Uber (UBER)
Uber's stock surged by 10.9% on Tuesday after the company reported second-quarter earnings that exceeded expectations, reversing concerns following a first-quarter loss. The ride-hailing giant posted earnings of 47 cents per share on $10.7 billion in revenue, surpassing analyst projections of 31 cents per share on $10.6 billion in revenue. Uber's total trips increased by 21% year-over-year, reflecting strong consumer demand, and the company's gross bookings grew 19% to $40 billion, with adjusted EBITDA reaching $1.57 billion. CEO Dara Khosrowshahi emphasized Uber's potential to partner with autonomous vehicle (AV) companies, addressing investor worries about competition from Tesla's potential robotaxi service. Uber's advertising segment also showed significant growth, contributing to an overall strong performance. Despite earlier stock declines in 2024 due to economic concerns and AV competition, Uber's latest results have reinforced its growth trajectory and profitability.
Celsius (CELH)
Celsius Holdings' stock initially surged on Tuesday following the company's announcement of record-breaking second-quarter results, only to reverse and close down 2.4%, continuing its decline since May. The energy drink maker reported a 65% increase in earnings to 28 cents per share and a 23% rise in revenue to $402 million, both surpassing expectations. Despite this, the company's earnings growth has decelerated over the past two quarters, and sales growth has slowed for four consecutive quarters. U.S. retail channel sales grew by 36.5%, while international sales rose by 30%. CEO John Fieldly highlighted the report as the company's best second-quarter performance, with record highs in revenue, gross profit, and a gross margin improvement of 320 basis points to 52%. Despite these strong results, Celsius stock has struggled, falling 33% year-to-date and retreating to around $39 a share from a high of nearly $100 just a couple of months ago.
Disney (DIS)
Disney's stock fell 4.5% on Wednesday despite the company reporting strong second-quarter results and significant strategic moves. On Tuesday, Disney announced price hikes for its streaming services, effective October 17, raising the cost of Disney+ and Hulu plans, as well as ESPN+. The company also achieved its first quarterly profit for its combined streaming businesses, with Disney+ and Hulu subscriptions growing to 153.8 million and 51.1 million, respectively. Revenue for the quarter reached $23.16 billion, exceeding estimates, and Disney forecast a 30% increase in full-year adjusted earnings. The company is also set to launch a new sports streaming service, Venu Sports, later this fall, and recently extended its media rights deal with the NBA and WNBA. However, Disney's stock struggled due to a forecasted decline in operating income from its experiences segment, and ongoing cost-cutting measures, including a 2% staff reduction in Disney Entertainment Television. Disney's stock has declined over 6% this year, reflecting broader challenges despite recent successes in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and new strategic initiatives.
Super Micro Computer (SMCI)
Super Micro Computer reported mixed fiscal fourth-quarter results, missing analyst expectations with adjusted earnings of $6.25 per share on $5.31 billion in revenue, falling short of the anticipated $8.12 per share on $5.32 billion. Despite a year-over-year earnings increase of 78% and a 143% surge in sales driven by the rising demand for AI infrastructure, the company's stock plummeted on Wednesday falling around 20%. For the current quarter, Supermicro projected adjusted earnings of $7.48 per share on $6.5 billion in sales, slightly below Wall Street expectations. The company also announced a 10-for-1 stock split set to take effect on October 1. CEO Charles Liang highlighted record demand for AI infrastructures, propelling a 110% increase in projected fiscal 2024 revenue to $14.9 billion. However, concerns about the sustainability of AI demand and AI server margins led JPMorgan analyst Samik Chatterjee to cut his price target on SMCI stock from $1,150 to $950, despite maintaining an overweight rating. The stock has dropped nearly 60% from its 52-week high of nearly $1,230, now trading around $500 per share.
Nova Nordisk (NVO)
Novo Nordisk's stock dropped 8.4% on Wednesday after the company reported disappointing sales for its key drugs, Ozempic and Wegovy, both of which use semaglutide to treat type 2 diabetes and obesity. Despite Ozempic sales rising 30% to $4.26 billion and Wegovy sales increasing 69% to $1.88 billion, both fell short of analysts' expectations. The company cited ongoing supply constraints for these drugs, which are also on the FDA's shortage list. Novo Nordisk's overall sales grew 24% to $9.98 billion, slightly missing forecasts, while adjusted earnings of 66 cents per share also lagged behind the expected 71 cents. Despite these misses, Novo raised its 2024 sales outlook, forecasting 22% to 28% growth, up from the previous 19% to 27%, although it warned of continued pricing pressure. The steep decline in Novo Nordisk's stock on Wednesday was fully recovered by the end of Thursday and Friday, with the stock rebounding from $119 per share on Wednesday to $133 per share during Friday’s intra-day trading.
Reddit (RDDT)
Reddit's stock fell over 6% on Wednesday, despite reporting better-than-expected second-quarter sales and a narrower loss. The company posted a 54% year-over-year revenue increase to $281.2 million, surpassing analyst expectations of $254 million. Reddit also reported a loss of 6 cents per share, much lower than the anticipated 32 cents per share. This was Reddit's second earnings report since its IPO in March, showing a significant improvement from a $41 million loss in the same quarter last year to a $10.1 million loss. The company forecasted $300 million in sales for the current quarter, beating analysts' projections of $282 million. Despite strong user growth, with daily active users up 51% and weekly active users up 57%, the stock's decline was attributed to the absence of new large data licensing deals and high investor expectations. Reddit's stock has been volatile since its IPO, hitting a record high in July but currently up just 2% from its first-day closing price.
Shopify (SHOP)
Shopify's stock surged 17.8% on Wednesday after the e-commerce giant reported second-quarter earnings and revenue that exceeded expectations, driven by strong growth in its subscription business. Shopify posted an adjusted profit of 26 cents per share, surpassing analyst estimates of 20 cents, while revenue grew 21% to $2 billion, slightly above predictions. The company's gross merchandise volume also impressed, rising 22% to $67.2 billion, beating forecasts. Shopify's subscription revenue, a key highlight, jumped 27% to $563 million, outpacing estimates, bolstered by recent price hikes for premium services targeting larger companies. Additionally, Shopify provided upbeat guidance for the third quarter, expecting revenue growth in the low-to-mid-twenties percentage range, exceeding Wall Street's forecasts. Despite the stock's strong performance following the earnings report, which led to a significant surge, it only managed to reduce Shopify's year-to-date decline from 27% to a more modest 7% decline.
Lyft (LYFT)
Lyft unexpectedly swung to its first-ever quarterly profit in the second quarter, reporting earnings of 1 cent per share on revenue of $1.436 billion, a 41% increase from the previous year. Despite this positive development, Lyft's stock plummeted 17.2% on Wednesday due to weaker-than-expected gross bookings and disappointing guidance for the current quarter. Gross bookings rose 17% to $4.02 billion, slightly below estimates, and the company provided a cautious outlook for the September quarter, projecting lower-than-expected earnings and bookings. To compete with Uber, Lyft is focusing on reducing surge pricing and testing a subscription service called Price Lock, which aims to offer more predictable fares. However, analysts expressed concerns about the potential short-term impact of these pricing strategies on volume growth. Lyft's stock has struggled this year, down over 30% year-to-date, amid broader market concerns and competitive pressures.
Airbnb (ABNB)
Airbnb's stock plummeted 14.5% on Wednesday, marking its largest single-day drop since going public in December 2020, after the company reported mixed Q2 earnings and a cautious outlook. Airbnb earned 86 cents per share on $2.75 billion in sales, missing analysts' expectations and showing a decline from the previous year's earnings. The company warned of slowing demand, particularly in the U.S., and projected Q3 sales to be $3.7 billion, below analyst forecasts of $3.84 billion. This reflects a broader trend of decelerating growth in bookings and a potential impact from a weakening U.S. economy. The stock is down 14% year-to-date and 16% over the past year, struggling to maintain momentum after a strong start to 2024.
Robinhood (HOOD)
Robinhood's stock surged 3.6% on Thursday following a strong earnings report for the second quarter, which showcased record earnings and revenue. The company posted earnings of 21 cents per share, surpassing expectations of 16 cents, and revenue soared 40% to $682 million, exceeding the forecast of $640 million. The significant revenue growth was fueled by a 69% increase in transaction-based revenue, driven by a 43% rise in options revenue and a 161% spike in cryptocurrency revenue. Robinhood's assets under custody grew 57% to $139.7 billion, and monthly active users rose 9% to 11.8 million. Despite this positive performance, the company's user base fell short of estimates, and the stock has been in a downtrend since mid-July, though it remains up 43% for the year.
Occidental Petroleum (OXY)
Occidental Petroleum's stock experienced a mixed performance after the company reported a strong second-quarter showing with a 51% increase in earnings per share, reaching $1.03, and a 2% rise in revenue to $6.817 billion, surpassing analysts' expectations. Despite these solid results, the stock fell 0.8% on Friday, though it had gained 4.3% the previous day. Occidental’s production for Q2 grew 3% year-over-year to 1.258 million barrels of oil equivalent per day, bolstered by contributions from the Permian Basin and Gulf of Mexico. The company also announced plans to pay back $2.3 billion in debt by the end of August and highlighted its recent $12 billion acquisition of CrownRock, which adds significant production and assets to its portfolio. However, Occidental faces challenges with lower oil prices, influenced by geopolitical tensions and softer demand from China, contributing to a 6.5% drop in oil prices for August. The stock remains below its April highs, down around 3% for the year, and more than 20% since April. Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway, which holds a significant stake and has been a major buyer of OXY shares, continues to support the company despite the downturn. Buffett has repeatedly invested in Occidental, seeing it as a valuable opportunity, but has stated he does not intend to take control of the company.
Expedia (EXPE)
Expedia Group's stock surged 7.5% on Friday after the company reported stronger-than-expected second-quarter earnings and sales. Expedia earned an adjusted $3.51 per share on revenue of $3.56 billion, surpassing analysts' forecasts of $3.18 per share and $3.53 billion. Despite a 21.5% increase in earnings and a 6% rise in sales, Expedia acknowledged a slowdown in travel demand and adjusted its expectations for the rest of the year, projecting annual gross bookings growth of approximately 4% and revenue growth of around 6%. The company's results were notably strong compared to peers like Booking Holdings and Airbnb, which had reported softening demand. Expedia's gross bookings grew 6% to $28.8 billion, and hotel room nights booked rose 10%, indicating robust performance in certain areas. However, even with Friday's gains, Expedia's stock has declined 13% year-to-date, reflecting broader concerns about the travel market and previous weaker-than-expected earnings.
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