Tale of the Tape
Good evening, folks. We made it through another Thursday. 😌 This week has been a doozy.
Every major index finished lower while the S&P 500 closed negative for its 3rd consecutive day. Will stocks finish the week on a down note? Time will tell…
Utilities was the strongest sector. Consumer discretionary barely closed higher. Energy dropped 2.28%.
Bitcoin buoyed just off all-time highs. The crypto is closing in on a $1,000,000,000,000 ($1T) market cap. 🤯
Ethereum pressed to new highs. Can $ETH.X crack 2K next?? Place your bets…
The virtual GameStop hearing kicked off today. ⚖️ 🎮 Roaring Kitty’s background (see below) stole the show.
Wix.com absolutely ripped after yesterday’s earnings report. The stock soared 14% and closed at a new all-time high. Here’s the daily chart:
JPMorgan jumped 0.32% to close at another all-time high.
$CCIV came close to 65 before it reversed and fell $7 in the final hour. The SPAC was one of the most active streams on Stocktwits— yesterday, the stream had ~15,000 messages!! 🚨
Here are the closing prints:
| S&P 500 | 3,914 | -0.44% |
| Nasdaq | 13,865 | -0.72% |
| Russell 2000 | 2,218 | -1.67% |
| Dow Jones | 31,493 | -0.38% |
$GME, Set, Match
The meme stock chronicles continue after a congressional hearing on the $GME and $AMC madness.
The virtual hearing was conducted by the house Financial Services Committee. A variety of people were called to testify, including Keith Gill (a.k.a Roaring Kitty or u/DeepF***ingValue), Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev, Melvin Capital CEO Gabriel Plotkin, and others.
Despite the hours of interrogation, today’s highlight was Keith Gill’s opening statement: “I am not a cat.”
Not everyone in Congress agreed with the hearing, though. GOP Michigan Rep Bill Huizenga called the event “political theater.” While that’s up for debate, it definitely was as entertaining as going to the movies. 😂 🎭
Perseverance Pays Off
We did it, America!! 🥳🎊
Today, the Mars rover Perseverance landed on the red planet safely…and tweeted about it.
Today’s successful mission ended a 203-day expedition (think about that before you complain about a long road trip). And it certainly wasn’t easy.
To successfully land, the rover needed to launch a supersonic parachute and survive the ‘7 minutes of terror,’ aka entering the Martian atmosphere at 12,000 mph. Perseverance did that without NASA’s help, because it’s so far away that communication takes 12 minutes. That’s some serious lag. 😂
Here’s the first image Perseverance transmitted from Mars!
Facebook vs. Australia 🥊
Facebook just blocked news sharing on its platform in Australia. Yep, sharing the news.
The move comes in response to recent Australian legislation allowing the country’s news outlets to charge online platforms for publishing their content.
Facebook altered its algorithm to prevent Australian news sharing. Accidentally, though, the algorithmic changes also banned public health advice regarding Covid-19, weather warnings, and even a children’s hospital site. 🤦
Facebook’s actions make an aggressive statement. Google is also on board, threatening to shut off its Australian engine if news isn’t free… yikes.
50% of Austrailians currently get their news from Google or Facebook, so this could be a disaster in the making. 😬
Tesla’s Price Cuts ✂️
Do you want a new Tesla without breaking the bank?
The infamous EV maker just lowered prices for its cheapest Model 3 and Model Y by 2.6% and 4.8%, respectively. The Model 3 Standard Range Plus now starts at $36,990 in the US, and you can get the Model Y Standard Range for $39,990.
Elon has often griped about his company’s cars being too expensive. Last year, Musk even said Tesla was working on a $25,000 car. But analysts have gotten other ideas.
Dan Levy of Credit Suisse said:
[Price] adjustments may reflect mix strategy. We believe Tesla’s strategy is to cut price (funded by cost cuts) to spur volume increase.
Whatever the reason for price cuts, would you buy a new Tesla? 🔋⚡
Earnings Round-Up
Walmart shares fell 6.6% after the company missed on Q4 earnings. 👎 CEO Doug McMillon said the company will increase its average hourly wage above $15 for US workers. 💸
Here are the stats:
EPS: $1.39 vs $1.51 est.
Revenue: $152.1B, +7.35% YoY
McMillon said:
Change in retail accelerated in 2020. The capabilities we’ve built in previous years put us ahead, and we’re going to stay ahead. Our business is strong, and we’re making it even stronger with targeted investments to accelerate growth, including raises for 425,000 associates in frontline roles driving the customer experience.
$WMT is down 4.6% YTD.
Roku reported earnings after the close. The company announced it has surpassed 50M active accounts. 🎉
Here are the numbers:
EPS: $0.49 vs ($0.05) est.
Revenue: $649.9M, +58% YoY
$ROKU is up 36% already in 2021. The stock was flat after hours.
Earnings This Week
Be sure to know when your stocks report earnings. Here’s the earnings calendar.
Links That Don’t Suck
🌿 What’s next for pot stocks? Here’s how new laws could radically change the industry*
🌌 Stocktwits After Hours: GameStop Hearing Takes Center Stage
👽 We’re Still Dreaming of Mars and Martians
🍄 Psychedelics: A Personal Take
🎙️ Understanding Your Inner Market w/ Dr. Andrew Menaker
🍿 Shopify President Harley Finkelstein on Panic with Friends
💰 Apple Pledges $2.5 Billion to Address California’s Housing Crisis
🏗️ Studio Marco Vermeulen Designs Cross-Laminated Timber Dutch Mountains Skyscrapers
