Sony hits highest point in decades on PS5 sales improvement, cheaper Japan console

US-listed ADRs of Sony reached their highest point since the early 2000s on Wednesday as investors continued to digest the tech giant’s second-quarter earnings results.

On Tuesday, Sony reported that it had sold 3.9 million PlayStation 5s in the quarter ended September 30 — a period that included a $50 US price hike. That sales figure moves the 5-year-old console’s lifetime sales number (now 84.2 million) ahead of Microsoft’s Xbox 360 and just shy of the PS3. The PS5 is still narrowly behind the sales pace of the PS4.

During a State of Play showcase on Tuesday evening, Sony announced it would begin selling a Japanese-language-only version of the console for about 25% cheaper than the standard version. The move mirrors Nintendo’s Switch 2 pricing strategy from earlier this year, when it priced the new handheld console about 35% cheaper in Japan than in the US.

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Luke Kawa23s

Gold gets to be a meme stock again

A ton of volatile, retail darlings are getting crushed on Wednesday.

And the hot momentum-seeking money seems to be flowing out of those speculative pockets of the market and back into gold.

Daily call volumes in the SPDR Gold Shares ETF already outstripped 1 million by 1:10 p.m. ET, roughly triple their 334,000 average over the last 10 full sessions.

Retail had been exiting gold in late October, per JPMorgan data, after a torrid run in the price action and trading activity in precious metals were exactly what you’d expect from a meme stock.

Analysts shrug off Oklo’s deeper-than-expected loss

They’re giving the company — which still has zero revenue and widening losses — credit for getting crucial support and approvals from the US government.

Matt Phillips1h

Max Knoblauch2h

Lucid on pace for lowest close ever following $875 million debt offering

Shares of luxury EV maker Lucid are down about 97% from their all-time highs in 2021, and the stock isn’t exactly showing signs of improvement.

The stock was down about 6.5% and on pace for its lowest closing price ever Wednesday following an announcement that it plans to raise $875 million through a private offering of convertible senior notes due in 2031. Earlier this year, Lucid raised $1.1 billion through an offering of convertible senior notes due in 2030.

The stock’s previous lowest close ever was September 4, after Lucid executed a big reverse stock split, at $16.16.

In its third-quarter earnings report, which was released last week, Lucid posted an adjusted net loss of more than $828 million, significantly deeper than Wall Street expected. The company reported negative free cash flow of $955 million for the quarter.

Luke Kawa3h

DraftKings insiders stepped up to buy over $1 million in company stock after two-month rout

Two directors at DraftKings bought over $1 million in company stock on Tuesday, a vote of confidence that better times are coming for the online sports betting company after shares plunged 36% during September and October as competition from prediction markets weighed on existing players.

SEC filings showed Vice Chairman Harry Sloan bought $757,500 in company stock in a series of transactions, while board member Gregory Westin Wendt purchased $302,700.

DraftKings recovered from a big knee-jerk drop after reporting earnings last week as investors warmed to its plans to get its own prediction markets business up and running “in the coming months.”

Luke Kawa4h

Starbucks jumps as Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent says tariff relief on coffee is imminent

While a shortage of Starbucks “Bearista” cups is a unique headache for upper-income consumers, high coffee prices are a problem for pretty much everyone who wants to function somewhat productively.

On that note, shares of Starbucks popped this morning after these headlines from a Fox News interview with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent hit the wires:

*BESSENT: WILL SEE SUBSTANTIAL TARIFF NEWS NEXT COUPLE DAYS

*BESSENT: GOING TO UNVEIL TARIFF RELIEF ON COFFEE, OTHER ITEMS

Dutch Bros also enjoyed a nice bump, while Keurig Dr Pepper and JM Smucker saw more muted gains on this news.

On Starbucks’ October 29 conference call, CFO Cathy Smith flagged that the company’s operating margin fell 500 basis points from the same quarter a year ago “primarily driven by inflation, led by coffee prices and tariffs.”

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