"Magnificent Seven" stocks like Microsoft and Amazon may still trade at or near all-time highs, but you may want to diversify your megacap positions. The "Mag Seven" may have surged thanks to the artificial intelligence (AI) boom, but their future success hinges heavily on AI spending.
There's nothing wrong with being bullish on the AI megatrend, but consider spreading your wagers elsewhere, to other high-growth opportunities. Take, for instance, another trend that isn't slowing down: the digitalization of payments. With this trend, one stock in particular fits the bill: Mastercard (NYSE: MA).
Missed Nvidia in 2009? This Rare Signal Is Flashing Again. In 2009, a "Double Down" signal flashed for a little-known chipmaker called Nvidia. For the first time in years, that same "Total Conviction" signal is flashing for a company 1/100th the size of Nvidia. Continue »
Mastercard may be synonymous with credit cards, but neither Mastercard nor its competitor Visa (NYSE: V) issues payment cards. Banks issue the cards but use the companies' respective payment networks to operate them.
In other words, payment stocks like Mastercard don't carry consumer credit risk like bank stocks. Think of Mastercard and similar names as the midstream names among financial stocks: middlemen that collect a small fee on every card swipe or digital payment transaction processed through their networks.

#stocks #like #seven

Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO) is one of the best-known companies in the world, thanks to its namesake beverage brand, so it needs little introduction. However, what's most impressive right now is the stock's performance. It is up 28% over the past year, as of this writing. The average consumer staples stock is only up 5% over that span. Even the S&P 500 index (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC) is "only" up 20%. After a run like that, is Coca-Cola a buy, hold, or sell?
Coca-Cola is a well-run business. It is one of the world's largest consumer staples companies. It is globally diversified and has industry-leading capabilities in distribution, marketing, and innovation. The company's fundamental strength is evident in its status as a Dividend King, with 64 consecutive annual dividend increases. The only consumer staples peer with a better record is Procter & Gamble (NYSE: PG), but P&G doesn't make food. So, Coca-Cola is the food company with the best dividend record.
Missed Nvidia in 2009? This Rare Signal Is Flashing Again. In 2009, a "Double Down" signal flashed for a little-known chipmaker called Nvidia. For the first time in years, that same "Total Conviction" signal is flashing for a company 1/100th the size of Nvidia. Continue »
If you want to own industry-leading businesses, Coca-Cola should be on your short list. And, with an above-market yield of 2.4%, you could easily justify adding it to your portfolio. That's particularly true given recent results, with organic revenue growth of 6% in the second quarter of 2026, even as consumers tighten their belts. In fact, Coca-Cola raised its full-year guidance despite the broader food industry's struggles.
Certainly, if you have owned Coca-Cola for years, selling it right when it is performing so well as a business probably isn't something you should be considering. Unless, of course, the stock's valuation was running ahead of its historical norms. But that's not the case.

#staples

Nvidia (NVDA) CFO Colette Kress told investors last week that the company is seeing "extreme pricing conditions in memory," that the increases have "exceeded our prior expectations," and that they are "headed even higher into next year." Colette Kress said this in prepared remarks on Nvidia's fiscal second-quarter earnings call on Aug. 26, and then delivered the line companies almost never say plainly: "As a result, we are resetting expectations today."
Memory is not an exotic part. It is the DRAM in a phone, the RAM in a laptop, the storage in a game console, and one of the most expensive ingredients in a graphics card… and three companies make nearly all of it. Kress was describing the market for AI server memory, not the shelf price of a laptop, and Nvidia said nothing at all about consumer devices. But those products draw on the same suppliers and the same fabs, which is why a chip company's margin guidance is worth reading even if you never buy a chip.
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#colette #expectations #Companies #never

Dollar Tree, Inc. (NASDAQ:DLTR) and Dollar General Corporation (NYSE:DG) both reported quarterly results above sales expectations as lower-priced essentials continued to drive consumers to their stores amid economic uncertainty. Both retailers also benefited from tariff refunds, which helped support their higher full-year profit targets.
Dollar General Corporation (NYSE:DG) saw a 3.5% year-over-year increase in quarterly same-store sales, supported by growth across categories like seasonal, home products, and apparel. The company lifted its fiscal 2026 same-store sales growth forecast from its earlier range of 2.2% to 2.7% to 2.5% to 2.9%.
Dollar General Corporation (NYSE:DG) now expects fiscal 2026 earnings per share of about $7.80 to $8.00. This includes a benefit of about 25 cents from tariff refunds after related reinvestments. Dollar Tree, Inc. (NASDAQ:DLTR) also raised its full-year earnings forecast to $7.70 to $8.05 per share, which includes a benefit of about 60 cents from tariff refunds.
Bull Case
It is not difficult to argue that the latest results point to improving momentum at both discount retailers. Dollar General Corporation (NYSE:DG) delivered its seventh consecutive earnings beat, with earnings per share coming in 11% above ******* ysts' expectations. Even after excluding the 25-cent net benefit from tariff refunds, the company's earnings were up approximately 20% year-over-year.

#dollar #year #refunds #sales

On August 25, EPAM Systems (NYSE:EPAM) announced a partnership with Wiz, the cloud and AI security platform now owned by Google Cloud, joining the Wiz Partner Alliance to help large organizations turn cloud risk data into actual engineering fixes. The timing is notable. Just weeks earlier, on August 6, EPAM reported second-quarter revenue growth of only 4.5% and pointed to a much slower pace ahead. A cybersecurity push gives the company a fresh growth story just as its core business decelerates.
The Wiz deal pairs Wiz's AI Application Protection Platform with EPAM's AI-native engineering and cloud modernization work, aiming to move clients from simply spotting cloud risks to actually remediating them across Google Cloud, AWS, Azure, and other environments. White Hat, an EPAM company, adds an offensive security layer of defensive, offensive, and incident response specialists to test whether flaws found by Wiz are actually exploitable, rather than just theoretical. EPAM says this formalizes work already underway, having delivered Wiz implementation programs across six industries: media and entertainment, transportation and logistics, life sciences and healthcare, financial services, automotive, and retail and consumer goods. That existing footprint gives the partnership a running start rather than a cold launch.
The financial backdrop supports the case that EPAM has room to invest here. Second quarter GAAP income from operations rose to 10.8% of revenue from 9.3% a year earlier, while non-GAAP operating margin climbed to 16.4% from 15%. GAAP diluted EPS reached $1.97, up 26.3% year over year, and non-GAAP diluted EPS hit $3.38, up 22%. The company also returned $409 million to shareholders through buybacks in the first half of 2026, including $85 million in the second quarter alone.
The numbers behind the Wiz announcement tell a more cautious story. EPAM's full-year revenue growth guidance now sits at 3.2% to 4.2%, with organic constant currency growth pegged at just 2.0% to 3.0%. The third quarter outlook is softer still: revenue of $1.410 billion to $1.425 billion implies year-over-year growth of roughly 1.7% at the midpoint, a sharp step down from the 4.5% posted in the second quarter.
Cash flow moved in the wrong direction too. EPAM used $38.8 million in operating activities during the first half of 2026, compared with $77.4 million generated over the same period in 2025. Total cash, equivalents and restricted cash fell 39% to $794.3 million as of June 30, from $1.301 billion at the end of 2025, a decline driven in part by continued share repurchases. Headcount growth was modest as well, with delivery professionals up just 0.3% from the prior quarter, suggesting a company being deliberate rather than aggressive about scaling capacity even as it adds new service lines like Wiz implementation.

#epam #cloud #year #company

Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO) has long been one of the most closely watched consumer stocks. Coca-Cola's flagship beverage anchors the stock, and its success is arguably the biggest factor in supporting the 64 consecutive years of dividend increases.
Moreover, under Warren Buffett's leadership at the time, Berkshire Hathaway has owned the stock for decades, holding 9.3% of Coca-Cola's outstanding shares.
Missed Nvidia in 2009? This Rare Signal Is Flashing Again. In 2009, a "Double Down" signal flashed for a little-known chipmaker called Nvidia. For the first time in years, that same "Total Conviction" signal is flashing for a company 1/100th the size of Nvidia. Continue »
Nonetheless, investors should think twice about paying $88 per share for it. For one, that takes its P/E ratio to 27, well above archrival PepsiCo at an 18 earnings multiple.
Additionally, PepsiCo's dividend yields almost 4.2%, well above the near 2.4% cash return investors now earn from Coca-Cola. Still, both stocks retain Dividend King status by virtue of more than half a century of annual payout hikes. Also, Coca-Cola investors should also not ignore the dividend, as it is typically the primary source of returns.

#signal

On August 6, Installed Building Products (NYSE:IBP) reported second-quarter results that told two different stories at once. Net revenue hit a second-quarter record of $777.8 million, yet profit and margins moved the other way, and the board still found room to raise the dividend for the fifth straight year.
The headline number was $777.8 million in net revenue, up 2.3% from $760.3 million a year earlier. That growth came almost entirely from outside the core insulation installation business. Other revenue, which covers IBP's manufacturing and distribution operations, jumped 50.4% to $67.1 million, while commercial work inside the Installation segment posted same-branch sales growth of 10.4%. Acquisitions did heavy lifting too. The company closed Diamond Energy Systems in May, then Harkraft and Builders Hardware of South Carolina in July, adding roughly $30 million in combined annual revenue. Year to date, IBP has acquired about $59 million in revenue and still expects to reach at least $100 million for all of 2026.
The balance sheet backed that ambition, with $394.5 million in cash on hand at quarter-end. Management also kept returning cash to shareholders, repurchasing about 365,000 shares for $76.2 million in the quarter, with $398 million still available under the buyback authorization through March 2027. The board topped it off by declaring a third-quarter dividend of $0.39 per share, payable September 30 to holders of record on September 15, more than a 5% increase over last year's third-quarter payout.
The strength was uneven. Residential same-branch installation sales fell 6.1% for the quarter, and job volume excluding heavy commercial work dropped 5.2%, evidence that the housing slowdown is landing directly on IBP's biggest business line. That mix shift showed up in the bottom line. Net income fell to $64.9 million, or $2.43 per diluted share, from $69.0 million and $2.52 a year ago. Adjusted EBITDA slid 2.3% to $130.9 million, with the margin compressing to 16.9% from 17.6%.
Gross profit margin also narrowed to 33.3% from 34.2%, and the company pointed to a specific cause: the faster-growing Other segment carries a 24.7% gross margin, well below the 36.5% margin in core Installation work, so revenue mix worked against profitability even as total sales climbed. Higher fuel costs added further pressure on gross margin, while administrative expense crept up as a percentage of revenue, driven by higher medical insurance costs. CEO Jeff Edwards acknowledged the backdrop directly, saying the company expects affordability and consumer confidence to keep weighing on the residential market.

#million #installation #year #sales

Americans have become value-driven when it comes to what goes into their shopping carts at grocery chains.
"Consumers aren't necessarily buying less. They're becoming more strategic. With 75% indicating that they're stressed about grocery bills (up from 73% last year), it makes sense that shoppers are looking for ways to maximize value from every trip," according to Algolia's The state of grocery shopping: inflation.
The survey showed that many consumers, but not a majority, have been willing to trade down.
Forty-two percent (42%) have switched to private labels to save money (up from 40% last year).
Thirty-six percent (36%) have traded their favorite brands for cheaper alternatives.

#grocery #consumers #value #year

Dollar Tree, Inc. (NASDAQ:DLTR) and Dollar General Corporation (NYSE:DG) both reported quarterly results above sales expectations as lower-priced essentials continued to drive consumers to their stores amid economic uncertainty. Both retailers also benefited from tariff refunds, which helped support their higher full-year profit targets.
Dollar General Corporation (NYSE:DG) saw a 3.5% year-over-year increase in quarterly same-store sales, supported by growth across categories like seasonal, home products, and apparel. The company lifted its fiscal 2026 same-store sales growth forecast from its earlier range of 2.2% to 2.7% to 2.5% to 2.9%.
Dollar General Corporation (NYSE:DG) now expects fiscal 2026 earnings per share of about $7.80 to $8.00. This includes a benefit of about 25 cents from tariff refunds after related reinvestments. Dollar Tree, Inc. (NASDAQ:DLTR) also raised its full-year earnings forecast to $7.70 to $8.05 per share, which includes a benefit of about 60 cents from tariff refunds.
Bull Case
It is not difficult to argue that the latest results point to improving momentum at both discount retailers. Dollar General Corporation (NYSE:DG) delivered its seventh consecutive earnings beat, with earnings per share coming in 11% above **** ysts' expectations. Even after excluding the 25-cent net benefit from tariff refunds, the company's earnings were up approximately 20% year-over-year.

#general #refunds

On August 6, Frontdoor (NASDAQ:FTDR) reported second-quarter results that outpaced its own recent history. Revenue rose 5% to $645 million, but profit grew faster: net income jumped 13% to $125 million, and earnings per share climbed 19% to $1.76. Adjusted EBITDA rose 10% to $220 million. Management liked what it saw enough to raise full-year revenue and Adjusted EBITDA guidance, a signal it expects the momentum to carry through the rest of 2026 rather than fade as a one-quarter ******* p.
Frontdoor's growth mix should please shareholders. About three percentage points of the 5% revenue increase came from higher realized price through its dynamic pricing model, with roughly one point from volume. That pricing lever flowed straight through to margins, as gross profit margin rose to 59% for the quarter. The renewal channel, the largest and stickiest part of the business, grew revenue 4% to $479 million, while total home warranty membership climbed 1% to 2.11 million.
The company's own earnings bridge shows why profit outran revenue: contract claims costs fell $7 million year over year, helped by $5 million in favorable weather, even after absorbing low-single-digit cost inflation across its contractor network and replacement parts. Frontdoor also leaned harder into buybacks, repurchasing $181 million of stock through July, up more than 21% from the same stretch a year earlier. For 2026, management now guides to revenue of $2.19 billion to $2.21 billion and Adjusted EBITDA of $585 million to $600 million, both raised, with first-year home warranty membership expected to grow roughly 5% for the full year.
The same release shows cracks alongside the strength. Direct-to-consumer revenue fell 2% to $55 million, as Frontdoor leaned on promotional pricing to win new members, a trade-off between growth and realized price that shows up directly in that line. Cash generation cooled too: operating cash flow for the first six months of 2026 came in at $245 million, down from $251 million a year earlier, and the period's total cash increase slowed to $62 million from $141 million, partly because investing activities swung to a $14 million outflow from a $42 million inflow the year before.
Financing activities used $169 million, more than the $153 million spent in the same period last year, largely reflecting the faster buyback pace plus $14 million in scheduled debt payments. For the full year, Frontdoor is guiding gross profit margin down to roughly 55%, well below the 59% posted this quarter, and it still expects direct-to-consumer revenue to decline at a low-single-digit rate. SG&A is projected at $685 million to $695 million, with low-single-digit cost inflation across contractors, parts, and equipment that could bite harder if weather turns less favorable than it was this quarter.

#revenue #adjusted #cash

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As consumers spend more on goods and services through subscriptions, retail and entertainment categories are attracting a lot of their payments. Those two categories comprised roughly 43% of consumers' overall subscription spending in the past 12 months ending in July, a greater share than 41% in 2025 and 2024, according to a new Bank of America report. Food, fitness and fashion was the next highest category (26%) among the non-utility spending.
The growth in subscription spending by U.S. consumers at 7.7% outpaced the expansion of total card spending for the second consecutive year, also for the 12-month period through July, according to the report issued Wednesday, which is based on the bank's transaction data.
While subscription spending among Gen Xers and Baby Boomers grew modestly during that 12-month period at 3% and 5%, respectively, Gen Z subscription spending surged by about 14%, surpassing that of younger Millennials (about 10%) and older Millennials (nearly 8%), per the report.
While subscription spending on reading and information was the smallest category of spending (7%), per the bank's report, those payments grew the most year-over-year, especially among the Gen Z group.

#spending #daily

Williams has closed its approximately $5.5 billion acquisition of Momentum Midstream, giving the U.S. pipeline operator a substantially larger position in the Haynesville natural gas basin as Gulf Coast LNG and power demand continue to rise.
The transaction consists of approximately $3.5 billion in cash and debt consideration and around $2 billion in Williams equity.
Momentum brings more than 4,000 miles of pipeline, over 1 million dedicated acres and 6 billion cubic feet per day of gas gathering capacity. The ******* ets also include processing and treating facilities and three pipelines backed by take-or-pay contracts with a combined 4.05 Bcf/d of transportation capacity.
Williams initially announced the acquisition on August 3, valuing the transaction at up to $5.5 billion. At the time, the company said the deal carried an implied valuation of approximately 8.5 times projected 2027 EBITDA and was expected to increase both earnings per share and available funds from operations per share. Williams also raised the midpoint of its 2026 adjusted EBITDA guidance by $200 million to $8.4 billion to reflect the transaction.
The acquisition gives Williams a larger role in moving Haynesville gas toward some of the fastest-growing sources of U.S. gas demand, particularly LNG export facilities and industrial consumers along the Gulf Coast.

#williams #billion #transaction

Big Tech is betting trillions of dollars on artificial intelligence, with a lot of that to be spent on building the data centers that would power large language models. Stock markets are reflecting this in Big Tech stocks, but that's not the only industry riding the artificial intelligence wave. Because that wave runs on electricity and the equipment that brings it from generator to consumer.
There have been reports about a chip shortage caused by the AI rush, and higher compute prices overall resulting from AI-related demand growth in electronics. But a more serious shortage is unfolding in power equipment, as the companies pledging hundreds of billions in AI investments want everything ready yesterday if possible. Alas, it is not.
Transformers, a vital component of the grid, have been in increasingly short supply for at least two years. The shortage has been driven by the fast growth in electricity demand, mostly coming from the tech sector, and the inability to respond to that growth with equally fast grid expansion.
Related: Europe's Low Gas Stocks Set Stage for Winter LNG Battle
Transformers are used to convert the high-voltage electricity that runs from power plants to substations along transmission lines to a lower-voltage electric current that can be used by end consumers, including data centers. According to Wood Mackenzie, the shortfall in transformers this year is 15%. Yet there is also a shortage of substations, highlighting the essential nature of power equipment. Per Wood Mackenzie estimates, the substation deficit is 8%. This situation will be aggravated further by a recent executive order by President Trump that banned imports of bulk power equipment from China.

#Growth #wood #stocks

OTTAWA, Sept 3 (Reuters) - Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said on Thursday his government was ready to sign a trade deal ‌with the U.S. that benefits both countries, adding any agreement would ‌need to have stability and credibility.
"The deal that's possible, that's in the interests of Canadian workers, families and businesses, is also the deal that is in the interests of American families, American businesses, American consumers, and ... we're ready to sit down and strike that deal when the Americans are ready," Carney told reporters ‌in Thunder Bay, Ontario.
Carney ⁠dismissed recent comments by U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent that Canada walked away from a ⁠trade deal because of domestic politics, saying in response to a question, "I don't think, with all respect, appointed, unelected cabinet members in the United States are experts on Canadian politics."
Carney suggested there had been a recent softening in the ‌U.S. approach to any trade deal that could spur further discussions.
"There were a few issues that the United States was arguing right up to the last hour," he said, describing it as an "our way or the highway" attitude before talks broke down last month. "Now, they're not," he said. "So all of ‌a sudden, they don't care about Canadian language or culture and those elements. Well, if they didn't care, they shouldn't have kept them in the deal," Carney said. "It's good. ‌We welcome that."

#carney #canadian #ready #interests

Updated Sept 03, 2026, 2:56 pm EDT / Original Sept 03, 2026, 8:58 am EDT
Food stocks are in a bit of trouble. As shoppers grapple with elevated inflation, the cautious consumer backdrop has sparked investor concerns over the outlook for some industry giants.
Copyright ©2026 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8
Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin Warsh raised the markets’ expectations for a September rate hike. Not so fast, three Fed officials suggested this week.

#rights

Duolingo shares rose about 7% on September 1 after Evercore ISI upgraded the stock from In Line to Outperform and doubled its price target from $105 to $210. From the prior closing level, the new objective implied roughly 42% upside. The **** yst's central argument was that competitive fears around general-purpose products such as ChatGPT had become exaggerated. Duolingo, Inc. (NASDAQ:DUOL) still owns a habit-forming consumer product, a global brand, and a large base of learners who want structure rather than an open-ended chatbot.
Andrey_Popov/Shutterstock.com
That distinction matters. A language model can explain grammar, simulate conversation, and create personalized exercises, but it does not automatically reproduce Duolingo's streaks, curriculum, social reinforcement, or mobile distribution. Duolingo can also use the same models to create content faster and improve speaking practice. Evercore raised its 2027 and 2028 earnings estimates, suggesting that AI may support engagement and operating leverage instead of simply eroding the moat.
The bear case is not imaginary. Chatbots are improving quickly, and voice interaction makes free-form tutoring more natural. Consumers can divide their time among many inexpensive applications, while Duolingo must keep spending on product development and marketing to remain distinctive. A doubled price target following a major decline may signal that expectations became too low, but it does not prove that competitive pressure has peaked. Valuation can still compress if user growth or bookings slow.
Hedge funds leaned modestly more bullish in Q2. Insider Monkey counted 39 funds holding Duolingo, Inc. (NASDAQ:DUOL), up from 37 in Q1. AQR Capital Management increased its stake more than twentyfold to 2,332,543 shares, one of the quarter's clearest institutional changes. The filing cannot show whether that was a long-term conviction bet, a quantitative signal, or a hedge.

#NASDAQ #duol #hedge #price

U.S. stocks climbed Thursday as investors grew hopeful the Federal Reserve would leave interest rates unchanged at its next meeting, following remarks from Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller. The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 635 points, or 1.2%, according to CNBC, which noted the move would mark the index's strongest single-session performance since Aug. 4. The S&P 500 added 1% and the Nasdaq Composite climbed 1.3%.
The rally came after Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller said he would be inclined to support holding interest rates steady, so long as upcoming inflation data did not produce surprises. The 10-year Treasury yield fell to around 4.75% after his remarks, pulling back from its highest level since November 2023, which it had reached the day before.
The share of fed funds futures traders pricing in a rate hike at the central bank's meeting in a couple of weeks fell to 50.4% after Waller's statement, down from 63.2% a day earlier, according to CNBC, citing the CME FedWatch tool.
A rise in the ***** anese yen also contributed to the drop in Treasury yields. The yen was trading 2% stronger against the dollar at 155.36, capping a two-day run of nearly 3% that was set off by hawkish signals from a Bank of ***** an board member, according to The Wall Street Journal.
The broad S&P 500 rally included all but two of its sectors, with consumer stocks leading gains. Snowflake stock surged more than 20% after the company topped second-quarter earnings and revenue estimates and offered an upbeat outlook. Broadcom stock fell 4% after the company paired its latest quarterly results with a fiscal fourth-quarter revenue forecast that fell short of what ***** ysts had anticipated.

#waller

Our ******* ysts just identified a stock with the potential to be the next Nvidia. Tell us how you invest and we'll show you why it's our #1 pick. Tap here.
Zegna brand performance is driven by 'high-quality growth,' capturing market share through a unique position in China and strength in core categories like knitwear and shoes.
The group is aggressively shifting toward a Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) model, with DTC now representing 86% of branded revenues, which supports higher gross margins despite currency headwinds.
Thom Browne is undergoing a structural transformation from a wholesale-driven model to a retail-oriented culture, involving a significant reduction and upgrade of the wholesale network.
TOM FORD Fashion is seeing improved fixed-cost absorption through revenue growth and disciplined cost management as it builds brand awareness.

#driven #model #NVIDIA #zegna

As of 11:46 AM ET, the Nasdaq Composite (NASDAQINDEX:^IXIC) is up 1.35% to 26,572 as tech shares recover from earlier pressure. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDICES:^DJI) has climbed 1.20% to 53,699, and the S&P 500 (SNPINDEX:^GSPC) is trading 1.01% higher to 7,744 as traders eye falling Treasury yields.
Gold is up 2.34% to $4,489.99, and the 10-Year Treasury yield fell 5 basis points to 4.75%. Industrials lead sector gainers, with financial services and consumer cyclical stocks also seeing significant intraday strength as investors rotate into growth-oriented names.
Broadcom shares dropped, despite beating ******* yst expectations in yesterday's earnings. Snowflake's Q2 results were a different story: The stock soared over 20% this morning after a blowout quarter. Robinhood Markets gained following ******* yst upgrades. Nvidia gained on news that it will acquire artificial intelligence (AI) platform Hugging Face.
Major U.S. indexes gained this morning as markets reassessed the probability of a September rate hike. Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller said he'd lean toward holding rates steady unless there are any major inflation surprises. His stance, which seemed to contrast with Chairman Kevin Warsh's emphasis on reducing stubborn inflation, reduced some of the pressure on U.S. Treasuries.
Investors will be watching tomorrow's labor market report and further inflation data due next week closely, as both will impact the Fed committee's decision when they meet on Sept. 15 and 16. Interest rate decisions can cause short-term headwinds for the stock market, and volatility is likely to increase in the second half of this year. However, unchecked inflation can erode long-term value and do more damage to your portfolio than higher rates.

#major

Our ****** ysts just identified a stock with the potential to be the next Nvidia. Tell us how you invest and we'll show you why it's our #1 pick. Tap here.
Management is prioritizing a return to core fundamentals in the Snacks division, specifically targeting households with kids for Goldfish and launching national brand campaigns for Pepperidge Farm.
The Meals and Beverage segment is leaning into 'semi-scratch' cooking trends, which represent 50% of at-home cooking occasions, by focusing on convenience with 5-ingredient-or-less recipes.
Performance attribution highlights a divergence in the soup portfolio, where cooking-related products (broth and condensed) are performing well while 'eating' soups require further innovation to meet consumer value needs.
The company is implementing a new $500 million enterprise cost-savings program through fiscal 2030, focusing on procurement efficiencies and supply chain network optimization.

#focusing

WestEnd Capital Management, an investment advisor, released its Q2 2026 investor letter. The letter can be downloaded here. WestEnd Capital Management's Core Strategy achieved a 16.3% net return in the quarter, surpassing the S&P 500's 15.0%. This performance stemmed from strong earnings generators and upward earnings revisions, showcasing U.S. companies' efficiency in converting sales into profits. S&P 500 net profit margins reached a decade-high of 14.8% in Q1 and are expected to remain above 14% in Q2 despite challenges like higher interest rates and geopolitical uncertainty. Technology remains a key focus in WestEnd's portfolio, along with investments in infrastructure, demographic shifts, financial innovation, and selective consumer opportunities. Also, check the fund's top five holdings to see its best picks in 2026.
In its second-quarter 2026 investor letter, WestEnd Capital Management highlighted WaterBridge Infrastructure LLC (NYSE:WBI). WaterBridge Infrastructure LLC (NYSE:WBI) is a pure-play water infrastructure company. On September 2, 2026, WaterBridge Infrastructure LLC (NYSE:WBI) closed at $32.26 per share. Over the past month, WaterBridge Infrastructure LLC (NYSE:WBI) declined 1.31%, while YTD its shares are up 61.37%. WaterBridge Infrastructure LLC (NYSE:WBI) has a market capitalization of $3.98 billion.
WestEnd Capital Management stated the following regarding WaterBridge Infrastructure LLC (NYSE:WBI) in its Q2 2026 investor letter:
"WaterBridge Infrastructure LLC (NYSE:WBI) owns and operates the largest independent produced-water infrastructure network in the Delaware Basin, providing services that are essential to energy production throughout one of North America's most productive oil basins.
The scale and density of this network would be extremely difficult and expensive to replicate. WaterBridge also generates most of its revenue through long-term contracts that include minimum-volume commitments and inflation-linked pricing.

#waterbridge #investor #quarter #earnings

WestEnd Capital Management, an investment advisor, released its Q2 2026 investor letter. The letter can be downloaded here. WestEnd Capital Management's Core Strategy achieved a 16.3% net return in the quarter, surpassing the S&P 500's 15.0%. This performance stemmed from strong earnings generators and upward earnings revisions, showcasing U.S. companies' efficiency in converting sales into profits. S&P 500 net profit margins reached a decade-high of 14.8% in Q1 and are expected to remain above 14% in Q2 despite challenges like higher interest rates and geopolitical uncertainty. Technology remains a key focus in WestEnd's portfolio, along with investments in infrastructure, demographic shifts, financial innovation, and selective consumer opportunities. Also, check the fund's top five holdings to see its best picks in 2026.
In its second-quarter 2026 investor letter, WestEnd Capital Management highlighted Janus Living, Inc. (NYSE:JAN). Janus Living, Inc. (NYSE:JAN) is the only U.S. publicly traded REIT focused exclusively on the senior housing sector and the only U.S. publicly traded REIT. On September 2, 2026, Janus Living, Inc. (NYSE:JAN) closed at $30.70 per share. Over the past month, Janus Living, Inc. (NYSE:JAN) returned 5.51%, and its shares are up 27.08% over the three months. Janus Living, Inc. (NYSE:JAN) has a market capitalization of $9.45 billion.
WestEnd Capital Management stated the following regarding Janus Living, Inc. (NYSE:JAN) in its Q2 2026 investor letter:
"Janus Living, Inc. (NYSE:JAN) is one of the nation's largest pure-play owners and operators of senior housing communities. Unlike traditional triple-net REITs that collect fixed lease payments, Janus generates operating income directly from resident rents and service fees. That means the company captures the full operational upside as occupancy and rental rates increase, while also ******* uming the operational risks of running its communities. Because residents pay privately rather than through Medicare or Medicaid reimbursement programs, the business is largely insulated from changes in government reimbursement policy.
The industry's long-term fundamentals remain compelling:

#westend

WestEnd Capital Management, an investment advisor, released its Q2 2026 investor letter. The letter can be downloaded here. WestEnd Capital Management's Core Strategy achieved a 16.3% net return in the quarter, surpassing the S&P 500's 15.0%. This performance stemmed from strong earnings generators and upward earnings revisions, showcasing U.S. companies' efficiency in converting sales into profits. S&P 500 net profit margins reached a decade-high of 14.8% in Q1 and are expected to remain above 14% in Q2 despite challenges like higher interest rates and geopolitical uncertainty. Technology remains a key focus in WestEnd's portfolio, along with investments in infrastructure, demographic shifts, financial innovation, and selective consumer opportunities. Also, check the fund's top five holdings to see its best picks in 2026.
In its second-quarter 2026 investor letter, WestEnd Capital Management highlighted Robinhood Markets, Inc. (NASDAQ:HOOD). Robinhood Markets, Inc. (NASDAQ:HOOD) is a US-based financial services company that provides a trading platform for stocks, exchange-traded funds, American depository receipts, options, gold, and cryptocurrencies. On September 02, 2026, Robinhood Markets, Inc. closed at $106.99 per share. Robinhood Markets, Inc. returned 34.83% over the past month, and its shares have gained 18.84% over the past 52 weeks. Robinhood Markets, Inc. has a market capitalization of $96.19 billion.
WestEnd Capital Management stated the following regarding Robinhood Markets, Inc. (NASDAQ:HOOD) in its Q2 2026 investor letter:
Robinhood Markets, Inc. (NASDAQ:HOOD) has evolved well beyond the online brokerage platform many investors still ****** ociate with its early years. The company is building a broader financial services ecosystem that includes brokerage and retirement accounts, cash management, securities lending, advisory services, credit products, prediction markets, and international operations.
But its primary advantage is the strength of its customer relationship. Robinhood has built a large, highly engaged user base and can introduce new products through a single digital platform with relatively low incremental distribution costs. As customers consolidate more of their financial activity with the company, Robinhood can generate higher revenue per account and develop recurring revenue streams that extend beyond transaction-based trading..." (Click here to read the full text)

#robinhood #hood #financial

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The median price of a sold home in July 2026 was over $434,100 — more than 10 times higher than housing prices 50 years ago. Inflation is one reason, but building costs have risen faster than the consumer price index because labor and material costs have increased. A shortage of homes for sale and increasing affordability issues are also to blame. Here's what hopeful homebuyers need to know about today's elevated home prices.
Read more: The best low- and no-down-payment mortgage lenders
This table shows the median prices of existing home sales over the past year.
July 2025

#price #offers

From identifying major life changes like a shopper's marriage or a recent pay ******* p, artificial intelligence is enabling marketers to learn more about consumers in a way that is almost too intimate.
A new report from Coresight Research offers a glimpse into how extensive data gathering has become for brands and retailers, and how the latest advancements in AI can further expand insights.
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What If Behind Every Successful Fortune 500 Executive Is An AI 'Super Agent'?
Better Cotton, Avalo Bring AI-Assisted Breeding to Texas Farms

#every #fortune #agent

ADP's 92% client retention and $11.04 EPS covering a $6.64 dividend powers growth, while Aflac CEO Dan Amos confirmed 43 straight years of dividend increases.
Chevron leads the trio with a 3.49% yield, $15.4 billion in free cash flow, and a 20-year Microsoft power deal delivering returns independent of oil prices.
Owning all three Aristocrats together delivers genuine sector diversification across payroll fees, insurance capital, and integrated energy inside a single income strategy.
Just released. Our ******* ysts combed the entire stock market and named the ten best stocks to buy right now. The report is free. Enter your email and see if any of your stocks made the cut.
Dividend Aristocrats get lumped together as if they are one defensive blob of consumer staples names, but the label actually spans wildly different business models. The three companies below sit in payroll processing, supplemental insurance and integrated energy, and each has stacked annual dividend increases well past the 25-year bar the headline demands.

#Dividend

Microsoft announced a new financial reporting structure on Wednesday, collapsing its three operating segments into two as artificial intelligence reshapes how the company organizes its business. The change takes effect in fiscal year 2027.
The two new segments are Agents and Infra, and Devices and Consumer. Those three categories — Productivity and Business Processes, Intelligent Cloud, and More Personal Computing — dated to 2015, according to CNBC.
Agents and Infra will include Azure cloud infrastructure, Microsoft 365, GitHub, productivity and server licensing, industry solutions, and frontier and support services. Devices and Consumer will cover search and advertising, Xbox, Windows operating system licenses, and device sales. The restructuring brings Microsoft's advertising businesses together under one segment, the company said.
"There's no question AI represents a profound shift in both technology and business," Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Satya Nadella wrote in the presentation. "It is changing what we build and how we operate, and it is blurring the boundaries between our products and reshaping our business models."
As part of the changes, Microsoft will begin reporting quarterly Azure revenue figures — a disclosure it has not previously made. Under the new, narrower definition of Azure, which excludes GitHub cloud services, developer cloud services, the Security Copilot **** istant, and healthcare and life sciences cloud products, Azure revenue grew 42% to $29.42 billion in the June quarter. That compares with 43% growth under the old Azure and other cloud services metric. Azure represented roughly 33% of Microsoft's total revenue in that period.

#Services #agents

This story was originally published on Food Dive. To receive daily news and insights, subscribe to our free daily Food Dive newsletter.
The Campbell's Company cut 13% of its salaried workforce as part of a plan to slash $500 million in costs by 2030, with CEO Mick Beekhuizen saying the company needs to take "decisive action" to improve performance.
The packaged food maker is also closing two snack plants as it aims to protect margins and support higher levels of investment. Campbell's added it will cut its quarterly dividend by 36% to generate savings that will be directed to other parts of its business.
The announcement comes as Campbell's posted a loss during its fourth quarter, with sales slipping 8% to $2.14 billion. Sales in its snacks business, which includes Goldfish and Pepperidge Farm, plunged 12% during the period. In meals and beverages, home to Rao's, V8 and its iconic soups, sales dipped 4%.
As consumers continue to rein in their spending, food companies are feeling the heat. Beekhuizen said cost cuts at Campbell's are necessary to support greater investment in brands to position them for success.

#sales #investment

In what is being referred to as potentially social media's "Big Tobacco moment," Meta Platforms (NASDAQ: META) recently announced an agreement with 52 attorneys general under which the parent company of Facebook and Instagram will pay up to $18 billion over the next decade and significantly change its policies for teen users.
While the fine would be the largest consumer-protection settlement ever, excluding Big Tobacco, most Wall Street ***** ysts and experts believe Meta avoided what could have been a vastly larger financial settlement.
Missed Nvidia in 2009? This Rare Signal Is Flashing Again. In 2009, a "Double Down" signal flashed for a little-known chipmaker called Nvidia. For the first time in years, that same "Total Conviction" signal is flashing for a company 1/100th the size of Nvidia. Continue »
But the ramifications from this landmark teen-safety lawsuit could be far worse for social media company Snap (NYSE: SNAP). Here's why.
Per the agreement, Meta will pay $12.7 billion to the participating states and U.S. territories in the lawsuit in annual installments over the next decade. The remaining $5.3 billion will be paid based on two conditions: Alphabet's YouTube and TikTok must apply some of the same changes that Meta is making for teens, and those companies must collectively pay a matching $5.3 billion.

#meta #billion #signal #flashing

On August 25, Qfin Holdings (NASDAQ:QFIN) reported second-quarter results that tell two very different stories at once. Total loan volume fell 25.1% year over year to RMB63,377 million, and non-GAAP net income dropped to RMB454.9 million from RMB946 million just one quarter earlier. Non-GAAP earnings per diluted ADS sank to RMB3.72 from RMB7.70. But buried in the same release, revenue from the company's technology solutions business jumped more than sixfold, and management laid out plans to turn Qfin into what it calls an AI-native lender. Investors have to weigh both halves of that picture.
The clearest growth story sits inside Qfin's tech solutions arm. Loan volume tied to that unit hit RMB10.5 billion for the quarter, up 515% from a year earlier, while the outstanding balance climbed to roughly RMB16.1 billion, up 313%. Through its FocusPRO platform, Qfin now helps banks serve borrowers priced between 3% and 12%, a segment its own consumer lending rarely touches. During the quarter, the company signed two new AI agent projects with banking partners, one built to support loan officers from lead identification through conversion, the other aimed at SME credit review and approval. CEO Wu Haisheng framed the effort as an organizational shift, saying it is "about turning individual and team experience into shared reusable organizational capabilities."
Risk metrics also moved in the right direction during the quarter itself. The 30-day collection rate rose to 88.1%, up 2.3 percentage points sequentially, while the C-M2 delinquency ratio fell 17% sequentially to 0.66%, nearing year-ago levels. The 90-day delinquency rate dropped to 2.83% from 3.5%. On the funding side, ABS issuance jumped 90% sequentially to RMB5.5 billion while issuance costs fell roughly 20 basis points, and overall funding costs eased about 10 basis points as the company leaned on a track record of stable ******* et performance. Qfin also paid a semiannual dividend of $0.46 per ADS, a payout ratio near 30%, and had repurchased $7 million of stock before pausing the buyback program.
Every one of those quarterly improvements sits next to a much rougher backdrop. Sales and marketing spending fell 13% sequentially as Qfin pulled back on growth, and new credit line users fell to 830,000, down from 1.19 million a quarter earlier. New loan provisions hit RMB1.72 billion, a booking ratio of 5.36%, the highest on record. A one-off RMB500 million tax expense tied to a change in tax treatment pushed the effective tax rate to 60.3%, though management expects it to settle near 20% going forward.

#earlier