Nasdaq soars, Tesla soars as big names increase following financial results

Tech stocks rose on Wednesday, outperforming the broader market as investors cheered Tesla's (TSLA) low-cost car pledge and awaited the next surge in corporate earnings.

The Nasdaq Composite Index (^IXIC) was up about 0.6%, a significant gain at the close. The S&P 500 (^GSPC) rose 0.2%, continuing its recovery from its longest losing streak in 2024, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) fell 0.1%.

Tesla stock soared nearly 12% after the EV maker's pledge to accelerate the launch of more affordable models masked quarterly profit and revenue misses. That encouraged investors who had been concerned about growth amid the company's strategic shift to robotaxis and plans to discontinue cheaper models.

The Magnificent Seven's first reported results added to already high expectations for Big Tech's earnings, with megacaps able to revive the stock price gains they helped fuel. All eyes are now on Meta Inc.'s (META) report, which will be released after the market closes, as the Facebook owner's stock rose after the Senate passed a possible ban on rival TikTok. Next up on Thursday are Microsoft (MSFT) and Alphabet (GOOG).

Meanwhile, Boeing (BA) reported better-than-expected first-quarter results before the opening bell, with a loss of $1.13 per share, narrower than the $1.72 that Wall Street expected. The stock rose about 2% in morning trading.

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Wednesday, April 24, 2024 06:35 PDT

Public technical lead

Tech stocks rose on Wednesday, outperforming the broader market as investors cheered Tesla's (TSLA) low-cost car pledge and awaited the next surge in corporate earnings.

The Nasdaq Composite Index (^IXIC) was up about 0.6%, a significant gain at the close. The S&P 500 (^GSPC) rose 0.2%, continuing its recovery from its longest losing streak in 2024, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) fell 0.1%.
Wednesday, April 24, 2024 4:50 a.m. (Pacific Daylight Time)

Just got off the phone: Otis CEO Judy Marks

Many of you in the Yahoo Finance newsroom know that I enjoy reading about elevator and escalator manufacturer Otis Worldwide (OTIS). I'm interested in what this company is making, how it's making it, and what it says about the health of the global economy.

I just got off the phone with Judy Marks, CEO of Otis. Her comments about China struck her after she visited China (an important market for Otis) in March.

“The message from the Chinese government is that we want economic development. We want foreign direct investment. This year marks our 40th anniversary in China, and China is an important market for us. , we have watched the market develop.'' Some of the challenges in the real estate market continue indeed, with liquidity and credit constraints remaining weak as they have been for the past 18 to 24 months. I can say it. Revenue for the top 50 developers this quarter was down almost 50% compared to this quarter last year. So on the equipment side, this is what he calls a low single-digit to 10% decline market for the year. ”

Marks does not expect growth in Otis' China business to return in 2024.
Wednesday, April 24, 2024 04:21 PDT

Hilton continues to buy back its own company

Hilton (HLT) continues to be one of the most active stockholders of the hundreds of millions of companies I closely follow.

In many ways, it feels like Hilton is private again. The hotel and resort company was acquired by Blackstone in 2007 and went public again in 2013. )

This is from the company's just-released earnings report.

“During the three-month period ending March 31, 2024, Hilton repurchased 3.4 million shares of its common stock at an average price of $196.17 per share, for a total of $662 million, and delivered $701 million to shareholders during the quarter, including dividends. As of April 19, 2024, the number of outstanding shares was 250 million.

By the way, Hilton's number of shares at the end of 2022 was 277 million shares.
Wednesday, April 24, 2024 04:03 PDT

Toy manufacturers' profits aren't interesting.

Let's not kid ourselves here, but the earnings of major toy companies Mattel (MAT) and Hasbro (HAS) are not very fun to watch.

Mattel's financial report released last night wasn't exactly great, but the company said it will return to increasing revenue in 2025. The thing about Mattel is that the Barbie movie boosted last year's results so much that mathematically the company's results will decline. Sales in the first quarter were down 1% from the same period last year.

Hasbro's earnings results this morning were also tough for investors. The company said sales in its core consumer products business fell 21% due to “a decline in closeout sales as a result of broader industry trends, business exits and inventory clearing over the past year.”

Both weak reports say a lot about where shoppers' minds are right now, rather than their purchases of dolls, action figures, and board games.
Wednesday, April 24, 2024 03:57 PDT

One statistic you should know about AT&T

I'm still reading AT&T's (T) long-term earnings report, but one number immediately caught my attention.

4.7 billion dollars.

That's the amount of debt AT&T paid off in the quarter as it continues to strive to reduce leverage in its post-Time Warner life. CEO John Stankey has told me several times over the past year that paying down debt is one of management's most important goals.

Not surprisingly, AT&T still ended the first quarter with approximately $132.8 billion in total debt. The company's market capitalization is $118 billion.
Wednesday, April 24, 2024 03:48 PDT
List of questions Tesla investors need to ponder

the next day.

Tesla (TSLA) CEO Elon Musk has been playing tricks on investors. He gave them what they wanted before profits: the details of a cheaper Tesla, and they're gobbling it up. The stock is up 10% in pre-market trading, and the company's ticker dominates Yahoo Finance's trending ticker page.

That's all great and good, but it all undermines Tesla's main story (which is likely by Musk's design) that has weighed on the stock price this year: The company is struggling, and the stock price A bold promise by Musk to boost the company's worst year should be questioned.

Here are some questions Tesla bulls need to ask themselves.

Musk is promising robotaxis and showing off a revenue slide deck of what his ride-hailing app will look like. but…

What are the regulators saying about this? Is this launch possible within the next 12 months?

Mr. Musk knows about Uber, right? In the end, he says he is making good profits and is actively investing in the business.

Musk seems to think people will want to share their Teslas and make this platform a success. What if they don't want to share their tricked-out Model 3?

Musk talks about Tesla's future Own Part of a robotaxi. How will that affect cash flow and profit margins? Investors and analysts are worried that Tesla will absorb these additional costs while its pure EV business is under pressure and it is working on developing its humanoid Optimus robot. Does he want to be carried on his back?

Musk promises to be fully committed to Tesla. but …

Some interesting conversations about earnings include Musk being asked how long he plans to remain CEO of Tesla. He didn't give an exact timeline, but said (like many others) he seems to be working 24 hours a day on Sundays. He also questioned whether Tesla would be able to bring the robot to market if he wasn't leading the company. Is now the time to consider a maskless Tesla in the next few years? How will that look to investors? A significant number of executives have retired or are planning to retire, including one person who attended last night's earnings call. If Disney (DIS) stalwart CEO Bob Iger is seen as failing in his succession planning, Musk could be seen as one of the worst succession planners in CEO history. .

Musk reiterated that Tesla is an AI company. but …

Yes, Tesla has great technology. But wouldn't Tesla build cars first and then leverage that technology? Which stock would you rather own? A pure AI company like Microsoft (MSFT) or a car company masquerading as an AI company?

Mr. Musk hypes cheap Tesla. but …

Tesla is no stranger to recalls and concerns about product quality. Check out last week's Cybertruck recall. So how good will a $25,000 Tesla be? This is the same as when my parents bought the 1986 Ford Tempo and 1987 Ford Escort on the cheap when they came out. Sounds like it could be a terrifying ownership experience.