All articles tagged with #market news
AI anxiety swept markets, sending stocks lower even as Nvidia posted solid results and OpenAI secured a $110 billion investment, underscoring ongoing AI-driven capex and near-term margin pressures; Block's layoffs highlighted automation risks. Geopolitics added risk with US-Israel strikes on Iran, Cuba tensions, and Pakistan-Taliban clashes, boosting demand for oil and haven assets and shaping a cautious market outlook for the week ahead.
Cathie Wood’s ARK Invest purchased about 198,980 CoreWeave shares (~$19.4 million) despite a 19% drop after mixed Q4 results, signaling conviction in AI infrastructure demand. ARK also bought 252,169 shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions while trimming exposure to Teradyne and Rocket Lab. Wall Street assigns CRWV a Moderate Buy with a price target around $114, implying ~43% upside; the moves reflect a long‑term AI compute growth thesis rather than near‑term earnings concerns.
OpenAI has struck a major deal with Amazon to expand AWS capacity for its AI systems, adding a significant new computing option alongside Microsoft Azure. The arrangement is described as not altering the long-standing Microsoft–OpenAI partnership; Microsoft retains exclusive rights to OpenAI technology and core services will continue to run on Azure, with open terms for future multi-cloud collaborations. The move is meant to meet rising demand without replacing Microsoft as the primary partner. Analysts still rate both AMZN and MSFT as Strong Buys, with MSFT offering about 51% upside versus roughly 34% for Amazon.
U.S. stock futures slipped Friday as Nvidia fell 5.6%, with Nasdaq 100, S&P 500, and Dow futures down about 0.3–0.5% ahead of a key inflation report. Thursday’s session was mixed and February’s final trading day looms amid AI-related tech jitters; after hours, Salesforce and Microsoft drifted lower while Zscaler tumbled on weak guidance. Economists expect January’s PPI to rise 0.3%, potentially shaping Fed expectations. The 10-year yield hovered near 3.99%, oil around $66.49 per barrel, and Asia-Pacific markets largely rose as Europe opened mixed.
CoreWeave’s stock fell about 16% after Q4 results showed revenue up 110% to roughly $1.57 billion, but a larger loss and rising debt from rapid data-center expansion spooked investors. The company’s guidance for Q1 revenue of $1.9–2.0 billion and an ~8% operating margin, plus 2026 capex of $30–35 billion, suggest profits may stay thin in the near term despite strong demand and a multi‑billion backlog.
The S&P 500 ETF SPY and the Nasdaq 100 ETF QQQ closed lower on Thursday, pressured by Nvidia despite a revenue and earnings beat and upbeat guidance. Nvidia remains the largest holding in both ETFs, and its roughly 5.5% drop underscores investor concerns about AI capital expenditure sustainability and concentration risk. The broader market showed SPX down about 0.54% and NDX down about 1.16%. Separately, U.S.–Iran indirect talks in Geneva were described as positive with progress but still unresolved on key issues, while data on jobless claims and tariff policy remained in focus for traders.
Morgan Stanley argues that fear over AI is creating a rare buying window for high-quality software, services, and financial stocks by focusing on 'AI adopters'—companies that use AI to boost efficiency and pricing power. They highlight names like Microsoft, Intuit, Atlassian, and Palo Alto Networks as beaten-down but solid bets, with banks and payments firms such as Citi, Visa, and Mastercard also set to benefit; the idea is that AI-enabled operating leverage could lift earnings through 2026.
TipRanks’ ETF comparison finds Vanguard Growth ETF (VUG) offers the highest upside for 2026 at about 30%, ahead of Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO) at ~21% and Vanguard Value ETF (VTV) at ~10%; VUG also has the highest beta, signaling more volatility, while VTV is the most defensive. VOO’s holdings are tech-heavy (NVDA, AAPL, MSFT, AMZN, GOOGL) with upside pockets like ORCL and INTU, whereas VTV focuses on lower-valuation, more traditional sectors led by JPMorgan, Berkshire Hathaway, and Exxon Mobil. Overall, VUG leads on upside, with VOO offering broad exposure and VTV offering steadier, slower upside.
Palantir has been punished by the market despite solid growth and a 127% Rule of 40 score, but top investor Daniel Sparks cautions that sky‑high multiples (roughly 200x P/E and 70x P/S) leave little room for error and could push the price lower. He suggests patient investing, while Wall Street’s Moderate Buy consensus still sees about $191.25 ahead in 12 months (roughly 45% upside).
Salesforce (CRM) beat fiscal Q4 expectations with adjusted EPS of $3.81 on $11.2B revenue (up 12%), aided by a 13% rise in subscription revenue and Informatica’s $399M contribution; RPO hit a record $72.4B and ARR for Agentforce/Data 360 surpassed $2.9B. The company announced a $50B share repurchase plan, raised its quarterly dividend to $0.44, and issued upbeat FY guidance (revenue of $45.8–$46.2B; adjusted EPS of $13.11–$13.19; Q1 revenue of $11.03–$11.08B). Despite the beat, CRM declined about 5% after hours as investors weigh the outlook. A Moderate Buy consensus remains from analysts.
Tech stocks led a rebound for the S&P 500 ETF (SPY) and Nasdaq 100 ETF (QQQ) on Tuesday, with AMD, INTC, CRM and QCOM up 3%+ and Amazon and Tesla also higher; Trump announced a global tariff of 10% that could rise to 15% later, keeping tariffs in focus; The Conference Board’s February consumer confidence rose to 91.2, while Fed official Austan Goolsbee urged keeping rates unchanged until inflation is at 2%; the State of the Union is tonight at 9 p.m. ET; the S&P 500 gained 0.77% and the Nasdaq 100 gained 1.09%.
Goldman Sachs maintains a Buy on Microsoft after the Maia 200 AI inference accelerator is unveiled, praising AI compute advances and keeping a $600 target, even as MSFT shares slip about 2.5% in trading. The Maia 200’s parity with competitors helps MSFT’s AI compute margins narrative, while Xbox leadership shifts (Phil Spencer’s retirement; Asha Sharma’s ascent; Sarah Bond’s departure; Matt Booty’s promotion) signal internal reorganization. Analysts remain bullish with a Strong Buy consensus and an average target around $594, implying roughly 53% upside.
Wells Fargo's Michael Turrin reiterates an Overweight rating on CoreWeave (CRWV), arguing that demand for the company's AI compute capacity could lift Q4 FY2025 revenue above the Street estimates. He models about $1.57 billion in Q4 revenue, near the consensus of $1.56 billion, citing over 1 gigawatt of contracted capacity remaining for the next 12–24 months and recent deals with Runway and Poolside; Poolside could represent roughly $1 billion in annual revenue. The stock has jumped about 140% in the last year, and TipRanks shows a Moderate Buy consensus with a target implying roughly 33% upside.
AMD shares fell about 2.4% after rumors that Zen 6 CPUs (codenamed Olympic Ridge) may be delayed to 2027 due to AI-driven component shortages, though AMD still expects a 2026 release; Intel reportedly faces similar delays. Analysts rate AMD as Moderate Buy with a price target around $283.69, implying roughly 45% upside.
Hedge fund investor Michael Burry questions when the aggressive AI data-center buildout will end, criticizing hyperscalers such as Oracle, Alphabet (Google), Meta, Microsoft, Amazon and Nvidia for expansive capex and potential cash-flow strain. He warns of possible earnings restatements and depreciation masking costs, and likens current AI hype to past bubbles like the 1920s radio boom and the dot-com era.