In today’s top stories, SoftBank announced record losses, the clean energy sector was boosted by the Senate passing the climate bill and CVS eyes up an acquisition. In other headlines, analysts see Alphabet as more resilient than other ad-reliant internet stocks and there could be upside for cannabis stocks.
SoftBank records biggest quarterly loss
Tech-focused funds have been nursing bruising losses in recent months, and the latest casualty is SoftBank [9984.T]. The Japanese conglomerate announced its biggest ever quarterly net loss of 3.16trn yen ($23.4bn) on Monday morning. Its flagship Vision Fund lost 2.33trn yen in the three months to the end of June. CEO Masayoshi Son admitted in an earnings briefing that valuations had been “in a bubble”.
Clean tech surges on Senate vote
The US Senate passed the Inflation Reduction Act over the weekend. The climate portion of the bill includes $369bn in energy provisions, including tax breaks for wind, solar and hydrogen, which are expected to turbocharge the clean energy industry. Unsurprisingly, clean tech stocks were soaring on the back of the news. Sunrun [RUN] and Plug Power [PLUG] were both edging higher in pre-market trading on Monday.
Alphabet a buy amid ad pressure
Advertising margins are being squeezed and the likes of Meta [META] and Snap [SNAP] have been feeling the pinch. Wells Fargo analyst Brian Fitzgerald believes that one way to navigate the slowdown is by focusing on search, namely Alphabet [GOOGL]. Companies that combine advertising and ecommerce are going to “still have resiliency as we go through these macro dislocations in the back half of the year,” Fitzgerald told CNBC’s Squawk on the Street.
CVS eyeing up Signify Health
Drug store retailer and health insurer CVS [CVS] is reportedly lining up a bid for Signify Health [SGFY], TheWall Street Journal reported. An acquisition would help it expand into at-home healthcare tech – Signify’s platform uses analytics to improve clinical diagnoses and healthcare delivery. This news comes as courier giant UPS [UPS] agrees to acquire Italian healthcare logistics company Bomi Group to firm up its position in the medical distribution space.
Upside for pot stocks
US cannabis share prices could light up following their second-quarter earnings. According to Cantor Fitzgerald analyst Pablo Zuanic, most MSOs (the stocks held by the AdvisorShares Pure US Cannabis ETF [MSOS]) expected Q2 revenue to be flat, so there’s room for them to surprise. In a note seen by Seeking Alpha, Zuanic argued that the SAFE Banking Plus legislation will help to spark debate about future cannabis reforms.
Dating services revenue rise
Investors may have a love-hate relationship with dating stocks, but as the above chart shows dating services revenue is expected to increase from $9bn this year to $9.5bn in 2023 and $11.5bn in 2026. Bumble [BMBL] and Match Group [MTCH] are implementing safety features to protect customers from romance scams and keep them renewing their subscriptions. “Dating apps have a fundamentally strong and growing market,” Vitali Kalesnik, director of research for Research Affiliates, told Opto.
Cost of living bites Deliveroo
Hot inflation is cooling customers’ appetite for takeaway, and this could well have eaten into Deliveroo’s [ROO.L] sales growth when the company reports interim results tomorrow. Even if it hasn’t, it still faces a mighty task in turning a profit. One way it aims to improve its margins is through partnerships. It announced last week that it was teaming up with Asda to provide groceries on demand.
Disclaimer Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results.
CMC Markets is an execution-only service provider. The material (whether or not it states any opinions) is for general information purposes only, and does not take into account your personal circumstances or objectives. Nothing in this material is (or should be considered to be) financial, investment or other advice on which reliance should be placed. No opinion given in the material constitutes a recommendation by CMC Markets or the author that any particular investment, security, transaction or investment strategy is suitable for any specific person.
The material has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research. Although we are not specifically prevented from dealing before providing this material, we do not seek to take advantage of the material prior to its dissemination.
CMC Markets does not endorse or offer opinion on the trading strategies used by the author. Their trading strategies do not guarantee any return and CMC Markets shall not be held responsible for any loss that you may incur, either directly or indirectly, arising from any investment based on any information contained herein.
*Tax treatment depends on individual circumstances and can change or may differ in a jurisdiction other than the UK.
Continue reading for FREE
- Includes free newsletter updates, unsubscribe anytime. Privacy policy
