Shares of Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA | MRNA Price Prediction) are up 14% to $68 and change in afternoon trading Friday, extending a remarkable run for the mRNA pioneer. Intraday, MRNA stock hit a new 52-week high of $69.29.
The rally easily outpaces peer vaccine makers. Merck (NYSE:MRK) stock is up 2% to $128, while Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) stock trades up 2% to $24 and change. On a single-session basis, Moderna stock is clearly leading the vaccine complex.
There’s no fresh same-day headline that cleanly explains the size of the move. Instead, traders appear to be extending momentum from a de-risking event last week, combined with bullish pipeline messaging and a likely short-covering component in a heavily traded name.
FDA Panel De-Risking and Pipeline Optimism Fuel the Run The biggest catalyst in the rear-view mirror was an FDA advisory committee unanimously endorsing Moderna’s flu vaccine, mFlusiva (mRNA-1010), for adults 50 and older. That vote is a key step ahead of the August 5, 2026 PDUFA date, which would mark Moderna’s fifth approved product if cleared.
Moderna also held a Science Day this week highlighting its push beyond vaccines into oncology and autoimmune disease, including T-cell engagers, an in-vivo CAR-T program, and a personalized cancer vaccine, with messaging around a 2028 break-even goal. Jefferies raised its MRNA price target to $53 from $45, while keeping a Hold rating.
The fundamental backdrop has been improving. Moderna’s Q1 2026 revenue came in at $389 million, up 264% year over year and beating consensus by 65%, with the company reaffirming guidance for up to 10% revenue growth in 2026 in its most recent 10-Q filing.
Moderna Leads, but Merck Won the Week Zoom out and the picture gets more nuanced. Over the past month, Moderna stock is up 45%, while Merck stock has added 7% and Pfizer stock has fallen 6%. Year to date, the gap is even wider, with Moderna up 130% against Merck’s 21% gain and Pfizer’s modest 3% decline.
Pfizer remains the laggard. Comirnaty revenue fell 59% to $232 million in Q1 2026, underscoring how reliant the company still is on its non-COVID portfolio. Pfizer’s forward P/E ratio of 8x and 7% dividend yield keep it a value-and-income story rather than a momentum trade.
The Street Is Still Cautious on Moderna For all the enthusiasm, the sell-side has not fully signed off. The MRNA stock consensus analyst target price sits at $43.45, well below today’s quote, with 16 Hold ratings against a smaller cluster of Buys and Sells. Leerink sits near $24 and Morgan Stanley near $33, meaning Moderna stock is running ahead of where most of the Street is positioned.
Moderna’s insiders have been net sellers as well, with 75 recent insider transactions tilting toward selling. That doesn’t invalidate the bull case, but it argues for keeping position sizes modest given MRNA stock’s volatility profile and forward P/E ratio of 23x on still-uncertain forward earnings.
What to Watch Next The next clear data point is the August 5, 2026 FDA decision on mRNA-1010. Investors can also watch upcoming Phase 3 readouts for norovirus, intismeran in melanoma, and propionic acidemia, any of which could shift the medium-term narrative for Moderna.
For today, the answer to the title’s question is clear. On a single-day basis, and across the past month and year to date, Moderna stock is decisively outperforming Merck stock and Pfizer stock. Whether the stock can hold above the $65 level into next week may say more about momentum traders than about the underlying biotech story.
Nvidia (NVDA) and Intel (INTC) could benefit from SpaceX's growing push into AI infrastructure as the company expands computing capacity and develops a neocloud
Key Takeaways SHOP reported AI-driven traffic to merchant stores rose 8x year over year in Q1 2026.Shopify saw orders from AI-powered searches increase nearly 13x, with higher new-buyer conversion.SHOP has structured more than 1 billion products to support AI-led discovery across shopping platforms. Shopify Inc. (SHOP - Free Report) is positioning agentic commerce as a potential new demand channel for merchants as artificial intelligence begins to reshape how shoppers discover, compare and purchase products online. The company is embedding its platform into emerging AI shopping ecosystems, giving merchants another route to reach buyers beyond conventional search and direct website traffic.
The early signals are notable. In the first quarter of 2026, AI-driven traffic to Shopify stores increased 8x year over year, while orders generated from AI-powered searches rose nearly 13x. New buyer orders from AI searches also occurred at nearly twice the rate of traditional organic search, suggesting that AI-led discovery may help merchants reach incremental customers. Shopify has also structured more than 1 billion products with clean attributes, real-time pricing and accurate inventory, allowing AI agents to surface relevant products more effectively across channels such as ChatGPT, Microsoft Copilot and Google AI services.
The opportunity extends beyond traffic growth. More AI-driven shopping activity could support higher merchant GMV over time, which would benefit Shopify’s broader commerce ecosystem if those transactions flow through its platform. Shopify Payments processed $67 billion of GMV in the first quarter, up 41% year over year, while penetration reached 67% of total GMV. Shop Pay processed $35 billion of GMV, growing 59% year over year.
Shopify is also working to become part of the infrastructure layer behind AI commerce. The company co-developed the Universal Commerce Protocol with Google to support agentic commerce across platforms. Amazon, Meta, Microsoft, Salesforce and Stripe have joined the related council, reinforcing the importance of common standards as AI agents become more involved in product discovery, checkout, payments and post-purchase activity. For Shopify, that participation strengthens its position as a connector between merchants and emerging AI-led shopping surfaces.
Shopify’s ability to turn agentic commerce into a durable growth channel will likely depend on whether AI-led shopping continues gaining adoption and converts into meaningful merchant activity. The first-quarter metrics show strong early momentum, but the financial impact will depend on how much of that traffic converts into orders, GMV and deeper merchant engagement. If AI increasingly becomes a starting point for online shopping, Shopify’s catalog, payments infrastructure and unified commerce platform could give the company a larger role in the next phase of digital commerce.
Shopify’s Competitor LandscapeAmazon.com, Inc. (AMZN - Free Report) provides a relevant benchmark for SHOP because it is also positioning AI as a major force in how consumers discover and purchase products. Amazon’s advantage lies in its marketplace scale, fulfillment network and large buyer base, supported by AI tools across shopping, advertising and AWS. However, Amazon’s model remains more controlled and marketplace-centered, while Shopify’s agentic commerce push is focused on helping independent merchants surface products across emerging AI shopping channels.
Wix.com Ltd. (WIX - Free Report) provides a closer product-level comparison because it also serves merchants and small businesses building digital storefronts. Wix is using AI to simplify website creation, design and business workflows through tools such as Harmony and Base44. Its AI strategy is more focused on creation and site-building, while Shopify’s opportunity is tied more directly to commerce execution, including product discovery, checkout, payments and merchant services.
Against this backdrop, Shopify’s agentic commerce opportunity is distinct from Amazon’s marketplace-led scale and Wix’s website-creation focus. SHOP’s potential advantage is that its AI commerce push is being built on a platform already expanding across multiple merchant use cases, including online commerce, payments, Shop Pay, catalog infrastructure, POS and international selling. That broader commerce stack gives Shopify a wider transaction base through which AI-led discovery can translate into merchant activity over time.
SHOP’s Price Performance, Valuation & EstimatesShares of Shopify have declined 0.2% in the past three months against the industry’s 25.3% growth.
SHOP’s Stock Three-Month Price Performance
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
SHOP stock is currently trading at a premium. It is currently trading at a forward 12-month price-to-sales (P/S) multiple of 8.89, above the industry average of 7.6.
SHOP’s P/S Ratio (Forward 12-Month) vs. Industry
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for SHOP’s 2026 earnings implies a year-over-year increase of 55.6%. Estimates for 2026 earnings per share have remained unchanged in the past 30 days.
EPS Trend of SHOP Stock
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
SHOP stock currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
FedEx Corp (NYSE:FDX) slipped 1.8% to $323.57 after FedEx Freight (FDXF) reported mixed quarterly results. In its first earnings release as an independent company, FedEx Freight posted a drop in operating income to $158 million, down 66.9% from a year prior. Results were weighed down by $205 million in costs related to its separation from FedEx Corporation, highlighting the financial impact of the recent spinoff.
On the charts, FDX have recovered to back above the supportive $320 level after a brief pullback on June 24. The stock has shed just 6% since its June 15 all-time high of $345.36 and still boasts an 85% 12-month lead.
Plus, FDX puts have been popular in recent days. This is per the shipping name's 10-day put/call volume ratio of 1.73 at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), which sits in the 85th percentile of its annual range. Echoing this is FDX's Schaeffer's put/call open interest ratio (SOIR) of 1.02, which indicates a heavy preference for puts among short-term traders.
Analyst’s Disclosure: I/we have a beneficial long position in the shares of PFE 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.
A Chevron gas station sign is seen in Austin, Texas, U.S., October 23, 2023. REUTERS/Brian Snyder Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab
SummaryCompaniesChevron expects a final investment decision on Project Kilby by the end of the yearChevron targets West Texas, Midwest, Gulf Coast, Rockies and Utah for future projectsNEW YORK, June 26 (Reuters) - Chevron (CVX.N), opens new tab is exploring additional data center deals across the U.S., including the Midwest, Rockies, and Gulf Coast, following its two-decade-long contract to power a Microsoft data center in West Texas, a company executive told Reuters.
Oil and gas companies such as Chevron (CVX.N), opens new tab and Exxon Mobil (XOM.N), opens new tab are angling to profit from the record-high electricity demand generated by Big Tech's AI-driven data center expansion, offering their natural gas and experience developing large and complex energy projects.
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Chevron said on Monday it signed an agreement to develop a natural gas-fired power facility, called Project Kilby, which would have 2.67 gigawatts of capacity and provide dedicated electricity to Microsoft's data center campus in Pecos, Texas. The project is the first of its kind for Chevron and will be big enough to power a city the size of San Francisco.
CHEVRON EYES TEXAS, MIDWEST, GULF COASTThe oil major sees potential for additional projects in West Texas, which is part of the Permian Basin, the top U.S. oilfield that holds abundant natural gas resources, said Jeff Gustavson, Chevron's president of new energies, in an interview on Wednesday.
Other regions of interest include the Midwest and Gulf Coast — an important energy production and shipping area — as well as near Colorado's Rocky Mountains, he said. The company is also considering data center deals in Utah, where Chevron has a hydrogen facility.
"We'll look at other parts of the country. We'll look at it with Microsoft. We'll look at it with other potential customers," Gustavson said. "If we can put the right pieces together to meet our return thresholds, you can see more announcements over time."
Kilby provides Chevron with a separate revenue stream not exposed to the commodity price risk of its core business. Gustavson said Chevron and its partners are finalizing project design details and declined to disclose the estimated cost.
Analysts said this week it is too early to tell whether providing power to data centers will become a meaningful revenue stream for Chevron.
Chevron expects to make a final investment decision by the end of the year. The first power from Kilby is expected in 2028, with the project taking several years to hit full capacity.
The project, which will require seven GE Vernova turbines and multiple smaller turbines from Caterpillar, can eventually expand beyond its initial 2.67 gigawatt capacity.
Reporting by Laila Kearney in New York and Sheila Dang in Houston; Editing by Rod Nickel
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab
Key Takeaways CAT Q1 2026 adjusted operating margin falls to 18% as cost of sales jumps 26% on tariff pressures.CAT expects $2.2-$2.4B tariff costs in 2026, keeping margins near the low end of its target range.CAT 2026 revenue estimate of ~$76.5B implies margins near the low end of 18-22%, slightly above 2025. Caterpillar Inc. (CAT - Free Report) reported a 30-basis-point year-over-year decline in its adjusted operating margin to 18% in the first quarter of 2026. This was mainly due to 26% year-over-year increase in the cost of sales, reflecting unfavorable manufacturing costs, including the impact of higher tariffs.
Tariffs introduced since early 2025 amounted to approximately $600 million in the first quarter of 2026. This was, however, below the company’s earlier estimate of $800 million. The lower figure was mainly due to a one-time adjustment in the calculation of 2025 tariff expenses.
Caterpillar had witnessed margin pressures in 2025 as well. Adjusted operating margin contracted 350 basis points year over year to 17.2% in 2025. The trend deteriorated progressively throughout the year, with margins declining from 18.3% in the first quarter to 17.6% in the second, 17.5% in the third, and 15.6% in the fourth quarter.
A key factor behind the margin compression was a significant increase in costs owing to tariffs. Cost of sales rose 11% year over year to $44.7 billion in 2025. While costs were down 7% in the first quarter, they climbed in each subsequent quarter, with the steepest jump of 29% occurring in the fourth quarter.
Total tariff impacts for 2025 reached about $1.8 billion and are expected to persist in 2026 as well. Management expects full-year 2026 tariff costs to be $2.2-$2.4 billion.
Even though Caterpillar expects low double-digit sales and revenue growth year over year in 2026, adjusted operating margin is expected near the bottom of its targeted range, factoring in the continued tariff pressures. The company, however, indicates margins would be higher than previous expectations.
Caterpillar maintains its adjusted operating margin outlook of 15–19% at revenue levels of around $60 billion. If revenues reach $72 billion, the operating margin range is 18–22%, while revenues of $100 billion could support margins in the range of 21–25%. This is shown in the chart below.
Image Source: Caterpillar Inc.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2026 revenues is currently at around $76.5 billion. This suggests the adjusted operating margin will come in near the low end of 18-22%, a slight improvement from 17.2% reported in 2025.
Among peers, Terex Corporation (TEX - Free Report) reported a 30-basis-point year-over-year contraction in operating margin to 8.7% in the first quarter of 2026. Cost of goods sold surged 55.6% year over year. In 2025, Terex reported a 100-basis-point decline in operating margin to 10.4% in 2025. This was primarily due to lower volumes across both segments and unfavorable manufacturing variances stemming from proactive production cuts and tariff impacts. This was partially offset by cost-efficiency initiatives and contributions from its ESG acquisition.
Komatsu Ltd. (KMTUY - Free Report) reported a 230-basis point contraction in operating margin to 13.7% in fiscal 2025 (ended March 31, 2025) due to the impact of additional U.S tariffs. Komatsu expects to suffer annual negative impacts of 37.8 billion yen ($0.24 billion) from increased costs linked to U.S. tariffs in fiscal 2026. Komatsu’s projection for the operating margin for fiscal 2026 is 12.3%, a contraction of 140 basis points.
CAT’s Price Performance, Valuation & EstimatesCAT shares have gained 176.8% over the past year compared with the industry’s 138.2% growth.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Caterpillar is currently trading at a forward 12-month price/earnings (P/E) ratio of 38.37X compared with the industry average of 33.92X.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for CAT’s 2026 earnings indicates year-over-year growth of 29.3%. The earnings estimate for 2027 indicates 24.3% growth.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Earnings estimates for Caterpillar for both 2026 and 2027 have moved up over the past 60 days, as shown in the chart below.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Caterpillar stock currently sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
Pre-market futures are down at this hour, following another global-led tech selloff. This is perhaps best illustrated by another -6% drop in the South Korean KOSPI index, which has halted AI-trade enthusiasm with the investment concentration into local stocks SK Hynix and Samsung, two recently anointed trillion-dollar companies.
In any case, this week of trading had so far been established early on: sinking on the Nasdaq and, by consequence, the S&P 500, while staying in the green for the blue-chip Dow and small-cap Russell 2000. Trading 101 brings us to the notion that a rotation in thre market is afoot — taking profits from the massive gains in the AI space and putting them into more pragmatic companies, especially those demonstrating success but getting less love from the investment community until recently. Caterpillar (CAT - Free Report) , for instance, is up +16% in the past month.
Trade & Inventory Numbers Bring a Couple SurprisesWe’ve survived a week chock full of economic prints — PCE for May, Service & Manufacturing PMI, New Home Sales — and have stayed mostly on-trend throughout. The market remains agnostic (with a positive bias) of the future of the Strait of Hormuz, and the Asian hangover to the AI party has demonstrated its influence.
Advance Trade in Goods for May dropped significantly from expectations: -$105.8 billion — well off the revised -$83.0 billion reported a month ago. This is the deepest deficit since the record-low -$158 billion (from the month prior to “Liberation Day” tariffs, which wound up lasting one week in April of 2025) in March of last year. Total Exports reached -$11.8 billion, while Imports rose +$10.9 billion.
Advance Retail Inventories for May dipped 10 basis points (bps) month over month to +0.6%. Advance Wholesale Inventories last month dropped to +0.3%, half of April’s +0.6% and lower than the +0.4% expected. Historically, it’s a good sign for the economy for wholesale inventories to fall faster than the retail side. But it’s also important to understand that the closing of the Strait of Hormuz — considered a temporary condition by most analysts — has spoken loudly on inventory levels on a global scale in recent months, and they have been less than complimentary to economies around the world.
What to Expect from the Market Today and Next WeekFinal June Consumer Sentiment numbers from the University of Michigan survey are due after the open today, expected to revise upward to 49.0 from 48.9 reported mid-month and 44.9 in the May tally. We started calendar 2026 in the mid-50s, but are wallowing at 10-year lows currently. Again, citing the real circumstances of the world economy — and multitudes of projections forward, including the “affordability crisis,” AI’s potential takeover and events ongoing in the Middle East — we can perhaps understand where consumers have been coming from.
Next week is Jobs Week — shortened by next Friday’s observance of Independence Day — with the modest rebound in employment data expected to continue. JOLTS for May, ADP private sector and Friday’s non-farm payrolls for June will help spell out where we are in the labor market. Based on previous accounts, we’ve gotten up from the mat of a year or so ago, where job losses per month had become commonplace.
Key Takeaways Macy's grew Q1 2026 net sales by 1.8% to $4.7 billion alongside stronger digital performance.M said early customer response to its Ask Macy's AI shopping assistant has been favorable.Macy's continues investing in digital, its Reimagine 200 stores and luxury banners to support growth. Macy’s Inc. (M - Free Report) is strengthening its digital business as part of its Bold New Chapter strategy, using artificial intelligence, platform enhancements and faster fulfillment to improve customer engagement. The digital channel is becoming increasingly important to the retailer, with digital sales accounting for 34% of first-quarter 2026 net sales, up from 33% a year ago, underscoring consumers’ growing preference for online shopping.
The company’s digital investments are translating into stronger business performance. During the first quarter, digital contributed to positive comparable sales, helping Macy’s deliver 3% comparable sales growth, its strongest first-quarter result in four years, while go-forward comparable sales increased 3.1%. Macy’s reported 1.8% net sales growth to $4.7 billion, reflecting broad-based momentum across its omnichannel operations.
Artificial intelligence (AI) is becoming a key differentiator. Macy’s introduced Ask Macy’s, an AI-powered conversational shopping assistant designed using insights from thousands of store associates. The tool helps customers discover products across stores and digital channels, while the company continues improving its digital platform and expanding its curated online marketplace to enhance assortment, personalization and product discovery. Management said early customer response to Ask Macy’s has been favorable.
Technology is also improving operational efficiency. Macy’s reported a 4.2% increase in units processed per hour across its direct-to-consumer and store replenishment network, while order-to-ship times improved 5.7% year over year. The company believes ongoing AI initiatives will further streamline operations, enabling it to better serve customers and support employees while strengthening its omnichannel capabilities.
Macy’s continues investing in digital across its go-forward business, alongside Reimagine 200 stores and its luxury banners. These efforts, coupled with stronger customer engagement and AI-driven personalization, reinforce management’s confidence in sustained omnichannel growth and support its decision to raise full-year fiscal 2026 guidance.
Macy’s Price Performance, Valuation & EstimatesShares of Macy’s have risen 44.4% over the past three months compared with the industry’s 21.6% growth.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
From a valuation standpoint, Macy’s is trading at a forward 12-month price-to-sales ratio of 0.31X, down from the industry average of 0.50X. M has a Value Score of A.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Macy’s fiscal 2026 earnings implies a year-over-year decline of 6.9%, while the same for fiscal 2027 indicates an uptick of 5.2%. Estimates for fiscal 2026 and 2027 have been revised upward by 5 cents and 4 cents, respectively, over the past 30 days.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Macy’s currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
Key PicksWe have highlighted three top-ranked stocks in the retail space, namely, Genesco Inc. (GCO - Free Report) , Tapestry, Inc. (TPR - Free Report) and Ross Stores Inc. (ROST - Free Report) .
Genesco is a specialty retail and branded company that sells footwear and accessories in retail stores. The company flaunts a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Genesco’s current fiscal-year earnings implies growth of 55.2% from the year-ago actual. GCO delivered a trailing four-quarter average earnings surprise of 3.8%.
Tapestry offers lifestyle products, which include handbags, women’s and men’s accessories, footwear, jewelry, seasonal apparel collections, sun wear, travel bags, fragrance and watches. It currently sports a Zacks Rank of 1.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Tapestry’s current fiscal-year earnings and sales suggests growth of 36.3% and 13.8%, respectively, from the year-ago actuals. TPR delivered a trailing four-quarter average earnings surprise of 15.6%.
Ross Stores operates as an off-price retailer of apparel and home accessories. The company sports a Zacks Rank #1 at present.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Ross Stores’ current fiscal-year earnings and sales indicates growth of 17.1% and 9.1%, respectively, from the year-ago actuals. ROST delivered a trailing four-quarter average earnings surprise of 10.2%.
It has been about a month since the last earnings report for Synopsys (SNPS - Free Report) . Shares have lost about 5.3% in that time frame, underperforming the S&P 500.
Will the recent negative trend continue leading up to its next earnings release, or is Synopsys due for a breakout? Before we dive into how investors and analysts have reacted as of late, let's take a quick look at the latest earnings report in order to get a better handle on the important catalysts.
Synopsys Q2 Earnings Surpass Estimates, Revenues Rise Y/YSynopsys reported non-GAAP earnings of $3.35 per share for the second quarter of fiscal 2026, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 5.7%. The bottom line decreased 8.7% on a year-over-year basis.
Synopsys’ fiscal second-quarter revenues jumped 41.9% year over year to $2.28 billion, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 1.1%. The top line was primarily driven by an increase in revenues of Time-Based Product, Upfront Product and Maintenance and Service businesses.
Synopsys’ Q2 DetailsIn the license-type revenue group, Time-Based Product revenues of $945.6 million (representing 41.5% of total revenues) increased 14.2% year over year. Upfront Product revenues (24% of total) rose 7% to $546.3 million. Maintenance and Service revenues (34.5% of total) surged to $784.1 million, up sharply from the year-ago quarter’s $265.3 million.
Segment-wise, Design Automation revenues, which include EDA, Ansys and Other, were $1.82 billion, representing 80% of total revenues and up 62.3% from the prior-year quarter. Design IP revenues were $454.2 million, representing 20% of total revenues and down from $482 million a year ago. With the addition of Ansys, the Simulation & Analysis group is now incorporated into the EDA segment, beginning the third quarter of fiscal 2025. Other revenues were $7 million, representing 0.3% of total revenues. Ansys contributed 28.7% of the total revenues.
Geographically, Synopsys generated $998.5 million from North America (44% of total) and $378.1 million from Europe (17%). Revenues from Korea (12%), China (10%) and Other regions (17%) were $265.4 million, $240.4 million and $393.6 million, respectively.
The non-GAAP operating margin for the quarter was 39.5%, which expanded 150 basis points from the year-ago period.
Within segments, Design Automation’s adjusted operating margin improved to 43.3%, up from 40.9% a year earlier, while the Design IP segment’s adjusted margin contracted to 24.4%, down from 31.2% last year.
Synopsys’ Balance Sheet & Cash FlowSynopsys ended the second quarter of fiscal 2026 with $2.48 billion in cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments, up from $2.20 billion in the prior quarter. Total long-term debt was $10.01 billion.
During the second quarter of fiscal 2026, Synopsys generated $629 million in operating cash flow.
SNPS Raises Guidance for FY26For fiscal 2026, Synopsys raised its revenue outlook to $9.625-$9.705, up from the prior guided range of $9.56-$9.66 billion. SNPS lifted the non-GAAP EPS target to $14.72-$14.80 per share, up from the prior guidance of $14.38-$14.46.
For the third quarter of fiscal 2026, the company expects revenues of $2.41-$2.4 billion and non-GAAP earnings of $3.63-$3.69 per share.
How Have Estimates Been Moving Since Then?It turns out, estimates review have trended upward during the past month.
VGM ScoresCurrently, Synopsys has a average Growth Score of C, a grade with the same score on the momentum front. Charting a somewhat similar path, the stock was allocated a grade of D on the value side, putting it in the bottom 40% for this investment strategy.
Overall, the stock has an aggregate VGM Score of D. If you aren't focused on one strategy, this score is the one you should be interested in.
OutlookEstimates have been broadly trending upward for the stock, and the magnitude of these revisions looks promising. It comes with little surprise Synopsys has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). We expect an above average return from the stock in the next few months.
A month has gone by since the last earnings report for Salesforce (CRM - Free Report) . Shares have lost about 14.8% in that time frame, underperforming the S&P 500.
Will the recent negative trend continue leading up to its next earnings release, or is Salesforce due for a breakout? Before we dive into how investors and analysts have reacted as of late, let's take a quick look at the latest earnings report in order to get a better handle on the important catalysts.
CRM Q1 Earnings Top Estimates, Revenues Rise Y/Y on ARR MilestoneSalesforce delivered a solid first-quarter fiscal 2027 non-GAAP earnings of $3.88 per share, up 50.4% year over year. The bottom line beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 24.4%.
Revenues rose 13.3% year over year to $11.13 billion and exceeded the consensus mark by 0.68%. Results reflected continued customer demand for Salesforce’s agentic offerings, with Agentforce ARR surpassing the $1 billion milestone.
Salesforce’s Q1 Performance in DetailSubscription and support revenues (95.1% of total revenues) increased 13.9% year over year to $10.59 billion, accounting for the bulk of total revenues. Professional services and other revenues (4.9% of total revenues) totaled $540 million, indicating relatively stable services activity during the quarter.
Within the updated revenue disclosure framework, Agentforce Apps revenue was $6.91 billion, while Data 360, Headless Platform and Other contributed $3.68 billion. Regionally, the Americas (65% of total revenues) generated revenues of $7.23 billion and grew 11.8% year over year. Europe (24.7% of total revenues) delivered revenues of $2.75 billion, reflecting year-over-year growth of 17.8%, while Asia Pacific (10.25 of total revenues) contributed revenues of $1.15 billion, up 12% year over year.
Profitability also improved. Non-GAAP operating income totaled $3.87 billion, up 22% from the year-ago quarter’s $3.17 billion. Moreover, the non-GAAP operating margin expanded 250 basis points to 34.8%, supported by operating leverage and disciplined spending. Management emphasized productivity gains from the internal adoption of AI tooling, even as it continued to invest in go-to-market capacity.
Salesforce’s Balance Sheet & Other DetailsSalesforce exited the first quarter with cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities of $11.83 billion, up from $9.57 billion at the end of the previous quarter. CRM generated an operating cash flow of $6.70 billion and a free cash flow of $6.56 billion in the first quarter.
As of April 30, the current remaining performance obligation (CRPO) was $33.6 billion, up 13.5% year over year. The company returned $27.5 billion to shareholders during the quarter, including $27.1 billion in share repurchases and $365 million in dividends. CRM also launched a $25 billion accelerated share repurchase program, with an upfront delivery of 103 million shares, which management said boosted both GAAP and non-GAAP per-share results in the quarter.
Salesforce Lifts FY27 Revenue OutlookLooking ahead, Salesforce raised the midpoint of its fiscal 2027 revenue outlook to $45.9-$46.2 billion. The company reiterated non-GAAP operating margin guidance of 34.3%, reflecting higher restructuring.
For the second quarter, Salesforce expects revenues of $11.27-$11.35 billion and non-GAAP earnings of $3.25-$3.27 per share.
Management expects momentum in Agentforce, Data 360 and Slack to continue, while noting that Marketing and Commerce weakness, along with softer Tableau bookings and renewals, remains a key item to watch.
How Have Estimates Been Moving Since Then?In the past month, investors have witnessed a upward trend in estimates review.
VGM ScoresCurrently, Salesforce has a nice Growth Score of B, a grade with the same score on the momentum front. Following the exact same course, the stock was allocated a score of B on the value side, putting it in the second quintile for this investment strategy.
Overall, the stock has an aggregate VGM Score of A. If you aren't focused on one strategy, this score is the one you should be interested in.
OutlookEstimates have been broadly trending upward for the stock, and the magnitude of these revisions looks promising. Interestingly, Salesforce has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). We expect an in-line return from the stock in the next few months.
For those looking to find strong Consumer Staples stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Is Hormel Foods (HRL - Free Report) one of those stocks right now? By taking a look at the stock's year-to-date performance in comparison to its Consumer Staples peers, we might be able to answer that question.
Hormel Foods is one of 173 individual stocks in the Consumer Staples sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #15 in the Zacks Sector Rank. The Zacks Sector Rank gauges the strength of our 16 individual sector groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups.
The Zacks Rank is a successful stock-picking model that emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions. The system highlights a number of different stocks that could be poised to outperform the broader market over the next one to three months. Hormel Foods is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).
Within the past quarter, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for HRL's full-year earnings has moved 4.6% higher. This means that analyst sentiment is stronger and the stock's earnings outlook is improving.
According to our latest data, HRL has moved about 9.8% on a year-to-date basis. At the same time, Consumer Staples stocks have gained an average of 8.2%. This shows that Hormel Foods is outperforming its peers so far this year.
Kenvue (KVUE - Free Report) is another Consumer Staples stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year. Since the beginning of the year, the stock has returned 9.9%.
Over the past three months, Kenvue's consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 5.3%. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
Breaking things down more, Hormel Foods is a member of the Food - Meat Products industry, which includes 5 individual companies and currently sits at #70 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has lost an average of 2.5% so far this year, so HRL is performing better in this area.
In contrast, Kenvue falls under the Consumer Products - Staples industry. Currently, this industry has 35 stocks and is ranked #172. Since the beginning of the year, the industry has moved +2.6%.
Investors interested in the Consumer Staples sector may want to keep a close eye on Hormel Foods and Kenvue as they attempt to continue their solid performance.
For new and old investors, taking full advantage of the stock market and investing with confidence are common goals. Zacks Premium provides lots of different ways to do both.
Featuring daily updates of the Zacks Rank and Zacks Industry Rank, full access to the Zacks #1 Rank List, Equity Research reports, and Premium stock screens, the research service can help you become a smarter, more self-assured investor.
It also includes access to the Zacks Style Scores.
What are the Zacks Style Scores? The Zacks Style Scores, developed alongside the Zacks Rank, are complementary indicators that rate stocks based on three widely-followed investing methodologies; they also help investors pick stocks with the best chances of beating the market over the next 30 days.
Based on their value, growth, and momentum characteristics, each stock is assigned a rating of A, B, C, D, or F. The better the score, the better chance the stock will outperform; an A is better than a B, a B is better than a C, and so on.
The Style Scores are broken down into four categories:
Value ScoreFinding good stocks at good prices, and discovering which companies are trading under their true value, are what value investors like to focus on. So, the Value Style Score takes into account ratios like P/E, PEG, Price/Sales, Price/Cash Flow, and a host of other multiples to highlight the most attractive and discounted stocks.
Growth ScoreGrowth investors are more concerned with a stock's future prospects, and the overall financial health and strength of a company. Thus, the Growth Style Score analyzes characteristics like projected and historic earnings, sales, and cash flow to find stocks that will see sustainable growth over time.
Momentum ScoreMomentum trading is all about taking advantage of upward or downward trends in a stock's price or earnings outlook, and these investors live by the saying "the trend is your friend." The Momentum Style Score can pinpoint good times to build a position in a stock, using factors like one-week price change and the monthly percentage change in earnings estimates.
VGM ScoreWhat if you like to use all three types of investing? The VGM Score is a combination of all Style Scores, making it one of the most comprehensive indicators to use with the Zacks Rank. It rates each stock on their combined weighted styles, which helps narrow down the companies with the most attractive value, best growth forecast, and most promising momentum.
How Style Scores Work with the Zacks Rank A proprietary stock-rating model, the Zacks Rank utilizes the power of earnings estimate revisions, or changes to a company's earnings outlook, to help investors create a successful portfolio.
It's highly successful, with #1 (Strong Buy) stocks producing an unmatched +24% average annual return since 1988. That's more than double the S&P 500. But because of the large number of stocks we rate, there are over 200 companies with a Strong Buy rank, plus another 600 with a #2 (Buy) rank, on any given day.
This totals more than 800 top-rated stocks, and it can be overwhelming to try and pick the best stocks for you and your portfolio.
That's where the Style Scores come in.
To have the best chance of big returns, you'll want to always consider stocks with a Zacks Rank #1 or #2 that also have Style Scores of A or B, which will give you the highest probability of success. If you're looking at stocks with a #3 (Hold) rank, it's important they have Scores of A or B as well to ensure as much upside potential as possible.
As mentioned above, the Scores are designed to work with the Zacks Rank, so any change to a company's earnings outlook should be a deciding factor when picking which stocks to buy.
Here's an example: a stock with a #4 (Sell) or #5 (Strong Sell) rating, even one with Style Scores of A and B, still has a downward-trending earnings outlook, and a bigger chance its share price will decrease too.
Thus, the more stocks you own with a #1 or #2 Rank and Scores of A or B, the better.
Stock to Watch: Stanley Black & Decker (SWK - Free Report) Headquartered in New Britain, CT, Stanley Black & Decker, Inc. manufactures and provides tools (power and hand tools) and related accessories, engineered fastening systems, and several other items and services.
SWK is a #3 (Hold) on the Zacks Rank, with a VGM Score of B.
It also boasts a Value Style Score of B thanks to attractive valuation metrics like a forward P/E ratio of 17.24; value investors should take notice.
Four analysts revised their earnings estimate higher in the last 60 days for fiscal 2026, while the Zacks Consensus Estimate has increased $0.13 to $5.35 per share. SWK also boasts an average earnings surprise of +61.6%.
With a solid Zacks Rank and top-tier Value and VGM Style Scores, SWK should be on investors' short list.
Taking full advantage of the stock market and investing with confidence are common goals for new and old investors, and Zacks Premium offers many different ways to do both.
The popular research service can help you become a smarter, more self-assured investor, giving you access to daily updates of the Zacks Rank and Zacks Industry Rank, the Zacks #1 Rank List, Equity Research reports, and Premium stock screens.
Zacks Premium also includes the Zacks Style Scores.
What are the Zacks Style Scores? The Zacks Style Scores, developed alongside the Zacks Rank, are complementary indicators that rate stocks based on three widely-followed investing methodologies; they also help investors pick stocks with the best chances of beating the market over the next 30 days.
Each stock is assigned a rating of A, B, C, D, or F based on their value, growth, and momentum characteristics. Just like in school, an A is better than a B, a B is better than a C, and so on -- that means the better the score, the better chance the stock will outperform.
The Style Scores are broken down into four categories:
Value ScoreFor value investors, it's all about finding good stocks at good prices, and discovering which companies are trading under their true value before the broader market catches on. The Value Style Score utilizes ratios like P/E, PEG, Price/Sales, Price/Cash Flow, and a host of other multiples to help pick out the most attractive and discounted stocks.
Growth ScoreGrowth investors are more concerned with a stock's future prospects, and the overall financial health and strength of a company. Thus, the Growth Style Score analyzes characteristics like projected and historic earnings, sales, and cash flow to find stocks that will see sustainable growth over time.
Momentum ScoreMomentum investors, who live by the saying "the trend is your friend," are most interested in taking advantage of upward or downward trends in a stock's price or earnings outlook. Utilizing one-week price change and the monthly percentage change in earnings estimates, among other factors, the Momentum Style Score can help determine favorable times to buy high-momentum stocks.
VGM ScoreWhat if you like to use all three types of investing? The VGM Score is a combination of all Style Scores, making it one of the most comprehensive indicators to use with the Zacks Rank. It rates each stock on their combined weighted styles, which helps narrow down the companies with the most attractive value, best growth forecast, and most promising momentum.
How Style Scores Work with the Zacks Rank A proprietary stock-rating model, the Zacks Rank utilizes the power of earnings estimate revisions, or changes to a company's earnings outlook, to help investors create a successful portfolio.
Investors can count on the Zacks Rank's success, with #1 (Strong Buy) stocks producing an unmatched +24% average annual return since 1988, more than double the S&P 500's performance. But the model rates a large number of stocks, and there are over 200 companies with a Strong Buy rank, plus another 600 with a #2 (Buy) rank, on any given day.
This totals more than 800 top-rated stocks, and it can be overwhelming to try and pick the best stocks for you and your portfolio.
That's where the Style Scores come in.
To have the best chance of big returns, you'll want to always consider stocks with a Zacks Rank #1 or #2 that also have Style Scores of A or B, which will give you the highest probability of success. If you're looking at stocks with a #3 (Hold) rank, it's important they have Scores of A or B as well to ensure as much upside potential as possible.
The direction of a stock's earnings estimate revisions should always be a key factor when choosing which stocks to buy, since the Scores were created to work together with the Zacks Rank.
Here's an example: a stock with a #4 (Sell) or #5 (Strong Sell) rating, even one with Style Scores of A and B, still has a downward-trending earnings outlook, and a bigger chance its share price will decrease too.
Thus, the more stocks you own with a #1 or #2 Rank and Scores of A or B, the better.
Stock to Watch: Commerce Bancshares (CBSH - Free Report) Incorporated in 1966, Commerce Bancshares Inc. is one of the largest bank holding companies in Missouri, with its principal offices located in Kansas City and St. Louis. It has significant operations in the states of Missouri, Kansas, Illinois, Oklahoma, Texas and Colorado.
CBSH is a #3 (Hold) on the Zacks Rank, with a VGM Score of B.
It also boasts a Value Style Score of B thanks to attractive valuation metrics like a forward P/E ratio of 13.93; value investors should take notice.
Two analysts revised their earnings estimate upwards in the last 60 days for fiscal 2026. The Zacks Consensus Estimate has increased $0.02 to $4.12 per share. CBSH boasts an average earnings surprise of +3.3%.
With a solid Zacks Rank and top-tier Value and VGM Style Scores, CBSH should be on investors' short list.
Key Takeaways AI data center expansion is boosting demand for power infrastructure, utilities and grid equipment providers.AI infrastructure spending is projected to rise as data center demand grows.ETFs like PAVE and RBLS offer diversified exposure to firms supporting the AI infrastructure build-out. While hyperscalers building next-generation cloud platforms and semiconductor giants producing HBM chips are stealing the spotlight in most instances, the physical structure of the artificial intelligence (AI) industry relies on a less glamorous but equally critical pillar — power infrastructure. This includes utilities like NextEra Energy (NEE - Free Report) and grid-to-chip infrastructure providers like Eaton Corp. (ETN - Free Report) that generate and manage the electricity which feeds power-hungry AI data centers, thereby enabling the smooth operation of high-capacity large-language model (LLM) workloads.
Amid the ongoing AI data center boom, these firms are thus profiting immensely by providing the essential "picks and shovels" for the AI era.
For investors who are increasingly wary of overconcentrated exposure or high valuations in mega-cap technology and hyperscale cloud platforms, shifting focus toward exchange-traded funds (ETFs) holding these physical enablers provides an excellent way to diversify portfolios while staying tethered to the AI secular tailwind.
Below, we discuss how these power infrastructure and utility companies are benefiting from the unprecedented AI data center expansion, using specific examples to provide the insights investors may need before making investment decisions.
The Physical Backbones of the AI Build-OutThe rapid transformation of data centers into dense, high-performance computing "AI factories" is driving massive order backlogs and thereby strong revenue growth visibility for electrical equipment manufacturers, utility players, as well as grid management and data center cooling solutions providers like those mentioned below:
Quanta Services (PWR - Free Report) : It is the largest electrical contractor in the United States by revenues, specializing in the construction of high-voltage transmission lines, electrical substations, and comprehensive power grid infrastructure. It ended the first quarter of 2026 with a record backlog of approximately $48.5 billion, with management highlighting data centers as a major growth engine.
Eaton: It provides essential switchgear, circuit breakers, transformers, and power distribution equipment for data centers and the grid. ETN’s 12-month rolling average order for its Electrical Americas segment went up 42% in the first quarter, driven by data center momentum.
Bloom Energy (BE - Free Report) : It offers solid oxide fuel cells for on-site power generation, reducing dependence of data centers on the grid and minimizing exposure to power interruptions. The company has signed multiple agreements with hyperscalers, the latest of which is with Oracle to deploy 2.8 gigawatts (GW) of Bloom’s fuel cell systems to support the rapid buildout of Oracle’s AI and cloud computing infrastructure.
Meanwhile, the massive 1.8 GW Wyoming data center facility is expected to include 900 megawatts (MW) of Bloom’s fuel cells, representing about $3 billion in revenues for BE in the coming years, according to an analysis by Morgan Stanley’s David Arcaro. (as cited in CNBC).
Caterpillar (CAT - Free Report) : It supplies on-site power generation and cooling equipment for data-intensive facilities. The company registered a solid 22% year-over-year improvement in its Power & Energy segment’s sales during the first quarter, thanks to rapid deployment of large reciprocating engines and turbines, primarily in data center applications.
NextEra Energy: It is the world's largest publicly traded utility by market cap, which currently expects to build between 15 and 30 GW of new generation capacity for U.S. data centers by 2035. In March 2026, the U.S. Department of Commerce selected NEE to build 9.5 GW of new gas-fired generation to serve large load from data centers in Texas and Pennsylvania.
AI Infrastructure Spending Outlook & ETFs to BuySince AI-related facilities require enormous amounts of power, global investments in transmission networks, substations, grid modernization, and power generation projects are rising rapidly. To this end, Gartner projects building AI foundations to alone drive a 49% increase in spending on AI-optimized servers in 2026, while AI infrastructure is expected to add $401 billion in spending this year as technology providers build out AI foundations.
Amid this backdrop, investors looking to capture this physical spending wave through diversified baskets rather than picking individual stocks may consider adding the following ETFs, focused directly on fueling the physical AI build-out, to their portfolios:
Global X U.S. Infrastructure Development ETF (PAVE - Free Report)
This fund, with net assets worth $14.76 billion, offers exposure to 100 companies that stand to benefit from a potential increase in infrastructure activity in the United States, including those involved in the production of raw materials, heavy equipment, engineering, and construction. PWR holds the top spot in this fund, with 3.97% weightage, while ETN holds the fourth spot with 3.25% weightage.
PAVE has soared 25.5% year to date and carries a Zacks ETF Rank #2 (Buy). The fund charges 47 basis points (bps) as fees and traded at a good volume of 2.29 million shares in the last trading session.
This fund, with net assets worth $11.96 billion, offers exposure to 120 companies that are primarily engaged and involved in electric grid, electric meters and devices, networks, energy storage and management, and enabling software used by the smart grid infrastructure sector. ETN holds the top spot in this fund, with 8.24% weightage, while PWR holds the fourth spot with 8.04% weightage.
GRID has surged 24.3% year to date and carries a Zacks ETF Rank #2. The fund charges 56 as fees and traded at a volume of 0.52 million shares in the last trading session.
iShares U.S. Infrastructure ETF (IFRA - Free Report)
This fund, with net assets worth $4.69 billion, comprises 161 U.S. companies with infrastructure exposure by balancing across both infrastructure enablers and infrastructure asset owners. CAT holds the top spot in this fund, with 4.27% weightage, while NEE holds the second spot with 3.97% weightage. PWR holds the fourth position in this fund with 3.68% weightage.
IFRA has rallied 21.8% year to date and carries a Zacks ETF Rank #2. The fund charges 30 as fees and traded at a volume of 0.30 million shares in the last trading session.
First Trust Alerian U.S. NextGen Infrastructure ETF (RBLD - Free Report)
This fund, with net assets worth $40.8 million, comprises 101 U.S. infrastructure companies. BE holds the top spot in this fund, with 1.94% weightage, while CAT holds the ninth spot with 1.20% weightage.
RBLD has rallied 21.4% year to date and carries a Zacks ETF Rank #2. The fund charges 30 as fees and traded at a volume of 0.003 million shares in the last trading session.
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College has become so expensive that many students and parents struggle to cover the cost on their own. Grandparents are often in a different position, having accumulated assets over decades that younger generations have not had time to build. That makes tuition one of the most meaningful gifts they can provide. Rather than leaving an inheritance someday, they can help open doors today by creating a portfolio that generates enough income to cover tuition while leaving the principal intact.
Most families tackle the problem with a 529 plan, contributing for years and hoping investment growth keeps pace with rising costs. Another approach is to build a portfolio that pays the tuition bill itself, turning a pool of assets into a family scholarship fund that can potentially support multiple generations.
What College Actually Costs The target depends on the school. Community colleges often charge $3,000 to $6,000 per year in tuition and fees. In-state public universities typically fall between $10,000 and $15,000 annually, while out-of-state public schools can run $30,000 to $45,000. Private colleges frequently exceed $50,000 per year before room and board.
For this article, we’ll use a $15,000 annual target, or about $1,250 per month, which is enough to cover tuition at many public universities and flagship state schools. The question is simple: how much capital does it take to generate that income indefinitely?
Capital Required, By Yield The math is one division problem: tuition divided by yield equals capital.
Conservative (3 to 4%): At 3.5%, you need $428,571. Think dividend-growth blue chips and aristocrat ETFs. Income tends to outpace tuition inflation. Moderate (5 to 7%): At 5%, $300,000. At 7%, $214,286. Net-lease REITs, telecoms, preferred shares, and high-dividend equity funds live here. Aggressive (8 to 14%): At 10%, just $150,000. BDCs, mortgage REITs, leveraged covered-call funds, and high-yield bond funds. Principal erosion and distribution cuts both happen at this tier. Adjust the portfolio value and rate of return to match your situation and see whether the 5% withdrawal holds up across an 18-year college horizon.
What $15,000 Actually Covers College costs vary dramatically. Community colleges often charge just a few thousand dollars per year in tuition and fees. Many in-state public universities fall in the $10,000 to $15,000 range, while out-of-state public schools can cost $30,000 to $45,000 before housing. Private colleges frequently exceed $50,000 per year. A $15,000 annual income target is designed to cover tuition at many public universities, not the full cost of an elite private school.
A Scholarship You Build Yourself Most college funding plans focus on accumulating a lump sum and then spending it down. An income portfolio takes the opposite approach. A $300,000 portfolio yielding 5% produces roughly $15,000 per year, enough to cover the tuition target used in this article. When the student graduates, the portfolio remains. The income can support another grandchild, graduate school, or a future generation.
The Scholarship That Never Expires Traditional college savings are often exhausted once the tuition bills are paid. An income-producing portfolio can continue generating cash long after the first student graduates. The goal is not simply to fund one degree but to create a lasting family resource that can adapt to changing educational needs over time.
Why Dividend Growth Matters Two portfolios can start with the same $15,000 annual income and end up in very different places. A portfolio yielding 3.5% with 7% annual dividend growth produces roughly $29,500 after ten years and nearly $58,000 after twenty. A portfolio yielding 10% with no growth still produces $15,000. Because tuition has historically risen faster than general inflation, growth matters. The objective is not merely to pay today’s tuition bill but to keep pace with tomorrow’s.
The Two-Grandkid Problem The math scales quickly. At a 5% yield, one grandchild requires about $300,000 of capital. Two grandchildren require roughly $600,000, and three require about $900,000. Fortunately, families rarely face all those bills at once. When grandchildren are several years apart in age, a growing income stream can often support multiple students sequentially rather than simultaneously.
Where The Income Comes From Today The conservative tier draws from Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ | JNJ Price Prediction), yielding about 2.2% with a beta of 0.26; Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG); Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO), yielding around 2.6%; and NextEra Energy (NYSE:NEE) at about 2.7% targeting ~10% annual dividend growth through 2026. The moderate tier is anchored by net-lease REITs paying monthly distributions, and high-yield telecoms near 6%. Broad dividend-growth ETFs, preferred-share funds, and the 10-year Treasury near 4.5% or 30-year near 4.9% round out the ballast.
When This Strategy Is The Wrong Tool An income portfolio works best when the college timeline is still years away and the investor can leave the principal intact. If a grandchild starts college in the near future, a 529 plan may offer a simpler and more tax-efficient solution.
In some cases, it may even make sense to allow a student to use federal loans while preserving retirement capital or keeping investments working. If the portfolio’s long-term return exceeds the loan’s interest rate, the family may come out ahead financially. Grandparents can also step in later and make the loan payments themselves, spreading the assistance over time rather than committing a large lump sum upfront. This approach preserves flexibility while still helping the student avoid carrying the debt indefinitely.
Grandparents with limited assets are often better served by helping reduce existing education debt or making direct tuition payments. Most important, anyone who may need the principal for retirement should prioritize their own financial security before creating a tuition fund for future generations.
Three Things To Do This Week Pull the actual tuition and fees figure for the specific public university the grandchild is most likely to attend. Your target may be $11,000, not $15,000. Compare the 10-year total return of a dividend-growth ETF against a 10%-yield covered-call fund. Cumulative income is the right scoreboard, not headline yield. If the portfolio sits in a taxable account, model the tax drag at your bracket. Qualified dividends, REIT distributions, and preferred-share income are taxed very differently.
Key Takeaways Oracles fiscal 2026 capex jumped 162% to $55.7B, while free cash flow fell to negative $23.7B.Oracle's cloud revenues rose 47% in fiscal Q4, with IaaS up 93% and RPO reaching $638B.ORCL forecasts $90B fiscal 2027 revenues, 18% non-GAAP EPS growth and 58-64% Q1 cloud growth. Oracle's (ORCL - Free Report) aggressive AI infrastructure build-out is once again testing investor patience, even as the underlying cloud business keeps printing record numbers. The tension came into sharp focus following the company's fiscal fourth-quarter and full-year 2026 results, released on June 10, which showed capital expenditures climbing 162% year over year to $55.7 billion for the fiscal year, far outpacing the growth in cloud revenues meant to justify that spending.
The scale of the buildout is straining Oracle's balance sheet. Free cash flow for fiscal 2026 came in at negative $23.7 billion, even as operating cash flow hit a record $32 billion, reflecting how much of the company's cash generation is being plowed straight back into datacenter capacity. Oracle has already raised $43 billion in debt and $5 billion in equity during fiscal 2026, and management has signaled plans to raise roughly $40 billion more in fiscal 2027, including a previously announced $20 billion at-the-market equity issuance.
Set against this spending is a cloud business that is genuinely accelerating. Total cloud revenues rose 47% in the fourth quarter to $9.9 billion, with Cloud Infrastructure (IaaS) revenues nearly doubling, up 93%. Remaining Performance Obligations, Oracle's forward bookings metric, surged 363% year over year to $638 billion, partly cushioned by $75 billion in prepaid or customer-supplied AI hardware that reduces Oracle's own funding burden.
Oracle has also used recent weeks to point to where the infrastructure spend is showing up in product terms. Earlier this month, Oracle disclosed that its Multicloud AI Database grew 404% in the fiscal fourth quarter, calling it the company's fastest-growing business ever. Oracle recently introduced the OPERA Cloud Assistant, embedding AI-driven automation into hotel operations workflows, part of a broader push to fold AI capabilities directly into existing application suites.
Looking ahead, Oracle guided fiscal 2027 total revenues to $90 billion and non-GAAP EPS growth of 18%, with first-quarter cloud revenue growth projected between 58% and 64%. The company also said it does not expect to issue additional debt in 2026. Whether bookings convert into cash flow fast enough to offset the financing load will likely remain the central question shaping sentiment around the stock in the quarters ahead.
How Microsoft and Google Compare on AI SpendingOracle is not alone in facing scrutiny over AI-related capital intensity. Microsoft (MSFT - Free Report) has guided capital expenditures toward roughly $190 billion for 2026, even as Azure growth runs near 40%, prompting investors to question the pace of Microsoft's spending relative to cloud conversion. Google parent Alphabet (GOOGL - Free Report) raised its own 2026 capital expenditure outlook to $180-$190 billion, though Google Cloud revenues grew 63% in its most recent quarter, among the fastest rates across major cloud providers. Both Microsoft and Google, like Oracle, continue defending heavy AI infrastructure outlays as necessary to meet demand that currently exceeds available capacity.
Looking ahead, Oracle guided fiscal 2027 total revenues to $90 billion and non-GAAP EPS growth of 18%, with first-quarter cloud revenue growth projected between 58% and 64%. The company also said it does not expect to issue additional debt in calendar 2026. Whether bookings convert into cash flow fast enough to offset the financing load will likely remain the central question shaping sentiment around the stock in the quarters ahead.
ORCL’s Price Performance, Valuation & EstimatesShares of Oracle have lost 21.9% in the past six-month period, underperforming the Zacks Computer and Technology sector’s appreciation of 12.9%.
ORCL’s 6-Month Price Performance
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
From a valuation standpoint, ORCL stock is currently trading at a premium with a trailing 12-month Price/Earnings ratio of 23.93x, which is higher than the Zacks Computer - Software industry average of 21.89x. Oracle carries a Value Score of C.
ORCL’s Valuation
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for ORCL’s fiscal 2027 earnings is pegged at $8.03, which suggests 5.24% growth over the figure reported in fiscal 2026.
ORCL stock currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Oracle (NYSE:ORCL | ORCL Price Prediction) has been one of the most punished mega-cap AI stories of 2026, sliding from a $303.62 peak in October to $152.46 today. Our 24/7 Wall St. price target for Oracle is $223.70, implying 46.73% upside over the next 12 months. The recommendation is buy with high confidence (90%).
Metric Value Current Price $152.46 24/7 Wall St. Price Target $223.70 Upside 46.73% Recommendation BUY Confidence Level 90% How a $303 Stock Became a $152 Stock in Nine Months Oracle is down 17.27% over the past week, 21.03% in a month, and 31.8% from its September 2025 high.
Q4 FY2026, reported June 10, 2026, delivered $19.184 billion in revenue and $2.11 in non-GAAP EPS, both above estimates. Cloud Infrastructure grew 93% YoY to $5.787 billion, and remaining performance obligations reached $638 billion, up 363% YoY.
Shares closed down 8.53% on the earnings report as investors focused on -$23.686 billion free cash flow and planned $40 billion capital raise. CFO Hilary Maxson bought 224,441 shares at $185.35 on May 5. Seven directors followed with coordinated reinvestment on May 31.
The Case for $300+: Why Bulls See a Breakout The bull case rests on RPO conversion. CFO Maxson told investors the $638 billion backlog provides “exceptional visibility,” with 12% recognizable in the next 12 months and another 34% in 13 to 36 months.
Cloud Infrastructure chief Clay Magouyrk noted Oracle signed “$67 billion in AI infrastructure contracts this quarter” with global GPU utilization at 97.5%. Multicloud database grew 404% in Q4.
Of 43 analysts covering Oracle, 30 rate it Buy and 6 Strong Buy, with a consensus target of $252.64. Our bull case projects $352.30 within 12 months if RPO converts ahead of schedule and OCI margins hold in the 30% to 40% range Magouyrk targeted.
What Could Go Wrong Trailing CapEx of $55.663 billion drove free cash flow to -$23.686 billion, and FY2027 net cash CapEx is guided to around $70 billion. Total liabilities sit at $218.703 billion. Software license revenue shrank 6% in Q4.
Much of that spend is offset by $75 billion in customer-supplied or prepaid GPU contracts, which Magouyrk said carry no margin degradation. Reddit sentiment dipped to 32 (bearish) on June 25, though activity remained low. A bear case downside target sits at $192.92, still above today’s price.
Oracle Price Prediction 2026-2030 The setup at $152.46 favors investors who can stomach Oracle’s CapEx-driven volatility and trust that the $638 billion RPO converts on schedule. Caution is warranted for those who expect AI infrastructure demand to roll over before FY2028 or worry that the $40 billion capital raise pressures the stock further.
Shares trading at 19x forward earnings against 20.6% revenue growth and a PEG of 0.89 favor buyers. Our 24/7 Wall St. price target of $223.70 reflects that conviction.
Extending the 24/7 Wall St. model forward, here is where Oracle could trade assuming current cloud growth trajectories and capital plans hold.
Year 24/7 Wall St. Price Target 2026 $223.70 2030 $439 These projections assume Oracle executes on long-term targets of 31% revenue CAGR and 28% EPS CAGR through FY2030. Material upside or downside could come from AI infrastructure demand shifts or GPU sourcing constraints.
It has been about a month since the last earnings report for Snowflake Inc. (SNOW - Free Report) . Shares have lost about 5.1% in that time frame, underperforming the S&P 500.
Will the recent negative trend continue leading up to its next earnings release, or is Snowflake due for a breakout? Well, first let's take a quick look at the latest earnings report in order to get a better handle on the recent catalysts for Snowflake Inc. before we dive into how investors and analysts have reacted as of late.
Snowflake Q1 Earnings Top Estimates, Revenues Increase Y/YSnowflake reported first-quarter fiscal 2027 non-GAAP earnings of 39 cents per share, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 21.88%. The company reported earnings of 24 cents per share in the year-ago quarter.
Revenues were $1.39 billion, up 33% year over year and beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 5.23%.
SNOW Top-line DetailsSNOW’s fiscal first quarter was driven by consumption across its core platform, with product revenue representing the majority of results. Product revenues totaled $1.33 billion, which accounted for 96% of total revenues. Professional Services and other revenues were $56.6 million, which contributed 4% of total revenues, representing a 25.1% year-over-year increase.
Geographically, results remained concentrated in the Americas, which represented 78% of revenue, with EMEA and APJ contributing 16% and 6%, respectively. The steady regional mix suggests Snowflake is scaling internationally without materially changing its revenue concentration.
Snowflake’s AI-Led Momentum and PartnershipsSnowflake framed the quarter as an inflection point in its AI roadmap, citing accelerating adoption of first-party AI products alongside core platform demand. Management pointed to strong sequential product revenue dollar growth and emphasized the role of offerings such as Cortex Code and Snowflake Intelligence in broadening usage across the installed base.
The company also underscored ecosystem moves aimed at extending distribution and deepening enterprise relevance. It expanded collaboration with AWS through a new $6 billion multi-year agreement, highlighted ongoing work with OpenAI, and noted that capabilities from its SAP partnership reached general availability. Snowflake also signed a definitive agreement to acquire Natoma in May 2026 to strengthen secure connections for AI agents across tools and workflows.
SNOW's Customer Scale Supports Durable ExpansionSNOW ended the quarter with 13,912 total customers and added 616 net new customers, including 13 new Forbes Global 2000 customers. Large-customer depth continued to improve, with 779 customers above the $1 million trailing product revenue threshold, representing 29% year-over-year growth in that cohort.
Retention remained a key support for the consumption model. Net revenue retention rate was 126%, reflecting continued expansion from existing customers, even as usage patterns can vary quarter to quarter. Contracted demand also stayed healthy, with remaining performance obligations of $9.21 billion, up 38% from the year-ago period.
Snowflake’s Operating DetailsThe non-GAAP gross margin contracted 40 basis points (bps) year over year to 71.8%. Product gross margin was 75.1% in the reported quarter.
Research & development expenses, as a percentage of revenues, decreased 250 bps on a year-over-year basis to 20.4%. General & administrative expenses, as a percentage of revenues, were 5.5%, down 60 bps year over year. Sales and marketing expenses, as a percentage of revenues, contracted 40 bps on a year-over-year basis to 33.9%.
Operating margin expanded 300 bps on a year-over-year basis to 11.9%.
SNOW’s Balance Sheet & Cash Flow DetailsThe balance sheet remained liquid. As of April 30, 2026, Snowflake reported $2.08 billion in cash and cash equivalents and $870.3 million in short-term investments.
SNOW produced $243.2 million of net cash from operating activities in the quarter. Free cash flow was $232.8 million, and adjusted free cash flow was $265.5 million.
Snowflake Raises Full-Year Product Revenue OutlookSnowflake expects second-quarter fiscal 2027 product revenues in the range of $1.415-$1.420 billion, implying 30% year-over-year growth, with a non-GAAP operating margin expected to be 12.5%.
For fiscal 2027, the company raised its product revenue outlook to $5.84 billion, representing 31% growth. Snowflake also lifted its full-year non-GAAP operating margin target to 13.5% and reiterated a 75% non-GAAP product gross margin assumption alongside a 23% non-GAAP adjusted free cash flow margin.
How Have Estimates Been Moving Since Then?In the past month, investors have witnessed a upward trend in fresh estimates.
The consensus estimate has shifted 5.83% due to these changes.
VGM ScoresCurrently, Snowflake has a great Growth Score of A, though it is lagging a bit on the Momentum Score front with a B. However, the stock has a grade of F on the value side, putting it in the lowest quintile for this investment strategy.
Overall, the stock has an aggregate VGM Score of C. If you aren't focused on one strategy, this score is the one you should be interested in.
OutlookEstimates have been broadly trending upward for the stock, and the magnitude of these revisions looks promising. Notably, Snowflake has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). We expect an in-line return from the stock in the next few months.
All investors love getting big returns from their portfolio, whether it's through stocks, bonds, ETFs, or other types of securities. But when you're an income investor, your primary focus is generating consistent cash flow from each of your liquid investments.
Cash flow can come from bond interest, interest from other types of investments, and, of course, dividends. A dividend is the distribution of a company's earnings paid out to shareholders; it's often viewed by its dividend yield, a metric that measures a dividend as a percent of the current stock price. Many academic studies show that dividends account for significant portions of long-term returns, with dividend contributions exceeding one-third of total returns in many cases.
Based in Buffalo, M&T Bank Corporation (MTB - Free Report) is in the Finance sector, and so far this year, shares have seen a price change of 17.51%. The company is currently shelling out a dividend of $1.50 per share, with a dividend yield of 2.53%. This compares to the Banks - Major Regional industry's yield of 2.78% and the S&P 500's yield of 1.45%.
Looking at dividend growth, the company's current annualized dividend of $6.00 is up 5.3% from last year. Over the last 5 years, M&T Bank Corporation has increased its dividend 3 times on a year-over-year basis for an average annual increase of 5.36%. Looking ahead, future dividend growth will be dependent on earnings growth and payout ratio, which is the proportion of a company's annual earnings per share that it pays out as a dividend. M&T Bank's current payout ratio is 33%, meaning it paid out 33% of its trailing 12-month EPS as dividend.
Earnings growth looks solid for MTB for this fiscal year. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2026 is $18.73 per share, representing a year-over-year earnings growth rate of 8.90%.
Investors like dividends for many reasons; they greatly improve stock investing profits, decrease overall portfolio risk, and carry tax advantages, among others. However, not all companies offer a quarterly payout.
High-growth firms or tech start-ups, for example, rarely provide their shareholders a dividend, while larger, more established companies that have more secure profits are often seen as the best dividend options. During periods of rising interest rates, income investors must be mindful that high-yielding stocks tend to struggle. With that in mind, MTB is a compelling investment opportunity. Not only is it a strong dividend play, but the stock currently sits at a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).
LOS ANGELES, June 26, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Schall Law Firm, a national shareholder rights litigation firm, reminds investors of a class action lawsuit against First Solar, Inc. (“First Solar” or “the Company”) (NASDAQ: FSLR) 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 February 26, 2025 and February 24, 2026, inclusive (the “Class Period”), are encouraged to contact the firm before August 24, 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. First Solar misled investors about its ability to mitigate the impact of tariffs on its operations. The Company overstated its ability to shift operations to the United States from Malaysia and Vietnam. 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 First Solar, 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.
CONTACT:
The Schall Law Firm
Brian Schall, Esq.,
www.schallfirm.com
Office: 310-301-3335 [email protected]
, /PRNewswire/ -- Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, LLC, a nationally recognized investor-rights law firm, announces that a class action lawsuit has been filed against First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR) and certain of its officers.
This lawsuit seeks to recover damages against Defendants for alleged violations of the federal securities laws on behalf of all persons and entities that purchased or otherwise acquired First Solar securities between February 26, 2025 and February 24, 2026, both dates inclusive (the "Class Period"). Such investors are encouraged to join this case by visiting the firm's site: bgandg.com/FSLR.
First Solar Case Details
The complaint alleges that throughout the Class Period, Defendants made materially false and/or misleading statements, as well as failed to disclose material adverse facts about the Company's business, operations, and prospects. Specifically, the Complaint alleges that:
Defendants had overstated First Solar's capacity to manage the impact of U.S. tariff policy on the Company's business Defendants understated the extent to which its responses to U.S. tariff policy, including the intentional underutilization of production facilities in Malaysia and Vietnam, and attempted relocation of production to the U.S., were likely to negatively impact First Solar's projected performance in the 2026 fiscal year; as a result, Defendants' public statements were materially false and misleading at all relevant times. What's Next for First Solar Investors?
A class action lawsuit has already been filed. If you wish to review a copy of the Complaint, you can visit the firm's site: bgandg.com/FSLR. or you may contact Peretz Bronstein, Esq. or his Client Relations Manager, Nathan Miller, of Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, LLC at 917-590-0911. If you suffered a loss in First Solar you have until August 24, 2026, to request that the Court appoint you as lead plaintiff. Your ability to share in any recovery doesn't require that you serve as lead plaintiff.
No Cost to First Solar Investors
We, Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman LLC, represent investors in class actions on a contingency fee basis. That means we will ask the court to reimburse us for out-of-pocket expenses and attorneys' fees, usually a percentage of the total recovery, only if we are successful.
Why Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, LLC for First Solar Securities Class Action?
Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, LLC is a nationally recognized firm that represents investors in securities fraud class actions and shareholder derivative suits. Our firm has recovered hundreds of millions of dollars for investors nationwide. More at www.bgandg.com
"Our practice centers on restoring investor capital and ensuring corporate accountability, which serves to uphold the essential integrity of the marketplace," said Peretz Bronstein, Founding Partner of Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, LLC.
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Contact Info
Peretz Bronstein, Esq. or Nathan Miller
Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, LLC
917-590-0911 | [email protected]
Attorney advertising.
Prior results do not guarantee similar outcomes.
BENSALEM, Pa.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Law Offices of Howard G. Smith announces that a class action lawsuit has been filed on behalf of investors who purchased First Solar, Inc. (“First Solar” or the “Company”) (NASDAQ: FSLR) securities between February 26, 2025 and February 24, 2026, inclusive (the “Class Period”). First Solar investors have until August 24, 2026 to file a lead plaintiff motion.
IF YOU ARE AN INVESTOR WHO SUFFERED A LOSS IN FIRST SOLAR, INC. (FSLR), CONTACT THE LAW OFFICES OF HOWARD G. SMITH TO PARTICIPATE IN THE ONGOING SECURITIES FRAUD LAWSUIT.
Contact the Law Offices of Howard G. Smith to discuss your legal rights by email at [email protected], by telephone at (215) 638-4847 or visit our website at www.howardsmithlaw.com.
What Happened?
On January 7, 2026, Jefferies downgraded First Solar from Buy to Hold, stating that during 2025, the Company had lowered guidance, faced significant de-bookings, and experienced margin compression. Additionally, Jefferies claimed that “[international] facilities remain a pain point while tariffs exist” and “underutilization at [international] facilities remains a concern.”
On this news, First Solar’s stock price fell $27.67, or 10.3%, to close at $241.11 per share on January 7, 2026, thereby injuring investors.
Then, on February 24, 2026, First Solar released its fourth quarter and full year 2025 financial results, revealing that earnings had significantly missed expectations. The Company also issued lower-than-expected revenue guidance for 2026 citing customer headwinds.
On this news, First Solar’s stock price fell $33.09, or 13.6%, to close at $210.12 per share on February 25, 2026, thereby injuring investors further.
What Is The Lawsuit About?
The complaint filed in this class action alleges that throughout the Class Period, Defendants made materially false and/or misleading statements, as well as failed to disclose material adverse facts about the Company’s business, operations, and prospects. Specifically, Defendants failed to disclose to investors that: (1) Defendants had overstated First Solar’s capacity to manage the impact of U.S. tariff policy on the Company’s business; (2) Defendants understated the extent to which its responses to U.S. tariff policy, including the intentional underutilization of production facilities in Malaysia and Vietnam, and attempted relocation of production to the U.S., were likely to negatively impact First Solar’s projected performance in the 2026 fiscal year; and (3) as a result, Defendants’ positive statements about the Company’s business, operations, and prospects were materially misleading and/or lacked a reasonable basis at all relevant times.
Contact Us To Participate or Learn More:
If you purchased First Solar securities, have information or 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 us:
Law Offices of Howard G. Smith
3070 Bristol Pike, Suite 112
Bensalem, Pennsylvania 19020
Telephone: (215) 638-4847
Email: [email protected]
Visit our website at: www.howardsmithlaw.com.
This press release may be considered Attorney Advertising in some jurisdictions under the applicable law and ethical rules.
The Social Security Administration’s headline benefit figure for the average retired worker, $2,071 a month, is the starting line of nearly every retirement income conversation. It is still well below what the average household actually spends. The Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Consumer Expenditure Survey put average annual household outlays at $78,535 in 2024, or roughly $6,545 a month. The gap between what Social Security delivers and what households spend is why dividend portfolios continue to show up in retirement planning.
This article walks through the math of replacing that $1,976 monthly check with stock dividends, using five companies as illustrations: Verizon, Realty Income, Altria, Enbridge, and Main Street Capital. The mix is intended as a worked example of what it takes to generate the same dollar amount as the average Social Security benefit.
The Number Behind the Number Replacing $2,071 a month means generating $24,852 a year in cash dividends. At a blended yield of around 6%, that requires a portfolio of roughly $414,000. Drop it to 4.50%, which is about where the current 10-year Treasury sits, and the required capital climbs to about $552,000. Push it to 7%, and the math comes out to nearly $355,000.
The 10-year Treasury sits at 4.50%, near the 94th percentile of its 12-month range. The Fed Funds upper bound is 3.75%, down 0.75 points from a year earlier. CPI has climbed from 321.435 in June 2025 to 333.979 in May 2026. Treasury coupons hold their nominal value but do not grow, whereas dividends from established payers have historically grown.
How Five Stocks Carry the Load The illustrative portfolio covers four sectors and three payment frequencies. Each name draws cash from a different corner of the economy, which spreads the risk that a single bad year erases that year’s income.
Verizon (NYSE:VZ | VZ Price Prediction) yields 6%, with a quarterly dividend that rose from $0.69 to $0.71 in Q1 2026, the latest step in a multi-decade payout track record. Trailing P/E sits near 11x. Realty Income (NYSE:O) yields 5.3% and pays monthly. The June 2026 payment of $0.27 extended its streak of 670 consecutive monthly dividends and 114 consecutive quarterly raises. Altria (NYSE:MO) yields 6%. Its quarterly payout climbed from $0.84 in 2020 to $1.06 today, the product of 60 increases in 56 years. Enbridge (NYSE:ENB) yields 6.8% on a 31-year dividend growth streak, with a U.S.-listed payment of $0.71 in June 2026. Main Street Capital (NYSE:MAIN) pays $0.26 monthly plus a $0.30 quarterly supplemental, which puts the base regular yield at 6% before supplementals. Equal-weighted at roughly $78,600 per position, the portfolio produces close to $4,700 in annual income per stock, blending to the $23,712 target. Monthly cash flow does not arrive evenly, since Verizon, Altria, and Enbridge pay quarterly while Realty Income and Main Street Capital pay monthly. A retiree using this kind of mix typically maintains a cash buffer to bridge gaps between quarterly payment dates.
What the Portfolio Does Not Solve Total return and dividend reliability are separate questions. Over the past 12 months, Enbridge rose 30%, Altria rose 29%, Verizon rose 14%, and Realty Income rose 13%, while Main Street Capital fell 9%. High yields can coexist with price weakness, and concentration in five names magnifies single-company risk.
Inflation is the other quiet constraint, as the 2026 Social Security COLA was set at 2.8%. Dividend growth across these five companies has historically outpaced that pace, but past raises do not guarantee future ones. The Cato Institute’s polling found that three-fourths of Americans cannot identify what the average Social Security benefit actually pays.
Matching that check with portfolio income is mathematically straightforward and operationally demanding. It requires roughly $393,000 in capital, the patience to hold equities through drawdowns, and acceptance that none of the income carries the contractual certainty of a Treasury coupon or a Social Security deposit.
Investors interested in Chemical - Diversified stocks are likely familiar with LyondellBasell (LYB) and Air Liquide (AIQUY). But which of these two stocks is more attractive to value investors?
Taking full advantage of the stock market and investing with confidence are common goals for new and old investors, and Zacks Premium offers many different ways to do both.
The research service features daily updates of the Zacks Rank and Zacks Industry Rank, full access to the Zacks #1 Rank List, Equity Research reports, and Premium stock screens, all of which will help you become a smarter, more confident investor.
Zacks Premium also includes the Zacks Style Scores.
What are the Zacks Style Scores? The Zacks Style Scores is a unique set of guidelines that rates stocks based on three popular investing types, and were developed as complementary indicators for the Zacks Rank. This combination helps investors choose securities with the highest chances of beating the market over the next 30 days.
Each stock is given an alphabetic rating of A, B, C, D or F based on their value, growth, and momentum qualities. With this system, an A is better than a B, a B is better than a C, and so on, meaning the better the score, the better chance the stock will outperform.
The Style Scores are broken down into four categories:
Value ScoreValue investors love finding good stocks at good prices, especially before the broader market catches on to a stock's true value. Utilizing ratios like P/E, PEG, Price/Sales, Price/Cash Flow, and many other multiples, the Value Style Score identifies the most attractive and most discounted stocks.
Growth ScoreGrowth investors are more concerned with a stock's future prospects, and the overall financial health and strength of a company. Thus, the Growth Style Score analyzes characteristics like projected and historic earnings, sales, and cash flow to find stocks that will see sustainable growth over time.
Momentum ScoreMomentum investors, who live by the saying "the trend is your friend," are most interested in taking advantage of upward or downward trends in a stock's price or earnings outlook. Utilizing one-week price change and the monthly percentage change in earnings estimates, among other factors, the Momentum Style Score can help determine favorable times to buy high-momentum stocks.
VGM ScoreIf you want a combination of all three Style Scores, then the VGM Score will be your friend. It rates each stock on their combined weighted styles, helping you find the companies with the most attractive value, best growth forecast, and most promising momentum. It's also one of the best indicators to use with the Zacks Rank.
How Style Scores Work with the Zacks Rank The Zacks Rank is a proprietary stock-rating model that harnesses the power of earnings estimate revisions, or changes to a company's earnings expectations, to help investors build a successful portfolio.
Investors can count on the Zacks Rank's success, with #1 (Strong Buy) stocks producing an unmatched +24% average annual return since 1988, more than double the S&P 500's performance. But the model rates a large number of stocks, and there are over 200 companies with a Strong Buy rank, plus another 600 with a #2 (Buy) rank, on any given day.
With more than 800 top-rated stocks to choose from, it can certainly feel overwhelming to pick the ones that are right for you and your investing journey.
That's where the Style Scores come in.
To have the best chance of big returns, you'll want to always consider stocks with a Zacks Rank #1 or #2 that also have Style Scores of A or B, which will give you the highest probability of success. If you're looking at stocks with a #3 (Hold) rank, it's important they have Scores of A or B as well to ensure as much upside potential as possible.
As mentioned above, the Scores are designed to work with the Zacks Rank, so any change to a company's earnings outlook should be a deciding factor when picking which stocks to buy.
Here's an example: a stock with a #4 (Sell) or #5 (Strong Sell) rating, even one with Style Scores of A and B, still has a downward-trending earnings outlook, and a bigger chance its share price will decrease too.
Thus, the more stocks you own with a #1 or #2 Rank and Scores of A or B, the better.
Stock to Watch: Dollar General (DG - Free Report) Headquartered in Goodlettsville, TN, Dollar General Corporation is one of the largest discount retailers in the United States. The company sells low-priced merchandise, typically $10 or less. Dollar General offers a wide selection of merchandise, including consumable items, seasonal items, home products and apparel. The company’s merchandise includes national brands from leading manufacturers and private brand offerings that are priced at discounts to many comparable national brands.
DG is a #3 (Hold) on the Zacks Rank, with a VGM Score of B.
It also boasts a Value Style Score of B thanks to attractive valuation metrics like a forward P/E ratio of 15.99; value investors should take notice.
19 analysts revised their earnings estimate upwards in the last 60 days for fiscal 2027. The Zacks Consensus Estimate has increased $0.09 to $7.35 per share. DG boasts an average earnings surprise of +21%.
With a solid Zacks Rank and top-tier Value and VGM Style Scores, DG should be on investors' short list.
Key Takeaways U.S. PCE inflation rose 4.1% in May, its highest annual rate since April 2023. DUK, KO, ARKO and NYT have seen positive earnings estimate revisions in the past 60 days. Rising inflation and rate hike expectations boost the appeal of defensive stocks. U.S. inflation surged past the 4% mark in May, for the first time since early 2023, giving the Federal Reserve enough reason to go for a rate hike in the near term. A surge in energy prices, owing to the Middle East conflict, drove commodity prices higher, which was primarily responsible for the sudden rise in inflation.
A rate hike now appears inevitable. Given this scenario, we recommend buying four defensive stocks from the utility and consumer staples sectors, namely, Duke Energy Corporation (DUK - Free Report) ,The Coca-Cola Company (KO - Free Report) , Arko Corp. (ARKO - Free Report) and The New York Times Company (NYT - Free Report) .
These stocks have seen positive earnings estimate revisions in the past 60 days, carry a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) or #2 (Buy) at present, and are set for solid returns. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
Inflation Continues to RiseThe personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index rose 4.1% year over year in May, its largest gain since April 2023, the Commerce Department reported on Thursday. This comes after PCE inflation jumped an unrevised 3.8% in April.
Month over month, the PCE index rose 0.4% in May, after climbing 0.7% in April. Oil and other energy prices rose 6.5%. Food prices increased 0.3%. Core PCE, which excludes volatile food and energy, rose 0.3% sequentially in May and 3.4% from the year-ago level. The annual reading for the core PCE was the highest level since October 2023.
Inflation eased last year but started surging from March, primarily due to higher energy costs that raised everything from transportation costs to commodity prices. Oil prices surged as much as 40% in March and April following the war in Iran.
Although oil prices have eased after the United States and Iran signed a preliminary peace deal, the crisis is far from over. The impact of the initial rise in oil prices is still pushing up the prices of commodities. Also, a surge in prices of semiconductors and other tech goods could likely push inflation up.
The Federal Reserve has been contemplating hiking rates as inflation remains far away from its 2% target. Markets have been pricing in a 25-basis-point rate hike by the end of this year. High borrowing costs could further weigh on the economy and keep markets volatile for a longer period.
4 Low-Beta Defensive Stocks With Growth PotentialDuke Energy CorporationDuke Energy Corporation is a diversified energy company with a broad portfolio of domestic and international, natural gas and electric and regulated and unregulated businesses that supply, deliver and process energy in North America and selected international markets. DUK primarily operates through three business segments — Electric Utilities and Infrastructure, Gas Utilities and Infrastructure, and Commercial Renewables.
Duke Energy Corporation has an expected earnings growth rate of 6.3% for the current year. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for current-year earnings has improved 0.1% over the past 60 days. DUK has a Zacks Rank #2. Duke Energy has a beta of 0.39 and a current dividend yield of 3.37%.
The Coca-Cola CompanyThe Coca-Cola Company’s strong brand equity, marketing, research and innovation help it to garner a market share of more than 40% in the non-alcoholic beverage industry. KO is putting its best foot forward to evolve its business model to become a total beverage company with something for everyone to drink. The Coca-Cola Company has coped with the industry-wide flattening of soda sales over the years by going on a buying spree and making investments in healthier alternatives like coffee, sparkling water and sports drinks.
The Coca-Cola Company has an expected earnings growth rate of 8.7% for the current year. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for current-year earnings has improved 0.9% over the past 60 days. The Coca-Cola Company has a Zacks Rank #2. KO has a beta of 0.35 and a current dividend yield of 2.63%.
Arko Corp. Arko Corp.’s primary asset is a controlling stake in GPM Investments. ARKO, formerly known as Haymaker Acquisition Corp. II, is based in Richmond, VA.
Arko Corp’s expected earnings growth rate for the current year is 93.3%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for current-year earnings has improved 11.5% over the past 60 days. Arko Corp. has a Zacks Rank #1. ARKO has a beta of 0.98 and a current dividend yield of 1.56%.
The New York Times CompanyThe New York Times Company is a leading global media organization focused on delivering high-quality journalism and information. Founded in 1851 and incorporated in 1896, NYT has evolved from a traditional newspaper publisher into a diversified digital-first media company with a strong global subscriber base and a growing portfolio of lifestyle and entertainment products.
The New York Times Company has an expected earnings growth rate of 19.1% for the current year. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for current-year earnings has improved 5% over the last 60 days. NYT has a beta of 0.95 and a current dividend yield of 1.29%.
While the proven Zacks Rank places an emphasis on earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find strong stocks, we also know that investors tend to develop their own individual strategies. With this in mind, we are always looking at value, growth, and momentum trends to discover great companies.
Of these, perhaps no stock market trend is more popular than value investing, which is a strategy that has proven to be successful in all sorts of market environments. Value investors use a variety of methods, including tried-and-true valuation metrics, to find these stocks.
On top of the Zacks Rank, investors can also look at our innovative Style Scores system to find stocks with specific traits. For example, value investors will want to focus on the "Value" category. Stocks with high Zacks Ranks and "A" grades for Value will be some of the highest-quality value stocks on the market today.
One company to watch right now is American International Group (AIG - Free Report) . AIG is currently holding a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) and a Value grade of A.
We should also highlight that AIG has a P/B ratio of 1.07. The P/B ratio pits a stock's market value against its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. This stock's P/B looks solid versus its industry's average P/B of 2.78. Over the past year, AIG's P/B has been as high as 1.22 and as low as 0.97, with a median of 1.09.
Finally, investors will want to recognize that AIG has a P/CF ratio of 6.55. This data point considers a firm's operating cash flow and is frequently used to find companies that are undervalued when considering their solid cash outlook. This company's current P/CF looks solid when compared to its industry's average P/CF of 8.23. AIG's P/CF has been as high as 38.26 and as low as 6.49, with a median of 24.14, all within the past year.
These figures are just a handful of the metrics value investors tend to look at, but they help show that American International Group is likely being undervalued right now. Considering this, as well as the strength of its earnings outlook, AIG feels like a great value stock at the moment.
Palantir (PLTR) is topping a list of oversold mega-cap tech stocks after a broader risk-off move hit global growth names and dragged down some of the market's b
A sharp sell-off in leading technology stocks reflects short-term impatience rather than any breakdown in the artificial intelligence trade, according to Wedbush.
The broker said core names driving what it calls the fourth industrial revolution, including Microsoft Corp (NASDAQ:MSFT), Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG), Palantir Technologies Inc (NYSE:PLTR), Oracle Corp (NYSE:ORCL, XETRA:ORC), Nvidia Corp (NASDAQ:NVDA, XETRA:NVD), Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN) and Meta Platforms Inc (NASDAQ:META, XETRA:FB2A, SIX:FB), have come under heavy selling pressure, with investors treating Microsoft and Meta as if they were bear-market stocks that cannot be owned.
Wedbush, whose technology team is led by Dan Ives, said the moves amounted to a "Twilight Zone market" for many of the sector's biggest names, while beneficiaries such as memory chipmakers were thriving.
Micron Technology Inc (NASDAQ:MU) was singled out as one such winner over the past week.
The bank put the disconnect down to two main concerns weighing on the hyperscalers and Nvidia.
The first is the lag between Big Tech's enormous capital spending and any payoff in revenue.
Wedbush estimates the largest technology companies will spend around $700 billion on capital expenditure this year to build out AI infrastructure, leaving the sector in what it described as an "air pocket stage".
The broker said investors had grown frustrated with the patience required on Microsoft and Meta in particular, with the two now in a six to 12 month window during which data centre and compute buildouts are ramping up but the expected monetisation boom has yet to arrive.
Alphabet had been the standout performer in the group until recent weeks, when it lost several core engineers to Anthropic.
Meta, meanwhile, is attempting to overhaul its business through heavy investment that will take time to feed through to earnings.
Wedbush framed the situation as year three of a 10-year AI buildout, arguing the current weakness represented short-term pain for long-term gain and that the stocks now offered major buying opportunities.
The second concern centres on rising compute and memory costs, and whether they could reach a level that forces enterprises to slow their AI buildouts.
Wedbush said Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL, XETRA:APC) price increases announced the previous day had sent a negative jolt through the market, feeding wider worries about the neoclouds and hyperscalers being left exposed in a game of musical chairs.
The broker expects those costs to ease over the coming year.
It argued that the present anxieties would fade once AI consumer hardware, physical AI deployments and enterprise use cases scaled up, comparing the buildout to the construction of the Las Vegas strip in the 1950s.
Wedbush concluded that the head-scratching moves across the sector were creating disconnects and opportunities to own the technology and AI winners in a multi-year bull market it believes still has considerable room to run.
It’s been a rough first half of the year for Palantir Technologies NASDAQ: PLTR shareholders. The stock is down nearly 40% in 2026, with shares recently sliding again to test the $107 level.
Palantir Technologies Today
PLTR
Palantir Technologies
$113.27 +6.00 (+5.59%)
As of 12:54 PM Eastern
This is a fair market value price provided by Massive. Learn more.
52-Week Range$106.37▼
$207.52P/E Ratio127.16
Price Target$192.76
Short interest, while still low on a percentage basis, is rising. Technology stocks, and software stocks in particular, are being met with suspicion due to the rapid, but perhaps misunderstood, adoption of agentic AI.
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That pressure feeds the tried-and-true critique that PLTR is simply overvalued. Even after the sell-off, the stock still trades at a steep forward price-to-earnings (P/E) multiple, well above the S&P 500 average and most software-stock benchmarks.
However, Palantir has consistently shown that its stock may be worth the premium. Two announcements in the past week reinforce that view and suggest the sell-off is creating a buying opportunity rather than confirming the bear thesis.
Zeta Global Partnership Expands the Commercial PipelinePalantir and Zeta Global NYSE: ZETA have entered into a seven-year strategic partnership in which Zeta's Data Cloud will be rearchitected on Palantir's Foundry infrastructure, with Athena by Zeta remaining as the application layer. Foundry provides the ontology, governance, and operational backbone; Athena (Zeta's AI intelligence layer) sits on top to drive real-time, agentic marketing decisions for enterprise clients.
What does that mean for Palantir’s finances? The partnership gives Palantir access to a new batch of potential customers representing more than $100 million in annual revenue. It also includes the development of a joint forward-deployed engineering team. CEO David Steinberg framed that $100M+ as an annual run-rate target "in the coming years," not a contract value.
ZETA shares climbed 5% on Tuesday, June 23, following the announcement. Wedbush and DA Davidson have flagged it as further enterprise AI validation for Palantir.
Another Government Win Builds on a Core StrengthNext Generation Command and Control (NGC2) is the Army's top modernization priority and its contribution to Joint All-Domain Command and Control (JADC2). That's the Pentagon's effort to fuse data across land, air, sea, space, and cyber. The Army has now established the foundational data architecture for NGC2, built on Palantir's Foundry as the cloud data layer and Anduril's Lattice as the tactical data layer. Raft handles data registries, transformation tools, and federation.
The financial implications are substantial, even though no contract value was disclosed. The award falls under Anduril's 10-year enterprise licensing agreement with the Army, which carries a $20 billion ceiling. Palantir's role is foundational rather than peripheral. Every future NGC2 application, AI model, and battlefield system built on this architecture will run on Foundry.
Overall MarketRank™92nd Percentile
Analyst RatingModerate Buy
Upside/Downside79.7% Upside
Short Interest LevelHealthy
Dividend StrengthN/A
News Sentiment0.74 Insider TradingSelling Shares
Proj. Earnings Growth42.37%
See Full Analysis
That matters because Palantir's government segment remains the company's largest revenue base. NGC2 is just beginning to scale beyond the 4th Infantry Division and 25th Infantry Division pilots. As the Army rolls the architecture out to additional formations, Foundry captures recurring revenue at the platform level. The win also complements existing government franchises, such as TITAN and the Maven Smart System.
The takeaway for investors is that new contracts lead to higher revenue and earnings. That’s the signal. The rest is noise.
There's nothing wrong with taking profits on a stock that was ahead of itself at over $200 per share. There’s also nothing wrong with having been early on PLTR. It’s a one-of-one company, and those don’t come around often.
Chart Shows Weak Hands Exiting, Not CapitulationPLTR has broken through a support level of around $128. The $115 level has now given way as well, and shares are sitting roughly $30 below the 50-day simple moving average at $137. Palantir bears smell blood, which could lead to more selling.
But a fair read of the chart shows that the recent sell-off is taking place on, at best, average volume. That’s not a sign of capitulation, but rather a sign of the weak hands exiting the trade. The relative strength index (RSI) has also dipped below 30, a sign that selling may run out of steam sooner than expected.
The MACD is deeply negative but extended; a setup that often precedes a counter-trend bounce. The next logical catalyst for a sustained rally will be the company’s upcoming earnings report, expected on Aug 3, 2026. Palantir is likely to report strong results...and history suggests the stock is likely not to reflect that strength.
The question for investors is, what role does PLTR play in a portfolio? As a short-term investment or trade, it’s a poor choice. There are many headwinds against software stocks in general and Palantir in particular. But the two deals announced this week reinforce why Palantir still merits a place in a long-term portfolio. The sell-off is uncomfortable, but for now seems like normal portfolio rebalancing driven by valuation normalization rather than a thesis breaker.
Should You Invest $1,000 in Palantir Technologies Right Now?Before you consider Palantir Technologies, you'll want to hear this.
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Palantir PLTR is getting another bullish read from Wedbush's Daniel Ives, who says the company's Zeta Global partnership adds more proof that Palantir remains at the center of the enterprise AI buildout, as per reporting for Tipranks.
The deal will combine Palantir's Foundry platform with Zeta's Data Cloud and Athena, Zeta's conversational AI agent for enterprise marketing. The goal is to build a unified data and AI platform that can support real-time decision making, customer intelligence, and agentic marketing across large companies.
Ives said the partnership could set a new standard for data-driven marketing, as security, governance, and compliance are becoming critical requirements for enterprises adopting AI. Zeta's marketing cloud already uses proprietary AI and trillions of consumer signals, while Foundry will provide the operational infrastructure underneath it.
The partnership is expected to generate more than $100M in revenue for Zeta over several years. The bigger point is Palantir's role. Ives said “more proof keeps coming” that many investors still do not fully understand the value Alex Karp and Palantir bring to enterprise AI.
Palantir Technologies (PLTR) ranked as the most oversold mega-cap technology stock following a broad retreat in growth shares.Palantir posted a Relative Strengt
Choosing between established healthcare giants often comes down to balancing income needs against growth potential. Both Bristol Myers Squibb (BMY +3.07%) and Johnson & Johnson (JNJ +3.37%) offer massive scale but follow different strategic paths.
Bristol Myers Squibb focuses heavily on specialized biopharmaceuticals like oncology and cardiovascular care, while Johnson & Johnson operates a broader model spanning medicine and medical devices. Investors frequently compare them because they both provide essential medical solutions and consistent dividends, making them staples for those seeking stability.
Bristol Myers Squibb operates as a pure-play biopharmaceutical company focusing on serious diseases. The company develops and sells medicines in the healthcare stocks sector across oncology, hematology, and immunology. It distributes these products primarily through wholesalers and specialty pharmacies, utilizing specific risk-management programs for drugs like Revlimid.
In FY 2025, revenue reached approximately $48.2 billion. This represented a slight decline of nearly 0.2% compared to the prior year. However, the company reported net income of $7.1 billion, which resulted in a net margin of 14.6%. This was a significant recovery from the net loss reported in fiscal year 2024.
As of its December 2025 balance sheet, the debt-to-equity ratio was 2.6x. This means total debt is 2.6 times the value of shareholder equity. The current ratio, which measures the ability to cover short-term obligations with short-term assets, was 1.3x. Free cash flow, calculated as cash from operations minus capital expenditures, was nearly $12.8 billion.
The case for Johnson & JohnsonJohnson & Johnson is a global healthcare giant divided into Innovative Medicine and MedTech segments. The company serves patients across diverse areas including orthopaedics, surgery, and neuroscience. It is currently undergoing a strategic separation of its Orthopaedics business, a process expected to take up to 24 months to complete.
For FY 2025, revenue reached approximately $94.2 billion, indicating growth of roughly 6.0%. The company reported net income of nearly $26.8 billion. This performance resulted in a strong net margin of 28.5%, showcasing the company's ability to turn sales into profit.
According to its December 2025 balance sheet, the debt-to-equity ratio was approximately 0.6x. This indicates a conservative level of total debt relative to shareholder equity. The current ratio was 1.0x, showing that current assets roughly equaled current liabilities. Free cash flow for the period was close to $20 billion.
Risk profile comparisonBristol Myers Squibb faces significant pressure from the Inflation Reduction Act, which allows for government price negotiations on major drugs like Eliquis and Pomalyst. The company also deals with the loss of market exclusivity for key products like Revlimid, which can lead to rapid sales declines. Furthermore, manufacturing complex biologics and cell therapies creates risks related to supply chain disruptions and quality control.
Johnson & Johnson is also impacted by government price negotiations for products like Stelara and Xarelto. The company continues to manage significant legal risks, particularly regarding long-standing litigation over talc-based baby powder. It faces competition from other large firms like Merck and Pfizer.
Valuation comparisonBristol Myers Squibb currently trades at a significant discount to Johnson & Johnson when looking at future earnings estimates and sales multiples.
MetricBristol-Myers SquibbJohnson & JohnsonSector BenchmarkForward P/E8.8x20.8x24.8xP/S ratio2.4x6.2xSector benchmark uses the SPDR XLV sector ETF.
Valuation metrics sourced from Financial Modeling Prep (FMP) and may differ from other data providers.
Which stock would I buy in 2026?I'd go with Johnson & Johnson. Both companies are navigating patent cliffs on blockbuster drugs, which is one of the trickier challenges in big pharma. But the two companies are in noticeably different positions when it comes to what's on the other side of that challenge.
J&J is firing on multiple fronts. Its innovative medicine business is growing, its MedTech segment is expanding in cardiovascular and electrophysiology, and the company just raised its full-year outlook after a strong first quarter. With 28 products generating at least a billion dollars in annual revenue, this is a business with extraordinary staying power.
Bristol Myers Squibb is making progress too. Its newer growth brands are gaining traction and the pipeline has some interesting candidates. But overall revenue is expected to decline in 2026 as legacy products lose ground, and the path forward requires more patience.
For a long-term investor who wants steady growth and a solid dividend, J&J is the more comfortable bet.
The rollercoaster ride that is investing in Micron (MU 2.87%) stock took another turn Friday, as shares of the computer memory maker slid 4% through 10:40 a.m. ET.
You can blame OpenAI for that.
Image source: Micron.
Easy come, less easy go Micron (MU 2.87%) blew past earnings estimates yesterday, setting a new all-time high share price and predicting even more gains in store in Q4. The stock closed Thursday up 15.7%, so while today's 4% subsidence is perhaps disappointing, it still leaves Micron stock worth considerably more than it was pre-earnings.
How long will this last, though?
As The New York Times reports, worries over the sudden downturn in the price of SpaceX (SPCX +2.89%) shares post-IPO have OpenAI rethinking whether now's really the right time for it to IPO. OpenAI's financial advisors are telling CEO Sam Altman he has to make a choice: IPO in 2027 and potentially secure a $1 trillion valuation for OpenAI -- or IPO in 2026 and risk a lower valuation.
Again, reportedly, Altman is intent on ringing the trillion-dollar bell and now leans toward postponing the OpenAI IPO.
Today's Change
(
-2.87
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-34.83
Current Price
$
1178.73
What this means for Micron What does this have to do with Micron stock? Simply this:
OpenAI's last pre-IPO funding round valued it at $852 billion and raised $122 billion in cash. OpenAI's expected to spend most of this money renting computing capacity from hyperscalers, who in turn will spend heavily on computer chips and memory to outfit gigantic data centers to run OpenAI's artificial intelligence programs.
The same thing will happen when OpenAI raises perhaps even more cash at its IPO. But if OpenAI delays its IPO to 2027, it might also postpone its spending. This delays the windfall for hyperscalers, for chipmakers -- and for Micron, too.
That's why Micron stock is down today.
Rich Smith has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Micron Technology. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
A sharp sell-off in leading technology stocks reflects short-term impatience rather than any breakdown in the artificial intelligence trade, according to Wedbush.
The broker said core names driving what it calls the fourth industrial revolution, including Microsoft Corp (NASDAQ:MSFT), Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG), Palantir Technologies Inc (NYSE:PLTR), Oracle Corp (NYSE:ORCL, XETRA:ORC), Nvidia Corp (NASDAQ:NVDA, XETRA:NVD), Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN) and Meta Platforms Inc (NASDAQ:META, XETRA:FB2A, SIX:FB), have come under heavy selling pressure, with investors treating Microsoft and Meta as if they were bear-market stocks that cannot be owned.
Wedbush, whose technology team is led by Dan Ives, said the moves amounted to a "Twilight Zone market" for many of the sector's biggest names, while beneficiaries such as memory chipmakers were thriving.
Micron Technology Inc (NASDAQ:MU) was singled out as one such winner over the past week.
The bank put the disconnect down to two main concerns weighing on the hyperscalers and Nvidia.
The first is the lag between Big Tech's enormous capital spending and any payoff in revenue.
Wedbush estimates the largest technology companies will spend around $700 billion on capital expenditure this year to build out AI infrastructure, leaving the sector in what it described as an "air pocket stage".
The broker said investors had grown frustrated with the patience required on Microsoft and Meta in particular, with the two now in a six to 12 month window during which data centre and compute buildouts are ramping up but the expected monetisation boom has yet to arrive.
Alphabet had been the standout performer in the group until recent weeks, when it lost several core engineers to Anthropic.
Meta, meanwhile, is attempting to overhaul its business through heavy investment that will take time to feed through to earnings.
Wedbush framed the situation as year three of a 10-year AI buildout, arguing the current weakness represented short-term pain for long-term gain and that the stocks now offered major buying opportunities.
The second concern centres on rising compute and memory costs, and whether they could reach a level that forces enterprises to slow their AI buildouts.
Wedbush said Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL, XETRA:APC) price increases announced the previous day had sent a negative jolt through the market, feeding wider worries about the neoclouds and hyperscalers being left exposed in a game of musical chairs.
The broker expects those costs to ease over the coming year.
It argued that the present anxieties would fade once AI consumer hardware, physical AI deployments and enterprise use cases scaled up, comparing the buildout to the construction of the Las Vegas strip in the 1950s.
Wedbush concluded that the head-scratching moves across the sector were creating disconnects and opportunities to own the technology and AI winners in a multi-year bull market it believes still has considerable room to run.
Micron Technology, Inc. is delivering historic results amid an AI-driven memory shortage, with shares up over 700% in a year and trading at 10x forward earnings. MU's current valuation capitalizes peak-cycle earnings, ignoring the memory industry's deeply cyclical, commodity nature and history of sharp post-peak drawdowns. Massive new capacity investments by all three DRAM producers, including MU, are set to come online from late 2027, likely ending today's shortage and pressuring margins.
The market has rarely seen a technological revolution like the one the artificial intelligence boom has unleashed. Semiconductor companies, in particular, have been rewarded at a pace few investors have ever witnessed.
Last year, Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA | NVDA Price Prediction) dominated headlines as demand for AI accelerators exploded. This year, the spotlight has shifted to a different bottleneck: memory. Every AI server needs massive amounts of high-bandwidth memory (HBM), and there simply isn’t enough to go around. That shortage has transformed Micron Technology (NASDAQ:MU) from an important supplier in a cyclical industry into one of AI’s foundational infrastructure companies, and one of its most valuable.
The memory chipmaker’s latest earnings release suggests the story is far from over, even after one of the fastest wealth-creation periods the semiconductor industry has ever seen.
Micron’s Growth is Rewriting the AI Playbook Micron’s fiscal third-quarter results showed a company operating on an entirely different scale than it was just a year ago. Revenue climbed from $9.3 billion in fiscal Q3 2025 to $41.5 billion this year, a better than fourfold increase. Net income expanded even faster, jumping from $1.9 billion to $28.2 billion, up nearly 15 times — surpassing even Nvidia’s historic run one year earlier.
The stock has reflected that explosive growth. Micron’s market capitalization increased from roughly $140 billion in June 2025 to $1.31 trillion today — a near-tenfold increase.
The old investing maxim says stock prices ultimately follow earnings, and earnings follow sales. Micron’s valuation isn’t simply responding to higher revenue — it is rewarding a business that has dramatically expanded its profitability as rising memory prices flow directly to the bottom line.
Management forecast another quarter of powerful growth for fiscal Q4 as demand continues to exceed available supply. The shortage has become so severe that Micron says its HBM production is sold out through 2026; it can currently satisfy only about 50% to 66% of customer demand; and it has also signed 16 long-term customer agreements to lock in future supply years in advance.
Meanwhile, customers are already passing higher costs along. Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) announced yesterday it was raising prices on select Macbook and iPad models, citing higher memory costs as the reason. CEO Tim Cook said, “We have never seen a component price increase this much, this quickly.” He has also likened the situation to a “100-year flood.” Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) followed by increasing Xbox pricing.
Those announcements illustrate how pricing power has shifted toward memory manufacturers as AI infrastructure competes directly with consumer electronics for limited DRAM and HBM production. Even with Samsung, SK hynix, and Micron investing billions to expand capacity, building advanced memory fabrication takes years — not months.
Valuation Offers Significant Upside A stock that climbs nearly tenfold naturally raises concerns about whether investors have missed the opportunity.
Surprisingly, Micron still trades at roughly 8 times forward earnings, despite Wall Street forecasting approximately 165% average annual EPS growth over the next five years. Those figures suggest earnings are expanding even faster than the stock price.
That said, risks remain. Memory has historically been a cyclical business, and eventually new manufacturing capacity will reduce pricing pressure. The key question is when — not whether — that happens.
Key Takeaway Micron probably won’t deliver another tenfold return over the next 12 months. Markets rarely repeat that kind of performance back-to-back. Yet the company’s latest earnings release shows revenue, profits, and demand continuing to expand at extraordinary rates, while supply remains constrained.
With HBM sold out through 2026, long-term supply contracts in place, a deeply discounted stock valuation, and earnings still accelerating, Micron’s AI story appears driven by fundamentals rather than hype. For investors looking beyond the next quarter, the numbers still suggest the memory leader has plenty of room to grow.
HomePersonal FinanceAlso in Weekend Reads: Medicare and GLP-1s, tech stocks and career adviceJune 26, 2026, 12:47 p.m. ET
Micron’s stock typically trades on the cheap because investors have long memories of dramatic cycles of supply and demand in the market for computer memory chips and peripheral devices. The company’s sales for its most recent reported fiscal quarter were up 74% from the previous quarter and had increased more than fourfold from the year-earlier quarter. But less than three years ago, the company reported a fiscal 2023 net loss as its annual revenue declined 49%.
And even though its stock price has more than quadrupled this year, Micron’s MU forward price/earnings ratio of 9.2 is very low when compared with a weighted forward P/E of 20.2 for the S&P 500 SPX, according to FactSet.
BlackBerry CEO John Giamatteo discusses the company's evolution into a software and infrastructure player, centered on its QNX operating system. He highlights that QNX now powers over 275 million vehicles globally and is increasingly used in robotics, medical devices and industrial automation.
Key Takeaways BlackBerry beat fiscal Q1 EPS estimates as revenue rose 26% year over year; it raised fiscal 2027 guidance.BB lifted QNX and Licensing outlook after strong execution and reaffirmed Secure Communications growth.BlackBerry posted its first cash-positive fiscal Q1 in nine years and repurchased 2.6 million shares. BlackBerry Limited (BB - Free Report) reported first-quarter fiscal 2027 non-GAAP earnings per share (EPS) of 4 cents. The figure beat the company’s estimate of 2-3 cents. In the year-ago quarter, it reported a non-GAAP EPS of 2 cents. The Zacks Consensus Estimate was pegged at 3 cents per share.
BlackBerry generated $152.9 million in fiscal first-quarter revenue, representing 26% year-over-year growth. During the quarter, BlackBerry delivered strong execution across both QNX and Secure Communications, with each achieving Rule of 40 performance through a combination of solid growth and profitability. QNX continues to gain traction for software-defined vehicles, robotics, industrial automation and physical AI, while Secure Comm remains a dependable source of high-margin revenue backed by government and defense customers.
After a strong start to fiscal 2027, BB raised its full-year QNX revenue guidance to $295–$312 million and adjusted EBITDA view to $74–$86 million. Secure Comm continues to be a stable and growing business. The company reaffirmed its full-year revenue guidance of $270–$280 million, representing 4–8% growth. For Licensing, it raised its guidance to approximately $29 million in revenue and $25 million in adjusted EBITDA.
Fueled by improved outlook for QNX and Licensing, BlackBerry raised fiscal 2027 guidance to $594–$621 million in revenue and $119–$139 million in adjusted EBITDA. Earlier, it expected revenue to grow 6–11% to $584–$611 million, with adjusted EBITDA of $110–$130 million. The 90%flow-through of incremental revenue to adjusted EBITDA highlights the strong operating leverage of BlackBerry's business model. Non-GAAP EPS is now estimated at 16-20 cents, up from the prior expected 15–19 cents. Stronger cash conversion is expected to drive full-year operating cash flow to about $100 million, nearly double.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Following stronger-than-expected momentum and bolstered guidance, BB’s shares rose 20% in trading and closed at $10.34 yesterday. The stock has gained 119% over the past year, outperforming the Zacks Internet-Software industry’s fall of 25%.
BB’s Fiscal Q1 in DetailsRevenue from the QNX business rose 26% to $72.3 million, exceeding the upper end of guidance ($60-$64 million). QNX's strong results were driven by software-defined vehicles and centralized computing, record development license revenue (the highest in eight quarters) and growing opportunities in Physical AI, supported by a robust silicon ecosystem and the Alloy platform.
Secure Communication revenues increased 24% to $73.6 million, nearly matching QNX's growth rate. The segment benefited from strong government demand fueled by digital sovereignty, cybersecurity modernization and secure communications initiatives. The solid performance was led by an expansion and multi-year extension with Shared Services Canada, including a larger deployment of Secusmart's encrypted communications solutions, resulting in the business's best performance in several years.
While large government contracts cause quarterly fluctuations due to long sales cycles, the business continues to develop into a steady growth driver. During the quarter, BB also secured several renewals, expansions and new customer acquisitions across government, defense and regulated industries.
Licensing revenue reached $7 million, up from $4.7 million in the prior-year quarter and surpassed guidance of around $6 million, driven by stronger-than-expected revenue from existing agreements and several new one-time licensing deals.
BB’s Margin PerformanceAdjusted gross margin was 78.6%, up from 74.6% in the year-ago period. QNX gross margin improved 5 percentage points (pp) year over year to 86%. Secure Comms adjusted gross margin expanded by roughly 2 pp year over year to 72%, benefiting from a more favorable software revenue mix.
Adjusted operating expenses totaled $88 million, up from $79.9 million in the previous-year quarter.
Adjusted EBITDA more than doubled year over year, reaching approximately $36 million and exceeding expectations ($14-$22 million). QNX’s adjusted EBITDA for the quarter came in much above the high end of guidance ($4-$8 million) at $19.3 million, up 52% year over year. Secure Communications’ adjusted EBITDA beat expectations ($14-$18 million) of $20.2 million, up 110% year over year.
The licensing business generated $6.2 million in adjusted EBITDA for the quarter, up from $3.8 million in the previous year quarter.
BB’s Cash Flow & LiquidityFor the quarter that ended on May 31, 2026, BlackBerry generated $4.6 million in operating cash flow, marking its first cash-positive fiscal first quarter in nine years (excluding special items related to patent sales) against usage of $18 million a year ago.
Free cash flow was $1.7 million at the end of the quarter against an outflow of $18.9 million in the previous quarter.
The company ended the quarter with $422.9 million in cash and investments compared with $432.4 million as of Feb. 28, 2026.
BlackBerry repurchased 2.6 million shares during the quarter for approximately $10 million. Since its launch in May last year, the company has bought back 18 million shares totaling $17 million. Last month, it renewed and expanded its share repurchase program, authorizing the buyback of approximately 27 million additional shares. The program remains a key tool in the company's disciplined, shareholder-focused capital allocation strategy.
BB’s Fiscal Q2 GuidanceFor the fiscal second quarter, BlackBerry expects QNX revenue of $70–$75 million and adjusted EBITDA of $16–$21 million. It expects Secure Communications revenue of $57–$63 million and adjusted EBITDA of $5–$10 million. Licensing & Other revenues are expected to be roughly $10 million.
It has guided total revenue of $137–$148 million and adjusted EBITDA of $20–$30 million. Non-GAAP EPS is expected in the range of 3-4 cents.
BlackBerry anticipates positive operating cash flow of breakeven to $10 million.
BB’s Zacks RankAt present, BlackBerry carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Performance of Recent CompaniesGuidewire Software, Inc. (GWRE - Free Report) reported non-GAAP earnings per share of 82 cents for the third-quarter fiscal 2026 compared with 55 cents in the same period last year. Earnings surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 79 cents. The company reported revenues of $372.5 million, up 26.9% year over year. Revenues beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 4.6%. The figure also surpassed the company’s guided range of $352-$358 million. This uptick was driven by solid momentum in Subscription and support and Services segments.
Micron Technology (MU - Free Report) reported third-quarter fiscal 2026 non-GAAP earnings of $25.11 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 17.39%. The company reported earnings of $1.91 per share in the year-ago quarter. Revenues soared 345.7% year over year to $41.46 billion and surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 12.91%. Revenues jumped 73.7% sequentially. The upside was driven by robust AI-led memory demand, with data center revenues exceeding $25 billion, an annualized run rate of more than $100 billion.
McCormick & Company, Incorporated (MKC - Free Report) reported second-quarter fiscal 2026 results, wherein both top and bottom lines beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate and increased year over year. Adjusted earnings rose 15.9% to 80 cents per share from 69 cents in the year-ago quarter. The metric beats the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 69 cents per share. The increase was driven by elevated adjusted operating income and a reduced adjusted effective tax rate, partially offset by weaker unconsolidated income and increased interest expense.
BlackBerry Limited (NYSE:BB) on Thursday reported upbeat first-quarter earnings.
BlackBerry reported adjusted earnings per share of 4 cents, beating the consensus estimate of 3 cents. In addition, it reported revenue of $152.90 million, beating the consensus estimate of $138.18 million and representing a 26% year-over-year increase.
"The foundation of the business is stronger than it has been in years, and we continue to focus on disciplined execution and creating long-term value for our shareholders," said John Giamatteo, CEO.
BlackBerry expects second-quarter adjusted earnings per share of between 3 cents and 4 cents, versus the consensus estimate of 4 cents. Furthermore, it anticipates revenue of $137.00 million to $148.00 million, versus the consensus estimate of $139.53 million.
The company also raised its fiscal-year adjusted earnings per share guidance from between 15 cents and 19 cents to between 16 cents and 20 cents, versus the consensus estimate of 17 cents. BlackBerry raised its revenue guidance as well from between $584.00 million and $611.00 million to between $594.00 million and $621.00 million, versus the consensus estimate of $601.88 million.
BlackBerry shares rose 6.9% to trade at $11.06 on Friday.
These analysts made changes to their price targets on BlackBerry following earnings announcement.
Canaccord Genuity analyst Michael Walkley maintained the stock with a Hold and raised the price target from $8.2 to $10.3. CIBC analyst Todd Coupland maintained BlackBerry with an Outperformer rating and raised the price target from $10 to $13. Considering buying BB stock? Here’s what analysts think:
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Philadelphia, Pennsylvania--(Newsfile Corp. - June 26, 2026) - National plaintiffs' law firm Berger Montague PC announces a class action lawsuit against Zillow Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: ZG) (NASDAQ: Z) ("Zillow" or the "Company") on behalf of investors who purchased or acquired Zillow common stock during the period from February 11, 2025 through May 7, 2026 (the "Class Period").
Investor Deadline: Investors who purchased or acquired Zillow securities during the Class Period may, no later than August 10, 2026, seek to be appointed as a lead plaintiff representative of the class. To learn your rights, CLICK HERE.
Headquartered in Seattle, Zillow operates a digital real estate marketplace that enables consumers to buy, sell, rent, and finance homes. The Company's platform aggregates residential property listings and connects consumers with real estate professionals, landlords, and mortgage providers.
According to the complaint, throughout the Class Period, Defendants represented that Zillow's February 2025 agreement with Redfin was a rental listings partnership intended to expand inventory and increase distribution across its network. The suit alleges that Defendants failed to disclose that the agreement effectively required Redfin to exit the multifamily rental advertising business, transfer customers, employees, and competitively sensitive information to Zillow, and refrain from competing against Zillow for years, thereby exposing the Company to significantly increased antitrust risk.
The truth allegedly began to emerge on September 30, 2025, when the FTC filed an antitrust lawsuit against Zillow and Redfin, alleging that Zillow paid Redfin $100 million to eliminate a competitor and remove competition from the online multifamily rental advertising market.
Following this disclosure, Zillow's Class A and Class C common stock lost more than 4% of their value.
The truth allegedly continued to emerge on February 10, 2026, when Zillow disclosed that elevated legal expenses had exceeded expectations and were expected to create an approximately 200-basis-point headwind to first-quarter EBITDA margins. Following this disclosure, Zillow's Class A and Class C common stock both fell more than 16%.
Then, on May 7, 2026, it was reported that a federal judge denied Zillow's and Redfin's motion to dismiss the FTC's lawsuit, allowing the agency's antitrust claims to proceed. Following this news, Zillow's Class A and Class C common stock further declined in value.
If you are a Zillow investor and would like to learn more about this action, CLICK HERE or please contact Berger Montague: Andrew Abramowitz at [email protected] or (215) 875-3015, or Caitlin Adorni at [email protected] or (267) 764-4865.
About Berger Montague
Berger Montague is one of the nation's preeminent law firms focusing on complex civil litigation, class actions, and mass torts in federal and state courts throughout the United States. With more than $2.4 billion in 2025 post-trial judgments alone, the Firm is a leader in the fields of complex litigation, antitrust, consumer protection, defective products, environmental law, employment law, securities, and whistleblower cases, among many other practice areas. For over 55 years, Berger Montague has played leading roles in precedent-setting cases and has recovered over $50 billion for its clients and the classes they have represented. Berger Montague is headquartered in Philadelphia and has offices in Chicago; Malvern, PA; Minneapolis; San Diego; San Francisco; Toronto, Canada; Washington, D.C., and Wilmington, DE.
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Eli Lilly and Co (NYSE:LLY) shares climbed nearly 6% on Friday after the European Medicines Agency's Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) recommended approval of Jaypirca (pirtobrutinib) for adults with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) across all lines of therapy.
The positive opinion covers patients regardless of prior treatment with Bruton tyrosine kinase (BTK) inhibitors and marks a step toward broader availability of the drug in the European Union. The recommendation will now be reviewed by the European Commission, which is expected to issue a final decision within one to two months.
The CHMP opinion was supported by data from the Phase 3 BRUIN CLL-313 and BRUIN CLL-314 studies. Lilly said BRUIN CLL-313 was the first Phase 3 trial to evaluate a non-covalent BTK inhibitor exclusively in previously untreated CLL patients, while BRUIN CLL-314 was the first Phase 3 study to compare non-covalent and covalent BTK inhibitors in the treatment-naïve setting.
Results from both studies were presented at the 2025 American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting and later published in The Journal of Clinical Oncology.
Jaypirca is already approved in certain markets for other blood cancer indications. Lilly has also submitted the CLL data to the US Food and Drug Administration, with a regulatory decision expected in the second half of 2026.
If approved by the European Commission, the expanded indication would allow Jaypirca to be used as a treatment option for CLL patients throughout the European Union regardless of disease stage or prior BTK inhibitor exposure.
"Based on the strong results from the BRUIN CLL-313 and CLL-314 studies, we believe Jaypirca has the potential to serve as a meaningful new option for newly diagnosed patients and those who have not yet received a BTK inhibitor," said Jacob Van Naarden, executive vice president and president of Lilly Oncology.
“This CHMP opinion represents a step toward an important global approval for Jaypirca in this indication and reflects our ambition to make Jaypirca available to every CLL patient who may benefit, at any line of therapy.
For new and old investors, taking full advantage of the stock market and investing with confidence are common goals. Zacks Premium provides lots of different ways to do both.
Featuring daily updates of the Zacks Rank and Zacks Industry Rank, full access to the Zacks #1 Rank List, Equity Research reports, and Premium stock screens, the research service can help you become a smarter, more self-assured investor.
Zacks Premium includes access to the Zacks Style Scores as well.
What are the Zacks Style Scores? The Zacks Style Scores is a unique set of guidelines that rates stocks based on three popular investing types, and were developed as complementary indicators for the Zacks Rank. This combination helps investors choose securities with the highest chances of beating the market over the next 30 days.
Each stock is given an alphabetic rating of A, B, C, D or F based on their value, growth, and momentum qualities. With this system, an A is better than a B, a B is better than a C, and so on, meaning the better the score, the better chance the stock will outperform.
The Style Scores are broken down into four categories:
Value ScoreFinding good stocks at good prices, and discovering which companies are trading under their true value, are what value investors like to focus on. So, the Value Style Score takes into account ratios like P/E, PEG, Price/Sales, Price/Cash Flow, and a host of other multiples to highlight the most attractive and discounted stocks.
Growth ScoreGrowth investors are more concerned with a stock's future prospects, and the overall financial health and strength of a company. Thus, the Growth Style Score analyzes characteristics like projected and historic earnings, sales, and cash flow to find stocks that will see sustainable growth over time.
Momentum ScoreMomentum trading is all about taking advantage of upward or downward trends in a stock's price or earnings outlook, and these investors live by the saying "the trend is your friend." The Momentum Style Score can pinpoint good times to build a position in a stock, using factors like one-week price change and the monthly percentage change in earnings estimates.
VGM ScoreWhat if you like to use all three types of investing? The VGM Score is a combination of all Style Scores, making it one of the most comprehensive indicators to use with the Zacks Rank. It rates each stock on their combined weighted styles, which helps narrow down the companies with the most attractive value, best growth forecast, and most promising momentum.
How Style Scores Work with the Zacks Rank The Zacks Rank is a proprietary stock-rating model that harnesses the power of earnings estimate revisions, or changes to a company's earnings expectations, to help investors build a successful portfolio.
Investors can count on the Zacks Rank's success, with #1 (Strong Buy) stocks producing an unmatched +24% average annual return since 1988, more than double the S&P 500's performance. But the model rates a large number of stocks, and there are over 200 companies with a Strong Buy rank, plus another 600 with a #2 (Buy) rank, on any given day.
With more than 800 top-rated stocks to choose from, it can certainly feel overwhelming to pick the ones that are right for you and your investing journey.
That's where the Style Scores come in.
To have the best chance of big returns, you'll want to always consider stocks with a Zacks Rank #1 or #2 that also have Style Scores of A or B, which will give you the highest probability of success. If you're looking at stocks with a #3 (Hold) rank, it's important they have Scores of A or B as well to ensure as much upside potential as possible.
As mentioned above, the Scores are designed to work with the Zacks Rank, so any change to a company's earnings outlook should be a deciding factor when picking which stocks to buy.
A stock with a #4 (Sell) or #5 (Strong Sell) rating, for instance, even one with Scores of A and B, will still have a declining earnings forecast, and a greater chance its share price will fall too.
Thus, the more stocks you own with a #1 or #2 Rank and Scores of A or B, the better.
Stock to Watch: Eli Lilly (LLY - Free Report) Indianapolis, IN-based Eli Lilly and Company, one of the world’s largest pharmaceutical companies, boasts a diversified product profile, including a solid lineup of new successful drugs. It also has a dependable pipeline in areas like obesity, diabetes and Alzheimer’s.
LLY is a #3 (Hold) on the Zacks Rank, with a VGM Score of B.
Momentum investors should take note of this Medical stock. LLY has a Momentum Style Score of B, and shares are up 0.1% over the past four weeks.
Nine analysts revised their earnings estimate higher in the last 60 days for fiscal 2026, while the Zacks Consensus Estimate has increased $1.80 to $35.67 per share. LLY also boasts an average earnings surprise of +14.5%.
With a solid Zacks Rank and top-tier Momentum and VGM Style Scores, LLY should be on investors' short list.
Eli Lilly and Co (NYSE:LLY) shares climbed nearly 6% on Friday after the European Medicines Agency's Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) recommended approval of Jaypirca (pirtobrutinib) for adults with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) across all lines of therapy.
The positive opinion covers patients regardless of prior treatment with Bruton tyrosine kinase (BTK) inhibitors and marks a step toward broader availability of the drug in the European Union. The recommendation will now be reviewed by the European Commission, which is expected to issue a final decision within one to two months.
The CHMP opinion was supported by data from the Phase 3 BRUIN CLL-313 and BRUIN CLL-314 studies. Lilly said BRUIN CLL-313 was the first Phase 3 trial to evaluate a non-covalent BTK inhibitor exclusively in previously untreated CLL patients, while BRUIN CLL-314 was the first Phase 3 study to compare non-covalent and covalent BTK inhibitors in the treatment-naïve setting.
Results from both studies were presented at the 2025 American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting and later published in The Journal of Clinical Oncology.
Jaypirca is already approved in certain markets for other blood cancer indications. Lilly has also submitted the CLL data to the US Food and Drug Administration, with a regulatory decision expected in the second half of 2026.
If approved by the European Commission, the expanded indication would allow Jaypirca to be used as a treatment option for CLL patients throughout the European Union regardless of disease stage or prior BTK inhibitor exposure.
"Based on the strong results from the BRUIN CLL-313 and CLL-314 studies, we believe Jaypirca has the potential to serve as a meaningful new option for newly diagnosed patients and those who have not yet received a BTK inhibitor," said Jacob Van Naarden, executive vice president and president of Lilly Oncology.
“This CHMP opinion represents a step toward an important global approval for Jaypirca in this indication and reflects our ambition to make Jaypirca available to every CLL patient who may benefit, at any line of therapy.
Whether it's through stocks, bonds, ETFs, or other types of securities, all investors love seeing their portfolios score big returns. But when you're an income investor, your primary focus is generating consistent cash flow from each of your liquid investments.
Cash flow can come from bond interest, interest from other types of investments, and, of course, dividends. A dividend is that coveted distribution of a company's earnings paid out to shareholders, and investors often view it by its dividend yield, a metric that measures the dividend as a percent of the current stock price. Many academic studies show that dividends make up large portions of long-term returns, and in many cases, dividend contributions surpass one-third of total returns.
Royal Bank (RY - Free Report) is headquartered in Toronto, and is in the Finance sector. The stock has seen a price change of 19.5% since the start of the year. The bank is currently shelling out a dividend of $1.18 per share, with a dividend yield of 2.32%. This compares to the Banks - Foreign industry's yield of 2.73% and the S&P 500's yield of 1.45%.
Looking at dividend growth, the company's current annualized dividend of $4.72 is up 9.9% from last year. Over the last 5 years, Royal Bank has increased its dividend 5 times on a year-over-year basis for an average annual increase of 5.79%. Looking ahead, future dividend growth will be dependent on earnings growth and payout ratio, which is the proportion of a company's annual earnings per share that it pays out as a dividend. Royal Bank's current payout ratio is 42%, meaning it paid out 42% of its trailing 12-month EPS as dividend.
Earnings growth looks solid for RY for this fiscal year. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2026 is $11.45 per share, representing a year-over-year earnings growth rate of 11.17%.
From greatly improving stock investing profits and reducing overall portfolio risk to providing tax advantages, investors like dividends for a variety of different reasons. However, not all companies offer a quarterly payout.
For instance, it's a rare occurrence when a tech start-up or big growth business offers its shareholders a dividend. It's more common to see larger companies with more established profits give out dividends. Income investors have to be mindful of the fact that high-yielding stocks tend to struggle during periods of rising interest rates. With that in mind, RY is a compelling investment opportunity. Not only is it a strong dividend play, but the stock currently sits at a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).
The ratio has now returned to levels last seen in early 2024, erasing almost two years of Nvidia’s relative outperformance versus the broader semiconductor sector. The move doesn’t necessarily mean Nvidia is struggling. Instead, it suggests the rest of the semiconductor industry is increasingly sharing in the AI boom.
Nvidia’s AI Monopoly Is WeakeningA falling NVDA/SOXX ratio means Nvidia is underperforming the broader semiconductor index on a relative basis. While the AI chipmaker remains one of the market’s biggest winners, investors have gradually begun rotating into other parts of the AI ecosystem.
That shift has become increasingly visible in recent weeks. The ratio spent nearly a year carving out a series of lower highs before accelerating lower over the past two months, suggesting investors have become increasingly comfortable rotating beyond Nvidia into the broader semiconductor ecosystem.
Rather than concentrating capital in a single AI leader, investors appear to be spreading bets across the broader semiconductor supply chain.
The AI Trade Has Moved Beyond NvidiaThe rotation reflects how AI infrastructure spending has evolved.
The first phase of the AI boom centered on graphics processors, with Nvidia emerging as the clear leader in accelerated computing. As hyperscalers continue investing hundreds of billions of dollars in AI infrastructure, however, demand is spreading to memory, networking, custom silicon, storage and other semiconductor technologies required to build next-generation data centers.
That broader participation has helped narrow Nvidia’s relative outperformance, even as spending on AI infrastructure continues to accelerate.
Why The Chart May Actually Be BullishAt first glance, Nvidia’s declining relative strength might appear bearish. Equally notable is what the volume isn’t showing. Weekly trading activity has remained relatively steady throughout the decline, suggesting the move reflects a gradual rotation rather than a panic-driven exodus from Nvidia.
Stable volume alongside a nearly 58% decline in the NVDA/SOXX ratio points to a measured rotation rather than wholesale selling—a sign that the AI trade may be maturing into a broader semiconductor bull market instead of fading.
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Key Takeaways Broadcom and OpenAI unveiled Jalapeno, a custom AI inference chip for large language models. Jalapeno is set for gigawatt-scale data centers starting in late 2026 to improve AI efficiency. AVGO expects AI semiconductor revenues to top $100B in 2027, backed by hyperscale demand. Broadcom (AVGO - Free Report) and OpenAI unveiled Jalapeño, the latter’s first custom AI inference processor, designed specifically for large language models (LLMs). Developed in just nine months, the chip is optimized for AI inference by balancing compute, memory and networking, with early tests indicating industry-leading performance per watt. Broadcom contributed silicon implementation, Tomahawk networking and system integration to enable large-scale production.
Jalapeño is the first in a multi-generation compute platform that will be deployed in gigawatt-scale data centers beginning in late 2026, supporting OpenAI’s broader strategy to build a full-stack AI infrastructure. The companies said the accelerator is designed to support current and future LLMs across the industry while lowering AI compute costs and improving efficiency. Broadcom expects the collaboration to extend over multiple generations and help power large AI clusters for OpenAI, Microsoft and other partners
The announcement reinforces Broadcom’s long-term AI growth outlook by validating its custom AI accelerator and networking strategy. On its second-quarter fiscal 2026 earnings call, management disclosed that silicon for OpenAI had already been delivered and remained on track for production in late 2026, with a contractual commitment to deploy 1.3 gigawatts of compute in 2027 as part of a broader 10-gigawatt agreement through 2029.
Broadcom also reiterated expectations for AI semiconductor revenues to exceed $100 billion in 2027, supported by sustained demand from OpenAI and other hyperscale customers. The Jalapeño launch provides tangible evidence that Broadcom’s custom silicon roadmap is progressing as planned and strengthens revenue visibility across multiple years.
AVGO Faces Tough Competition in the Semiconductor MarketBroadcom is facing stiff competition from NVIDIA (NVDA - Free Report) and Advanced Micro Devices (AMD - Free Report) in the semiconductor space.
NVIDIA is at the center of AI computing, with its products widely used across data centers, gaming and autonomous vehicles. The company’s newer Hopper 200 and Blackwell GPU platforms are being adopted quickly as customers work to grow their AI infrastructure. Data Center revenues reached $75.2 billion in the first quarter of fiscal 2027, up 92% from a year ago and up 21% sequentially, driven by the ramp-up of Blackwell 300 products and demand for InfiniBand, Spectrum-X Ethernet and NVLink solutions.
AMD’s prospects are benefiting from strong demand for EPYC processors that power cloud and enterprise workloads. AMD believes EPYC’s expanding portfolio — including the upcoming sixth-generation Venice family and AI-optimized Verano processors — positions AMD to capture substantial market share gains as hyperscalers deploy broader AI compute architectures. Management indicated that server CPU revenues are expected to grow more than 70% year over year in the second quarter, with strong growth continuing into 2027 as new EPYC products ramp.
AVGO’s Share Price Performance, Valuation & EstimatesBroadcom shares have appreciated 9.5% year to date, underperforming the broader Zacks Computer and Technology sector’s return of 14.2%.
AVGO Stock Lags Sector
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The AVGO stock is trading at a premium, with a forward 12-month price/sales of 12.44X compared with the broader sector’s 6.41X. Broadcom has a Value Score of D.
AVGO Stock Has a Stretched Valuation
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for AVGO’s fiscal 2026 earnings is pegged at $11.73 per share, up 2.8% over the past 60 days, suggesting 72% growth from the figure reported in fiscal 2025.
Broadcom currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Broadcom (AVGO) had a "great" earnings while other chipmakers like Nvidia (NVDA) posted "phenomenal" reports, a reason Gil Luria believes shares of the company have not outperformed as well. He considers Broadcom a company running on all cylinders on expectations it will ramp up its partnership with Alphabet (GOOGL).
