Tale of the Tape

Good evening, folks. What a way to start the week!! 😁

Every major index finished green. 💚 The Nasdaq and Russell 2000 both ran more than 3% while the S&P 500 had its best day since June 5, 2020. 

All but 40 stocks in the S&P 500 closed higher. Here’s the heatmap of today’s action:

Tech was the strongest sector, and financials flew 3.1% as two of the biggest banks on the Street shared crypto news: CitiBank dropped a 108-page report on Bitcoin. Meanwhile, Goldman will start trading $BTC.X once again. More on this below. 

Bitcoin bounced back 7% while Ethereum inched 8%. Can crypto recoup last week’s losses? Time will tell… 

Gambling stocks saw strong gains. 💪 DraftKings dashed to an all-time high. $DKNG had its first double-digit day since last September. $PENN popped 9% and closed only $2.65 away from its all-time high.

Zoom Video crushed earnings after the close. The company’s revenue grew 369% as $ZM zoomed ~10% after hours.

Here are the closing prints: 

S&P 500	3,901	+2.38%
Nasdaq	13,588	+3.01%
Russell 2000	2,275	+3.37%
Dow Jones	31,535	+1.95%

Crypto-Man Sachs

According to a Reuters report, Goldman Sachs is looking to restart its cryptocurrency trading desk as early as next week. 🤭

The desk debuted in 2018, but didn’t get much interest because Bitcoin had already backed off its all-time high. After a 3-year pause, though, the desk will once again begin dealing bitcoin futures, and no-deliverable forwards.

But it doesn’t stop there— Goldman is also reportedly exploring a Bitcoin ETF. 👀

‘Crypto-Man Sachs’ might sound like a joke now, but Bitcoin’s market cap is only a 10x increase away from flipping gold. So you really never know…

Texas’ Power Companies Go Bankrupt

Texas’ largest power company just filed for bankruptcy thanks to last month’s winter freeze. 🥶 💰

Brazos Electric Power Cooperative earned $2.1B in charges during the storms. In 2020, the company spent $774M the whole year… The power company filed for Chapter 11, and its VP said the charges “could not have been reasonably anticipated or modeled.” 

Brazos’ Executive Vice President Clifton Karnei told the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (Ercot) that it would not pay the $2.1B. Karnei also resigned from his position on Ercot’s board. He said: 

Brazos Electric suddenly finds itself caught in a liquidity trap that it cannot solve with its current balance sheet. 

Texas power companies had to purchase more power as prices flew during the storms, resulting in billions worth of unforeseen debt. Here’s Bloomberg with the details. 

Earnings Round-Up

Zoom Video crushed earnings after the close. The company beat on both top and bottom lines, and raised its guidance.

Here are the numbers:

EPS: $1.22 vs $0.79
Revenue: $882M, +369% YoY

$ZM zoomed ~9% after hours. Following the stock’s epic run in 2020, $ZM has maintained its range dating back to September. Where will Zoom drift next?? Place your bets… 

MercadoLibre also reported earnings this afternoon. The platform’s number of active users increased 71.3% YoY, with $MELI’s number of transactions up 109.5% YoY. Ya think the ‘Amazon of Latin America’ is getting popular…? 👀 💸

Here are the numbers:

EPS: -$1.02
Revenue: $1.33B, +97.3% YoY

MercadoLibre’s CFO, Pedro Arnt, commented on the report:

Our strong performance during the quarter further established our leadership position in Latin America, which is the world’s fastest growing region for e-commerce, according to e-Marketer. These positive market dynamics, combined with our strong execution and focus, are reflected in our quarterly performance, where growth continued accelerating despite the gradual reopening of physical retail during the period. 

NIO reported unaudited Q4 and FY 2020 earnings. Vehicle sales increased 130% YoY and vehicle margin was 17.2% compared to -6.0% in Q4 2019.

Here are the numbers:

EPS: ($0.14) vs ($0.38)
Revenue: $1.02B, +149%

$NIO fell ~4% after hours. 

The Game May Be Virtual, But The Stadiums Are Real AF

The Canadian architecture firm Populous recently unveiled new designs for an e-sports stadium in downtown Toronto.

The 7,000-seat stadium is set for completion in 2025, and will feature a venue equipped for everything from e-sports to the opera. Populous’ senior principal, Jonathan Malllie, said: 

The theatre architecture creates a merger of the old and the new.

Will e-sports ever surpass real sports in popularity? With venues like this, we guess anything is possible… 🤷 🤔

Happy Birthday, Yellowstone

On this day in 1872, Yellowstone became the world’s first ever national park. 🙌  💚 The park’s original protection act says: 

…the tract of land in the Territories of Montana and Wyoming, lying near the headwaters of the Yellowstone River… is hereby reserved and withdrawn from settlement, occupancy, or sale under the laws of the United States, and dedicated and set apart as a public park or pleasuring-ground for the benefit and enjoyment of the people; and all persons who shall locate or settle upon or occupy the same, or any part thereof, except as hereinafter provided, shall be considered trespassers and removed therefrom.

Yellowstone started what some might consider one of America’s best ideas. 😉 Never visited? Take a look for yourself: 

Earnings This Week

Be sure to know when your stocks report earnings. Here’s the earnings calendar. 

Links That Don’t Suck

💰 *$OBTC has the lowest management fee of any bitcoin fund in the world. No wallets or keys required. Check Us Out HERE.

🧠 Embracing Mental Novelty

🍿 Howard Lindzon Tells Us Why He Launched His Own SPAC

⚽️ Police Raid FC Barcelona and Detain Four People

✌️Jack of Two Trades

⛔️ Why Every Industry Is Scandalously Wrong (About Everything)

🤖 Physicist Creates AI Algorithm that May Prove Reality Is a Simulation

💪 7 Mentally Tough People on the Tactics They Use to Build Resilience

*Sponsored