Hey there weekday warriors,
Define “poking the bear.” Ford CEO Jim Farley came from the rafters yesterday: “If you’re looking for the future of the automotive industry, stop looking at FSD and Tesla. Look at Ford Pro. It’s got half a million subscribers with 50% gross margin.”
Name a worse person to give bulletin board material to than Elon Musk…
Here’s what else we’re getting into today…
Bill Ackman knows how to hold a grudge
The Nvidia effect is real
Wells Fargo still sucks
Enjoy the next 4 minutes and 18 seconds of blue-chip news and commentary.
Keep on snapping necks and cashing checks,
PS, no newsletter Monday. Happy President’s Day to those who celebrate. See ya Tuesday.
+ US stocks “popped on Thursday, with the S&P 500 hitting a fresh record high, despite a disappointing retail sales report that raised questions about a ‘soft landing’ scenario for the US economy.” (Yahoo! Finance)
+ The 10-year Treasury yield “fell Thursday after weaker-than-expected retail sales data, coming on the heels of a hotter inflation print this week, raised some concern about the strength of the consumer." (CNBC)
+ Oil prices “rose over 1% on Thursday after U.S. retail data prompted a sell-off in the dollar, though investors eyed an International Energy Agency (IEA) report that flagged slowing demand growth this year.” (Reuters)
+ Bitcoin hovered at or just below $52k for most of the day.
+ The three most talked about stocks on WallStreetBets in the past 24 hours were: 1) Super Micro Computer +14.0% 2) Nvidia -1.6% 3) DraftKings +1.3% AH: -3.1%
The market moves you need to know about…
+ Shares of DWAC (the SPAC expected to merge with Donald Trump’s media company) surged 16.1% on news that the SEC signed off on the deal.
– Let me get this straight… Roku reported an earnings beat and shared a forecast that came in above expectations… but shares still fell 14.6%?
+ Shake Shack is out here making McDonald’s its b*tch. The burger chain’s stock rose 26.0% after reporting an easy earnings beat and indicating it’s about to have a huge 2024.
+ Have yourself a day, Coinbase. The crypto exchange jumped 14.0% after indicating it returned to profitability for the first time in ~3 years.
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Psychological short
(Source: Giphy)
Some men just want to watch the world burn…
Bill Ackman is one of those men. The hedge fund manager who founded Pershing Square has been going scorched earth lately. First, he took on basically the entire Ivy League (and Business Insider). Now, he’s coming for Herbalife (again).
Yesterday, Ackman said this on Twitter…
It is a very good day for my psychological short on @Herbalife. And it is an even better day for the world to see one of the biggest pyramid schemes fail.
That said, it is sad that so many with so little have been deceived and bankrupted by Herbalife. And it is incredibly… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…
— #Bill Ackman (#@BillAckman)
4:24 PM • Feb 15, 2024
As in, he doesn’t actually have a short position on Herbalife, he’s just petty as f*ck. Sidenote: I wonder if he’s also got a “psychological 10-inch d*ck”.
You might recall that Ackman built a ~$1B short position in Herbalife back in 2012. And famously battled with Carl Icahn, who was the largest shareholder in the pyramid scheme supplement company. That led to one of the greatest moments in the history of CNBC TV.
Ackman eventually exited his position with his tail between his legs (and a huge realized loss… not the psychological variety).
Redemption
In the past six months alone, shares of Herbalife fell more than 50%. Yesterday alone, they fell 32% to a 14-year low following just a horrendous earnings report.
Of course, Ackman didn’t make any actual money. But he got something better… the opportunity to Tweet “I told you so.”
Why should I care? Say what you want about him, but this world needs more unhinged billionaires like Ackman.
+ Warren Buffett Once Received A Unique Offer From A Fan: 'You're My Role Model. I'll Pay You $500 A Week For The Opportunity To Intern For You' — Buffett Didn't Take Him Up On It, But He Did Land A Paid Role At Berkshire Hathaway (Read)
+ MrBeast brings in $700 million a year but says he’s not rich: ‘I’ve reinvested everything to the point of stupidity’ (Read)
~ ICYMI... This Guy Says $150-225K Is the 'Worst Salary Range' You Can Have (Read)
+ New stock price hack just dropped: make it on Nvidia’s 13F…
Yesterday, Nvidia (-1.6%) shared what companies it had been investing in. Arm, SoundHound AI, Recursion Pharmaceuticals, Nano-X Imaging, and TuSimple all got the stamp of approval from the third-most valuable company in the US.
Arm, the only large-cap stock on the list, rose 5.6% on the day.
SoundHound and Nano-X were like, “those are rookie numbers in this racket.” They mooned 67% and 49%, respectively.
The big picture… If it wasn’t abundantly clear yet that the hopium is real among AI chip investors, it is now…
+ And now for your quarterly reminder that Wells Fargo is and always will be a bunch of dirtbags…
Wells (+7.2%) is still very much paying the price for its 2016 “fake accounts” scandal… and all the f*ckery that was uncovered once regulators got a peek under the hood.
But on Thursday the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency lifted a mandate that forced it to revamp how it sells and markets retail products… which is great news for bankers who can get back to their scheming ways.
Still, the bank has 8 consent orders hanging over it. The most notable is the Fed’s asset cap.
Why should I care? The move could be a sign that WF is getting its sh*t together. And if/when the asset cap is lifted, Wells could return to growth.
+ Annnnd it’s gone. It appears all that inflation and crippling credit card debt have finally caught up to the American consumer’s insatiable appetite to buy stuff. Retail sales plummeted 0.8% in January vs. economists expectations of 0.3%. Woof. (Read)
Here's what I'm keeping an eye on today...
+ Hawaiian Airlines shareholders vote on the pending acquisition by Alaska Airlines
My prediction of tomorrow’s TWC headlines, today…
~ Crystal ballin’… “Warner Bros. Discovery tumbles as DOJ kicks tires on WBD, Fox, and ESPN sports streaming service” (timeline: next few weeks)
Yesterday I asked, “What is the best breakfast in the game?”
38.1% of you were team bacon/sausage, egg & cheese. That was followed closely by a diner breakfast. Then it was a big drop-off to #3 (bagel & lox). Full English breakfast and biscuits and gravy also got some write-in love.
Here’s today’s question…
What's the best workday lunch in the game?
Oh, and one more thing…
What did you think about today's newsletter?
Does this look like the face of a guy you should take financial advice from?
No, it’s the face of an individual who is financially irresponsible/dumb enough to be talked into spending money on a family photo shoot that he could have just done with his iPhone. So, act accordingly...
This is not financial advice. Nothing in this newsletter is an investment recommendation. All content is created for entertainment, educational, or informational purposes only. Do your own research, or do yourself a favor and hire a professional