GOOG - Alphabet Inc.
| Previous close | 1,510.99 |
| Open | 1,506.15 |
| Bid | 1,541.95 x 2200 |
| Ask | 1,543.03 x 1400 |
| Day's range | 1,496.56 - 1,543.83 |
| 52-week range | 1,013.54 - 1,543.83 |
| Volume | 1,856,704 |
| Avg. volume | 1,784,184 |
| Market cap | 1.055T |
| Beta (5Y monthly) | 1.06 |
| PE ratio (TTM) | 31.10 |
| EPS (TTM) | 49.57 |
| Earnings date | N/A |
| Forward dividend & yield | N/A (N/A) |
| Ex-dividend date | N/A |
| 1y target est | 1,560.55 |
- Motley Fool
Better Buy: IBM vs. Alphabet
Alphabet (NASDAQ: GOOG) (NASDAQ: GOOGL) relies heavily on advertising revenue, but has expanded its business into the growing cloud computing market, where IBM (NYSE: IBM) also plays. The cloud is an exciting segment, but that didn't help these tech titans avoid the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. IBM was well on its way to repositioning its business around cloud computing services when the pandemic struck.
- Bloomberg
TikTok Gets an Amazon-Sized Scare
(Bloomberg Opinion) -- What was a turbulent enough week for TikTok turned downright bizarre on Friday.Already, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo had warned that the Trump administration was looking at banning the short-video platform owned by Beijing-based parent ByteDance Ltd. over data-privacy concerns, and President Donald Trump himself said h e was considering banning TikTok as one way to retaliate against China over the coronavirus. Then things got worse when Amazon.com Inc. on Friday sent an email to employees telling them to delete the TikTok app from mobile devices they use to access company email, citing “security risks.”The bizarre part happened just hours after that, when Amazon issued a statement saying the it had sent the email to its employees “in error” and there was no change in their policies toward TikTok. All clear? Not quite. For soon after Amazon corrected the record on its TikTok policy, Wells Fargo & Co. confirmed a report from the Information that the bank had told employees to delete the app from work phones because of “concerns about TikTok’s privacy and security controls and practices.”For sure, the company dodged a bullet when it comes to Amazon. But it is unknown whether the e-commerce giant intends to resend a similar email on TikTok policy in the future; clearly, someone drafted something. And the government threats remain. Not only that: The prospect of a potential ban has brought widespread anxiety to the TikTok community. In recent days, many creators posted tearful “goodbye” videos, with some asking their viewers to follow their accounts on other platforms such as YouTube and Instagram. What has been a slow boil of troublesome developments risks cascading into a full-blown public relations crisis. Whether or not the security concerns are justified or the motivations political, TikTok can and should do a lot more to address them and take more control of the narrative. TikTok’s responses, thus far, have been low-key. The company has said it keeps its user data in the U.S. with backups in Singapore and has never provided data to the Chinese government. On Friday, in response to the initial Amazon news, it said in a statement that “user security is of the utmost importance” to TikTok, adding it hadn’t heard from Amazon about its concerns and looks forward to a “dialogue so we can address any issues” the tech giant may have. A more proactive response is in order, and here are some things TikTok can do. First, statements aren’t enough. Where is TikTok’s CEO? Earlier this year, ByteDance hired former Walt Disney Co. executive Kevin Mayer to head up TikTok. You’d think the veteran media executive would be the perfect ambassador to help tamp down concerns. He needs to get out there and explain TikTok’s side of the story, whether in interviews to print press or on TV. He should know the basics of crisis management and PR strategy, following his long tenure in the upper ranks of a U.S. entertainment giant.Second, the Wall Street Journal on Thursday said ByteDance was considering making changes to its corporate structure, including the creation of a new management board for TikTok or designating a new headquarters for the company outside of China. While it won’t make a huge difference as TikTok will be still owned by the China-based ByteDance, both are easy, low-hanging-fruit-type moves that would at least give the appearance of more autonomy. They should go ahead and announce the changes as soon as possible. It also wouldn’t hurt to remind the public of TikTok’s growing U.S. workforce.And finally, TikTok needs to forcefully defend itself against the Trump administration’s conjecture and allegations. Yes, it’s a bit of a tricky situation as any pushback can backfire if not done tactfully, but the company can’t afford not to respond. Further, it should hire an external, independent consulting firm to do a full security audit. Anything to assuage the security and privacy concerns would help as the pressure isn’t going away. Late Friday, Fox Business’s Charlie Gasparino reported the White House is looking at using the Committee on Foreign Investment review as possible way to ban TikTok by saying its prior acquisition of Musical.ly was illegal. ByteDance has been under review by the interagency committee in the U.S. for its 2017 purchase of the lip-synching startup.In many ways, TikTok’s situation is similar to the public relations frenzy over Zoom Video Communications Inc. in early April. At the time, the video-conferencing company — whose service had seen an unprecedented surge from business customers and other entities looking to connect under lockdown — faced an avalanche of scrutiny over its security and privacy practices, including its use of Chinese servers. In response, CEO Eric Yuan proactively made himself available for numerous media interviews and helped restore his company’s reputation. He conducted weekly webinars, hired security experts and did whatever it took to educate the public that fears concerning his company’s products were overblown and that Zoom had taken concrete steps to address the issues. The strategy appears to have worked, as Zoom has managed to both retain customers and attract more to its platform.TikTok should take note and do the same. Hunkering down and doing the bare minimum is not a great strategy.(The third paragraph of this column was updated to include information about Wells Fargo’s ban of the TikTok app on its employees’ work phones.)This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners.Tae Kim is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering technology. He previously covered technology for Barron's, following an earlier career as an equity analyst.For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com/opinionSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.
- Bloomberg
Google to Restrict Ads for Tracking Technology, Spyware
(Bloomberg) -- Alphabet Inc.’s Google is changing its policies next month to restrict advertising for spyware and other unauthorized tracking technology.The change “will prohibit the promotion of products or services that are marketed or targeted with the express purpose of tracking or monitoring another person or their activities without their authorization,” according to the company.While ads for these products already violate Google’s Enabling Dishonest Behavior policy, the change will make the ban on tracking technology explicit and lead to increased enforcement, a company spokeswoman said.The policy will prohibit advertisements of spyware and malware “that can be used to monitor texts, phone calls, or browsing history,” according to Google. It will also ban ads for “GPS trackers specifically marketed to spy or track someone without their consent” and of cameras or recorders “marketed with the express purpose of spying.”The new policy will be implemented globally on Aug. 11, and the accounts of advertisers that violate it will be suspended, according to Google.(Updates with comments from Google spokeswoman in the third paragraph.)For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.
- Bloomberg
Facebook Mulls Political-Ad Blackout Ahead of U.S. Election
(Bloomberg) -- Facebook Inc. is considering imposing a ban on political ads on its social network in the days leading up to the U.S. election in November, according to people familiar with the company’s thinking.The potential ban is still only being discussed and hasn’t yet been finalized, said the people, who asked not to be named talking about internal policies. A halt on ads could defend against misleading election-related content spreading as people prepare to vote. Still, there are concerns that an ad blackout may hurt “get out the vote” campaigns, or limit a candidate’s ability to respond widely to breaking news or new information.This would be a big change for Facebook, which has so far stuck to a policy of not fact-checking ads from politicians or their campaigns. That’s prompted criticism from lawmakers and advocates, who say the policy means ads on the platform can be used to spread lies and misinformation. Civil rights groups also argue the company doesn’t do enough to remove efforts to limit voter participation, and a recent audit found Facebook failed to enforce its own voter-suppression policies when it comes to posts from U.S. President Donald Trump.Facebook shares briefly dipped after Bloomberg‘s report, before recovering to close Friday at a record $245.07. Hundreds of advertisers are currently boycotting Facebook’s marketing products as part of a protest against its policies.Ad blackouts before elections are common in other parts of the world, including the U.K., where Facebook’s global head of policy, Nick Clegg, was once deputy prime minister. A Facebook spokesperson declined to comment.Facebook is an important platform for politicians, especially at a time when many people are stuck at home and campaign rallies pose potential health risks due to the coronavirus. In 2016, Trump used Facebook ads and the company’s targeting capabilities to reach millions of voters with tailored messaging, a strategy that some believe helped win him the election.Alex Stamos, Facebook’s former top security executive, said Friday that any political ad ban could benefit Trump. “Eliminating online political ads only benefits those with money, incumbency or the ability to get media coverage,” he tweeted. “Who does that sound like?”Democratic political operatives were quick to criticize the idea of a temporary ad blackout. Rob Flaherty, digital director for Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden’s campaign, suggested the potential ad ban was not a sufficient solution to misinformation. “Under this proposal the President could use organic posts to suppress voting by mail (as he did today), but Democrats could not run ads encouraging people to return their mail ballots,” he tweeted.Nell Thomas, chief technology officer for the Democratic National Committee, was also skeptical. “We said it seven months ago to @Google and we will say it again to @Facebook,” she tweeted. “A blunt ads ban is not a real solution to disinformation on your platform.”Spokespeople for the Biden and Trump campaigns didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment, nor did a spokesperson for the Republican National Committee.Political advertising is a very small part of Facebook’s business. In the past 90 days, Trump and Biden have spent a combined $29.2 million on ads, according to the company’s self-reported data. In contrast, Facebook generated more than $17 billion in its latest quarter.Political advertising has been a complicated issue for online platforms, and many of them have taken different approaches. Twitter Inc. has banned most political ads, but still sells some “cause-based” ads that touch on economic, environmental or social issues. Google’s YouTube has already sold ad space on its homepage to the Trump campaign for the days leading up to November’s election -- a deal that ensures Trump will be highly visible on the video service when people start to vote.In 2016, Russian operatives used Facebook to spread misleading and divisive ads and posts. The company has made a series of changes since then to tighten up its political ad process, including the implementation of stricter requirements for buying marketing spots and the addition of a searchable ad archive.(Updates with comments from Biden digital director in the eighth paragraph.)For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.
- TechCrunch
Google’s Fitbit deal could avoid EU antitrust probe by agreeing not to use health data for ads
Google announced its plans to acquire Fitbit for $2.1 billion back in November. As of this writing, the deal has yet to go through, courtesy of all the usual regulatory scrutiny that occurs any time one large company buys another. Citing “people familiar with the matter,” Reuters notes that Google may be facing down some scrutiny in the form of an EU antitrust investigation if it doesn’t make some concessions.
- Motley Fool
Will NVIDIA Stock Surge to $500?
Strong growth in several massive markets will help drive NVIDIA's (NASDAQ: NVDA) share price to $500. So says Rosenblatt Securities analyst Hans Mosesmann. On Friday, Mosesmann reiterated his buy rating on NVIDIA's stock and boosted his target price from $400 to $500.
- Motley Fool
3 Places Advertisers Are Still Increasing Spend Despite COVID-19
Ad buyers expect overall ad spend to decline about 20% in the second half of 2020, according to a survey from IAB last month. Traditional media will see a decline in ad spend, but most digital advertising channels will grow considerably in the second half of 2020. 59% of connected TV advertisers expect to increase their spend in the second half of the year, according to IAB's survey.
- Motley Fool
Google Might Need to Make Sacrifices to Close Fitbit Deal
European regulators are reportedly looking for concessions before approving the $2.1 billion acquisition.
- Yahoo Finance
These ‘epicenter’ stocks could surge higher, says analyst who called March bottom
Surging tech stocks are hiding the opportunity in some beaten-down names, says Fundstrat's Tom Lee.
- TechCrunch
California reportedly launches antitrust investigation into Google
According to a report in Politico, California has become the 49th state to launch an antitrust investigation into Google. California and Alabama were the only states that did not participate in an antitrust investigation by 48 states, Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia, that began in September and is focused on Google’s dominance in online advertising and search. It is still unclear on which aspects of Google’s business the reported California investigation will focus.
- Bloomberg
Who’s Desperate to Get Back to the Gym?
(Bloomberg Opinion) -- When you return to the gym, your workout will be noticeably different than before the coronavirus lockdown. Don’t plan on pumping iron for more than an hour, or taking a shower. And you can probably forget those trendy boxing classes that have you making contact with your fellow gym-goers.Welcome to the new world of fitness, which will be characterized by social distancing, obsessively wiping down equipment and, for those who don’t want to brave the gym, sessions with a virtual coach on a Peloton bike at home.The Covid-19 pandemic has hit something that we largely take for granted: our health. So people are now likely to spend even more of their incomes on well-being, including staying in shape. But with a plethora of choices, from Zoom yoga to ballet barre via Instagram Live, not all of this money may find its way into the traditional fitness sector.That is likely to lead to a shakeout of an industry that has seen the number of global facilities roughly double over the past 15 years. Many clubs could now close or shrink. Those best placed to survive are the trendy boutiques that can successfully pivot to providing digital content and the no-frills operators that can appeal to cash-strapped fitsters. Some fitness fans can’t wait to get back to the gym. For others, being in close proximity to other people engaging in sweaty exercise is the last place they will feel comfortable. And for now, workout chains remain closed in some parts of the U.S. Clubs in England will be able to open from July 25. Where gyms are trading, they’re limiting the number of people inside at any one time and offering “busyness trackers” on their apps, so customers can decide the best time to visit. At peak hours, people may be asked to book ahead of time, or keep their workouts to an hour. As for showers it’s a mixed picture, depending on particular clubs and locations. Many people are choosing to get changed at home anyway.For gyms, in addition to contending with costly measures to contain the spread of the virus and keep customers feeling safe, it’s a changing landscape in terms of where their customers are and what they may want.Because many fitness centers are located in business districts, there may be far less demand when they reopen as working from home becomes entrenched. Virgin Active, owned by investment holding company Brait SE, whose clubs are mostly in metropolitan areas, looks particularly exposed here. And the new routines people have embraced while at home may lend themselves to working out in one’s kitchen or bedroom, rather than going to the gym at all. Consequently, clubs could face a wave of cancellations.Already, months of closure and higher reopening costs have taken their toll. Bodybuilder favorite Gold’s Gym International Inc. and 24 Hour Fitness Worldwide Inc. have filed for bankruptcy protection. But it is not just the legacy gyms, already caught in the ultimate barbell economy between chic boutiques and budget operators, that are feeling the burn.The boutiques, such as those that specialize in cycling, yoga or Pilates, face unique and acute challenges. The economics of many of these businesses are built around cramming lots of class participants into a tiny space — the kind of set-up people are likely to want to avoid.These fitness outposts are experimenting with ways of hanging onto their members. In a particularly fanciful example, SoulCycle Inc. is offering some outdoor classes in the Hamptons this summer that cost $50 for a single class. In such a posh location, there may be plenty of takers, but that’s hardly a model that can be replicated across the country. And outdoor classes will lose their appeal in the dead of winter.That is why some gyms, both boutiques and big-box outlets, are turning to digital content. Yogaworks Inc., for example, is live-streaming more than 100 daily classes from teachers at their studios all over the U.S. If this becomes really popular, it’s not hard to imagine the company needing to upend its business model, perhaps by reducing its roster of instructors, closing underperforming brick-and-mortar studios and hiring more technologists.Going online is far from a sure bet. It’s a highly competitive space that includes everything from free workouts on YouTube to Nike Inc.’s activity app and subscription programs like Glo and Daily Burn. In the U.K. alone, David Minton of the Leisure Database Company said he counted more than 600 Instagram Live workout classes in one day.It also puts operators in more direct competition with trendy home-workout programs such as the Mirror, which was just acquired by yoga-wear maker Lululemon Athletica Inc. for $500 million, and Peloton Interactive Inc., which has seen such explosive demand for its stationary bikes that it paused advertising back in March while it moved to accelerate its supply chain.The budget sector, which has been booming on both sides of the Atlantic, is not immune to the new pressures either. It faces a future with higher hygiene-related costs, such as the more regular and intensive cleaning of equipment. These may be difficult to accommodate when clubs are typically charging only about 20 pounds ($25) a month. Even so, companies such as Planet Fitness Inc. in the U.S. and Basic-Fit NV in Europe, as well as U.K. operators The Gym Group Plc and Pure Gym Group Plc, are probably best placed. Their clubs tend to be large, and many are located in suburban areas. In some cases, members are younger, and so may be less cautious about coming back. Pure Gym found that when its clubs reopened in Switzerland, people under 30 were three times more likely to return than those over 50. Yes, some people may ditch their subscriptions as the hard economic impact of the lockdowns hits. But no-frills clubs may also benefit from cash-strapped fitness fans trading down.The result is that even the most nimble, well-situated competitors will have to work up more of a sweat to compete in the Covid-19 era. This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners.Andrea Felsted is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering the consumer and retail industries. She previously worked at the Financial Times.Sarah Halzack is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering the consumer and retail industries. She was previously a national retail reporter for the Washington Post.For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com/opinionSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.
- Bloomberg
TikTok Teens Try To Trick Trump Campaign, Again
(Bloomberg) -- The TikTok-tivists are at it again.Thousands of users of the popular video app flocked to the Apple App Store in the last few days to flood U.S. President Donald Trump’s 2020 campaign app with negative reviews. On Wednesday alone 700 negative reviews were left on the Official Trump 2020 app and 26 positive ones, according to tracking firm Sensor Tower.TikTok fans are retaliating for Trump’s threats to ban the app, which is owned by China’s Bytedance Ltd. and is hugely popular in the U.S., especially among teens. The thought of taking away a key social and entertainment hub in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic has led to outrage.“For Gen Z and Millennials, TikTok is our clubhouse and Trump threatened it,” said Yori Blacc, a 19-year-old TikTok user in California who joined in the app protest. “If you’re going to mess with us, we will mess with you.”Blacc said the movement gained steam Wednesday when a popular TikTok user, DeJuan Booker, called on his 750,000 followers to seek revenge. He posted a step-by-step primer on how to degrade the app’s rating, notching 5.6 million views. “Gen Z don’t go down without a fight,” said Booker, who goes by @unusualbeing on TikTok. “Let’s go to war.”The Trump campaign said the effort hasn’t had any impact.“TikTok users don’t affect anything we do. What we do know is that the Chinese use TikTok to spy on its users,” said Tim Murtaugh, director of communications for the Trump Campaign. ByteDance has always denied such accusationsThe efforts to push the app low enough so that Apple will remove it from the app store may be misguided. Apple doesn’t delete apps based on their popularity. The App Store may review those that violate its guidelines or are outdated, but not if their ratings sink. A similar tactic was tried in April to protest Google Classroom by kids frustrated with quarantine home-schooling.But young people are looking for ways to make their voices heard, even if some of them can’t yet vote. Last month, many young people organized through TikTok to sign up to attend Trump’s first post-shutdown campaign rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, but then didn’t show up. The Trump campaign denied the online organizing effort contributed to lower-than-expected attendance.Nearly 60% of Gen Zers are opposed to a TikTok ban, according to a survey conducted from Tuesday to Thursday of 2,200 adults by Morning Consult Brand Intelligence. Across all ages, about a third of Americans have never heard of TikTok, while a third have a favorable impression and a third have an unfavorable view of the app, the survey found.Apple didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. TikTok experienced connectivity issues on Thursday, according to Downdector, which measures web traffic, but the company said it had resolved them later the same day.Trump’s re-election smartphone app is a big part of the president’s unrivaled digital operation and was meant to circumvent tech companies like Facebook Inc. and Twitter Inc. and give the campaign a direct line to supporters. The app has helped the campaign engage Trump’s die-hard supporters, especially in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, by feeding them his latest tweets and promoting virtual events. Supporters can donate to the president’s campaign or earn rewards for recruiting friends like VIP seats to rallies or photos with the president.The Official Trump 2020 app has been downloaded more than 500,000 times on Google’s Android store as of June 15. Apple doesn’t publish information on downloads.Reviews with titles such as “Terrible App” or “Do Not Download!” have been flooding the App Store since late June. Official Trump 2020 now has more than 103,000 one-star reviews for an overall rating of 1.2.But the uptick of activity has also caused the app to rise in rankings. Users have to download the app to review it, vaulting it to second place on the Apple store from No. 486 on Tuesday, according to Sensor Tower.“Do I think that this is going to fundamentally change the election? No,” said Tim Lim, a veteran Democratic digital strategist. “But it goes to show that they are just as susceptible to these mass actions as anyone else. Trump is starting to see what it feels like to have a massive online army committed to defeating him.”Trump earlier this week said his administration is considering banning TikTok as one way to retaliate against China over its handling of the coronavirus. Trump’s comments came after Secretary of State Michael Pompeo told Americans not to download the app unless they want to see their private information fall into “the hands of the Chinese Communist Party.” Bytedance is also facing a U.S. national security review for its acquisition of startup Musical.ly. It has denied allegations that it poses a threat to U.S. national security.Trump didn’t offer specifics about a potential decision and Pompeo seemed to walk back the idea of a ban in a later statement, saying that the U.S. efforts to protect American consumers’ data don’t relate to any one particular company.Many TikTok users say they care less about potential Chinese snooping and more about Trump taking away their digital hangout. In the U.S., TikTok has been downloaded more than 165 million times, according to Sensor Tower.“I don’t believe Trump is trying to take TikTok away because of national security, but more to retaliate against activism on the app and all the videos about him that drag him through the mud,” said Darius Jackson, an 18-year-old TikTok user in Champaign, Illinois, who asked his followers Wednesday to give Trump’s app a one-star rating.“This is the first year I’ll be able to vote and I think activism on TikTok is going to make a big difference,” Jackson said.(Updates with Trump campaign response from sixth paragraph. A previous version of the story corrected the spelling of the Illinois city in the penultimate paragraph.)For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.
- Bloomberg
SoftBank-Backed Coupang Buys Hooq Assets to Take on Netflix
(Bloomberg) -- South Korean e-commerce giant Coupang Corp. is buying the software of Hooq Digital Ltd., the Southeast Asian video streaming service owned by Singtel, Sony and Warner Bros that’s filed for liquidation, according to people familiar with the deal.Coupang has already struck a deal to acquire the assets, the people said, asking not to be named because the information hasn’t been announced.The deal ushers SoftBank-backed Coupang into a competitive but fragmented video streaming arena and pits it against the likes of Amazon.com Inc. and Netflix Inc. U.S. giants have emerged as frontrunners, squeezing out a number of domestic players with splashier local programming and fuller Hollywood slates. In a sign of accelerating consolidation, Tencent Holdings Ltd. recently agreed to buy the assets of Malaysian streaming platform iFlix Ltd. And last month, ride-hailing giant Gojek won funding from Golden Gate Ventures and other backers for its own video foray.Coupang, backed also by BlackRock Inc. and Sequoia Capital, has designs too on its own home market. Korea in recent years birthed blockbusters that captivated global audiences from “Parasite” to “Train to Busan,” yet Netflix and Alphabet Inc.’s Youtube remain dominant local players. South Korea’s government announced a plan last month to nurture five homegrown over-the-top or streaming service providers into global companies, and support their growth by expediting deals and investment in content.A Coupang representative declined to comment.Read more: Tencent Buys Assets of Struggling Streaming Platform IFlixHooq, a joint venture between Singapore Telecommunications Ltd., Sony Pictures Television Inc. and Warner Bros Entertainment Inc., filed for liquidation in March and discontinued service at the end of April. Set up in 2015, it offered movies and drama series across Singapore, the Philippines, Thailand, Indonesia and India, but ran into trouble during the pandemic.Coupang, widely regarded as South Korea’s Amazon, has been aggressively expanding into new businesses such as food delivery and digital payments, mirroring the U.S. giant by broadening its services. The Seoul-based company, founded in 2010 by Chief Executive Officer Bom Kim, was said to be valued at $9 billion in late 2018 and has been eyeing a public listing as early as next year, Bloomberg News reported in January.Buoyed by the growth in subscribers to its delivery service, sales at the startup rose to a record 7.15 trillion won ($5.9 billion) in 2019.Read more: Coupang Grew Revenue 64% in Boost For SoftBank’s Startup Cred(Updates with details on Asian market from the third paragraph)For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.
- Motley Fool
Report: Alphabet Must Offer Concessions for Fitbit Acquisition to Win EU Approval
The European Union (EU) expects concessions before its regulator allows Alphabet (NASDAQ: GOOG)(NASDAQ: GOOGL) unit Google to acquire Fitbit (NYSE: FIT). According to a report from Reuters citing "people familiar with the matter," the U.S. tech giant will have to give up something in order for the deal to clear the European Commission's (EC) antitrust review process. One possible solution is that Google concretely promises that it will not misuse Fitbit user data by culling it to target advertising, the article's sources said.
- Bloomberg
Runup in Tech Mega-Caps Sows Doubt Before Key Earnings
(Bloomberg) -- Some of Wall Street’s biggest stocks are coming off their best quarterly performance in years, and with the broader economy still grappling with the pandemic, analysts are starting to express some skepticism about high-profile rallies.The S&P 500 surged 20% in the second quarter, its biggest quarterly gain since 1998. While the superlative nature of the rally was partly a function of timing -- many components hit a bottom right before the end of the first quarter -- the move was fueled by tech and internet stocks, which outperformed the benchmark and have heavy weightings due to their massive market capitalizations.Apple and Amazon.com both gained more than 40% during the quarter, making it the iPhone maker’s best quarter since 2012 and Amazon’s best since 2010.On Wednesday, Deutsche Bank confessed it was “surprised at both the speed and magnitude of the rebound” in Apple shares, adding that the move “has us nervous.” Raymond James echoed this tone on Tuesday, seeing uncertainty surrounding Apple’s forecast given an expected delay in the iPhone 12, a product Nomura Instinet expects “will fall short of a supercycle.” Both Deutsche Bank and Raymond James still recommend buying Apple shares.Amazon remains a consensus favorite on Wall Street -- more than 90% of the firms tracked by Bloomberg recommend buying it -- but the degree to which the share price exceeds analysts’ average price target is near a multiyear high, suggesting that even bulls aren’t expecting much additional upside.Among other mega-cap names, Microsoft rose 29% over the second quarter, its best such showing since 2009. Both Facebook and Google-parent Alphabet notched their biggest quarterly gain since 2013, with Facebook up 36% and Alphabet up 22%, based on its Class A shares. Netflix rose 21% last quarter.All are at or near record levels, and the rallies will soon be tested as each member of the group is scheduled to post quarterly results before the end of the month, with Netflix reporting next week.Apple EstimatesFor Apple, the rally has come despite a more tepid view for its upcoming results. Wall Street expects third-quarter earnings, excluding some items, of $2.03 a share, a consensus that is down 6.8% from where it was three months ago. The consensus for revenue has declined 0.9% over the same period.While analysts debate whether the results will justify the recent gains, many of these names are seen as potential pandemic winners. Microsoft is expected to see stronger demand for its cloud-computing and workplace collaboration products as people continue to work remotely, while the e-commerce wave lifting Amazon and others is seen as outlasting the coronavirus’s impact on brick-and-mortar stores.Apple analysts also see a number of reasons to be optimistic for the long term, including the company’s services business, wearable products, and its stock-buyback program. “Overall, we believe the directionality and reasoning behind AAPL’s stock rise,” Deutsche Bank’s Jeriel Ong wrote. Still, the firm has “ambivalence at these levels.”Firms expressed a similar sentiment about Netflix, which has seen higher engagement during the pandemic. Rosenblatt Securities “struggle[s] to see the upside” from current levels given “uncertainty over how [long] this favorable environment will last.” Stifel continues “to grapple with the risk/reward profile given limited 2H visibility.”Imperial Capital downgraded the stock earlier this week, moving away from an outperform rating that it had held since starting coverage on Netflix about two years ago, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Following the recent advance, Netflix “will begin a fairly extensive range-bound trend as other long opportunities emerge in the media space,” the firm said.(Removes reference to Microsoft reporting next week in seventh paragraph of story originally published July 8.)For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.
- Motley Fool
Why Splunk Stock Jumped by 32.7% in the First Half of 2020
The AI-powered analytics company's share price has soared by more than 250% over the last three years.
- Reuters
Exclusive: Google can ward off EU antitrust probe into Fitbit deal with data pledge
Google may be able to stave off a full-scale EU antitrust investigation into its planned $2.1 billion bid for Fitbit <FIT.N> by pledging not to use Fitbit's health data to help it target ads, people familiar with the matter said. The deal announced in November last year allows Google, a unit of Alphabet <GOOGL.O>, to take on Apple <AAPL.O> and Samsung <005930.KS> in the fitness tracking and smart watch market, alongside others including Huawei and Xiaomi <1810.HK>. Apple is the leader in the global wearables market with a 29.3% market share in the first quarter of 2020, followed by Xiaomi, Samsung and Huawei, according to data from market research firm International Data Corp. Fitbit's share of the market was 3%.
- Reuters
Exclusive: Google can ward off EU antitrust probe into Fitbit deal with data pledge - sources
Google may be able to stave off a full-scale EU antitrust investigation into its planned $2.1 billion bid for Fitbit by pledging not to use Fitbit's health data to help it target ads, people familiar with the matter said. The deal announced in November last year allows Google, a unit of Alphabet, to take on Apple and Samsung in the fitness tracking and smart watch market, alongside others including Huawei and Xiaomi. Apple is the leader in the global wearables market with a 29.3% market share in the first quarter of 2020, followed by Xiaomi, Samsung and Huawei, according to data from market research firm International Data Corp. Fitbit's share of the market was 3%.
- Bloomberg
Musk Says Tesla Is ‘Very Close’ to Developing Fully Autonomous Vehicles
(Bloomberg) -- Tesla Inc.’s Elon Musk said the carmaker is on the verge of developing technology to render its vehicles fully capable of driving themselves, repeating a claim he’s made for years but been unable to achieve.The chief executive officer has long offered exuberant takes on the capabilities of Tesla cars, even going so far as to start charging customers thousands of dollars for a “Full Self Driving” feature in 2016. Years later, Tesla still requires users of its Autopilot system to be fully attentive and ready to take over the task of driving at any time.Tesla’s mixed messages have drawn controversy and regulatory scrutiny. In 2018, the company blamed a driver who died after crashing a Model X while using Autopilot for not paying attention to the road. Documents made public last year showed the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration had issued multiple subpoenas for information about crashes involving Tesla vehicles, suggesting the agency may have been preparing a formal investigation of Autopilot.Read more: Businessweek’s October 2019 cover story on Tesla AutopilotWhile other self-driving developers have tempered expectations for when their technology will be ready for deployment, Musk is undeterred. He said in a prerecorded video played Thursday during the World AI Conference in Shanghai that Tesla is “very close” to level five autonomy, meaning its cars won’t require human intervention.“I remain confident that we will have the basic functionality for level five autonomy complete this year,” Musk said. “I think there are no fundamental challenges remaining for level five autonomy. There are many small problems, and then there’s the challenge of solving all those small problems and then putting the whole system together, and just keep addressing the long tail of problems.”Shares of Tesla rose as much as 3.1% to $1,408.56 in early New York trading on Thursday.Musk’s view contrasts with Alphabet Inc.’s Waymo, which recently acknowledged it will be relying on human safety drivers to back up its robotaxis for many years to come. General Motors Co.’s Cruise last year backed off plans to make autonomous vehicles available for hailing rides and hasn’t set a new timetable for when such a service will be ready.Related: The State of the Self-Driving Car Race 2020Musk, 49, has repeatedly described autonomous driving as transformative for Tesla. He’s not alone in this sense: Cruise CEO Dan Ammann has estimated there will be a $1 trillion addressable market in the U.S. for autonomous ride hailing.During Thursday’s video, Musk said that original engineering on Tesla technology is an important facet of the company’s operations in China, which are anchored by its massive new factory near Shanghai.(Updates with shares in sixth paragraph.)For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.
- TechCrunch
Google expands its Swirl 3D ad format
Google is announcing the global availability of Swirl, an ad format the company unveiled in beta just over a year ago. The Swirl format involves banner ads that include interactive 3D product models. Swirl lets consumers engage with a product like it's right in front of them by allowing them to rotate, zoom and expand the creative in the ad.
- Zacks
Cloud Investments Increase Amid Coronavirus: Stocks in Focus
With people now preferring to work remotely due to growing number of coronavirus cases, investments in the cloud space have increased.
- Bloomberg
TikTok Says a Quarter of Videos Removed Involve Misbehaving Kids
(Bloomberg) -- Almost a quarter of the videos TikTok took down in 2019’s second half involved inappropriate behavior by minors, from illegal drug use to sexual activity.The Chinese-owned social video service said 24.8% of the clips removed were “depicting harmful, dangerous, or illegal behavior by minors, like alcohol or drug use, as well as more serious content we take immediate action to remove.” Another 15.6% “violated our suicide, self-harm, and dangerous acts policy,” TikTok said in its second transparency report.TikTok -- which has insisted it operates independently of Beijing despite its Chinese ownership -- has come under fire in the U.S. and India for the way it polices content on a platform used by more than a billion people. Parent ByteDance Ltd. has been accused of censoring content that may anger the Chinese government, even as scrutiny grows about its control over the personal information of youths.The report made no mention of requests related to China, where ByteDance is based but TikTok doesn’t operate. A company spokesperson said it also didn’t receive a single data request in the second half from Hong Kong, a market it’s abandoned after Beijing passed a controversial law to grant police sweeping powers over online content. This week, U.S. internet giants from Facebook Inc. to Google said they will stop processing data requests from the city’s government, signaling their opposition to the legislation. TikTok was no longer available on Apple’s and Google’s Hong Kong app stores as of Thursday.Read more: TikTok Pulling Out of Hong Kong After China Law ControversyThe video sharing app said it removed more than 49 million clips overall, according to its report on enforcement of content policy and government takedown requests. Of those removed videos, more than 16 million originated in India, a small portion of which came down after government request. TikTok said that of the total videos removed, its systems proactively caught and removed 98.2% before a user reported them, while 89.4% were taken down before they got any views.The disclosure from TikTok comes in the same week as reports that the Federal Trade Commission and the U.S. Department of Justice have started to inquire about the company’s data practices -- specifically accusations that the app collected data on users under the age of 13. A prior iteration of the app paid $5.7 million in 2019 to settle similar claims by the FTC.“TikTok takes the issue of safety seriously for all our users,” a spokesperson said this week, “and we continue to further strengthen our safeguards and introduce new measures to protect young people on the app.” He declined to comment on whether the FTC or DOJ had approached TikTok about an investigation.Read more: TikTok Owner’s Profit Said to Hit $3 Billion as Sales DoubleFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.
