Stanislaw Pytel/DigitalVision via Getty Images In just a few short months, many software companies made the hard transition from being AI stock darlings to potential AI roadkill, at immediate risk of being unseated by cheaply vibe-coded applications. As the Q4 earnings season rolls on and we're seeing strong results and outlooks from a spectrum of software stocks, the "SaaSpocalypse" narrative con...
Stanislaw Pytel/DigitalVision via Getty Images In just a few short months, many software companies made the hard transition from being AI stock darlings to potential AI roadkill, at immediate risk of being unseated by cheaply vibe-coded applications. As the Q4 earnings season rolls on and we're seeing strong results and outlooks from a spectrum of software stocks, the "SaaSpocalypse" narrative continues to lose more and more credibility. Figma ( FIG ), the AI-powered design platform that is taking market share from legacy incumbents like Adobe ( ADBE ), just soared 15% after reporting healthy Q4 results and issuing a robust outlook for FY26. Of course, those gains still do little to arrest a tremendous correction over the past year, with shares of Figma below its original $33 IPO price and well below the $100 levels at which it changed hands last August . The question for investors now is: can this stock make a full rebound? Data by YCharts I last wrote a neutral article on Figma in December, when the stock was trading in the high $30s. Since then, the stock is down ~30%, even after the recent post-earnings jump. Given Figma's quickly collapsing valuation amid strong growth (which provides ample evidence that AI is a tailwind rather than a headwind), I'm more than enticed to buy Figma on the dip, and I'm raising my rating on the stock to buy. To me, especially at current decimated share prices, there are a number of bull case tailwinds that support a rebound for Figma. The key catalysts for investors to keep in mind are: Figma is achieving terrific growth at scale. Figma has surpassed a $1 billion annualized revenue run rate, and yet, in spite of this, the company is still showcasing revenue growth accelerating to the high 30%'s/40%'s. This is a clear indication of a company that serves a broad TAM and has greenfield expansion opportunities, especially as it launches more products. Cross-sell and retention momentum is unparalleled, especially as Figma grows its pene...
(RTTNews) - Stock of UL Solutions Inc. (ULS) is moving up about 13 percent on Thursday morning trading over rise in fourth-quarter revenue to $789 million from $739 million last year.
(RTTNews) - Stock of UL Solutions Inc. (ULS) is moving up about 13 percent on Thursday morning trading over rise in fourth-quarter revenue to $789 million from $739 million last year.
The bond market’s consensus view that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates at least twice more this year is at odds with US economic resilience, say portfolio managers at Invesco Ltd. and Carmignac, who are betting against Treasuries. Yields on US government debt are close to their lowest levels in months, after a rally spurred by haven demand amid stock-market jitters and last week’s tame ...
The bond market’s consensus view that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates at least twice more this year is at odds with US economic resilience, say portfolio managers at Invesco Ltd. and Carmignac, who are betting against Treasuries. Yields on US government debt are close to their lowest levels in months, after a rally spurred by haven demand amid stock-market jitters and last week’s tame January inflation reading. The bullish tilt suggests many investors expect ebbing price pressures will give officials room to slash borrowing costs later this year on any signs of labor-market weakness. It’s not an outlook that Invesco, Carmignac and BNP Paribas SA share, however. As they see it, the economy looks too sturdy to build in much more Fed easing. For one thing, January job growth beat projections . Meanwhile, companies are pouring money into the economy to invest in artificial intelligence. And minutes from the Fed’s last meeting showed policymakers appeared wary of lowering rates , with “several” suggesting hikes may be needed if inflation stays above the central bank’s 2% target. Macro strategists at TS Lombard told clients this week to bet on fewer rate reductions in the second half of 2026. For Rob Waldner , fixed-income chief strategist at Invesco, the base case is one cut this year. But it’s “increasingly likely there are no cuts” given the strength of recent economic data, he said. The firm, which manages more than $2.2 trillion, is underweight Treasuries given expectations for improving growth and above-target inflation. At Carmignac in Paris, Guillaume Rigeade has a similar view. He’s short US Treasuries and sees the 10-year yield drifting toward 4.5% in the coming months, the highest since mid-2025, from roughly 4.1% now. The rate, a benchmark for global borrowing, sank to about 4.02% on Tuesday, the lowest since November. “They will cut rates, but it is not justified by the inflation outlook and growth,” said Rigeade, co-head of fixed income at Carmig...
straga/iStock via Getty Images Stocks for the week ended February 13 were 2,070 Bcf vs. 2,214 Bcf for the week ended February 6. Net change: -144 Bcf vs. -249 Bcf for the week ended February 6. Consensus: - 148.00B. ETFs: ( UNG ), ( BOIL ), ( KOLD ), ( FCG ), ( UNL ), ( HNU:CA ) Click here to read the full EIA Weekly Natural Gas Storage Report. More on Natural Gas Futures, United States Natural Ga...
straga/iStock via Getty Images Stocks for the week ended February 13 were 2,070 Bcf vs. 2,214 Bcf for the week ended February 6. Net change: -144 Bcf vs. -249 Bcf for the week ended February 6. Consensus: - 148.00B. ETFs: ( UNG ), ( BOIL ), ( KOLD ), ( FCG ), ( UNL ), ( HNU:CA ) Click here to read the full EIA Weekly Natural Gas Storage Report. More on Natural Gas Futures, United States Natural Gas Fund LP ETF, etc. Natural Gas: $3 Support Under Pressure As Breakdown Risk Builds Commodities: Oil Spikes As U.S.-Iran Conflict Concerns Intensify Commodities: U.S.-Iran Talks Continue U.S. natural gas inventory net change of -249 Bcf for week ended February 6 – EIA Crude oil tumbles ahead of U.S.-Iran talks; U.S. posts record natural gas storage draw
Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) CEO Elon Musk has reiterated the April production goal for the upcoming Cybercab. No Steering, Pedals In a post on the social media platform X on Monday, the billionaire quoted a video that showcased a clip from an old interview Musk gave where he predicted the advent of autonomous vehicles. "Cybercab, which has no pedals or steering wheel, starts production in April," Mus...
Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) CEO Elon Musk has reiterated the April production goal for the upcoming Cybercab. No Steering, Pedals In a post on the social media platform X on Monday, the billionaire quoted a video that showcased a clip from an old interview Musk gave where he predicted the advent of autonomous vehicles. "Cybercab, which has no pedals or steering wheel, starts production in April," Musk said in the post. Cybercab, which has no pedals or steering wheel, starts production in April http
Thitima Uthaiburom/iStock via Getty Images Investment Thesis Robinhood’s ( HOOD ) business is moving away from the trading-focused business it was originally founded on and becoming more of an asset-gathering business, subscription business, and banking business. This makes the business more stable and less dependent on the ups and downs of cryptocurrency or trading markets. Increasing deposits wi...
Thitima Uthaiburom/iStock via Getty Images Investment Thesis Robinhood’s ( HOOD ) business is moving away from the trading-focused business it was originally founded on and becoming more of an asset-gathering business, subscription business, and banking business. This makes the business more stable and less dependent on the ups and downs of cryptocurrency or trading markets. Increasing deposits will continue to grow the business’s interest income and operating leverage, providing a stable earnings profile. If the company can continue to drive the strong deposit growth into 2026, the business mix will continue to improve. Since my last coverage , when I downgraded the stock to Hold, shares have fallen 26%, but with the business now more diversified and resilient, I believe the risk/reward supports an upgrade to Buy. Targets 20%+ Net Deposit Growth in FY26 As I see it, Robinhood Markets has expanding net deposits and a diversified topline. This base reduces dependence on trading volumes that are volatile in nature. Robinhood Markets has moved beyond simple transaction-based income into a broad ecosystem. In FY25, total platform assets grew nearly ~70% YoY to $324 billion. Net deposits hit $68 billion, which represents a 35% growth rate. This influx of capital directly supports financials by increasing the base of interest-earning assets. Interest-earning assets increased 39% amid growth in the cash sweep program, margin, and credit card loan books. The expansion into subscription models offers stability. The subscribers of Robinhood Gold grew 58% YoY to 4.2 million, while subscription revenue grew 56% to $50 million in Q4. This is a hedge against market downturns. I mean, as market volatility decreases and trading volumes decrease, subscription fees remain unchanged. Q4 Earnings Robinhood Markets now operates 11 businesses, deriving over $100 million in annualized topline. In my view, this diversification means that a decline in one sector (like cryptocurrency) may no...
New OpenAI Funding Round Could Top $100 Billion, Pushing Valuation North Of $850 Billion OpenAI's private valuation could soon top $850 billion , as the first tranche of a new funding round is expected to raise more than $100 billion , giving the ChatGPT maker fresh powder for additional infrastructure spending and faster development of its AI tools, Bloomberg reported. People familiar with the fu...
New OpenAI Funding Round Could Top $100 Billion, Pushing Valuation North Of $850 Billion OpenAI's private valuation could soon top $850 billion , as the first tranche of a new funding round is expected to raise more than $100 billion , giving the ChatGPT maker fresh powder for additional infrastructure spending and faster development of its AI tools, Bloomberg reported. People familiar with the fundraising told the outlet that the ChatGPT maker's valuation could exceed $850 billion, with a reported pre-money valuation of $730 billion . The first phase of the funding round is being led by Amazon, SoftBank Group, Nvidia, and Microsoft, with allocations potentially finalized by the end of this month. A second phase of funding could include venture firms, sovereign wealth funds, and other investors, potentially pushing the total fundraising even higher. UBS analyst Aditi Samajpati told clients earlier that OpenAI's new funding round "highlights the escalating capital intensity of AI development and deepening strategic alignment between OpenAI and Big Tech." Bloomberg hedged the report by indicating the "deal is not yet finalized and the details could change." Shares of SoftBank , which held an 11% stake in OpenAI as of December, jumped as much as 4% on the news during Tokyo trading. Shares closed up 2.6% and have remained flat year-to-date after peaking in October 2025. OpenAI's potentially stunning private-market valuation comes after Anthropic was valued at about $350 billion in its latest Series G funding round led by GIC and Coatue. Markets are pricing in a world in which US AI giants capture an outsized share of global AI revenue, control the highest-margin layers of the stack, and retain pricing power as customers continue to pay up. The key risk we see is duration in the AI story , and this may be a harder narrative to maintain as the technological gap between US and Chinese AI models narrows. Tyler Durden Thu, 02/19/2026 - 10:30
Almost $1 billion in US government funding helped fuel a series of research projects involving defense labs in China in recent years, according to a new study that concludes security policies around such partnerships have failed. The study is believed to be the first of its kind to put a dollar figure — $943.5 million — on such collaborations, which critics have cited as examples of the US unwisel...
Almost $1 billion in US government funding helped fuel a series of research projects involving defense labs in China in recent years, according to a new study that concludes security policies around such partnerships have failed. The study is believed to be the first of its kind to put a dollar figure — $943.5 million — on such collaborations, which critics have cited as examples of the US unwisely aiding its top adversary’s military, and using taxpayer money to do so. The report was published by the nonpartisan Center for Research Security & Integrity, a Virginia-based nonprofit. The report doesn’t allege illegal activity. Instead it argues that a big part of the problem is precisely that the US government has not put more limits on research collaboration. For example, because academic research is exempt from export controls, in many cases there’s nothing to stop a professor in the US from working with a defense lab in China — even if Washington has otherwise restricted it from accessing US technology on national-security grounds. The analysis documented collaborations with 45 Chinese government-designated defense labs from 2019 through mid-2025. The resulting 313 English-language articles involved topics such as directed energy systems, artificial intelligence and high-performance computational physics. “These are critical technology fields that can fundamentally change future military and warfighting capabilities, yet PRC defense laboratories are directly benefiting from this research,” the report said, referring to the People’s Republic of China. The report said the total amount of federal dollars aiding Chinese military research would be higher if it took into account all Chinese labs working on defense, such as those run by provincial governments or state-owned enterprises. “The US and many of its key allies have failed to adapt to a contradictory reality: one of the most significant contributors to and participants in the global scientific enterprise is also ...
Dilok Klaisataporn Joe Lavorgna, Counselor to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, declared that the U.S. economy is experiencing “very strong disinflationary growth,” with GDP expanding at approximately 4% under President Trump’s administration. “The reality… is we’re getting very strong disinflationary growth,” Lavorgna said in an interview with CNBC. He emphasized that growth has been driven entir...
Dilok Klaisataporn Joe Lavorgna, Counselor to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, declared that the U.S. economy is experiencing “very strong disinflationary growth,” with GDP expanding at approximately 4% under President Trump’s administration. “The reality… is we’re getting very strong disinflationary growth,” Lavorgna said in an interview with CNBC. He emphasized that growth has been driven entirely by the private sector, noting that excluding government contributions, the economy is growing closer to 5%. The administration’s fiscal discipline has also yielded significant results, according to Lavorgna. He pointed to a substantial drop in the calendar year budget deficit from nearly 7% to 5.4% of GDP, calling it the largest non-pandemic decline in the deficit-to-GDP ratio since 2013 when sequestration measures took effect. To support this analysis, he mentioned headline and core CPI running at approximately 2.2% over the last four months. He attributed the cooling prices to a capital expenditure boom that is increasing productive capacity. “All the ingredients now with faster productivity are there,” he said, adding that these conditions support lower interest rates going forward. Addressing concerns about tariff-induced inflation, Lavorgna argued that the predicted price increases have not materialized in the data. He cited research showing that the 90% pass-through rate predicted by the Federal Reserve has not occurred, with consumer goods prices running under 2% rather than the expected 4%. “There’s clearly not that tariff effect that everybody thought was going to occur,” he said, suggesting that foreign producers are absorbing costs in their margins while tariff revenues have helped push mortgage rates lower. Lavorgna acknowledged weakness in consumer confidence indicators but attributed them to a labor market that was “weaker than it appeared” when the administration took office. He noted that non-farm employment has been revised down by nearly 2M jobs from 2...
jetcityimage/iStock Editorial via Getty Images Carvana Co. ( CVNA ) shares plunged 14% to $310 on Thursday, Feb. 19, after the used-vehicle reseller reported decent Q4 results but also mildly concerning profitability trends. The company's gross profit per vehicle dipped amid a weaker wholesale market, but what really pressured the stock was the lack of revenue and earnings guidance from the manage...
jetcityimage/iStock Editorial via Getty Images Carvana Co. ( CVNA ) shares plunged 14% to $310 on Thursday, Feb. 19, after the used-vehicle reseller reported decent Q4 results but also mildly concerning profitability trends. The company's gross profit per vehicle dipped amid a weaker wholesale market, but what really pressured the stock was the lack of revenue and earnings guidance from the management team and a percentage point margin dip. I have a "B uy" rating on the stock. The price-to-earnings ratio is not stratospheric, and the street still expects significant bottom-line growth in the years ahead. What's more, the technicals point to potential support in play. This is an ideal name to dip a toe in, then buy again if we see weakness. I’ll call out key price levels on the chart to monitor heading into the spring. CVNA Gives Up Massive YoY Alpha StockCharts.com In February, Carvana reported a mixed set of quarterly results. Q4 net income tallied $951 million, while adjusted EBITDA was $511 million during the October through December period. Its adjusted EBITDA margin was 9.1%, with net sales of $5.6 billion (a record and up 58% from the same period a year ago). Operationally, Carvana sold a record 163,522 retail units during the quarter, a 43% increase compared to the previous year. Despite the big top-line beat, shares cratered 14% by the following morning, which would be a second straight decline of that magnitude after earnings. The options market had priced in a large 13.8% earnings-related stock price swing based on the at-the-money straddle, so the move was actually in line with the volatility cue. Implied volatility was sky-high at 95% coming into the print on the $68 billion market cap Consumer Discretionary sector stock. Keep in mind that short interest on CVNA is elevated at 10.5%. Looking back on the quarter that was, Carvana posted rather strong revenue and free cash flow, with retail units comfortably beating street estimates. Its EBITDA and retail ...