Check out the companies making headlines in extended trading: Apple — The iPhone maker shed 2% after its closely watched Services division performed below expectations in the fiscal second quarter. Services revenue came in at $26.65 billion, lower than the $26.70 billion analysts surveyed by StreetAccount anticipated. Overall earnings and revenue during the period beat Wall Street’s expectations. Airbnb — Shares slipped more than 4%. Airbnb expects second-quarter revenue in a range between $2.99 billion and $3.05 billion, or $3.02 billion at the middle of the range. Analysts had forecast $3.04 billion in revenue. Management noted softening trends in the U.S. segment on a sequential on a year-over-year basis due to macro uncertainty. Amazon — The e-commerce giant fell about 4% after its second-quarter operating income guidance range missed analysts’ estimates. Amazon is forecasting operating income to land between $13 billion and $17.5 billion, which missed the $17.64 billion consensus call, according to StreetAccount. Meanwhile, Amazon managed to beat on both the top and bottom lines in the first quarter. Roku — The streaming company fell 3% after posting its first-quarter results. Roku reported a loss of 19 cents per share on $1.02 billion in revenue. This was slightly better than consensus estimates, which anticipated losses of 27 cents per share on revenue of $1.01 billion, according to LSEG. Block – Shares of the financial services company plunged more than 17% after its first-quarter revenue missed analysts’ estimates, posting $5.77 billion for the period. That is less than the $6.20 billion analysts had penciled in, according to LSEG. Maplebear – The grocery delivery company, which does business as Instacart, jumped 5% after giving an upbeat forecast for the current quarter. The company expects adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, or EBITDA, for the second quarter to come in between $240 million and $250 million, while analysts polled by FactSet were expecting $234.8 million. Earnings and revenue for the first quarter came in weaker than expected, however. Twilio – The stock surged more than 7% after the cloud communications company’s first-quarter results topped Wall Street expectations. Twilio posted adjusted earnings of $1.14 per share on $1.17 billion in revenue, above the 94 cents per share and $1.14 billion in revenue analysts surveyed by LSEG were expecting. The company also forecast stronger-than-expected revenue for the second quarter. Reddit – The social media forum surged about 18%. Reddit sees second-quarter sales coming in between $410 million and $430 million, ahead of analysts’ estimates for $396 million. First-quarter results trounced the Street’s expectations, as Reddit posted earnings of 13 cents per share on revenue of $392 million. Analysts polled by LSEG sought 2 cents per share in earnings and $370 million in revenue. Atlassian – The software company tanked 15% as Atlassian’s fiscal fourth-quarter revenue outlook failed to dazzle investors. The company sees sales ranging between $1.35 billion and $1.36 billion, compared to the $1.36 billion analysts were seeking, per LSEG. Third-quarter adjusted earnings came in at 97 cents per share, while revenue was $1.36 billion, slightly above the Street’s estimates. Duolingo – The maker of the learning platform jumped 9% after providing rosy guidance. Duolingo sees second-quarter revenue ranging between $239 million and $242 million, while LSEG consensus estimates called for $234 million. Full-year revenue is expected to range between $987 million and $996 million, versus the Street’s estimate of $977 million. — CNBC’s Darla Mercado, Sean Conlon and Jesse Pound contributed reporting.
Check out the companies making headlines in extended trading. Ross Stores — Shares pulled back more than 11%. Ross withdrew its earlier full-year guidance . The off-price retailer said that it expects second-quarter earnings to range from $1.40 to $1.55 per share, while analysts polled by LSEG sought $1.65 per share. Ross also said that it expects pressure on its profitability if tariffs remain at elevated levels. AutoDesk — Shares gained more than 2% after the software company issued a higher-than-expected second-quarter outlook. AutoDesk forecast adjusted earnings in the current quarter in the range of $2.44 to $2.48 per share on revenue of $1.72 billion to $1.73 billion. Analysts polled by LSEG were looking for $2.34 cents per share and revenue of $1.70 billion. Intuit — Shares of the tax software company gained about 8% after Intuit forecast a rosy outlook for the full year. The firm forecast adjusted earnings in the range of $20.07 to $20.12 per share, up from its earlier guidance of $19.16 to $19.36 per share. FactSet consensus estimates sought $19.40 per share. Fiscal third-quarter results also topped estimates. Workday — The human resources software company pulled back more than 6% after forecasting subscription revenue in the second quarter of $2.16 billion, which matched the StreetAccount consensus estimate. The company’s first-quarter results surpassed analyst estimates on the top and bottom lines. StepStone Group — Shares of the private market investment firm surged 13%. Assets under management surged to $189.4 billion in the fiscal fourth quarter, up from $156.6 billion in the year-ago period. Deckers Outdoor — The maker of Ugg boots saw shares slide 14%. Deckers declined to provide full-year guidance for fiscal 2026, citing “macroeconomic uncertainty related to evolving global trade policies.” Fourth-quarter results beat LSEG consensus expectations on the top and bottom lines, however. — CNBC’s Darla Mercado contributed reporting
Ray Dalio, founder of Bridgewater Associates LP, speaks during the Greenwich Economic Forum in Greenwich, Connecticut, US, on Tuesday, Oct. 3, 2023.
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Billionaire investor Ray Dalio on Thursday sounded another alarm on soaring U.S. debt and deficits, saying it should make investors fearful of the government bond market.
“I think we should be afraid of the bond market,” Dalio said at an event for the Paley Media Council in New York. “It’s like … I’m a doctor, and I’m looking at the patient, and I’ve said, you’re having this accumulation, and I can tell you that this is very, very serious, and I can’t tell you the exact time. I would say that if we’re really looking over the next three years, to give or take a year or two, that we’re in that type of a critical, critical situation.”
The founder of Bridgewater Associates, one of the world’s largest hedge funds, has warned about the ballooning U.S. deficit for years. Recently, investors have begun demanding lower prices to buy the bonds that cover the government’s massive budget deficits, pushing up yields on the debt. Rising worries about the fiscal situation last week triggered a high-profile credit rating downgrade from Moody’s.
Rising financing costs along with continued spending growth and declining tax receipts have combined to send deficits spiraling, pushing the national debt past the $36 trillion mark. In 2024, the government spent more on interest payments than any other outlay other than Social Security, defense and health care.
“We will have a deficit of about 6.5% of GDP — that that is more than the market can bear,” Dalio said.
Dalio said he’s not hopeful politicians would be able to reconcile their differences and lessen the country’s debt load. In a party-line vote early Thursday, House members approved legislation that lowers taxes and adds military spending. The bill — which now goes to the Senate — could increase the U.S. government’s debt by trillions and widen the deficit at a time when fears of a flare-up in inflation due higher tariffs are already weighing on bond prices and boosting yields.
“I’m not optimistic. I have to be realistic,” Dalio said. “I think it’s the essence of the challenge of our country that anything related to bipartisanship and getting over political hurdles … essentially means ‘give me more,’ which leads to these deficits.”
People walk by the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) on June 18, 2024 in New York City.
Spencer Platt | Getty Images
Hopes for an active year of mergers and acquisitions could be back on track after being briefly derailed by the Trump administration’s sweeping tariff policies last month.
Dealmaking in the U.S. was off to a strong start this year before President Donald Trump announced tariff policies that led to extremely volatile market conditions that put a chill on activity. In a pre-tariffs world, dealmakers were encouraged by the Trump administration’s pro-business flavor and deregulatory agenda, as well as previously easing concerns about inflation. Those trends were expected to fuel an even stronger M&A comeback in 2025, after last year’s moderate recovery from a slow 2023.
This year’s appetite for dealmaking came back quickly after Trump suspended his highest tariffs and market jitters took a backseat. If borrowing costs remain in check, many expect activity could be brisk.
“More clarity on trade policy and rebounding equities markets have set the stage for continued M&A, even in sectors hit especially hard by tariffs,” Kevin Ketcham, a mergers and acquisitions analyst at Mergermarket, told CNBC.
The total value of U.S. deals jumped to more than $227 billion in March, which saw 586 deals, before suddenly slowing down in April to roughly 650 deals worth about $134 billion, according to data compiled by Mergermarket.
So far this month, activity is rebounding and the average deal has been larger. More than 300 deals collectively valued at more than $125 billion have been struck this month as of May 20, Mergermarket said.
That’s encouraging. After Trump’s “liberation day” tariff announcement, U.S. deal activity plunged by 66% to $9 billion during the first week of April from the prior week, while global M&A activity dropped by 14% week over week to $37.8 billion, according to the data.
Charles Corpening, chief investment officer of private equity firm West Lane Partners, anticipates M&A activity to pick up after the summer.
“The trade war has indeed caused a slowdown in the anticipated M&A boom earlier this year, particularly in the second quarter,” Corpening said.
Higher bond yields are also hurting activity in the U.S. given that higher rates translate into greater financing costs, which reduces asset prices, he said.
Corpening expects greater interest towards special situations M&A, or deals that involve a motivated seller and tend to be flexible with their structure and terms, as well as smaller transactions, which are easier to finance and generally face less regulatory scrutiny.
“We’re beginning to see signs of recovery and we’re getting some clarity on the types of deals that are likely to get into the pipeline soonest,” Corpening said. “We anticipate that these earlier transactions will lean toward special situations as the better-performing businesses will wait for more market stability in order to maximize sale price.”
Several major deals have been announced in recent months, with large transactions occurring in tech, telecommunications and utilities so far this year.
Some of the biggest include:
According to Ketcham, the Dick’s-Foot Locker deal “likely isn’t an outlier” given that Victoria’s Secret on Tuesday adopted a “poison pill” plan. Such a limited-duration shareholder rights plan suggests the lingerie retailer is concerned about the threat of a potential takeover, he said.
Ketcham added that some consumer companies are adapting to the new macroeconomic environment instead of pausing dealmaking. He cited packaged food giant Kraft Heinz confirmation on Thursday that it has been evaluating potential transactions over the past several months as an example. Kraft Heinz said it would consider selling off some of its slower growing brands or buying a brands in some of its core categories such as sauces and snacks.
This kind of trend would lead to smaller deals, which has already been seen this year. For example, PepsiCo scooped up Poppi, a prebiotic soda brand, for $1.95 billion in March.