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☆ Private equity firms Apollo and KKR among those reviewing Silicon Valley Bank loans
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Seema Mody | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

People wait outside the Silicon Valley Bank headquarters in Santa Clara, CA, to withdraw funds after the federal government intervened upon the bank's collapse, on March 13, 2023. Two of those people said Apollo may be interested in acquiring a piece of the business at par. Private equity firms Apollo Global Management and KKR are among the parties reviewing a book of loans held by Silicon Valley Bank, people familiar with the discussions told CNBC. Previously, Bloomberg reported that several private equity firms have been conducting due diligence on the loan assets. That report, which cited several people with knowledge of the talks, said Apollo, Ares Management , Blackstone , Carlyle Group and KKR were among those reviewing a potential deal.

☆ Under threat, Weight Watchers enters obesity drug space. Here's what it means for the stock
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( Christina Cheddar Berk | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

The company's sales have been in a steady multiyear decline after an attempt to de-emphasize weight loss and focus on wellness failed miserably. WW 1Y mountain The parent of Weight Watchers has seen its market value shrink as sales have dropped for several years. Another drug, Eli Lilly's Mounjaro, adds a second incretin hormone to the mix and has been shown to be even more successful with weight loss. This trend could provide an opportunity for the core Weight Watchers brand and its focus on behavior modification. That scenario assumes Weight Watchers continues to see membership erosion, while cost controls help minimize margin compression.

☆ This biotech startup has a chance to grab a piece of the lucrative obesity drug market, analysts say
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-28 | by ( Christina Cheddar Berk | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Enter biotech startup Structure Therapeutics , which is hoping to change that regimen with oral GLP-1 formulations for obesity and type 2 diabetes treatment. The stock rallied 73% in its first day of trading, but has pulled back in the weeks since its debut. Novo Nordisk's Wegovy and Ozempic are currently on the market and approved to treat obesity and type 2 diabetes. BMO was among the group of investment banks acting as joint book runners for Structure's IPO. (Jefferies was the lead book runner in Structure's IPO.)

☆ The pullback in this high-quality edtech stock could be opportunity for investors
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( Christina Cheddar Berk | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

Knoblauch raised his price target to $27 from $21, saying the stock's underperformance so far this year is an opportunity. Last year, PowerSchool's stock outperformed its edtech peers by a wide margin. Demand for PowerSchool's products are largely driven by the growth of school budgets, which are recession-resilient. The international opportunity Thill said it's early days for PowerSchool's international expansion, and it's one of the reasons he's positive on the stock in the long term. We're particularly optimistic regarding the company's persona-based cloud bundles and international opportunity.

☆ Goldman sees another robust year for spinoffs. How to spot those that will outperform
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-21 | by ( Christina Cheddar Berk | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

In a research note published last week, Kostin updated that study to look at the track records of more recent spinoffs, completed over the past two years. "However, while 11 of the 20 spinoffs completed during 2022 outperformed the S & P 500 since transaction completion, only six of the spinoffs outperformed their parent entities." The largest completed deal in 2022 was General Electric' s spin off of GE HealthCare , a $26 billion business. The next largest completed deal last year was Intel's spinoff of Mobileye , which wrapped up on Oct. 26, 2022 . In 2021, the value of the completed spinoffs hit $112 billion, and included Dell's spinoff of VMWare , the largest deal at $57 billion.

☆ M.D. Sass is betting big on these out-of-favor stocks, expecting growth, recession or not
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-18 | by ( Christina Cheddar Berk | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

"Myself and the team really did a lot of introspection," Sass recalled, in an interview with CNBC. Sass Concentrated Value portfolio, which the younger Sass manages. By limiting the number of stocks, Sass said he can do extensive due diligence and research into each of the companies it owns. The goal is to find value in underappreciated companies that are in the midst of a transformation that will accelerate growth and ultimately lead to a boost in a stock's value. 'Digging under rocks' To place his bets, you won't see Sass looking strictly at a stock's price-to-earnings multiple.

☆ Why the Super Bowl still matters: Football is 'the glue' holding network TV together
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-11 | by ( Christina Cheddar Berk | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

And it came on top of a 9% bump in viewership during the 2021-22 football season, he said. Nathanson said the NFL is the biggest single driver of network ratings — and ultimately advertising dollars — during the fall TV season. "Sunday Night Football" is aired on NBC, while Disney, which owns ESPN and ABC, has the rights to show "Monday Night Football." Amazon has the rights to "Thursday Night Football" through 2033 . All this is to say, that there is a reason why advertisers still care about putting their commercials on during football games.

Bob Berg | Moment Mobile | Getty ImagesIn a fragmented media landscape, events like the Super Bowl are prized by advertisers for the exposure they offer. These commercials are an institution in and of themselves, with the ads generating conversation for weeks ahead and days after the big game. Consumers might recall well-crafted Super Bowl ads years after their debut. So does Super Bowl exposure truly help boost business? It drove so many viewers to Coinbase's app that it crashed on the night of the Super Bowl.

☆ Nordstrom could use an activist, but Ryan Cohen might not be the right one
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-03 | by ( Christina Cheddar Berk | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Activist investor Ryan Cohen is building a stake in the department store chain as he looks to shake up its board, people familiar with the matter told CNBC. Tritton had once worked at Nordstrom, and Cohen thinks this makes him "conflicted and unqualified" to serve, the Journal report said. JWN 1D mountain Nordstrom shares surged after a report says Ryan Cohen is building a stake in the department store chain. 'Begs for an activist' The department store business hasn't been an easy one as shoppers buy more goods online or look to avoid large malls. The analyst also recalled that El Puerto de Liverpool, a Mexico City-based department store operator, holds a 10% stake in Nordstrom.

☆ Eli Lilly investors spooked by weak Mounjaro sales, but it's the obesity drug approval that will unlock its value
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-02 | by ( Christina Cheddar Berk | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Lilly said slightly more than 50% of commercial and Part D subscribers have access to the drug via their insurance plans. But new classes of weight loss medications are helping to change this mindset. Still, legislation will be necessary to get coverage of Mounjaro for obesity and overweight treatment by Medicare plans. By law, these plans are banned from paying for weight loss medications. Wegovy and Mounjaro One encouraging sign: Lilly competitor Novo Nordisk has gained access to more than 80% of insurance company formularies for their obesity treatment, Wegovy.

☆ In a water-scarce world, the Xylem-Evoqua deal makes sense. Why some think it's too expensive
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-23 | by ( Christina Cheddar Berk | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Evoqua shareholders will receive 0.480 Xylem shares, or about $52.89, for each one they own. That's a 29% premium to where Evoqua shares closed on Friday. Evoqua shares jumped 14% on the news, but Xylem shareholders are balking at what they see as a pricey deal. XYL 1Y mountain Xylem shares sell off in the wake of Evoqua deal That's one of problems Raymond James analyst Pavel Molchanov raised. Trading in Evoqua shares doesn't appear to indicate expectations of a competing bid surfacing, and some analysts have said they didn't expect one,.

☆ Here's where to look for the next developments in the fight against Alzheimer's disease
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-17 | by ( Christina Cheddar Berk | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +10 min

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates 5.8 million Americans were living with the disease in 2020 . BIIB 6M mountain Biogen's stock is trading well above its lows Leqembi treats Alzheimer's disease by targeting amyloid-beta plaques in the brain. Attention shifts to Eli Lilly Shares of other Alzheimer's drug developers have often mirrored Biogen's moves. Small drug developers Smaller Alzheimer's drug developers have also been boosted by research developments. Still in an early stage of its research, Prothena has traded as a proxy for developments in Alzheimer's treatment.

☆ A busier movie calendar will lead to a 15% jump in box office sales, JPMorgan predicts
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-15 | by ( Christina Cheddar Berk | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Slow and steady will win the race at the box office this year, according to JPMorgan analyst David Karnovsky. The first is tied to the depressed state of the box office last year . However, if additional movies are released, here's where there could be upside to his box office forecast. DIS 3M mountain Disney shares have gotten a boost from a proxy battle, but box office gains could be ahead. Paramount's "Top Gun: Maverick" topped the box office charts last year, while NBC Universal had new films in the Jurassic Park and Minions franchises.

☆ Guide to investing in 2023: This year's weaknesses could turn into next year's strengths
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-31 | by ( Christina Cheddar Berk | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Many are resigned to the expectation that the Federal Reserve's aggressive tightening campaign will result in a recession sometime in 2023. That means investors should brace themselves for a rough start to 2023 , reports CNBC's Patti Domm . Still, some of 2022's weaknesses could turn into 2023's strengths. To best equip readers for these situations and more, CNBC Pro has talked to top investors , analysts and market strategists . Your guide to emerging market investing in 2023

☆ It's not just tech. Consumer and communications stocks aided in $10 trillion market wipeout
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-28 | by ( Scott Schnipper | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Most of the decline came in S & P 500 stocks, which lost a combined $8.2 trillion. Amazon, Apple, Alphabet, Microsoft, Tesla, Meta Platforms and Nvidia lost a combined $4.95 trillion in market capitalization in 2022. Of those seven megacaps, losses ranged from Amazon's plunging market value of $844 billion to Nvidia's decline of $388 billion. Broken down by the S & P 500's 11 major industry groups, information technology's market value slid $3.49 trillion in 2022, trailed by consumer discretionary stocks, dominated by Amazon, Tesla, Home Depot, Nike, Lowe's and Target, at $1.91 trillion. Silverblatt used the S & P U.S. Broad Market Index, consisting of roughly 2,500 stocks, to measure the total market decline of $10 trillion.

☆ Health-care stocks are looking good for 2023 and not just because the sector is a 'safe haven'
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-21 | by ( Christina Cheddar Berk | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +9 min

Investors looking for cover this year would have done well if they sought a safe haven in large-cap pharmaceutical stocks, a trend that is likely to continue into 2023. The Inflation Reduction Act provided some clarity around drug pricing that should help health-care stocks. The average price target, according to FactSet, is $62, or nearly 40% above the stock's closing price on Tuesday. Gene therapies in focus Investors will be closely watching the progress of several gene therapies, according to Phipps. "Yes, these are expensive therapies," Phipps said.

☆ Few stores closed in 2022. UBS says get ready for that to change in 2023, starting with department stores
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-19 | by ( Christina Cheddar Berk | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

After a record number of store closures in 2020, retailers have shuttered far fewer doors over the last two years, but that may be about to change, especially for department stores, according to UBS. He also said that he believes the lack of store closures has made it harder for retailers to grow sales. Compares got tougher in 2Q22 as the industry lapped the big store closures. Our view is tough compares remain a reason Department Store sales will remain under pressure in the 1H23." Instead, he said, many store closures that would have occurred in 2021 or 2022 were accelerated by the pandemic.

☆ A strong China open for 'Avatar' lays the ground for a film stock rally, Morgan Stanley says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( Christina Cheddar Berk | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Chinese audiences appear eager to see Disney's "Avatar: The Way of Water," according to initial ticket sales ahead of the film's Dec. 16 opening. In 2009, China accounted for only $910 million in ticket sales, but 10 years later its box office receipts swelled to $8 billion. Stage set for box office recovery Morgan Stanley's Xu expects China's box office to rebound 50% in 2023, to Rmb51 billion, with the assumption that China's reopening gains momentum in the spring. In China, there is a "rich slate of blockbuster films" ready to come to theaters, Xu said. With this in mind, Xu raised her price targets for IMAX China, Ali Pictures, Wanda Film , Enlight and China Film.

☆ Kroger's stock is a solid bet, with or without the Albertsons' deal, Bernstein says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-07 | by ( Christina Cheddar Berk | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Analyst Dean Rosenblum said he's bullish on Kroger without the deal, seeing 25% potential upside for the stock from Tuesday's close. Although the grocery market is highly fragmented, Kroger and Albertsons are two of its biggest players. Says 90% chance the deal will close Rosenblum said he has "pretty high-conviction" that the deal will close, based on his research. Once the deal closes, Albertsons shares should be worth about $27, based on the deal price, net a special dividend the company plans to pay as part of the transaction. The bigger picture Beyond the strategic reasons for the Kroger-Albertsons deal, Rosenblum also sees reasons to be optimistic about both grocery and home improvement sectors.

☆ Three pharmaceutical stocks were last week's top performers — and analysts gave one 40% upside
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-05 | by ( Weizhen Tan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Global stocks rose last week, tracking U.S. stocks as Wall Street's major indexes closed with weekly gains. The MSCI World index was up about 1% over the week, and all three U.S. indexes also set weekly gains , with the Nasdaq posting the largest increase. Pharmaceutical stocks had a good week, with three — Horizon Therapeutics , Catalent and Alnylam Pharmaceuticals — making big gains. Of all three, Catalent got the highest upside (40%) from analysts — getting a buy rating from 56% of those covering the stock. U.S. media and internet company IAC was one top weekly performer, with the highest upside given by analysts — at 60%.

☆ These discounted e-commerce stocks could be winners this holiday season. Here’s why
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-24 | by ( Christina Cheddar Berk | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

The National Retail Federation expects holiday sales growth of about 6% to 8% over 2021 — about in line with inflation. Adobe Analytics is predicting U.S. online sales during November and December will grow 2.5% from last year. "The last few years, we actually saw an incredible amount of sales demand momentum, if you will, really early in the season." Her observations, which are based on data from hundreds of clients she works with, echo findings from Adobe Analytics, released Wednesday, that show a slow start to online sales in November. "I think [investors] should expect a continued commitment to sustainable growth and what we mean by that is sort of aggressive, ambitious growth coupled with expanding profitability," he said.

☆ Holiday shoppers aren’t in a rush. What that means for retail stocks
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-20 | by ( Christina Cheddar Berk | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +9 min

If you're a retailer, and it's the holiday season, the thing you most want consumers to feel is a sense of urgency. Unlike last year, holiday shoppers don't need to fear empty shelves at the store. Walmart said it saw more shoppers with incomes above $100,000 ring up items in its stores, drawn in by less expensive groceries. He suggests investors position themselves in discounters like Walmart or Family Dollar or in luxury stocks like RH or Lululemon . She explained that many shoppers perceive Target as a place where "you go in for two items and come out $150 later."

☆ The world is running out of fresh water. How to invest in the companies trying to prevent this crisis
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-07 | by ( Christina Cheddar Berk | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +10 min

Many operate in areas like filtration and desalination, testing and analytics or smart water networks that can help use water more efficiently. It also invests in water solutions companies like Danaher even if the share of their revenue from water-related businesses is below the 30% threshold the fund typically requires. Water metering also is important for conservation efforts, and companies in this space include Xylem , Badger Meter and Roper . As a pure-play water company, he expects it to take advantage of several industry trends. In the water quality space, Evoqua Water Technologies is a name RBC likes.

☆ New obesity drugs win support of doctors and insurers, which could lift these pharma names even higher
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-03 | by ( Christina Cheddar Berk | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

They are also increasingly being prescribed by doctors and covered by insurers – a win for patients and for investors. According to Novo Nordisk , the maker of weight-loss drug Wegovy, about 80% of anti-obesity medications are being covered by health insurers, Meacham said. Novo's semaglutide is branded Wegovy as a weight-loss treatment and Ozempic for the treatment of type 2 diabetes. When combined with lifestyle modifications, patients taking Wegovy can sustain a 15% weight loss , according to late-stage clinical trial data. Eli Lilly has a competing drug, Mounjaro, that uses both GLP-1 and a second incretin, glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide, or GIP.

The back half of the earnings season gets underway this week, with key companies across different sectors set to report. FactSet data shows that slightly more than 70% of the S & P 500 that have reported earnings have beaten earnings expectations. Tuesday Advanced Micro Devices is set to report earnings after the bell, followed by a conference call at 5 p.m. Wednesday Yum Brands is set to report earnings before the bell, with management holding a call at 8:15 a.m. EBay is set to report earnings after the bell, followed by a call at 5 p.m.

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