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Tag: Financial Performance

  • Amazon and Apple to headline Q2 earnings this week

    Amazon and Apple to headline Q2 earnings this week

    When Amazon.com Inc. and Apple Inc. report quarterly results on Thursday, we’ll get a look at two big companies, with big expectations, trying to do smaller things — or at least less exciting things, or things that might be more inconveniencing to customers — to stay bigger.

    For Apple
    AAPL,
    +1.35%    ,
    D.A. Davidson analyst Tom Forte said, the focus will be on the iPhone, as always, as well as demand abroad and a new VR headset, as its stock hovers near record highs and its market value holds above $3 trillion. And he said that Amazon
    AMZN,
    +3.09%    ,
    meanwhile, could face questions about the impact of cost cuts on e-commerce growth, and what AI could do to boost slower growth in its cloud business.

    The results from those companies, which are big enough to make or break a single quarter’s worth for the S&P 500 Index
    SPX,
    +0.99%    ,
    will follow those from the other tech giants like Microsoft Corp.
    MSFT,
    +2.31%
    and Facebook parent Meta Platforms Inc.
    META,
    +4.42%    .
    And they’ll arrive as Wall Street starts to get a tad more realistic about AI: Microsoft shares fell after management said the expansion of its AI capabilities would be “gradual” — and gradually more expensive.

    D.A. Davidson analyst Tom Forte, in a research note this month, said Amazon, like other big tech companies, was taking more steps to control its costs. That might help margins, he said. But he said he’d be watching for any impact to e-commerce sales growth, following thousands of layoffs and pulling back on its expansion of Amazon Fresh.

    Amazon began tacking on servicing fees onto some Amazon Fresh delivery orders this year. And Forte noted what he said were other tweaks to service: Charging for a home pickup of a defective smoke alarm that used to be free, and incentives to wait longer during Prime Day.

    “In our view, Amazon is playing a ‘game of chicken’ and banking on other e-commerce companies not to offer a superior service, instead of its historical approach of working backwards with a customer-obsessed approach,” D.A. Davidson analyst Tom Forte said in a research note.

    He added later: “We believe there is something to be said about the experience of having an Amazon-branded delivery vehicle show up at your house EVERY day. Having one show up once a week or twice is not the same.”

    At Apple, Forte said in a separate note, the iPhone, whose sales were still solid, had turned into more of a consumer staple than a discretionary buy. He also said he’d be looking for more detail about the upcoming iPhone 15 — likely to be modestly fancier than previous iPhones — the recovery in China and growth in India. Apple last month also unveiled its Vision Pro VR headset — for $3,499. Forte said he had his doubts.

    “We believe Apple will have to overcome a number of structural challenges to achieve mass adoption for its AR/VR headset,” he said.

    This week in earnings

    Apple and Amazon will report as more companies than normal report quarterly profit ahead of estimates, according to a FactSet report on Friday. For the week ahead, 170 S&P 500 companies report results, with four from the Dow, the repot said.

    Results from Uber Technologies Inc.
    UBER,
    +3.28%
    and DoorDash Inc.
    DASH,
    +4.20%
    will offer an update on the gig economy and how far app-based deliveries can go, while results from Kraft Heinz Inc.
    KHC,
    -0.11%
    will offer an update on food prices and how much they might ease from the highs seen in recent months.

    With the “Barbie” movie lifting rival Mattel Inc.
    MAT,
    -2.40%    ,
    results from Hasbro Inc
    HAS,
    -0.29%
    during the week will offer a glance at the rest of the toy industry, where demand hasn’t exactly been great, and what entertainment options Hasbro has up its sleeve to keep apace with its archrival. Drug maker Pfizer Inc.
    PFE,
    -0.36%
    reports, as does video-game maker Electronic Arts Inc.
    EA,
    +0.25%    .
    Starbucks Corp.
    SBUX,
    +0.47%
    reports as well.

    The call to put on your calendar

    “Barbie,” the Hollywood strike and Warner Bros. Discovery: Mattel has said it wants to turn “Barbie” into a content franchise. Now we’ll hear what Warner Bros. Discovery Inc.
    WBD,
    +4.07%    ,
    the media conglomerate that produced the film, thinks about the film’s results and its prospects, as studios increasingly pump out sequels or offshoots of well-known, established character universes like “Star Wars,” Marvel and DC. The company — which reports oversees Warner Bros. CNN, TNT and the streaming service Max — reports quarterly results on Thursday. But even as “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” carry the parts of the entertainment industry that are still functioning through the Hollywood strike, Wall Street will likely be focused on contingency plans, and any sense of whether more viewers are turning to streaming with productions on pause.

    The number to watch

    Payments and crypto volumes: Results this week from trading app Robinhood Markets Inc.
    HOOD,
    +4.09%
    and crypto exchange Coinbase Global Inc.
    COIN,
    +2.23%    ,
    along with PayPal Holdings Inc.
    PYPL,
    +2.71%
    and Block
    SQ,
    +3.42%    ,
    will land at the intersection of rebounding markets and job-market concerns.

    UBS analysts predicted solid growth and cost control for Block, and “steady” e-commerce trends for PayPal. But BofA analysts said PayPal’s search for a new chief executive, following the announcement of Dan Schulman’s retirement at the end of the year, would become more important, adding that “we think investors should rightfully expect the CEO search to conclude in the near-term.” While Bitcoin’s rebound helped Coinbase, the company and others in the industry face the prospect of tougher regulations. Robinhood and PayPal report on Wednesday. Coinbase and Block report on Thursday.

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  • Ford revenue jumps 12%, but stock dips as Wall Street spooked by shifting EV production goal

    Ford revenue jumps 12%, but stock dips as Wall Street spooked by shifting EV production goal

    Ford Motor Co. late Thursday reported quarterly profit that was about three times higher than last year’s and a 12% increase in its revenue, moving it to raise its outlook for 2023, but the beat-and-raise was overshadowed by a delay in EV production goals.

    Ford stock
    F,
    +0.44%
    initially rose about 3% after the positive results, with Chief Executive Jim Farley telling investors that the company’s goal is to match an “exciting, long-term vision” of itself with “boringly predictable execution quarter after quarter, year after year.”

    Share gains started to fade, however, as investors zeroed in on the shifted production goal, and ended the extended session down 1.2%. Ford said it expects to reach a production rate of 600,000 EVs in 2024; when it reported first-quarter earnings in May it said it would reach that milestone by the end of this year.

    The company’s EV production growth has been “disappointing,” CFRA analyst Garrett Nelson said Thursday.

    Nelson said he was “cautious” on Ford in light of the stock’s run so far this year and the possibility that “higher-for-longer” interest rates would weigh on sales after a strong first half of the year. Looming labor negotiations with the United Auto Workers are another reason for caution, he said.

    Ford earned $1.9 billion, or 47 cents a share, in the second quarter, nearly three times higher than in the year-ago period and a 4% margin, the company said. Adjusted for one-time items, the automaker earned 72 cents a share.

    Revenue rose 12% to $45 billion, Ford said, and its cash and liquidity are “persistently strong.” The revenue increase included a 39% rise for Ford’s EV business.

    Analysts polled by FactSet expected Ford to report adjusted earnings of 54 cents a share on sales of $43.17 billion.

    Supply-chain “disruptions” have persisted but are now easing, and Ford has “more work to do” to streamline its systems, reduce costs and improve quality, Farley said in the call.

    EV adoption is still in the upswing, Farley said, but the number of companies entering the market is growing even at the higher end of the market. With its varied offers, though, Ford is building EV “loyalists” to its brand, Farley said.

    Ford lifted its EBIT guidance range for the full year to between $11 billion and $12 billion. It also adjusted upward its expectations for 2023 adjusted free cash flow to between $6.5 billion and $7 billion. Capital expenditures would be between $8 billion and $9 billion, the automaker said.

    The guidance presumes “headwinds” including “global economic uncertainty and inflationary pressures, higher industrywide customer incentives and continued EV pricing pressure,” Ford said, as well as increased warranty costs and costs associated with union contract negotiations.

    On the positive side, “tailwinds” accounted for in the guidance included “improved” supply chain, higher industry volumes, upside from the its all-new Ford Super Duty truck and lower commodity costs, Ford said.

    Ford earlier this month surprised Wall Street by cutting the price of its sought-after electric pickup truck, the F-150 Lightning.

    Ford earnings close the cycle for major U.S. automakers, as Tesla Inc.
    TSLA,
    -3.27%
    reported second-quarter earnings last week and General Motors Co.
    GM,
    +1.78%
    earlier this week.

    Shares of Ford have gained 19% so far this year, matching the advance for the S&P 500 index
    SPX,
    -0.64%    .
    The stock holds an outperformance, however, in the past three months, up 19% to the S&P’s 11%.

    See also: GM, Hyundai and other car manufacturers to build 30,000 fast EV chargers in challenge to Tesla

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  • Intel stock rallies after earnings show AI data-center beat, strong PC sales

    Intel stock rallies after earnings show AI data-center beat, strong PC sales

    Intel Corp. shares surged in the extended session Thursday after the chip maker posted a surprise profit, but while data-center sales came in better than expected, a larger beat in PC product sales drove margin improvement.

    Intel
    INTC,
    +0.55%
    shares surged around 8% after hours, following a 0.6% rise to close the regular session at $34.55.

    The company reported second-quarter net income of $1.48 billion, or 35 cents a share, versus a loss of $454 million, or 11 cents a share, in the year-ago period. After adjusting for restructuring charges and other items, Intel reported 13 cents a share, versus net income of 28 cents a share a year ago.

    Revenue fell to $12.95 billion from $15.32 billion in the year-ago period, and adjusted gross margins came in at 39.8%, the company said.

    Intel had forecast an adjusted second-quarter loss of 4 cents a share on revenue of about $11.5 billion to $12.5 billion for the current period, and adjusted gross margins of about 33.2% for the quarter.

    Analysts surveyed by FactSet, on average, expected a loss of 4 cents a share on revenue of $12.12 billion.

    The margin beat was “largely a function of revenue,” Intel Chief Financial Officer David Zinsner told analysts on a conference call, and that revenue beat was much more pronounced in Intel client, or PC, business than it was data center.

    “We had obviously beat revenue significantly, and we’ve got a good follow-through in the fixed-cost nature of our business, and so that really was what helped us outperform significantly on the gross-margin side in the second quarter,” Zinsner told analysts.

    Intel posted PC-group sales of $6.8 billion and data-center sales of $4 billion, while analysts surveyed by FactSet had forecast $6.08 billion and $3.8 billion, respectively.

    Before the conference call, Edward Jones analyst Logan Purk told MarketWatch in an interview following the report that most of the improvement in Intel’s gross margin came from the unexpected amount of growth in the PC business.

    “The magnitude of client computing growth, and how the PC market is recovering faster than anticipated,” came as a surprise, Purk told MarketWatch. The analyst, who has a hold rating on Intel, said he expects sequential single-digit improvement in data center going forward.

    Still, on the call, Intel Chief Executive Pat Gelsinger hammered home the point that Intel was wholeheartedly going after the AI market, which is expected to be dominated by Nvidia Corp.
    NVDA,
    +0.99%    ,
    and to a lesser extent, by Advanced Micro Devices Inc.
    AMD,
    +0.92%    ,
    which reports earnings on Tuesday.

    “We see AI being infused in everything and there’s going to be AI chips for the edge, AI chips for the communications infrastructure, AI chips for sensing devices, for automotive devices, and we see opportunities for us both as a product provider and as a foundry and technology provider across that spectrum,” Gelsinger said.

    Meanwhile, network and edge sales came in at $1.4 billion, while analysts called for $1.48 billion, and foundry services revenue rose to $232 million for the quarter, while Wall Street looked for $149.2 million.

    “In the third quarter, we do obviously at the midpoint see revenue growth sequentially and so that will be helpful in terms of gross margin,” Zinsner told analysts on the call. “We expect, again, pretty good follow-through as we get that incremental revenue.”

    Intel forecast third-quarter earnings of about 20 cents a share on revenue of about $12.9 billion to $13.9 billion and adjusted gross margins of about 43% for the current quarter. Analysts surveyed by FactSet had forecast third-quarter adjusted earnings of 16 cents a share on revenue of $13.22 billion.

    Read: Intel may have bottomed, but earnings will show if chip maker can hope to catch up to Nvidia and AMD in AI

    Year to date, Intel shares have gained nearly 31%, while the PHLX Semiconductor Index 
    SOX,
    +1.86%
    has surged 49%, the S&P 500
    SPX,
    -0.64%
    has grown 18%, the Nasdaq Composite
    COMP,
    -0.55%
    has gained 34% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average
    DJIA,
    -0.67%
    is up more than 6%.

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  • ‘The housing recession is over,’ real-estate group says, as pending home sales tick up for the first time in 4 months

    ‘The housing recession is over,’ real-estate group says, as pending home sales tick up for the first time in 4 months

    The numbers: Home sales inched up for the first time in four months, even as the U.S. housing market continues to deal with a dearth of listings. 

    Pending home sales rose by 0.3% in June from the previous month, according to the monthly index released Thursday by the National Association of Realtors.

    The figure exceeded expectations on Wall Street. Economists were expecting pending home sales to fall 0.5% in June.

    Transactions were still down 15.6% from last year.

    Pending home sales reflect transactions where a contract has been signed for the sale of an existing home but the sale has not yet closed. Economists view it as an indicator of the direction of existing-home sales in subsequent months.

    Big picture: Home sales rose as the housing market contends with excess buyer demand and a shortfall in the supply of homes for sale. 

    Real-estate agents are looking to home builders to fill the gap as rate-locked homeowners hold out on selling. New-home sales surged in May, and while they lost some momentum in June, the broader trend is still upward.

    The prices of new homes, which are generally seen as more expensive, are also coming down. The gulf between the median price of a new home and of an existing home narrowed in June, based on data from the NAR and the federal government. 

    What the real-estate experts said: “The recovery has not taken place, but the housing recession is over,” NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun said. “The presence of multiple offers implies that housing demand is not being satisfied due to lack of supply.” 

    The NAR also said it expects rates for 30-year mortgages to average 6.4% this year and to fall to 6% in 2024. 

    The NAR also expects existing-home sales to fall 12.9% in 2023 from the previous year, to 4.38 million, before recovering in 2024 to a rate of 5.06 million.

    The group also expects home prices to hold steady this year, falling only slightly by 0.4% to $384,900, before rising 2.6% next year to $395,000.

    “The West — the country’s most expensive region — will see reduced prices, while the more affordable Midwest region is likely to see a small positive increase,” Yun added.

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  • Weaker Energy Prices Temper Shell’s Profit, but Not Cash Payouts for Investors

    Weaker Energy Prices Temper Shell’s Profit, but Not Cash Payouts for Investors

    Weaker Energy Prices Temper Shell’s Profit, but Not Cash Payouts for Investors

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  • Anheuser Busch InBev to cut jobs after Bud Light boycott

    Anheuser Busch InBev to cut jobs after Bud Light boycott

    Anheuser-Busch InBev is planning to cut jobs in the U.S. after a sharp deterioration in sales following a boycott that’s still impacting Bud Light.

    The industry publication Brewbound said the company was going to cut 2% of its U.S. workforce, where it employs 19,000. The company told the publication that front-line workers, including warehouse staff and field reps, will not be impacted. The company did not specifically identify slumping Bud Light sales as the cause of the layoffs.

    Bud Light sales have tumbled after the company’s ill-fated social media promotion with Dylan Mulvaney.

    Citing Nielsen U.S. beer data, analysts at Bank of America said volumes at the brewer tumbled by 15.3% year-over-year in the four weeks ending July 15, compared to the 2.7% decline for the broader U.S. beer category.

    Bud Light sales over that same time period skidded 29.8%, and Budweiser volumes skidded 14%. In contrast, Coors Light sales rose 17% in the last four weeks, Miller Lite volumes rose by 12.5% and Yuengling sales surged 38%.

    Anheuser-Busch InBev’s U.S.-listed shares
    BUD,
    +0.22%
    have dropped 2% this year. In its home market of Belgium, shares
    ABI,
    +0.97%
    rose 0.6% on Thursday.

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  • ServiceNow Posts Strong Earnings and Adds New AI Tools. But the Stock Is Lower.

    ServiceNow Posts Strong Earnings and Adds New AI Tools. But the Stock Is Lower.

    This copy is for your personal, non-commercial use only. To order presentation-ready copies for distribution to your colleagues, clients or customers visit http://www.djreprints.com.

    https://www.barrons.com/articles/servicenow-earnings-stock-price-ef3bea69

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    ServiceNow


    posted better-than-expected results for its latest quarter and lifted its full-year outlook.

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  • Meta’s stock jumps after AI, ad momentum drive earnings, revenue jump

    Meta’s stock jumps after AI, ad momentum drive earnings, revenue jump

    Facebook parent Meta Platforms Inc. is raking in digital ads, as its earnings attest, and Wall Street is rewarding it. The company’s stock rose about 7% in after-hours trading Wednesday.

    Meta
    META,
    +1.39%
    reported fiscal second-quarter net income of $7.79 billion, or $2.98 a share, compared with net income of $6.7 billion, or $2.46 a share, in the year-ago quarter.

    Revenue climbed 11% to $32 billion from $28.8 billion in the year-ago quarter.

    Analysts surveyed by FactSet had expected on average net income of $2.91 a share on revenue of $31.1billion.

    Also see: Zuck beats Musk at his own game with Meta’s year of efficiency

    A rebound in advertising, the monetization of Instagram and Reels, and AI-fueled ad targeting and measurement contributed to the quarter’s performance. Meta’s better-than-expected performance comes on the heels of a similarly strong quarter from Google parent
    GOOGL,
    +5.78%

    GOOG,
    +5.59%
    Alphabet Inc. and poor results from Snap Inc.
    SNAP,
    -14.23%    .

    “We had a good quarter. We continue to see strong engagement across our apps and we have the most exciting roadmap I’ve seen in a while with Llama 2, Threads, Reels, new AI products in the pipeline, and the launch of Quest 3 this fall,” Meta Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg said in a statement announcing the results. AI has been an increasingly dominant story line for Meta, which has quickly shifted its focus from the metaverse. Zuckerberg said AI remains the company’s near-term focus, with metaverse poised to have a long-term impact.

    “In many ways, the two are interrelated,” Zuckerberg said of AI and metaverse in a conference call with analysts. He also spotlighted the potential of Threads, a Twitter-like service that launched earlier this month with much fanfare. “When it gets to hundreds of millions of users, we’ll see how it monetizes,” he said. “It is a long road ahead.”

    Meta executives forecast third-quarter revenue of $32 billion to $34.5 billion, while analysts on average were expecting $31.2 billion, according to FactSet.

    Facebook had 2.06 billion daily active users, up 5% from a year ago, and the “family” of Meta apps — which includes Instagram — reported daily active users of 3.07 billion, up 7%.

    There were blips amid the hoopla, however. Meta says it expects 2023 total expenses will be in the range of $88 billion to $91 billion, compared to the prior range of $86 billion to $90 billion because of legal-related expenses in the second quarter. And Meta’s headcount dropped 14% from a year ago to 71,469 as of June 30. Zuckerberg said Meta’s austerity program will continue into 2024.

    Meta’s stock improved 1.4% to $298.57 in the regular session. The stock has sky-rocketed 148% so far this year, while the broader S&P 500 index 
    SPX,
    -0.02%
     has increased 19%.

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  • PacWest stock rockets nearly 40% after Banc of California confirms plan to buy troubled bank

    PacWest stock rockets nearly 40% after Banc of California confirms plan to buy troubled bank

    PacWest Bancorp’s stock jumped more than 38% in after-hours trading Tuesday after the company said it had agreed to be acquired by Banc of California Inc. in an all-stock merger backed by two private-equity firms. The merger comes as PacWest looks to put a rocky period behind it.

    Under the terms of the merger agreement, PacWest
    PACW,
    -27.04%
    stockholders will receive 0.6569 of a share of Banc of California common stock for each share of PacWest common stock. Based on closing prices on Tuesday, the deal values PacWest at $9.60 a share, a premium over its closing price of $7.67 a share on Tuesday.

    Warburg Pincus and Centerbridge will provide $400 million in equity.

    PacWest stockholders will own 47% of the outstanding shares of the combined company, while the private-equity investors will own 19% and Banc of California shareholders will have 34%.

    PacWest said that it is the company being acquired and that it will change its name to Banc of California. PacWest said it will be the “accounting acquirer,” with fair-value accounting applied to Banc of California’s balance sheet at closing.

    Banc of California CEO Jared Wolff will retain the same role at the combined company.

    The combined company will repay about $13 billion in wholesale borrowings to be funded by the sale of assets, “which are fully marked as a result of the transaction, and excess cash,” the companies said.

    The merged company is currently projecting about $36.1 billion in assets, $25.3 billion in total loans, $30.5 billion in total deposits and more than 70 branches in California.

    John Eggemeyer, the independent lead director at PacWest, will be chair of the board of the combined company following the merger.

    The board of directors of the combined company will consist of 12 directors: eight from the existing Banc of California board, three from the existing PacWest board and one from the pair of private-equity firms led by Warburg Pincus.

    Citing sources close to the deal, the Wall Street Journal had reported earlier that a tie-up was imminent.

    In regular trading Tuesday, PacWest’s stock ended 27% down; trading was halted for volatility following the report of the deal.

    Banc of California’s stock rose 11% but was later halted for news pending as well. The stock rose more than 9% in after-hours trading on Tuesday.

    At last check, PacWest’s market capitalization was about $1.2 billion, while Banc of California’s was about $764 million. Combined, the business would be worth about $2 billion.

    PacWest’s big share-price move on Tuesday marks the latest in a volatile few months for the Beverly Hills, Calif., bank, which was founded in 1999.

    Investors had speculated that the bank could be the next to fail after Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank failed in March and First Republic Bank was taken over by JPMorgan.

    Also on Tuesday, PacWest said it lost $207.4 million, or $1.75 a share, in its second quarter, as it got a hit from items related to loan sales and restructuring of its lending unit Civic. The loss contrasts with earnings of $122 million, or $1.02 a share, in the year-ago period.

    Analysts polled by FactSet expected the bank to report a loss of 58 cents a share in the quarter.

    PacWest disclosed in recent months that it was exploring strategic alternatives while it sold off parts of its business to raise cash to strengthen its balance sheet. It sold a loan portfolio to Ares Management Corp.
    ARES,
    +0.92%
    in a move to generate $2 billion.

    Also read: PacWest sells loan portfolio to Ares Management in deal that generates $2 billion ‘to improve liquidity’

    It also sold a portfolio of loans to Kennedy-Wilson Holdings Inc.
    KW,
    -1.70%    ,
    which then sold part of the portfolio to Canada’s Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd.
    FFH,
    +1.07%    .

    Also read: PacWest sparks regional-bank rally after unveiling plan to sell loans worth $2.6 billion

    In May, PacWest sold its real-estate lending portfolio to Roc360.

    Also in May, PacWest’s stock dropped more than 20% after it said it had lost 9.5% of its deposits amid market volatility.

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  • Sales forecast sinks Snap stock, and execs say more investments are likely ahead to improve platform

    Sales forecast sinks Snap stock, and execs say more investments are likely ahead to improve platform

    Like other social-media platforms, Snap has struggled with a slowdown in the digital ad market.


    AFP/Getty Images

    Shares of Snap Inc. slid in after-hours trade Tuesday after the social-media platform forecast third-quarter sales that were below expectations, amid concerns about a wobbly digital advertising backdrop and the company’s spending push to improve the way people interact and advertise when they log on.

    Snap
    SNAP,
    -1.34%
    said it expects third-quarter revenue of $1.07 billion to $1.13 billion. The midpoint of that range was below FactSet estimates for $1.13 billion.

    Shares tumbled 18.4% after hours on Tuesday.

    “From a revenue perspective, our business remains in a period of rapid transition as we work to improve our advertising platform, while forward visibility of advertising demand remains limited,” executives said in Snap’s earnings release.

    Like other social-media platforms, Snap has struggled with a slowdown in the digital ad market, amid advertiser wariness of a recession. Snap has also faced competition from the likes of Tiktok and Instagram and Facebook parent Meta Platforms Inc.
    META,
    +0.98%    .

    Snap has invested heavily strengthening its advertising platform, to serve users with more relevant ads and bring more impact to the businesses trying to advertise. It has also been spending to boost user engagement. Management, during Snap’s earnings call on Tuesday, said it would likely make “a further step up in investment here in Q3” to accelerate the progress being made on those efforts.

    Executives said during the earnings call that engagement with Snapchat friend stories in the U.S. had started to fall more slowly, with viewership trending better than they had forecast. And they said time spent watching Spotlight — a part of the site that helps users explore and discover content — more than tripled year over year.

    JPMorgan analysts, in a note earlier this month, said they continued to monitor Snap’s “heightened infrastructure costs.” But they said that the digital ad market had “stabilized” in the second quarter and that advertisers weren’t feeling as cautious, despite worries over the state of the economy.

    “That said, we continue to believe it will take multiple quarters of improved execution for many investors to get more comfortable with the story longer-term,” the analysts said.

    For the second quarter, Snap reported a net loss of $377 million, or 24 cents a share, compared with $422 million, or 26 cents a share, in the same quarter last year. Revenue fell to $1.07 billion, compared with $1.11 billion in the prior-year quarter.

    Analysts polled by FactSet expected Snap to report a per-share loss of 25 cents a share, on revenue of $1.05 billion.

    Daily active users rose 14% year over year to 397 million.

    Evan Spiegel, Snap’s chief executive, said during Tuesday’s call that despite the competition from larger social platforms, it still had some advantages — namely, communication with friends and family.

    “We actually think providing this place for friends and family to communicate has only become more important as more and more platforms focus on public social-media-style features where people feel like they have to compete for popularity, compete for likes and comments,” Spiegel said.

    “It’s never been more important to actually build deeper relationships with your friends and family,” he added.

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  • Alphabet earnings push stock up 6%; CFO Ruth Porat to become president, chief investment officer

    Alphabet earnings push stock up 6%; CFO Ruth Porat to become president, chief investment officer

    Google parent Alphabet Inc.’s stock jumped 6% in after-hours trading Tuesday after the company beat estimates on the top and bottom line, and announced the transition of Chief Financial Officer Ruth Porat to president and chief investment officer in September.

    Fueled by strong advertising sales, Alphabet
    GOOGL,
    +0.56%
     
    GOOG,
    +0.75%
    racked up fiscal second-quarter net income of $18.4 billion, or $1.44 a share, compared with net income of $16 billion, or $1.21 a share, in the same quarter a year ago.

    Total revenue was $74.6 billion, compared with $69.7 billion a year ago. Sales minus traffic-acquisition costs were $62.06 billion, vs. $57.5 billion last year.

    Analysts surveyed by FactSet had expected on average net earnings of $1.34 a share on revenue of $72.85 billion and ex-TAC revenue of $60.25 billion.

    “There’s exciting momentum across our products and the company, which drove strong results this quarter,” Alphabet Chief Executive Sundar Pichai said in a statement. “Our continued leadership in AI and our excellence in engineering
    and innovation are driving the next evolution of Search, and improving all our services.”

    During a conference call Tuesday afternoon, he highlighted the intertwining of advertising and Alphabet’s strides in generative AI. He added the company continues to consolidate and align operations to streamline spending.

    Shares of Alphabet have advanced 39% so far this year largely on the strength of generative AI and its potential. The broader S&P 500 index 
    SPX,
    +0.28%
    is up 19%. Alphabet’s stock inched up 0.6% to $122.21 in the regular session Tuesday.

    Google’s total advertising sales improved to $58.14 billion from $56.3 billion a year ago, and edged analysts’ average expectations of $57.45 billion. Google Cloud hauled in $8 billion, compared with $6.3 billion last year. YouTube ad sales rebounded to $7.7 billion from $7.34 billion a year ago.

    “The proverbial floodgates aren’t opening yet but clients are starting to see pockets of opportunity and are willing to invest for a direct return,” Aaron Levy, vice president of paid search at Tinuiti, said in an email.

    Porat, who has played an essential role in Google’s advertising success since she became CFO in 2015, will start her new role on Sept. 1. She will be responsible for Alphabet’s investments in its Other Bets portfolio, and the company’s investments in countries and communities around the world. Porat will continue to report to Pichai.

    “We see technology can make so much of a difference in people’s lives… and in economic growth globally,” Porat said during the conference call late Tuesday.

    The monetization of AI continues to be an obsession of investors and Wall Street. Microsoft Corp.’s
    MSFT,
    +1.70%
    AI version, Bing, hit the market first, but Google’s competing entry, Bard, is making headway, according to analysts. Alphabet is ramping up AI initiatives to improve operational efficiency and productivity.

    When asked on the call about AI monetization, Pichai said the technology expands the company’s total addressable market, brings in potential new customers, deepens the versatility of its product portfolio, and differentiates core products such as cybersecurity.

    AI’s importance was underscored by a Wall Street Journal report on Tuesday that Google co-founder Sergey Brin has been spotted at the company’s Mountain View, Calif., headquarters in recent weeks working with AI researchers on a large-scale project. Brin has been largely out of sight after stepping down from an executive role at parent company Alphabet in 2019.

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  • Microsoft earnings top estimates, but stock falls as execs detail AI’s costs

    Microsoft earnings top estimates, but stock falls as execs detail AI’s costs

    Microsoft Corp. easily topped profit and revenue expectations for its latest quarter, though its shares were moving more than 3% lower in extended trading Tuesday after the company discussed the year ahead.

    The technology giant has won favor on Wall Street for its positioning in the artificial-intelligence revolution, though Chief Financial Officer Amy Hood said on Tuesday’s earnings call that “even with strong demand and a leadership position,” Microsoft’s
    MSFT,
    +1.70%
    “growth from our AI services will be gradual.” Microsoft’s AI for its Azure cloud-computing business needs to ramp, and the company is working toward the general availability of its Copilot productivity product.

    Microsoft’s AI revenue impacts will thus be weighted toward the second half of the new fiscal year that just began, she continued. Meanwhile, she expects that Microsoft’s capital expenditures will rise sequentially each quarter “as we scale to meet demand signals.”

    Hood’s commentary came as Microsoft posted fiscal fourth-quarter results Tuesday afternoon that showed a 15% jump in revenue for the company’s cloud-computing segment, which it calls Intelligent Cloud. Revenue for the segment came in at $24.0 billion, while analysts had been anticipating $23.8 billion. The growth rate was 17% on a currency-neutral basis.

    The company said revenue for Azure and other cloud services was up 26%, or 27% in constant currency. Microsoft’s forecast had been for 26% to 27% in constant-currency Azure sales growth, while the company posted 31% constant-currency growth on the metric in the March period. The FactSet consensus was for 27% growth in constant currency.

    “While we believe the Street was hoping for Azure growth more in the ~28% range, we believe the consumption part of the business held up well,” Evercore ISI analyst Kirk Materne said in a note to clients.

    For the September quarter, Microsoft anticipates 25% to 26% in constant-currency Azure growth.

    The cloud migration is still in the “early innings,” Chief Executive Satya Nadella said on the call, while also highlighting a “new world of AI driving a set of new workloads.”

    “We think of that, again, being pretty expansive from a TAM [total addressable market] opportunity and we’ll play it out,” he continued, though the company is also up against the “law of large numbers” given the massive scale of its cloud business.

    The company generated fiscal fourth-quarter net income of $20.1 billion, or $2.69 a share, compared with $16.7 billion, or $2.23 a share, in the year-earlier period. Analysts tracked by FactSet were modeling $2.55 a share.

    Overall revenue for Microsoft climbed to $56.2 billion from $51.9 billion, whereas analysts had been expecting $55.5 billion.

    See also: Microsoft bulls are excited as company reveals pricing for AI offering

    Microsoft logged $18.3 billion in revenue for its productivity and business processes unit, up 10% from a year before, or up 12% in constant currency. That part of the business includes LinkedIn and both commercial and consumer versions of Office. Analysts had been looking for $18.1 billion.

    Revenue for the More Personal Computing segment, which includes Windows and Xbox content and services, dropped 4% to $13.9 billion and was off 3% on a constant-currency basis. The FactSet consensus was for $13.6 billion.

    Nadella, meanwhile, expressed optimism about the eventual opportunities brought upon by Microsoft’s Copilot offerings.

    “I do think people are going to look at how can they complement their [operating-expense] spend with essentially these Copilots in order to drive more efficiency and, quite frankly, even reduce the burden and drudgery of work on their OpEx and their people and so on,” he said.

    Evercore’s Materne called the overall results “solid” amid “a lot of macro headwinds.”  Microsoft’s investment story “gets stronger in [the second half of the calendar year] as some optical headwinds reverse and [comparisons] soften, and Microsoft’s position in the enterprise market continues to get stronger as customers look to consolidate spending,” he wrote.

    Read: Amazon finally is nearing a bottom on this key measure, analyst says

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  • U.S. stocks drift higher as tech earnings, Fed rate decision loom

    U.S. stocks drift higher as tech earnings, Fed rate decision loom

    U.S. stocks were modestly higher on Tuesday as the Dow’s winning streak continued for now, while investors waited for big tech company earnings after the bell and the Federal Reserve’s interest rate decision on Wednesday.

    How stocks are trading

    • The S&P 500 climbed 5 points, or 0.1%, to 4,560

    • The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 12 points, or 0%, to 35,423

    • The Nasdaq Composite increased 51 points, or 0.3%, to 14,110

    On Monday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average
    DJIA,
    +0.21%
    rose 184 points, or 0.52%, to 35411, the S&P 500
    SPX,
    +0.30%
    increased 18 points, or 0.4%, to 4555, and the Nasdaq Composite
    COMP,
    +0.66%
    gained 26 points, or 0.19%, to 14059.

    What’s driving markets

    The Dow Jones Industrial Average is on an 11-session winning streak, its best run in more than six years, as hopes build that the Federal Reserve’s remaining interest rate hikes this year will not cause a recession as inflation cools.

    Whether the Dow can make it an even dozen days of gains and extend its rally even further to fresh 15-month highs will likely depend on the next few days containing corporate earnings reports and Fed comments.

    Dow components 3M
    MMM,
    +5.58%
    and Verizon Communications Inc.
    VZ,
    +0.60%
    both reported results before the bell. So did big name companies like General Electric
    GE,
    +5.97%
    and General Motors
    GM,
    -4.44%    .

    After the bell, come Microsoft
    MSFT,
    +1.18%
    and Visa
    V,
    -0.28%    ,
    with non-Dow member Alphabet
    GOOG,
    +0.11%
    also a highlight. Coca-Cola
    KO,
    -0.23%
    and Boeing
    BA,
    -1.67%
    are among those Dow members presenting their numbers on Wednesday.

    Investors will be want to hear from Alphabet and Microsoft about their cloud businesses, the ongoing impact and use of artificial intelligence and their general outlooks for American and global markets, David Sekera, chief U.S. market strategist at Morningstar, said in a phone interview.

    Meanwhile, equity markets are in “a little bit of a holding period” ahead of the events to come, he noted.

    Read also: IMF sees signs global economy is headed in the right direction

    Wednesday also sees the Fed’s latest monetary policy decision. The market is certain the central bank will increase its policy interest rate by another 25 basis points to a range of 5.25% to 5.50%.

    But investors are less sure of whether that will be the last hike of the current cycle, so the Fed’s accompanying statement and what Chair Jerome Powell says at his press conference will be the main drivers of bonds, equities and forex around the event.

    “Our view is the Fed is one and done,” Sekera said. Even with expectations that central banks will continue to “talk tough” on inflation, Sekera said Morningstar’s base case is that July’s 25-basis point hike is the last, while inflation continues to cool over the second half of the year. Rate cuts could occur as early as February, he said.

    At Vanguard, Andrew Patterson, senior international economist, said in a note that the Fed could reach its terminal rate “with 1 or 2 more hikes.” The central bank is “likely to remain on hold through at least the end of the year.  If inflation proves persistent, this may be a sign of a higher neutral rate and the Fed may need to go to 6% or beyond in order to bring inflation back to target,” he said.

    Others think there’s more rate hikes to go. “There is a great chance that the Fed will spoil your mood if you are among those thinking that this week’s rate hike will be the last for this tightening cycle in the U.S.,” said Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior analyst at Swissquote Bank.

    Read also: ‘No chance we’re having a soft landing’: Stock-market strategist David Rosenberg gives Powell’s Fed no credit — and no mercy

    Meanwhile, helping underpin sentiment on Tuesday was a rebound in Chinese stocks, notably property developers after Beijing signaled support for the heavily-indebted sector.

    In other economic data Tuesday, home prices increased for the fourth consecutive month in May, according to the S&P Case-Shiller Index. May’s strongest price gains were in Midwest cities, but the overall gains underscore the ongoing lack of supply of homes.

    While home prices are rising, so is consumer confidence. One gauge on consumer sentiment reached a two-year high, according to data out Tuesday. The Conference Board’s index for July increased to 117.0, which was above economists’ expectations and up from a revised 110.1 last month.

    While mood is brightening, the index is still below pre-pandemic levels as consumers contend with the toll of high prices and rising interest rates.

    Companies in focus

    • General Electric Co.
      GE,
      +5.97%
      shares up more than 6% and approaching a nearly five-year high after second quarter results from the aerospace and renewable energy company that topped expectation. The company reported net income of $946 million, or 86 cents per share, from a loss of $1.25 billion, or $1.13 a share one year ago, while free cash flow and revenue also beat estimates.

    • Verizon Communications Inc.
      VZ,
      +0.60%
       shares are up more than 0.7% after the telecommunications company topped profit expectations in its latest earnings but came just below revenue expectations. The company reported $1.21 earnings per share, above FactSet consensus for $1.17 earnings per share.

    • General Motors Co.
      GM,
      -4.44%
      shares are more than 3% lower after the car maker delivered better than expected second quarter earnings and raised its guidance. The company had adjusted earnings per share of $1.91, topping the $1.86 consensus according to FactSet.  

    • 3M Co.
      MMM,
      +5.58%
      shares are more than 6% higher Tuesday after results showing the company booked a loss in connection with a litigation settlement over “forever chemicals.” But taking away the one-time charge, the company still topped adjusted profit expectations and raised its full-year outlook.

    • Spotify Technology
      SPOT,
      -13.68%
      shares tumbled about 12% Tuesday after the streaming giant easily surpassed subscriber-growth expectations for its latest quarter but failed to sport upside on its key financials.

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  • F5, Logitech, Cadence Design, GE, GM, Microsoft, Alphabet, and More Stock Market Movers

    F5, Logitech, Cadence Design, GE, GM, Microsoft, Alphabet, and More Stock Market Movers

    This copy is for your personal, non-commercial use only. To order presentation-ready copies for distribution to your colleagues, clients or customers visit http://www.djreprints.com.

    https://www.barrons.com/articles/stock-market-movers-9cc9fac3

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  • Unilever PLC 1H EPS EUR1.40

    Unilever PLC 1H EPS EUR1.40

    By Joe Hoppe

    Unilever said Tuesday that its second-quarter sales growth beat expectations, as price increases outweighed a slight decline in volumes, and it raised full-year guidance.
    

    

    The Anglo-Dutch retailer–which owns consumer brands like Ben & Jerry’s ice cream, Dove soap and Domestos cleaning products–posted underlying sales growth of 7.9% for the second quarter of the year, with a decrease of 0.3% in volumes and an increase of 8.2% in prices. Analysts’ consensus for underlying sales growth was 6.4%, according to a forecast from the company.
    

    “As underlying price growth has sequentially moderated from 13.3% in the fourth quarter of 2022, volumes were virtually flat with a step-up in performance in Beauty & Wellbeing and Personal Care offsetting volume declines elsewhere,” it said.
    

    For the first half as a whole, sales growth came in at 9.1%, beating the company’s compiled consensus of 8.3%.
    

    The company said first-half pretax profit was 5.27 billion euros ($5.83 billion) compared with EUR4.36 billion a year earlier.
    

    Turnover came in at EUR30.43 billion, including EUR15.74 billion in the second quarter. Analysts expected half-year and second-quarter turnover of EUR30.34 billion and EUR15.59 billion, respectively.
    

    The company raised its guidance for full-year underlying sales growth for 2023 to be above 5%. It had previously guided at the upper end of 3%-5%.
    

    The board declared a quarterly dividend of 42.68 European cents a share, flat on the first half of 2022.
    

    Write to Joe Hoppe at joseph.hoppe@wsj.com
    

    

    


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  • 
		
		
    
			
    Tupperware’s stock sees largest daily gain on record amid meme-like surge
    
			
    Tupperware’s stock sees largest daily gain on record amid meme-like surge
    
			
    

    

    Tupperware Brands Corp. shares enjoyed their best day on record Monday despite an apparent absence of news related to the beleaguered seller of kitchen and home products.
    

    The stock shot up more than 75% Monday in meme-like trading action and amid vastly higher-than-average volume. The surge marked Tupperware’s
    
        TUP,
    
        +75.56%
    
       largest one-day percentage gain yet, surpassing the prior record of a 67.7% increase on July 29, 2020, according to Dow Jones Market Data.
    

    

    Just shy of 130 million Tupperware shares changed hands on the day, easily breaking the record of 42.7 million shares traded, also set on July 29, 2020. The name’s 30-day average volume is about 2.4 million shares.
    

    The stock finished Monday at $1.58 to record its highest close since April 6, 2023, according to Dow Jones Market Data.
    

    Tupperware shares remain off 62% so far in 2023 amid serious challenges for the company. It issued a going-concern warning in April and disclosed that it has hired financial advisers, and it said earlier in the year that it had discovered misstatements in past financial reports. 
    

    Don’t miss: Why investors gamble on shares of bankrupt companies — Bed Bath & Beyond, for example
    

    The company’s website doesn’t appear to show any recent filings or press releases that would have driven Monday’s stock move. Tupperware didn’t immediately respond to a MarketWatch request for comment about the day’s trading activity.
    

    Tupperware’s stock is up 136% over a two-session span, with the rally coming as investors don’t necessarily seem spooked by companies sporting bankruptcy risk. Used-car retailer Carvana Co.
    
        CVNA,
    
        +1.36%    ,
    
       once thought to be on the brink of failure, has seen its shares come roaring back this year, up nearly 900% over the course of 2023.
    

    See more: Carvana’s stock has roared back from the brink. This chart shows its meteoric surge.
    

    

    


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  • 
		
		
    
			
    AMC, Chevron, Tesla, Domino’s, Microsoft, and More Stock Market Movers
    
			
    AMC, Chevron, Tesla, Domino’s, Microsoft, and More Stock Market Movers
    
			
    

     
    

        
    

     
    

        
    

    

     
    

        
    

     
    

        
    

        
    

     
    

    

    

    


    

     
    

    

    





    


    
    
    
    
    
    
  


    


    


    


    


    


    




    

 



      





    









    

 



      

      


    
        


    
          
          


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    https://www.barrons.com/articles/stock-market-movers-2b3602a5
    


        
    



        


    
          


    
            


    

              
              


    

              


    









      
    


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  • 
		
		
    
			
    With Microsoft, Meta and Alphabet earnings hanging on AI, more investors are asking: ‘How are you going to pay for that?’
    
			
    With Microsoft, Meta and Alphabet earnings hanging on AI, more investors are asking: ‘How are you going to pay for that?’
    
			
    

    Shares of big tech companies have coasted through this year on AI euphoria, but as Microsoft Corp., Alphabet Inc. and Meta Platforms Inc. prepare to report results this week, some investors are starting to ask how much those AI advancements might actually cost. 
    

    Those questions have surfaced after several months during simply saying “AI” on earnings calls appeared to be enough for investors. If  the economy sours though — as some expect in the second half of this year or next year — big tech’s AI ambitions could go with it.
    

    

    “Given the exorbitant costs associated with the development, hosting and serving of AI products, many investors are concerned about the potential for [fiscal 2024] commentary regarding a material increase,” Jefferies analyst Brent Thill wrote, according to a MarketWatch earnings preview for Microsoft’s
    
        MSFT,
    
        -0.89%
    
       results.
    

    Microsoft and Alphabet Inc.
    
        GOOGL,
    
        +0.69%
    

            GOOG,
    
        +0.65%    ,
    
       which both report on Tuesday, have been in heated competition in the world of online search and digital advertisements, as Microsoft leans more on its massive investments in research lab OpenAI to muscle up its own search capabilities. But a Deutsche Bank analyst said that so far, Google appears to have the upper hand in that battle. 
    

    Still, for Microsoft, after a broader pullback in IT spending earlier this year, analysts have found more to like about its cloud-computing business — namely market-share gains, generally-sturdy demand, and whatever ways AI can fit into the equation. Wolfe Research analyst Alex Zukin, in a recent note, said he believed “the focus will turn from what is good enough, to how good can it be,” as Microsoft moves deeper into AI. 
    

    “How good can it be?” might also be a question for Meta
    
        META,
    
        -2.73%    ,
    
       which reports second-quarter results on Wednesday. 
    

    Shares of the social-media company have more than doubled in value so far this year. JMP analyst Andrew Boone, in a recent note, cited likely improvements in Meta’s digital ad segment, better engagement, and a broader advertising backdrop that “appears to be stable” after a slowdown in spending, Still, there are signs that the initial user attraction to Threads, Meta’s answer to Twitter, has fizzled. 
    

    This week in earnings
    

    For the week ahead, 166 companies in the S&P 500 index report results, including 12 from the Dow, according to FactSet. Among them are Domino’s Pizza Inc.
    
        DPZ,
    
        -0.62%    ,
    
       which now plans to deliver pizza via Uber Eats after years of chafing at third-party delivery apps. Industrials General Electric Co.
    
        GE,
    
        -0.82%
    
       and 3M Co.
    
        MMM,
    
        +0.04%
    
       also report, after 3M agreed to pay $10.3 billion to settle accusations it was responsible for so-called “forever chemicals” in drinking water. 
    

    Quick-service restaurant chains Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc.
    
        CMG,
    
        +0.20%
    
       and McDonald’s Corp.
    
        MCD,
    
        -0.51%
    
       also report, with BofA analysts expecting an “almost normal” quarter for the industry, after spending at chain restaurants grew last month and costs for some ingredients started to ease following two years of supply disruptions. Auto makers General Motors Co.
    
        GM,
    
        -1.81%
    
       and Ford Motor Co.
    
        F,
    
        -0.71%
    
       also report, and while parts shortages that have constrained vehicle production have shown signs of fading, so has electric-vehicle “euphoria.”
    

    The calls to put on your calendar
    

    Visa, Mastercard: Earlier this month executives from the big banks said U.S. consumers are generally doing OK despite still-rampant inflation, although perhaps less OK than in prior months. This week credit-card giants Visa Inc. and Mastercard Inc. report results on Tuesday and Thursday, respectively.  The profit, sales and credit-card volume figures from Visa
    
        V,
    
        -0.15%
    
       and Mastercard
    
        MA,
    
        -0.14%
    
       will offer more specifics on consumer spending, as vacations and concerts compete with more expensive and more pressing needs, like groceries and other bills. 
    

    Shares of Visa and Mastercard are up so far this year, but some analysts said there could be more room investors to step in. SVB MoffettNathanson analyst Lisa Ellis recently said shares of both companies were hovering at “unusually attractive” levels. 
    

    The number to watch
    

    Mattel outlook, and anything ‘Barbie’-related: The “Barbie” movie hit theaters nationwide on Friday. And after an epic marketing campaign, Mattel Inc.’s investors, banking on the film to drive a rebound for the toy maker during the second half of this year, will be zeroed in on the box-office results following the film’s debut on Friday. 
    

    Expectations for the film are huge. And when Mattel
    
        MAT,
    
        -0.42%
    
       reports second-quarter results on Wednesday, executives could offer the first answers to some big questions: Has the film helped revive toy sales? Sales for anything else? Will the “Barbenheimer” effect help or hurt financials? 
    

    The film — directed by Greta Gerwig, written Gerwig and Noah Baumbach, and starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling — brings together two writers with indie bona fides and two actors with mainstream starpower. Reviews so far have been favorable, and Barbie is already Mattel’s most profitable franchise. But the movie isn’t directly geared toward children, movie theaters have struggled to get back on track after pandemic lockdowns, and toy demand through this year has been weak after ballooning during the pandemic. And some analysts don’t expect “Barbie” to do much for Mattel’s stock.  
    

    Emily Bary and Jon Swartz contributed reporting to this story. 
    

    


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  • 
		
		
    
			
    Chevron’s Second Quarter Profit Beats Outlook on Record Shale Production
    
			
    Chevron’s Second Quarter Profit Beats Outlook on Record Shale Production
    
			
    

    

    

    

    

    

    Chevron said it had record production in the shale-rich Permian Basin region in the second quarter.
    

          
    
            Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images
    
          
    
  
    

    

    

    

    
        
    
          
    
            Chevron
    
          
    
        
    
       released a second-quarter performance update on Sunday that was better than expected ahead of the oil major’s earnings announcement this week.
    

    

    


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  • 
		
		
    
			
    Chevron’s Q2 adjusted profit beats estimates on record Permian production; new CFO announced
    
			
    Chevron’s Q2 adjusted profit beats estimates on record Permian production; new CFO announced
    
			
    

    

    Chevron Corp. released a second-quarter performance update that was better than expected on Sunday, ahead of the oil major’s earnings announcement this week.
    

    Adjusted profit of $3.08 a share beat the consensus of $2.97 a share as tracked by FactSet. That is down about 47% from the second quarter last year and down from profit of $3.55 a share in the first quarter of 2023.
    

    

    The company also announced its chief financial officer, Pierre Breber, is retiring after 35 years at the company. Eimear Bonner, the chief technology officer, will succeed him starting in March 2024. 
    

    Chief Executive Mike Wirth thanked Breber for his contributions and welcomed Bonner, a 24-year Chevron veteran, saying she can “build on Chevron’s strong foundation and drive further value for shareholders.”
    

    Chevron
    
        CVX,
    
        +1.46%
    
       said it had record quarterly production in the Permian Basin, 11% higher than last year’s second quarter. It produced 772,000 barrels of oil equivalent a day, and added that it is on-track for its full-year guidance. The Permian is a shale basin covering parts of West Texas and southeastern New Mexico.
    

    Quarterly shareholder distributions of $7.2 billion also set a record, Chevron said, including $4.4 billion in share buybacks and $2.8 billion in dividends. 
    

    Chevron expects to close the acquisition of shale driller PDC Energy in August.
    

    

    


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