(Anusak Laowilas/Getty Images) |
Investors gave Netflix the green light |
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Some of TikTok’s most popular creators spilled secrets ahead of the app’s shutdown, only for President Trump to delay the ban deadline by 75 days — plenty of time for those creators to stew in the awkwardness of their revelations.
Stocks rose yesterday as investors checked out moves by the new admin, including a massive tech deal: Trump announced a $500B AI infrastructure project dubbed “Stargate,” which involves OpenAI, Oracle, SoftBank, and Nvidia. Oracle’s shares popped 7%.
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TSA thrillers and masked killers… Netflix shares soared 14% yesterday after the streaming leader unloaded its biggest quarterly subscriber growth ever, saying it added nearly 19M new customers in Q4 — more than double what analysts expected. It topped 300M global subs for the first time as fans tuned in for “Squid Game 2,” “Carry-On,” and live sports like WWE. Quarterly revenue grew 16% and profit almost doubled from a year earlier to $1.8B.
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- Cued up: Netflix hiked its sales forecast for the year as it preps for the return of hits including “Wednesday” and the final season of “Stranger Things.”
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Cashed in: Netflix is hiking prices for both its standard ad-free tier and its cheaper ad plan, which has fueled subscriptions and profit growth since its 2022 launch.
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Coming for cable’s cake… Streamers have invested big in live sports, and Netflix’s recent #s show it’s paying off. Netflix’s Paul-Tyson fight was the most-streamed sporting event ever, and its two Christmas Day NFL games were the most streamed for the league. Streamers are building up their content rosters as more Americans watch games online. |
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Disney just acquired sports streamer FuboTV, days after scrapping plans for a joint sports-streaming service with Warner Bros. Discovery and Fox.
- DirecTV recently rolled out a $70/month live-sports streaming service with games from ESPN, Fox Sports, and NBC, as it tries to fend off sports-hungry streamers.
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It pays to be in the end zone… Live events give streaming platforms a chance to lock in large audiences and sell prime-time-style ads. For now, streamers are focusing on high-profile games that draw in big crowds. Last month Netflix nabbed exclusive US broadcasting rights to the next two FIFA Women's World Cup tourneys. |
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Nasdaq-100®: The Innovation Index |
The New Economy is here, and technology & innovation are reshaping investment landscapes. Driven by global demand for data and interconnectivity, economic growth has moved from traditional manufacturing and industrial sectors to technology-driven sectors. Patents and R&D are now key drivers of growth. How can you take advantage of these trends in your portfolio?
The Nasdaq-100 Index® (NDX®) has become the world’s preeminent large-cap growth index and is the benchmark of the 21st century. The index provides targeted exposure to high-growth, innovation-driven companies including the Magnificent Seven: Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta, Microsoft, Nvidia and Tesla.1
Learn more about NDX and how to invest in innovation here. |
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Nasdaq-100®: The Innovation Index |
The New Economy is here, and technology & innovation are reshaping investment landscapes. Driven by global demand for data and interconnectivity, economic growth has moved from traditional manufacturing and industrial sectors to technology-driven sectors. Patents and R&D are now key drivers of growth. How can you take advantage of these trends in your portfolio?
The Nasdaq-100 Index® (NDX®) has become the world’s preeminent large-cap growth index and is the benchmark of the 21st century. The index provides targeted exposure to high-growth, innovation-driven companies including the Magnificent Seven: Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta, Microsoft, Nvidia and Tesla.1
Learn more about NDX and how to invest in innovation here. |
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Hard launch… The crypto community’s conflicted about Donald and Melania Trump’s pair of solana meme coins, which the couple peddled on social media leading up to Inauguration Day. They launched the tokens on the solana blockchain, which has a reputation for volatility and scams (ahem: the Hawk Tuah coin). The prices of $TRUMP and $MELANIA have swung sharply since launch, though Trump’s coin briefly hit a fully diluted market value of $70B before plunging.
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- Toss-up: The $TRUMP website says 80% of the coin is owned by two Trump-tied businesses: CIC Digital, an affiliate of Trump’s conglomerate, and Fight Fight Fight LLC, a new company co-owned by CIC Digital.
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Safeguard: The companies can’t sell their coins all at once because of a three-year unlocking schedule that could prevent a “rug pull” scam (when big investors suddenly cash out, causing the coin’s value to plummet).
- Still: Some critics said Trump’s meme-coin rollout undermined the credibility of the industry and raised questions over whether the POTUS was merely promoting crypto for personal gain.
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Belle of the crypto ball… Crypto execs and celebs like Snoop Dogg celebrated Trump’s inauguration at an industry gala in DC on Friday — but they were expecting much more than meme coins from his first day in office. Trump left crypto fans on read when it comes to an exec order he was expected to issue making crypto a national priority. He also failed to elaborate on the strategic bitcoin reserve he promised on the campaign trail. One bright spot: yesterday the new SEC announced a “crypto task force” that’s expected to provide greater regulatory clarity while taking a chiller approach than former boss Gensler’s SEC.
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Not everything adds value… Some crypto advocates say the meme coins, and Trump’s potential to profit off them, could hurt his plans to make the US the “crypto capital of the planet.” He’s already caught the industry's attention with splashy moves (like his NFTs). Now it’s looking for something with more substance. |
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Vail’s Epic Pass carved a fresh path for the wider industry — subscription skiing — but demand is showing signs of waning. Read more. |
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Yesterday’s Big Daily Movers |
Walgreens stock plummeted as much as 13% after America’s second-largest pharmacy chain got slapped with an opioid-related DOJ lawsuit that could lead to an ~$80B fine.
Shares of SpaceX rival Rocket Lab rocketed up 30% after Trump pledged to launch American astronauts “to plant the Stars and Stripes on the planet Mars.”
EV stocks including Tesla were seeing red after Trump signed an exec order to slash electric-car subsidies. Rivian and Lucid dropped nearly 7%. |
- Trump rescinded 75+ Biden-admin exec orders, including one that aimed to reduce AI risks for consumers and make the tech more trustworthy.
- The FDA approved the use of a Johnson & Johnson nasal spray, Spravato, as a standalone treatment for depression (the first of its kind).
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Trump said his admin would impose 25% tariffs on Mexico and Canada, aka the US’s top trade partners, beginning February 1.
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18K+ Costco workers voted to authorize a strike, threatening the warehouse club with a February walkout at about 10% of its US stores.
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“Moana 2” passed $1B at the global box office — Disney’s third film to do so last year (FYI: no other studio managed even one).
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- Earnings expected from GE, Kinder Morgan, Alcoa, Steel Dynamics, and Discover
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Authors of this Snacks own bitcoin and shares of: Disney, Nvidia, Tesla, and Warner Bros. Discovery |
Advertiser's disclosures:
1 It is not possible to invest directly in an index.
Nasdaq®, Nasdaq-100 Index®, Nasdaq-100®, and NDX® are trademarks of Nasdaq, Inc. The information contained above is provided for informational and educational purposes only, and nothing contained herein should be construed as investment advice, either on behalf of a particular security or an overall investment strategy. Neither Nasdaq, Inc. nor any of its affiliates makes any recommendation to buy or sell any security or any representation about the financial condition of any company. Statements regarding Nasdaq-listed companies or Nasdaq proprietary indexes are not guarantees of future performance. Actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Investors should undertake their own due diligence and carefully evaluate companies before investing. ADVICE FROM A SECURITIES PROFESSIONAL IS STRONGLY ADVISED.
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Sherwood Media, LLC produces fresh and unique perspectives on topical financial news and is a fully owned subsidiary of Robinhood Markets, Inc., and any views expressed here do not necessarily reflect the views of any other Robinhood affiliate... See more |
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