Business and Finance News - 8.9.24

Eli Lilly raised its annual sales forecast by $3 billion due to increased manufacturing capacity for its weight-loss drug Zepbound, causing shares to jump as much as 14%. The company also reported crossing $1 billion in quarterly sales for Zepbound for the first time, with overall revenue now expected to be between $45.4 billion and $46.6 billion for 2024. (Reuters)

*Eli Lilly (LLY) - Eli Lilly and Company is a global pharmaceutical company that discovers, develops, manufactures, and markets products in the areas of oncology, endocrinology, neuroscience, and immunology.

Microsoft and Palantir have partnered to provide services for classified U.S. defense and intelligence networks, integrating Microsoft's Azure OpenAI Service with Palantir's AI Platforms. This collaboration aims to operationalize Microsoft's large language models within Palantir’s systems, enhancing capabilities for national security missions. (The Verge)

*Microsoft (MSFT) - Microsoft Corporation is a global technology company that develops, manufactures, licenses, supports, and sells a wide range of software products, hardware devices, and related services.

*Palantir (PLTR)-Palantir Technologies is a public American software company that specializes in big data analytics. It provides software solutions for data integration, analysis, and visualization to help organizations make informed decisions.

Paramount Global announced it will cut 15% of its U.S. workforce as part of a $2 billion cost-saving plan in preparation for a merger with Skydance Media. Despite a 11% revenue drop in Q2, largely due to a 48% decline in TV licensing fees, Paramount's streaming division reported a $26 million profit, boosting shares by over 5% in after-hours trading. (CNBC)

*Paramount Global (PARA) - Paramount Global is a multinational media and entertainment conglomerate. It operates a broad portfolio of media and entertainment assets, including television networks, film production, streaming services, and content licensing.

Under Armour beat Wall Street’s quarterly earnings expectations and raised its full-year profit guidance after settling a $434 million securities lawsuit. Despite better-than-expected results, sales fell across North America, online, and in apparel, footwear, and accessories, leading to an adjusted profit forecast for fiscal 2025. (CNBC)

*Under Armour (UA) - Under Armour, Inc. is an American company that designs, manufactures, and sells performance apparel, footwear, and accessories.

Initial jobless claims fell to 233,000 for the week ending August 3, down from 250,000 the previous week and below the expected 240,000, easing some concerns about the labor market. However, continuing unemployment claims rose to 1.875 million, the highest since November 2021, reflecting ongoing labor market challenges. (Yahoo! Finance)

*Weekly Jobless Claims - Weekly jobless claims refer to the number of individuals who file for unemployment benefits for the first time during a given week. This data, reported by the U.S. Department of Labor, serves as an important economic indicator, reflecting the health of the job market.

Here’s how the major indexes did yesterday:

• Dow Jones Industrial Average: 39,446.49 +683.04 (+1.76%)

• S&P 500: 5,319.31 +119.81 (+2.30%)

• Nasdaq Composite: 16,660.02 +464.21 (+2.87%)

• Russell 2000: 2,084.42 +49.31 (+2.42%)

• CBOE Volatility Index (VIX): 23.79 -4.06 (-14.58%)

Here’s how leading market ETFs did yesterday:

• SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY): 530.65 +11.99 (+2.31%)

• iShares Core S&P 500 ETF (IVV): 533.57 +12.08 (+2.32%)

• Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ): 448.07 +13.30 (+3.06%)

• Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO): 487.73 +11.12 (+2.33%)

• Vanguard Total Stock Market ETF (VTI): 261.79 +5.99 (+2.34%)

Here’s how The Magnificent Seven did yesterday:

• Apple (AAPL) [3.271T]: 213.31 +3.49 (+1.66%)

• Microsoft (MSFT) [2.993T]: 402.69 +4.26 (+1.07%)

• Nvidia (NVDA) [2.586T]: 104.97 +6.06 (+6.13%)

• Alphabet (GOOG) [2.017T]: 163.84 +3.09 (+1.92%)

• Amazon (AMZN) [1.725T]: 165.80 +3.03 (+1.86%)

• Meta Platforms (META) [1.293T]: 509.63 +20.71 (+4.24%)

• Tesla (TSLA) [634B]: 198.84 +7.08 (+3.69%)

Here’s how the major cryptocurrencies did yesterday:

• Bitcoin (BTC): $61,645.88 (5:30PM PST on 8/8/24)

• Ethereum (ETH): $2,684.81 (5:30PM PST on 8/8/24)

• Solano (SOL): $163.37 (5:30PM PST on 8/8/24)