Check out the companies making headlines in midday trading. Reddit – Shares soared 41% after the social media company reported a blockbuster third-quarter report . Reddit reported earnings of 16 cents per share, while analysts surveyed by LSEG had expected a loss of 7 cents. The company’s $348.4 million revenue also exceeded consensus estimates of $312.8 million. Reddit guided fourth-quarter revenue and adjusted earnings that beat the average analyst estimate. Super Micro Computer – The AI server stock shed 30% after revealing in a regulatory filing that its auditor EY resigned after raising concerns about the board’s independence and accounting practices. Garmin – Shares rose more than 23%, hitting a new 52-week high, following the company’s better-than-expected third-quarter results. For the period, Garmin posted pro forma earnings of $1.99 per share on $1.59 billion in revenue. That’s above the $1.45 per share on $1.44 billion in revenue that analysts polled by FactSet were expecting. The company also raised its full-year forecast. Eli Lilly – The stock plummeted more than 7% after the drug maker posted weaker-than-expected third-quarter earnings and cut its full-year outlook. Eli Lilly earned $1.18 per share, excluding items, on revenue of $11.44 billion. That’s below the consensus estimate of $1.47 per share and $12.11 billion in revenue, according to LSEG. XPO – Shares soared more than 13% on the backs of the logistics company topping Wall Street’s third-quarter expectations. XPO earned $1.02 per share, excluding items, while analysts polled by FactSet had expected 90 cents per share. Revenue, on the other hand, came in just ahead of expectations, with the company seeing $2.05 billion compared to the consensus estimate of $2.02 billion. Shake Shack – The stock moved nearly 14% higher, hitting a new 52-week high, after the burger chain’s quarterly results surpassed the Street’s expectations. For the third quarter, Shake Shack earned 25 cents per share, excluding items, on $316.9 million in revenue. Analysts surveyed by LSEG were expecting 20 cents per share on $316.1 million in revenue. Caesars Entertainment – The stock plunged more than 10% on the heels of the casino operator missing analysts’ expectations for the third quarter. In an earnings call with analysts, CEO Thomas Reeg said, “There’s still more headwinds than tailwinds for us. I think you’re looking at a year that’s down slightly to flat is my Regional expectation for next year.” Wingstop – Shares fell around 19% after the restaurant chain missed analysts’ expectations for the third quarter. Wingstop earned 88 cents per share, while analysts were looking for 95 cents per share, per LSEG. Chipotle – The fast casual chain’s stock slid more than 7% after the company missed the Street’s revenue estimates for the third quarter. Chipotle also missed expectations for same-store sales, seeing a 6% increase in the period compared to the 6.3% growth that analysts polled by StreetAccount were expecting. Alphabet – The search giant’s stock gained more than 5% following the Google parent’s stronger-than-expected third-quarter earnings . The company also saw strong cloud revenue growth for the period, notching nearly 35% gains from the prior-year period. Visa – The stock advanced nearly 4% following the global payments company’s earnings beat for the fiscal fourth quarter. Visa posted $2.71 in adjusted earnings per share on revenue of $9.62 billion. Analysts were expecting $2.58 per share on revenue of $9.49 billion, per LSEG. The company also increased its quarterly dividend by 13% to 59 cents . Qorvo – The semiconductor stock dove 24.6%. Weak earnings guidance for the current quarter appeared to pull attention from a better-than-expected report for the second fiscal quarter. Following the report, Raymond James downgraded its rating to market perform from outperform and removed its price target. Snap – Shares surged nearly 16% on the backs of a better-than-expected third-quarter earnings report and the announcement of a $500 million stock repurchase program. The social media platform posted 8 cents in adjusted earnings per share and revenue of $1.37 billion. Analysts were looking for 5 cents per share and $1.36 billion in revenue, according to LSEG. Advanced Micro Devices – Shares tumbled 9.5% after AMD gave guidance for fourth-quarter revenue of $7.5 billion, in line with analysts expectations, per LSEG. It also posted adjusted earnings per share for the third quarter that met expectations, while revenue beat estimates. VinFast Auto – The stock rose more than 2% after Bloomberg News, citing a person with direct knowledge of the matter, reported that a group of investors is going to invest at least $1 billion into the electric vehicle maker. The funding push is being led by Emirates Driving, according to the Bloomberg News source. Humana – The health insurance stock jumped more than 3% after a better-than-expected report for the third quarter. Humana generated $4.16 in adjusted earnings per share on $29.30 billion of adjusted revenue. Analysts surveyed by LSEG had penciled in $3.40 per share on $28.67 billion of revenue. First Solar – The solar stock dipped 1% after posting disappointing third-quarter earnings and revenue, and lowering its full-year guidance. First Solar reported per-share earnings of $2.91 on revenue of $887.7 million. Analysts polled by FactSet anticipated earnings of $3.16 per share on revenue of $1.08 billion. However, a number of Wall Street firms including Goldman Sachs and Bank of America reiterated buy ratings on the stock following the results, with Bank of America saying “don’t fret the noise.” — CNBC’s Alex Harring, Samantha Subin, Lisa Kailai Han, Sarah Min, Jesse Pound and Michelle Fox contributed reporting.
Ken Griffin, chief executive officer and founder of Citadel Advisors LLC, speaks during an Economic Club of New York event in New York, US, on Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024.
Yuki Iwamura | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Citadel CEO Ken Griffin issued a warning against the steep tariffs President-elect Donald Trump vowed to implement, saying crony capitalism could be a consequence.
“I am gravely concerned that the rise of tariffs puts us on a slippery slope towards crony capitalism,” the billionaire investor said Thursday at the Economic Club of New York.
The Citadel founder thinks domestic companies could enjoy a short-term benefit of having their competitors taken away. Longer term, however, it does more harm to corporate America and the economy as companies lose competitiveness and productivity.
Crony capitalism is an economic system marked by close, mutually advantageous relationships between business leaders and government officials.
“Those same companies that enjoy that momentary sugar rush of having their competitors removed from the battlefield, soon become complacent, soon take for granted their newfound economic superiority, and frankly, they become less competitive on both the world stage and less competitive at meeting the needs of the American consumer,” Griffin said at the event.
Trump made universal tariffs a core tenet of his economic campaign pitch, floating a 20% levy on all imports from all countries with a specifically harsh 60% rate for Chinese goods.
The protectionist trade policy could make production of goods more expensive and raise consumer prices, just as the world recovers from pandemic-era inflation spikes.
“Now you’re going to find the halls of Washington really filled with the special interest groups and the lobbyists as people look for continued higher and higher tariffs to keep away foreign competition, and to protect inefficient American businesses have failed to meet the needs of the American consumer,” Griffin said.
At the same event, Griffin also said that he’s not focused on taking Citadel Securities public in the foreseeable future. Citadel is a market maker founded by Griffin in 2002.
“We’re focused on building the business, on investing in our future. And we do believe that there are benefits to being private during this period of very, very rapid growth,” he said.
Check out the companies making headlines in midday trading. Nvidia — Shares of the chipmaker dipped about 1% in midday trading, after gyrating earlier in the session. Nvidia beat on top and bottom lines for the third quarter, posting adjusted earnings of 81 cents per share on revenue of $35.08 billion. Analysts polled by LSEG had called for earnings of 75 cents per share on $33.16 billion in revenue. Nvidia also gave a better-than-expected forecast for the current quarter. Baidu — U.S. shares of the Chinese search engine fell about 5% after Baidu’s third-quarter revenue declined by 3% compared to the year-ago period . Still, the company posted a 12% increase in its non-online marketing revenue, fueled mostly by growth in its artificial intelligence cloud business. Alphabet — Shares declined 5% on news that the Department of Justice is pushing a federal judge to force Google divest its Chrome internet browser in order to create a more level playing field for competitors in the search industry. That follows a ruling in August that Google has a monopoly in the search market. Snowflake — The data analytics software maker saw shares skyrocket more than 34%, after the company’s better-than-expected third-quarter results . The stock is heading for its best day ever. Snowflake also called for $3.43 billion in fiscal 2025 product revenue, implying 29% growth. CEO Sridhar Ramaswamy said Snowflake is focusing more on saving money. Merus — Shares of the cancer therapeutics company gained nearly 4%. Goldman Sachs initiated coverage of Merus with a buy rating, saying it sees big gains ahead driven by the company’s cancer treatment. Netflix — Shares rose nearly 2% on the heels of Bank of America reiterating its buy rating on the stock and upping its price target to $1,000. The bank cited live events, as well as Netflix’s in-house ad tech platform, as catalysts for growth. Crypto-related stocks — Stocks tied to cryptocurrencies earlier rose after the price of bitcoin crossed $98,000 for the first time , but they fluctuated after Galaxy Digital CEO Michael Novogratz warned that a pullback in bitcoin will come eventually. MicroStrategy was down 1%, reversing its earlier gains, while Coinbase dipped 3%. Miner Mara Holdings gained nearly 10%, while trading platform Robinhood dipped about 1%. BJ’s Wholesale Club — Shares moved 9% higher after the warehouse club’s third-quarter adjusted earnings beat the Street’s estimates. BJ’s also boosted its full-year guidance. The company said it will increase its membership fee and announced plans to repurchase $1 billion shares. PDD Holdings — Shares of the e-commerce giant, which owns Temu, fell 9.7%. PDD missed profit and revenue estimates. — CNBC’s Sean Conlon, Yun Li and Michelle Fox contributed reporting.
Rohit Chopra, director of the CFPB, testifies during the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee hearing titled “The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s Semi-Annual Report to Congress,” in the Dirksen Building on Nov. 30, 2023.
Tom Williams | Cq-roll Call, Inc. | Getty Images
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on Thursday issued a finalized version of a rule saying it will soon supervise nonbank firms that offer financial services likes payments and wallet apps.
Tech giants and payments firms that handle at least 50 million transactions annually will fall under the review, which is meant to ensure the newer entrants adhere to the laws that banks and credit unions abide by, the CFPB said in a release. That would include popular services from Apple and Google, as well as payment firms like PayPal and Block.
While the CFPB already had some authority over digital payment companies because of its oversight of electronic fund transfers, the new rule allows it to treat tech companies more like banks. It makes the firms subject to “proactive examinations” to ensure legal compliance, enabling it to demand records and interview employees.
“Digital payments have gone from novelty to necessity and our oversight must reflect this reality,” said CFPB Director Rohit Chopra. “The rule will help to protect consumer privacy, guard against fraud, and prevent illegal account closures.”
A year ago, the CFPB said it wanted to extend its oversight to tech and fintech companies that offer financial services but that have sidestepped more scrutiny by partnering with banks. Americans are increasingly using payment apps as de facto bank accounts, storing cash and making everyday purchases through their mobile phones.
The most popular apps covered by the rule collectively process more than 13 billion consumer payments a year, and have gained “particularly strong adoption” among low- and middle-income users, the CFPB said on Thursday.
“What began as a convenient alternative to cash has evolved into a critical financial tool, processing over a trillion dollars in payments between consumers and their friends, families, and businesses,” the regulator said.
The initial proposal would’ve subjected companies that process at least 5 million transactions annually to some of the same examinations that the CFPB conducts on banks and credit unions. That threshold got raised to 50 million transactions in the final rule, the agency said Thursday.
Payment apps that only work at a particular retailer, like Starbucks, are excluded from the rule.
The new CFPB rule is one of the rare instances where the U.S. banking industry publicly supported the regulator’s actions; banks have long felt that tech firms making inroads in financial services ought to be more scrutinized.
The CFPB said the rule will take effect 30 days after its publication in the Federal Register.