Market Signal Briefing

Apple (AAPL 0.47%) just wrapped up a jam-packed three days of new product releases. While the launch of a $599 entry-level laptop dubbed the MacBook Neo garnered headlines for its affordability, there's something bigger at play -- something that keeps resurfacing across almost all of its product announcements: artificial intelligence (AI). Apple is aggressively outfitting its professional and consumer product stack to run heavy artificial intelligence workloads -- and it isn't being shy about trying to draw attention to this push.

Ultimately, Apple is tapping into a major selling point as it releases new products, highlighting that its latest products aren't just incremental upgrades but part of a major hardware transformation -- a transformation that could help accelerate sales.

Apple's new Neo MacBook. Image source: Apple.

Silicon built for heavy AI workloads At the core of this three-day product launch event is the revamped MacBook Pro lineup, powered by the new M5 Pro and M5 Max architectures. Management noted in the press release that the new silicon features up to four times the AI performance of the previous MacBook Pro generation and up to eight times the AI performance of M1-powered models.

"With Neural Accelerators in the GPU, the new MacBook Pro enables professionals to run advanced [large language models] on device and unlock capabilities that no other laptop can do," said Apple hardware engineering chief John Ternus in the company's press release about the new 14- and 16-inch laptops.

This AI theme was present in the product release for every new Apple product announced this week, except its new monitors.

Even the new entry-level MacBook Neo features a dedicated 16-core neural engine that "supports fast on-device Apple Intelligence features and everyday AI tasks," the company said.

By embedding powerful local processing across its entire lineup, Apple is not only giving customers a reason to upgrade, but it's quietly ensuring its hardware base is ready before it unveils a heavily overhauled, smarter version of Siri later this year.

Supercharging an already massive hardware cycle This push for artificial intelligence hardware comes at a time of impressive momentum for Apple.

The company's fiscal 2026 first-quarter revenue surged 16% year over year to a record $143.8 billion -- an acceleration from 8% growth in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2025. That impressive top-line acceleration was driven largely by the iPhone. Fiscal first-quarter iPhone revenue spiked 23% year over year to $85.3 billion.

The influx of highly capable, artificial intelligence-ready iPads and Macs announced this week -- not to mention the new, aggressively priced iPhone 17e -- could easily compound this momentum, given their appeal in an increasingly AI-first technological environment. And keep in mind that Apple boasts an installed base of more than 2.5 billion active devices. A bigger-than-usual upgrade cycle, therefore, could have a significant impact on the tech giant's financials.

And while hardware drives the headlines, these device sales ultimately feed Apple's highly lucrative Services segment, which commands a gross margin typically hovering around 75%. So the true value of these devices to Apple (and shareholders) is far greater than their sale price.

Today's Change

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Current Price

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262.52

But is all of this excitement already priced into the stock?

With a market capitalization of about $3.9 trillion as of this writing and a price-to-earnings ratio of about 34, the stock commands a premium valuation. But I think Apple is one of those rare companies worth paying a premium for -- especially ahead of what could be a multi-year upgrade supercycle driven by artificial intelligence; Apple's AI-focused hardware will likely play an increasingly important role in both consumers' and professionals' daily tasks, leading to a big wave of upgrades.

Of course, investors should keep an eye on key risks, including supply chain risks stemming from Apple's global supply chain, surging memory prices, and regulatory scrutiny given Apple's massive scale. Overall, however, I think Apple stock is worth paying up for as consumers and businesses increasingly look to upgrade their devices to be better equipped for an era of accelerating technological transformation.

Roku, Inc. (ROKU) Morgan Stanley Technology, Media & Telecom Conference 2026 March 4, 2026 4:05 PM EST

Company Participants

Anthony Wood - Founder, Chairman, President & CEO

Presentation

Unknown Analyst

All right. We're going to get started here. For important disclosures, please see the Morgan Stanley research disclosure website at morganstanley.com/researchdisclosures. If you have any questions, please reach out to your Morgan Stanley sales representative.

And with that, I am very pleased to welcome Anthony Wood, Founder and CEO of Roku. Thank you so much for coming back to the conference.

Anthony Wood
Founder, Chairman, President & CEO

Thanks for having me. I appreciate it.

Question-and-Answer Session

Unknown Analyst

All right. So you looked -- you reported a couple of weeks ago, and you talked about a 2026 outlook that gave investors, I think, a little bit of a peek into what you see as a potential growth opportunity going forward. As we look out to this year, what do you think are the 2 or 3 biggest strategic priorities for you, for the company? And what do you think will be most different about your business if all goes well and you execute on your plan?

Anthony Wood
Founder, Chairman, President & CEO

Yes. So our priorities are really to focus on our main businesses. So our main businesses are advertising and subscriptions. And then I would say the third priority would be our home screen. So I'll just talk a little bit about each of those. So advertising is doing really well for us. It's been a very positive business. It's growing nicely.

And in advertising, we're focused on being the most performant connected TV platform, so continuing to invest in integrating generative AI throughout our platform to drive even more performance on our platform, integrating with DSPs. So a big

NEW ORLEANS, March 04, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ClaimsFiler, a FREE shareholder information service, reminds investors that they have until April 24, 2026 to file lead plaintiff applications in a securities class action lawsuit against Navan, Inc. (“Navan” or the “Company”) (NasdaqGS: NAVN), if they purchased or otherwise acquired the Company’s shares pursuant and/or traceable to the Registration Statement and Prospectus (collectively, the “Offering Documents”) issued in connection with Navan’s October 2025 initial public offering (the “IPO”). This action is pending in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California.

Get Help

Navan investors should visit us at https://claimsfiler.com/cases/nasdaq-navn/ or call toll-free (844) 367-9658. Lawyers at Kahn Swick & Foti, LLC are available to discuss your legal options.

About the Lawsuit

Navan and certain of its executives are charged with failing to disclose material information during the Class Period, violating federal securities laws. The alleged false and misleading statements and omissions include, but are not limited to, that the Company had increased its “sales and marketing” expenses for the quarter ending October 31, 2025 to nearly $95 million, or by 39% compared to $68.5 million sales and marketing expenses in the quarter ending July 31, 2025. When the true details entered the market, the lawsuit claims that the Company’s shares fell sharply.

The case is McCown v. Navan, Inc., Case No. 26-cv-01550.

About ClaimsFiler

ClaimsFiler has a single mission: to serve as the information source to help retail investors recover their share of billions of dollars from securities class action settlements. At ClaimsFiler.com, investors can: (1) register for free to gain access to information and settlement websites for various securities class action cases so they can timely submit their own claims; (2) upload their portfolio transactional data to be notified about relevant securities cases in which they may have a financial interest; and (3) submit inquiries to the Kahn Swick & Foti, LLC law firm for free case evaluations.

To learn more about ClaimsFiler, visit www.claimsfiler.com.

NEW ORLEANS, March 04, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ClaimsFiler, a FREE shareholder information service, reminds investors that they have until April 13, 2026 to file lead plaintiff applications in a securities class action lawsuit against Kyndryl Holdings, Inc. (“Kyndryl” or the “Company”) (NYSE: KD), if they purchased or otherwise acquired the Company’s shares between August 7, 2024 and February 9, 2026, inclusive (the “Class Period”). This action is pending in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York.

Get Help

Kyndryl investors should visit us at https://claimsfiler.com/cases/nyse-kd/ or call toll-free (844) 367-9658. Lawyers at Kahn Swick & Foti, LLC are available to discuss your legal options.

About the Lawsuit

Kyndryl and certain of its executives are charged with failing to disclose material information during the Class Period, violating federal securities laws.  

On February 9, 2026, the Company disclosed that it would be unable to timely file its Form 10-Q Report for the quarter ended December 31, 2025 and that “the Company anticipates reporting material weaknesses in the Company’s internal control over financial reporting for the period covered in the Quarterly Report, as well as for the full fiscal year ended March 31, 2025, and the first two fiscal quarters of fiscal year 2026, which are expected to include, but may not be limited to, the effectiveness and strength of certain functions at the Company, including with respect to controls related to information and communication and tone at the top,” as well as the departure of its C.F.O and General Counsel. On this news, the price of Kyndryl’s shares fell $12.90 per share, or 55%, to close at $10.59 on February 9, 2026.

The case is Brander v. Kyndryl Holdings, Inc., et al., No. 26-cv-00782.

About ClaimsFiler

ClaimsFiler has a single mission: to serve as the information source to help retail investors recover their share of billions of dollars from securities class action settlements. At ClaimsFiler.com, investors can: (1) register for free to gain access to information and settlement websites for various securities class action cases so they can timely submit their own claims; (2) upload their portfolio transactional data to be notified about relevant securities cases in which they may have a financial interest; and (3) submit inquiries to the Kahn Swick & Foti, LLC law firm for free case evaluations.

To learn more about ClaimsFiler, visit www.claimsfiler.com.

New York, New York--(Newsfile Corp. - March 4, 2026) - WHY: Rosen Law Firm, a global investor rights law firm, reminds purchasers of common stock of Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical Inc. (NASDAQ: RARE) between August 3, 2023 and December 26, 2025, inclusive (the "Class Period"), of the important April 6, 2026 lead plaintiff deadline.

SO WHAT: If you purchased Ultragenyx common stock during the Class Period you may be entitled to compensation without payment of any out of pocket fees or costs through a contingency fee arrangement.

WHAT TO DO NEXT: To join the Ultragenyx class action, go to https://rosenlegal.com/submit-form/?case_id=52472 or call Phillip Kim, Esq. toll-free at 866-767-3653 or email [email protected] for information on the class action. A class action lawsuit has already been filed. If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff, you must move the Court no later than April 6, 2026. A lead plaintiff is a representative party acting on behalf of other class members in directing the litigation.

WHY ROSEN LAW: We encourage investors to select qualified counsel with a track record of success in leadership roles. Often, firms issuing notices do not have comparable experience, resources, or any meaningful peer recognition. Many of these firms do not actually litigate securities class actions, but are merely middlemen that refer clients or partner with law firms that actually litigate the cases. Be wise in selecting counsel. The Rosen Law Firm represents investors throughout the globe, concentrating its practice in securities class actions and shareholder derivative litigation. Rosen Law Firm has achieved, at that time, the largest ever securities class action settlement against a Chinese Company. Rosen Law Firm was Ranked No. 1 by ISS Securities Class Action Services for number of securities class action settlements in 2017. The firm has been ranked in the top 4 each year since 2013 and has recovered hundreds of millions of dollars for investors. In 2019 alone the firm secured over $438 million for investors. In 2020, founding partner Laurence Rosen was named by law360 as a Titan of Plaintiffs' Bar. Many of the firm's attorneys have been recognized by Lawdragon and Super Lawyers.

DETAILS OF THE CASE: According to the lawsuit, defendants provided investors with material information concerning Ultragenyx's expected results for its Phase III Orbit and Cosmic Studies, which tested setrusumab (UX 143) in patients with Osteogenesis Imperfecta ("OI"). Defendants' statements included, among other things, confidence in setrusumab's ability to ultimately trigger a decrease in the OI patients' annualized fracture rate, alongside confidence in the study designs to demonstrate such ability and reduce testing variability that could interfere with such a result.

The lawsuit claims that defendants provided these overwhelmingly positive statements to investors while simultaneously disseminating materially false and misleading statements and/or concealing material adverse facts concerning the true state of setrusumab's potential, as well as the true risk inherent in the study protocols put forth; notably, that while setrusumab does increase material bone density, this increase does not correlate to a decrease in annualized fracture rates or otherwise, that the Phase III Orbit and Cosmic studies were much less likely to be able to demonstrate such a link than management claimed. The lawsuit claims that such statements absent these material facts caused Ultragenyx shareholders to purchase Ultragenyx securities at artificially inflated prices. When the true details entered the market, the lawsuit claims that investors suffered damages.

To join the Ultragenyx class action, go to https://rosenlegal.com/submit-form/?case_id=52472 or call Phillip Kim, Esq. toll-free at 866-767-3653 or email [email protected] for information on the class action.

No Class Has Been Certified. Until a class is certified, you are not represented by counsel unless you retain one. You may select counsel of your choice. You may also remain an absent class member and do nothing at this point. An investor's ability to share in any potential future recovery is not dependent upon serving as lead plaintiff.

Follow us for updates on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-rosen-law-firm, on Twitter: https://twitter.com/rosen_firm or on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rosenlawfirm/.

Attorney Advertising. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.

-------------------------------

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/286339

Source: The Rosen Law Firm PA

Ready to Announce with Confidence? Send us a message and a member of our TMX Newsfile team will contact you to discuss your needs.

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, /PRNewswire/ --

Why: Rosen Law Firm, a global investor rights law firm, reminds purchasers of securities of Beyond Meat, Inc. (NASDAQ: BYND) between February 27, 2025 and November 11, 2025, both dates inclusive (the "Class Period"), of the important March 24, 2026 lead plaintiff deadline.

So what: If you purchased Beyond Meat securities during the Class Period you may be entitled to compensation without payment of any out of pocket fees or costs through a contingency fee arrangement.

What to do next: To join the Beyond Meat class action, go to https://rosenlegal.com/submit-form/?case_id=16090 or call Phillip Kim, Esq. toll-free at 866-767-3653 or email [email protected] for information on the class action. A class action lawsuit has already been filed. If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff, you must move the Court no later than March 24, 2026. A lead plaintiff is a representative party acting on behalf of other class members in directing the litigation.

Why Rosen Law: We encourage investors to select qualified counsel with a track record of success in leadership roles. Often, firms issuing notices do not have comparable experience, resources, or any meaningful peer recognition. Many of these firms do not actually handle securities class actions, but are merely middlemen that refer clients or partner with law firms that actually litigate the cases. Be wise in selecting counsel. The Rosen Law Firm represents investors throughout the globe, concentrating its practice in securities class actions and shareholder derivative litigation. Rosen Law Firm has achieved, at that time, the largest ever securities class action settlement against a Chinese Company. Rosen Law Firm was Ranked No. 1 by ISS Securities Class Action Services for number of securities class action settlements in 2017. The firm has been ranked in the top 4 each year since 2013 and has recovered hundreds of millions of dollars for investors. In 2019 alone the firm secured over $438 million for investors. In 2020, founding partner Laurence Rosen was named by law360 as a Titan of Plaintiffs' Bar. Many of the firm's attorneys have been recognized by Lawdragon and Super Lawyers.

Details of the case: According to the lawsuit, throughout the Class Period, defendants made materially false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (1) the book value of certain of Beyond Meat's long-lived assets exceeded their fair value, making it highly likely that Beyond Meat would be required to record a material, non-cash impairment charge; (2) the  foregoing was likely to impair Beyond Meat's ability to timely file its periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission; and (3) as a result, defendants' public statements were materially false and misleading at all relevant times. When the true details entered the market, the lawsuit claims that investors suffered damages.

To join the Beyond Meat class action, go to  https://rosenlegal.com/submit-form/?case_id=16090 or call Phillip Kim, Esq. toll-free at 866-767-3653 or email [email protected] for information on the class action.

No Class Has Been Certified. Until a class is certified, you are not represented by counsel unless you retain one. You may select counsel of your choice. You may also remain an absent class member and do nothing at this point. An investor's ability to share in any potential future recovery is not dependent upon serving as lead plaintiff.

Follow us for updates on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-rosen-law-firm, on Twitter: https://twitter.com/rosen_firm or on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rosenlawfirm/.

Attorney Advertising. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.

Contact Information:

      Laurence Rosen, Esq.
      Phillip Kim, Esq.
      The Rosen Law Firm, P.A.
      275 Madison Avenue, 40th Floor
      New York, NY 10016
      Tel: (212) 686-1060
      Toll Free: (866) 767-3653
      Fax: (212) 202-3827
      [email protected]
      www.rosenlegal.com

SOURCE THE ROSEN LAW FIRM, P. A.

NEW YORK, March 04, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) --

WHY: Rosen Law Firm, a global investor rights law firm, reminds purchasers of ordinary shares of uniQure N.V. (NASDAQ: QURE) between September 24, 2025 and October 31, 2025, inclusive (the “Class Period”), of the important April 13, 2026 lead plaintiff deadline.

SO WHAT: If you purchased uniQure ordinary shares during the Class Period you may be entitled to compensation without payment of any out of pocket fees or costs through a contingency fee arrangement.

WHAT TO DO NEXT: To join the uniQure class action, go to https://rosenlegal.com/submit-form/?case_id=53025 or call Phillip Kim, Esq. toll-free at 866-767-3653 or email [email protected] for information on the class action. A class action lawsuit has already been filed. If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff, you must move the Court no later than April 13, 2026. A lead plaintiff is a representative party acting on behalf of other class members in directing the litigation.

WHY ROSEN LAW: We encourage investors to select qualified counsel with a track record of success in leadership roles. Often, firms issuing notices do not have comparable experience, resources, or any meaningful peer recognition. Many of these firms do not actually litigate securities class actions, but are merely middlemen that refer clients or partner with law firms that actually litigate the cases. Be wise in selecting counsel. The Rosen Law Firm represents investors throughout the globe, concentrating its practice in securities class actions and shareholder derivative litigation. Rosen Law Firm has achieved, at that time, the largest ever securities class action settlement against a Chinese Company. Rosen Law Firm was Ranked No. 1 by ISS Securities Class Action Services for number of securities class action settlements in 2017. The firm has been ranked in the top 4 each year since 2013 and has recovered hundreds of millions of dollars for investors. In 2019 alone the firm secured over $438 million for investors. In 2020, founding partner Laurence Rosen was named by law360 as a Titan of Plaintiffs’ Bar. Many of the firm’s attorneys have been recognized by Lawdragon and Super Lawyers.

DETAILS OF THE CASE: According to the lawsuit, defendants misrepresented and/or failed to disclose that: (1) the design of uniQure’s Pivotal Study (a study of uniQure’s leading drug candidate in patients with Huntington’s Disease) — including comparison of the Pivotal Study results to the ENROLL-HD external historical data set— was not fully approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (the “FDA”); (2) defendants downplayed the likelihood that, despite purportedly highly successful results from the Pivotal Study, uniQure would have to delay its Biologics License Application (“BLA”) timeline to perform additional studies to supplement its BLA submission; and (3) as a result, defendants’ statements about uniQure’s business, operations, and prospects lacked a reasonable basis. When the true details entered the market, the lawsuit claims that investors suffered damages.

To join the uniQure class action, go to https://rosenlegal.com/submit-form/?case_id=53025 or call Phillip Kim, Esq. toll-free at 866-767-3653 or email [email protected] for information on the class action.

No Class Has Been Certified. Until a class is certified, you are not represented by counsel unless you retain one. You may select counsel of your choice. You may also remain an absent class member and do nothing at this point. An investor’s ability to share in any potential future recovery is not dependent upon serving as lead plaintiff.

Follow us for updates on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-rosen-law-firm, on Twitter: https://twitter.com/rosen_firm or on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rosenlawfirm/.

Attorney Advertising. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.

Contact Information:

Laurence Rosen, Esq.
Phillip Kim, Esq.
The Rosen Law Firm, P.A.
275 Madison Avenue, 40th Floor
New York, NY 10016
Tel: (212) 686-1060
Toll Free: (866) 767-3653
Fax: (212) 202-3827
 [email protected]
 www.rosenlegal.com

NEW ORLEANS, March 04, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ClaimsFiler, a FREE shareholder information service, reminds investors that they have until May 1, 2026 to file lead plaintiff applications in a securities class action lawsuit against Apollo Global Management, Inc. (NYSE: APO) (“Apollo” or the “Company”), if they purchased or otherwise acquired the Company’s securities between May 10, 2021 and February 21, 2026, inclusive (the “Class Period”). This action is pending in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York.

Get Help

Apollo investors should visit us at https://claimsfiler.com/cases/nyse-apo/ or call toll-free (844) 367-9658. Lawyers at Kahn Swick & Foti, LLC are available to discuss your legal options.

About the Lawsuit

Apollo and certain of its executives are charged with failing to disclose material information during the Class Period, violating federal securities laws. The alleged false and misleading statements and omissions include, but are not limited to, that: (i) the Company’s leadership figures, including defendants Marc Rowan and Leon Black, frequently communicated with Jeffrey Epstein in the 2010s regarding the Company’s business; (ii) as a result, the Company’s assertion that Apollo Global had never done business with Jeffrey Epstein was untrue; (iii) because of the entanglement between Apollo Global’s leaders and Jeffrey Epstein, the harm to the Company’s reputation was more than a mere possibility; and (iv) as a result, the Company’s statements about its business, operations, and prospects, were materially false and misleading and/or lacked a reasonable basis at all times.

The case is Feldman v. Apollo Global Management, Inc., et al., Case No. 26-cv-01692.

About ClaimsFiler

ClaimsFiler has a single mission: to serve as the information source to help retail investors recover their share of billions of dollars from securities class action settlements. At ClaimsFiler.com, investors can: (1) register for free to gain access to information and settlement websites for various securities class action cases so they can timely submit their own claims; (2) upload their portfolio transactional data to be notified about relevant securities cases in which they may have a financial interest; and (3) submit inquiries to the Kahn Swick & Foti, LLC law firm for free case evaluations.

To learn more about ClaimsFiler, visit www.claimsfiler.com.

Flutter Entertainment plc (PDYPY) Morgan Stanley Technology, Media & Telecom Conference 2026 March 4, 2026 5:35 PM EST

Company Participants

Jeremy Jackson - CEO & Executive Director
Rob Coldrake - Chief Financial Officer

Conference Call Participants

Edward Young - Morgan Stanley, Research Division

Presentation

Edward Young
Morgan Stanley, Research Division

So hello. I'm delighted to be joined by Peter Jackson and Rob Coldrake, from Flutter. Thanks very much for joining us again at the conference.

Jeremy Jackson
CEO & Executive Director

Thank you very much for having us.

Question-and-Answer Session

Edward Young
Morgan Stanley, Research Division

So you reported results last week. Revenue was up 17%, EBITDA was up 21%. But obviously, an awful lot of drivers within the business. So perhaps for ease, we'll start with the U.S., as you probably expect me to say. So I guess as a sort of short overview at the start what did you make of the U.S. performance in '25?

Jeremy Jackson
CEO & Executive Director

Yes. well thank you, Ed. I mean hopefully, we'll get to speak about international...

Edward Young
Morgan Stanley, Research Division

You will.

Jeremy Jackson
CEO & Executive Director

As that is an important part of the business. But from a U.S. perspective, I think that -- look, let's start with the most successful part of our business, which is the iGaming business. We exited Q4 with 28% of GGR. I think our strategy of building exclusive content, having access to the loyalty program has been working really effectively for us. We're excited with the way that the business exited last year and the prospects for it through the course of this year.

If I take our sports business, I have no doubt we'll talk about Q4 at some stage. Actually, the progress we're making in terms of getting towards our

At the Morgan Stanley Technology, Media and Telecom conference in downtown San Francisco Wednesday, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said his company’s recent investments in OpenAI and Anthropic are likely to be its last in both, saying that once they go public as anticipated later this year, the opportunity to invest closes.

It could be that simple. While firms sometimes pile into companies until practically the eve of their public debut in search of more upside, Nvidia is minting money selling the chips that power both companies — it’s not like it needs to goose its returns by pouring even more money into either one.

Nvidia, for its part, isn’t offering much elaboration. Asked for comment earlier today following Huang’s remarks, a spokesman pointed TechCrunch to a transcript from the company’s fourth-quarter earnings call, where Huang said all of Nvidia’s investments are “focused very squarely, strategically on expanding and deepening our ecosystem reach,” a goal its earlier stakes in both companies have arguably met.

Still, a few other dynamics might also explain the pullback, including the circular nature of these arrangements themselves, which have raised questions about a potential bubble. When Nvidia first announced it would invest up to $100 billion in OpenAI last September, MIT Sloan professor Michael Cusumano blandly described it to the Financial Times as “kind of a wash,” observing that “Nvidia is investing $100 billion in OpenAI stock, and OpenAI is saying they are going to buy $100 billion or more of Nvidia chips.”

The commitment shrank either way. The investment Nvidia finalized just last week as part of OpenAI’s $110 billion round came in at $30 billion — well short of the $100 billion it had once pledged. Meanwhile, Huang has dismissed suggestions of bad blood between the two companies as “nonsense,” though Nvidia’s relationship with Anthropic has looked fraught in its own right.

Just two months after Nvidia announced a $10 billion investment in November, Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei took the stage at Davos and, without naming Nvidia directly, compared the act of U.S. chip companies selling high-performance AI processors to approved Chinese customers to “selling nuclear weapons to North Korea.” (Ouch.)

In retrospect, a nuclear weapons comparison was the least of it. Just days before Huang appeared at the banking conference, the Trump administration blacklisted Anthropic, barring federal agencies and military contractors from using its tech after the company refused to allow its models to be used for autonomous weapons or mass domestic surveillance.

Techcrunch event

San Francisco, CA | October 13-15, 2026

Within hours of that announcement, OpenAI struck its own deal with the Pentagon — a move Anthropic has called “mendacious” and the public appears to have viewed similarly. Within 24 hours, Claude had shot to the top of Apple’s U.S. App Store, overtaking ChatGPT. (At the end of January, Anthropic was outside the top 100, according to Sensor Tower data.)

Where that leaves Nvidia is holding stakes in two companies that, at this particular moment, are pulling in very different directions — one newly aligned with the Defense Department, and the other blacklisted by it.

Whether Huang saw any of this coming, given Nvidia’s web of partnerships, is impossible to know. But his stated reason on Wednesday for likely pulling the plug on future investments — that the IPO window closes the door on this kind of deal — is hard to square with how late-stage private investing actually works. What’s looking more probable s that this is an exit from a situation that has gotten really complicated, really fast.

Loizos has been reporting on Silicon Valley since the late ’90s, when she joined the original Red Herring magazine. Previously the Silicon Valley Editor of TechCrunch, she was named Editor in Chief and General Manager of TechCrunch in September 2023. She’s also the founder of StrictlyVC, a daily e-newsletter and lecture series acquired by Yahoo in August 2023 and now operated as a sub brand of TechCrunch.

You can contact or verify outreach from Connie by emailing [email protected] or [email protected], or via encrypted message at ConnieLoizos.53 on Signal.

VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESS Newswire / March 4, 2026 / Global Education Communities Corp. ("GECC" or the "Company") (TSX:GEC)(OTCQB:GECSF) has completed the divestment of its remaining Canadian educational assets as of February 28, 2026. This final sale marks the Company's strategic evolution into a pure-play student housing developer and operator, centred on a project pipeline currently valued at approximately $674 million (based on construction budgets), in addition to eight operational properties across Metro Vancouver.

Investing in the private credit market can offer high yields, but the downside risks are real and increasingly visible.

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Schall Law Firm, a national shareholder rights litigation firm, reminds investors of a class action lawsuit against Apollo Global Management, Inc. (“Apollo” or “the Company”) (NYSE: APO) for violations of §§10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 promulgated thereunder by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Investors who purchased the Company’s securities between May 10, 2021 and February 21, 2026, inclusive (the “Class Period”), are encouraged to contact the firm before May 1, 2026.

If you are a shareholder who suffered a loss, click here to participate.

We also encourage you to contact Brian Schall of the Schall Law Firm, 2049 Century Park East, Suite 2460, Los Angeles, CA 90067, at 310-301-3335, to discuss your rights free of charge. You can also reach us through the firm's website at www.schallfirm.com, or by email at [email protected].

The class, in this case, has not yet been certified, and until certification occurs, you are not represented by an attorney. If you choose to take no action, you can remain an absent class member.

According to the Complaint, the Company made false and misleading statements to the market. Apollo’s leadership team was in regular contact with Jeffrey Epstein about the Company throughout the 2010s. Despite this, the Company claimed that it had never done business with Epstein. The Company’s connection to Epstein could potentially harm its reputation. Based on these facts, the Company’s public statements were false and materially misleading throughout the class period. When the market learned the truth about Apollo, investors suffered damages.

Join the case to recover your losses.

The Schall Law Firm represents investors around the world and specializes in securities class action lawsuits and shareholder rights litigation.

This press release may be considered Attorney Advertising in some jurisdictions under the applicable law and rules of ethics.

Bragar Eagel & Squire, P.C. Litigation Partner Brandon Walker Encourages Investors Who Suffered Losses In BellRing (BRBR) To Contact Him Directly To Discuss Their Options

If you purchased or acquired BellRing securities between November 19, 2024 and August 4, 2025 and would like to discuss your legal rights, call Bragar Eagel & Squire partner Brandon Walker or Melissa Fortunato directly at (212) 355-4648.

Click here to participate in the action.

NEW YORK, March 04, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) --

What’s Happening:

Bragar Eagel & Squire, P.C., a nationally recognized stockholder rights law firm, announces that a class action lawsuit has been filed against BellRing Brands, Inc. (“BellRing” or the “Company”) (NYSE:BRBR) in the The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York on behalf of all persons and entities who purchased or otherwise acquired BellRing securities between November 19, 2024 and August 4, 2025, both dates inclusive (the “Class Period”).Investors have until March 23, 2026 to apply to the Court to be appointed as lead plaintiff in the lawsuit. Allegation Details:

According to the complaint, defendants failed to disclose to investors that its strong sales results did not reflect increased end-consumer demands or brand momentum. Rather, customers accumulated excess inventory as a safeguard against product shortages that had previously constrained BellRing’s supply. Once customers gained confidence that product shortages were a thing of the past, they promptly reduced their inventory by selling through existing products and cutting back on new orders. Following the destocking, the Company admitted that competitive pressures were materially weakening demand.
On August 4, 2025, BellRing reported its fiscal Q3 25 financial results, revealing a disappointing 2025 sales outlook, stating “BellRing management has narrowed its fiscal year 2025 outlook for net sales to [a] range between $2.28-$2.32 billion[.]” On this news, the price of BellRing stock declined $17.46 per share, or nearly 33%, from $53.64 per share on August 4, 2025, to $36.18 per share on August 5, 2025.
Next Steps:

If you purchased or otherwise acquired BellRing shares and suffered a loss, are a long-term stockholder, have information, would like to learn more about these claims, or have any questions concerning this announcement or your rights or interests with respect to these matters, please contact Brandon Walker or Melissa Fortunato by email at [email protected], telephone at (212) 355-4648, or by filling out this contact form. There is no cost or obligation to you.
About Bragar Eagel & Squire, P.C.:

Bragar Eagel & Squire, P.C. is a nationally recognized law firm with offices in New York, South Carolina, and California. The firm represents individual and institutional investors in securities, derivative, and commercial litigation as well as individuals in consumer protection and data privacy litigation. The firm has a nationwide practice and routinely handles cases in both federal and state courts. For more information about the firm, please visit www.bespc.com.  Attorney advertising.  Prior results do not guarantee similar outcomes.

Follow us for updates on LinkedIn and Facebook, and keep up with other news by following Brandon Walker, Esq. on LinkedIn.

Contact Information:

Bragar Eagel & Squire, P.C.
Brandon Walker, Esq.
Melissa Fortunato, Esq.
(212) 355-4648
[email protected]
www.bespc.com

Floor & Decor remains a hold as macro headwinds and weak comps persist, despite resilient margins. Comparable store sales declined 4.8% in Q4, with monthly cadence worsening and no near-term growth acceleration expected. Unit growth is steady but not accelerating; management plans only 20 new stores in 2026, mirroring 2025 levels.

FinecoBank Banca Fineco S.p.A. (FNBKY) Analyst/Investor Day Transcript

This post may contain links from our sponsors and affiliates, and Flywheel Publishing may receive compensation for actions taken through them.

MSTY has one of the most eye-catching yields in the ETF universe. But the number that should be keeping investors up at night isn’t the yield, it’s the check size. The most recent weekly distribution was $0.30 per share. At the fund’s peak in late 2024, that number was $4.42. That’s a decline in the income this fund actually delivers, and understanding why it happened is the most important thing any MSTY holder can do right now.

What MSTY Is and Why People Own It YieldMax MSTR Option Income Strategy ETF (NYSEARCA:MSTY) launched in February 2024 with a simple promise: give income investors exposure to the volatility of Strategy (NASDAQ:MSTR) without having to own the stock outright. The fund doesn’t hold MicroStrategy shares directly. Instead, it runs a synthetic options strategy, selling call options on MSTR to collect premium income, while holding roughly 32% of assets in U.S. Treasury notes as collateral. The income those premiums generate gets distributed to shareholders, typically on a weekly basis.

The appeal is obvious. Strategy is one of the most volatile large-cap stocks in the market, essentially a leveraged bitcoin holding company. High volatility means expensive options, and expensive options mean fat premiums for whoever is selling them. For income-hungry investors, that looked like a compelling deal. At its peak, it was delivering extraordinary payouts. The problem is what happened next.

The Core Risk: Your Income Is Borrowed From Your Own Capital MSTY’s primary risk isn’t that Strategy stock might fall, though that matters too. The deeper structural risk is that the fund’s distributions are not purely generated income. When MSTR declines sharply, the options premiums MSTY collects shrink, and the fund’s NAV erodes. As NAV falls, the dollar amount of each distribution falls with it, because the fund can only generate so much premium relative to its shrinking asset base.

The data tells this story clearly. MSTY’s share price has fallen 39.5% over the past year, from $41.82 to $25.29. That price decline tracks closely with what happened to the underlying: Strategy shares dropped 46.8% over the same period, falling from $275.15 to $146.44. As Strategy’s price collapsed, so did the value of the options MSTY was selling — and so did the distributions.

The distribution timeline is stark. In November 2024, the fund paid $4.42 per share. By February 2026, that had fallen to $0.30. The mid-2025 period showed some recovery — $2.37 in May 2025 and $1.18 in July 2025 — but those spikes coincided with the VIX surging to 52.33 in April 2025, an extreme fear event that temporarily inflated options premiums. When volatility normalized, the income collapsed again.

This is the transmission mechanism that matters: Strategy’s price falls, implied volatility spikes briefly but then normalizes, the options MSTY sells become cheaper, distributions shrink, and the lower NAV means each future distribution is drawn from a smaller pool. An investor who bought MSTY expecting $4 monthly checks is now receiving $0.35 per week — and holding a share worth 40% less than a year ago.

The Secondary Risk: Bitcoin Is the Actual Underlying Exposure Owning MSTY means owning, at multiple removes, a bet on bitcoin. Strategy holds 713,502 bitcoins as of February 2026, with a cost basis of approximately $54.26 billion. The company’s quarterly results are dominated by unrealized gains or losses on those holdings — not its software business. In Q4 2025, Strategy reported an unrealized loss of $17.44 billion on digital assets, driving a net loss of $12.44 billion for the quarter.

That bitcoin sensitivity flows directly into MSTY. When bitcoin declines, Strategy’s stock falls. When Strategy’s stock falls, the put options MSTY has written (the short puts that represent some of its largest positions) generate losses, NAV erodes further, and the premiums available on future call sales compress. The fund carries no diversification across underlying equities — its entire options portfolio is concentrated in MSTR calls and puts. There is no hedge against a sustained bitcoin bear market other than the Treasury collateral, which provides income but not capital protection.

Reddit sentiment around Strategy has been predominantly bearish through early 2026, with one widely-circulated post titled “Michael Saylor 3% away from Negative Bitcoin Position” generating 1,000 upvotes and sustained discussion about liquidation risk. That concern may be overstated, but it reflects how the market is pricing the tail risk embedded in Strategy’s balance sheet — and by extension, in MSTY.

What to Monitor Three indicators matter most for MSTY holders:

The VIX and MSTR implied volatility. MSTY’s income depends on expensive options. The VIX currently sits at 23.57, which is elevated relative to the 12-month average of 19.06, temporarily favorable for premium collection. But the December 2025 low of 13.47 shows how quickly that can evaporate. Check the VIX on the Federal Reserve’s FRED database weekly. If VIX drops below 15 and stays there, MSTY’s distributions will compress further. Bitcoin’s price trend. Because Strategy’s stock price moves with bitcoin, bitcoin’s direction is the most upstream signal for MSTY’s NAV trajectory. A sustained decline below Strategy’s average cost basis of approximately $76,000 per coin would create acute pressure on the stock and on MSTY’s options structure. Monitor bitcoin prices daily through any major exchange or financial data site. Weekly distribution amounts. YieldMax publishes distribution announcements before each ex-dividend date. The trajectory of those weekly payments is the most direct real-time signal of how the strategy is performing. A sustained move below $0.25 per week at the current NAV would indicate the premium environment has deteriorated further. Compare each distribution to the prior four weeks, not just the prior period, to identify trend direction. What Staying in MSTY Actually Requires You to Believe MSTY is a fund where the headline yield can be deeply misleading. The 99 basis point expense ratio is the least of an investor’s concerns. The real cost is NAV erosion that has outpaced distributions during sustained drawdowns in Strategy’s stock. An investor who bought MSTY near its inception and held through today has received meaningful income, but has also watched the share price fall from $14.63 at launch to $25.29 today, a gain that looks reasonable until you factor in that the 2024 peak price was substantially higher and distributions have shrunk from their peak.

The fund is not broken in a structural sense. It does what it says: it sells options on Strategy and distributes the premiums. The risk is that what it does is inherently tied to a single, bitcoin-correlated stock in a way that makes income both volatile and potentially self-defeating during prolonged downturns. If bitcoin recovers and Strategy’s stock climbs back toward its 2024 highs, MSTY’s distributions could recover meaningfully. If bitcoin enters another extended bear cycle, the current $0.30 weekly payout could shrink further as NAV continues to erode. That asymmetry is what should keep MSTY holders watching closely.

European Wax Center, Inc. (EWCZ - Free Report) reported $45.1 million in revenue for the quarter ended December 2025, representing a year-over-year decline of 9.3%. EPS of $0.10 for the same period compares to $0.16 a year ago.

The reported revenue represents a surprise of -0.88% over the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $45.51 million. With the consensus EPS estimate being $0.04, the EPS surprise was +130.95%.

While investors scrutinize revenue and earnings changes year-over-year and how they compare with Wall Street expectations to determine their next move, some key metrics always offer a more accurate picture of a company's financial health.

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

Here is how European Wax Center performed in the just reported quarter in terms of the metrics most widely monitored and projected by Wall Street analysts:

System-wide sales: $225.6 million versus the three-analyst average estimate of $223.24 million.Ending center count: 1,047 versus the two-analyst average estimate of 1,047.Revenue- Marketing fees: $7.22 million versus the three-analyst average estimate of $7.02 million. The reported number represents a year-over-year change of -1.5%.Revenue- Royalty fees: $12.51 million versus the three-analyst average estimate of $11.99 million. The reported number represents a year-over-year change of -2.1%.Revenue- Product sales: $22.57 million versus $24.16 million estimated by three analysts on average. Compared to the year-ago quarter, this number represents a -14.3% change.Revenue- Other revenue: $2.8 million versus $2.93 million estimated by three analysts on average. Compared to the year-ago quarter, this number represents a -14.7% change.View all Key Company Metrics for European Wax Center here>>>

Shares of European Wax Center have returned +46.1% over the past month versus the Zacks S&P 500 composite's -1.3% change. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy), indicating that it could outperform the broader market in the near term.

Q4: 2026-03-03 Earnings SummaryEPS of $0.04 beats by $0.01

 |

Revenue of

$203.60M

(-2.73% Y/Y)

beats by $3.65M

Cricut, Inc. (CRCT) Morgan Stanley Technology, Media & Telecom Conference 2026 March 4, 2026 6:20 PM EST

Company Participants

Jim Suva - Senior Vice President of Finance, Treasurer & Investor Relations
Kimball Shill - Chief Financial Officer

Conference Call Participants

Erik Woodring - Morgan Stanley, Research Division

Presentation

Erik Woodring
Morgan Stanley, Research Division

Good afternoon, guys, day 3 of the Morgan Stanley TMT Conference. I appreciate you guys joining us. My name is Erik Woodring. I lead the U.S. IT hardware coverage here.

I'm pleased to be joined by Cricut, Kimball Shill, CFO; Jim Suva, Treasurer, SVP of Finance and IR. Welcome to the conference guys. Thank you for joining us.

Before we get started, we got to do this little disclaimer. So for important disclosures, please see the Morgan Stanley research disclosure website at www.morganstanley.com/researchdisclosures. If you have any questions, please reach out to your Morgan Stanley sales representative. And then Jim from your side, please?

Jim Suva
Senior Vice President of Finance, Treasurer & Investor Relations

And I would refer you to the Cricut Investor Relations website where we have our safe harbor statements, and I refer you to our most recently published 10-Q and 10-K for our risks and uncertainty statements. And with that, Erik, let's get things going.

Question-and-Answer Session

Erik Woodring
Morgan Stanley, Research Division

Perfect. Let's get going. So first of all, thank you guys for joining us. A lot to talk about quick turnover from last night where you reported earnings, and that's probably the best place to start for us. So I imagine a lot of people listening were here at the conference. Can you maybe just touch on the most important and salient points from the report last night and help the audience better understand the high-level message for 2026?

New York, New York--(Newsfile Corp. - March 4, 2026) - WHY: Rosen Law Firm, a global investor rights law firm, reminds purchasers of common stock of PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: PYPL) between February 25, 2025 and February 2, 2026, inclusive (the "Class Period"), of the important April 20, 2026 lead plaintiff deadline.

SO WHAT: If you purchased PayPal common stock during the Class Period you may be entitled to compensation without payment of any out of pocket fees or costs through a contingency fee arrangement.

WHAT TO DO NEXT: To join the PayPal class action, go to https://rosenlegal.com/submit-form/?case_id=53653 or call Phillip Kim, Esq. toll-free at 866-767-3653 or email [email protected] for information on the class action. A class action lawsuit has already been filed. If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff, you must move the Court no later than April 20, 2026. A lead plaintiff is a representative party acting on behalf of other class members in directing the litigation.

WHY ROSEN LAW: We encourage investors to select qualified counsel with a track record of success in leadership roles. Often, firms issuing notices do not have comparable experience, resources, or any meaningful peer recognition. Many of these firms do not actually handle securities class actions, but are merely middlemen that refer clients or partner with law firms that actually litigate the cases. Be wise in selecting counsel. The Rosen Law Firm represents investors throughout the globe, concentrating its practice in securities class actions and shareholder derivative litigation. Rosen Law Firm has achieved, at that time, the largest ever securities class action settlement against a Chinese Company. Rosen Law Firm was Ranked No. 1 by ISS Securities Class Action Services for number of securities class action settlements in 2017. The firm has been ranked in the top 4 each year since 2013 and has recovered hundreds of millions of dollars for investors. In 2019 alone the firm secured over $438 million for investors. In 2020, founding partner Laurence Rosen was named by law360 as a Titan of Plaintiffs' Bar. Many of the firm's attorneys have been recognized by Lawdragon and Super Lawyers.

DETAILS OF THE CASE: According to the lawsuit, defendants provided investors with material information concerning PayPal's expected financial targets for 2027 alongside the growth trajectory for its core branded checkout segment ("Branded Checkout"). Defendants' statements included, among other things, confidence in PayPal's ability to capitalize on its growth potential through new initiatives to facilitate Branded Checkout growth both in the U.S. and internationally. According to the lawsuit, defendants provided these overwhelmingly positive statements to investors while, at the same time, disseminating materially false and misleading statements and/or concealing material adverse facts concerning the true state of PayPal's salesforce; notably, that it was not truly equipped to execute on PayPal's perceived growth potential and were "too optimistic" as to how easily and expeditiously its staff could change customer adoption. When the true details entered the market, the lawsuit claims that investors suffered damages.

To join the PayPal class action, go to https://rosenlegal.com/submit-form/?case_id=53653 or call Phillip Kim, Esq. toll-free at 866-767-3653 or email [email protected] for information on the class action.

No Class Has Been Certified. Until a class is certified, you are not represented by counsel unless you retain one. You may select counsel of your choice. You may also remain an absent class member and do nothing at this point. An investor's ability to share in any potential future recovery is not dependent upon serving as lead plaintiff.

Follow us for updates on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-rosen-law-firm, on Twitter: https://twitter.com/rosen_firm or on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rosenlawfirm/.

Attorney Advertising. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.

-------------------------------

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/286316

Source: The Rosen Law Firm PA

Ready to Announce with Confidence? Send us a message and a member of our TMX Newsfile team will contact you to discuss your needs.

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NEW YORK, March 04, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) --

WHY: Rosen Law Firm, a global investor rights law firm, announces a class action lawsuit on behalf of purchasers of securities of Lakeland Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ: LAKE) between December 1, 2023 and December 9, 2025, inclusive (the “Class Period”). A class action lawsuit has already been filed. If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff, you must move the Court no later than April 24, 2026.

SO WHAT: If you purchased Lakeland securities during the Class Period you may be entitled to compensation without payment of any out of pocket fees or costs through a contingency fee arrangement.

WHAT TO DO NEXT: To join the Lakeland class action, go to https://rosenlegal.com/submit-form/?case_id=50020 or call Phillip Kim, Esq. toll-free at 866-767-3653 or email [email protected] for information on the class action. A class action lawsuit has already been filed. If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff, you must move the Court no later than April 24, 2026. A lead plaintiff is a representative party acting on behalf of other class members in directing the litigation.

WHY ROSEN LAW: We encourage investors to select qualified counsel with a track record of success in leadership roles. Often, firms issuing notices do not have comparable experience, resources, or any meaningful peer recognition. Be wise in selecting counsel. The Rosen Law Firm represents investors throughout the globe, concentrating its practice in securities class actions and shareholder derivative litigation. Rosen Law Firm has achieved, at that time, the largest ever securities class action settlement against a Chinese Company. Rosen Law Firm was Ranked No. 1 by ISS Securities Class Action Services for number of securities class action settlements in 2017. The firm has been ranked in the top 4 each year since 2013 and has recovered hundreds of millions of dollars for investors. In 2019 alone the firm secured over $438 million for investors. In 2020, founding partner Laurence Rosen was named by law360 as a Titan of Plaintiffs’ Bar. Many of the firm’s attorneys have been recognized by Lawdragon and Super Lawyers.

DETAILS OF THE CASE: According to the lawsuit, defendants throughout the Class Period made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (1) Lakeland was experiencing significant, sustained issues with its Pacific Helmets and Jolly businesses, including, inter alia, shipping-related delays, production issues, and slower than expected rollout of new products; (2) accordingly, defendants overstated the anticipated and actual positive impact of these businesses on Lakeland’s financial results, as well as the overall strength and quality of Pacific Helmets’ and Jolly’s respective operations; (3) Lakeland’s business and financial results were significantly deteriorating because of, inter alia, tariff-related headwinds and timing, certification delays, and material flow issues in its acquired businesses; (4) accordingly, defendants overstated the strength of their tariff mitigation measures and “small, strategic, and quick” (“SSQ”) M&A strategy; (5) as a result of all the foregoing issues, defendants’ financial guidance was unreliable; and (6) as a result, defendants’ public statements were materially false and misleading at all relevant times. When the true details entered the market, the lawsuit claims that investors suffered damages.

To join the Lakeland class action, go to https://rosenlegal.com/submit-form/?case_id=50020 or call Phillip Kim, Esq. toll-free at 866-767-3653 or email [email protected] for information on the class action.

No Class Has Been Certified. Until a class is certified, you are not represented by counsel unless you retain one. You may select counsel of your choice. You may also remain an absent class member and do nothing at this point. An investor’s ability to share in any potential future recovery is not dependent upon serving as lead plaintiff.

Follow us for updates on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-rosen-law-firm, on Twitter: https://twitter.com/rosen_firm or on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rosenlawfirm/.

Attorney Advertising. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.

Contact Information:

        Laurence Rosen, Esq.
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        275 Madison Avenue, 40th Floor
        New York, NY 10016
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        Toll Free: (866) 767-3653
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        www.rosenlegal.com

3D-printed oil pump jacks, Iranian flag, and a rising stock graph appear in this illustration taken March 2, 2026. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab

TOKYO, March 5 (Reuters) - Oil prices rose on Thursday amid growing concern over the prolonged closure of the Strait of Hormuz, as the U.S.-Iran war ​chokes off vital Middle East oil and gas flows while production facilities limit ‌output.

Brent crude was trading up $1.67, or 2.05%, at $83.07 per barrel by 0141 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude rose $1.94, or 2.60%, to $76.60.

The Reuters Power Up newsletter provides everything you need to know about the global energy industry. Sign up here.

The U.S.–Iran war widened on Wednesday after a U.S. strike hit an Iranian warship off ​Sri Lanka and U.S. Senate Republicans backed President Donald Trump's military campaign against Iran.

They voted ​against a bipartisan resolution aiming to stop the air war and require ⁠Congress to authorise hostilities against Iran.

Iraq, the second-largest crude producer in the Organization of the ​Petroleum Exporting Countries, has cut output by nearly 1.5 million barrels a day for lack ​of storage and an export route, officials told Reuters.

Qatar, the biggest liquefied natural gas producer in the Gulf, declared force majeure on gas exports on Wednesday, with sources saying a return to normal production volumes may ​take at least a month.

Shipping via the Strait of Hormuz, a key conduit for nearly ​a fifth of global energy consumption, has ground to a near-halt for the fifth day during the war on ‌Iran ⁠and Tehran's retaliation.

Britain's maritime trade operations agency reported a large explosion heard and seen by the master of a tanker anchored 30 nautical miles southeast of Kuwait's Mubarak Al Kabeer, with a small craft later seen leaving the area.

Iran has refrained from targeting most critical energy infrastructure while ​keeping shipping risk extremely ​elevated, J.P. Morgan said ⁠in a client note, estimating that about 329 oil vessels are stuck in the Gulf.

"Storage capacity in the Gulf Cooperation Council countries and ​prevailing energy prices are limiting factors on the length of the ​U.S. campaign," ⁠it added.

The reference was to the political and economic alliance of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, Oman and Bahrain.

Most of the oil fields can restart within days, with full ⁠capacity typically ​restored within two to three weeks, J.P. Morgan said.

"While ​operators must gradually rebuild reservoir pressure, particularly in Iraq, where water injection is critical, the primary constraint today is ​logistics rather than geology."

Reporting by Katya Golubkova in Tokyo; Editing by Chris Reese and Clarence Fernandez

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

TL;DR

Decentralized exchanges surpass 10% market share in both spot and perpetual trading, narrowing the gap with centralized platforms. Hyperliquid enters the Top 10 derivatives exchanges by volume, marking a breakthrough for on-chain infrastructure. Meanwhile, Uniswap and PancakeSwap rank among leading spot venues, reinforcing the structural shift toward decentralized liquidity.
Hyperliquid and DEXs are reshaping exchange rankings as on-chain platforms climb into the Top 10 by trading volume. While centralized exchanges continue to lead global liquidity, fresh data shows decentralized competitors expanding at a steady pace across spot and derivatives markets.

Hyperliquid And DEXs Expand Market Share In Spot And Perpetuals Recent industry reports indicate that centralized venues processed nearly $80 trillion in combined spot and perpetual volume during 2025. That figure confirms their scale. However, decentralized exchanges doubled their spot market share over the past two years, rising from 6.9% in early 2024 to 13.6% at the start of 2026.

Monthly DEX spot volume climbed from about $96 billion to more than $231 billion over the same period. At one point in mid-2025, DEXs captured 24.5% of total spot activity, driven in part by routing mechanisms that directed additional flow on-chain. Even after that peak cooled, DEX market share remained above 10%, suggesting structural adoption rather than a temporary spike.

In derivatives, the shift proved even more visible. The perpetual futures market expanded 75% in two years, reaching $7.24 trillion in monthly volume by January 2026. Within that growth, decentralized platforms increased their share from 2.0% to 10.2%. Roughly one in every ten dollars traded in crypto perpetuals now moves through smart contracts instead of centralized order books.

Security, Listings, And The Structural Divide Hyperliquid emerged as a central player in this transition. Between August 2025 and January 2026, the platform recorded $1.59 trillion in cumulative perpetual volume, becoming the only DEX ranked among the Top 10 derivatives exchanges. On the spot side, Uniswap and PancakeSwap each surpassed $0.5 trillion in six-month trading activity, placing them alongside established centralized brands.

Token listings highlight a deeper contrast. Large centralized platforms listed around 1,200 tokens over 13 months, averaging fewer than 100 new assets per month. In contrast, permissionless protocols enabled millions of tokens to launch and trade without prior approval, reflecting the open architecture of decentralized finance.

Security remains a shared challenge. The industry recorded more than $2.4 billion in exchange-related losses over the past year, with centralized venues accounting for the majority. Decentralized exploits occurred as well, often linked to smart contract vulnerabilities, yet overall losses were smaller in aggregate terms.

Market Analysis

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Last updated: 

March 4, 2026

The price of Bitcoin is soaring near $71,500 despite war between the U.S. and Iran, signaling that crypto markets may have priced it in already.

At the same time, traders are expecting the eventual passage of the U.S. CLARITY Act to trigger the next wave of growth across digital assets.

When that happens, the three biggest cryptocurrencies stand to gain the most…

Discover: The best meme coins in the world right now.

XRP (XRP): Ripple’s Stablecoin, Tokenization and Payments Crypto Could Hit $5XRP ($XRP) commands a market capitalization of $86 billion, making it the leading blockchain solution for cross-border payments.

Ripple engineered the XRP Ledger (XRPL) for near-instant settlement and ultra-low fees, presenting a modern alternative to the expensive and slow SWIFT.

Ripple recently doubled down on transforming XRPL into core infrastructure for stablecoins and tokenized real-world assets, while preserving XRP’s role as the network’s primary liquidity mechanism.

Both the UN Capital Development Fund and the White House have hailed the potential of Ripple’s technology to modernize global payment rails.

Adding to the bullish narrative, the approval of spot XRP exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the U.S. has expanded access for both institutional and retail participants.

On the charts, XRP could be breakout out of a bullish flag formation, which under supportive macro and industry conditions, could see prices hitting $5 in H1.

Bitcoin (BTC): Can the Crypto Pioneer Set a New Price Record by Summer?Bitcoin ($BTC), the world’s largest cryptocurrency by market value, previously surged to a record high of $126,080 on October 6.

That rally was followed by a sharp pullback, fueled by geopolitical uncertainty and speculation around potential U.S. military actions involving Iran and Greenland.

The resulting sell-off erased nearly half of BTC’s value, briefly dragging prices to $63,000 last weekend.

Despite the volatility, Bitcoin’s status as “digital gold” continues to attract investors seeking protection from inflation, currency debasement, and broader macroeconomic instability.

Growing institutional adoption, lower post-halving supply, and expectations for clearer U.S. regulatory guidance could help restore upside momentum soon.

In addition, if Donald Trump delivers his promise for a U.S. Strategic Bitcoin Reserve, Bitcoin’s dominance in the digital asset landscape could be reinforced for years.

Ethereum (ETH): The Backbone of DeFi Eyes New HighsEthereum ($ETH) underpins much of decentralized finance and carries a market capitalization close to $249 billion.

The network currently secures roughly $53 billion TVL, making it the most active ecosystem for on-chain financial activity.

If market sentiment improves, ETH could revisit the $5,000 resistance zone as early as June, potentially eclipsing its previous all-time high of $4,946 set last August.

Over the longer term, Ethereum’s trajectory toward five-figure prices hinges on regulatory clarity in the U.S. and favorable macroeconomics. Passage of CLARITY could accelerate institutional adoption of stablecoins and tokenized real-world assets built on Ethereum.

Technically, ETH is attempting to break free from a bearish pennant pattern that developed throughout February. For long-term holders, current price levels may offer a strategic accumulation window.

Bitcoin Hyper: A Low Price Crypto Presale Bringing Solana-Speed Performance to BitcoinWhile Bitcoin, XRP, and Ethereum present strong long-term cases, history suggests the most explosive gains often come from early-stage exposure to new crypto infrastructure plays.

Bitcoin Hyper ($HYPER) extends Bitcoin’s functionality by integrating Solana’s speed and efficiency through a Layer 2 scaling solution. The design reduces transaction fees while retaining Bitcoin’s core security framework.

Through Bitcoin Hyper, users can stake assets, generate yield, trade tokens, and interact with smart contracts without moving funds off the Bitcoin network.

The project has already raised $31.8 million in its ongoing presale, drawing increasing interest from major investors and exchange platforms. As a result, $HYPER is emerging as one of the most closely watched crypto launches of the year.

Those looking to secure $HYPER at its fixed presale price can visit the official Bitcoin Hyper website and connect a supported wallet such as Best Wallet.

Purchases are also available via bank card.

Visit the Official Website Here

Gate Ventures, the venture capital arm of Gate.com, has made a strategic investment in Bitcoin finance platform Sats Terminal, a startup building tools that let users borrow, swap, and generate yield with bitcoin while keeping custody of their coins.