Tale of the Tape

Good evening, everyone! The market of stocks snapped a 3-day losing streak as every major index marched higher!! 💪

The Nasdaq led the way, gaining 1.7%. The Dow barely closed positive.

Tech turned up 1.9%, followed closely by communications. Real estate, healthcare, and consumer discretionary all dashed at least 1%. Energy was the only negative sector. 👎

Crypto clapped back after its hideous humpday action. Bitcoin bopped between 35K and 42.6K. Ethereum nearly reclaimed 3K— its intraday high from today is 2,999.99. 👀

The US Dollar dropped 0.45%, giving up yesterday’s gains. 

Semiconductors surged for the second straight session. ⚡ $SMH sailed +2.48%. 

Virgin Galactic flew 14.7% as the company confirmed Saturday’s test flight. Listen to the latest on tonight’s episode of After Hours. 🌌

Snap streaked 5.86% as the company held its 2021 partner summit. Here’s adweek with more. 

Etsy etched up 4.2%. The stock closed at its highest price since its earnings gap down on May 6th. 

$ANET advanced 3.82% and broke out to blue skies. Here’s its monstrous monthly chart:

And here are the closing prints:

S&P 500	4,159	+1.06%
Nasdaq	13,535	+1.77%
Russell 2000	2,207	+0.64%
Dow Jones	34,084	+0.55%

Manhattan’s Little Island 🏝️

Manhattan’s $260M “Little Island” park is finished, and we have to say… it’s pretty awesome. 

Little Island is visible from Manhattan’s West Side Highway where Pier 54 used to be— it’s a 2.4-acre park featuring concrete “tulip” structures holding up a maze of bridges, walkways, and trees. 🌳

Billionaire Barry Diller paid for the park’s construction through the Diller-von Furstenberg Family Foundation. The park emulates a “leaf floating on water.” 

Little Island Executive Director Trish Santini commented: 

There are different views of the city, views of the water, views of people, and views of the landscape. You’re digesting a different element of the experience [as you move through the space].

Check it out: 

Attention All Tech-Savvy Creators!! 📣 🎨 

Instagram will host an event for NFT creators as part of its Creator’s Week. 🎨

The event aims to help digital creators grow their social media presence and earn income. Instagram’s tutorial sessions include media training, “finding feet” in the world of entertainment, and getting discovered on Instagram.

It’s basically a free lunch, though it is by invite-only. 🤷

With 5,000+ expected in attendance, the virtual event is an amazing way to share experiences with other participants. Creator’s Week starts June 8 until June 10, and a recap series after each day (called “The Rundown”) will be available.

If you’re lucky enough to get an invitation, don’t miss out!

A Goal for NFTs ⚽ 🏅

We typically toast to victories and success. 🥂 But English soccer club Manchester City F.C. has decided to celebrate its Premier League victory differently…

The club will release NFTs 1 day after the soccer team receives its Premier League trophy!!

Manchester City’s collection, called “1,” will be available on MakerPlace, the NFT marketplace, starting May 24. The club is also hosting a free prize draw, awarding fans the opportunity to win an NFT edition of The Champions Medal.  

The best part? Some of the sale’s profits will be donated to charities supporting the mental health of the Manchester community during the pandemic. ❤️

Earnings Round-Up

Applied Materials beat earnings and revenue expectations after the bell. 👏 The semiconductor company posted record sales as the chip shortage continues to drive business.

Here are the stats:

EPS: $1.63 vs $1.51 est.
Revenue: $5.58B, +41% YoY

Gary Dickerson, CEO of $AMAT, said:

Applied Materials’ record performance is underpinned by broad-based strength across our semiconductor businesses. We are confident in our ability to outperform our markets as large, secular trends create sustainable demand for semiconductors and our leadership in materials engineering becomes increasingly critical to deliver new chip technologies.

$AMAT was flat after hours.

Lightspeed lit the fuse today after reporting impressive Q4 numbers. Revenue grew 127% YoY to a whopping $82.4M.

Here are the results:

EPS: ($0.09) vs ($0.10) est.
Revenue: $82.4M, +127% YoY

$LSPD leaped 15.7% today.

Robinhood Strikes Again 🏹

Robinhood just launched a new platform, and it’s a game-changer for retail investors. 😤

Today, Robinhood Markets Inc unveiled a new platform allowing users to purchase shares in initial public offerings— transactions which have traditionally been reserved for Wall Street’s mega funds. 

The platform, called IPO Access, supports Robinhood’s goal of finance “democratization.”  With the brokerage’s own public offering in the works, the platform shared:

Most IPO shares typically go to institutions or wealthier investors. With IPO Access, everyday investors at Robinhood will have the chance to get in at the IPO price.

Robinhood strikes again. 🏹 Read the platform’s press release here. 

Earnings This Week

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

Links That Don’t Suck

💰Feel like you’re the only person who’s not trading options? Here’s an infographic that covers the basics of calls, puts and more!*

📉 The Bitcoin Crash of 2021 Compared to Past Sell-Offs

💭 Girls Just Wanna Have Funds: How Do I Break The Glass Ceiling? Featuring Kinsey Grant

🏡 Richard Neutra’s Branch House in Los Angeles Hits the Market for $4.3M

👂 A Tree Planted in Water at the Venice Biennale Represents the Wisdom of Listening

📈 Osprey Funds Investor Product Series I: Polkadot

💡 Short Their Optimism

🕊 Israel, Hamas Agree to Cease-Fire After 11 Days of Conflict