Market Signal Briefing

As the cryptocurrency market faces renewed bearish sentiment, concerns are rising that XRP could be approaching a possible capitulation.

However, analysis from market strategist CrediBULL Crypto suggests these concerns may be overstated.

In an X post on September 26, the analyst highlighted that while a downside move is possible, it is unlikely to derail the broader bullish outlook.

On the short-term chart, XRP is consolidating within a descending triangle pattern. The price has repeatedly tested the horizontal support zone near $2.65, creating what analysts describe as “triple lows.”

XRP price analysis chart. Source: Tradingview
CrediBULL noted that a breakdown of this level could trigger a dip into the high-timeframe (HTF) demand area between $2 and $2.40. 

This would represent a decline of roughly 10–15%, in line with pullbacks expected across the wider crypto market should Bitcoin (BTC) slide below $105,000.

However, the higher-timeframe chart tells a different story. The expert noted that the current consolidation sits within a much larger bullish structure that has been developing over several years.

Despite short-term weakness, XRP remains above major support levels and continues to build a foundation for a potential breakout to new all-time highs.

XRP fundamentals 
Indeed, the technical structure emerges as XRP continues to record notable fundamental developments that are likely to influence the price. 

The recently unveiled XRP ETF has yet to gain traction, with investors now focusing on the potential approval of the spot product later in October. 

With several applications pending before regulators, attention is on how potential approval might impact the price due to anticipated institutional capital inflows.

XRP price analysis
By press time, XRP was trading at $2.78, having gained about 0.92% in the past 24 hours.

XRP seven-day price chart. Source: Finbold
In the short term, XRP is under bearish pressure. The price is currently below its 50-day simple moving average (SMA) of $2.99, indicating weakening momentum and potential for further downside, while remaining above the 200-day SMA of $2.58, which provides support against deeper corrections.

The 14-day Relative Strength Index (RSI) at 37.75 underscores this bearish tilt, dipping into oversold territory but not yet extreme (below 30), suggesting limited immediate rebound potential without fresh catalysts.

Featured image via Shutterstock

XRP price prediction weighs a bearish triangle against a strong onchain buy wall. Will $2.50 trigger a recovery or deepen the slide?

Eric Trump published an X post which said, “Buy the Dips!”
World Liberty Financial repurchased 6.04 million WLFI for around $1.06 million.
WLFI price surged to $0.2083 by 8.32%over 24 hours.

Eric Trump recently sought the purchase of dips. World Liberty Financial went on to repurchase more than 6 million WLFI worth over $1 million. Eric Trump had earlier shed light on the benefit of embracing crypto in the early stages. Meanwhile, WLFI price has surged by more than 8% over the past 24 hours.

Eric Trump on Dips
Eric Trump earlier published a post on X, saying, “Buy the Dips.” This post was possibly a reference to purchasing cryptocurrencies at a time when their prices are low. World Liberty Financial, hours later, was reported to have repurchased 6.04 million WLFI. Their collective worth was approximately $1.06 million at the time of transaction.

The tokens were repurchased by collecting 4.91 million tokens at $1.01 million and $1.06 million in fees on BSC, Solana, and Ethereum. Interestingly, World Liberty Financial also reportedly burned 7.89 million tokens on Ethereum and BSC. Their value was estimated at around $1.43 million at that time. Per the report, only 3.06 million tokens are on Solana, which remain unburned.

WLFI Price Surged Over 24 Hours
WLFI price has surged by 8.32% in the last 24 hours, with the uptrend commencing during early hours. The token is being traded at $0.2083 right now with a decline of 24.89% in its 24-hour trading volume. The current exchange value is, however, down by 6.32% and 8.90% over the past 7 days and 30 days, respectively.

The WLFI price is estimated to decline further in the next 30 days. It could be a fall of around 24.90%, taking WLFI to an approximate value of $0.155979. Ongoing sentiments are bullish with the 14-Day RSI of 38.12 points. Overall sentiments remain bullish despite the FGI rating of 28 points. The closest resistance margin is $0.220147, and the nearest support level is $0.196039.

That said, it is important to note that the crypto market is highly volatile and investments are subject to fluctuations. Do thorough research and risk assessment before allocating funds to any cryptocurrency.

Eric Trump Fact-Checked Crypto Embrace
The development comes days after Eric Trump fact-checked one of his statements. He had earlier said that people who quickly embrace cryptocurrency would win the race. The statement shares a close association with his recent pitch of buying the dips.

Eric’s announcement about ABTC going live on Nasdaq remains one of the key highlights in the crypto market. It instilled a sense of confidence in the crypto community.

Highlighted Crypto News Today:

Week Observed Outflows from Spot Bitcoin ETF and Spot Ether ETF as BTC Price and ETH Price Stumbled

Curious by nature, Ankur's core topic is Web3, but he's a versatile writer who can cover many more subjects. If you catch up with him in his free time, you'll find discussions often center around different movies and TV series. He's an easy person to talk to—you can literally chat with him about anything.

Following a rather turbulent trading week, Bitcoin prices now sit below $110,000, representing a 12% decline from its all-time high at $124,457. Amid this situation, popular analyst Ted Pillows has shared an audacious market prediction that would douse fears of an impending cycle top.

Institutional Demand To Extend Bitcoin Market Cycle To 2026
A typical crypto market cycle has always peaked in Q4 of the fourth year. This timing usually matches the post-halving hype and a strong wave of retail and institutional market demand.  Such behavior is observed in the last two cycles when Bitcoin reached a market top of $19,700 in December 2017, and $69,000 in November 2021. However, Ted Pillows postulates the present market is likely to present a different pattern, which aligns with the US business cycle.

Source: @TedPillows on X
Generally, the US business policy centered around liquidity, interest rates, and inflation all play a heavy role in Bitcoin demand. Notably, the US Federal Reserve implemented its first rate cut of 2025 this September, and market analysts expect the monetary authority to maintain this dovish approach for the next six months. In particular, JP Morgan predicts the Fed will implement two more rate cuts in 2025 and one in 2026. This drop in interest rates is expected to boost investors’ access to liquidity through borrowing and support investments in risk assets such as Bitcoin.

Furthermore, the introduction of Bitcoin Spot ETFs has also changed the structure of inflows. Notably, these investments have improved the ease of institutional investment in Bitcoin, with the present cumulative ETF inflows valued at $57.23 billion. Importantly, these heavy inflows, coupled with the emergence of Bitcoin treasury companies, have all contributed to maturing the Bitcoin market that is now likely to be driven by macroeconomic cycles rather than the traditional crypto-native cycles. 

If US market forces prove dominant, Ted Pillows expects Bitcoin to reach a market peak in Q1 or Q2 2026, indicating the potential for higher price targets despite recent price drops.

Bitcoin Heading To $112,000? 
Over the last few hours, Bitcoin has shown strong resilience in bouncing off the $109,000 price support. According to a separate analysis post by Pillows, the premier cryptocurrency is now likely headed to reclaim the $112,000 resistance price level.

If market bulls successfully overcome this barrier, further analysis suggests a potential rise to $117,000. Alternatively, another retest of $109,000 could result in a decisive break below this support level, pushing prices as low as $101,000. At the time of writing, Bitcoin exchanges hands at $109,420, reflecting a decline of 0.25% in the past day.

BTC trading at $109,414 on the daily chart | Source: BTCUSDT chart on Tradingview.com
Featured image from Flickr, chart from Tradingview

Ripple (XRP) has staged one of the most dramatic comebacks in cryptocurrency history. The digital asset, once considered “dead money” following its SEC lawsuit, is now up 370% year-to-date, trading near $2.85. 

This performance outpaces both Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH), which have gained 167% and 76% respectively, in 2025.

Price and Return Comparison: Jan 2024 – Sep 2025AssetJan 2024 PriceSep 2025 PriceApprox. % ReturnXRP$0.59$2.77+370.8%Bitcoin$41,685$111,540+167.6%Ethereum$2,283$4,021+76.1%Ripple vs SEC Clarity Sparks XRP Bull RunThe Ripple vs SEC lawsuit in late 2020 was once seen as an existential threat. XRP’s price collapsed from $0.50 to $0.17, and many U.S. exchanges delisted the token.

That changed in 2024, when Ripple secured a favorable settlement. The court ruled XRP is not a security, ending years of uncertainty.

“This was the turning point,” said Edino Fina, co-founder of Alpha Lions Academy. “Without the regulatory cloud, institutional money felt safe entering XRP. The market re-rated it almost overnight.”

Ripple Institutional adoption fuels momentumAfter the legal victory, Ripple made new partnerships, most notably with BNY Mellon, America’s oldest bank. Several firms also disclosed over $1 billion in XRP reserves, a signal of growing institutional confidence.

“The Ripple-BNY Mellon partnership legitimized XRP as more than just a speculative asset,” said crypto strategist Maya Rodriguez. “It positioned XRP as a bridge currency for the banking system.”

Concerns about XRP centralization remainDespite the surge, critics point out that Ripple still controls around 40% of XRP’s total supply. Some analysts warn that this concentration could put downward pressure on prices if large amounts are sold into the market.

“XRP has always faced skepticism about centralization,” said independent analyst Richard Lee. “That hasn’t gone away. The question is whether adoption can outweigh those concerns.”

XRP Ledger (XRPL) upgrades give XRP a competitive edgeWhile Bitcoin dominates as “digital gold” and Ethereum leads in smart contracts, XRP has carved out a niche in cross-border payments. Upgrades to the XRP Ledger (XRPL) have cut settlement times to just seconds.

“Speed and efficiency matter,” said influencer Ben Armstrong, known as BitBoy Crypto. “You can’t ignore a blockchain that settles global payments faster than SWIFT.”

This combination of real-world use cases and regulatory clarity has been key to XRP’s rise.

XRP Price PredictionThe XRP price rally began in late 2024, when the token surged from $0.50 to $340 within weeks. By 2025, momentum carried it to new highs.

Jamie Rogozinski, founder of WallStreetBets, commented: “It’s unbelievable. XRP went from being written off to outperforming every major crypto asset. It shows you how quickly sentiment can flip.”

Still, XRP Price has not yet surpassed its all-time high of $3.84 set in 2018.

The loyal XRP community, known as the XRP Army, has stuck with the token through years of criticism, exchange delistings, and price drops. Many held on, even joking about the famous $589 prediction.

“It feels like justice,” said longtime holder Sarah Nguyen. “We were mocked for believing in XRP, but patience is finally paying off.”

Looking forward, analysts are divided. Some, like Fina, believe XRP could eventually reach $100 or higher, offering more than 40x upside from current levels if adoption grows. Others caution that speculative hype may have driven prices too far, too fast.

“What was once a toxic asset is now being seriously considered for institutional portfolios,” said asset manager Daniel Kim. “But whether XRP’s rally is sustainable will depend on real-world usage.”

XRP’s 2025 price surge has changed the crypto market. With clear regulations, support from institutions, and a strong community, XRP has gone from being overlooked to leading the pack.

Never Miss a Beat in the Crypto World!Stay ahead with breaking news, expert analysis, and real-time updates on the latest trends in Bitcoin, altcoins, DeFi, NFTs, and more.

Despite the sudden shift in market sentiment that saw the price of DOGE retrace sharply by nearly 2%, the leading meme token has seen its derivatives market remain negative, according to data from CoinGlass.

The data shows that Dogecoin traders have committed about 16.71 billion DOGE tokens to its derivatives market, suggesting a rise in speculative activity around the leading meme-based cryptocurrency.​

Dogecoin still headed for breakout?Open interest volume shows the total value of outstanding derivatives contracts, such as futures and options, that have not yet been settled. A surge in this metric signals growing confidence among investors about the token’s price potential, hence they have decided to commit more funds to the asset’s derivatives market.

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Unfortunately, this is not the case for Dogecoin this time, as the asset has seen the value of its outstanding futures contracts decline to $3.83 billion on Sept. 27, a decline of 1.23% over the last 24 hours.

The decline in DOGE’s derivatives activity has spurred uncertainty among investors as the token has remained in deep reds for the most part of last week.

While it has shown a slight resurgence in its price over the last day, showing a 1.49% increase to a decent $0.2291 as of writing time, investors are worried about the sustainability of the ongoing price resurgence. Data from CoinMarketCap shows that the asset has reached a high of $0.2342 today after hitting an intraday low of $0.222.

Source: CoinMarketCap Although the rapid surge witnessed in the last day might be signaling renewed interest in the asset, the plummeting open interest volume has raised concerns among market watchers that the latest price bounce may be short-lived.

Despite the brief DOGE price rally, a sustained decline in the asset’s derivatives activities poses a threat to its expected breakout. This could see the token face more selling pressure, possibly pushing the token into its bear phase.

However, a potential resurgence in Dogecoin’s open interest volume accompanied by the growing buzz surrounding the recent launch of the DOGE ETF would mean further price surges for the token. Apparently, this could push the token to reclaiming previous highs and setting new targets.

Key NotesTether is actively developing its QVAC decentralized AI platform, which runs locally on user devices to ensure data privacy.The ecosystem comprises a developer SDK, software such as QVAC Translate and Health, and an upcoming hardware keyboard with integrated AI.This push into AI is a strategic move to diversify and fortify Tether's market dominance as stablecoin competition increases.
Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino has shared an updated look on X at the “QVAC Translate” application. He posted about the latest development in the company’s ongoing push into artificial intelligence. The preview, posted on Sept. 27, follows a series of updates on the QVAC ecosystem, which was first announced in May and also includes AI-powered health and keyboard applications.

The broader QVAC initiative is centered on the principle of “Local AI”. That is a concept that the company says was inspired by an Isaac Asimov science fiction story, “The Last Question.” QVAC’s architecture is designed for its tools to operate directly on a user’s local device. This approach is intended to ensure user data remains private and under the control of its creator.

QVAC Translate (private beta design)@QVAC_tether pic.twitter.com/qDw6czlPAQ

— Paolo Ardoino 🤖 (@paoloardoino) September 27, 2025

The QVAC ecosystem is built upon a foundation of tools for developers and a suite of software for consumers. At its core is the QVAC SDK, a toolkit that enables creators to build their own decentralized AI agents for the platform’s peer-to-peer network. Technical progress has been steady, with the project demonstrating high-speed local inference on mobile devices and support for AI models like LLAMA 3.2. This technology powers the user-facing applications, including the recently previewed QVAC Translate and a wellness monitor called QVAC Health.

A Multi-Faceted Innovation Strategy
Tether’s strategy includes a significant expansion into physical hardware, demonstrating the scope of its ambition. As Coinspeaker reported on July 25, CEO Paolo Ardoino announced the development of the QVAC Keyboard, a device with integrated local and private AI. Features are expected to include on-device text prediction and secure data encryption. This marks a tangible step toward the company’s goal of embedding its privacy-focused AI into everyday consumer products.

This major push into AI can be seen as a direct strategic response to an increasingly crowded stablecoin market. The competition is no longer limited to other crypto firms. Major tech companies are now entering the space. Cloudflare’s new NET Dollar stablecoin is designed specifically for AI agent transactions. By building the QVAC ecosystem, Tether is not just diversifying its business but also creating a dedicated, privacy-focused environment where its own stablecoin can become the native currency for a new generation of AI applications.

These strategic initiatives are being launched from a position of significant market dominance. Data from industry analytics platform RWA.xyz shows that Tether Holdings commands nearly 60% of the stablecoin market with a total market cap exceeding $171 billion. This leadership position underscores the motivation behind its expansion into AI.

Disclaimer: Coinspeaker is committed to providing unbiased and transparent reporting. This article aims to deliver accurate and timely information but should not be taken as financial or investment advice. Since market conditions can change rapidly, we encourage you to verify information on your own and consult with a professional before making any decisions based on this content.

Artificial Intelligence, Cryptocurrency News, News, Technology News

As a Web3 marketing strategist and former CMO of DuckDAO, Zoran Spirkovski translates complex crypto concepts into compelling narratives that drive growth. With a background in crypto journalism, he excels in developing go-to-market strategies for DeFi, L2, and GameFi projects.

Zoran Spirkovski on X

Several Solana ETF proposals, some including staking, could receive approval from US regulators by mid-October, according to ETF analyst Nate Geraci.

Dogecoin is the original meme token that took off due to the power of virality and social media.

The original meme token Dogecoin (DOGE 2.18%) launched toward the end of 2013, largely as a joke about cryptocurrencies, leveraging the Shiba Inu dog as its mascot. But what started as a joke rose to unimaginable highs in 2021 and has lasted far longer than most could have imagined. Today, Dogecoin is the eighth-largest cryptocurrency in the world with a market cap over $37 billion as of Sept. 24.

Still, despite its survival, Dogecoin has no real-world utility. Unlike Bitcoin, the world's largest cryptocurrency, which is viewed by many investors as a superior store of value due to its 21 million finite tokens, Dogecoin grows its supply by 5 billion tokens every year.

Image source: Getty Images.

Additionally, Dogecoin does not have a strong technical network because it doesn't process many transactions per second (TPS), a key feature of many highly regarded blockchain networks. Dogecoin's network also lacks smart contract functionality, which is what enables decentralized applications.

Now, this could eventually change. MyDoge, the organization behind a free custodial Dogecoin wallet, has reportedly raised funds to build a layer-2 solution that would enable smart contract functionality, but it's unclear if and when this would actually happen.

If you'd invested $500 in Dogecoin five years ago
From a fundamental perspective, it doesn't make a ton of sense why Dogecoin has delivered such incredible gains over the past five years, but it has. One explanation is that it was one of, if not the first cryptocurrency to truly take advantage of the power of virality and build a social media community, which has made the token thrive.

Dogecoin Price data by YCharts

As you can see, a $500 investment in Dogecoin five years ago would be worth over $44,000 today! That's a return of more than 8,730%, which crushes the broader benchmark S&P 500 index's five-year return of over 100%.

Bram Berkowitz has positions in Bitcoin. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Bitcoin. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Dogecoin (DOGE), the world-famous meme coin, is back in the spotlight as the first-ever U.S. Dogecoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) begins trading. The REX-Osprey Doge ETF debuted on the CBOE exchange, offering investors the direct exposure to Dogecoin.

The strong debut of Doge ETF has investors and analysts wondering: could this ETF be the catalyst for a major DOGE rally?

Dogecoin ETF Pump Token PriceThe U.S. market has witnessed a historic milestone with the official launch of the first-ever Dogecoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) on September 18, 2025. Within the first hour after opening, the DOJE ETF recorded an astounding $6 million in trading volume, reflecting robust investor appetite and institutional interest

Bloomberg analyst Eric Balchunas had predicted a modest $2.5 million in volume for the entire first day. Instead, the ETF smashed those expectations in less than 60 minutes, highlighting strong confidence in Dogecoin’s future.

Following the ETF debut, Dogecoin’s price reacted quickly, rallying toward $0.30, a level not seen in months.

More DOGE ETFs Await Approval in OctoberThe momentum doesn’t stop with the first launch. The 21Shares spot-based DOGE ETF was recently listed on the Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC), a step that signals broader adoption is on the way.

At the same time, the U.S. SEC is reviewing new Dogecoin ETF applications from Grayscale and Bitwise, with final decisions expected by October 17. 

Many experts believe the strong debut of the first DOGE ETF could boost the odds of approval for these upcoming filings.

Make-or-Break Moment For DogecoinAs of now, DOGE is hovering near $0.23, brushing close to its rising trendline support. Crypto analyst Ali Martinez notes that the $0.22 mark could be the make-or-break zone for DOGE. Historically, Dogecoin tends to rally aggressively once major resistances turn into support.

Therefore, if bulls manage to defend this zone, it could spark renewed confidence, with the next major test sitting at the triangle’s upper boundary around $0.29 or even $0.45.

But the flip side is equally clear. Losing $0.22 could unravel the setup, opening the door to lower levels around $0.20 or even $0.19.

Trusted Editorial content, reviewed by leading industry experts and seasoned editors. Ad Disclosure

Galaxy CEO Mike Novogratz predicts a $200,000 Bitcoin if Jerome Powell’s replacement is dovish.

The comment came during an interview with Kyle Chasse, where Novogratz declared:

Trump told us he wants a dove in the Fed […] And if he picks a dove enough of a person, there’s gonna be an ‘oh s**t’ moment. Gold skyrockets, Bitcoin skyrockets.

—Mike Novogratz, Kye Chasse interview

As Novogratz sees it, Fed’s next chair nominee could serve as the largest crypto catalyst, potentially pushing Bitcoin to a new ATH by the end of the year.

Bitcoin Hyper’s ($HYPER) $18.5M presale will also contribute to that thanks to its promise of turning the Bitcoin network faster and cheaper. Hyper’s Layer 2 aims to solve Bitcoin’s native performance limitation, which would turn the network more feasible for institutional investors.

The Fed Turns Bitcoin Stronger at the Expense of the US Dollar
Novogratz warns against a dangerous tipping of balance between crypto and the US dollar stemming from the Fed’s rate cuts.

While rate cuts are bullish for Bitcoin, they’re bearish for the US dollar, because it scares away investors who seek refuge in high risk, high reward digital assets.

The last FOMC meeting, which took place on September 17, had the opposite effect, though, with the US dollar jumping almost 2 basis points over the following week, while Bitcoin lost 5.4% between then and today.

The meeting resulted in a 0.25% rate cut, which didn’t seem to raise the investors’ interest, but the next ones might. The Fed announced three more cuts coming, two by the end of this year and one more in 2026.

The closest one is planned for October 28 and it’s an almost guarantee if we go by FedWatch’s market sentiment, which puts the odds of a favorable decision at 87.7%.

And this time we expect Bitcoin to recover its lost territory and make a breakthrough for another ATH. With $120K cleared, a push to $130K and beyond is more than feasible.

Mid-October is the true test if Michael Saylor’s Strategy decides to buy the dip, which is more than likely given that Bitcoin is currently in consolidation mode, floating around the $109K zone for over two days.

This hints at a dying bear momentum, which Strategy could capitalize on to push its treasury above 640,000 $BTC.

With a bullish Bitcoin for October and the crypto market on the verge of a coming alt season, Bitcoin Hyper ($HYPER) appears to be the biggest winner.

How Bitcoin Hyper Could Turn Bitcoin Into the Future of the Financial Sector
Bitcoin Hyper ($HYPER) is the Layer 2 upgrade that promises to transform Bitcoin into the driving force behind the new global financial system.

Hyper seeks to solve the very problem that’s holding Bitcoin back in 2025: its native performance limitation. The Bitcoin network is currently limited to seven transactions per second (TPS), which places Bitcoin on the 23rd position on the list of the fastest blockchains in the world.

By comparison, BNB is second with a TPS of 220, while Solana is second with a real-time TPS of up to 1,000 and a theoretical one of 65,000.

A change is necessary and Hyper brings just that with the help of tools like Solana Virtual Machine (SVM) and the Canonical Bridge.

While SVM allows for the ultra-fast execution of DeFi apps and smart contracts, the Canonical Bridge handles network congestion and addresses transaction finality times directly.

The Canonical Bridge works by minting the users’ tokens onto the Hyper layer, allowing investors to use their $BTC in the Hyper ecosystem.

These tools allow Hyper to boost Bitcoin’s performance by improving scalability and allowing for near-instant finality thanks to the Bitcoin Relay Program and the zero-knowledge (ZK) proofs.

Most importantly, Hyper eliminates the fee-based priority system, which prioritizes larger and more fee-heavy transactions to the detriment of the smaller and cheaper ones. This system currently increases transaction confirmation times to hours in some cases.

Long-term, Hyper hopes to turn the Bitcoin network into a more feasible choice for institutional investors who process thousands of transactions per second.

The $18.5M presale offers $HYPER at $0.012985 per token, which translates into a potential wealth-building investment opportunity.

Given Hyper’s projected long-term utility and investor support during the presale, our price prediction for $HYPER puts the token at $0.32 by the end of the year, following a Q4 release.

Continuous support and successful implementation could lead to mainstream adoption, pushing $HYPER up to $1.50 or higher by 2030. This translates to a 11,451% five-year ROI if you invest at today’s price.

If you’d like to support $HYPER or simply diversify your portfolio, read our guide on how to buy $HYPER and go to the presale page today.

This isn’t financial advice. Do your own research (DYOR) before investing.

Authored by Bogdan Patru, Bitcoinist: https://bitcoinist.com/bitcoin-could-reach-200000-following-powells-replacement

Editorial Process for bitcoinist is centered on delivering thoroughly researched, accurate, and unbiased content. We uphold strict sourcing standards, and each page undergoes diligent review by our team of top technology experts and seasoned editors. This process ensures the integrity, relevance, and value of our content for our readers.

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Axon bought a company that will expand its ecosystem in important ways.

Axon Enterprise (AXON -0.30%) announced the acquisition of a 991 emergency response company powered by AI, expanding the company's ecosystem for emergency response. Travis Hoium shows how this deal fits into the company's business in this video.

*Stock prices used were end-of-day prices of Sept. 24, 2025. The video was published on Sept. 26, 2025.

About the Author

Travis Hoium is a contributing Motley Fool stock market analyst covering solar energy, technology, and growth stocks. Before The Motley Fool, Travis was a mechanical engineer at 3M and founded a virtual reality company. He holds a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering and a master’s degree in business administration from the University of Minnesota.

Travis Hoium has positions in Axon Enterprise. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Axon Enterprise. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Travis Hoium is an affiliate of The Motley Fool and may be compensated for promoting its services. If you choose to subscribe through their link they will earn some extra money that supports their channel. Their opinions remain their own and are unaffected by The Motley Fool.

Brian Niccol took the helm nearly a year ago, but results have been disappointing.

It's been one year since Brian Niccol took the top job at Starbucks (SBUX -0.47%). The move surprised industry observers. Niccol had earned a reputation as a turnaround specialist after getting Chipotle rolling again when the burrito chain was still reeling from the fallout of an E. coli-related crisis that started back in late 2015.

Starbucks stock jumped roughly 25% in a single session on news of the burrito whisperer's arrival, but since then, the java giant has disappointed investors as Starbucks and Niccol struggle to return the business to steady growth. As you can see from the chart below, Starbucks has served investors a half-empty cup over the last year.

Data by YCharts.

Niccol has done a good job of communicating his strategy, called Back to Starbucks, to investors, and it's received plenty of press coverage. He's tried to bring a human touch back to customer service, encouraging baristas to write messages to customers, making stores more inviting with improved designs and store cleanliness, and even serving coffee in ceramic mugs. He's also focused on solving the bottleneck from the influx of online orders Starbucks gets in the mornings, giving priority to in-store customers.

Those efforts have yielded mixed results thus far, and on Thursday, the company announced the latest update to its turnaround plan. It's closing some stores and laying off some corporate staff.

Image source: Starbucks.

What is Starbucks doing?
In line with the Back to Starbucks plan, Niccol said the company had reviewed its portfolio of coffeehouses and will be closing those that don't "create the physical environment our customers and partners expect, or where we don't see a path to financial performance." He didn't say how many stores the company would close, but the net effect with store openings is a loss of about 200 stores this year, leaving Starbucks with close to 18,300 locations at the end of the fiscal year in North America.

Along with the store closure plan, Starbucks also plans to refurbish over 1,000 locations to "introduce greater texture, warmth, and layered design." Additionally, the company will eliminate 900 non-retail jobs and close many of its open positions.

Niccol expressed optimism for the store refreshes, saying early results from other "coffeehouse uplifts" have been positive, and adding labor during busy hours is also paying off.

A move Howard Schultz would appreciate
The store-closing and refresh plan is not unlike what Founder Howard Schultz did in 2008 when he returned to the CEO chair. Schultz closed 600 stores, arguing that the chain had overexpanded and some of its locations were stale, not offering the welcoming "third place" the brand was known for.

That move paid off and helped set the stage for Starbucks' next round of growth, resetting the brand and getting its focus back to the things that have differentiated it like customer service, being a comfortable third place, and treating customers to an affordable luxury.

It's unclear if this round of store closures will work the same magic. Starbucks is much bigger and more mature now. It faces a wide range of competition, including from the fast-growing Dutch Bros chain.

Can Starbucks turn it around?
What is clear after a year with Niccol at the helm is that any turnaround is going to take time as same-store sales are still declining. Additionally, the company is facing headwinds from weak discretionary spending in the U.S. and a slowing job market.

Niccol seems to be making the right moves, but investors will have to be patient, especially if the economy doesn't cooperate. The stock also still seems to be pricing in a turnaround -- its price-to-earnings ratio is now over 30, which is expensive for a restaurant chain that has been struggling for at least a few years.

In Starbucks' recent earnings report, Niccol expressed optimism for 2026, saying, "We'll unleash a wave of innovation that fuels growth, elevates customer service, and ensures everyone experiences the very best of Starbucks."

At this point, a quick improvement is unlikely. Starbucks investors will have to be patient as Niccol's strategy plays out.

Jeremy Bowman has positions in Chipotle Mexican Grill and Starbucks. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Chipotle Mexican Grill and Starbucks. The Motley Fool recommends Dutch Bros and recommends the following options: short September 2025 $60 calls on Chipotle Mexican Grill. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Broadcom is already the seventh-largest company in the world by market cap.

A few years ago, only gamers and cryptocurrency miners really knew Nvidia (NVDA 0.27%). While it was in some personal computers from the factory, it was far from a household name. Now, it's the world's largest company and almost everyone knows about it.

For the most part, any company valued at about $1 trillion is already a household name, but there is one company that is flying under most investors' radar despite its large size. Broadcom (AVGO -0.48%) is a $1.6 trillion company and holds seventh place among the world's largest companies. However, I'd wager that most people have no idea what Broadcom does.

I think Broadcom has the potential to become the next big household name, especially with all of the increased AI spending that's coming down the pipeline.

Image source: Getty Images.

Broadcom's AI business has a huge opportunity
Broadcom has its finger in many different technology fields. It provides cybersecurity solutions, mainframe hardware and software, a virtual desktop platform (via its acquisition of VMware), and many other offerings. That may sound a bit boring (and it is), but it also has an exciting AI computing segment that's slated to take off over the next few years.

Broadcom's AI business comes in two major forms: connectivity switches and custom AI accelerators. Its connectivity switches are deployed in data centers to stitch back together information that was split up to be computed on several different computing units.

However, the bigger opportunity lies in its custom AI accelerators. These are devices that are designed in collaboration with the end user. It calls these products XPUs, and they are growing in popularity. Nvidia's graphics processing units (GPUs) are incredible computing units that are great for a wide variety of applications. However, if a user is only going to run one type of workload on them, this versatility is wasted.

That's where Broadcom's XPUs come in. With Broadcom and the end user designing the chip for the exact workload it will see, it allows them to outperform a GPU at a lower cost point. With artificial intelligence workloads starting to become more standardized, this makes the market opportunity for these devices massive.

Nvidia estimates that global data center capital expenditures will reach $3 trillion to $4 trillion by 2030. This is a massive increase from today's totals and is a positive sign for every company involved in the AI arms race, regardless of whether it's Nvidia or Broadcom.

This is a monstrous opportunity for Broadcom, but what does it mean for the stock?

Broadcom's stock isn't cheap
AI is only a fraction of Broadcom's current revenue, but it could take a larger revenue share with its outsized growth. In its fiscal 2025's third quarter (ended Aug. 3), Broadcom's revenue rose 22% year over year to $15.9 billion. However, its AI revenue rose 63% year over year to $5.2 billion. It anticipates $6.2 billion in AI revenue during Q4, clearly marking massive growth.

As AI starts to capture a larger portion of Broadcom's business, its overall growth rate will increase, transforming Broadcom into a top-tier growth stock along the way. However, the market has already caught wind of this and has given Broadcom an expensive valuation multiple.

AVGO PE Ratio (Forward) data by YCharts

At more than 50 times forward earnings, Broadcom's stock is far from cheap. Still, Broadcom could turn out to be a monster investment if the massive spending on data centers grows to the $3 trillion to $4 trillion range, like Nvidia's management projects.

Although a lot of Broadcom's gains have already been pulled forward, I think it could still be a smart buying opportunity for long-term investors. The AI arms race is far from over, and Broadcom is expected to take some market share from Nvidia because of its purpose-built AI chips. This could transform Broadcom into a household name, placing it alongside the likes of Nvidia.

Keithen Drury has positions in Broadcom and Nvidia. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Nvidia. The Motley Fool recommends Broadcom. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

SummaryProsus N.V. is rated Buy, driven by strong Tencent momentum, a persistent NAV discount, and a growing e-commerce ecosystem.Prosus benefits from Tencent’s compounding growth and uses share buybacks at a 30%+ NAV discount to create shareholder value.The ex-Tencent portfolio is now profitable, growing revenues at 18% CAGR.Management is focused on increasing NAV/share, aligning closely with shareholders.The base case projects 17.6% annual returns; downside is limited by buybacks, while upside could come from narrowing the NAV discount. Funtap/iStock via Getty Images

Prosus N.V. (OTCPK:PROSF) is a global investor in consumer internet companies, headquartered in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Prosus is known for its substantial stake in Tencent (OTCPK:TCEHY), dating back to an early investment made

Analyst’s Disclosure:I/we have a beneficial long position in the shares of PROSF either through stock ownership, options, or other derivatives. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.

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

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Sometimes you want to wait for a pullback before stepping into a stock. These are not one of those times.

Generally speaking, it's better to step into a good stock after a pullback rather than buying it in the midst of a rally. You simply get more bang for your buck when you do.

Every now and then, though, a soaring stock is worth buying despite the apparent risk of sudden weakness. The greater short-term risk is missing out on continued upside, and in the long run, getting a slightly better entry price won't matter much anyway.

To this end, here's a rundown of three such stocks I'd buy right now even if it means jumping in mid-rally.

Lyft
Given the lead that its rival already has, it's unlikely that Lyft (LYFT 1.37%) will ever be as big as ride-sharing leader Uber Technologies. And in most instances, an industry's leading name is often its best investment. That was certainly the case here for a long while anyway.

In this case, though, the second-place player is arguably the better option right now. Uber is technically growing its top line faster than Lyft is at this time, but the latter is at a pivotal point in its existence. It's just now reaching critical mass, resulting in an explosion of its bottom line.

The company's second-quarter earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization improved 26% year over year, while its net income soared from $5 million a year earlier to $40 million. Per-share profits are predicted to grow from last year's $0.06 to $0.28 for all of 2025 before nearly doubling to $0.47 next year.

That's why the stock is up nearly 70% just since August's low. More and more investors are starting to see and believe in this up-and-comer's viability.

The company has still only scratched the surface of its ultimate opportunity, though, particularly now that it has acquired Europe's taxi-like service Freenow that will benefit from its new parent's marketing know-how and technological capabilities.

At the same time, it's forging more partnerships like the ones it recently entered into with autonomous ride-sharing brand Waymo as well as DoorDash. Lyft now seems to recognize that its brand name and network of drivers can be leveraged in a range of revenue-bearing ways.

Even without knowing exactly what its distant future might look like, it seems bright enough to be willing to dive in without waiting for a pullback.

Carnival
Anyone who knows anything about cruise line operator Carnival (CCL 0.57%) likely knows it was nearly wiped out because of the pandemic. It borrowed a huge amount of money to remain afloat. And although the coronavirus contagion has now ebbed, that debt remains.

As of the latest look, the $42 billion market-size company was doing roughly $25 billion worth of annual business and was sitting on nearly $26 billion worth of long-term obligations that are costing it on the order of $400 million in interest expenses every quarter. That's the chief reason the stock rekindled its pandemic-prompted weakness in 2021 and 2022 even though most other stocks were on the mend by then.

There's also a reason, however, that its shares have been rallying (albeit erratically) from their 2022 low. As it turns out, the maritime cruise business is thriving enough to allow Carnival to handle its debt load and have a little something left over.

From its record-breaking second-quarter revenue of $6.3 billion (up 10% year over year), $934 million of it was turned into operating income -- also a record -- leading to net income of $470 million. Customer deposits toward future business also reached an all-time high of $8.5 billion, establishing a ton of future revenue that technically can't be booked yet.

What gives? Although consumers may be tightening their purse strings on other fronts, they're not skimping on leisure travel. They are, however, looking for the best bang for their vacation buck. For many people, that's a surprisingly affordable cruise.

Now, do know that the bulk of the post-pandemic rebound of this business is in the rearview mirror. From here, Carnival's double-digit growth on the top and bottom lines is likely to cool to a single-digit number, in step with the Cruise Lines International Association's expectation for the industry's growth through 2028.

That's OK, though. Even if the industry's recovery is slowing, Carnival also manages some of the more marketable brand names in the cruise business, like Holland America and Princess. Even just a little more scale will do it a lot more good, by virtue of widening its net profit margins.

Taiwan Semiconductor
Lastly, add Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSM -1.17%) to your list of soaring stocks that are still buys despite their current rallies.

It's not exactly a household name, although there's a very good chance you or someone in your household regularly relies on a product made by this company. Taiwan Semiconductor (TSMC for short) is a third-party microchip manufacturer, contracted by players like Apple, Qualcomm, and Intel just to name few.

Since building and managing a semiconductor foundry can be expensive as well as complex, it's often cheaper and easier for these companies to outsource production to a third-party specialist like TSMC. Its customers simply need to provide the chip foundry with the proper product specifications.

Image source: Getty Images.

That doesn't mean it has no competition, nor does it mean it doesn't face cyclical headwinds. For example, after a banner 2022, concerns of economic weakness prompted technology companies to curtail their spending in 2023.

The growing secular need for new chips dramatically outweighs any cyclical slowdown though. Deloitte says the global semiconductor market could swell from last year's $627 billion to more than $1 trillion by 2030, on the way to $2 trillion by 2040.

And even that outlook may understate the opportunity ahead. Jensen Huang, CEO of artificial intelligence (AI) hardware leader Nvidia, recently suggested the AI infrastructure market alone could be worth $3 trillion to $4 trillion within the next five years. And given Nvidia's place in the silicon business, Huang would most definitely know.

It's something else he specifically said about TSMC, however, that makes this stock so compelling despite its seemingly frothy valuation of nearly 30 times this year's expected earnings: "You can't overstate the magic that is TSMC."

This follows his comments last month that TSMC "is one of the greatest companies in the history of humanity," and anybody who wants to buy the stock "is a very smart person."

If for no other reason than sheer logistics and the fact that Taiwan Semiconductor already has the know-how and manufacturing infrastructure in place, it's positioned to win more than its fair share of the chip industry's brewing growth.

James Brumley has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Apple, DoorDash, Intel, Nvidia, Qualcomm, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing, and Uber Technologies. The Motley Fool recommends Carnival Corp. and Lyft and recommends the following options: short November 2025 $21 puts on Intel. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

SummaryRio Tinto remains a buy, supported by strong financials, robust dividends, and growth potential from copper and lithium diversification.Recent results show a resilient business despite weaker iron ore prices, with increased exposure to copper and aluminum.Management restructuring and a three-division strategy aim to streamline operations and focus on future-facing commodities, enhancing long-term prospects for RIO.Conservative valuation suggests some upside from current levels, while macro headwinds and tariff risks persist, but long-term industry tailwinds and dividends offer compelling value.Analyst’s Disclosure:I/we have no stock, option or similar derivative position in any of the companies mentioned, but may initiate a beneficial Long position through a purchase of the stock, or the purchase of call options or similar derivatives in RIO over the next 72 hours. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.

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

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

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

Income investors can sleep soundly knowing these stocks are likely to pay reliable and growing dividends.

High dividend yields often translate to high anxiety for income investors, as it's hard to shake worries that steep dividend cuts could be on the way.

For some stocks with exceptionally high dividend yields, those concerns are warranted. However, that isn't always the case. Here are three ultra-high-yield dividend stocks that won't keep you up at night.

Image source: Getty Images.

1. Enbridge
Enbridge (ENB 0.04%) offers a forward dividend yield of roughly 5.4%. Is this juicy dividend in jeopardy? Not at all. Enbridge has increased its dividend for 30 consecutive years. I predict the company will keep that streak going for a long time to come.

Around three-quarters of Enbridge's total revenue stems from its pipelines and midstream operations. The company owns the world's longest network of liquids pipelines. Its natural gas pipelines transport around one-fifth of the natural gas consumed in the U.S. These businesses have minimal exposure to volatile commodity prices. Enbridge shouldn't be impacted much by the Trump administration's tariffs, either.

Want more assurance about this stock? No problem. Enbridge is also the largest natural gas utility in North America based on volume. It delivers 9.3 billion cubic feet of natural gas to 7 million customers every day. This makes the stock and its dividends even safer, in my opinion.

Enbridge has generated reliable distributable cash flow in the past during turbulent periods, including the financial crisis of 2007 through 2009 and the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 through 2021. I think income investors can be confident that its dividends will continue to flow (and grow) no matter what the future holds.

2. Realty Income
Realty Income's (O 0.89%) dividend yield of 5.4% is just a hair below Enbridge's yield. Like Enbridge, Realty Income has increased its dividend for 30 consecutive years. One big difference between the two, though, is that Realty Income pays its dividend monthly. It even trademarked the name "The Monthly Dividend Company."

Another key difference stems from Realty Income's organizational structure. It's a real estate investment trust (REIT). All REITs must distribute at least 90% of their income as dividends to be exempt from federal income taxes.

Realty Income stands above most REITs, in my view. It has delivered a compound annual total return of 13.5% since listing on the New York Stock Exchange in 1994. The company has also delivered positive operational returns (annual funds from operations per share growth plus dividend yield) for 29 consecutive years.

The REIT's diversified portfolio gives it this impressive stability. Realty Income owns over 15,600 properties rented to tenants representing 91 industries. Most of its clients operate in nondiscretionary, low-price-point, and/or service-oriented businesses.

There's one other thing about Realty Income that should give income investors a warm and fuzzy feeling: It has solid growth prospects. The total addressable market for net lease properties is $14 trillion. Europe makes up $8.5 trillion of that total -- and Realty Income has only one major competitor in the region.

3. Verizon Communications
If you want a really juicy dividend, check out Verizon Communications (VZ 0.55%). The telecom giant pays a dividend yield of 6.4%. It has also increased its  dividend payout for 19 consecutive years.

Does the intense competition in the wireless services market make Verizon's dividend riskier? I don't think so. The company has been able to more than hold its own. It posted the industry's highest revenue in the second quarter of 2025. Verizon claims the most broadband and mobile customers. And its network has been ranked No. 1 in the nation by both J.D. Power and RootMetrics.

The other side of the coin with wireless services is that it's unlikely that there will be new entrants in the market. It's simply too expensive to build the infrastructure required to support high-speed networks that cover the entire U.S. and beyond.

For income investors who like to focus on the numbers, one Verizon statistic should stand out: $20 billion. That's the midpoint of the company's guidance for free cash flow this year. This gives Verizon ample coverage of its dividend, which should allow investors to buy the stock and sleep peacefully as the dividends come quarter after quarter.

Keith Speights has positions in Enbridge, Realty Income, and Verizon Communications. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Enbridge and Realty Income. The Motley Fool recommends Verizon Communications. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

The answer could depend on your investing time horizon.

Have you ever seen a puzzle that asks you to identify what doesn't seem to belong in the picture? That comes to mind when I look at the list of stocks with market caps of $1 trillion or more.

Only 10 companies (and 12 stocks, because two have multiple share classes) are members of the trillion-dollar club. All of them have artificial intelligence (AI) pedigrees except one: Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A 0.59%) (BRK.B 1.06%).

While Berkshire is an outlier in this elite club, I think the huge conglomerate deserves its spot. Most investors can't afford the Class A shares, which trade at close to $745,000. But should you buy Berkshire Hathaway Class B stock while it's hovering around $500?

Image source: Getty Images.

Playing devil's advocate
I'll start off answering the question by playing devil's advocate. There are several arguments against buying Berkshire Hathaway right now.

Perhaps the top reason for hesitation in many investors' minds is the impending departure of Warren Buffett as the company's CEO. Buffett and Berkshire have become synonymous through the years. However, he is handing over the reins as top executive to Greg Abel as of Jan. 1, 2026. Some may worry that Berkshire Hathaway's allure will be diminished without Buffett at the helm.

Another argument against buying Berkshire stock is its valuation. Shares currently trade at a forward price-to-earnings ratio of 22.8. The stock is only around 8% below its all-time high. Even Buffett seems to think the valuation isn't compelling, considering that he hasn't authorized any stock buybacks since last year.

Economic uncertainty is another factor that could prevent some investors from buying Berkshire. Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell recently stated that rising inflation and unemployment present a "challenging situation" for the Fed. Some of Berkshire's businesses could be negatively impacted by these macroeconomic concerns.

Arguments in favor of buying Berkshire Hathaway
While those might be compelling arguments against buying Berkshire Hathaway stock, there are also some reasonable counterpoints. For example, Buffett isn't leaving Berkshire altogether; he will stay on as chairman. Importantly, he doesn't think the company will miss a beat without him as CEO. Buffett even said at the annual shareholder meeting in May 2025 that he expects Berkshire will be in better shape with Abel running the business.

What about the valuation concerns? They shouldn't be dismissed. However, Berkshire has had higher earnings multiples in the past but delivered enough growth to drive its share price higher. I think history will repeat itself over the long run. If you're a long-term buy-and-hold investor, Berkshire's current valuation (which is much lower than the S&P 500's, by the way) shouldn't keep you from buying the stock.

As for economic uncertainty, it's a legitimate issue as well. The Fed's rate cuts could prop up the economy, though. Even if not, Berkshire Hathaway could be widely viewed as a safe haven if the economy stumbles. I suspect its stock would hold up better than most in the event of an economic pullback.

Importantly, Berkshire offers diversification that's almost at an exchange-traded fund (ETF) level. The company owns over 60 subsidiaries representing a wide range of industries. It also has equity holdings in around 40 other publicly traded companies across multiple sectors.

Final verdict
So should you buy Berkshire Hathaway Cass B shares while they're trading around $500? I think answer is yes -- if you have a long-term investing time horizon.

The case against buying Berkshire is mainly focused on near-term concerns. It's entirely possible that the stock could decline over the next year because of the issues discussed earlier. However, the long-term case for Berkshire is persuasive, in my view.

Keith Speights has positions in Berkshire Hathaway. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Berkshire Hathaway. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Take a small position in a potential multibagger and let compounding work its magic.

Plenty of investors out there dream of discovering a rare stock that can yield a stellar, tenfold return. However, to reach that goal, a company must grow revenue and profitability at extraordinary rates. It is also essential that a company operates in a market that is large enough to support such growth. Artificial intelligence (AI) is one of the few booming industries today that can realistically drive companies to a tenfold increase in the next decade.

I believe CoreWeave (CRWV -4.96%) is an AI stock with the potential to grow its share price 10x over the next decade. With a current market capitalization of about $66 billion, the company would need to be valued at $660 billion by the mid-2030s to deliver a 10x return. Although this prediction seems aggressive, it is definitely not implausible.

Image source: Getty Images.

CoreWeave needs stellar financial performance and a robust pipeline
CoreWeave's revenue surged 207% year over year to top $1.2 billion in the second quarter of fiscal 2025 (ending June 30). Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) also more than tripled year over year to $753 million, while adjusted EBITDA margins were an impressive 62%.

CoreWeave also ended the second quarter with $30.1 billion in contracted backlog, double what it held at the start of 2025. That backlog offers vital clues to the company's impressive revenue potential over the next several years. The contracted pipeline includes a $4 billion contract expansion with OpenAI, contract expansions with two hyperscaler customers, and new customer wins, including large enterprises and AI start-ups.

Based on this strong demand, management now expects fiscal 2025 revenue to be in the range of $5.15 billion to $5.35 billion, and adjusted operating income in the range of $800 million to $830 million.

Scaling data center capacity
The AI cloud market is supply-constrained at the moment, with demand growing much faster than available capacity. CoreWeave CEO Michael Intrator claimed that the biggest challenge in building new data center capacity is securing powered shells (data center buildings already connected to the electrical grid and capable of handling massive power loads), which are necessary to support the infrastructure at the scale customers require.

CoreWeave is investing aggressively to expand its data center footprint. The company concluded the second quarter with nearly 470 megawatts of active power (capacity online and operational in data centers) and increased its total contracted power (capacity secured for future build-outs) to 2.2 gigawatts. CoreWeave is now on track to deliver over 900 megawatts of active power by the end of 2025.

Vertical integration strategy
CoreWeave is pursuing vertical integration both up and down the stack to create operational and financial efficiencies. By owning data centers, the company aims to scale its infrastructure more quickly, while reducing its capital costs.

The proposed acquisition of Core Scientific is expected to position CoreWeave as one of the largest AI cloud platforms globally. The deal will add 1.3 gigawatts of gross power capacity, while making an incremental 1 gigawatt or more capacity available for future expansion. Once closed, the deal will also eliminate $10 billion in future lease liabilities and generate $500 million in annual savings by 2027.

CoreWeave has also completed the acquisition of Weights & Biases, which brought 1,600 new enterprise clients and added tools for full-stack observability and inference optimization. These capabilities are now integrated into CoreWeave's Mission Control system, which is used to manage the life cycle of data center clusters. Customers can monitor workloads end-to-end, including GPU usage, storage, and machine learning code. The new Weights & Biases inference product also gives customers greater control over compute capacity.

These AI initiatives are deepening customer stickiness across the platform

Deal with Nvidia
In September 2025, CoreWeave signed a $6.3 billion capacity agreement with Nvidia (NVDA 0.27%), under which the chip giant will purchase any unsold capacity through April 13, 2032.

CoreWeave has already purchased massive amounts of Nvidia's GPUs, which are then rented to customers. Additionally, Nvidia owned nearly 7% of CoreWeave's Class A shares as of June 30. Hence, these companies already enjoy a close relationship.

CoreWeave is in a position to gain early access to Nvidia's advanced GPUs, such as the Blackwell portfolio, ensuring the AI cloud platform can meet the surging demand for complex AI workloads at scale and at lower costs. With Nvidia now guaranteeing utilization, CoreWeave faces limited downside risk and can continue with its aggressive build-out strategy.

Can CoreWeave grow 10x in the next decade?
If CoreWeave can compound revenue at 35% annually over the next decade, its top line could climb from about $5.25 billion (midpoint of guidance) in fiscal 2025 to nearly $105 billion by 2035. This may seem achievable if we consider that Visible Alpha analysts are expecting CoreWeave's revenue to grow at a compounded annual growth rate of 106% from 2024 to 2027.

At that scale, even applying a conservative 9x price-to-sales multiple, which is less than half of its current 18.4x, would imply a market capitalization of $949 billion -- far higher than the target of $660 billion. That would represent a more than tenfold increase from today's market capitalization. That sounds steep, but with the global AI infrastructure market estimated to be nearly $998 billion by 2035, it is definitely doable.

However, execution is critical. CoreWeave must continue to scale data center capacity despite power and GPU supply chain constraints. The company should also maintain high utilization levels through long-term contracts, while also handling its high debt levels and cost of capital. The $30 billion backlog offers significant revenue visibility for future years, while even older GPU clusters based on H100 or A100 are being recontracted for inference workloads. Competition from hyperscalers poses a considerable risk; however, with Nvidia guaranteeing capacity purchases and CoreWeave's vertical integration strategy reducing costs, the downside is somewhat mitigated.

CoreWeave is a high-risk, high-reward investment, especially since the company is currently unprofitable. Investors can consider taking a small stake in this stock to capture the potential upside if the growth story unfolds, but limit their downside risk if execution falters. And while the stock may or may not increase tenfold in the next decade, it is undoubtedly a brilliant pick for 2025.

Manali Pradhan has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Nvidia. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

The leading e-commerce platform is firing on all cylinders these days.

From the company's initial public offering in May 2015 to the peak in November 2021, shares of Shopify (SHOP -2.25%) had skyrocketed 6,480%. As of Sept. 25, they still trade 15% below that record.

But the business has been winning back enthusiasm from the investment community in tremendous fashion. The e-commerce stock has climbed an impressive 399% in just the past three years. Here's one reason Shopify is approaching its all-time highs.

Image source: Getty Images.

Strong fundamental momentum
The market loves a good growth story. And Shopify has been delivering. Its latest financial results speak to the ongoing momentum the business has been experiencing, despite macro uncertainty caused by shifting trade policies.

During the second quarter (ended June 30), Shopify reported 31% year-over-year growth in gross merchandise sales that supported a 31% gain in revenue. Adjusted net income soared 32%. The sales and profit figures came in well ahead of Wall Street analyst estimates.

Shopify has enabled a whopping $1.2 trillion in commerce since its founding. Millions of merchants use its platform in over 175 countries, demonstrating its broad reach.

Reaching a new all-time high
Shopify stock has been on an absolute tear. It only needs to rise 18% from today's price to reach its previous high-water mark. If the company continues to put up robust financial results, hitting and exceeding this record is only a matter of time.

There is one potential headwind, though, and that's the valuation. Shares trade at a steep price-to-sales multiple of 18.6. That's 156% more expensive than exactly three years ago.

Neil Patel has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Shopify. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Cryptocurrency mining showed how quickly a market can move from GPUs to ASICs.

So far, Nvidia (NVDA 0.27%) has been the biggest winner of the artificial intelligence (AI) boom, but investors should not forget how quickly hardware leadership can shift when a market matures. The cryptocurrency mining industry is a great example. Graphics processing units (GPUs) were once the workhorse of crypto mining, at least until application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs) were developed to take mining to the next level.

These ASICs did only one thing, but they did it faster and cheaper, and in short order, GPU-based mining for currencies like Bitcoin fell far out of vogue. The economics were simply too compelling to ignore. If a crypto miner wanted to stay competitive, they had to switch to ASICs or get priced out.

Now, ASICs are being designed for AI workloads.

Image source: Getty Images.

ASICs and AI
GPUs have been the dominant choice for training large language models (LLMs), and Nvidia has been the undisputed GPU king thanks to its powerful software platform, CUDA. The company has built an entire ecosystem around its chips, and it is the reason Nvidia's data center revenue has exploded. But AI workloads are massively expensive and energy-hungry, and for the largest hyperscalers (companies that own massive data centers) focused on AI, there is a huge incentive to find something cheaper and more efficient.

This is exactly why Alphabet built its Tensor Processing Units (TPUs), and why Amazon developed its Trainium and Inferentia chips. Others are now following suit. Meta Platforms and OpenAI have reportedly been working with Broadcom to develop their own custom chips, with OpenAI believed to be the customer that made a surprising $10 billion order for next year. Meanwhile, large Nvidia customer Microsoft has also been working to create its own custom AI chip.

The goal is clear: lower costs and reduce reliance on Nvidia. Meanwhile, with the market beginning to shift more toward inference, the landscape is changing. Nvidia's moat around inference isn't nearly as wide as the one it has for training. Inference isn't as technically demanding as training, so the years of code built on top of CUDA aren't as impactful. Meanwhile, inference is a continuing cost, so the total cost of ownership and cost per inference are much more important factors.

When the cost curve in Bitcoin mining forced the shift to ASICs, GPUs went from must-have to irrelevant almost overnight in the space. Nvidia's massive valuation today assumes that hyperscalers will keep buying ever more GPUs, but history says they will only do so as long as the economics make sense.

Now, there are some major differences between Bitcoin mining and inference that work in Nvidia's favor. Bitcoin mining is a brute force repetitive task, while inference is understanding the intent of an input, like a question, and using the information the LLM was trained on to execute. New AI techniques are also constantly being developed, like reasoning or multimodal AI, and GPUs are more adaptable to handle these tasks compared to ASICs, which can become obsolete more quickly.

Nvidia also sees this risk and is taking steps to protect itself. Its recent $100 billion investment partnership with OpenAI is a perfect example. Whether directly or indirectly, OpenAI is one of the biggest users of Nvidia's GPUs, but it has recently developed its own AI ASICs. With this investment, Nvidia is effectively paying to ensure OpenAI keeps using its GPUs.

Will AI ASICs replace GPUs?
Investors should watch the ASIC threat closely because it could be the single biggest risk to Nvidia's growth story. The company has a wide moat, but it is not unbreakable. The hyperscalers have the money and motivation to chip away at its dominance, and every dollar that moves to in-house AI chips is a dollar that doesn't go to Nvidia.

That doesn't mean GPUs are going away, as AI workloads are still evolving, and GPUs are flexible enough to handle new models and techniques. However, as the market shifts to inference, custom AI chips will likely take share.

Right now, the market looks big enough for there to be multiple future AI infrastructure winners, but Bitcoin showed how quickly the economics can flip, and AI could follow a similar pattern. Investors should keep that in mind before assuming Nvidia's growth is on autopilot for the next decade.

Geoffrey Seiler has positions in Alphabet. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet, Amazon, Bitcoin, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, and Nvidia. The Motley Fool recommends Broadcom and recommends the following options: long January 2026 $395 calls on Microsoft and short January 2026 $405 calls on Microsoft. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

These three stocks have huge growth opportunities ahead.

Growth stocks continue to lead the market higher, and with artificial intelligence (AI) still in its early innings, that looks like the strong growth could continue over the next few years. Even though the market is trading near all-time highs, there are still plenty of stocks with good upside from here.

Let's look at three stocks with huge growth opportunities still in front of them that could soar by 2028.

Image source: Getty Images.

1. Broadcom
As the AI market starts to shift toward inference, Broadcom (AVGO -0.48%) is in great shape. Companies don't want to be totally reliant on Nvidia's graphics processing units (GPUs), so they are increasingly turning to Broadcom to help them develop custom AI chips. Custom AI chips are particularly useful for inference, given inference's comparative simplicity versus training and ongoing costs. This makes custom chips that can run inference workloads at a lower cost a great alternative for large hyperscalers (companies that own massive data centers).

Broadcom has already helped Alphabet (GOOGL 0.28%) (GOOG 0.21%) design its tensor processing units (TPUs), and that win led to Meta Platforms and ByteDance also becoming customers. Broadcom has said those three alone could represent a $60 billion to $90 billion opportunity by fiscal 2027, which is more than double the total revenue it will generate in fiscal 2025.

However, it doesn't end there. A fourth customer, widely believed to be OpenAI, has already placed a $10 billion order for next year. OpenAI and Oracle are talking about spending $300 billion on data centers in the coming years, so Broadcom has a big opportunity if it can win even just a small slice of this business. Apple is also reportedly working on AI chips with Broadcom, which could be another needle mover.

Given its massive opportunity in custom AI chips over the next few years, Broadcom's stock could trade much higher by 2028.

2. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing
Another company poised to benefit from the ongoing AI infrastructure buildout over the next few years is Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSM -1.17%). It's the only foundry that can consistently manufacture advanced chips at scale with strong yields. Intel has tried to catch up for years and is still losing money in its foundry business, while Samsung has stumbled with yields and even lost Google's Tensor G5 production to TSMC.

TSMC's success comes from its ability to manufacture chips at small node sizes while getting strong yields. Shrinking node sizes is important for advanced chips, like GPUs, as it increases the number of transistors that can fit on a chip, which makes them more powerful and energy efficient. Meanwhile, manufacturers need a high percentage of the chips they make to be defect-free. A higher yield means a lower cost per chip and a greater number of usable chips from each production run.

This ability has led TSMC to become a critical partner to chip designers and also given it strong pricing power. It currently projects that AI chip demand will grow at a more than 40% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) through 2028. It will reportedly raise prices by up to 10% next year, which will be another growth driver on top of strong demand.

TSMC is the one company every major chip designer has to use to get chips made. It is basically selling shovels in a gold rush, which makes it a strong stock to own over the next few years.

3. Alphabet
Alphabet has managed to turn what many thought was a big risk into a growth driver. People worried that AI chatbots would hurt Google Search, but search growth actually picked up last quarter, and new AI features are leading to more search queries. Meanwhile, its Gemini AI chatbot is gaining steam, with the Gemini app recently becoming the most downloaded app on the Apple App Store, surpassing ChatGPT.

Meanwhile, the biggest risk the stock faced is now behind it. Despite losing its antitrust case to the Department of Justice, a federal judge allowed the company to not only keep its Chrome browser and Android operating system, but also the main tenets of its search deal with Apple in place. This means Alphabet still controls the main gateways to the internet for billions of users.

Google's biggest growth driver, though, is cloud computing. Alphabet is one of the few companies with its own AI models, custom chips, and cloud infrastructure, which should help margins over time. This vertical integration should become a significant advantage in the coming years.

Meanwhile, its Waymo robotaxi business is expanding rapidly throughout the U.S. and could become a big contributor over the next few years. This is a significant opportunity that often gets overlooked by investors.

Overall, Alphabet is set up well to see strong growth through 2028 and beyond, and its stock has a lot of potential upside over the next few years.

Geoffrey Seiler has positions in Alphabet. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet, Apple, Intel, Meta Platforms, Oracle, and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing. The Motley Fool recommends Broadcom and recommends the following options: short November 2025 $21 puts on Intel. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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

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