| | | | A ride-hailing giant is tumbling 5% after missing earnings, an entertainment major’s streaming business just turned profitable, and a biotech stock is surging 54% on positive trial results for its lead candidate. Read on to find out what’s moving the markets. | |
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| | | | | What to Watch | Earnings: | QUALCOMM Incorporated [QCOM]: Aftermarket Arm Holdings PLC [ARM]: Aftermarket McKesson Corporation [MCK]: Aftermarket
| Economic Reports: | ADP Employment [Jan]: 8:15 a.m. U.S. Trade Deficit [Dec]: 8:30 a.m S&P Final U.S. Services PMI [Jan]: 9:45 a.m. ISM Services [Jan]: 10:00 a.m.
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| | Pharmaceuticals | Novo Nordisk Projecting Weaker Growth in 2025, Posts Strong Q4 Earnings | | Novo Nordisk [NVO] reported strong fourth-quarter earnings today, driven by surging sales of its obesity drug Wegovy, which more than doubled year-over-year to 19.9 billion Danish crowns ($5.12 billion). Despite this, the company forecasts slower growth for 2025, sending mixed signals to investors. | Shares of Novo Nordisk are up 3% in premarket trading. | The Danish pharmaceutical giant expects sales growth in local currencies to range between 16% and 24% this year, down from the 26% growth recorded in 2024. The projection aligns with analysts' expectations of around 20%. | Novo also predicts operating profit growth between 19% and 27% for 2025, slightly lower than last year’s 26% increase. | CEO Lars Fruergaard Jorgensen reassured investors that demand for obesity treatments remains strong in the U.S. and other key markets. However, competition from Eli Lilly’s weight-loss drug Zepbound is intensifying. Novo lost market share to Lilly in the U.S. during Q4 in terms of weekly prescriptions. | Despite the CEO’s positive outlook, concerns remain about future drug development. In December, disappointing trial results for the experimental weight-loss drug CagriSema led to a 27% drop in Novo’s stock—the largest single-day decline for a European company in years. Novo remains focused on securing new drug candidates, with Wegovy’s patent set to expire in 2032. |
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| | Entertainment | Disney’s Streaming Segment Turns Profitable, Parks Struggling Due to Hurricanes | | Disney [DIS] reported first-quarter earnings today that are better than analyst expectations, driven by a profitable streaming segment despite challenges in its parks division. The company’s revenue of $24.7 billion is higher than projections of $24.57 billion and marks a 5% year-over-year increase. Adjusted earnings per share are at $1.76, well above the expected $1.42, representing a 44% annual increase. | For the first time, Disney’s direct-to-consumer (DTC) streaming business, which includes Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+, turned a profit of $293 million, up from a $138 million loss a year ago. This marks the third consecutive quarter of profitability for the segment, reinforcing Disney’s strategy to drive long-term growth in digital content. | However, Disney+ lost 700,000 subscribers during the quarter, attributed mainly to price hikes in October. The decline was smaller than analysts’ forecast of 1.41 million, and Disney expects a modest further decline in Q2. | Meanwhile, the parks and experiences division saw a 5% drop in operating income, primarily due to the impact of Hurricanes Helene and Milton, which caused an estimated $130 million loss, along with $90 million in cruise pre-launch costs. Despite this, Disney expects operating income in the parks segment to improve by 6% to 8% in 2025. | The company reaffirmed its full-year earnings guidance, projecting high-single-digit EPS growth. Shares are marginally down by 1% in premarket trading. |
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| | | | Ride Hailing | Uber Stock Falling After Q4 Earnings Miss Despite Strong Bookings Growth | | Uber Technologies [UBER] reported fourth-quarter earnings today that are below Wall Street expectations, which is causing its stock to drop by more than 5% in premarket trading. | The company’s adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) of $1.84 billion is slightly below the expected $1.85 billion. Operating income is at $770 million, missing analyst projections of $1.2 billion. | CEO Dara Khosrowshahi attributed the shortfall to legal and regulatory expenses that offset gains from operational improvements. | Gross bookings, which include ride-hailing, deliveries, and merchant earnings but exclude tips, are up 18% year-over-year to $44.2 billion. For the first quarter of 2025, Uber forecasts bookings between $42 billion and $43.5 billion. | Rising insurance costs have put pressure on Uber’s core U.S. rideshare business, leading to price increases in markets such as Southern California, New Jersey, and Florida. The company has pledged to push for insurance and tort reform to address these expenses. | Meanwhile, Uber continues expanding into new revenue streams. It recently launched a $2.99 monthly pass for commuters, partnered with Home Depot for deliveries, and secured an exclusive deal with Delta Airlines to replace Lyft’s former rideshare partnership. | On the autonomous vehicle front, Uber has opened a waitlist for Waymo rides in Austin ahead of a March launch and will be the sole app offering Waymo rides in Atlanta this summer. Despite these advancements, Khosrowshahi acknowledged that widespread adoption of self-driving technology remains a long-term goal. |
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| | Movers and Shakers | | Pasithea Therapeutics Corp. [KTTA] - Last Close: $2.08 | Pasithea Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biotech company that develops innovative treatments for central nervous system disorders and cancer. Its shares are climbing 54% in the premarket after it announced a positive safety review for its Phase 1 trial of its lead candidate PAS-004. | My Take: Pasithea’s early trial success is promising, but its a tiny stock with high volatility, and as a clinical stage firm it doesn’t have strong financials. It might be best to adopt a wait and watch policy for this stock. |
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| Mercury Systems Inc [MRCY] - Last Close: $42.09 | Mercury Systems is a defense and aerospace technology company that specializes in mission-critical military solutions. Its shares are surging 19% in early trading after announcing job cuts expected to save $15 million annually, along with a strong revenue increase in this quarter from $197.5 million last year to $223.1 million this year. | My Take: Mercury Systems is executing a strong turnaround strategy, cutting costs and delivering consistent revenue growth. Keep a close eye on this stock because it has potential for positive gains. |
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| Aviat Networks, Inc. [AVNW] - Last Close: $20.55 | Aviat Networks is a wireless networking solutions provider specializing in microwave and millimeter-wave technologies for mission-critical communications. Its shares are climbing premarket after the company reported a massive earnings beat, posting $0.82 EPS versus the expected $0.02 EPS. | My Take: The company has now beaten earnings expectations twice in the last four quarters. However, it has a history of volatile earnings, so be cautious before investing here. |
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| | | | | | That’s all for today. Thank you for reading. If you have any feedback, please reply to this email. | Best Regards, | — Adam Garcia Elite Trade Club |
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