Walmart Inc. (STAR)
WMT - NYSE
“Attention Walmart shoppers! You’re ruining the narrative that the economy is on life support and people are going broke.” In a sign that consumers might not be as badly off as everyone thought, discount giant Walmart Inc. this week reported third-quarter revenue and earnings well ahead of Wall Street’s expectations, prompting the company to hike its full-year guidance for the third consecutive quarter. With total revenue climbing 5.5 per cent to US$169.6 billion, including a 27-per-cent jump in e-commerce sales, it’s almost like consumers have plenty of money to spend as we head into the holidays. But that can’t be because things are bad, real bad. So bad, in fact, that Walmart’s stock has soared more than 70 per cent this year and keeps hitting record highs.
MicroStrategy Inc. (STAR)
MSTR - Nasdaq
Somebody really likes bitcoin. I mean, really, REALLY likes bitcoin. Michael Saylor, executive chairman and co-founder of MicroStrategy Inc., has spent the past several years plowing billions of dollars of the software company’s money into the cryptocurrency, amassing a bitcoin war chest worth more than US$30-billion. That includes about $6.6-billion purchased since Oct. 31, with plans to acquire another US$2.6-billion with proceeds of a convertible share offering announced this week. With bitcoin’s price surging now that crypto booster Donald Trump is heading to the White House, MicroStrategy’s shares have soared more than 750 per cent in the past year, vaulting it into the top 100 publicly traded U.S. companies by market cap. Warning: Don’t try this at home.
Alphabet Inc. (DOG)
GOOGL - Nasdaq
Business quiz! Shares of Google parent Alphabet Inc. fell after: a) a U.S. law firm launched a class-action lawsuit demanding US$5-billion in punitive damages for “Google’s reckless pattern of continuing to deliver annoying online ads for running shoes, smartphones and clothing items long after people have already bought said items”; b) a team of North Korean and Russian hackers infiltrated Google’s servers and redirected all search queries to a photo of Kim Jong Un and Vladimir Putin clinking wine glasses; c) The U.S. Justice Department and a group of U.S. states asked a federal court to force Google to sell its Chrome web browser, among other measures, to break up its near-monopoly on the search business. Answer: c.
KinderCare Learning Companies Inc. (DOG)
KLC - NYSE
What’s worse than having to listen to children throw tantrums all day at nursery school? Answer: Investing in nursery school operator KinderCare Learning Companies Inc. Shares of the company sank after the provider of daycare and education services for children up to age 12 said third-quarter earnings slumped by nearly 13 per cent to US$14-million amid rising costs, even as revenue grew by 7.5 per cent to US$671.5-million. With the stock down about 13 per cent from its initial offering price of $24 in early October, KinderCare investors are the ones throwing tantrums now.
Gold (STAR)
GCZ24 - COMEX
There once was a metal called gold
Whose gains were a thing to behold
With central banks buying
And interest rates sliding
You’d be kicking yourself if you’d sold