Track market-moving stories before they get noisy

Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) (NASDAQ:GOOG) took an $8.7 billion paper loss on its investment portfolio in the third quarter, with Space Exploration Technologies Corp.‘s (NASDAQ:SPCX) falling share price doing most of the damage. The hit reduced earnings by 55 cents per share, accounting for roughly 61% of the 90-cent earnings miss — and continued declines in SpaceX stock suggests the accounting pain could continue into the current quarter.

The US filed a lawsuit on Thursday accusing Google of failing to give an employee his old job back or put him in a similar job following one year of military leave as a US Army reservist.

The case is a rare instance of the US government suing a private employer for violating the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA), which protects the civilian employment of military personnel called to active duty.

According to a complaint filed in Manhattan federal court, Mark Davisson had spent 2-1/2 years as a Google key account executive, where he handled cloud services accounts for asset manager BlackRock and hedge fund Bridgewater Associates, and managed the US business of the former Credit Suisse.

Army reservist Mark Davisson had spent 2-1/2 years as a Google key account executive, where he handled cloud services accounts for BlackRock and Bridgewater, and managed the US business of the former Credit Suisse. Mark Davisson / Facebook Employee fired after further military leave Upon Davisson’s return from leave in May 2023, Google – a unit of Mountain View, Calif.-based Alphabet – allegedly refused to let Davisson handle any customer accounts, depriving him of career advancement though he kept his pay and title.

The complaint said Google assigned Davisson in January 2024 to a cloud solutions position that also involved no management of customer accounts, and fired him seven months later following another military leave and as part of a broader workforce reduction.

Davisson has a home in Charlotte, NC, but lived and worked in Manhattan while Google employed him.

Google did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The complaint said Google assigned Davisson in January 2024 to a cloud solutions position that also involved no management of customer accounts, and fired him seven months later following another military leave and as part of a broader workforce reduction. Mark Davisson / Facebook Lost wages and benefits The lawsuit was brought by the civil rights unit of the US Attorney’s office in Manhattan, with backing from Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon, the Trump administration’s top civil rights enforcer.

It seeks to recoup lost wages and benefits as well as additional damages for Davisson, and requires Google to ensure a nondiscriminatory workplace including by improving training regarding USERRA.

The suit seeks to recoup lost wages and benefits as well as additional damages for Davisson, and requires Google to ensure a nondiscriminatory workplace including by improving training regarding USERRA. Gado via Getty Images “Federal law ensures that our brave soldiers, who sacrifice so much to keep us safe, are not punished by employers when they return to the civilian workforce after completing their military service,” US Attorney Jamie McDonald in Manhattan said in a statement.

Amazon is slated to report third-quarter earnings results after the bell on Thursday.

Here's what analysts are expecting, according to LSEG:

Earnings per share: $1.96 adjustedRevenue: $202.31 billionWall Street is also looking at other key revenue numbers:

Amazon Web Services: $45.48 billion, according to StreetAccount Advertising: $20.82 billion, according to StreetAccount Investors expect to see robust growth in Amazon's cloud segment. AWS sales are predicted to grow 38%, according to StreetAccount, compared with a 37% gain last quarter. It would mark AWS's fifth consecutive quarter of revenue acceleration.

That momentum isn't expected to slow down. CEO Andy Jassy said Amazon's cloud capacity is "largely sold out" for next year, and it's received significant commitments for 2028 as well.

"We always leave a certain amount for on demand and our inference service Bedrock or EC2, but largely sold out all the big chunks," Jassy said on an Andreessen Horowitz podcast last week. "A good chunk of '28 is sold out."

Wall Street will be listening for any commentary from Amazon executives around AI spending.

Last quarter, the company hiked its capital expenditure forecast for 2026 to $220 billion, up from $200 billion. Analysts surveyed by StreetAccount expect Amazon's capex to creep up more than $280 billion in 2027.

Read more CNBC tech newsAI build-out hits snag as Google and Microsoft put off raising capex forecastsAlphabet earnings miss reflects first real sign that AI is taking a bite out of searchAs Waymo expands overseas, it remains a niche cash-burning businessHands-on with Apple’s first touchscreen laptop: Touch is totally optionalAmazon has rushed to bring more data centers online to meet surging demand for AI computing power. The aggressive spending has eaten into the company's cash flow. In July, the company reported negative free cash flow of $7.6 billion for the trailing twelve months, compared with positive free cash flow of $18.2 billion one year earlier. It's expected to be cash flow negative in the current quarter, with an outflow of $9.9 billion, according to FactSet estimates.

Alphabet and Meta both reported negative free cash flow in their latest quarterly earnings reports. Microsoft said Wednesday its free cash flow declined 27% in the fiscal first quarter, but its cash flow remained positive, unlike its hyperscaler peers.

As Amazon shells out more on AI, it's steadily trimmed its headcount. The company has laid off more than 57,000 staffers since 2022, or roughly 16% of its corporate workforce. The job cuts have continued on a rolling basis this year via smaller rounds of layoffs.

The company on Wednesday laid off some staffers in its device software and services team to "operate more efficiently and better align with our product roadsmap," an Amazon spokesperson confirmed to CNBC. Fewer than 250 employees were let go as a result of the job cuts, the company said.

During the third quarter, Amazon made headlines when it blocked Meta's Muse AI agent from shopping on its platform. The company said it was not given advance notice that Muse would access its webstore, and it never agreed to participate.

The move is in line with Amazon's broader stance on third-party agents accessing its site. Amazon has blocked dozens of external agents, including Perplexity, which the company sued last year over allegations that the startup concealed its AI shopping bots.

Amazon stock chart.

While it locks down its site from third-party agents, Amazon has increasingly invested in its own tools. In May, Amazon rebranded its Rufus AI shopping chatbot to Alexa for Shopping.

On Thursday, Amazon said more than 400 million shoppers have used the assistant, and the number of people using Alexa for Shopping's agentic features has "grown more than eight times since the start of the year."

The tool now has more than 100 shopping-related capabilities, the company said, including the ability to build gift lists, manage subscriptions and handle account changes.

As rivals Meta and OpenAI push deeper into AI shopping tools, analysts have said the services could pose a risk to Amazon's digital advertising business. Users are turning to services like Muse and ChatGPT to research products, or in some cases, handing off purchases to AI agents, which means they're bypassing sponsored ads on Amazon's site.

"We expect Amazon to eventually develop its own agentic shopping offering, with its proprietary purchase data and commerce infrastructure positioning it well," Deutsche Bank analysts wrote in a note last week. "The key question is whether Amazon can accommodate third-party agents on terms that preserve attractive monetization."

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Analyst’s Disclosure: I/we have a beneficial long position in the shares of MSFT either through stock ownership, options, or other derivatives. 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.

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Analyst’s Disclosure: I/we have a beneficial long position in the shares of MSFT either through stock ownership, options, or other derivatives. 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.

Key Takeaways Microsoft reported Q1 fiscal 2027 revenues of $92.3 billion, up 19%, beating estimates by 1.88%.Azure revenues surged 48% to $33.2 billion, while Microsoft Cloud revenues grew 30% to $63.9 billion.Microsoft expects 2026 capital spending of $170 billion as AI demand exceeds available capacity. Microsoft (MSFT - Free Report) reported first-quarter fiscal 2027 earnings of $4.89 per share on a non-GAAP basis (excluding OpenAI investment impacts), which increased 18% on a year-over-year basis (up 19% in constant currency). The figure beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 3.82%. On a GAAP basis, earnings per share were $4.92, up 32% year over year.

Revenues of $92.3 billion increased 19% year over year (up 19% in constant currency) and beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 1.88%. The top line came above management's guided range of $89.85-$90.95 billion, with results exceeding the company's expectations across revenues, operating income and earnings per share.

Microsoft Cloud revenues totaled $63.9 billion, up 30% year over year (31% in cc), accelerating from 27% growth in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2026. Commercial remaining performance obligation reached $677 billion, up 73% year over year, with a weighted average duration of 2.3 years. Roughly 30% of this is expected to be recognized as revenue over the next 12 months, up 29% year over year, while the portion recognized beyond 12 months increased 98%. Commercial bookings declined 12% (down 11% in cc), reflecting large Azure commitments in the prior-year quarter, partly offset by a large Azure commitment signed this quarter.

Beginning fiscal 2027, Microsoft reports results under two segments, Agents and Infra and Devices and Consumer, replacing the earlier three-segment structure. The change was announced in September 2026, and prior-period figures have been recast to conform to the new structure.

MSFT's Q1 Segment PerformanceAgents and Infra

The Agents and Infra segment generated $76.8 billion in revenue, which grew 25% year over year (25% in cc).

Azure revenues surged 48% year over year (48% in cc) to $33.2 billion, accelerating from 42% growth in the prior quarter and ahead of the company's expectations, despite delays in some third-party capacity deliveries. Growth was driven by Foundry and improved CPU monetization. Foundry revenues more than tripled year over year, aided by efficiency gains across the GPU fleet that freed up additional capacity for customers, as well as higher revenue per token.

Microsoft 365 Commercial cloud revenues increased 17% on a reported basis (18% in cc), or 18% (19% in cc) when adjusted for a prior-year comparable that had benefited from one point of in-period revenue recognition. Results were ahead of expectations on stronger GitHub Copilot adoption and usage, partially offset by weaker sales execution in Microsoft 365 E3 and stand-alone SKUs. Paid Microsoft 365 commercial seats grew 5%. Average revenue per user growth was led by premium offerings, including Microsoft 365 Copilot, E5 and E7, the latter of which has already reached millions of paid seats.

Microsoft 365 Consumer cloud revenues rose 17% (16% in cc), as the business began lapping the benefit of the prior-year price increase. Total Microsoft 365 cloud revenues were $27.8 billion, up 17%.

Productivity and server licensing revenues declined 3% (down 2% in cc) to $8.4 billion. Industry solutions cloud revenues grew 10%, driven by Dynamics 365 and LinkedIn Talent Solutions, although booking trends continued to moderate. Frontier and support services revenues rose 4% (5% in cc) to $2.1 billion.

Operating income for the segment rose to $40.6 billion from $32.7 billion a year earlier, representing an increase of 24% (25% in cc). Operating margin decreased slightly to 53% as sales mix shifted toward Azure. Microsoft Cloud gross margin was 66%, down year over year.

Devices and Consumer

The Devices and Consumer segment generated $15.5 billion in revenues, down 3% year over year (down 3% in cc), pressured by a steep decline in Windows OEM and devices revenues, partly offset by growth in search and advertising.

Search and advertising revenues, excluding traffic acquisition costs, rose 12%, ahead of expectations on higher volume and rate across LinkedIn, Edge and Bing. Xbox content and services revenues fell 2% (down 1% in cc), as declines in third-party content and Xbox Game Pass were partially offset by growth in first-party content. Windows OEM and devices revenues declined 22%, with Windows OEM revenues down 27% (down 28% in cc) due to a prior-year comparable that benefited from Windows 10 end of support, inventory drawdowns by OEM and channel partners, and weaker PC market demand.

Operating income for the segment increased to $5.4 billion from $5.2 billion a year earlier, up 2% (3% in cc). Operating margin expanded to 35%, aided by lower amortization of intangible assets from the Activision acquisition.

MSFT's Notable Developments in Q1Microsoft announced its biggest Copilot update to date, combining Chat, Cowork, Autopilot and Code into a single unified experience across commercial and consumer users. Copilot daily users increased nearly 50% sequentially and more than five-fold year over year, while the number of customers with more than 50,000 Copilot seats rose more than eight-fold. Customers consuming Copilot credits through usage-based billing grew more than 75% in the quarter. The company did not provide an updated paid Copilot seat count this quarter.

Foundry crossed 120,000 customers, and revenues from open-source models on Foundry increased 10-fold. Microsoft completed pre-training of MAI Base 2, its next first-party base model, and released DecisionOne, a structured decision-making model used by more than 4,000 customers in its first month. Paid Fabric customers reached 44,000, up more than 50% year over year, while more than 50 million agents are now registered in Agent 365, up over 30% sequentially.

On GitHub, agent-generated pull requests increased six-fold over the past six months, and GitHub Advanced Security revenues grew more than 50% year over year. At GitHub Universe, the company announced broad availability of Copilot Fusion, which brings multi-model orchestration to software development.

Microsoft added 24 new data centers across five continents during the quarter, cut dock-to-live times for new GB300 systems in its largest regions by about 20% sequentially and docked its first NVIDIA Vera Rubin GPUs. Its in-house Maia 200 chip is delivering up to 1.7 times more tokens per watt across Teams and Copilot workloads.

LinkedIn surpassed 1.4 billion members, with time spent viewing feed content up 15% year over year. In gaming, Minecraft delivered a record quarter for engagement and revenues. The company also announced an employee voluntary exit offer, the estimated cost of which is included in its second-quarter guidance.

MSFT's Financial Performance in Q1Gross margin reached $62.6 billion, up 17% year over year, with gross margin percentage at 68%.

Total operating expenses increased to $16.6 billion from $15.7 billion, up 6%, driven by continued investments in research and development, compute capacity and talent. Research and development expenses were $9 billion, sales and marketing were $5.7 billion, and general and administrative expenses were $1.9 billion.

Operating income increased 21% year over year (22% in cc) to $45.9 billion, while operating margin expanded slightly to 50%. Net income reached $36.6 billion, up 32% on a GAAP basis. On a non-GAAP basis, excluding OpenAI-related impacts, net income was $36.4 billion, up 18% (19% in cc).

Other income and expense, net, was a positive $38 million in the quarter compared with a negative $3.7 billion a year earlier. Excluding the impact of OpenAI investments, other income and expense was a negative $234 million.

MSFT's Q1 Capital Expenditure and InfrastructureCapital expenditures, including finance leases, were $45.2 billion, below expectations as some anticipated third-party capacity deliveries were delayed. Roughly three-quarters of spending went toward short-lived assets, primarily CPUs and GPUs, including higher memory and storage costs. Finance leases were $7.4 billion, while cash paid for property and equipment was $39.4 billion.

Cash flow from operations totaled $58 billion, up 29% year over year, driven by strong cloud billings and collections. Free cash flow was $18.6 billion, down from $25.7 billion a year ago, reflecting higher capital spending.

As of Sept. 30, 2026, Microsoft had total cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments of $64.5 billion compared with $76.8 billion as of June 30, 2026. Long-term debt was $31.1 billion, with an additional $4.4 billion in the current portion of long-term debt.

Microsoft returned $10.2 billion to shareholders through dividends and share repurchases during the fiscal first quarter.

MSFT's OpenAI Partnership UpdateThe fiscal first quarter reflected net gains from investments in OpenAI of $207 million, adding 3 cents to earnings per share. This compares with the first quarter of fiscal 2026, when net losses from OpenAI investments decreased net income and earnings per share by $3.1 billion and 41 cents, respectively.

These OpenAI-related impacts have historically created volatility in reported GAAP results, leading the company to provide non-GAAP measures excluding these effects to help investors better understand operational performance.

MSFT's Q2 2027 OutlookFor the second quarter of fiscal 2027, Microsoft expects total revenues between $96 billion and $97.1 billion, indicating growth of 18% to 19%. Based on current rates, foreign currency is not expected to have a meaningful impact on revenues, cost of revenues or operating expense growth.

The Agents and Infra segment is expected to generate revenues between $80.1 billion and $80.7 billion, indicating growth of 24% to 25%. Azure revenue growth is projected at 49% to 50% in cc, with demand continuing to exceed available supply and some third-party GPU capacity contracts delayed to the second half of the fiscal year. Microsoft 365 Commercial cloud revenues are expected to grow approximately 19% in cc, while Microsoft 365 Consumer cloud revenues are expected to grow in the low teens. Microsoft Cloud gross margin is expected to be roughly 65%.

The Devices and Consumer segment is expected to generate revenues between $15.9 billion and $16.4 billion. Search and advertising revenue growth, excluding traffic acquisition costs, is expected in the low double digits, and Xbox content and services revenues are expected to grow in the mid-to-high single digits depending on the timing of first- and third-party content launches. Windows OEM and devices revenues are expected to decline in the mid-30s percentage range.

Cost of revenues is projected between $32.7 billion and $32.9 billion, up 26% to 27%, while operating expenses are expected between $18.5 billion and $18.6 billion, up 9%. Operating margin is expected to decline slightly year over year. Excluding any impact from OpenAI investments, other income and expense is expected to be roughly negative $300 million, and the effective tax rate is projected at approximately 20%.

Capital expenditures are expected to exceed $50 billion in the second quarter. Given the third-party capacity delays, Microsoft now expects calendar 2026 capital spending of approximately $170 billion, with spending expected to accelerate in the second half of fiscal 2027. The company expects to remain free cash flow positive in fiscal 2027.

MSFT’s Zacks Rank and Stocks to ConsiderCurrently, Microsoft carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

Some better-ranked stocks in the broader Zacks Computer and Technology sector are Analog Devices (ADI - Free Report) , Applied Materials (AMAT - Free Report) and Cisco Systems (CSCO - Free Report) , each carrying a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Shares of Analog Devices have rallied 54.4% year to date. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for ADI’s fiscal 2026 earnings is pegged at $13.00 per share, up by a penny over the past seven days, indicating an increase of 66.9% year over year.

Shares of Applied Materials have jumped 54.5% year to date. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for AMAT’s fiscal 2026 earnings is pegged at $12.79 per share, unchanged over the past 30 days, indicating a rise of 35.8% year over year.

Cisco Systems shares have surged 45.3% year to date. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for CSCO’s fiscal 2027 earnings is pegged at $5.11 per share, unchanged over the past 30 days, indicating an increase of 18% year over year.

Key Takeaways MongoDB's upgraded fiscal 2027 outlook and long-term targets strengthen its position as an AI data platform.MDB targets 20% revenue growth and mid-20% Atlas growth, with limited capital spending and expanding margins.Microsoft faces rising AI infrastructure costs and cloud margin pressure, limiting near-term upside.
Microsoft (MSFT - Free Report) and MongoDB (MDB - Free Report) are both positioning their platforms at the center of enterprise artificial intelligence (AI) adoption. Microsoft monetizes AI through Azure, Foundry and Copilot, while MongoDB powers AI applications through its Atlas platform and Enterprise Advanced offering.

The two also compete directly, as Microsoft’s PostgreSQL, SQL Database and Cosmos DB services vie with MongoDB for the operational data workloads that feed AI agents. With both updating outlooks and launching agentic AI tools, the comparison is timely.

Let’s delve deep and closely compare the fundamentals of the two stocks to determine which one is a better investment now.

The Case for MSFT StockMicrosoft’s AI strategy is gaining traction as its business model expands from per-seat subscriptions to consumption-based pricing. In October 2026, the company introduced the new Copilot, unifying Chat, Cowork, Autopilot and code in one experience, brought Office into the Copilot app and made Microsoft 365 E7 and Agent 365 generally available. At GitHub Universe, it launched Copilot Fusion, which routes coding tasks across multiple models. Commercial remaining performance obligation of $677 billion provides solid long-term revenue visibility.

For the second quarter of fiscal 2027, Microsoft expects revenues of $96-$97.1 billion, indicating 18-19% year-over-year growth. Azure revenues are expected to grow 49-50% in constant currency, while Microsoft 365 Commercial Cloud is projected to grow roughly 19%.

However, this growth comes at a steep cost. Microsoft expects second-quarter capital expenditure to exceed $50 billion, with 2026 spending of approximately $170 billion and further acceleration in the second half of fiscal 2027. Demand continues to exceed available supply, and some third-party GPU capacity deliveries have been pushed to the second half. Microsoft Cloud gross margin is expected to decline to roughly 65% due to a higher Azure mix, while operating margin is expected to dip slightly year over year.

The Devices and Consumer business remains a drag, with Windows OEM and devices revenues expected to decline in the mid-30s percent range due to elevated inventory, weak PC demand and a tough Windows 10 comparison. Although free cash flow is expected to stay positive in fiscal 2027, rising capital intensity limits near-term upside.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for MSFT’s fiscal 2027 earnings is pegged at $19.66 per share. The estimate indicates 9.53% year-over-year growth.

The Case for MDB StockMongoDB is emerging as the intelligent data platform for the AI era. At its Investor Day on Sept. 29, 2026, the company launched MongoDB 9.0, delivering up to 2x higher throughput, along with Atlas Infinite, a new deployment option that separates compute from storage for AI-scale demand and Atlas Agent Engine, which unifies governance, memory and retrieval for running AI agents in production. MongoDB also launched the Atlas Managed MCP Server, connecting coding agents to live Atlas data, and made Search and Vector Search generally available in Enterprise Advanced.

These innovations are backed by a strong outlook. MongoDB raised its fiscal 2027 guidance and now expects revenues of $2.99-$3.03 billion, non-GAAP operating income of $616.3-$636.3 million and non-GAAP earnings of $6.39-$6.58 per share, with the second-half raise mainly driven by Atlas. For the third quarter, revenues are expected to be in the range of $756-$761 million.

At Investor Day, MongoDB also raised its long-term targets, now aiming for 20%+ total revenue growth and mid-20% Atlas growth over roughly three years, along with 100-200 basis points of average annual operating margin expansion. Remaining performance obligations surged 91% year over year to $1.52 billion, reflecting rising multi-year commitments.

MongoDB’s asset-light model is a key advantage, as it does not shoulder Microsoft-scale capital spending. With $2.4 billion in cash and investments, the company continues to actively repurchase its shares.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate projects 2026 earnings of $6.50 per share, representing a substantial 30.78% year-over-year growth. The earnings estimates have been revised upward over the past 30 and 60 days.

Valuation and Price Performance ComparisonBoth MSFT and MDB trade at premium valuations. In terms of forward 12-month Price/Sales (P/S), MSFT trades at 9.52X, while MDB trades at 9.19X. MDB’s premium is justified as its guidance calls for 20%+ long-term revenue growth, steady margin expansion and minimal capital spending, while MSFT’s multiple already prices in AI optimism amid soaring capital expenditure and margin pressure, making it prudent to wait.

MSFT vs. MDB: P/S F12M Ratio
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

On price performance, MSFT shares have returned 9.8% over the year-to-date period, while MDB shares have lost 6.3%. MDB’s pullback offers investors an attractive entry point, as its raised long-term targets signal that fundamentals remain intact.

MSFT Outperforms MDB Year to Date
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

ConclusionMongoDB holds an edge over Microsoft on several fronts. MDB benefits from a raised fiscal 2027 outlook, upgraded long-term targets of 20%+ revenue growth, expanding margins and an asset-light model that converts growth into free cash flow. Recent launches, including MongoDB 9.0, Atlas Infinite and Atlas Agent Engine, strengthen its AI positioning, while a lower forward P/S multiple and year-to-date share price decline offer a compelling entry point. Microsoft’s AI momentum is solid, but soaring capital expenditure, declining cloud gross margin and Windows weakness limit upside. Investors should buy MDB now and wait for a better entry point for MSFT. MSFT currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), whereas MDB has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Key Takeaways Microsoft shares gained 4% after fiscal Q1 2027 earnings and revenues beat consensus estimates.MSFT's cloud revenues grew 30%, while capital spending rose 29.5%, pressuring free cash flow.ETFs including FTEC offer diversified tech exposure, with MSFT holdings ranging from 11.18% to 14.63%.
Shares of software giant Microsoft (MSFT - Free Report) rose 4% in yesterday’s extended trading session (as cited in CNBC), following the company’s better-than-expected first-quarter fiscal 2027 results. The company added 24 new data centers across five continents in the fiscal first quarter, thanks to accelerating demand. This expansion is expected to remain a key long-term growth catalyst for MSFT.

However, the company’s capital expenditure, a metric that has been worrying investors across the market in recent times, went up 29.5% year over year to $45.2 billion and subsequently dragged down its free cash flow by 27% from the prior-year level. 

While management expects free cash flow to remain positive in fiscal 2027, persistent pressure on cash generation could temporarily constrain Microsoft’s financial flexibility. If sustained, this friction could even limit the company’s capacity for future infrastructure investments or raise leverage concerns among risk-averse investors — even as new data centers drive near-term revenue growth.

Against this backdrop, investors seeking exposure to Microsoft’s leadership in cloud computing — without absorbing the single-stock risk of its declining cash flow — should consider exchange-traded funds (ETFs) with significant MSFT holdings. This approach captures Microsoft’s upside while maintaining broad technology diversification.

Before exploring our top ETF picks, let us examine Microsoft’s fiscal first-quarter performance across key metrics to help investors make well-informed decisions.

A Brief Analysis of MSFT’s Q1 ResultsMicrosoft’s fiscal first-quarter adjusted earnings per share (EPS) beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 3.8%, while its revenues topped the consensus mark by 1.9%. The company delivered strong year-over-year results, with both revenues and earnings registering double-digit growth.

Segment-wise, revenues from MSFT’s Agents and Infra units grew 25%, backed by strength across the connected layers of its platform. Nevertheless, commercial bookings fell 12%, primarily due to tough year-over-year comparisons stemming from large Azure commitments in the prior-year period.

Revenues from its Devices and Consumer segment dropped 3% year over year, primarily on account of a 22% slump in its Windows OEM and Devices revenues.

As far as Microsoft’s cloud business is concerned, revenues improved 30%, backed by strong demand across Azure and M365 Commercial Cloud platforms. Azure revenues increased 48%, driven by Foundry and improved CPU monetization. M365 Commercial Cloud revenues rose 18%, driven by stronger GitHub Copilot adoption and usage. 

In relation to its shareholder-friendly moves, Microsoft returned $10.2 billion to its stakeholders in the form of dividends and share repurchases in the first quarter of fiscal 2027.

Microsoft expects to witness healthy growth in its commercial bookings in the fiscal second quarter. However, quarterly growth is expected to reflect lumpiness due to large Azure commitments secured a year ago. 

Business-wise, Microsoft expects M365 Commercial Cloud revenues to grow roughly 19% in constant currency (with minimal foreign exchange impact), driven by rising ARPU, seat additions, and strong traction in premium and usage-based offerings.

Its Devices and Consumer segment is projected to generate $15.9 billion to $16.4 billion in revenues in the fiscal second quarter, with search and advertising revenue (ex-TAC) forecasted to expand in the low double digits on steady volume and rate growth. Additionally, Xbox Content and Services is expected to grow in the mid-to-high single digits. 

Microsoft-Heavy ETFs to BuyGlobal X PureCap MSCI Information Technology ETF (GXPT - Free Report)

This fund, with net assets worth $140.8 million, offers exposure to 85 U.S.-listed companies classified within the Information Technology sector under the Global Industry Classification Standard. Of these, Microsoft carries the third spot, holding 14.63% of the fund. 

GXPT has rallied 26.3% year to date. The fund charges 15 basis points (bps) in fees and traded at a volume of 0.02 million shares in the last trading session.  

iShares U.S. Technology ETF (IYW - Free Report)

This fund, with net assets worth $25.13 billion, includes 148 software, semiconductors and tech hardware companies. Of these, Microsoft carries the third spot, holding 13.07% of the fund. 

IYW has surged 29% year to date. The fund charges 37 bps in fees and traded at a volume of 0.85 million shares in the last trading session.  

VanEck Technology TruSector ETF (TRUT - Free Report)  

This fund, with net assets worth $246.2 million, offers exposure to 77 information technology-related companies. Of these, Microsoft carries the fourth spot, holding 11.89% of the fund. 

TRUT has rallied 23.9% year to date. The fund charges 14 basis points (bps) in fees and traded at a volume of 0.15 million shares in the last trading session.  

Fidelity MSCI Information Technology Index ETF (FTEC - Free Report)

This fund, with net assets worth $22.15 billion, includes 298 information technology stocks. Of these, Microsoft carries the third spot, holding 11.18% of the fund. 

FTEC has risen 31.3% year to date. The fund charges 8 bps in fees and traded at a volume of 0.31 million shares in the last trading session.

Microsoft shares MSFT fell on Thursday, reversing early gains and premarket strength, as investors assessed the company's latest earnings, capital spending plans, and intention to raise $25 billion through a US bond offering. The stock declined despite Microsoft reporting stronger-than-expected fiscal first-quarter results, with revenue rising 19% year over year to $92.28 billion.

Bloomberg's Ed Ludlow breaks down Alphabet's weak search and ad sales which raised new fears that AI is eating into Google's core business and caused a record market cap wipeout. Plus, Bloomberg reports Microsoft is looking to tap the bond market for the first time since 2017, seeking at least $25 billion to support spending as AI cloud growth soars.

Stephanie Walter with HyperFRAME Research says the most interesting takeaway from Microsoft (MSFT) earnings is how it can extend AI revenue opportunities beyond Azure cloud. She adds that existing partnerships offer a wide moat to maximize opportunities through evolving tech.

Key Takeaways Nokia appears better positioned than Ericsson, with stronger 2026 growth prospects and stock performance.NOK's 2026 sales and EPS are projected to rise 5% and 18.2%.Nokia shares gained 29.3% in a year versus Ericsson's 9.1%, but trade at a higher forward price/sales ratio.
Ericsson (ERIC - Free Report) and Nokia Corporation (NOK - Free Report) are key players in the telecommunications infrastructure market, particularly 5G networks, radio access equipment and emerging AI-powered network technologies. Ericsson is well-positioned to capitalize on the market momentum with a competitive 5G product portfolio. With a holistic growth focus, the company strives to be the leading telecommunications infrastructure provider worldwide and establish a focused enterprise business.

Nokia is a premier telecommunications equipment provider, supporting businesses’ digital transformation at the network edge through both 5G connectivity and cloud-native applications and capabilities. It has been developing its 5G portfolio, strengthening AirScale and advancing the capabilities of its ReefShark chipset. Nokia’s extensive portfolio consists of around 20,000 patents, among which 7,000 are essential for 5G.

With domain-specific expertise in core areas, both Ericsson and Nokia are well-positioned to cater to the evolving network connectivity demands of business enterprises. Let us delve a little deeper into the companies’ competitive dynamics to understand which of the two is relatively better placed in the industry.

The Case for ERICEricsson is focusing on 5G system development and has undertaken many notable endeavors to position itself for market leadership in 5G. It currently has 206 live 5G networks across the globe, spanning 85 countries. The company believes that the standardization of 5G is the cornerstone for digitizing industries and broadband. The deployment of 5G networks is likely to boost the adoption of IoT (Internet of Things) devices, with technologies like network slicing gaining more prominence.

Ericsson continues to invest in the Enterprise business to make it a sizeable part of its business. The company has introduced on-demand network slicing capability in Android 14 devices. It empowers developers to enhance the flexibility of applications and allows service providers to better align network connectivity with user-specific requirements. Ericsson continues to prioritize the terms and value of new agreements and renewals. Management also identifies opportunities to increase smartphone market penetration and extend licensing into additional segments.

However, rising component costs represent a continuing challenge for Ericsson's profitability and pricing competitiveness. Management expects the global radio access network market to remain flat in 2026, constraining opportunities for broad-based industry expansion. Management has identified component cost increases as a margin headwind for 2027. Ericsson is pursuing pricing actions, portfolio optimization and operational efficiencies to mitigate these costs. The ability to offset inflation remains important in a flat network equipment market, where opportunities to recover higher expenses through volume growth may be limited.

The Case for NOKNokia facilitates its customers to move away from an economy-of-scale network operating model to demand-driven operations by offering easy programmability and flexible automation needed to support dynamic operations, reduce complexity and improve efficiency. The company seeks to expand its business into targeted, high-growth and high-margin vertical markets to address growth opportunities beyond its traditional primary markets.

Its installed base of high-capacity AirScale products, which enables customers to quickly upgrade to 5G, is growing fast. The company is driving the transition of global enterprises into smart virtual networks by creating a single network for all services, converging mobile and fixed broadband, IP routing and optical networks with the software and services to manage them. Leveraging state-of-the-art technology, Nokia is transforming the way people and things communicate and connect. These include a seamless transition to 5G technology, ultra-broadband access, IP and Software Defined Networking, cloud applications and the Internet of Things.

Nokia is reportedly the only global supplier offering Open Radio Access Network (O-RAN) with commercial 5G Cloud-RAN networks. The company intends to accelerate strategy execution, sharpen customer focus and reduce long-term costs. At the same time, it is focused on building a strong, scalable software business and expanding it to structurally attractive enterprise adjacencies. Nokia’s C-Band portfolio supports 5G standalone and non-standalone networks, cloud-based implementations and O-RAN products.

However, Nokia remains exposed to the cyclical nature of telecommunications infrastructure spending, which can create uneven revenue and profitability across investment cycles. While AI and cloud demand is supporting Optical Networks and IP Networks, carrier spending remains mixed across regions and business lines. Although the company continues to strengthen its AI-native networking portfolio and expand relationships with hyperscale cloud providers, competitors are pursuing similar opportunities across 5G, AI infrastructure and future 6G deployments. Maintaining technology leadership while preserving pricing discipline remains essential as customers balance network modernization against capital spending constraints.

How Do Zacks Estimates Compare for ERIC & NOK?The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Ericsson’s 2026 sales implies a year-over-year decline of 1.6%, while that for EPS indicates a fall of 5.9%. EPS estimates have trended up 4.9% on average over the past 60 days.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Nokia’s 2026 sales suggests year-over-year growth of 5%, while that for EPS implies a rise of 18.2%. The EPS estimates have remained static over the past 60 days.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

Price Performance & Valuation of ERIC & NOKOver the past year, Ericsson has surged 9.1% against the industry’s fall of 0.6%. Nokia has gained 29.3% over the same period.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

Nokia looks more expensive compared to Ericsson from a valuation standpoint. Going by the price/sales ratio, Ericsson’s shares currently trade at 1.59 forward sales, lower than 2.1 for Nokia.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

ERIC or NOK: Which is the Better Pick?Both Ericsson and Nokia carry a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Nokia expects sales and earnings to improve in 2026, unlike Ericsson. In terms of price performance, Nokia has outperformed Ericsson, although it is trading relatively more expensively compared with the latter. Although there is not much to choose from, Nokia appears to be slightly better placed than Ericsson at the moment and is therefore a better investment option now.

Two AI chip giants, one $10,000 stake each, and a five-year model that puts them on surprisingly different trajectories. The gap has nothing to do with which company is bigger.

Put $10,000 into Advanced Micro Devices (NASDAQ:AMD | AMD Price Prediction) and another $10,000 into NVIDIA (NASDAQ:NVDA), and our price-prediction model has the two stakes ending up in very different places by 2030.

In early trading, AMD sat at $546.66 and NVIDIA at $215.69. The model starts from reference prices of $531.29 and $210.96. Both companies sell into the same AI data center expansion.

The gap between them comes down to how much growth each stock’s price already reflects.

What $10,000 Could Become in Each Stock The model’s closest horizon to 2030 is its five-year target, which runs to October 2031, so every specific number below is linked to that window and 2030 serves as an illustrative label.

In the base case, $10,000 in NVIDIA could be worth about $18,056, a total return of 80.56%, built on a per-share target of $380.90. The same $10,000 in AMD could grow to about $11,989, a total return of 19.89%, on a target of $636.99.

As an illustration, the base-case tracks pass through about $352.11 for NVIDIA and $597.12 for AMD in October 2030. The model rates its confidence at 0.9 for both stocks.

NVIDIA Scenarios (Five-Year Horizon) Scenario Target Price Total Return Value of $10,000 Bull $378.63 79.48% $17,948 Base $380.90 80.56% $18,056 Bear $268.57 27.31% $12,731 AMD Scenarios (Five-Year Horizon) Scenario Target Price Total Return Value of $10,000 Bull $999.74 88.17% $18,817 Base $636.99 19.89% $11,989 Bear $422.13 -20.55% $7,945 NVIDIA’s bull and base cases land almost on top of each other, which makes its outcome range narrower. AMD has the highest single upside in either table and is also the only stock whose bear case loses money.

Why NVIDIA’s Base Case Runs Higher On valuation, NVIDIA trades at about 16x forward earnings. AMD trades at about 43x after a year-to-date rally of 155.26%, compared with NVIDIA’s 15.92%. The model calls AMD “near fair value (2.2%)” and flags “strong upside (+21.6%)” for NVIDIA over one year.

NVIDIA also adds scale. Fiscal second-quarter revenue reached $96.22B (+105.8% YoY), Data Center revenue was $89.02B, and third-quarter guidance calls for $108B ±2%.

Management expects fiscal 2028 revenue to grow approximately 70% even with supply constraints. Revenue per gigawatt rises to $40 billion with Vera Rubin. Analysts put their consensus target at $328.95, with 95% bullish view.

AMD’s Path to the Bull Case AMD’s growth curve is steeper, and its bull case depends on it. Second-quarter revenue rose to $11.54B (+50.1% YoY), and Data Center sales hit $6.72B (+107% YoY). Management expects Data Center revenue to “more than double year-over-year in 2027“, helped by the Helios ramp and an Anthropic deal for up to 2 GW of MI450.

Analysts’ consensus target is $637.61, with 80% bullish view. Both chipmakers also appear in reports about the AI-related stock offering from Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META), as they compete against custom chips (Barron’s).

Risks That Could Shrink Either Stake Volatility: AMD’s beta is 2.454 and NVIDIA’s is 2.216. AMD fell 13.32% over the past month alone. China and export controls: NVIDIA’s guidance assumes no Data Center compute revenue from China, and AMD has the same regulatory exposure. Margins and supply: NVIDIA expects gross margin to bottom at 71% to 72% in the fourth quarter because of memory costs. Both companies depend on Taiwan Semiconductor (NYSE:TSM). Execution: AMD’s Gaming revenue fell 31%, and its AI story depends on Helios and ROCm continuing to gain adoption. Where the Two Stakes Could Land by 2030 Across the five-year scenarios, $10,000 in NVIDIA runs from $12,731 to $18,056. AMD runs from $7,945 to $18,817.

NVIDIA offers a steadier projected tracks, while AMD has the wider spread of outcomes. The model projections here serve research purposes, and actual results could look very different.

Contact [email protected] for any questions or corrections.

Don't look now, but Apple (AAPL +1.71%) is closing in on Nvidia (NVDA -0.80%) for the market cap crown. The consumer tech giant is rolling this year, on the strength of accelerating revenue growth and new product rollouts. Apple stock is up 26% so far this year, more than double the market's return. Its market cap just cracked $5 trillion.

In the other corner, Nvidia shares are up only 15% this year. The AI bellwether continues to deliver blowout financial results, but investors have rotated into memory stocks and other infrastructure plays that will benefit from the boom. Nvidia's market cap is currently $5.2 trillion. Don't be surprised if Apple pulls ahead of Nvidia in market cap, potentially in the final two months of this year.

Image source: Getty Images.

The case for Apple as the new market cap king Apple's revenue is accelerating for the third consecutive year. When it reports its fiscal fourth-quarter results next week, analysts expect top-line growth of 15% for fiscal 2026. It will be Apple's first fiscal year of double-digit revenue growth since 2021.

Apple stock capping off its biggest annual growth in five years is huge. Apple's trailing adjusted net margin topping 20% for the first time since 2012 could be even more important. Apple's long-running push to grow into a high-margin services company is starting to bear fruit.

It also has momentum on the hardware front to make it happen. The Tim Cook era brought unprecedented operational excellence when he arrived as the CEO in the summer of 2011. It failed to deliver on revenue growth and, to a much lesser extent, innovation. This will be just the fifth year of double-digit top-line growth in his 15-year reign.

He certainly planted the seeds for all of the new products rolling out these days. The new foldable Duo iPhone is raising the bar for smartphone selling prices. Apple's first MacBook Pro with a touchscreen was introduced this week. Cook has set up new CEO John Ternus with the tools to deliver stronger revenue growth on booming margins. It's not surprising to see that Apple is the best performer -- by far -- of the "Magnificent Seven" stocks.

AAPL Apple$349.72+$5.89 (+1.71%)

NASDAQ · As of 1:35 PM ET 10/29/26

Then there's Nvidia Nvidia investors shouldn't be upset when Apple flashes its high beams to pass the AI chip leader in the next couple of months. Nvidia has still had a respectable year, currently ahead of the five other Magnificent Seven names.

Nvidia stock is growing considerably faster than Apple. It's trading for less than 13 times next year's earnings, a more compelling valuation than Apple. Sustainability is the biggest question. Nvidia's revenue growth and net margin are stunning today, but both can tumble at the first hiccup in the AI revolution.

I am a proud shareholder of Apple and Nvidia. I think both can continue to beat the market over the long haul. However, with Apple's newfound momentum, it feels like the better buy as it gets ready to don the market cap crown again.

An alleged Chinese spy developed a “close relationship” with Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, setting off alarms among US intelligence officials who were secretly monitoring her communications, according to a report.

The woman, Alice Huang, also known as Huang Le, is a Chinese citizen who has served as a top executive at Singapore-based Megaspeed, an Nvidia customer and cloud partner that provides AI computing power to Chinese companies including Alibaba, the New York Times reported Thursday.

US intelligence agencies concluded that Alice Huang — seen in photos enjoying whiskey and dining with the tech titan — was secretly funneling information to Beijing, according to the paper, which cited people briefed on classified intelligence findings.

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang was photographed drinking whiskey with Alice Huang, a Chinese businesswoman accused of passing intelligence to Beijing, at a Taipei bar in June 2024. @netthunder/LinkedIn US electronic surveillance identified Jensen Huang as one of Alice Huang’s contacts, but the report offered no evidence that he knew of her alleged intelligence activities.

The Times could not determine what information she passed along or how valuable it was to Chinese authorities. The report did not address whether the relationship was romantic in nature.

Photos posted online in June 2024 showed the duo at a Taipei, Taiwan, bar after a local tech show, where they reportedly quaffed whiskey with other AI bigshots.

They were also seen together in May 2025, exiting a Taipei restaurant following a business dinner with AI suppliers. In a video of the scene, Alice Huang is seen standing a few feet behind the Nvidia boss with a big grin on her face while he banters with local journos.

US authorities have been investigating Megaspeed over suspicions that it helped Chinese firms circumvent US export restrictions and smuggle advanced Nvidia chips into China, the Times reported.

Megaspeed operates as a middleman, purchasing Nvidia chips through the US arm of Inspur, a Chinese server manufacturer, and renting computing power from its Southeast Asian data centers to Chinese companies, according to the Gray Lady.

Inspur’s parent company has been blacklisted by Washington for funneling technology to China’s military, although its American subsidiary remains free of sanctions, according to the Times.

Nvidia is the world’s most valuable publicly traded company, boasting a market capitalization of roughly $5.2 trillion.

Alice Huang, also known as Huang Le. LinkedIn Its advanced chips have become the backbone of the artificial intelligence boom, giving Huang enormous clout in Silicon Valley and Washington as the US races to maintain its technological edge over China. The feds have banned Nvidia from selling its best chips to Chinese companies for years.

Jensen Huang is married to Lori Mills Huang, whom he met while studying electrical engineering at Oregon State University.

The couple has two children, Spencer and Madison, both of whom work at Nvidia.

President Trump was briefed on the intelligence findings roughly a year ago but chose not to take action, according to the Times, which added that he was wary of disrupting Nvidia’s lucrative chip sales and further complicating trade relations with China.

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has cultivated close ties with President Trump, successfully lobbying his administration to ease restrictions on AI chip sales to China. Getty Images Jensen Huang has cultivated close ties with Trump, attending a high-dollar donors’ dinner at Mar-a-Lago, Fla., with his wife, personally lobbying the president to allow Nvidia to continue selling chips to Beijing, the Times reported.

Nvidia subsequently donated at least $20 million to Trump’s White House ballroom fund, according to a person familiar with the matter cited by the Times.

The chipmaker also pledged to invest $500 billion in US manufacturing — a top Trump priority — while Huang successfully pressed the administration to loosen restrictions on AI companies and chip exports to China.

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Although US officials initially believed Jensen Huang did not know of Alice Huang’s alleged espionage activities, some senior Trump administration officials now doubt that the Nvidia boss “could have remained unaware” of her intelligence-gathering role for Beijing, according to the Times.

It remains unclear whether US intelligence agencies have formally changed their assessment.

Nvidia pushed back against suggestions that Jensen Huang’s dealings with the alleged Chinese intelligence operative were suspicious, describing Megaspeed as a typical regional cloud customer.

“Jensen’s interactions with Ms. Huang are not unusual or unexpected,” an Nvidia spokesperson told The Post.

President and CEO of NVIDIA Jensen Huang, left, and his wife Lori Huang talk to former Apple CEO Tim Cook during a state dinner for Chinese President Xi Jinping in the White House on Sept. 24. Getty Images “Meetings with customers are part of a CEO’s job; Jensen talks with thousands of customer executives every year.”

The company insisted that its regional cloud customers receive “ordinary business information — not sensitive NVIDIA trade secrets” and “zero information relevant to national security.”

Nvidia also said it regularly receives government updates about potentially problematic individuals and companies, adding that it “always” takes appropriate action.

“We’re confident that if the US government believes that any person is a threat to American industry, it would let us know,” the spokesperson said.

The chipmaker also rejected allegations that its technology was being diverted through Megaspeed, saying the claims were “thoroughly investigated and debunked last year.”

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang was never warned by US intelligence officials that a Chinese businesswoman with whom he had developed a close relationship was allegedly gathering information for Beijing, according to the Times. REUTERS It maintained that Beijing has blocked American AI chips rather than sought them through regional cloud providers.

“China opposes vilifying China by peddling the so-called ‘Chinese spy’ narrative,” Chinese embassy spokesperson Liu Chang told The Post.

“China is committed to self-reliance and strength in science and technology, and its scientific and technological development has always been grounded in independent innovation.

“We urge the US to stop its malicious efforts to block and suppress China and its groundless smears and slanders, and do more things that are conducive to sci-tech exchanges and cooperation between the two countries.”

The Post has sought comment from the White House and Megaspeed.

Key Takeaways Mastercard's Q3 adjusted EPS rose 21.2% to $5.31, beating estimates by 3.3%.Revenues grew 14% to $9.8 billion, driven by cross-border volumes, pricing and value-added services.Value-added services revenues jumped 19% to $4.1 billion, while adjusted operating margin expanded to 60.5%.
Mastercard Incorporated (MA - Free Report) reported third-quarter 2026 adjusted earnings of $5.31 per share, which topped the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 3.3%. The bottom line improved 21.2% year over year.

Net revenues advanced 14% year over year to $9.8 billion. The top line surpassed the consensus mark by 1.8%.

The strong quarterly results benefited from higher cross-border volumes, increased gross dollar volume and robust demand for value-added services, along with pricing initiatives. However, the upside was partly offset by higher payment network rebates and incentives, as well as increased operating expenses.

Mastercard’s Q3 Operational PerformancePayment network net revenues totaled $5.7 billion, up 11% year over year. Growth was primarily driven by higher domestic and cross-border transaction volumes, increased transaction processing activity and pricing.

Gross dollar volume or GDV (representing the aggregated dollar amount of purchases made and cash disbursements obtained from Mastercard-branded cards) rose 7.5% on a local-currency basis to $3 trillion. The metric beat our model estimate by 1.3%.

Cross-border volumes (a key measure that tracks spending on cards beyond the issuing country) grew 11% on a local-currency basis in the quarter under review. Switched transactions, which indicate the number of times a company’s products have been used to facilitate transactions, improved 9% year over year to 49.3 billion. However, the metric missed our model estimate by 2.2%.

Mastercard’s value-added services and solutions continued to be a key contributor to the revenue mix. Value-added services and solutions’ net revenues totaled $4.1 billion, which advanced 19% year over year and surpassed our model estimate of $4 billion. The year-over-year growth was aided by pricing and the strong performance of security, digital and authentication solutions, as well as customer acquisition and engagement services.

Payment network rebates and incentives increased 18% year over year as a result of higher business activity and new and renewed deals. Mastercard’s clients issued 3.8 billion Mastercard and Maestro-branded cards as of Sept. 30, 2026.
Adjusted operating expenses escalated 12% year over year to $3.9 billion in the third quarter due to rising general and administrative expenses.

Even with higher costs, operating leverage showed through. Adjusted operating income of $5.9 billion climbed 15% year over year and beat our model estimate of $5.8 billion. The adjusted operating margin improved 70 basis points (bps) year over year to 60.5%.

Mastercard’s Financial Position (As of Sept. 30, 2026)Mastercard exited the third quarter with cash and cash equivalents of $10.1 billion, down from the 2025-end level of $10.6 billion. Total assets amounted to $58.1 billion, up 7.4% from the year-end 2025 level.

Long-term debt amounted to $22.2 billion, up 21.6% from the figure as of Dec. 31, 2025. Short-term debt totaled $1.7 billion.

Total equity declined to $6.7 billion from $7.7 billion at 2025-end.

Mastercard generated $11.9 billion in operating cash flow during the first nine months of 2026, down 6.2% from the year-ago period.

Mastercard’s Capital Deployment UpdateMastercard repurchased 5.3 million shares for $3 billion during the third quarter of 2026. The company also distributed $763 million in dividends during the quarter under review.

Between Oct. 1 and Oct. 26, 2026, MA repurchased another 1.1 million shares for approximately $0.6 billion. Following these transactions, the company had $4.9 billion remaining under its authorized share repurchase programs.

Mastercard’s Q4 GuidanceFor the fourth quarter of 2026, management expects net revenues to grow at the high end of the low-double-digit range year over year, while adjusted operating expenses are anticipated to record low-teens growth.

Mastercard’s 2026 ViewManagement continues to project net revenues to witness low-teens growth in 2026 from the 2025 figure. Adjusted operating expenses are still expected to witness high-end of low double-digit growth from the year-ago figure.

MA’s Zacks RankMastercard currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

How Are Mastercard’s Peers Placed This Quarter?Visa Inc. (V - Free Report) reported fourth-quarter fiscal 2026 adjusted earnings of $3.48 per share, up 17% year over year and beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 1.5%. Net revenues came in at $12.1 billion, rising 13% year over year. V’s quarterly results reflected higher payment volumes, robust cross-border activity and increased transaction processing. However, the upside was partly offset by increased operating expenses.

American Express Company (AXP - Free Report) reported third-quarter 2026 EPS of $4.68, which surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 4.7%. The bottom line advanced 13% year over year. Total revenues, net of interest expense, improved 9% year over year to $20.1 billion. AXP’s quarterly results were driven by increased Card Member spending, higher net interest income and improved card fee growth. However, the upside was partly offset by elevated operating expenses.

CompaniesOct 29 (Reuters) - Mastercard

(MA.N), opens new tab on Thursday rounded out a strong quarter for payment networks with a profit beat, as consumer spending held up despite worries over ​still-high inflation and economic uncertainty.

Shares of the company rose more than 4% in afternoon trading, while ‌rivals Visa

(V.N), opens new tab and American Express

(AXP.N), opens new tab were up about 2% each.

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A steady labor market and still-strong wage growth have helped cushion the squeeze from soaring gasoline prices due to the war in Iran and higher costs of living.

Some of the spending growth this year was driven by higher gas prices, ​Mastercard's newly appointed CFO Ling Hai told Reuters in an interview, while stressing that the short-term benefit on ​price could be hindered if inflation levels remained high.

Mastercard's payments network, like that of rival ⁠Visa, spans more than 200 countries and territories, helping insulate it from economic downturns as billions of consumers rely ​on its network for everyday purchases.

Spending was growing across income cohorts, Hai added, as mass consumers were allocating more of ​their budget on essentials, while higher-income earners kept up discretionary purchases.

Additionally, credit card usage often tends to rise during economic slumps as consumers lean on borrowing to offset financial shortfalls.

"Cash-strapped consumers might swipe their card to ride through the rougher times," said Brian Jacobsen, chief economic ​strategist at Annex Wealth Management.

STRONG QUARTER FOR PAYMENT NETWORKSThe results follow earnings beats from Visa

(V.N), opens new tab earlier this week and ​American Express

(AXP.N), opens new tab, which caters to affluent customers, earlier in the month.

Still, card executives have remained cautious given the uncertain economic backdrop, as ‌concerns over ⁠a pullback from inflation and a higher interest rate environment persist.

"We see resilience across the spending bands on our network. So we have seen stability in that sense. But in terms of like how strong for how long, and what the new normal is, I think that's just too hard to tell," Visa CEO Ryan McInerney told analysts on Tuesday.

Cross-border ​growth numbers across Visa and ​Mastercard have remained steady, highlighting the strength ⁠of affluent consumers who are using their purchasing power to keep discretionary spend intact.

The second half of the FIFA World Cup, which spanned from June 11 to July 19, ​has been a positive driver of cross-border payment metrics for card networks, buffering a hit ​to travel from ⁠escalating tensions in the Middle East.

Cross-border volumes at Mastercard, a metric that tracks spending on cards outside the country they were issued in, jumped 11% in the quarter.

Mastercard shares have gained about 7% so far in 2026, underperforming both the broader ⁠markets and ​its peer Visa. Still, the stock has been trading near record levels, ​closing Wednesday just 3.6% below its all-time high set on October 22.

It posted an overall adjusted profit of $5.31 per share, surpassing analysts' average estimate of $5.16 ​per share, according to data compiled by LSEG.

Reporting by Pritam Biswas and Utkarsh Shetti in Bengaluru; Editing by Vijay Kishore

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab

Key Takeaways BAC's expansion into new markets should strengthen deposit gathering and cross-selling opportunities.Branch modernization and AI adoption could enhance customer engagement and operational efficiency.Rising investment costs and competitive pressures remain near-term challenges.
Bank of America (BAC - Free Report) is stepping up its branch expansion efforts, with its recent entry into Wisconsin and planned openings in Alabama and Louisiana reinforcing its growth strategy. The bank intends to add 19 financial centers in Wisconsin by 2030, alongside 18 locations across Alabama and Greater New Orleans beginning in 2027.

With approximately 3,500 financial centers reaching nearly 83% of the U.S. population, BAC plans to add 50 locations annually. Its growing physical presence should complement its established digital platform, enabling the bank to attract customers in newer markets while deepening relationships through personalized financial advice. This could boost demand for mortgages, wealth management and business banking services, supporting diversified revenue growth.

Meanwhile, BAC’s focus on modernizing its existing network should enhance service quality and strengthen its competitive position. Since 2016, the bank has invested more than $5 billion in opening and upgrading financial centers. It has completed more than 400 renovations this year, with more than 300 additional projects planned. These upgrades should improve customer experience and employee productivity, potentially supporting stronger returns from its physical infrastructure over time.

BAC’s AI initiatives further reinforce its long-term growth potential. While more than 95% of client interactions occur digitally, approximately 10 million specialist appointments over the past year highlight sustained demand for in-person expertise. AI-powered tools like Plan My Day and EricaAssist are helping employees deliver more efficient and personalized services. Notably, management expects benefits from its AI project pipeline to rise from $250-$300 million in 2026 to $700 million in 2027, indicating meaningful scope for productivity gains and cost savings.

BAC’s integrated approach to physical expansion and digital innovation should support sustainable revenue growth and improved operating leverage. A wider distribution network, coupled with AI-led efficiencies, could strengthen profitability and long-term earnings prospects. However, elevated investment spending, intense competition and the time required for new branches to achieve profitability remain concerning. Nevertheless, these initiatives position BAC favorably to capitalize on evolving customer preferences and drive long-term growth.

BAC’s Competitive LandscapeJPMorgan (JPM - Free Report) is also expanding its branch network while investing in digital capabilities to deepen customer relationships and capture market share. JPMorgan’s strategy of combining physical accessibility with technological innovation should support deposit gathering, lending activity and wealth management opportunities. Like BAC, JPMorgan is positioned to benefit from stronger customer engagement and diversified revenue streams.

Likewise, Wells Fargo (WFC - Free Report) is focusing on digital transformation and operational efficiency to strengthen its consumer banking franchise. Wells Fargo’s investments in technology and customer service improvements should support retention and cross-selling opportunities. Similar to BAC, Wells Fargo aims to balance personalized banking services with digital convenience, although cost pressures and competition could limit near-term benefits.

BAC’s Price Performance, Valuation & EstimatesIn the past six months, shares of Bank of America have lost 4.9% against the industry’s 1.2% growth.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

From a valuation standpoint, BAC trades at a trailing 12-month price-to-tangible book ratio of 1.81, below the industry average of 2.99.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for BAC’s 2026 and 2027 earnings indicates year-over-year growth rates of 18.6% and 14.8%, respectively. Earnings estimates for both years have been revised lower over the past 30 days.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

Binance's founder Changpeng Zhao has publicly declared he does not own any Shiba Inu tokens after a viral post with a contradictory story emerged.

The post, which has stirred discussion across the crypto ecosystem, has triggered a quick reaction from CZ, clarifying the misconceptions that may have stemmed from the wrong information.

CZ does not own a SHIBOn Thursday, October 29, a social media post from a renowned crypto content creator drew the attention of crypto users after it asked CZ to confirm a story about his alleged Shiba Inu pet, Riki.

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In response to the post, Binance's founder dismissed the claims for their ingenuity, stating that he has never owned a Shiba Inu and does not know who or what Riki is.

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While CZ seemed displeased by the claims, he further mentioned that he generally avoids answering questions of such nature because they often contain too much misinformation to correct.

Fake SHIB endorsement?Although the post suggested that CZ's supposed Shiba Inu had adapted to life in Tokyo faster than the Binance founder himself and had never needed to worry about rent, it appeared that the poster was not entirely certain about the truthfulness of the story either.

While the post asked whether the story was genuine and whether CZ could share an unknown fact about the alleged pet, CZ's response to the claims triggered mixed reactions among commentators.

Some have claimed that someone may have come up with the story to create a fake-endorsement pump for Shiba Inu. Nonetheless, the reason behind the false claims remains uncertain.

17h05 ▪
5
min read ▪ by
Luc Jose A.

Summarize this article with:

About 92 billion SHIB joined the platforms in one day, while the price of Shiba Inu remained under pressure. The number seems considerable, but it barely represents 0.11% of the reserves held on the exchanges: the real problem mainly comes from the lack of buyers.

In brief

About 92 billion SHIB joined the platforms in 24 hours, representing only 0.11% of their reserves.
The price of Shiba Inu remains under pressure, mainly due to the lack of buyers.
SHIB struggles to rise above 0.0000052 dollar, while the support at 0.0000048 dollar remains to be watched.
The repetition of deposits on the platforms could increase selling pressure if demand does not recover.

The 92 billion SHIB weigh only 0.11% of the reserves
The net inflows of Shiba Inu on the platforms reached 92.07 billion tokens in 24 hours, according to CryptoQuant. Deposits totaled 324.28 billion SHIB, against 232.21 billion withdrawn during the same period.

A positive net flow means that more tokens arrived on the exchanges than left. These SHIB can be sold quickly, which theoretically increases the available pressure on the market. A deposit however does not prove that a sale actually took place.

The data puts the size of the movement into perspective :

The platforms held 86,250 billion SHIB ;
The net flow represented about 0.11% of these reserves ;
The 92 billion tokens were worth nearly 450,000 dollars ;
The total value of the reserves approached 418.32 million dollars ;
The number of SHIB on the exchanges increased by only 0.11%.

The economic amount therefore remains modest despite an impressive number of tokens. This difference is explained by the extremely low unit price of SHIB, which was around 0.00000489 dollar. A few hundred thousand dollars are thus enough to produce a transfer counted in tens of billions of tokens.

The increase in reserves alone cannot explain a significant drop in price. It only indicates that the immediately tradable supply has slightly increased. The real effect depends on the volume of sell orders and especially on the buyers’ capacity to absorb them.

The weakness of buyers holds SHIB below 0.0000052 dollar
The dollar value of the reserves held by the platforms fell by 2.9%, even though their quantity of SHIB increased. This divergence shows that the depreciation of the token was stronger than the increase in the number of available units.

The main problem is therefore on the demand side. Shiba Inu tried to rebound towards 0.000006 dollar at the beginning of October, before being rejected. It then failed to maintain its gains above 0.0000052 dollar.

The price now moves below several important moving averages. The level of 0.000005 dollar constitutes a first psychological resistance, followed by a more difficult zone between 0.0000054 and 0.0000056 dollar.

The relative strength index also remains below 50. This indicator does not necessarily signal an imminent fall, but it confirms that buyers do not yet have enough momentum to regain control.

On the downside, the first support is around 0.0000048 dollar. A sustained break of this threshold could open the way to 0.0000044 dollar. Conversely, a return above 0.0000052 dollar, accompanied by an increase in volumes, would diminish the importance of the inflows observed on the platforms.

A series of deposits would matter more than a single day
The 92 billion SHIB do not constitute an isolated event. On October 23, net inflows had already reached about 77.3 billion tokens. The repetition of the phenomenon deserves more attention than the value recorded over 24 hours alone.

Several consecutive days of deposits would gradually increase the reserves available for sale. If the price continued in parallel to lose its supports, this combination would indicate that supply is growing faster than demand.

Flows can however change quickly. A few days earlier, nearly 95.68 billion SHIB had left the platforms in a single session. Presented in isolation, this movement could have been interpreted as accumulation. Yet it was not enough to cause a lasting price reversal.

These variations show the limits of daily data. Platforms sometimes move their funds between hot and cold wallets, while users can transfer tokens without immediate intention to sell them. Data providers do not necessarily record exactly the same addresses either.

The signal would become stronger if three elements evolved together: a sustained increase in reserves, several days of net inflows and a break of the support at 0.0000048 dollar. For now, the 92 billion SHIB illustrate additional selling pressure, but their weight remains too small to explain the drop alone.

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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.

As a tech selloff sparked by Alphabet (GOOGL) earnings grips the stock market, Dan Deming continues to see the rotation as the biggest unsung headline for equities. As for today's Big 3, he expects Apple (AAPL) to maintain tech dominance in earnings, sees Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) as a leader in the healthcare sector, and names 3M (MMM) as a strong defensive stock.

Altria Group, Inc. (MO) Q3 2026 Earnings Call October 29, 2026 9:00 AM EDT

Company Participants

Mac Livingston - Vice President of Investor Relations
Salvatore Mancuso - CEO & Director
Heather Newman - Executive VP & CFO

Conference Call Participants

Mirza Faham Baig - UBS Investment Bank, Research Division
Matthew Smith - Stifel, Nicolaus & Company, Incorporated, Research Division
Bonnie Herzog - Goldman Sachs Group, Inc., Research Division
Andrei Andon-Ionita - Jefferies LLC, Research Division
Pallav Mittal - Barclays Bank PLC, Research Division
Eric Serotta - Morgan Stanley, Research Division

Presentation

Operator

Good day, and welcome to the Altria Group 2026 Third Quarter Earnings Conference Call. Today's call is scheduled to last about 1 hour, including remarks by Altria's management and a question-and-answer session. Representatives of the investment community and media on the call will be able to ask questions following the conclusion of the prepared remarks.

I would now like to turn the call over to Mac Livingston, Vice President of Investor Relations. Please go ahead, sir.

Mac Livingston
Vice President of Investor Relations

Thanks, Olivia. Good morning, and thank you for joining us. This morning, Sal Mancuso, Altria's CEO, and Heather Newman, our CFO, will discuss Altria's 2026 third quarter and first 9 months business results.

Earlier today, we issued a press release providing our results. The release, presentation and quarterly metrics are all available at altria.com. During our call today, unless otherwise stated, we're comparing results to the same period in 2025.

Our remarks contain forward-looking statements, including projections of future results. Please review the forward-looking and cautionary statements section at the end of today's earnings release for various factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from projections. Future dividend payments and share repurchases remain subject to the discretion of our Board of Directors.

We report our financial results in

Vancouver, BC – TheNewswire - October 29, 2026 – Global Stocks News - Sponsored content disseminated on behalf of Alex Metals. On October 27, 2026, Alex Metals (TSXV: ALX) (OTCQB: ALXMF) reported the first batch of drill results from its inaugural drill program at its KSO project in Southeast Alaska.

Alex Metals owns three properties in accessible coastal Southeast Alaska. The Wodski and Frenchie projects lie within the Alexander Triassic Belt, which hosts the world-class 42 million tonne (MT) high-grade Greens Creek and 297 MT Windy Craggy volcanogenic massive sulphide (VMS) deposits.

The KSO Project lies within Proterozoic-age rocks that host numerous early 1900s-era historical VMS mines and noted occurrences. ALX is built with a clear purpose: to discover a new silver-gold-rich VMS deposit in under-explored Southeast Alaska.

Click Image To View Full Size

"We staked the KSO project for its potential to host copper-gold-rich VMS mineralization and our first drill holes returned precisely that," stated Gwen Preston, President and CEO in the October 28 press release. "Striking multiple intervals of semimassive to massive sulphide with strong copper and gold grades in a first test of a new target is rare and promising. We are also very pleased to report the discovery of a promising new VMS target within the first few weeks at KSO, which demonstrates the outstanding VMS potential of this seriously under-explored region."

The 2026 first-pass drill program at Khayyam was designed to test below the outcropping massive sulphide to understand the extent, orientation, and style of mineralization. Massive sulphide outcrops include 8 lenses over a 70-metre interval and along 300 metres of strike length.

"The rocks at KSO have undergone a complex structural and metamorphic history, common to Proterozoic VMS belts," stated Nathan Steeves, VP Exploration. "The geology, geochemistry, and geophysical response of each VMS deposit is unique, so exploration methods must be custom-tailored.”

“This first pass exploration program started to test the part of the system visible at surface,” continued Steeves, “But, as importantly, it is helping us understand the metamorphic and structural history of these rocks and build an exploration toolkit for this under-explored region, where we see ample VMS discovery potential."

Click Image To View Full Size

Gwen Preston, President and CEO of Alex Metals, holds a B.Sc. in Chemistry from McGill University and a Master of Journalism from UBC. Formerly, she was the CEO of the Resource Maven newsletter, where she spent a decade visiting mine sites, interviewing geologists and producing independent research for a global subscriber base.

On October 28, 2026, Alex Metals published an “explainer video” by Preston that provided detail and context for the company's first full Alaska field season.

“Alex Metals just delivered results from our inaugural drill program at the KSO project in southeast Alaska,” stated Preston in the explainer video. “Six of eight holes returned mineralization, including highlight intervals in four holes. While drilling those holes, we discovered a new VMS target 2 kilometres west with outcropping massive sulphide and indications of scale, including large alteration zones.”

“We staked the KSO project for the opportunity to deliver a new copper-gold-rich VMS discovery, and that’s what we’ve done. To drill into grades and widths like these in the first season at a project while also finding a new strong target is rare and promising.”

“Some great results there feed one of the two goals we had at KSO this season. That first goal: start testing whether the 8 lenses of massive sulphide visible at the surface at the Khayyam target area extend to depth, and therefore have scale. The answer after this initial test: the lenses do extend to depth, though at a different angle than we expected. This area deserves more drilling.”

“Our second goal: learn more about this zone of mineralization at Khayyam so we can explore the rest of this large underexplored VMS region effectively,” continued Preston. “VMS deposits are unique. Each has its own mineralogy, indicators, alteration and geophysical response. If you want to explore a new VMS belt effectively, you have to start by understanding at least one zone of mineralization so you know what you’re looking for.”

“To get good widths of strong copper-gold mineralization across multiple holes in that kind of first effort is promising, both for the potential to find something of scale at the Khayyam target and for our chance of unlocking this whole district.”

Click Image To View Full Size

“Over the next few months, we will keep releasing results,” concluded Preston. “We also have results from the rest of the work at KSO, including the new target called Triple G, and results from our work at the Wodski and Frenchie projects about 100 kilometres to the north.”

Triple G Target: A 2025 SkyTEM electromagnetic survey outlined conductive anomalies at both Khayyam and Stumble-On and identified a large new target two kilometres west that was named Triple G.

There are no historical records of mineralization around this target. Alex Metals drilled four holes from two pads to test massive and stringer-style sulphide mineralization at surface and plates modeled from SkyTEM survey data. Results from the Triple G holes are pending.

"While drilling at Khayyam, our team discovered the 'Triple G' VMS target just two kilometres to the west," stated Nathan Steeves, VP Exploration. "Subsequent mapping and prospecting led to the discovery of several outcropping massive sulphide lenses and stringer zones. Outcropping massive sulphide with alteration of scale is exciting to find, and we are keen to do more work at Triple G and around this highly under-explored region."

2026 Exploration Program Update: Alex Metals completed its first-pass 3,058 m drill program at the KSO Project in 2026, with meterage primarily focused on Khayyam where holes were designed to test below outcropping massive sulphide. Today's Khayyam results are the first batch released from the KSO Project. Stumble-On and Triple G drill results are pending.

In addition to drilling during the 2-month program, Alex Metals also completed prospecting, two weeks of mapping, a UAV magnetic and photogrammetry survey, ground and drillhole EM surveys, and soil and channel sampling at KSO. The Company is keen to receive and integrate these data to guide exploration.

The inaugural Wodski Project 2026 exploration program was completed over two months and included 3,138 metres of drilling at the Mad Dog prospect, LiDAR, UAV magnetic and photogrammetry surveys, and mapping and prospecting of key prospects. Wodski results are pending.

Mapping and geophysical surveys at the Frenchie Project on Zarembo Island are still underway. These results will guide an inaugural drill program in 2027.

Click Image To View Full Size

The scientific and technical information contained in this news release has been reviewed and approved by Darwin Green, Chairman of the Company, and a Qualified Person under NI 43-101. Mr. Green is not independent of the Company.

Contact: [email protected]

Disclaimer: Alex Metals paid Global Stocks News (GSN) $1,750 for the research, writing and dissemination of this content.

Full Disclaimer: GSN researches and fact-checks diligently, but we cannot ensure our publications are free from error. Investing in publicly traded stocks is speculative and carries a high degree of risk. GSN publications may contain forward-looking statements such as “project,” “anticipate,” “expect,” which are based on reasonable expectations, but these statements are imperfect predictors of future events. When compensation has been paid to GSN, the amount and nature of the compensation will be disclosed clearly.

Jim Farley has grand visions for Ford's future built on digital subscriptions and a new EV nobody can buy yet, but the company's own numbers tell a very different story about where things are headed.

Ford’s (NYSE: F | F Price Prediction) earnings report outlined its vision for the future. CEO Jim Farley said, “For me, personally, the most exciting upsell opportunity is really the long-term subscription and digital experience for the customer.” Since there is no evidence this is what drivers want, it is not much to stake the future on. But Farley has had long-term plans that have fallen apart before. His other plan is the Fathom smallish EV, which will not be on the market until next year. Ford thinks it can sell 100,000 in the first year. Of course, there is no reason to think that forecast has any value.

Ford posted good results in the most recently reported quarter. It did so because it is a fossil-fuel vehicle company. Americans are still in love with these. EV sales as a percentage of new car sales in the US are about 6% this year.

Ford points to its F-150 as a key to the future. It is America’s best-selling vehicle and accounts for over a third of Ford’s sales. A full-sized pickup is about as far from an EV as one can get. Ford also pointed to its overseas sales future. It sells very few cars in the EU and China, the two largest car markets other than the US.

Notably, Ford did improve its guidance.

As for its core car business, the WSJ pointed out, “Ford Motor reported lower profit and revenue in the third quarter, pressured by persistent losses in its electric-vehicle unit and softer sales across its gas and hybrid models.”

Revenue fell from $50.5 billion last year to $49.5 billion. EPS dropped from $ 0.61 to $ 0.51. Its EV segment continues to bleed money, with a loss of $1.1 billion, “as the segment continues to optimize first-generation vehicles for profitability….” It also pointed to plans for Fathom and Ford Energy, which may be its one future success.

In the last five years, Ford’s stock is down 30% while the S&P is up 68%. That is the real measure of Farley’s time as CEO. His visions for what comes next for Ford haven’t helped the stock in the past.

Contact [email protected] for any questions or corrections.

Key Takeaways Ford's Q3 adjusted EPS rose 8.9% to 49 cents, beating estimates by 25.64%, despite a 2% revenue decline.Favorable product mix and a 27% rise in Ford Credit pretax earnings supported quarterly results.Ford raised its 2026 adjusted EBIT outlook to $10.5-$11 billion despite rising commodity cost pressures.
Ford Motor (F - Free Report) reported third-quarter 2026 adjusted earnings of 49 cents per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 39 cents by 25.64%. Earnings increased 8.9% from 45 cents in the year-ago quarter, supported by favorable product mix and stronger Ford Credit results.

Automotive revenues, excluding Ford Credit, totaled $46.08 billion, down 2.3% year over year but surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $45.67 billion by 0.9%.

Consolidated revenues declined 2% to $49.5 billion. Global wholesale volumes fell 9% to 1.05 million units, reflecting product discontinuations and supply-related constraints.

Ford currently carries a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell).

You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Ford generated adjusted earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) of $2.7 billion, up 3% year over year. Adjusted EBIT margin expanded 30 basis points to 5.4%, reflecting improved operating efficiency despite lower revenues.

Ford Blue Faces Volume and Commodity PressuresFord Blue revenues declined 3% year over year to $27.1 billion as wholesale volumes fell 10% to 657,000 units. Lower sales reflected discontinued models and disruptions associated with the Middle East conflict. Favorable product mix provided a partial offset.

Segment EBIT decreased 10% to $1.39 billion, while EBIT margin contracted to 5.1% from 5.5%. Higher commodity costs also weighed on profitability.

Demand for higher-margin vehicles remained encouraging. Explorer's Tremor and Platinum trims registered nearly 60% year-to-date sales growth in the United States. F-Series achieved the highest retail share among full-size truck brands during the quarter.

F's Model e Loss Narrows Amid EV RestructuringFord Model e revenues declined 31% to $1.2 billion, with wholesale volumes falling 31% to 34,000 units. The decline reflected the discontinuation of F-150 Lightning and production adjustments for Mustang Mach-E.

The segment reported an EBIT loss of $1.06 billion, narrowing from $1.41 billion a year earlier. However, its EBIT margin deteriorated to negative 86.5% from negative 79.1%, reflecting reduced revenues and continued investments in next-generation products.

Management expects to launch the affordable electric vehicle, Fathom, in the fourth quarter of 2027, with a starting price below $30,000. Ford Energy also remains on track to establish 20 gigawatt-hours of annual battery capacity by the end of 2027.

Ford Pro Sees Higher Sales but Weaker MarginsFord Pro revenues increased 2% year over year to $17.8 billion despite a 4% decline in wholesale volumes to 358,000 units. Favorable product mix, supported by increased truck production, helped offset weaker volumes.

Segment EBIT declined 16% to $1.67 billion, while the EBIT margin contracted to 9.4% from 11.4%. Higher commodity costs, temporary aluminum sourcing expenses and launch costs associated with Super Duty production at Oakville pressured profitability.

The Oakville production ramp exceeded planned daily volume and labor productivity targets. Management also highlighted continued expansion in software services and parts, which together represented approximately 10% of consolidated quarterly revenues.

Ford Credit Business Delivers Strong Earnings GrowthFord Credit generated earnings before taxes of $803 million, which increased 27% year over year. Favorable derivative valuations, higher receivables and a supportive used-vehicle pricing environment contributed to the improvement.

However, U.S. retail loss-to-receivables increased to 0.67% from 0.61% a year earlier, reflecting higher credit loss severity. Used-vehicle auction values declined 3% amid increasing supply.

Cash Flow Strength Supports Capital ReturnsFord generated $5.4 billion in operating cash flow during the quarter, compared with $7.4 billion a year ago. Adjusted free cash flow improved to $4.7 billion from $4.3 billion.

The company ended September with $25.3 billion in cash and $46.4 billion in liquidity. Capital spending totaled $2.3 billion during the quarter. Ford declared a regular quarterly dividend of 15 cents per share, payable Dec. 1 to shareholders of record on Nov. 10.

2026 Earnings OutlookFord raised the lower end of its full-year adjusted EBIT guidance to $10.5-$11 billion from $10-$11 billion. Adjusted free cash flow guidance remained unchanged at $6-$7 billion, while capital spending is expected to be between $9.5 billion and $10.5 billion.

For 2026, management anticipates Ford Blue EBIT of approximately $5.5 billion and Ford Pro EBIT of about $7 billion. Model e is expected to incur losses of approximately $4 billion, while Ford Credit is projected to generate pretax earnings of roughly $2.8 billion.

Ford now expects commodity-related headwinds approaching $2.5 billion, up from slightly more than $2 billion previously. Management also expects U.S. industry pricing to increase approximately 1% year over year and maintains its longer-term target of an 8% adjusted EBIT margin by 2029.

The company remains on track to deliver $1 billion in material and warranty cost reductions in 2026, excluding tariffs and Novelis-related costs.

Other Key Releases From the Auto SpaceGenuine Parts Company (GPC - Free Report) reported third-quarter 2026 adjusted earnings of $2.07 per share, which missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.09. The bottom line increased 4.5% from $1.98 in the year-ago quarter. Revenues rose 4.2% year over year to $6.52 billion and surpassed the consensus estimate of $6.5 billion. Comparable sales increased 2.9%, led by strong Industrial demand. Genuine Parts ended September with $2.4 billion of liquidity, including $763 million in cash. 

General Motors (GM - Free Report) delivered strong third-quarter 2026 results yesterday. Its earnings per share grew 32.2% year over year to $3.70 and topped the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $3.55. Revenues of $50.02 billion increased 3% year over year and outpaced the consensus mark of $48.21 billion. On a further encouraging note, General Motors raised its adjusted automotive free cash flow forecast to $11.5-$12.5 billion from $9.5-$11.5 billion and authorized a $20-billion multi-year share repurchase program.             

Tesla (TSLA - Free Report) reported third-quarter 2026 adjusted earnings of 48 cents per share, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 45 cents by 6.67%. However, earnings declined 4% from 50 cents in the year-ago quarter, reflecting higher operating expenses. Tesla’s revenues totaled $28.05 billion, down marginally from $28.1 billion a year ago. The metric surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $27.78 billion by 0.96%. Tesla has trimmed its 2026 capital expenditure outlook to approximately $20 billion from $25 billion guided earlier.