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Seagate Technology Holdings plc (NASDAQ: STX) (“Seagate” or “Company”) and Seagate HDD Cayman, a subsidiary of Seagate (“Seagate HDD”) today announc

SailPoint SAIL is experiencing a significant drop in pre-market trading following a slight revenue miss for fiscal Q2 and guidance for Q3 that did not exceed expectations. Investors seem to be concentrating on revenue timing, flat adjusted margins, and declining free cash flow, overlooking stronger recurring revenue indicators.

Fiscal Q2 Highlights: Adjusted EPS of $0.09 exceeded the FactSet consensus by $0.01. Revenue rose 17% year-over-year to $309 million, slightly below the expected $310.25 million. SaaS revenue surged 34% to $194 million, but revenue recognition timing created a $5 million headwind. Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR): Total ARR increased 25% to $1.231 billion. SaaS ARR grew 36% to $847 million, contributing 97% of net new ARR, surpassing the anticipated 90-95%. Remaining Performance Obligations (RPO) rose 30% to $1.9 billion, with current RPO up 27% to $931 million. Q3 Guidance: EPS guidance is set at $0.07-$0.08, with revenue expectations of $326-$330 million, both in line with forecasts. FY27 revenue and EPS guidance remain at $1.265-$1.275 billion and $0.30-$0.34, respectively. FY27 ARR guidance was raised to $1.375-$1.385 billion, indicating 22-23% growth. AI Adoption: AI-driven ARR surpassed $70 million, accounting for over 30% of net new ARR. More than two-thirds of migrations included AI solutions, with existing customers increasing their annual spending by over 60% when adopting AI products. The AI pipeline has more than doubled since the June Investor Day. Customer Metrics: SaaS customers increased by 16%, with ARR per SaaS customer rising 17% to over $400,000. Customers spending over $1 million grew by 27% to 235, while net retention remained steady at 113%. Adjusted operating margin held nearly flat at 20.3%, adjusted net income increased by 22% to $48.8 million, while free cash flow fell to $37.4 million from $46.0 million.The recent report highlights a stark contrast between reported revenue and underlying contract momentum. Although the higher SaaS mix temporarily impacted revenue, it enhanced the recurring quality of the business. The raised ARR guidance and strong RPO suggest that demand is stronger than the headline figures indicate. SailPoint must now focus on scaling AI-driven ARR from over $70 million to at least $800 million by FY29, while managing investments related to Entro, stock-based compensation, and the pressures of transitioning to SaaS. Future performance will hinge on ARR growth, AI expansion, stable subscription margins, and converting backlog into revenue and free cash flow.

This stock alert was generated using automated technology and GuruFocus financial data to provide readers with timely and accurate market reporting. This content was reviewed by GuruFocus editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to [email protected].

Disclosures I/We may personally own shares in some of the companies mentioned above. However, those positions are not material to either the company or to my/our portfolios.

SailPoint, Inc. (SAIL - Free Report) reported $308.81 million in revenue for the quarter ended July 2026, representing a year-over-year increase of 16.8%. EPS of $0.09 for the same period compares to $0.07 a year ago.

The reported revenue compares to the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $310.4 million, representing a surprise of -0.51%. The company delivered an EPS surprise of +12.5%, with the consensus EPS estimate being $0.08.

While investors closely watch year-over-year changes in headline numbers -- revenue and earnings -- and how they compare to Wall Street expectations to determine their next course of action, some key metrics always provide a better insight into a company's underlying performance.

As these metrics influence top- and bottom-line performance, comparing them to the year-ago numbers and what analysts estimated helps investors project a stock's price performance more accurately.

Here is how SailPoint, Inc. performed in the just reported quarter in terms of the metrics most widely monitored and projected by Wall Street analysts:

Annual Recurring Revenue: $1.23 billion compared to the $1.22 billion average estimate based on three analysts.SaaS Annual Recurring Revenue: $847 million versus $834.94 million estimated by three analysts on average.Customers: 3,310 versus the two-analyst average estimate of 3,288.Revenue- Services and other: $13.61 million compared to the $14.86 million average estimate based on four analysts. The reported number represents a change of -14.9% year over year.Revenue- Subscription: $295.21 million compared to the $295.52 million average estimate based on four analysts. The reported number represents a change of +19.1% year over year.Revenue- Subscription- Other subscription services: $9.67 million versus $8.89 million estimated by three analysts on average. Compared to the year-ago quarter, this number represents a +46.8% change.Revenue- Subscription- Term subscriptions: $56.2 million versus the three-analyst average estimate of $56.52 million. The reported number represents a year-over-year change of -3.3%.Revenue- Subscription- SaaS: $193.87 million compared to the $193.85 million average estimate based on three analysts. The reported number represents a change of +33.9% year over year.Revenue- Subscription- Maintenance and support: $35.47 million versus $36.43 million estimated by three analysts on average. Compared to the year-ago quarter, this number represents a -7.8% change.Gross profit- Subscription: $211.1 million versus the two-analyst average estimate of $216.45 million.Gross profit- Services and other: $-5.72 million versus $-3.19 million estimated by two analysts on average.View all Key Company Metrics for SailPoint, Inc. here>>>

Shares of SailPoint, Inc. have returned -6.7% over the past month versus the Zacks S&P 500 composite's -0.4% change. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell), indicating that it could underperform the broader market in the near term.

Detailed Phase 3 CANOPY-HCH-3 data in children living with hypochondroplasia also featured in a late-breaking oral presentation at the European Society for Paediatric Endocrinology (ESPE) 2026 Annual Meeting

VOXZOGO demonstrated statistically significant improvements across multiple measures of growth, including annualized growth velocity, standing height, height Z-score and arm span

BioMarin recently submitted a supplemental New Drug Application (sNDA) to the FDA to support expanding treatment with VOXZOGO to include children with hypochondroplasia

, /PRNewswire/ -- BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc. (Nasdaq: BMRN) today announced new data from the Phase 3 CANOPY-HCH-3 study evaluating VOXZOGO® (vosoritide) in children with hypochondroplasia were published in New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) Evidence and presented at the European Society for Paediatric Endocrinology (ESPE) 2026 Annual Meeting. The data included new results on the magnitude of benefit seen in children receiving VOXZOGO, including statistically significant improvements in annualized growth velocity (AGV), standing height, height Z-score and arm span after 52 weeks, with safety findings consistent with the established profile of VOXZOGO in achondroplasia.

The CANOPY-HCH-3 study showed that treatment with VOXZOGO led to a statistically significant improvement in AGV compared with placebo after 52 weeks, meeting the study's primary endpoint (least squares [LS] mean difference of 2.33 cm/year; p<0.0001). Children treated with VOXZOGO also showed significant improvements in standing height (LS mean difference of 2.35 cm; p<0.0001), height Z-score (LS mean difference of 0.39 standard deviation score; p<0.0001), and arm span (LS mean difference of 1.03 cm; p=0.0082) compared with placebo. Children who received VOXZOGO also demonstrated numerical improvements in quality of life, and follow-up will continue to assess the impact of treatment over a longer term. The overall safety profile was consistent with previous studies of VOXZOGO, with most adverse events reported as mild and no treatment-related serious adverse events identified.

"These results presented in detail for the first time provide a comprehensive picture of the impact of VOXZOGO across multiple measures of growth in children with hypochondroplasia," said Greg Friberg, M.D., Executive Vice President and Chief Research & Development Officer at BioMarin. "Based on this compelling body of evidence, we have submitted these data to the FDA with the goal of securing approval for the first medicine for children with hypochondroplasia."

"Hypochondroplasia can affect a child's growth, physical function and everyday life, with families often navigating unique challenges as they support their children's development," said Andrew Dauber, M.D., lead study investigator and Chief of Endocrinology at Children's National in Washington, D.C. "The changes we observed in annualized growth velocity and arm span provide encouraging evidence of how children with hypochondroplasia responded to treatment throughout the study. These findings deepen our understanding of the condition while reinforcing VOXZOGO's potential as the first targeted medicine developed specifically for children with hypochondroplasia."

BioMarin recently submitted its supplemental New Drug Application (sNDA) to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the approval of VOXZOGO for the treatment of hypochondroplasia and are on track with the submissions to the European Medicines Agency (EMA) and other regional health authorities. If approved, VOXZOGO would be the first targeted therapy for the treatment of hypochondroplasia, with a potential 2027 launch.

Below are key BioMarin presentations across both achondroplasia and hypochondroplasia at ESPE, with all times listed in Central European Summer Time:

Vosoritide Increases Growth Velocity in Children With Hypochondroplasia: Phase 3 Trial Results
Oral Presentation #LBA 1067
Wednesday, Sept. 9, 10:48 – 10:56 a.m.

Vosoritide Safety and Effectiveness in Young Children With Achondroplasia Aged ≤3 Years and With up to 36 Months of Follow-Up from the Japanese Post-Marketing Safety Surveillance Study (111-604)
Oral Presentation #FC3.4
Tuesday, Sept. 8, 3:30 – 3:40 p.m.

About Hypochondroplasia 

Hypochondroplasia is a rare, genetic skeletal dysplasia characterized by impaired bone growth, leading to disproportionate short stature and skeletal differences that can affect the long bones, spine and other parts of the skeleton and may impact physical functioning and overall quality of life. The condition presents with a broad and variable clinical spectrum and may include otolaryngologic (related to the ears, nose and throat) and neurological complications and is often diagnosed in toddlerhood or early school age based on clinical and radiological findings. BioMarin estimates that roughly 14,000 children with hypochondroplasia within the company's global footprint may be eligible for treatment with VOXZOGO. 

There are currently no medicines approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration or the European Medicines Agency for the treatment of hypochondroplasia. 

For more information about our clinical trials in hypochondroplasia, achondroplasia and other skeletal conditions, please visit clinicaltrials.biomarin.com. 

About VOXZOGO 

In children with achondroplasia, endochondral bone growth, an essential process by which bone tissue is created, is negatively regulated due to a gain of function mutation in FGFR3. VOXZOGO, a C-type natriuretic peptide (CNP) analog, acts as a positive regulator of the signaling pathway downstream of FGFR3 to promote endochondral bone growth. 

VOXZOGO is the only approved medicine to support the growth of children with achondroplasia starting from birth, with international consensus guidelines recommending initiation of VOXZOGO as early as possible. First approved in 2021, VOXZOGO has helped more than 5,000 infants and children in more than 50 countries. Through our ongoing studies, BioMarin continues to evaluate VOXZOGO on key clinical endpoints relevant for achondroplasia patients, such as arm span, tibial bowing (leg bowing), body proportionality, spinal morphology (including spinal stenosis) and quality of life measures.

VOXZOGO is approved in the U.S., Japan and Australia to increase linear growth in children of all ages with achondroplasia with open epiphyses, and VOXZOGO is indicated in the EU for the treatment of achondroplasia in children 4 months of age and older whose epiphyses are not closed, as confirmed by appropriate genetic testing. In the U.S., this indication is approved under accelerated approval based on an improvement in annualized growth velocity. Continued approval may be contingent upon verification and description of clinical benefit in confirmatory trial(s). An sNDA with long-term safety and efficacy data from three ongoing studies, including adult height and additional clinical outcomes beyond linear growth such as body proportionality and arm span is under review with an FDA Prescription Drug User Fee Act (PDUFA) target action date of Feb. 28, 2027.

The use of VOXZOGO to treat hypochondroplasia has not yet been approved by any regulatory agency. 

VOXZOGO U.S. Important Safety Information 

What is VOXZOGO used for? 

VOXZOGO is a prescription medicine used to increase linear growth in children with achondroplasia and open growth plates (epiphyses).  VOXZOGO is approved under accelerated approval based on an improvement in annualized growth velocity. Continued approval may be contingent upon verification and description of clinical benefit in confirmatory trials.  What is the most important safety information about VOXZOGO? 

VOXZOGO may cause serious side effects including a temporary decrease in blood pressure in some patients. To reduce the risk of a decrease in blood pressure and associated symptoms (dizziness, feeling tired, or nausea), patients should eat a meal and drink 8 to 10 ounces of fluid within 1 hour before receiving VOXZOGO.  What are the most common side effects of VOXZOGO? 

The most common side effects of VOXZOGO include injection site reactions (including redness, itching, swelling, bruising, rash, hives, and injection site pain), high levels of blood alkaline phosphatase shown in blood tests, vomiting, joint pain, decreased blood pressure, and stomachache. These are not all the possible side effects of VOXZOGO. Ask your healthcare provider for medical advice about side effects, and about any side effects that bother the patient or that do not go away.  How is VOXZOGO taken? 

VOXZOGO is taken daily as an injection given under the skin, administered by a caregiver after a healthcare provider determines the caregiver is able to administer VOXZOGO. Do not try to inject VOXZOGO until you have been shown the right way by your healthcare provider. VOXZOGO is supplied with Instructions for Use that describe the steps for preparing, injecting, and disposing VOXZOGO. Caregivers should review the Instructions for Use for guidance and any time they receive a refill of VOXZOGO in case any changes have been made.  Inject VOXZOGO 1 time every day, at about the same time each day. If a dose of VOXZOGO is missed, it can be given within 12 hours from the missed dose. After 12 hours, skip the missed dose and administer the next daily dose as usual.  The dose of VOXZOGO is based on body weight. Your healthcare provider will adjust the dose based on changes in weight following regular check-ups.  Your healthcare provider will monitor the patient's growth and tell you when to stop taking VOXZOGO if they determine the patient is no longer able to grow. Stop administering VOXZOGO if instructed by your healthcare provider.  What should you tell the doctor before or during taking VOXZOGO? 

Tell your doctor about all of the patient's medical conditions including  If the patient has heart disease (cardiac or vascular disease), or if the patient is on blood pressure medicine (anti-hypertensive medicine).  If the patient has kidney problems or renal impairment.  If the patient is pregnant or plans to become pregnant. It is not known if VOXZOGO will harm the unborn baby.  If the patient is breastfeeding or plans to breastfeed. It is not known if VOXZOGO passes into breast milk.  Tell your doctor about all of the medicines the patient takes, including prescription and over-the-counter medicines, vitamins, and herbal supplements.  You may report side effects to BioMarin at 1-866-906-6100. You are encouraged to report negative side effects of prescription drugs to the FDA. Visit www.fda.gov/medwatch, or call 1-800-FDA-1088. 

Please see additional safety information in the full Prescribing Information and Patient Information. 

About BioMarin 

BioMarin is a leading, global rare disease biotechnology company focused on delivering medicines for people living with genetically defined conditions. Founded in 1997, the San Rafael, California-based company has a proven track record of innovation, with nine commercial therapies and a strong clinical and preclinical pipeline. Using a distinctive approach to drug discovery and development, BioMarin seeks to unleash the full potential of genetic science by pursuing category-defining medicines that have a profound impact on patients. To learn more, please visit www.biomarin.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements about the business prospects of BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc. (BioMarin), including without limitation, statements about: the data to be presented at European Society for Paediatric Endocrinology (ESPE) 2026 Annual Meeting, including the safety profile and potential benefits of VOXZOGO for children with hypochondroplasia and achondroplasia; BioMarin's plans and expectations for the development of VOXZOGO for children with hypochondroplasia, including the expectation that, if approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), VOXZOGO would be the first targeted therapy for the treatment of hypochondroplasia with a potential 2027 launch; BioMarin's expectations regarding its supplemental New Drug Application (sNDA) for VOXZOGO for full approval in children with achondroplasia, including expectations regarding the Prescription Drug User Fee Act (PDUFA) target action date; and BioMarin's estimate regarding total addressable patient population (TAPP) with respect to the conditions targeted by BioMarin's product candidates and commercial products, including hypochondroplasia. These forward-looking statements are predictions and involve risks and uncertainties such that actual results may differ materially from these statements. These risks and uncertainties include, among others, results and timing of current and planned preclinical studies and clinical trials and the release of data from those trials; any potential adverse events observed in the continuing monitoring of the patients in the clinical trials; the content and timing of decisions by the FDA, the European Medicines Agency, the European Commission and other regulatory authorities; and those factors detailed in BioMarin's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), including, without limitation, the factors contained under the caption "Risk Factors" in BioMarin's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2026, as such factors may be updated by any subsequent filings with the SEC. Investors are urged not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof. BioMarin is under no obligation, and expressly disclaims any obligation to update or alter any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

BioMarin® and VOXZOGO® are registered trademarks of BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc.

Contacts:

Investors: 

Media

Traci McCarty

Andrew Villani

BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc.

BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc.

(415) 455-7558

(628) 269-7393

SOURCE BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc.

18.12K Followers

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

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Tim Cook called it a hundred-year flood in memory pricing, and now Apple is betting a $2,400 foldable iPhone can keep margins intact while rivals have already lapped the category twice.

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Apple’s (NASDAQ:AAPL | AAPL Price Prediction) product event lands tomorrow, and the story ahead of it has less to do with hardware romance than with margin arithmetic. On September 8, 2026, CNBC reporter MacKenzie Sigalos previewed a lineup she framed as a deliberate push upmarket, anchored by a foldable device reportedly called iPhone Ultra.

Apple enters the event with supportive fundamentals. The stock closed at $316.22, up 33.43% over the past year, and last quarter it reported $109.4 billion in revenue with company gross margin at 50.1%.

But those numbers arrive alongside a candid warning from Tim Cook about “a 100-year flood on the memory pricing”. Read the foldable as the response, and the event becomes a test of whether pricing power can carry the P&L while unit growth stays modest.

What Sigalos Says to Expect Sigalos told CNBC viewers that Apple is expected to skip a regular iPhone 18 and lean into a foldable that would, per Sigalos, represent the first major iPhone design change in nearly a decade.

According to Sigalos, the iPhone Ultra is expected to start around $2,400 and top $3,000 at higher storage tiers. Early production is reportedly very limited, which Sigalos suggested could feed scarcity-driven demand.

She also cited a Morgan Stanley projection of $14 billion in December-quarter revenue tied to the foldable alone, according to CNBC. That figure remains a projection that depends on Apple hitting an aggressive ramp on a first-generation product.

A new A20 Pro chip is also expected, aimed at running more of Siri on device, according to CNBC. None of this is confirmed by Apple; treat every specification, price, and ship window as reported expectation until the keynote.

Pricing Architecture and the ASP Lever Average selling price is the quiet variable that decides how this quarter looks. If mix shifts toward a $2,400 tier, iPhone revenue can grow even if the unit count barely moves, according to CNBC.

That matters because iPhone was $54.3 billion of last quarter’s revenue, still Apple’s biggest single line. A blended ASP lift compounds directly through a product’s gross margin that already ran at 40.1%.

Sigalos summarized the playbook plainly: push the mix toward more expensive devices, lift ASPs, and protect margins even with modest unit growth. Analyst models agree the top line has room to run, with the FY2027 revenue consensus at $526.35 billion.

The risk is that borrowed growth today makes next year’s comparison harder, an issue Apple has managed before but never at this price ceiling.

Passing Memory Costs to the Consumer Cook already told investors Apple “reluctantly raised prices” because memory inflation was outrunning the company’s ability to absorb it. Sigalos reported that the street expects like-for-like price increases of $200 to $500 versus comparable iPhone 17 models.

Apple’s most recent 8-K shows why the pass-through matters: gross profit rose to $54.77 billion, and management flagged that memory costs will step higher again in the September quarter.

Charging consumers instead of eating the cost protects reported margin, but it strains the value proposition at the low end of the Pro line. Buyers, however, have real alternatives, including holding their current phone another year.

Cook was unusually direct about evaluating units, revenue, and margin together rather than optimizing any single line.

Competitive Pressure and the iPhone 17 Comp Problem, according to CNBC Huawei and Xiaomi have sold foldables for years, particularly in Greater China, where Apple’s segment revenue was $18.82 billion last quarter. Apple is arriving late to a category rivals have already iterated through multiple generations.

Sigalos also flagged that Apple faces tougher iPhone 17 comparisons after that lineup drove 22% year-over-year iPhone growth. Lapping that result with a supply-constrained foldable is a demanding setup.

Services growth is also cooling, with the segment up 12% from a year ago at $30.7 billion, pressured by foreign exchange and App Store rule changes. A foldable buyer typically converts to higher iCloud and AppleCare spend, which helps explain the $2,400 anchor.

Retail sentiment reflects the ambivalence: Reddit’s most-upvoted AAPL thread this week asked whether a $2,500 foldable iPhone is really enough to move the stock.

Is AAPL Stock a Buy? At a 41x trailing P/E and 2.14% free cash flow yield, Apple is priced for the pricing strategy to work. The margin math is defensible; the comparison math is the harder problem heading into FY2027.

Trading volume for price can hold for a cycle or two, especially with Services attach economics behind it, although it does borrow growth from later years if memory costs normalize and buyers resist another hike.

Given the defensive margin profile, the buyback pace of $62.09 billion over nine months, and neutral-to-positive sentiment at a composite 54.2, the risk/reward looks balanced heading into the event, with the setup skewed toward waiting to digest the keynote before adding exposure. I’d tag it a hold, as Apple is undergoing a transition with its new CEO.

Contact [email protected] for any questions or corrections.

Apple (AAPL -0.46%) has been a quiet outperformer this year. It has risen around 18% this year, while the S&P 500 (^GSPC -0.31%) is up around 13%. That's a solid outperformance, but what investors are focused on is what happens over the next year. Apple has some major headwinds popping up, and with new CEO John Ternus at the helm, he's going to be thrown into the deep end quickly.

I think this could be a problematic run for Apple, and if you own shares, now may be the time to exit.

Image source: The Motley Fool.

Apple is highly valued for its growth If you compare Apple stock to its peers, it's clear that it has a much greater premium than any of them.

NVDA P/E Ratio (Forward) data by YCharts

Apple is in a league of its own and must maintain consistent execution if it hopes to stay on top. The problem is, a storm is coming.

During Tim Cook's last earnings call as CEO, he noted a particular problem that could cause issues: memory chip prices. AI firms have eaten up all available memory chip capacity, which is causing prices to skyrocket for these components. Apple isn't immune to these price increases, so it has two choices: First, it can eat the price increase, which cuts into profits. Second, it can raise prices on devices to compensate. The second option could push consumers who are already stretched to the brink, potentially leading them to delay an upgrade or switch to a different phone provider. Regardless, it isn't an easy situation for a new leader to find himself in, which is why Cook framed the event as a "100-year flood."

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I think all of this could negatively affect Apple's stock and force the market to value Apple at a more reasonable level. With its big tech peers all growing faster, I think there's a tough case for Apple to maintain its premium valuation.

NVDA Revenue (Quarterly YOY Growth) data by YCharts

Should Apple fall to a big tech average valuation of 25 times forward earnings, combined with fiscal-year 2027's projections (Wall Street analysts estimate $9.57 in earnings per share next year), that would price the stock at about $240 per share. That's a long way down from today's $320 stock price, but I don't think it's out of the question.

The reality is that Apple is a very expensive stock with a valuation out of sync with other big tech peers despite a slower growth rate. Weakness in sales due to price hikes or shrinking margins could trigger a drop, making Apple a poor stock to own over the next year.

Keithen Drury has positions in Alphabet, Amazon, Microsoft, and Nvidia. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, and Nvidia. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Dominic Rizzo, T. Rowe Price Global Technology Fund portfolio manager, joins 'Squawk Box' to discuss Apple's expected unveiling of the iPhone 18, what the release means for Apple, and more.

As Apple prepares to unveil its most ambitious iPhone in years, veteran tech analyst Paul Meeks is raising a quiet alarm about a supplier oligopoly that could turn a blockbuster launch into a margin nightmare.

Just before Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL | AAPL Price Prediction) takes the stage for what Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman calls “the most exciting iPhone launch in a decade”, others are less convinced. Veteran tech analyst Paul Meeks of Freedom Capital Markets used a CNBC appearance to push back on the celebration. His message: the memory oligopoly is quietly winning this cycle, and Apple’s gross margins will pay for it.

Meeks warned viewers not to get swept up in the hype around the debut of the first foldable iPhone, codenamed V68, expected to start near $2,000 and unveiled by incoming CEO John Ternus. “I’m afraid…that you might be overselling it,” he said, flagging Apple’s lagging AI position as a structural concern.

Meeks’s Memory Warning, In His Own Words Meeks identified the mechanism squeezing Apple: an entrenched supplier oligopoly. He called out the “big three oligopolies in memory,” Micron, SK Hynix, and Samsung, controling roughly 90% of market share, adding:

“A company with the heft of an Apple has to pay more. Cost of goods sold goes up, gross margins go down. And it’s a real problem.”

Former CEO Tim Cook confirmed the pressure on Apple’s Q3 FY26 call. He described the environment as “a 100-year flood on the memory pricing with exponential increases in memory prices” and said Apple “reluctantly raised prices.” CFO Kevan Parekh added that “more than 100% of that can be explained by the memory cost change” when explaining sequential margin compression.

Fundamentals Still Look Strong The warning lands against a genuinely powerful backdrop. Apple posted June-quarter revenue of $109.42 billion, up 16.4% YoY, with EPS of $2.02 beating consensus by 6.80%, the ninth straight upside surprise. iPhone revenue reached $54.25 billion and Services hit $30.74 billion. The stock trades at $315.49, up 34.62% over one year, with a market cap of $4.61 trillion and a trailing P/E near 37.

But Cook flagged that “for September, we expect to pay even higher memory costs.” He further warned supply constraints will affect iPhone, Mac, and iPad. September-quarter gross margin guidance sits at between 47% and 48%, with roughly a point of that from tariff refunds.

Where the Money Went Meeks’s data point is Micron Technology (NASDAQ:MU), the U.S. memory maker riding the same wave that is pinching Apple. Micron shares trade at $1,0001, up 640.4% over one year and 250.8% year to date. Fiscal Q3 revenue reached $41.46 billion, up 345.7% YoY, with gross margin of 84.6%. CEO Sanjay Mehrotra said record results “reflect the strategic value of memory in the AI era.”

Meeks expects the squeeze to persist, forecasting no relief in memory pricing for years. He points capital toward AI data-center names including CoreWeave, Applied Digital, and NVIDIA (we profiled seven suppliers powering that same buildout, from power to cooling, in a free AI infrastructure report). Investors watching today’s launch should keep an eye on the stock, but also on Apple’s next margin commentary.

Contact [email protected] for any questions or corrections.

The first iPhone in 2007 mainstreamed touch-screen technology, years after it was developed. Now Apple is betting its maiden foldable phone can do the same for a format stuck in a niche despite years of efforts from Samsung and Chinese rivals like Huawei.

The foldable iPhone, expected to be unveiled ​at Apple's (AAPL.O) Cupertino headquarters later on Wednesday, marks one of the biggest changes to the flagship device that brings in around half ‌of the company's revenue and has made it a global technology giant.

Despite attracting attention with their large screen size, foldable phones have only secured a single-digit percentage share of the overall global smartphone market due to trade-offs — including inferior cameras, a shorter battery life and an awkward crease at the screen center once the handsets are unfolded.

But analysts have said Apple, known ​for grabbing the second-mover advantage by learning from rivals' mistakes, will likely benefit from supply-chain and technological advances that have made foldables more durable ​and less prone to creasing.

Samsung's (005930.KS) latest Fold 8 device, for instance, features a design that has significantly reduced the crease, ⁠thanks to years of investment in the technology.

Here's a brief timeline of foldables ahead of Apple's event:

EARLY STRUGGLES, BIG SAMSUNG GOOF-UP (2018-2021)
Foldable phone concepts have been around for ​decades, but Chinese display maker Royole is credited with shipping the first such device in 2018. Its FlexPai phone, with a 7.8-inch outward-folding screen, was widely panned ​for clunky software and crude plastic hinges.

Months later, Samsung raised fresh fears about reliability and pricing with the $2,000 Galaxy Fold, the category's first mass-market product. Reviewers, including Marques Brownlee, reported broken screens, with some peeling a protective layer that resembled a screen protector but wasn't in a debacle dubbed "foldgate". Samsung delayed the launch and retrieved all sample devices.

The period also saw competing ​visions over the best shape for a foldable. The Galaxy Fold targeted customers with its inward-folding screen that expanded into a small tablet, while Motorola revived ​its iconic Razr in late 2019 with a clamshell design that folded a normal-size phone in half.

Huawei's Mate X, also released in 2019, folded outward and wrapped a single screen ‌around the ⁠outside of the device, while Microsoft (MSFT.O) in 2020 skipped a flexible screen and joined two separate displays with a hinge in its Surface Duo. The Windows maker has since discontinued the devices.

SLOW MARCH TO MAINSTREAM (2022-2026)
Alphabet-owned Google (GOOGL.O) entered the market in 2023 with its $1,799 Pixel Fold, a passport-shaped device whose wider, shorter screen opened closer to a mini tablet. Meanwhile, Samsung and its Chinese rivals delivered steady improvements to foldables until the next big leap arrived in 2024 with tri-folds.

Huawei launched the first ​such device in September that year at $2,800, ​which could fold three ways like ⁠an accordion and became an instant best-seller. Samsung launched its own multi-folding smartphone in December 2025.

Today, Samsung leads the global foldable phone market with a share of about 40%, followed by Huawei with a 30% share, according to research firm Counterpoint.

The ​passport shape, meanwhile, has become a dividing line.

Google abandoned the design after 2023 while Samsung used it for one ​of its latest devices. ⁠Apple is expected to adopt the shape as it is geared more toward video and other media consumption rather than a taller, book-style phone built for productivity.

The passport shape's wider proportions sit closer to the native aspect ratio of most video, shrinking the black bars that frame footage on taller, book-style devices.

Analysts expect Apple's entry into the ⁠category would ​accelerate its growth, with IDC estimating that foldable phone shipments would increase nearly 30% this year, ​outperforming an estimated decline of nearly 1.4% in non-foldable smartphones.

"Apple's entry will surely increase competition at the premium end. However, foldables are still a very small part of the overall smartphone market, so ​there is room for the category to grow well beyond current volumes," said Tarun Pathak, research director at Counterpoint.

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Newly inaugurated Apple CEO John Ternus posted a cryptic teaser video ahead of Apple's product launch on Thursday. Michael Buckner/Variety via Getty Images John Ternus is stoking the hype.

The recently inaugurated Apple CEO took to X on Wednesday to post a cryptic, 14-second teaser video ahead of the company's hotly anticipated launch event this afternoon.

In the short clip, a small spotlight shines down on a dome-shaped, slightly translucent orb that X users speculated could be anything from an iPhone camera to an Apple-branded flashlight.

The teaser, the first of its kind for Apple, which typically doesn't publicize its product launches in such amorphous ways, signals a possible new, more glitzy direction Ternus intends to take the company.

Ternus officially replaced Tim Cook as CEO on September 1. Formerly a products guy, Ternus has represented Apple in numerous public speaking appearances and helped design the AirPods, among other products.

Recently, the ambiguous teaser video has become a popular method for tech companies to garner publicity for upcoming product launches. This summer, Samsung previewed a new line of foldable phones with a video of someone cutting a pizza.

Apple is widely expected to unveil a foldable iPhone during Wednesday's launch.

Business Insider is set to live blog the launch event from gavel to gavel. Check back on the website at 1 p.m. ET for more updates.

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Truman Dickerson You're currently following this author! Want to unfollow? Unsubscribe via the link in your email.

Truman Dickerson is the Weekend News Fellow at Business Insider, based in New York City. He covers trending tech and business news. He previously reported for The Boston Globe's Express Desk. He graduated from Boston University, where he served as editor in chief of The Daily Free Press, BU's student-run newspaper.Contact him at [email protected]

Apple iPhone Tim Cook More

Apple's new CEO John Ternus faces his first real test before he has even settled in, as customers weigh whether to absorb two price increases inside two weeks or simply sit out the upgrade cycle entirely.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL | AAPL Price Prediction) is asking customers to pay more on two fronts inside a fortnight, and the second raise arrives today. Apple stock trades at $316.06, down 0.1% in Wednesday morning trading, and it’s up 17% year to date.

Two broad benchmarks are drifting alongside the launch. The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSEARCA:SPY) trades at $763.94, down 0.3%. Meanwhile, the Invesco QQQ Trust (NASDAQ:QQQ) sits at $718.29, practically unchanged.

Two Price Hikes in Two Weeks Apple raised the U.S. Apple TV subscription to $14.99 a month from $12.99, per a MacRumors report dated August 28. Today’s product event is expected to widen the hardware ask, with CNBC’s MacKenzie Sigalos reporting the Street looks for like-for-like iPhone price increases of $200 to $500 versus comparable iPhone 17 models.

Former CEO Tim Cook had framed the hardware repricing as forced by supply-chain math on Apple’s fiscal Q3 2026 call, saying Apple “reluctantly raised prices” because of a “100-year flood on the memory pricing.” Apple posted revenue of $109.42 billion, up 16.4% year over year, with iPhone revenue of $54.3 billion and Services of $30.7 billion.

The Bundle Took a Raise, Too The streaming increase didn’t travel alone. Apple One Individual went to $21.95 a month from $19.95 on the same day, since the bundle carries Apple TV inside it. Apple One Family and Apple One Premier held steady that day, but only because both had already been raised in July alongside an Apple Music increase. Read across the summer and the count isn’t two price increases in a fortnight. It’s a rolling sequence that started well before the September event, with Apple One Individual the last plan to get pulled up to the new line.

The Apple TV ladder is steeper than the single step suggests. The service launched in 2019 at $4.99 a month. It moved to $6.99 in 2022, to $9.99 in 2023, to $12.99 in 2025, and now to $14.99, with the annual plan going to $119 from $99. That’s four increases against one launch price, and the U.S. wasn’t alone: Brazil, Chile and Mexico were repriced the same day, while every other market was left untouched.

The revenue lands on a delay, which matters for how fast any of this reaches the Services line. New subscribers pay the higher rate immediately, while existing subscribers are notified roughly a month before their renewal bills at the new price. That gap is also the window in which cancellations happen, so the increase gets tested by subscribers before it gets counted by Apple. Whether it holds is Ternus’s problem, not Cook’s.

Streaming Peers Face the Same Playbook Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) says its own hikes are landing well. Netflix Q2 2026 revenue reached $12.56 billion, up 13.4%, and Greg Peters stated “our recent price adjustments are going well on the pricing side.” Netflix stock is down 18% year to date.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) leaned on the same lever, with Entertainment SVOD subscription revenue growing 15% in fiscal Q3 2026 on rate and volume. Spotify Technology (NYSE:SPOT) crossed 300 million Premium subscribers with ARPU up 7% to $5.63. Disney shares are down 8.27% year to date, and Spotify shares are down 8.93%.

What Ternus Inherits John Ternus stepped in as Apple’s chief executive on August 31, which means the streaming raise and the memory-cost reasoning both belong to Cook. What Ternus owns is execution: whether customers absorb a second increase inside two weeks or hold their current iPhone for another cycle.

Apple stock carries a P/E ratio of 41x and a market cap near $4.61 trillion, so pricing follow-through matters for the multiple. Investors can size their positions with room to add if the hardware bump sticks and its gross margin holds inside the guided 47% to 48% September-quarter range. Shareholders may want to keep an eye on whether iPhone upgrade rates cool after a $200 to $500 like-for-like step up.

Contact [email protected] for any questions or corrections.

Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC lowered its stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META – Free Report) by 5.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 33,983 shares of the social networking company’s stock after selling 2,104 shares during the quarter. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $19,143,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of META. RHL Group LLC bought a new stake in Meta Platforms in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Advantage Trust Co acquired a new stake in Meta Platforms in the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Axiom Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Meta Platforms in the first quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC bought a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

Meta Platforms Stock Down 0.5% META opened at $613.48 on Wednesday. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $520.26 and a fifty-two week high of $790.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.56 trillion, a P/E ratio of 23.11, a PEG ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.25. The company’s 50-day moving average is $598.23 and its 200 day moving average is $608.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 2.23 and a quick ratio of 2.23.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The social networking company reported $6.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.19 by ($1.01). The firm had revenue of $60.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $60.22 billion. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 33.18% and a net margin of 29.83%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 28.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $7.14 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 28.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year. Analyst Ratings Changes Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Raymond James Financial lifted their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $825.00 to $850.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $800.00 to $750.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $830.00 to $780.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Mizuho set a $750.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $766.00 to $715.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have given a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Meta Platforms has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $785.22.

Get Our Latest Analysis on META

More Meta Platforms News Here are the key news stories impacting Meta Platforms this week:

Positive Sentiment: Meta launched Muse, a personal AI agent that can interact with Facebook, Instagram and third-party applications to perform tasks such as sending emails, booking travel, shopping and making payments. The product includes free and paid subscription tiers, offering a potential new revenue stream beyond digital advertising. Meta launches AI agent that can access other apps to send emails, make payments Positive Sentiment: The rollout follows the release of Muse Spark 1.3, a model aimed at coding and extended agentic tasks. Investors viewed the development as evidence that Meta’s substantial AI investment could eventually generate financial returns; Bank of America reportedly continues to see meaningful upside in the stock. Meta stock jumps 4% after Muse Spark 1.3: why BofA still sees 32% upside Positive Sentiment: Meta and Panmnesia proposed a data-center architecture designed to connect computing resources more tightly for extremely large AI models. The initiative supports Meta’s strategy of building extensive AI infrastructure and could improve long-term computing efficiency. One Chip, One Datacenter: Meta and Panmnesia Extend Tight Coupling Beyond the Rack with CXL Neutral Sentiment: Analysts and investors remain divided over Meta’s large AI infrastructure spending, reportedly including a potential $130 billion capital-expenditure commitment. Strong advertising growth and user monetization support the investment case, but the scale of spending raises execution and return-on-investment concerns. Wall Street Keeps Asking How Much Meta Will Spend Negative Sentiment: Muse increases Meta’s exposure to privacy, security and consumer-trust concerns because it can access sensitive information and act across other applications. Reports noted internal concerns about potential misuse or mishandling of personal data, which could increase regulatory and reputational risks. Meta pushes into personal AI agents as company faces public reckoning over privacy and safety Negative Sentiment: Meta faces continuing legal pressure, including a reported lawsuit alleging facial-recognition data was used to train smart-glasses systems. Separately, the company’s chief accounting officer sold 3,240 shares under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan; the planned nature of the sale reduces its significance, but insider selling may weigh modestly on sentiment. Insider Transactions at Meta Platforms In other news, CFO Susan Li sold 9,196 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $550.61, for a total value of $5,063,409.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 13,186 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,260,343.46. This represents a 41.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 3,348 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $600.97, for a total value of $2,012,047.56. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 9,498 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,708,013.06. The trade was a 26.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 36,227 shares of company stock worth $21,205,509. 13.53% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Meta Platforms Company Profile (Free Report)

Meta Platforms, Inc develops technologies that help people connect, communicate and build communities online. The company’s principal products include Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp and Threads, which enable social networking, messaging, content sharing and digital communication.

Meta generates most of its business through advertising displayed across its family of apps. It also develops artificial intelligence technologies, business messaging tools and hardware and software through its Reality Labs division, including Quest virtual- and mixed-reality devices and related experiences.

The company was founded as Facebook in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg and was renamed Meta Platforms in 2021 to reflect its broader focus on building the metaverse.

Featured Articles Five stocks we like better than Meta Platforms Tesla’s Robotaxi Launch Wasn’t the Moment Investors Expected Despite Post-Earnings Drop, Wall Street Analysts Eye New Highs for Broadcom Stock Morgan Stanley Eyes Good Things Ahead for Meta After $18 Billion Legal Settlement Q3 Earnings Could Be the Catalyst the Market Has Been Waiting For Want to see what other hedge funds are holding META? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META – Free Report).

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Mark Zuckerberg shared on a podcast how he is using Muse, Meta's new AI agent. Bloomberg/Getty Images Mark Zuckerberg is testing Meta's new personal AI agent with a decidedly low-stakes assignment: helping him bake with his 3-year-old daughter.

Speaking on the "Sources" podcast released on Tuesday, the Meta CEO said he set up the agent, called Muse, to plan a baking project for them every weekend.

Its job is to pick something manageable for a toddler and an adult who knows little about baking, then use a service such as Instacart to make sure the ingredients are ready.

The early verdict? Muse may need to adjust its difficulty settings.

"Cake pops, really difficult, surprisingly difficult," Zuckerberg said. "Don't start with cake pops."

Zuckerberg said he reports back after each project so the agent can learn what worked and what didn't.

"You give it projects, or you give it goals," Zuckerberg said. "And then it just works, and it works 24-7, and it doesn't stop until it's helped achieve the goal."

You can see Zuckerberg's comments below:

The example reflects one of Meta's broader claims about Muse. Unlike a chatbot that simply responds to a prompt, it is designed to pursue longer-term tasks, work in the background, and retain information about a user's preferences.

He said he is also using Muse for other family-related tasks.

The agent watches for mountain-climbing permits for his older daughter and alerts him when one becomes available. It also created a guide to "Civilization" — a video game about building societies — for another of his daughters, then suggested turning it into a history lesson.

Away from parenting, Zuckerberg uses Muse to review footage from cameras in his MMA gym. Its feedback can be blunt: "It looks like you really gave up," he said the agent once told him.

"I was like, yeah, I did. I was really tired right there," Zuckerberg said.

Meta plans to offer Muse with what Zuckerberg described as a large free allowance — about 100 million tokens a week — alongside a paid subscription option.

The company says the agent could eventually help users run small businesses, manage ad campaigns, and handle other tasks that require access to outside services.

That ambition requires users to trust Muse with sensitive data and account access. Zuckerberg said Meta built a confidential virtual-machine system that the company itself cannot inspect, along with monitoring agents and approval prompts for actions such as payments and sending emails.

For now, Muse's assignment in Zuckerberg's household has exposed a potential limitation of AI assistants: they can organize the ingredients, but they may not know that cake pops are an ambitious place to start.

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Georgia Hennessy You're currently following this author! Want to unfollow? Unsubscribe via the link in your email.

Georgia is a Business News Fellow at Business Insider's London office.Before joining Business Insider, she worked at Japan's largest newspaper, The Yomiuri Shimbun, and interned at the Financial Times. She is an NCTJ-qualified journalist with a degree in Philosophy from the University of Birmingham.

Theron Mohamed You're currently following this author! Want to unfollow? Unsubscribe via the link in your email.

Theron Mohamed is a London-based correspondent on the International team at Business Insider. His coverage spans finance, investing, wealth, markets, and the economy.Theron joined BI in 2019 as a reporter at Markets Insider and rose to the rank of correspondent before moving to the Trending team then the broader International team. He previously covered tech, media, and telecom stocks for Investors Chronicle magazine and had a brief stint on the Financial Times' Data team. He interned at the Wall Street Journal in New York where he primarily wrote for Heard on the Street.Theron has freelanced for The Independent, The Telegraph, WIRED, and several smaller publications. He holds an undergraduate degree in geography from the London School of Economics, and a master's degree in journalism from Columbia University.Theron often covers Warren Buffett, Michael Burry, and other elite investors. He also writes about the world's wealthiest people and shares financial advice from all manner of rich and successful people.Email Theron at [email protected] and follow him on X @theron_mohamed.

Meta AI Mark Zuckerberg More Big Tech

Key Takeaways Tesla secured FSD Supervised approval in Slovenia, its sixth European country to authorize the system.An EU-wide approval vote could take place as early as October 6, per Tesla.France has begun testing two FSD-equipped Tesla vehicles after constructive talks with Musk. Tesla (TSLA - Free Report) has secured approval for its Full Self-Driving (FSD) Supervised driver-assistance system in Slovenia, making it the sixth European country to authorize the technology as the company prepares to expand its rollout.

Tesla announced that FSD Supervised has been approved for use on Slovenian roads, adding that the rollout will begin soon. CEO Elon Musk also reposted the announcement on X.

The approval follows the Netherlands’ provisional authorization in early April, making it the first European Union country to permit Tesla’s FSD system. While the software can control various driving functions, drivers must remain attentive and responsible for the vehicle.

Per Tesla, an EU-wide approval vote could take place as early as Oct. 6. The company released a company-produced dataset covering its FSD testing in Europe and North America last week.

In addition to Slovenia and the Netherlands, four other European countries have approved Tesla’s driver-assistance technology, while Finland and Greece are evaluating potential approvals.

Meanwhile, France, which had raised safety concerns over FSD approval in July, has started testing two FSD-equipped Tesla vehicles following what its transport minister described as a constructive exchange with Musk. TSLA currently has a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell).

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

Updates on Autonomous Driving by Other AutomakersIn December 2025, Rivian Automotive (RIVN - Free Report) introduced its first in-house self-driving chip alongside Autonomy+, a new subscription-based driver-assistance package. All new Rivian R1S and R1T deliveries come with a 60-day trial of Autonomy+, which includes features such as hands-free driving and lane-change assistance. Rivian has also confirmed that Autonomy+ is available exclusively on Gen 2 vehicles (2025 and newer), while Gen 1 models come standard with the Driver+ suite.

In June, Lucid Group (LCID - Free Report) began rolling out its latest over-the-air software update for the Lucid Gravity SUV. The update adds hands-free driving capabilities and improvements to navigation, charging and overall usability. Hands-Free Drive Assist is designed to make highway driving more convenient while requiring drivers to remain attentive. The feature supports steering, acceleration and braking on compatible highways across North America.

Tesla’s Price Performance, Valuation and EstimatesTesla has underperformed the Zacks Automotive – Domestic industry in the last six months. It has lost 7.8% compared with the industry’s decline of 6%.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

From a valuation perspective, Tesla appears overvalued. Going by its price/sales ratio, the company is trading at a forward sales multiple of 12.73, higher than the industry’s 3.24.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

 
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2026 and 2027 EPS has moved down 32 cents and 25 cents, respectively, in the past 60 days.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

Tesla Inc‘s (NASDAQ:TSLA) Cybercab rollout in Austin, Texas, is producing two completely different stories. On some trips, riders have paid less than half of what Uber Technologies, Inc (NYSE:UBER) charged for the same route. On others, Cybercab fares have surged well above Uber’s prices. The contrast offers an early look at the economics behind Tesla’s robotaxi strategy—and the biggest challenge it still faces.

Tesla Cybercab PricingEarly fare comparisons suggest Tesla’s autonomous ride-hailing model can deliver a meaningful cost advantage when demand is under control.

Several riders shared side-by-side screenshots showing Cybercab fares undercutting Uber on identical routes. In one comparison, a 15-minute trip cost $9.65 in a Cybercab versus $21.00 on Uber—a discount of more than 50%. Another comparison showed Tesla charging $19.35 for a route where Uber quoted $34.98, while a shorter 3.3-mile journey cost just $4.31 on Tesla’s network compared with $10.96 for UberX.

Those early comparisons support Elon Musk‘s long-held thesis that removing the human driver could eventually make autonomous rides cheaper than traditional ride-hailing.

Read Next

Uber Price AdvantageCybercab wait times stretched beyond an hour in Austin, and prices climbed sharply. For one 1.3-mile trip, Cybercab charged $15.24, while Uber listed the same route for $7.95, with its Wait & Save option falling to $6.41.

Perhaps the clearest sign of the supply crunch was that Cybercab briefly became more expensive than Tesla’s own four-seat Model Y Robotaxi on comparable trips.

The fluctuations do not necessarily undermine Tesla’s long-term economics. Instead, they reflect a familiar marketplace dynamic: when demand outpaces supply, prices rise.

Replying to a post about the increase in registration numbers for the Cybercab in Texas, Musk said “The degree to which Cybercab is optimized for lowest possible cost per mile (fully loaded) is understood by very few.”

With only a limited Cybercab fleet operating in Austin, surge pricing appears to be doing exactly what it is designed to do—balance demand until more vehicles become available.

What Investors Should WatchThe most important takeaway from Austin’s early fare data is not whether Tesla or Uber was cheaper on a particular day. It is that Tesla’s robotaxi economics appear capable of delivering lower prices—assuming enough vehicles are available.

That shifts the investment question from pricing to production. If Tesla can rapidly expand its Cybercab fleet, lower operating costs could become a durable competitive advantage over traditional ride-hailing. If fleet growth lags demand, however, frequent surge pricing could narrow that advantage and give platforms like Uber more room to compete, even in an autonomous future.

Read Next

Photo courtesy: Shutterstock

© 2026 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.

Meta just attached a price tag to its AI ambitions, and traders are now asking whether a consumer subscription can justify one of the biggest capital budgets in tech history while a key rival takes an immediate hit.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META | META Price Prediction) put a price tag on its AI buildout Tuesday evening with Muse, a personal AI agent sold through a tiered consumer subscription, and investors moved quickly Wednesday morning. The launch answers the standing bear case that Meta Platforms’ capital spending carried no direct consumer revenue line, and the reaction reads as a company-specific repricing rather than a broader bid for AI names. Overnight endorsements from commerce and startup leaders added credibility to the rollout heading into the open.

Meta Platforms stock is up 6% to $649.20 Wednesday morning, the first meaningful vote for the company’s AI monetization since its July earnings report. Meanwhile, Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) stock is down 2% to $330.53 as investors read Muse as encroachment on Gemini’s consumer agent footprint.

For broader market context, the Invesco QQQ Trust (NASDAQ:QQQ) is down 0.5% to $714.55. The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSEARCA:SPY) is down 0.3% to $763.38, confirming today’s move is a single-name story rather than a sector rotation.

Muse Puts a Price on the AI Spend [chart symbol=”META”]

Meta Platforms launched Muse Tuesday evening as a personal AI agent available through a dedicated app and through WhatsApp. Muse can use a browser, run in the background, connect to a user’s existing services, and complete tasks including sending email, organizing calendars, planning trips, filling forms, and making payments. The agent runs on Meta Platforms’ Muse Spark model, which the company said drove a 60% jump in daily interactions with Meta AI after integration.

Meta Platforms introduced paid plans at $20 per month and $100 per month above a free tier, the first direct consumer revenue line attached to its AI buildout. Alexandr Wang, chief AI officer at Meta Platforms, said Muse follows a “principle of least privilege,” with users deciding which connectors are enabled and whether the agent can read or modify data. Shopify (NASDAQ:SHOP) CEO Tobi Lütke and Y Combinator’s Garry Tan publicly praised the launch overnight, positioning Muse as an ecosystem asset rather than a walled-garden play.

The launch matters because Meta Platforms has faced sustained criticism for pouring capital into AI without a subscription line to model against. Meta Platforms reported Q2 2026 capital expenditures of $30.1 billion and guided full-year 2026 capex to $130 to $145 billion, with operating margin compressing to 31% from 43% a year earlier. Muse gives investors the first pricing anchor to weigh against that spend.

Alphabet Slips as the Repricing Stays Company-Specific [chart symbol=”GOOGL”]

Alphabet reported Q2 2026 revenue of $119.8 billion, up 24.2% year over year (YoY), with Google Cloud growing 82% to $24.77 billion and the Gemini App reaching 950 million monthly active users. That’s a strong AI adoption story, yet Alphabet stock is falling today because Muse targets the consumer agent surface Google has been building around Gemini.

Alphabet’s Q2 capital expenditures hit $44.92 billion, its free cash flow turned to negative $5.9 billion, and the company suspended its stock buyback in Q2 2026. Traders want to see who wins the consumer agent race before paying up further for Alphabet stock, and Muse arriving with a WhatsApp distribution footprint compresses that timeline.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT), Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN), and Shopify sit adjacent to the story without occupying the same seat. Microsoft’s fiscal Q4 2026 results showed Copilot crossing 30 million paid seats with Azure past $100 billion in annual revenue. Amazon’s AWS grew 37% to $42.23 billion in Q2 2026, with its AI business at a $25 billion annualized run rate (we profiled seven suppliers powering that data-center buildout, from power to cooling, in a free AI infrastructure report). Shopify remains a commerce-AI adjacency, and Lütke endorsing Muse frames it as a distribution partner for merchants rather than a rival.

What to Watch Meta Platforms delivered $60.8 billion in Q2 2026 revenue against that full-year capital budget, and its free cash flow narrowed to $784 million from $8.55 billion a year earlier. A subscription line at those price points has to scale meaningfully before it moves that math. Today’s rally is sentiment moving ahead of evidence.

Meta Platforms stock is down 2% year to date (YTD), so Wednesday’s gain narrows a losing year rather than extending momentum. Investors can watch for early Muse adoption disclosures, WhatsApp attach rates, and any read-through in the Q3 2026 earnings call, when Meta Platforms will need to translate agent engagement into a monetization curve.

Traders weighing their exposure should calibrate their holdings carefully given a Muse thesis that rests on a consumer subscription yet to prove it can offset a capital budget of this size. A moderate position that reflects both today’s monetization catalyst and Meta Platforms’ free cash flow compression is the sensible frame from here.

Contact [email protected] for any questions or corrections.

Family Legacy Inc. bought a new position in shares of Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN – Free Report) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 26,000 shares of the e-commerce giant’s stock, valued at approximately $6,197,000. Amazon.com comprises 1.7% of Family Legacy Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest holding.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of AMZN. Trust Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Amazon.com by 3.3% in the 2nd quarter. Trust Asset Management LLC now owns 107,563 shares of the e-commerce giant’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 3,414 shares during the period. MilWealth Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Amazon.com by 79.0% during the 4th quarter. MilWealth Group LLC now owns 179 shares of the e-commerce giant’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares during the period. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. acquired a new stake in shares of Amazon.com in the fourth quarter worth approximately $45,000. Elkhorn Partners Limited Partnership boosted its position in shares of Amazon.com by 900.0% in the fourth quarter. Elkhorn Partners Limited Partnership now owns 200 shares of the e-commerce giant’s stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fairway Wealth LLC grew its holdings in Amazon.com by 95.6% in the fourth quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 221 shares of the e-commerce giant’s stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the period. 72.20% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Phillip Securities downgraded shares of Amazon.com from a “strong-buy” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Arete Research upped their price objective on Amazon.com from $301.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, May 18th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $300.00 target price on shares of Amazon.com in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Truist Financial upped their price target on Amazon.com from $320.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Citizens Jmp restated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $315.00 price objective on shares of Amazon.com in a report on Friday, July 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifty-six have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Amazon.com presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $323.26.

View Our Latest Report on AMZN Amazon.com Price Performance Shares of NASDAQ AMZN opened at $256.97 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.77 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.67, a PEG ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.87. Amazon.com, Inc. has a 1-year low of $196.00 and a 1-year high of $287.20. The business has a 50-day moving average of $254.88 and a 200-day moving average of $243.41.

Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The e-commerce giant reported $5.75 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.82 by $3.93. Amazon.com had a return on equity of 18.00% and a net margin of 17.44%.The firm had revenue of $200.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $197.03 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.68 EPS. Amazon.com’s quarterly revenue was up 19.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Amazon.com, Inc. will post 8.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets In related news, SVP David Zapolsky sold 9,258 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $259.77, for a total transaction of $2,404,950.66. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 41,190 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,699,926.30. This trade represents a 18.35% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Matthew S. Garman sold 14,541 shares of Amazon.com stock in a transaction on Friday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $259.06, for a total transaction of $3,766,991.46. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 17,794 shares in the company, valued at $4,609,713.64. This trade represents a 44.97% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 71,589 shares of company stock valued at $18,568,785. Corporate insiders own 8.90% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Amazon.com Here are the key news stories impacting Amazon.com this week:

Positive Sentiment: AWS expands its custom-chip strategy. Amazon and Qualcomm announced a multi-generation collaboration to develop customized AI data-center silicon, initially focused on AWS inference, along with optical-connectivity solutions of up to 1.6T. The agreement diversifies Amazon’s supply chain beyond Nvidia, Broadcom and its internally developed Trainium chips, while supporting AWS’s long-term AI infrastructure buildout. Qualcomm Announces Multi-Generational Product Collaboration with Amazon Positive Sentiment: Profitability remains a key investment argument. Commentary highlighted AWS’s roughly 39% operating margin and recent acceleration in cloud growth as reasons investors may view Amazon’s valuation as attractive, particularly with the stock trading near its 50-day moving average and below its recent high. Amazon’s AWS Operating Margin Neutral Sentiment: Amazon is preparing a sterling bond offering. The company has hired banks for its first sterling-denominated bond sale, apparently seeking additional funding sources for major AI and infrastructure investments. The move may improve financing flexibility, but it also underscores the scale of Amazon’s capital requirements. Amazon Hires Banks for First Sterling Bond Sale Negative Sentiment: Fatal Prime Air crash increases operational and reputational risk. Federal investigators are examining why a contractor-operated Boeing 767 cargo jet overshot the Miami runway by about 1,300 feet, killing five people. The investigation could bring additional scrutiny to Amazon Air’s contractor oversight, logistics practices and potential liability. Investigators Probe Amazon Cargo Plane Crash Negative Sentiment: Employment lawsuit adds legal and regulatory uncertainty. Four former warehouse workers allege Amazon discriminated against pregnant employees by penalizing medically necessary breaks and absences. The class-action complaint could create litigation costs and renewed scrutiny of warehouse labor policies. Amazon Sued for Allegedly Discriminating Against Pregnant Workers Amazon.com Company Profile (Free Report)

Amazon.com, Inc is a global technology and e-commerce company that operates online marketplaces and provides a broad range of consumer products and services. Its retail business sells merchandise directly to customers and enables third-party sellers to offer products through Amazon’s websites and applications. The company also operates physical stores and provides services such as digital content, subscriptions, and consumer devices, including Kindle and Echo products.

Amazon Web Services (AWS) provides cloud computing, storage, database, analytics, artificial intelligence, machine learning, and other technology services to businesses, governments, and organizations.

Recommended Stories Five stocks we like better than Amazon.com Tesla’s Robotaxi Launch Wasn’t the Moment Investors Expected Despite Post-Earnings Drop, Wall Street Analysts Eye New Highs for Broadcom Stock Morgan Stanley Eyes Good Things Ahead for Meta After $18 Billion Legal Settlement Q3 Earnings Could Be the Catalyst the Market Has Been Waiting For

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Clearstead Trust LLC acquired a new position in shares of Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN – Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 69,665 shares of the e-commerce giant’s stock, valued at approximately $16,604,000. Amazon.com accounts for 2.2% of Clearstead Trust LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest position.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. MilWealth Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Amazon.com by 79.0% in the fourth quarter. MilWealth Group LLC now owns 179 shares of the e-commerce giant’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. bought a new position in Amazon.com during the 4th quarter worth about $45,000. Elkhorn Partners Limited Partnership grew its holdings in Amazon.com by 900.0% during the 4th quarter. Elkhorn Partners Limited Partnership now owns 200 shares of the e-commerce giant’s stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC increased its position in Amazon.com by 95.6% during the 4th quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 221 shares of the e-commerce giant’s stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the period. Finally, Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Amazon.com by 87.7% during the 4th quarter. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. now owns 229 shares of the e-commerce giant’s stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the period. 72.20% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Amazon.com In other news, CEO Douglas Herrington sold 1,000 shares of Amazon.com stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $254.77, for a total transaction of $254,770.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 475,681 shares in the company, valued at approximately $121,189,248.37. The trade was a 0.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, VP Shelley Reynolds sold 2,343 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $259.01, for a total transaction of $606,860.43. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 119,780 shares in the company, valued at $31,024,217.80. This trade represents a 1.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 71,589 shares of company stock valued at $18,568,785. Company insiders own 8.90% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Amazon.com in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Pivotal Research restated a “buy” rating and set a $333.00 target price (up from $320.00) on shares of Amazon.com in a report on Friday, July 31st. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $320.00 target price (up from $315.00) on shares of Amazon.com in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Monness Crespi & Hardt lifted their price target on Amazon.com from $315.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Citizens Jmp reissued a “market outperform” rating and issued a $315.00 price target on shares of Amazon.com in a research report on Friday, July 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifty-six have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $323.26. View Our Latest Stock Report on Amazon.com

Amazon.com Price Performance Shares of NASDAQ AMZN opened at $256.97 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 1.03. The company has a market cap of $2.77 trillion, a PE ratio of 20.67, a P/E/G ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.44. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $254.88 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $243.41. Amazon.com, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $196.00 and a fifty-two week high of $287.20.

Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN – Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The e-commerce giant reported $5.75 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.82 by $3.93. The company had revenue of $200.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $197.03 billion. Amazon.com had a net margin of 17.44% and a return on equity of 18.00%. Amazon.com’s revenue for the quarter was up 19.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.68 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Amazon.com, Inc. will post 8.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Amazon.com News Summary Here are the key news stories impacting Amazon.com this week:

Positive Sentiment: AWS expands its custom-chip strategy. Amazon and Qualcomm announced a multi-generation collaboration to develop customized AI data-center silicon, initially focused on AWS inference, along with optical-connectivity solutions of up to 1.6T. The agreement diversifies Amazon’s supply chain beyond Nvidia, Broadcom and its internally developed Trainium chips, while supporting AWS’s long-term AI infrastructure buildout. Qualcomm Announces Multi-Generational Product Collaboration with Amazon Positive Sentiment: Profitability remains a key investment argument. Commentary highlighted AWS’s roughly 39% operating margin and recent acceleration in cloud growth as reasons investors may view Amazon’s valuation as attractive, particularly with the stock trading near its 50-day moving average and below its recent high. Amazon’s AWS Operating Margin Neutral Sentiment: Amazon is preparing a sterling bond offering. The company has hired banks for its first sterling-denominated bond sale, apparently seeking additional funding sources for major AI and infrastructure investments. The move may improve financing flexibility, but it also underscores the scale of Amazon’s capital requirements. Amazon Hires Banks for First Sterling Bond Sale Negative Sentiment: Fatal Prime Air crash increases operational and reputational risk. Federal investigators are examining why a contractor-operated Boeing 767 cargo jet overshot the Miami runway by about 1,300 feet, killing five people. The investigation could bring additional scrutiny to Amazon Air’s contractor oversight, logistics practices and potential liability. Investigators Probe Amazon Cargo Plane Crash Negative Sentiment: Employment lawsuit adds legal and regulatory uncertainty. Four former warehouse workers allege Amazon discriminated against pregnant employees by penalizing medically necessary breaks and absences. The class-action complaint could create litigation costs and renewed scrutiny of warehouse labor policies. Amazon Sued for Allegedly Discriminating Against Pregnant Workers Amazon.com Company Profile (Free Report)

Amazon.com, Inc is a global technology and e-commerce company that operates online marketplaces and provides a broad range of consumer products and services. Its retail business sells merchandise directly to customers and enables third-party sellers to offer products through Amazon’s websites and applications. The company also operates physical stores and provides services such as digital content, subscriptions, and consumer devices, including Kindle and Echo products.

Amazon Web Services (AWS) provides cloud computing, storage, database, analytics, artificial intelligence, machine learning, and other technology services to businesses, governments, and organizations.

Recommended Stories Five stocks we like better than Amazon.com Tesla’s Robotaxi Launch Wasn’t the Moment Investors Expected Despite Post-Earnings Drop, Wall Street Analysts Eye New Highs for Broadcom Stock Morgan Stanley Eyes Good Things Ahead for Meta After $18 Billion Legal Settlement Q3 Earnings Could Be the Catalyst the Market Has Been Waiting For

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BIP Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 53,933 shares of the e-commerce giant’s stock, valued at approximately $12,854,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in AMZN. Trust Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Amazon.com by 3.3% in the second quarter. Trust Asset Management LLC now owns 107,563 shares of the e-commerce giant’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 3,414 shares in the last quarter. MilWealth Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Amazon.com by 79.0% in the 4th quarter. MilWealth Group LLC now owns 179 shares of the e-commerce giant’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 79 shares during the period. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. acquired a new position in Amazon.com during the 4th quarter worth approximately $45,000. Elkhorn Partners Limited Partnership boosted its holdings in Amazon.com by 900.0% in the fourth quarter. Elkhorn Partners Limited Partnership now owns 200 shares of the e-commerce giant’s stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fairway Wealth LLC grew its stake in Amazon.com by 95.6% in the fourth quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 221 shares of the e-commerce giant’s stock valued at $51,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares during the period. 72.20% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Amazon.com News Summary Here are the key news stories impacting Amazon.com this week:

Positive Sentiment: AWS expands its custom-chip strategy. Amazon and Qualcomm announced a multi-generation collaboration to develop customized AI data-center silicon, initially focused on AWS inference, along with optical-connectivity solutions of up to 1.6T. The agreement diversifies Amazon’s supply chain beyond Nvidia, Broadcom and its internally developed Trainium chips, while supporting AWS’s long-term AI infrastructure buildout. Qualcomm Announces Multi-Generational Product Collaboration with Amazon Positive Sentiment: Profitability remains a key investment argument. Commentary highlighted AWS’s roughly 39% operating margin and recent acceleration in cloud growth as reasons investors may view Amazon’s valuation as attractive, particularly with the stock trading near its 50-day moving average and below its recent high. Amazon’s AWS Operating Margin Neutral Sentiment: Amazon is preparing a sterling bond offering. The company has hired banks for its first sterling-denominated bond sale, apparently seeking additional funding sources for major AI and infrastructure investments. The move may improve financing flexibility, but it also underscores the scale of Amazon’s capital requirements. Amazon Hires Banks for First Sterling Bond Sale Negative Sentiment: Fatal Prime Air crash increases operational and reputational risk. Federal investigators are examining why a contractor-operated Boeing 767 cargo jet overshot the Miami runway by about 1,300 feet, killing five people. The investigation could bring additional scrutiny to Amazon Air’s contractor oversight, logistics practices and potential liability. Investigators Probe Amazon Cargo Plane Crash Negative Sentiment: Employment lawsuit adds legal and regulatory uncertainty. Four former warehouse workers allege Amazon discriminated against pregnant employees by penalizing medically necessary breaks and absences. The class-action complaint could create litigation costs and renewed scrutiny of warehouse labor policies. Amazon Sued for Allegedly Discriminating Against Pregnant Workers Amazon.com Price Performance Amazon.com stock opened at $256.97 on Wednesday. Amazon.com, Inc. has a 52 week low of $196.00 and a 52 week high of $287.20. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $254.88 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $243.41. The stock has a market cap of $2.77 trillion, a P/E ratio of 20.67, a P/E/G ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a quick ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN – Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The e-commerce giant reported $5.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.82 by $3.93. The company had revenue of $200.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $197.03 billion. Amazon.com had a return on equity of 18.00% and a net margin of 17.44%.Amazon.com’s quarterly revenue was up 19.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.68 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Amazon.com, Inc. will post 8.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets In other Amazon.com news, CEO Douglas Herrington sold 6,362 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $259.01, for a total value of $1,647,821.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 476,681 shares in the company, valued at $123,465,145.81. This represents a 1.32% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP David Zapolsky sold 9,258 shares of Amazon.com stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $259.77, for a total transaction of $2,404,950.66. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 41,190 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,699,926.30. This represents a 18.35% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 71,589 shares of company stock valued at $18,568,785. 8.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets AMZN has been the subject of several recent research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “buy” rating and set a $325.00 price objective (up from $315.00) on shares of Amazon.com in a report on Friday, July 31st. Monness Crespi & Hardt lifted their price target on shares of Amazon.com from $315.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Raymond James Financial restated an “outperform” rating and set a $390.00 price target (up from $280.00) on shares of Amazon.com in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Barclays restated an “overweight” rating and set a $365.00 price objective (up from $330.00) on shares of Amazon.com in a report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Amazon.com from $330.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifty-six have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $323.26.

Check Out Our Latest Stock Analysis on AMZN

Amazon.com Company Profile (Free Report)

Amazon.com, Inc is a global technology and e-commerce company that operates online marketplaces and provides a broad range of consumer products and services. Its retail business sells merchandise directly to customers and enables third-party sellers to offer products through Amazon’s websites and applications. The company also operates physical stores and provides services such as digital content, subscriptions, and consumer devices, including Kindle and Echo products.

Amazon Web Services (AWS) provides cloud computing, storage, database, analytics, artificial intelligence, machine learning, and other technology services to businesses, governments, and organizations.

See Also Five stocks we like better than Amazon.com Tesla’s Robotaxi Launch Wasn’t the Moment Investors Expected Despite Post-Earnings Drop, Wall Street Analysts Eye New Highs for Broadcom Stock Morgan Stanley Eyes Good Things Ahead for Meta After $18 Billion Legal Settlement Q3 Earnings Could Be the Catalyst the Market Has Been Waiting For Want to see what other hedge funds are holding AMZN? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN – Free Report).

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Bridgewater Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN – Free Report) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 76,356 shares of the e-commerce giant’s stock, valued at approximately $21,687,000. Amazon.com comprises 1.2% of Bridgewater Advisors Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 13th biggest holding.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SFE Investment Counsel purchased a new stake in Amazon.com in the second quarter valued at approximately $19,383,000. Alesco Advisors LLC An ESL Co purchased a new stake in Amazon.com in the 2nd quarter valued at $5,100,000. Bank Hapoalim BM purchased a new stake in Amazon.com in the 2nd quarter valued at $20,761,000. BIP Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Amazon.com during the 2nd quarter worth $12,854,000. Finally, Phillips Financial Management LLC acquired a new stake in Amazon.com during the 2nd quarter worth $2,450,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.20% of the company’s stock.

Amazon.com News Roundup Here are the key news stories impacting Amazon.com this week:

Positive Sentiment: AWS expands its custom-chip strategy. Amazon and Qualcomm announced a multi-generation collaboration to develop customized AI data-center silicon, initially focused on AWS inference, along with optical-connectivity solutions of up to 1.6T. The agreement diversifies Amazon’s supply chain beyond Nvidia, Broadcom and its internally developed Trainium chips, while supporting AWS’s long-term AI infrastructure buildout. Qualcomm Announces Multi-Generational Product Collaboration with Amazon Positive Sentiment: Profitability remains a key investment argument. Commentary highlighted AWS’s roughly 39% operating margin and recent acceleration in cloud growth as reasons investors may view Amazon’s valuation as attractive, particularly with the stock trading near its 50-day moving average and below its recent high. Amazon’s AWS Operating Margin Neutral Sentiment: Amazon is preparing a sterling bond offering. The company has hired banks for its first sterling-denominated bond sale, apparently seeking additional funding sources for major AI and infrastructure investments. The move may improve financing flexibility, but it also underscores the scale of Amazon’s capital requirements. Amazon Hires Banks for First Sterling Bond Sale Negative Sentiment: Fatal Prime Air crash increases operational and reputational risk. Federal investigators are examining why a contractor-operated Boeing 767 cargo jet overshot the Miami runway by about 1,300 feet, killing five people. The investigation could bring additional scrutiny to Amazon Air’s contractor oversight, logistics practices and potential liability. Investigators Probe Amazon Cargo Plane Crash Negative Sentiment: Employment lawsuit adds legal and regulatory uncertainty. Four former warehouse workers allege Amazon discriminated against pregnant employees by penalizing medically necessary breaks and absences. The class-action complaint could create litigation costs and renewed scrutiny of warehouse labor policies. Amazon Sued for Allegedly Discriminating Against Pregnant Workers Analysts Set New Price Targets A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on AMZN shares. Monness Crespi & Hardt upped their target price on shares of Amazon.com from $315.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Amazon.com in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Amazon.com from $330.00 to $365.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Benchmark increased their price objective on Amazon.com from $370.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $360.00 target price (up from $355.00) on shares of Amazon.com in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifty-six have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $323.26. Get Our Latest Analysis on Amazon.com

Insider Activity at Amazon.com In related news, VP Shelley Reynolds sold 2,343 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $259.01, for a total value of $606,860.43. Following the sale, the vice president owned 119,780 shares in the company, valued at $31,024,217.80. This represents a 1.92% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Andrew Jassy sold 20,000 shares of Amazon.com stock in a transaction on Friday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $259.01, for a total value of $5,180,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,235,766 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $579,085,751.66. This represents a 0.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 71,589 shares of company stock worth $18,568,785. 8.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Amazon.com Trading Down 0.6% NASDAQ:AMZN opened at $256.97 on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $254.88 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $243.41. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.77 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.67, a PEG ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 1.03. Amazon.com, Inc. has a 1 year low of $196.00 and a 1 year high of $287.20.

Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The e-commerce giant reported $5.75 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.82 by $3.93. Amazon.com had a net margin of 17.44% and a return on equity of 18.00%. The firm had revenue of $200.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $197.03 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.68 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 19.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Amazon.com, Inc. will post 8.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Amazon.com (Free Report)

Amazon.com, Inc is a global technology and e-commerce company that operates online marketplaces and provides a broad range of consumer products and services. Its retail business sells merchandise directly to customers and enables third-party sellers to offer products through Amazon’s websites and applications. The company also operates physical stores and provides services such as digital content, subscriptions, and consumer devices, including Kindle and Echo products.

Amazon Web Services (AWS) provides cloud computing, storage, database, analytics, artificial intelligence, machine learning, and other technology services to businesses, governments, and organizations.

See Also Five stocks we like better than Amazon.com Tesla’s Robotaxi Launch Wasn’t the Moment Investors Expected Despite Post-Earnings Drop, Wall Street Analysts Eye New Highs for Broadcom Stock Morgan Stanley Eyes Good Things Ahead for Meta After $18 Billion Legal Settlement Q3 Earnings Could Be the Catalyst the Market Has Been Waiting For

Receive News & Ratings for Amazon.com Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Amazon.com and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.

Qualcomm (QCOM +1.98%) isn't one of the first names that come to mind when considering data center infrastructure, but that may change soon. The chip company announced a deal with Amazon (AMZN -1.94%) to buy up to $60 billion of its AI data center chips.

As part of the deal, Qualcomm will grant Amazon warrants worth about $4 billion that will vest with product purchases. Amazon will be able to purchase Qualcomm shares at $161.26 per share.

Qualcomm and Amazon will also work together to improve high-performance optical connectivity to support fast-growing bandwidth demands in AI infrastructure. And Qualcomm will increase its use of Amazon Web Services and Amazon Bedrock infrastructure to reduce chip design cycles.

"As AI demand accelerates, data center infrastructure will require advances in both computing and connectivity to deliver greater performance with more efficiency," Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon said. "Qualcomm is pleased to work with AWS on customized silicon and connectivity solutions, bringing decades of leadership in advanced processing and power-efficient compute, to deliver breakthrough performance and enable the next generation of AI infrastructure."

Image source: The Motley Fool.

Qualcomm's partnership with Amazon is expected to continue for multiple generations of chips for large-scale AI data centers. It signals Qualcomm's growing effort to broaden its portfolio beyond smartphones -- particularly important, as Apple has announced plans to phase out its reliance on Qualcomm cellular modems and use in-house C-series silicon.

About Qualcomm stockQualcomm, which is based in San Diego, has long been best known for designing high-performance, low-power chips for mobile devices, personal computers, automobiles, robotics, and wearable devices. Shares have been on a roller-coaster this year and have fallen throughout the summer.

Revenues for the fiscal third quarter (ending June 28) fell 4% to $9.94 billion, net income dropped 25% to $2 billion, and diluted earnings per share slid 23% to $1.87. Handset revenue plummeted 20% to $5.08 billion.

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Meanwhile, Qualcomm said it expects its Apple revenue to fall 50% from the September to December quarter, although that will be offset somewhat by sequential growth in Android phones.

Qualcomm enters the data center marketIt's against this backdrop that Qualcomm is pinning its hopes on securing a foothold in the fast-growing AI data center market.

Qualcomm previously identified Meta Platforms as its first data center customer, announcing in June that it reached a multi-generation supply agreement to power Meta's servers with Dragonfly C1000 CPUs. It also acquired AI software start-up Modular in an all-stock deal valued at nearly $4 billion. Modular makes software that supports CPUs, GPUs, and custom chip architectures, enabling AI models to run across them without requiring developers to rewrite code for each processor.

"This is the ideal and logical time for Qualcomm to enter the market, as agentic workloads are reshaping the economics of AI," Amon said. "Efficient token generation and total cost of ownership are fundamental to scaling AI. And as a result, inference is becoming disaggregated in the data center and will be increasingly distributed. This means hybrid inference will evolve across the entire compute continuum from data center to on-premise network edge and edge devices. Given Qualcomm's assets, it's a natural evolution of our growth story."

Qualcomm is projecting that its non-handset business -- including automotive, technology for the Internet of Things, and data center -- will rise to $40 billion by the 2029 fiscal year, or roughly two-thirds of Qualcomm's revenue for its semiconductor business. That is a dramatic change from its 2025 fiscal year, when handset revenue made up about 75% of the segment's revenue.

Qualcomm believes there is a $1 trillion total market opportunity in its data center segment, including connectivity, custom silicon, AI accelerators, and server-class CPUs. It aims to generate more than $15 billion in that business by 2029, with a long-term goal of capturing 5% of the total market.

The Amazon deal is a major step toward Qualcomm achieving its goal. Qualcomm stock rose 3% on Tuesday's announcement.

Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. raised its holdings in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report) by 3.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 473,877 shares of the software giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 14,673 shares during the period. Microsoft accounts for about 2.3% of Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 4th biggest position. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $176,766,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC grew its holdings in Microsoft by 51.3% in the 2nd quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 59 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the period. Shepherd Kaplan Krochuk LLC boosted its position in shares of Microsoft by 4.9% in the third quarter. Shepherd Kaplan Krochuk LLC now owns 431 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $223,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Fischer Investment Strategies LLC boosted its position in shares of Microsoft by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Fischer Investment Strategies LLC now owns 697 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $337,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Pollock Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Microsoft by 0.8% in the third quarter. Pollock Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,805 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $1,453,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the period. Finally, Better Money Decisions LLC increased its position in Microsoft by 0.6% during the second quarter. Better Money Decisions LLC now owns 3,498 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $1,740,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity In other news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,810 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $496.48, for a total transaction of $2,388,068.80. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 42,677 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,188,276.96. The trade was a 10.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Satya Nadella sold 86,525 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $501.46, for a total transaction of $43,388,826.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 486,763 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $244,092,173.98. This trade represents a 15.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 101,335 shares of company stock worth $50,655,795 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Friday, July 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $640.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on Microsoft from $540.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Wolfe Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $550.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Forty-two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $564.27. View Our Latest Report on MSFT

Microsoft Price Performance Shares of NASDAQ MSFT opened at $493.95 on Wednesday. Microsoft Corporation has a 1-year low of $349.20 and a 1-year high of $553.72. The business has a 50-day moving average of $449.56 and a 200-day moving average of $417.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 1.22. The company has a market capitalization of $3.67 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.50, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.11.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.50. The business had revenue of $90.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $87.62 billion. Microsoft had a return on equity of 31.98% and a net margin of 40.31%.The company’s revenue was up 17.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.65 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Key Microsoft News Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

Positive Sentiment: Microsoft disclosed that Azure is generating more than a $100 billion annualized revenue run rate and reorganized reporting around AI infrastructure and agents. Greater Azure transparency and accelerating demand could support revenue visibility and investor confidence. Microsoft Breaks Out Azure Sales at $100 Billion Annualized Pace, Reorganizes AI Segments Positive Sentiment: Microsoft is positioned at the center of a projected multitrillion-dollar AI infrastructure buildout, with Azure demand, large customer commitments, and its partnership with NVIDIA potentially creating a long-term growth opportunity. Nvidia, Microsoft at Center of $7 Trillion AI Boom Neutral Sentiment: Analysts remain broadly constructive, with recent buy or overweight ratings and a reported median price target of $540. However, the stock’s sharp advance and proximity to its prior high make continued gains dependent on cash-flow conversion and the payoff from heavy AI investment. Microsoft Stock Opinions on Recent Earnings and Business Reorganization Negative Sentiment: Two additional lawsuits from news organizations over the use of news content in AI training increase legal uncertainty around Microsoft’s OpenAI relationship and could create financial, reputational, or operational costs. Microsoft’s OpenAI Partnership Draws Fresh Legal Fire Negative Sentiment: Microsoft’s effort to measure the “useful yield” produced by each AI infrastructure dollar and watt highlights investor concerns about whether massive data-center spending will generate adequate returns. The scrutiny could pressure sentiment toward Microsoft and key supplier NVIDIA. Microsoft’s Useful Yield Test Raises the Stakes for NVIDIA’s AI Economics Negative Sentiment: Recent reports also cite insider selling, including sales by Chief Executive Officer Satya Nadella, while separate reports of Outlook and Microsoft 365 service disruptions add modest execution and reliability concerns. Microsoft’s OpenAI Partnership Draws Fresh Legal Fire About Microsoft (Free Report)

Microsoft Corporation is a global technology company that develops software, cloud services, devices and digital solutions for consumers, businesses and public-sector organizations. Its products and services include the Windows operating system, Microsoft 365 productivity applications, Teams collaboration software, Dynamics business applications and Azure cloud computing services.

The company also operates LinkedIn, GitHub and Xbox, which includes gaming consoles, video games and related online services.

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Azure and Google Cloud are posting jaw-dropping growth numbers just as Treasury yields hit levels that have historically crushed high-multiple tech stocks. Whether Microsoft's fortress balance sheet or Alphabet's cheaper valuation wins this rate-scare showdown could determine which mega-cap compounds…

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Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT | MSFT Price Prediction) and Alphabet (NASDAQ: GOOGL) both posted blowout AI-fueled quarters just as the 10-year Treasury yield pushed to 4.78%, its 98.8th percentile reading over the past year. With rate-hike anxiety squeezing growth multiples, these two mega-caps stand out because their balance sheets absorb the shock other hyperscalers have to borrow through. Huge cash reserves make borrowing-cost worries less prominent for both.

Azure Crosses $100 Billion, Google Cloud Accelerates to 82% Microsoft’s fiscal Q4 delivered revenue of $90.01 billion, up 17.8%, with Intelligent Cloud jumping 32% and Azure growing 43%. Satya Nadella called out that “Azure revenue surpassed $100 billion for the first time, and Microsoft 365 Copilot reached over 30 million paid seats.” Commercial RPO ballooned to $678 billion, up 84%, a booking backlog that dwarfs peers.

Alphabet’s Q2 was arguably louder. Revenue hit $119.80 billion, up 24.2%, marking its 12th straight quarter of double-digit growth. Google Cloud accelerated to 82% growth at $24.77 billion, a stunning jump. Sundar Pichai noted “nearly 90% of the Fortune 100 using” Gemini Enterprise, and Search still cranked out $63.27 billion, up 17%.

Business Driver Microsoft Alphabet Cloud growth Azure +43% Google Cloud +82% FY CapEx $115.95B $91.45B (FY25) Main AI wedge Copilot + OpenAI Full-stack Gemini + TPUs Cash Fortress vs. Debt-Funded Sprint Microsoft generated $182.94 billion in operating cash flow for FY26 and still returned over $43 billion to shareholders. Amy Hood emphasized flexibility: “You have a big book of business that’s flexible… It does allow us to have a lot more flexibility to manage through those.” Free cash flow was pinched to $19.64 billion, but the war chest keeps rate sensitivity muted.

Alphabet leaned harder on financing. Q2 free cash flow turned negative $5.86 billion, long-term debt jumped from $46.5 billion to $98.2 billion, and buybacks were suspended. Alphabet raised roughly $70 billion in combined equity and debt. Rising yields matter more here, though Google’s P/E of 17 gives it valuation cushion versus Microsoft’s P/E of 28.

What Decides the Next Leg I will be watching whether Microsoft can convert that $678 billion RPO into revenue without margin slippage as capacity finally catches demand. For Alphabet, the key metric to watch is when free cash flow turns positive again and whether Google Cloud’s 82% pace holds. If yields keep climbing from 4.78%, the debt-funded builder will feel it first (the power, cooling, and networking names taking the other side of that capex are in our free AI infrastructure report).

Why I Lean Toward Alphabet on Valuation Right Now Personally, I find Alphabet more interesting at these levels. A forward P/E of 23 for a business compounding 24% with an 82% cloud growth rate looks mispriced against Microsoft’s premium multiple. Microsoft is the safer AI compounder, and if you want the cleanest balance sheet and a 0.71% yield with buybacks intact, it fits defensive portfolios well. For a growth investor willing to absorb capex volatility, Alphabet’s ad moat plus Gemini traction stands out through this rate scare.

Contact [email protected] for any questions or corrections.

A securities class action alleges Alibaba's own filings described its MIIT licensing and AI "distillation" risks in ways that omitted its status as a designated Chinese military company and an ongoing campaign against a U.S. AI developer's model, as investors watched BABA slide from $173.68 to $95.07.

, /PRNewswire/ -- Levi & Korsinsky, LLP reminds purchasers of Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE: BABA) securities of a pending securities class action on behalf of investors who acquired shares between June 26, 2025 and June 24, 2026. See if you could be eligible to recover. You may also contact Joseph E. Levi, Esq. at [email protected] or (212) 363-7500.

BABA declined from a Class Period high of $173.68 on October 9, 2025 to $95.07 on June 25, 2026, a drop of $78.61 per share, or approximately 45.26%. Investors have until October 5, 2026 to seek lead plaintiff status.

Chronology of Material Events

June 26, 2025: the 2025 Form 20-F, with SOX certifications, incorporated a Hong Kong annual report stating that the Company's online and mobile commerce businesses require an operating license from China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology. It is alleged that the same filing warned about U.S. restrictions on Chinese military companies while omitting that the MIIT affiliation placed Alibaba within the FY2025 NDAA definition.

May 20, 2026: the 2026 Form 20-F described "unauthorized distillation of third-party models" as a perceived or inadvertent risk. As set forth in the complaint, a large-scale distillation campaign was already underway.

Timeline of Alleged Disclosure Failures

June 26, 2025: Class Period opens with the 2025 annual report and accompanying SOX certifications. May 20, 2026: AI distillation described in hypothetical, forward-looking terms. June 8, 2026: the U.S. Department of Defense publishes an updated Chinese military company list naming Alibaba; shares fall $4.69, or 3.9%, over two trading days to close at $115.38 on June 10, 2026. June 24, 2026: Bloomberg reports Anthropic PBC accused Alibaba of "illicitly" accessing its Claude model through 28.8 million exchanges and roughly 25,000 fraudulent accounts; shares close at $99.80, down $2.80, or 2.7%. June 25, 2026: shares fall a further $4.73, or 4.7%, to close at $95.07. "The sequence here matters: this complaint alleges that risk language filed in May 2026 characterized third-party model distillation as hypothetical while the conduct described weeks later was already ongoing. Shareholders are entitled to have annual report disclosures reflect what is actually happening inside a company." -- Joseph E. Levi, Esq.

Calculate your potential recovery or call (212) 363-7500.

INSTITUTIONAL INVESTOR REPRESENTATION — Levi & Korsinsky, LLP provides sophisticated counsel to institutional investors evaluating lead plaintiff opportunities. The firm has recovered hundreds of millions of dollars. Ranked among ISS Top 50 for seven consecutive years.

Frequently Asked Questions About the BABA Lawsuit

Q: What specific misstatements does the BABA lawsuit allege? A: The complaint alleges Alibaba made materially false or misleading statements regarding its MIIT affiliation and resulting classification as a Chinese military company under the FY2025 NDAA, and regarding the characterization of unauthorized distillation of third-party AI models as merely hypothetical. When the Department of Defense listing and the Anthropic allegations were reported, the stock price declined.

Q: When did Alibaba Group Holding Limited allegedly mislead investors? A: The Class Period runs from June 26, 2025 to June 24, 2026. The complaint alleges that corrective disclosures in June 2026 revealed information that caused significant stock declines.

Q: What court was the BABA class action filed in? A: The case was filed in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, governed by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.

Q: What do BABA investors need to do right now? A: Gather brokerage records including purchase dates, share quantities, and prices paid. Contact Levi & Korsinsky for a free, no-obligation evaluation at [email protected] or (212) 363-7500. No immediate action is required to remain eligible as an absent class member.

Q: What is a lead plaintiff and why does it matter? A: A lead plaintiff is the investor appointed by the court to represent the entire class. Lead plaintiffs are typically investors with the largest documented losses. Being appointed does not increase individual recovery but gives direct oversight of how the case is run.

Q: What if I already sold my BABA shares -- can I still recover losses? A: Yes. Eligibility is based on when you purchased, not whether you still hold the shares. Investors who bought during the Class Period and sold at a loss may still be eligible to participate.

Q: What if I live outside the United States? A: U.S. securities class actions generally cover purchases on U.S. exchanges regardless of the investor's country of residence.

Q: What does it cost me to participate? A: There is no upfront cost to contact the firm. Securities class actions are generally handled on a pure contingency basis, with no retainer and no out-of-pocket costs. Any attorneys' fees and expenses awarded to class counsel are subject to court approval.

CONTACT:\
Levi & Korsinsky, LLP\
Joseph E. Levi, Esq.\
Ed Korsinsky, Esq.\
33 Whitehall Street, 27th Floor\
New York, NY 10004\
[email protected]\
Tel: (212) 363-7500\
Fax: (212) 363-7171

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SOURCE Levi & Korsinsky, LLP