Student loan repayment boosts SoFi shares
A planned return of student-loan payments boosted SoFi (SOFI:NASDAQ) shares by 15% on Wednesday.
The stock of the online lender jumped 15% Wednesday, building on Tuesday gains after President Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy reached a debt-ceiling deal to avert a looming government default.
SoFi’s services include student-loan refinancing, and the deal locks in the restart of student-loan payments and interest accrual this summer—without any further extensions to the pandemic-era pause. Per previous federal budget estimates, keeping student-loan payments paused costs the U.S. government around $5 billion a month.
Shares of SoFi have gained 35% in the past week.
Advanced auto part plummets by 35%
Advance Auto Parts (AAP:NYSE)hit some speed bumps in its latest quarter. The auto-parts retailer on Wednesday posted a steep drop in quarterly profit after it was forced to slash prices to stay competitive and hold on to professional customers, such as auto-repair shops. Advance Auto Parts lowered its profit outlook for the year and cut its dividend.
The disappointing numbers stick out compared with the broader auto industry, as the company said the U.S. car population is still growing and Americans are driving more.
Advance Auto Parts shares plummeted 35% Wednesday. Shares of the auto parts retailer have fallen 39% in the past week.
Dollar General shares get clobbered by 20%
A squeeze on budget shoppers has forced US discount retailer Dollar General to cut its sales forecast, sending its shares down 20% on Thursday – a sign of mounting pressures in the American economy.
Shoppers are spending less and bargain hunting in a tough economic climate, spelling trouble for retailers. Dollar General (DG:NYSE) fared well in the last economic downturn, but the dollar-store chain cut its fiscal year’s sales and profit outlook and said it would slow the pace of new store openings. Pointing to a weakening economy, the company noted that its typically lower-income customers said they are relying more on items priced at $1 or below.
Other retailers are feeling the pinch as well. Macy’s (M:NYSE) on Thursday cut its full-year outlook on sales and profits, citing the economic challenges facing consumers.
Chief Executive Jeff Gennette said sales trends began to weaken in late March, and the department-store chain is stepping up promotions to clear out spring seasonal merchandise as a result.
Shares of Dollar general have lost 18.4% in the past week.
Amazon plans to enter wireless market
Amazon (AMZN:NASDAQ) may be entering the telecom market, sending shares of T-Mobile and others down Friday.
Bloomberg News reported Friday that the tech giant has been talking with wireless carriers about offering low-cost or free mobile to Prime subscribers. Grocery stocks were dealt a similar blow when Amazon in 2017 announced its acquisition of Whole Foods.
The Wall Street Journal reported in May that Dish Network was in talks to sell wireless plans for its nascent mobile service through Amazon. Friday’s news sent Dish shares higher, a welcome change after the stock reached a 24-year low earlier this year.
Wireless plans sold through Amazon’s massive e-commerce portal could challenge rivals like T-Mobile, AT&T and Verizon as they wrestle with slowing subscriber growth after a pandemic-era boom.
Amazon shares have risen over 8% in the past week
Nvidia hits 1trn market finally
Nvidia finally hit $1trn market capitalization, thanks to the recent AI mania sweeping through Wall Street. Nvidia touched the milestone intraday, but its shares didn’t close above the threshold.
The graphics-chip maker briefly became the first semiconductor company with a $1 trillion market capitalization, joining an elite club that includes Amazon, Apple (APPL:NASDAQ), and Microsoft (MSFT:NASDAQ).
Nvidia is the market leader in chips used for AI data centers, having about an 80% share of such processors as of 2020. As the chip industry struggles with slowing sales, a potential AI boom could lead to a surge in demand for the semiconductors that power tools like ChatGPT.
Nvidia shares gained 3.5% over the week