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BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI – Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 4,892,342 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock, valued at approximately $725,926,000. BlackRock Inc. owned 16.88% of Badger Meter at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Badger Meter in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Badger Meter by 76.5% during the fourth quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 150 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the period. Godfrey Financial Associates Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Badger Meter during the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. lifted its holdings in Badger Meter by 62.3% in the third quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 185 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the period. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Badger Meter in the second quarter worth about $28,000. Institutional investors own 89.01% of the company’s stock.

Badger Meter Trading Up 3.2% Shares of NYSE BMI opened at $132.19 on Friday. Badger Meter, Inc. has a twelve month low of $112.09 and a twelve month high of $204.00. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $137.48 and a two-hundred day moving average of $139.15. The company has a market capitalization of $3.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.89, a PEG ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.65.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.01 by $0.01. Badger Meter had a net margin of 14.27% and a return on equity of 18.03%. The company had revenue of $220.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $220.59 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.17 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.43 earnings per share for the current year. Badger Meter Increases Dividend The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 11th. Investors of record on Friday, August 28th will be issued a dividend of $0.44 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 28th. This is a positive change from Badger Meter’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. Badger Meter’s payout ratio is 37.38%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets BMI has been the topic of several research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Badger Meter from $172.00 to $170.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Badger Meter from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Badger Meter from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday. Seaport Research Partners set a $160.00 price objective on shares of Badger Meter in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $167.00 price objective on shares of Badger Meter and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Badger Meter currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $164.00.

View Our Latest Report on Badger Meter

Insider Transactions at Badger Meter In other Badger Meter news, VP Edward F. Callahan purchased 751 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 30th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $135.25 per share, for a total transaction of $101,572.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 1,937 shares in the company, valued at $261,979.25. This represents a 63.32% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Badger Meter Company Profile (Free Report)

Badger Meter, founded in 1905 and headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, is a global leader in flow measurement and control solutions. The company’s core business centers on the design, manufacture and sale of water meters, control valves and related accessories for municipal and industrial water utilities. Over its more than a century of operation, Badger Meter has built a reputation for precision engineering, durability and compliance with international regulatory standards.

The company’s product portfolio includes mechanical and ultrasonic water meters, electromagnetic flow meters for industrial applications, and a range of control valves that help utilities manage pressure and flow in distribution networks.

Further Reading Five stocks we like better than Badger Meter 2 Biotech Stocks Shaping Up for Major Breakouts 3 Stocks Came Roaring Back—Now They’re Flashing Warning Signs 3 Beaten-Down Stocks That Haven’t Gotten the Message About the S&P 500’s Record Run Darden Restaurants Just Hit a 52-Week High–Is the Olive Garden Comeback Story Legit? Want to see what other hedge funds are holding BMI? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI – Free Report).

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EP Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Avery Dennison Corporation (NYSE:AVY – Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 10,839 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,760,000.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Trust Co. of Vermont acquired a new stake in shares of Avery Dennison during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Avery Dennison by 684.0% during the 2nd quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 196 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 171 shares during the period. Root Financial Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Avery Dennison by 60.8% in the fourth quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 193 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC acquired a new position in Avery Dennison in the third quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Godfrey Financial Associates Inc. purchased a new position in Avery Dennison in the fourth quarter worth approximately $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.17% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings raised Avery Dennison from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Argus set a $175.00 price target on Avery Dennison in a research note on Thursday, June 4th. UBS Group increased their price target on Avery Dennison from $218.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Truist Financial cut their price objective on Avery Dennison from $221.00 to $209.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Avery Dennison from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, August 8th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $201.22.

Read Our Latest Stock Report on Avery Dennison Insider Transactions at Avery Dennison In related news, SVP Ignacio J. Walker sold 1,742 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.61, for a total transaction of $298,944.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 7,585 shares in the company, valued at $1,301,661.85. This trade represents a 18.68% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.81% of the company’s stock.

Avery Dennison Stock Up 0.6% Avery Dennison stock opened at $183.79 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $13.93 billion, a PE ratio of 20.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 1.13. Avery Dennison Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $152.42 and a fifty-two week high of $199.54. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $166.80 and a 200 day moving average price of $170.32.

Avery Dennison (NYSE:AVY – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.89 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.47 by $0.42. Avery Dennison had a return on equity of 34.60% and a net margin of 7.62%.The company had revenue of $2.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.30 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.42 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 10.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Avery Dennison has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 10.000-10.300 EPS. Research analysts expect that Avery Dennison Corporation will post 10.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Avery Dennison Announces Dividend The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 16th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 2nd will be paid a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 2nd. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. Avery Dennison’s dividend payout ratio is presently 43.81%.

Avery Dennison Profile (Free Report)

Avery Dennison (NYSE:AVY) is a global materials science and manufacturing company specializing in labeling and packaging solutions. The company develops pressure-sensitive materials, tags and labels, and adhesive technologies that help brands and businesses enhance product identification, branding and supply-chain performance. Avery Dennison’s offerings range from industrial and retail labeling to high-performance tapes, films and graphics materials used across multiple end markets.

The company operates through several key segments, including Label and Graphic Materials, which supplies pressure-sensitive materials for consumer goods; Retail Branding and Information Solutions, offering apparel tags, RFID inlays and digital product identification; Pressure-Sensitive Materials, providing specialty tapes and adhesives; and RF Technologies, focused on advanced RFID and IoT labeling solutions.

Featured Stories Five stocks we like better than Avery Dennison 2 Biotech Stocks Shaping Up for Major Breakouts 3 Stocks Came Roaring Back—Now They’re Flashing Warning Signs 3 Beaten-Down Stocks That Haven’t Gotten the Message About the S&P 500’s Record Run Darden Restaurants Just Hit a 52-Week High–Is the Olive Garden Comeback Story Legit?

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It's easy for a stock to get lost in the crowd when a portfolio has an enormous number of holdings. Citadel Advisors, the hedge fund founded and led by billionaire Ken Griffin, owns nearly 7,500 stocks and thousands of options, according to its latest 13F filing.

However, a few stocks still stand out with Citadel's second-quarter activity. For example, Griffin especially loaded up on Eli Lilly (LLY +0.88%) in Q2. Should you follow his lead?

Citadel founder and CEO Ken Griffin. Image source: Getty Images.

A big buy of a big pharma stock Griffin nearly quadrupled Citadel's stake in Lilly during Q2 with his purchase of around 704,000 additional shares. The big pharma stock is now the hedge fund's sixth-largest position. Because Citadel holds so many holdings, though, Lilly still accounts for only 0.65% of the total portfolio.

It isn't hard to guess why Griffin likes Lilly. The company's revenue continues to soar, driven largely by the phenomenal success of its tirzepatide franchise, which includes type 2 diabetes drug Mounjaro and weight loss drug Zepbound. Mounjaro and Zepbound are on track to generate combined sales of over $55 billion this year.

Lilly's daily GLP-1 weight-loss pill, Foundayo, is off to a decent start after receiving U.S. regulatory approval in April. Wall Street expects the oral therapy to rake in around $1.5 billion in sales this year and eventually hit peak annual sales of $26 billion.

We don't know exactly when Griffin bought additional shares of Lilly. However, the stock was down roughly 21% year-to-date as of late April. I suspect the billionaire jumped on the opportunity to buy on the dip early in Q2.

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Is Lilly stock a good pick now? It isn't wise to buy any stock solely because a famous investor bought it -- even when the investor is as legendary as Griffin. Importantly, you can't scoop up Lilly's shares as cheaply as he did: The stock is up around 18% since the end of Q2 (and perhaps even more since Griffin added to his stake in Lilly).

Valuation could be a concern for some investors. Lilly's shares trade at 35 times forward earnings.

However, I think the stock remains a good pick. Sales for Mounjaro, Zepbound, and Foundayo should continue to grow strongly. Lilly hopes to file for approval of another promising weight loss drug, retatrutide, in the first quarter of 2027. The company also has several products with solid momentum outside of its diabetes-obesity franchise.

I don't expect Lilly's stock to climb nearly 370% over the next five years as it did over the last five years. But it could continue to beat the market and be a winner for investors.

SummaryHewlett Packard Enterprise earns a buy rating, driven by surging AI infrastructure demand and a strengthened networking business post-Juniper acquisition.HPE posted record Q2 FY2026 revenue of $10.7 billion (+40% YoY), with Cloud and AI revenue up 22.9% and Networking revenue up 148.2%.Profitability is improving: Q2 non-GAAP EPS grew 108% YoY, Cloud and AI operating margin nearly doubled, and free cash flow guidance was raised to at least $3.5 billion.Valuation remains compelling, with HPE trading at 16.27x forward P/E, declining to 12.58x by FY3, offering strong growth at a discount to peers.pingingz/iStock via Getty Images

Thesis Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) investment history is changing together with rapidly growing artificial intelligence infrastructure demand and the strengthened company's Networking business. HPE operations cover servers, data storage, network infrastructure, hybrid cloud, and funding solutions, but AI infrastructure and the

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Analyst’s Disclosure: I/we have no stock, option or similar derivative position in any of the companies mentioned, and no plans to initiate any such positions within the next 72 hours. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.

Seeking Alpha's Disclosure: Past performance is no guarantee of future results. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. Any views or opinions expressed above may not reflect those of Seeking Alpha as a whole. Seeking Alpha is not a licensed securities dealer, broker or US investment adviser or investment bank. Our analysts are third party authors that include both professional investors and individual investors who may not be licensed or certified by any institute or regulatory body.

Meta Platforms (META +0.75%) CEO Mark Zuckerberg released a 6,500-word manifesto detailing how the company will make agentic artificial intelligence (AI) a mainstream resource.

"Everyone will have an exceptionally capable personal agent that understands you, your goals, and everything you care about," Zuckerberg said in his open letter.

Superintelligence can revolutionize industries and give consumers access to more valuable tools, but what about investors? Here's how the company's efforts to double down on its AI buildout will affect shareholders.

Image source: Getty Images.

Superintelligence can diversify Meta Platforms' revenue It's no secret that Meta Platforms makes almost all of its revenue from online advertising. It represented 97.6% of total revenue in the second quarter, with "Other revenue" and Reality Labs making up the remaining sliver.

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Meta Platforms has been trying to diversify beyond online advertising for several years. Other tech rivals like Amazon and Alphabet have diversified into multiple industries, with online advertising still playing a key role.

Meta Platforms fumbled with the metaverse, and subscription revenue hasn't been moving the needle much. AI agents can initiate the revenue diversification Meta Platforms has been seeking for years. A push into neocloud services, which Zuckerberg floated earlier this year, can also aid the company in unlocking new income streams.

This development can make the company less reliant on advertising, which is still a fast-growing segment. The stock only trades at a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 20, which is a low valuation just for the online advertising component. Any meaningful commercial progress with the superintelligence buildout can trigger a big rally, especially if online advertising revenue growth rates remain elevated.

Meta Platforms is still losing a lot of money on AI Meta Platforms is still doing fine. Revenue jumped by 28% year over year in the second quarter. Operating income dipped by 8% year over year, but it may be a small price to pay if diversification efforts pay off.

"If" is the big problem here. The Metaverse debacle was a few years ago, but high capital expenditures without the payoff can bring that memory back. Reality Labs produced a $4.6 billion operating loss in the second quarter, while online advertising operating income slightly decreased year-over-year.

Although Meta Platforms doesn't face many competitors in the AI landscape, a few hyperscalers can quickly secure a large portion of the market. For instance, Amazon, Microsoft, and Alphabet control more than 60% of the cloud computing market. Oracle, the fourth-largest cloud provider, only has a 4% market share. A similar setup with AI agents that doesn't include Meta Platforms at or near the top can make it harder to justify increased spending.

Big investments in AI are necessary for the company to keep up with other tech leaders and finally diversify beyond online advertising. Meta Platforms is correctly acting upon this opportunity, but it must translate this spending into commercial success while pivoting back to positive operating income growth rates to reignite the stock.

Marc Guberti has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet, Amazon, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, and Oracle. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

The last week has proven extremely strong for XRP as the asset regained momentum across both its spot and ETF markets, following its recent price rally.

Over the period, XRP saw its price suddenly flip bullish after seeing stronger demand from investors, causing its ETF market to post its best weekly performance since May.

Nearly $40 million fresh capital Per data provided by SosoValue, XRP ETFs saw steady inflows on nearly all days of the week as they attracted a total of $39.78 million in net inflows last week.

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While this is coming after multiple weeks of recording little to no fresh capital, the inflows seen last week mark a major recovery from a prolonged period of relatively muted demand.

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The largest share of the fresh capital flowed in on August 21st, when XRP rallied by over 20% within a 24-hour period and the XRP ETFs also recorded $18.38 million in net inflows during the same day.

This resurgence in demand for XRP ETFs triggered an increase in their cumulative net inflows, causing them to rise to a massive $1.55 billion milestone since they launched late last year.

Bitwise continues to buy XRPWhile the major XRP ETF recovery came amid a broader crypto market resurgence, XRP's price rallied by nearly 60% over the period, drawing attention to the leading altcoin.

Amid the bullish momentum, institutional investors continued to increasingly demand the XRP product through Bitwise as the firm led all XRP funds on all their positive trading days.

While Bitwise also led the latest inflow with a fresh capital intake of $16.89 million, the Bitwise XRP ETF now boasts about $443.46 million in net assets.

Chainlink (LINK) is experiencing a renewed surge in price momentum as institutional purchases and increased demand for its network infrastructure drive optimism among traders. Buyers have defended recent gains and reinforced recovery, setting the stage for a potentially larger rally if key resistance levels are overcome.

LINK price and key resistance levelsAt the latest reading, LINK traded at $12.06, reflecting a 12.03% increase over the past 24 hours. Chainlink’s 24-hour trading volume stood at $1.04 billion, and its market capitalization reached $9.03 billion. The coin’s price action has caught the market’s attention, with the $12.50 resistance zone now viewed as a critical threshold for a broader shift in trend dynamics.

Continued upward movement hinges on whether LINK can break and consolidate above this level. A decisive push past $12.50 may reinforce positive sentiment, with traders targeting the $20 mark next. If momentum continues to build, the price could even approach $28.

Market participants are closely watching the $12.50 resistance for signs of a sustained reversal, as a breakout at this level could open the door to higher price targets amid renewed institutional interest.

Institutional accumulation through Bitwise ETFInstitutional demand has played a major role in recent LINK strength. Bitwise Asset Management, a firm known for launching multiple cryptocurrency ETFs, has continued to accumulate LINK for its Chainlink product. In a recent transaction, the Bitwise Chainlink ETF acquired 163,379 LINK tokens worth approximately $1.85 million.

Over the span of one week, Bitwise amassed around 727,170 LINK tokens, representing a total value of $5.515 million. The ETF achieved an average entry price of $7.585 per token. With LINK now trading close to $12.06, Bitwise is already sitting on over 50% in unrealized gains from its latest purchases.

MetricBitwise Chainlink ETFTotal LINK purchased (1 week)727,170 tokensTotal value$5.515 millionAverage entry price$7.585Current LINK price$12.06Unrealized gain50%+Chainlink’s ETF activity from Bitwise has caught the attention of both retail and institutional investors, suggesting that further accumulation could fuel continued bullish momentum.

Bitwise Asset Management is a US-based investment manager specializing in index and thematic products focused on the digital asset market.

Mini dictionary: Bitwise Asset Management, an investment firm specializing in cryptocurrency index funds and thematic ETFs for institutional and retail investors.

Technical outlook and market expectationsThe short-term outlook for LINK now depends on its ability to breach and hold above the $12.50 resistance zone. If this level is reclaimed with strong demand and increased trading volume, technical analysts believe a move toward $20 could materialize, and further gains to $28 may come into view with sustained momentum.

Broader interest in blockchain oracle solutions and real-world asset (RWA) networks is also supporting Chainlink’s long-term narrative. The project is recognized for providing decentralized data oracles, which are essential for securely connecting smart contracts to off-chain information.

Mini dictionary: Oracle, a service enabling blockchains and smart contracts to access real-world data such as asset prices, events, and off-chain information in a secure and decentralized manner.

Market observers are expected to focus on upcoming ETF flows and any technical breakthroughs, as they may offer additional confirmation of Chainlink’s trend development in the sessions ahead.

The next major test for LINK lies at $12.50, with bullish momentum likely to intensify if this barrier is cleared and trading volume remains high.

Disclaimer: The information contained in this article does not constitute investment advice. Investors should be aware that cryptocurrencies carry high volatility and therefore risk, and should conduct their own research.

Stani Kulechov, the founder and CEO of Aave, announced on August 22 that total deposits on the Aave protocol have crossed $30 billion, a milestone that arrives with a pointed three-word editorial: “liquidity is back.”

The figure represents a 30% increase in deposits for the third quarter of the year.

What the numbers say To understand the $30B deposit figure, it helps to separate two metrics that often get conflated. Total deposits on Aave count every asset supplied to the protocol, including capital that has been borrowed against and redeployed. DeFiLlama’s Total Value Locked reading, which sat around $17.6B as of mid-August, uses a different methodology, netting out borrowed amounts and applying its own chain coverage and asset inclusion criteria.

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Active loans on the protocol are running at roughly $10B, which means a meaningful portion of that deposited capital is already doing work inside the ecosystem.

Aave V4, the protocol’s latest architecture upgrade, saw deposits climb from around $50M when the deployment launched in early May to over $400M by mid-August.

Lifetime deposits on Aave have now totaled $3.46 trillion since the protocol launched, a figure that puts its $30B current snapshot in perspective.

Where Aave sits historically Aave has been here before, and higher. Net deposits surpassed $50B during mid-2025, and TVL readings exceeded $40B in early 2026. The current $30B sits below those peaks, which means the “liquidity is back” framing from Kulechov carries some nuance: the protocol is recovering from a drawdown, not setting an all-time high.

The protocol itself has a longer history than many DeFi participants remember. Aave began life as ETHLend in 2017, a peer-to-peer lending platform built on Ethereum. It rebranded to Aave in 2018 and pivoted to a liquidity pool model. The fact that it remains the leading decentralized lending protocol by deposits and overall activity in 2026 is a product of that early architectural decision and years of incremental iteration.

Governance over the protocol is managed through the AAVE token, which gives holders the ability to vote on protocol parameters, risk configurations, and treasury allocations.

Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.

Uniswap recorded its highest daily UNI burn by dollar value on August 21. Ethereum remained the largest contributor, while Base and Robinhood Chain supplied a sizable share. Roughly 150,000 UNI were removed from supply during the session. UNI held near $4.34 after a sharp recovery from its mid-August lows. Uniswap recorded its largest single-day UNI burn by dollar value on August 21, removing roughly 150,000 UNI worth about $590,000 as protocol activity across Ethereum, Base and Robinhood Chain fed into its fee-driven burn system. The record matters because Uniswap’s current token economics connect network usage directly to UNI supply reduction, giving investors a measurable way to assess whether trading activity is translating into value accrual for the governance token.

Ethereum Led the Record Burn, but Base Added $165,000 Ethereum generated approximately $267,000 of the UNI burned on August 21, according to data reported by Wu Blockchain. Base contributed another $165,000, while Robinhood Chain accounted for roughly $87,000.

Daily blockchain token burns surged to nearly $600,000 at the latest peak, with Ethereum remaining a major contributor. The distribution is arguably more significant than the headline record. Ethereum supplied about 45% of the day’s dollar-value burn, meaning more than half came from other networks and sources.

That reduces the extent to which UNI’s burn rate depends exclusively on Ethereum mainnet trading activity.

The August 21 figures break down as follows: Total UNI burned: approximately 150,000 UNI Total burn value: approximately $590,000 Ethereum contribution: approximately $267,000 Base contribution: approximately $165,000 Robinhood Chain contribution: approximately $87,000 Remaining contribution: approximately $71,000 across other supported sources

The 150,000 UNI total was reportedly the second-largest daily burn measured in tokens, while the dollar value established a new record.

That distinction matters. A dollar-denominated burn record can be produced by a combination of higher UNI prices and greater token destruction, whereas the number of UNI removed provides a cleaner indication of the mechanism’s underlying activity.

How Uniswap Turns Protocol Fees Into UNI Burns Uniswap’s burn architecture is different from a conventional corporate buyback.

Protocol fees collected from supported Uniswap products are routed through fee adapters into an on-chain TokenJar. A specialized smart contract called a Releaser then determines how those accumulated assets can be extracted.

Under the Firepit mechanism, an external participant burns a specified amount of UNI to claim assets held by the system when doing so becomes economically worthwhile. The UNI used in the transaction is permanently removed from supply.

The economic sequence is therefore: Trading activity generates fees across supported Uniswap markets. Protocol fees accumulate in TokenJar contracts. A release becomes economically attractive once accumulated assets justify the required UNI burn. UNI is burned when those assets are released. Higher fee-generating activity can therefore increase the amount of UNI removed from supply.

UNI holders do not receive a direct proportional distribution of protocol revenue. The value-accrual mechanism instead operates through supply reduction, according to Uniswap’s documentation.

That difference is important when assessing the record. The $590,000 figure should not be interpreted as cash returned directly to token holders.

Cross-Chain Activity Is Becoming More Important to UNI Economics The burn system has expanded considerably beyond its original Ethereum footprint.

A governance proposal executed in March extended protocol fees across Base, Arbitrum, OP Mainnet and several other networks. Fees collected on supported Layer 2 networks can ultimately result in UNI being bridged back to Ethereum mainnet and permanently burned.

That architecture helps explain why Base could contribute roughly $165,000 to the August 21 record.
It also changes how UNI investors can evaluate Uniswap’s growth. Trading volume on an additional network is no longer relevant only as an ecosystem adoption metric. Where protocol fees are active and connected to the burn infrastructure, that activity can become part of UNI’s supply economics.

The next expansion is already under discussion. Uniswap governance currently has a temperature check concerning activation of v4 protocol fees, according to the governance forum.

If additional fee sources are activated, the relevant metric will not simply be whether Uniswap processes more volume. Investors will need to watch how much of that activity produces collectible protocol fees and how efficiently those fees translate into actual UNI destruction.

UNI Reclaims $4.30 After a Sharp August Reversal UNI was trading around $4.34 on the four-hour chart at the time of writing, after recovering sharply from approximately $3.20 in mid-August.

UNI trades near $4.34 after a strong rebound from the $3.20 region. Source: TradingView. The structure changed notably after August 19. UNI moved through $3.50, $3.70 and $4.00 in relatively quick succession before reaching the $4.40 area.

The latest candles show buyers attempting to hold those gains after a volatile rejection. One four-hour candle briefly fell toward approximately $3.70 before recovering, leaving a long lower wick. Price subsequently returned above $4.30.

The immediate technical levels are: $4.40-$4.45: The first resistance area, corresponding with the recent rally high. $4.20: Short-term support created during the latest consolidation. $4.00-$4.10: A more consequential support zone if the current advance loses momentum. Around $3.70: The recent volatility low and a deeper reference point for the recovery structure. A sustained break above the recent $4.40 region would establish a new short-term high. Failure to hold $4.20 would instead put the strength of the latest breakout under greater scrutiny.

The broader crypto market was weaker at the same time. Bitcoin traded around $77,036, down approximately 1.85% over 24 hours, while Ethereum changed hands near $2,423, down about 4.29%. UNI’s ability to remain near its recent highs despite that backdrop separates the token’s latest move from a simple market-wide advance.

The burn data now provides another metric against which that relative strength can be tested. One record session has limited influence on UNI’s overall supply by itself. A sustained increase in protocol-generated burns, particularly if contributions continue spreading across Ethereum, Base and other networks, would provide stronger evidence that the expanded fee architecture is producing recurring rather than episodic supply reduction.

Palantir Technologies (PLTR +3.44%) took in $1.94 billion of revenue in the second quarter and kept $1.06 billion of it as net income. Out of every dollar the artificial intelligence (AI) software specialist collected, 55 cents dropped to the bottom line.

For context, a year earlier the margin was 33%, and it ran at 36% across all of 2025. Software has always been a high-margin business. But numbers like these are rare at any scale, let alone for a growth stock still expanding revenue 93% year over year.

A margin that extreme deserves a closer look, because how Palantir earns its 55 cents matters as much as the figure itself.

Image source: The Motley Fool.

The operating engine does most of itMost of Palantir's profit is exactly what it looks like. Income from operations was $912 million in the second quarter, a 47% operating margin -- up from 27% in the year-ago quarter and 46% in the first quarter of 2026. The year-over-year jump is operating leverage in its purest form: revenue grew 93% while operating expenses rose just 34%, on a gross margin of about 85%.

And management's preferred summary of the quarter was a Rule of 40 score (revenue growth plus adjusted operating margin) of 155%.

"The sovereign AI revolution makes us very optimistic about the future," CEO Alex Karp said in the earnings release.

However you feel about the stock, that operating line is the most important part of the margin story. And it repeated, which matters. The first quarter ran a 46% operating margin, so this is now the established level, not a spike.

Interest and a tiny tax billThe remaining 8 cents come from below the operating line.

Palantir ended June with $9.2 billion of cash, equivalents, and short-term U.S. Treasuries, and that pile generated $77.5 million of interest income in the quarter. Another $91.8 million arrived as other non-operating income. And the tax bill was the unusual part. On $1.08 billion of pre-tax income, it came to about $15 million -- an effective rate of about 1.4%.

Run the same quarter at the 21% U.S. statutory rate instead, and the net margin lands closer to 44%. Still remarkable, just not 55%.

To be fair, this isn't a one-quarter quirk. The first quarter showed the same shape, with a 53% net margin against that 46% operating margin. But tax rates this low tend not to last as profitable companies scale, and interest income is a return on the cash pile, not on the software. The gap between 47 and 55 is the part of the margin a shareholder probably shouldn't count on keeping.

Can it hold?Management's own outlook says the profitability isn't going anywhere this year. Alongside the second-quarter report, Palantir raised its 2026 revenue guidance to between $8.150 billion and $8.158 billion, which implies 82% growth over 2025. It lifted its outlook for U.S. commercial revenue, the fastest-growing piece of the business, to more than $3.4 billion after that line grew 149% year over year to $764 million in the quarter.

On the profitability side, it guided to adjusted income from operations of about $4.9 billion and adjusted free cash flow of $4.5 billion to $4.7 billion, or about 55% to 58% of guided revenue. And the company said it continues to expect positive operating income and net income, under generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), in each quarter of this year.

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The honest version of the headline number, then, goes like this. About 47 of the 55 cents come from the software business itself, before any tax. The rest is interest and other non-operating income, plus a tax rate that won't stay near zero forever. Palantir's own non-GAAP math assumes a long-term rate of 23%. And big profitable software companies do eventually pay something close to it.

I think that distinction matters mostly because of the price. Shares sit near $174 as of this writing, and the stock trades at more than 150 times earnings -- a valuation that treats today's extraordinary economics as a permanent feature.

That assumption leaves the work to revenue growth. A company already converting revenue to profit at this rate has little room to expand margins further -- from the first quarter to the second, the operating margin inched from 46% to 47%. From here, the stock's case rests almost entirely on growth staying extreme.

The profitability is exceptional, and most of it is the right kind. But at more than 150 times earnings, the price already assumes all of it continues.

Anthropic's backers reportedly want the artificial intelligence (AI) company to go public in October at a valuation of $2 trillion or more. The Financial Times reported the figure this month, citing the company's investors.

Anthropic itself has confirmed far less. It filed a confidential draft registration statement on June 1, and it hasn't publicly set a valuation, a date, an exchange, or a ticker. Bloomberg reported Thursday that the company expects to match or beat the size of SpaceX's record raise, and could file publicly as soon as the end of this month.

A $2 trillion debut would be the largest initial public offering (IPO) ever, and the company it would take the record from is barely two months into public life. SpaceX (SPCX +2.22%) priced the current largest IPO on record in June, at a valuation of about $1.77 trillion.

That makes SpaceX a timely case study. Anyone weighing whether to chase the next record listing can look at exactly what the market did with the last one.

Image source: Getty Images.

The reported appetite for Anthropic rests on explosive growth. Preliminary figures the company shared with prospective investors put second-quarter revenue above $11.5 billion, more than double the first quarter's $4.73 billion, according to documents seen by Bloomberg News. Investors who spoke to the Financial Times expect annualized revenue of $100 billion to $120 billion by the end of the year.

Days before filing, Anthropic raised $65 billion at a $965 billion valuation. In other words, its backers are now discussing a price about double what they paid in late May.

Worth noting, too: According to the same reporting, Anthropic's own senior executives haven't fixed a valuation target, even privately. The $2 trillion figure belongs to the investors, not the company.

Up 67%, down 22%, back to evenSpaceX sold 555,555,555 shares at $135 apiece on June 11, raising $75 billion at the offer in the largest IPO on record -- and about $86 billion in all, once its underwriters exercised their option to buy 83.3 million more shares. Trading began the next day, and the first public trade came at $150.

The 10 weeks since gave buyers the full range of outcomes. Shares ran as high as $225.64, a 67% gain from the offer price. They then fell as low as $104.83, which is 22% below it.

As of this writing, the stock sits within a few percent of $135 -- about 40% below its high, and almost exactly where it started.

So the investors who got shares at the offer price have made essentially nothing in two months. And anyone who bought at the opening trade is down about 9%.

The sellers set the recordThe business performed the whole time, which is what makes the return so instructive. SpaceX grew second-quarter revenue 92% year over year to $7.81 billion, and its AI segment's revenue more than tripled year over year to $2.6 billion. The company signed $14.1 billion of cloud computing contracts during the quarter, narrowed its net loss to $541 million from $1 billion a year earlier, and ended June with $47.5 billion in backlog.

Growth like that usually moves a stock. Across the full 10 weeks, on net, it hasn't moved this one -- because the offer price had already charged for it. Even today, SpaceX trades at about 57 times revenue, annualizing its second-quarter figure. The sellers, in short, set a record price precisely because the growth story was at full strength -- and the buyers have spent two months waiting for the story to catch up to what they paid.

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Anthropic's math could work out better. If revenue lands where its backers project, a $2 trillion valuation would be about 18 times the annualized revenue they expect by December. That is a lower price against hoped-for sales than SpaceX commanded.

But it still assumes annualized revenue grows another 50% or more from the $65 billion annualized run rate the company reported for late July. And it prices that assumption in before the company has reported a single quarter in public.

Of course, SpaceX's two months prove nothing about the next two years, and a business that keeps doubling can outgrow any starting price eventually. But I think the two-month record is worth taking at face value.

The largest IPO ever delivered a 67% surge, a 53% collapse from that peak, and, for the investor who simply bought and held from the start, a return of about zero -- all while the business nearly doubled its revenue year over year. A record-setting price means the growth is charged upfront. Two months in, that is exactly how it has traded.

The two biggest off-price retailers just reported the same 13 weeks of business, one day apart. The market treated them like different industries.

TJX (TJX -0.11%), the company behind TJ Maxx, Marshalls, and HomeGoods, reported Wednesday morning that its comparable sales -- sales at stores open long enough to compare with a year earlier -- grew 4% in its fiscal second quarter of 2027 (the period ended Aug. 1, 2026), above its own plan. The stock fell 4% that day and kept falling Thursday, leaving it within about 5% of its 52-week low.

Ross Stores (ROST +4.39%) reported its own quarter, covering the very same weeks, after Thursday's close. Comparable sales grew 10%. The stock jumped on Friday, closing up more than 4%.

What did the market see that the headline numbers miss? The answer sits in the two companies' second-half plans.

Image source: The Motley Fool.

Ross: the growth is broadeningRoss delivered the kind of quarter off-price investors have been waiting for. Total sales rose 13% year over year to $6.3 billion, and the 10% comparable sales gain was driven primarily by customer traffic (more people in stores, not just bigger baskets).

Even more encouraging, management said the growth drew on both new customers and higher engagement from existing ones. And the 10% gain came on top of just a 2% rise in the same quarter last year.

Additionally, net income climbed to $851 million from $508 million a year earlier, and earnings per share of $2.66 landed far above the company's own $1.85-to-$1.93 guidance. About $0.60 of that came from tariff refunds under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), so the clean beat was smaller than it looks -- but it was still a beat, and the company raised its outlook on top of it.

That outlook is the part the market paid for. Ross now expects comparable sales to grow 6% to 7% in the third quarter and 4% to 5% in the fourth -- raised numbers, against tougher year-over-year comparisons. And the third-quarter range matches the comparable sales guidance Ross gave for the quarter it just beat by three points.

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TJX: bigger, steadier, slowingTJX's quarter was good by nearly every measure it guides on. Revenue rose 5% year over year to $15.2 billion, and earnings per share of $1.36, up 24%, came in well above plan.

Excluding a $0.14 net tariff-refund benefit, adjusted earnings per share still grew 11%.

Topping it all off, the company raised its full-year margin and earnings outlook, lifted its long-term store target to 7,500 locations, and returned $1.3 billion to shareholders in the quarter. And the stock fell anyway.

The problem was the composition.

Marmaxx, the U.S. division that includes TJ Maxx and Marshalls and generates most of TJX's sales, grew comparable sales just 1%, down from 3% a year ago. The strength came from everywhere else.

"While sales at Marmaxx were below our expectations, HomeGoods, TJX Canada, and TJX International all delivered terrific comp sales increases of 6% to 7%, which underscores the strength of our global diversified business," said CEO Ernie Herrman in the earnings release.

The second-half plan, I think, extends the slowdown. TJX expects third-quarter comparable sales growth of just 2% to 3% and full-year growth of 3% to 4%. That sales outlook was not raised. The earnings raise came from margin, and part of it from tariff refunds.

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The second half decided itPut the two plans side by side and the reactions stop looking strange. Ross just posted 10% comparable sales growth and told investors to expect 6% to 7% next quarter. TJX posted 4% and told investors to expect 2% to 3%, with its flagship division near flat.

The valuations sharpen the contrast.

TJX's market value sits near $155 billion, about twice Ross' $78 billion, and the stocks trade at similar valuations: TJX at about 26 times earnings, Ross at about 29 times earnings.

So investors are paying nearly the same price per dollar of profit for a company growing comparable sales at less than half the rate.

And forward price-to-earnings ratios, measured against each company's own raised full-year guidance, land in the same neighborhood.

Sure, TJX runs the bigger, more diversified business, and a turn at Marmaxx could change this comparison quickly. Herrman said the third quarter is off to a strong start overall, with improvement at Marmaxx, and he may prove the plan conservative. But off-price is a traffic business. Ross is still pulling more customers through its doors quarter after quarter, while growth at TJX's biggest U.S. banners has nearly stalled.

I think the market read the two reports correctly. The quarter was fine at both companies. The second half, by each management team's own numbers, belongs to Ross.

Robert G. Wright, Chief Financial Officer of Delek Logistics Partners, LP (DKL +0.78%), executed a direct purchase of 1,500 shares of common units on August 13, 2026 according to a recent SEC Form 4 filing.

Transaction summaryMetricValueShares purchased (directly held)1,500Transaction value$75,000Post-transaction shares (directly held)7,994Post-transaction value$418,086.20Transaction value based on SEC Form 4 weighted average purchase price ($50.00); post-transaction value based on August 13, 2026 market close ($52.30).

Key questionsWhat was the relative scale of this acquisition for the CFO?
The addition of 1,500 shares expanded the executive's direct stake by nearly a quarter, indicating a substantial relative increase in their personal equity commitment to the firm.How does the execution price align with the partnership's recent equity performance?
The purchase at $50.00 per share was executed while the partnership's one-year total return stood at 20% as of the August 13, 2026 transaction date.What is the current level of internal ownership for the executive?
Following this transaction, the CFO maintains direct beneficial ownership of 7,994 shares, which carries a market value of $431,755.94 based on the $54.01 price as of the August 14, 2026 market close.Does this transaction involve any derivative or indirect holdings?
The filing reflects only direct common unit ownership, with no reported indirect entities or associated derivative securities, such as stock options or warrants, held by the reporting owner.Company OverviewMetricValueShare Price (as of market close 2026-08-14)$54.01Market Capitalization$2.9 billionRevenue (TTM)$1.2 billionNet Income (TTM)$154.1 millionCompany SnapshotDelek Logistics Partners operates a diversified portfolio of logistics and marketing assets for crude oil, intermediate, and refined petroleum products, generating revenue through its various segments, including Storage and Transportation, Wholesale Marketing and Terminalling, and Pipeline Joint Venture Investments.The company generates earnings through the transportation and storage of petroleum products via its pipeline network and trucking fleet, as well as through wholesale marketing and terminalling operations that facilitate product distribution across the United States.The company serves major petroleum refiners, producers, and downstream distributors throughout the United States, positioning itself as a critical infrastructure provider in the midstream energy sector.Delek Logistics Partners is a substantial midstream energy infrastructure operator with $1.2 billion in trailing 12-month revenue and a market cap of $2.9 billion. The company's integrated logistics platform provides essential transportation and marketing services for petroleum products, leveraging its extensive pipeline network and terminalling facilities to capture value across the crude oil and refined products supply chain.

With a 20.2% one-year share price appreciation, the company demonstrates strong investor confidence in its operational performance and strategic positioning within the energy infrastructure sector.

What this transaction means for investorsChief Financial Officer Robert Wright's Aug. 13 purchase of Delek Logistics Partners for $50 per share came after the stock dropped from the prior day's closing price of $60. The price fell after the company announced a secondary public offering at $50 per share.

Wright's purchase indicates he is bullish on Delek Logistics Partners stock, and that he sees $50 as an attractive share price level to buy, so much so that he increased his direct holdings by 23%, which is quite a large increase. The stock's 52-week high was $61.50 reached on July 31.

The company's sales in the second quarter rose to $384.8 million, up from $246.4 million in the previous year. However, its costs increased, resulting in Q2 net income of $28.9 million, which is down from the prior year's net income of $44.6 million. Delek Logistics Partners reiterated its 2026 EBITDA guidance of $520 million to $560 million.

Robert Izquierdo has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Currency analysts lift their near-term EUR/USD view and bring forward a 1.18 target as US debt-market worries put the US Dollar back on the defensive. The Euro to Dollar (EUR/USD) exchange rate ended the week around 1.1677 after a sharp mid-week jump carried the pair as high as 1.1711.

EUR/USD is now up roughly 1.15% in August, while the Dollar has lost ground against the Pound, Euro, Australian Dollar, New Zealand Dollar and Canadian Dollar over the past month. Rabobank has responded by softening its Dollar forecasts and raising its one-to-three-month EUR/USD projection to 1.16 from 1.15.

Latest — Exchange Rates:

Euro to Dollar (EUR/USD): 1.16767 (-0.09%)

Pound to Dollar (GBP/USD): 1.36445 (+0.01%)

Dollar to Yen (USD/JPY): 158.98453 (+0.05%)

At first glance, that looks odd. Spot is already above 1.16.

The more important change sits further out: Rabobank has brought forward its 1.18 EUR/USD target to next spring, rather than leaving it on a 12-month horizon.

“We have softened our USD forecasts moderately and, given also resilient Eurozone economic data, increased our 1-to-3-month EUR/USD forecasts to 1.16 from 1.15,” said Rabobank's Jane Foley.

Image: Euro-to-Dollar exchange rate chart for last week EUR/USD climbed from below 1.1570 to above 1.17 during the week before giving back some of the advance, leaving the pair comfortably above its recent range lows.

The bigger Dollar problem, in Rabobank's view, is no longer simply Fed policy.

Concerns over the US Treasury market have “stormed back into the limelight” amid a large budget deficit, rising national debt, above-target inflation and stronger competition for buyers of fixed-income assets.

There is a slightly uncomfortable twist here.

US government bonds used to become more attractive when markets became nervous. Rabobank argues that last year's Treasury sell-off raised questions over whether that automatic safe-haven relationship can still be taken for granted.

Foley warns that fears of greater government intervention in the Treasury market could add “debasement pressure on the USD”, potentially encouraging some investors to accelerate de-dollarisation.

She is careful not to overplay it.

The bank still argues that “the USD's dominance in the global payments system is still unchallenged” and expects that status to preserve a floor under Dollar demand and its safe-haven role.

EUR/USD Outlook: 1.18 Comes Forward The Euro side has improved too.

Rabobank highlights stronger-than-expected Eurozone second-quarter GDP and a robust August PMI round, including Germany's strongest manufacturing performance in more than four years.

“Despite the June rate hike from the ECB and the expectation of one more rate hike next month, potential growth headwinds have undermined confidence in the single currency,” the bank said.

But the latest data are “consistent with an improved position for the EUR”.

There is still an obvious risk. Europe remains an energy importer, so another escalation in the Iran conflict would revive the same growth and inflation concerns that hurt the Euro earlier in the year.

Image: USD crosses over one-month The Dollar's weakness has become broad rather than confined to EUR/USD, with all five major USD crosses in the chart below their levels from a month earlier.

Rabobank's forecast path reflects that tension rather well: 1.16 at one and three months, 1.17 at six months and 1.18 at nine and twelve months.

So this is not a call for EUR/USD to sprint higher from 1.17.

Quite the opposite. Rabobank still expects some near-term consolidation.

What has changed is the destination.

The bank now thinks 1.18 can arrive sooner, with the Dollar's fiscal and Treasury-market vulnerabilities becoming harder to ignore.

Paramount (PSKY.O) and California state officials are set to meet on Monday to discuss a ​potential settlement path of the state's lawsuit ‌aimed at stopping Paramount's acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD.O), the New York Times reported on Saturday citing ​sources familiar with the discussions. Here's ​what to know:

The talks are preliminary, and ⁠there is no assurance that they will lead ​to meaningful negotiations toward a settlement, the report ​said, adding that Paramount requested the meeting.

Reuters couldn't immediately verify the report. Paramount didn't immediately respond to a ​request for comment outside regular business hours.

The ​meeting, which will include senior executives and lawyers from ‌each ⁠side, has been in the works for a little over a week, NYT added, citing one of the people.

Last month, California and 11 ​states sued to ​block Paramount's $110 ⁠billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, alleging the deal would lessen competition ​in film distribution and cable television, ​harming ⁠theaters and pay TV distributors.

States including New York, Arizona and Minnesota argued the deal would harm ⁠theaters ​and television distributors, raise prices ​for consumers and make wages less competitive for workers.

In brief In an interview with Decrypt, Bitcoin Red Team member Calle said Chinese AI models are used far more than U.S. models for security research because American models often block cybersecurity-related requests. The group has proactively scanned much of Bitcoin's significant open-source ecosystem and works directly with projects to identify and fix vulnerabilities. Calle warned that AI allows people without advanced security expertise to carry out exploits from beginning to end. AI is putting powerful hacking capabilities in the hands of people with little cybersecurity expertise, forcing crypto developers into a race to find vulnerabilities before attackers exploit them.

One group taking on that challenge is the Bitcoin Red Team, whose pseudonymous member and Bitcoin software developer Calle said formed as an emergency effort to find AI-assisted security threats across the Bitcoin ecosystem.

Myriad: Bitcoin price next move? Click to make your prediction."At this point, it is a question about time,” Calle, who helps maintain the open-source protocol Cashu, told Decrypt. “The reason why the Bitcoin Red Team exists right now is because we need to get ahead of the attackers as fast as possible.”

The Bitcoin Red Team consists of about 20 to 25 volunteers, according to Calle, many of whom prefer to remain pseudonymous, such as Bitcoin privacy protocol developers Stu, Talip, and fellow Cashu dev thesimplekid. Others in the group include Bitcoin developers Ben Carmen, Daniela Brozzoni, and James O'Beirne, and Vinteum Bitcoin R&D Center board member Bruno Garcia.

Bitcoin Red Team Update:

We have been working around the clock, with ~$20,000 of spend up to this point across different services. Funding is secured, I appreciate all the gestures for donations but it is not necessary. The bill is taken care of.

We have done over a dozen…

— Rob Hamilton 🟥 (@Rob1Ham) August 4, 2026

Calle said the Bitcoin Red Team began taking shape after CEO of Bitcoin Insurance firm AnchorWatch Rob Hamilton started examining Bitcoin projects following the Coldcard air-gapped wallet hack.

While Calle stressed that the group has found no issues in the Bitcoin protocol itself, the concern he said instead lies with applications, wallets, services, and other software built around Bitcoin.

"Although Bitcoin itself is secure, the software that we're using to transact with Bitcoin may not be, and that is what most people interface with anyway," Calle said.

The Coldcard exploit, attacks on other Bitcoin services, and the release of more powerful Chinese AI models pushed Calle and other security researchers to join the effort and move quickly.

"I think the arrival of Kimi K3 has also caused a lot of chaos in the cybersecurity realm because it gave attackers as well as defenders unprecedented power," he said.

As Calle explained, the Red Team receives requests from Bitcoin projects seeking security scans but also searches for vulnerabilities on its own.

"We get a bunch of inbound requests from projects that want to be scanned, but we act proactively, and we've covered almost the entire significant open-source ecosystem by our own sweeps already," Calle said. "So even if you come and ask us to scan your project, we've probably scanned it already."

The group shares its findings with affected developers and uses their feedback to improve its vulnerability classifications and severity ratings.

Chinese models fill the gap

Chinese AI models are used far more than their U.S. counterparts for the group's security work because guardrails on American models can block cybersecurity research, Calle said.

“It's not even close," he said.

In February, Anthropic accused Chinese AI labs DeepSeek, Moonshot AI, and MiniMax of using roughly 24,000 fraudulent accounts to extract more than 16 million Claude exchanges through model distillation, while the Trump administration warned in April that Chinese entities were conducting similar campaigns on an “industrial scale.”

Myriad: When will OpenAI release GPT-6? Click to make your prediction.While Calle said U.S. frontier models remain arguably more capable overall, their restrictions can limit their usefulness for security-sensitive work.

"Although U.S.-based frontier models are still arguably more intelligent than any other models out there in the world, they all come with heavy guardrailing, which limits their use, especially in the cybersecurity realm," he said.

Calle encountered those restrictions before joining the Red Team. He said U.S. models sometimes refused to help find vulnerabilities and, in some cases, would not assist with fixing vulnerabilities that developers had already identified, leading him to switch to Chinese AI models.

'Bitcoin is burning'

Earlier this month, Calle described the growing security threat facing Bitcoin software as "Bitcoin is burning," referring to the wider ecosystem of wallets, exchanges, Lightning implementations and other software built around it.

Calle believes attackers are already using AI to find and exploit vulnerabilities, but avoids discussing their methods in detail out of concern that doing so could give malicious hackers ideas.

He also warned that AI is eroding the information advantage that once kept some software vulnerabilities out of reach of less-skilled attackers.

"I think that there are no secrets anymore in software," Calle said. "There is no information asymmetry that was previously being used to kind of create security theater or security through obscurity. Those times are over."

AI has also lowered the technical barrier to exploiting vulnerable software, he said.

"Simple exploits can now be completed end to end by someone who doesn't know how to do it without AI," Calle said. "So AI gave people a form of power that has completely changed the playing field."

Bitcoin may be confronting that shift earlier than other industries because attackers have a direct financial incentive to target cryptocurrency, Calle said.

"The first thing that, as an attacker, you would want to attack is internet money," he said. "So we are the beginning of a larger change in society or in computer systems in general, and I'm convinced that other industries will experience the same thing as we do right now later."

Daily Debrief NewsletterStart every day with the top news stories right now, plus original features, a podcast, videos and more.

16h35 ▪ 7 min read ▪ by Luc Jose A.

Summarize this article with:

AI now goes beyond simple analysis and advisory functions. It already makes payments. Thanks to the advent and development of autonomous agents capable of conducting banking and commercial transactions, the role of the XRP Ledger will undergo an evolution. In addition to its function as a visible settlement infrastructure, the network could also serve as a secondary financial layer, directly solicited by machines. This revolution also shifts the question of adoption. Beyond the traded volumes, the value of the blockchain would now be assessed by its ability to automate various payments, organize flows, and make the network almost invisible to users.

In Brief More than one million transactions have already been executed without human intervention by AI agents on the XRP Ledger (XRPL). The launch of the XRPL AI Starter Kit and the integration of Mastercard’s Agent Pay for Machines program structure payments in XRP and RLUSD. AI agents are evolving towards concrete purchases governed by budgets, merchant restrictions, and strict mandates. The use of XRPL Payment Channels aggregates thousands of off-chain micro-transactions to preserve network scalability. The Rise of Spending Mandates and Trade Automation on the XRP Network The transition from automated programs to full-fledged economic actors surpasses a critical phase on the XRPL. Indeed, Chandler Fang, co-founder of the trusted startup for AI agents t54 and former product manager at Ripple with experience at J.P. Morgan, highlighted this shift by noting that machine-to-machine transactions are no longer theoretical. For him, agents already conduct more than one million transactions on the XRP Ledger without human presence in the system.

Since June 10, this momentum has been built through the launch of the XRPL AI Starter Kit. This kit allows making x402 payments in XRP using the Ripple(USD) stablecoin for compensating computing resources, model inference, or API access. This methodology expanded commercially the same day following the inauguration of Mastercard’s “Agent Pay for Machines” program. The launch brought together more than thirty partners including Coinbase, Stripe, the Solana Foundation, and Ripple via its subsidiary RippleX.

Furthermore, the system integrates crypto settlement channels within traditional payment infrastructures for invoice processing. It also reserves computing capacity without prior human validation. Given these deployments and a $5 million financial support granted to t54 by Ripple and Franklin Templeton during a seed round, Chandler Fang stated: “this changes how we should think about XRPL adoption”.

This gradual progression is based on a strict evolution of authorization mechanisms granted to software. After consuming exclusively digital services at the core of automated workflows, agents move toward spending mandates regulated by concise budgets, merchant limitations, and user-set approval rules.

The network now requires the development of crypto wallets associated with configurable financial instruments. Concerning merchants, this deployment necessitates software adaptation capable of presenting prices, stock status, delivery conditions, and settlement interfaces in a form readable by autonomous systems. Ultimately, agents that build a reliable history regarding identity, transactions, and reimbursements will no longer be pre-funded operation by operation. They will immediately receive financial capacities or lines of credit.

Numerous strategic initiatives and technical developments make up this new stage of institutional adoption :

Strong institutional anchoring : the $5 million financial support obtained by t54 from Ripple and Franklin Templeton validates the industrial relevance of trusted infrastructures for AI ; Bank interoperability : RippleX’s integration into Mastercard’s “Agent Pay for Machines” program brings together major crypto players and payment giants within a single framework ; Standardization of x402 payments : the combined use of XRP and RLUSD ensures full flexibility between rapid settlement and monetary stability for microservices. Off-Chain Payment Channels to Crypto Coexistence The increase in commercial flows driven by artificial intelligence does not mean that every price comparison or compliance check materializes by a direct inscription on the XRPL. To preserve the ecosystem’s capacity against high-frequency requests, the architecture relies on XRPL Payment Channels.

This process allows two parties to exchange signed claims in XRP off the global consensus before settling their final obligation through a single transaction on this ledger. Three workloads emerge: recurring low-value payments for web micro-services, less frequent but higher transactions for enterprise commerce, and thousands of internal operations aggregated before the ultimate on-chain settlement. In this context, settlement needs condition the asset used. Ripple’s crypto XRP plays a routing and direct settlement role, whereas RLUSD provides monetary stability denominated in dollars for certain acquisitions.

There is thus a functional operational complementarity between these two assets within the network. While the XRP crypto retains its appeal for cross-border liquidity and immediate interoperability, the RLUSD stablecoin secures the accounting predictability required by companies for managing their IT subscriptions or stocks. This coexistence between the two settlement instruments facilitates infrastructure adaptation to regulatory and financial requirements of institutional actors, without forgetting the optimization of transaction costs for continuously made micropayments.

The Disappearance of Graphical Interfaces in Favor of Backend Banking Adoption Such infrastructure will become completely invisible to the end user in the long term. Embedded directly within treasury platforms, logistics software, or institutional financial applications, agents will assess risks and handle blockchain infrastructure selection in the background without any interface manipulation by the individual. In this perspective, Chandler Fang emphasizes: “long-term adoption does not require every person to open an XRPL wallet or consciously choose a blockchain before accomplishing a task”.

Thus, transaction volume no longer constitutes a relevant adoption metric. The network will now be evaluated based on the recurrence of operations, gains generated by merchants, strict respect of assigned budgets, as well as efficiency in dispute settlement. As the former Ripple manager concluded: “by then, XRPL will not be judged solely on agents’ capacity to use it. It will be judged on the amount of useful economic activity they choose to settle on it”.

This transition therefore sets the crucial milestones for integrating decentralized ledgers into the global economic fabric. While this shift to transparent fundamental transactions promises to resolve interoperability issues between traditional banking systems and blockchains, adoption speed will depend exclusively on the robustness of security standards imposed on agents.

The analogy drawn by Chandler Fang with the emergence of ChatGPT recalls that infrastructure deployment seems long and uncertain before suddenly appearing as an obvious solution to the general public. It is now up to developers and financial institutions to test the resilience of these aggregation channels, as the true measure of success for the XRP Ledger’s industrial achievement will lie in its ability to support this secure payload.

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Diplômé de Sciences Po Toulouse et titulaire d'une certification consultant blockchain délivrée par Alyra, j'ai rejoint l'aventure Cointribune en 2019. Convaincu du potentiel de la blockchain pour transformer de nombreux secteurs de l'économie, j'ai pris l'engagement de sensibiliser et d'informer le grand public sur cet écosystème en constante évolution. Mon objectif est de permettre à chacun de mieux comprendre la blockchain et de saisir les opportunités qu'elle offre. Je m'efforce chaque jour de fournir une analyse objective de l'actualité, de décrypter les tendances du marché, de relayer les dernières innovations technologiques et de mettre en perspective les enjeux économiques et sociétaux de cette révolution en marche.

DISCLAIMER

The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed in this article belong solely to the author, and should not be taken as investment advice. Do your own research before taking any investment decisions.

Cardano currently offers probabilistic settlement rather than hard finality. An $ADA transaction becomes progressively safer as more blocks are added on top of it, but near-certainty can take hours under the existing Ouroboros Praos protocol. A proposed upgrade aims to compress that wait to around two minutes.

What Peras Does The proposal, filed as CIP-140 and called Ouroboros Peras, The result is faster confirmation confidence without a redesign of the underlying consensus engine.

Peras is part of Cardano's broader Dijkstra era, a two-phase upgrade plan. The two upgrades are intentionally separate:

Timeline and Governance Importantly,

The Leios side of the equation is also progressing.

Together, the two upgrades form Cardano's most significant technical evolution in years, targeting both the speed and capacity limitations that have drawn criticism as rival layer-1 networks have scaled aggressively. Whether they ship on schedule will depend on testnet results and the outcome of on-chain governance votes.

Sources:
The Crypto Basic: Cardano Sets Two-Phase Roadmap for Dijkstra Upgrade Through 2027
Blockonomi: Cardano Sets Two-Phase Dijkstra Upgrade With Leios in 2026 and Peras in 2027
Cardano Improvement Proposals: CIP-140 Ouroboros Peras

Chainlink [LINK] moved closer to erasing its 2026 losses after reaching $12.60, its highest price in seven months.

However, LINK quickly retraced from that level. At press time, Chainlink traded near $11.76, marking a 1.47% daily gain. Trading Volume climbed 84% to $1.2 billion, reflecting elevated market activity during the volatile move.

Why did Chainlink fall from $12? Chainlink’s retreat coincided with considerable capital leaving the futures market.

Source: CoinGlass CoinGlass recorded $410.29 million in Futures Outflows, compared with $390.9 million in Futures Inflows.

Consequently, Futures Netflow fell 280% to -$19.3 million. The negative reading showed that more capital exited futures than entered them.

However, Futures Netflow alone could not confirm whether traders closed Long Positions or added selling pressure. While derivatives exposure weakened, institutional demand moved in the opposite direction.

Are Chainlink ETFs buying LINK? Chainlink Spot ETFs recorded five consecutive days of Net Inflows as LINK approached its seven-month high.

Onchain Lens reported that Grayscale received 132,950 LINK worth $1.53 million from Coinbase Prime. Grayscale was the only Chainlink fund recording Net Inflows that day. Its Daily Net Inflows reached $5.16 million, lifting Cumulative Net Inflows to $109 million.

Source: SoSoValue The previous day, Bitwise’s Chainlink ETF added 163,379 LINK worth $1.85 million.

These purchases suggested that institutional demand continued despite LINK’s rejection from $12.60. That demand now faces a test from the wider Spot market.

Is Spot demand supporting Chainlink? CoinAnk data showed that Market Delta remained positive for three consecutive days.

Source: CoinAnk At press time, Market Delta stood near 64,000, reflecting stronger Spot buying than selling.

Meanwhile, Spot Netflow turned negative after previously reaching $15 million. That earlier spike coincided with increased profit-taking after LINK crossed $10.

Source: CoinGlass At press time, Spot Netflow stood near -$1.19 million, indicating that more LINK left exchanges than entered them. This reduced immediate sell-side pressure but did not independently confirm fresh purchases.

Can Chainlink reach $14? Chainlink’s bullish structure remained intact despite the rejection. The Positive Directional Indicator climbed to 55, while the Negative Directional Indicator fell to 3.

Source: TradingView A rising Average Directional Index and Positive Directional Indicator reflected a strong prevailing trend.

If institutional and Spot demand continue, Chainlink [LINK] could reclaim $12 before targeting $14. However, continued Futures Outflows could weaken momentum and expose the $10 support.

Final Summary

Chainlink reached a seven-month high of $12.60 before retracing to $11.76. LINK Trading Volume rose 84% to $1.2 billion during the volatile move.

Circle’s USDC Treasury minted 250 million USDC directly on the Solana blockchain in a single on-chain transaction on August 20, 2026. The move, flagged by Whale Alert and confirmed via Solana transaction data, represents fresh issuance rather than a redeployment of existing supply.

A single mint, but part of a much larger wave The $250M transaction did not happen in isolation. According to tracking data, roughly $1.25B in USDC was minted on Solana within a single week during mid-to-late August 2026. That is five transactions the size of this one, compressed into seven days.

Circle operates USDC on a strict 1:1 model against USD reserves. Every token minted corresponds to a real dollar sitting in a custody account. Circle only mints on verified demand, meaning the issuance is a response to demand already sitting at the door.

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USDC held its peg through and after the transaction, producing no immediate price impact.

Why Solana, and why now The clustering of large USDC mints throughout 2026, with similar 250M events occurring multiple times this year alone, points to sustained and growing institutional appetite.

DeFi activity on Solana has been a significant pull factor. Liquidity pools require deep stablecoin reserves to function efficiently, and institutional desks routing dollar exposure through on-chain venues have similarly contributed to the demand signal Circle is responding to.

The minting itself is trackable in real time through services like Whale Alert, which broadcast large on-chain transactions to market participants.

What this means for Solana’s competitive position Ethereum remains the dominant venue for stablecoin issuance in aggregate, but Solana’s growing share of Circle’s minting activity reflects a rebalancing in where institutional and DeFi users prefer to operate.

The key variable to watch is where the newly minted USDC flows next. Movement into centralized exchanges would suggest institutional actors are preparing to trade or redeem. Movement into on-chain liquidity pools would indicate DeFi protocols absorbing the new supply.

Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.

Cover image via U.Today Disclaimer: The opinions expressed by our writers are their own and do not represent the views of U.Today. The financial and market information provided on U.Today is intended for informational purposes only. U.Today is not liable for any financial losses incurred while trading cryptocurrencies. Conduct your own research by contacting financial experts before making any investment decisions. We believe that all content is accurate as of the date of publication, but certain offers mentioned may no longer be available.

In a recent post, Shiba Inu community member Kuro highlights a recent development in Japan that has the potential to boost Shiba Inu's status in the country.

According to Kuro, a new registration of a Japanese crypto asset exchange operator has occurred for the first time in four years.

4年ぶりに日本の暗号資産交換業者が新規登録されました。

しかもそれは野村グループのデジタルアセット事業会社で、そこで最初に取り扱われるわずか6銘柄の中に $SHIB が含まれます！

日本の機関投資家向け暗号資産インフラの中にSHIB！
もうSHIBは日本において特別な存在と見ていいでしょう！😍 https://t.co/XJiZ07S9T8

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— KURO🐾SHIBARMY JPN🇯🇵 (@kuro_9696_9696) August 22, 2026 Laser Digital Japan, the Japanese entity of Nomura's digital assets subsidiary, Laser Digital, announced Friday that it has completed its registration and is now authorized to operate as a crypto asset exchange service provider under Japan's Payment Services Act.

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Laser Digital's registration marks the newest entry into Japan's crypto asset industry since 2022, following a four-year hiatus in new approvals.

Within these four years, Japan has introduced major regulatory reforms, including around stablecoins, and institutional investors have increasingly come to view digital assets as an important diversification tool.

SHIB gains major Japan boostKuro highlighted the significance of this development to SHIB: Shiba Inu is one of the six tokens that will be handled first. Others include BTC, ETH, XRP, BCH, and LTC.

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Laser Digital indicated that it will initially serve to enhance liquidity across the domestic market for local VASPs, while future services will include offering institutional investors trading opportunities for digital assets.

"SHIB in Japan's crypto asset infrastructure for institutional investors. At this point, it's safe to say SHIB holds a special status in Japan," Kuro reacted.

Details regarding the launch date and scope of Laser Digital's services are expected to be announced later.

Shiba Inu (SHIB) was added to the Japan Virtual and Crypto Assets Exchange Association (JVCEA)'s regulatory "Green List" in November 2025, boosting its status in the country.

In April this year, Japanese crypto exchange Rakuten Wallet listed Shiba Inu, enabling users to trade SHIB against the yen and convert Rakuten Points.

At the time of writing, SHIB was up 2.92% in the last 24 hours to $0.00000545 and up 20% weekly.

Elon Musk is known for making bold moves. When it comes to Tesla (TSLA +5.14%), the big change he's implementing is a shift from making electric vehicles (EVs) to making humanoid robots. Tesla, however, still needs to make its EVs if it has any hope of supporting this massive business shift. Which is why the Model Y L is so important.

What is Tesla's big goal? Elon Musk has embraced the idea that autonomous devices are the future. To that end, he's pushed Tesla to develop self-driving cars. The company is currently working on autonomous taxi services, but self-driving electric vehicles have long been a key part of the company's technology push. The company has also been working on a humanoid robot, known as Optimus.

Image source: The White House.

To this end, the company has retooled its Fremont factory. It has ended production of the Tesla Model S and Model X, instead using the production lines to mass-produce Optimus robots. It is a bold bet, and it comes at a cost for the company: there will be fewer cars to sell. And while robotics may be the future, Tesla is still largely a car company at this point.

Will the Model Y L come to the rescue? The Model Y is Tesla's existing SUV vehicle. The Model Y L is an update that adds a third row of seats and a larger battery, giving it a longer range. It was first introduced in China, but has since been brought to other markets. This is where things get interesting for investors as they consider the impact of the updated Model Y on the company's financial results.

In Australia, the Model Y L accounted for more than half of the Model Y vehicles registered in July, according to industry watchers. Roughly 40% of the Model Y SUVs registered in New Zealand were the updated version, as well. There is clearly a demand for the product in Western markets.

Now, Tesla is bringing the Model Y L to the United States. U.S. consumers tend to like large vehicles, so it seems highly likely that the Model Y L will be a strong seller in the U.S. market, as well. Consumers also like new and improved products, so there's another positive here to push sales. And there could be an early burst of demand for a car already available in other markets, creating something of an exclusivity pitch for early U.S. customers.

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But will it reginite Tesla's sales growth? The answer isn't a clear yes. It may get customers excited about Tesla again, but the Model Y L is an expensive vehicle. That could put a limit on demand. And Tesla is already one of the most popular U.S. EV brands, so investors probably shouldn't get their hopes up on a massive growth spike.

Then there's the issue of the production halt for the Model S and Model X, which has to be factored in. While they were older models, the Model Y L has to offset the drop off from those two vehicles. It is more likely that the Model Y L simply supports current sales volumes and, perhaps, adds a little to sales growth. But that may actually be all that Tesla is looking for.

The Model Y L is part of a bigger plan At the end of the day, the Model Y L isn't likely to be a company-changing development. It is an incremental update to an existing product. Good, but not likely to spur massive sales growth. The company-changing shift is the transition to producing and selling Optimus robots. If the Model Y L makes that transition easier, then it will be a massive success. Early sales results in Australia and New Zealand suggest the launch of the Model Y L in the U.S. market could be just what Tesla is looking for.

The artificial intelligence boom is turning corporate capital spending into a different kind of arms race. The biggest cloud companies aren’t merely adding data centers as demand grows; they’re building infrastructure years ahead of expected usage. 

UBS now estimates hyperscaler capital expenditures could reach about $4.1 trillion from 2026 through 2028. That’s more than three times the $1.292 trillion spent across the previous six years, based on UBS’s hyperscaler spending estimates. For investors, the message is clear: AI is pushing the industry’s long-term spending base into territory that would have looked absurd just a few years ago.

Cloud Revenue Tells The Story UBS estimates Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN | AMZN Price Prediction), Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG), and Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) will collectively spend about 102% of their cloud revenue on capital expenditures in 2026.

That doesn’t mean these companies are burning through more cash than they generate. Their businesses are much larger and more diversified than cloud infrastructure alone. Instead, the ratio shows how aggressively cloud revenue is being recycled into AI infrastructure.

UBS expects that ratio to ease to roughly 99% of cloud revenue in 2027 and 94% in 2028. Yet spending keeps rising.

UBS projects total hyperscaler capex at $492 billion in 2025, $1.009 trillion in 2026, $1.447 trillion in 2027, and $1.619 trillion in 2028 — three times more in three years than in the previous six years combined. It shows how the growth rate can slow while the dollar amount continues climbing.

And the composition matters, too. Amazon, Alphabet, Microsoft, and Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) account for the largest portions of the buildout, but SpaceX (NASDAQ:SPCX) is making up for lost time, and  Oracle (NYSE:ORCL), neocloud providers, and newer entrants are expanding the spending pool. 

That means the AI infrastructure opportunity is spreading beyond the handful of companies investors typically associate with the boom.

$4.1 Trillion Is A Bigger Bet Than It Looks The cumulative UBS estimates for 2026 through 2028 are staggering:

Company 2026-2028 Capex Alphabet ~$938 billion Meta Platforms ~$683 billion Microsoft ~$672 billion Amazon ~$628 billion SpaceX ~$335 billion Oracle ~$276 billion CoreWeave (NASDAQ:CRWV) ~$130 billion Nebius Group (NASDAQ:NBIS) ~$93 billion Together, those figures illustrate why this isn’t simply another upgrade cycle for servers. New demand is coming from traditional hyperscalers, neocloud providers, and SpaceX, creating additional pools of infrastructure spending.

For chipmakers, networking companies, data-center power suppliers, and infrastructure operators, the spending becomes revenue somewhere in the supply chain.

More importantly, the UBS forecast suggests the spending isn’t peaking when the growth rate peaks. Total hyperscaler capex rises from $1.009 trillion in 2026 to $1.619 trillion in 2028. In other words, the industry could be spending more than $1.6 trillion annually even after the initial acceleration begins to moderate.

That’s what makes this different from a normal technology upgrade. AI could reset the industry’s capital requirements at a permanently higher level.

Tech giants are recycling nearly 100% of their cloud revenue into a $4.1 trillion AI bet. This unprecedented infrastructure buildout is resetting the global spending base forever. The Risk Is Spending Without Returns Granted, $1.619 trillion of annual hyperscaler capex by 2028 creates a formidable hurdle. Companies eventually need AI revenue and cash flow to justify those investments.

That’s where investors should remain selective. A data center doesn’t generate attractive returns merely because it contains expensive GPUs. Capacity has to stay utilized, customers have to pay for it, and AI services have to produce enough revenue to cover depreciation, electricity, financing, and operating costs.

There is also a timing risk. Companies can spend billions today on infrastructure that may take years to reach full utilization. If AI demand grows more slowly than expected, depreciation expenses could rise faster than revenue, pressuring margins and free cash flow.

That said, the scale of the commitment from multiple customers reduces the risk that this is simply one company’s speculative bet. Amazon, Alphabet, Microsoft, Meta, SpaceX, Oracle, and the neoclouds are collectively building an ecosystem around AI compute.

In short, the spending itself isn’t the investment thesis. The investment thesis is that AI demand becomes large enough to keep this infrastructure productive for years.

UBS’s numbers suggest the major cloud platforms are betting heavily that it will. Smart investors don’t have to match their conviction blindly. They should follow the money — and favor companies positioned to monetize the buildout rather than simply finance it.

Key Takeaway The 102% figure is less a warning about reckless spending than a measure of how radically AI is changing the cloud economy. With UBS projecting roughly $4.1 trillion of hyperscaler capex from 2026 through 2028, investors should expect AI infrastructure spending to remain a dominant market theme well beyond the current boom.

The opportunity is strongest where spending translates into recurring revenue, high utilization, and durable free cash flow. In the end, the winners won’t necessarily be the companies spending the most. They’ll be the ones turning that unprecedented spending into the highest returns on capital.

Contact [email protected] for any questions or corrections.

B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG purchased a new stake in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP – Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 46,665 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,384,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors LP acquired a new stake in shares of American Electric Power in the second quarter worth $8,448,000. Silvant Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in American Electric Power in the 2nd quarter worth $2,278,000. LaSalle St. Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in American Electric Power in the 2nd quarter worth about $239,000. Ceredex Value Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Electric Power in the second quarter valued at about $51,516,000. Finally, Oxford Financial Group LTD. LLC purchased a new position in American Electric Power during the second quarter worth about $1,208,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on American Electric Power from $139.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on American Electric Power from $141.00 to $140.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Raymond James Financial restated an “outperform” rating and set a $144.00 price target on shares of American Electric Power in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Truist Financial decreased their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $146.00 to $139.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 17th. Finally, Scotiabank increased their target price on American Electric Power from $131.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $140.19.

Get Our Latest Stock Analysis on AEP American Electric Power Price Performance Shares of AEP opened at $120.94 on Friday. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 52 week low of $105.70 and a 52 week high of $140.58. The company has a current ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44. The firm has a market cap of $65.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.74, a PEG ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 0.52. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $131.01 and a 200-day moving average of $130.48.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP – Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $1.36 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.48 by ($0.12). American Electric Power had a net margin of 13.78% and a return on equity of 9.95%. The company had revenue of $5.45 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.34 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.43 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. American Electric Power has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.250-6.550 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 6.37 EPS for the current year.

American Electric Power Announces Dividend The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 10th will be given a dividend of $0.95 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 10th. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 65.18%.

(Free Report)

American Electric Power (NASDAQ: AEP) is a major investor-owned electric utility headquartered in Columbus, Ohio. The company is primarily engaged in the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity, operating a diverse portfolio of power plants and an extensive high-voltage transmission network. AEP serves retail customers through its regulated utility subsidiaries and provides wholesale power and grid services across multiple regional markets in the United States.

Operations span the full utility value chain: AEP owns and operates generation assets that include fossil-fuel, natural gas, nuclear and hydropower facilities, and it has been adding renewable resources to its mix.

See Also Five stocks we like better than American Electric Power Blueprint for a Boom: SEC Clears the Crypto Runway Ross Stores Just Flipped the Off-Price Retail Story After TJX’s Marmaxx Miss Advance Auto Parts Plunged, But Its Turnaround Is Still Working Is Palo Alto Networks Priced for Perfection Again as AI Security Demand Accelerates? Want to see what other hedge funds are holding AEP? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP – Free Report).

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Bard Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of IDEX Corporation (NYSE:IEX – Free Report) in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 6,593 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,496,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of IDEX in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Optiver Holding B.V. bought a new stake in shares of IDEX in the first quarter worth about $27,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. raised its holdings in IDEX by 104.1% during the 1st quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 149 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 76 shares during the period. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC acquired a new stake in shares of IDEX in the 2nd quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC increased its stake in IDEX by 57.6% in the 1st quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 208 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. 97.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Headlines Impacting IDEX Here are the key news stories impacting IDEX this week:

Positive Sentiment: Analysts raised several forward earnings forecasts. Zacks Research lifted its FY2026 EPS estimate to $8.70 from $8.46, Q3 2026 to $2.20 from $2.17, Q1 2027 to $2.11 from $2.09, FY2027 to $9.21 from $9.20, and FY2028 to $10.45 from $10.27. The upgrades suggest expectations for improving earnings momentum beyond the current year. IDEX analyst estimates Positive Sentiment: Longer-term earnings growth remains a key support. The FY2028 forecast implies continued expansion from the approximately $8.70 expected for FY2026, while the company’s latest reported quarter exceeded consensus estimates for both revenue and EPS. IDEX financial information Neutral Sentiment: Board changes may increase investor focus on governance and valuation. IDEX announced a board resignation and a governance adjustment. The development does not provide a clear operating-impact signal, but investors may scrutinize leadership, capital allocation, and whether the company’s premium valuation is justified. IDEX board resignation and governance adjustment Negative Sentiment: Some estimates were reduced. Zacks cut its Q2 2027 EPS forecast to $2.33 from $2.43 and its Q2 2028 forecast to $2.43 from $2.54. These isolated reductions temper the broader upgrade story and could limit upside if investors view them as signs of uneven demand or execution. IDEX revised earnings estimates Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. TD Cowen lifted their target price on IDEX from $260.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on IDEX from $261.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $265.00 price target on shares of IDEX in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Argus upped their price objective on shares of IDEX from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $257.00 target price on shares of IDEX in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $260.80. View Our Latest Stock Report on IDEX

IDEX Trading Up 0.4% Shares of IDEX stock opened at $234.57 on Friday. IDEX Corporation has a 12-month low of $158.19 and a 12-month high of $243.80. The company has a market capitalization of $17.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.98. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $227.88 and a 200 day simple moving average of $212.87. The company has a current ratio of 3.05, a quick ratio of 2.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46.

IDEX (NYSE:IEX – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The industrial products company reported $2.32 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.11 by $0.21. The business had revenue of $920.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $905.38 million. IDEX had a return on equity of 15.69% and a net margin of 14.49%.IDEX’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.07 earnings per share. IDEX has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.700-8.850 EPS and its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.200-2.250 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that IDEX Corporation will post 8.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

IDEX Announces Dividend The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 24th. Investors of record on Monday, July 6th were given a $0.73 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 6th. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. IDEX’s payout ratio is 42.01%.

Insider Buying and Selling In other IDEX news, CAO Lisa M. Anderson sold 385 shares of IDEX stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.59, for a total transaction of $91,857.15. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 4,327 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,032,378.93. The trade was a 8.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

IDEX Profile (Free Report)

IDEX Corporation is a diversified industrial manufacturer specializing in the design, production and distribution of highly engineered fluidics systems, measurement technologies and safety solutions. The company’s core offerings include positive-displacement pumps, flow meters, valves, sampling systems and analytical instruments that serve a wide range of end markets such as water treatment, chemical processing, energy, food and beverage, and life sciences. Through its focus on precision engineering and proprietary material science, IDEX delivers products designed for reliability in demanding applications.

Operations at IDEX are organized into three principal segments.

Featured Stories Five stocks we like better than IDEX Blueprint for a Boom: SEC Clears the Crypto Runway Ross Stores Just Flipped the Off-Price Retail Story After TJX’s Marmaxx Miss Advance Auto Parts Plunged, But Its Turnaround Is Still Working Is Palo Alto Networks Priced for Perfection Again as AI Security Demand Accelerates? Want to see what other hedge funds are holding IEX? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for IDEX Corporation (NYSE:IEX – Free Report).

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