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Investors cheered the buyback plan, sending shares of the Google parent as much as 4% higher in after-hours trade before they pared gains to trade up 1.6%. Demand rose for cloud services and Google's ad sales held up better than expected. Alphabet reported a slight dip in first-quarter ad sales from a year earlier to $54.55 billion, which nonetheless beat analyst estimates of $53.71 billion. It was the third such decline for the company since it went public in 2004, but was the second in a row following a fourth-quarter ad sales drop of 3.6%. Alphabet's revenue for the quarter ended March 31 stood at $69.79 billion compared with estimates of $68.95 billion, according to Refinitiv data.

At issue is whether a public official's social media activity can amount to governmental action bound by First Amendment limits on government regulation of speech. The Garniers sued O'Connor-Ratcliff and Zane in federal court, claiming their free speech rights under the First Amendment were violated. Zane and O'Connor-Ratcliff each had public Facebook pages identifying them as government officials, according to the Garniers' court filing. O'Connor-Ratcliff also had a public Twitter profile. Circuit Court of Appeals last July agreed, finding that the school board members had presented their social media accounts as "channels of communication with the public" about school board business.

☆ Futures slip as investors brace for tech earnings, economic data
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Market heavyweights including Alphabet Inc (GOOGL.O), Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O), Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O) and Meta Platforms Inc (META.O), whose shares have supported markets this year, are scheduled to report results this week. Whether the rally continues could depend on the companies beating already-lowered first-quarter estimates. Of the 88 S&P 500 companies that reported results through Friday, nearly 76% beat analysts' first-quarter profit estimates, as per Refinitiv IBES data, above the long-term average of 66.3%. ET, Dow e-minis were down 80 points, or 0.24%, S&P 500 e-minis were down 9 points, or 0.22%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were down 19.5 points, or 0.15%. The regional bank, whose shares have sunk 88% this year triggered by the U.S. banking crisis, is set to report results after market closes on Monday.

REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/IllustrationApril 24 (Reuters) - A quarter into record layoffs, investors in U.S. tech giants will scrutinize if the cost cuts boosted profits to their satisfaction, while the companies emphasize how artificial intelligence will be their next growth driver. Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O), Google parent Alphabet Inc (GOOGL.O), Instagram owner Meta Platforms Inc (META.O) and Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O) all report quarterly results this week. From a year earlier, profit is expected to slump nearly 16%, on average, with Microsoft expected to perform the least poorly with a 0.5% slip. These three companies, along with Amazon, said between November and March they would slash 70,000 jobs in a rapidly weakening economy, following a pandemic-led hiring boom. "There are expectations that companies could create or do even more with AI ... every tech investor is expecting those companies to be in the frontier."

☆ Life sciences software startup Benchling lays off 9% of workforce
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

April 21 (Reuters) - Benchling, which develops software tools for scientists and pharmaceutical research organizations, has laid off 74 employees, or 9% of its workforce, its spokesperson confirmed on Friday. The startup joins a growing number of U.S. firms, including Facebook-parent Meta Platforms Inc (META.O), Amazon.com Inc and several startups, to downsize its workforce amid mounting worries of a recession in the United States. The San Francisco-based company, which filed for an initial public offering in late 2021, was last valued at over $6 billion. Benchling offers cloud-based tools and laboratory automation software that allow researchers to collaborate and track projects. Reporting by Granth Vanaik in Bengaluru and Krystal Hu in New York; Editing by Anil D'SilvaOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Wall St Week Ahead- Tech earnings to test markets' 'most crowded' trade
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( David Randall | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

NEW YORK, April 21 (Reuters) - A blistering rally in megacap growth and technology shares has buoyed markets this year, and earnings reports in coming weeks could help investors determine if those gains are justified. Technology earnings are seen falling 14.4%. Earnings will show "whether this is really a safe haven if you are worried about recession." Still, gains could fizzle if the Fed does not cut interest rates this year, as widely expected. Growth stocks are especially vulnerable to high borrowing costs, which threaten to erode the value of their longer-term cash flows.

"Investors are okay with earnings so far because the lack of bad news is good news," said Adam Sarhan, chief executive of 50 Park Investments. "The market is waiting to see if we can get some bullish earnings over the next few weeks from some of the big cap tech stocks." A slate of Fed speakers this week voiced support for another 25-basis-point rate hike by the U.S. central bank when it meets next week. Declining issues outnumbered advancers by a 1.42-to-1 ratio on the NYSE and a 1.30-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq. The S&P index recorded 18 new 52-week highs and three new lows, while the Nasdaq recorded 27 new highs and 78 new lows.

☆ Your Share of the $725 Million Facebook Settlement Will Be Tiny
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Cordilia James | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Facebook parent Meta Platforms agreed to the settlement. Photo: Justin Sullivan/Getty ImagesPeople who used Facebook in the U.S. during the past 15 or so years can expect free money from its parent company—but not a lot, and not anytime soon. In December, Meta Platforms Inc. agreed to pay $725 million to settle a class-action lawsuit accusing the social-media company of allowing data firm Cambridge Analytica and other third parties to access private information about millions of users. Cambridge Analytica was a top vendor for former President Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign.

Meta Platforms Inc. CEO Mark Zuckerberg told employees that the company expects to wrap up most layoffs for 2023 in May. Photo: john g mabanglo/ShutterstockMeta Platforms Inc. Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg told employees that he won’t rule out future layoffs and said he doesn’t expect the social-media company to hire as quickly as it did before the layoffs that began late last year. Preview SubscribeMr. Zuckerberg addressed employees in a virtual Q&A session on Thursday, a day after the company completed its latest round of layoffs. Mr. Zuckerberg told employees that approximately 4,000 employees, primarily in the company’s tech divisions, were affected by the latest cuts, according to a recording of the employee town hall. Since November, Facebook’s parent company has said it would lay off 21,000 employees, or nearly a quarter of its workforce.

☆ Your Share of the $725M Facebook Settlement Will Be Tiny
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Cordilia James | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

☆ China regulators plan new bond market rules, will coordinate more after turmoil, sources say
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

"After the chaos, coordination between bodies will be strengthened," one of the regulatory sources said. Turnover in the market — the world's second-largest bond market with $21 trillion in notes outstanding — slid and traders said they had to scramble to chat groups for quotes. In contrast to the pre-ban market, Tullet Prebon's data is now available on all other bond market information platforms including Wind, Dealing Matrix and government-affiliated iDeal. China's interbank bond market operator also said on March 20 that iDeal now offers price data from six interdealer brokers. The strength of the market's reaction to the data ban had surprised authorities, according to one of the regulatory sources.

"The Tesla bull case has centered around the company's growth goals, which it is failing to meet." Tesla's stock is trading at about 43 times expected earnings, down from astronomical levels above 200 times in 2021, according to Refinitiv data. Tesla on Wednesday doubled down on the price war it started at the end of last year, as Musk said the company would prioritize sales growth ahead of profit. In the first quarter, Tesla posted its lowest quarterly gross profit margin in two years. You're investing in Elon Musk," said Kim Forrest, chief investment officer of Bokeh Capital Partners.

Meta in March became the first Big Tech company to announce a second round of mass layoffs, which it said would take place in three main batches over several months and impact 10,000 employees. Wednesday's cuts, though expected, prompted expressions of frustration from Meta employees. Layoffs were the subject of the most popular questions posted on an internal company forum on Wednesday ahead of an upcoming employee town hall. "You've shattered the morale and confidence in leadership of many high performers who work with intensity. The question references comments Zuckerberg made last year urging employees to work with more "intensity" to meet the Facebook and Instagram parent company's business challenges.

As part of Meta's latest round of job cuts announced in March, the company on Wednesday started laying off employees in technical roles. A Meta spokesperson confirmed to CNBC the cuts had started. Gameplay engineers work on virtual and augmented reality products, according to a Meta job listing. With ad revenue slumping last year and its stock price in free-fall, Facebook's parent announced its first round of layoffs in November, affecting some 11,000 workers. As Zuckerberg said at the time, the new round of April layoffs targets technical workers.

☆ Activist investor urges Getty to partner with Meta, Microsoft to grow revenue
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] Meta Platforms Inc's logo is seen on a smartphone in this illustration picture taken October 28, 2021. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/IllustrationApril 17 (Reuters) - Activist investor Trillium Capital said on Monday stock-photo company Getty Images Holdings Inc (GETY.N) should expand and create partnerships with technology firms and publishers to grow its revenue. Last week, Trillium asked Getty for a board seat and urged the company to evaluate strategic options including a sale. The investor, which holds more than 500,000 shares of Getty, said the platform should expand its library of generic stock photos to special events including religious functions, weddings, graduations and family celebrations. Trillium also listed Nvidia, Microsoft, Adobe and Meta as potential takeover suitors for the company.

☆ India says new IT fact-checking unit will not censor journalism
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

NEW DELHI, April 14 (Reuters) - A proposed Indian government unit to fact-check news on social media is not about censoring journalism nor will it have any impact on media reportage, a federal minister said on Friday. Recently amended IT regulation requires online platforms like Meta Platforms Inc's (META.O) Facebook and Twitter to "make reasonable efforts" to not "publish, share or host" any information relating to the government that is "fake, false or misleading". Rajeev Chandrasekhar, India minister of state for IT, said in an online discussion it was "not true" that the government-appointed unit, which press freedom advocates strongly oppose, was aimed at "censoring journalism". The Editors Guild of India last week described the move as draconian and akin to censorship. Reporting by Shivam Patel, Munsif Vengattil and Aditya Kalra in New Delhi; Editing by Richard ChangOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Big U.S. intelligence leak was by gun enthusiast in 20s -Washington Post
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

April 12 (Reuters) - The person who leaked U.S. classified documents prompting a national security investigation is a gun enthusiast in his 20s who worked on a military base, the Washington Post reported on Wednesday, citing fellow members of an online chat group. The Post based its report, which did not name the person, on interviews with two members of the Discord chat group. The Department of Defense and the Department of Justice did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. U.S. national security agencies and the Justice Department are investigating the release to assess the damage to national security and relations with allies and other countries, including Ukraine. Reporting by Daniel Trotta and Idrees Ali Editing by Don Durfee and Raju GopalakrishnanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Snap hires Google ad executive to help improve ad performance
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Sheila Dang | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

April 12 (Reuters) - Snap Inc (SNAP.N), owner of photo messaging app Snapchat, said on Wednesday it has hired a former Google executive to help the tech company improve the performance of its digital ads. Darshan Kantak, who previously led product management for search ads at Alphabet Inc's (GOOGL.O) Google, joins Snap as senior vice president of revenue product. Snap is rebuilding its ad sales team after two key leaders left for Netflix Inc last year. Last month, Snap hired Rob Wilk, a longtime Microsoft ad executive, to lead ad sales in the Americas region. Kantak will lead the teams that develop ad formats and also focus on improving how to measure and optimize the effectiveness of Snapchat ads, the company said.

The Labor Department data showed headline and core CPI in March rose 0.1% and 0.4%, respectively, on a month-on-month basis. "We are finally starting to see the cumulative effects of the relentless rate hikes," said Peter Andersen, founder at Andersen Capital Management. US inflation, Fed rates and marketsMinutes from the U.S. central bank's policy meeting in March will also be watched closely by investors later in the day for further clues on the trajectory of interest rates. The Fed raised rates by 25 bps last month and signaled it was on the verge of pausing further rate hikes. ET, Dow e-minis were up 220 points, or 0.65%, S&P 500 e-minis were up 33 points, or 0.80%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were up 130 points, or 0.99%.

☆ Arkansas governor signs sweeping bill imposing a minimum age limit for social media usage
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Brian Fung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

Sarah Huckabee Sanders has signed a sweeping bill imposing a minimum age limit for social media usage, in the latest example of states taking more aggressive steps intended to protect teens online. The legislation, known as the Social Media Safety Act and taking effect in September, is aimed at giving parents more control over their kids’ social media usage, according to lawmakers. It defines social media companies as any online forum that lets users create public profiles and interact with each other through digital content. The confusion over YouTube appears to stem from the carveout for businesses that offer cloud storage and that make less than 25% of their revenue from social media. “The purpose of this bill was to empower parents and protect kids from social media platforms, like Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and Snapchat,” Dees said in a statement.

☆ Wall St ends mixed as inflation data comes into focus
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( Stephen Culp | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

The bellwether S&P 500 ended essentially unchanged. "With huge inflation data tomorrow, Fed minutes coming out soon and earnings right around the corner, traders are taking a wait and see approach to see how the inflation data comes in." Analysts expect aggregate first-quarter S&P 500 earnings falling 5.2% year-on-year, a stark reversal from the 1.4% annual growth seen at the beginning of the quarter. Among the 11 major sectors of the S&P 500, communication services (.SPLRCL) and tech (.SPLRCT) ended in the red, while energy (.SPNY) and financials (.SPSY) enjoyed the largest percentage gains. The S&P 500 posted nine new 52-week highs and no new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 64 new highs and 118 new lows.

☆ S&P 500 edges higher as investors look to CPI
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( Stephen Culp | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

With a lack of market moving catalysts, investors looked ahead to Wednesday's consumer price index (CPI) for any evidence that the long, slow inflation cooldown continues. Beyond CPI, investors are eyeing first-quarter reporting season, which surges from the starting gate this Friday with results from three major banks, Citigroup Inc (C.N), JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM.N) and Wells Fargo & Co (WFC.N). Analysts expect aggregate first-quarter S&P 500 earnings falling 5.2% year-on-year, a stark reversal from the 1.4% annual growth seen at the beginning of the quarter. Among the 11 major sectors of the S&P 500, energy (.SPNY) and materials (.SPLRCM) were enjoying the biggest percentage gains, while communication services (.SPLRCL) and tech (.SPLRCT) were in the red. The S&P 500 posted eight new 52-week highs and no new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 56 new highs and 86 new lows.

Hopes that the Fed will soon end its aggressive monetary policy tightening campaign spurred a rebound in the S&P 500 this month after the collapse of two U.S. mid-sized lenders sparked a selloff in March. Analysts expect first-quarter profits at S&P 500 companies to fall 5.2% year-on-year, the worst contraction since the third quarter of 2020 and a stark reversal from the 1.4% annual growth forecast at the beginning of the year, according to Refinitiv IBES data. Remarks later on Tuesday from voting members of the Fed's rate-setting committee will be parsed for more clues on the central bank's policy moves. Seven of the 11 major S&P sectors rose, with gains in material (.SPLRCM) and energy (.SPNY) shares offsetting losses in technology (.SPLRCT) stocks. The S&P index recorded six new 52-week highs and no new lows, while the Nasdaq recorded 43 new highs and 72 new lows.

Hopes that the Fed will soon end its aggressive monetary policy tightening have helped the benchmark S&P 500 (.SPX) stabilize so far in April after the collapse of two U.S. mid-sized lenders sparked a selloff last month. This marks a shift in traders' bets of a pause in the Fed's policy tightening after recent weak economic data raised the possibility of a U.S. recession. Data on Wednesday is expected to show consumer prices grew 5.2% in March after a 6.0% rise in February. Analysts expect first-quarter profits at S&P 500 companies to fall 5.2% year-on-year, a stark reversal from the 1.4% annual growth expected at the beginning of the year, according to Refinitiv data. ET, Dow e-minis were up 24 points, or 0.07%, S&P 500 e-minis were up 4.25 points, or 0.10%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were down 2.25 points, or 0.02%.

☆ Futures edge higher as focus shifts to inflation data, earnings
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SummarySummary Companies Futures up: Dow 0.15%, S&P 0.26%, Nasdaq 0.34%April 11 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures rose on Tuesday as investors awaited inflation data to gauge the Federal Reserve's next policy moves, while caution prevailed ahead of the quarterly earnings season. All eyes will be on the inflation data on Wednesday, with economists forecasting consumer prices to grow 5.2% in March after a 6.0% rise in February. Big U.S. banks Citigroup Inc (C.N), JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM.N) and Wells Fargo & Co (WFC.N) will kick off the first-quarter earnings season. Investors will be scrutinizing the earnings reports for clues on the overall health of the banking sector. ET, Dow e-minis were up 51 points, or 0.15%, S&P 500 e-minis were up 10.75 points, or 0.26%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were up 44.75 points, or 0.34%.

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