vestact posted: " Market Scorecard Yesterday, most US shares rose with earnings being the focus, even though the indexes ended slightly down. The S&P 500 was basically unchanged but the Nasdaq bled a little, with Netflix sinking more than 35% after reporting a "
Yesterday, most US shares rose with earnings being the focus, even though the indexes ended slightly down. The S&P 500 was basically unchanged but the Nasdaq bled a little, with Netflix sinking more than 35% after reporting a decline in subscriber numbers.
In company news, Procter & Gamble climbed after the fast-moving consumer goods giant reported its biggest jump in sales in two decades. Elsewhere, Tesla rose in extended trading after earnings beat estimates. Woohoo! More on that below.
After a heavy slog, the JSE All-share was flat, the S&P 500 ended a little changed, and the Nasdaq was down 1.22%.
Our 10c Worth
Michael's Musings
Tesla reported record profits again last night, with earnings per share of $3.22 versus the $2.27 that was expected. The company did caution that their production system is really battling currently with supply constraints and volatile pricing of key components.
The strong beat was thanks to a pleasing increase in gross profit margins in the automotive division, to 33%, higher than the 28% the street had penciled in. The margin improvement was due to lower production costs, which bodes well for the possibility of an even cheaper Tesla in years ahead.
Elon Musk said he thought that the closure of the Shanghai factory will end soon and that lost production will be made up. There are reports of staff sleeping at the factory, to circumvent lockdowns. Management has forecast growth in vehicle sales to remain at 50% in 2022 from 2021.
The energy division grew sales by 25% from a year earlier, but only contributed revenue of $616 million, compared to the automotive division's $16.8 billion. Musk is on record saying that he expects the energy division to be as big in time, so stay tuned.
Tesla is a growth machine, justifying its $1 trillion valuation. Truly, an amazing feat!
One Thing, From Paul
I'm off for a few days, so I'm submitting my weekly life advice column a day early. Here's the core message: greatness is only achieved through hard work.
This is true in every dimension of life. You don't need to be born a genius or sports sensation, go to UCT or Harvard, or have rich parents to be the very best at what you do. You need to decide what matters most and do the hard, daily work to make it happen.
As Axios CEO Jim VandeHei (pictured below) said recently, you should take up a profession that you would do for free.
"You can't fake passion. And passion leads to a healthy, daily obsession. If you find a way to get paid to do what you love most, this comes naturally. There is no substitute for getting up every day and pouring uncommon time and effort into what matters most. This also means sucking it up when you flop or fail."
Byron's Beats
There is a lot of focus on the energy sector at the moment because of sky-high prices and the knock-on inflationary effects. The war in Ukraine has also highlighted how important the source of your energy supply can be.
I believe Putin's war will be a landmark event that changes the way we consume energy for the rest of time. It's vital for nations to be energy self-sufficient. Most countries don't have large fossil fuel resources, so renewables and nuclear are the only viable solutions. Fortunately, technology has reached a point where this is very doable. The fact that it's far better for the environment is also great. Fossil fuels have just become very dirty in more ways than one.
Germany has committed itself to end Russian gas imports by next year. It would be foolish of them to just find a new supplier of gas and be heavily reliant on another country with volatile politics. Instead, they will invest a lot in alternate energy sources that they can control.
Imagine a world where the price of energy was not determined by a cartel of corrupt leaders? Take a look at the members of OPEC, it will make you shiver. As with all things, there will be friction in the transition and fossil fuels will still play a big role for many years to come. But in my opinion this really is the beginning of the end.
Bright's Banter
Shopify is reported to be in talks to buy tech start-up Deliverr with hopes to expand into fulfilment services. The deal values the San Francisco-based company at more than $2 billion and if the talks go well, this could be Shopify's biggest deal ever.
Deliverr was founded by Harish Abbott and Michael Krakaris on the 28th of July 2017. The company integrates with e-commerce marketplaces, offering two-day shipping to merchants selling on these online marketplaces. Its customers include Amazon, Walmart, eBay, Wish, BigCommerce, and of course Shopify.
This deal is very interesting for Shopify, because it could lead to conflicts with other merchants and e-commerce players. Ideally, they won't change Deliverr's business model, just keep it separate to extend their reach. Shopify shareholders should be excited by the deal, despite a fall in the share price on the news.
Asian stocks are really mixed this morning. Equities in Japan, India and South Korea are up solidly, but Chinese bourses are down sharply, thanks to a spike in Covid cases in Shanghai and a dour speech by Xi Jinping.
US equity futures are in the green, probably due to the pleasing numbers from Tesla.
The Rand has lost 50 cents somewhere, and is back trading above R15 to the US Dollar.
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