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Sony Is Going All-Digital—But Investors Should Watch This InsteadSouthern NYSE: SO reported second-quarter 2026 adjusted earnings of $1.13 per share, up $0.21 from the prior-year period and $0.13 above the company’s estimate, as higher electricity usage, customer growth and construction-related earnings supported results.

Chief Financial Officer David Poroch said first-half adjusted earnings totaled $2.46 per share, above the company’s year-to-date expectations. Southern now expects full-year adjusted earnings to be near or at the top of its $4.50 to $4.60 per-share guidance range and provided a third-quarter adjusted EPS estimate of $1.65.

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Large-load contracts drive growth outlook Microsoft’s Xbox Problem Is Bigger Than a Console WarChairman, President and CEO Chris Womack said economic-development activity and power demand across the Southeast remained strong, particularly from data centers and other large-load customers.

During the quarter, Alabama Power added roughly 3 gigawatts through three projects, while Georgia Power signed a 25-year, 3.2-gigawatt electric-service agreement with OpenAI for a site near Savannah, Georgia. The OpenAI project is expected to begin taking service in phases beginning in 2028 and includes 1 gigawatt of flexible demand response.

How the Memory Shortage Is Crushing the Gaming IndustryWomack said the four projects together represent 6 gigawatts of newly contracted load. Including prior agreements, Southern’s electric subsidiaries now have more than 17 gigawatts of contracts and large-load agreements expected by the mid-2030s.

The company’s prospective pipeline of large industrial and data-center projects remains above 75 gigawatts. Beyond the 17 gigawatts already contracted, Southern identified another 8 gigawatts of projects in late stages, including 3 gigawatts it expects could be finalized in the near term. Poroch said several of those prospective projects are likely to start ramping in 2028 and continue into the next decade.

Southern’s systemwide data-center load exceeded 1.2 gigawatts during the quarter, an increase of more than 500 megawatts from a year earlier. Data-center usage rose 55% from the second quarter of 2025 and was up 49% year to date, according to Poroch.

Retail sales and customer additions increase Weather-normalized retail electricity sales increased 2.3% in the first half from the same period last year, which Poroch said was the company’s strongest sales growth through June in nearly two decades. Sales increased across residential, commercial and industrial customer classes.

Southern added approximately 11,000 residential electric customers during the second quarter, bringing net electric customer additions to more than 40,000 over the past year. Weather-normalized commercial sales rose 7.4% in the second quarter and were 6% higher year to date.

The company cited manufacturing and reshoring activity in Alabama, including primary metals, stone, clay, glass and pipeline-related segments, as contributors to industrial demand. Announcements in Southern’s electric territories during the quarter represented nearly $14 billion in investment and more than 3,000 jobs, led by data-center facilities in Alabama and an Amazon warehouse in Georgia, Poroch said.

Generation needs could create investment opportunities Southern said it has received approvals in recent years for 10 gigawatts of company-owned generation resources, including thermal, battery and solar assets, as well as hundreds of miles of transmission lines. Two battery sites are in service, while work continues on three combustion turbines at Plant Gaston.

Requests for proposals are underway at Alabama Power and Georgia Power for additional generation resources needed in the early 2030s. Poroch said any company-owned projects selected through the processes and approved by state public service commissions would represent incremental investment beyond Southern’s current capital plan.

Poroch said a rough rule of thumb for new generation capacity could be “about $2 billion or so” per gigawatt, covering a range of generation resources. He said spending related to potential projects could begin to enter the company’s projections around 2028, with assets potentially coming online in 2031 or 2032.

Southern also sees potential to expand investments in FERC-regulated pipeline infrastructure as electricity demand and potential gas-generation needs rise across the Southeast.

Rate protections and financing plans Womack said Southern’s large-load agreements include minimum bills designed to recover at least 100% of the incremental cost to serve customers, along with termination-payment provisions and collateral requirements. He said the structure is intended to protect existing customers and investors while supporting rate stability.

Retail base rates at Southern’s two largest subsidiaries, Georgia Power and Alabama Power, are set to remain stable until 2029, according to the company. Womack said the OpenAI project’s demand-response capability can help reduce peak demand and benefit the broader system.

On financing, Poroch said Southern sourced an additional $700 million of equity through its at-the-market program during the second quarter, using forward contracts that can settle through 2028. The company said its projected remaining equity need through 2030 has declined to $1.1 billion and reiterated its goal of reaching roughly 17% funds from operations to debt by 2029.

Southern Power is also discussing opportunities to recontract assets as existing tolling arrangements expire. Womack said potential new agreements would involve energy and capacity under long-term power-purchase agreements rather than typical tolling structures.

About Southern (NYSE:SO)Southern Company NYSE: SO is an Atlanta-based energy holding company that provides electric and gas utility services and owns power generation assets across the United States. Founded in 1945, the company operates a portfolio of regulated electric utilities and affiliated businesses that generate, transmit and distribute electricity to residential, commercial and industrial customers.

Southern's principal regulated electric subsidiaries include Georgia Power, Alabama Power and Mississippi Power, which serve large portions of the southeastern United States.

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3 transportation stocks gearing up for a new rallyTrinity Industries NYSE: TRN reported second-quarter earnings per share from continuing operations of $1.25, supported by a $132 million pre-tax, non-cash gain related to its Napier Park railcar partnership transaction. The company said its leasing business maintained high utilization and improved pricing indicators, while its Rail Products segment faced production and manufacturing-footprint disruptions that pressured margins.

Chief Executive Officer and President Jean Savage said the company’s results reflected “the successful completion of our Napier Park partnership transaction alongside execution headwinds in Rail Products that are specific and transitional.” Trinity maintained its full-year EPS outlook of $2.20 to $2.40 and its expectation for Rail Products segment margins of 5% to 6%, though it now expects results at the lower end of that range.

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Napier Park Transaction Reshapes Leasing Financials Markets Are Loving These Stocks 'Firing On All Cylinders'In the second quarter, Trinity contributed its remaining membership interest in the Tribute partially owned fleet in exchange for an 11.2% limited partnership interest in Napier Park SPE Holdings. The Tribute fleet is now managed by Trinity, while the company no longer has a direct ownership interest in TRIP Holdings.

Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Eric Marchetto said the transaction generated the $132 million non-cash pre-tax gain because the fleet’s book value was below its market value. The deal also simplified Trinity’s financial statements, including the deconsolidation of assets and debt associated with TRIP Holdings.

3 Reasons Oshkosh Stock is Headed to New HeightsQuarterly revenue was $485 million, down slightly from both the prior quarter and a year earlier, primarily because partially owned leasing subsidiaries were deconsolidated as their railcars shifted to Trinity’s managed fleet. Trinity also recorded an $8 million gain from $31 million in lease portfolio sales during the quarter.

Trinity’s wholly owned railcar fleet totaled 96,280 railcars as of June 30, while its investor-owned managed fleet totaled 50,650 railcars. Marchetto said the Napier Park investment will be accounted for under the equity method and reported in other assets and other income rather than through Trinity’s segment results.

Leasing Metrics Improve Despite Smaller Consolidated Fleet The Leasing and Services segment’s fleet utilization was 97.3% in the second quarter. Renewal success rates rose to 75% from 60% in the first quarter, while the future lease rate differential increased to positive 3.5% from positive 1.2%.

Savage said the future lease rate differential has been positive for 20 consecutive quarters and should support continued lease-rate growth as renewals are completed. She cited high utilization, increased renewal rates, inflation and rising material costs as factors supporting additional pricing.

Leasing segment operating margin was 79.8%, including the Napier Park gain. Excluding that gain, Leasing and Services margin was 33%, reflecting higher maintenance and depreciation expense, the effects of a smaller consolidated fleet and disposal charges tied to the exit of certain logistics solutions locations.

Trinity reported $1 billion in liquidity and approximately $900 million in unencumbered fleet value. During the quarter, it amended and extended its $600 million corporate revolver and refinanced certain secured railcar equipment notes. The company said the financing raised the loan-to-value ratio on its wholly owned lease fleet to 70.8%, slightly above its targeted range, reflecting higher fleet market values associated with improved lease rates.

Rail Products Margin Pressured by Production Disruptions Rail Products received orders for 1,560 railcars and delivered 1,570 railcars in the quarter, ending the period with a $1.6 billion backlog and a book-to-bill ratio just below one. Trinity said it holds just under half of the industry backlog.

The segment’s operating margin was 1.3%, as an unplanned production interruption at Trinity’s Longview manufacturing facility and temporary expenses related to realigning its Mexico manufacturing footprint reduced margin by roughly 270 basis points. Excluding those items, underlying margin was in the 4% range, according to Savage.

Savage said the Longview disruption followed the tragic loss of an employee. She said Trinity has reinforced safety programs and is reviewing opportunities to strengthen its processes, while declining to discuss specifics of the incident.

The company also experienced delayed deliveries due to the disruptions, but Savage said those deliveries were not lost and are expected to move into later periods. Trinity expects higher Rail Products deliveries in the second half than in the first half, providing operating leverage and supporting its full-year margin outlook. The company does not expect large quarter-to-quarter margin swings in the second half.

Trinity continues to consolidate and automate Longview operations, transitioning from two facilities to one. The company expects the project to be completed in early 2027.

Outlook Includes Higher Industry Deliveries in 2027 Management continues to expect approximately 25,000 industry railcar deliveries in 2026, which Marchetto said remains below replacement levels. Trinity lowered its expected net lease fleet investment range slightly to $300 million to $400 million and continues to project $160 million to $180 million in gains. The company had booked $162 million in gains year to date, implying limited secondary-market sales during the second half.

For 2027, Marchetto said Trinity currently anticipates industry deliveries could increase to about 35,000 units, though additional order activity will be needed to support that level. He said rail traffic, manufacturing indicators and low railcar storage levels support management’s view that market momentum is improving.

Trinity also announced that it acquired a 32% interest in Touax Texmaco Railcar Leasing Private Limited, a joint venture with Touax Group and Texmaco Rail & Engineering Limited focused on India. The company does not expect a material profit-and-loss contribution from the venture in 2026 as it continues building its fleet.

On tariffs, Savage said Trinity has filed a formal ruling request with U.S. Customs and Border Protection asserting a Section 232 exemption for its North American-made tank cars. She said the company’s contracts generally include escalation provisions that would allow tariff-related costs to be passed through to customers if applicable.

About Trinity Industries (NYSE:TRN)Trinity Industries, Inc is a diversified industrial company headquartered in Dallas, Texas, with roots dating back to its incorporation in 1933. The company principally serves the transportation, infrastructure and energy sectors through the design, manufacture and leasing of railcars and related components. Trinity operates multiple business segments that encompass railcar manufacturing, aftermarket parts production, railcar leasing and management, inland barge construction and leasing, as well as infrastructure products for highways and energy applications.

In its railcar segment, Trinity produces a broad portfolio of freight cars—including tank cars, covered hoppers, gondolas and autoracks—alongside critical system components such as braking systems, couplers and wheels.

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TLDR Hyperliquid HIP-4 now lets testnet developers deploy standardized outcome markets after staking 100 HYPE, without auctions or gas charges. HYPE price slipped below $55 and tested the $52 to $54 support zone as lower highs, lower lows, and whale transfers increased selling concerns. Hyperliquid burned about 26,080 HYPE worth nearly $1.43 million in 24 hours while protocol fees reached approximately $1.47 million. The preliminary mainnet model still proposes a 500,000 HYPE stake, six-month lock, validator slashing, and approved templates for market creation. Hyperliquid HIP-4 has entered a new testnet phase, allowing developers to deploy outcome markets through approved templates. The rollout expands Hyperliquid’s prediction-market framework beyond validator-created contracts while keeping settlement rules standardized. Developers currently stake 100 HYPE to register as deployers and can launch markets without auctions or gas charges. 

The update arrives as HYPE price trades near $53.50 after losing the $55 level. Large token transfers to institutional trading platforms have also raised supply concerns. Meanwhile, Hyperliquid burned about 26,080 HYPE during the past day. Protocol fees reached roughly $1.47 million, supporting its continuing buyback-and-burn mechanism during the reported period.

Hyperliquid Price (HYPE/USD) Hyperliquid HIP-4 Expands Permissionless Testnet Markets Hyperliquid HIP-4 lets registered builders select validator-approved templates, then define an underlying asset, target level, and expiry. Each template fixes important wording, side names, and keywords. That structure reduces duplicate markets carrying slightly different language or settlement conditions.

The current testnet limits each deployer to 10 active outcomes and 50 deployments daily. Hyperliquid plans to add configurable fees and additional templates after developers test market creation and settlement. Its updated documentation now exposes outcome metadata through a testnet-only application programming interface.

Hyperliquid first introduced HIP-4 outcome contracts as fully collateralized products that settle within a fixed range. They do not use leverage or liquidations. Initial contracts focused on recurring binary outcomes tied to HyperCore mark prices.

The wider permissionless design follows a preliminary framework announced on July 20. Hyperliquid proposed a 500,000 HYPE stake for mainnet deployers, a six-month lock, and validator-controlled slashing. Validators could penalize poorly defined markets, incorrect settlements, or contracts left unsettled beyond one week. Those mainnet terms remain preliminary and differ from the lower testnet requirement.

HIP-4 activity remains small after sports-related contracts lost demand following the World Cup. Market data placed open interest near $182,000 and notional volume around $881,000. Permissionless creation could broaden listings toward economic data, elections, crypto prices, and other measurable events.

HYPE Price Holds $52 to $54 as Whale Transfers Increase Meanwhile, the HYPE price has formed lower highs and lower lows after retreating from the $60 region. The token traded near $53.50, placing the $52 to $54 support band under pressure. That area also matches a June swing low.

A four-hour close below $52 would weaken the current structure. A failed recovery above that level could expose $48 to $50. Further selling could return attention to the earlier $44 to $46 demand zone. However, a rebound above $58 to $60, followed by a higher low, would reduce immediate downside pressure.

Large transfers have complicated the short-term HYPE price setup. Lookonchain previously recorded institutional unstaking and exchange-related movements during July, including deposits to Coinbase Prime. The tracker also reported 1.96 million HYPE unstaked across three Multicoin Capital wallets. Multicoin later said wallet rotation, rather than selling, motivated at least part of its activity.

Separate wallet movements included HYPE deposits to FalconX and Coinbase Prime. Transfers to brokerage or custody platforms can support over-the-counter execution, asset rotation, or sales. Blockchain movements alone cannot confirm a disposal.

Hyperliquid’s fee system continues removing tokens from the circulating supply. A tracker read the protocol’s assistance-fund address on July 27. It showed about 46.05 million HYPE at the burn address. That balance represented roughly 4.6% of the original one-billion-token maximum supply.

The latest reported daily burn added about 26,080 HYPE, valued near $1.43 million at the recorded price. Protocol fees reached about $1.47 million during the same period. The burn reduces supply, while whale transfers increase the amount potentially available for institutional execution. Mainnet still lacks a confirmed launch date, leaving broader developer participation dependent on future testnet results and validator feedback.

https://www.economist.com/finance-and-economics/2025/12/04/bitcoin-has-plunged-strategy-inc-is-an-early-victim

Strategy Inc., led by Michael Saylor, has announced a substantial increase in its Bitcoin holdings and a significant rise in STRC issuance this year. The company reported purchasing 48 times more Bitcoin than it has sold, while issuing 300 times more STRC than it has repurchased. This activity comes as Strategy continues its approach of managing liquidity through a combination of stock sales, preferred-share issuance, and selective Bitcoin sales.

Strategy’s recent disclosures indicate a relative slowdown in Bitcoin sales compared to purchases, suggesting a focus on accumulating the cryptocurrency. The company held approximately 843,775 BTC by early July and had repurchased 288,930 STRC shares, maintaining a strong cash reserve. The firm’s capital allocation approach appears to prioritize Bitcoin accumulation and STRC issuance to support its financial strategies.

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Market participants appear to interpret these moves as potentially supportive of STRC price increases, although recent market odds for STRC reaching $100 by December 31 have slipped slightly, now priced at 32% YES, a decrease from previous levels. This reflects uncertainty about whether the company’s aggressive Bitcoin acquisition strategy will translate into the anticipated market outcomes for STRC.

Key Takeaways Strategy Inc.’s Bitcoin purchases appear to exceed its sales significantly, indicating an accumulation-focused approach. The substantial issuance of STRC suggests a strategic use of equity to manage liquidity and support financial operations. Market pricing suggests participants are evaluating the impact of these actions on STRC’s potential to reach $100 by year-end. What to Watch Watch for any future announcements from Strategy Inc. regarding further Bitcoin acquisitions or changes in STRC issuance strategies. Any significant increase in Bitcoin purchases or strategic shifts could influence market perceptions and pricing of STRC. Additionally, updates on the company’s financial performance and strategic direction under Michael Saylor’s leadership may impact market expectations for STRC’s potential price movements.

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Term Structure

Contract Odds Δ since publish Volume 24h December 31 32% — — View market → September 30 15% — — View market →

Sony Is Going All-Digital—But Investors Should Watch This InsteadSony NYSE: SONY reported record first-quarter sales and operating income for fiscal 2026, raised its full-year sales, operating income and net-income forecasts, and said it expects most of an estimated ¥80 billion in U.S. tariff refunds to benefit results during the current fiscal year.

For the quarter ended June 30, consolidated sales rose 8% year over year to ¥2.84 trillion, while operating income increased 40% to ¥476.5 billion. Net income climbed 32% to ¥342.2 billion. CFO Lin Tao said sales and operating income were both first-quarter records.

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Microsoft’s Xbox Problem Is Bigger Than a Console WarSony lifted its fiscal-year sales forecast by 2% to ¥12.5 trillion and raised its operating-income outlook by 8% to ¥1.72 trillion. Its net-income forecast increased 4% to ¥1.21 trillion, while the operating cash flow outlook remained unchanged at ¥1.5 trillion.

Tao said Sony expects approximately ¥80 billion in refunds of U.S. tariffs paid by the group during the fiscal year. Most of that amount was incorporated into the higher consolidated operating-income forecast. During the investor question-and-answer session, management said roughly 70% of the expected refund was recognized in the first quarter, with the largest share benefiting the Game & Network Services business and the remainder going to Imaging & Sensing Solutions.

Earthquake Impact Not Included in Forecast How the Memory Shortage Is Crushing the Gaming IndustryThe company said its semiconductor facilities in Kumamoto Prefecture and neighboring regions were affected by the July 28 Kumamoto earthquake. Sony reported no casualties other than several minor injuries.

The Kumamoto Technology Center in Kikuyo Town, which was near the epicenter and experienced seismic intensity of 5+, suspended production immediately after the quake. Tao said the site was scheduled to gradually resume production beginning Aug. 4 and return to pre-earthquake output levels by mid-August. Production had already resumed at sites in Nagasaki, Oita and Kagoshima, where Sony said there was no significant damage to buildings or equipment.

Sony did not include earthquake effects in its full-year outlook because the financial impact could not yet be reasonably estimated. Tao said the company did not expect the event to have a major effect on full-year semiconductor results, citing a lower level of damage than the Kumamoto earthquake a decade earlier, strengthened seismic resistance at facilities and lessons from prior business-continuity planning.

Gaming Profit Rises as Sony Plans Disc Production End Game & Network Services first-quarter sales were essentially flat at ¥937.1 billion, while operating income rose 37% to ¥202 billion. The profit increase was primarily driven by U.S. tariff refunds, partly offset by higher costs, including investment in the next-generation platform and restructuring expenses.

Sony increased its full-year G&NS sales outlook by 3% to ¥4.54 trillion, primarily due to foreign exchange rates, and raised its operating-income forecast by 10% to ¥660 billion. The company also cited tariff refunds and additional cost improvements.

Monthly active users across the PlayStation platform rose 2% year over year to a June record of 125 million accounts. Total play time declined 4%, which management attributed to a comparison period that benefited from season updates to major titles and new hit releases. Tao said engagement remained solid and could improve as major first- and third-party titles are scheduled for release toward the end of the calendar year.

Sony said it has secured the memory required to meet projected PS5 sales volume in the current fiscal year and continues to expect hardware profitability comparable with the prior year.

During the media session, Tao confirmed Sony will stop manufacturing game discs from January 2028. She said the decision reflected broader digitalization of content and that the company does not currently anticipate a negative business impact because a large share of content sales is already digital. Sony said it will continue discussions with retailers and take regional differences into account, noting that North American retailers already sell packages containing digital codes rather than discs.

Music and Image Sensors Deliver Record Quarterly Profits The Music segment posted a 21% increase in sales to ¥562 billion and a 14% increase in operating income to a first-quarter record of ¥105.9 billion. Sony cited foreign exchange, higher live-event revenue and increased recorded-music streaming revenue.

On a U.S.-dollar basis, recorded-music streaming revenue rose 10% and music-publishing streaming revenue increased 8%. Tao said streams of Michael Jackson songs increased to about four times their pre-film-release level following the global success of the movie Michael.

Sony raised its Music sales forecast 2% to ¥2.19 trillion and its operating-income forecast 5% to ¥420 billion, citing foreign exchange and consolidation of Recognition Music Group.

Imaging & Sensing Solutions sales rose 26% to ¥512.7 billion, while operating income increased approximately 2.3 times to a first-quarter record of ¥122.2 billion. Higher average selling prices for mobile sensors and foreign exchange contributed to the result.

The company raised the segment’s sales forecast by 2% to ¥2.11 trillion and operating-income forecast by 5% to ¥420 billion. However, Sony said it remains cautious on the second half because memory-market conditions could affect high-end smartphone shipments. It expects full-year mobile-sensor revenue to decline slightly from the prior fiscal year.

Sony also said discussions with TSMC toward definitive agreements for a next-generation image-sensor development and manufacturing partnership were progressing smoothly. The company included roughly ¥10 billion of additional fiscal-year costs for preparations related to the prospective joint venture.

Other Business Updates Pictures sales declined 4% to ¥315.1 billion, reflecting fewer television-series deliveries, while operating income rose 33% to ¥24.8 billion as theatrical marketing costs decreased. Sony raised its segment operating-income forecast by 3% to ¥150 billion. Crunchyroll subscribers continued to grow beyond the more than 21 million reported at the end of March, according to Tao.

Entertainment, Technology & Services sales rose 2% to ¥543.9 billion and operating income was essentially flat at ¥42.6 billion. Sony maintained its full-year forecast for the segment, while noting continued memory-price increases as a challenge.

Sony said it had repurchased approximately ¥120 billion of shares through the end of June under the repurchase facility established in May.

About Sony (NYSE:SONY)Sony Group Corporation NYSE: SONY is a Japanese multinational conglomerate headquartered in Minato, Tokyo. Founded in 1946 by Masaru Ibuka and Akio Morita, Sony has grown from an electronics maker into a diversified global company with operations spanning consumer electronics, entertainment, gaming, semiconductors and financial services. The company’s shares trade in Japan and its American Depositary Receipts trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker SONY.

Sony’s primary businesses include Electronics Products & Solutions, which covers televisions, audio equipment, digital cameras and professional broadcast systems; Game & Network Services, anchored by the PlayStation platform, consoles, software and online services; Music and Pictures, through Sony Music Entertainment and Sony Pictures Entertainment, producing, distributing and licensing recorded music, film and television content; Imaging & Sensing Solutions, which develops CMOS image sensors and other semiconductor components; and Financial Services, offering life insurance, banking and other financial products in Japan.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to [email protected].

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$XRP holders are moving their tokens off centralized exchanges at the fastest clip in more than five years, with on-chain data pointing to a broad retreat from sell-side activity even as the price lingers just above the $1 mark.

Withdrawals Hit a Multi-Year Peak On July 31, the seven-day $XRP withdrawal transaction share on Binance surged to 55.6%, the highest level since February 2021, while the same metric across all centralized exchanges reached 54%, according to CryptoQuant data. Deposit transaction shares fell to matching five-year lows of 44.3% on Binance and 45.95% across the broader market.

At the same time, exchange inflows fell to their lowest level ever recorded. Crypto analyst Darkfost observed that average monthly $XRP inflows to exchanges now stand at around 3.6 million XRP, the lowest monthly inflow figure on record. Combined with the surge in withdrawals, the on-chain metrics point toward holders unwilling to sell in large numbers, a condition Darkfost described as seller exhaustion.

Leverage and Reserves Also Pulling Back XRP futures open interest on Binance has fallen to roughly 397 million XRP, its lowest level in over three months, as the token trades around $1.09. A decline in open interest alongside price weakness often reflects deleveraging, as traders reduce or close existing positions.

Binance $XRP reserves have dropped roughly 650 million coins, or about 20%, since November 2024, falling from 2.8 billion in May to around 2.6 billion more recently. Such withdrawals can signal investors moving tokens into self-custody, though they do not automatically translate into upward price pressure without corresponding demand from fresh buyers.

The broader picture suggests a market in consolidation rather than active distribution. Holders appear reluctant to bring coins to market, leveraged bets are being unwound, and exchange supply is thinning. Whether that sets the stage for a recovery or simply reflects a lack of conviction on all sides remains an open question.

Sources:
XRP exchange withdrawals hit 5-year high: Here's what it means, CryptoNews.net
XRP exchange withdrawals hit multi-year high as selling pressure fades, AMBCrypto
XRP Open Interest on Binance Hits a Three-Month Low, Yahoo Finance

REITs Set for a 2026 Rebound? 7 Top Picks as Rate Cuts ApproachPublic Storage NYSE: PSA said its second-quarter operating trends improved and raised its 2026 guidance, while highlighting the completed acquisition of National Storage Affiliates and a planned entry into Canada through the acquisition of Public Storage Canada.

Core funds from operations totaled $4.17 per share in the second quarter, down from a year earlier and sequentially, which President and CFO Joe Fisher attributed to higher financing costs and general and administrative expenses. Same-store revenue declined 0.6% year over year and same-store net operating income fell 2.2%, though both measures exceeded the company’s internal expectations.

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These 3 Defensive Stocks Could Help Portfolios Weather a 2026 DownturnThe company reported improving forward-looking operating indicators. Average move-in rents increased 1.6%, marking the first time since 2021 that both move-in rates and occupancy rose year over year, Fisher said. Occupancy was 92.5%, up 20 basis points from the prior year, while move-in rates rose 18% from the fourth quarter of 2025.

Guidance Raised as Operating Trends Improve Public Storage raised its full-year outlook across key metrics. The company now expects same-store revenue growth at a midpoint of negative 0.2% and same-store NOI growth at a midpoint of negative 1.1%, representing improvements of 90 basis points and 110 basis points, respectively, from its previous guidance.

What are specialty REITs? How to invest in themThe revised outlook assumes positive low-double-digit new move-in rate growth, compared with a prior expectation for mid-single-digit declines, and occupancy growth of 30 basis points year over year, versus a previous assumption of flat occupancy.

Core FFO guidance was increased to a range of $16.75 to $17.05 per share, with a midpoint of $16.90, a $0.22-per-share increase from the prior forecast. Fisher said the increase reflects stronger same-store trends, lower-than-expected interest expense, and contributions from non-same-store properties and ancillary businesses, partly offset by higher G&A expenses.

Public Storage expects same-store revenue growth to improve in the second half of the year and turn positive in the fourth quarter. Fisher said the company’s performance in Los Angeles, where pricing restrictions have expired, will contribute to that improvement but will not be the sole driver. Stronger coastal and Midwestern markets, along with improving Sun Belt conditions, are also expected to help.

CEO Tom Boyle said June move-in rents were up 4% year over year, aided by a more consistent year-over-year promotional strategy, and July trends remained positive. July occupancy was up about 30 basis points year over year, according to Boyle.

NSA Integration Begins Public Storage closed its acquisition of National Storage Affiliates on July 22 and transitioned the acquired portfolio of approximately 1,100 stores and 575,000 units to Public Storage systems overnight, Boyle said. The company also welcomed more than 1,300 former NSA employees.

On the first day after closing, Public Storage completed more than 1,500 reservations, transitioned 265,000 autopay accounts, began rent collections and started temporary rebranding efforts, according to Boyle.

Management said the integration has identified additional expansion opportunities. Boyle said the company found approximately 14,000 units that could be restored to inventory through repair-and-maintenance spending, creating incremental availability in the second half of 2026. The company has also identified opportunities to expand some existing NSA properties.

Public Storage maintained its expectation that NSA and the planned Canadian transaction would be neutral to Core FFO in 2026 before financing effects. Fisher said the company now expects approximately $0.02 per share of positive Core FFO impact this year from financing benefits associated with the two transactions. The benefit is primarily tied to the ability to finance part of the NSA acquisition using lower-cost Canadian borrowing after the Canadian deal closes.

NSA generated year-to-date NOI growth of 2.4%, driven by occupancy improvement and expense controls, Fisher said. Its year-to-date Core FFO was $1.14 per share, which Public Storage said was ahead of consensus expectations.

Canadian Acquisition and Capital Deployment Public Storage expects to close its $1.2 billion acquisition of Public Storage Canada in the third quarter. The Canadian portfolio is the country’s third largest and is concentrated in Toronto and Vancouver, with properties in infill locations. Boyle said the Canadian self-storage market has per-capita supply of about 2.5, below U.S. levels.

The transaction is expected to be funded with about $900 million in operating partnership units and roughly $300 million in Canadian debt. The seller also may receive additional OP units through earn-out provisions tied to future NOI performance.

Fisher said the portfolio has 83% occupancy and 65% NOI margins, presenting potential upside through the company’s PS Next operating platform. The Canadian OP-unit issuance will allow Public Storage to finance an equivalent portion of the NSA acquisition at Canadian rates more than 100 basis points below the U.S. financing levels used in the original underwriting, he said.

Elsewhere, the company said it had acquired or placed under contract more than $450 million of properties year to date, with about 70% of that activity conducted off market. Management said it has increasingly targeted recently developed lease-up properties, which can be dilutive to near-term FFO but may offer higher stabilized returns.

Development pipeline: $692 million across 47 projects, with targeted stabilized yields of 8%. Remaining development funding: $432 million. Lending platform: $173 million outstanding, up $30 million from the prior quarter, at a current rate of about 7.6%. Third-party management: 22 net new properties added during the quarter, bringing the total to more than 460 properties. Balance Sheet and Customer Initiatives Public Storage reported approximately $12 billion in capital-markets activity completed or committed year to date. During and after the quarter, it announced $5.9 billion of debt-related activity, including $1.4 billion of unsecured issuance, an expanded and extended $3 billion revolving credit facility, a new $1 billion commercial paper program and a $500 million delayed-draw term loan.

The $1.4 billion of unsecured debt carried a weighted average effective rate below 5%, Fisher said. The company also entered forward-sale agreements for nearly 800,000 shares under its at-the-market program, expected to produce nearly $260 million in future net proceeds.

At quarter-end, Public Storage had $3.8 billion of available liquidity between cash and its revolving credit facility, plus about $600 million in annual free cash flow. Net debt to EBITDA stood at 2.9 times.

Boyle said customer-focused initiatives are contributing to lower churn and improved sentiment. The company now receives roughly 90,000 customer surveys a month, compared with 2,000 to 3,000 previously. It also continues to expand digital tools: nearly 90% of customers interact with Public Storage digitally during their rental journey, while three-quarters complete their leases entirely online. Its AI-powered customer service agent, Ellie, has handled more than 90,000 customer interactions in recent months, Boyle said.

About Public Storage (NYSE:PSA)Public Storage NYSE: PSA is a real estate investment trust (REIT) that specializes in self-storage services. Headquartered in Glendale, California, the company was founded in the early 1970s and has grown through development and acquisitions to become one of the largest owner-operators of self-storage facilities in the United States. It is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker PSA.

The company's core business is the ownership, operation and management of self-storage properties that serve both residential and commercial customers.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to [email protected].

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3 2021 IPOs Likely To Notch Further Big Price Gains Ryan Specialty NYSE: RYAN reported second-quarter revenue growth of 7.2% to $917 million, supported by 6.7% organic growth and modest contributions from acquisitions, as the specialty insurance services company navigated pricing pressure in property insurance and rising competition in several markets.

Adjusted EBITDA increased 6% to $327 million, while adjusted EBITDA margin declined 40 basis points year over year to 35.7%. Adjusted earnings per share rose 12.1% to $0.74. For the first half of 2026, the company said organic revenue grew 8.9%, adjusted EBITDA increased 9.8%, and adjusted EPS rose 16.2%.

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Founder and Executive Chairman Pat Ryan said the quarter demonstrated the resilience of the company’s wholesale brokerage and delegated underwriting platform despite industry headwinds. He highlighted Ryan Specialty’s specialty-product breadth, carrier relationships and ability to develop new underwriting programs as differentiators.

Property pricing remains a headwind CEO Tim Turner said the company faced a “very challenging property pricing environment,” particularly in catastrophe-exposed and large-account business, where capacity continued to build and competition remained intense. Pricing on some catastrophe business declined materially, although Ryan Specialty’s property book fell only modestly during the quarter, better than management had expected.

Turner attributed the relative performance to strong retention, new-business wins and a better-than-expected June. He said the company continued to benefit from business flowing into the excess-and-surplus, or E&S, market, even as pricing conditions remained difficult.

In casualty, Ryan Specialty reported a strong quarter, aided by construction activity and several large project-based wins, including data center-related business. Turner cautioned that construction project activity is inherently lumpy because the timing of client binding decisions can be difficult to predict. Management said the pipeline for construction opportunities remains strong heading into the remainder of the year.

The company said casualty pricing remains firm in areas including transportation, habitational, sports and entertainment, portions of healthcare, public entity and human services. However, it is seeing increased competition and some price moderation in small and medium-hazard risks, as well as certain other market segments.

Underwriting management and new products support growth Ryan Specialty’s underwriting management operations posted what management described as an excellent quarter, with strength in transactional liability, transportation, international specialty, casualty and reinsurance. Transactional liability exceeded the company’s expectations, supported by a more constructive global mergers-and-acquisitions environment.

Ryan Re, the company’s reinsurance managing underwriter, also delivered strong renewal retention despite a difficult pricing environment. Turner said Ryan Re remains on track to place $2 billion of reinsurance premium during 2026.

Management noted continued pressure in builders risk, reflecting broader macroeconomic conditions. Its binding authority business grew revenue year over year but encountered heightened competition, particularly from new facilities competing for smaller commercial accounts. The company expects those competitive pressures to intensify in the second half.

Ryan Specialty also discussed its efforts to expand beyond traditional managing general agency and managing general underwriter activities. Pat Ryan cited reinsurance underwriting, alternative capital solutions and benefits products as businesses intended to diversify the company from the property-and-casualty cycle. He said these newer businesses remain smaller than the company’s wholesale distribution and underwriting management operations but are becoming more meaningful contributors to growth, margins and earnings.

In July, RSUM launched a Lloyd’s Consortium stamp that will take a 15% line on its syndicated business beginning Aug. 1. Turner said the initiative is designed to improve capital efficiency, support underwriting capacity and accelerate the company’s speed to market.

Guidance updated; margins expected to decline CFO Janice Hamilton said Ryan Specialty continues to expect full-year organic revenue growth in the mid-single digits for 2026, but now expects results to fall toward the higher end of that range. The outlook assumes continued property price declines, heightened competition, softer binding-authority growth and ongoing builders-risk pressure.

The company expects a moderate decline in its property book for the full year and a more normalized level of construction-project growth in the second half. Hamilton said the third quarter represents Ryan Specialty’s most difficult organic-growth comparison of the year, including comparisons against prior-year property growth and strong underwriting-management growth in transactional liability, structured solutions and reinsurance.

Ryan Specialty now expects its full-year adjusted EBITDA margin to decline by approximately 50 to 100 basis points year over year. Hamilton said the outlook reflects market conditions, continued absorption of talent investments, lower fiduciary investment income and higher healthcare and benefits costs. Those pressures are expected to be partly offset by cost discipline and early benefits from the company’s Empower operational-efficiency program.

Capital allocation and leadership changes During the quarter, Ryan Specialty repurchased approximately 8.1 million shares for $260 million and increased its repurchase authorization by $300 million. The company also repurchased $42 million of stock in July. It ended the quarter with total net leverage of 3.3 times on a credit basis, within its stated 3-times-to-4-times comfort range.

Hamilton said the company considers both acquisitions and repurchases priorities within its capital-allocation strategy, but it is unlikely to close a meaningful acquisition in 2026. Management said it is looking toward 2027 for larger acquisition opportunities, while remaining prepared to pursue assets that meet its strategic, cultural and financial criteria.

The company also announced a planned leadership succession at RT Specialty. Brendan Mulshine will become CEO of RT Specialty, while Ed McCormack will transition to vice chairman of RT Specialty.

Finally, management described ongoing technology and artificial-intelligence investments, including tools designed to accelerate reinsurance submission processing, improve treaty underwriting workflows and reduce manual property-inspection tasks. Turner said the company is using proprietary data and internal guardrails as it expands AI deployment across its operations.

About Ryan Specialty (NYSE:RYAN)Ryan Specialty Group, Inc NYSE: RYAN is a global specialty insurance and reinsurance platform that partners with a network of insurers and reinsurers to deliver tailored risk solutions. The company focuses on complex and large-scale risks across multiple industry sectors, leveraging its underwriting expertise to structure coverage programs that meet clients' unique needs.

Ryan Specialty's core offerings span a diverse range of specialty lines, including casualty, property, professional liability, marine and energy, program administration, and sports and entertainment.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to [email protected].

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Some Coinbase users found themselves in a holding pattern on July 31 when the exchange flagged delays affecting MultiversX (EGLD) transactions. Sending and receiving EGLD tokens hit a bottleneck, leaving a subset of users temporarily unable to move their funds on and off the platform.

Buying, selling, and all fiat-related operations continued working just fine throughout the disruption.

What happened and how fast it got fixed Coinbase’s investigation into the issue kicked off around 15:47 PDT. The problem was narrowly scoped to EGLD network transactions, meaning only users trying to send or receive MultiversX tokens were affected.

The engineering team identified the root cause and deployed a fix within hours on the same day. Monitoring after the fix confirmed that normal operations had resumed, and the issue was marked as resolved.

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No security breach was reported in connection with the incident. No funds were lost or compromised.

MultiversX in context For those unfamiliar, MultiversX (formerly Elrond) is a blockchain protocol built around a technology called adaptive state sharding, which splits its network into parallel processing lanes to handle more transactions simultaneously.

The protocol claims throughput of up to 15,000 transactions per second with roughly six-second latency and low fees. For comparison, Ethereum’s base layer typically handles around 15-30 TPS.

Throughout 2026, the MultiversX team has been rolling out security enhancements and network upgrades, including the introduction of “Guardians,” aimed at hardening its infrastructure. None of the publicly available information suggests that the Coinbase delay was caused by any issue on MultiversX’s own network. The problem appears to have been isolated to Coinbase’s integration layer.

MultiversX’s network continued operating normally during the window when Coinbase users were experiencing delays. No reports of congestion, downtime, or unusual activity surfaced from other platforms or on-chain monitoring tools in connection with this event.

What this means for EGLD holders and traders No adverse effects on EGLD’s trading liquidity were observed during the incident. Users could still buy and sell EGLD on Coinbase throughout the disruption. They just couldn’t move it off the exchange or receive inbound transfers for a few hours.

For anyone who was mid-transfer when the delays hit, it’s worth verifying that pending transactions have completed successfully now that operations are back to normal. Checking both the Coinbase transaction history and the MultiversX blockchain explorer for confirmation is the prudent move.

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

Solana Mobile is doubling down on its hardware-meets-crypto playbook. The company has earmarked 27 million SKR tokens for the second round of its Seeker Summer campaign, a meaningful bump from the 25 million tokens distributed in Round 1.

Claims for the Round 2 allocation opened on July 30, 2026, at 4 PM UTC. The broader Seeker Summer campaign stretches from July 7 through August 30, and we’re now firmly in the middle innings of what Solana Mobile is framing as a summer-long engagement marathon.

How the campaign actually works Seeker Summer is structured into four two-week rounds, each packed with daily app drops, quests, and badges available through the Solana dApp Store.

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The quest format keeps things specific. Round 2 features integrations with apps like Moonwalk Fitness, which requires participants to deposit 100 MF tokens by July 28 to unlock badges and additional rewards.

Over 50% of the SKR rewards distributed during Round 1 were staked shortly after they became available. When more than half of recipients choose to lock up tokens rather than sell them, it suggests participants see longer-term value in holding, or at minimum, that the staking incentives are compelling enough to delay gratification.

The bigger picture for Solana’s mobile strategy The Seeker Summer campaign is essentially Solana Mobile’s answer to a fundamental hardware problem: how do you keep people using a crypto-native phone after the initial novelty wears off? The strategy is straightforward. Flood the device with app integrations, reward users for actually engaging with those apps, and create enough ongoing activity that the dApp Store becomes a daily habit rather than a one-time curiosity.

SKR serves as the primary incentive mechanism within the campaign, with a capped supply of 10 billion tokens and functions including staking to Guardians and app selection in the dApp Store. Rather than distributing a grab bag of different partner tokens, Solana Mobile is using a single asset to unify the reward structure.

By routing quests through third-party applications like Moonwalk Fitness, Solana Mobile is effectively acting as a user acquisition funnel for Solana-native projects. The apps get exposure and active users, Solana Mobile gets engagement metrics, and participants get token rewards.

What this means for investors The staking behavior from Round 1 is the most interesting data point for anyone watching SKR as an investable asset. When users voluntarily lock up over half of a token distribution, it creates natural supply constraints. If that pattern repeats across Rounds 2 through 4, the effective circulating supply of SKR could remain significantly below the total distributed amount.

The escalating token allocations also deserve scrutiny. Moving from 25 million to 27 million tokens per round sounds modest, but across four rounds, the total distribution adds up. Investors should pay attention to whether the increased supply is being absorbed by genuine demand or simply diluting existing holders.

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

Transaction establishes a banking foundation for Freedom's integrated financial and digital ecosystem in Türkiye

ISTANBUL, TR / ACCESS Newswire / July 31, 2026 / Freedom Holding Corp. (NASDAQ:FRHC), an international diversified financial services group operating in more than 20 countries, today announced that, through its subsidiary Freedom Finansal Hizmetler A.Ş., it has completed the acquisition of 99.32% of the share capital of Turkish Bank A.Ş.

Following completion of the transaction, the financial institution changed its corporate name to Freedom Bank A.Ş. The relevant resolution has been submitted to the Turkish Trade Registry for registration.

The closing follows the receipt of the required approvals from Türkiye's Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency and the Turkish competition authority. It marks Freedom Holding Corp.'s formal entry into the Turkish banking sector and represents an important step in the Group's strategy to build an integrated financial and digital services platform in Türkiye.

Under the transaction, Freedom acquired the 99.32% interest in the Bank previously held by entities affiliated with Özyol Holding A.Ş. and National Bank of Kuwait.

Immediately following the transfer of the shares, a general meeting of shareholders was held, at which a new board of directors was elected.

The Board of Directors of Freedom Bank A.Ş. includes H. Cenk Eynehan, Furkan Evranos, Ayşe Hale Yıldırım and Timur Turlov, founder and Chief Executive Officer of Freedom Holding Corp.

The acquisition, together with the development of Freedom's brokerage and capital markets operations in Türkiye, provides the foundation for the Group to offer a broader range of services to retail, affluent and high-net-worth clients, as well as small and medium-sized businesses and corporate clients.

Freedom plans to develop a comprehensive ecosystem of financial and everyday services in Türkiye, with the Bank at its center.

"In Kazakhstan, we have built an ecosystem in which financial and everyday services operate through a single SuperApp that has become the country's fastest-growing digital service," said Timur Turlov, founder and Chief Executive Officer of Freedom Holding Corp. "We are now bringing this model to Türkiye, where clients already have high expectations of their banks, setting a high standard for us. Our task over the coming years is to strengthen the Bank's capital base and technological capabilities so that an ecosystem can develop rapidly around it."

In Kazakhstan, Freedom's ecosystem brings together banking, brokerage, insurance, payments and investment services, as well as a growing range of lifestyle products, including e-commerce, travel, ticketing and entertainment services. Freedom's ecosystem serves more than 14 million customers across banking, brokerage, insurance, lifestyle and other businesses as of March 2026.

The Group intends to apply the experience gained through the development of this platform to Türkiye while adapting its products, technology and client experience to the needs and expectations of the local market. Freedom plans to implement a modernization and growth program focused on strengthening the Bank's capital position, upgrading its technology infrastructure, expanding digital client channels, developing new products and improving operational efficiency.

The acquisition of the Bank complements Freedom's expansion in Türkiye's capital markets sector. Freedom Yatırım Menkul Değerler A.Ş. was established following the receipt of an establishment license from the Capital Markets Board of Türkiye and is being developed as the Group's local brokerage platform. The Bank and Freedom's brokerage and capital markets operations are expected to form the core of a broader platform serving individuals, entrepreneurs and businesses through a combination of financial products, technology and everyday digital services.

About Freedom Holding Corp.

Freedom Holding Corp. provides financial services in 22 countries, including Kazakhstan, the United States, Cyprus, Poland, Spain, Uzbekistan, and Armenia. The Company's principal executive office is located in New York City. In Kazakhstan, Freedom is actively developing its financial and digital ecosystem, which includes Freedom Bank, Freedom Broker, the insurance companies Freedom Life and Freedom insurance, as well as a lifestyle segment that features Arbuz.kz, Freedom Ticketon, and Aviata. Freedom Holding Corp. shares are traded on the U.S. technology exchange NASDAQ, the Kazakhstan Stock Exchange (KASE), and the Astana International Exchange (AIX) under the ticker symbol FRHC. Freedom Holding Corp. is regulated by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the common stock is included in Russell 3000® Index.

Freedom Finansal Hizmetler A.Ş., a wholly owned subsidiary of Freedom Holding Corp., was established in 2022 to support the Group's expansion in Türkiye's financial services sector. The company focuses on financial consulting and investments across banking, insurance, capital markets, payment systems and other financial services, including supporting the capitalization and development of portfolio companies.

In 2025, the Capital Markets Board of Türkiye granted the company an establishment license. Freedom Yatırım Menkul Değerler A.Ş. was subsequently established and is working toward obtaining an operating brokerage license upon meeting the regulator's requirements

Turkish Bank A.Ş. is a commercial bank operating in Türkiye and a member of TurkishBank Group. The bank provides a range of financial services, including corporate, commercial and retail banking solutions.

TurkishBank Group, established in 1901, is a privately owned financial services group operating across Türkiye, the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus and the United Kingdom. The Group provides banking, financial and wealth management solutions through an international network.

Contact Information:

Natalia Kharlashina
Head of Public Relations
[email protected]
+77013641454

SOURCE: Freedom Holding Corp.

Before ChatGPT launched, Nvidia (NVDA +2.93%) was worth $386 billion.

Today, largely because of the generative AI boom unleashed by ChatGPT, the company is worth more than ten times that, currently valued at nearly $5 trillion.

Now, there's another technological revolution unfolding that Nvidia is also leading, and it could be a significant long-term driver for the stock. I'm talking about the autonomous vehicle and robotics market, or, more broadly, what CEO Jensen Huang calls physical AI.

Image source: Nvidia.

Nvidia and physical AI Nvidia is best known for its GPUs and the related components that power AI compute in the data center, but the company has also built a substantial advantage in physical AI components.

Its Jetson Thor supercomputer, for example, is widely considered the market leader for raw AI inference and robotics simulation. Nvidia sells Jetson Thor to a wide range of robotics companies, including Boston Dynamics, Amazon Robotics, Caterpillar, Deere, and others.

Those companies are using Jetson Thor for applications like computer vision to help operate robots and machines in Amazon's warehouses or agricultural fields for Deere.

Jetson Thor has also been adopted by tech companies like Meta and OpenAI, as well as healthcare companies like Medtronic.

While the robotics market is growing rapidly, the bigger prize here for Nvidia seems to be autonomous vehicles, an industry that could be approaching a tipping point. Alphabet's Waymo is now handling 500,000 weekly paid rides, more than doubling from a year ago, and it operates in 10 metro areas. Tesla's robotaxis are now available in seven cities, and other AV companies are expanding rapidly as well.

While Waymo and Tesla aren't direct AV partners of Nvidia, the chipmaker has signed up a number of key AV companies, including Uber, Toyota, Stellantis, Mercedes-Benz, and two Chinese EV makers, BYD and Geely.

Its most important automotive partnership is with Uber, as the ridesharing giant is working with Nvidia and OEMs like Stellantis to deliver at least 5,000 Level 4 autonomous vehicles for a robotaxi network. Nvidia's DRIVE AGX Hyperion AV platform will provide the brains for the AVs as it does for the other companies listed above.

What the numbers say Nvidia's automotive business is still small, reporting just $2.3 billion in revenue in fiscal 2026, which was up 39% from the year before. In fiscal 2027, which started earlier this year, Nvidia restructured its reporting segments to combine the three non-data-center segments (Gaming and AI PC; Professional Visualization; Automotive and Robotics) into one, Edge Computing.

As a result, investors won't get the same level of transparency on the automotive business, but Nvidia is providing updates on it.

Though it's small now, the physical AI business is likely to deliver returns over a longer time horizon, as Jensen Huang recently said it's now generating $10 billion in annual run rate revenue, and he sees it growing to $100 billion within the next decade.

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Nvidia is already valued at $5 trillion, and it trades at a forward P/E of just 22, less than the S&P 500, even though analysts expect revenue to grow 82% this year.

That mismatch seems to owe to the historical cyclicality of the semiconductor sector and the risk of an AI bubble. Investors are hedging their bets that Nvidia's bumper profits will eventually decline, or at least that its growth will slow significantly.

The physical AI business provides an antidote to this. It's a totally separate vertical from data centers and generative AI, and should be less cyclical, as transportation is a constant need. Additionally, the company uses a recurring software-as-a-service model for part of its AV business, including the Drive AV stack.

That could give the physical AI business a significantly higher multiple than Nvidia's hardware business, as software typically trades at a higher valuation than hardware. If it reaches $100 billion in revenue, the physical AI business could earn a market value of $2 trillion or more, depending on its growth rate and profitability.

By making Nvidia more resilient to an AI downturn, the business should also help lift its valuation. Combine those benefits with the continued growth in the core data center segment, and it's not hard to see the company reaching $10 trillion in a few years.

If you’ve been staking SOL, ATOM, or INJ through Ledger and noticed a name change on your validator, you’re not losing it. Bitwise has officially swapped the Chorus One branding on its Ledger Wallet validator nodes to “Bitwise” across Solana, Cosmos, and Injective.

The cosmetic surgery was expected. Bitwise acquired Chorus One back in February 2026, bringing along more than $2.2 billion in staked assets. The rebrand is the final step in making that marriage official across user-facing platforms.

Same infrastructure, new name tag Here’s the thing: nothing about the actual staking experience changes. Same validator infrastructure. Same fees. Same rewards mechanics. The only difference is the label you see in the Ledger Wallet app, which now reads “Bitwise” or “Ledger by Bitwise” depending on the chain.

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Chorus One was one of the more respected institutional staking operators in the business, running validator nodes across more than 30 proof-of-stake networks. Bitwise didn’t acquire it to gut the operation. It acquired it to wear the jersey.

The rebrand also serves a branding consolidation purpose. Bitwise has been steadily building out what it calls Bitwise Onchain Solutions, or BOS, its division focused on staking infrastructure for institutional and self-custody users.

Why Bitwise is going all-in on staking Bitwise now manages over $15 billion in client assets across its entire operation. The Chorus One acquisition wasn’t just about adding validator nodes. It was about positioning the firm as a one-stop shop for institutions that want exposure to proof-of-stake yields without building their own infrastructure.

By absorbing Chorus One’s operations across 30-plus networks, Bitwise instantly became one of the largest institutional staking providers in the space. The $2.2 billion in staked assets it inherited isn’t pocket change.

The emphasis on Ledger integration is also telling. Bitwise has been vocal about offering “institutional-grade infrastructure tailored for self-custody users,” specifically highlighting competitive staking yields for Solana through Ledger.

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

The emergence of Caterpillar (CAT +0.70%) as an AI stock caught many investors by surprise. Although Caterpillar doesn't produce exciting chips that enable AI models, humanoid robots, or other innovations, it supplies the necessary energy components.

Caterpillar's power generators provide data centers with a backup energy source in the event of grid or utility downtime. This role has helped Caterpillar outperform the S&P 500, and it suggests that recent gains are just the beginning.

Image source: Getty Images.

Power generators continue to propel the company Caterpillar delivered 22% year-over-year revenue growth in the first quarter, and the company's power and energy segment was a major reason. That part of the business also went up by 22% year over year and represents more than one-third of total sales.

Caterpillar's construction segment also did well as more companies build data centers. The company's equipment is vital for site construction, giving Caterpillar even more exposure to the AI boom.

The International Energy Agency projects data center electricity consumption to increase by 15% per year through 2030. That's more than four times the growth rate of total electricity consumption from all other sectors.

The heightened demand for electricity will simultaneously help Caterpillar's power generators gain market share. Deloitte offers even more ambitious targets, suggesting that power demand from AI data centers in the U.S. can grow more than 30-fold by 2035.

These long-term targets imply that AI expansion will continue for multiple years or decades. Energy is required to enable AI data centers, setting up a massive tailwind for Caterpillar.

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Caterpillar anticipates more growth Connecting the dots suggests Caterpillar can continue to post solid results, but executives opted to provide a clear picture after reporting Q1 results. After touting those earnings as better than expected, the company now anticipates "higher sales and revenue growth in 2026 compared to a quarter ago."

Power generators and North American customers are driving most of the growth and contributed to a $62.7 billion order backlog. That backlog represents an $11.5 billion sequential increase -- a new record for the company. It offers clear revenue visibility that will make it easier for the company to achieve double-digit revenue growth rates.

That growth also comes with a rising dividend and plenty of stock buybacks. Caterpillar returned $5.7 billion to shareholders in Q1, demonstrating it can increase capital expenditures while rewarding long-term investors.

Caterpillar even delivered rising profits, with adjusted operating profits increasing from $2.6 billion in Q1 2025 to $3.1 billion in Q1 of this year. The AI boom needs power, and Caterpillar is built to supply it for years to come.

Opportunity Knocks: Buy the Dip on Permian Resources Stock?Pembina Pipeline NYSE: PBA reported second-quarter adjusted EBITDA of C$1.064 billion, up C$51 million, or 5%, from the same period a year earlier, as solid pipeline and facilities operations and stronger marketing results offset the impact of a revised Alliance Pipeline toll structure and revenue-sharing mechanism.

President and Chief Executive Officer Scott Burrows said the quarter reflected “a constructive industry environment” alongside operational performance and new assets entering service. The company reaffirmed its 2026 adjusted EBITDA guidance range of C$4.35 billion to C$4.55 billion and said it was trending toward the midpoint.

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Net earnings for the quarter were C$512 million, a 23% increase from the prior-year period. Adjusted earnings rose 10% to C$415 million. Total volumes across Pembina’s pipelines and facilities businesses increased 3% year over year to 3.7 million barrels of oil equivalent per day.

Operations and new assets support results Chief Financial Officer Cameron Goldade said the pipelines segment benefited from higher contracted volumes on the Nipisi Pipeline, which serves the Clearwater formation, and higher Cochin Pipeline revenue related to prior-period tariff adjustments. Those factors were partly offset by a lower Alliance Pipeline contribution under its negotiated settlement with shippers.

The facilities business benefited from the late-May startup of the RFS IV fractionator at the Redwater Complex and the Wapiti Expansion in Pembina Gas Infrastructure, or PGI, which entered service at the end of March. Both projects were completed on time and at or below budget, according to management.

RFS IV added 55,000 barrels per day of propane-plus fractionation capacity at Redwater. Pembina also cited improved performance at Dawson-area assets, fewer unplanned outages and higher recoveries from an asset upgrade as contributors to facilities results.

Marketing and new ventures results were supported by wider Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin and U.S. natural gas liquids fractionation spreads, higher NGL prices, higher crude oil prices and higher sales volumes. Goldade said Pembina also benefited from its exposure to premium propane markets through West Coast exports, though realized NGL derivative losses were higher and realized crude-oil derivative gains were lower.

Guidance outlook includes seasonal second-half effects While maintaining its annual outlook, Pembina expects third-quarter adjusted EBITDA to be lower than the second quarter before a stronger seasonal fourth-quarter contribution. Goldade said the third quarter historically has represented 23% to 27% of annual adjusted EBITDA, with the company’s current outlook placing this year’s third-quarter contribution at the low end of that range.

Factors expected to affect the second half include seasonal weakness in WCSB NGL fractionation spreads during the third quarter, higher integrity and maintenance spending, lower Cochin Pipeline contributions compared with the first half, and seasonal Alliance Pipeline volumes. Pembina has hedged approximately 90% of its NGL fractionation-spread exposure for the third quarter and 40% for the fourth quarter.

The company said its marketing business remains sensitive to commodity prices, while annual results are also influenced by interruptible volumes, the U.S.-Canadian dollar exchange rate and share-price-driven incentive compensation costs.

Growth projects span NGLs, LNG and power demand Burrows highlighted projects across Pembina’s “3Cs” strategy of capturing basin volumes, connecting them to markets and catalyzing additional hydrocarbon demand.

Beyond RFS IV, Pembina sanctioned the Heartland Extraction Plant, which will use existing infrastructure and monetize extraction rights on the Yellowhead Pipeline. The project was accompanied by an expansion of Pembina’s commercial relationship with Dow that increases contracted ethane supply volumes by 15%.

The company also reached a positive final investment decision on the 932-megawatt Greenlight Electricity Center, a gas-fired power facility intended to provide dedicated power to a new Alberta data center being developed by Meta. Burrows described Greenlight as a new growth platform that is expected to generate long-term cash flows while creating incremental demand for Western Canadian natural gas.

Chief Marketing and Strategy Officer Chris Scherman said Pembina intends to pursue future gas-to-power developments using a structure similar to Greenlight: long-term, fixed-fee and low-risk arrangements. He said the company is not pursuing a merchant-power model or a broader independent power producer strategy. Pembina has acquired additional land near the Greenlight site and Redwater Complex and is advancing discussions with potential customers for future phases.

Construction on Cedar LNG is also advancing toward expected first exports in late 2028. During the quarter, Pembina completed the pipeline that will supply the facility and moved the floating LNG vessel hull from dry dock to wet dock in South Korea. Burrows said the remaining major uncertainty is the vessel hookup and commissioning process, while other workstreams are tracking well.

Management sees broader Western Canadian growth opportunity Pembina also announced participation in the proposed West Coast oil pipeline, where it expects to contribute development and execution capabilities. Management said the project’s path to a final investment decision will require regulatory approvals, a competitive cost estimate and sufficient contracted volumes.

Burrows said incremental oil-sands production and new crude export capacity could require substantial additional condensate supply, much of which Pembina expects to come from the WCSB’s Montney and Duvernay regions. That growth could also increase demand for natural gas processing, NGL fractionation and exports.

Goldade said Pembina’s 2026-to-2030 outlook incorporated more historically based liquids-volume growth assumptions of roughly 2% to 3%. Faster basin growth could provide an additional, capital-efficient upside, he said, although it could eventually require more fractionation capacity and potentially further infrastructure investments.

The company continues to target 5% to 7% compound annual growth in fee-based adjusted EBITDA per share through 2030. Burrows said potential future Greenlight phases, the proposed West Coast oil pipeline and condensate-related opportunities could support growth into the following decade.

About Pembina Pipeline (NYSE:PBA)Pembina Pipeline Corporation NYSE: PBA is a North American energy infrastructure company that develops, owns and operates midstream assets that transport, store and process hydrocarbons. Its core business focuses on the transportation of crude oil, natural gas liquids (NGLs) and condensate, along with gas processing, fractionation, storage and related marketing services. Pembina serves producers, refiners and other energy companies by providing pipeline capacity, terminal services and midstream solutions that link upstream production to downstream markets and export facilities.

The company's asset base is concentrated in Western Canada, including major operations in Alberta and British Columbia, and it also has operations and commercial activities that extend into the United States.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to [email protected].

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Uniti Group Inc. (UNIT) Q2 2026 Earnings Call July 30, 2026 8:30 AM EDT

Company Participants

Bill DiTullio
Kenneth Gunderman - President, CEO & Director
Paul Bullington - Senior EVP, CFO & Treasurer
John Harrobin - Senior EVP & President of Kinetic

Conference Call Participants

Gregory Williams - TD Cowen, Research Division
Richard Choe - JPMorgan Chase & Co, Research Division
Frank Louthan - Raymond James & Associates, Inc., Research Division
Matthew Griffiths - BofA Securities, Research Division

Presentation

Operator

Good morning, and welcome to today's conference call to discuss Uniti's Second Quarter 2026 Earnings Results. My name is Jonathan, and I will be your operator for today. Today's call is being recorded, and a webcast will be available on the company's Investor Relations website, investor.unity.com, beginning today and will remain available for 365 days. [Operator Instructions] It is now my pleasure to introduce Bill DiTullio, Uniti's Senior Vice President of Investor Relations and Treasury. Please begin.

Bill DiTullio

Thanks, Jonathan. Good morning, everyone, and thank you for joining today's conference call to discuss Uniti's second quarter 2026 results. Speaking on the call today will be Kenny Gunderman, our CEO; and Paul Bullington, Uniti's CFO. John Harrobin, President of Kinetics, will also be joining us this morning during Q&A.

Before we get started, I'd like to quickly cover our safe harbor statement. Please note that today's remarks may contain forward-looking statements. These statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding Uniti's fiber build strategy, the business' growth potential, our 2026 outlook and other statements that are not historical facts. Numerous factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements. For more information on those factors, please see the section titled Safe Harbor Statement in the accompanying presentation in the Risk Factors sections in our filings with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission. With that, I would now like

By PYMNTS  |  July 31, 2026

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Automotive retailer AutoNation has found that the industry and consumers are “in good shape,” despite declines in sales volume and profit that the company saw in the second quarter, AutoNation CEO Michael Manley said during a Friday (July 31) earnings call.

“Consumer sentiment is improving every month,” Manley said. “Our banking partners are reporting 20% increases in applications and originations, and their delinquencies continue to improve.”

During the second quarter, AutoNation’s revenue was down 1% year over year. The company saw year-over-year declines of 2% in same-store revenue, 5% in same-store gross profit, 5% in same-store new vehicle retail unit sales and 8% in same-store used vehicle retail unit sales, according to a Friday earnings release.

In a presentation released Friday, AutoNation said the company faced headwinds related to tariffs and battery electric vehicle (BEV) sales. New vehicles sales were impacted by the “tariff pull-ahead” seen in April 2025 and the BEV subsidies that were in place through September 2025.

During an earlier earnings call, in February, Manley said AutoNation and others in the industry had seen shoppers race to buy vehicles in early 2025 before the implementation of tariffs and the expiration of electric vehicle tax credits. That created a “strong pull ahead” that affected vehicle sales in subsequent quarters, Manley said.

During Friday’s earning call, Manley said that during the second quarter, BEV sales were down by more than 30% year over year.

“We’re looking forward to the second half when the volume comparison headwinds from 2025 relating to tariffs and EV credits lapse,” Manley said.

Looking ahead, AutoNation expects to see consumer and industry sales remain resilient, new and used vehicle profitability stabilize, and its market share grow, according to the presentation.

Manley said during the call that the seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR) is “at a healthy place” and consumers are “incredibly resilient given everything that is going on.” He added that affordability levels are the best they’ve been in a few years. While not back to pre-COVID levels, affordability is “significantly improved” over the past 24 to 48 months.

“That was largely stable Q1 to Q2, and I think it’s going to be stable as we get into Q3 and Q4, which means, from my point of view, the underlying SAAR, absent a shock that none of us can see, I think is going to be in a good place as we get into the second half,” Manley said.

Matador’s Results Were Better Than Feared, But 2026 Headwinds Still MatterMettler-Toledo International NYSE: MTD reported second-quarter results that exceeded its prior sales-growth expectations, supported by improving market conditions, particularly in China and other emerging markets, as well as its sales and marketing initiatives.

Chief Executive Officer Patrick Kaltenbach said the company’s performance reflected “better-than-expected organic sales growth across our portfolio,” with strong execution of its Spinnaker sales and marketing program and productivity initiatives contributing to adjusted earnings-per-share growth.

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3 Mid-Cap Energy Firms Analysts See Moving Up to the Big LeaguesSecond-quarter sales were $1 billion, up 7% in U.S. dollars and 6% in local currency. Acquisitions contributed about 1.5 percentage points of sales growth, while organic local-currency sales increased 4%.

The company said its reported results included a one-time $52 million gross benefit from IEEPA tariff refunds, which was recorded in cost of sales. That benefit was partly offset by a $28 million refund to customers that reduced reported net sales by 3%. Management excluded both tariff-refund items from its discussion of adjusted results and guidance.

Regional and Business-Line Performance 5 Highly Rated Dividends With 50% Upside According to AnalystsOrganic sales, excluding acquisitions and tariff refunds, increased 1% in the Americas, 4% in Europe and 9% in Asia/rest of world. China also grew 9%, exceeding management’s expectations.

Kaltenbach said China’s growth was led by Industrial, which posted double-digit growth in the country. Demand was supported by biopharma, food, batteries and new-energy investments. Laboratory growth in China was more modest, though the company expects further improvement in the second half.

By product area, organic sales in Laboratory increased 4%, while Industrial sales rose 3%. Core Industrial grew 4%, partially offset by 1% growth in Product Inspection. Food Retail sales increased 11%, aided by the timing of project activity, while service revenue rose 9%, or 7% organically.

Laboratory growth was broad-based, according to Kaltenbach. Process analytics and bioproduction performed strongly, while laboratory balances and analytical instruments benefited from newer product introductions. The company also cited demand for its LabX software platform and activity in semiconductors, advanced materials and batteries.

In Industrial, Mettler-Toledo saw strong demand for automation-related solutions across biopharma, food manufacturing, semiconductors and new energy. Product Inspection growth was modest because of customer-project timing, but Chief Financial Officer Shawn Vadala said the company expects organic growth in that business to improve in the second half. He projected mid-single-digit Product Inspection growth for the third quarter and high-single-digit growth for the full year, including acquisition contributions.

Margins, Earnings and Cash Flow Adjusted gross margin was 59.3%, up 30 basis points from a year earlier. Excluding foreign exchange and acquisitions, gross margin expanded about 90 basis points, driven by favorable price realization, lower tariff rates than the prior year, volume growth, productivity initiatives and cost savings. Those benefits were partly offset by higher transportation costs.

Adjusted operating profit rose 9% to $309 million, and adjusted operating margin increased 50 basis points to 29.3%. Excluding unfavorable currency, adjusted operating margin increased 100 basis points.

Adjusted EPS increased 14% year over year to $11.46. Reported EPS was $11.55, compared with $9.76 in the prior-year quarter. Reported EPS included a net tariff-refund benefit of $0.92, along with $0.26 of purchased intangible amortization, $0.22 of restructuring costs, a $0.04 tax headwind tied to stock-option exercise timing, and a $0.31 acquisition-related charge related to higher earn-out achievements.

Year-to-date adjusted free cash flow was $367 million, affected by tax payments that were $55 million higher than the prior year because of timing. The company reported days sales outstanding of 35.6 days and inventory turnover of 4.2 times.

Raised Full-Year Outlook Mettler-Toledo raised its 2026 local-currency sales-growth forecast to approximately 4% to 5%, from approximately 4% previously. The revised outlook implies 3% to 4% organic local-currency growth and excludes the tariff-refund effects.

Full-year adjusted EPS is projected at $47.15 to $47.50, representing growth of 10% to 11%, or 11% to 12% excluding currency. The prior full-year adjusted EPS outlook called for growth of 8% to 10%. Third-quarter local-currency sales growth is expected to be about 4%, including roughly a 0.5% benefit from acquisitions. Third-quarter adjusted EPS is forecast at $12.00 to $12.15, up 8% to 9%, or 9% to 10% excluding currency. Full-year free cash flow is expected to be approximately $900 million. The company now expects to repurchase $875 million of shares during 2026, compared with an annualized repurchase pace of $825 million in the first half. At recent spot rates, the company expects foreign currency to add about 1% to full-year sales growth but create a slight EPS headwind. Currency is expected to be neutral to third-quarter sales and reduce third-quarter adjusted EPS growth by roughly 1 percentage point.

Emerging Markets, Biopharma and Market Conditions Kaltenbach highlighted emerging markets as a long-term source of growth. Emerging markets outside China accounted for approximately 18% of second-quarter sales, slightly more than the company’s China business, and grew at a high-single-digit rate. Management said those markets have grown at a high-single-digit local-currency average over the past five years.

The company cited India, Southeast Asia, Eastern Europe and Latin America as areas of opportunity, including potential benefits from nearshoring investment. Kaltenbach said Mettler-Toledo’s local market organizations, direct sales capabilities, local manufacturing and assembly capabilities in markets such as Mexico, and global data infrastructure position it to pursue growth opportunities.

Management also said biopharma activity improved, particularly in process analytics and bioproduction. Kaltenbach said Mettler-Toledo is seeing requests for quotations tied to U.S. reshoring, but characterized the opportunity as still in its early stages. He said more substantial facility investments could extend into 2027 and 2028.

While the company acknowledged continued geopolitical uncertainty and volatile conditions in the Middle East, Vadala said Mettler-Toledo has limited exposure to the region and has not observed a related change in customer behavior. The company did not include an escalation of the conflict in its forecast.

“We remain focused on capitalizing on our customers’ investments in automation, digitalization, and onshoring around the world,” Kaltenbach said.

About Mettler-Toledo International (NYSE:MTD)Mettler-Toledo International Inc is a global manufacturer and distributor of precision instruments and services for laboratory, industrial and food retail applications. The company's product portfolio includes laboratory balances and analytical instruments, industrial weighing systems, process analytics and sensors, metal detection and x-ray inspection equipment, checkweighers, and a range of automated inspection and data-management solutions. Mettler-Toledo also provides software, calibration and lifecycle services intended to support compliance, quality control and operational efficiency across customer facilities.

The company serves a broad set of end markets including pharmaceutical and biotech laboratories, chemical and food processors, logistics and manufacturing operations, and retail environments where accurate weighing and inspection are critical.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to [email protected].

Should You Invest $1,000 in Mettler-Toledo International Right Now?Before you consider Mettler-Toledo International, you'll want to hear this.

MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and Mettler-Toledo International wasn't on the list.

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If you want proof that "very good" still isn't always good enough for investors, look no further than the market's response to SoFi Technologies' (SOFI -0.97%) second-quarter results. Revenue grew 40% year over year to $1.2 billion, pushing per-share earnings up from $0.08 a year ago to $0.12 this time around, both of which topped estimates of $1.12 billion and $0.11, respectively. Yet, largely because the online bank didn't raise its 2026 profit guidance despite raising its full-year revenue outlook, the stock tanked to the tune of 10% on Wednesday.

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The thing is, SoFi reported a seemingly meaningless metric for Q2 that could actually be a pretty big deal for its bottom line in the foreseeable future...even if the company isn't saying as much.

Increasingly tapping more cost-effective prospects It's not a complicated business. SoFi Technologies offers its customers everything a more traditional brick-and-mortar bank can, including checking, loans, savings, credit cards, investment services, and more. It's just all accessed online. And for much of its existence, most of the company's customers used only one of SoFi's products or services.

That's finally changing in a big way, though. Last quarter, 51% of the 2.22 million new products or services it sold were sold to existing customers. That's up from 43% just a quarter earlier and 35% in Q2 of last year. Said another way, while SoFi Technologies added 1.12 million new members last quarter to bring its customer headcount up to 15.81 million, it did just as well selling products to its existing users, who are much cheaper and easier to access and many of whom have now been around long enough to trust SoFi with more of their finances. End result? The average SoFi member now utilizes 1.54 products, up from an average of 1.46 just a year ago.

Image source: SoFi Technologies Q2-2026 investor report.

The new normal At first blush, this doesn't seem to mean much. Although it's progress, it's progress that only extends existing trends.

This is a bigger deal than it seems on the surface, though. That figure of 51%, paired with the fact that SoFi's new customer growth is still accelerating rather than slowing down, says the company is at a tipping point many investors have been waiting for it to reach: being able to cost-effectively add revenue by leveraging -- for free -- its existing customers, most of whom almost certainly have assets held elsewhere. This dynamic ultimately raises each of these customers' lifetime value to SoFi.

Image source: Getty Images.

No, it doesn't look like this growing per-member lifetime value is going to make much positive impact in the immediate future. As was noted, while the online bank now expects to report 2026 revenue of between $4.75 billion and $4.85 billion, versus previous guidance of $4.655 billion, it's still calling for earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) of only $1.6 billion. That's what rattled shareholders.

Just don't lose sight of the bigger picture. SoFi Technologies has proven not only that online banking is marketable but also that it can be profitable. The stock's post-earnings dip, which dragged it back to less than half of its November peak, also leaves it more than 20% below analysts' consensus price target of around $20 per share. That's a hint worth taking.

Amazon logo outside an Amazon warehouse in Manchester, Britain, October 28, 2025. REUTERS/Phil Noble/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab

SummaryCompaniesLawsuit challenges claims such as 'dolphin safe,' 'sustainable,' 'wild caught'Amazon allegedly misled consumers into buying or overpaying for tuna, salmonJuly 31 (Reuters) - Amazon.com (AMZN.O), opens new tab was sued on Friday by consumers ​who accused the retailer of misrepresenting the environmental benefits of seafood sold ‌on its platform, a practice known as greenwashing.

In a proposed class action in Seattle federal court, consumers said labels containing phrases such as "dolphin safe," "responsibly sourced," "sustainable," "wild caught" and "MSC Certified Sustainable Seafood” misled them ​into believing Amazon's seafood sourcing causes minimal harm to oceans and the ​environment.

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The consumers called such representations unsubstantiated or materially false because most ⁠fishing vessels are not publicly tracked, and some vessels obscure their whereabouts by ​disabling electronic devices known as transponders. They also said at least one-fifth of imported ​wild-caught seafood is not responsibly or sustainably sourced.

"Amazon nevertheless markets the greenwashed seafood products using broad sustainability messaging without providing disclosures necessary to prevent consumer deception," the complaint said.

The Seattle-based company is ​the second-largest U.S. grocer with more than $150 billion of gross sales in 2025, Chief ​Executive Andy Jassy said on an April 29 conference call with analysts.

Amazon and lawyers who represent ‌it ⁠in other consumer class actions did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The company faces frequent lawsuits over products sold on its platform, including by outside sellers.

BUMBLE BEE, CHICKEN OF THE SEA, STARKISTThe lawsuit targets dozens of tuna, salmon and other seafood products ​under brands including ​Bumble Bee, Chicken ⁠of the Sea, StarKist and Amazon's own 365 by Whole Foods Market.

Plaintiffs led by Madeleine Rogow of Los Angeles and Adam ​Sorkin of Chicago said they would not have bought or would ​have paid ⁠less for their seafood had Amazon disclosed its "true sustainable nature."

The lawsuit seeks compensatory damages, punitive damages and restitution for people in the United States for Amazon's alleged violations ⁠of Washington ​consumer protection laws.

The respective parents of Bumble Bee, ​Chicken of the Sea and StarKist — Taiwan's FCF, Thai Union Group (TU.BK), opens new tab and South Korea's Dongwon Industries (006040.KS), opens new tab — are not ​defendants in Friday's lawsuit.

Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; editing by David Gaffen

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

CompaniesJuly 31 (Reuters) - Becton Dickinson (BDX.N), opens new tab said on Friday it is issuing a recall on certain lots of medical needle sets in the U.S. after users ​reported difficulty in removing a part of the device after ‌using it on patients.

Here are some details:

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The product, called an intraosseous needle set, is used to deliver fluids and medicine quickly into a patient's bone when ​a regular IV line cannot be used fast enough. This is ​often done in emergencies, such as cardiac arrest or severe ⁠trauma.

Becton said the issue involves a part called the obturator, or ​stylet, which sometimes cannot be removed after the needle is inserted.

The company ​said this incident can happen if the drill used to insert the needle is not pulled straight back, or if the obturator is rotated the wrong way ​when taken out.

As of June 2026, BD said it had received 75 ​complaints and 45 reports of serious injury related to the problem. The company also ‌said ⁠four patients died when the part could not be removed during resuscitation efforts for people who had suffered cardiac arrest outside a hospital.

The affected needle sets were made with parts slightly out of the normal ​size range and were ​shipped between ⁠September 30, 2024, and June 12, 2026.

The recall does not include the intraosseous powered driver, which is the ​tool used to insert the needles.

BD said that if ​the obturator ⁠cannot be removed, medical staff may need to get a new needle or switch to another way of giving treatment, like a peripheral IV ⁠catheter. That ​delay could be dangerous, especially for critically ​ill patients, the company said.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has been informed about the ​recall, BD said.

Reporting by Padmanabhan Ananthan in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber

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

Conflict Profits: Why These 2 Chemical Stocks Are Suddenly SoaringLyondellBasell Industries NYSE: LYB said second-quarter earnings and margins improved sharply as disruptions tied to the Middle East conflict tightened petrochemical supply, altered trade flows and supported pricing across several of its businesses.

Chief Executive Officer Peter Vanacker said the company generated EBITDA of $2.1 billion and earnings of $4.30 per diluted share during the quarter. EBITDA more than tripled sequentially, while the company posted a 23% EBITDA margin. Vanacker said the results demonstrated the effects of LyondellBasell’s value-enhancement program and cash-improvement actions when market conditions are favorable.

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Is LyondellBasell’s Nearly 10% Dividend Safe, or a Warning Sign for Investors?“The scale and duration of the supply loss is unprecedented, and we believe that recovery time will be measured in quarters, not months,” Vanacker said of the market disruption. He said approximately 6 million tons of polyethylene capacity, or about 20% to 25% of Middle East supply, sustained damage and is not expected to restart until at least 2027.

Supply disruptions reshape trade flows The company said the conflict affected production, feedstock availability, logistics and trade flows across petrochemical markets. Higher Asian freight rates effectively closed arbitrage routes from Asia to Europe and Central America, increasing demand for U.S. and European material, according to management.

3 High-Yield Dividend Stocks That Could Rally Near 52-Week LowsVanacker also highlighted an unexpected shift in China, where producers reduced imports and increased exports to Southeast Asia despite lower operating rates. Chinese polyethylene inventories declined about 30% from pre-conflict levels, he said, while local operating rates remained in the mid-70% range.

LyondellBasell expects China may need to increase imports to replenish those inventories. Management said it has not seen broad demand destruction in key end markets, with packaging demand remaining stable and healthcare and infrastructure applications continuing to grow. Housing and automotive demand remained subdued, though the company characterized those conditions as continuing rather than new headwinds.

Kim Foley, executive vice president of Olefins and Polyolefins and Trading, said the company announced a $0.10-per-pound polyethylene price increase for August amid continuing volatility. Foley said export prices and volumes increased in July, while China was no longer exporting at the pace seen in the second quarter.

Americas segment drives earnings growth LyondellBasell’s Olefins and Polyolefins Americas segment generated EBITDA of $1.3 billion, roughly four times the level recorded in the same quarter a year earlier. Integrated polyethylene margins expanded after a $0.30-per-pound increase in April contract pricing, which Foley described as the largest increase on record. June contract prices settled $0.15 per pound lower.

North American polyethylene domestic sales volumes rose approximately 3.5% and reached their highest quarterly level since the first quarter of 2022. Polypropylene demand also increased, aided by lower imports. Segment operating rates were about 90%, while crackers ran at approximately 95%.

For the third quarter, the company expects O&P Americas operating rates of approximately 85% of nameplate capacity. The lower rate reflects planned maintenance at Clinton and Lake Charles. The Clinton turnaround began in July and is expected to last about 70 days, while the Lake Charles outage is scheduled to begin in the second half of the third quarter and continue into the fourth quarter.

The Europe, Asia and International olefins and polyolefins segment reported EBITDA of $331 million, up $337 million sequentially and its strongest quarterly result since 2021. Results included an approximately $50 million gain from the sale of European emissions credits. The segment operated at approximately 75% utilization during the quarter, with crackers at about 85% utilization.

Management expects the segment to operate at about 70% utilization in the third quarter as it aligns output with seasonal demand. Foley said prolonged low water levels on the Rhine could further affect operations.

Bayport outage limited intermediates results The Intermediates and Derivatives segment generated EBITDA of $386 million, supported by stronger margins in several businesses. However, unplanned downtime at the company’s Bayport PO/TBA asset in Houston reduced second-quarter EBITDA by an estimated $250 million, according to Aaron Ledet, executive vice president of Intermediates and Derivatives and Enterprise Services.

Ledet said the Bayport facility was safely restarted and ramped to full rates in June. The company expects improved oxyfuels and propylene oxide derivatives volumes in the third quarter, targeting segment operating rates of about 85%.

The company said oxyfuels benefited from seasonal demand and near-record gasoline crack spreads. Ledet said approximately 40% of Russian refining capacity has been idled amid refinery disruptions associated with the Ukraine war, tightening refined-product supply. He also said 20% of global methanol capacity is supplied from the Middle East, including significant Iranian capacity that largely serves China.

Advanced Polymer Solutions posted second-quarter EBITDA of $78 million. Executive Vice President Torkel Rhenman said margins improved through pricing actions and cost optimization, while automotive demand remained stable. The segment’s first-half EBITDA rose more than 50% from the prior-year period, he said.

Portfolio actions and cash plan continue LyondellBasell completed the divestiture of four European olefins and polyolefins assets in May and intends to close its Brindisi site by the end of 2026. Vanacker said the remaining European portfolio is centered on more advantaged operations, including crackers and integrated polyolefins assets in Wesseling, Germany, as well as PO/TBA sites in Botlek and Fos.

The company said construction of its MoReTec-1 recycling facility in Wesseling remains on schedule for startup near the end of 2027. Vanacker said most of the facility’s expected capacity has already been pre-sold through agreements with brand owners. LyondellBasell has delayed its planned MoReTec-2 project in the U.S., citing less-advanced regulation and its cash-improvement plan.

Chief Financial Officer Agustín Izquierdo said the company generated $752 million in operating cash flow during the quarter, invested $270 million in capital expenditures and returned $224 million to shareholders through dividends. Cash totaled $2.6 billion at quarter-end, while available liquidity was $7.1 billion.

LyondellBasell maintained its 2026 capital-expenditure plan of $1.2 billion. The company expects sustaining capital expenditures to decline by about $100 million following the European asset divestitures. Management said it remains on track to deliver $500 million of incremental cash flow by the end of 2026 through lower fixed costs and capital spending. Headcount has been reduced by approximately 3,400 employees, or 17% of the workforce, since the beginning of last year. Izquierdo said the company’s capital-allocation priorities remain focused on maintaining an investment-grade balance sheet, funding safe and reliable operations, paying dividends and pursuing growth investments selectively. He said the company would consider mergers and acquisitions opportunistically, but that its current priority is rebuilding the balance sheet and improving credit metrics.

About LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB)LyondellBasell Industries N.V. NYSE: LYB is a global chemical company headquartered in Houston, Texas, that specializes in the production of polyolefins and advanced polymers. Through its extensive portfolio, the company supplies raw materials for a wide range of end markets, including packaging, automotive, construction, electronics and consumer goods. By combining proprietary process technologies with expertise in catalysts, LyondellBasell aims to deliver value-added solutions that enhance product performance and sustainability.

The company's integrated operations encompass the manufacture of olefins and polyolefins, advanced polymer products, chemical intermediates and refining activities.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to [email protected].

Should You Invest $1,000 in LyondellBasell Industries Right Now?Before you consider LyondellBasell Industries, you'll want to hear this.

MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and LyondellBasell Industries wasn't on the list.

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A view of the Amgen logo at the BIO International Convention 2026, a meeting of pharmaceutical and biotechnology leaders in San Diego, California, U.S. June 23, 2026. REUTERS/Mike Blake Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab

CompaniesJuly 31 (Reuters) - Drugmaker Amgen (AMGN.O), opens new tab ​said on Friday hackers ‌stole company data and patient health information in ​a cybersecurity breach ​involving cloud storage systems run ⁠by third-party providers.

On ​July 29, Amgen determined ​the incident was material, based on its evaluation of how ​many files appeared ​to be affected and the ‌possibility ⁠that the information in those files could be sensitive, it said ​in a ​regulatory ⁠filing.

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The company has activated its ​cybersecurity response plan, put ​containment ⁠measures in place, and brought in independent ⁠forensic ​experts to ​investigate.

Reporting by Padmanabhan Ananthan in Bengaluru; ​Editing by Shilpi Majumdar

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Invesco Mortgage Capital Inc. (IVR) Q2 2026 Earnings Call July 31, 2026 9:00 AM EDT

Company Participants

Greg Seals - Investor Relations
Kevin Collins - Chief Executive Officer
Brian Norris - Chief Investment Officer

Conference Call Participants

Ameeta Lobo Nelson - UBS Investment Bank, Research Division
Trevor Cranston - Citizens JMP Securities, LLC, Research Division
Douglas Harter - BTIG, LLC, Research Division
Jason Weaver - JonesTrading Institutional Services, LLC, Research Division
Jason Stewart - Compass Point Research & Trading, LLC, Research Division

Presentation

Operator

Welcome to the Invesco Mortgage Capital Second Quarter 2026 Earnings Call. [Operator Instructions] As a reminder, this call is being recorded. I would like to turn the call over to Greg Seals in Investor Relations. Mr. Seals, you may begin the call.

Greg Seals
Investor Relations

Thanks, operator, and to all of you joining us on Invesco Mortgage Capital's Second Quarter 2026 Earnings Call. In addition to today's press release, we have provided a presentation that covers the topics we plan to address today.

The press release and presentation are available on our website, invescomortgagecapital.com. This information can be found by going to the Investor Relations section of the website. Our presentation today will include forward-looking statements and certain non-GAAP financial measures. Please review the disclosures on Slide 2 of the presentation regarding these statements and measures as well as the appendix for the appropriate reconciliations to GAAP.

Finally, Invesco Mortgage Capital is not responsible for and does not edit nor guarantee the accuracy of our earnings. Teleconference transcripts provided by third parties. The only authorized webcasts are located on our website.

Again, welcome, and thank you for joining us today. I'll now turn the call over to IVR's CEO, Kevin Collins, for his comments.

Kevin Collins
Chief Executive Officer

Good morning, and welcome to Invesco Mortgage Capital's Second Quarter Earnings

Agree Realty Corporation (ADC) Q2 2026 Earnings Call July 31, 2026 10:00 AM EDT

Company Participants

Reuben Treatman - Senior Director of Corporate Finance
Joey Agree - President, CEO & Director
Peter Coughenour - CFO, Secretary & Investor Relations Professional

Conference Call Participants

Michael Goldsmith - UBS Investment Bank, Research Division
William John Kilichowski - Wells Fargo Securities, LLC, Research Division
James Kammert - Evercore ISI Institutional Equities, Research Division
Spenser Allaway - Green Street Advisors, LLC, Research Division
Eric Borden - BMO Capital Markets Equity Research
Robert Stevenson
Ronald Kamdem - Morgan Stanley, Research Division

Presentation

Operator

Good morning, and welcome to the Agree Realty Second Quarter 2026 Earnings Call. [Operator Instructions] After today's presentation, there will be an opportunity to ask questions. [Operator Instructions] Note this event is being recorded. I would now like to turn the conference over to Reuben Treatman, Senior Director of Corporate Finance. Please go ahead, Reuben.

Reuben Treatman
Senior Director of Corporate Finance

Thank you. Good morning, everyone, and thank you for joining us for Agree Realty's Second Quarter 2026 Earnings Call. Before turning the call over to Joey and Peter to discuss our results for the quarter, let me first run through the cautionary language. Please note that during this call, we will make certain statements that may be considered forward-looking under Federal Securities Law including statements related to our updated 2026 guidance.

Our actual results may differ significantly from the matters discussed in any forward-looking statements for a number of reasons. Please see yesterday's earnings release and our SEC filings, including our latest annual report on Form 10-K for a discussion of various risks and uncertainties underlying our forward-looking statements. In addition, we discuss non-GAAP financial measures, including core funds from operations or core FFO, adjusted funds from operations, or AFFO, net debt to enterprise value, fixed charge coverage ratio and pro forma net debt to