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Fear is unwinding as fast as it built.

The CBOE Volatility Index — commonly known as the VIX, Wall Street’s real-time gauge of expected equity market volatility — collapsed 44% over the three weeks ending April 17, 2026. The gauge hit a nine-week low of 16.87 Friday as Iran reopened the Strait of Hormuz and U.S. President Donald Trump announced Tehran had agreed to never close the waterway again.

A drop of that magnitude over a three-week window is rare.

History suggests what follows tends to be positive and durable for equity markets.

A Rare Signal: Only Seven Prior Episodes Since 1970

A TradingView event study analyzing every instance of a three-week VIX rate of change dropping at or below negative 40% since 1970 identified just seven prior episodes.

The current reading of negative 43.74 joins that list as the eighth.

Date VIX 3-Week Move % Catalyst
Jan 14, 2013 −45.16% U.S. fiscal cliff crisis resolved
Nov 3, 2014 −40.34% Mid-cycle growth scare; Ebola fears and slowing global demand faded
Jul 11, 2016 −50.82% Brexit vote shock absorbed; central banks signaled accommodation
Nov 21, 2016 −45.18% U.S. presidential election; markets pivoted to …

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The small-cap Russell 2000 punched through to an intraday record high on Friday, capping a furious 13-day rally that marks the index’s best run since 2020 and signaling that gains are finally broadening beyond the mega-cap tech leaders. 

The benchmark’s sprint to fresh highs comes less than a month after the U.S.-Iran conflict drove it into a 10%-plus correction. 

The iShares Russell 2000 ETF (NYSE:IWM) is now up roughly 8.6% over the past two weeks, trouncing the S&P 500’s 1.6% gain over the same stretch, according to Benzinga Pro data. 

What’s Driving The Move

A major turning point came on Tuesday when President Donald Trump announced …

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The trading activity of members of Congress continues to draw attention from retail investors, with potential conflicts of interest based on timing of trades and committee assignments signaling red flags around the transactions.

One member of Congress is drawing attention for the purchase of an ETF, not for a potential conflict, but for the size of the trade.

• iShares Bitcoin Trust stock is trading near recent lows. What should traders watch with IBIT?

Congresswoman Buys Bitcoin ETF Again

Congresswoman Sheri Biggs (R-S.C.) recently disclosed several transactions made in March, according to the Benzinga Government Trades page.

One of the transactions included buying $100,000 to $250,000 in shares of the iShares Bitcoin ETF (NASDAQ:IBIT) on March 4. The transaction is noted as being made by a spouse and is listed as coming from a “professionally managed account.”

This marks the second time Biggs has disclosed buying shares of this Bitcoin …

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Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) is doubling down on enterprise AI, partnering with Expert.ai to push real-world adoption beyond experimentation and into scalable deployment.

Expert.ai has partnered with Microsoft Italy to accelerate enterprise adoption of artificial intelligence for complex business processes. The collaboration aims to help organizations move AI from experimental stages into scalable, production-ready environments.

The partnership brings Expert.ai’s EidenAI Suite to the Microsoft Azure Marketplace, enabling businesses to deploy advanced AI capabilities within a trusted cloud ecosystem.

The latest development comes when Bank of America Securities analyst Tal Liani expects Azure growth to depend on how quickly new AI capacity comes online. Microsoft posted 38% constant-currency growth last quarter, and the analyst models about 37.5% growth for the fiscal third quarter, in line with expectations.

Driving Enterprise AI Adoption

The collaboration focuses on enabling companies to operationalize artificial intelligence across critical workflows.

By leveraging Microsoft Azure, organizations can integrate models, data, and automation into unified systems that support enterprise-grade deployment.

The initiative addresses a key challenge in the AI landscape, where many companies …

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BLUF: Prologis (NYSE:PLD) holds an A credit rating and maintains approximately 41% dividend buffer, with Core FFO of $5.81 per share against an annualized dividend of $3.84. The balance sheet is investment grade at the high end of the REIT sector, with a 5.3x debt-to-EBITDA ratio and 8.2-year weighted average debt maturity. The variable worth watching is CapEx velocity — a 5.7 gigawatt data center pipeline is compressing the distance between growth and structural constraint. The dividend is not under pressure today. The structure is being tested.

The Stability Case

Prologis enters 2026 with structural metrics that place it among the most insulated dividend payers in the REIT sector. Core FFO coverage of approximately 1.51x — $5.81 per share against a $3.84 annual dividend — leaves meaningful room before refinancing pressure or occupancy softness could threaten the payout.

The debt structure reinforces that position. A weighted average interest rate of 3.3% on approximately $32 billion in total debt, combined with an 8.2-year weighted average maturity, limits near-term refinancing exposure. The company closed $3.0 billion of new debt in 2025 at a 3.1% weighted average rate — below the existing portfolio cost — which suggests the refinancing cycle, when it arrives, may not materially compress coverage.

Operationally, 2025 was a record year. Prologis signed 228 million square feet of leases, pushing occupancy toward 96%. Management guided 2026 Core FFO at $6.00 to $6.20 per …

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Michael Saylor spent another billion dollars betting Bitcoin has bottomed, but prediction markets are pricing a 57% chance he is wrong.

Strategy (NASDAQ:MSTR) disclosed in an April 13 filing that it acquired 13,927 Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) between April 6 and April 12 at an average price of $71,902, funded entirely through its Stretch preferred stock (NASDAQ:STRC).

The company now holds 780,897 BTC at an average cost of $75,577.

Saylor Has Been Calling The Bottom

At a Mizuho investor event earlier this month, Saylor said Bitcoin “likely bottomed around $60,000,” framing the current drawdown as forced-seller exhaustion rather than a sentiment reset.

He doubled down this week on crypto podcast Bankless. “I haven’t seen anything to shake my confidence yet,” Saylor said, calling the asset oversold and predicting it closes 2026 materially higher.

So far, the call has held. Bitcoin bottomed …

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Volume is one of the most widely used trading indicators in market analysis. The underlying idea is straightforward: a price move accompanied by high volume is generally considered more reliable, as it reflects stronger participation from market participants.

This apparent simplicity is what made volume so popular, leading many traders to rely on it as a confirmation tool for price movements.

Understanding how volume works is essential for anyone involved in trading or building systematic strategies. However, volume is not as easy to interpret as it may seem, and in several contexts it can be distorted or difficult to compare.

In this article, we will explore what volume actually represents, then focus on some of the most common pitfalls in its interpretation, along with practical ways to address them.

What Is Volume in Trading and How the Indicator Works

Volume represents the number of contracts or shares traded over a given period of time. On most trading platforms, it is displayed as a histogram, typically located at the bottom of the chart.

To better understand its meaning, consider a simple example: every trade involves a buyer and a seller. When a transaction is executed, volume increases based on the number of units exchanged. For instance, if 1 share is traded, volume increases by 1. If 100 shares are traded, volume increases by 100. In essence, volume simply measures the total number of transactions completed.

As shown in Figure 1, volume is always tied to a specific time interval. On a daily chart, for example, each bar in the histogram represents the total number of trades executed during that trading session. This means volume is not cumulative over time – it resets at the beginning of each new interval, reflecting activity within that specific period.

From a visual standpoint, it is easy to identify phases of lower activity, characterized by smaller volume bars, and phases where trading activity increases significantly, highlighted by noticeable spikes. This alternating pattern is one of the key reasons why volume has become such a widely used tool for analyzing market activity.

Figure 1. Volume indicator in trading: example of a volume histogram on a daily chart

Why Volume Is So Widely Used by Traders

As mentioned earlier, volume is often used as a confirmation tool for price movements. The underlying assumption is that higher volume reflects participation from larger market players, and therefore from more influential participants.

From this perspective, a significant increase in volume is typically interpreted as a sign of stronger interest and engagement, making …

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Editor’s note: the story has been updated with a comment by Binance.

Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) sent letters Friday to the Justice Department and Treasury demanding answers by April 24 on Binance’s (CRYPTO: BNB) compliance monitors after over $1.7 billion flowed through the exchange to Iran-linked wallets.

The Monitor Question

Blumenthal specifically asked about the status of monitors Binance had to install after the exchange pleaded guilty in November 2023 to failing to register as a money transmitting business and breaching sanctions. 

The exchange agreed to pay over $4 billion in penalties and retain an independent compliance monitor for three years.

“I am writing with concern over mounting allegations of dangerously lax anti-money laundering prevention by Binance,” Blumenthal said in the letters.

Frances McLeod, the Justice Department’s chosen monitor and a founding partner at consulting firm Forensic Risk Alliance, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. 

Neither did Sharon Cohen …

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The release of Aave (CRYPTO: AAVE) V4 marks more than just another upgrade in decentralized finance. It represents a deliberate attempt to redesign how liquidity flows across the ecosystem, thereby reshaping how value is created and captured within the Aave protocol itself.

For years, DeFi has been dealing with a simple but important problem: liquidity fragmentation. 

Funds are spread out across different blockchains, platforms, and pools. Instead of moving freely to where they’re needed, much of it sits idle. So you end up with one part of the market having more than enough liquidity, while another part is struggling to keep up with demand.

Even on Aave, this has been the case. Liquidity is divided across different markets, which makes it harder to use that capital as efficiently as possible.

Aave V4 is designed to change that by making liquidity easier to share and better used across the system.

From Isolated Markets to a Unified Liquidity System

At the center of the upgrade is a shift away from the traditional model of siloed liquidity pools toward what Aave describes as a more unified architecture. Instead of maintaining separate reserves for each market, V4 introduces a central liquidity hub that can be accessed by multiple markets simultaneously.

By consolidating liquidity, Aave allows capital to be reused more efficiently across different borrowing environments. The same pool of assets can now serve multiple use cases without duplication, reducing idle capital and improving overall utilization.

What Aave is effectively doing is increasing the productivity of its existing capital base without requiring proportional inflows of new liquidity. In a market where growth is often dependent on attracting fresh capital, that kind of internal efficiency can become a powerful differentiator.

For investors, this matters because utilization is directly tied to yield generation. When capital is used more often and more efficiently, the protocol sees more activity and generates more fees, strengthening its revenue base and supporting the long-term value of the AAVE token.

Aave’s Transition From Application to Infrastructure

Beyond efficiency gains, V4 introduces a more profound strategic shift. Aave is positioning itself not just as a lending protocol, but as a foundational liquidity layer that other applications can build on top of.

The new modular design allows developers to create specialized markets, whether for real-world assets, higher-risk collateral types, or …

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Bitcoin climbed to $77,000 on Friday, coinciding with nearly $1 billion in liquidations of mostly shorts.

Cryptocurrency Ticker Price
Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) $77,245.02
Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) $2,422.90
Solana (CRYPTO: SOL) $89.21
XRP (CRYPTO: XRP) $1.47
Dogecoin (CRYPTO: DOGE) $0.1003
Shiba Inu (CRYPTO: SHIB) $0.056379

Notable Statistics:

  • Coinglass data shows 182,798 traders were liquidated in the past 24 hours for $818.97 million.
  • SoSoValue data shows net inflows of $26.05 million from spot Bitcoin ETFs on Thursday. Spot Ethereum ETFs saw net inflows of $18.02 million.
  • In the past 24 hours, top gainers include RaveDAO, Ethena and …

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Bitcoin climbed to $77,000 on Friday, coinciding with nearly $1 billion in liquidations of mostly shorts.

Cryptocurrency Ticker Price
Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) $77,245.02
Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) $2,422.90
Solana (CRYPTO: SOL) $89.21
XRP (CRYPTO: XRP) $1.47
Dogecoin (CRYPTO: DOGE) $0.1003
Shiba Inu (CRYPTO: SHIB) $0.056379

Notable Statistics:

  • Coinglass data shows 182,798 traders were liquidated in the past 24 hours for $818.97 million.
  • SoSoValue data shows net inflows of $26.05 million from spot Bitcoin ETFs on Thursday. Spot Ethereum ETFs saw net inflows of $18.02 million.
  • In the past 24 hours, top gainers include RaveDAO, Ethena and …

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Galaxy Digital Inc (NASDAQ:GLXY) shares are surging on Friday. The stock is riding a wave of renewed optimism across the digital asset ecosystem.

The Nasdaq is up 1.38% while the S&P 500 has gained 1.40%.

Middle East Peace Fuels Risk-On Sentiment

The primary catalyst is a sector-wide crypto rally. Markets reacted to signs of progress toward a Middle East ceasefire. Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi declared the Strait of Hormuz open to commercial vessels on Friday.

“In line with the ceasefire in Lebanon, the passage for all commercial vessels through the Strait of Hormuz is declared completely open,” Araghchi posted on X.

Crypto Prices Bounce On Geopolitical Relief

Bitcoin

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Motorola Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:MSI) shares are relatively flat on Friday as the company announced the launch of its new CommandCentral RMS, a unified records and case management platform designed to streamline investigations.

This news comes as the broader market is experiencing gains, with the S&P 500 up 1.1% and the Communication Services sector gaining 0.2%, although MSI is slightly underperforming its sector.

Motorola Solutions unveiled CommandCentral RMS, which aims to enhance productivity for public safety agencies by automating time-intensive case management processes. The platform will be showcased at the upcoming Summit 2026 public safety technology conference from April 20-22 in Orlando.

The broader market saw gains, with the Technology sector up 1.32% today. MSI’s performance aligns with the overall market trend, though it is slightly lagging behind the sector’s growth.

Technical Analysis

Motorola Solutions is currently trading within the upper range of its 52-week spectrum, indicating a strong position relative to its historical performance. The stock is trading 0.2% above its 20-day simple moving average (SMA), suggesting short-term bullish momentum, while it is 1.6% below its 50-day SMA, indicating some weakness in the intermediate trend.

The relative strength index (RSI) is at 49.91, reflecting a neutral momentum state, suggesting that the stock is neither overbought nor oversold. The MACD is currently below the signal line, which indicates bearish momentum; however, traders should watch for any potential shifts …

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Congresswoman Yassamin Ansari (D-Ariz.), the first Iranian American Democrat in Congress, filed six articles of impeachment against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Wednesday over the Iran war.

A day later, she turned her attention to another Iran-war flashpoint: prediction markets Polymarket and Kalshi.

Ansari posted on X that prediction markets are casinos where the rich and powerful are the house and everyone else is the chips. She said 99.96% of users lose everything while the top 0.04% walk away with billions.

The political risk lands on Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE:ICE), the parent of the New York Stock Exchange, which committed $2 billion to Polymarket in a two-stage deal completed in March. Kalshi raised $1 billion at a $22 billion valuation in its latest round.

Ansari was promoting the BETS OFF Act, which she cosponsored last month alongside Sen. …

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The Chinese provider of data services for businesses has linked up with a state-run exchange with a joint mission to develop datasets as digital commodities

image credit: Bamboo Works

Key Takeaways:

  • Xunce and the Shenzhen Data Exchange will work together to expand a system in which data is traded as tokens and can be recognized on balance sheets
  • The company’s shares jumped after news of the partnership to trade at more than six times its IPO price 

As the fuel behind the explosive growth of AI, data is transforming itself from a business input into a financial asset.

That’s the assumption behind a strategic partnership between a Chinese provider of data solutions and a state-run platform that aims to promote the trading of datasets as a commodity within the digital economy.

Shenzhen Xunce Technology Co. Ltd. (3317.HK) supplies data systems and analytics to businesses, including AI-powered data agents that can act on the information they process. The company announced on April 12 it had linked up with the Shenzhen Data Exchange to develop what it called a service framework for “data assetization”, the process of turning data into marketable assets.

The partners also agreed to work on harnessing data and AI to drive growth across sectors, to push for data assets to be logged on balance sheets and to foster high-quality data standards and scenarios for robotics, autonomous driving and smart devices.

Investors welcomed the tie-up, sending Xunce’s shares 15.61% higher in the first session after the announcement. The closing price of HK$358.4 was more than six times the company’s IPO price from December last year, capping a steady rise in market enthusiasm.

Founded in 2016, …

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Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) has the potential to reach $1 million by 2035, says Bitwise CIO Matt Hougan, but only if store of value market continues to grow the same manner for the past 20 years.

Path To $1 Million

In an Apr. 17 interview with CoinDesk, Hougan said Bitcoin is entering a long-term institutional adoption phase, driven by ETF growth, geopolitical instability and rising demand for “digital gold.”

He estimates Bitcoin could reach seven-figure valuations if it captures 15%–17% of the global store-of-value market, up from roughly 6% today.

Under that scenario, long-term price targets …

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The long discussed threat that quantum computing could one day break modern cryptography is no longer being treated as a distant, theoretical concern. Within the crypto industry, it is increasingly framed as a timing problem, not an if.

For holders of Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC), that distinction matters. If quantum capabilities arrive sooner than expected, the network’s current security assumptions could be tested before it has time to adapt. That possibility is beginning to reshape how institutional players think about custody, risk, and preparedness.

The Timeline Problem Is Getting Harder To Ignore

For years, the idea that quantum computers could crack cryptographic keys sat comfortably in the long term category. Estimates often placed meaningful breakthroughs decades away, giving networks ample time to upgrade.

That timeline is now being questioned.

Recent research and industry discussions suggest that advances in quantum computing could compress that window significantly. Some projections now place potential disruption within a single decade, with more aggressive estimates pointing even sooner.

Even if those forecasts prove optimistic, the shift is enough to trigger concern in markets where preparation cycles are measured in years. In crypto, that gap is particularly relevant.

Bitcoin’s Strength Is Also Its Constraint

Bitcoin’s design prioritizes stability over speed. Its decentralized governance and conservative approach to upgrades are widely seen as strengths, especially for an asset that secures hundreds of billions of dollars in value.

But that same conservatism creates friction when responding to emerging threats.

Protocol level changes on Bitcoin typically take years to propose, debate, and implement. The last major upgrade followed a multi year process before activation. Any meaningful shift to quantum resistant cryptography would likely face a similar timeline, if not longer.

That creates a mismatch. If quantum risks materialize within a comparable timeframe, the network may not be able to react quickly enough through traditional upgrade paths alone.

A Shift Toward User Level Protection

As a result, attention is starting to move …

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Carvana Co (NYSE:CVNA) shares are surging his Friday.

Nasdaq is up 1.27% while the S&P 500 has gained 1.29% as Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi declared the Strait of Hormuz fully open to all commercial vessels for the duration of the ceasefire.

The rally follows news on Tuesday, regarding its Carvana Insurance Built with Root program. The partnership with Root Inc (NASDAQ:ROOT) officially surpassed 200,000 policies sold.

Leadership On Integration

“This milestone is a strong reflection of the success and momentum,” stated Root CEO Alex Timm. Carvana CEO Ernie …

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U.S. stocks traded higher midway through trading, with the Dow Jones index gaining over 2% on Friday.

The Dow traded up 2.16% to 49,629.15 while the NASDAQ surged 1.61% to 24,489.57. The S&P 500 also rose, gaining, 1.35% to 7,136.68.

Leading and Lagging Sectors

Consumer discretionary shares climbed by 3.1% on Friday.

In trading on Friday, energy stocks fell by 4.5%.

Top Headline

State Street Corp (NYSE:STT) reported upbeat earnings for the third quarter on Friday.

The company posted quarterly earnings of $2.84 per share which beat the analyst consensus estimate of $2.63 per share. The company reported quarterly sales of $3.796 billion which beat the analyst consensus estimate of $3.658 billion.

Equities Trading UP
           

  • Energy Focus Inc (NASDAQ:EFOI) shares shot up 288% to $8.11. Energy Focus announced a multi-year data …

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Autoliv, Inc. (NYSE:ALV) shares are trading higher on Friday after the firm reported first-quarter results that topped expectations, supported by solid sales growth and resilient demand across key markets.

The company highlighted continued momentum in Asia and improving underlying profitability despite some margin pressure.

Quarterly Details

The company reported first-quarter adjusted earnings per share of $2.05, beating the analyst consensus estimate of $1.89. Quarterly sales of $2.753 billion (+6.8% year over year) beat the Street view of $2.605 billion.

Adjusted operating income in the quarter under review slumped 3.9% year over year to $245 million. Adjusted operating margin contracted to 8.9% from 9.9% a year ago.

“Underlying profitability improved, with gross profit increasing by 10%, although …

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U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) reported upbeat first-quarter 2026 results on Thursday.

The bank reported first-quarter adjusted earnings per share of $1.18, beating the analyst consensus estimate of $1.14. Quarterly sales of $7.288 billion outpaced the Street view of $7.277 billion.

“Strong revenue growth drove 440 basis points of positive operating leverage, as ongoing investments for growth and continued cost savings drove 260 basis points of year-over-year improvement in our efficiency ratio,” said CEO Gunjan Kedia.

U.S. Bancorp expects net interest income and fees to grow 6%–7% in the second quarter. The bank also guides full-year revenue growth of 4%–6% with operating leverage of over 200 basis points.

U.S. Bancorp shares rose 3.4% …

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iSpecimen Inc (NASDAQ:ISPC) shares are surging during Friday’s session.

Logistics Overhaul Drives Momentum

The Massachusetts-based biospecimen marketplace last week announced a direct supplier-to-customer shipping overhaul. This move eliminates centralized hub routing. Previously, this routing added 7–14 days to delivery. iSpecimen reported that the new model slashes domestic transit times by 70–85%.

Domestic Shipments See Rapid Delivery

Under the restructured model, domestic shipments now arrive in 1–2 days. Fewer handoffs also contribute to lower overall shipping costs for the company.

The efficiency gains come as broader markets trade higher on Friday. The Nasdaq gained 1.30% …

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ManpowerGroup (NYSE:MAN) reported upbeat earnings for the first quarter on Thursday.

The company posted quarterly earnings of 51 cents per share which beat the analyst consensus estimate of 49 cents per share. The company reported quarterly sales of $4.510 billion which beat the analyst consensus estimate of $4.414 billion.

ManpowerGroup said it sees second-quarter GAAP EPS of 91 cents to $1.05, versus market estimates of 96 cents.

Jonas Prising, ManpowerGroup Chair & CEO, said, “We delivered solid performance in the quarter driven by disciplined execution and stabilization in demand trends across key markets. This marks five consecutive quarters of year over year revenue trend improvement. We grew our pipeline, saw continued momentum across the portfolio within our Manpower brand, and enhanced operating leverage through reductions in SG&A. Building on this …

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State Street (NYSE:STT) released first-quarter financial results and hosted an earnings call on Friday. Read the complete transcript below.

This content is powered by Benzinga APIs. For comprehensive financial data and transcripts, visit https://www.benzinga.com/apis/.

The full earnings call is available at https://state-street-1q-2026-earnings.open-exchange.net/registration

Summary

State Street Corp emphasized the high-quality credit risk profile of its investment services clients, highlighting zero losses in subscription finance and AAA CLOs.

The company expects low to mid single-digit growth in its strategic lending segments, despite minor impacts from elevated redemption requests in the private credit space.

A scoping charge of $41 million was discussed, linked to an existing alpha client, but deemed idiosyncratic and unrelated to previous issues.

Management noted a 2% year-on-year decrease in headcount contributing to a 4% net productivity savings, with plans for further optimization through automation and process re-engineering.

The company reported strong positive operating leverage for the ninth consecutive quarter, driven by organic growth and strategic investments in geographic and product capabilities.

Scale and technology investments, including AI, were highlighted as critical for maintaining competitive advantage over smaller players in the financial services sector.

Full Transcript

OPERATOR

That customer segment. And these are investment services clients by and large. And you know, as part of the broad suite of services we provide them, we support them from a balance sheet standpoint. So this is highly strategic lending for us. When you see NDFIs and each of these categories are extremely well positioned from a risk return credit risk profile standpoint. We’ve never had losses in, in subscription finance or in the AAA CLO book. And that’s really the large majority of the NDFI book is in that space. And we wanted to make it clear that you know, just how high quality, you know, these, these categories are. You know, we’re down to $1.6 billion in the actual BDC lending. You know, I would, I would, you know, kind of highlight that, that the points made on the slide with respect to that these are seniors secured with substantial subordination on them. You know, 80% subordination sitting behind the positions that we have in the BDC space. Diversified with ongoing structural protections. This is, this will be a growth area for us. And you know, you could see, you know, low to mid single digit growth and commensurate with our continued penetration of this customer segment, which is really attractive for us. And I think we’re feeling very good about the profile here. Great. And on the private market, private credit servicing business, you’ve made several investments there over the past few years. Do any of the pressures that we’re seeing here on the private credit side impact that business? Got it. Appreciate all the details, thank you. Our next question will come from Vivek Janija with JP Morgan. Your line is now open. Please go ahead. Thanks. A couple of questions. Firstly you had a scoping charge of 41 million. This was the second one in the last 12 months. Can you give us some color? Is it the same client? What? Is it the same type of issue? It doesn’t seem like it but I just want to, you know, not make assumptions. What’s driving …

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WeShop Holdings Ltd (NASDAQ:WSHP) shares are trading higher on Friday.

The community-owned social commerce platform on Thursday announced it will release its first quarterly earnings report as a public company on April 28.

Massive Trading Volume Spikes

Market activity for WSHP is significantly higher than usual. Friday’s volume reached six million shares. This far exceeds the average daily volume of 690,565 shares.

The surge comes amid a positive day for the broader indices. …

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Home Depot Inc (NYSE:HD) shares are surging Friday morning as Wall Street reacts to a de-escalation in Middle East tensions.

The world’s largest home improvement retailer is finding support from broader market momentum following news of a strategic maritime reopening.

Geopolitical Optimism Lifts Markets

Investor sentiment shifted overnight after Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said the Strait of Hormuz was “completely open” for commercial vessels during the current ceasefire.

President Donald Trump previously said that the Iran war “should be ending pretty soon.” These developments have propelled the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust

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Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei plans to visit the White House on Friday to meet with President Donald Trump‘s top adviser in an effort to resolve the company’s ongoing lawsuit with the Pentagon.

Amodei is meeting with White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, Axios reported.

Anthropic has been under fire for its AI models being used by the Pentagon. Tensions stem from concerns about national security and from the Defense Department under Trump seeking unrestricted military use of AI.

The company filed a lawsuit in March, after the Pentagon formally notified the artificial intelligence company that its products pose a risk to the …

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The Nasdaq 100, tracked by the Invesco QQQ Trust (NASDAQ:QQQ), is entering record territory with a 12-day streak on the line Friday and a chance to have the longest daily gain streak since 2013 when the week is over.

Here’s a look back at the other times the index has had a 12-day win streak and how close the record is from being broken.

• Invesco QQQ Trust, Series 1 shares are testing new highs. Why is QQQ stock breaking out?

Nasdaq 100 12-Day Win Streaks

On Thursday, the Nasdaq 100 reached 12 straight days of positive gains, marking only the eighth time this feat has been accomplished since the index was created back in 1985.

The gains come as Middle East tension sent markets lower earlier this year and has caused extreme volatility for investors. Markets have traded higher in recent weeks, with both the Nasdaq 100 and S&P 500 hitting all-time highs.

The index could also break its record for the longest streak if it continues to post daily gains. Here’s a look at the past times when the index has traded higher for 12 or more days, with data from Carson Group Chief Market Strategist Ryan Detrick:

  • Feb. 18, 1986: 12 days
  • May 24, 1990: 19 days (record)
  • Jan. 9, 1992: 13 days
  • July 23, 2009: 12 days
  • March 12, 2010: 13 days
  • July 15, 2013: 14 days
  • July 24, 2017: 12 days
  • April 16, 2026: 12 days (current streak)

A positive gain on Friday would extend the current streak to 13 days and see the index accomplish something that has only been done four other times.

The Nasdaq 100 could head for record …

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Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is positioning itself as the “ultimate edge AI play” through its latest internal hardware developments.

In a Friday note, BofA Securities analyst Wamsi Mohan reiterated a Buy rating and a $325 price forecast for the tech giant. The focus remains on the newly expanded M5 chip family, which analysts believe will revolutionize on-device AI processing.

AI-Optimized Architecture Drives Local Inference

The M5 generation represents a “meaningful step” toward a self-sustained AI compute stack. Unlike previous iterations, the M5 focuses on local inference. This strategy reduces reliance on cloud infrastructure.

According to BofA, this shift provides “faster response time, better privacy and lower cloud infra costs.” The base M5 launched in October, followed by the Pro and Max versions in …

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La Rosa Holdings (NASDAQ:LRHC) shares are down on Friday in a volatile trading session. The company announced the upcoming release of its My Agent Account 5.0 platform, which aims to enhance transaction management through advanced AI capabilities.

This news comes as the broader market saw gains on Thursday, with the S&P 500 futures rising 1.47%, indicating that the decline may be driven by company-specific factors.

La Rosa Holdings unveiled My Agent Account 5.0, a platform designed to streamline transaction functions and improve operational efficiency, with a public release expected in Fall 2026.

This initiative reflects the company’s strategy to integrate technology into its brokerage operations, aiming to enhance agent …

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President Donald Trump‘s claim that he is “permanently opening” the Strait of Hormuz sent Polymarket peace deal odds surging on Friday, with traders repricing a potential US-Iran agreement by 28 to 43 percentage points across every major deadline.

But the market still isn’t buying the “permanently” framing: traders give just 41% odds of a permanent deal by April 22, the day the current ceasefire expires.

Cash-For-Uranium Plan Drives Repricing

The repricing tracks a scoop from Axios reporting the U.S. and Iran are negotiating over a three-page memorandum of understanding to end the war, with a central element being a $20 billion release of frozen Iranian funds in exchange for Tehran giving up its enriched uranium stockpile.

U.S. negotiators started at $6 billion for humanitarian purchases; Iran asked for $27 billion.

Trump pushed back on Truth Social after the story published, writing …

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Dogecoin (CRYPTO: DOGE) is up 6% after closing above $0.10 for the first time in weeks as Dogecoin Cash Inc. announced it is developing Dogecoin Gold, a planned token that would link digital assets to physical gold reserves.

Dogecoin Cash Announces Gold-Backed Token Plan

Dogecoin Cash Inc. proposed a framework where one billion tokens would equal one gram of physical gold. 

The system would create tokens only when gold enters custody and remove them from circulation upon verified redemption.

“We are evaluating a framework that seeks to integrate verifiable ownership of physical gold with blockchain-based auditability and precision,” management said in a statement.

“The objective is to determine whether a system can be structured in which real-world assets, mathematically defined units, and transparent digital infrastructure operate within a disciplined and verifiable environment,” they added

The initiative remains in the development phase with no tokens issued or timeline …

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Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) is up 5% after breaking above the descending trendline that defined the entire bear trend from $128,000, setting up short-squeeze conditions.

The 46-Day Short Streak

The last time this squeeze happened was November to December 2022 during the FTX collapse.

“Traders are actively building short positions and betting against a breakout, creating conditions where a short squeeze becomes more likely if upward momentum persists,” said Vetle Lunde, head of research at K33.

If prices keep climbing, traders who bet against the rally face mounting losses that can force them to buy back positions all at once, sending prices sharply higher in a cascading short squeeze. The longer the standoff persists, the bigger the potential unwind.

The Wall Street Push

Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) filed for a Bitcoin ETF this week, its first direct push …

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XRP (CRYPTO: XRP) has gained roughly 10% over the past week, with traders increasingly pointing to a potential breakout as price compression continues higher timeframes.

Price Structure Compressed

In a Apr.16 podcast, Trader Cryptoinsightuk said XRP is forming a “compressed” structure, a pattern that often precedes sharp volatility expansions. While short-term weakness in Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) remains a possibility, he argued that XRP’s broader setup is increasingly significant.

He says this compression, combined with several weekly indicators, is unusually significant.

Based on historical cycle behavior, he suggested XRP …

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U.S. stocks were higher, with the Dow Jones index gaining around 700 points on Friday.

Shares of Autoliv Inc (NYSE:ALV) rose sharply after the company reported better-than-expected first-quarter financial results.

Autoliv reported quarterly earnings of $2.05 per share which beat the analyst consensus estimate of $1.89 per share. The company reported quarterly sales of $2.753 billion which beat the analyst consensus estimate of $2.605 billion.

Autoliv shares jumped 8.4% to $120.77 on Friday.

Here are some other big stocks recording gains in today’s session.

  • Critical Metals Corp (NASDAQ:CRML) shares jumped 30.4% to $12.08 following reports suggesting the company raised its stake in Greenland’s Tanbreez rare earth deposit.
  • American Bitcoin Corp (NASDAQ:ABTC) gained 22.5% to $1.38. American Bitcoin will release financial results for the first quarter of 2026 after the market closes on May 6.
  • mF International Limited (NASDAQ:MFI) gained 20% to $12.95.
  • Beyond Meat Inc (NASDAQ:BYND) jumped 16.6% to $0.91.
  • Rackspace Technology, Inc.

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Faraday Future Intelligent Electric Inc. (NASDAQ:FFAI) shares are up on Friday, gaining traction after California State Treasurer Fiona Ma visited the company’s headquarters.

The visit highlighted the firm’s EAI robotics and electric vehicle initiatives, which may be contributing to the stock’s positive movement as broader markets experienced mixed results on Thursday, with the Nasdaq rising 0.21% and the S&P 500 gaining 0.27%.

During the visit, Treasurer Ma unveiled the FF EAI Robotics Education & Innovation Lab, marking a significant step for Faraday Future in its goal to enhance EAI education in California.

The event also included discussions on expanding access to public procurement channels for Faraday’s products, indicating strong support from state officials for the company’s initiatives.

Technical Analysis

Faraday Future is currently trading within its 52-week range, with a high of $3.61 and a low of 21 cents. The stock …

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Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) released first-quarter financial results and hosted an earnings call on Friday. Read the complete transcript below.

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Access the full call at https://events.q4inc.com/attendee/920732669

Summary

Fifth Third Bancorp reported strong financial results with earnings per share of $0.83, excluding certain items, and revenue reaching $2.9 billion, a 33% increase year-over-year.

The company’s acquisition of Comerica, which closed on February 1, 2026, is progressing ahead of schedule, with expected net cost savings of $360 million this year and an $850 million annual run rate by the fourth quarter.

Fifth Third Bancorp’s credit performance remained stable, with net charge-offs at 37 basis points, and improved metrics in NPAs and criticized assets.

The commercial segment saw healthy growth with C&I loan balances up 6%, driven by manufacturing and construction sectors, while consumer and small business loans grew 7%, led by auto and home equity loans.

The company plans to open new branches and expand its market presence in Texas, Arizona, and California, with an emphasis on leveraging digital marketing channels post the technology conversion scheduled for Labor Day weekend.

Management remains optimistic about achieving its 2027 financial targets, with a focus on sustaining strong returns on equity and efficiency ratios, and plans to resume share repurchases in the second half of 2026.

Full Transcript

Audra (Conference Operator)

Good morning, My name is Audra and I will be your conference operator today. At this time I would like to welcome everyone to the first quarter 2026 Fifth Third Bancorp earnings conference call. Today’s conference is being recorded. All lines have been placed on mute to prevent any background noise. After the speaker’s remarks, there will be a question and answer session. If you’d like to ask a question during this time, simply press the star key followed by the number one on your telephone keypad. If you would like to withdraw your question, press star one again. At this time I would like to turn the conference over to Matt Kirow, Director of Investor Relations. Please go ahead.

Matt Kirow (Director of Investor Relations)

Good morning everyone. Welcome to Fifth Third First Quarter 2026 Earnings Call. This morning our Chairman, CEO and President Tim Spence and CFO Brian Preston will provide an overview of our first quarter results and outlook. Please review the cautionary statements in our materials which can be found in our earnings release and presentation. These materials contain information regarding the use of non GAAP measures and reconciliations to the GAAP results, as well as forward looking statements about Fifth Third’s performance. These statements speak only as of April 17, 2026 and Fifth Third undertakes no obligation to update them. Following prepared remarks by Tim and Brian, we’ll open up the call for questions. With that, let me turn it over

Tim Spence (Chairman, CEO and President)

to Tim Good morning everyone and thanks for joining us today. At Fifth Third, we believe great banks distinguish themselves based on how they perform in uncertain environments, not in benign ones. We prioritize stability, profitability and growth in that order. We deliver them by finding ways to get 1% better every day while investing meaningfully in the future. Today we reported earnings per share of $0.15 or $0.83, excluding certain items outlined on page 2 of the release. Results reflect the February 1 closing of the Comericaa acquisition. Revenue was $2.9 billion, up 33% year over year and adjusted net income was $734 million, up 38%. Credit performance was in line with expectations with net charge offs at 37 basis points. Both NPAs and criticized assets improved modestly in the quarter we closed the largest M&A transaction in fifth thirds history. We delivered an adjusted return on assets of 1.12% and an adjusted return on tangible common equity of 13.7%. Our tangible common equity ratio rose to 7.3% and tangible book value per share increased 1%. We are the only bank among our peers who have reported to date to increase both of these key metrics during the quarter. Fifth Third legacy strategies are continuing to produce broad based growth while we execute the Comericaa integration on plan and on schedule. In Commercial Legacy Fifth Third CNI loan balances grew 6% year over year. Production remained healthy with the strongest activity in manufacturing and construction supported by reshoring and infrastructure investment. New client acquisition more than doubled led by our southeast markets and 35% of new clients were fee led with no extension of credit. Importantly, our commercial loan growth continues to come from relationship based lending and not from non relationship sources. In commercial payments, Newline continued to scale with revenue up 30% and deposits up $2.7 billion year over year. During the quarter, Plaid launched a new payment product built on Newline, joining other marquee clients like Stripe and Circle, and we advanced preparations for the second quarter launch of a new Direct Express platform. In consumer the Legacy Fifth Third franchise delivered 3% household growth and 4% DDA balance growth. Southeast households grew 8% led by Georgia and the Carolinas, and we opened 10 additional branches in the region during the quarter. Consumer and small business loans grew 7% led by auto home equity and and our provide fintech platform. Now turning to Comericaa thanks to timely regulatory approvals, we closed earlier than originally expected on February 1 and have continued to make progress at an accelerated pace. Our top priority is our people and we’re working hard to become one team. Since Legal Day One leaders have been on the ground in Comericaa’s major markets nearly every week and we visited every branch in the Comericaa Network. We’ve also hosted product showcases to highlight the breadth of our combined capabilities. Organizational design and leadership decisions are complete and I’m very excited about the caliber of our combined team on technology. We remain on track to convert all systems over Labor Day weekend with our first full mock conversion later this month. As a result, we remain confident that we will deliver $360 million of net cost savings this year and reach an $850 million annual run rate by the fourth quarter. We’re also already building a strong pipeline of revenue synergies in commercial we’re seeing early wins by bringing capital markets payments and specialty lending to existing relationships. In the first 60 days, our capital markets team completed fuels and metals commodity hedges and executed an accelerated share repurchase for Comericaa clients. We also booked our first Comericaa to Fifth Third loan win in asset based lending, while Fifth Third referrals helped to build the largest ever pipeline in Comericaa’s national dealer services business. Commercial Payments has presented our managed services solutions to over 100 Comericaa clients with 65 of them interested in moving forward in consumer we launched our first Comericaa branded deposit campaign in Texas in February. Response rates and average opening balances were broadly consistent with results that we generate in our legacy Fifth Third markets and nearly half of new savings customers also opened a checking account. We’ve hired more than half of the mortgage loan officers and auto dealer representatives that we plan to add this year in Comericaa’s footprint and pipelines in each of those businesses. We’ll open our first Fifth Third branded branches in Dallas and Fresno this month. And we now have letters of intent in place or in progress for 81 of our targeted 150 de novo branches in Texas. As I wrote in our annual letter to shareholders, the global economy is a complex, adaptive system, and such systems react to change in unexpected ways. We’re closely evaluating the direct impacts of the war in Iran on energy and other commodities, as well as the implications for prices, interest rates and customer activity in an environment where we may not see the macro tailwinds that many expected at the start of the year. The Comericaa merger expands Fifth Third organic opportunity set, but we do not need a perfect backdrop to deliver on our commitments. Before I turn it over to Brian, I want to take a moment to say thank you to our colleagues. Earlier this month we surpassed 300 billion in total assets for the the first time, an important milestone that reflects the work we do together to serve customers, support communities and show up for one another. I know many of you are putting in extra effort to support the integration, whether that’s helping customers, learning new products, meeting new teammates or navigating change. Your commitment to getting 1% better every day, and your dedication to our clients and to each other is what gives me confidence in what we’re building and and the opportunities ahead. With that, Brian will provide more detail on the quarter and the outlook.

Brian Preston (Chief Financial Officer)

Thanks Tim and good morning. Our first quarter results reflect the strength of what we have built and the discipline with which we are executing. Results exceeded our March expectations, driven by stronger nii, disciplined expense management and integration. Execution on plan adjusted Return on Assets (ROA) was 1.12% and adjusted Return on Tangible Common Equity (ROTCE) excluding AOCI was 13.7%. The Comerica acquisition closed without tangible book value. Dilution and Tangible Book Value (TBV) per share grew 1% sequentially and 15% year over year. The earnings power of the combined company is intact and the integration is on track. Given the magnitude of the acquisition standard year over year and sequential comparisons obscure more than they reveal this quarter, what matters is how we exit a larger, more granular loan portfolio, a lower cost deposit base and larger diversified fee income businesses. Each of those is a deliberate outcome and each positions us to generate stronger and more durable returns as the integration delivers. Now diving further into the income statement starting with net interest income (NII) and the balance sheet, net interest income was $1.94 billion for the quarter above our March expectations. Net interest margin expanded 17 basis points to 330 basis points driven by the impacts of the Comerica acquisition that includes 7 basis points from securities portfolio marks and repositioning, 6 basis points from cash flow hedge termination and 2 basis points from purchase accounting accretion on the loan portfolio. A full quarter of these impacts will benefit NIM by a few additional basis points in the second quarter, end of period loans were $178 billion, up 2% sequentially from pro forma combined year end balances. Average total loans were 158 billion, reflecting the February 1 close. The growth was broad based. Strong middle market production, a rebound in line utilization and continued momentum in home equity auto and a provide fintech platform in commercial line utilization ended the quarter at 40.7%, up approximately 120 basis points from the pro forma combined year end level and notably held steady throughout the volatility in March. Clients are cautious but active on a legacy 5th 3rd basis. Commercial loans grew 6% year over year. Combined with the Comerica addition, shared national credits now represent only 26% of total loans, a deliberate and ongoing reduction in concentration risk. On the consumer side, first quarter auto originations were the highest in two years with average indirect secured balances up 10% year over year. Home equity balances grew substantially supported by both the acquisition and strong underlying production. We achieved the number one HELOC origination market share in our legacy 5th 3rd branch footprint with an average portfolio FICO of 773 and average loan to value of 64%. The production strength is real and the credit discipline behind it is equally real. Turning to deposits, Average core deposits were 207 billion and end of period core deposits were 231 billion dollars. Non interest bearing balances comprised 28% of core deposits at quarter end, up from 25% at the same point last year. That improvement reflects the combined benefit of Comerica’s commercial DDA franchise and our continued organic consumer DDA growth. The household growth Tim described is showing up directly in our funding costs. On a legacy 5 third basis, consumer household growth of 3% over last year supported 4% consumer DDA growth. Total deposit costs including the benefit of non interest bearing balances were 158 basis points in the first quarter, a funding cost profile that compares favorably across the peer group. Interest bearing deposit costs were 215 basis points, down 27 basis points year over year, reflecting both that organic deposit mix improvement and the benefit of the Comerica balance sheet. Despite the larger balance sheet, our approach to balance sheet management is unchanged. We prioritize granular insured deposit funding over large wholesale holds, we maintain strong liquidity buffers and we proactively managed the overall cost of funds. That discipline showed up again this quarter. Average wholesale funding declined 3% year over year even with Comerica balances included. That favorable mix shift lowered the cost of interest bearing liabilities by 36 basis points. We also maintained full category one Liquidity Coverage Ratio (LCR) compliance at 109% and a loan to core deposit ratio of 76%. Now turning to fees, adjusted noninterest income excluding securities losses and the other items listed on page four of our release was $921 million, slightly above the midpoint of our March expectations. The most significant milestone here is that both wealth and commercial payments are now generating fee income at the run rate necessary to deliver $1,000,000,000 each in annualized non interest income. That outcome reflects years of consistent disciplined investment in both businesses and the recurring nature of the revenue. Looking further at wealth, fees were $233 million and total AUM ended the quarter at 119 billion. Legacy 5 3rd AUM trends remained strong, up $10 billion or 15% over last year. 5th 3rd securities delivered strong retail brokerage results with revenue up 15% year over year. These are businesses that we have been consistently investing in and the returns are compounding. Commercial payment fees totaled 218 million for the quarter. Direct Express contributed $14 million in fees for the quarter and approximately $3.7 billion in average deposits for the month of March. Newline continues to drive strong fee growth of 30% year over year and related deposits reached $5.5 billion, up $2.7 billion from last year. Capital markets fees were $134 million, up 11%. Sequentially increased hedging activities and commodities and FX and strong bond underwriting fees combined with two months of Comerica activity were the primary drivers of this growth. Turning to expenses, page 5 of our release details certain items that had a larger impact on the non interest expense this quarter, primarily $635 million in merger related expenses. Adjusted noninterest expense was 1.77 billion. Consistent with our guidance, the adjusted efficiency ratio was 61.9%, which reflects the addition of Comerica and normal first quarter seasonality associated with the timing of compensation awards and payroll taxes. On the Synergy front, we remain confident in our ability to achieve the $850 million of annualized run rate cost savings in the fourth quarter of this year. Integration activities are progressing as planned against our established milestones and savings are being realized. The expense benefit will build steadily over the first three quarters of this year with a more significant increase in the fourth quarter once the system conversion and branch consolidations are completed in early September. Shifting to Credit the net charge off ratio was 37 basis points for the quarter, in line with our expectations and the lowest level in two years. The NPA ratio was 57 basis points compared to 65 basis points last quarter. Commercial net charge offs were 26 basis points, also a two year low with stable trends across industries and geographies. Consumer net charge offs were 58 basis points, down 5 basis points from last year. The consumer portfolio remains healthy with non accrual and over 90 delinquency rates relatively stable across all loan categories. We have been deliberate about where we choose to grow. Our exposure to non depository financial institutions represents only 7% of our total loan portfolio, well below the industry average. Our three largest categories are subscription lines, supporting capital call facilities, corporate credit facilities to traditional institutions such as payment processors, insurance companies and brokerage firms, and secured lending to residential mortgage related entities. These are long standing portfolios. We have deep underwriting expertise in each of them, strong collateral visibility and structural protections where needed, including borrowing base requirements and advance rates that provide significant loss absorption before we would recognize a dollar of loss on private credit. We have chosen not to participate meaningfully in lending to private credit vehicles and business development companies which combined represent less than 1% of total loans. That was a deliberate decision, not a missed opportunity. The structural complexity embedded in these exposures introduces risks that are harder to assess through a cycle. We would rather grow in categories where we have more transparency to the collateral and have direct relationships with the underlying borrowers. On software and data center lending, we have maintained that same disciplined posture. We believe in the long term demand for AI infrastructure, but we have also seen how quickly these build cycles can overshoot. We have remained selective and our exposure is intentionally limited. Software related exposures is less than 1% of total loans with the portfolio performing in line with expectations with no material migration in the quarter. ACL as a percentage of portfolio loans and leases decreased to 1.79%, primarily reflecting the Comerica acquisition. The ACL as a percentage of non performing assets increased to 316%. Provision expense included $83 million for merger related day one ACL build. Our baseline and downside cases assume unemployment reaching 4.5 and 8.5% respectively in 2027. We made no changes to our macroeconomic scenario weightings during the quarter, though a qualitative adjustment was applied to reflect the direct impacts of the elevated energy and commodity costs as well as the broader implications for economic growth, inflation and unemployment in the current geopolitical environment. Moving to capital CET1 ended at 10% reflecting the impact of the Comerica transaction and strong RWA growth under the proposed capital rule. Our estimated fully phased in pro forma CET1 ratio is 9.6%. The RWA benefit to capital ratios associated with the new rule is nearly 100 basis point improvement primarily due to credit risk RWA reduction. The proposed rule recognizes the granular, well secured and relationship based nature of our loan portfolio, the same portfolio characteristics we have been deliberately building toward over the past several years. The proposed rule should expand the ability of the banking industry to support the economy through increased lending capacity. Additionally, our tangible common equity ratio including the impact of AOCI and the Comeric acquisition increased to 7.3% over the last 12 months. The impact of unrealized losses included in regulatory capital under the proposed rule has decreased by 16%, a 25 basis point improvement to the pro forma capital ratios despite an 11 basis point increase in the 10 year treasury rate. That is the direct result of our strategy to concentrate our AFS portfolio in securities that return principal on a known schedule which represents approximately 55% of the fixed rate holdings within our AFS portfolio. We expect continued improvement in the unrealized losses as the securities pulled apart. Moving to our Current Outlook Our outlook reflects the forward curve at the end of March which assumes no rate cuts or hikes in 2026. Given the updated rate outlook and our more asset sensitive balance sheet, we are updating our full year net interest income (NII) outlook to a range between 8.7 and $8.8 billion. We will continue to take actions to move the balance sheet to a more neutral rate risk position over time which could include investment portfolio and or other hedging actions. Our outlook for full year average total loans remains in the mid $170 billion range. Full year non interest income is expected to be between 4.0 and $4.2 billion reflecting continued revenue growth in commercial payments, capital markets and wealth and asset management. Full year non interest expense is expected to be 7.2 to $7.3 billion, including the impact of $210 million of CDI amortization and $360 million of net expense synergies in 2026. This outlook excludes acquisition related charges. In total, our guide implies full year adjusted PP and R including CDI amortization up approximately 40% over 2025. We remain on track to exit 2026 at or near the profitability and efficiency levels consistent with our 2027 targets. For credit. We expect full year net charge offs between 30 and 40 basis points. Turning to Capital with the release of the proposed Capital Rule, we are updating our CET1 operating target to a range of 10 to 10.5%. We expect to resume regular quarterly share repurchases in the second half of 2026 with the amount and timing dependent on the balance sheet growth and the timing of the remaining merger related charges. Our capital return priorities are unchanged. Pay a strong dividend, support …

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A week before Tesla Inc.’s (NASDAQ:TSLA) Q1 earnings, Elon Musk posted a photo of what he said was the first physical sample of the company’s AI5 processor, the chip meant to power future self-driving cars, Optimus robots, and potentially xAI data centers.

TSLA has ripped 14% since last Friday’s close, clawing back a chunk of a year-to-date decline that had reached 23% after the Q1 delivery miss.

The question for traders is whether the rally is a pre-earnings short squeeze or the start of a new narrative leg.

A Half-Reticle Chip And A 40X Claim

The image Musk shared shows an ASIC die roughly half the size of a standard reticle, ringed by 12 SK hynix memory packages, most likely GDDR6 or GDDR7, according to Tom’s Hardware. Twelve packages suggest a 384-bit memory interface.

Musk has claimed AI5 could be up to 40 times …

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On Friday, Ally Financial (NYSE:ALLY) discussed first-quarter financial results during its earnings call. The full transcript is provided below.

This content is powered by Benzinga APIs. For comprehensive financial data and transcripts, visit https://www.benzinga.com/apis/.

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Summary

Ally Financial reported a significant increase in adjusted EPS to $1.11, up 90% year-over-year, and a core ROTCE of 11.1%, indicating strong financial performance.

The company emphasized its Focusforge strategy, highlighting its success in doubling down on key business segments, resulting in record application flow and origination volumes with risk-adjusted returns.

Ally Financial remains optimistic about its future outlook, projecting sustainable upper 3% net interest margins and maintaining confidence in its ability to deliver mid-teens ROTCE despite a dynamic macroeconomic environment.

Operational highlights include record written premium volume in insurance, strong growth in corporate finance with a 26% ROE, and continued expansion of its digital bank customer base.

Management expressed confidence in capital allocation priorities, supported by a favorable Basel III proposal, and noted the company’s ability to balance growth, capital build, and shareholder returns.

Full Transcript

OPERATOR

Good day and thank you for standing by. Welcome to the first quarter 2026 Ally Financial Earnings Conference Call. At this time all participants are in a listen only mode. After the speakers’ presentation, there will be a question and answer session. To ask a question during the session,, you’ll need to press star 11 on your telephone. You will then hear an automated message advising your hand is raised to withdraw your question. Please press star 11 again. Please note that today’s conference is being recorded. I’d now like to hand the conference over to Sean Leary, Chief Financial Planning and Investor Relations Officer. Please go ahead.

Sean Leary (Chief Financial Planning and Investor Relations Officer)

Thank you. Good morning and welcome to Ally Financial’s first quarter 2026 earnings call. This morning our CEO Michael Rhodes and our CFO Russ Hutchinson will review Ally’s results before taking questions. The presentation we’ll reference can be found on the Investor Relations section of our website, ally.com. Forward-looking statements and risk factor language governing today’s call are on page two. GAAP and non-GAAP measures pertaining to our operating performance and capital results are on page three. As a reminder, non GAAP or core metrics are supplemental to and not a substitute for U.S. GAAP measures, definitions and reconciliations can be found in the appendix. And with that I’ll turn the call over to Michael.

Michael Rhodes (Chief Executive Officer)

Thank you Sean and good morning everyone. I appreciate you joining us today for our our first quarter earnings call. In the last update I noted my optimism for the path ahead one quarter into 2026. Our results confirm we’re on the right path and support my confidence in our outlook even as the macro environment remains dynamic. That confidence is grounded in the position of strength we carried into the year, driven by the actions to focus our business, streamline our operations and increase our capital levels. The focus-forward strategy we rolled out last year is simple and powerful. Focused means we’re doubling down on the businesses and segments where we have clear competitive advantages. These are areas where we have long standing relationships, differentiated capabilities, relevant scale and a right to win. Forward reflects our ambition to create something extraordinary and sustainable from a position of strength. Together these principles have allowed us to streamline and sharpen our focus, building a business that is increasingly impactful and enduring. The results since our refresh last year provide unmistakable evidence it’s working. Record application flow has enabled strong origination volume with accretive risk adjusted returns. Record written premium volume as we continue to leverage our insurance offering to deepen dealer relationships and help them win across their entire ecosystem. Strong growth across the corporate finance portfolio while delivering an ROE of over 25% and maintain an unwavering focus on credit risk and reinforce our position as the nation’s leading all digital direct bank as we continue to grow customers and increase engagement providing stable, cost efficient funding. The progress is real and we remain committed to delivering even more. With that, let me cover some of the highlights from our first quarter. Adjusted EPS of $1.11 was up 90% year over year. Core ROTCE of 11.1% was up 440 basis points versus 2025 reflecting the structurally high returns we’re capable of generating. Margin of 3.52% was impacted by the lease headwinds we discussed last quarter, but we remain confident in our ability to deliver a sustainable upper 3% margin. The final lever of our mid teens thesis. Adjusted net revenue of 2.2 billion was up 6% year over year and 12% when adjusting for the sale of credit card. Finally, CET1 of 10.1% was up roughly 60 basis points year over year. We’re encouraged by the thoughtful Basel III proposal released a few weeks ago and the clarity it provides. We appreciate the agency’s efforts to modernize the capital rules and achieve a more streamlined framework that better aligns capital requirements with the risks inherent in our business. Specific to Ally, I view the proposal as being constructive and supporting our existing capital allocation priorities. We remain confident in our ability to identify accretive opportunities for organic growth in our business, build CET1, and return capital to shareholders. The strategy is amplified by our brand and our culture. Our brand is an asset, one known for authenticity and impact. Earlier this week we announced that we met our 50/50 media pledge to spend equally in men’s and women’s sports. That’s a year ahead of schedule and clear proof of the impact we can make. Women’s sports have been experiencing remarkable growth in recent years and we’re incredibly proud to partner with and support those shaping the evolution. The business outcomes of these investments have been encouraging. With our brand health at an all time high and customer retention continuing to lead the industry, our culture is based on an unwavering commitment to do it right and establishes an ethos for everything we do. In the first quarter, we were honored to be named to Fortune’s 100 Best Companies to Work for, the highest ranking we’ve received and the fourth consecutive year being recognized. Additionally, Newsweek included Ally on their list of the most trusted companies. These recognitions reflect the kind of culture and customer centricity our team builds every day. What mattered even more was hearing directly from our teammates. Over 90% said that Ally is a great place to work and saw meaningful gains in trust and leadership and confidence in where we are headed. That tells me our strategy is resonating. We’re aligned, focused and executing in a way that employees can resonate with. That alignment is energizing. The momentum is real and I am excited for what lies ahead with that. Let’s turn to page five and discuss the Core Franchises Operational momentum within each of our core franchises remains strong, builds on the progress we delivered in 2025 and positions us for further improvement in financial performance. Our dealer centric through the cycle approach remains a key differentiator, driving results across dealer financial services and reinforcing the strength of our relationships. 4.4 million applications reflect another record quarter. The scale and breadth of our product offerings and mutually beneficial dealer relationships remain key strategic advantages that drive strong application flow and enable us to be selective in what we originate. The strength at the top of the funnel translate into solid origination performance with consumer originations of $11.5 billion up 13% year over year despite a decline in industry, light vehicle sales and healthy competition. Importantly, with a focus on risk adjusted returns, we are mindful of the economic environment and maintain a dynamic approach to underwriting. The benefit of the strong application flow extends beyond originations as we saw record volume and revenue from our pass through programs this quarter. Insurance is a critical lever contributing to the success of our dealer partners and our ability to win. That strength is translating to results. With written premium of $389 million marking a first quarter record for Ally, growth continues to be fueled by leveraging synergies with the auto finance team as we highlight our all in value proposition to support dealers across all aspects of their business. In corporate finance, we delivered a 26% ROE while growing the portfolio to $13.7 billion up roughly 6% quarter over quarter. While we continue to see accretive growth opportunities, credit remains central to how we operate. As we’ve cited previously, we serve as the lead agent for virtually all transactions, giving us the ability to own the diligence, process, underwrite and structure transactions appropriately. Turning to Ally bank, our customer first approach sets us apart as we continue to benefit from the shift to digital channels. We ended the quarter with $146 billion in retail deposit balances, reinforcing our position as the largest all digital direct bank in the us. Our focus remains on providing best in class products and services to drive customer growth and retention. We saw an improvement in customer acquisition the first quarter and over the past year we delivered 6% customer growth. We see meaningful opportunity to continue deepening relationships with 3.5 million customers as we look to provide value extending beyond rate paid. The strength and stability of the portfolio remains critical to our success. Retail deposits continue to represent nearly 90% of total funding and 92% are FDIC insured. The franchise provides stable, low cost funding source that enables our business to focus on prudent growth. Let me finish where I opened up and that’s with optimism. Our path ahead is clear and compelling. Our core franchises are delivering and returns are moving higher. I’m encouraged by the progress and momentum and while mindful of the dynamic operating environment, I’m optimistic for what remains ahead. And with that I’ll turn it over to Russ to walk through the financials in more detail.

Russ Hutchinson (Chief Financial Officer)

Thank you Michael. I’ll begin by walking through first quarter performance on slide 6. Net financing revenue excluding OID, of $1.6 billion was up 8% year over year and up 15% when excluding the credit card business in the prior year. We continue to benefit from strong performance across our core franchises, ongoing optimization of the balance sheet toward higher yielding assets and our disciplined approach to deposit pricing. Adjusted other revenue of $572 million in the first quarter was flat year over year despite an approximately $25 million headwind due to the sale of the credit card business. This momentum reflects the strength of our diversified revenue streams which include insurance, smart auction and our pass through programs. Adjusted provision expense of $474 million was down $23 million year over year, largely driven by continued improvement in retail auto NCOs and the exit from the credit card business. Retail auto NCOs declined 15 basis points year over year to 1.97%. Adjusted non interest expense of $1.2 billion was down $85 million year over year, demonstrating our continued commitment to cost discipline as well as reflecting the sale of the credit card business and historically elevated weather losses in March of last year. Let’s move to slide 7 to discuss margin in detail. Net interest margin excluding OID, was 3.52% as repricing of floating rate exposures and lower lease yields were offset by lower deposit costs. Retail auto portfolio yield excluding the impact from hedges was flat sequentially consistent with the expectations noted in January. Lease Yield included a $10 million loss on lease terminations given the headwinds on select plug in hybrids we noted in January. We assessed depreciation rates quarterly, and we accelerated depreciation on certain leases maturing in the near term primarily due to these impacted models. As a reminder, we expect our lease termination mix will start to shift next year. Approximately half of the leases we originated over the past two years have OEM residual value guarantees, while the other half reflect a more diversified mix of OEMs. This will continue to reduce lease gain and loss volatility over time. On the liability side, cost of funds decreased 9 basis points quarter over quarter, largely driven by a 9 basis point decrease in deposit costs. Retail deposit balances increased $2.6 billion and we added 74,000 net new customers, clear proof our brand and products resonate in the market. We remain disciplined on pricing through a key growth period, but given the strength of the portfolio, we were able to reduce liquid saving rates by 10 basis points in February, bringing our cumulative beta to 57%. While not reflected in 1Q results, we just reduced liquid savings another 10 basis points, bringing our cumulative beta to 63%. Additionally, CD maturities remain a tailwind with approximately $18 billion in maturities in the first half of 2026, carrying a weighted average yield of nearly 4%. Looking ahead, we anticipate a decline in 2Q retail deposit balances given seasonal tax payments. Our focus remains on customer growth trends and optimizing overall cost of funds. Average earning assets were up 2% year over year. Importantly, growth continues to be concentrated in our highest returning assets retail, auto and corporate finance. Those portfolios in aggregate were up 6% year over year. Momentum across the balance sheet supports my conviction in our path to a sustainable upper 3s margin over time across a variety of rate environments. Turning to page 8, CET1 of 10.1% was up approximately 60 basis points versus the prior year. Like Michael, I’m appreciative of our regulators thoughtful approach to the revised Basel proposals and and the clarity they provide. I look forward to continued engagement throughout the comment period. The proposal’s improved alignment between capital requirements and fundamental risk in our business is encouraging. Relative to current headline CET1 of 10.1%, the revised standardized approach would produce a CET1 ratio just above 9% when fully phasing in AOCI. That is nearly 100 basis points higher than where we would have landed under the 2023 proposal. In addition to the standardized approach, we continue to evaluate the expanded risk based framework. As Michael noted, the proposals indicate a favorable outcome for Ally and our capital allocation priorities remain the same. We look forward to continuing to drive accretive growth in our core franchises, build capital support our dividend and repurchase shares earlier this week we announced a quarterly, dividend of $0.30 for the second quarter of 2026, which remains consistent with the prior quarter and we repurchased shares worth $147 million. Our open ended buyback authorization continues to provide flexibility enabling us to remain dynamic in any given quarter as buybacks complement the rest of our capital allocation framework. At the end of the quarter, adjusted tangible book value per share reached an all time high of $41, up nearly 14% over the past year and reflecting our ability to concurrently increase book value and returns. On slide 9, we will review asset quality trends. Consolidated net charge offs of 121 basis points were down 13 basis points versus the prior quarter and down 29 basis points year over year. Strength across our commercial portfolios continues to complement favorable trends in retail auto. Retail auto net charge offs of 197 basis points were down 17 basis points quarter over quarter and down 15 basis points compared to a year ago. 1Q marked the fifth consecutive quarter of year over year improvement in NCOs as we benefited from particularly strong used vehicle prices and record low flow to loss rates. On the top right of the page 30 all in delinquencies of 4.6% were down 17 basis points from the prior year, marking the fourth consecutive quarter of year over year improvement on an all in basis. Industry data has shown that tax refunds increased roughly 11% year over year versus some earlier expectations for increases above 20%. Notwithstanding the increase in tax refunds and a dynamic macro delinquency followed what we would consider to be a typical seasonal pattern during the quarter. We’ve continued to see a resilient consumer, but given the evolving backdrop, we feel it’s appropriate to remain measured. Turning to the bottom of the page on reserves, Consolidated coverage decreased 1 basis point this quarter to 2.53% given mix dynamics, while the retail auto coverage rate was flat at 3.75%. Retail auto coverage levels continue to balance favorable credit results within our portfolio against macroeconomic uncertainty across our commercial portfolios. Credit performance remains strong with stable fundamentals. We continue to see accretive growth opportunities, but risk adjusted returns remain our focus. We’ll remain disciplined on both underwriting and pricing as growth is assessed through a credit first lens. Moving to Slide 10 to review auto segment highlights pretax income of $336 million was lower year over year due mainly to CECL reserve build on the bottom …

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RTX Corporation (NYSE:RTX) shares are up during Friday’s session as the company has launched new maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) services for its PT6C-67C and PW127XT engine families at its Singapore facility.

This expansion aims to enhance support for helicopter and regional turboprop operators in the Asia Pacific region, which is crucial as the company seeks to meet rising demand for localized maintenance solutions. New maintenance services are expected to reduce turnaround times and bolster the company’s competitive edge in the region.

Pratt & Whitney Canada, a business unit of RTX, has delivered over 3,000 PT6C-67C engines, accumulating more than 10 million flight hours. The new capabilities at the Singapore facility will include full overhauls supported by a modular test cell, enhancing the existing MRO capabilities for the PW100 family, which has seen over 220 million flight hours globally.

Airbus EASA Certification

Meanwhile, Pratt & Whitney’s GTF Advantage-powered Airbus A320neo family aircraft has received EASA certification, clearing the way for entry into service.

The engine was previously certified by the FAA in February 2025 and validated by EASA in October 2025. GTF Advantage delivers 4–8% more thrust, improved range and payload, and up to double time on wing.

It will become the production standard by …

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Arrive AI Inc. (NASDAQ:ARAI) stock is retreating Friday morning. The decline follows a week of intense price swings for the autonomous delivery firm. Shares are cooling off after a brief rally and a subsequent sharp reversal.

Nasdaq futures are up 0.92% while S&P 500 futures have gained 0.82%.

Mixed Earnings Results

The company released its fourth-quarter 2025 earnings on Wednesday. Arrive AI reported quarterly revenue of approximately $15,000. Full-year revenue reached about $113,000. Both figures stemmed …

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Prologis Inc. (NYSE:PLD) on Thursday reported better-than-expected first-quarter funds from operations and raised its full-year 2026 outlook.

Rental and other revenue totaled $2.137 billion, missing the analyst consensus estimate of $2.212 billion.

Core funds from operations rose to $1.50 per share from $1.42 a year earlier, beating the consensus estimate of $1.49. Earnings per share increased to $1.05 from $0.63 in the prior-year quarter.

Prologis shares traded at $142.45 on Friday.

These analysts made changes to their price targets on Prologis following earnings announcement.

  • BTIG …

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The leading solar module maker’s loss more than tripled in the fourth quarter of last year, as its gross margin barely managed to stay positive

image credit: Bamboo Works

Key Takeaways:

  • JinkoSolar’s revenue fell 15% in the fourth quarter, easing from a 34% decline in the previous quarter
  • The solar products maker forecast its shipments would continue to fall this year, as its new CEO called 2026 a “transition year”

Record gold prices may be getting all the attention in commodities headlines lately, but similarly spiking prices for silver have been causing headaches for solar companies these days. That factor nearly drove JinkoSolar Holding Co. Ltd. (NYSE:JKS)(688223.SH) back into the difficult position of spending more to produce each of its solar cells and modules than it could sell them for, just two quarters after its gross margin returned to positive territory.

The rising yuan, JinkoSolar’s home currency, also worked against the company’s gross margin, which dropped to just 0.3% in the fourth quarter of last year, well below the 7.3% in the third quarter and 2.9% in the second quarter, according to its latest results published on Thursday. Just as disheartening for investors, the company forecast its shipments would continue to decline this year, as its recently named CEO Cao Haiyun referred to 2026 as a “transition year.”

Adding to its woes, the company and its peers took a hit from April 1, as China officially cancelled its yearslong tax rebate policy for exported photovoltaic products. That policy previously dropped the value added tax that solar companies had to pay for their products to 9% for exports from the standard 13%.

That rebate policy was just one of many Chinese government subsidies designed to promote the industry’s development for years – something Western countries often complained about, saying it gave Chinese manufacturers an unfair advantage over global competitors. China is eliminating the export rebate policy as part of a broader campaign to wean its companies from reliance on government support and end a destructive price war that has plunged most manufacturers into the red in the last year.

JinkoSolar was typical of the group, reporting a massive …

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U.S. stocks traded higher this morning, with the Dow Jones index gaining over 600 points on Friday.

Following the market opening Friday, the Dow traded up 1.30% to 49,210.43 while the NASDAQ surged 1.05% to 24,355.28. The S&P 500 also rose, gaining, 0.74% to 7,093.54.

Leading and Lagging Sectors

Consumer discretionary shares climbed by 2% on Friday.

In trading on Friday, energy stocks fell by 4.5%.

Top Headline

Netflix Inc (NASDAQ:NFLX) shares dipped over 11% on Friday as the company reported better-than-expected financial results for the first quarter of 2026 after the market close on Thursday.

The company issued weak forecast for the second quarter and announced that chairman and co-founder Reed Hastings will not stand for re-election to the board when his term expires in June.

Equities Trading …

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Palantir Technologies Inc (NASDAQ:PLTR) shares are gaining momentum during Friday’s morning session. This follows a broader weekly rally where the stock jumped over 11%. Investor sentiment is shifting as macroeconomic and company-specific factors align.

Nasdaq futures are up 0.49% while S&P 500 futures have gained 0.49%.

Geopolitical Tensions Ease

Broader market optimism is fueling the move on the heels of a 10-day cease-fire agreement between Israeli forces and the militant group Hezbollah, which went into effect at midnight.

President Trump said on Friday that the U.S.’s naval blockade in the Strait of Hormuz will remain in place until a deal with Iran is reached.

Wall Street Defends Growth

Wedbush analyst Dan Ives recently defended the company against …

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Allbirds Inc (NASDAQ:BIRD) shares climbed Friday morning, following a week of massive price swings. The company recently announced it is abandoning the footwear business to pivot toward artificial intelligence infrastructure.

Nasdaq futures are up 0.32% while S&P 500 futures have gained 0.36%.

• Allbirds stock is charging ahead with explosive momentum. Why are BIRD shares rallying?

NewBird AI and Financing Details

The company signed a definitive agreement for a $50 million convertible financing facility. This supports a rebrand to NewBird AI. The firm will focus on GPU-as-a-Service and AI-native cloud solutions. This shift follows the sale of footwear assets to American Exchange Group.

Short …

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Top Wall Street analysts changed their outlook on these top names. For a complete view of all analyst rating changes, including upgrades and downgrades, please see our analyst ratings page.

  • Benchmark raised the price target for J B Hunt Transport Services Inc (NASDAQ:JBHT) from $230 to $250. Benchmark analyst Christopher Kuhn maintained a Buy rating. J B Hunt Transport shares closed at $238.32 on Thursday. See how other analysts view this stock.
  • Truist Securities cut US Bancorp (NYSE:USB) price target from $63 to $62. Truist Securities analyst John McDonald maintained a Buy rating. US Bancorp shares closed at $55.48 on Thursday. See how other analysts view this stock.
  • Truist Securities raised price target for Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN) from $280 to $285. Truist Securities analyst Youssef Squali maintained a Buy rating. Amazon shares closed at $249.70 on Thursday. See how other analysts view this stock.
  • Stephens & Co. slashed the price target for Domo Inc …

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Navitas Semiconductor Corp. (NASDAQ:NVTS) shares fell in Friday’s premarket trading, likely reflecting profit-taking after the stock surged more than 20% in the previous session.

The stock closed Friday at $12.37, up $2.11, or 20.57%.

Earlier this week, Navitas announced the appointment of Gregory Fischer to its board of directors.

Fischer brings more than four decades of industry experience, including his prior role as senior vice president at Broadcom Inc. (NASDAQ:AVGO).

Short Interest Data

Data shows that short interest recently decreased. Total shorted shares fell from 43.80 million to 43.48 million.

Currently, 25.11% of the float is held short. At average volumes, it would take 1.96 days for shorts to cover.

Technical Analysis

Navitas Semiconductor is currently trading 31.7% above its 20-day simple moving average (SMA) and 36.1% above its 100-day SMA, suggesting strong short-term momentum. The stock’s 12-month performance shows a remarkable gain of 579.67%, reflecting significant investor interest over the past year.

The relative strength index (RSI) is at 71.79, indicating that the stock is in …

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Economist Mohamed A. El-Erian has warned that a growing mismatch between debt supply and investor demand is building risks in U.S. bond markets and investors may not be pricing that in, as fiscal pressures intensify.

“We do have a developing fundamental imbalance between the amount of issuance we’re gonna see and the amount of money available to buy that issuance,” El-Erian said in a CNBC interview on Thursday.

Rising Issuance Meets Weakening Demand

The Wharton professor pointed to persistent deficits of around 6–7% of GDP, heavy refinancing needs and increased corporate borrowing as key drivers of supply, while demand is showing signs of strain.

“On the demand side, the money from the Middle East isn’t going to be there in the quantity that has been,” he said.

The U.S.-Israeli war on Iran, which began on February 28, has killed thousands of people and effectively closed the critical Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas transits, threatening the worst oil shock in history and roiling markets.

‘Doom loop’ Risk Emerges In Bond Markets

He warned …

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The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation (NYSE:BK) reported better-than-expected first-quarter 2026 results Thursday.

Diluted EPS rose 42% year over year to $2.24 from $1.58, while adjusted EPS of $2.25 topped estimates of $1.93. Total revenue increased 13% to a record $5.409 billion, exceeding estimates of $5.180 billion.

CEO Robin Vince said, “BNY had a strong start to 2026 with record revenue of $5.4 billion in the first quarter, up 13% year-over-year, reflecting broad-based growth across our Securities Services and Market and Wealth Services businesses.”

Bank of New York Mellon shares rose 0.1% to close at $134.84 on Thursday.

These analysts made changes …

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Truist Finl (NYSE:TFC) reported first-quarter financial results on Friday. The transcript from the company’s first-quarter earnings call has been provided below.

This content is powered by Benzinga APIs. For comprehensive financial data and transcripts, visit https://www.benzinga.com/apis/.

Access the full call at https://app.webinar.net/7W4qlGD2wzg

Summary

Truist Finl reported a net income available to common shareholders of $1.4 billion for Q1 2026, representing a 25% increase year-over-year.

The company’s strategic priorities focused on loan and fee growth, robust deposit engagements, and executing on their digital strategy, including AI enhancements.

Truist Finl aims for a ROTCE target of 14% in 2026 and 15% in 2027, with a long-term target of 16-18%, driven by profitability improvements and capital management.

Consumer and small business deposits and loans grew, supported by digital engagement and AI deployment, with digital users increasing significantly.

Wholesale banking saw strong growth in loans and deposits, particularly in new expansion markets, with solid performance in investment banking and trading.

The company anticipates 2-3% growth in net interest income for 2026, slightly revised due to expected unchanged federal rates, but maintains a strong non-interest income growth forecast.

Management commented on the strength of their investment banking business, highlighting its broad-based growth and connectivity with the core franchise.

Full Transcript

OPERATOR

Greetings ladies and gentlemen and welcome to the Truist Financial Corporation First Quarter 2026 Earnings Conference Call. Currently, all participants are in a listen only mode. A brief question and answer session will follow the formal presentation. As a reminder, this event is being recorded. It is now my pleasure to introduce your host, Mr. Brad Millsaps.

Brad Millsaps (Moderator)

Thank you Betsy and good morning everyone. Welcome to Truist’s first quarter 2026 earnings call. With us today are our chairman and CEO Bill Rogers, our CFO Mike McGuire and our chief Risk Officer Brad Bender, as well as other members of truist’s senior management team. During this morning’s call, they will discuss Truist’s first quarter 2026 results, share their perspectives on current business conditions and provide an updated outlook for 2026. The accompanying presentation as well as our earnings release and supplemental financial information are available on the TRUIST Investor relations website, ir.truist.com Our presentation today will include forward looking statements and certain non GAAP financial measures. Please review the disclosures on slides 2 and 3 of the presentation regarding these statements and measures as well as the appendix for appropriate reconciliations to gaap. With that, I will turn it over to Bill.

Bill Rogers (Chairman and CEO)

Thanks Brad Good morning everyone and thanks for joining our call today. Before we discuss our first quarter 2026 results, let’s begin as we always do, with purpose on slide 4. At Truist, our purpose is to inspire and build better lives and communities and one way we bring that to life is through the work we do every day for our clients. One example of this is our Project Finance business which is a client focused platform that provides financial advice and capital to help develop essential infrastructure that drives long term economic growth, job creation and stronger and better communities throughout our footprint in the United States. Our relationships with these clients have led to broad based franchise engagement which includes deposits, payments and lead roles in capital market transactions. From a financial perspective, there are aspects of this business that generate returns somewhat differently than our other businesses. A meaningful portion of this benefit is realized through reductions to our tax provision rather than reported revenue. Mike’s going to walk you through the impact of that later in the call, but this dynamic contributed to our lower tax provision in the first quarter, is a factor in our expected lower tax rate for 2026 compared to 2025. This though is a great example of how serving our clients and communities is true to our purpose and also drives strong financial outcomes for our shareholders. Now turning to our results on Slide 5. Before I get into the details of our first quarter, I want to spend a moment on the quality of what we’re delivering across the company and how we’re executing against our strategic priorities. What I’m most excited about this quarter is the underlying momentum we’re seeing. New client pipelines are growing, activity levels remain healthy, and we’re continuing to add talent and execute in the areas that matter most to our strategy of driving improvement in our profitability. During the quarter, we once again added new clients, deepened existing relationships and grew profitably in the business and products where we’re chosen to focus on. With loan growth coming from priority segments, fee growth driven by core client activity and stronger referrals and connectivity across the company, I can clearly say that we’re focused, we’re aligned and we’re executing well, which is evident in our first quarter results. As you can see on Slide 5, we delivered net income available to common shareholders of 1.4 billion or $1.09 per diluted share for the first quarter, which represents a 25% increase over the first quarter of last year. Earnings of $0.87 a share. Our performance was driven by continued execution against strategic priorities including growth in both consumer and wholesale loans along with strong non interest income growth led by our investment banking and wealth management businesses. Together those factors, along with our expense and credit discipline contributed to 250 basis points of year over year positive operating leverage in the quarter. As a result of this execution in managing our capital through share repurchases, our return on tangible common Equity improved by 150 basis points to 13.8% compared to the first quarter of 2025, representing meaningful progress towards our full year 2027 ROTC target of 15%. While we remain firmly on track to achieve this target, as I’ve said before, it’s not a ceiling for our company. The progress we’re seeing today across our company gives us confidence in our ability to drive profitability higher over time. With continued execution against our strategic priorities, continued capital return and the benefit of expected changes to the capital framework, we’re establishing a long term rotc target of 16 to 18%. Before I hand the call over to Mike to discuss quarterly results, I want to spend some time discussing the positive momentum we’re seeing within our business segments and with our digital strategy on slides six and seven. First, let me start with consumer and small business banking. DSBB delivered another solid quarter that was consistent with our expectations and strategy to drive profitability improvement across the enterprise. Average consumer and small business deposits and loans were up 1% and 4% respectively versus the first quarter of last year of 2025. Average loans declined modestly for the fourth quarter, which is consistent with normal seasonality and our goal of emphasizing growth in categories offering the most attractive risk adjusted returns. As you can see on the slide, Premier Banking was again a source of strength with both deposit and lending production up significantly, driven by deeper client engagement, advisor productivity and continued momentum in financial planning activity. Digital continues to be a key growth engine for CSBB. Digital share of new to bank clients increased to 45% with Gen Z and Millennials representing more than half of the growth. Active digital users grew year over year and digital transaction volumes remained strong, reflecting sustained client engagement with our platforms. Building on that digital progress, we’re increasingly focused on how AI can further enhance productivity, decision making and client engagement across the company. We see AI as a real operating lever, one that improves the client experience while also creating productivity and operating leverage across our businesses without compromising control, safety and reliability. Our focus is on using AI to strengthen relationships, giving clients faster, more personalized service and enabling our teammates to spend more time advising and problem solving, not navigating processes. We’re already deploying AI across consumer and small business banking in practical, client facing ways. Truist Insights delivers personalized financial guidance at scale. Truist Assist handles most routine service requests digitally and around the clock, improving consistency and reducing call volumes. AI enabled call summarization is live for care center agents, lowering after call work and enhancing insight capture. Overall, our disciplined focus on capital allocation, pricing, productivity and digital execution is translating into strong underlying performance and positions consumer and small business banking well as we progress through the year. Now turning to wholesale on slide 7. In wholesale we delivered a strong start to 2026 with continued momentum across loans, deposits and fees while maintaining a disciplined focus on relationship returns and capital efficiency. Average wholesale loans and deposits increased 9% and 2% respectively versus the first quarter of 2025, reflecting diversified growth across our industry, banking, middle market and CRE teams as we continue to prioritize high quality relationship driven loan growth. Middle market deposits in particular, an area where we’ve invested heavily, grew 11% year over year, driven by 7% growth in our legacy markets and and 30% growth in expansion markets such as Texas, Ohio and Pennsylvania. Wholesale fee performance was also a standout this quarter with strong results in wealth management and investment banking and trading. Investment banking and trading delivered its highest quarterly revenue since 2021, driven by strength across a broad set of product areas. Importantly, we’re also seeing even stronger connectivity among our commercial, corporate and investment banking platforms. This is driving higher quality fee growth with an increase in the number of lead roles and meaningful contributions from existing commercial and wealth clients. We’re also leveraging AI across wholesale to enhance productivity, underwriting and client engagement, using predictive analytics to improve advisor effectiveness, accelerate underwriting speed and precision and scale lead generation and conversion among payments and wealth. These capabilities are helping us serve clients more efficiently while improving returns and speed to market. Overall, we see clear evidence that our strategy is working. We are pairing high quality balance sheet growth with improving fee mix, stronger client engagement and enhanced operating efficiency which gives us confidence Wholesales Outlook in Wholesales outlook for the remainder of this year. Now let me turn it over to Mike to discuss our financial results in a little more detail.

Mike McGuire (Chief Financial Officer)

Thanks Bill and good morning Everybody. We reported first quarter 2026 GAAP net income available to common shareholders of $1.4 billion or $1.09 per diluted share. Earnings per share increased 25% versus the first quarter of 2025 and we’re up 9% versus the fourth quarter of 2025. Revenue decreased 1.9% linked quarter due to lower net interest income primarily related to day count. Revenue increased 5.1% versus the first quarter of 2025 due to higher net interest income driven by strong loan growth and higher non interest income primarily due to growth in investment banking and trading and wealth management income. GAAP non interest expense decreased 5.9% versus the fourth quarter of 2025 primarily due to low other expense. Non interest expense increased 2.6% versus the first quarter of 2025 which helped drive the 250 basis points of year over year. Positive operating leverage. Our effective tax rate in the first quarter was 12.4% versus 17.9% in the first quarter of 2025. Approximately half of the year over year decline was due to increased client transaction activity in our project finance business that Bill mentioned earlier in the call. Next, I’ll cover loans and leases on Slide 9. Average loans held for investment increased $2.3 billion or 0.7% on a linked quarter basis to $327 billion, driven by 1.8% growth in commercial loans, partially offset by a 0.9% decline in consumer loans. End of period loans increased modestly linked quarter as 1% growth in commercial loans was offset by a 1.1% decline in consumer loan balances. Both average and end of period loan trends are consistent with the expectations for loan growth and mix that we outlined in January. As a reminder, our expectations for 2026 were that average loan growth would be driven primarily by commercial and other consumer categories with relatively slower growth in residential mortgage and indirect auto. This outlook reflected our focus on profitability and being selective in where we deploy capital within consumer average. Other consumer loans, which include our specialty lending businesses like Sheffield Service Finance and lightstream, were relatively stable on a linked quarter basis consistent with normal seasonal patterns. We continue to expect these portfolios to grow at a mid to high single digit pace in 2026 given their attractive risk adjusted returns. Based on our current pipeline and economic outlook, we continue to expect average loan growth of approximately 3 to 4% in 2026. Moving now to deposits on slide 10 driving client deposit growth is a key priority across many of our top businesses and growth initiatives and I’m encouraged that we saw growth in client deposits in what is typically a seasonally weak quarter for client deposit growth. Average deposits increased 0.7% linked quarter driven by growth in interest checking, partially offset by declines in all other deposit categories. Average interest bearing deposit costs declined 14 basis points linked quarter to 2.09% and average total deposit cost declined 9 basis points to 1.55%. As shown in the chart on the bottom right of the slide, our cumulative interest bearing deposit beta increased from 45% to 46% and our total deposit beta increased from 30% to 31% on a linked quarter basis. Moving now to net interest income and net interest margin on Slide 11, taxable equivalent net interest income decreased 2.8% linked quarter or $105 million, primarily due to two fewer days in the quarter compared with the fourth quarter and seasonal changes in our deposit mix. Our net interest margin decreased by 5 basis points linked quarter to 3.02% driven primarily by that same seasonal change in deposit mix for full year 2026. We now expect net interest income to increase 2 to 3% compared with our prior expectation of 3 to 4% growth. The change in our outlook is primarily driven by our expectation that the federal funds rate will remain unchanged throughout 2026 compared with our previous expectation for two 25 basis point reductions, one in April and one in July, our net interest income outlook still assumes 3 to 4% average loan growth and and the continued benefit from fixed rate asset repricing. Although we expect the net interest margin to remain relatively stable in the second quarter, we do anticipate the full year 2026 average net interest margin will exceed the 25 average of 3.03%. As you can see on the right hand side of the slide, we also updated our fixed rate asset repricing outlook and our swap disclosure. Turning now to non interest income on slide 12. Non interest income increased $7 million or 0.5% versus the fourth quarter of 2025 reflecting strong growth in investment banking and trading income and lending related fees largely offset by a decline in other income due to lower investment income. Investment banking and trading income increased $37 million or 11% linked quarter to $372 million reflecting stronger trading income and capital markets activity partially offset by lower M and A fees. Noninterest income increased 11.6% versus the first quarter of 2025 due primarily to the 36% growth in investment banking and trading and 7.6% growth in wealth management income. Next I’ll cover noninterest expense on slide 13 on a linked quarter basis. Non interest expense declined 5.9% driven by lower other expense and lower personnel expense. Other expense in the fourth quarter of 2025 included an accrual income related to a legal matter, while the decline in personnel expense was driven primarily by lower incentive compensation. These benefits were partially offset by higher regulatory costs as the fourth quarter of 2025 benefited from an FDIC Special assessment credit on a year over year basis. Expense growth remains well controlled. Non interest expense increased 2.6% versus the first quarter of 2025 reflecting higher personnel expense partially offset by lower professional fees and outside processing costs. Moving now to asset quality on Slide 14, our asset quality metrics remain strong on both a linked and light quarter basis. Net charge offs increased 4 basis points, linked quarter to 61 basis points and were up 1 basis point versus the first quarter of 2025. Non performing loans held for investment increased 2 basis points linked quarter to 50 basis points of total loans driven by higher consumer non performing loans partially offset by improvement in CNI and cre. The increase in consumer nonperforming loans was primarily due to a change in the non accrual criteria for certain indirect auto loans which we disclosed in our 10k rather than any deterioration in underlying credit trends. While this enhancement will result in higher reported non performing indirect auto loans over time, there’s no impact to the cash flows or loss expectations and over the lifetime earnings of these loans. Before I move on to discuss our capital position on Slide 16, I do want to spend a few moments on our non depository financial institution or NDFI exposure and how we think about the risk profile of that portfolio. To support that discussion, we’ve included expanded detail on our NDFI loan portfolio on Slide 15. As of March 31, loans classified as NDFI represented 12% of total loans. This is a well diversified portfolio across 35 different asset classes and it’s structured with protections that have held up well historically in stress environments. Our largest NDFI exposure is to diversified equity REITs. This is a client driven business that we’ve been active in for more than 20 years and it’s an area where we have deep experience. These loans are secured by income producing real estate, underwritten with conservative leverage and supported by strong covenant packages which helps mitigate downside risk. With respect to private credit. Our exposure is primarily through lending relationships with business development companies or BDCs and middle market loan funds. In total, these exposures represent about 1% of our loan portfolio. From a risk standpoint, these facilities are underwritten with advanced rate limits, borrowing based mechanics and meaningful equity positions beneath us, all of which are designed to provide significant loss protection in more stressed scenarios. Moving now to Capital on slide 16, our 10.8% CET ratio was stable with the fourth quarter. During the first quarter we repurchased $1.1 billion of common stock compared with $750 million in the fourth quarter. We are targeting repurchases of $1.2 billion in the second quarter and approximately $5 billion in 2026 compared with our previous expectation for $4 billion of repurchases for full year 2026. Overall, our capital allocation priorities remain unchanged. These priorities include supporting the organic growth needs of our clients, paying our common stock dividend and returning excess capital to shareholders through share repurchases. M and A is not a priority for TRUIST as we remain focused on improving our own profitability and returning …

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Simmons First Ntl (NASDAQ:SFNC) released first-quarter financial results and hosted an earnings call on Friday. Read the complete transcript below.

This content is powered by Benzinga APIs. For comprehensive financial data and transcripts, visit https://www.benzinga.com/apis/.

Access the full call at https://app.webinar.net/4bJO197X0Ll

Summary

Simmons First Ntl reported a strong quarter with 10% annualized loan growth, driven by a focus on quality growth and internal shifts, such as changes in incentive plans and client targeting strategies.

The company is optimistic about future organic growth, supported by a favorable talent environment and recent leadership hires in commercial and consumer sectors.

Simmons First Ntl expects net interest margin (NIM) to continue improving, driven by deposit cost management, balance sheet remixing, and a structural tailwind from back book repricing.

Operating leverage is expected to surpass the initial 5% growth guidance for the year, with confidence in achieving the top end of the 9-11% NII growth range.

Credit quality remains stable despite some non-performing loan increases, with management expressing confidence in their net charge-off outlook.

Capital deployment remains focused on organic growth and dividends, with share buybacks under consideration given the current valuation and earnings outlook.

Full Transcript

Ed Billick (Director of Investor Relations)

Good morning and welcome to the Simmons First National Corporation First Quarter 2026 Earnings Conference call and webcast. All participants will be in listen only mode. Should you need assistance, please signal a conference specialist by pressing Star then zero on your telephone keypad. After today’s presentation there will be an opportunity to ask questions. To ask a question, you may press Star then one on your telephone keypad. To withdraw your question, please press Star then two. Please note this event is being recorded. I would now like to turn the conference over to Ed Billick,, Director of Investor Relations. Please go ahead. Good morning and welcome to Simmons First National Corporation first quarter 2026 earnings call. Joining me today are several members of our Executive management team including President and CEO Jay Brogden and CFO Daniel Hobbs. Today’s call will be in a Q and A format. Before we begin, I would like to remind you that our first quarter earnings materials, including the earnings release and presentation deck are available on our website at simmonsbank.com under the Investor Relations tab. During today’s call we will make forward looking statements about our future plans, goals, expectations, estimates, projections and outlook including among others, our outlook regarding future economic conditions, interest rates, lending and deposit activity, credit quality, liquidity and net interest margin. These statements involve risks and uncertainties and you should therefore not place undue reliance on any forward looking statement as actual results could differ materially from those expressed in or implied by the forward looking statements due to a variety of factors. Additional information concerning some of these factors is contained in our earnings release and investor presentation furnished with our Form 8K yesterday as well as our Form 10K for the year ended December 31, 2025 including the risk factors contained in that filing. These forward looking statements speak only as of the date they are made and Simmons assumes no obligation to update or revise any forward looking statements or other information. Finally, in this presentation we will discuss certain non-GAAP financial metrics we believe provide useful information to investors. Additional disclosures regarding non-GAAP metrics, including the reconciliations of these non-GAAP metrics to GAAP are contained in our Earnings Release and Investor presentation which are furnished as exhibits to the Form 8K we filed yesterday with the SEC and are also available on the Investor Relations page of our website. simmonsbank.com Operator we’re ready to begin the Q and A session.

OPERATOR

Thank you. We will now begin the Question and Answer session. To ask a question, you may press Star then one on your telephone keypad. If you’re using a speakerphone, please pick up your handset before pressing the keys. If at any time your question has been addressed and you’d like to withdraw your question, please press star then two. At this time, we will pause momentarily to assemble our roster. The first question comes from David Feaster with Raymond James. Please go ahead.

David Feaster (Equity Analyst)

Hey, good morning, everybody. Hey, David. Good morning. I wanted to start on the growth front. It was a terrific quarter for growth. You know, 10% annualized, that was, it was diverse. Pipelines remain solid. You know, I think one of the concerns that the markets had over the past few years, we’ve really questioned your ability to grow like this and your growth clearly showing what you can do. I guess my question is, what’s changed to get here? Is this a function of demand? Is payoffs and pay downs improving? Or is this just more of an internal shift, like a cultural shift and an increased emphasis on quality growth? And just how sustainable do you think this kind of 7 to 10% pace of annualized growth that we’ve seen over the past couple quarters is?

Jay Brogden (President and CEO)

Yeah. Hey, David, I’ll jump in on that. Thanks for the comments and the question there. So, you know, I think overall probably the best way to answer the sustainability of the loan growth is really say we’ve been focused on quality growth for really a few years now. We started focusing on organic growth really a handful of years ago. And it’s taken time to inflect and create some of those internal capabilities, bring maturity. Big part of that has been focus on both soundness and profitability, as you’ve heard us say over and over again. And so there’s been changes in behaviors, changes in incentive plans, changes in how we, you know, target clients that we want to grow. And I think what you’ve seen in the last couple of quarters is, you know, one part, some of that, you know, inflecting some of the maturity in those programs coming to bear. I do think you also have to acknowledge that a part of it is just the timing. The market setup, the last part of last year and early into this year has been very, very good for us. We’ve seen really, really robust demand. Our biggest concern as we think about the growth outlook really isn’t the things that we control, it’s the non controllables. We would acknowledge uncertainty in the macro. We have acknowledged, I think several times in recent calls, pricing, competition, all of those things still give us some caution to the overall optimism that we have about our business and our ability to grow the business. But we were really, really pleased with what we saw in the quarter this quarter. I don’t want to promise 10% annualized loan growth every quarter. This just happened to be a really good quarter for that. But I do think it clearly demonstrates the capabilities that we’ve been working on and our ability to bring those to bear in the marketplace.

David Feaster (Equity Analyst)

Okay, that’s great. And then one of the comments in the press release that stood out to me is just the comments on the talent environment being favorable and supporting that organic growth trajectory. So a couple questions on the talent side first. I know you’ve made a couple leadership hires on the commercial and consumer side, so was hoping you could touch on what they’re working on and where they see the most opportunity near term to kind of accelerate organic growth. And then secondarily, just on the banker side, the pipelines that you’ve got there, your appetite for new hires, and then just any comments on that? I know you hired a recent wealth management team. How have some of the new hires that you’ve. You’ve made been going so far?

Jay Brogden (President and CEO)

Yeah. So again, I’ll jump in on this. Our two new leadership hires over consumer and commercial have been here, I guess eight or nine weeks at this point. So really, really pleased with what they’re already bringing to bear in the organization. On the consumer side, I think just the rhythms of everyday life are in our retail network is changing or evolving in very, very good ways. And the approach to driving business, deepening relationships. We’ve got some very strong and loyal customers that have been with us for a long time. But in many of those situations with those customers, there’s still relatively thin relationships to the bank and so really focused on deepening and capitalizing on the loyalty and strong relationships we have in those regards as well as driving marketing and better penetrating the communities that we serve throughout the retail network. So real focus on sales, performance and again, kind of deepening through that network. On the commercial side, it’s really a lot of the things that I was describing in the first question that you asked around, that real organic growth emphasis, its total banking relationship focus. I think it would be fair to say that a lot of our focus in some of our recent history has been more kind of a lending growth focus and a commercial loan growth focus. We’ve been really, really investing heavily in commercial treasury management, really our full commercial payments suite of products, and the talent in the organization that can really go after those types of relationships and drive more diversified commercial business. And so we’ve got a lot of really good things going in that regard under both of those leaders. And I would just say that the talent pipeline, the opportunities that we are seeing, from senior leadership all the way down to very productive bankers who have strong reputations in our markets, we’re seeing some really, really good opportunities to continue to grow and invest in that way. So that will continue to be a great focus. You asked about the wealth team that we also brought on throughout the first quarter and just as a reminder, we brought on about half that team in kind of mid or late January. The other half joined in March. So they haven’t been here for all that long when you think about first quarter results. But what I could tell you is that that group has already brought over about in terms of assets under management that are either transferring or verbally committed, over 350 million in AUM. And so we could not be more pleased with what we’re seeing in terms of early success. And actually the part of that team, what we’re seeing that has me most excited is the referrals. When I think about what that team’s doing in terms of referring their client relationships into the commercial bank, into private banking, et cetera, really, really excited. And that’s just one small example, David. We can look all across the footprint and see some great examples of those kinds of behaviors. And again, I dovetail that all the way back to your first question. Those are the things that are helping me, helping all of us get more and more optimistic about our ability to drive organic growth in a very meaningful and profitable way.

David Feaster (Equity Analyst)

The business that’s great. And then maybe just staying a bit more high level still. And you know, kind of following up on some of your commentary. I mean, in the release you talked about designing a more efficient and scalable infrastructure. And I know we’ve spent a lot of time talking about the Better bank initiative and some of the things that you’re focusing on there from improving processes and procedures. I mean, you’ve obviously made a lot of progress on the expense front that’s demonstrated in your results. I was just hoping you could maybe elaborate on some of the things that you’re working on to improve the efficiency and scalability of what you got to support the organic growth that you got. Just some of the things that you’re more excited about and key initiatives that you’re focused on as a part of that Better bank initiative.

Jay Brogden (President and CEO)

Yeah, I think, at least for now, David, I’ll probably sound like a broken record here or Daniel would too. But really our mantra in the bank is fund every investment that we want to make in the business. And we have been able to do that over the last few years. We were able to do that here in the …

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Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) on Thursday posted upbeat first-quarter earnings but revised its 2026 earnings outlook below expectations.

The global healthcare company reported quarterly sales of $11.16 billion, slightly beating the consensus of $10.99 billion. Abbott reported adjusted earnings of $1.15 per share, beating the Wall Street estimate of $1.14 and management guidance of $1.12-$1.18 per share.

The global healthcare company on Thursday said it expects the second quarter of 2026 adjusted earnings of $1.25-$1.31, below the consensus of $1.37. Abbott lowered its fiscal 2026 adjusted earnings from $5.55-$5.80 per share to $5.38-$5.58 per share compared to the Wall Street consensus of $5.62.

The updated guidance includes 20 …

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Autoliv (NYSE:ALV) released first-quarter financial results and hosted an earnings call on Friday. Read the complete transcript below.

Benzinga APIs provide real-time access to earnings call transcripts and financial data. Visit https://www.benzinga.com/apis/ to learn more.

The full earnings call is available at https://edge.media-server.com/mmc/p/bsxkr7js/

Summary

Autoliv reported a strong first quarter for 2026, with sales exceeding expectations due to strong March performance and productivity improvements.

The company’s growth in Asia, particularly in China and India, was notable, with sales in India growing by 38% organically.

Despite a 4% decrease in adjusted operating income, Autoliv maintained its full-year guidance of flat organic sales and an operating margin of 10.5-11%.

Operational highlights include the introduction of the first airbag for motorcycles and a complete wearable airbag solution.

The company continues to focus on strategic cost reductions and optimization to offset raw material headwinds, estimated at $90 million.

Autoliv paid a dividend of $0.87 per share and paused buybacks but remains committed to its $2.5 billion share repurchase authorization through 2029.

Management highlighted the resilience of cash flow generation across economic cycles and maintained a positive outlook despite geopolitical uncertainties.

Full Transcript

OPERATOR

And thank you for standing by. Welcome to The Autoliv Inc. First Quarter 2026 Financial Results Conference call and webcast. At this time, all participants are in a listen only mode. After the speaker’s presentation, there will be a question and answer session. To ask a question during the session, please press Star one one on your telephone. You will then hear an automated message as your hand is raised to withdraw your question, please press Star one one again. Please note that today’s conference is being recorded. I would now like to turn the conference over to First Speaker, VP Investor Relations. Please go ahead.

Anderstrap (VP Investor Relations)

Thank you Razia. Welcome everyone to our first quarter 2026 earnings call. On this call we have our President and Chief Executive Officer Mikael Bratt, our Chief Financial Officer Monica Gramma and I am Anderstrap, VP Investor Relations. During today’s earnings call we will highlight several key points: our strong performance in a challenging market environment, our full year guidance, the potential impact of ongoing and new geopolitical challenges, an update on the latest market developments, and finally an overview of our continued strong shareholder returns. Following the presentation we will be available to answer your questions. As usual, the slides are available on autoliv.com Turning to the next slide, we have the Safe Harbor Statement which is an integrated part of this presentation and includes the Q and A that follows. During the presentation we will reference non-U.S. GAAP measures. The reconciliations of historical US GAAP to non use GAAP measures are disclosed in our quarterly earnings Release available on autoliv.com and in the 10Q that will be filed with the SEC and at the end of this presentation. Lastly, I should mention that this call is intended to conclude at 3:00pm Central European Time, so please follow a limit of two questions per person. I now hand over to our CEO Mikael Bratt.

Mikael Bratt (President and Chief Executive Officer)

Thank you Anders. Looking on the next slide, the first quarter exceeded our expectations driven by strong sales in March. Operational performance was also ahead of plan, supported by solid productivity improvements, partly reflecting reduced call off volatility. Our positive trend in Asia continued with strong growth in India, South Korea and China. In China we continued to grow faster than light vehicle production, especially with the Chinese OEMs outperforming by more than 40 percentage points. In India, we grew sales by 38% organically, reflecting mainly the trend of increased safety content in vehicles in India, but also the continued high level of light vehicle production growth. Underlying profitability improved with gross Profit increasing by 10%, although adjusted operating income was slightly lower due to temporary lower RD and E reimbursements and a one time income in Q1 last year. In the quarter we paid a dividend of US$0.87 per share representing a total payout of US$65 million. Buybacks were paused as the company was in a restricted period following multiple filings and the announcement of a new CFO. Our 2.5 billion US dollar share repurchase authorization through 2029 remains unchanged with the Ambition annual share repurchase between 300 and 500 million US dollars. Hostilities in the Persian Gulf had a limited impact this quarter and we are continuously monitoring any potential wide reaching impact on the industry. Based on what we know today, we reiterate Our full year 2026 guidance of flat organic sales. With continued significant outperformance of light vehicle production in both China and India, we continue to expect an adjusted operating margin of around 10.5 to 11%. This is based on the assumption that light vehicle production will decline by around 1% and that the gross headwind from raw materials is around US$90 million. I am also pleased that we introduced our first airbag for motorcycles as well as our first complete wearable airbag solution for motorcycle riders, building on our long term strategy of growing outside our traditional core business. Looking now on the next slide, first quarter sales increased by approximately 7% year over year driven by strong outperformance relative to light vehicle production along with favorable currency effects and tariff related compensations. The adjusted operating income for Q1 decreased by 4% to US$245 million compared to a strong first quarter last year. The adjusted operating margin was 8.9%, 1 percentage points lower than in the same quarter last year. Operating cash flow was a negative US$76 million, a decrease of US$153 million compared to last year. The lower cash flow was mainly driven by a temporary negative working capital impact from strong sales towards the end of the quarter as well as other temporary effects that are expected to reverse later in the year and the normalization of payables from year end. Looking now on the next slide, we continue to deliver broad based improvements with particularly strong progress in direct costs. Our positive direct labor productivity trend continues. This is supported by the implementation of our strategic initiatives including optimization and digitalization. Gross Profit increased by US$48 million and the gross margin improved by almost 60 basis points year over year. RD&E net cost rose year over year primarily on negative currency translation effects and lower engineering income due to timing of specific currency. Customer development project SGA costs increased by 16 million US dollars mainly due to negative currency translation effects. Higher costs for personnel and non recurring costs of US$4 million. Looking now on the market development in the first quarter on the next. According to S and P Global data from April, global light vehicle Production declined by 3.4% in the first quarter, slightly better than earlier expectations. The modestly stronger than expected outcome was mainly supported by Europe in March and rest of Asia. The decline in global light vehicle production was primarily driven by China. India contributed positively to global light vehicle production performance, benefiting from substantially lower taxes on new vehicle purchases. As an effect of the declining light vehicle production in China in the quarter, the global regional light vehicle production mix was approximately 1.5 percentage points favorable during the quarter. Volatility improved despite higher than expected call offs in March. We will talk about the market development more in detail later in the presentation. Looking now on our sales growth in more detail on the next slide, Our consolidated net sales were almost US$2.8 billion, the highest for a first quarter yet. This was around US$175 million, higher than last year, mainly driven by US$154 million, positive kerosene translation effect and US$14 million from higher tariff related compensation. Excluding currencies, our organic sales grew US$21 million or by 80 basis points including tariff cost compensation. Based on the latest light vehicle production data from S and P Global, we outperformed the market by over 4 percentage points. Globally. Our outperformance was significant in China and Restoration. In rest of Asia we outperformed the market by 7 percentage points, driven by continued strong sales growth in India where we outperformed by close to 30 percentage points. South Korea and the Asian sub region also contributed to the outperformance, partly offset by Japan. In China we outperformed overall with 15 percentage points, mainly driven by sales to Chinese OEMs that outperformed light vehicle production with over 40 percentage points. Despite light vehicle production decline in China, China increased its share of our sales to 18% versus 17% a year ago. Asia excluding China accounted for 20%, Americas for 31% and Europe for 30%. On the next slide, we will look more on our growing business in India. Autoliv is rapidly expanding its business in India, securing its market leadership. India now represents almost 6% of Autoliv’s global sales, which is almost triple what it was in just three years ago. Fuelled by regulatory focus and rising consumer demand for safety. Safety content in vehicles has increased by around 20% annually for the past two years in India. Autoliv operates five manufacturing plants, a technical centre and a global support engineering center with more than six associates in total. To further strengthen our footprint, Autoliv recently opened a new inflated plant to meet growing demand for airbags from both India and other Asian markets. Autoliv’s largest customers in India, including Maruti, Suzuki, Hyundai, Mahindra and Under, reflecting the company’s strong position among leading vehicle manufacturers in the country. Looking now on the next slide, the first quarter of 2026 saw a relatively high number of new launches, primarily in China with both Chinese and other OEMs. These new China launches reflect strong momentum for autoliv in this important market. Higher content per vehicle is driven by front center airbags on many of these new vehicles. In terms of Autoliv’s sales potential, the Nissan Voracia is the most significant in the quarter. Here you also see the Yamaha Tri City 300 commuter scooter. For rest of 2026, we expect a high number of new product launches mainly driven by Chinese OEMs, offsetting fewer launches in America and Europe. Let’s continue with the next slide. Before I’m moving on, I’d like to introduce our new CFO Monika Grammer. Monika joined AutoLeave in 2009 and has been instrumental in strengthening the EMEA division during a particular challenging period for the automotive industry. I am very pleased to welcome her to the executive management team and looking forward to her continued contributions in her new role. I will now hand it over to Monika.

Monika Grammer

Thank you Michael. I will talk about the financials more in detail on the next slide. Turning to the next slide, this slide highlights our key figures for the first quarter of 2026 compared to the first quarter of 2025. Our net sales were almost 2.8 billion, representing a 7% increase. Gross profit increased by 40 million 48 million US dollar and gross margin increased by almost 60 basis points compared to the prior year. The drivers behind the gross profit improvement were mainly positive. FX translation effects improved operational efficiency with lower cost for labor and as well as positive effects from higher sales. This was partly offset by increased tariff cost. The adjusted operating income decreased from 255 million US dollar to 245 million and the adjusted operating margin decreased from 9.9% to 8.9%. The reported operating income of 237 million US dollar was 8 million lower mainly due to capacity alignment activities. The adjusted earning per share diluted decreased by 10 cents. The main drivers 9 cents from lower operating income, 4 cents from financial and non operating items, 4 cents from taxes, partly offset by 7 cents from lower number of outstanding shares diluted. Our adjusted Return on capital employed was a solid 23% and our adjusted return on equity was 24%. We paid a dividend of $0.87 per share in the quarter. Looking now on the adjusted operating income bridge on the next slide, in the first quarter of 2026 our adjusted operating income decreased by 10 million US dollar. Operations contributed 28 million positively, primarily driven by higher organic sales and the successful execution of operational improvement initiatives supported by better call off stability. Excluding the 13 million from ethics translation effects, cost for RB and E net and SGA increased by 28 million driven by lower R&D reimbursement of 9 million. Due to timing and the non recurring cost of 4 million during the quarter we recovered approximately 70% of our US tariff costs. This recovery rate was lower than last year due to delays from the implementation of the new U.S. administration’s import adjustment Offset Program. We expect though most of the outstanding tariffs to be recovered later in the year. The combination of unrecovered tariffs and the dilutive effect of the recovered portion resulted in a negative impact of around 40 basis points on our operating margin in the quarter. Looking now at cash flow on the next slide, Operating cash flow for the first quarter was negative 76 million, a decrease of US$153 million year over year. This change was primarily due to a negative working effect of 349 million US dollar compared with a negative impact of 179 million in the prior year. The working capital effect was was largely driven by higher end of quarter sales which is the good reason other temporary effects that are expected to reverse later in the year and the normalization of payables from the year end 2025. Capital expenditures net for the quarter decreased by 9 million. Capital expenditures net in relation to sales was 3% versus 3.6 a year earlier. The lower level of capital expenditure net is mainly related to lower footprint optimization, less capacity expansion and timing effects. Reoperating cash flow for the quarter was negative 159 million compared to negative 16 million in the same period in the prior year due to lower operating cash flow partly offset by lower CapEx. The cash conversion for the last 12 months, defined as free operating cash flow in relation to net income was 83%, exceeding our target of at least 80%. Now looking on our cash flow and shareholder returns on the next slide, our cash flow generation has proven resilient across economic cycles as shown on this slide, we have consistently delivered positive operating and free operating cash flow through major disruptions such as the financial crisis, the COVID 19 pandemic and periods of structural change. Cash generation has strengthened in recent years, reaching record levels. This resilience reflects disciplined working capital management, a flexible cost base and limited capital intensity of our operations, supporting higher asset returns, durable long term growth and shareholder value …

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XRP (CRYPTO: XRP) has surged 12.5% from its April low as U.S. spot ETFs recorded $41.64 million in net inflows for the week ending April 16, the largest single-week inflow in three months.

The ETF Acceleration

The weekly inflow represents a 254% jump from the prior week’s $11.75 million, the kind of acceleration that typically accompanies pattern breakouts rather than consolidation.

The last five days show consistent demand with inflows of $11.87 million, $17.11 million, $11.20 million, $1.46 million, and $9.09 million. 

Cumulative inflows have reached $1.26 billion, pushing total assets past $1.08 billion.

Bitwise and Franklin products continue to lead flows, while Grayscale shows mixed activity with earlier outflows still weighing on totals.

The Timing Difference

The current setup flips the …

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Dogecoin (CRYPTO: DOGE) and Shiba Inu (CRYPTO: SHIB) saw notable price gains over the past month, rising 7% and 6% respectively, as broader market sentiment improved and large holders moved tokens off exchanges.

Large Outflows From Robinhood

According to Whale Alert data, both tokens recorded significant transfers from Robinhood into private wallets, a move typically interpreted as reduced near-term selling pressure.

Dogecoin holders moved more than 2.56 billion DOGE, worth roughly $245 million, across five transactions, marking one of the largest single-day liquidity withdrawals in the asset’s history.

Shiba Inu holders also transferred over 16 trillion SHIB, …

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French President Emmanuel Macron and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Friday convened an international summit in Paris to advance plans to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, as the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran continues to disrupt one of the world’s most critical oil arteries.

Around 30 countries were set to take part in the talks, which did not include the United States. The meeting is part of efforts by nations not directly involved in the conflict to address the economic impact of the disruption.

Iran has effectively shut the strait since the war began on Feb. 28, restricting passage through a channel that typically carries about a fifth of global oil supply.

Macron said ahead of the summit that a proposed Strait of Hormuz Maritime Freedom of Navigation Initiative would be “strictly defensive” and limited to non-belligerent countries, to be …

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Top Wall Street analysts changed their outlook on these top names. For a complete view of all analyst rating changes, including upgrades, downgrades and initiations, please see our analyst ratings page.

  • BMO Capital analyst Frank Lee upgraded Postal Realty Trust Inc (NYSE:PSTL) from Market Perform to Outperform and raised the price target from $21 to $23. Postal Realty Trust shares closed at $19.88 on Thursday. See how other analysts view this stock.
  • Mizuho analyst Vijay Rakesh upgraded Texas Instruments Inc (NASDAQ:TXN) from Underperform to Neutral and raised the price target from $160 to $215. Texas …

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(Editor’s note: The futures moves, ETFs data and the stocks in focus section were updated to include the latest information)

U.S. stock futures moved higher early Friday, as investors built on recent optimism that tensions in the Middle East may be easing.

President Donald Trump said the Iran war “should be ending pretty soon,” describing developments as “going along swimmingly” during remarks in Las Vegas on Thursday. The comments followed the announcement of a temporary ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon.

Recent optimism around a potential peace deal has lifted equities, putting all three major indexes on track for weekly gains. The Dow is up about 1.4%, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq have advanced roughly 3.3% and 5.2%, respectively.

Investors will also watch earnings from financial firms on Friday, including State Street (NYSE:STT), Truist Financial Corp (NYSE:TFC) and Fifth Third Bancorp (NYSE:FITB).

Meanwhile, the 10-year Treasury bond yielded 4.305%, and the two-year bond was at 3.773%. The CME Group’s FedWatch tool‘s projections show markets pricing a 99.5% likelihood of the Federal Reserve leaving the current interest rates unchanged in its April meeting.

Index Performance (+/-)
Dow Jones 0.57%
S&P 500 0.39%
Nasdaq 100 0.39%
Russell 2000 0.56%

The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSE:SPY) and Invesco QQQ Trust ETF (NASDAQ:QQQ), which track the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100, respectively, were higher in premarket trading on Thursday. The SPY was up 0.57% at $705.64, while the QQQ gained 0.62% to $644.41.

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Top Wall Street analysts changed their outlook on these top names. For a complete view of all analyst rating changes, including upgrades, downgrades and initiations, please see our analyst ratings page.

  • BMO Capital analyst Eric Borden initiated coverage on Four Corners Property Trust Inc (NYSE:FCPT) with a Market Perform rating and announced a price target of $27. Four Corners Property shares closed at $25.12 on Thursday. See how other analysts view this stock.
  • Stephens & Co. analyst Jeff Lick initiated coverage on RB Global Inc (NYSE:RBA) with an Equal-Weight rating and announced a price target …

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Polaris Inc. (NYSE:PII) shares are up during Friday’s premarket session, rising 1.58%. The company announced that recent changes to tariff policy are not expected to impact its 2026 full-year guidance materially.

This news comes as the company strengthens its domestic manufacturing presence, which includes facilities in Alabama, Indiana, and Minnesota, supporting American jobs while enhancing supplier relationships, as detailed in the recent announcement.

Polaris expects that the recent tariff policy changes will not have a significant effect on its financial outlook for the year.

In the fourth quarter of 2025, the firm’s adjusted gross profit margin fell 77 basis points to 20.3%, primarily driven by tariffs and net price.

The broader market saw gains on Thursday, with the Technology sector rising 0.60%.

Technical Analysis

Polaris is currently trading within its 52-week range, which spans from $31.40 to $75.25, suggesting it is positioned in the middle of this range. The stock is trading 1.2% below its 20-day simple moving average (SMA) and 7.4% below its 100-day SMA, indicating a potential short-term weakness …

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Top Wall Street analysts changed their outlook on these top names. For a complete view of all analyst rating changes, including upgrades, downgrades and initiations, please see our analyst ratings page.

  • BMO Capital analyst James Thalacker downgraded Exelon Corp (NASDAQ:EXC) from Outperform to Market Perform and cut the price target from $52 to $49. Exelon shares closed at $47.59 on Thursday. See how other analysts view this stock.
  • Wolfe Research analyst Chris Caso downgraded Qorvo Inc (NASDAQ:QRVO) from Outperform to Peer Perform. Qorvo shares closed at $81.72 on …

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Polestar Automotive (NASDAQ:PSNY) held its fourth-quarter earnings conference call on Friday. Below is the complete transcript from the call.

This transcript is brought to you by Benzinga APIs. For real-time access to our entire catalog, please visit https://www.benzinga.com/apis/ for a consultation.

Access the full call at https://edge.media-server.com/mmc/p/kdtoh7ky/

Summary

Polestar Automotive reported record retail sales of over 60,100 cars for 2025, achieving a 34% year-on-year growth and meeting its growth target of 30-35%.

The company announced a $1 billion equity raise supported by Geely Sweden Holdings and conversions of $640 million in loans to equity, strengthening its balance sheet.

Polestar Automotive plans to expand its model lineup with four new cars over the next three years, including the Polestar 5 and a new variant of the Polestar 4.

Revenue for 2025 grew by 50% year-on-year to surpass $3 billion, although gross margin remained negative at 35% due to impairment expenses.

The company’s plans for 2026 include achieving low double-digit growth in sales volume, expanding its retail network by 20%, and continuing cost reduction initiatives.

Full Transcript

Anna Gavrilova (Head of Investor Relations)

Hello everyone, I’m Anna Gavrilova, Head of Investor Relations at Polestar. Thank you for joining this call covering Polestar’s results for the fourth quarter and full year 2025. I’m joined by Michael Lochscheller, Polestar CEO, and Jean Francois Madi, Polestar CFO, who will comment on the performance and then we will open the floor to analysts questions. Before we start, I would like to remind participants that many of our comments today will be considered forward looking Statements under the U.S. federal securities laws and are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties that may cause Polestar’s actual results to differ materially from what has been communicated. These forward looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the future financial performance of the company, production and delivery volumes, financial and operating results, near term outlook and medium term targets, fundraising and funding requirements, macroeconomic and industry trends, company initiatives and other future events. Forward looking statements made today are effective only as of today and Polestar undertakes no obligation to update any of its forward looking statements. For a discussion of some of the factors that could cause our actual results to differ, please review the risk factors contained in our SEC filings. In addition, management may make references to non GAAP financial measures during the call. A discussion of why we use non GAAP financial measures and a reconciliation to the most directly comparable GAAP measure can be found in the appendix of the press release and in the form 6k published today. Now I will hand over to Michael

Michael Lochscheller (Chief Executive Officer)

hello everyone and thank you for joining us today as we present our full year 2025 results and provide an update on recent developments across the business. As you are all aware, the world around us continues to throw up challenges, but we are making good progress and we are focusing on delivering against our strategy. I want to update you on the most recent developments within technology, our financing situation and future model lineup expansion. But before that, a few words on the year that just passed. 2025 was a record year for Polestar in terms of retail sales. We delivered over 60,100 cars during the year in line with our guidance of 30 to 35% growth and a new record for our young brand, an achievement to be proud of given the competition and market conditions. 2025 was also a year in which we took significant steps to adapt our commercial strategy and footprint, an important foundation for our future growth and journey towards profitability. We accelerated the expansion of our network of retailers by 50% from 140 to 210 retail sales points and have worked hard to improve our operational efficiency whilst also preparing for the company’s largest ever model Offensive, which we presented in February. During the fourth quarter we made several announcements that reinforce our position as a technology leader in the EV segment. The upgraded model year 26 Polestar 3, which is being tested by the world’s leading automotive media in the UK this week, has received several upgrades including an 800 volt architecture. This means our flagship SUV offers customers charging speeds of up to 350 kilowatts, up to 500 kilowatts of power and 6% better efficiency. It also has an upgraded Nvidia processor taking its computing power from 30 to 254 trillion operations per second. The same upgrade is also being offered to all existing Polestar 3 customers. We are the first OEM to integrate Google’s Life Lane guidance in our cars. It’s already being rolled out to Polestar 4 customers across the US and Sweden with more to come. Further evidence of our strong relationship with Google came in November when We demoed Google’s AI based Gemini assistant in Polestar 5. This service brings a whole new level of interaction and experience to our cars and it will be rolled out via over the air updates to existing Polestar customers. We have made solid progress on securing additional financing in the last month. Starting in December 2025, through a series of the three equity financing rounds, we have raised $1 billion of new external equity with the support of Geely Sweden Holdings. These placements strengthen our balance sheet and widen our shareholder base. Concurrently, we have announced agreements with Volvo Cars and Geely Sweden holdings for the conversion of approximately $640 million of shareholder loans to equity. These conversions, once completed, will reinforce our liquidity profile and maintain Volvo Car’s ownership in Pollster at approximately 19.9%. Both the equity funding rounds and the debt to equity conversions are a clear sign of the continued support that we enjoy from our major shareholders. In February we presented the details of our largest ever model LineUp expansion with four new cars planned in the next three years. Polestar 5, our four door GT which was presented during the end of last year, is expected to start deliveries in the summer. This car sets a whole new standard in EV performance segment, combining design, performance and luxury in a way that has never been done before. Later this year we will bring a new variant of Polestar 4 to the market. Our global bestseller, which represented 65% of our deliveries in the first quarter of this year, will bring even more versatility to an already incredible car. The this will help us to address a wider segment and offer more customers an alternative based on their lifestyle and needs. First deliveries are expected to start in the fourth quarter, with production for all markets taking place in Busan, South Korea. Our next model will be the next generation Polestar 2, the car that built Polestar’s brand. With over 190,000 Polestar 2 on the road, this car already has a huge following and customer base which we have an opportunity to capitalize on. Completely redesigned with the latest in drivetrain, battery and UX technology, Polestar 2 will play an important role in our future success. Our Compact Premium SUV Polestar 7 provides provides an attractive entry point to the brand, offering a level of performance and design that this segment lacks today. The pace at which we are developing and bringing those models to market is a testament to the value of our asset light model, our ability to work in close collaboration with partners, and a sign of our underlying ambitions for more profitable growth. Targeting wider, more profitable segments before handing over to Jean Francois for the financial details, I’d like to just spend a moment reflecting on the first quarter of this year 2026. Our sales team has worked incredibly hard to carry over our record performance in 25 into the start of this year. Our Our retail sales in the first quarter totaled some 13,100 cars, a record number for a first quarter, translating into a year …

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During times of turbulence and uncertainty in the markets, many investors turn to dividend-yielding stocks. These are often companies that have high free cash flows and reward shareholders with a high dividend payout.

Benzinga readers can review the latest analyst takes on their favorite stocks by visiting Analyst Stock Ratings page. Traders can sort through Benzinga’s extensive database of analyst ratings, including by analyst accuracy.

Below are the ratings of the most accurate analysts for three high-yielding stocks in the information technology sector.

AudioCodes Ltd (NASDAQ:AUDC)

  • Dividend Yield: 4.49%
  • Needham analyst Joshua Reilly maintained a Buy rating with a price target of $12.5 on May 7, 2026. This analyst has an accuracy rate of 55%
  • Needham analyst Ryan Koontz maintained a Buy rating and raised the price target from $11 to $12.5 on Feb. 5, 2025. This analyst has an accuracy rate of 81%.
  • Recent News: AudioCodes announced that it will release financial results for its first quarter on …

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IonQ Inc. (NYSE:IONQ) shares are under pressure Friday morning. Nasdaq futures are up 0.20% while S&P 500 futures have gained 0.26%.

After skyrocketing more than 50% this week, the stock is seeing natural profit-taking from investors.

No specific company event triggered the slide, but recent data shows a climb in bearish bets.

Short interest in the quantum firm rose from 79.48 million to 80.93 million shares during the last reporting period. This currently places 22.78% of the company’s float in short positions.

Sector Momentum and Nvidia Catalyst

The dip comes despite a massive week for the …

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Zions Bancorporation, National Association (NASDAQ:ZION) will release earnings for its first quarter after the closing bell on Monday, April 20.

Analysts expect the Salt Lake City, Utah-based company to report quarterly earnings of $1.43 per share, up from $1.13 per share in the year-ago period. The consensus estimate for Zions Bancorp’s quarterly revenue is $855.145 million. It reported $806 million last year, according to Benzinga Pro.

Some Zions investors may be eyeing potential gains from the company’s dividends. Currently, the bank has an annual dividend yield of 2.92%. That’s a quarterly dividend amount of 45 cents per share ($1.80 a year).  

So, how can investors exploit its dividend yield to pocket a regular $500 monthly?

To earn $500 per month or $6,000 annually from dividends alone, you would need an investment of approximately $205,113 or around …

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Cardano (CRYPTO: ADA) CEO Frederik Gregaard said the network cut audit costs by 50% for institutions and listed a $100 million reinsurance product on the London Stock Exchange.

The Audit Cost Breakthrough

The Cardano Foundation posted 7,000 financial transactions using a product called Leccia on the blockchain.

Grant Thornton then used legal entity identifiers to download all transactions, compare them to the bookkeeping ledger, and sign the audit.

The process proved institutions can lower audit costs by nearly 50% while moving from spot checks to full architectural audits that examine all transactions, Gregaard told Cointelegraph at Paris Blockchain Week.

“Instead of a spot check of transactions, they can look at all the transactions,” Gregaard said. “We are the only blockchain who has enabled that using legal entity identifiers.”

The London Stock Exchange Play

Cardano partnered with Members Cap to tokenize exposure to Hannover Re, one of the …

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Macro investor Raoul Pal says the entire banking system will move to Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) as ETH tests the 100 exponential moving average at $2,355 for the first time since October.

The Banking System Thesis

Raoul Pal pushed back against the “ETH is dead” narrative from 1.5-2 years ago, arguing banks care about Lindy effects—things that survive, things you don’t get fired for, things that are proven.

“I find it hilarious that 1.5-2 years ago people were like, ‘ETH is dead.’ I’m like, ‘No, the entire banking system will go to ETH,’” Pal said. 

“That doesn’t mean it’s a mono-chain world, but I know how banks work. It’s really for them about Lindy effects because nobody wants to lose their jobs over new technology,” he added.

The Decentralization Customer

Etherealize co-founder Danny Ryan …

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TORONTO, April 17, 2026 /CNW/ – CIBC (TSX:CM) (NYSE:CM) – CIBC Global Asset Management (“CIBC GAM”) today announced it will reopen the Renaissance U.S. Equity Fund (the “Fund”) to investors on or about April 30, 2026. This means the Fund will be open to all new purchases from existing and new unitholders (including through regular investment plans). The Fund seeks long-term capital growth by investing primarily in equity securities of companies listed on major U.S. exchanges and/or domiciled primarily in the United States.

The Fund was previously capped to all investors on December 9, 2020.

Effective on or about April 30, 2026, portfolio management responsibilities for the Renaissance U.S. Equity Fund will be assumed by Emory W. (Sandy) Sanders, Jr. Sandy brings over two decades of distinguished leadership in equity …

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Mortgage rates fell for the second consecutive week, providing some relief to homebuyers during what is typically the busiest period for the housing market.

This has lent some support to homebuilder ETFs such as iShares U.S. Home Construction ETF (BATS:ITB), SPDR S&P Homebuilders ETF (NYSE:XHB), Invesco Dynamic Building & Construction ETF (NYSE:PKB) and Hoya Capital Housing ETF (NYSE:HOMZ).

As of Friday morning, ITB was up 0.7% while the other three funds were trading flat during the premarket session.

ETFs in Focus

ITB provides exposure to U.S. companies that manufacture residential homes by tracking the Dow Jones U.S. Select Home Construction Index. With Assets Under Management (AUM) of $2.6 billion, the fund charges 0.38% in annual fees and trades an average of 2.5 million shares a day. The fund has shed 2.3% year-to-date but gained 1.1% over the past month.

Benzinga Edge Stock Rankings indicate ITB has a weak pricing trend in short, medium and long term.

XHB follows the S&P Homebuilders Select Industry Index, charging investors 0.35% in annual fees. The fund has AUM of $1.5 billion and trades in an average daily volume …

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As of April 17, 2026, two stocks in the health care sector could be flashing a real warning to investors who value momentum as a key criteria in their trading decisions.

The RSI is a momentum indicator, which compares a stock’s strength on days when prices go up to its strength on days when prices go down. When compared to a stock’s price action, it can give traders a better sense of how a stock may perform in the short term. An asset is typically considered overbought when the RSI is above 70, according to Benzinga Pro.

Here’s the latest list of major overbought players in this sector.

Avanos Medical Inc (NYSE:AVNS)

  • On April 14, Avanos Medical agreed to be acquired by American Industrial Partners for …

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Bitcoin remains above $75,000 while Bitcoin ETFs saw $26.05 million in net inflows on Thursday, while Ethereum ETFs reported $18 million in net inflows.  

Cryptocurrency Ticker Price
Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) $75,517
Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) $2,352
Solana (CRYPTO: SOL) $87.67
XRP (CRYPTO: XRP) $1.43
Dogecoin (CRYPTO: DOGE) $0.09807
Shiba Inu (CRYPTO: SHIB) $0.056200

Meme coin market capitalization is up 7.5% over the past 24 hours at $38.4 billion

Trader Commentary: 

Crypto chart analyst …

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The CNN Money Fear and Greed index showed further improvement in the overall market sentiment, while the index remained in the “Greed” zone on Thursday.

U.S. stocks settled higher on Thursday, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite surging to new all-time highs as peace-deal optimism over the Iran conflict kept buyers engaged.

President Donald Trump announced that Israeli and Lebanese leaders have agreed to a 10-day ceasefire, calling it his potential tenth war resolved.

In earnings, PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) posted upbeat earnings for the first quarter on Thursday. Netflix Inc (NASDAQ:NFLX) reported better-than-expected financial results for the first quarter of 2026 after the market close on Thursday.

On the economic data front, U.S. initial jobless claims declined to 207,000 in the week ended April 11, versus a revised 218,000 in the …

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Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM) unveiled Headless 360 on Wednesday, shifting its platform toward an API-first architecture where AI agents and humans execute workflows across data, applications and business logic amid a broader software sector selloff.

From UI-First CRM To Agent-Driven Infrastructure

Headless 360 exposes Salesforce’s Customer 360 stack through APIs, MCP tools and CLI commands, enabling AI agents to operate without traditional interfaces. The release includes 60+ MCP tools and 30+ preconfigured coding skills, designed to give agents direct access inside developer environments such as Anthropic‘s Claude Code and Anysphere‘s Cursor.

A new Agent Fabric layer adds governance and deterministic orchestration across multi-vendor AI deployments.

Bulls vs. Bears: AI Catalyst Or SaaS Disruption Risk

The rollout comes amid broader skepticism toward software equities as investors reassess whether AI will replace or commoditize traditional SaaS offerings. The debate …

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The most oversold stocks in the consumer staples sector presents an opportunity to buy into undervalued companies.

The RSI is a momentum indicator, which compares a stock’s strength on days when prices go up to its strength on days when prices go down. When compared to a stock’s price action, it can give traders a better sense of how a stock may perform in the short term. An asset is typically considered oversold when the RSI is below 30, according to Benzinga Pro.

Here’s the latest list of major oversold players in this sector, having an RSI near or below 30.

Pilgrims Pride Corp (NASDAQ:PPC)

  • On April 13, Pilgrim’s Pride announced pricing of tender offer for its 6.250% senior notes due 2033. The company’s stock fell around 10% over the past month and has a 52-week low of $32.79.
  • RSI Value: 29.4
  • PPC Price Action: …

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Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. (NYSE:CLF) will release earnings for its first quarter before the opening bell on Monday, April 20.

Analysts expect the Cleveland, Ohio-based company to report a quarterly loss of 41 cents per share, versus a loss of 92 cents per share in the year-ago period. The consensus estimate for Regions Financial’s quarterly revenue is $4.79 billion (it reported $4.63 billion last year), according to Benzinga Pro.

On Feb. 9, Cleveland-Cliffs reported mixed fourth-quarter financial results.

Cleveland-Cliffs shares rose 0.6% to close at $9.72 on Thursday.

Benzinga readers can access the latest analyst ratings on the Analyst Stock Ratings page. Readers can sort by stock ticker, company name, analyst firm, rating change or other variables.

Let’s have a look at how Benzinga’s most-accurate analysts have rated the company in the recent period.

  • JP …

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(Editor’s note: The future prices of benchmark tracking ETFs, the economic data and the headline were updated in the story.)

Futures related to U.S. stocks ticked up in pre-market trading on Thursday, after the benchmark S&P 500 and tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite rose to fresh records in the previous session, as investors weighed signs of easing tensions between Washington and Tehran.

Sentiment was supported by growing hopes of a possible diplomatic breakthrough after President Donald Trump said in an interview aired on Wednesday that the Iran war was “very close to over” and that Tehran was eager to strike a deal. He also said that talks between Israel and Lebanon will take place on Thursday.

A White House official also told CNBC that a second round of U.S.-Iran talks was under discussion, though no date has been set.

Investors are also pricing in earnings before the bell from PepsiCo (NYSE:PEP), Travelers (NYSE:TRV), and Charles Schwab Corp (NYSE:SCHW), alongside weekly jobless claims and March’s industrial production data.

In a speech on Thursday, New York Fed President John Williams said that the Middle East conflict has introduced substantial risks and heightened uncertainty. He said the war is driving “significant increases in energy prices, which are already lifting overall inflation.”

Meanwhile, the 10-year Treasury bond yielded 4.283%, and the two-year bond was at 3.755%. The CME Group’s FedWatch tool‘s projections show markets pricing a 99.5% likelihood of the Federal Reserve leaving the current interest rates unchanged in its April meeting.

Index Performance (+/-)
Dow Jones 0.23%
S&P 500 0.13%
Nasdaq 100 0.19%
Russell 2000 0.30%

The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSE:SPY) and Invesco QQQ Trust ETF (NASDAQ:QQQ), which track the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100, respectively, were higher in premarket trading on Thursday. The SPY was up 0.16% at $701.07, while the …

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The S&P 500 rose on Thursday, gaining 0.26% to close at a fresh record of 7,041.28, as optimism around a potential end to the Iran war continued to support equities.

The Polygon-based (CRYPTO: POL) Polymarket crowd remains bullish heading into Friday. The April 17 market shows a majority of traders betting “Up,” with early trading activity building on whether the S&P 500 will open higher or lower.

Why That Number Matters

President Donald Trump said Thursday that the war in Iran “should be ending pretty soon,” adding to a …

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In today’s rapidly changing and highly competitive business world, it is imperative for investors and industry observers to carefully assess companies before making investment choices. In this article, we will undertake a comprehensive industry comparison, evaluating Palantir Technologies (NASDAQ:PLTR) vis-à-vis its key competitors in the Software industry. Through a detailed analysis of important financial indicators, market standing, and growth potential, our goal is to provide valuable insights and highlight company’s performance in the industry.

Palantir Technologies Background

Palantir is an artificial intelligence, analytics, and automated decision-making company that leverages data to drive efficiency across its clients’ organizations. The firm serves commercial and government clients via its Foundry and Gotham platforms, respectively. Palantir works only with entities in Western-allied nations and reserves the right not to work with anyone that is antithetical to Western values. The company was founded in 2003 and went public in 2020.

Company P/E P/B P/S ROE EBITDA (in billions) Gross Profit (in billions) Revenue Growth
Palantir Technologies Inc 226.60 46.22 81.83 8.71% $0.58 $1.19 70.0%
Salesforce Inc 23.23 2.83 4.17 3.26% $3.27 $8.69 12.09%
AppLovin Corp 46.42 73.64 29.08 61.09% $1.34 $1.47 65.88%
Intuit Inc 25.19 5.62 5.43 3.61% $1.14 $3.61 17.36%
Adobe Inc 14.46 8.77 4.26 16.39% $2.66 $5.73 11.97%
Cadence Design Systems Inc 75.61 15.48 15.84 7.27% $0.59 $1.25 6.2%
Synopsys Inc 67.71 2.77 9.60 0.22% $0.69 $1.77 65.52%
Autodesk Inc 46.49 16.85 7.25 10.64% $0.58 $1.79 19.4%
Datadog Inc 398.29 11.71 13.09 1.3% $0.08 $0.77 29.21%
Roper Technologies Inc 25.48 1.86 4.95 2.15% $0.86 $1.43 9.67%
Workday Inc 48.21 4.11 3.51 1.74% $0.39 $1.92 14.52%
Zoom Communications Inc 14.03 2.60 5.47 7.06% $0.28 $0.95 5.31%
PTC Inc 20.36 4.28 5.82 4.34% $0.25 $0.57 21.36%
Trimble Inc 38.45 2.69 4.56 2.69% $0.25 $0.7 -1.38%
IREN Ltd 33.11 6.30 18.78 -5.77% $-0.23 $0.11 59.02%
Tyler Technologies Inc 47.20 3.90 6.38 1.79% $0.12 $0.26 6.29%
Guidewire Software Inc 62.95 7.80 9.05 3.95% $0.08 $0.23 24.05%
HubSpot Inc 259.28 5.69 3.79 2.78% $0.1 $0.71 20.42%
Average 73.32 10.41 8.88 7.32% $0.73 $1.88 22.76%

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In today’s fast-paced and highly competitive business world, it is crucial for investors and industry followers to conduct comprehensive company evaluations. In this article, we will delve into an extensive industry comparison, evaluating Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) in relation to its major competitors in the Software industry. By closely examining key financial metrics, market standing, and growth prospects, our objective is to provide valuable insights and highlight company’s performance in the industry.

Microsoft Background

Microsoft develops and licenses consumer and enterprise software. It is known for its Windows operating systems and Office productivity suite. The company is organized into three equally sized broad segments: productivity and business processes (legacy Microsoft Office, cloud-based Office 365, Exchange, SharePoint, Skype, LinkedIn, Dynamics), intelligence cloud (infrastructure- and platform-as-a-service offerings Azure, Windows Server OS, SQL Server), and more personal computing (Windows Client, Xbox, Bing search, display advertising, and Surface laptops, tablets, and desktops).

Company P/E P/B P/S ROE EBITDA (in billions) Gross Profit (in billions) Revenue Growth
Microsoft Corp 26.30 7.98 10.27 10.2% $58.18 $55.3 16.72%
Oracle Corp 32.02 15.29 8.08 11.65% $8.16 $11.1 21.66%
Palo Alto Networks Inc 92.76 14.42 12 4.78% $0.64 $1.91 14.93%
ServiceNow Inc 57.75 7.71 7.60 3.31% $0.76 $2.73 20.66%
Fortinet Inc 34.05 49.27 9.27 51.3% $0.69 $1.52 14.75%
Nebius Group NV 1442.54 9.07 78.96 -5.3% $0.01 $0.1 55.85%
Check Point Software Technologies Ltd 14.30 4.98 5.55 10.21% $0.37 $0.65 5.85%
Gen Digital Inc 20.39 5.14 2.60 8.02% $0.57 $0.97 25.76%
Dolby Laboratories Inc 25.93 2.36 4.66 2.04% $0.1 $0.3 -2.88%
UiPath Inc 20.40 2.67 3.59 5.21% $0.09 $0.41 13.56%
CommVault Systems Inc 49.41 19.25 3.73 8.33% $0.03 $0.25 19.5%
Monday.Com Ltd 29.63 2.72 2.86 6.1% $0.01 $0.3 24.59%
Qualys Inc 15.45 5.34 4.58 9.75% $0.06 $0.15 10.11%
BlackBerry Ltd 52.11 3.70 5.10 3.27% $0.04 $0.12 10.09%
Teradata Corp 19.83 11 1.56 16.48% $0.08 $0.26 2.93%
A10 Networks Inc 46.53 8.99 6.72 4.72% $0.03 $0.06 8.29%
Average 130.21 10.79 10.46 9.32% $0.78 $1.39 16.38%

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Silver prices hovered around $80 per ounce on Friday, as a 10-day ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel calmed inflation fears and weakened the U.S. dollar.

A sustained supply deficit projection for 2026 is also supporting prices.

What ETFs To Tap Amid Silver Rebound?

Silver COMEX (May 2026) rose 1% to $79.47 at 4.42 AM EDT after declining about 15% since the war began in late February amid fears that rising energy costs would stoke inflation, keeping interest rates higher. Those concerns have eased somewhat, with optimism returning on hopes that the U.S. and Iran could reach a permanent ceasefire deal over the weekend.

This has brought back the allure of the white metal and investors looking to tap the rise in silver prices could consider the following ETFs:

1. iShares Silver Trust

The iShares Silver Trust (NYSE:SLV) offers exposure to the day-to-day movement of the price of silver bullion. It has an AUM of $21.5 billion and trades in a heavy volume of 41 million shares a day. It charges 0.50% in fees per year from investors.

Price Action: SLV gained 0.4% at 4.16 AM ET, but is down 16.1% since the Iran war began.

Benzinga Edge Stock Rankings indicate SLV has a Momentum score in the 91th percentile and maintains a strong price trend in the short, …

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Signs of easing geopolitical tensions have lifted cryptocurrencies, including Dogecoin (CRYPTO: DOGE), and whales have started loading up on the memecoin.

Whales Getting Ready For DOGE’s Leg Up?

Widely followed cryptocurrency analyst Ali Martinez highlighted in an X post on Thursday that large investors bought around 330 million DOGE tokens this week. At the prevailing prices, this amounted to $32.34 million

Exchange-traded funds rode the bullish wave, as the Grayscale Dogecoin Trust ETF (NYSE:GDOG), 21Shares Dogecoin ETF (NASDAQ:TDOG), and Bitwise Dogecoin ETF (NYSE:BWOW) attracted over $1.5 million in net inflows over the last week, per data from SoSo Value.

Hope Builds for Iran War Resolution

President Donald Trump’s …

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Shares of Blaize Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:BZAI) rose sharply in pre-market trading following a contract of up to $50 million with technology company NeoTensr for AI edge data center infrastructure across Asia Pacific and a strategic Memorandum of Understanding with Taiwan-based rugged technology maker Winmate Inc. targeting sovereign, mission-critical edge AI deployments.

Blaize Holdings shares jumped 24.3% to $2.15 in pre-market trading.

Here are some other stocks moving in pre-market trading.

Gainers

  • Psyence Biomedical Ltd (NASDAQ:PBM) gained 85.4% to $10.90 in pre-market trading after jumping around 106% on Thursday.
  • iSpecimen Inc (NASDAQ:ISPC) gained 44.9% to $0.17 in pre-market trading after adding 4% on Thursday.
  • YXT.Com Group Holding Ltd – ADR (NASDAQ:YXT) rose 54.1% to $0.57 in pre-market trading after declining 10% on Thursday.
  • Able View Global Inc (NASDAQ:ABLV) jumped 39.8% to $0.81 in pre-market trading after falling over 5% on Thursday.
  • WeShop Holdings Ltd (NASDAQ:WSHP) rose 31.9% to $18.82 in pre-market trading after jumping around 74% on Thursday.
  • Harte Hanks Inc (NASDAQ:

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The numbers no longer add up—at least not in the traditional sense. The SPDR S&P 500 ETF (NYSE:SPY) just added roughly $30 billion in a single week, even as the “physical reality” tells a different story.  U.S. GDP growth was revised down to 0.5%, spot oil prices hit a record high, and an active geopolitical conflict is choking global trade flows.

Yet the market climbs.

The Buffett indicator, a ratio of the total U.S. stock market to GDP, has climbed to 223.5%—a level that makes the 162% peak during the Dot-Com bubble look almost conservative. Historically, such readings signaled imminent danger. Today, they barely register as a concern.

Such paradoxes best show the ongoing structural shift. The stock market is no longer a wind vane for the real economy. It has become a leveraged bet on a narrow but powerful future—one driven by artificial intelligence, capital intensity, and financial system resilience. Investors are no longer buying “America.” They are buying a handful of global platforms increasingly detached from the “dirt and diesel” economy.

Micro is Macro

Company-level dynamics, specifically AI-driven capital expenditures, have become so …

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Spirit Aviation Holdings Inc. (OTC:FLYYQ) could reportedly halt operations within days as the creditors raise doubts about the company’s ability to clear dues.

Spirit To Liquidate?

On Thursday, CBS News reported that the airline could halt its operations within the coming days, raising questions about the passengers who might have already booked their tickets on Spirit flights. The airline had earlier filed for bankruptcy amid post Covid-19 struggles.

Spirit Airlines didn’t immediately respond to Benzinga‘s request for comment.

The war in Iran has led to a surge in fuel costs, which is said to be the reason behind the reported liquidation. According to data from Airlines for America, the price of a gallon of jet fuel on Thursday was $4.32, which, while lower …

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Ally Financial Inc. (NYSE:ALLY) will release earnings for its first quarter before the opening bell on Friday, April 17.

Analysts expect the Detroit, Michigan-based company to report quarterly earnings of 94 cents per share. That’s up from 58 cents per share in the year-ago period. The consensus estimate for Ally Financial’s quarterly revenue is $2.14 billion (it reported $1.54 billion last year), according to Benzinga Pro.

On April 15, the board of directors of Ally Financial declared a quarterly cash dividend of 30 cents per share of the company’s common stock.

Shares of Ally Financial fell 0.7% to close at $41.96 on Thursday.

Benzinga readers can access the latest analyst ratings on the Analyst Stock Ratings page. Readers can sort by stock ticker, company name, analyst firm, rating change or other variables.

Let’s have a look …

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Telefonaktiebolaget L M (NASDAQ:ERIC) reported first-quarter financial results on Friday. The transcript from the company’s first-quarter earnings call has been provided below.

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Summary

Telefonaktiebolaget L M reported a 10% decline in sales due to currency headwinds, but achieved a 6% organic growth across all segments.

The company maintained a strong gross margin of 48.1%, with the networks segment reaching 50.4%, despite mid-single-digit sales reductions in North America.

EBITDA was 5.6 billion krona with a margin of 11.3%, impacted by currency fluctuations, while cash flow remained healthy at 5.9 billion krona.

Telefonaktiebolaget L M announced a share buyback program worth 15 billion krona and an increased dividend, reflecting confidence in cash flow and financial stability.

Strategic focus areas include expanding into enterprise and mission-critical networks, with notable interest in defense solutions and 5G-based sensing technologies.

The company is cautious about rising input costs, including memory prices, and plans to mitigate these through pricing strategies and product substitution.

Management highlighted reduced geographic dependency, particularly on North America, and expressed confidence in growth from markets like India and Japan.

Future guidance suggests a flat RAND market with a focus on maintaining stable margins and strategic investments in new growth areas like AI-driven mobile applications.

Full Transcript

OPERATOR

Hello everyone and welcome to the presentation of Ericsson’s first quarter 2026 results. Joining us by video today is Börje Ekholm, our President and CEO. And in the studio I’m joined by Lars Sandstrom, our Chief Financial Officer. As usual, we’ll have a short presentation followed by Q and A. And in order to ask a question, you’ll need to join the conference by phone. Details can be found in today’s earnings release and on the investor relations website as well. Please be advised that today’s call is being recorded and that today’s presentation may include forward looking statements. These statements are based on our current expectations and certain planning assumptions which are subject to risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially due to factors mentioned in today’s press release and discussed in the conference call. We encourage you to read about these risks and uncertainties in our earnings report as well as in our annual report. Now hand the call over to Börje and Lars for their introductory comments.

Börje Ekholm

Thanks Tanya and good morning everyone and thanks for joining us today. Q1 was a solid start of the year and with the results that reflects our continued execution against our operational and strategic priorities. We saw a very large currency headwind during the quarter, probably one of the toughest quarters from a comp ratio as the Swedish Krona strengthened towards almost all currencies compared to last year. So this of course materially impacted every line of our financial statements with reporting sales falling 10% at the same time. We performed well operationally, realizing strong organic growth of 6% with all segments contributing. Our results are a testament to our leading portfolio and the investments we’ve been making in furthering our technology leadership. Over the last few years we’ve actively managed to reduce dependence on geographic mix. Of course we realize that North America often receives a disproportionate interest from, I guess, you, the analyst community, but also around the world. And that’s of course natural because it is a front runner market. And this quarter we saw sales reduced by mid single digits in North America. But we could still deliver a gross margin of 48.1% for the group and 50.4% for segment networks, indicating that the work we’ve done to balance out the geographic mix is coming through in the result and giving us less sensitivity to geographic mix. Cloud software services continue to execute well. We reached a gross margin of 43.2%. That’s up more than 300 basis points year over year. Revenue seasonality was in line with the guidance we had for the quarter and we saw some deals being pushed into Q2 and we expect to see that therefore stronger seasonality than normal next quarter. EBITDA came in at 5.6 billion krona with a margin of 11.3. And the strengthening of the Swedish krona affected EBITDA by 2.2 billion krona. And you’ve also seen we had the revaluation of the long term stock based programs and all of those are of course included in the result. Cash flow during the first quarter is seasonably lower. Typically. Despite this, cash flow came in at a healthy 5.9 billion kroner with a net cash position of 68.1 billion. And as you’ve seen just a couple of weeks ago the AGM approved the board’s proposal on increased dividend and our first share buyback program. We will start to execute on the share buyback program next week with a target to buy back 15 billion kronor. In the next phase of AI we see that high performance mobile connectivity will become increasingly important. Even so, our planning assumptions for the RAN market remains flat over the longer term. With disciplined execution, we create room to make selective investments in growth to broaden the mobile platform to new use cases and new sectors. We believe the growth will come in areas outside of our traditional CSP markets. And then we’re talking about areas like enterprise and mission critical networks in our enterprise segments, which includes our wireless one business private networks, network APIs or as we now call it actually network powered solutions and mobile money. Organic growth was stronger, which is encouraging. There are new markets that we see as key opportunities going forward. Of course new markets take time to develop, but we’re now seeing these efforts start to scale. I would also comment on the loss in enterprise of 1.4 billion kroner. It’s clearly unacceptable, but it also includes a number of one time costs. And we have an improvement plan in place that we’re executing on and we will expect to see that coming through. Shrinking losses during the rest of the year comes from growth, operational discipline and of course at the one time cost a bit. We’re also driving several other growth initiatives and there we see good progress in mission critical networks which tend to be a bit lumpy and vary by quarter. We’re experiencing strong interest in several verticals, particularly within defense solutions. In modern defense applications, high performance then I’m talking about large capacity connectivity is required and this will make 5G standalone a cost effective alternative. And we’ve seen a trial with the Italian Navy or actually deployment with the Italian Navy this quarter. Another very exciting area is 5G based sensing where one of many use cases is about detecting unconnected drones. And a few weeks ago we showcased our solution which is seeing significant customer interest. Of course given a difficult current market environment or environment geopolitically we see that our technology here has great market potential and we’re now starting to invest to capture these opportunities. I would say this is just one example that you don’t have to wait for 6G to get part of new exciting use cases with the technology we have. So we’re seeing good momentum on our strategy execution and we’ve strengthened Ericsson operationally and I would say this is showing now in our Q1 results. With that I’ll Let me give the word over to you Lars to go through the numbers in some more detail.

Lars Sandstrom (Chief Financial Officer)

All right, thank you Börje. I will begin with some additional comments on the group before moving over to the segments so net sales in Q1 totaled 49.3 billion which with organic sales growing 6% year on year the growth was broad based and sales grew in all segments and three market areas delivered. Double digit organic growth driven by continued 5G rollouts and increased uptake of 5G core Americas declined 2% with strong growth in Latin America more than offset by a mid single digit decline in North America. Following a strong quarter last year, reported sales decreased by 10% impacted by a negative currency effect of 7.8 billion. So organic growth again grew 6%. IPR revenues were 3.1 billion and this run rate coming out of the quarter is approximately then 13 billion. Adjusted gross income was 23.7 billion with a negative currency impact of 3.8 billion. Adjusted gross margin was 48.1 in line with last year excluding iConnective. On the cost side, operating expenses excluding restructuring charges dropped to 18.4 billion, around 2 billion lower year over year driven mainly by currency as well as the divestment of iConnective. Underlying inflationary pressures were more than offset by cost reduction driven by headcount as well as efficiency measures. And as Bay mentioned, adjusted Ebitda, which excludes restructuring but includes the other one offs was 5.6 billion. This is down by 1.4 billion including a negative impact of 2.2 billion. The divestment of iConnective and 0.5 billion of additional share based compensation costs coming from the increased share price here during the quarter. The EBITDA margin was 11.3%. Cash flow before M&A was 5.9 billion driven by earnings and reduced net operating assets. So let’s move to the segments in Network sales decreased by 8% year on year to 32.9 billion with a negative currency impact of 5.2 billion. Organic sales increased by 7%. Organic revenues grew in three of our four market areas. Two strategic markets, India and Japan grew strongly. North America declined impacted by customer spend reallocation in Q1 this year following recent market consolidation. Customer investments were also elevated last year due to tariff uncertainty impacting the comparison network’s adjusted gross margin decreased slightly to 50.4% mainly reflecting actions to enhance resilience in the supply chain. Adjusted EBITDA was 6.4 billion, impacted by a negative currency impact of 2 billion and benefiting from lower operating expenses which were also supported by continued efficiency improvements. Adjusted EBITDA margin was 13.3%. Looking at the right hand graph, the rolling 4 quarter gross margin stabilized around 50% and adjusted EBITDA margin at around 20%. Moving to the segment cloud, software and services sales here decreased 9% to 11.8 billion including a negative currency impact of 1.6 billion. So organically sales grew by 4% with growth primarily in core. Adjusted gross margin came in at 43.2% an improvement from 39.9% last year supported by improved delivery efficiency and a favorable product mix. Adjusted EBITDA increased to 0.6 billion with a margin of 5.3 despite a negative currency impact of 0.3 billion. Lower gross income was offset by lower operating expenses. Here looking at the right hand graph, the rolling 4/4 adjusted gross margin was around 44% and adjusted EBITDA margin around 12% and these are both new high levels. So reported sales on the enterprise side decreased 30% impacted by the sale of iConnective and currency on organic basis. Enterprise grew by 4% and this marks the second quarter of organic growth. Adjusted gross margin declined to 49.0% reflecting the impact of the divestment of iConnective and change in business mix. In global communications platform, adjusted EBITDA landed at minus 1.4 billion reflecting the divestment of iConnective and non recurring cost of 0.3 billion in the current quarter. Turning then to free cash flow which was 5.9 billion before M&A in the quarter we delivered a cash to net sales of 13% for the rolling 4 quarters above our 9 to 12 target and cash flow generation was strong supported by earnings and a stronger than normal seasonal reduction in operating net assets. Net cash increased sequentially by 6.9 billion to 68.1 billion. Here in the quarter, the buyback program of up to 15 billion was approved by The AGM and share repurchases will start now, soon. Next I will cover the outlook. Global uncertainty remains elevated given the broad geopolitical and macroeconomic environment, including the global semiconductor situation and where we’ll come back to this. The Q2 outlook assumes no tariff changes and the exchange rates specified in the report. For networks we expect sales growth to be broadly similar to the three year average quarter on quarter seasonality and for cloud, software and services we expect the sales growth to be above the three year average quarter on quarter seasonality. We expect net works adjusted gross margin to be in the range of 49 to 51% and restructuring charges for 2026 are expected to be at an elevated level with a fairly large part already seen in Q1. So with that I hand back to you Bea.

Börje Ekholm

Thanks a lot lars. So our Q1 results demonstrate the strong execution on our strategic priorities and the actions we’ve taken over the last several years to strengthen the company operationally. This includes how we made Ericsson less reliant on any specific geographical mix, enabling us to sustain healthy margins in varying market conditions, as you have seen in today’s report. Our actions also include how we diversified our supply chain to mitigate as much of the geopolitical disturbances as possible. This continues to be a clear competitive advantage, enabling us to meet customer commitments amid the current backdrop. Of course, the global semiconductor situation remains challenging as the AI boom is increasing input costs. We continue to take actions, and Lars mentioned this as well, to mitigate this impact by working closely with both our customers and suppliers, of course, including our pricing. While we believe we’re in a good position, we’re not immune to these disturbances, so they will have consequences on price and availability. As of course AI may be the key driver for our industry. Longer term we see AI as a net positive for us. The next phase of AI will see AI being industrialized, shifting focus from current focus on data centers, large language models rather to applications devices use cases. This will require advanced mobile connectivity with capabilities such as ultra low latency and high uplink. This puts us in the middle of the next phase of …

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Oportun Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:OPRT) shares surged 12.02% to $5.98 before the bell on Friday, after the San Mateo-based lender announced the appointment of Doug Bland as Chief Executive Officer, effective April 20.

Veteran Credit Operator Steps In

Bland, former Senior Vice President and General Manager of PayPal‘s (NASDAQ:PYPL) Consumer Business, brings over 30 years of consumer credit experience, according to Oportun. He earlier co-led Swift Financial through its 2017 PayPal acquisition and held senior lending roles at Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) through the 2008 financial crisis.

Lead Independent Director Louis Miramontes called Bland “the ideal leader,” citing his disciplined credit management and operational track record.

Bland said …

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Regions Financial Corporation (NYSE:RF) will release earnings for its first quarter before the opening bell on Friday, April 17.

Analysts expect the Birmingham, Alabama-based company to report quarterly earnings of 59 cents per share, up from 54 cents per share in the year-ago period. The consensus estimate for Regions Financial’s quarterly revenue is $1.92 billion (it reported $1.8 billion last year), according to Benzinga Pro.

On April 15, Regions Financial declared quarterly common and preferred stock dividends.

Regions Financial shares rose 0.3% to close at $27.92 on Thursday.

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With U.S. stock futures trading mixed this morning on Friday, some of the stocks that may grab investor focus today are as follows:

  • Wall Street expects State Street Corp (NYSE:STT) to report quarterly earnings at $2.63 per share on revenue of $3.66 billion before the opening bell, according to data from Benzinga Pro. State Street shares fell 0.6% to $141.00 in after-hours trading.
  • Netflix Inc (NASDAQ:NFLX) reported better-than-expected financial results for the first quarter of 2026 after the market close on Thursday. The company issued weak forecast for the second quarter and announced that chairman and co-founder Reed Hastings will not stand for re-election …

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Former Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson urged U.S. authorities on Thursday to prepare a contingency plan for a potential collapse in demand for government bonds before it’s too late.

“We need an emergency break-the-glass plan, which is targeted and short-term, on the shelf, so it’s ready to go when we hit the wall,” Paulson said during an interview on Bloomberg Television’s Wall Street Week with David Westin.

A Different Crisis Than 2008

Paulson, who led the Treasury through the 2008 financial crisis, said a U.S. debt crisis would be far harder to contain than the credit meltdown he managed then.

“When you hit the wall and you’re trying to issue Treasuries and the Fed is the only buyer and the prices of the Treasuries are going down and interest rates are up, that’s a dangerous …

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Truist Financial Corporation (NYSE:TFC) will release earnings for its first quarter before the opening bell on Friday, April 17.

Analysts expect the Charlotte, North Carolina-based company to report quarterly earnings of $1.00 per share. That’s up from 89 cents per share in the year-ago period. The consensus estimate for Truist Financial’s quarterly revenue is $5.18 billion (it reported $4.95 billion last year), according to Benzinga Pro.

On Feb. 26, Truist Securities named Matthew Miller as head of mergers & acquisitions.

Shares of Truist Financial fell 0.3% to close at $49.43 on Thursday.

Benzinga readers can access the latest analyst ratings on the Analyst Stock Ratings page. Readers can sort by stock ticker, company name, analyst firm, rating change or other variables.

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Pakistan has lately accelerated efforts to integrate cryptocurrencies into its financial system, while neighboring rival India continues to take a more cautious approach, with limited progress toward comprehensive regulation.

Pakistan’s Ambitious Crypto Push

In a notable shift, Pakistan’s central bank now allows banks to service licensed virtual asset providers, marking the end of an eight-year lull in regulated cryptocurrency activity.

Bilal Bin Saqib, Chairman of the country’s federal regulator for virtual assets, said that the country will now move from “restriction to regulation,” and “from ambiguity to institutional clarity.”

Pakistan Attracting Big Players

The move is part of Pakistan’s ongoing cryptocurrency pivot, as it works to attract global players and position the country as a global hub of digital assets.

It has roped in Binance (CRYPTO: BNB) co-founder Changpeng Zhao as strategic advisor of the Pakistan Crypto Council, …

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Governor Gavin Newsom (D-CA) slammed President Donald Trump on Thursday for causing Americans to spend billions in additional costs at the pump as fuel continues to hover around the $4-mark.

A Trump Win?

Taking to the social media platform X, Newsom’s official Press Office handle delivered sharp criticism of Trump. “Americans have paid $10.53 billion more for gas nationwide,” the post said, adding that states like Idaho, Utah, Kentucky and Arizona had seen the steepest increases in fuel prices. “TRUMP WIN?” the post said.

While the press office did not specify where the $10.53 billion figure came from, GasBuddy analyst Patrick De Haan had earlier shared that rising fuel costs have resulted in Americans paying over $10 billion in excess at the pumps. According to data from the American Automobile Association (AAA), the national average price of a gallon of gas on …

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Snail Inc. (NASDAQ:SNAL) shares are trending on Friday.

SNAL surged 18.49% to $0.90 after the bell on Thursday after investors cheered pipeline updates and a confirmed “Survivor Mercs” launch timeline, alongside efforts to broaden its portfolio across genres.

The California-based technology company announced that “Survivor Mercs,” its horde-shooter game, will officially launch its 1.0 version on April 30 across Steam, Xbox and PlayStation under its Wandering Wizard label, marking a full transition from early Access to global release.

What Investors Should Know About Pipeline Expansion And Diversification

Snail emphasized a strategy to reduce reliance on a single intellectual property and expand across genres, platforms and development models. CFO Heidy Chow said the company aims for …

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Tesla Inc.‘s (NASDAQ:TSLA) legal troubles could reportedly cost the Elon Musk-led EV giant billions of dollars in settlement costs.

$14.5 Billion In Costs

On Thursday, Electrek reported that Tesla was facing over 21 active lawsuits comprising wrongful death lawsuits, as well as customers suing the EV giant over its self-driving and driver assistance systems. Tesla is also being sued over allegations of racial discrimination. The exposure estimates, according to the report, range from $2.1 billion to $14.5 billion.

The estimates include Autopilot/FSD crash lawsuits with exposures of $1-5 billion, as well as class action lawsuits relating to Full Self-Driving (FSD) false advertising ($100-500 million), autonomy predictions and more. The racial discrimination lawsuit at its Fremont, California, facility could cost up to $1.2 billion.

It also faces multiple regulatory investigations, like the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) FSD investigation, which could cost over $500 million, as well as …

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AEVEX Corp rode a surge in defence spending and investor appetite for military tech to raise $320 million in its U.S. initial public offering on Thursday, pricing shares at $20 apiece, near the top of its indicated range.

The California-based drone maker sold 16 million shares between $18 and $21 each.

Goldman Sachs, BofA Securities and Jefferies acted as joint bookrunners. AEVEX is set to begin trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker “AVEX” on Friday.

Defence Spending Surge Lifts Demand

The listing comes amid heightened interest in defence-linked companies, as conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East push governments to ramp up military budgets. Investors are increasingly viewing such firms as strategic hedges against global instability, and the group is attracting higher valuations as smaller companies …

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Bank of New York Mellon (NYSE:BK) held its first-quarter earnings conference call on Thursday. Below is the complete transcript from the call.

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Summary

Bank of New York Mellon Corp reported a strong financial performance in Q1 2026, with earnings per share of $2.24, up 42% year-over-year, and record revenue of $5.4 billion, up 13%.

The company highlighted strategic initiatives, including significant investments in AI and technology, with over 200 AI solutions developed, and emphasized its role as a trusted provider in global financial markets.

Future outlook is positive with raised total revenue growth guidance for 2026 to approximately 6% year-over-year, driven by strong client engagement and a diversified business model.

Full Transcript

OPERATOR

Good morning and welcome to the 2026 first quarter earnings conference call hosted by BNY. At this time all participants are in a listen only mode. Later we will conduct a question and answer session. Please note that this conference call and webcast will be recorded and will consist of copyrighted material. You may not record or rebroadcast these materials without BNY’s consent. I will now turn the call over to Mary Merz, BNY Head of Investor Relations. Please go ahead.

Mary Merz

Thank you operator Good morning, everyone and welcome to our first Quarter Earnings call. I’m here with Robin Vince, our CEO and David McDonagh, our CFO. As always, we will reference the Quarterly Update presentation which can be found on the Investor Relations page of our website at bny.com and I’ll note that our remarks will contain forward looking statements and non GAAP measures. Actual results may differ materially from those projected in the forward looking statements. Information about these statements and non GAAP measures is available in the Earnings Press Release, Financial Supplement and Quarterly Update Presentation, all of which can be found on the Investor Relations page of our website. Forward looking statements made on this call speak only as of today, April 16, 2026, and will not be updated. With that, I will turn it over to Robin.

Robin Vince (Chief Executive Officer)

Thanks, Mary Good morning everyone and thank you for joining us. I’ll begin with a few broader comments before Dermot takes you through our financial results. Referring to page two of the Quarterly update presentation, BNY has started the year with a strong performance. In the first quarter earnings per share of $2.24 grew 42% year over year both on a reported basis and excluding notable items. Record revenue of $5.4 billion was up 13% year over year reflecting broad based growth across our securities services and market and wealth services businesses. And we delivered over 800 basis points of positive operating leverage while making meaningful investments in new products, capabilities, AI and critically our people and culture. Taken together, this combination of strong top line growth and significant operating leverage resulted in pre tax margin expansion to 37% and improved profitability with a return on tangible common equity of 29% in the quarter. BNY’s position at the heart of global financial markets with platforms across custody, security, settlement, collateral, payments, trading, wealth investments and more supports durable financial performance for our company enabling us to power our clients growth as they navigate an increasingly complex landscape. While the path of global markets is difficult to predict with certainty, what is clear is that the underlying trends higher levels of activity, greater complexity, new technologies and a resulting need for scale, efficiency and connectivity are more relevant than ever for our clients. As I mentioned in my shareholder letter earlier this year, the portfolio of BNY’s businesses is unique, but it is how we are embracing new ways of working, our adoption and integration of new technologies, and our strong culture that allows us to create truly differentiated solutions. Clients are increasingly recognizing the value of holistic solutions that support the full lifecycle of their activity. Whether it is managing liquidity, optimizing collateral, supporting higher trading volumes, or getting ready for the future of financial market infrastructure, our work to operate together as one BNY through both our platform’s operating model and our commercial model better enables us to bring the full breadth of our capabilities together in service of our clients. A good example of this from the first quarter is our work with Allianz Global Investors, one of the world’s leading active asset managers. AGI has selected BNY to support optimizing their investment operating model, leveraging the breadth of our global capabilities. This integrated model will help AGI deliver exceptional experience front to back, while placing AI and modern data infrastructure at the heart of their operations to enhance productivity, enable faster work, clearer insights and better outcomes for their teams and clients alike. In another example, PayPal has selected BNY to provide institutional grade digital asset custody, supporting their digital payments, wallets and financial services for millions of users globally. And just last week, the US Treasury Department announced that they have selected BNY as financial agent for Trump Accounts, the US Government’s Investment Savings Initiative for children. Aimed at building a strong financial foundation for for our next generation. BNY will manage the national infrastructure for the program and collaborate with Robinhood, which will provide brokerage and initial trustee services. These examples illustrate our strategic evolution toward deeper integration between our products delivered with the technology and scale of BNY’s differentiated platforms. Over the next phase of BNY’s transformation. One of the most significant enablers of being more for our clients and running our company better is AI, and so we felt that this was an opportune time to spotlight how we are going about AI at BNY. Turning to slide 3 of the presentation as a reminder, our work to set the foundation for reimagining our company has included intentional and consistent investments in AI AI over the past several years, we took a very deliberate approach to AI through the lens of integration, adoption and importantly our people and culture. We embraced a platform’s approach to embedding AI across the company, creating our AI hub in 2023 so we could develop the enterprise capabilities, strong governance framework and training to empower every employee to embrace AI. More than two years Ago, in collaboration with Nvidia, BNY became the first global bank to Deploy a DGX SuperPod and in the same year we launched Eliza, BNY’s AI platform outlined on page four. Our vision for AI at BNY is that it is for everyone, everywhere and everything. As is the case with many things, the key to making it work is culture. We took a people first approach over the last year we focused on broad adoption. We made eliza available to 100% of our employees and supported advanced learning and development through a series of training programs. This approach to enterprise wide enablement has already allowed us to develop more than 200 AI solutions and to introduce digital employees multi agentic solutions that operate alongside human colleagues. In 2026 we are doubling down on depth, moving from AI point solutions to using AI to enhance end to end processes, reducing manual touch points, improving cycle times, strengthening control outcomes and to build more connected intelligence by linking data, workflows and expertise to enhance the service and value propos for our clients. On page five we show just some of the initial outputs, tangible results of AI enablement and impact across improved business and operating performance, driving greater efficiency and product innovation. None of these metrics individually show a complete picture of AI at bny, but taken together they show something important that we are systematically embedding AI in our workflows across the entire company. Already, AI is helping us increase the pace at which we innovate our technology, accelerate onboarding, improve client service and streamline processes. And in combination with our broader efforts to run our company better, AI is starting to contribute to the improved financial performance trajectory at the bottom of the page. Building on our deliberate strategy and the solid foundation we’ve laid over the past several years, we’re confident that AI will enable us to evolve our business model and enhance how we deliver for clients. Our commitment not just to deep AI enablement, but the full reimagination of our company, combined with the role that we play in global financial market infrastructure, the breadth of our businesses and our trusted and deep client relationships together represents a powerful competitive advantage. Taking a Step back and Reflecting on the Operating Environment While AI was an ever present theme in markets over the past few months, the first quarter also presented a dynamic market backdrop. Significant volatility was driven by shifting expectations for the paths of growth, inflation and interest rates amid geopolitical conflicts and evolving policy outlooks. Within this constantly changing environment, our diversified business model combined with our strong balance sheet allows BNY to serve as a pillar of strength for our clients and for global markets. Before I hand it over to Dermot. I want to take a moment to recognize our employees around the world for rising to the challenge to execute on our long term plan to unlock BNY’s full potential for our clients and shareholders. We’ve had a strong start to the year supported by increasing client engagement and continued progress on our strategic priorities. I’d like to thank our clients for their trust, our employees for their commitment and hard work, and our shareholders for their continued support. And with that over to you Dermot.

Dermot

Thank you Robin and good morning everyone. I’ll pick up on page six of the presentation with our consolidated financial results for the first quarter. Total revenue of $5.4 billion was up 13% year over year. Fee revenue was up 11%. This included 10% growth in investment services fees reflecting higher client activity, net new business and higher market values. Investment management and performance fees were up 6%, primarily driven by higher market values and a favorable impact of a weaker US dollar, partially offset by the impact of the mix of AUM flows. While not on the page, I will note that firm wide AUCA of $59.4 trillion increased by 12% year over year. This reflects net client inflows, higher market values and the favorable impact of the weaker dollar. Assets under management of $2.1 trillion were up 6%, primarily driven by higher market values and the weaker dollar partially offset by cumulative net outflows. Foreign Exchange revenue was up 49% year over year on the back of higher volumes resulting from elevated market activity and supported by new products and capabilities. Investment and Other revenue was $271 million in the quarter, including approximately $135 million of investment related gains and $50 million of net securities losses. Net interest income increased by 18% year over year, primarily driven by continued reinvestment of investment securities at higher yields and balance sheet growth partially offset by deposit margin. Compression expenses of $3.4 billion were up 5% year over year, both on a reported basis and excluding notable items. This was primarily driven by our commitment to higher investments in our businesses, higher revenue related expenses, the unfavorable impact of the weaker dollar and employee merit increases partially offset by continued efficiency savings. Provision for credit losses was a benefit of $7 million in the quarter, primarily driven by improvements in commercial real estate exposure, partially offset by changes in macroeconomic and other factors. On the back of significant positive operating leverage of 833 basis points, pre tax margin expanded to 37% and return on tangible common equity was 29%. Taken together, we reported earnings per share of $2.24, up 42% year over year on to Capital and Liquidity on page 7, our Tier 1 leverage ratio for the quarter was 6% flat. Sequentially, Tier 1 capital increased by $532 million, primarily driven by preferred stock issuance and earnings retention, partially offset by a net decrease in accumulated other comprehensive income. Average assets increased by 2% on the back of deposit growth. Our CET1 ratio at the end of the quarter was 11%, down 89 basis points sequentially as CET1 capital remained approximately flat. This decrease was primarily driven by higher risk weighted assets, reflecting a single day increase in overnight loan balances on the last day of the quarter along with higher client activity in agency securities lending and foreign exchange. Over the course of the first quarter we returned $1.4 billion of capital to our shareholders representing a total payout ratio of 87%, and our board of directors authorized a new $10 billion share repurchase program. Our consolidated liquidity coverage ratio and net stable funding ratio were at 111 and 131% respectively. Turning to net interest income and balance sheet Trends on page 8, net interest income of $1.4 billion was up 18% year over year and up 2% quarter over quarter. Like the year over year increase described earlier, the sequential increase was primarily driven by the continued reinvestment of investment securities at higher yields and and balance sheet growth partially offset by deposit margin compression. Average deposit balances increased by 3% sequentially reflecting 2% growth in interest bearing and 6% growth in non interest bearing deposits and average interest earning assets were up 2% quarter over quarter. Cash and reverse repo balances were flat. Loans increased by 6% and investment securities portfolio balances increased by 2%. Turning to our business segments starting on page nine, security services reported a total revenue of $2.7 billion, up 17% year over year. Total investment services fees were up 10% in asset servicing. Investment services fees grew by 11% reflecting higher market values and broad based client activity. ETF AUCA were up 33% year over year on the back of higher market values, client inflows and net new business and our alternatives Auca were up 20%. I want to highlight that consistent with our strategy to deliver the breadth of BNY to our clients, over 50% of the clients that awarded asset servicing new business in the first quarter also awarded new business to at least one of our other lines of business in issuer services. Investment services fees were up 4% reflecting growth in both corporate trust and depository receipts. I’ll note that for the first time in our history, corporate trust reached $15 trillion of total debt serviced and we’re particularly pleased with our continued market share gains in CLO servicing. Once again, the breadth of our capabilities is a powerful differentiator. Our clients clearly recognize the superior value proposition of a single provider for corporate trust, asset servicing, collateral, liquidity solutions and more in Security services. Overall foreign Exchange revenue was up 44% year over year reflecting higher client volumes. Net interest income for the segment was up 20% year over year. Segment expenses of $1.6 billion were up 5% year over year, primarily driven by higher investments and revenue related expenses. The unfavorable impact of the weaker dollar and employee merit increases partially offset by efficiency savings Security Services reported pre tax income of $1 billion, a 46% increase year over year and a pre tax margin of 39%. Investment related gains added 3 percentage points to pre tax margin in the quarter. Next Market and Wealth Services on page 10 market and wealth services reported total revenue of $1.9 billion, up 11% year over year. Total investment services fees were up 10% during the quarter. We formed our Wealth Solutions business by realigning Archer’s managed accounts solutions from asset servicing to pershing. This integration further strengthens our capabilities to serve wealth advisors by adding Archer’s market leading distribution and managed accounts expertise to deliver fully integrated end to end solutions across the entire wealth ecosystem. In Wealth Solutions Investment services fees were up 6% reflecting higher market values and client activity. Net new assets were $22 billion in the quarter representing an annualized growth rate of 3% and AUCA of $3.3 trillion were up 14% year over year in clearance and collateral management. Investment services fees increased by 19% reflecting broad based growth in collateral balances and clearance volumes. Average collateral balances of $7.8 trillion increased by 18% year over year reflecting higher market activity and growth on the back of a robust environment for financing with U.S. treasury securities, strong money market fund balances and increasing client demand for non cash collateral ahead of the central clearing mandate for US Treasuries. We are engaging with central counterparties and our clients and we’re delivering innovative solutions from across BNY that help them find new ways to access the market clear transactions and manage collateral and margin. In the quarter we also saw strong growth in clearing volumes reflecting net new business wins particularly in international clearance and from expanding wallet share with existing clients. Doing more with BNY in our payments and trade business. Investment services fees were up 5% primarily reflecting net New business payments and Trade delivered another solid quarter with continued sales momentum including numerous multi line of business wins particularly with FX and global liquidity solutions. Net interest income for the Segment overall was up 15% year over year. Segment expenses of $937 million were up 6% year over year, primarily driven by higher investments, employee merit increases, higher revenue related expenses and the unfavorable impact of the weaker dollar partially offset by efficiency savings. Taken together, our Market and Wealth Services segment reported pre tax income of $961 million up 18% year over year and a pre tax margin of 51%. Turning to investment and wealth management on page 11, investment and wealth management reported total revenue of $825 million up 6% year over year. Investment management and performance fees were up 6% primarily driven by higher market values and the favourable impact of the weaker dollar partially offset by the impact of the mix of AUM flows. Segment expenses of $726 million were up 2% year over year primarily driven by the weaker dollar, employee merit increases and higher investments partially offset by efficiency savings. Investment and Wealth Management reported pre tax income of $90 million up 43% year over year and a pre tax margin of 11% versus 8% in the prior year quarter. As I mentioned earlier, assets under management of $2.1 trillion increased by 6% year over year in the first quarter. Long term active flows were flat reflecting net inflows into fixed income and LDI strategies and net outflows from equity strategies. We saw $10 billion of net outflows from cash and $7 billion net outflows from Index Strategies Wealth Management. Client assets of $339 billion increased by 4% year over year reflecting higher market values. Page 12 shows the results of the other segment. I’ll close with an update on our financial outlook for the year. In light of our strong performance in the first quarter, we are raising our outlook for total revenue excluding notable items for the full year 2026 and now expect approximately 6% year over year growth. That includes our expectation for full year 2026 net interest income to be up approximately 10% year over year. We expect full year 2026 expense growth excluding notable items to be at the top of the 3 to 4% year over year growth rate range that we provided in January and we continue to expect a quarterly tax rate of approximately 23% for the remaining quarters this year. I want to leave you with three important points. First, we delivered a strong financial performance in the first quarter and continue to serve as a pillar of strength for our clients amid a dynamic market environment. Second, the combination of our unique portfolio of businesses, our role in global financial market infrastructure, our deep and trusted client relationships, our diversified business model and the strength of our balance sheet represents an exceptional client value proposition and a powerful competitive advantage. And finally, what truly differentiates BNY today is our ability to mobilise all of the above for the benefit of our clients and shareholders. With that operator, can you please open the line for Q and A?

OPERATOR

If you would like to ask a question, please press Star one on your telephone keypad. As a reminder, we ask that you please limit yourself to one question and one related follow up question. We’ll take our first question from Brennan Hawken with BMO Capital Markets.

Brennan Hawken (Analyst at BMO Capital Markets)

Good morning. Thanks for taking my questions. I’ll just start with deposits. So the deposit trends were stronger than expected. Was hoping maybe you could speak to quarter to date trends around betas specifically for the euro and Pound deposit betas. Given we’ve got hikes now in the forward curve, how should we be thinking about the betas for those currencies? Thanks.

Dermot

Okay, thanks for the question, Brennan. Let me start with overall balances and trends. As you will recall from our call on January 13, we finished last year with strong momentum on deposits. With the macro uncertainty and just how the events of the quarter played out, we saw clients holding higher levels of liquidity. And …

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Gaxos.ai Inc. (NASDAQ:GXAI) shares rose 19.35% to $1.48 in after-hours trading on Thursday after expanding its Gaxos Labs platform with AI Music Generation, AI Chat and AI 3D Model Creation tools, aiming to boost user engagement, broaden its generative AI offerings and reinforce its AI growth strategy.

The announcement of the expansion was made after the markets closed on Thursday.

User Engagement Supports AI Strategy

Gaxos said the rollout enhances its platform across image, video, music and text-based AI tools, targeting consumer, creator and commercial users. The company said the rollout has already contributed to an uptick in user engagement across its AI portfolio following the feature expansion.

CEO Vadim Mats said the additions “significantly enhance” the platform’s breadth and support growing demand for generative AI tools.

In Feb, Amazon Web Services (NASDAQ:AMZN) …

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Blaize Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BZAI) shares are trending on Thursday night.

BZAI jumped 21.39% to $2.10 in after-hours trading on Thursday following a contract of up to $50 million with technology company NeoTensr for AI edge data center infrastructure across Asia Pacific and a strategic Memorandum of Understanding with Taiwan-based rugged technology maker Winmate Inc. targeting sovereign, mission-critical edge AI deployments.

$50M Contract Follows $20M Q4 2025 Revenue

The NeoTensr contract increases the total contracted value between the two companies to $70 million, following more than $20 million in revenue generated for Blaize in the fourth quarter of 2025.

Blaize’s Hybrid AI architecture combines its Graph Streaming Processor (GSP) with GPU infrastructure, processing 200+ simultaneous camera streams per server while running LLMs and VLMs at the edge.

Ke Yin, co-founder and chief scientist at Blaize, said, “We are not partitioning the workload between edge and cloud — we are collapsing that boundary entirely.”

Edge AI Market Projected …

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Economist Peter Schiff, on Thursday, expressed concerns about New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s plan to open government-owned stores to make food more affordable.

New York’s State-Run Grocers Will Hurt Private Sector Profit

In a post on X, Schiff said that the opening of five state-run grocery would hurt private-sector profit and reduce the efficiency of the stores. He wrote “profit margins are less than 2%. Without a profit motive government stores will be far less efficient, so without taxpayer subsidies, prices will be higher.”

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Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) has sold out its Model S ‘Signature’ Edition inventory as Elon Musk bids farewell to the luxury Model S and X vehicles.

Reservations Closed, $56 Million Revenue

In a post on the social media platform X on Thursday, influencer Sawyer Merritt shared that the automaker had run out of ‘Signature’ Edition units. “The $160,000 Model S Signature Edition is officially sold out,” he said, adding that Tesla had closed reservations for both Model S and X units.

“Between the 250 Model S and 100 Model X Signature Editions, Tesla generated a combined $56M in revenue,” Merritt shared. Notably, Tesla has barred customers purchasing the limited editions from selling their vehicles within one year of purchase.

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Cryptocurrency bookmakers significantly raised odds of Iran surrendering its enriched uranium stockpile after President Donald Trump claimed the Middle-Eastern country agreed to abandon nuclear weapons.

Polymarket Traders Raise Optimism

Polygon (CRYPTO: POL)-based Polymarket showed a 40% possibility of Iran officially pledging to give up its stockpile by the end of the month, up from 30% a day earlier.

The odds of this happening by the end of June spiked 14 percentage points to 65%, while the chances of this happening anytime before the end of 2026 rose to 72%.

The bet has already garnered over $1 million in wagers on the outcome. To qualify, Iran must publicly commit to transferring all or part of its enriched uranium stockpile to an entity outside its jurisdiction and influence.

Meanwhile, …

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Allbirds Inc. (NASDAQ:BIRD) shares fell 8.20% to $10.02 after the bell on Thursday, with the rally tapering down after surging nearly 700% on Wednesday.

The California-based company, which plans a “sneakers-to-servers” reset, closed the regular session at $10.91, down 35.79%, according to Benzinga Pro data.

Traders Pile In, But Technicals Flash Caution

Volume for Allbirds hit 30.81 million on Thursday, more than triple the 9.77 million average, reflecting heavy trading activity.

The Relative Strength Index (RSI) stood at 66.71, indicating strong bullish momentum while nearing the overbought threshold of 70.

Sneakers Out, Servers In

The massive gains on Wednesday came amid Allbirds’ announcement of an AI pivot backed by a $50 million convertible financing facility and a rebranding as “NewBird AI,” …

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Leading cryptocurrencies held steady, while stocks closed at new records on Thursday as President Donald Trump said Iran agreed to transfer its “nuclear dust” to the U.S

Cryptocurrency 24-Hour Gains +/- Price (Recorded at 9:25 p.m. EDT)
Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) +0.13% $74,712.15
Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH)
               		 -0.81% $2,332.19
XRP (CRYPTO: XRP)                          +2.44% $1.43
Solana (CRYPTO: SOL)                          +4.28% $88.46
Dogecoin (CRYPTO: DOGE)              +3.89% $0.09856

Major Coins Consolidate

Bitcoin traded in a range between the mid-$73,000s and mid-$75,000s, even as 24-hour volume climbed 9%.Ethereum consolidated around $2,300, while XRP and Dogecoin moved higher.

Shares of Strategy Inc. (NASDAQ:MSTR) and Coinbase Global Inc. (NASDAQ:COIN) closed up 3.76% and 2.00%, respectively.

Over $440 million was liquidated in the past 24 hours, nearly evenly split between long positions and short positions, according to Coinglass data.

Open interest in Bitcoin futures fell 0.70% over the last 24 hours. Meanwhile, derivative sentiment on Binance remained bearish for the apex cryptocurrency.

Top Gainers (24 Hours) 

Cryptocurrency (Market Cap>$100 M) Gains +/- Price (Recorded at 9:25 p.m. EDT)
Ordi (ORDI)       +175.03%     $9.82
siren (SIREN)                  +124.03%     $1.89
RaveDAO (RAVE)            +55.16%     $16.80

The global cryptocurrency market capitalization stood at $2.52 trillion, following an increase of 0.82% increase in the last 24 hours.

Stocks Extend Record-Breaking Run

The stock market rally continued on Thursday. The Dow …

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Major U.S. indices closed higher on Thursday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 0.2% at 48,578.72, the S&P 500 gaining nearly 0.3% to 7,041.28, and the Nasdaq advancing about 0.4% to 24,102.70.

These are the top stocks that gained the attention of retail traders and investors through the day:

Netflix Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX)

Netflix shares saw a slight increase of 0.07% to close at $107.79. The stock hit an intraday high of $108.95 and a low of $106.62, with a 52-week range of $134.12 to $75.01. The shares slid by 9.6% to $97.44 in the after-hours trading.

Netflix reported first-quarter 2026 revenue of $12.25 billion and earnings of $1.23 per share, both beating estimates, with revenue rising 16% year-over-year driven by membership growth, pricing and advertising. The company also generated $5.3 billion in operating cash flow and $5.1 billion in free cash flow, ending the quarter with $12.3 billion in cash.

However, Netflix guided second-quarter revenue of $12.57 billion and EPS of $0.78, both below expectations, while reaffirming full-year revenue of $50.7 billion to $51.7 billion. The company also said co-founder Reed Hastings will not seek re-election as chairman when his term ends in June.

Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (NASDAQ:AMD)

AMD shares soared by 7.80% to close at $278.26. The stock’s intraday high was $279.34 and low was $261.51, with a 52-week range of $279.34 …

Full story available on Benzinga.com

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Scale AI CEO Jason Droege is calling out CEOs using AI as an excuse to do what they were going to do anyway—cut jobs

According to Semafor, Droege claims companies are “washing the layoffs” with AI and downplays the idea that AI will trigger an employment “apocalypse.”

“The tools are going to add capabilities; they are going to make companies more competitive. Those more competitive companies are going to put pressure on less competitive companies,” he said.

The AI honcho also blamed employees for not learning how to use the burgeoning tech effectively. 

“Your livelihood could be at risk, but that’s because you didn’t adapt, not because there is something that just happened to us out of our control,” he said.

Droege warned that AI can be inconsistent, especially in areas where small errors can carry great consequences.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent echoed similar statements to CNBC during the Invest In America Forum regarding what AI disruption might mean for the economy, jobs, and …

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Lakeland Industries (NASDAQ:LAKE) released fourth-quarter financial results and hosted an earnings call on Thursday. Read the complete transcript below.

This transcript is brought to you by Benzinga APIs. For real-time access to our entire catalog, please visit https://www.benzinga.com/apis/ for a consultation.

View the webcast at https://viavid.webcasts.com/starthere.jsp?ei=1750467&tp_key=d6dc402422

Summary

Lakeland Industries reported net sales of $192.6 million for fiscal 2026, up 15.2% from the previous year, driven by strong growth in the fire services segment.

The company faced challenges in converting revenue growth into expected earnings, citing execution issues amid a volatile cost environment, including freight inflation and raw material pressures.

Strategic initiatives included the divestiture of non-core product lines for $14 million, expansion in fire services through acquisitions, and certification of a full NFPA-compliant product range.

Operational highlights include the opening of new facilities to enhance service capabilities and an improved cash generation discipline reflected in positive operating cash flow in Q4.

Future guidance indicates expectations for high single-digit revenue growth and positive cash flow from operations in fiscal 2027, with a focus on improving margins and supply chain optimization.

Full Transcript

OPERATOR

Good afternoon and welcome to the Lakeland Fire and safety fiscal fourth quarter and full year 2026 financial results conference call. All lines have been placed on a listen only mode and the floor will be open for your questions following the presentation. During today’s call we may make statements relating to our goals and objectives for future operations, including our goals for revenue and cash flow from operations for fiscal year 2027, financial and business trends, business prospects and management’s expectations for future performance that constitute forward looking statements under federal securities laws. Any such forward looking statements reflect management expectations based upon currently available information and are not guarantees of future performance and involve certain risks and uncertainties that are more fully described in our SEC filings. Our actual results, performance or achievements may differ materially from those expressed in our in or implied by such forward looking statements. We undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward looking statements to reflect events or developments after the date of this call. On this call we will also discuss financial measures derived from our financial statements that are not determined in accordance with US gaap, including Adjusted ebitda, Adjusted EBITDA excluding fx, adjusted EBITDA Margin, adjusted EBITDA excluding FX Margin, Organic Revenue, Organic Gross Margin and Adjusted Operating expenses. A reconciliation of each of the non GAAP measures discussed on this call to the most directly comparable GAAP measure is presented in our Earnings release and or the supplemental slides filed with our earnings Release. A press release detailing these results was issued this afternoon and is available in the Investor Relations section of our company’s website ir.lakeland.com at this time I would like to introduce your hosts for this call, Lakeland Fire and Safety’s President, Chief Executive Officer and Executive Chairman Jim Jenkins, Chief Financial Officer Calvin Sweeney, Chief Commercial Officer, Global Industrials Cameron Stokes, Chief Revenue Officer Barry Phillips and Executive Vice President of EMEA Fire sales Kevin Ray. Mr. Jenkins, the floor is yours.

Jim Jenkins (President, Chief Executive Officer and Executive Chairman)

Thank you Operator and good afternoon everyone. Thank you for joining us today to discuss the results of our fiscal 2026 fourth quarter and full year ended January 31, 2026. Fiscal 2026 was a year of meaningful top line growth and important strategic progress for Lakeland. Calvin will walk through the financials in detail shortly, so I will provide you with a brief overview here. For the full year, net sales increased 25.4 million or 15.2% to 192.6 million, driven by continued strength in fire services. In the fourth quarter, net sales were 45.8 million, down 800,000 or 1.7% from the prior period. US sales increased 35.1% for the full year to 81.6 million and increased 7.1% in the fourth quarter to 19.6 million. Europe also grew meaningfully for the full year increasing 12.1 million or 28.7% while fourth quarter Europe sales were down 2.4 million due primarily to timing on LHD and JOLLY orders on profitability adjusted EBITDA excluding FX was 7.2 million for the full year and 1.3 million in the fourth quarter. Gross margin was 32.9% for the full year and 32.2% in the fourth quarter. Those results were below our expectations and I want to be direct about why. We grew revenue at a strong rate, but we did not convert that growth into the earnings we expected. We view this as an execution issue, not a demand issue. The underlying demand environment across our core markets remains intact. We operated in a volatile cost environment during fiscal 2026. Freight inflation, raw material pressure, tariffs and certification timing delays exposed weaknesses in our planning and pricing response that we are actively addressing. Against that backdrop I want to note something important. The fourth quarter generated approximately 2 million of operating cash. Delivering that level of cash generation on lower revenue than the third quarter reflects improved discipline across the organization, stronger cost control and better day to day execution. We are seeing early signs that the actions we have been taking are beginning to work. Subsequent to the fiscal year end we completed the divestiture of our HPFR and HI VIS product lines to National Safety apparel generating approximately 14 million of cash proceeds. This transaction simplifies the business and allows management to concentrate fully on our core fire services and industrial protective product lines where we see the greatest long term opportunity. On the product side we achieved a significant milestone with numerous NFPA 1970-2025 certifications across our brand portfolio. Products including Lacon Structural Turnout and Proximity gear, Meridian Gloves and Fire Particulate Blocking hoods, Jolly Boots and Pacific Helmets are now fully certified enabling customers to order from a complete head to toe NFPA certified range of products across Lakeland’s brands. This certification was a meaningful commercial unlock and we look forward to showcasing our portfolio at FDIC 2026 next week. We strengthaned the organization with several important appointments. Calvin Sweeney was named Chief financial officer in February 2026, having served as interim CFO since December 2025 and Kevin Ray was just recently named Executive Vice President of EMEA Fire Sales. You will be hearing more from both of them shortly. We also welcome Lee Rideau to our Board of Directors in early April. Lee previously served as CEO of NASDAQ listed transcat and his invaluable business and strategic M&A integration strategic M&A integration experience in the industrial markets with a strong track of execution across both organic growth and acquisition driven strategies will be a valuable addition to our governance. During the year we completed the acquisitions of Arizona PPE and California PPE, expanding our US Fire services, distribution and rental capabilities with ISP locations in Arizona, California and soon Denver. California PPE also opened a new state state-of-the-art facility in Fresno providing compliant decontamination, inspection and repair services to California Fire departments. These recurring revenue service businesses strengthen our fire platform and build long term customer relationships. We also completed the 6.1 million sale and partial leaseback of Decatur, Alabama warehouse property generating an approximately 4.3 million pre tax gain and reducing our fixed cost exposure and Lakeland was added to the Russell 3000 and Russell 2000 indices in June of last year reflecting our growing market profile. Alongside these actions, we are working to further strengthen liquidity and flexibility through our pending ABL facility which we expect to close soon. Although there can be no assurance that the ABL facility will close on that timeline or at all, the bank of America Covenant labor has been secured and we anticipate to be in covenant throughout fiscal 27. Taken together, these steps reflect a company that is not standing still, but that one is actively reshaping its operating model to support improved performance. From a macro standpoint, fiscal 2026 was affected by tariff uncertainty, freight inflation, raw material cost pressure and certification timing delays across both fire and industrial. Those factors pressured production efficiency, revenue timing and gross margin. We also saw softer performance in select areas in the fourth quarter, but do not view the issues in front of us as demand destruction. We view them as timing, execution and cost challenges that are addressable and that is an important distinction. As we move into fiscal 2027. We are encouraged by the progress already underway and continue to make structural improvements that we believe will strengthen the business over the long term. We are tightening forecasting, strengthening accountability, and putting more structure around sales and production planning. As an example, inventory ended January at 82.5 million and is down meaningfully from October. As we continue to better align supply with demand, we are entering fiscal 2027 with a simpler portfolio, improved internal discipline, and a pipeline that continues to build. We are now tracking modestly ahead of budget entering fiscal 2027 and our forecast is clear Convert demand into more consistent, repeatable financial performance, improve forecasting, better align sales and operations, increase utilization and drive stronger margins and cash flow. Based on the foundation we have built, we are comfortable providing goalposts for fiscal 2027 of high single digit revenue growth and a clear line of sight to positive cash flow from operations. Taken together, these steps reflect a company that is not standing still, but one that is actively reshaping its operating model to support improved performance. With that, I’d like to pass the call to our Chief Commercial Officer Cameron Stokes to provide an update on our industrial and Chemical critical environment businesses.

Cameron Stokes (Chief Commercial Officer, Global Industrials)

Thank you Jim. Turning to Industrial and Chemical Critical environment for the fourth quarter, chemical revenue increased 0.3 million to 5 million, demonstrating continued strength in that product line. Disposables revenue decreased 0.9 million and Woven’s revenue decreased 1 million in Q4, reflecting the macro headwinds Jim referenced particularly softer performance in the North American industrial markets late in the quarter. For the full year, these three product lines combined represented approximately 49% of total revenue, with disposables at 27%, chemical at 11 and wovens performing at 11%. On the strategic side, the divestiture of Our high performance FR&HI VIS product lines meaningfully simplifies the industrial portfolio. These lines required significant management attention and resources and that we are now redirecting towards higher margin, faster growing opportunities within Chemical Critical Environment and core industrial protective apparel. The decision to divest was the right one and it sharpens our focus on the product lines where we have a competitive differentiation incredible path to improve improving profitability within the business. We are seeing differentiated performance across our product line so far in fiscal 2027. Chemical critical environment is outperforming driven by continued demand from industrial and pharmaceutical end users while wovens are tracking to plan with good visibility into the pipeline. Disposables face the most pressure during the year driven by tariff related cost increases and softness in select North American markets and we have defined specific recovery initiatives underway at the account level to address that gap. From a competitive standpoint, we are not seeing broad based shifts across the market. The movement we are seeing remains limited and localized and competitors have generally not responded with meaningful price action to date. At the same time, fuel and logistics instability has become a more relevant variable across the market than tariff uncertainty. That backdrop reinforces our focus on tighter channel discipline, better market segmentation and more targeted execution by product line and end market. Our strategy for growing these lines is straightforward. Continue to develop products and expand the range of certified high performance offerings, disciplined strategic pricing to protect and improve margins as cost pressures ease, reach a broader set of end users and reduce distributor concentration while optimizing operations to drive better utilization at our manufacturing facilities. I’d like to note that the industrial segment tends to see its highest seasonal activity in the spring, when scheduled maintenance shutdowns at nuclear, coal, oil and gas and chemical facilities drive meaningful order activity. We are entering that period now and our teams are positioned to execute on the incoming demand. Looking ahead into fiscal 2027, our industrial priorities are clear. We are tightening demand forecasting and improving the alignment between sales commitments and production planning. We are also actively pursuing pricing actions where cost increases warrant them. We are working to improve manufacturing utilization at our Mexico and Vietnam facilities as we consolidate our footprint and transition production from India into those sites. The tariff environment remains a factor, but we are working through mitigation strategies and believe we can manage the impact without structural disruption at our cost base or to our cost base. Overall, the industrial and chemical business is stable and we are focusing on converting that stability into consistent improving profitability throughout fiscal 2027. I will now hand the call over to Chief Revenue Officer Barry Phillips to provide an update on our fire services business.

Barry Phillips (Chief Revenue Officer)

Thank you, Cameron Turning to fire services, revenue for Q4 was 21.7 million, an increase of 0.5 million, or approximately 2%, compared to the prior year. For the full year, fire Service revenue grew 30.6 million, or 48.6%, to 93.6 million. This is a significant milestone. Our fire segment now represents approximately 49% of our total revenue, a significant transformation from where we stood just two years ago when it represented approximately 21% the full year. Growth was supported by contributions from Viridian lhd, Jolly and Pacific Helmets, as well as Arizona PPE and California ppe. These acquisitions have expanded our geographic reach, broadened our product offering and positioned us as the head to toe provider in global fire protection, a platform we believe is unique in the market. FHIR demand is increasing as certification cycles are completed and tender timelines are tracking on schedule across multiple regions. These have been timing delays rather than structured demand issues. Opportunities remain in the pipeline and have simply shifted later than expected. Our tender pipeline is active globally and we continue to see strong engagement from the fire departments and procurement agencies across the regions we serve. We also saw meaningful international wins during the year, including significant emergency follow on orders from the National Fire Department of Colombia, an order from the Fire and Rescue Department of Malaysia, and a Fire Equipment Tender Award from anac, Argentina’s National Civil Aviation Administration. A particularly important milestone was receiving numerous NFPA 19702025 edition certifications across our portfolio, enabling customers to order a complete Head to TOE certified range across our brands for the first time. These certifications are a commercial unlock that we’ve been working toward and we look forward to showcasing the full portfolio at FDIC 2026 on decontamination and services. Our ISP business is growing faster than initially projected and the green fielding and ISP M and A pipeline remain robust. California PPE’s new Fresno location opened in January 2026 and our Denver location is expected to open in the summer of 2026. This recurring revenue model builds long term customer relationships, generates predictable cash flow and positions us well as the fire departments increasingly invest in gear maintenance and NFPA 1950 compliance. Fire Service margins remain structurally sound as volume normalizes and tenders convert are expected to recover without requiring broad pricing actions. LHD Germany is stabilizing and we expect a formal relaunch of the brand@intenshutz 2026 in June this summer and with leadership in Kevin Ray driving momentum across our EMEA brands looking ahead into fiscal 2027, we have the strongest backlog in Lakeland Fires history. We expect continued success with our head to toe offering and anticipated tender wins in Europe and the us. Our new NFPA product portfolio rollouts are well underway and we look forward to showcasing our entire lineup at FDIC next week. I’ll now pass along the call to Executive Vice President of EMA FHIR Kevin Ray for an EMEA update.

Kevin Ray (Executive Vice President of EMEA Fire Sales)

Thank you Barry. Before I begin, I’d like to provide you with a bit of my background. I’ve over 20 years of leadership experience in personal protective equipment and fire safety across the UK and emea. I …

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Apollo Global Management (NYSE:APO) CEO Mark Rowan called private credit lenders who can’t meet 5% redemptions “idiots” during CNBC’s Invest In America forum.

• Where is APO stock headed?

“I’ll say it frankly, you’re an idiot. This is not that hard to do,” Rowan said to CNBC’s Sara Eisen. Rowan’s remarks came as he argued that parts of the software market have been mispriced, while stressing that risk in private credit is not evenly distributed. 

Investors have been watching the private credit space closely amid worries that software-linked loans could be vulnerable if artificial intelligence reshapes business models faster than expected.

Last month, Apollo received redemption requests in its Apollo Debt Solutions BDC fund, equal to approximately 11.2%, or …

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Alcoa (NYSE:AA) released first-quarter financial results and hosted an earnings call on Thursday. Read the complete transcript below.

Benzinga APIs provide real-time access to earnings call transcripts and financial data. Visit https://www.benzinga.com/apis/ to learn more.

The full earnings call is available at https://event.choruscall.com/mediaframe/webcast.html?webcastid=5edDZmET

Summary

Alcoa reported strong first-quarter performance for 2026, with a net income of $425 million, up from $213 million in the prior quarter, and earnings per share rising to $1.60.

The company maintained stable operations, capturing higher metal prices despite disruptions in the Middle East, and continued to advance strategic initiatives, including mine approvals in Western Australia and monetization of idle sites.

Looking ahead, Alcoa expects increased profitability through higher shipments and operational performance, with a focus on safety, operational excellence, and maintaining strong market conditions in the aluminum segment.

Full Transcript

OPERATOR

Good afternoon and welcome to The Alcoa Corporation first quarter 2026 earnings presentation and conference call. All participants will be in a listen only mode. Should you need assistance, please signal a conference specialist by pressing the star key followed by zero. After today’s presentation, there will be an opportunity to ask questions. To ask a question, you may press Star then one on your phone. To withdraw your question, please press Star then two. Please note this event is being recorded. I would now like to turn the conference over to Louis Langloua, Senior Vice President of Treasury and Capital Markets. Please go ahead.

Louis Langloua (Senior Vice President of Treasury and Capital Markets)

Thank you and good day everyone. I’m joined today by William Maplinger at Alcoa Corporation President and Chief Executive Officer and Molly Behrman, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. We will take your questions after comments by Bill and Molly. As a reminder, today’s discussion will contain forward looking statements relating to future events and expectations that are subject to various assumptions and caveats. Factors that may cause a company’s actual results to differ materially from these statements are included in today’s presentation and in our SEC filings. In addition, we have included some non GAAP financial measures in this presentation for historical non GAAP financial measures. Reconciliations to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures can be found in the appendix to today’s presentation. We have not presented quantitative reconciliations of certain forward looking non GAAP financial measures for reasons noted on this slide. Any reference in our discussion to term EBITDA means Adjusted EBITDA finally, as previously announced, the earnings press release and slide presentation are available on our website. Now I’d like to turn over the call to Bill.

William Maplinger (President and Chief Executive Officer)

Thank you Louis and Welcome to our first quarter 2026 earnings conference call. Today we’ll review our strong first quarter performance, discuss our markets and highlight the progress we are making on our strategic priorities. Let me start with the headline. We had a strong start to 2026 driven by execution and we are well positioned to deliver a strong second quarter and full year 2026 performance. Starting with safety, we continued making progress with improved total injury rates in the first quarter. While we’re never satisfied both our leading and lagging indicators are moving in the right direction, our focus remains clear. Fatality and critical risk management are combined with leader time in the field. Our leaders are expected to be on the production floor or mine site, interacting, coaching and reinforcing standards. Safety is not an initiative, it’s the foundation of everything we do. Operationally, we delivered. We maintained stable performance across the system and captured higher metal prices despite significant disruption in the Middle East. Our teams ensured continuity of supply for our operations. Our flexible cast house network continues to unlock value add opportunities and the depth of our commercial, procurement and logistics capabilities was evident this quarter. Strategically, we kept moving forward. In Western Australia we advanced our MINE approvals, completing responses from the public comment period and continuing to work collaboratively with stakeholders. We continue to anticipate ministerial approvals by year end 2026, consistent with the timeline we’ve previously shared. We are in advance discussions on the monetization of our former Messina east smelter site for a data center project. The potential developer has applied for public review. We are still finalizing terms and won’t comment on value today, but we will provide additional details later in the process. Additionally, we are making progress on two other sites in parallel. Our momentum continues into the second quarter. On April 7th we successfully and safely completed the restart of the San Cyprian smelter and on April 14th we issued notice to redeem the remaining $219 million outstanding of our 2028 notes, another clear example of disciplined capital allocation supported by our strong cash balance of $1.4 billion at the end of the first quarter. Looking ahead, we are focused on increasing profitability through higher shipments, continued operational performance and and realizing the benefit of strong market conditions in the aluminum segment. At the same time, we will maintain momentum on the company’s strategic initiatives aimed at creating value. Now I’ll turn it over to Molly to take us through the financial results.

Molly Behrman (Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer)

Thank you bill revenue decreased 7% sequentially to $3.2 billion in the alumina segment. Third party revenue decreased 33% due to typically lower first quarter shipments, lower purchased and resold alumina to satisfy third party commitments as well as vessel constraints related to the Middle east conflict and vessel loading issues caused by Cyclone Narelle in Western Australia. Realized prices were also lower for both alumina and bauxite in the aluminum segment, third party revenue increased 3% primarily due to an increase in average realized third party price and increased shipments from the San Cyprian smelter. These impacts were partially offset by seasonally lower shipping volumes from other sites as well as the timing impacts from proactively repositioning inventory within North America. The repositioning creates a timing difference deferring revenue recognition until the second quarter while providing cast house flexibility for additional value add product production and shipments which yield higher margins. Related to my comments on typically or seasonally lower first quarter shipments in both segments, it is important to Note that our first quarter shipments are historically only 23 to 24% of the annual outlook and our fourth quarter shipments are typically 26 to 27% depending on portfolio changes. Coming off the strong fourth quarter 2025 shipment levels, the first quarter of 2026 was mostly in line with our expectations, even if consensus analysts projected higher first quarter net income attributable to Alcoa was $425 million versus the prior quarter of $213 million, with earnings per common share increasing to $1.60 per share. The sequential improvement reflects realized aluminum prices and a favorable mark to market change on the Moden shares. These impacts are partially offset by the net unfavorable sequential impact from non recurring items in 4Q25, including carbon dioxide compensation recognition in Spain and Norway, the reversal of a valuation allowance on deferred tax assets in Brazil and a goodwill impairment charge. On an adjusted basis, net income attributable to Alcoa was $373 million or $1.40 per share, excluding net special items of $52 million. Notable special items include a mark to market gain of $88 million on the modern shares due to an increase in share price during the period. Adjusted EBITDA was $595 million. Let’s look at the key drivers of EBITDA. The sequential increase in adjusted EBITDA of $68 million is primarily due to higher metal prices, mainly driven by increases in LME and the Midwest premium, partially offset by lower sequential shipping volumes in both segments. The Alumina segment adjusted EBITDA decreased $52 million from primarily due to lower alumina prices and lower bauxite offtake margins, partially offset by the non recurrence of a fourth quarter charge related to the announced agreements with the Australian Federal government to further modernize the mining approval framework. The aluminum segment adjusted EBITDA increased $174 million primarily due to higher metal prices and lower alumina costs. These impacts were partially offset by the non recurrence of carbon dioxide compensation in Spain and Norway recognized in the fourth quarter and lower shipping volumes, including the impact of inventory repositioning which deferred EBITDA recognition on 30,000 metric tons to the second quarter and higher costs associated with the San Cyprian restart. Other costs outside the segment were unfavorable $54 million sequentially but primarily due to unfavorable intersegment eliminations. Moving on to cash flow activities for the first quarter of 2026, we ended March with a strong cash balance of $1.4 billion despite consuming cash as we typically do in the first quarter. The $595 million of adjusted EBITDA generated in the first quarter was mostly offset by an increase in working capital. The seasonal working capital build resulted from lower accounts payable inventory replenishment and higher alumina inventory due to shipping delays at the end of the quarter and an increase in accounts receivable primarily on higher metal prices on a days basis. The working capital increase is consistent with prior years and is likewise expected to decrease as we move through the year. Capital expenditures were $119 million which reflect our typical trend of lower spending in the first quarter. We maintain our 2026 outlook for capital expenditures. Environmental and Asset Retirement Obligation (ARO) payments were $85 million which include progress on the Kwinana site remediation Net additions to debt reflect short term borrowings related to inventory repositioning which which will be repaid when the sale of the inventory is recognized in the second quarter. Now let’s take a look at the key financial metrics for the first quarter. Return on equity through the first quarter was 21.9% reflecting a strong start to the year. During the quarter we returned $27 million in cash to stockholders through our regular quarterly dividend. Free cash flow was negative $298 million for the quarter, primarily reflecting seasonal working capital build capital expenditures and environmental and Asset Retirement Obligation (ARO) payments offsetting the quarter’s strong EBITDA. We finished the quarter with a cash balance of $1.4 billion and adjusted net debt of $1.8 billion as announced on April 14th. The company issued notice to redeem on May 15th the remaining $219 million outstanding on our 2028 notes. The notes will be redeemed at par value. This announcement is aligned with our goal to delever and further strengthen our balance sheet. We will continue with disciplined execution of our capital allocation framework where excess cash will be evaluated in competition between value creating growth opportunities and additional returns to stockholders. Now let’s turn to the outlook. We have 2 updates to our 2026 full year outlook. Interest expense will decrease slightly to $135 million with the redemption of our 2028 notes in May. Additionally, our estimate for environmental and Asset Retirement Obligation (ARO) payments has increased to approximately $360 million, up from $325 million to reflect the cash requirements from the announced Agreements to Modernize Mining Approvals framework in Australia for the second quarter of 2026. At the segment level, alumina segment performance is expected to be unfavorable by approximately $15 million due to low price and volumes from bauxite offtake agreements and higher energy prices, primarily diesel associated with the Middle east conflict. Aluminum segment performance is expected to be favorable by $55 million due to inventory repositioning actions taken in the first quarter, higher shipments and product premiums and lower production costs due to the completion of the San Cyprian smelter restart, partially offset by seasonally lower third party energy sales. Based on recent pricing, we expect second quarter benefits from high LME and Midwest premium pricing as well as higher shipments but but this results in higher section 232 tariff costs on our Canadian metal imported to the US we expect tariff costs to increase by approximately $35 million. Alumina costs in the aluminum segment are expected to be favorable by $20 million. Regarding intersegment profit elimination, any further decrease in API prices is estimated to result in no intersegment profit elimination if API increases. Our prior guidance applies below EBITDA within other expenses. The first quarter of 2026 included favorable currency impacts of approximately $30 million which may not recur. Based on last week’s pricing, we expect the second quarter of 2026 operational tax expense to approximate 110 to $120 million. Now I’ll turn it back to Bill Thanks Molly.

William Maplinger (President and Chief Executive Officer)

Let’s begin with the alumina segment dynamics. The current environment remains challenging with the Middle east conflict exacerbating margin pressure across global refineries. FOB Western Australia, alumina prices stayed relatively weak through the quarter. At the same time, disruptions tied to the Middle east conflict, including the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, have pushed energy and freight costs higher, while related demand losses are weighing on refinery margins outside of China. Our alumina cost position provides resilience in a low price environment and we have insulated ourselves from spot energy volatility through long term contracts and financial hedges. In China, pressure on margins has been more muted. Higher domestic Alumina prices, lower bauxite costs and stable coal pricing, largely unaffected by the conflict, have supported refinery margins. That said, we do expect costs to rise as the caustic market tightens and higher freight costs begin to flow through seaborne bauxite supply. To date in 2026, roughly 4 million metric tons of annual refining capacity has been curtailed in China, with cargoes originally intended for Middle east smelters rerouting into China. We expect pressure on China prices in the near term. Forthcoming supply from new refinery projects in coastal China and Indonesia, along with the weaker demand from the Middle East Smelters will continue to weigh on the global aluminum market through the first half of the year. Finally, on bauxite prices remained weak through the first quarter on ample guinea supply. Elevated freight rates related to the Middle east conflict have lent some support to Cost, Insurance, and Freight (CIF) China pricing despite soft FOB levels. And the market is now closely watching Guinea’s export policy for the next directional signal. Now let’s look at the conflict in the Middle east and why it matters to the alumina segment. The Middle east is the largest alumina importing region in the world, with supply routes for raw materials heavily dependent on the Strait of Hormuz. Each year, roughly 8.8 million tons of alumina and 6 million tons of bauxite transit through the strait. That changed on February 27th as a result of the conflict. More than 2.5 million tons of annual smelting capacity, nearly 2 million tons of refining capacity are offline year to date. That’s a meaningful disruption to the global system. Aluminum refineries in the region are integrated with …

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Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) could be heading toward a potential supply squeeze, fueled by aggressive institutional accumulation and a tightening available supply in the market.

Saylor’s Buying Strategy In Focus

In his Apr.15 podcast, analyst Scott Melker pointed to Michael Saylor and his firm Strategy (NASDAQ:MSTR) as central to this narrative.

The company has consistently raised capital and deployed it into Bitcoin purchases, creating a steady and highly visible source of demand.

This repeatable strategy is seen as “structural demand,” gradually removing circulating supply and reinforcing bullish sentiment among investors.

Beyond Saylor’s accumulation, broader institutional participation is accelerating.

Major firms such as BlackRock

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Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) could form a market bottom as early as May, according to crypto analyst Benjamin Cowen, though such a scenario would likely require a sharp capitulation event.

Early Bottom Possible, But Unlikely

In his Apr. 15 podcast, Cowen said the base-case outlook still points to a later bottom, likely around October 2026, in line with historical market cycles.

While a May bottom is possible, it remains a lower-probability scenario unless price action deviates significantly from past patterns.

He noted that the current cycle closely resembles previous midterm-year behavior, where markets tend to move sideways before a more decisive phase …

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Alcoa Corp. (NYSE:AA) reported first-quarter results after Thursday’s closing bell, missing analyst estimates on the top and bottom lines.

Here’s a look at the details.

Q1 Miss x2

Alcoa reported quarterly earnings of $1.40 per share, which missed the consensus estimate of $1.49, according to Benzinga Pro data.

The company said the results “reflect improved profitability from higher aluminum prices.”

However, quarterly revenue came in at $3.19 billion, missing the Street estimate of $3.3 billion and …

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Netflix Inc (NASDAQ:NFLX) reported financial results for the first quarter of 2026 after the market close on Thursday. Here’s what you need to know from the streaming giant’s report.

Netflix Q1 Earnings Highlights

Netflix reported first-quarter revenue of $12.25 billion, beating analyst estimates of $12.18 billion, according to Benzinga Pro. The company reported earnings of $1.23 per share for the quarter, beating estimates of 76 cents per share.

Total revenue was up 16% year-over-year in the first quarter, driven primarily by membership growth, higher pricing and increased ad revenue. Revenue was above company expectations due to stronger membership growth.

Cash generated from operations was $5.3 billion in the quarter, up from $2.8 billion year-over-year. Free cash flow came in at $5.1 billion. Netflix exited the quarter with …

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The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) has filed a federal lawsuit accusing Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence company xAI of breaking federal air-pollution rules.

The complaint aims to halt what the group says are unpermitted gas turbines that are sending harmful emissions throughout the Memphis area, The Guardian reported.

The lawsuit lodged in the Mississippi federal court centers on equipment in Southaven, Mississippi, used to supply electricity to xAI’s local data center footprint. The NAACP is working with the Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC) and Earthjustice on the suit.

NAACP To Judge: ‘No More Turbines’

In the filing, the NAACP argues xAI’s setup amounts to an illegal operation under the Clean Air Act, alleging dozens of methane-fueled generators were run without the required permits. The group is asking a judge to order the company to stop using the turbines it says lack authorization.

xAI operates two facilities in the area known as Colossus and Colossus II, with Colossus II described as a roughly 1 million-square-foot site in Southaven. The lawsuit claims xAI installed and used as many as 27 gas turbines at the Southaven site, describing each unit as comparable in size to a bus. It also alleges the Southaven facility …

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Bitcoin holds $74,000 as market sentiment remains neutral, supported by continued institutional interest and positive ETF inflows.

Cryptocurrency Ticker Price
Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) $74,938.23
Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) $2,340.42
Solana (CRYPTO: SOL) $88.90
XRP (CRYPTO: XRP) $1.44
Dogecoin (CRYPTO: DOGE) $0.09930
Shiba Inu (CRYPTO: SHIB) $0.056337

Notable Statistics:

  • Coinglass data shows 162,452 traders were liquidated in the past 24 hours for $427.31 million.        
  • SoSoValue data shows net inflows of $186 million from spot Bitcoin ETFs on Wednesday. Spot Ethereum ETFs saw net inflows of $67.9 million.
  • In the past 24 hours, …

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Allied Gaming & Entertainment Inc. (NASDAQ:AGAE) shares are trending on Tuesday night.

AGAE surged 134.79% after hours to $0.77 on Tuesday after the company settled a legal dispute with Los Angeles-based gaming and entertainment firm Knighted Pastures LLC, clearing a Delaware court attorneys’ fees overhang.

Settlement Removes Key Overhang

The resolution closes all prior legal proceedings, including a Delaware court award of attorneys’ fees to Knighted Pastures, replacing lingering litigation risk with a mutually agreed term sheet. Allied stated it has “no basis to question the integrity or business practices of Knighted Pastures,” according to a Tuesday after-the-bell announcement.

CEO Signals Strategic Pivot

CEO James Li framed the settlement as a catalyst, saying Allied would now focus on “building and scaling a next-generation digital platform” integrating real-world assets, …

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Avis Budget Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:CAR) shares are climbing rapidly during Thursday’s trading session. The move follows a period of intense volatility for the mobility giant. A massive short squeeze is the primary driver behind the sudden upward price action.

The Nasdaq is up 0.51% while the S&P 500 has gained 0.25%.

• Avis Budget Group stock is approaching key resistance levels. Why are CAR shares at highs?

Circuit Breakers Triggered Amid Rally

On Thursday, Avis Budget Group shares were halted after triggering an upside circuit breaker. At the time of the halt, the stock gained 7.49%. Trading later resumed as buyers …

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BlackSky Technology Inc (NYSE:BKSY) shares are surging over 10% this Thursday. The stock reached a new 52-week high of $37.32 during the session.

Investor enthusiasm stems from sector-wide tailwinds and recent multi-million dollar government awards.

The Nasdaq is up 0.37% while the S&P 500 has gained 0.13%.

• BlackSky Technology stock is showing exceptional strength. What’s fueling BKSY momentum?

Space Sector Consolidation Rumors

Space-related stocks are ripping higher following reports that Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN) may explore an acquisition of Globalstar, Inc. (NYSE:GSAT). …

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BlackBerry Limited (NYSE:BB) shares are up on Thursday. The company announced a partnership with The IP Company to bring certified secure communications to naval and military environments. The collaboration will integrate BlackBerry SecuSUITE into The IP Company’s WCMS platform used across naval fleets.

The planned integration aims to enable secure, role-based communications up to Top Secret levels in mission-critical settings. Both companies said the partnership combines naval expertise with certified security to strengthen defense communications.

SecuSUITE is backed by global certifications and is used by G7 governments, many G20 nations and major banks. The IP Company’s system is already widely deployed for naval messaging and alarms, and the partnership is expected to enhance long-term security and operational reliability.

Technical Analysis

BlackBerry is currently trading within its 52-week range, positioned at $4.18, which is approximately 21.5% above its 20-day simple moving average (SMA) of $3.47, indicating strong …

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Ares Management Corp., Apollo Global Management (NYSE:APO) and Sixth Street Partners are reportedly having early-stage conversations regarding the National Basketball Association’s (NBA) European expansion.

Anonymous sources told Bloomberg that the NBA is weighing a proposal to launch a European league that would feature a mix of new franchises, current clubs and new football organizations.

Should this proposal be approved, it would create a multi-billion-dollar opportunity for private investments, although conversations are still ongoing and are subject to change. More than 120 prospective investors have shown interest in the process, the article stated.

Private equity in sports has been an accelerating investment trend, where firms are looking to acquire minority or majority stakes in professional teams, leagues and businesses, …

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Elon Musk’s SpaceX is reportedly showing potential anchor investors its facilities in California, Mississippi, and Texas as the company gears up for its initial public offering (IPO).

Earlier this month, SpaceX submitted a draft initial public offering registration to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). 

The company is now targeting a May listing with a valuation of more than $1.75 trillion making it the largest IPO in history, surpassing Saudi Aramco’s $29 billion debut in 2019. The offering is expected to price the week of June 15, Bloomberg reported.

SpaceX will be offering this tour across America for large stakes investors such as sovereign wealth funds. The plane is set to depart from …

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Navitas Semiconductor Corp (NASDAQ:NVTS) shares are charging higher during Thursday’s session. The Nasdaq is up 0.35% while the S&P 500 has gained 0.06%.

Veteran Leadership Joins Board

The company announced the appointment of Gregory Fischer to its Board of Directors on Monday.

Fischer brings over 40 years of industry experience. He previously served as Senior Vice President at Broadcom Inc. (NASDAQ:AVGO).

Strategic Market Pivot

Chairman Richard Hendrix noted Fischer joins at a “pivotal time.” The company is currently executing a Navitas 2.0 strategy.

This shift focuses on high-power markets, including artificial intelligence (AI) data centers …

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International Paper Company (NYSE:IP) on Thursday agreed to acquire North Pacific Paper Company (NORPAC) from One Rock Capital Partners for $360 million to expand its packaging footprint on the U.S. West Coast.

NORPAC’s Longview, Washington mill, which produces about one million tons of containerboard annually, is expected to enhance International Paper’s system flexibility, lower costs and support growing demand for recycled packaging.

Management called the deal a “strong strategic fit,” citing NORPAC’s customer base, location and operational capabilities. The transaction is subject to regulatory approvals.

International Paper reported cash and temporary investments of $1.145 billion as of December 31, 2025.

Technical Analysis

International Paper is currently trading within a 52-week range, with a high of $56.13 and a low of $33.57. The stock is trading 2.7% above its 20-day simple moving average (SMA), suggesting a short-term bullish trend, while it remains 9.1% below its 50-day SMA and …

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SpaceX accounted for more than 18% of all Cybertruck registrations in the US during the fourth quarter, according to S&P Global Mobility data.

That’s 1,279 of 7,071 Cybertrucks registered.

Other Musk-run companies, including xAI, Boring Co. and Neuralink, picked up another 60.

Without those inter-company transfers, Cybertruck registrations would have fallen 51% in Q4.

The purchases have continued into 2026, with another 225 units registered across January and February.

What SpaceX Is Doing With Them Is Unclear

Photos and video show long rows of idle Cybertrucks on SpaceX property in Texas.

The lead Cybertruck engineer posted in October that SpaceX was replacing gas-powered support vehicles.

At least some appear to be used for security. But why xAI, an AI and social media company, would need 50 electric pickups has not been explained.

The combined value of the purchases likely exceeds $100 million, based on the Cybertruck’s current starting price of roughly $70,000.

The …

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Home BancShares (NYSE:HOMB) reported first-quarter financial results on Thursday. The transcript from the company’s first-quarter earnings call has been provided below.

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Summary

Home BancShares reported a strong first quarter of 2026, with a record book value per share and significant capital ratios, including CET1 at 16.7%.

The company successfully completed the merger with Mountain Commerce, although full integration savings are not expected until the end of the year.

Home BancShares ranked as the number two bank in the US over $10 billion by S&P Global for 2025.

A $110 million Texas credit was moved to non-performing status, but management is confident in resolving it without significant losses.

The company continues its stock repurchase program and remains active in the M&A market, focusing on opportunities in Florida and Tennessee.

Loan production was $917 million in Q1, with expectations for continued strong deposit growth despite some anticipated Q2 headwinds.

Home BancShares maintains a prudent credit approach, with criticized assets and early-stage past dues remaining stable.

Management expressed caution regarding inflation and potential interest rate increases, impacting loan and deposit strategies.

Full Transcript

OPERATOR

Greetings ladies and gentlemen. Welcome to the Home BancShares incorporated first quarter 2026 earnings call. The purpose of this call is to discuss the information and data provided in the quarterly earnings release issued after the market closed yesterday. The company presented will begin with prepared remarks, then entertain questions. Please note that if you would like to ask a question during the Q&A session, please press Star then one on your touchtone phone. If you decide you want to withdraw your question, please press Star then two to remove yourself from the list. The company has asked me to remind everyone to refer to their cautionary notes regarding the forward-looking statements. You will find this Note on page 3 of their Form 10K filed with the SEC in February 2026. At this time all participants are in listen only mode and this conference is being recorded. If you need operator assistance during the conference, please press Star then zero. It is now my pleasure to turn the call over to Donna Townsell, Director of Investor Relations.

Donna Townsell (Director of Investor Relations)

Thank you. Good afternoon and welcome to our first quarter conference call. With me for today’s discussion is our Chairman John Allison, Stephen Tipton, Chief Executive Officer of Centennial Bank, Kevin Hester, President and Chief Lending Officer Brian Davis, our Chief Financial Officer Chris Poulton, President of Central Choice Financial Group and Scott Walter of Shore Premier Finance. Our first quarter set a strong tone for 2026. Results demonstrate sound expense control, consistent operating performance and attractive returns including record setting metrics of book value per share of $22.15, tangible book value per share of $14.87 which is $1.72 per share increase year over year for 13% increase. By the way, CET1 ratio at 16.7%, leverage of 14.3% and Tier 1 capital of 16.7%. In today’s economic environment that is a meaningful accomplishment and our team is pleased to walk through the quarter’s results with you. Our opening remarks today will be from our Chairman John Allison.

John Allison (Chairman)

Thank you and welcome to Home BancShares’ first quarter 2026 earnings report to shareholders. Thank you for joining us today and I think the headline and the quotes pretty much summarize the first quarter. I want to thank our team for getting us off to a great start in 26. For those of you who are not already home based shareholders that are interested in a better understanding of home, I think it’s important that you look at the strength of the balance sheet. Couple that with the monthly and quarterly consistent level of performance over the last several years as primarily showcased by the last five quarters. The prior years reminded us of the highest interest rate cycle in the early 80s where then almost all banks struggled because of poor balance sheet management. And the same story has been even more visible today, that is lack of liquidity by investing into long term securities trying to stretch for yield. I’m proud to say Home didn’t suffer those problems during that time and was reporting record earnings while others were struggling. S and P Global just ranked Home’s performance for 2025 as number two of all banks in the US over $10 billion. We’re honored by this elite ranking by one of the world’s best and most respected experts. We were barely edged out for the number one position last year. Maybe we’ll get it this year. We’re happy to have completed the merger with our acquisition of Mountain Commerce and look forward to a successful combination. Due to the back office computer upgrade that was already in progress before Mountain Commerce, we will not be able to start converting Mountain Commerce until November. As a result, the maximum anticipated savings will not be realized until probably the end of 26. Once accomplished, we believe our new partners can soon begin helping us to continue the outstanding performance of Home BancShares that is known in the US and worldwide. Home is proud of our reputation. Always known as one of the strongest, safest, most conservative and best performing banks in the world. We’ll continue to try to make our shareholders proud and happy to be part of this outstanding company. We know who we work for and that is our shareholders. If you loan money we all know problems can and will arise from time to time. It has to be worked through. We haven’t. We had a $110 million Texas credit that we decided to non perform this quarter. This is the same credit we’ve been talking about for a year and a half or two years. The credit remained current until this quarter. It has been one we’ve been monitoring intensely for about eight months. We’ve entered into a short term forbearance agreement with multiple deadlines and requirements. We are advised by legal counsel not to discuss. In that I can say we’re either going to get paid off or we’ll liquidate the existing collateral. We do not anticipate any additional loss but if things were to result in some loss, Home BancShares’ strength puts us in a position to deal with whatever comes because the conservative balance sheet we’re carrying right at $300 million in loan loss reserves, one of the highest reserve percentages in the world. Couple that with the strong Couple the strong reserves with a consistent quarterly pre tax pre provision net revenue of 100 to 150 to 160 million and we’re confident of our ability with whatever happens and do not expect this loan to have any major impact on earnings, if any at all. It is our belief that there is more sufficient assets and personal guarantees to properly resolve this issue. I’m pleased with the results comparing Q1 to Q1. Last year the first quarter only had 90 days and we had two extra. If we’d had the two extra days in the normal quarter plus just a little touch of wind I think I said last year we had to wind our back two or three times. We had no wind this time this quarter we got zero. When Brian, you always come up with. When you didn’t come up with any juice this time. Well, we did have that FDIC assessment but we got a reduction. Well we had a write off to balance that off. So that’s evident in the non interest income category being the lowest since December of 24. Maybe next quarter will be the best on M&A. I want to congratulate the administration and the Fed along with the Arkansas State Bank Department for the fast approval process. The speed of the approval may possibly give time for another deal this year. We’re certainly in the market and looking for another good fit. We continue to repurchase stock as the volatility of uncertain world as a war kind of makes it uncertain had provided opportunity for us to purchase more recently. That is before we were in a blackout period. However, we did file our normal 10B5 for this time. If the volatility continues we will be very active on the repurchase side. I think we have essentially bought back if not all of the shares issued in the Happy bank transaction and will endeavor to do the same for Mountain Commerce bank transaction. Particularly if volatility continues to create opportunities. The repurchases will take some time but once MC is converted on our system the additional share reduction should have a positive impact on earnings. We’re being very careful on the loan side because the uncertainty of the war, the consumers business asset class and what this cycle might ultimately evolve into. The talking heads have all said rates are coming down but we have cautioned that there is possibly that possibly they will go back up before they come down. Inflation is not dead. Let me say that again. Inflation is not dead and as Jamie Dimon would say, that’s a major cockroach in the mix. The question is how high and how long do they remain high? It depends on how aggressive the Fed is going to be with the escalating interest rates to try to get a Handle on inflation. Remember the late 70s and the early 80s? 21%. It’s not going to be that high, but it has to be corral. Chris Pelton, who runs our New York office has a great sign. He said the year of the lender is followed by the year of the collector. I think. I think our early Texas experience confirms some of Chris’s statements. I think it’s a time to be very careful. The normal structure of some asset classes that worked in the past may not work today. It is our job to watch and hopefully recognize in advance these loans that we think may be infected with, as Jamie Dimon would say, cockroaches. You will hear from Chris Paulson today about his attitude on private credit and the changes made because of it. His call on private credit was outstanding. The good news market pricing on acquisition deals are more in line with the correct value and slowed the insane dilution, at least for a while. One of the CEOs that did a fairly flagrant. I use the term here, maybe it’s a Johnny word, dilutionary. It may have been delusionary. Actually, the trade was so silly. He did a trade some time back, came up to me at a bank conference and said, I’m here to get my butt chewed out. And I proceeded to do just that. Then I gave him a hug and we discussed the pros and cons and the impact and the damage done to long term loyal shareholders and agreed that dilution is not the friend of a shareholder. Enough said. With all the attention that diluted transactions are getting, maybe the publicity and management embarrassment has slowed the shareholder damage. At least I certainly hope so. I hope it’s finally the start of a sea change that forces management to do the right thing for the shareholders. Donna, great quarter. I’m pleased with the strong continuation of Holmes earnings. And again, I’m going to hand it back to you and let’s go. Since I teed up Chris, if you don’t mind, let’s go to Chris first and let him comment and carry forward. Then we’ll go to Stephen and Kevin and Brian and back to you to wrap up.

Donna Townsell (Director of Investor Relations)

Okay, sounds good. Thank you, Johnny. So up next, we have a report on CCFG from Chris Fulton.

Chris Poulton (President of CCFG)

All right, thank you, Donna. Today I’ll provide a brief update on Central Choice Financial Group’s first quarter and then, as Johnny said, we’ll share some perspectives on the private credit market. During Q1, we grew the portfolio to approximately $2.1 billion. This represents a roughly $60 million increase supported by $370 million in new loan production. Loan productions remain steady and this number is in line with prior year levels. Payoffs for the quarter total just under $200 million, which is also consistent with historical averages. We do expect slightly higher payoffs in Q2, so I do think our pipeline should allow us to replace those balances either this quarter or the next. Over the past several years, I’ve discussed declining balances in our corporate lending portfolio. This is an appropriate time maybe to provide some additional context and particularly in light of recent news around private credit. Central Choice Financial Group has long participated in the private corporate credit market. Our exposure has varied over time, but we’ve maintained a consistent presence and have long term experience in the space. Our private credit balances peaked at just under $500 million at the end of 2022 and today outstandings are $87 million. That’s a reduction of over 80% in the past three years. So why do we make the choice to reduce our private credit exposure? Well, beginning in 2023 we observed several trends that influence this decision. First, we saw new bank entrance. As some banks looked to reduce their reliance on commercial real estate, many chose to lend into the growing private credit space through participations in structured facilities. This led to broad yield compression across the private credit market and as often happens, some loosening of credit structures and underwriting standards. At the same time, we saw significant equity inflows from individual investors or retail investors into these sponsored investment vehicles. We’ve seen this movie a few times before and we haven’t always enjoyed the ending. We’ve maintained and we have historically maintained an intentional focus on the shorter duration positions, typically under three years, and as a result, we were able to actively exit credit facilities as they reached the end of their reinvestment period. In total, we exited eight corporate lending facilities through repayment during this time. Our remaining exposure is limited to a few facilities primarily within double A rated structures. Our attachment points approximately 58% of par value of the underlying loans which provides 40% sponsor equity support beneath our senior position. While market dislocation often creates opportunity, we believe it’s still early in the cycle and as a result we’re remaining cautious and at present are biased towards further reductions while continuing to monitor this closely. With that Don, I’ll turn it back to you.

Donna Townsell (Director of Investor Relations)

Thank you. That was a great call, Chris. Yeah, thank you for keeping your eye on the ball with private credit, Chris. Next we will hear a few words from Steven Tipton.

Stephen Tipton (Chief Executive Officer of Centennial Bank)

Thanks Donna. Chris, we appreciate your approach and discipline over the last 11 years with us as Johnny mentioned the first quarter of 2026 was a good start to the year with 118.2 million in net income, a 2.009% return on assets and 16.56% return on tangible common equity. Q1 2026 earnings were in line with the prior quarter despite two fewer days and were up $3 million or 2.6% from the first quarter of 2025. The reported net interest margin was 4.51%, down 10 basis points from Q4 as there was zero event income in Q1 2026 and up 7 basis points from the same period a year ago. The core margin having no event income was 4.51% versus 4.56% in Q4. The overall loan yield declined by 15 basis points to 7.08% while interest bearing deposit costs declined by 12 basis points to 2.35%. Total deposit costs were 1.83% in Q1 2026 and exited the quarter at 1.82%. Deposit balances increased $258 million, driven by all of our Florida regions. I would expect some headwinds in Q2 from tax payments, but we’re pleased to start the year strong. A highlight from the quarter was that non interest bearing balances grew by $126 million to almost $4 billion and now account for 22.5% of total deposits. As we typically see in Q1 2026, loan production softened coming off of a very strong fourth quarter, we had total loan production of $917 million with over half of that coming from the community bank footprint. Switching to Capital, we repurchased 507,000 shares of stock during the quarter for a total of $13.9 million. And as Johnny said, we will continue to be active with our share repurchase plan. Capital levels continue to build with common equity tier 1 capital ending at 16.7% and total risk based capital at 19 and a half percent. Lastly, we’re thrilled to have the Mountain Commerce employees, customers and shareholders on board and look forward to growing the Tennessee franchise for home. With that said, I’ll turn it back over to you Donna.

Donna Townsell (Director of Investor Relations)

Thank you Stephen. And to close out our prepared remarks, Kevin Hester has a lending report.

Kevin Hester (President and Chief Lending Officer)

Thanks Donna. Given our Strong showing in 2025, it could be easy to look at this quarter as boring. I think that shows the high bar that we’ve set for ourselves because any quarter that posts a return on assets of 2.09%, maintains solid asset quality and is an earnings beat over the same quarter a year ago is not an easy task. And should be inspiring. As I anticipated, last quarter ending loan balances dropped by a little over $50 million. But it happened very late in the quarter which resulted in average loan balances actually being up $174 million on a linked quarter basis. I see this downward trend continuing in the legacy bank into the second quarter because Q2 and Q3 projected payoffs very high. The Mountain Commerce Bank acquisition will however add over 1.4 billion in loans to the balance sheet. Based on my meetings with their lenders, I expect them to settle into our credit culture quickly and be accretive to loan production in short order. Johnny mentioned the non accrual of the Texas C&I credit that we’ve been wrestling with since 2024 and this increased non accrual balances significantly. But we have made recent progress with the executed forbearance agreement which leads us to a couple of ways to exit this credit during the next quarter or two. We are continuing to work with the small same set of issues that we’ve been dealing with for a while now. We took our medicine in 4Q24, but maximizing the exit sometimes takes more time and effort than you would like. It’s wonderful to have the level of capital and reserves that we have which allows you to work to maximize recovery on this limited set of problems. To that end, criticized assets were flat on a linked quarter basis and early stage past dues were below 50 basis points. Even with the large increase, the reserve coverage of non performing loans is still over 160%. As a point of reference, our loan loss Reserve would cover 15 years of our historical charge offs. If you use the last five years of average charge offs as a base. And that base includes the large 4Q24 Texas cleanup quarter. There’s nothing wrong with a workman like quarter where you meet expectations. I expect that a majority of banks would trade results with us. On that note, Donna, I’ll send it back to you.

Donna Townsell (Director of Investor Relations)

I expect you’re right. Kevin, thank you for that report. Before we go to Q&A, does anyone have any additional comments? My pleasure. And with that, I think we’ll go to live Q and A.

OPERATOR

Thank you. If you would like to ask a question, please press star followed by one on your telephone keypad. If you would like to withdraw your question, please press star followed by two. When preparing to ask your question, please ensure your device is unmuted locally. First question comes from Steven Scooten with Piper Sandler. Your line is open. Please go ahead.

Steven Scooten

Hey, good afternoon, everyone. Appreciate the time. I guess, Johnny, maybe if you can talk a little bit more about how the Progress is going to acquire even more assets on top of Mountain Commerce. I mean, like you said that your returns are phenomenal. So it just feels like you need to be able to multiply that on a larger balance sheet. So what have conversations been like and how aggressive would you be? Kind of within that. Would you ever think about loosening. This might be a crazy question for you, loosening the triple accretive mantra to

John Allison (Chairman)

get a deal done. Well, I think, folks, we hold pretty tight to our philosophy around here. You know, my fear is. My fear is they will say, well, he lied. You know he lied. I hear. I can hear the market saying, oh, he lied. He broke it. He diluted a deal. So I just don’t believe it. You know, I’m the largest individual shareholder and I’m not interested in diluting myself. So I think I hurt our shareholders when we do. You know, my philosophy on that. You know, we stretch as much as we can on a trade, but, you know, people have joined this company because we don’t dilute. And if I dilute it now, I think it would be kind of in. In as I’m getting older, in my career, I think people say, well, he got weak. He weak. Got weak and gave up. You know, so. But I haven’t as of yet. And I think it’s known when we tell it, when we’re talking to another perspective seller, we say we don’t dilute. You need to understand we’re not going to be your highest price. But if you’re going to sell a stock tomorrow, it doesn’t matter. You do a deal and the buyer dilutes the hell out of himself. If you sell a stock tomorrow, it doesn’t matter. Just get out and get going. But if you’re going to be going to ride with him for a while, it makes lots …

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Schwab Draws A Line At Gambling

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Wurster drew a sharp distinction between wagers tied to financial events and contracts covering sports, politics and pop culture.

“It’s not at the top of our clients’ list,” he said. “And if you look at the stats on the success of gamblers, they’re not strong and people generally lose money.”

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On Thursday, Great Southern Bancorp (NASDAQ:GSBC) discussed first-quarter financial results during its earnings call. The full transcript is provided below.

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The full earnings call is available at https://edge.media-server.com/mmc/p/i5tsmo6y/

Summary

Great Southern Bancorp reported a solid start to 2026 with net income of $17.5 million or $1.58 per diluted share, up from $17.2 million or $1.47 per share in Q1 2025.

Net interest income was $48.3 million, slightly down from the previous year due to the termination of an interest rate swap, but supported by strategic funding cost management.

Total loans increased by nearly $100 million, driven by growth in construction and commercial real estate lending, despite a decline in multifamily loans.

The company maintained strong asset quality with nonperforming assets at 0.18% of total assets and recorded no credit loss provisions due to lower unfunded balances.

Despite competitive deposit markets, total deposits remained stable, with non-broker deposits down slightly and broker deposits reduced by $11 million.

Non-interest expense was well-managed at $34.8 million, with expectations of slight increases due to deferred IT projects and investments in systems upgrades.

Great Southern Bancorp repurchased 268,664 shares of its stock and declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.43 per share, with a strong capital position maintained.

Management remains cautious about loan payoffs and future expense levels, with expectations of measured loan origination and disciplined underwriting.

The company remains focused on maintaining credit quality, preserving net interest margin, and strategic capital deployment for shareholder value.

Full Transcript

OPERATOR

Good day and thank you for standing by. Welcome to the Great Southern Bancorp first quarter 2026 earnings call. At this time, all participants are in listen only mode. After this previous presentation, there will be a question and answer session. To ask the question during the session, you will need to press star 11 on your telephone. You will then hear automated messages that your hand is raised. To withdraw your question, please press Star one one again. Please advise that today’s conference is being recorded. I would like to hand conference over to your first speaker today, Cristina Maldonado. Please go ahead.

Cristina Maldonado (Moderator)

Good afternoon and thank you for joining Great Southern Bancorp’s first quarter 2026 earnings call. Today we’ll be discussing the Company’s results for the quarter ended March 31, 2026. Before we begin, I’d like to remind everyone that during the call, forward looking statements may be made regarding the Company’s future events and financial performance. These statements are subject to various factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated or projected. For a list of these factors, please refer to the forward looking statements disclosure in the first quarter earnings release and other public filings. Joining me today are President and CEO Joe Turner and Chief Financial Officer Rex Copeland. I’ll now turn the call over to Joe.

Joe Turner (President and CEO)

Okay, thanks Christina and good afternoon to everyone on the call. We appreciate you joining us today. Our first quarter 2026 results reflect a solid start to the year in a continuing competitive operating environment. Both credit and earnings metrics remain strong, allowing for continued progress in our pursuit of meaningful per share tangible book value growth. This progress was underpinned by disciplined expense management, careful balance sheet structuring and a continued emphasis on relationship based banking. In the first quarter of 2026, we reported net income of 17.5 million or $1.58 per diluted common share compared to 17.2 million or $1.47 per share in the year ago quarter. Compared to the fourth quarter of 2025, net income was up from 16.3 million or $1.45 per diluted share. Overall results for the quarter reflected a resilient net interest margin, prudent asset liability management, thoughtful capital allocation and stable loan balances. Net interest income totaled 48.3 million for the quarter. That was down about a million dollars from the first quarter of 2015. Primarily as a result of the absence of the income from our now terminated interest rate swap that was, I think about $2 million in Q1 of 25. Despite this lost income, our ability to strategically manage funding costs while maintaining attractive asset yields allowed for strong net interest income for the quarter. Additionally, we benefited from the collection of 483,000 in unbooked interest this quarter, which further supported our net interest income. Our annualized margin was 3.71% compared to 3.57% in 2025 first quarter and 3.70% in 4Q25. And I think if you pulled out the 483,000 of somewhat unusual interest income, that might have knocked 3 or 4 basis points off the margin number. Total loans increased almost $100 million during the quarter. Loan growth was primarily in construction commercial real estate lending, though that growth was partially offset by a decline in the multifamily category. While this balance sheet growth supported earnings in the quarter period to period, loan trends are influenced significantly by loan repayments from our borrowers in 1Q26. Our loan repayments were less than our quarterly average during 2025 and definitely during the last half of 2025. As such, we remain committed to measured loan origination and disciplined underwriting. From a credit standpoint, we remain mindful of the volatility and the macroeconomic challenges affecting our borrowers. Asset quality metrics in the first quarter of 2026 remained very strong for our bank with nonperforming assets to total assets of 0.18% with virtually no charge offs. But we continue to monitor isolated examples of slower lease ups on projects along with broader credit concerns as markets remain volatile. We did not record a provision for credit losses on outstanding loans in 1Q26. Given lower unfunded balances and mix changes in 1Q26, we we did recognize a negative provision on unfunded commitments of 931,000. On the funding side, total deposits remained generally stable throughout 1Q26. Non broker deposits were down just 26 million from the start of the quarter and broker deposits were down about 11 million. As we used FHLB borrowings to replace certain maturing balances, we saw normal movement across deposit categories. Deposit markets remain competitive across both core and broker channels and we continue to manage our funding mix with a focus on cost, duration and flexibility. Expense management remains a top priority for the bank as well. Non interest expense for the quarter was 34.8 million, down 30,000 from 1Q25. Part of this decline is related to an insurance reimbursement of 261,000 in legal fees recovered through a loan foreclosure in the quarter. Additionally, several projects that would have increased. Hardware and software systems costs expected in 1Q26 have been pushed to later in the year. We continue to invest in systems, infrastructure and personnel to support the franchise over the long term. As we move through the balance of 2026, we remain focused on maintaining strong credit quality, preserving net interest margin, managing expenses carefully, and continuing to build long term value for our stockholders through thoughtful capital deployment. With that, I’ll turn the call over to Rex for a more detailed discussion of the financials.

Rex Copeland (Chief Financial Officer)

Thank you Joe and good afternoon everyone. I’ll now provide a little more detail on our first quarter 2026 financial performance and how it compares to both the prior year and the previously linked quarters. For the quarter ended March 31, 2026, we reported net income of $17.5 million, or $1.58 per diluted common share, compared to $17.2 million, or $1.47 per diluted common share in the first quarter of 2025 and compared to $16.3 million, or $1.45 per diluted common share in the fourth quarter of 2025. We did have a few income and expense items that impacted our results in a positive manner in the quarter. I’ll mention some of those throughout this discussion. Net interest income for the quarter totaled $48.3 million compared to $49.3 million in the first quarter of 2025 and $49.2 million in the fourth quarter of 2025. Compared to the first quarter of 2025, net interest income decreased by about a million dollars as we mentioned were approximately 2%, and as we said, that decrease …

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Anthropic has released its latest AI model, Claude Opus 4.7, which will test new cyber capabilities “not as advanced” as those of Mythos Preview.

“We stated that we would keep Claude Mytho’s Preview’s release limited and test new cyber safeguards on less capable models first,” a company press release stated. 

Last week, Anthropic announced the creation of Project Glasswing, a security-focused collaboration that includes big-name companies spanning both finance and tech.

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The group plans to use the unreleased Anthropic model, …

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The Failed Breakout

DOGE had a clear fakeout yesterday as it attempted to break out of a descending triangle on the 12-hour chart. 

The descending trendline held firm as resistance, immediately rejecting the price.

The market rarely revisits a fakeout level without intent. DOGE has returned to retest the $0.098 resistance zone—the exact level where price was rejected from the descending channel trendline.

The Decision Zone

The daily chart reflects a falling channel in place since October …

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NuScale Power Corp (NYSE:SMR) shares are trading lower Thursday morning. The decline comes as investors face a looming legal deadline and prepare for upcoming financial results.

• NuScale Power stock is showing downward bias. Where are SMR shares going?

Class Action Deadline Approaches

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Specifically, the complaint alleges that ENTRA1 had never built, financed, or operated any significant nuclear projects.

NuScale Power did not immediately respond to Benzinga’s request for comment.

High Short Interest Remains

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U.S. stocks traded higher midway through trading, with the Nasdaq Composite gaining over 100 points on Thursday.

The Dow traded up 0.22% to 48,570.07 while the NASDAQ rose 0.48% to 24,130.19. The S&P 500 also rose, gaining, 0.33% to 7,046.04.

Leading and Lagging Sectors

Energy shares climbed by 1.8% on Thursday.

In trading on Thursday, consumer discretionary stocks fell by 1%.

Top Headline

PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) posted upbeat earnings for the first quarter on Thursday.

The company reported first-quarter adjusted earnings per share of $1.61, outpacing the analyst consensus estimate of $1.55. Quarterly sales of $19.44 billion beat the Street view of $18.94 billion.

PepsiCo lowered its fiscal 2026 adjusted EPS guidance to $8.46-$8.63 from $8.55-$8.71, compared with the $8.61 estimate. It also cut fiscal 2026 sales guidance to $95.803 billion-$97.682 billion from $97.682 billion-$99.561 billion, compared with the $98.373 billion estimate.

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Jim Chanos is not impressed with Elon Musk’s latest pitch to Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) shareholders.

The $13 Trillion Number

Musk’s lieutenants have been hitting up chipmaking equipment suppliers including Applied Materials, Lam Research and Tokyo Electron for price quotes on gear for Terafab, the joint venture between Tesla and SpaceX.

Bernstein analysts estimate the project could eventually require between $5 trillion and $13 trillion in capital spending.

That caught the eye of Chanos, a long-time Tesla bear. “Time for another narrative change at $TSLA,” the short-seller posted on X. “Who needs FSD and Robotaxis when you can spend $5-13T on AI chip fabs?! That’s only 16-40% of US GDP.”

US GDP was roughly $30 trillion in 2025.

Chanos Is Betting Against A Bubble Traders Do Not See Bursting

Chanos has been warning about the AI capex cycle for months.

In December, the short-seller argued that GPUs depreciate over three years …

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U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) reported first-quarter 2026 results Thursday.

First-Quarter Details

The bank reported first-quarter adjusted earnings per share of $1.18, beating the analyst consensus estimate of $1.14. Quarterly sales of $7.288 billion outpaced the Street view of $7.277 billion.

“Strong revenue growth drove 440 basis points of positive operating leverage, as ongoing investments for growth and continued cost savings drove 260 basis points of year-over-year improvement in our efficiency ratio,” said CEO Gunjan Kedia.

In the quarter under review, net interest income totaled $4.263 billion, up 4.2% year over year.

Provision of credit losses jumped 7.3% year over year to $576 million. The increase on a year-over-year basis was primarily driven by loan portfolio growth.

The bank said it is closely watching economic uncertainty, including interest rates, inflation, trade policy, and geopolitical risks, as these factors could impact borrowers’ financial health.

Net interest margin was 2.77% in the first quarter of 2026, compared with 2.72% in the first quarter of 2025. The increase in net interest margin compared with the prior-year quarter was primarily due to the benefits from fixed asset repricing.

Net income attributable to U.S. Bancorp was $1.945 billion for the first quarter of 2026, $236 million higher than the first quarter of 2025 and $100 million lower than the fourth quarter of 2025.

Outlook

U.S. Bancorp expects net interest income and fees to grow 6%–7% in the second quarter. The bank also guides full-year revenue growth of 4%–6% with operating leverage …

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Infleqtion Inc. (NYSE:INFQ) shares are trading lower on Thursday. The decline follows a massive multi-week rally. Investors appear to be locking in gains after a significant price appreciation.

Infleqtion surged 67.15% between March 30 and recent peaks. The stock climbed from $8.92 to $14.91 during that window.

Citron Research Highlights Nvidia Partnership

Andrew Left’s Citron Research weighed in on the valuation gap Thursday. In a post on X, Citron noted that Nvidia Corp. (NASDAQ:NVDA) recently selected Infleqtion for multiple roles.

Citron said INFQ is the only company Nvidia selected twice—for both calibration and …

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JP Morgan Chase (NYSE:JPM) analysts see negotiations around the proposed CLARITY Act moving closer to resolution, as lawmakers and regulators in Washington intensify efforts to settle key disputes in digital asset regulation.

Key Issues In Focus

The CLARITY Act is designed to define how cryptocurrencies are regulated in U.S., including how authority is split between the SEC and the CFTC. It also aims to establish clearer rules for stablecoins and decentralized finance platforms, CoinDesk reported on Thursday.

According to JPMorgan’s analysis, ongoing discussions are centered on two major areas: DeFi …

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A report from brokerage Wolfe Research found that when Polymarket users bet a company will miss earnings estimates, the firm misses 44% of the time, more than double the historic 18% benchmark.

When bettors are very confident a company will beat, it happens 90% of the time, above the 81% norm, Bloomberg reported on Thursday.

Yin Luo, who runs quant research at Wolfe, said the accuracy may come from crowdsourcing, with Polymarket users more diverse than the sell-side analyst pool that drives consensus estimates.

A separate working paper from London Business School and Yale researchers offered a more uncomfortable explanation.

The academics found that earnings markets for companies audited by one particular accounting firm were more accurate than those for companies with other auditors. They declined to name the firm, but the finding raises questions about whether some participants may be …

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Charles Schwab (NYSE:SCHW) is rolling out Schwab Crypto, giving its 39 million active brokerage account holders access to Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) and Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) trading for the first time.

The Phased Launch

Schwab Crypto will be introduced in phases over the coming weeks, confirming a previously stated timeline for a second-quarter launch. 

Clients will be able to trade Bitcoin and Ethereum through dedicated crypto accounts linked to their traditional Schwab brokerage accounts.

Access to spot trading is a big step up from Schwab’s previous offerings of indirect crypto exposure via exchange-traded funds and derivatives. Schwab will charge 75 basis points per transaction.

Charles Schwab will offer the crypto accounts through its Premier Bank and act as custodian, while Paxos will handle trade execution.

The Early Constraints

The platform will …

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Roku, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROKU) shares are slightly up on Thursday after the company surpassed 100 million streaming households worldwide in April.

The broader market saw gains on Wednesday, with the Technology sector rising 0.27%. Roku’s upward movement aligns with the positive sentiment in the tech space, suggesting that the stock is benefiting from broader market trends.

Technical Analysis

Roku is currently trading near its 52-week-high, indicating strong momentum as it approaches this key level. The stock is trading 13.8% above its 20-day simple moving average (SMA) and 17% above its 50-day SMA, suggesting a bullish short-term trend.

The relative strength index (RSI) stands at 69.18, near overbought territory, suggesting the stock may be under upward pressure. This level suggests that while momentum is strong, traders should be cautious of potential pullbacks if the stock becomes too overextended.

  • Key Resistance: $116.50 — A …

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On Thursday, Insteel Indus (NYSE:IIIN) discussed second-quarter financial results during its earnings call. The full transcript is provided below.

Benzinga APIs provide real-time access to earnings call transcripts and financial data. Visit https://www.benzinga.com/apis/ to learn more.

View the webcast at https://events.q4inc.com/attendee/427023510

Summary

Insteel Industries Inc reported weaker-than-expected Q2 financial results due to severe winter weather disruptions, lower shipment volumes, and higher unit conversion costs.

Net earnings for the quarter were $5.2 million or $0.27 per share, a decrease from $10.2 million or $0.52 per share in the same period last year.

Average selling prices increased by 14.2% year-over-year due to pricing actions to counter rising costs and tariffs, although the impact was tempered by product mix and softer volumes.

The company experienced a 5.9% decline in shipments year-over-year but saw a sequential increase of 6.9% from Q1.

Management remains optimistic about a recovery in demand and margins in the third quarter, driven by seasonal factors, recent price increases, and improved operating rates.

The company ended the quarter with $15.1 million in cash and no outstanding borrowings, maintaining strong liquidity.

Strategic initiatives include a focus on the growth of the engineered structural mesh business and continued investments in plants and information systems.

The impact of the Section 232 tariffs and global supply chain challenges continue to affect operations, necessitating reliance on offshore raw materials.

Management is confident in the demand outlook for 2026, with expectations for robust activity in data centers and other core markets.

Full Transcript

OPERATOR

Hello and welcome everyone to the Interstell Industries second quarter 2026 earnings call. My name is Becky and I will be your operator today. All lines will be muted throughout the presentation portion of the call with a chance for Q and A at the end. If you wish to ask a question in this time, please press STAR followed by one on your telephone keypads. I will now hand over to your host HBolt CEO to begin. Please go ahead.

HBolt

Thank you, Becky. Good morning and thank you for your interest in Insteel Industries Inc and welcome to our second quarter 2026 conference call which will be conducted by Scott Gifruti, our Vice President, CFO and Treasurer, and me. Before we begin, let me remind you that some of the comments made in our presentation are considered to be forward looking statements that are subject to various risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected. These risk factors are described in our periodic filings with the SEC. Despite falling well short of our expected financial performance in Q2, we believe the upturn in business activity we reported previously is still intact. Winter weather is a fact of life in our business, and it happens that during Q2 conditions were severe and prolonged in many geographies, particularly compared to recent years, and project delays, while undesirable, are rather common in the industry. We regret that we experienced both of these phenomena during Q2, but we’re confident that short term weather conditions and project delays neither create nor destroy demand and that postponed demand will be evident during the balance of fiscal 2026. I’m going to turn the call over to Scott to comment on our financial results and then following his comments, I’ll pick the call back up to discuss our business outlook.

Scott Gifruti (Vice President, CFO and Treasurer)

Thank you. H and good morning to everyone joining us on the call. As we reported earlier this morning, our second quarter results were weaker than expected, reflecting the combined impact of winter weather disruptions, lower spreads and higher unit conversion costs. Net earnings for the quarter were 5.2 million or $0.27 per share, compared with 10.2 million or $0.52 per diluted share in the same period last year. Shipments for the quarter declined 5.9% from the prior year, but increased 6.9% sequentially from the first quarter. While the second quarter typically reflects some seasonal softness conditions this year were significantly more severe. Following a solid start in January, we experienced extended periods of winter weather across most of our markets, which reduced construction activity and disrupted operating schedules for both our customers and Insteel Industries Inc, which weighed on order flow and shipments. In addition, certain projects originally scheduled for delivery during the quarter were deferred to later in the year for reasons unrelated to weather. Although we are still early in the third quarter, recent order activity has been solid with April shipments trending above forecasted levels. With that backdrop on volumes, let me turn to pricing. Average selling prices were up 14.2% year over year driven by the pricing actions we put in place throughout fiscal 2025 and into the current year to offset higher rod costs, increased Section 232 tariffs, and rising operating expenses. Sequentially, ASPs were up 1% from the first quarter even as wire rod costs continued to move higher. For context, published prices for steel wire rod, our primary raw material, rose $90 per ton during the quarter. Although we implemented additional price increases during Q2, the limited sequential improvement in ASPs was influenced by product mix, existing contractual pricing, and softer volumes. We expect these recent pricing actions, along with the additional price increase implemented in April, to provide further benefit in the coming periods as they are more fully reflected in our realized pricing. Gross profit declined $8 million year over year, 16.5 million and gross margin narrowed to 9.6%. The decline primarily reflects lower shipment volumes, reduced spreads between selling prices and raw material costs, and higher unit conversion costs resulting from lower production levels and weather related operational inefficiencies. Sequentially, gross profit declined 1.6 million and gross margin contracted by 170 basis point as the slowdown in shipments delayed the tailwinds of recent price increases and extended the lag between raw material cost increases and realized pricing. As we enter the third quarter, we expect several factors to support a recovery in gross margin. Demand is improving as we move into the seasonally stronger portion of the year, recent price increases are beginning to gain traction and our current raw material carrying values are more favorable. In addition, higher operating rates across our facilities should enhance fixed cost absorption. Taken together, these factors are expected to support a gradual improvement in margin performance as the quarter progresses. FGA expense for the quarter decreased to 9.7 million or 5.6% of net sales compared to 10.8 million or 6.7% of net sales in the prior year period. The decline was primarily driven by a $1.1 million reduction in compensation costs tied to our return on capital based incentive plan, reflecting weaker financial performance this year. SG&A expense was also affected by $203,000 unfavorable year over year change in the cash surrender value of life insurance policies, reflecting the downturn in financial markets and its effect on the underlying investments. Our effective tax rate for the quarter was 23.3%, which is up slightly from 23.2% last year. Looking ahead, we expect our effective tax rate for the remainder of the year to be approximately 23%, subject to the level of pre tax earnings book to tax differences and the other assumptions and estimates underlying our tax provision calculation. Turning to cash flow Statement of balance sheet Operating cash flow provided $4.8 million in the current quarter compared with using $3.3 million of cash in the prior year period, driven primarily by the change in net working capital. Net working capital to use $1.4 million of cash in the second quarter, reflecting a $16.8 million increase in receivables resulting from higher sales and average selling prices, partially offset by a $13.3 million reduction in inventory as we scale back raw material purchases, our quarter end inventory position represented approximately 3.4 months of shipments on a forward looking basis calculated off of our third quarter forecast. That’s down from 3.9 months at the end of the first quarter. As we mentioned on our Q1 call, we increased inventory levels early in the year as we supplemented domestic wire rod with offshore material and that build naturally ease as we move through the second quarter. Looking ahead, we expect a modest increase in inventory as we move into the seasonal busy period, positioning us to support higher shipment volumes. Additionally, our inventories at the end of the second quarter were valued at an average unit cost that approximates our second quarter cost of sales and remains favorable relative to current replacement costs which will have a positive impact on spreads and margins as we move through the third quarter. We incurred $4.4 million in capital expenditures in quarter for a total of 5.9 million through the first half of our fiscal year and we remain committed to our full year target of 20 million. Finally, from a liquidity perspective, we ended the quarter with $15.1 million of cash on hand and no borrowing outstanding on our $100 million revolving credit facility, providing us ample liquidity and financial flexibility going forward. Turning to the macroeconomic indicators for construction end markets, the latest readings from our two leading measures, the Architectural Billing Index and the Dodge Momentum Index, point to an environment that remains uneven but generally stable. The Architectural Billing Index, which typically leads non residential construction activity by approximately 9 to …

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Netflix Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX) reports Q1 earnings after the bell today, the first print since the company walked away from an $83 billion deal for Warner Bros. Discovery (NASDAQ:WBD) and pocketed a $2.8 billion termination fee paid by Paramount Skydance (NASDAQ:PSKY).

Wall Street expects EPS of 78 cents on revenue of $12.17 billion, up 15.5% year-over-year.

The company has topped EPS estimates in recent quarters, which is why Polymarket gives a 95% chance of another beat tonight.

Kalshi has a mention market, where traders are betting real money on which specific words Co-CEOs Ted Sarandos, Greg Peters, and CFO Spence Neumann will say on the 4:45 p.m. ET call.

The WBD Hangover

“Acquisition” at 92% and “Warner Bros.” at 86% are near-locks. Neumann already told analysts in March that Netflix would “move forward” with “$2.8 billion in our pocket that we didn’t have a few weeks ago.”

“Paramount” sits at 53%. A direct mention of the rival now absorbing HBO, …

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Something in the market’s math doesn’t hold.

The IEA’s director general Fatih Birol has described the current situation at the Strait of Hormuz as the worst energy crisis in history. Oil – which is trading above $90 a barrel – is still 38% above where it traded the day before the conflict began.

At $4.09 per gallon nationally, and $5.86 in California, the pump is not signaling resolution.

Yet seven major energy producers and refiners — the companies that drill the oil, refine the gasoline, and collect the margin — are trading as if Hormuz is already open, the crisis is resolved, and crude is heading back to $65.

Their forward price-to-earnings multiples sit between 7x and 11x, roughly half the S&P 500’s consensus forward P/E of around 22x.

The disconnect is not subtle. It is structural.

The Energy Stocks That Didn’t Get The Memo

The State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF (NYSE:XLE) is up 27% year-to-date, which sounds impressive until you consider that crude oil is up 38% from pre-war levels.

The sector has underperformed its own commodity — and pulled back 10% from its March peak — even as the underlying supply disruption has not materially improved.

That compression is where the opportunity, and the risk, lives.

The April drawdown is the mechanism that created this entry point.

Every name in the table has sold off between 5% and 14% month-to-date, even as WTI has held around $90 and Brent has pushed toward $95. 

APA Corporation (NASDAQ:APA), the cheapest name at 7.2x …

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DraftKings (NASDAQ:DKNG) shares were up during Thursday’s premarket session but down at last check as the company unveiled online sports betting and casino products in Alberta, Canada.

This expansion, pending regulatory approval, aligns with the company’s strategy to expand its footprint across North America and is likely contributing to positive sentiment around the stock, especially as the broader market gained on Wednesday.

Alberta would be the second province in Canada to offer these services, alongside Ontario.

The anticipated launch date is set for July 13, 2026, coinciding with the World Cup, which could further boost engagement from sports fans in the province.

“With the anticipated launch aligning with the World Cup — hosted right here in North America — it’s a particularly exciting moment for sports fans in the province to engage with our platform,” said Greg Karamitis, Executive Vice President and General Manager of Sports at DraftKings.

The broader market saw gains on Wednesday, with the Nasdaq rising 0.15% and the S&P 500 up 0.14%. DraftKings’ upward movement comes as the Technology sector gained 0.27%, indicating that the stock is moving in line with positive market trends.

Technical Analysis

DraftKings is currently trading within its 52-week range, with a high of $48.78 and a low of $20.46. The stock is trading 4.8% above its …

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Nvidia Corp (NASDAQ:NVDA) is sitting on massive cash flows, backing AI labs, and effectively powering the infrastructure boom. By all appearances, the next logical step would be to: become a hyperscaler. But CEO Jensen Huang isn’t interested.

Speaking on the Dwarkesh Podcast, Huang laid out a different philosophy—one that runs counter to how Big Tech typically expands.

‘Do As Little As Possible’

“This is a philosophy of the company… we should do as much as needed, as little as possible,” Huang said, explaining Nvidia’s approach to new markets.

That philosophy draws a clear line. Nvidia will build what it believes the ecosystem cannot—but it won’t step into areas already well served.

“In the case of clouds… if I didn’t do it, somebody would show up,” he added.

This is where the business logic kicks in. Hyperscalers like Amazon, Microsoft, and Google already spend tens of billions building cloud infrastructure — and they …

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J B Hunt Transport Services Inc (NASDAQ:JBHT) reported upbeat earnings for the first quarter on Wednesday.

The company posted quarterly earnings of $1.49 per share which beat the analyst consensus estimate of $1.45 per share. The company reported quarterly sales of $3.056 billion which beat the analyst consensus estimate of $2.940 billion.

“I’m thankful for our team and their unwavering focus on operational excellence, even as we navigated challenging winter weather and elevated demand across the business,” said Shelley Simpson, president and CEO. “We began the year with strong financial results, building on the momentum we established in 2025 and once again executed well in safety performance by …

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NextNRG (NASDAQ:NXXT) held its fourth-quarter earnings conference call on Thursday. Below is the complete transcript from the call.

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Summary

NextEnergy Inc. reported a 195% revenue growth from $27.8 million in 2024 to $81.8 million in 2025, primarily driven by its mobile fueling business and strategic acquisitions.

The company improved its gross margin from 8.4% in 2024 to 10.4% by Q4 2025, indicating enhanced operational efficiency.

The company closed its first power purchase agreements for microgrid projects, highlighting a pipeline worth approximately $750 million, which promises long-term revenue streams.

NextEnergy Inc. recorded a GAAP net loss of $88.2 million for 2025, largely due to non-cash items like stock-based compensation and amortization, while adjusted EBITDA loss was $17.1 million.

Management emphasized the focus on reducing reliance on high-cost short-term debt and increasing operating cash flow through strategic growth in both fueling and energy infrastructure segments.

Full Transcript

OPERATOR

Good morning and welcome to the NextEnergy Energy Inc. Fourth quarter and full year 2025 earnings call. All participants are in a listen only mode. Following management’s prepared remarks, we will move to a pre submitted Q and A. This call is being recorded. Before we begin, I will turn it over to Sharon Cohen for the required forward looking statements disclosure. Sharon, please go ahead.

Sharon Cohen

Thank you. I’d like to begin by reminding everyone that today’s discussion will include forward looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially. Please refer to our most recent SEC filings for a full discussion of relevant risk factors. Today’s call will also reference adjusted ebitda, a non GAAP (Generally Accepted Accounting Principles) financial measure, a full reconciliation of this measure to net loss. The most comparable GAAP (Generally Accepted Accounting Principles) measure is available in our earnings release located in the Investor tab of our website. Non GAAP (Generally Accepted Accounting Principles) financial measures should not be considered a substitute for GAAP (Generally Accepted Accounting Principles) results. On the call today is Michael DeFarkas, founder and chief Executive Officer as well as Joel Kleiner, Chief Financial Officer. Michael, the floor is yours.

Michael DeFarkas (Founder and Chief Executive Officer)

Thank you Sharon and good morning everyone. I want to begin with some numbers that will frame everything you’re about to hear. In 2024 NextEnergy generated $27.8 million in revenue, while in 2025 we generated $81.8 million. I want to repeat that 27.8 million to 81.8 million. That is about 195% growth in one single year. Our on site mobile fueling business was the driver of this growth. Following the completed merger of NextEnergy and Easy Fill, we integrated two acquisitions, Shelf Tap Up Assets and Yoshi. These acquisitions allowed us to enter into four new major markets, Phoenix, Austin, San Antonio and Houston, ending the year operating coast to coast and results reflected that. We posted seven consecutive months of record revenue and by May, our year to date revenue had already surpassed all of 2024. Most critically, our margins improved as we scaled. Our full year gross margin in fueling was 8.4%. By Q4 it had climbed to 10.4%. That is the direction we’re moving towards as we continue to optimize our operations, implement smarter customer acquisition, greater route density, increase of fuel mix deliveries and less wasted time in that curve. We are still early. I want to call out our fourth quarter specifically because it tells you where this business is headed. Q4 revenue was approximately $23 million. October 7.4 million November 7.5 December, $8 million December alone represented 253% year over year growth in revenue and 308% growth in fuel volumes. And that is the momentum we’re carrying into 2026. I also want to take a moment to highlight something specific because I believe it speaks to the quality of what we are building right now. Our largest commercial fleet customer, the largest global online retailer, is actively cutting other fuel vendors in certain markets and replacing them with us, NextEnergy. That does not happen by accident. That happens when service is cleaner, more reliable and more integrated than the alternatives. This is precisely what we designed our products and services to do. And it means that the opportunity with this one customer alone has not even reached its full potential. I want to talk about our energy infrastructure segment because this is where the Next chapter of NextEnergy is being written. We closed our first power purchase agreements, Sunnyside and Topanga Terrace Rehabilitation and Subacute Care Centers, both in California. Under these agreements, Next Energy will design and build fully integrated on site smart microgrids combining rooftop solar battery storage, gas generators and our patented AI driven controller. These are long term structured agreements with annual escalators built in. This is not equipment sales, but is contracted energy relationships that generate annuitized revenues over the long term, some as many as three decades. We believe finalizing these agreements validates the model. The market exists, customers are ready to commit and NextEnergy is ready to execute. Our pipeline of planned smart microgrid projects stands at approximately $750 million, spanning municipal, tribal, health care, multifamily and commercial facilities, all in various stages of development. We are now converting that pipeline into executed contracts. Before I turn it over, …

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Progressive Corp (NYSE:PGR) posted strong first‑quarter earnings on Wednesday.

Progressive reported first-quarter earnings of $4.96 per share, topping analyst expectations of $4.87. Profit rose 6.4% from the same quarter last year, and net income for the quarter climbed to $2.82 billion, up 10% year‑over‑year.

The company also delivered solid top‑line growth. Quarterly sales rose 8% to $20.97 billion, though it didn’t meet the $22.96 estimate. Net premiums written increased 22% year-over-year to $23.64 billion.

Progressive shares rose 1.5% to trade at $204.59 on Thursday.

These analysts made changes to their price targets on Progressive …

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On Thursday, Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) discussed first-quarter financial results during its earnings call. The full transcript is provided below.

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Summary

Citizens Financial Group reported a strong start to 2026 with a 47% increase in EPS, positive operating leverage of 7%, and a net interest margin (NIM) expansion of 24 basis points.

The private bank and wealth business, accounting for 10% of pre-tax income, continued to grow, contributing $0.11 to EPS, with a robust ROE exceeding 25%.

Strategic initiatives like ‘Reimagine the Bank’ and expansion in New York and private banking are progressing well, with a reaffirmed P&L target of $450 million by 2028.

The company anticipates favorable outcomes from regulatory changes and stress tests, and remains cautiously optimistic about navigating external challenges.

Management highlighted strong loan growth across commercial, consumer, and private banking segments, with an emphasis on maintaining robust credit quality.

Full Transcript

Ivy (Operator)

Good morning everyone and welcome to the Citizens Financial Group’s first quarter 2026 earnings conference call. My name is Ivy and I will be your operator today. Currently all participants are in a listen only mode. Following the presentation we will conduct a brief question and answer session. As a reminder, this event is being recorded now. I will turn the call over to Kristen Silverberg, Head of Investor Relations. Kristen, you may begin.

Kristen Silverberg (Head of Investor Relations)

Thanks Ivy. Good morning everyone and thank you for joining us. First this morning our Chairman and CEO Bruce Van Sorn and CFO Anoy Banerjee will provide an overview of our first quarter results. Brendan Coughlin, President and Ted Swimmer, Head of Commercial Banking are also here to provide additional color. We will be referencing our first quarter presentation located on our Investor Relations website. After the presentation we’ll be happy to take questions. Our comments today will include forward looking statements which are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause our results to differ materially from expectations. These are outlined for your review in the presentation. We also reference non GAAP financial measures so it’s important to review the GAAP results in the presentation and the reconciliations in the appendix and with that I will hand it over to Bruce.

Bruce Van Saun

Okay, thanks Kristen and good morning everyone. Thanks for joining our call today. We’re pleased to start the year off strong. Notwithstanding geopolitical tensions and uncertainty in the macroeconomic environment environment, we delivered good financial performance in a seasonally soft quarter with year over year eps growth of 47%, positive operating leverage of 7% and NIM expansion of 24 basis points. Our balance sheet position continues to be robust with CET1 at 10.5% and our allowance for loan losses at 1.52%. Credit trends continue to be favorable across our portfolios and we continue our loan mix shift towards deeper relationships with lower credit Risk execution on our strategic initiatives continues to track wealth. The private bank and wealth business showed further growth in customers balance sheet and profitability now accounting for roughly 10% of our pre tax income while delivering an ROE in excess of 25%. During the quarter we opened three more PBOs bringing the total to nine Reimagine the Bank is off to a solid start and we reaffirm our 450 million P&L target by the end of 2028. We estimate about 100 million in 2026 exit run rate benefits. At this point, our positioning with private capital continues to be excellent. We anticipate a strong year for private equity sponsor activity which should provide balance sheet and fee opportunities for us. We’ve reviewed all of our lending to private credit vehicles at a granular level and we feel good about our credit exposure. The New York City Metro Initiative also continues to show further progress. We are growing across retail, small business and middle market. We are in the process of analyzing Citizens existing branch footprint for Net new investment and optimization. With New York City likely to see growth in branches in coming years, we should have more details to share to share with you on this mid year. We’re also focused on an initiative we call One Citizens which is systematically finding ways to work across the enterprise to deliver valuable solutions to our customers. Now that we have established the private bank and continued the build out of our corporate bank, we have the capacity to provide both personal and corporate services to successful business owners, investors and entrepreneurs. We will report more on this as the year progresses, but we’re already gaining real traction as we look ahead to the second quarter and the full year. We remain cautiously optimistic that we’ll be able to navigate through external challenges and still deliver the strong results we projected coming into this year. So far, markets have behaved rationally despite the war with equity markets holding in and credit spreads only slightly wider. We intend to stay on our investment plan for the year unless the macro takes a meaningful turn for the worse. We’re pleased with the regulatory changes we see coming from Washington D.C. and we look forward to the upcoming CCAR stress test results which we’re hopeful will give a more accurate result for Citizens than than what we’ve seen in the past. So to sum up, a good start, well positioned with a great strategy and a great team and optimistic for a strong 2026. With that, I’ll turn it over to Anoy for the financial details. Thank you, Bruce. Anoy.

Anoy Banerjee

Good morning everyone. As Bruce mentioned, Citizens have started the year well. Referencing slides 3 and 4. We delivered EPS of $1.13 for the first quarter with ROTC of 12.2%. Results were paced by strong net interest income (NII) reflecting both continued net interest margin expansion and and solid loan growth. We also delivered our best ever first quarter fee result led by strong performance in our commercial bank. The solid revenue performance and expense discipline drove more than 700 basis points of positive operating leverage year over year, notwithstanding continued investment in the private bank and our other strategic priorities. Along with ramping up our Reimagine the Bank program, the private bank continued to grow its profitability, contributing $0.11 to EPS, up from $0.10 in the prior quarter as the business delivered another very strong quarter of deposit growth. Now let me walk through the first quarter resultss in more detail starting with net interest income on slide 5. Net interest income was up 1.6% linked quarter driven by the benefit of an expanded net interest margin and higher interest earning assets including strong loan growth which more than offset the day count impact of about $22 million. As you see from the net interest margin (NIM) walk at the bottom of the slide, our margin improved 7 basis points to 3.14% driven primarily by the benefits of the reduced drag from terminated swaps and non core runoff with a five basis point of combined impact, the fixed rate asset repricing benefit of 1 basis point and lastly the net impact of 1 basis point related to improved funding cost and mix largely offset by lower asset yields. We continue to do a good job optimizing deposits in a competitive environment. Our interest bearing deposit cost were down 16 basis points and total deposit costs were down 12 basis points. The cumulative interest bearing deposit beta improved to 50% as we benefited from the repricing after the last rate cut. Even with the Fed now expected to hold steady in 26, we are still projecting a high 40s beta for the cycle. Moving to slide 6 non interest income is up 11% year over year but down 2% linked quarter as I mentioned this was our strongest first quarter fee result ever notwithstanding heightened geopolitical tensions and an increase in market volatility. Capital markets performance demonstrated the strength and diversity of the franchise with fees up 34% year over year and down 4% compared with the strong fourth quarter. MA delivered a good result in the quarter with our pipeline strong and continues to build. Bond underwriting was up nicely from the prior quarter. Our equity underwriting performance was stable linked quarter and up significantly year over year. Loans indications were lower given the market volatility. We continue to maintain strong market share ranking fourth in the middle market. Sponsors Bookrunner Deals by volume this is for both the first quarter and over the last 12 months. Our deal pipelines across MA debt and equity capital markets continue to build notwithstanding the unsettled environment. Our global markets business was up $10 million linked quarter with increased client hedging activity in interest rate products and energy related commodities. Our wealth business continues to build with progress in the private bank and strength in our retail network. Wealth fees are up 2% linked quarter and 23% year over year. These results reflect higher advisory fees with continued positive momentum in fee based AUM growth year over year. The fourth quarter results reflect positive net inflows partially offset by market impacts on AUM. Mortgage was down 19% linked quarter given a lower MSR valuation partially offset by slightly higher production and servicing fees on slide 7. Expenses were managed tightly up 2.6% linked quarter, largely reflecting the usual seasonality in salaries and benefits as well as about $6 million of implementation costs to ramp up the reimagine. The bank program on slide 8 average and period end loans were up 1% linked quarter we saw solid loan growth across each of the businesses. Commercial loans excluding the private bank were up 1% on a spot basis. This was driven by net new money originations and higher commercial line utilization. This was partially offset by CRE paydowns. We continue to reduce commercial banking CRE balances which were down about 4% this quarter and 16% year over year. The private bank delivered good loan growth again this quarter with period end loans up about $600 million driven by growth in multifamily and residential mortgage. Growth in retail loans ex non core on a spot basis was about $300 million led by real estate secured categories. This was offset by non core auto portfolio run up of roughly $500 million for the quarter. Next on slides 9 and 10 we continued to do a good job on deposits with average deposits up 1% or $1.5 billion quarter on quarter, primarily driven by the growth in the private bank which reached $16.6 billion at the end of the quarter. This was partially offset by seasonal impacts in commercial year over year average balances are up $8.6 billion or 5% reflecting combined growth in the private bank and commercial of $11.2 billion, partially offset by roughly $2 billion of reduction in higher cost treasury broker deposits on a spot basis. Non interest bearing balances are up $1.3 billion or 3% quarter on quarter and up $4.1 billion or 11% year over year, improving the overall mix to 23% of the book. Our total non interest bearing and low cost deposit mix was steady at 43% and our consumer deposits are 64% of our total deposits. This compares to a peer average of about 56%. Moving to Slide 11 credit continues to trend favorably with net charge offs coming in at 39 basis points down from 43 basis points in the prior quarter. Non accrual loans are down modestly linked quarter reflecting a decrease in commercial largely driven by CNI which was partially offset by an increase in mortgage. Turning to slide 12, the allowance was essentially stable this quarter with ACL coverage ratios of 1.52%. This reflects the continued improvement in our portfolio mix with non core runoff, the reduction in CRE and strong originations of lower loss content cni, Residential Real Estate Secured and Private Loans the economic forecast supporting the allowance contemplates a mild recession with a slight deterioration compared with the last quarter, reflecting the potential impact of higher energy prices. As we look broadly across the portfolio, the credit outlook remains positive, though we continue to carefully monitor the macroeconomic environment. Moving to slide 13 we maintained excellent balance sheet strength, ending the quarter with CET1 at 10.5%. We returned about $500 million to shareholders in the first quarter with $198 million in common dividends and $300 million of share repurchases. Moving to Slide 14, the private bank continues to make excellent progress. The private bank delivered strong deposit growth again ending the quarter at $16.6 billion. Importantly, the overall deposit mix and cost continues to be very attractive. We also delivered solid loan growth in the quarter, adding about $600 million of loan at a healthy spread of 4% over deposit cost to end the quarter at $7.7 billion of loans. We ended the quarter with $10.1 billion of total client assets with modest net inflows partially offset by market impacts. We have more Runway here as we plan to continue adding top quality teams in key geographies. We opened offices in Melno park and Laurel village in the first quarter and we expect to open at least two more offices this year in West Palm Beach, Florida and Greenwich, Connecticut. Moving to Slide 15 our Reimagine the Bank program is off to a great start. The objective is to position citizens for long term success by embracing a host of new innovative technologies across the bank and simplifying our business model which will reshape our customer experience and drive a meaningful improvement in productivity and efficiency. The program is well underway with work commencing on several key work streams. For example, on the technology front, we are leveraging AI to assist in writing code and expect to have material productivity improvements in software development, cutting down cycle times. We’re also using AI to improve our interactions with customers which we expect will materially cut call volumes and improve the overall customer experience. We expect to exist 2026 with an annualized run rate of about $100 million of pre tax benefit. Now moving to Slide 16, we provide our outlook for the second quarter. We expect net interest income to be up in the range of 3 to 4% driven by continued expansion in net interest margin and earning asset growth. Non interest income is expected to be up 3 to 5%, led by capital markets with some risk if market volatility moves higher. Other fee categories such as FX and derivatives, wealth and card should also provide lift for the quarter. We are projecting expenses to be stable to up 1%, incorporating a step up in implementation cost associated with Reimagine the Bank and continued investment in other key business initiatives. We expect expense saves from Reimagine the Bank to benefit second half expenses. The charge off level is expected to be stable to down slightly and we should end the second quarter with CET1 in the range of 10.5 to 10.6%, including share repurchases of about $225 million. In addition, our full year outlook remains broadly in line with the guide we provided in January, which contemplated a pickup in business activity over the course of the year. Looking out further, we see a clear path to achieving our 16 to 18% ROTC target by the end of 2017. Expanding our net interest margin is an important driver and we continue to project net interest margin (NIM) to be in the range of 322 to 328% in 4Q26 and in the range of 330 to 350% in 4Q27. Slide 17 provides incremental details on our net interest margin progression to the end of 2017. This, combined with the impact of successful execution of our strategic initiatives and normalizing credit, should drive ROTC to our target range. To wrap up, we are off to a Good start to 26 with results highlighted by strong growth in net interest income and good fee results in a seasonally soft quarter. Our balance sheet is strong and we continue to drive forward our strategic initiatives with strong momentum in growing the private bank and in our Reimagine the Bank program. With that, I will hand it back over to Bruce.

Bruce Van Saun

Okay, thank you, Anoy Operator, let’s open it up for Q and a.

OPERATOR

Question and answer portion of the call. If you would like to participate at this time. If you would like to ask a question, please unmute your phone, press Star one and record your name clearly when prompted. If you need to withdraw your question at any time, please press Star two. Again, that is Star one to ask a question. Our first question comes from Scott Siefers from Piper Sandler. Please go ahead.

Scott Siefers (Equity Analyst)

Morning guys. Thank you for taking the question. Let’s see, I was hoping you could maybe start by speaking to kind of the Capital markets Dynamics. Obviously see the numbers in the first quarter but curious how you thought the first quarter actually performed given that you had sort of the interplay between one the environment played out a lot differently than we all figured it might.

Bruce Van Saun

But two, I know you all had some deals that were pushed from the fourth quarter into the first quarter, so maybe just sort of results versus expectations, then if you could speak to the forward look, you know, things like pipelines, confidence in pull through, et cetera. Yeah, Scott, let me. It’s Bruce. I’ll take it first and then hand it over over to Ted to provide more color. But you know, I would say all things considered, we’re pleased with the performance of the capital markets franchise in an environment that had increased volatility and lots of uncertainty, particularly in March once the war kicked in. But we have good diversification across our different services and capital markets. So we have M and A, we have bond underwriting, equity underwriting and syndicated loans. I think that diversity helped us print a good quarter. There was some leakage, I would say, from March that’s geared up to go in April, which now that we have more optimistic tone to the market, we’re actually starting to see that come through. So we may be in this situation where our pipelines are very full. We’re very optimistic given kind of the strength of the franchise, the likelihood that people want to transact. But if there’s this external volatility, ebbs

Ted Swimmer (Head of Commercial Banking)

and flows, you could see people pull to the sidelines, wait for the opportune time, for example, to go to market, and hopefully that cleans up. We’re certainly not taking our numbers down for the year. In fact, we feel quite good about that given the level of activity that we see and the pipeline strength that we have. So, Ted, over to you. Building on what Bruce just said. We’ve seen we took a couple of transactions in March that we would have launched into the market and pushed them into April, just given the volatility in the overall markets. But during that whole period of time, we continued to sign up new transactions. And I think what’s really exciting about the transactions that we’re signing up based on the investments we made in corporate finance and industry specialization, we now are doing more complex transactions and getting signed up on more complex transactions than we ever had before and feel very good about what that pipe, what those transactions are and how the pipeline is building. And to more to what Bruce just said, the deals that got postponed in March, especially this week, we’ve seen them back into the market. We are launching several transactions and part of several transactions that were postponed in March that are getting very good reception now in April. So we continue to feel very optimistic about the pipeline, especially on the M and A side. And during this whole period of turmoil, we really actually saw a pickup in new mandates, especially on the MA side of the business.

Bruce Van Saun

Yeah, I should just close by saying it was a record first quarter for us in capital markets, fees that shouldn’t go unnoted.

Scott Siefers (Equity Analyst)

Yeah, totally agree. Okay, perfect. Thank you. That’s very helpful. And then I was hoping you all would maybe speak to the private credit portfolio as well. I know there’s a lot of good detail in the appendix. Just curious, sort of not only for an update on credit quality dynamics, but also given your build out of the team over many years, I know it’s been a focus area, just sort of your appetite to continue to grow the portfolio given sort of certain current, just sort of industry circumstances.

Bruce Van Saun

Yeah, I’ll start again and flip to ted, but you know, I would say we’ve been very disciplined in terms of the kind of counterparties that we select. Usually there often a private equity sponsor that’s migrated to a broader kind of business model that picks up private credit, and they’re moving to be more of an alternative asset manager. And so we’ve helped them grow and get into this business and provide leverage to many of those names. So client selection is always key. And then making sure we have the right structures in place so that we’re structurally protected from any issues that could arise in the portfolios. And so we’ve gone through and looked at kind of our exposure and kind of the broad portfolio, looking at all the underlying factors, who has liquidity gates for retail investors, who’s got software exposure at the end of the day, feel very, very confident that we’re structurally well protected from a credit loss standpoint. And I think even though this is in the headlines and there’s concerns about private credit, the asset class, if you want to call it that, is here to stay. And they provide a certain amount of leverage and deal structures that exceeds what banks have historically been willing to play. And there’s certainly a lot of institutional demand folks or private credit managers are continuing to raise new money. So I think we’ll just grow selectively with the market as we have in the past. But we don’t see this turning around and being something that starts to shrink. It’s just going to grow. And I think every player in the market will be more selective, and we’ll continue to be selective, but …

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Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) released first-quarter financial results and hosted an earnings call on Thursday. Read the complete transcript below.

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Summary

Abbott Laboratories reported Q1 adjusted earnings per share of $1.15, in line with expectations despite earlier financing costs and a weaker respiratory season.

The acquisition of Exact Sciences was completed, anticipated to add $3 billion in sales for 2026, enhancing the company’s diagnostics portfolio.

Medical device pipeline achievements include early launches and trial completions, with future clinical trials set to expand their technological offerings.

Diagnostics sales rose 2%, driven by core lab growth, while rapid and molecular diagnostics saw a 10% decline due to lower respiratory testing demand.

Nutrition sales were slightly above expectations, with strategic pricing actions beginning to show positive volume growth effects.

EPD pharmaceutical sales increased by 9% with broad market growth, while medical devices grew 8.5%, led by cardiovascular devices.

The company expects accelerated growth in the second half of the year, driven by nutrition strategy execution, electrophysiology and core lab diagnostics growth, and the integration of Exact Sciences.

Future guidance includes 6.5% to 7.5% comparable sales growth for 2026, with adjusted earnings per share guidance midpoint revised to $5.48 due to $0.20 dilution from Exact Sciences acquisition.

Full Transcript

OPERATOR

Good morning and thank you for standing by. Welcome to Abbott Laboratories’ first quarter 2026 earnings conference call. All participants will be able to listen only until the question and answer portion of this call. During the question and answer session, you will be able to ask your question by pressing the star 11 keys on your touchtone phone. This call is being recorded by Abbott with the exception of any participants questions asked during the question and answer session. The entire call, including the question and answer session, is material copyrighted by Abbott. It cannot be recorded or rebroadcast without Abbott Laboratories’ express written permission. I would now like to introduce Mr. Mike Camilla,, Vice President, Investor Relations

Mike Camilla (Vice President, Investor Relations)

Good morning and thank you for joining us. With me today are Robert Ford, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, and Phil Boudreau, Executive Vice President, Finance and Chief Financial Officer. Robert and Phil will provide opening remarks following their comments. We’ll take your questions before we get started. Some statements made today may be forward looking for purposes of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including the expected financial results for 2026. Abbott cautions that these forward looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated in the forward looking statements. Economic, competitive, governmental, technological and other factors that may affect Abbott’s operations are discussed in Item 1A, which Risk Factors to our Annual Report on Form 10K for the year ended December 31, 2025. Abbott undertakes no obligation to release publicly any revisions to forward looking statements as a result of subsequent events or developments except as required by law on today’s conference call. As in the past, non GAAP financial measures will be used to help investors understand Abbott’s ongoing business performance. These non GAAP financial measures are reconciled with the comparable GAAP financial measures in our earnings news release and regulatory filings from today, which are available on our website at Abbott.com Note that Abbott has not provided the related GAAP financial measures on a forward looking basis for the non GAAP financial measures for which it is providing guidance because the company is unable to predict with reasonable certainty and without unreasonable effort the timing and impact of certain items which could significantly impact Abbott’s results in accordance with gaap. Unless otherwise noted, our commentary on sales growth refers to comparable sales growth which includes the prior and current year sales of Exact Sciences, a cancer diagnostics company that Abbott acquired on March 23, 2026. Our definition of comparable sales growth can be found on page two of our press release issued earlier today and a reconciliation table that contains data needed to calculate comparable sales growth can be found on page 13. With that, I will now turn the call over to Robert.

Robert Ford (Chairman and Chief Executive Officer)

Thanks Mike. Good morning everyone and thank you for joining us. Our results in the first quarter were aligned with our expectations for the start of the year that included delivering adjusted earnings per share of $1.15 consistent with our guidance. Despite absorbing the impact of earlier than planned financing costs related to our acquisition of Exact Sciences and a weaker than expected respiratory season, this quarter also marked an important strategic milestone for Abbott with the completion of our acquisition of Exact Sciences. This acquisition adds a new high growth business to the Abbott portfolio, further strengthening our leadership position in diagnostics and expanding our presence into one of the fastest growing areas of healthcare cancer diagnostics. As we communicate at the time of the acquisition announcement, we forecast the addition of Exact Sciences to add approximately $3 billion of incremental sales in 2026 and accelerate Abbott’s long term sales growth rate. Before I summarize our first quarter results, I wanted to highlight a few pipeline achievements in our medical device business. An earlier than planned approval and launch of two new PFA catheters, completion of patient enrollment in our Catalyst left atrial Appendage device trial, initiation of development activities to bring an implantable extravascular ICD product to market, and the announcement of positive results from our randomized control trial which demonstrated that people with Type 2 diabetes on basal insulin therapy benefited from using Libre, including seeing reductions in HbA1c and increased time spent in healthy glucose range. In addition to these achievements, our teams are preparing to initiate patient enrollment in several important clinical trials in the second half of this year. These trials represent a unique opportunity that could position Abbott to bring a new wave of highly differentiated technologies to the market. This pipeline of new technologies includes a balloon expandable TAVR valve, a leadless conduction system pacing device that utilizes our revolutionary Aver leadless pacemaker, a mitral replacement valve developed following our acquisition of Cephia Valve Technologies, a peripheral IVL device developed following our acquisition of CSI, and a wearable continuous lactate monitoring sensor that will monitor for sepsis following discharge from hospital. I’ll now summarize our first quarter results before I turn the call over to Phil and I’ll start with diagnostics where sales increased 2% on a comparable basis. In core lab diagnostics, growth of 3% was driven by growth in the US, Europe and Latin America. Sales of core lab diagnostic tests, which exclude capital equipment and digital health solutions, increased on both a year over year and sequential basis and this is a trend that we expect to continue and drive higher growth in the second half of the year compared to the first half. In our rapid and molecular diagnostic business, sales declined 10% reflecting lower demand for respiratory virus testing due to a much weaker respiratory season compared to last year and in cancer diagnostics, sales grew 13% on a comparable basis driven by mid teens growth of cologuard and high teens growth in international markets. Moving to nutrition where sales finished slightly ahead of our expectations for the quarter. As discussed on our January earnings call, results in the quarter reflect the impact of lower sales volumes compared to the prior year and the effect of strategic pricing actions implemented in the fourth quarter of 2025 with an objective of re accelerating volume growth. While we are still early in the transition back toward a more sustainable balance between price and volume driven growth, I’m encouraged by the progress we’re making. Early data indicates we are seeing the intended effect with volume growth beginning to follow our pricing actions. We continue to expect that these pricing actions combined with the launch of several new products will result in growth improving over the course of the year. Turning to EPD, our pharmaceutical business where sales increased 9% in the quarter, growth was broad based across the markets we serve which included double digit growth in several countries across Latin America and Asia Pacific regions. Demand in these markets continues to be supported by favorable long term health care economic and demographic trends. With a broad product offering across five therapeutic areas and an expanding biosimilars portfolio which includes several market leading oncology therapies, we are well positioned to serve the growing customer base in these markets and I’ll wrap up with medical devices where sales grew 8.5%. Growth was led by strong performance in our cardiovascular device businesses. This included double digit growth in electrophysiology, heart failure and rhythm management. In electrophysiology growth of 13% included contributions from two pulsed fueled ablation catheter launches in the quarter. The launch of our Volt PFA catheter contributed to a growth of 14% in the US and the launch of our Tactaflex Duo catheter helped drive mid teens growth in Europe. As we broaden the launch of both catheters, we expect growth in our electrophysiology business to accelerate. In rhythm management, sales grew 13% making third consecutive quarter that we have delivered double digit growth and continued our track record of significantly outperforming the market. In heart failure. Growth of 12% was driven by our market leading portfolio of heart assist devices which offer treatment for chronic and temporary conditions in diabetes care, continuous glucose monitoring sales were $2 billion and grew 7.5% growth in the quarter reflects an impact from a delay in the renewal process related to an international tender. We also saw the expected impact from a challenging comparison to last year. This comparison relates to shelf restocking dynamics that occurred in the first half of 2025, a topic that we discussed on an earnings call last year. As we look forward to the second quarter, we expect CGM to return to double digit growth. So in summary, our results in the quarter were in line with our expectations to start the year. We remain confident in our expectation for an acceleration in growth in the second half of the year and we have clear visibility to the key drivers of that acceleration and are highly focused on executing on them. Those drivers include first, executing our growth strategy in nutrition which is underway and on track with our expectations. Second, we see a clear path to accelerating growth in both electrophysiology and core lab diagnostics supported by best in Class portfolios, new product launches and improving market conditions. Third, we will continue our proven track record of delivering strong sustainable performance in EPD and across our medical devices portfolio. And finally, we are successfully integrating Exact Sciences which adds a compelling high growth business to the Abbott portfolio, further strengthening our ability to deliver long term sustainable growth and I’ll turn over the call to Phil.

Phil Boudreau (Executive Vice President, Finance and Chief Financial Officer)

Thanks Robert. As a result of the March 23rd close of our acquisition of Exact Sciences, our first quarter financial results include the results of the Exact Sciences business from the close date through the end of the quarter. As Mike mentioned, our press release issued this morning provides sales growth in the quarter on a comparable basis which includes the full quarter sales of Exact Sciences in both the prior and current year to align with our reporting of comparable sales growth. Our full year 2026 sales growth outlook of 6.5 to 7.5% is now on a comparable basis as well. The sales growth outlook includes the full year sales of Exact Sciences in both the prior and current year compared to our previous full year. Adjusted earnings per share guidance range midpoint of $5.68. Our new guidance range midpoint of $5.48 reflects $0.20 of dilution related to the Exact Sciences acquisition consistent with our assumption at the time of the announced transaction. Turning to our first quarter results, sales increased 3.7% on a comparable basis and adjusted earnings per share of $1.15 grew 6% compared to the prior year. Foreign exchange had a favorable year over year impact of 4% on first quarter sales. Earlier we saw the US dollar weaken which resulted in a favorable impact on sales compared to exchange rates at the time of our earnings Call in January regarding other aspects of the P&L. The adjusted gross margin profile was 56.3% of sales. Adjusted R&D was 6.7% of sales and adjusted SGA was 29.3% of sales. Based on current rates, we expect Exchange to have a favorable impact of approximately 1% on full year reported sales. For the second quarter, we expect Exchange to have relatively neutral impact on sales. And for the second quarter, we forecast adjusted earnings per share of $1.25 to $1.31. With that, we’ll now open the call for questions.

OPERATOR

Thank you. At this time we will conduct the question and answer session. As a reminder to ask a question, you will need to press star 11 on your telephone. You will then hear an automated message advising you that your hand is raised to withdraw your question. Please press star 11 again. For optimal sound quality, we kindly ask that you use your handset instead of your speakerphone when asking your question. Again, that’s star 11 to ask a question. And please stand by. We compile our Q and A roster. And our first question will come from David Roman from Goldman Sachs. Your line is open.

David Roman (Equity Analyst at Goldman Sachs)

Thank you and good morning everyone. Thanks for taking the question. Maybe I’ll start with just the updated guidance. And I know you touched on some of this during the call, but maybe you could just go into some further detail on firstly maybe your guidance philosophy and your thought process in establishing the revised outlook. And then secondly, just the extent to which the outlook is in your mind sort of fully de risks and captures upside potential, but also contemplates any downside, unforeseen risks here.

Robert Ford (Chairman and Chief Executive Officer)

Yeah, sure. I mean, I think the philosophy here, David, is, I think maybe there’s a portion there that is, you know, we’ve included exact sciences into the history and our philosophy there has always been to ensure that our investors have, you know, clear, transparent, detailed kind of breakdown of our performance. We did that during COVID if you remember, we always split out the COVID sales and we got feedback that they really wanted to understand the underlying part of the business and the COVID part of the business. When we did the acquisition of St. Jude, the acquisition closed in the first quarter and so we did the same approach there to fold in St. Jude into a kind of more comparable basis. And we just think it provides the investors really the most relevant growth rate, a growth rate that is, of the new Abbott portfolio on a very kind of clean, apples to apples basis. So I think that’s the philosophy there as it relates to the guidance. I think maybe the view there was just maybe a little bit of a take a little bit of a conservative side here on some aspects that we felt in the first quarter. For example, if you look at the respiratory season, we forecasted Q1 to be a relatively weak season compared to other seasons that we had seen in the past. And then that was even weaker than what we had forecasted. And I think as we’ve looked at other comparable healthcare businesses that we look at, for example, OTC meds, which is a very good kind of triangulation there, we’re seeing also those types of businesses have this year over year effect there. One of the ways to think about it is like, okay, you have two parts in the year where you’re going to have this effect. You have it at the beginning of the year and you have it at the end of the year. So one of the ways to think about it is, okay, we’re going to make that lower respiratory season at the back end of the year and then we would have to assume that you would have an above average respiratory season, at least from a testing perspective. But I’m only going to find that out just before Thanksgiving. So I just thought it was prudent to say, you know what, we’re not going to be able to make up, or I’ll put it this way, I’m not going to forecast that we’re going to make it up in Q4. This respiratory aspect. That doesn’t mean we won’t be ready. Obviously, you know our portfolio and we know we’ve got the manufacturing, the capabilities and the distribution to be able to do that. I just decided that I didn’t think it was prudent to bake that into the forecast. The rest of the, you know, the rest of the areas of the business, the sales growth out is very much in line with our January, with our January outlook. And if I go back to the way I described our year and the year progression, there’s a couple key kind of blocks that really drive our growth throughout the year. I’d say the first block here is, just as I said in my comments, sustaining the growth of our medtech business and our pharma business. Medtech business low double digits, our pharma business above 7%. These are businesses that have consistently and reliably deliver this type of performance. And whether it’s market conditions or new product launches in these businesses, we feel very good about our ability to be able to sustain that kind of performance. The other bucket, I would say the second bucket would probably be more okay, Trajectory changing businesses. And I would put diagnostics, especially our core lab business and nutrition into those buckets. I think they’re a little bit different though, David, I would say on our core lab business and we talked about this last year, the impacts of China and the VBP and obviously Covid, that was about a billion dollar headwind that we faced last year. Other parts of the business geography, other parts of the platforms doing very well, growth, and we continue to see that. So what I’ve seen over the last six months really gives me confidence that we’re actually on very much either on track or slightly ahead of that recovery in our diagnostics and that growth trajectory change. And I think the teams there have done an incredible job in China and especially here in the US Too. I think the teams have done really good in terms of being able to capture market share. The nutrition transition I think is a little bit earlier on in that stage. But I still feel that what we’re seeing right now, the decisions that we took, the timely …

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ADF Group (TSX:DRX) released fourth-quarter financial results and hosted an earnings call on Thursday. Read the complete transcript below.

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Summary

ADF Group reported revenues of $258.7 million for the fiscal year ended January 31, 2026, down from $339.6 million the previous year, with a gross margin decrease from 31.6% to 23.1%.

The company’s results were impacted by US tariffs, which increased raw material costs and delayed projects, but the acquisition of Groupe Lahr added $20 million in revenue and $2 million to the gross margin.

Adjusted EBITDA was $43.5 million, a decrease from $91.3 million the previous year, mainly due to lower gross margins and increased selling and administrative expenses.

ADF Group’s order backlog was $561.1 million as of January 31, 2026, and the company anticipates revenue growth for fiscal year 2027 despite tariff challenges.

The company plans to invest $35 million in fiscal year 2027 for plant expansion and modernization, primarily for Groupe Lahr, and is negotiating financing for these investments.

Management expressed satisfaction with the company’s improved position despite ongoing trade uncertainties and is optimistic about future growth, particularly in the hydroelectric sector and Canadian projects.

Full Transcript

OPERATOR

Good morning ladies and gentlemen and welcome to the ADF Group’s results for the fiscal year ended January 31, 2026. Note that at this time all lines are in a listen only mode. Following the presentation we will conduct a question and answer session and if at any time during this call you require immediate assistance, please press star zero for the operator. Also note that this call is being recorded on Thursday, April 16, 2026 and I would like to turn the conference over to Jean François Bourcier, Chief Financial Officer. Please go ahead.

Jean François Bourcier

Thank you. Good morning. Welcome to ADF’s conference call covering the 12 month period ended January 31, 2026. I am with Thierry Paschini, President and Chief Operating Officer of ADF, who will be available to answer your question. At the end of the call, I will first update you on our full year results which were disclosed earlier this morning by press release and then proceed with a quick update about our operations including our recent new contracts announcement and the recent US Tariff change. This said, let me remind you that some of the issues discussed today may include forward looking statements. These are documented in ADF Groups Management report for the 2026 fiscal year which will be filed with SEDAR in the coming days. On this very call a year ago and in spite of exceptional results, we were confirming the significant uncertainties that the then recently announced US Tariffs were bringing to our markets and operations a year later and considering all the tariffs related turmoil, we can confirm that we without a doubt close our fiscal 2026 with exceptional results and in a much better position to face these uncertainties in light of Groupe LAR’s acquisition. Revenues for the fiscal year ended January 31, 2026 reach $258.7 million compared to $339.6 million last year. As a percentage of revenues, the gross margin went from 31.6% in fiscal 2025 to 23.1% during the fiscal year ended January 31, 2026. As just mentioned, fiscal 2025 was an exceptionally good year with a favorable project mix. The fiscal 2026 results have been impacted by the US tariffs both directly with higher raw material costs and indirectly with delays in project signing and fabrication start. As such, and as already mentioned in previous calls, ADF implemented a work sharing program at its Terrebonne, Quebec facility earlier this year which reduced fabrication hours but also enabled ADF to reduce the cost impact, although not entirely considering that the Canadian employment program compensated some of these reduced hours. The Groupe LAR acquisition added $20 million in revenue since its acquisition was finalized on September 18, 2025 and added $2 million to our consolidated gross margin for the same period. Adjusted EBITDA totaled $43.5 million or 16.8% of revenues, compared with $91.3 million or 26.9% of revenues a year ago. The year over year decrease comes from the previously explained gross margin variances and by the selling administrative expenses which at $23.2 million were $1.1 million higher than a year ago, all of the increase being explained by the inclusion of Group LAURE in our consolidated SGAs. We closed our January 31, 2026 fiscal year with a mostly non monetary foreign exchange gain of $2.1 million compared to a $5.6 million loss a year ago, most of this variance coming from the from the end of year mark to market valuation of our FX contracts on end at both year ends year to date, ADF posted net income of $26.3 million or $0.93 basic and diluted per share, compared with a net income of $56.8 million a year ago or $1.84 basic and diluted per share. Cash flows from operating activities generated $49.4 million, while we invested $11.1 million in capex, mostly for equipment maintenance at both our plants in Turbonne, Quebec and in Great Falls, Montana. We plan to invest close to $35 million for our 2027 fiscal year, the majority of this amount being for our Group LAR plant expansion and modernization in parallel. We are presently negotiating financing packages for these investments. We will be able to provide further updates on our next call. As of January 31, 2026, working capital stood at $104.8 million, just $4.4 million lower than last year. Also on January 31, 2026, cash and cash equivalents stood at $62.7 $62.7 million, which is actually $2.7 million higher than a year ago. Even considering the conclusion of RNCIB and the acquisition of goplau. Yesterday, the Board of Directors approved the payment of a semiannual dividend of $0.02 per share, which will be paid on May 15, 2026 to shareholders of record. As at April 27, 2026, we closed the year with an order backlog of $561.1 million as at January 31, 2026, excluding the new contracts totaling $157.3 million announced last week, the ending backlog included $138.2 million of contracts from which also excludes last week’s announcement Quickly Looking at the fourth quarter results, ADF recorded revenues of $78.8 million, up $1.4 million from the fourth quarter of 2025 fiscal year. Fourth quarter revenues this year did include $13.8 million coming from the from Groupe LAR. The gross margin as a percentage of revenue stood at 21.5% for the fourth quarter ended January 26, compared with 31% for the corresponding quarter of fiscal 2025. The margin decrease between these two quarters is primarily explained by the mix of products and fabrication, including lower margins coming from the LAR projects. We recorded a net income of $6.4 million during the last quarter of fiscal 2026, compared with net income of $9.1 million for the corresponding period of fiscal 2025, with minimal impact coming from LAR, which basically broke even for the quarter. Because the corporation carries out contracts that vary in complexity and in duration, upward and downward fluctuation may occur from quarter to quarter. In light of this, revenue and order, backlog growth must be analyzed over several quarters, not just from one period to the next. As mentioned at the beginning of the call, the situation was bleak a year ago and we’re definitely very satisfied with how everything turned out, including our overall financial results, our ending …

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Travelers Companies (NYSE:TRV) reported first-quarter financial results on Thursday. The transcript from the company’s first-quarter earnings call has been provided below.

This content is powered by Benzinga APIs. For comprehensive financial data and transcripts, visit https://www.benzinga.com/apis/.

Access the full call at https://events.q4inc.com/attendee/758651125

Summary

Travelers Companies reported strong financial performance for Q1 2026, with core income of $1.7 billion and a core return on equity of 19.7%.

The company returned $2.2 billion of excess capital to shareholders, including $2 billion through share repurchases, and declared a 14% increase in quarterly dividends.

Net written premiums reached $10.3 billion, with growth in business insurance and bond and specialty insurance, despite a decline in the property line.

The company continues to leverage investments in technology and AI to enhance underwriting precision and customer experience.

Management expressed confidence in navigating future challenges, citing strong capital positions and strategic advantages in the market.

Full Transcript

OPERATOR

Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. Welcome to the first quarter results teleconference for Travelers. We ask that you hold all questions until the completion of formal remarks, at which time you will be given instructions for the question and answer session. As a reminder, this conference is being recorded on April 16, 2026. At this time, I would like to turn the conference over to Ms. Abby Goldstein, Senior Vice President of Investor Relations. Ms. Goldstein, you may begin.

Abby Goldstein (Senior Vice President of Investor Relations)

Thank you. Good morning and welcome to Travelers’ discussion of our first quarter 2026 results. We released our press release, financial supplement and webcast presentation earlier this morning. All of these materials can be found on our website at travelers.com under the Investors Section. Speaking today will be Alan Schnitzer, Chairman and CEO Dan Fry, CFO and our three segment presidents, Greg Teslowski of Business Insurance, Jeff Klenk of Bond and Specialty Insurance, and Michael Klein of Personal Insurance. They will discuss the financial results of our business and the current market environment. They will refer to the webcast presentation as they go through prepared remarks and then we will take your questions. Before I turn the call over to Alan, I’d like to draw your attention to the explanatory note included at the end of the webcast presentation. Our presentation today includes forward looking statements. The company cautions investors that any forward looking statement involves risks and uncertainties and is not a guarantee of future performance. Actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied in the forward looking statements due to a variety of factors. These factors are described under forward looking statements in our earnings press release and in our most recent 10-Q and 10-K filed with the SEC. We do not undertake any obligation to update forward looking statements. Also in our remarks or responses to questions, we may mention some non-GAAP financial measures. Reconciliations are included in our recent earnings press release, financial supplement and other materials available in the Investors section on our website. And now I’d like to turn the call over to Alan Schnitzer.

Alan Schnitzer (Chairman and CEO)

Thank you, Abby. Good morning everyone and thank you for joining us today. We’re pleased to report an excellent start to 2026 with strong underwriting performance across all three segments and a strong result from our investment portfolio. We also continued to deliver on key strategic initiatives during the quarter. For the quarter, we earned core income of $1.7 billion or $7.71 per diluted share, generating core return on equity of 19.7% over the trailing four quarters. We generated a core return on equity of 22.7% driven by excellent underlying fundamentals. Underwriting income of $1.2 billion pre tax benefited from strong levels of underlying underwriting income and favorable prior year development. Each of our three segments generated attractive underlying and reported margins. Turning to investments, our high quality investment portfolio continued to perform well after tax. Net Investment income increased by 9% to $833 million, driven by strong and reliable returns from our growing fixed income portfolio. Our underwriting and investment results together with our strong balance sheet enabled us to return more than $2.2 billion of excess capital to shareholders during the quarter, including approximately $2 billion of share repurchases. Even after that return of capital and having made important investments in the business, adjusted book value per share was 16% higher than a year ago. In recognition of our strong financial position and confidence in the outlook for our business, I’m pleased to share that our board of Directors declared a 14% increase in our quarterly cash dividend to $1.25 per diluted share, marking 22 consecutive years of dividend increases with a compound annual growth rate of 8% over that period. Turning to the top line through disciplined marketplace Execution across all 3 segments, we generated net written premiums of $10.3 billion in the quarter. In business insurance, we grew net written premiums to $5.8 billion. Excluding the property line, we grew domestic net written premiums in the segment by 6%. The declining premium volume in property continues to be a large account dynamic. Property premiums were higher in our small commercial business and about flat in our middle market business reno. Premium change in business insurance was 5.8%. Retention increased a point from recent quarters to a very strong 86% and was higher or stable in every line, reflecting deliberate execution on our part and a generally high level of stability in the market. We know a premium change in our core middle market business was about unchanged sequentially also with retention higher at 89%. In terms of the product lines, RPC and auto, CMP and umbrella remained in the double digits. RPC in GL and workers comp was stable and RPC in the property line was positive. New business in the segment was a record $775 million, a reflection of our strong value proposition. In bond and specialty insurance, we grew net written premiums by 7% to $1.1 billion. In our high quality management liability business, renewal premium change ticked up sequentially with excellent retention of 87%. In our industry leading surety business, we grew net written premiums by 14%. In personal insurance, we generated net written premiums of $3.5 billion with solid retention and positive renewal premium change in both auto and homeowners. You’ll hear more shortly from Greg, Jeff and Michael about our segment Results the results we released this morning are part of a larger story. They reflect a set of advantages that we have developed and that have compounded over a long period of time. Over the course of many years, we’ve managed through a wide variety of challenging conditions the 2008 financial crisis, dramatic changes in interest rates, a major inflection in liability loss cost trends, a global pandemic, severe natural catastrophes, and periods of heightened geopolitical and economic uncertainty. We didn’t predict the full scope of any of those events, but by carefully balancing risk and reward on both sides of the balance sheet, we were positioned to manage successfully. Through all of them, we’ve consistently delivered growth in book value per share and earnings per share at industry leading returns averaging more than 1000 basis points above the 10 year treasury over the last 10 years. And with industry low volatility, we’ve also built as strong a capital position as we’ve ever had. That track record isn’t a coincidence. It reflects a set of structural advantages that hold up regardless of the environment, starting with the breadth of the franchise. We’re a market leader across nine major lines of insurance, serving personal and commercial customers across the country and diversified across distribution partners, industry class and customer size. That balance, which represents a bigger advantage than people sometimes appreciate, has resulted in our consolidated loss ratio being less volatile than the loss ratio of our least volatile segment. In an uncertain world, that kind of structural hedge is a meaningful source of stability. Where we operate also matters. More than 95% of our premiums come from North America. At a time of considerable geopolitical complexity, that concentration is a strategic advantage and the domestic market offers substantial room for growth. With our broad product capability, our our leading market position and the execution you’ve seen from us over the years, we’re well positioned to continue gaining share as we have in our commercial businesses over the past five years. Equally important is our ability to navigate the loss environment. We have the data, the analytics and the discipline to see changes in loss activity early and to reflect what we see in our reserves, our risk selection, our pricing, and our claim strategy. That capability is foundational because until you have an accurate view of the loss environment, the many downstream decisions are working from the wrong inputs. Our early identification of the acceleration in social inflation is a good example. We adjusted before the market did, and since then we’ve grown the business and significantly improved our margins. Our scale is also a significant and growing advantage. Our profitability and cash flow support our ability to invest more than a billion and a half dollars annually in technology, including in our ambitious AI strategy. Our size gives us the data to power AI and the resources to deploy it, creating a virtuous cycle of better insights, better decisions and better outcomes. Our financial strength also enables us to absorb the increasing severity of weather losses and all of these benefits position us as a preferred counterparty in the reinsurance market. Beyond that, our product breadth, risk control, claim expertise and other capabilities that benefit from scale make us more relevant to our distribution partners, deepening those relationships and our access to quality business. Over time, companies that can leverage scale effectively will have a meaningful edge in consolidating industry premium. As for our investment portfolio, the principles that guide us are the same ones that have served us well for decades. We consistently manage for risk adjusted returns, not headline Yield. More than 90% of our portfolio is in high quality fixed income with an average credit rating of AA minus issue of the day. Private credit is a non issue for us. We manage interest rate risk by holding the vast majority of our fixed income securities to maturity and carefully coordinating the duration of our assets and liabilities. Our investing discipline has produced default rates that were a fraction of industry averages through every stress event of the past two decades. You can’t gracefully reposition a portfolio in the middle of a dislocation. The time to build that resilience is before you need it. In short, whether we’re talking about underwriting or investing, the advantages we’ve built are designed to deliver across environments. And they have Before I wrap up, I’d like to share that a number of my colleagues and I have just returned from our Travelers Leadership Conference, a multi day event we host each year for the principals and senior leaders of our most significant distribution partners. As we’ve shared before, the vision for our innovation agenda includes enhancing our value proposition as an indispensable partner to our agents and brokers. We continue to make significant investments to ensure that we realize that vision through best in class products, services and experiences. What we heard consistently is that our deep specialization across a wide range of modernized, simplified and tailored products, along with a broad and consistent appetite, an extraordinary field organization, the ability to deliver exceptional experiences and our industry leading claim capabilities are major differentiators in the market. To sum it up, we’re off to an excellent start for 2026 and we’re highly confident that the advantages that have driven our success will extend our strong record of outperformance. And with that, I’m pleased to turn the call over to Dan.

Dan Fry (Chief Financial Officer)

Thank you Alan. Travelers delivered $1.7 billion of core income in the first quarter, resulting in a quarterly core return on equity of 19.7% and a trailing twelve month core return on equity of 22.7%. First quarter earnings were driven by yet another very strong quarter of underlying underwriting income which at $1.2 billion after tax marked our seventh consecutive quarter of more than $1 billion. Net investment income of more than $800 million after tax and net favorable prior year reserve development of $325 million after tax also contributed to the strong bottom line result. After tax cat losses were just over $600 million. The all in combined ratio of 88.6% was again excellent. The underlying underwriting gain reflected $10.6 billion of earned premium and an underlying combined ratio of 85.3%. Within the underlying combined ratio, the first quarter expense ratio came in at 29%. That’s what we expected given the timing of expenses in Q1, and we still expect the full year expense ratio to be in line with our prior guidance right around 28.5%. The previously announced sale of most of our Canadian operations closed as expected on January 2nd, and I wanted to take a couple of minutes to summarize the impact of that sale on our first quarter results. Let’s start with premium volume. The year over year comparison with Canada’s business included in 2025 but not included in 2026 reduced the first quarter growth rate for consolidated net written premium and net earned premium by about 2 points each. The impact in both business insurance and bond and specialty was about 1 point, while the impact in personal insurance was about 4 points. The impacts on the growth rate of both written and earned premium will be similar for the remaining quarters of this year. To help with modeling the year over year impact for the rest of the year, we provided the quarter by quarter dollar impacts on slide 19 of the webcast presentation. Within net income for the quarter is a gain on sale consistent with our expectations when we originally announced the transaction last May. That gain does not impact core income. And finally, within the equity section of the balance sheet you see a reduction in accumulated other comprehensive loss, which is primarily because the previously unrealized FX loss related to the sold Canadian entities became a realized loss upon sale. The move from unrealized to realized had no impact on total equity or on book value per share. Turning back to the rest of the quarterly results, catastrophe losses for the quarter totaled $761 million pre tax, with the largest events being the winter storm that impacted much of the country in January and a large tornado hail event in March, both of which you can see in the table of significant CAT losses in the MDA section of our 10Q we reported net favorable prior year reserve development of $413 million pre tax in the first quarter with all three segments contributing in business insurance, net favorable development of $162 million pre tax was driven by commercial property and workers comp in bond and specialty. Net favorable Prior Year Development of $65 million pre tax was driven by better than expected results and surety personal insurance recorded net favorable Prior Year Development of $186 million pre tax with both auto and home contributing after tax. Net investment income increased 9% from the prior year quarter to $833 million. Fixed income Net Investment Income was higher than in the prior year quarter and in line with our expectations, benefiting from both higher yields and a higher level of invested assets. New money yields at the end of Q1 were about 70 basis points higher than the yield embedded in the portfolio. Our outlook for fixed income Net Investment Income by quarter, including earnings from short term securities, is consistent with the guidance we provided on our fourth quarter earnings call, expecting roughly $810 million after tax in the second quarter, growing to approximately $840 million in the third quarter and then to around $870 million in the fourth quarter. Net investment income from our alternative investment portfolio was also positive in the quarter, although down from a year ago. Given recent movement in the equity markets, this is a good time to remind you that results for our private equities, hedge funds and real estate partnerships are generally reported to us on a 1/4 lag and while not perfectly correlated, our non fixed income returns tend to directionally follow the broader equity markets. In other words, the impact of the decline in financial markets that occurred in the first quarter will be reflected in our second quarter results. Turning to Capital Management, operating cash flows for the quarter of $2.2 billion were again very strong as we generated more than $2 billion in operating cash flow for the fourth consecutive quarter. As interest rates increased during the quarter. Our net unrealized investment loss increased from $1.5 billion after tax at year end to $2.4 billion after tax at March 31. Adjusted book value per share, which excludes unrealized investment gains and losses, was $161.60 at quarter end, up 16% from a year ago. Adjusted book value per share also increased 2% from year end, despite the very strong level of share repurchases during Q1. Share repurchases this quarter included $1.8 billion of open market repurchases in line with the guidance we shared last quarter. And As a reminder, $700 million of that 1.8 billion came from the closing of the Canadian business sale in January. We had an additional $185 million of buybacks in connection with employee share based compensation plans …

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Bank of America Corp (NYSE:BAC) reported upbeat earnings for the first quarter on Wednesday.

The company posted quarterly earnings of $1.11 per share which beat the analyst consensus estimate of $1.00 per share. The company reported quarterly sales of $30.272 billion which beat the analyst consensus estimate of $29.931 billion.

Chairman and CEO Brian Moynihan said the company entered 2026 with strong momentum, delivering a 25% year-over-year increase in earnings per share and $8.6 billion in net income, driven by disciplined execution. He added that the bank generated 290 basis points of operating leverage, supporting improvements in …

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Top Wall Street analysts changed their outlook on these top names. For a complete view of all analyst rating changes, including upgrades, downgrades and initiations, please see our analyst ratings page.

  • Mizuho analyst Dan Dolev downgraded PayPal Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:PYPL) from Outperform to Neutral and slashed the price target from $60 to $50. PayPal shares closed at $49.57 on Wednesday. See how other analysts view …

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American Airlines Group Inc (NASDAQ:AAL) shares gained momentum during Thursday’s premarket session. Investors are reacting to a mix of analyst optimism and historic merger speculation.

In the regular trading session, the stock gave up its gains.

UBS Raises Price Forecast

On Wednesday, UBS analyst Atul Maheswari maintained a Buy rating on American Airlines. Maheswari increased the price target from $14 to $16, according to Benzinga Pro.

This update provided a fresh catalyst for the carrier as broader markets showed strength. Nasdaq futures rose 0.02% early Thursday, while S&P 500 futures edged up 0.12%.

Merger Chatter Sparks Volatility

The stock prices increased on Tuesday following reports involving …

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Despite the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 hitting all-time highs, Micron Technology Inc. (NASDAQ:MU) remains in the red.

The decline follows a volatile week for the semiconductor giant. Sentiment soured following first-quarter results from ASML Holding NV (NASDAQ:ASML). The Dutch firm is the sole supplier of EUV lithography systems.

The chip equipment maker posted net sales of 8.77 billion euros ($10.26 billion), up from 7.74 billion euros a year earlier and slightly above analyst estimates of $10.21 billion.

Traders Booking Profits

While ASML beat earnings estimates, its …

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Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) shares are up on Thursday as the company expands its multicloud networking capabilities.

This move comes after Oracle announced plans to establish high-speed connectivity between Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI) and Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) Web Services (AWS), enhancing its offerings in the competitive cloud market. At the same time, the Technology sector gained 0.27% on Wednesday.

Oracle’s collaboration with AWS aims to provide customers with simplified, high-performance connectivity, allowing for seamless data movement and application modernization.

This initiative is set to enhance Oracle’s multicloud capabilities and is expected to be available later this year.

“With Oracle AI Database@AWS, we pioneered a simpler way for customers to run Oracle AI Database workloads in AWS with the same features, architecture, and performance as they expect on-premises. We’re now building on that by establishing connectivity between our popular cross-cloud interconnect and AWS Interconnect–multicloud,” said Nathan Thomas, senior vice president, product management, Oracle Cloud Infrastructure.

Oracle AI expansion

Yesterday, Oracle expanded its enterprise cloud partnership with a major automotive supplier.

The collaboration centers on deploying AI-powered applications to …

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U.S. spot Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) ETFs recorded $186.1 million in net inflows on Wednesday as Morgan Stanley’s (NYSE:MS) MSBT crossed $103 million while Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) filed for its first Bitcoin ETF.

Morgan Stanley Beats WisdomTree In Week One

MSBT reached $103 million in total inflows just six trading days after launch, surpassing WisdomTree’s BTCW (BATS:BTCW) cumulative total of $86 million. 

The fund charges a 0.14% expense ratio, the cheapest in the category.

Morgan Stanley’s wealth management network oversees trillions in client assets, giving MSBT direct distribution to investors. 

However, the fund remains far smaller than BlackRock’s (NYSE:BLK) IBIT, …

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XRP (CRYPTO: XRP) is up 5% on the day and 7.5% over the past week as spot ETFs recorded $17.11 million in net inflows on April 15, the highest single-day figure in almost two months.

The ETF Surge

ETF demand began picking up on April 14 with $11.20 million in inflows, forming the strongest two-day run since January.

Total net assets have crossed back above the $1.02 billion milestone, and cumulative inflows now stand at $1.25 billion.

Bitwise’s XRP ETF led April 15 with $6.23 million, followed by 21Shares at $5.43 million and Franklin Templeton at $5.30 million. Canary Capital saw a slight inflow of $148,130.

The inflows continued to surge this week amid bullish developments such as Ripple partnering with Kyobo Life Insurance and MassMutual buying Bitwise XRP …

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Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) reclaimed $75,000 this week, erasing all losses since the Iran war began — and according to Anthony Pompliano, that price action just proved something historic.

In a wide-ranging conversation with his son John on The Pomp Podcast, Pompliano argued that Bitcoin has officially “transcended” its identity as a risk-on tech proxy, decoupled from equities, and is now trading as a neutral, non-sovereign store of value in a world at war.

The War Trade Broke Every Prediction

When the U.S. began bombing Iran, the consensus trade was textbook: stocks up on defense spending, oil up on supply disruption, bonds down on inflation fears, and Bitcoin down as a risk asset.

Every single one of those predictions was wrong — except oil.

Bitcoin outperformed every major asset class during active conflict, Pompliano said: “If you need to move money around the world during conflict, Bitcoin becomes …

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The Treasury Department has launched Operation “Economic Fury” against Iran, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Thursday, describing it as a move designed to escalate economic pressure on the Iranian government.

During a war press briefing, Hegseth urged Iran to “choose wisely”, warning that the U.S. military is prepared to continue combat if Tehran makes a “poor” choice.

Hegseth also highlighted that the blockade of Iranian ports and the Strait of Hormuz will be maintained “for as long as necessary.”

Treasury Targets Iran’s Illicit Networks

The U.S. Treasury is escalating pressure on Iran by targeting two illicit networks. The first is the Shamkhani network, a multi-billion-dollar Iranian-Russian petroleum empire tied to senior regime figures, Iranian oil shipping magnate Mohammad Hossein Shamkhani, building on OFAC’s largest-ever single designation under the maximum pressure campaign.

The second is a Hezbollah money laundering scheme, uncovered in a joint OFAC/HSI investigation, involving an Iranian national and three companies that traded Iranian oil for Venezuelan gold to finance Hezbollah and the IRGC-Qods …

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Alcoa Corporation (NYSE:AA) will release earnings for its first quarter after the closing bell on Thursday, April 16.

Analysts expect the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania-based company to report quarterly earnings of $1.51 per share, down from $2.15 per share in the year-ago period. The consensus estimate for Alcoa’s quarterly revenue is $3.27 billion (it reported $3.37 billion last year), according to Benzinga Pro.

On Tuesday, Alcoa announced intention to redeem in full $219 million of outstanding 6.125% notes due 2028.

Alcoa shares fell 2% to close at $70.38 on Wednesday.

Benzinga readers can access the latest analyst ratings on the Analyst Stock Ratings page. Readers can sort by stock ticker, company name, analyst firm, rating change or other variables.

Let’s have a look at how Benzinga’s most-accurate analysts have rated the company in the recent …

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Luda Technology Group Ltd. (AMEX:LUD) shares are trading lower Thursday morning. The move appears to be a natural correction. It follows a massive rally during Wednesday’s session. Traders are likely taking profits after the stock gained over 24%.

Major Tender Win Details

Luda on Wednesday announced a subsidiary won a significant tender. The award comes from Shangdong Yulong Petrochemical Co., Ltd. The contract supports the Yulong Island Refining and Chemical Integration Project. This framework agreement covers medium and low-pressure stainless steel flanges.

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eToro Group (NASDAQ:ETOR) shares are up during Thursday’s premarket session following the company’s announcement of significant upgrades to its AI investing companion, Tori.

The stock’s rise comes as the multi-asset trading platform integrates real-time market sentiment powered by Grok 4.2, enhancing user experience.

The relaunch of Tori introduces features such as persistent memory and the ability to create AI-driven Agent Portfolios, allowing users to manage investments through conversation.

The firm highlighted that the move is part of eToro’s broader strategy to embed artificial intelligence into its trading platform, aiming to provide users with immediate access to market insights.

xAI commented: “Financial conversations move fast. When major investors disclose positions, an analyst flags a macro shift, or retail sentiment turns on a major asset, the signal is on X first. eToro’s Tori now captures that signal in real time.”

Technical Analysis

eToro is currently trading within a challenging technical landscape, having experienced a 12-month decline of 44.88%. The stock is trading 21.8% …

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As of April 16, 2026, three stocks in the financial sector could be flashing a real warning to investors who value momentum as a key criteria in their trading decisions.

The RSI is a momentum indicator, which compares a stock’s strength on days when prices go up to its strength on days when prices go down. When compared to a stock’s price action, it can give traders a better sense of how a stock may perform in the short term. An asset is typically considered overbought when the RSI is above 70, according to Benzinga Pro.

Here’s the latest list of major overbought players in this sector.

Oppenheimer Holdings Inc (NYSE:OPY)

  • On April 9, Oppenheimer & Co, a subsidiary of Oppenheimer Holdings, announced that David Fleming has been promoted to a leadership role within the firm’s …

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The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:PNC) reported upbeat earnings for the first quarter on Wednesday.

PNC Financial reported first-quarter diluted EPS of $4.13 and adjusted EPS of $4.32, beating the $4.05 analyst estimate. Revenue of $6.17 billion missed the $6.242 billion estimate, rising 13% year over year and 2% sequentially.

Chairman and CEO Bill Demchak said, “2026 is off to a great start for PNC. During the first quarter, we successfully closed the FirstBank acquisition and generated strong legacy loan growth. Client activity remains robust across all our geographies, and importantly, we’re well-positioned to continue our strong momentum.”

The company expects second-quarter …

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U.S. stock futures were higher this morning, with the Dow futures gaining around 0.1% on Thursday.

Shares of QuidelOrtho Corporation (NASDAQ:QDEL) fell sharply in pre-market trading following the release of its preliminary first-quarter 2026 revenue figures.

The diagnostic healthcare products maker reported preliminary unaudited revenue in the range of $615 million to $620 million for the first quarter ended March 29.

The results reflect a weaker respiratory season, with U.S. Influenza-like Illness visits down about 30% compared to the prior-year period, along with slower China distributor sales and delays in certain EMEA orders, the company said.

QuidelOrtho shares dipped 19.4% to $14.09 in pre-market trading.

Here are some other stocks moving lower in pre-market trading.

  • Allbirds, Inc. (NASDAQ:BIRD) declined 31.9% to $11.58 in pre-market trading. Allbirds shares jumped 582% on Wednesday after …

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On Wednesday, Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) urged Congress to step in as tensions tied to the Iran war escalate, warning of mounting casualties, soaring costs, and what he called weak presidential leadership.

Iran Conflict Sparks Congressional Oversight Push

Kelly, in a post on X, criticized the federal response to the ongoing crisis, pointing to both American military losses and civilian deaths abroad.

“13 American service members have lost their lives. There are more than 150 dead Iranian kids. Billions are being spent,” Kelly wrote. 

He added, “Meanwhile, this president is flailing. Congress needs to do its job and assert its oversight authority.”

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In a podcast posted Wednesday with Dwarkesh Patel, Nvidia Corp (NASDAQ:NVDA) CEO Jensen Huang dismissed the idea that AI hardware is becoming a commodity.

Huang described Nvidia’s core mission as an “incredible journey” of transforming electrons into valuable digital tokens.

“The amount of artistry, engineering, science, and invention that goes into making that token valuable… is far from deeply understood,” Huang stated.

He pushed back against the notion that Nvidia is simply a software company using Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (NYSE:TSM) as a middleman.

The ‘Insanely Hard’ Five-Layer Cake

Huang described AI as a “five-layer cake,” noting that Nvidia operates across every level.

While the company partners with upstream suppliers like Micron Technology Inc

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Shares of Japan’s Daikin Industries (OTC:DKILY) (OTC:DKILF) jumped on Thursday after U.S. activist investor Elliott Investment Management said it would work with the air conditioner and refrigerator maker to enhance performance and narrow its valuation gap with peers.

Daikin’s shares closed 9.09% higher at ¥22,090 ($138.96) in Tokyo trading, as Japan’s Nikkei 225 hit an all-time high amid a broader rally in Asian markets.

The activist investor plans to collaborate with Daikin to improve performance and narrow the valuation gap with its rivals. Elliott said on Wednesday that its major investment in the Japanese cooling solution giant reflects confidence that the company’s strong businesses and long-term growth are undervalued.

The U.S. investment firm views Daikin’s forthcoming medium-term management plan as a chance to rectify the undervaluation issues.

Elliott intends to disclose specific measures to widen margins, enhance shareholder returns, and reassess its portfolio of non-core businesses. …

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Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) sits in a “no-trade zone” according to BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes, who outlines three scenarios that could force the cryptocurrency out of its current range as AI-driven deflation collides with Iran war dynamics.

The No-Trade Call

Maelstrom did minimal trading in the first quarter apart from slowly increasing its long position in Hyperliquid, Hayes said. 

Two developments combined to produce a trading dead zone: AI agents destroying knowledge worker jobs and creating deflationary pressure, and the Iran war entering its seventh week with uncertainty around commodity flows through the Strait of Hormuz.

Hayes believes the quantity of money determines Bitcoin’s price, not its price. Bitcoin has no cash flows, so the discount rate derived from central bank policy rates is irrelevant. 

But given Bitcoin’s fixed supply, its value in fiat terms depends on the total amount of fiat in existence.

Scenario One: Back To Normal

The war ends immediately and the pre-war status quo returns. However, the secular trend to replace expensive knowledge workers …

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PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) is turning up the heat with a strong quarter while doubling down on a bold Gatorade overhaul.

The beverage giant is pushing ahead with brand reinvention and global momentum, even as it trims expectations for the year ahead.

First-Quarter Details

The company reported first-quarter adjusted earnings per share of $1.61, outpacing the analyst consensus estimate of $1.55. Quarterly sales of $19.44 billion beat the Street view of $18.94 billion.

Net revenue increased 8.5%, driven by a 3.4-percentage-point benefit from foreign exchange translation.

Organic revenue rose 2.6%, supported by effective net pricing and a modest contribution from volume growth.

Acquisitions and divestitures added a 2.5-percentage-point net benefit to overall revenue growth.

PepsiCo’s North American food unit saw a return to volume growth for the first time in over two years after price cuts on key snack brands helped draw back consumers, CNBC reported.

PepsiCo lowered prices by up to 15% on key snack brands, including Lay’s, Tostitos, Doritos, and Cheetos, in February to revive sales.

PepsiCo Chairman and CEO Ramon Laguarta highlighted the firm’s international business …

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Jensen Huang, CEO of Nvidia Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA), stated that the company’s investment approach is to back a wide array of tech firms, rather than just a select few.

While speaking on the “Dwarkesh” podcast, aired on Wednesday, Huang clarified, “There are so many great, amazing foundation model companies, and we try to invest in all of them. We don’t pick winners. We need to support everyone.”

Huang cited two reasons for this strategy. First, he believes it’s not Nvidia’s job to pick winners. Second, he referred to the company’s own history as a guiding lesson.

The CEO reminisced that Nvidia was once an unlikely survivor among 60 D graphics companies and wasn’t expected to succeed. “Nvidia would be at the top of that list not to make it,” Huang said.

He recollected that the company’s graphics architecture didn’t seem promising back …

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Billionaire entrepreneur Mark Cuban has proposed a “specially designed bank account” healthcare model using Affordable Care Act Silver plan–level monthly deposits to fund savings, stop-loss coverage and direct primary care, with remaining balances available for approved medical expenses or retained in the account with interest until age 65.

Healthcare Reform Pitch Reframes Insurance as Personal Savings System

In posts on X on Wednesday, Cuban described a model in which a family of five contributes about $2,100 per month, similar to a typical ACA silver plan premium. Of that amount, roughly $300 goes toward stop-loss insurance capped at $30,000, and $200 is allocated to local Direct Primary Care.

The remaining $1,600 is saved in an individual account that can only be used for approved medical expenses, similar to a Health Savings Account, which is a tax-advantaged savings account structure.

Cuban said unspent balances would earn interest, writing, “If you never have any medical expenses, you will get to keep the money plus checking account level interest when you turn 65.”

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Top Wall Street analysts changed their outlook on these top names. For a complete view of all analyst rating changes, including upgrades, downgrades and initiations, please see our analyst ratings page.

  • Keybanc analyst Samuel McKinney initiated coverage on Kaiser Aluminum Corp (NASDAQ:KALU) with an Overweight rating and announced a price target of $170. Kaiser Aluminum shares closed at $138.03 on Wednesday. See how other analysts view this stock.
  • Morgan Stanley analyst Judah Frommer initiated coverage on Kalaris Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:KLRS) with an Overweight rating and announced a price target of $14. …

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On CNBC’s “Halftime Report Final Trades,” Stephen Weiss, chief investment officer and managing partner of Short Hills Capital Partners, picked Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX) ahead of quarterly earnings.

Netflix is scheduled to report first-quarter financial results on Thursday after the market close. Analysts expect Netflix to report first-quarter revenue of $12.17 billion, up from $10.54 billion in last year’s first quarter, according to data from Benzinga Pro. Analysts expect Netflix to report first-quarter earnings of 76 cents per share, up from 66 cents per share year-over-year.

SoFi ‘s Liz Young Thomas named Invesco QQQ Trust (NASDAQ:QQQ) as her final trade.

Don’t forget …

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Top Wall Street analysts changed their outlook on these top names. For a complete view of all analyst rating changes, including upgrades, downgrades and initiations, please see our analyst ratings page.

  • Raymond James analyst Adam Tindle upgraded Okta Inc (NASDAQ:OKTA) from Market Perform to Outperform and announced a price target of $85. Okta shares closed at $67.35 on Wednesday. See how other analysts view this stock.
  • Morgan Stanley analyst Jeffrey Adelson upgraded Bread Financial Holdings Inc (NYSE:BFH) from Underweight to Equal-Weight and announced a $91 price target. Bread Financial …

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Truist Financial Corporation (NYSE:TFC) will release earnings for its first quarter before the opening bell on Friday, April 17.

Analysts expect the Purchase, New York-based company to report quarterly earnings of $1.00 per share, up from 89 cents per share in the year-ago period. The consensus estimate for Truist Financial’s quarterly revenue is $5.18 billion. It reported $4.95 billion last year, according to Benzinga Pro.

Ahead of quarterly earnings, JP Morgan analyst Vivek Juneja, on April 7, maintained Truist Financial with a Neutral rating and lowered the price target from $57 to $51.5.

With the recent buzz around Truist Financial, some investors may be eyeing potential gains from the company’s dividends too. As of now, Truist Financial has an annual dividend yield of 4.19%, with a quarterly dividend amount of 52 cents per share ($2.08 a year).  

So, …

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F.N.B. Corporation (NYSE:FNB) will release earnings for its first quarter after the closing bell on Thursday, April 16.

Analysts expect the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania-based company to report quarterly earnings of 38 cents per share, up from 32 cents per share in the year-ago period. The consensus estimate for FNB’s quarterly revenue is $454.02 million (it reported $411.61 million last year), according to Benzinga Pro.

On Tuesday, F.N.B. raised its quarterly dividend from 12 cents to 13 cents per share and announced a $250 million stock buyback plan.

FNB shares rose 0.9% to close at $17.89 on Wednesday.

Benzinga readers can access the latest analyst ratings on the Analyst Stock Ratings page. Readers can sort by stock ticker, company name, analyst firm, rating change or other variables.

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Offshore driller Transocean (NYSE:RIG) shares are slightly up during Thursday’s premarket session as the company recently announced a $158 million contract for the Deepwater Asgard in the Eastern Mediterranean.

This news follows a series of significant backlog additions totaling approximately $1.6 billion since early April, which may be boosting investor confidence as broader markets edged higher.

Transocean’s recent contract for the Deepwater Asgard is part of an estimated 390-day campaign expected to commence in the fourth quarter of 2026.

This contract is anticipated to contribute significantly to the company’s backlog, highlighting its ongoing operational strength in the offshore drilling sector.

The broader market saw gains on Wednesday, with the Energy sector rising 0.09%. RIG’s upward movement aligns with this trend, suggesting that the stock is benefiting from overall positive market sentiment.

Transocean recently secured a 1,156-day contract extension for its Deepwater Corcovado rig with Petrobras, which will keep the rig active through November 2030.

The firm is an international provider of offshore contract drilling services for oil and gas wells. This extension is projected to contribute around $445 million …

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During times of turbulence and uncertainty in the markets, many investors turn to dividend-yielding stocks. These are often companies that have high free cash flows and reward shareholders with a high dividend payout.

Benzinga readers can review the latest analyst takes on their favorite stocks by visiting Analyst Stock Ratings page. Traders can sort through Benzinga’s extensive database of analyst ratings, including by analyst accuracy.

Below are the ratings of the most accurate analysts for three high-yielding stocks in the industrials sector.

Watsco Inc (NYSE:WSO)

  • Dividend Yield: 3.17%
  • JP Morgan analyst Stephen Tusa maintained a Neutral rating and raised the price target from $370 to $400 on Feb. 19, 2026. This analyst has an accuracy rate of 72%
  • UBS analyst Damian Karas maintained a Neutral rating and lowered the price target from $390 to $370 on Jan. 5, 2026. This analyst has an accuracy rate of 68%.
  • Recent News: Watsco announced that it has scheduled a conference call to discuss its first quarter results on Tuesday, April …

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CBRE Group Inc. (NYSE:CBRE) is taking a central role in a new forestry infrastructure deal, as its affiliate, CBRE Investment Management, backs Canadian Resource Roadways’ (CRR) acquisition of a 90% stake in the Berland Resource Road.

The transaction highlights CBRE’s growing push into real assets and critical infrastructure, leveraging its investment platform to expand beyond traditional real estate into resource-linked sectors.

CBRE Investment Management, which operates independently but draws on CBRE’s global data, sourcing, and market insights, is supporting CRR’s first strategic move into forestry—broadening its exposure across Canada’s resource industries.

The deal underscores CBRE’s strategy to deploy capital into infrastructure assets that generate long-term, stable returns while supporting industrial and resource supply chains.

Technical Analysis

CBRE is currently trading within its 52-week range, reflecting a solid performance over the past year with a return of 25.83%. The stock is trading 7.5% above its 20-day simple moving average (SMA), suggesting a bullish short-term trend, while it is 3.8% below its 100-day SMA, indicating some resistance …

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Top Wall Street analysts changed their outlook on these top names. For a complete view of all analyst rating changes, including upgrades and downgrades, please see our analyst ratings page.

  • Mizuho cut the price target for PayPal Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:PYPL) from $60 to $50. Mizuho analyst Dan Dolev downgraded the stock from Outperform to Neutral. PayPal shares closed at $49.57 on Wednesday. See how other analysts view this stock.
  • B of A Securities increased Ciena Corp (NYSE:CIEN) price target from $355 to $550. B of A Securities analyst Tal Liani maintained a Buy rating. Ciena shares closed at $475.76 on Wednesday. See how other analysts view this stock.
  • Needham raised price target for Taiwan Semicndctr Mnufctrng Co Ltd (NYSE:TSM) from $410 to $480. Needham analyst Charles Shi maintained a Buy rating. TSMC shares closed at $375.10 on Wednesday. See how other analysts view this stock.
  • HC Wainwright & Co. slashed the price target for Allogene Therapeutics …

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Gold climbed on Thursday, driven by hopes of a potential U.S.-Iran deal that resulted in lower yields and a weaker dollar, both of which bolstered the demand for the yellow metal.

At 7.04 AM ET, gold futures (June) were up 0.4% at $4,841, after losing about 3.8% over the past month. Meanwhile, spot gold rose 0.6% to around $4817 per ounce, after having lost nearly 7% since the U.S.-Iran war began in February.

Even as rising energy prices fuel inflation, typically boosting gold’s appeal as a hedge, the fear of persistently high interest rates is limiting demand for the metal.

Dollar Edges Lower

The U.S. dollar is hovering near its lowest level since early March, with the U.S. Dollar Index (DXY) at …

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SpaceX CEO Elon Musk on Thursday hailed the Starship’s Super Heavy Booster 19 following the rocket’s successful static fire test.

Most Powerful Moving Object

In a post on X, Musk quoted a post by SpaceX, which showcased the first successful test for the Super Heavy V3 booster, which is powered by over 33 Raptor engines. “Starship Super Heavy Booster, the most powerful moving object ever made by far,” Musk said in the post.

Starship V3 Will Achieve Full Reusability

Musk had earlier shared that he believed the Starship V3 rocket would be fully reusable. “I am highly confident that the V3 design will achieve full reusability,” he said, adding that SpaceX would only try to catch the rocket after two perfect ocean landings.

It’s worth noting that SpaceX recently shifted its focus from Mars to missions targeting the Lunar surface. The commercial space flight …

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Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) on Wednesday posted better-than-expected earnings for the first quarter.

The company posted EPS of $3.43, beating market estimates of $3.00. The company’s sales came in at $20.580 billion, topping expectations of $19.724 billion.

Wealth Management delivered revenues of $8.5 billion with a pre-tax margin of 30.4%, reflecting strong asset management revenues, robust levels of client activity and higher net interest income.

Morgan Stanley shares fell 0.1% to $191.45 in pre-market trading.

These analysts made changes to their price targets on Morgan Stanley …

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Bitcoin remains steady near $74,000 as Bitcoin ETFs saw $186 million in net inflows on Wednesday, while Ethereum ETFs reported $67.9 million in net inflows.  

Cryptocurrency Ticker Price
Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) $74,371.24
Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) $2,332.27
Solana (CRYPTO: SOL) $85.14
XRP (CRYPTO: XRP) $1.41
Dogecoin (CRYPTO: DOGE) $0.09545
Shiba Inu (CRYPTO: SHIB) $0.056032 

Meme coin market capitalization is up 3.4% over the past 24 hours at $36.2 billion

Trader Commentary:  

Trader CyrilXBT explained Bitcoin …

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Circle Internet Group (NYSE:CRCL) CEO Jeremy Allaire said China could launch a yuan-backed stablecoin within three to five years, calling it a “tremendous opportunity” as digital money integrates into global trade.

The Yuan Play

China wants to expand the yuan’s role in the global financial system, and stablecoins have emerged as a way to export a currency by making it easier for global payments, Allaire told Reuters.

“There’s a tremendous opportunity for a yuan stablecoin,” Allaire said in an interview in Hong Kong. 

“If there’s currency competition, you want your currency to have the best features possible. This is becoming a technological competition,” he added.

Reuters reported last August that China was considering a yuan-backed stablecoin to boost adoption of its currency globally. 

Such a move would mark a major shift in China’s approach toward digital assets after the country banned cryptocurrency trading and mining in 2021.

The Iran War Bump

Circle …

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The S&P 500 rose 0.8% on Wednesday to close at a record 7,022.95, extending its recent rally as investors continued to bet that the U.S.-Iran war may soon draw to a close.

The Polygon-based (CRYPTO: POL) Polymarket crowd remains bullish heading into Thursday. The April 16 market shows 60% of traders betting “Up,” after $147,830 in traded volume on the April 15 outcome.

Why That Number Matters

The benchmark index has now fully recovered from its Iran war losses and pushed to fresh all-time highs, highlighting how quickly investor sentiment has shifted on hopes of de-escalation.

President Donald Trump said in a Fox Business interview aired Wednesday that the Iran war is “very close …

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The CNN Money Fear and Greed index showed further improvement in the overall market sentiment, while the index moved to the “Greed” zone on Wednesday.

U.S. stocks settled mostly higher on Wednesday, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite surging to fresh all-time highs.

President Donald Trump said Wednesday the conflict was “very close to over,” adding that oil prices would “come dropping down.”

In earnings, Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) posted better-than-expected earnings for the first quarter. Bank of America Corp (NYSE:BAC) reported upbeat earnings for the first quarter on Wednesday.

On the economic data front, U.S. import prices rose by 0.8% month-over-month in March compared to a revised 0.9% gain in February. U.S. export prices increased by 1.6% month-over-month in …

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The most oversold stocks in the consumer discretionary sector presents an opportunity to buy into undervalued companies.

The RSI is a momentum indicator, which compares a stock’s strength on days when prices go up to its strength on days when prices go down. When compared to a stock’s price action, it can give traders a better sense of how a stock may perform in the short term. An asset is typically considered oversold when the RSI is below 30, according to Benzinga Pro.

Here’s the latest list of major oversold players in this sector, having an RSI near or below 30.

Patrick Industries Inc (NASDAQ:PATK)

  • On April 9, Keybanc analyst Noah Zatzkin maintained Patrick Industries with an Overweight rating and lowered the price target from $155 to $140. The company’s stock fell around 17% over the past five days and has a 52-week low of $75.27.
  • RSI Value: …

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The global silver market could remain undersupplied for a sixth consecutive year despite a fading demand. The latest report from the Silver Institute shows a 2% decline owing to high prices pressuring the key consumption segment.

Still, the organization expects the structural deficit to widen to 46.3 million ounces at 1.1 billion demand.

From Industry to Investment

Higher prices are the primary driver of demand decline. On the consumer side, jewelry fell by 8% in 2025, and the Institute expects the trend to continue. India remains a particularly exposed market, as record prices erode affordability. Silverware demand remains under pressure, even at a four-year low.

Meanwhile, industrial demand, the largest consumer of silver, is also softening. After 4 years of growth, it declined by 3% in 2025. The Institute expects it to continue falling in 2026 as solar panel manufacturers look to reduce silver use or find ways to fully …

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Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX) will release earnings for its first quarter after the closing bell on Thursday, April 16.

Analysts expect the Los Gatos, California-based company to report quarterly earnings of 78 cents per share. That’s up from 66 cents per share in the year-ago period. The consensus estimate for Netflix’s quarterly revenue is $12.17 billion (it reported $10.54 billion last year), according to Benzinga Pro.

The company has beaten analyst estimates for revenue in nine of the last 10 quarters, including the most recently reported fourth quarter.

Shares of Netflix rose 1.4% to close at $107.71 on Wednesday.

Benzinga readers can access the latest analyst ratings on the Analyst Stock Ratings page. Readers can sort by stock ticker, company name, analyst firm, rating change or other variables.

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The company’s new business model after a government crackdown centers on providing education services to schools, with a growing use of AI

image credit: Bamboo Works

Key Takeaways:

  • Tianli International’s net profit rose 21% in the first half of its fiscal year through February, while its revenue increased by 14.2%
  • The company’s gross margins are roughly twice as high as they were before a government crackdown in 2021, after it dropped its tutoring business to focus on school operation

Tianli International Holdings Ltd. (1773.HK) is among a handful of edtech companies that have not only survived but thrived in the market five years after China banned for-profit tutoring services for K-12 students in core curriculum areas. Unfortunately for Tianli, investors who were badly burned in the crackdown don’t seem willing to give the company a second chance.

That’s too bad for Tianli, whose turnaround is a story of renewal in a field that still holds out huge potential due to the strong value Chinese culture places on education. In its latest results, announced last week, Tianli reported its revenue grew by 14% year-on-year to 2.1 billion yuan ($314 million) in the six months to February, the first half of its fiscal year, while its profit rose 21% to 471.3 million yuan.

The reversal of an 81.8 million yuan impairment loss was responsible for most of the profit gain, after Tianli was able to obtain operating licenses for art training that it previously wrote off after the crackdown. That loss was just a tiny part of the more than 1 billion yuan in impairments that Tianli took in 2021 related to the crackdown. Without the reversal, Tianli’s profit would have been flat year-on-year.

The flat profit, despite the double-digit revenue growth, was partly the result of margin pressure, as the company’s gross margin fell 2.4 percentage points to 35.2% in the latest six-month period. But notably, the latest figure was twice as high as the year before the regulatory crackdown, when Tianli’s gross margin was just 17.2%.

Tianli is in the same boat with peers like Gaotu Techedu (NYSE:GOTU), TAL Education (NYSE:TAL) and New Oriental (NYSE:EDU) ( 9901.HK), which have all survived by pivoting …

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In today’s rapidly changing and highly competitive business world, it is vital for investors and industry enthusiasts to carefully assess companies. In this article, we will perform a comprehensive industry comparison, evaluating Palantir Technologies (NASDAQ:PLTR) against its key competitors in the Software industry. By analyzing important financial metrics, market position, and growth prospects, we aim to provide valuable insights for investors and shed light on company’s performance within the industry.

Palantir Technologies Background

Palantir is an artificial intelligence, analytics, and automated decision-making company that leverages data to drive efficiency across its clients’ organizations. The firm serves commercial and government clients via its Foundry and Gotham platforms, respectively. Palantir works only with entities in Western-allied nations and reserves the right not to work with anyone that is antithetical to Western values. The company was founded in 2003 and went public in 2020.

Company P/E P/B P/S ROE EBITDA (in billions) Gross Profit (in billions) Revenue Growth
Palantir Technologies Inc 225.63 46.02 81.48 8.71% $0.58 $1.19 70.0%
Salesforce Inc 22.77 2.77 4.09 3.26% $3.27 $8.69 12.09%
AppLovin Corp 46.28 73.41 28.99 61.09% $1.34 $1.47 65.88%
Intuit Inc 25.36 5.66 5.46 3.61% $1.14 $3.61 17.36%
Adobe Inc 14.26 8.65 4.20 16.39% $2.66 $5.73 11.97%
Synopsys Inc 67.30 2.75 9.54 0.22% $0.69 $1.77 65.52%
Cadence Design Systems Inc 74.90 15.34 15.69 7.27% $0.59 $1.25 6.2%
Autodesk Inc 45.76 16.58 7.14 10.64% $0.58 $1.79 19.4%
Datadog Inc 390.52 11.48 12.84 1.3% $0.08 $0.77 29.21%
Roper Technologies Inc 25.22 1.84 4.90 2.15% $0.86 $1.43 9.67%
Workday Inc 47.92 4.09 3.48 1.74% $0.39 $1.92 14.52%
Zoom Communications Inc 14.41 2.67 5.62 7.06% $0.28 $0.95 5.31%
PTC Inc 20.11 4.23 5.75 4.34% $0.25 $0.57 21.36%
IREN Ltd 33.92 6.45 19.24 -5.77% $-0.23 $0.11 59.02%
Trimble Inc 37.95 2.66 4.50 2.69% $0.25 $0.7 -1.38%
Tyler Technologies Inc 46.89 3.87 6.34 1.79% $0.12 $0.26 6.29%
Guidewire Software Inc 61.80 7.65 8.89 3.95% $0.08 $0.23 24.05%
HubSpot Inc 254.21 5.58 3.71 2.78% $0.1 $0.71 20.42%
Average 72.33 10.33 8.85 7.32% $0.73 $1.88 22.76%

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In today’s fast-paced and highly competitive business world, it is crucial for investors and industry followers to conduct comprehensive company evaluations. In this article, we will delve into an extensive industry comparison, evaluating Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) in relation to its major competitors in the Automobiles industry. By closely examining key financial metrics, market standing, and growth prospects, our objective is to provide valuable insights and highlight company’s performance in the industry.

Tesla Background

Tesla is a vertically integrated battery electric vehicle automaker and developer of real world artificial intelligence software, which includes autonomous driving and humanoid robots. The company has multiple vehicles in its fleet, which include luxury and midsize sedans, crossover SUVs, a light truck, and a semi truck. Tesla also plans to begin selling a sports car and offer a robotaxi service. Global deliveries in 2025 were nearly 1.64 million vehicles. The company sells batteries for stationary storage for residential and commercial properties including utilities and solar panels and solar roofs for energy generation. Tesla also owns a fast-charging network and an auto insurance business.

Company P/E P/B P/S ROE EBITDA (in billions) Gross Profit (in billions) Revenue Growth
Tesla Inc 362.92 17.91 14.58 1.04% $2.91 $5.01 -3.14%
General Motors Co 23.79 1.15 0.41 -5.22% $0.42 $-1.12 -5.06%
Ferrari NV 33.87 13.70 7.57 9.89% $0.69 $0.93 3.79%
Thor Industries Inc 13.53 0.93 0.41 0.41% $0.1 $0.25 5.34%
Winnebago Industries Inc 21.53 0.72 0.31 0.39% $0.03 $0.09 6.0%
Average 23.18 4.12 2.18 1.37% $0.31 $0.04 2.52%

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In the dynamic and cutthroat world of business, conducting thorough company analysis is essential for investors and industry experts. In this article, we will undertake a comprehensive industry comparison, evaluating Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN) and its primary competitors in the Broadline Retail industry. By closely examining key financial metrics, market position, and growth prospects, our aim is to provide valuable insights for investors and shed light on company’s performance within the industry.

Amazon.com Background

Amazon is the leading online retailer and marketplace for third party sellers. Retail related revenue represents approximately 74% of total, followed by Amazon Web Services (17%), and advertising services (9%). International segments constitute 22% of Amazon’s total revenue, led by Germany, the United Kingdom, and Japan.

Company P/E P/B P/S ROE EBITDA (in billions) Gross Profit (in billions) Revenue Growth
Amazon.com Inc 34.66 6.50 3.75 5.43% $46.76 $103.43 13.63%
MercadoLibre Inc 47.52 14.07 3.28 8.62% $1.07 $3.78 44.56%
eBay Inc 23.48 9.71 4.22 11.31% $0.8 $2.12 14.97%
Coupang Inc 193.55 8.42 1.14 -0.56% $0.17 $2.54 10.92%
Dillard’s Inc 16.65 5.32 1.45 10.66% $0.3 $0.72 -3.03%
Ollie’s Bargain Outlet Holdings Inc 24.49 3.08 2.22 4.6% $0.13 $0.31 16.82%
Global E Online Ltd 85.26 5.99 6.08 6.69% $0.13 $0.15 28.05%
Macy’s Inc 8.25 1.04 0.23 11.04% $0.9 $2.97 -1.14%
Kohl’s Corp 6.01 0.40 0.10 3.13% $0.39 $1.85 -4.15%
Savers Value Village Inc 59.14 2.95 0.80 5.28% $0.07 $0.26 15.59%
Hour Loop Inc 43.60 10.97 0.54 -8.96% $-0.0 $0.03 3.03%
Average 50.8 6.2 2.01 5.18% $0.4 $1.47 12.56%

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U.S. stocks rallied on signs of a potential end to the Iran conflict and on a strong start to the first quarter earnings season.

The S&P 500 closed above 7,000 for first time on Wednesday and hit its first closing high since January. The index gained 3% so far this week. The Nasdaq Composite Index hit new all-time highs, extending its winning streak to 11 consecutive sessions. The tech-heavy index has risen 5% week-to-date.

President Donald Trump said in an interview with FOX Business anchor “Mornings on Maria” on Wednesday that the Iran war is “very close to over” with Tehran vying for a peace deal.

Big banks were off to a strong start to earnings season with Bank of America (NYSE:BAC), Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS), and JPMorgan (NYSE:JPM) reporting stronger-than-expected earnings.

We have highlighted three ETFs that reached new all-time highs on Wednesday:

ETFs All-Time High YTD Price Performance
QQQ $637.83 23.1%
SPY $700.28 18.0%
QTUM $123.50 13.7%

Invesco QQQ Trust Series 1 (NASDAQ:QQQ)

This ETF offers exposure to companies at the forefront of innovation across a …

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T3 Defense Inc. (NASDAQ:DFNS) shares dropped 3.29% to $0.60 in pre-market trading on Thursday.

The decline followed an over 11% surge in after-hours trading on Wednesday after the defense holding company reported preliminary first-quarter 2026 revenue of about $4.2 million and reaffirmed its full-year outlook.

It also disclosed a $12.1 million backlog and $12.0 million in incoming requests for proposals. The company said the pipeline is driven by escalating global defense spending and heightened geopolitical tension.

Iron Dome Supplier Anchors Growth

T3 Defense stated that the company’s wholly owned subsidiary, B. Rimon, a manufacturer and distributor of Iron Dome missile defense components, secured about $4.1 million in new multi-year contracts during the first quarter, with a backlog of $4.8 million.

Full first-quarter results are …

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With U.S. stock futures trading higher this morning on Thursday, some of the stocks that may grab investor focus today are as follows:

  • Wall Street expects PepsiCo Inc (NASDAQ:PEP) to report quarterly earnings at $1.55 per share on revenue of $18.94 billion before the opening bell, according to data from Benzinga Pro. PepsiCo shares fell 0.6% to close at $154.85 on Wednesday.
  • J B Hunt Transport Services Inc (NASDAQ:JBHT) reported upbeat earnings for the first quarter. The company posted quarterly earnings of $1.49 per share which beat the analyst consensus estimate of $1.45 …

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