Hey Snackers,
First Taylor Swift, now King Charles: Ticketmaster's caught up in a royal scandal after some fans were told they’d won free tickets for next week's coronation concert, only to find out the tickets were already gone when they tried to claim them.
Yesterday the S&P 500 had its biggest daily gain since January and the Nasdaq rallied 2.4% as investors digested better-than-feared tech earnings. We also got word the US economy grew slower than expected last quarter.
Big Techies surge after surprising investors, showing how low expectations have fallen
Scrollin’ with the homies… Investors sighed after Amazon, Alphabet, Microsoft, and Meta delivered better-than-feared quarterly earnings this week. Those four make up about 15% of the S&P 500, and their results lifted the broader market. “AI” was a favorite in earnings calls, with Microsoft mentioning it 50 times. Other highlights:
Amazon unboxed expectation-beating revenue growth, helped by solid gains in its #ad biz. The Prime padre said AI investments have helped it surface more relevant sponsored listings.
Meta spiked 15% after it surprised investors with its first quarterly sales growth in a year and gave upbeat guidance as it served up more ads. Time spent on Instagram surged 24% thanks to AI recs and TikTok-esque Reels.
Alphabet popped after the Google parent beat expectations, though ad revenue and profit fell from last year as YouTube advertising sagged.
Microsoft also topped estimates, though quarterly sales grew just 7% after previous years of double-digit gains. AI-powered Bing had 100M+ daily users.
From Insta Stories to industry stories… Tech earnings paint a broader picture of consumer and corporate demand. Some trends:
Ad-pocalypse not now? Google said it’s still suffering from an ad pullback, but Meta pleasantly surprised. Social-media ad growth is expected to accelerate this year.
AI on the prize: Meta CEO Zuck said AI recs were boosting social engagement, while Microsoft said bots would drive revenue growth in its productivity tools.
Cloud growth is slowing for Google, Amazon, and Microsoft as companies cool their spend, but it held up better than forecast (Google finally turned a cloud profit).
Low bars are easier to clear… Earnings expectations were low, with S&P 500 companies forecast to report the worst profit decline since lockdown-era 2020. After years of double-digit revenue growth being the norm for Big Tech, now investors are cheering baby gains. Meta stock popped to a one-year high despite its profit plunging by nearly $2B.
Boeing halts some plane deliveries just as summer vacays get ready for takeoff
Plz fix… A sharp-eyed Boeing employee deserves a bonus after detecting a “gnarly” but hard-to-spot flaw in nearly three-quarters of stored 737 Max jets. Boeing said the defect isn’t safety-related, but it is putting deliveries of the popular model on hold just as travel heats up.
Jet not set: Boeing will deliver fewer planes than planned for the next several months as it addresses the problem.
Wing it: The company still expects to meet its annual targets by boosting 737 Max production later this year. Southwest was set to receive 90 Max jets this year, but now expects 70.
FYI: In its quarterly earnings this week, Boeing said sales were up 28%, while its loss narrowed as aircraft demand was hot.
Bad timing… Everyone’s dreaming of a “White Lotus” summer (minus the drama). The TSA’s expecting a record-breaking year for flights, and some analysts say this could be the busiest spring ever. Meanwhile, airlines are seeing record summer bookings. Delta's summer flights were 75% reserved as of mid-April, and United Airlines added 24 global routes to meet eat-pray-lovers’ demand. Hilton unpacked strong #s this week as hotel bookings quadrupled worldwide.
A perfect storm could rain on travelers… Booming demand + aircraft delays + staffing shortages + airport congestion = summertime blues. Southwest plans to cut hiring as a result of Boeing’s delivery delays, even as the industry faces a labor shortage that has NYC airports so short-staffed that airlines are cutting scores of flights. American Airlines’ CEO said this about aircraft-delivery delays: “Guess what? We’re going out and having to cancel flights.”
The Crypto Catch-Up….
💰 Costly… Binance.US backed out of its $1B deal to buy the assets of bankrupt crypto lender Voyager (a fund infusion that would’ve helped it make its customers whole), citing an "uncertain regulatory climate."
🌶️ Spicy… Coinbase said the SEC is making up rules “on the fly” after suing the regulator to force it to issue clearer guidelines. The commission is brewing up its own suit against the US’s largest crypto exchange.
🤔 Sus… The first NFT insider-trading case went to trial this week. The suit, which accuses an ex-OpenSea employee of using confidential token-listing info for personal gain, could set a precedent for the unique asset class.
What else we’re Snackin’
Ban: US senators proposed a bipartisan bill that would ban social media for kids under 13 as mental-health concerns mount. It follows similar tween-focused bills that’ve become law in states like Arkansas and Utah.
Jenga: Hasbro shares jumped 15% after the toy legend topped sales expectations, fueled by its card game “Magic: The Gathering.” Hasbro and rival Mattel also signed cobranded IP deals (like: Barbie Monopoly).
Rocked: Here comes the bride slide. Signet Jewelers said sales have slumped as fewer couples get engaged. It’s a theme: this month wedding icon David’s Bridal filed for bankruptcy after 70+ years in biz.
Skip: NBC's Peacock streamer logged a $700M+ quarterly loss (and expects a $3B annual hit). The plus side: Peacock’s sales and sign-ups soared, with paid US subs up 60% from last year.
Roof: The GOP-led House passed a bill to raise the US debt ceiling by $31.4T. While the Biden admin said it has “no chance” of becoming law, it could spark talks as the default deadline looms.
Friday
- Earnings expected from Exxon, Chevron, Colgate-Palmolive, and Sony
Authors of this Snacks own shares of: Amazon, Comcast, Exxon, Delta, Google, and Microsoft