Applied Materials ( AMAT ) delivered stronger-than-expected results for its July quarter, but the celebration ended quickly.  The chip equipment maker reported adjusted earnings of $2.48 per share, topping analyst forecasts of $2.36, and revenue of $7.3 billion, slightly above the $7.22 billion consensus. Sales rose nearly 8% from a year earlier, with all three business segments exceeding expectations. Semiconductor Systems revenue climbed 10% to $5.43 billion, buoyed by foundry-logic investments and solid DRAM demand, while Applied Global Services grew 1% to $1.6 billion. Yet, the optimism was cut short by a sharp downgrade in the company’s guidance for the October quarter. Management now expects revenue of about $6.7 billion at the midpoint, well below Wall Street’s $7.33 billion forecast, and adjusted EPS between $1.91 and $2.31. The announcement sent Applied shares tumbling more than 13% on Friday, marking their steepest one-day drop in over five years. China Slowdown and ...

UnitedHealth Group ( UNH ) shares staged their sharpest rally in a decade after Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway disclosed a major investment in the battered health care giant.  A regulatory filing revealed Berkshire had purchased just over five million shares in the second quarter, a stake worth roughly $1.6 billion. The announcement sent UnitedHealth stock up more than 11% to about $300 in early trading, contributing nearly 170 points to the Dow Jones Industrial Average’s rise. The surge follows an already strong week for the stock, which had climbed in five of the prior six sessions on speculation that Buffett was buying in. Berkshire’s move marks a notable vote of confidence in a company whose share price has been cut nearly in half over the past year. The health insurer has been under pressure from rising medical costs, intensifying regulatory scrutiny, and leadership turmoil. A Company Under Siege UnitedHealth, the nation’s largest provider of Medicare Advantage plans, has...

Intel ( INTC ) shares climbed sharply after reports surfaced that the Trump administration is in talks to take an equity stake in the struggling chipmaker.  According to people familiar with the matter, the move could help finance Intel’s long-delayed Ohio semiconductor hub, once pitched as the largest chipmaking facility in the world. While neither the White House nor Intel confirmed the details, both acknowledged their shared interest in strengthening U.S. technology and manufacturing. Intel’s CEO Lip-Bu Tan met with President Trump earlier this week, only days after the president had publicly called for his resignation over alleged ties to Chinese firms. The discussions reportedly stemmed from that meeting, though the potential size and structure of the investment remain unclear. A Storied Name, a Strained Position The news comes at a pivotal moment for Intel, which has been losing ground to Nvidia ( NVDA ) and Advanced Micro Devices ( AMD ) in the high-performance chip mar...

Advance Auto Parts ( AAP ) delivered better-than-expected second-quarter results.  The company reported adjusted earnings of $0.69 per share — roughly 23% above Wall Street forecasts — and a modest 0.1% increase in comparable-store sales. The uptick was fueled by ongoing momentum in the Pro segment, which caters to professional installers, and early signs of stabilization in the do-it-yourself (DIY) segment. Revenue came in at $2.01 billion, down nearly 8% from a year earlier but slightly ahead of analyst estimates. CEO Shane O’Kelly, who has been steering the company’s turnaround since 2023, credited supply chain improvements and a leaner store footprint for the better-than-expected performance. Profit Outlook Slashed on Higher Debt Costs The positive headline numbers quickly gave way to a far more sobering reality. Advance Auto lowered its fiscal 2025 adjusted earnings guidance to a range of $1.20 to $2.20 per share — roughly 20% below the previous midpoint — citing increased int...

Ethereum prices climbed sharply on Wednesday, pushing to nearly $4,700 per token—just a hair below its all-time high from November 2021—amid a rush of institutional interest and favorable policy shifts. The world’s second-largest cryptocurrency is now up over 50% since the passage of the GENIUS Act last month, which set new regulatory guardrails for stablecoins. The rally was also fueled by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s “Project Crypto” initiative, aimed at clarifying digital asset regulations, and a broad appetite from Wall Street firms seeking exposure to blockchain infrastructure. “Ethereum is the biggest macro trade over the next 10–15 years,” said Fundstrat’s Tom Lee, underscoring its central role as the foundation for most major crypto projects and stablecoins. Corporate Treasuries Drive Demand for Ether A surge in Ethereum accumulation by public companies has become a defining trend of this cycle. BitMine Immersion Technologies revealed plans to sell up to $20 bi...

Cava Group’s ( CAVA ) stock endured its steepest single-day drop on record after the Mediterranean fast-casual chain reported a sharp slowdown in same-store sales and lowered its growth forecast for the year.  Shares tumbled as much as 22% in late trading, hitting a new 52-week low and extending their year-to-date decline to roughly 38%. The second quarter marked the first time since its June 2023 IPO that Cava trimmed its full-year comparable sales guidance, now expecting growth of 4%–6%, down from 6%–8%. Same-store sales rose just 2.1% in Q2—barely above flat traffic—falling far short of Wall Street’s expectations for more than 6% growth and a fraction of the double-digit gains posted in prior quarters. Lapping Steak Launch and the “Honeymoon Effect” Management pointed to two unusual headwinds for the slowdown. First, the company was up against a tough comparison from last year’s popular steak menu launch, which had boosted sales in mid-2024. Second, Cava experienced what executi...

U.S. consumer prices rose at a slower pace than expected in July, offering some relief to markets even as underlying pressures remained firm.  The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the Consumer Price Index (CPI) increased 2.7% year over year, just shy of the 2.8% economists had forecast. On a monthly basis, inflation climbed 0.2%, matching June’s pace and consensus estimates. However, core CPI—which strips out volatile food and energy prices—ticked up to 3.1% year over year from June’s 2.9%, overshooting the 3% projection. The monthly increase in core prices came in at 0.3%, in line with expectations. While these figures show inflation remains far below its 2022 peak, the uptick in core inflation will likely weigh on Federal Reserve discussions heading into September’s policy meeting. Energy and Food Provide Breathing Room Falling fuel costs were a key factor keeping headline inflation in check. The energy index dropped 1.1% in July, with gasoline down 2.2%, marking prices a...