By following a playbook that will be quite familiar to U.S. shoppers, Coupang has come to dominate e-commerce in its home market.When U.S. investors hear the word "e-commerce," it's natural for them to think of Amazon, the company that redefined how people think about shopping online. But they may easily overlook one company in Asia that's following the Amazon playbook and putting up impressive results.Coupang (CPNG 3.41%) now dominates the South Korean e-commerce space, and it's continuing to add products ...

Core Insights - Intuitive Surgical's shares have decreased by approximately 26% from their peak earlier this year, yet long-term shareholders have seen a remarkable increase of 5,490% over the past 20 years [1] Competitive Landscape - Intuitive Surgical faces competitive pressure from Medtronic, which has introduced the Hugo RAS system that showed successful results in a urologic procedure study [2] - Medtronic's Hugo RAS system received its first marketing approval from European regulators in 2021, and an application for U.S. marketing is expected to be submitted to the FDA, potentially allowing sales to begin in early 2026 [4] Operational Performance - In 2024, da Vinci systems conducted 2.68 million procedures, and the company expanded its da Vinci machine installations by 1,790 to a total of 11,040 globally [5] - Hospitals investing in da Vinci systems also commit significant resources to training surgical teams, creating high switching costs that hinder competitors like Medtronic from capturing market share [5] Financial Metrics - Despite the recent decline, Intuitive Surgical's shares are trading at over 55 times earnings estimates, indicating a high valuation [6] - The company anticipates a procedure volume increase of 15.5% to 17% for the year, suggesting strong growth potential [6]

Which of these AI-oriented plays has a brighter future?Navitas (NVTS -0.97%) and CoreWeave (CRWV 7.38%) represent two different ways to invest in the rapid growth of the artificial intelligence (AI) market. Navitas was recently chosen by Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA) to supply more power-efficient chips for its next-gen data centers, while CoreWeave provides cloud-based access to Nvidia's GPUs through its own data centers.Both of these AI-oriented stocks generated big gains within a short time. Navitas' stock had s ...

Core Insights - Apple is entering a potentially strong iPhone cycle, with early preorder data indicating robust demand for the iPhone 17 family compared to the previous year, despite uncertainty surrounding the new iPhone Air model [2][5][10] Group 1: iPhone Demand and Sales Performance - Preorder trends for the iPhone 17 models show stronger initial demand, particularly for the Pro Max variant, suggesting a solid baseline of demand from loyal customers [5][6] - In the fiscal third quarter, iPhone revenue reached $44.6 billion, a 13% year-over-year increase, accounting for approximately 47% of Apple's total sales of $94.0 billion [6][10] - The iPhone category's growth accelerated as Apple approached its fall launch window, with a notable increase from the previous quarter's revenue of $46.8 billion [6][10] Group 2: iPhone Air Model - The iPhone Air, at just 5.6 millimeters thick and weighing about 165 grams, is positioned to attract users seeking a lightweight device with a large display, filling a gap left by the discontinuation of the mini and Plus models [8][9] - Early reviews highlight the Air's premium build and ultra-thin profile as key selling points, although its demand relative to the core iPhone 17 models remains uncertain [8][9] Group 3: Market Valuation and Future Outlook - Apple's shares are currently trading at around 36 times earnings, reflecting a premium valuation that relies on steady product cycles and growth in the iPhone segment [7][10] - If the iPhone 17 lineup maintains its early momentum and the iPhone Air broadens the upgrade pool, revenue and earnings could continue to grow at healthy, double-digit rates, supporting the current valuation [10][11]

Dividend-paying growth stocks and covered call ETFs provide opportunities to generate income even in a declining stock market.We aren't even through September, and the S&P 500 (^GSPC 0.47%) has already produced an 11.2% year-to-date total return (dividends included) at the time of this writing. That puts the index on track for its third consecutive year of higher-than-historical gains. Over the long term, the S&P 500 has averaged a 9% to 10% annualized total return.Outsized gains have made the S&P 500 relat ...

The weight loss drug market may reach $95 billion within five years.The new generation of effective weight loss drugs has generated billions of dollars for industry leaders Eli Lilly (LLY -0.96%) and Novo Nordisk (NVO 1.39%), and opened the door for companies such as Viking Therapeutics and Amgen that are working on rival new candidates.The growth of this healthcare niche looks to be far from over: While the weight loss drug segment is expected to be worth $28 billion this year, Goldman Sachs Research predi ...

Though cloud giant Oracle came within a stone's throw of reaching the psychologically important $1 trillion valuation mark, another company is better suited to beat it to the punch.On Wall Street, market cap serves as a differentiator of good and great businesses. While there are plenty of budding small- and mid-cap companies, businesses with valuations in excess of $10 billion have (more often than not) demonstrated their innovative capacity and backed up their worth to Wall Street.But among this class of ...

The high-flying stock is up more than 2,000% in the last three years.There are two types of stock splits -- and in my view, two types of companies that perform stock splits. First is the reverse stock split, in which a company consolidates shares of stock to raise the price. In a 1-for-10 stock split, someone who has 10 shares of a stock suddenly has one share, and the value is now 10 times what the share price was pre-split. That way, the investment's total value doesn't change.Those are the kind of splits ...

These two "pick-and-shovel" AI stocks offer attractive growth prospects.There is a massive investment cycle underway in artificial intelligence (AI). Morgan Stanley estimates that spending on AI infrastructure could exceed $3 trillion in the next three years.The companies providing the chips and data centers to enable the AI transformation of the economy could be very rewarding investments for potentially decades to come.Here are two top AI infrastructure stocks to consider buying right now. 1. NvidiaCloud ...

Core Insights - The article discusses the evolution of the most valuable companies, highlighting a shift from industrial and energy sectors to technology leaders, particularly those involved in artificial intelligence (AI) [1][2]. Company Performance - Meta Platforms has a current market cap of approximately $1.9 trillion, with a significant stock price increase of 537% since early 2023, driven by advancements in generative AI [4]. - In Q2, Meta's revenue rose by 22% year over year to $47.5 billion, with diluted earnings per share (EPS) increasing by 38% to $7.14 [7]. - The user base across Meta's platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and WhatsApp, grew to 3.48 billion, a 6% increase year over year, contributing to its advertising success [8]. Market Cap Projections - To reach a $3 trillion market cap, Meta's stock price would need to increase by approximately 55%, with Wall Street estimating revenue of $196 billion in 2025, resulting in a forward price-to-sales (P/S) ratio of about 10 [9]. - Meta would need to generate around $305 billion in annual revenue to support a $3 trillion valuation, with forecasts suggesting nearly 15% annual growth over the next five years [10]. Valuation Comparison - Meta's current valuation at 27 times earnings is comparable to the S&P 500, but its stock has increased by 729% over the past decade, significantly outpacing the S&P 500's 238% gain [11].