Author: Journalist

Net Earnings: $7.3 billion for fiscal 2024. Earnings Per Share (EPS): $7.40, up 10% year-over-year. Revenue: $25.6 billion, up 10% year-over-year. Pre-Provision Pretax Earnings: $11.3 billion, up 11%. Return on Equity (ROE): 13.7%, up 30 basis points from the prior year. CET1 Ratio: 13.3%. Dividend Increase: 8% or $0.07 increase in quarterly dividend. Adjusted Net Income: $1.9 billion for Q4, up 24%. Provisions for Credit Losses: $419 million in Q4. Net Interest Income (NII): Up 17% excluding trading. Non-Interest Income: $3 billion, up 13% from the prior year. Operating Leverage: 180 basis points. Share Repurchase: 5 million shares bought back.…

As Bitcoin blew past $100,000, MicroStrategy’s (MSTR, Financial) stock fell by 4.5%. The company, MicroStrategy, is a crude Bitcoin investor holding in excess of 402,000 BTC, which is equivalent to about $40 billion. Despite Bitcoin reaching a record high, traders opted to sell off cryptocurrency-related stocks like MicroStrategy and Coinbase (COIN, Financial), Which also dropped to 3%. MicroStrategy Stock Sinks 4.5% as Bitcoin Hits $100K Milestone MicroStrategy’s journey from its main business of developing enterprise software towards an increasingly fervent Bitcoin gambit has proven useful. Its shares have inflated almost fivefold this year, bringing its market value to approximately $90…

If you buy and hold a stock for many years, you’d hope to be making a profit. But more than that, you probably want to see it rise more than the market average. But First Western Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:MYFW) has fallen short of that second goal, with a share price rise of 31% over five years, which is below the market return. Some buyers are laughing, though, with an increase of 26% in the last year. So let’s assess the underlying fundamentals over the last 5 years and see if they’ve moved in lock-step with shareholder returns. Check out our…

Walker & Dunlop has demonstrated impressive growth with a 36% increase in transaction volume, closing $11.6 billion in Q3 2024, driven by strategic expansion in GSE financing. Challenges such as a 9% revenue growth lag and a decline in affordable equity revenues highlight areas needing strategic focus. The following report examines key areas including financial performance, growth opportunities, internal limitations, and external threats impacting Walker & Dunlop’s future trajectory. NYSE:WD Share price vs Value as at Dec 2024 With a significant transaction volume growth, Walker & Dunlop has closed $11.6 billion in Q3 2024, marking a 36% increase from the…

(Bloomberg) — US equity futures fluctuated as investors paused a record-breaking rally. Bitcoin topped $100,000 after President-elect Donald Trump picked a crypto proponent to be the next head of the Securities & Exchange Commission. Most Read from Bloomberg French assets rebounded slightly as investors debated the implications of the ousting of Michel Barnier’s government. The CAC 40 stock index climbed 0.3% in Paris, tracking Europe’s regional Stoxx 600 gauge. French bonds rose, trimming the extra yield investors demand to hold the debt over safer German peers. The euro was up 0.2%. S&P 500 contracts were steady after the 56th record…

(Bloomberg) — Stocks hit all-time highs as Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said the economy is in remarkably good shape. The euro pared gains as the French government fell after a no-confidence vote in Parliament. Most Read from Bloomberg A rally in big tech drove the S&P 500 toward its 56th closing record in 2024. The Nasdaq 100 climbed over 1%. Nvidia Corp. led a gauge of the “Magnificent Seven” megacaps higher as the group extended this year’s surge to almost 65%. Salesforce Inc. and Marvell Technology Inc. soared as their results boosted hopes both companies will keep benefiting from…

The return of President-elect Donald Trump to office raises the likelihood of a renewed wave of import tariffs, particularly targeting mainland China but potentially extending more broadly. In a recent posting, Fitch Ratings highlights that businesses should be proactive in dusting off their tariff mitigation playbooks, leveraging both short-term financial strategies and long-term sourcing adjustments to manage the potential costs. One of the first lines of defence against tariffs is lobbying for exemptions or the outright removal of duties. According to Fitch Ratings, this can include exemption requests, waivers, or direct advocacy to influence trade policies. Pre-emptive lobbying efforts —…

(Bloomberg) — South Korea’s currency recovered while its stocks fell Wednesday, as investors braced for prolonged political uncertainties following a brief decree of martial law by President Yoon Suk Yeol. Most Read from Bloomberg The benchmark Kospi closed 1.4% lower, while a gauge of equity volatility climbed by the most in three weeks. The won gained 1.2% to 1,410.56 per dollar, to erase most of its overnight loss. Credit default swaps for South Korean government debt widened 2.75 basis points, according to traders, poised for the biggest increase since early August, data compiled by Bloomberg show. Yoon sparked chaos with…

After a particularly strong November, traders are eager to protect their profits as the year winds down. Bearing this in mind, we compiled a list of the 25 best stocks to own during December. Focusing in on number three on the list, Broadcom Inc (NASDAQ:AVGO) is the only chip manufacturer in the top 20. Per Schaeffer’s Senior Quantitative Analyst Rocky White, AVGO finished the month of December higher eight times in the past 10 years, averaging a gain of 7.3%. Best Of Dec 2 Broadcom stock resisted the broader-market trend with a 4.5% November loss. In fact, subscribers to Expiration Week Countdown tripled their…

(Bloomberg) — US exchange-traded funds investing directly in Bitcoin and Ether are enjoying unprecedented demand, buoyed by President-elect Donald Trump’s pledge to unfetter the crypto industry from regulatory shackles. Most Read from Bloomberg The groups of Bitcoin and Ether ETFs each posted record monthly net inflows in November, $6.5 billion and $1.1 billion respectively, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Friday’s daily Ether ETF subscriptions also hit an all-time peak. The interest in Ether, the largest token after Bitcoin, points to widening speculative appetite for crypto following Trump’s US election victory on Nov. 5. By some metrics, the clamor for…