Cover:
-Disney stock should rally after suffering in limbo for the past decade, with the stock trading at $121, the same price as it was on August 4, 2015. Disney’s main moneymaker at the time was ESPN, which lowered forecasts due to ongoing subscriber losses. Shares lost 9% in a day, while Discovery, Time Warner, Viacom, Fox, Comcast, and CBS tumbled. Disney now appears more resilient due to the diminished risk of further declines, with a new ESPN streaming service launching soon. Disney's streaming business is profitable and growing, and while movies are slumping, there are dependable box-office performers coming. Theme parks are mostly bustling, and Disney is transforming from a media company that owned theme parks to a theme park company that owns media assets. Wall Street is overwhelmingly bullish, with more than three-quarters of analysts recommending a purchase for Disney stock.
Interview:
-no update
Tech Trader:
-Big Tech is increasing its spending on AI, particularly in the area of Nvidia chips, data centers, and the energy grid. However, artificial intelligence is also increasing the costs for human capital, particularly for prominent AI developers. Meta Platforms is reshaping the AI landscape by increasing the cost for top researchers, and only the well-heeled may be able to keep up. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg is using Meta's operational cash flows, which reached $91 billion in 2024, to navigate the rapidly changing AI world. In 2025, Meta plans to spend $70B building AI data centers, outspending Amazon, Microsoft, and Alphabet. However, Meta is unique in that it is not renting out these AI servers in the cloud, but using them for its own purposes. This allows each of its researchers to have more computing power at their fingertips.
The Trader:
-General Motors experienced a wild week with better-than-expected Q2 results, but the stock dropped 8.1% in response. Despite a trade deal with Japan lowering import tariffs, shares jumped 8.7%. By Thursday, the stock was trading at 5.2 times 2025 earnings estimates, cheaper than any S&P 500 stock besides Viatris, the former Upjohn division of Pfizer focused on generic drugs. The low valuation feels undeserved, as earnings were not a problem despite the drop. Analysts believe tariffs masked record profit performance in North America and investors are worried about a weaker second half.
-The job market remains strong, with median average hourly earnings growing nearly two percentage points faster than inflation for the past two years. This growth is expected to be confirmed in July's payrolls report. The growth is attributed to the surge in wage growth, as reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Big tech firms, such as Google parent Alphabet, are also investing in artificial intelligence, with Google spending almost $40B in the first half of 2025, up from $25B in 2024. This investment is benefiting companies like TE Connectivity, which is expected to generate $800M from its data center business in fiscal year 2025, up from $300 million in 2024.
Features:
-Bin stores have become a popular destination for bargain hunters since the Covid-19 pandemic. These warehouse-like liquidation stores offer discounted merchandise from major retailers like Amazon.com and Walmart. They buy pallets of returned merchandise and overstock, sorting them into large bins by category. Prices typically decrease daily after a weekly restock, starting at $7 to $15 an item on a restock day and falling to $1 or less by the end of the week. The rising popularity of bin stores is largely a postpandemic phenomenon, as increased online shopping has led to a surplus of merchandise available for purchase on the secondary market. Additionally, a spike in inflation has strained household budgets, prompting many consumers to prioritize bargain-hunting. The good deals make bin stores attractive to lower-income and middle-income brackets.
-Berkshire Hathaway stock has experienced a decline of over 10% since CEO Warren Buffett announced his resignation at the end of the year. This has given investors an opportunity to buy when others are fearful. Factors contributing to the decline include an erosion in the "Buffett premium," concerns about the property-and-casualty insurance cycle, scant new investment activity, no stock buybacks in over a year, and a recent shift away from defensive stocks like Berkshire. However, Berkshire still has a lot to offer, with its main businesses remaining dominant in their industries and a diverse stock portfolio. Its fortress balance sheet with over $330B
in cash, a third of the company's market value, could be used for buybacks, dividends, and even a large deal, such as the purchase of railroad operator CSX.
Europe:
-Ferrari has seen a significant increase in its share price this year, gaining 18% compared to Tesla's 17% decline in 2025. This outperformance is attributed to Ferrari's technical setup, which now leans bullish, suggesting a push toward $600 in the coming months. General Motors opened earnings season for the auto group on Tuesday and closed down 8% at the day's low. The stock has fallen 25% from its all-time high of $65.74 set on Jan. 4, 2022. Ford Motor appeared largely unfazed by General Motors' weakness on Tuesday, holding firm ahead of its earnings report next Wednesday after the close. The stock is retesting a recent breakout above a cup-with-handle pattern, with the $10.97 pivot serving as a key level. This pattern forms with a rounded bottom and a handle that takes shape over five to 10 sessions with low volume and little downward price movement.
Honda is acting firmly in the early going, up better than 12% on Wednesday following the Japan trade deal announced overnight. Honda has risen 6% so far this year, compared to Toyota's 12% decline. It also pays a handsome dividend yield of 4%.
Emerging Markets:
-The MSCI Emerging Markets index has seen an 18% increase this year, more than twice the S&P 500's gain. As investors diversify their portfolios, many are looking abroad, as EM stocks trade for just 12.6 times 2026 estimated earnings, a 40% discount to the US benchmark's valuation. Portfolio manager and analyst, Rait Chopra, sees opportunities in emerging markets, including new technologies and a rising middle class in developing countries. However, Chopra argues that treating emerging markets as a monolithic asset class would be misguided due to widening differences among developing economies. Chopra and his team oversee over $15B, focusing on companies that thrive amid geopolitical shifts and produce strong returns on equity. This approach has helped the $4.2B Lazard Emerging Markets Equity fund produce an average annual return of almost 12%, beating 93% of peers.
Commodities:
-No update
Streetwise:
-No update