, and the S&P 500 posted its first quarterly decline in a year. The year began on a constructive note as declining yields, improving leading indicators, and rising mortgage applications supported a broadening rally. However, sentiment reversed sharply in Mar...
Love Employee/iStock via Getty Images Market Update U.S. equities were mostly lower in the first quarter of 2026. The Russell 3000 declined 4%, and the S&P 500 posted its first quarterly decline in a year. The year began on a constructive note as declining yields, improving leading indicators, and rising mortgage applications supported a broadening rally. However, sentiment reversed sharply in March following the Iran conflict escalation. The near-blockage of the Strait of Hormuz sent crude oil surging over 75%, reigniting inflation fears and shifting the Fed narrative from rate cuts to potential hikes. Equity market leadership changed sharply as the quarter progressed. Early cyclical broadening gave way to a narrow, commodity-driven market that benefited energy, agriculture, and hard-asset industries. Large-cap Growth was the only style box to post double-digit losses, hampered by Big Tech weakness and AI displacement concerns in software. Conversely, Small Caps proved resilient; the Russell 2000 finished higher while the Equal-Weight S&P 500 remained flat. Sector dispersion was extreme in the S&P 500, with Energy surging over 35% while Technology fell over 9%. From a factor perspective, Value, Momentum, and Yield drove returns. Quality was mixed, while Growth and Volatility factors detracted. Key Performance Takeaways The London Company Small Cap portfolio decreased 1.8% (-2.0% net) during the quarter vs. a 0.9% increase in the Russell 2000 Index. Both sector exposure and stock selection were headwinds to relative performance. The Small Cap portfolio trailed its benchmark in Q1 and came up short of our 85-90% upside capture expectations. Early signs of broadening gave way to a narrower, macro-driven market where our structural underweight to Energy and commodity-linked industries was a significant detractor—similar to early 2022 when Russia invaded Ukraine. Lower-quality, more speculative areas also proved surprisingly defensive. While frustrating, we've navigated...
Earnings Call Insights: Opendoor Technologies (OPEN) Q1 2026 Management View "We entered into contract in over 5,000 homes. That's 2x bigger than Q4 and 3x bigger than Q3" (CEO Kasra Nejatian). "We've now sold through over 80% of the October cohort... Margins for our core cash products have come down only 90 basis points" (CEO Nejatian). "More than 1/3 of our acquisition contracts in Q1 were cash ...
Earnings Call Insights: Opendoor Technologies (OPEN) Q1 2026 Management View "We entered into contract in over 5,000 homes. That's 2x bigger than Q4 and 3x bigger than Q3" (CEO Kasra Nejatian). "We've now sold through over 80% of the October cohort... Margins for our core cash products have come down only 90 basis points" (CEO Nejatian). "More than 1/3 of our acquisition contracts in Q1 were cash now more later. This time last year, that number was exactly 0" (CEO Nejatian). "We purchased 2,474 homes in Q1, up 45% from Q4" and "resale contribution margin... clos[ed] Q1 at 4.4%, up 3.4 percentage points quarter-over-quarter" (Chief Financial Officer Christy Schwartz). "Starting in Q2 2026, we expect to be adjusted EBITDA profitable on a 12-month go-forward basis" (CFO Schwartz). Outlook "Revenue... expected revenue growth of approximately 25% quarter-over-quarter" (CFO Schwartz). "We expect the contribution margin for Q2 2026 to fall in the middle of our 5% to 7% goal" (CFO Schwartz). "We expect Q2 adjusted EBITDA to be breakeven, plus or minus a few million dollars" and "we see Q2 as an inflection point" (CFO Schwartz). "We expect Opendoor to be breakeven or profitable, adjusted net income profitable, by the end of this year on a 12-month go-forward basis" (CFO Schwartz). Financial Results "Q1 closed at 4.4%" resale contribution margin and "fixed operating expenses were $33 million in Q1" (CFO Schwartz). "The percentage of homes on the market for more than 120 days fell to 10%, down from 33% at year-end and 51% at the end of Q3" (CFO Schwartz). "We ended the quarter with $999 million in unrestricted cash" and "we held 3,420 homes in inventory... $1.1 billion in net inventory" (CFO Schwartz). "Our nonrecourse asset-backed borrowing capacity remains robust at $7.1 billion with $1.5 billion committed" (CFO Schwartz). Q&A Mike Alfred, Alpine Fox LP: asked if Opendoor is prepared for AI-driven changes in real estate; CEO Nejatian said, "yes, we believe we're well positio...
Earnings Call Insights: Tantalus Systems Holding Inc. (GRID:CA) Q1 2026 Management view "At $15.1 million of revenue generated in the quarter, we set another milestone for the most revenue generated in a three month period," said CEO Peter Londa, adding, "Our revenue grew by 27% year-over-year while also delivering positive cash flow from operations and positive free cash flow." Londa highlighted ...
Earnings Call Insights: Tantalus Systems Holding Inc. (GRID:CA) Q1 2026 Management view "At $15.1 million of revenue generated in the quarter, we set another milestone for the most revenue generated in a three month period," said CEO Peter Londa, adding, "Our revenue grew by 27% year-over-year while also delivering positive cash flow from operations and positive free cash flow." Londa highlighted TRUSense Gateway adoption, saying, "The number of utilities placing orders for the TRUSense Gateway increased to 70 as of today's call," and linked demand to utility buying preferences: "This innovative offering... provides an alternative option to the traditional rip and replace model across the distribution grid." Londa pointed to commercial momentum amid uncertainty, stating, "Our order conversion in the first quarter remained solid, reflecting a 1.3 book-to-bill ratio despite broader economic and geopolitical uncertainty that surfaced at the end of February this year." CFO Azim Lalani said, "In Q1 2026, the company generated revenue of $15.1 million, reflecting 27% growth year-over-year," and attributed the increase to "shipping more connected devices, tariff recoveries recorded in revenues, as well as revenue from the TRUSense Gateway, coupled with higher software and services revenue." Lalani emphasized recurring revenue scaling, saying, "Recurring revenue recognized in the quarter increased by 16% to $3.6 million" and "As of March 31, 2026, ARR stood at $14.8 million. This is a high watermark for us and demonstrates that our revenue model continues to scale." Outlook Management did not issue formal revenue or EPS guidance in the Q1 2026 transcript. Lalani framed near-term margin expectations around inputs and TRUSense scaling, stating, "In keeping with our comments during the recent Q4 earnings call, we are modeling an anticipated 150 basis point impact to our Connected Devices gross profit margin in the short term," and added, "we expect that gross profit margins wi...
Earnings Call Insights: Covista (CVSA) Q3 FY2026 Management View CEO & Chairman Stephen Beard framed the quarter as a milestone rebrand and scale message, saying, "This is our first earnings call as Covista. The name reflects what we've been building, a single platform for health care workforce development on a national scale, backed by the performance you're seeing in this quarter's results." He ...
Earnings Call Insights: Covista (CVSA) Q3 FY2026 Management View CEO & Chairman Stephen Beard framed the quarter as a milestone rebrand and scale message, saying, "This is our first earnings call as Covista. The name reflects what we've been building, a single platform for health care workforce development on a national scale, backed by the performance you're seeing in this quarter's results." He tied demand durability to staffing shortfalls, citing "roughly 700,000 health care jobs posted every month in the U.S. and only 306,000 unemployed health care workers to fill them." Beard highlighted three headline items: "we surpassed 100,000 students," "Chamberlain returned to positive total enrollment growth ahead of our expectations," and "the strength of our results gives us the confidence to raise both revenue and adjusted EPS guidance for the year." He added that Chamberlain’s reported growth was modest but improving, stating, "We're not declaring victory on a single quarter of 0.5% enrollment growth, but we are telling you that the operating model is working and the trajectory ahead is stronger than the trailing numbers suggest." On Chamberlain’s operational reset, Beard said the company addressed "marketing effectiveness and funnel conversion" by changes including localized marketing, simplifying applications, rebuilding scholarships, and upgrading talent, adding, "We said we'd do these things, and we did." He also detailed forward priorities: "Six new campuses are in active development. The first begins teaching in September," plus a new brand campaign and leadership change. On Walden, Beard emphasized program launch velocity and persistence, stating, "Total enrollment grew 12.3% to over 54,000 students, a record for that institution," and that new programs "have already enrolled over 1,400 students" with "7 additional programs" approved. On enterprise and AI, Beard said, "we're codeveloping the AI-powered classroom of the future" with Google Cloud and noted crede...
In this video, Motley Fool contributor Jason Hall breaks down the latest from QuantumScape (NASDAQ: QS) , including how close to generating real revenue it is, and its pivot to helping power AI data centers. *Stock prices used were from the Morning of May 6, 2026. The video was published on May 7, 2026. Continue reading
In this video, Motley Fool contributor Jason Hall breaks down the latest from QuantumScape (NASDAQ: QS) , including how close to generating real revenue it is, and its pivot to helping power AI data centers. *Stock prices used were from the Morning of May 6, 2026. The video was published on May 7, 2026. Continue reading
The Women’s prize-shortlisted author on being obsessed with Judy Blume, hating Jane Austen at first, and the joys of Tove Jansson My earliest reading memory The Little Engine That Could. My mom used to read it to me at night and then one day I could read it myself. I read it over and over in bed, the story of a valiant little train making it over the mountain when all the bigger ones refused. The ...
The Women’s prize-shortlisted author on being obsessed with Judy Blume, hating Jane Austen at first, and the joys of Tove Jansson My earliest reading memory The Little Engine That Could. My mom used to read it to me at night and then one day I could read it myself. I read it over and over in bed, the story of a valiant little train making it over the mountain when all the bigger ones refused. The thrill of that never got old. I must have been four. My favourite book growing up I was really into Judy Blume. Obsessed. My very favourite, theone that made me think about being a writer for the first time, was It’s Not the End of the World. It’s told in the first person (which was a revelation to me) in the voice of a 12-year-old whose parents are divorcing. The dialogue is funny and sharp. It was the opposite of going through the Looking-Glass: Blume helped me see at age nine how all the drama and craziness and humour and meaning is right here in everyday life. Continue reading...
Oxfordshire’s Ray Valley Solar already generates clean energy for 7,000 homes, and is now crowdfunding storage to marry daylight with evening demand Tucked away among hedgerows on a large field between a motorway and the River Ray, one of the UK’s largest community-owned solar parks is hard to spot from the surrounding country lanes. But the nearly 36,000 solar panels installed on the site are lit...
Oxfordshire’s Ray Valley Solar already generates clean energy for 7,000 homes, and is now crowdfunding storage to marry daylight with evening demand Tucked away among hedgerows on a large field between a motorway and the River Ray, one of the UK’s largest community-owned solar parks is hard to spot from the surrounding country lanes. But the nearly 36,000 solar panels installed on the site are literally a shining example of what can be achieved when a renewable energy project is co-owned by local people. Continue reading...
Law says conviction of two men for spying raises serious concerns over how they accessed sensitive information Nathan Law, an exiled leader of the Hong Kong student protest who lives with a £100,000 bounty on his head from the Chinese authorities, was not surprised to discover a spy ring had photographed him entering the Oxford Union for an evening debate in November 2023. The conviction at the Ol...
Law says conviction of two men for spying raises serious concerns over how they accessed sensitive information Nathan Law, an exiled leader of the Hong Kong student protest who lives with a £100,000 bounty on his head from the Chinese authorities, was not surprised to discover a spy ring had photographed him entering the Oxford Union for an evening debate in November 2023. The conviction at the Old Bailey of Chi Leung “Peter” Wai, 38, and Chung Biu “Bill” Yuen, 65, for assisting a foreign intelligence service, was a sobering first – no Chinese spies had been convicted in British criminal history before Thursday – but the details that came out in the nine-week trial mainly served to confirm his suspicions. Continue reading...
For nearly four decades, the artist Kermit Oswald lived with some of the most intimate works Haring ever made. Now the pieces are going up for auction The story of how Keith Haring came to paint a crib began on a quiet, ordinary afternoon in 1986. His best friend’s wife was pregnant, and the couple didn’t have the money to buy a new crib for their home in New York City’s Greenpoint neighborhood. “...
For nearly four decades, the artist Kermit Oswald lived with some of the most intimate works Haring ever made. Now the pieces are going up for auction The story of how Keith Haring came to paint a crib began on a quiet, ordinary afternoon in 1986. His best friend’s wife was pregnant, and the couple didn’t have the money to buy a new crib for their home in New York City’s Greenpoint neighborhood. “I called my parents to ask if my old crib was still in the attic,” says artist Kermit Oswald, Haring’s friend since childhood. “I got it and I painted it yellow, then Keith came over, we had a few beers and he painted the rest of it.” Haring is famed as an enduring, globally recognized celebrant of Aids activism, nightlife and the New York Bohemian scene of the 1980s. But he honored his connection with his straight best friend even as he rubbed shoulders with Andy Warhol , Robert Mapplethorpe and Jean-Michel Basquiat . Continue reading...