Track market-moving stories before they get noisy

Key Takeaways MasTec's Communications unit faces weaker revenue expectations and margin pressure through 2026.Free cash flow remains negative as capital spending outpaces operating cash flow in 2026.Large project opportunities support long-term growth, but many are not expected to contribute until 2027. Shares of MasTec, Inc. (MTZ - Free Report) have lost 34.3% over the past six months compared with the Zacks Building Products - Heavy Construction industry's decline of 19.3%. The stock has also lagged the Zacks Construction sector and the S&P 500 Index, as evidenced by the chart below.

MTZ’s 6-Month Price Performance
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

This Florida-based infrastructure construction company continues to benefit from strong demand across power infrastructure, pipeline, clean energy and mission-critical projects. Record backlog and solid activity across several businesses support its growth prospects. However, near-term challenges in Communications, project timing and cash generation are weighing on the investment case.

Despite the company’s strong backlog and raised full-year outlook, several near-term factors remain concerns for investors. Lower Communications expectations, delayed project starts, higher project-related costs and weak free cash flow may limit the pace at which earnings growth translates into cash generation. In addition, much of the recent backlog growth is expected to benefit 2027 rather than 2026, while the integration of Superior adds another layer of execution and balance-sheet considerations.

Let us examine the key factors that may weigh on MTZ’s prospects.

Communications Pressure Weighs on Near-Term ResultsMasTec’s Communications business remains the main source of near-term pressure as project timing and higher operating costs weigh on results. In the second quarter of 2026, segment revenues increased 6.2% year over year to $888.9 million. EBITDA declined 11.6% to $73.1 million, while the EBITDA margin contracted 170 basis points (bps) to 8.2%. Execution challenges on certain projects, along with higher indirect fuel and equipment costs, also reduced profit flow-through.

The pressure is expected to persist through the remainder of 2026, with the company lowering its full-year segment revenue outlook to approximately $3.25 billion from approximately $3.65 billion previously. The company also expects the segment EBITDA margin to remain under pressure, with the margin projected in the high single digits, but about 100 bps lower than the prior year. Wireless revenues are expected to decline in the second half as customers wait for new spectrum equipment, while some wireline projects have been delayed. Although the longer-term outlook remains intact, weaker segment results could limit consolidated growth in the near term.

MTZ’s Cash Generation Remains Under PressureCash generation remains a weak spot despite the company’s earnings growth. MasTec reported negative free cash flow of $59 million in the second quarter of 2026, compared with negative $45 million a year ago. For the first six months, free cash flow was negative $47.6 million, while it was roughly break-even in the prior-year period.

The gap between cash generation and investment also remains notable. Operating cash flow was $120.3 million in the first half, while capital expenditures reached $188.3 million. The company expects operating cash flow to exceed $1 billion for 2026, with most of the inflow expected in the fourth quarter. The ability to convert earnings into cash will therefore remain important as MasTec funds its ongoing investments and manages the balance sheet.

MasTec Remains Exposed to Project Timing and Cost RisksMasTec’s results remain sensitive to project timing, customer spending decisions and execution across its infrastructure markets. The Communications business is already seeing wireline project starts pushed back by several months, while the company also expects some moderation in Pipeline project timing and mix during the third quarter of 2026. Higher fuel and equipment costs have added further pressure in Communications.

These timing issues are important because MasTec is pursuing increasingly large and complex projects, many of which take time to move from pursuit to backlog and revenues. The company has seen a meaningful increase in large project pursuits, but some of the opportunities are not expected to contribute materially until 2027 or later. This could create uneven revenue conversion even as long-term demand remains strong.

MTZ’s Earnings Estimates Show Mixed RevisionsMasTec’s earnings estimates for 2026 and 2027 stand at $9.30 and $12.83 per share, respectively. While the 2027 estimate has moved higher over the past 30 days, the 2026 estimate has declined, signaling some near-term pressure on earnings expectations. Even so, the estimates imply strong year-over-year earnings growth of 42% for 2026 and 37.9% for 2027.

MTZ EPS Estimate Revision Trend
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

MTZ Stock Trades at a PremiumMasTec stock is currently trading at a premium compared with its industry peers, with a forward 12-month price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 19.71, as shown in the chart below.

MTZ Valuation (P/E F12M)
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

MasTec & Its Key Infrastructure PeersMasTec competes closely with Quanta Services, Inc. (PWR - Free Report) , EMCOR Group, Inc. (EME - Free Report) and Dycom Industries, Inc. (DY - Free Report) in the infrastructure and engineering construction market.

Quanta operates across utility, technology and load center markets, providing electrical, mechanical, civil and fabrication services. Its broad capabilities and long-standing customer relationships support large and complex infrastructure projects. Quanta also has exposure to technology, power generation and utility markets. However, utility capital spending and the timing of large project awards can affect growth.

Meanwhile, EMCOR has a diversified construction and services platform spanning electrical, mechanical, building and industrial markets. Strong demand from data centers, network and communications, manufacturing and institutional markets supports growth. EMCOR also benefits from its ability to execute complex projects across multiple trades and geographies. However, project mix and timing can affect margins and revenue growth.

Dycom has a more specialized position in digital and critical infrastructure, with exposure to fiber-to-the-home, long-haul fiber, data center interconnects and data center electrical and structured cabling systems. Strong demand across these markets supports growth opportunities, while its record backlog provides visibility into future activity. However, investments to scale its operations and the timing of wireless projects can affect near-term revenues and margins.

How to Play MTZ Stock?Despite MasTec’s strong backlog, solid demand across power infrastructure, clean energy and other key markets, its near-term outlook remains challenging. The raised 2026 guidance and strong earnings growth provide support, but pressure in Communications, delayed project starts, weak free cash flow and uneven revenue conversion remain concerns. The stock’s premium valuation also leaves less room for execution setbacks, while the lower 2026 earnings estimate points to some pressure on near-term expectations.

Thus, MTZ stock’s current risk-reward profile remains challenging, supporting its Zacks Rank #4 (Sell). Investors are currently advised to steer clear of MasTec until the trends move more in favor of the stock.

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

Key Takeaways HealthEquity posted strong fiscal Q2 results, with revenues up 7.6% and adjusted EPS rising 14.8%.HSA assets reached $37.9 billion, while HSAs with investments increased 20% year over year.AI reduced service costs, while HealthEquity raised fiscal 2027 adjusted EBITDA guidance to $628-$636 million. HealthEquity, Inc. (HQY - Free Report) has been gaining from its business model and strategy. The optimism, led by a solid second-quarter fiscal 2027 performance and strength in Health Savings Accounts (HSAs), is expected to contribute further. However, data security threats are major concerns.

In the year-to-date period, this Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) company’s shares have lost 0.6% against the 2.7% growth of the industry. The S&P 500 has increased 14.7% during the said time frame.

The renowned provider of technology-enabled services platforms for healthcare savings and spending decisions has a market capitalization of $7.57 billion. The company projects 16.1% growth over the next five years and expects to witness continued improvements in its business. HealthEquity’s earnings surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the trailing four quarters, the average surprise being 8.7%.

AI reduced service costs, while HealthEquity raised fiscal 2027 adjusted EBITDA guidance to $628-$636 million.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

Reasons Favoring HQY’s GrowthExpansion of Health Savings Accounts: HealthEquity has experienced significant growth in its HSA offerings. HealthEquity reported 939,000 HSAs with investments as of July 31, 2026, up 20% year over year. Total accounts were 17.8 million, up 4% year over year. This included 10.7 million HSAs and 7.0 million Consumer Directed Benefits (CDBs).

Total HSA assets were $37.9 billion as of July 31, 2026. This included $17.4 billion of HSA cash, up 2%, and $20.6 billion of HSA investments, up 28%. The increase in HSA investments reflected higher market values and transfers from HSA cash, while HSA cash growth was supported by net contributions from new and existing members.

Client-held funds, which are deposits held on behalf of HealthEquity’s clients to facilitate the administration of its CDBs and from which the company generates custodial revenues, were $931 million as of July 31, 2026, up 14% year over year.

AI & Digital Innovation Drive Scalable Efficiency:In second-quarter fiscal 2027, AI resolved 85% of routine chat inquiries and contained 55% of card-related phone contacts. Human-handled calls decreased 25% year over year, while card-related calls declined 30%. Management said that the next phase will focus more heavily on client service and back-office workflows, including onboarding, file transparency and claims automation. These efforts contributed to lower service costs per account and a 48% adjusted EBITDA margin in the quarter. Fiscal 2027 adjusted EBITDA guidance was raised to $628-$636 million, reinforcing continued investment alongside operating leverage.

Strong Fiscal Q2 Results: HealthEquity reported adjusted earnings of $1.24 per share for second-quarter fiscal 2027, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 4.2% and rising 14.8% year over year. Revenues increased 7.6% to $350.7 million, driven by double-digit custodial revenue growth, a 14% rise in HSA assets to $37.9 billion and 24% growth in new HSA sales. Margin expansion remained a highlight, with gross margin improving 220 basis points to 73.5% and operating margin expanding to 28.1%.

HealthEquity also strengthened its financial position, with operating cash flow improving and debt declining sequentially. The company raised its fiscal 2027 revenue guidance to $1.411-$1.421 billion while reaffirming adjusted earnings guidance of $4.66-$4.73 per share, reflecting confidence in sustained HSA growth and disciplined execution.

Factor That May Offset HQY’s GainsData Security Threats: HealthEquity manages sensitive personal data and large custodial balances, which keeps cybersecurity risk elevated despite recent progress in fraud reduction. The company remains subject to a consolidated putative class action related to a fiscal 2025 cybersecurity incident involving a business partner’s user account and is also subject to regulatory inquiries connected to that incident.

In May 2026, the company filed a renewed motion to compel arbitration, and the potential loss associated with the lawsuit and any regulatory action was not reasonably estimable based on available information. Any adverse outcome could increase costs, create operational distraction and impact member and client confidence, which can weigh on the long-term margin and growth profile.

Estimate TrendHealthEquity has been witnessing a stable estimate revision trend for fiscal 2027. Over the past 30 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings per share (EPS) has remained stable at $4.72.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for third-quarter fiscal 2027 revenues is pegged at $347.3 million, implying a 7.8% rise from the year-ago reported number. The consensus mark for fiscal third-quarter EPS is pinned at $1.16, implying a 14.9% improvement year over year.

Key PicksSome better-ranked stocks from the broader medical space are Globus Medical (GMED - Free Report) , Veracyte (VCYT - Free Report) and West Pharmaceutical (WST - Free Report) .

Globus Medical, currently carrying a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), reported a second-quarter 2026 adjusted EPS of $1.34, which surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 19.6%. Revenues of $789.6 million beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 0.4%. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

GMED has an estimated long-term earnings growth rate of 12.4%. The company’s earnings beat estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, the average surprise being 27.9%.

Veracyte, currently flaunting a Zacks Rank #1, reported a second-quarter 2026 adjusted EPS of 54 cents, which surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 25.6%. Revenues of $150.3 million beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 4.1%.

VCYT has an estimated earnings growth rate of 8.4% for 2026. The company’s earnings beat estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, the average surprise being 41.8%.

West Pharmaceutical, carrying a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) at present, reported second-quarter 2026 adjusted EPS of $2.37, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 13.9%. Revenues of $872.3 million surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 4.2%.

WST has an estimated long-term earnings growth rate of 16%. WST’s earnings surpassed estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, the average surprise being 17.4%.

Key Takeaways Clean Harbors shares gained 5.6% in three months while its industry declined 8%.Revenues are projected to rise 7.8%, while earnings are expected to grow 34.3% in 2026.Acquisitions are expected to add about $340 million in annual revenues and $87 million in adjusted EBITDA. Clean Harbors, Inc. (CLH - Free Report) , a leading provider of environmental, energy and industrial services in North America, has delivered an impressive performance over the past three months and shows potential to sustain its momentum in the near term. Therefore, if you have not yet taken advantage of the share price appreciation, you should add the stock to your portfolio.

What Makes CLH an Attractive Pick?    An Outperformer: A glimpse at the company’s price trend reveals that the stock has had a decent run over the past three months. Shares of Clean Harbors have risen 5.6% against the 8% decline of the industry it belongs to.

                                                                     Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

Solid Rank & VGM Score: CLH currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) and has a VGM Score of A. Our research shows that stocks with a VGM Score of A or B, when combined with a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) or #2, offer the best investment opportunities for investors. Thus, the company appears to be a compelling investment proposition now. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Northward Estimate Revisions: Over the past 60 days, two earnings estimates for 2026 have moved northward, reflecting analysts’ confidence in the company. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2026 earnings has increased 2.8% during this period.

Positive Earnings Surprise: CLH has an impressive earnings surprise history. The company outpaced the Zacks Consensus Estimate in three of the trailing four quarters and missed once, delivering an earnings surprise of 4% on average.

Strong Growth Prospects: The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Clean Harbors’third-quarter 2026 revenues is pegged at $1.71 billion, indicating a 10.3% increase from the year-ago quarter. For fiscal 2026, the consensus estimate is $6.50 billion, indicating 7.8% year-over-year growth.

The consensus estimate for third-quarter earnings is pegged at $3.25 per share, indicating 47.1% year-over-year growth. For the full year, the consensus mark is pegged at $9.78 per share, implying 34.3% growth from the prior year.

Growth Factors:Demand Trends Remain Favorable: Industrial activity, environmental regulations, reshoring and Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances-related work continue to support demand for Clean Harbors’ hazardous waste and environmental services. In the second quarter of 2026, Environmental Services generated revenues of $1.46 billion, up 7.7% from the year-ago quarter. Safety-Kleen Environmental Services revenues advanced 11%, aided by pricing and higher volumes in containerized waste collection and vacuum services. Technical Services revenues rose 18%, incinerator utilization reached 91% and landfill volumes increased 7%. A 10-year, $600-million disposal contract beginning in the fourth quarter of 2026 adds further visibility.

Acquisitions Broaden Growth: CLH continues to expand its service capabilities and geographic reach through acquisitions. The May 2026 acquisition of Terra Nova Solutions strengthened technical and field services, while the announcement of the acquisitions of EnviroServe and ES&H on Oct. 5, 2026, is expected to add about $340 million in annual revenues and $87 million in post-synergy adjusted EBITDA. This should provide a visible lift to CLH’s revenue base and earnings capacity, with further upside as integration benefits and synergies are realized.

Profitability Continues to Improve: Clean Harbors posted a 34.3% increase in net income, while adjusted EBITDA rose 21.6% to $409 million in the second quarter of 2026. Gross margin expanded 180 basis points to 35.1%, and adjusted EBITDA margin increased 190 basis points to 23.6%, reflecting better performance across both segments. Sustained margin expansion should support earnings growth if operating momentum continues.

Cash Flow Supports Capital Returns: Clean Harbors generated $245.5 million of operating cash flow in the first half of 2026 and raised 2026 adjusted free cash flow guidance to $520-$580 million. With more than $500 million in cash and short-term securities, the company retains ample flexibility for buybacks and growth investments. Higher cash generation should support continued shareholder returns while preserving balance-sheet capacity.

Other Stocks to ConsiderA couple of other top-ranked stocks in the broader Business Services sector are Corpay, Inc. (CPAY - Free Report) and Gen Digital Inc. (GEN - Free Report) .

Corpay carries a Zacks Rank #2 at present. It has a long-term earnings growth expectation of 14.1%. CPAY delivered a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 3.6%, on average.

Gen Digital also holds a Zacks Rank of 2 at present. It has a long-term earnings growth expectation of 12%. GEN’s earnings beat estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, with the surprise being 2.3%, on average.

Key Takeaways LUNR is building a scalable satellite business through repeatable, higher-volume spacecraft production.LUNR's IM 300 supports varied payloads and missions with a modular spacecraft design.LUNR has built 13 spacecraft with SiriusXM, highlighting potential for repeat commercial business. Intuitive Machines, Inc. (LUNR - Free Report) is increasingly building a satellite manufacturing business that could provide a more scalable source of growth. Its recent commercial satellite activity suggests that LUNR is developing the production capabilities needed to move from project-based spacecraft development to repeatable, higher-volume manufacturing.

The company’s satellite portfolio includes platforms designed to serve different mission requirements. The IM 300, in particular, uses a modular architecture that allows the same core spacecraft bus to accommodate substantially different payloads and mission profiles. Its standardized interfaces can support commercial, civil and national security payloads, while configurable propulsion and optical and radio-frequency crosslinks provide additional mission flexibility.

In September 2026, LUNR announced an order for two IM 300 platforms from a new, undisclosed customer. The contract expands the customer base for the platform and demonstrates its ability to support a heavier, higher-power payload class. Importantly, LUNR produces the spacecraft at its high-volume satellite production facility in Palo Alto, CA, which was purpose-built for serial spacecraft manufacturing rather than one-off builds.

LUNR has also demonstrated its ability to deliver operational commercial satellites. The company recently completed in-orbit commissioning and handed over SiriusXM’s SXM-11 satellite after successful testing. Built on the IM 1300 platform, SXM-11 became fully operational following its June launch. LUNR has now built 13 spacecraft with SiriusXM, highlighting the potential for repeat business from established commercial customers.

If LUNR can continue increasing spacecraft production while maintaining quality and delivery schedules, satellite manufacturing could become an increasingly important part of its long-term growth strategy.

Companies Expanding in Satellite ManufacturingSeveral space companies are also building businesses around spacecraft manufacturing and satellite systems, as discussed below:

Rocket Lab Corporation (RKLB - Free Report) has expanded beyond launch services into spacecraft, satellite components and space systems, creating multiple revenue opportunities across commercial and government markets.

Redwire Corporation (RDW - Free Report) is another space infrastructure company with exposure to satellite manufacturing and space systems, positioning itself across multiple parts of the growing space economy.

LUNR Stock’s Earnings EstimatesThe Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2026 earnings per share (EPS) implies a decrease of 59.52% year over year, while that for 2027 EPS suggests an increase of 54.53%.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

LUNR Stock Trades at a PremiumIn terms of valuation, LUNR’s forward 12-month price-to-sales (P/S) is 2.97X, a premium to the industry’s average of 2.11X.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

LUNR Stock’s Price PerformanceIn the past three months, the company’s shares have lost 11.5% compared with the industry’s 13.2% decline.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

LUNR’s Zacks Rank

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Ether.fi is moving its core payments infrastructure onto MoonPay’s integrated stack, the two companies said on October 6, as the crypto neobank works to make a self-custodial wallet feel as simple as a mainstream banking app. The move folds on-ramps and off-ramps, cross-chain trading, virtual accounts, and crypto deposits into a single experience, according to the joint announcement.

Ether.fi, which reports more than $6 billion in assets under management across its Cash, Stake, and Liquid products, will replace payments functions it previously sourced from separate vendors. The shift builds on the neobank upgrade ether.fi rolled out earlier this year. Users complete identity verification once, and that check carries across the card, account, and on-ramp instead of restarting for each product.

Four MoonPay Products Inside the App MoonPay Headless Ramps embed on- and off-ramp flows directly in the app, so users can fund an account in one tap without redirects to a third party. MoonPay Trade handles cross-chain routing for in-app conversions. MoonPay Enterprise assigns each user a virtual account with account and routing numbers, supporting ACH, Fedwire, SWIFT, Faster Payments, SEPA, and Open Banking so paychecks and transfers can settle in seconds. MoonPay Crypto Deposits lets users move assets in from external wallets or exchanges, with the token swapped into their balance. The four products extend MoonPay’s broader expansion into payments across blockchains such as Solana.

Card Spending Grows Faster Than the Market The integration lands as ether.fi’s spending product grows without tracking crypto prices. The company cited Paymentscan data showing its card users spent $123.7 million in September 2026 across 1.5 million transactions and 48,162 active addresses, up from $24.1 million a year earlier. Since the card’s April 2025 launch, it has processed $918.1 million across 11.6 million transactions, the release said. Ether.fi attributed the growth to everyday spending rather than trading, which it argues insulates volume from market swings.

Self-Custody at the Core Unlike a traditional neobank, ether.fi does not take custody of user funds: keys stay with the user, and the company says it cannot move or seize wallet assets. Combined with MoonPay’s licensed fiat rails, that design is the basis for the firms’ claim that they can reach more markets without bank licensing in each one. The four MoonPay products will roll out across ether.fi over the coming months, with no immediate date given for full availability.

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Mysterious crypto writer with expertise in blockchain, offering deep insights that captivate and intrigue readers. With a unique ability to uncover hidden insights and trends, Samuel delivers in-depth analysis and thought-provoking content that keeps readers on the edge of their seats. His writing style is engaging and informative, blending technical knowledge with a sense of intrigue, making complex crypto topics accessible to both newcomers and seasoned industry professionals. Samuel’s work continues to capture the attention of the crypto community, solidifying his reputation as a trusted voice in the space.

Mantle [MNT] is under strong bearish pressure. The altcoin lost its $0.6 support and fell to a low of $0.54, nearly erasing all recent gains.

As of this writing, Mantle was trading around $0.58 after plunging 11.4% on the daily charts. Over the same timeframe, the altcoin’s Spot trading volume surged 89% to $48 million, reflecting higher sell-side activity.

Why did Mantle decline? AMBCrypto’s analysis observed that Mantle’s weakness arose from the derivatives market. According to CoinGlass data, the altcoin’s Open Interest (OI) plunged 14% to $50 million, while Derivatives Volume rose 210% to $39 million.

Source: CoinGlass When OI falls, it signals reduced leveraged exposure. The falling OI alongside rising volume suggested that the market experienced position unwinding.

A look at Futures flow and Perpetuals Volume confirms this sentiment. According to Coinalyze data, Mantle’s Perpetuals Sell Volume on Bybit rose to $4.2 million, compared to $3.2 million in Buy Volume.

Source: Coinalyze On the Futures side across tracked exchanges, Mantle saw $14.7 million in outflows compared to $10.7 million in inflows. As a result, the altcoin’s Futures netflow plummeted 1225% to 4 million, a clear sign of aggressive market exit.

Source: CoinGlass Historically, massive sell-side activity in derivatives has led to short-term market shocks and price drops.

Spot demand offers much-needed relief Interestingly, while traders in the derivatives market panicked, Spot sentiment remained unchanged.

A look at Spot netflow shows that this metric has remained negative for two weeks, suggesting exchange outflows have consistently outpaced inflows.

Source: Coinalyze Over the past 24 hours, Spot netflow dropped to -$928K, with more than $10 million flowing out of exchanges. With buyers holding steady in the spot market, they offer Mantle much-needed relief by absorbing the rising pressure.

Can MNT stand firm? Mantle’s downside momentum has strengthened extensively. Looking at the Relative Strength Index (RSI), the metric fell to 41, dipping into deep bearish territory.

RSI declined for six consecutive days following a bearish crossover. At these levels, RSI implied that bears are stronger and have significantly displaced bulls.

Source: TradingView Such a structural setup has often preceded further weakness and more losses on the charts. Thus, if sellers continue to exert pressure, Mantle could fall to $0.54 again and likely revisit the $0.50 support level.

With bulls still active in the Spot market, they could, however, help invalidate this bearish outlook. If demand in the spot market holds, we could see MNT reclaim $0.6 and push for a daily close above $0.63.

Final Summary MNT plunged 11%, losing $0.6 support, hitting a low of $0.54 before slightly rising to $0.58.  Mantle declined amid a broader market sell-off as panic exits in the derivatives caused intense selling pressure. 

Key Takeaways Navitas Semiconductor acquired Claros to add IVR technology to its GaN and high-voltage SiC portfolio.Claros' IVR technology helps address the final stage of power delivery to processors in AI systems.The deal broadens NVTS' grid-to-xPU capabilities and could create more AI infrastructure opportunities. Navitas Semiconductor (NVTS - Free Report) is expanding its artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure portfolio with the acquisition of Claros. Navitas Semiconductor recently completed the acquisition, adding Claros’ intelligent voltage regulator (IVR) technology to its existing GaN and high-voltage SiC portfolio. The deal is aimed at strengthening Navitas Semiconductor’s power delivery solutions for AI infrastructure and extending its capabilities from the grid to the xPU.

Claros’ IVR technology is expected to help Navitas Semiconductor address the final stage of power delivery to the processor. This is important as AI systems require higher power levels and more efficient power delivery. The acquisition also enables vertical and embedded power architectures, expanding Navitas Semiconductor’s ability to support different AI infrastructure designs. As a result, Navitas Semiconductor expects the deal to complete its high-power portfolio and strengthen its grid-to-xPU strategy.

The acquisition also fits with Navitas Semiconductor’s broader strategy of becoming a high-power company focused on AI infrastructure. The company has been expanding its GaN and high-voltage SiC products to address power requirements across the grid, data center and rack. Adding IVR technology allows Navitas Semiconductor to cover another part of the power-delivery chain and could increase the amount of power content it can provide to customers.

The Claros acquisition gives Navitas Semiconductor a broader portfolio to address the growing power requirements of AI infrastructure. By combining IVR technology with its existing GaN and SiC solutions, Navitas could strengthen its position across the grid-to-xPU power chain and create additional opportunities as AI data center power demand increases. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2026 and 2027 indicates revenue growth of around 4.1% and 44.6%, respectively.

How Competitors Fare Against NVTSThe company faces strong competition from ON Semiconductor (ON - Free Report) and STMicroelectronics (STM - Free Report) in the race to supply high-voltage solutions for AI data centers.

ON is expanding its presence in AI data center power as the industry moves toward 800V DC architectures. The company expects AI data center revenues to more than double in 2026, while silicon carbide revenues from AI data center applications are expected to grow nearly 60% year over year. The company expects its high-voltage revenues to accelerate as data centers adopt 800V DC distribution, increasing demand for its power solutions across the AI power tree.

STMicroelectronics is another semiconductor company gaining from rising AI data center power demand. The company reported 50% year-over-year growth in communication equipment and computer peripherals in the second quarter, supported by its AI-related customer programs. STM is already supplying microcontrollers, high-voltage power and analog products for the power stage of cloud AI systems and is building a pipeline for low-voltage power solutions. The company expects data center revenues to exceed $1 billion in 2026 and $2 billion in 2027 if current trends continue.

NVTS' Price Performance, Valuation & EstimatesShares of Navitas Semiconductor have rallied 67.6% year to date compared with the Zacks Electronics – Semiconductors industry’s growth of 39.4%.

NVTS YTD Price Return Performance
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

From a valuation standpoint, Navitas Semiconductor trades at a forward price-to-sales ratio of 48.71X, significantly higher than the industry’s average of 5.26X. The Zacks Value Score of F suggests that NVTS stock is overvalued.

NVTS Forward 12-Month P/S Ratio
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Navitas Semiconductor’s 2026 bottom line is pegged at a loss of 14 cents per share. The estimates for 2026 loss per share have remained unchanged over the past 30 days.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

Navitas Semiconductor currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

The market sees a phone company that missed the AI revolution, but one investor keeps buying shares and believes Wall Street has the story exactly backwards.

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I added to my Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL | AAPL Price Prediction) position this month and expect to add more after the October 29 earnings report. The market has misunderstood Apple’s AI strategy.

Why I Keep Coming Back Apple owns the device in your pocket and the relationship with it. The company counts more than 2.5 billion active devices, with iPhone install base at an all-time high in the June quarter. Apple delivers AI to a customer base it already owns, and that base is where the boom comes from.

Three Reasons the Data Backs Me Up First, Apple can monetize AI without heavy data center spending. Tim Cook described Siri AI as “a completely reimagined version of Siri that is profoundly capable, deeply personal, and integrated seamlessly across our platforms.” It runs on-device and via Private Cloud Compute. Cook called on-device AI “very strategic and sort of a competitive weapon.” Paid iCloud+ upgrades sit atop Services revenue of $30.74B last quarter, up from $27.42B a year earlier, with 1.5 billion paid subscriptions.

Second, hardware demand is strong. iPhone revenue reached $54.25B versus $44.58B a year ago. Mac revenue grew 29%. Apple posted EPS of $2.02 against $1.8914 consensus, its 9th consecutive EPS beat.

Third, Apple keeps sending cash back to shareholders. The board authorized an additional $100B buyback, Apple repurchased $62.094B of stock in the nine months through June 27, 2026, and it raised the dividend 4% to $0.27 per quarter. Return on invested capital stands at 53.35%.

Why My Money Goes Here Instead of Microsoft Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) offers a different path to AI exposure. Microsoft’s P/E of 29 looks cheaper than Apple’s 43, but it is spending heavily on AI infrastructure. Fiscal 2026 capital spending hit $115.948B, up 79.62%, while free cash flow fell 6.46% to $66.987B. Microsoft trades at 59x free cash flow versus 49x for Apple. I prefer the company whose customers pay for AI hardware themselves.

Risks I Refuse to Ignore Memory costs worry me. Cook called it “a 100-year flood on the memory pricing with exponential increases in memory prices,” with further rises expected. The June quarter’s 50.1% gross margin included about two points from tariff refunds worth $0.11 of EPS. Guidance calls for 47% to 48%. Greater China revenue fell to $14.49B from $15.03B.

Apple guided September-quarter revenue growth of 9% to 11%, with supply constraints from demand exceeding forecasts. Analysts expect EPS of $9.5758 for fiscal 2027, up from $8.8202 for fiscal 2026. Cook said: “We look at all three dimensions and think about it over the long term instead of a 90-day clock.”

Catalysts That Could Drive Apple Higher Siri AI awaits regulatory approval in the EU and China. iCloud+ upgrades have yet to launch. Apple’s $30 billion-plus Broadcom (NASDAQ:AVGO) silicon deal strengthens chip control, the kind of infrastructure strategy we mapped out in a free report on the AI buildout beyond the chipmakers. Over ten years, shares returned 1179.19%. The market prices Apple as a phone maker that missed AI. I see a company putting AI on 2.5 billion devices.

Contact [email protected] for any questions or corrections.

Tesla liquidated the bulk of its crypto holdings at a price that looked reasonable in 2022, but the years since have turned that call into one of the most scrutinized treasury decisions in recent memory. Was it reckless, or just…

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In the second quarter of 2022, Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA | TSLA Price Prediction) sold approximately 75% of its Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) for $936 million, when Bitcoin was trading around $29,000. Fast forward to October 7, 2026, and Bitcoin is priced near $84,000—nearly three times its previous value. This substantial increase makes Tesla’s Bitcoin sale one of the decade’s most significant financial missteps.

However, investors judging Tesla’s decision today have the benefit of hindsight—an insight the company didn’t have in 2022. So, did Tesla make an error, or was their decision a prudent move that simply didn’t age well?

Why Did Tesla Sell Its Bitcoin in 2022?

Tesla originally purchased $1.5 billion worth of Bitcoin in early 2021. A year later, in 2022, COVID lockdowns in China significantly affected its Shanghai factory, which remained shut for several weeks. Elon Musk told investors Tesla was uncertain when the lockdowns would ease.

To ensure financial stability during this unpredictable period, the company decided to sell most of its Bitcoin to “maximize our cash position,” emphasizing that the sale was not a negative assessment of Bitcoin itself.

A corporate treasury is crucial for managing a company’s financial needs, covering expenses like payroll, suppliers, and new investments. Cash is stable and maintains its value week to week, while Bitcoin is known for its volatility, which can swing by 20% in a month. By converting a volatile asset into cash, Tesla ensured it had the funds necessary to navigate the uncertainties brought on by the lockdowns.

Tesla continues to manage its treasury with an eye on spending. In its July 22, 2026, earnings call, Musk indicated that Tesla was willing to be “a little less capital efficient” if it meant advancing projects more quickly.

How Much Is the Bitcoin Tesla Sold Worth Today?

Since Tesla sold its Bitcoin near $29,000, the cryptocurrency has surged by about 190%. At today’s price, the Bitcoins Tesla converted into $936 million would now be worth approximately $2.7 billion—an increase of roughly $1.8 billion.

However, this figure is speculative and assumes Tesla could have held onto its Bitcoin through all fluctuations. Just months after the sale, Bitcoin fell below $16,000 in November 2022. If Tesla had retained billions in Bitcoin during that downturn, it would have faced significant losses, especially while its factories were still trying to recover.

So the estimated $1.8 billion gap represents the opportunity cost rather than a reflection of Tesla’s foresight in making the sale. If Bitcoin had continued to decline after 2022, this decision could very well have been viewed as a careful risk-management strategy—a challenge any company holding Bitcoin on its balance sheet faces.

Tesla Still Holds 11,509 Bitcoin From Its 2021 Purchase

Despite the sale, Tesla retained a significant portion of its crypto assets. As of March 31, 2026, the company’s filings showed that it still held 11,509 Bitcoin, which it initially acquired for $386 million. Notably, Tesla recorded no further Bitcoin sales in the second quarter of 2026.

The value of Tesla’s remaining Bitcoin has also grown. As of June 30, 2026, these digital assets were valued at $674 million, even after a $112 million paper loss that quarter. At $84,000 per coin, Tesla’s remaining Bitcoin is now worth around $970 million, about 2.5 times its initial purchase price.

Even after selling 75% of its Bitcoin, Tesla’s holdings still place it among the top public companies with substantial Bitcoin investments.

Was the Tesla Bitcoin Sale a Mistake? In summary, Tesla’s decision to sell a significant portion of Bitcoin in 2022 was a reasonable strategy given the circumstances—though it cost the company about $1.8 billion in hindsight. The need for cash amid factory shutdowns warranted their choice, and by retaining 11,509 Bitcoin valued at around $970 million, Tesla still benefits from the robust Bitcoin rally.

Looking ahead, Tesla’s next quarterly filing will show whether the company remains committed to holding Bitcoin. A decrease in its Bitcoin count would indicate sales, whereas an increase might suggest renewed purchasing in the crypto market.

Contact [email protected] for any questions or corrections.

The barriers to entry for game creation are rapidly diminishing as AI makes game development more accessible to people without traditional programming, design, or illustration skills. The latest example is an experiment from Google Labs. 

On Wednesday, the tech giant’s public incubator and experimental platform launched a new AI-powered game-creation platform called Playground, which allows users to build browser-based games using simple text prompts, eliminating the need for coding expertise.

With Playground, creators can select a genre, such as trivia or racing, or start a project from scratch. They can specify whether they want a 2D or 3D game and choose between single-player and multiplayer experiences before describing the desired mechanics, gameplay, and visual style. Playground also allows users to upload visuals that its AI can transform into game assets tailored to the game’s overall art style.

Once created, games can be played on both mobile devices and computers. Projects can remain private, be shared through a link, or be published to Playground’s Explore gallery. Published games can support features such as leaderboards, while creators can continue modifying their projects even after they have been released.

Image Credits:Google Google also indicated that it plans to add Unity Spark integration in a future update. The integration could give Playground users access to additional 3D capabilities and “professional-level” game mechanics through Unity’s technology, further expanding what can be created through the platform.

Playground is initially available to users aged 18 and older in the U.S., with Google planning to expand availability to additional countries. Browsing and playing games in the catalog is free, while game generation relies on a weekly token system. The free tier provides a limited number of tokens, while Google One AI subscribers receive higher usage limits.

Google’s launch places Playground within a growing market of AI-assisted game-development tools. Roblox, for example, announced its own Build feature in July, enabling users to create games through natural-language prompts.

The initiative also builds on Google’s broader interest in gaming. The company previously explored cloud gaming through Stadia back in 2022, and later on continued incorporating games into other platforms, including YouTube Playables, a dedicated hub offering a selection of instantly playable web-based games.

When you purchase through links in our articles, we may earn a small commission. This doesn’t affect our editorial independence.

Lauren covers media, streaming, apps and platforms at TechCrunch.

You can contact or verify outreach from Lauren by emailing [email protected] or via encrypted message at laurenforris22.25 on Signal.

AMD has turned a few thousand dollars into life-changing wealth over the past decade, but the same run from a trillion-dollar market cap would dwarf every chip giant alive today. Here is what stands between AMD and that outcome.

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Advanced Micro Devices (NASDAQ:AMD | AMD Price Prediction) trades at $626.97 this morning. Our 24/7 Wall St. price target for AMD is $605.04 over the next 12 months. That means -3.5% downside and a hold rating, and our model has high confidence in it.

24/7 Wall St. Price Target Summary Metric Value Current Price $626.97 24/7 Wall St. Price Target $605.04 Upside/Downside -3.5% Recommendation HOLD Confidence Level 90% Since October 2016, AMD has gained 8895.27%, rising from $6.97 on an adjusted basis. That works out to roughly 90x. Doing it again from a $1.025 trillion market cap would make AMD many times larger than NVIDIA (NASDAQ:NVDA) is today. My model suggests the stock already prices in much of its AI ramp.

Why We Could Be Wrong Our 24/7 Wall St. price target sits slightly below where AMD trades today.

Two catalysts could drive the stock higher: the Helios rack-scale platform, where management said customer demand is “tracking ahead of our initial forecasts,” and gigawatt-scale deployments for OpenAI, Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) and Anthropic.

A 192% Year-to-Date Surge Powered by Data Center Demand AMD is up 192.76% year to date and 37.17% over the past month. It slipped 0.58% over the past week. Shares sit about 4% below the 52-week high of $645.46 and far above the low of $188.22.

Second-quarter revenue rose 50.1% to $11.54 billion, ahead of the $11.31 billion consensus. Non-GAAP EPS of $1.66 beat the $1.61 estimate. Data Center revenue jumped 107% to $6.72 billion. Management forecast third-quarter revenue to about $13 billion.

Why Bulls See $689 and Beyond Management expects Data Center revenue to more than double in 2027. They also said they “expect to significantly exceed our $20 annual EPS target.” AMD projects that the AI accelerator market will reach about $1.4 trillion by 2030.

Wall Street is largely on board, with 44 Buy or Strong Buy ratings, 11 Holds and no Sells. The consensus target is $619.51. If the bull case plays out, our model points to $689.01.

Valuation and Volatility Are the Risks Worth Watching AMD trades at 239x trailing earnings. Gaming revenue fell 31%, and export controls on China remain a risk. In our bear case, the stock falls to $474.35.

Bulls would point out that the GAAP multiple understates profitability. Non-GAAP operating margin was 27%, and AMD has net cash.

How AMD Compares to NVIDIA and Broadcom NVIDIA is AMD’s most direct competitor in AI accelerators. It trades at just 47x trailing earnings while growing revenue 105.85%.

Broadcom (NASDAQ:AVGO) competes for the same hyperscaler budgets with custom AI chips. Its AI semiconductor revenue grew 221%. Both rivals are growing faster at lower or comparable valuations, which makes our target look reasonable.

Company Market Cap Latest Quarter Revenue Growth AMD $1.025T 50.1% NVIDIA $5.72T 105.85% Broadcom $1.70T 85.5% AMD Price Prediction 2026-2030 My 24/7 Wall St. price target is $605.04, with a hold rating and high confidence. The stock has already priced in a strong Helios ramp.

I would turn more constructive if Helios shipments and 2027 Data Center growth beat guidance. A repeat of the last decade’s run is unlikely, but steady compounding is realistic.

Looking further ahead, here is where our model projects AMD could trade, assuming current growth trends and market conditions has.

Year 24/7 Wall St. Price Target 2026 $650.41 2027 $618.12 2028 $623.57 2029 $586.24 2030 $636.40 These projections assume AMD keeps executing on its current strategy. Faster MI450 and MI500 adoption could drive the stock toward our bull path of $844.29 by 2031.

Contact [email protected] for any questions or corrections.

Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA) could be poised for another leg higher after breaking above a key technical resistance level, according to market analyst Ali Martinez.

In an X post on October 6, Martinez noted that NVDA shares are breaking out of a multi-month consolidation pattern that had capped gains for much of the second half of 2026.

The analyst identified the $238 area as a critical resistance zone. With the stock now trading at $239, Martinez projected a move toward approximately $280, implying upside of about 19% from the breakout point.

NVDA stock price analysis. Source: Ali Martinez The setup suggests Nvidia may be entering a new bullish phase, with the former resistance zone potentially turning into support.

Nvidia stock backed by fundamentals The technical breakout comes as Nvidia continues to benefit from strong demand for artificial intelligence infrastructure.

Much of the optimism stems from the technology company’s August earnings report, which reinforced its dominance in the AI sector.

For the second quarter of fiscal 2027, reported in August, Nvidia posted revenue of $96.2 billion, up 106% year-over-year and 18% sequentially, beating Wall Street expectations by about 4%.

Data Center revenue, Nvidia’s main growth driver, surged 117% year-over-year to $89 billion, accounting for about 92% of total sales, driven by continued AI infrastructure spending from hyperscalers, enterprises, and AI cloud providers.

The company reported GAAP earnings per share of $2.46, maintained a 75% gross margin, and generated approximately $21.3 billion in quarterly free cash flow. 

Management said AI has reached an inflection point, with computing power increasingly translating into revenue-generating applications, while Blackwell Ultra and Vera Rubin are expected to support future growth.

At the same time, the semiconductor giant forecast third-quarter revenue of about $108 billion, above Wall Street estimates, despite assuming no Data Center compute revenue from China. It also projected roughly 70% revenue growth for fiscal 2028, well ahead of pre-earnings expectations.

NVDA buyback plan  Adding to the bullish sentiment, Nvidia expanded its share repurchase authorization by a record $150 billion in September, raising total remaining buyback capacity to about $235 billion through fiscal 2028. The move was widely viewed as a strong signal of management’s confidence in the company’s long-term growth prospects.

Analysts remain bullish on Nvidia, citing its leadership across GPUs, networking, systems, and CUDA software, alongside strong AI demand from hyperscalers and enterprises. Expectations for sustained growth are also supported by ongoing supply constraints in advanced AI hardware.

Recent reports suggest SpaceX is exploring a roughly $40 billion financing package to purchase Nvidia chips, underscoring the scale of AI infrastructure demand.

Despite the bullish outlook, investors continue to monitor risks including rising memory costs, margin pressure, competition from AMD and custom AI chips, and the possibility of slower AI spending growth as customers seek greater returns on their investments.

Featured image via Shutterstock

Morgan Stanley just raised its NVIDIA target as the stock closes in on all-time highs, but margin compression and a $50 billion financing controversy raise real questions about how much runway this rally has left.

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Shares of NVIDIA (NASDAQ:NVDA | NVDA Price Prediction) closed Friday at $233.95. That is within 1.7% of its 52-week high of $237.88, and the stock was indicated at $235.28 before the open.

The 24/7 Wall St. price target stands at $272.75 over the next 12 months, which implies 16.59% upside. The stock earns a buy rating with high confidence from our model.

24/7 Wall St. Price Target Summary Metric Value Current Price $233.95 Price Target from 24/7 Wall St. $272.75 Upside/Downside 16.59% Recommendation BUY Confidence Level 90% Shares traded near their 52-week high last week. Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) analyst Joseph Moore holds an Overweight rating. The key question now is how long supply limits support the cycle.

Record Highs Follow a $96 Billion Quarter NVIDIA is up 4.54% over the past week, 4.97% over the past month and 26.45% year to date. The stock sits 42.7% above its 52-week low.

In the fiscal second quarter, revenue reached $96.22 billion against estimates of $92.07 billion. Non-GAAP EPS of $2.22 beat the $2.09 consensus. Data Center revenue rose 117% to $89.02 billion, and third-quarter guidance calls for $108 billion.

Why Bulls See $318 and Beyond Management expects fiscal 2028 revenue to grow about 70% even with supply constraints. On the call, the company said “Our demand is much higher than that.” NVIDIA earns about $40 billion per gigawatt on Vera Rubin, compared with $25 billion on Blackwell.

The top five hyperscalers are expected to spend $1.3 trillion on capex in 2027. The consensus fiscal 2028 EPS estimate of $15.6951 has drawn 42 upward revisions and no cuts in 30 days. The average analyst target is $327.70, and our bull case points to $318.39.

Margin Compression and Vendor Financing Could Cap Gains Management expects gross margins to bottom at 71% to 72% in the fourth quarter as memory costs rise. Days sales outstanding rose to 60 days from 45.

NVIDIA has invested nearly $50 billion in leading AI labs, and management admitted “some will call this circular financing.” Guidance also assumes no China data center compute revenue.

Bulls have a response: price increases should raised fiscal 2028 margins to 72% to 73%, and NVIDIA computing capacity can be moved to other customers. The bear case sits at $235.18.

NVIDIA Trades Between Broadcom and AMD on Forward Earnings Company Forward P/E Quarterly Revenue Growth (YoY) NVIDIA 25x 105.9% AMD 40x 50.1% Broadcom 19x 85.5% TSMC 21x 36% Advanced Micro Devices (NASDAQ:AMD) competes directly with NVIDIA in GPUs but trades at a much higher forward multiple while growing revenue at less than half NVIDIA’s pace.

Broadcom (NASDAQ:AVGO) builds custom chips for the same hyperscalers at a cheaper multiple, reflecting market skepticism of AI silicon outside NVIDIA’s ecosystem.

Taiwan Semiconductor (NYSE:TSM) makes Blackwell and Rubin wafers. Compared with this group, NVIDIA’s premium appears justified, and our 18x forward input looks conservative.

Our Model Still Sees Room to Run The 24/7 Wall St. price target sits at $272.75 with a buy rating and high confidence. Supply-limited demand keeps driving earnings estimates higher.

The setup improves if Vera Rubin supply expands on schedule and weakens if memory costs push margins below guidance. Keep an eye on the November earnings report.

Looking further out, here is our model projects NVIDIA could trade, assuming current growth rates and market conditions hold.

Year Price Target from 24/7 Wall St. 2026 (12-month) $272.75 2027 $287.46 2028 $307.06 2029 $327.99 2030 $357.65 The projections rest on NVIDIA executing its annual architecture cycle. Faster AI capex buildout could driving results above this path; a consolidation phase could pull them below. All of that hyperscaler spending has to be powered, cooled, and connected by somebody other than the chipmakers, and we rounded up seven of those suppliers in a free report here.

Contact [email protected] for any questions or corrections.

T-bill yields are running higher than Exxon's dividend right now, but that gap shrinks fast once taxes, reinvestment risk, and a 43-year streak of dividend growth enter the picture.

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Treasury bills paid yield averages from 3.95% on the 4-week bill to 4.46% on the 52-week bill as of October 6, 2026, the latest Treasury record date. This edition’s dividend stock is Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM | XOM Price Prediction). Its dividend yield was about 2.55% as of October 7, 2026. Every bill maturity shows a higher posted yield than the stock. For a retiree, though, posted yield is only the first question. How safe the payment is, how long the rate lasts and how much the tax bill takes all come next.

How a Treasury Bill Pays You and When Its Rate Resets A Treasury bill acts as short-term loan to the U.S. government. The Treasury sells bills at auction with maturities of 4, 6, 8, 13, 17, 26 and 52 weeks. Bills pay no coupon. You buy a bill for less than its face value, and at maturity the Treasury pays you the full face value. The gap between those two totals is your interest.

Because of that discount structure, bills are quoted two ways. The discount rate is figured against face value. The investment yield is figured against what you actually paid, and it is the number to compare with a dividend yield. On October 6, 2026, the 13-week bill showed a discount-based close average of 4.05 and a yield average of 4.15.

Maturity Close Average (Oct. 6, 2026) Yield Average (Oct. 6, 2026) 4-week 3.88 3.95 8-week 3.97 4.05 13-week 4.05 4.15 26-week 4.16 4.31 52-week 4.26 4.46 A bill’s rate holds only until that bill matures. The next bill gets whatever the next auction sets. Rates went even within a single week: the 13-week yield average was 4.1 on October 1, 2026 and 4.15 on October 6. Federal Reserve policy drives much of this.

The upper bound of the fed funds target was 4.00% as of October 7, 2026. It had dropped to a low of 3.75% on September 16, 2026, and a year earlier it stood at 4.25%. A retiree who rolls bills over gets whatever rate exists on each rollover date. That is reinvestment risk: if rates fall, your income goes down with them.

At maturity, the face value lands in your TreasuryDirect or brokerage account, and you can reinvest it or spend it. If you sell a bill before it matures, you get the market price that day. That price falls when rates rise, so an early sale can return less than you expected. On short bills the swing is small, but it exists.

Treasuries have no FDIC insurance. They are backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government, and that backing has limits. It covers payment of face value at maturity. It does not protect the bill’s market price before maturity, the rate on your next bill or your buying power against inflation. Fights over the federal debt ceiling have also raised concerns at times about whether maturing bills would be paid on time.

Exxon Mobil’s Dividend Against a T-Bill: Safety Comes First A higher yield means little if the payment is at risk, so start with how safe Exxon Mobil’s dividend is. The company pays $1.03 per share each quarter, or $4.12 annualized, and its most recent payment went out on September 10, 2026. The balance sheet backs the payout:

Interest coverage: 56.3x. Debt: debt-to-equity of 0.168 and net debt of 0.55 times EBITDA. Cash flow: 2025 free cash flow of $26.131 billion on operating cash flow of $51.97 billion. In the second quarter of 2026, the company reported more than $17 billion of free cash flow. It returned more than $9 billion to shareholders through dividends and buybacks combined. Chief executive Darren Woods said on the July 31, 2026 call, “That strength allows us to keep investing in advantaged opportunities, return surplus cash to shareholders, and maintain one of the strongest balance sheets in industry.”

Cash flow can still swing hard. Free cash flow in the first quarter of 2026 was $2.699 billion, down 61.74% from a year earlier. The drop came from a $3.88 billion unfavorable timing effect on derivatives and $706 million in losses from Middle East supply disruptions. Management lists commodity price volatility, Middle East geopolitics, weak chemical margins and currency went as risks. The 2026 plan includes $20 billion in buybacks. That gives the board a large expense to trim before it would have to touch the dividend.

First half of the trade-off: a dividend can be cut. Exxon Mobil’s board declares each dividend quarter by quarter, and no contract requires it to pay. A T-bill’s payment at maturity is a legal obligation of the Treasury. Once you own the bill, the totals you will receive is set and cannot be reduced.

Second half: a dividend can grow. The bill’s rate stays the same for its whole term. Exxon Mobil has raised its annual dividend per share for 43 consecutive years, most recently by 4% in the fourth quarter of 2025. The quarterly payment was $0.87 in early 2021 and is $1.03 today. Management points to Guyana as the next source of cash. Chief financial officer Neil Hansen called it “very much an inflection into free cash flow” and projected “two times the level of free cash flow in 2030 than we saw in 2025” from that region. That is a forecast, and nothing guarantees it.

A dividend yield is also different from a return. The stock traded at $165.93 on the morning of October 7, 2026, up 40.63% year to date. Over the past 52 weeks it has traded between $107.28 and $174.09. When the share price rises, the yield on new purchases shrinks. A retiree who has to sell shares on a bad day takes market risk that a bill held to maturity avoids.

Tax Treatment Can Flip the Answer T-bill interest is taxed as ordinary income at the federal level and is exempt from state and local income tax. Because bills are bought at a discount, the interest is generally taxed in the year the bill matures. For 2026, federal ordinary rates run from 10% up to 37%. A single filer went into the 22% bracket on income over $50,400, and a married couple filing jointly crosses that line at $100,800. The 2026 standard deduction is $16,100 for single filers and $32,200 for joint filers.

Exxon Mobil’s dividends usually count as qualified if you meet the minimum holding period. Qualified dividends are taxed federally at long-term capital-gains rates, which are below ordinary rates for most brackets and include a zero tier for lower-income filers. Your state, however, taxes the dividend in full.

That split often decides the question. A retiree in a high-tax state gets real value from the bill’s state exemption. A retiree in a state with no income tax gets nothing from it, which gives the dividend’s lower federal rate as the deciding factor. Inside a traditional IRA or 401(k), both advantages disappear, because withdrawals are taxed as ordinary income no matter what produced them.

Who Each Option Suits Treasury bills suit retirees who need a known totals of money on a known date within the next year, such as next year’s withdrawals or an emergency reserve. They fit especially well in a high-income-tax state, for savers who accept that the rate resets at every rollover. Exxon Mobil’s dividend suits retirees with a horizon of many years who will not have to sell shares during a downturn. It also fits those who want income with a 43-year record of increases and who can use the federal qualified-dividend rate. Retirees who would be forced to sell stock in a slump to cover living costs face market risk on that part of their money that a bill held to maturity avoids (that is the whole point of a dividend ladder built so you never have to sell a share, which we laid out step by step in a free guide here).

Contact [email protected] for any questions or corrections.

Singapore has already decided that AI runs on trusted access to people's data. At the Tanglin Club, hosted by the MIT Club of Singapore, the question from senior business leaders and government officials was how.

Singapore's refreshed National AI Strategy makes one of its ten priorities to unlock datasets, underpinned by strong data governance. The strategy says the challenge is no longer making more data available, but giving the right people trusted access to the right data, with safeguards, for the four national AI Missions in manufacturing, financial services, connectivity and healthcare. Parliament has already gone further. The Personal Data Protection Act carries a data portability obligation: a person can ask an organisation to send their data straight to another, in a form the receiving organisation can read. The right exists in law. The method is what the country is working out.

Vana is the open network where personal data moves with the permission of the person it belongs to, and a record of every move. Vana wrote the standard for how personal data moves, now hosted by the Linux Foundation Decentralized Trust.

We sat down with the MIT Club of Singapore at the Tanglin Club, with senior business leaders and government officials around one table. The conversation kept returning to three things.

Keeping data under Singapore's jurisdiction while letting it move A country's data is most useful when it stays under its own laws and its citizens' consent, and can still go where it is needed. On Vana a person grants a specific use of their data, for a specific purpose, for a specific time. The grant is recorded and can be revoked. The data moves without leaving the protections the country has set. That is AI a country runs on its own terms rather than on whichever platform holds its people's context.

Opening the market to new players When data is trapped where it was created, only the incumbent can build on it. When people can move their data, anyone can compete to serve them better. Singapore's economy is built on being open to new players. Its data infrastructure should be too.

Fitting with the identity infrastructure Singapore already has Singapore has some of the most advanced digital identity infrastructure in the world. Identity says who you are. Vana says what you permit. Together they let a person carry their data into any service they choose, and take it back when they want.

Where Vana fits The standard Vana wrote does what Singapore's portability obligation asks for: a person's data goes from one organisation to another, with their permission, in a form the receiver can use, with a record of what was agreed. Because the standard is open and owned by no single company, a regulator can point to it and a company can build against it. Governments are already scoping national implementations. The Vana network is where that data moves today: more than 100 apps built by its community, 1.5 million users and more than 20 million transactions.

Singapore is investing more than S$1 billion in public AI research through 2030. That investment pays off fastest where AI can draw on real context from real people, moved with their permission, on infrastructure the country controls. We look forward to continuing to work with sovereign governments and with organisations like the MIT Club of Singapore to lead the way data moves in an AI world.

McDonald's Corp (NYSE:MCD, XETRA:MDO) is facing a federal lawsuit alleging its artificial intelligence (AI) pricing tool illegally coordinates prices among franchisees and has raised menu costs for customers.

The proposed nationwide class action was filed Friday in Illinois by Michael Thomas, who alleges McDonald’s shares nonpublic store-level sales data among franchisees that can compete in the same markets. 

The complaint alleges that McDonald’s uses millions of daily transactions to generate price recommendations across thousands of restaurants, effectively facilitating algorithmic price-fixing.

McDonald’s has responded by saying that the lawsuit contains inaccuracies and that it would defend itself, arguing that franchisees independently decide menu prices and can choose whether to use its pricing tools.

The company said its system has provided pricing recommendations for more than a decade, using factors including restaurant sales, location and competitor prices to help franchisees make decisions.

About 95% of McDonald’s 14,000 US restaurants are operated by franchisees, making the relationship between the company’s recommendations and individual pricing decisions central to the case. 

The lawsuit alleges McDonald’s has significant leverage over franchisees and can pressure them to follow pricing recommendations, despite its position that the tools do not automate, coordinate or fix prices.

The case comes as McDonald’s faces pressure to make its restaurants more affordable for lower-income customers after years of price increases and weaker visits from budget-conscious consumers.

McDonald’s has acknowledged that US menu prices increased 40% between 2019 and 2024.

Its chief executive, Chris Kempczinski, said in August that only 60% of US restaurants had adopted the company’s proposed 10-item menu priced below $3. 

Thomas is seeking class-action status, damages for affected consumers and an order preventing McDonald’s from enforcing agreements that allegedly restrict competition.

The Euro could recover against the US Dollar as markets scale back Fed rate expectations, according to ABN AMRO, despite French debt concerns. ABN AMRO is holding its end-2026 Euro to Dollar forecast at 1.15 despite mounting French debt concerns, arguing that the US currency's interest-rate support is vulnerable.

EUR/USD traded near 1.1171 on Wednesday, down 0.73% from Tuesday's close as the previous session's recovery unravelled.

The 1.15 forecast puts the Euro roughly 3% above Wednesday's level.

Georgette Boele, ABN AMRO's senior FX and oil strategist, acknowledges in her 7 October outlook that the political pressure has arrived sooner than expected.

But the bank believes markets are already allowing for considerable trouble in France, alongside more US rate increases than it expects the Federal Reserve to deliver.

Image: EUR/USD 48hr chart Less Fed tightening could weaken the Dollar's support Investors have scaled back expectations for rate increases from both the Fed and the European Central Bank over the past week, yet German bond yields have moved further below US yields.

Boele tracks the widening US advantage across two-year and ten-year bond yields, including the ten-year gap after adjusting for inflation.

The shift has encouraged speculative investors to take positions against the Euro and in favour of the Dollar, according to the bank.

Boele sees a larger mismatch between market expectations and ABN AMRO's forecasts for the Fed:

"Markets expect more than three additional Fed increases by 2027, compared with our forecast of only one. They also expect slightly fewer than three ECB increases by September next year, compared with our forecast of two."

If markets move towards ABN AMRO's forecasts, the larger adjustment in US rate expectations could erode the Dollar's yield advantage.

French bond prices may already reflect much of the risk France's rising borrowing costs reflect a different problem for the Euro: concern about government finances and political stability.

Official figures released on 29 September put French public debt at 119.0% of GDP in the second quarter, up from 117.5% in the first.

Investors have demanded a larger premium to hold French bonds over German debt, while the risk of wider fiscal stress also underpins ING's recent warning of further Euro losses.

Boele identifies a similar pattern during the eurozone debt crisis and later episodes of Italian bond-market stress, when fiscal and political uncertainty coincided with speculative bets against the Euro and a weaker exchange rate.

Higher yields in those circumstances reflect the extra compensation investors demand for risk, rather than an improvement in the currency's appeal.

ABN AMRO had expected political uncertainty to weigh towards the end of this year and into early 2027.

The earlier arrival of that pressure has not persuaded it to cut its currency forecast, because its rates strategists believe the French yield premium already reflects considerable fiscal and political uncertainty.

If developments prove less damaging than investors fear, the bank sees scope for the French-German yield gap to narrow, easing pressure on the Euro.

Boele writes: "For EUR/USD, sentiment may remain negative in the near term, but we do not expect the sell-off to continue."

Shares of Intel Corporation (INTC +0.98%) rallied 34.3% in September, according to data from S&P Global Market Intelligence.

Though Intel stock is up significantly for the year, it entered September well below its all-time high set in June. After exceeding $140 per share that month, Intel's stock fell to the mid-$80 range by the end of August.

Due for a rally, Intel stock was propelled higher by several news items. These mainly centered on the growing importance of server CPUs for agentic AI applications. A potential collaboration with memory giant SK Hynix (SKHY -1.40%) also contributed.

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Intel to hike prices as Meta Muse boosts CPUs Early in September, DigiTimes reported that Intel will raise PC CPU prices by 10% this month. Intel has been transitioning its capacity toward server CPUs this year, and away from PC chips. With agentic AI taking off, demand for server CPUs has skyrocketed because it is much more CPU-intensive than initial chatbot-style generative AI. With Intel reducing its supply of PC chips, it appears Intel still feels it can raise prices due to the shortage. That's a good sign that demand for Intel chips remains strong.

The focus on CPUs only grew with the introduction of Meta Platforms' (META -2.01%) Muse personal AI agent on Sept. 8. Muse was very well-received when it was unveiled, and investors became excited about its growth prospects. Each Muse agent has its own dedicated virtual machine, security parameters, and browser, so each agent requires its own CPU.

While it appears that Muse primarily uses Advanced Micro Devices CPUs for now, Muse should still boost overall demand for server CPUs, which are in short supply. Furthermore, Muse likely won't be the only AI agent on the market, and it served as a proof point for CPU-intensive AI tasks.

Further cementing this demand story, Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan was interviewed shortly after Muse's introduction last month, and told the interviewer that Intel could only support about half of what its customers were requesting for server CPUs.

In addition to the outsize demand for its bread-and-butter CPU products, Reuters reported toward the end of the month that Intel was collaborating with Korean memory giant SK Hynix, potentially at Intel's new Ohio campus. SK Hynix is the leader in HBM, a crucial technology for AI.

While the talks were deemed "exploratory," the report augmented rumors that first circulated in August that Intel had been chosen to produce "base dies" for SK Hynix's high bandwidth memory (HBM).

Intel had already hired former SK Hynix CEO Seok-Hee Lee back in June to head Intel Foundry's advanced packaging and system integration division. Thus, the September report seemed to confirm that something more concrete is happening between the two companies .

Image source: Getty Images.

Get ready for earnings Intel remains a controversial stock. While the company still has its skeptics, it has also blown away its revenue and earnings estimates each of the last couple of quarters.

Will the turnaround continue? Investors will find out when the company reports third-quarter earnings on Thursday, Oct. 29.

Billy Duberstein and/or his clients have positions in Intel, Meta Platforms, and SK Hynix. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Advanced Micro Devices, Intel, and Meta Platforms. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

American Express (AXP -0.83%) has been a staple of Berkshire Hathaway's (BRKA -0.02%) (BRKB -0.12%) portfolio for decades -- with Warren Buffett essentially completing purchases of the stock by 1995. Buffett's hand-picked successor -- Greg Abel -- expects American Express to remain a long-term compounder and a core Berkshire holding because it's a business Berkshire understands well and trusts its management team.

American Express also features a growing dividend. It doesn't raise it every year, but even during the 2008 financial crisis, when many banks and financial services companies were slashing their payouts, American Express held its quarterly dividend steady at $0.18 per share.

American Express has substantially increased its dividend since then. The next payment of $0.95 per share is payable on Nov. 10 to shareholders on record as of Oct. 9.

Here's how many shares of American Express you'd need to generate $1,000 in yearly dividends, and the three levers American Express pulls to reward long-term shareholders.

Image source: Getty Images.

American Express is down 18.2% in 2026 Buying and holding a stock for decades takes steadfast dedication, patience, and the ability to endure drawdowns. American Express is currently in a fairly steep sell-off -- down 18.2% year-to-date compared to a 2.4% decline in the financial sector and a 12.8% increase in the S&P 500 (^GSPC -0.65%).

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The sell-off has pushed American Express's dividend yield up to 1.3% -- which isn't high-yield territory, but it is greater than the S&P 500 dividend yield of 1.1%.

With a quarterly dividend of $0.95 per share, investors would need to own about 263 American Express shares to generate $1,000 in annual dividends. That's no small feat, as American Express is $302.78 per share at the time of this writing -- making a 263-share position worth a whopping $79,631.

The good news is that investors can expect the yield on that initial investment to increase substantially over time, thanks to American Express's loyal customer base and excellent business model.

American Express has greater growth potential than Visa and Mastercard American Express operates a closed-loop network in which it issues cards and bears the credit risk, unlike open-loop networks operated by Visa (V +0.33%) and Mastercard (MA +0.69%), which partner with financial institutions to issue cards. Visa and Mastercard tend to have higher margins than American Express, but they also have fewer opportunities for growth.

American Express has a closer relationship with its customers, which can reduce switching costs. American Express caters to an affluent customer base, and its cards charge relatively high annual fees. But American Express also rewards customers with generous perks and points, which incentivize customers to use their American Express cards for as many purchases as possible – thereby boosting American Express's swipe fees.

American Express has a track record for managing risk, with very low net write-off rates and delinquencies. And because it issues cards and other products, such as personal banking and loans, it collects revenue from interest on outstanding balances.

American Express's sales and earnings have grown in lockstep with its expanding customer base and services. However, its margins have been declining due to higher operating costs, particularly those associated with its cardholder benefits.

AXP Revenue (TTM) data by YCharts

Aside from falling margins, another reason American Express has been under pressure is concerns about declining consumer spending. American Express's affluent customer base tends to be more resistant to inflationary pressures on expenses like gas and food. But if artificial intelligence (AI) disrupts the high-paying job market in a big way, that could have ripple effects on American Express.

American Express's payout ratio is just 21.5% The good news is that American Express's fundamentals show no signs of deteriorating. Management is guiding for a 10% increase in fiscal 2026 revenue and even faster earnings growth.

American Express's payout ratio is just 21.5% becasue it consistently grows its earnings and makes affordable dividend raises. For a company of its caliber, a payout ratio between 50% and 75% would be healthy. The payout ratio is the dividend per share divided by earnings per share (EPS), which provides a yardstick for measuring dividend affordability.

AXP data by YCharts

As you can see in the chart, American Express has drastically reduced its share count through buybacks, raised its dividend, and seen its stock price compound significantly over time. Through multiple recessions, American Express's dividend has remained affordable -- even during the financial crisis.

In sum, American Express rewards investors in three ways -- with growing earnings that can justify a rising stock price if the investment thesis remains intact, through stock buybacks that reduce the share count and accelerate EPS growth, and through a growing quarterly dividend that provides a passive income stream for shareholders.

An unassuming passive income powerhouse American Express may not have a high current yield, but investors who buy the stock can expect their yield on cost to rise over time, driven by American Express's dividend increases. Berkshire Hathaway's American Express position showcases this concept well. As of Dec. 31, 2025, Berkshire's cost basis was just $1.287 billion, its market value was $56.09 billion, and it generated $479 million in dividends for Berkshire Hathaway in 2025 -- a yield on cost of 37.2%.

Given that American Express is a more mature company today than in the 1990s, investors shouldn't expect it to be a 40-bagger as it has been for Berkshire. But its affordable dividend and long-term runway for earnings growth make American Express an excellent buy for investors looking to anchor their portfolios with a high-quality blue chip dividend stock.

New updates bring people, digital teammates, and enterprise context together across work, workplaces and customer experience

News Summary

Cisco evolves Webex to empower digital teammates and people to work seamlessly across collaboration to understand what matters and move work forward. Teams will benefit from Claude in Webex to analyze data, generate content, and execute work using shared enterprise context, all without leaving Webex, built with Claude Managed Agents. Intelligent Workplace Experiences unify secure networking, collaboration technology, and physical spaces to create more engaging and inclusive experiences for people in the workplace. Dialog, an all-new agentic harness for the Webex AI Agent platform, turns fragmented interactions into continuous customer relationships and works on their behalf until issues are resolved. , /PRNewswire/ -- WebexOne 2026 -- Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO) today introduced agentic collaboration innovations that transform how people and agents work together. This approach addresses three connected dimensions of work for the AI era: how people work, how the workplace adapts, and how businesses engage with customers.

Organizations face a critical challenge: as the workforce evolves, teams need a way to unlock the potential of digital teammates, while maximizing the impact of work that requires the human touch. Cisco is uniting conversations, physical workspaces, and customer touchpoints into shared context. This transforms AI from reactive chatbots into digital teammates that drive complex work forward.

"The next era of work isn't about bolting chatbots onto yesterday's tools," said Jeetu Patel, President and Chief Product Officer, Cisco. "It's about AI agents working alongside people and teams, being deeply embedded in their workspaces, and collaborating on a secure, trusted foundation. When people and agents share the same context, work keeps moving and every customer relationship gets stronger."

The New Webex: Built for People and AI Agents Working Together
Cisco is moving enterprise AI beyond reactive, prompt-based assistants into proactive digital teammates that participate directly in the flow of work. New capabilities include:

Claude Managed Agents | intelligent teammates and multi-step actions in Webex: Soon, turn shared team context into deeper analysis, strategic recommendations, and coordinated action across approved agents. New AI agents that work alongside teams: Collaborative AI agents can be invited directly into spaces, meetings, and calls to execute complex, multi-step work across Webex and third-party applications. For example, a team member can @mention an analytics agent in a Webex space to pull usage statistics, then ask a presentation agent to update a PowerPoint deck to reflect those numbers. OpenAI dots | rich context and personal intelligence: The Webex Suite Model Context Protocol (MCP) integration brings Webex context directly into dots. In the future, dots will also be available within Webex as an always-on personal agent. Built for enterprise trust: Cisco brings identity, security, governance and visibility together so organizations can control what AI can access, what it can do and how it acts. A New Workplace for the AI Era
To support the vital moments of the agentic era that require the human touch—critical judgment, strategic alignment, and relationship-building—today's workplace must become an intelligent ecosystem that senses, reasons, and acts. Through Intelligent Workplace Experiences, Cisco is unifying secure networking, collaboration devices, digital experience assurance and physical spaces into a single architecture. Managed through Cisco Cloud Control, this foundation enables organizations to create flawless in-office environments, streamline IT operations, and unlock actionable insights to drive efficiency across physical spaces and technology. New innovations include:

Visual planning for IT and facilities: Workplace Designer extends Cisco's visual planning experience from individual rooms to the entire workplace, spanning networking, collaboration and workplace intelligence. It can, for example, turn a street address into a tailored blueprint to help teams align decisions and prepare for deployment, resulting in a simpler and better employee experience. Pinpoint and resolve workplace disruptions faster: Extending Experience Metrics into the workplace helps IT move beyond simple connectivity alerts to reveal exactly where issues occur and how they affect employees. By correlating network and device assurance with floor plans, Wi-Fi coverage, and occupancy, IT teams can prioritize and troubleshoot issues based on business impact, remediate problems faster, and ensure reliable workplace experiences. Optimize space and capacity planning: Workplace Insights in Cisco Cloud Control delivers a clear, unified view of how physical offices are utilized across locations and floors. By tracking activity patterns over time and comparing booked spaces against real-world occupancy, it empowers workplace leaders to move beyond isolated snapshots, right-size real estate investments, and adapt environments to how people collaborate every day. Cisco is also introducing RoomOS 27, the operating system for Collaboration Devices. Built for a new era of AI in physical spaces, RoomOS 27 advances the workplace experience across AI, platform choice, and intelligent management—helping spaces understand context, adapt to what's happening and increasingly take action, including:

Comprehensive interoperability: Through a new partnership with Google, Cisco devices now offer support for fully featured Google Meet natively, joining Webex, Microsoft Teams, and Zoom — making Cisco the most open collaboration hardware on the market. This gives customers complete freedom to choose their preferred meeting and AI environments, while retaining Cisco device intelligence and management. Advanced AI at the edge: The new Cisco AI Assistant on Collaboration Devices brings natural-language interaction to the room. With greater intelligence, AI Assistant can now engage in 32 languages. A prompt that the room is too warm, for example, automatically results in adjusting the temperature and lowering the blinds. Intelligent workplace management: Optimize workspaces with new intelligence in RoomOS 27 and Cisco Cloud Control. Workspace Advisor, Smart Room Assurance, Divisible Rooms, Splunk and agent integrations give IT greater visibility into how spaces are used with new ways to investigate, operate and continuously improve them at scale. Available in November, RoomOS 27 brings intelligence to where work happens—making the workplace more natural for people and easier for IT to secure, manage and improve.

Cisco Ceiling Speaker Pro completes Cisco's vision for fully integrated, IP-connected meeting spaces, ensuring every voice is heard clearly and naturally no matter where people join from. It integrates into the same intelligent system as Cisco cameras, microphones, and room devices, using AI to adapt audio across the space so even quiet voices carry naturally. Connected directly from the network to central management, Ceiling Speaker Pro replaces complex, multi-vendor audio setups with a single Ethernet cable that is simple to deploy and scale.

A New Approach to Customer Relationships
Customer experience today is constrained by treating engagements as isolated, atomic interactions. Advances in agentic AI now make it possible to connect interactions across customer journeys, systems and time into a single, continuous relationship. To help organizations evolve from an interaction-based approach to a relationship-based approach, Cisco is introducing Dialog, an agentic harness that enables personalized, long lasting customer relationships. New capabilities in Dialog include:

Long-horizon execution: Agents keep working on the customer's behalf after a conversation ends, coordinating across people, agents, and backend systems until the desired outcome is achieved. Persistent relationship context: Unifies customer history with enterprise data to maintain continuous context across all channels and time, powering absolute personalization at scale. Self-learning with every interaction: Continuously refines agent performance with every interaction, learning from customer journeys and human agent judgment while adhering to enterprise policy. Rapid onboarding: Enables organizations to onboard AI agents like new teammates, indexing existing employee handbooks, knowledge bases, and operating procedures. To ensure enterprise trust and scale, Webex AI Agents operate within active safety guardrails from Cisco AI Defense, with live telemetry and operational observability powered by Splunk.

Bringing It All Together
Cisco brings together collaboration, networking, workplace intelligence, customer experience, security, and observability on one integrated foundation. Together with Connected Intelligence, this foundation turns fragmented context into coordinated action across work, workplaces, and customer experiences.

Forward-Looking Statements
This press release may be deemed to contain forward-looking statements, which are subject to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Readers are cautioned that these forward-looking statements are only predictions and may differ materially from actual future events or results due to a variety of factors. Any forward-looking statements in this release are based on limited information currently available to Cisco, which is subject to change, and Cisco will not necessarily update the information.

About Cisco
Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO) is the worldwide technology leader that is revolutionizing the way organizations connect and protect in the AI era. For more than 40 years, Cisco has securely connected the world. With its industry-leading AI-powered solutions and services, Cisco enables its customers, partners and communities to unlock innovation, enhance productivity and strengthen digital resilience. With purpose at its core, Cisco remains committed to creating a more connected and inclusive future for all. Discover more on The Newsroom and follow us on X at @Cisco.

SOURCE Cisco Systems, Inc.

Chevron CEO Mike Wirth warned Wednesday it would be “unwise” of the US to impose a ban on diesel exports, saying such a policy could actually make the global energy crisis worse.

The comments came after President Trump recently ruled out such a ban, though he threatened one last month. The commander-in-chief said the measure was not necessary after European countries heeded his demands to release fuel from their reserves.

“Export bans, be they in the US or in other countries, actually take supply off the global market and they run the risk of making the situation worse,” Wirth told CNBC’s “Squawk Box Europe.” 

“The US has been a reliable supplier to the world at a time when it needs it,” he said. “And I think it would be unwise for the US to create questions in the minds of our allies and our partners as to whether or not we will be there with reliable supply when times are difficult.” 

Chevron CEO Mike Wirth (above) on Wednesday called President Trump’s proposed diesel export ban “unwise.” Bloomberg via Getty Images Trump previously said he was “very seriously” considering a ban on diesel exports from the US — the world’s biggest supplier of the substance — in a bid to lower prices ahead of the November midterm elections.

Such a ban could immediately reduce US prices by 30 or 40 cents a gallon, but the relief would be short-lived, according to Joe Adamski, managing director of ProcureAbility, a supply chain consultancy. As the US market becomes flooded with supply, producers would start losing money and move their distillate refineries elsewhere, he said.

Trump took the ban off the table on Friday, after Europe agreed to release up to 100 million barrels of diesel and crude oil. The president also signed an executive order this week allowing a more widespread use of tax-exempt diesel.

“Europe has a lot of diesel, and they’re going to be making a major world contribution, and so are we,” Trump was quoted as saying by Politico. “And we’re not going to be doing the export ban.”

Brent crude oil rose 2% to $102.55 a barrel Wednesday as traders grew concerned about dwindling reserves amid fresh Houthi attacks in Saudi Arabia and storm-related production shutdowns off the US Gulf Coast.

Asked whether global crude inventories are fragile ahead of the winter season, Wirth described it as a “very serious” situation.

“We came into this year with high inventories. High inventories in commercial stocks held by companies, high inventories in strategic stocks held by governments around the world and actually significant inventories on the water, particularly barrels that were sanctioned by the US or the EU,” the exec said.

President Trump (above) previously said he was “very seriously” considering a ban on US diesel exports. Bonnie Cash / Pool via CNP / SplashNews.com “Over the last several months, we’ve seen commercial inventories draw down, strategic stocks be released and those sanctioned barrels have been relieved and allowed to be delivered, as well.

“Those are all buffers in the system that have bought us time, but they’ve been drained. And so, we’re at much lower levels of inventory right now and it makes the system more vulnerable to disruption.”

The US Strategic Petroleum Reserve now stands at roughly 283 million barrels, its lowest level since the 1980s, after a coordinated global release of 400 million barrels earlier this year.

Wirth also said Venezuela will play a key role in the oil giant’s long-term strategy. 

Gasoline and diesel prices have soared amid the war in Iran. ZUMAPRESS.com Last month, Chevron vowed to more than double its production in the country over the next five years, a major win for the Trump administration after its capture of Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro in January.

A $7 billion investment in Venezuela will allow the company to increase production to 600,000 barrels a day by 2031, up from roughly 280,000 barrels per day.

“Longer term, I think Venezuela can be part of a more secure energy system. Venezuela is coming off a relatively low starting point – there has not been much investment in the country,” Wirth said.

“We have a good position there that we intend to grow, but that takes time and the amount of production that Venezuela can add over the next short period of time is dwarfed by the amount that is at risk in the Middle East.”

Shares in Chevron are up 33% so far this year. In July, the energy giant reported its highest quarterly profits in six years, beating Wall Street estimates on soaring crude oil prices.

Key Takeaways Dow held around $14B in liquidity and generated $1.3B in operating cash in the second quarter.Dow returned $253M through dividends in Q2 with a long-term target of roughly 65% of operating net income.DOW has no substantial long-term debt maturities until 2029, supporting financial flexibility for growth. Dow Inc. (DOW - Free Report) exited the second quarter with solid liquidity of about $14 billion, including roughly $4 billion in cash and cash equivalents. Dow generated $1.3 billion of cash from operating activities in the quarter.

DOW’s strong balance sheet and substantial cash flows support capital allocation, enabling it to finance its growth investments in higher-value businesses and regions and drive shareholder value while navigating a challenging macroeconomic environment. It remains focused on growth actions in attractive end markets and executing high-return incremental growth projects in cost-advantaged regions, leveraging strong financial health.

Dow returned $1.5 billion to its shareholders through dividends in 2025. In the second quarter of 2026, the company returned $253 million to its shareholders through dividends. Dow has a long-term strategy of returning roughly 65% of its operating net income through dividends and buybacks. It has no substantial long-term debt maturities until 2029.

Looking across the competitive landscape, LyondellBasell Industries N.V. (LYB - Free Report) ended the second quarter with $2.6 billion in cash and cash equivalents and $7.1 billion of available liquidity, providing solid financial flexibility. The company returned $224 million to its shareholders through dividends in the second quarter. As of the second quarter, LyondellBasell generated $3 billion of cash from operating activities over the last 12 months, while cash conversion was 80%, in line with its through-cycle target.

Eastman Chemical Company (EMN - Free Report) ended the second quarter with cash and cash equivalents of $691 million. Eastman Chemical operating cash flow was $224 million in the second quarter. EMN returned $96 million to its stockholders through dividends in the quarter.

The Zacks Rundown for DOWShares of Dow have gained 24.6% in the past year compared with the Zacks Chemicals Diversified industry’s decline of 2.2%.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

DOW is currently trading at a forward price-to-sales ratio of 0.48, below the industry. It carries a Value Score of A.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for DOW’s 2026 and 2027 earnings implies a year-over-year rise of 355.3% and a decline of 32.8%, respectively. The EPS estimates for 2026 and 2027 have been trending lower over the past 60 days.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

Key Takeaways PKX signs a KRW 1.1 trillion LFP cathode supply deal with SK On through 2029. POSCO is expanding LFP production as demand grows in energy storage systems and AI data centers.PKX is investing in graphite capacity and new processes to strengthen its battery materials business. POSCO Holdings Inc. (PKX - Free Report) , through its subsidiary POSCO Future M, has signed a KRW 1.1 trillion contract with SK On to supply lithium iron phosphate (LFP) cathode materials from 2027 through 2029. The agreement, signed on Oct. 22, can be extended by two years upon mutual agreement and marks POSCO’s first cathode material supply deal with SK On.

POSCO Expands LFP Cathode BusinessUnder the agreement, POSCO Future M will supply LFP cathode materials to SK On for three years, with the contract extendable by an additional two years upon mutual agreement. The deal follows last month’s long-term agreement to supply 190,000 tons of LFP cathode materials to another Korean battery maker, highlighting the company’s accelerating entry into the LFP market. 

POSCO has historically supplied anode materials to SK On. With the latest agreement, it will now provide both cathode and anode materials to SK On. The company also supplies cathode and anode materials to all three major Korean battery makers, broadening its customer base and supporting its long-term growth prospects. 

PKX Targets Growing LFP DemandLFP batteries offer lower power output than nickel-based chemistries such as nickel-cobalt-manganese (NCM) and nickel-cobalt-aluminum (NCA) but benefit from lower costs and longer lifespans. Demand for LFP batteries is increasing in energy storage systems (ESS), particularly as electricity requirements rise with the expansion of AI data centers. 

To address this growing demand, POSCO is expanding its product portfolio beyond its existing NCM and NCA cathode materials. The company recently completed the conversion of part of its high-nickel cathode production lines at its Pohang plant to manufacture LFP cathode materials. Mass production and supply are expected to begin by the end of 2026. 

POSCO has also planned to improve the cost competitiveness and quality of its LFP cathode materials by adopting a new production process using lithium sourced from salt lakes in Argentina. 

POSCO Expands Battery Material CapacityBeyond LFP cathode materials, POSCO is pursuing additional investments to strengthen its cathode and anode material businesses. The company signed a KRW 1 trillion long-term supply agreement for synthetic graphite anode materials with a global automaker in March 2026 and plans to invest approximately KRW 357 billion in a new synthetic graphite anode material plant in Vietnam. 

Meanwhile, a spherical graphite processing plant is under construction at the Saemangeum National Industrial Complex in Jeonbuk. The facility is expected to begin trial operations in early 2027, followed by completion and full-scale mass production in the second half of 2027. 

Per PKX, the initiatives align with POSCO Group’s “Triple-Core” growth strategy, which focuses on industrial resources, strategic resources such as lithium and battery materials, and energy resources. The company aims to leverage its technology, supply-chain capabilities and diversified product portfolio to strengthen its competitiveness. 

Price Performance of PKXShares of PKX have risen 20.7% over the past year compared with the industry’s 24.7% decline.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

PKX’s Zacks Rank & Key PicksPKX carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) at present.

Some better-ranked stocks in the Conglomerates space are Grupo Cibest S.A. (CIB - Free Report) , ITT Inc. (ITT - Free Report) and Griffon Corporation (GFF - Free Report) . CIB sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) at present, while both ITT and GFF carry a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for CIB’s current-year earnings is pegged at $10.87 per share, indicating a 48.7% year-over-year decrease. Its earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in two of the trailing four quarters and missed twice, with the average surprise being 12.1%.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for ITT’s current-year earnings is pegged at $8.25 per share, indicating a 22.8% year-over-year increase. Its earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the trailing four quarters, with the average surprise being 7.4%.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for GFF’s current fiscal-year earnings is pegged at $5.41 per share. Its earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in three of the trailing four quarters and missed once, with the average surprise being 6.6%.

Realty Income Corp. (O - Free Report) is one of the stocks most watched by Zacks.com visitors lately. So, it might be a good idea to review some of the factors that might affect the near-term performance of the stock.

Shares of this real estate investment trust have returned -11.1% over the past month versus the Zacks S&P 500 composite's +1.4% change. The Zacks REIT and Equity Trust - Retail industry, to which Realty Income Corp. belongs, has lost 4.5% over this period. Now the key question is: Where could the stock be headed in the near term?

Although media reports or rumors about a significant change in a company's business prospects usually cause its stock to trend and lead to an immediate price change, there are always certain fundamental factors that ultimately drive the buy-and-hold decision.

Earnings Estimate RevisionsRather than focusing on anything else, we at Zacks prioritize evaluating the change in a company's earnings projection. This is because we believe the fair value for its stock is determined by the present value of its future stream of earnings.

We essentially look at how sell-side analysts covering the stock are revising their earnings estimates to reflect the impact of the latest business trends. And if earnings estimates go up for a company, the fair value for its stock goes up. A higher fair value than the current market price drives investors' interest in buying the stock, leading to its price moving higher. This is why empirical research shows a strong correlation between trends in earnings estimate revisions and near-term stock price movements.

For the current quarter, Realty Income Corp. is expected to post earnings of $1.11 per share, indicating a change of +2.8% from the year-ago quarter. The Zacks Consensus Estimate has changed +0.2% over the last 30 days.

For the current fiscal year, the consensus earnings estimate of $4.42 points to a change of +3.3% from the prior year. Over the last 30 days, this estimate has changed -0.2%.

For the next fiscal year, the consensus earnings estimate of $4.59 indicates a change of +3.7% from what Realty Income Corp. is expected to report a year ago. Over the past month, the estimate has changed +0.1%.

Having a strong externally audited track record, our proprietary stock rating tool, the Zacks Rank, offers a more conclusive picture of a stock's price direction in the near term, since it effectively harnesses the power of earnings estimate revisions. Due to the size of the recent change in the consensus estimate, along with three other factors related to earnings estimates, Realty Income Corp. is rated Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

The chart below shows the evolution of the company's forward 12-month consensus EPS estimate:

12 Month EPS

Projected Revenue GrowthWhile earnings growth is arguably the most superior indicator of a company's financial health, nothing happens as such if a business isn't able to grow its revenues. After all, it's nearly impossible for a company to increase its earnings for an extended period without increasing its revenues. So, it's important to know a company's potential revenue growth.

For Realty Income Corp., the consensus sales estimate for the current quarter of $1.58 billion indicates a year-over-year change of +7.6%. For the current and next fiscal years, $6.3 billion and $6.84 billion estimates indicate +9.6% and +8.4% changes, respectively.

Last Reported Results and Surprise HistoryRealty Income Corp. reported revenues of $1.55 billion in the last reported quarter, representing a year-over-year change of +9.7%. EPS of $0.37 for the same period compares with $1.05 a year ago.

Compared to the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.54 billion, the reported revenues represent a surprise of +0.69%. The EPS surprise was 0%.

Over the last four quarters, Realty Income Corp. surpassed consensus EPS estimates two times. The company topped consensus revenue estimates each time over this period.

ValuationNo investment decision can be efficient without considering a stock's valuation. Whether a stock's current price rightly reflects the intrinsic value of the underlying business and the company's growth prospects is an essential determinant of its future price performance.

While comparing the current values of a company's valuation multiples, such as price-to-earnings (P/E), price-to-sales (P/S), and price-to-cash flow (P/CF), with its own historical values helps determine whether its stock is fairly valued, overvalued, or undervalued, comparing the company relative to its peers on these parameters gives a good sense of the reasonability of the stock's price.

As part of the Zacks Style Scores system, the Zacks Value Style Score (which evaluates both traditional and unconventional valuation metrics) organizes stocks into five groups ranging from A to F (A is better than B; B is better than C; and so on), making it helpful in identifying whether a stock is overvalued, rightly valued, or temporarily undervalued.

Realty Income Corp. is graded C on this front, indicating that it is trading at par with its peers. Click here to see the values of some of the valuation metrics that have driven this grade.

Bottom LineThe facts discussed here and much other information on Zacks.com might help determine whether or not it's worthwhile paying attention to the market buzz about Realty Income Corp.. However, its Zacks Rank #3 does suggest that it may perform in line with the broader market in the near term.

Duke Energy (DUK - Free Report) is one of the stocks most watched by Zacks.com visitors lately. So, it might be a good idea to review some of the factors that might affect the near-term performance of the stock.

Over the past month, shares of this electric utility have returned -4.6%, compared to the Zacks S&P 500 composite's +1.4% change. During this period, the Zacks Utility - Electric Power industry, which Duke Energy falls in, has lost 4.2%. The key question now is: What could be the stock's future direction?

While media releases or rumors about a substantial change in a company's business prospects usually make its stock 'trending' and lead to an immediate price change, there are always some fundamental facts that eventually dominate the buy-and-hold decision-making.

Earnings Estimate RevisionsRather than focusing on anything else, we at Zacks prioritize evaluating the change in a company's earnings projection. This is because we believe the fair value for its stock is determined by the present value of its future stream of earnings.

Our analysis is essentially based on how sell-side analysts covering the stock are revising their earnings estimates to take the latest business trends into account. When earnings estimates for a company go up, the fair value for its stock goes up as well. And when a stock's fair value is higher than its current market price, investors tend to buy the stock, resulting in its price moving upward. Because of this, empirical studies indicate a strong correlation between trends in earnings estimate revisions and short-term stock price movements.

Duke Energy is expected to post earnings of $1.85 per share for the current quarter, representing a year-over-year change of +2.2%. Over the last 30 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate has changed -2.1%.

For the current fiscal year, the consensus earnings estimate of $6.72 points to a change of +6.5% from the prior year. Over the last 30 days, this estimate has remained unchanged.

For the next fiscal year, the consensus earnings estimate of $7.16 indicates a change of +6.5% from what Duke Energy is expected to report a year ago. Over the past month, the estimate has remained unchanged.

With an impressive externally audited track record, our proprietary stock rating tool -- the Zacks Rank -- is a more conclusive indicator of a stock's near-term price performance, as it effectively harnesses the power of earnings estimate revisions. The size of the recent change in the consensus estimate, along with three other factors related to earnings estimates, has resulted in a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) for Duke Energy.

The chart below shows the evolution of the company's forward 12-month consensus EPS estimate:

12 Month EPS

Revenue Growth ForecastWhile earnings growth is arguably the most superior indicator of a company's financial health, nothing happens as such if a business isn't able to grow its revenues. After all, it's nearly impossible for a company to increase its earnings for an extended period without increasing its revenues. So, it's important to know a company's potential revenue growth.

In the case of Duke Energy, the consensus sales estimate of $8.86 billion for the current quarter points to a year-over-year change of +3.7%. The $33.79 billion and $35.59 billion estimates for the current and next fiscal years indicate changes of +4.8% and +5.3%, respectively.

Last Reported Results and Surprise HistoryDuke Energy reported revenues of $7.59 billion in the last reported quarter, representing a year-over-year change of +1.1%. EPS of $1.43 for the same period compares with $1.25 a year ago.

Compared to the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $7.71 billion, the reported revenues represent a surprise of -1.59%. The EPS surprise was +10.85%.

Over the last four quarters, Duke Energy surpassed consensus EPS estimates three times. The company topped consensus revenue estimates three times over this period.

ValuationNo investment decision can be efficient without considering a stock's valuation. Whether a stock's current price rightly reflects the intrinsic value of the underlying business and the company's growth prospects is an essential determinant of its future price performance.

Comparing the current value of a company's valuation multiples, such as its price-to-earnings (P/E), price-to-sales (P/S), and price-to-cash flow (P/CF), to its own historical values helps ascertain whether its stock is fairly valued, overvalued, or undervalued, whereas comparing the company relative to its peers on these parameters gives a good sense of how reasonable its stock price is.

As part of the Zacks Style Scores system, the Zacks Value Style Score (which evaluates both traditional and unconventional valuation metrics) organizes stocks into five groups ranging from A to F (A is better than B; B is better than C; and so on), making it helpful in identifying whether a stock is overvalued, rightly valued, or temporarily undervalued.

Duke Energy is graded C on this front, indicating that it is trading at par with its peers. Click here to see the values of some of the valuation metrics that have driven this grade.

ConclusionThe facts discussed here and much other information on Zacks.com might help determine whether or not it's worthwhile paying attention to the market buzz about Duke Energy. However, its Zacks Rank #3 does suggest that it may perform in line with the broader market in the near term.