>>> US After Hours Summary: AAPL +6% higher on earnings, div hike and buyback in

After Hours Summary: AAPL +6% higher on earnings, div hike and buyback increase; also PCTY +12.3%, SQ +7.6%, LOCO +26.6%, OLED +4.9% higher on earnings; SPT -22.1%, NET -14.6%, TRUP -11.7%, EXPE -8.3%, FTNT -7.8% lower on earnings

After Hours Gainers:

Companies trading higher in after hours in reaction to earnings/guidance: LOCO +26.6%, OSPN +18.8%, TNDM +14.7%, ARDX +13.4%, AMGN +13.2%, PCTY +12.3% (also authorizes new $500 mln share repurchase program), BJRI +8.4%, TWST +8.1%, UDMY +8% (also increases share repurchase program by $50 mln), SIMO +7.6%, SQ +7.6%, NR +6.8%, OPEN +6.7% (also files mixed shelf securities offering), CLFD +6.5% (also increases share repurchase program to $65 mln), AAPL +6% (also raises dividend 4%; authorizes $110 bln share repurchase program), MTZ +6%, VIR +5.9%, RMAX +5.2%, OLED +4.9%, WSC +4.9%, DVA +4.8%, MELI +4.6%, MSI +4.5%, ACA +4%, SPXC +3.9%, ALHC +3.6%, MODV +3.5%, LYV +3.1%, FIVN +3%, HOLX +2.8%, BILL +2.7%, WK +2.7%, TXRH +2.4%, RLAY +2.4%, CTRA +2.3%, LMAT +2.3%, REG +2.1%, WW +2.1%, DKNG +2%, RKT +2%, BKNG +1.6%, XPOF +1.6%, BECN +1.5%, MNST +1.4% (also says it intends to repurchase $3 bln in stock), TDW +1.2%, ACCO +1.1%, DLR +1%, DYN +0.9%, ED +0.8%, WTRG +0.8%, CIVI +0.3% (also to repurchase ~1.04 mln shares from Vitol for $75 mln), X +0.3%, EOG +0.2%, FOXF +0.2%, AES +0.1%, FRT +0.1%, GDDY +0.1%, KWR +0.1%, RGA +0.1%, VRRM +0.1%, OUT +0.1%, OTEX +0.1% (also authorizes new $250 mln share repurchase program)

Companies trading higher in after hours in reaction to news: WOW +17.6% (Crestview Partners consortium with DBRG submit bid to acquire WOW), CDXS +9.9% (files $200 mln mixed shelf securities offering), IBRX +7% (signs supply agreement), DBRG +3.2% (Crestview Partners consortium with DBRG submit bid to acquire WOW), KIDS +1.9% (receives "breakthrough device" designation from FDA for eLLi growing rod system), ARWR +1.5% (receives $50 mln milestone payment), DLR +1% (announces AI collaboration with Oracle), CTAS +0.4% (approves 4-for-1 stock split), MBUU +0.3% (files mixed shelf securities offering; also files for offering by selling shareholders), ENPH +0.3% (CFO bought 4000 shares), SAND +0.2% (to sell a collection of metals royalties), NOC +0.1% (awarded $7 bln US Air Force contract)

After Hours Losers:

Companies trading lower in after hours in reaction to earnings/guidance: SPT -22.1%, STEM -18.1%, BBAI -15.7%, NET -14.6%, TRUP -11.7% (also names new CEO), CTOS -10.4%, EXPE -8.3%, FTNT -7.8%, KURA -7.7%, VREX -7.5%, VIAV -7.1%, IR -6.2%, AAON -5.7%, RARE -5.1%, CABO -5%, FDP -4.9%, FND -3.4%, COIN -3.2%, COHU -2.6%, MP -2.6%, PLMR -2.5%, ILMN -2.4%, ALTR -2.2%, OHI -1.6%, EB -1.1%, SXI -0.8%, SWN -0.7%, HTGC -0.3%, DRH -0.2%, PTVE -0.1%, PXD -0.1%, SM -0.1%

Companies trading lower in after hours in reaction to news: LLAP -13.5% (LMT withdraws proposal to acquire LLAP; LLAP says its ongoing strategic review continues), KOD -6.2% (presents data), SLNO -5.5% (stock offering), CLLS -2% (CFO steps down), ASPN -1.6% (stock offering by selling shareholder), PRGS -1.3% (PRGS confirms it does not intend to make an offer for MariaDB plc), AM -1.2% (AM acquires assets in Marcellus Shale for $70 mln from SMLP), HRL -1.2% (voluntarily recalling varieties of PLANTERS products), SABR -0.3% (files $100 mln mixed shelf securities offering), BDX -0.1% (files mixed shelf securities offering)

>>> Notable earnings/guidance movers: AAPL +6.9%, SQ +6.6%, PCTY +6.3%, FIVN +6.

Notable earnings/guidance movers: AAPL +6.9%, SQ +6.6%, PCTY +6.3%, FIVN +6.1%, BKNG +5.1%, LOCO +14.1% on upside; SPT -25.2%, BBAI -18%, TRUP -13.8%, NET -13%, FTNT -10.4%, EXPE -8.2%, COIN -3% on downside
  • Earnings/guidance gainers: LOCO +14.1%, ARDX +13.1%, TWST +12.1%, TNDM +12%, OPEN +11.1%, RMAX +10.2%, AMGN +9.6%, AAPL +6.9%, SQ +6.6%, PCTY +6.3%, FIVN +6.1%, ALHC +5.9%, CLFD +5.6%, MODV +5.6%, XPOF +5.6%, BKNG +5.1%, OLED +4.6%, MTZ +4.5%, MELI +4.3%, BILL +4.2%, WSC +3.7%, MNST +3.6%, DVA +3.4%, UDMY +3.3%, TXRH +3.2%, SEM +3%, HOLX +2.9%, VIR +2.9%, BECN +2.4%, RLAY +2.3%
  • Earnings/guidance losers: SPT -25.2%, BBAI -18%, STEM -15%, TRUP -13.8%, NET -13%, AAON -12%, FTNT -10.4%, VIAV -10.2%, CTOS -9.6%, EXPE -8.2%, FOXF -8.2%, VREX -6.9%, CABO -5%, CPT -5%, KURA -4.9%, FDP -3.7%, COIN -3%, ILMN -2.8%, IR -2.7%, ALTR -2.2%, FND -2%, TDW -2%, SWN -1.8%, EOG -1.7%, BJRI -1.6%, HTGC -1.2%, X -1.2%

>>> Apple beats by $0.02, reports revs in-line; iPhone revenue slightly below es

Apple beats by $0.02, reports revs in-line; iPhone revenue slightly below ests; raises dividend 4%; authorized $110 bln share repurchase program; guidance color will be provided on call (173.03 +3.73)
  • Reports Q2 (Mar) earnings of $1.53 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.02 better than the FactSet Consensus of $1.51; revenues fell 4.3% year/year to $90.75 bln vs the $90.37 bln FactSet Consensus.
  • Co reports Q2 iPhone revenue of $45.963 bln vs. $46.4 bln ests and $51.3 bln last year.
  • Co reports Q2 Mac revenue of $7.45 bln vs. $7.17 bln last year.
  • Co reports Q2 iPad revenue of $5.56 bln vs. $6.67 bln last year.
  • Co reports Q2 wearables revenue of $7.913 bln vs. $8.757 bln last year.
  • Co reports Q2 China revenues of $16.4 bln vs. $17.8 bln last year.
  • Apple's board of directors has declared a cash dividend of $0.25 per share of the Company's common stock, an increase of 4 percent. The dividend is payable on May 16, 2024 to shareholders of record as of the close of business on May 13, 2024. The board of directors has also authorized an additional program to repurchase up to $110 billion of the Company's common stock.
  • Apple CEO Tim Cook told CNBC that he expects Q3 (Jun) revenue will be up low single digits, but it wasn't specified if that was sequential or yr/yr. There will be more color provided on the call.
  • Mr. Cook said that the DOJ lawsuit is "misguided" and Apple will fight it. He says there will be more to come on artificial intelligence.
  • "Today Apple is reporting revenue of $90.8 billion for the March quarter, including an all-time revenue record in Services," said Tim Cook, Apple's CEO. "During the quarter, we were thrilled to launch Apple Vision Pro and to show the world the potential that spatial computing unlocks. We're also looking forward to an exciting product announcement next week and an incredible Worldwide Developers Conference next month. As always, we are focused on providing the very best products and services for our customers, and doing so while living up to the core values that drive us."

>>> Dyne Therapeutics misses by $0.01, reports no revenue (26.00 +0.17)

Dyne Therapeutics misses by $0.01, reports no revenue (26.00 +0.17)
  • Reports Q1 EPS of ($0.81), $0.01worse than the ($0.80) FactSet consensus estimate; no revenue.
  • Dyne anticipates reporting data from multiple, higher dose cohorts from both the ACHIEVE and DELIVER trials in the second half of 2024 with the goal of initiating registrational cohorts by the end of 2024.
  • Cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities were $453.5 million as of March 31, 2024. In addition, subsequent to March 31, 2023, the company received $24.3 million from the sale of stock through its "at the market" offering program. The Company's cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities are anticipated to fund operations through 2025.

WSJ : Sony, Apollo Make $26 Billion All-Cash Offer for Paramount

Sony, Apollo Make $26 Billion All-Cash Offer for Paramount
Offer comes as exclusive negotiating window between Skydance and entertainment giant is about to expire

Sony 6758 -0.31%decrease; red down pointing triangle Pictures and private-equity giant Apollo Global Management APO 3.72%increase; green up pointing triangle have submitted an all-cash $26 billion offer for Paramount Global PARA 11.42%increase; green up pointing triangle, marking the second time the private-equity firm has come in with a bid for the entertainment giant.

Apollo and Sony on Wednesday submitted the offer letter, which was signed by Sony Pictures CEO Tony Vinciquerra and Aaron Sobel, a partner at Apollo, according to people familiar with the situation. The offer is a starting point for discussions and is nonbinding.

FT : Janus Henderson set to march into Europe with Tabula acquisition

Janus Henderson set to march into Europe with Tabula acquisition
The $335bn manager already has $14bn in active fixed income ETFs in the US and is eyeing rapid growth in demand globally

Global asset manager Janus Henderson has bought London-based Tabula Investment Management as it seeks to exploit growing demand for actively managed exchange traded funds outside the US.

Janus is already the fourth-largest provider of active fixed income ETFs in the US, according to Morningstar data, with $14.2bn of its $335bn of assets under management held in the structure.

It said the acquisition was driven by a push to “enhance its partnership with its UK and European client base, which is increasingly looking at active ETFs, and to reach key growing markets in Latin America, the Middle East and Apac”. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Europe’s near-ubiquitous Ucits funds structure is highly popular in much of Latin America and Asia, allowing funds domiciled in Europe to provide a springboard for expansion to much of the world outside of the US.

The ETF industry was once synonymous with benchmark-tracking passive funds but active ETFs have expanded rapidly in the US in recent years, partly because the American tax system has favoured ETFs over mutual funds, but also because active managers have lost their fears that the transparency inherent in ETFs would allow others to front-run their investment decisions.

Active ETFs held $530bn of assets in the US at the end of 2023, 8.5 per cent of the broader ETF market, according to Morningstar.

The trend is less advanced in Europe, where ETFs have no tax advantage over mutual funds, but interest in active ETFs has jumped over the past year with active ETF AUM increasing by €10bn to €33.8bn representing 1.9 per cent of the wider ETF market, according to Morningstar.

Take up has been stronger in parts of the Apac region, with active ETFs accounting for 29.4 per cent of the $93bn South Korean ETF market and 11.8 per cent of Australia’s $65bn ETF sector. In 2023 active ETFs took 86.7 per cent of all net ETF flows in Korea, according to Morningstar.

“The European ETF market is undergoing a significant transformation, growing considerably and mirroring trends observed in the US market where active management is increasingly being incorporated into the ETF wrapper,” Janus chief executive Ali Dibadj told analysts on a conference call Thursday. The company noted that nearly 10 per cent of European ETF launches last year were actively managed.

“This shift represents a considerable growth opportunity for asset managers looking to broaden the ways in which clients access their investment capabilities and capitalise on evolving client preferences in the European market,” Dibadj continued.

Tabula was formed in 2018 by Michael John Lytle and Stefan Garcia, who built Source into a $25bn ETF manager before selling it to Invesco.

Tabula itself is far smaller, with about $500mn of assets in fixed income ETFs, many of them badged as Paris-aligned, all of which are passive.

Lytle, who will continue as chief executive, said the plan was to launch a wide range of both active bond and equity ETFs in Europe, some based on Janus’s existing US investment products and some entirely new.

Janus will “certainly do some ETF launches off the back of the Tabula transaction,” chief financial officer Roger Thompson told analysts on Thursday’s call.

“I think we are just at the turning point of the European [active ETF] market,” Lytle said, with the likes of Robeco, BlackRock’s iShares, Eurizon Capital and Cathie Wood’s Ark Invest all having launched or planning to launch active ETFs in Europe this year.

Janus could have entered the European market under its own steam. However, Lytle said that doing so via an acquisition will have allowed it to accelerate the process by a couple of years or so, compared with setting up an operation from scratch.

Moreover Tabula, whose ETFs are listed across 10 European exchanges, already has relationships with 200 institutional investors, as well as a host of market makers and authorised participants, which create and redeem shares.

“Tabula’s existing infrastructure and ecosystem offers us instant access to an institutional platform that we believe will position Janus Henderson as a trusted and credible player in the European ETF market,” Dibadj said.