Core Insights - U.S. energy firms have added oil and natural gas rigs for the second consecutive week, marking the first such increase since early February, according to Baker Hughes [1] - The total oil and gas rig count rose by two to 553, the highest level since November 2025, although it remains down 39 rigs or 7% compared to the same time last year [1] Rig Count Details - Oil rigs increased by one to 412, the highest since early February, while gas rigs also rose by one to 133, the highest since late February [1] - The oil and gas rig count has seen a decline of approximately 7% in 2025, 5% in 2024, and 20% in 2023 due to lower U.S. oil prices, leading firms to prioritize shareholder returns and debt repayment over output increases [1] Capital Expenditure Trends - Financial services firm TD Cowen reported that all 18 exploration and production companies it tracks plan to reduce capital expenditures by about 1% in 2026 compared to 2025, following a decline of around 4% in 2025 [1] - This trend contrasts with increases of 27% in 2023, 40% in 2022, and 4% in 2021, indicating a shift in spending priorities within the industry [1] Future Production Projections - The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) projects that crude output will rise from a record 13.59 million barrels per day (bpd) in 2025 to 13.61 million bpd in 2026, driven by expected increases in West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude prices due to geopolitical factors [1] - On the natural gas side, EIA forecasts output to increase from a record 107.7 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) in 2025 to 109.5 bcfd in 2026, with spot prices at the U.S. Henry Hub expected to rise by about 7% in 2026 [1]

It's really interesting because for a very long time, we were zeroed in on capital expenditures, and that was the be all and the end all. There are stories on the Bloomberg terminal today about the credit profile, and and, CDS, for example, on on Oracle. Are investors starting to look deeper and at different datasets to assess the health of what's going on.Yeah. Absolutely. When we look though at the structure of the national economy and we look at CapEx as a share of GDP, what's interesting to note is that ...

>> BLOOMBERG TECH FROM COAST TO COAST WITH CAROLINE HYDE IN NEW YORK AND ED LUDLOW IN SAN FRANCISCO. >> AMAZON KICKS OFF WHAT IS LIKELY TO BE ONE OF THE BIGGEST CORPORATE BOND OFFERINGS THAT ARE IN A BID TO PAY FOR THE APPLE ROOM. CAROLYN: GOOGLE INTRODUCES AI AGENTS TO AUTOMATE ROUTINE JOBS.THIS AS THE PENTAGON'S FIGHT WITH ANTHROPIC DRAGS ON. >> WE WILL BREAK IT ALL DOWN WITH THE CEO. CAROLINE: WE WANT MORE FOCUS IN ON THE MIDDLE EAST CONFLICT WITH IRAN AND THE FACT THAT IT HAS BEEN STOPPED IN TERMS OF AG ...

Amazon has kicked off a potentially record setting corporate bond sale, tapping debt markets to fuel its ambitions. Let's get over to Bloomberg Tech co-host Ed Ludlow. Ed, it's remarkable that in the midst of volatile markets, Amazon is going forward a potentially $40 billion plus offering across dollars and euros.Yeah, we've seen a wave of AI related offerings, particularly from the HYPERSCALERS. But, you know, the Amazon one is size large. Basically the offering targeting 37 to $42 billion in dollar terms ...

Core Insights - U.S. energy firms have added oil and natural gas rigs for the first time in four weeks, with the total rig count rising by one to 551 as of March 6 [1] - Despite the increase, the total rig count is still down 41 rigs, or 7%, compared to the same time last year [1] - Oil rigs increased by four to 411, the highest level since early February, while gas rigs decreased by two to 132, marking their lowest since early February [1] Industry Trends - The oil and gas rig count has seen a decline of approximately 7% in 2025, 5% in 2024, and 20% in 2023, driven by lower U.S. oil prices prompting firms to prioritize shareholder returns and debt repayment over output increases [1] - Financial services firm TD Cowen reported that 18 of the 21 exploration and production companies it tracks plan to reduce capital expenditures by about 1% in 2026 compared to 2025, following a decline of around 4% in 2025 [1] - U.S. spot crude prices are expected to fall for the fourth consecutive year in 2026, with the EIA projecting crude output to remain steady at 13.6 million barrels per day in 2026, matching the record high of 2025 [1] Gas Market Outlook - The EIA forecasts that natural gas output will increase from a record 107.6 billion cubic feet per day in 2025 to 110.0 billion cubic feet per day in 2026, with spot prices at the Henry Hub benchmark expected to rise by about 22% in 2026 [1]

Core Insights - Cracker Barrel Old Country Store Inc. experienced an 8.02% increase in after-hours trading, reaching $33.08 following the release of its fiscal second-quarter 2026 results [1] Financial Performance - Total revenue for the second quarter was $874.8 million, a decline of 7.9% year-over-year, slightly below the analyst estimate of $876.94 million [2] - Comparable restaurant store sales decreased by 7.1%, while comparable retail store sales fell by 9.2% [2] - Net income under generally accepted accounting principles was $1.3 million, down from $22.2 million a year ago [3] - Adjusted EBITDA for the quarter was $38.2 million, down from $74.6 million in the prior-year quarter [3] - Adjusted earnings per share were $0.25, surpassing the analyst estimate of -$0.22, compared to $1.38 in the same quarter last year [3] Previous Quarter Comparison - In the first quarter, Cracker Barrel reported revenue of $797.19 million, a 5.7% decrease from the previous year, and an adjusted loss of 74 cents per share, which was wider than the estimated loss of 68 cents [4] Updated Guidance - The company narrowed its full-year adjusted EBITDA outlook to a range of $85 million to $100 million, down from $70 million to $110 million [5] - Commodity inflation guidance was revised to 2.0%–2.5%, reduced from the previous range of 2.5%–3.5% [5] - Capital expenditures guidance was also narrowed to $105 million–$115 million [5] - A quarterly dividend of $0.25 was declared, payable on May 13 to shareholders of record as of April 10 [5] Market Position - CEO Julie Masino stated that the company is "well-positioned to regain prior momentum" [6] - Cracker Barrel has a market capitalization of $681.91 million, with a 52-week high of $71.93 and a low of $24.85 [6] - The stock has decreased by 24% over the past 12 months and is currently trading near the lower end of its 52-week range, approximately 12.3% above its 52-week low [6][7] - The stock closed at $30.62, down 0.29% [6]

Core Insights - Amazon plans to invest approximately $200 billion in capital expenditures by 2026, marking a significant increase from the previous year [1] Group 1 - The planned investment represents a substantial jump in capital expenditures compared to last year's figures [1]

One of the biggest developments in recent memory has been the advent of artificial intelligence (AI). The potential of these game-changing algorithms to increase productivity and streamline time-consuming tasks has fueled growing adoption. This, in turn, has sparked a mad dash by big tech companies to capitalize on the unprecedented opportunity. Capital expenditures (capex), particularly for the servers and data centers needed to support the growing demand for AI, have risen to record levels and are only ...

Big Tech Spending Spree Is About More Than Capex - Barron'sSkip to Main ContentThis copy is for your personal, non-commercial use only. Distribution and use of this material are governed by our Subscriber Agreement and by copyright law. For non-personal use or to order multiple copies, please contact Dow Jones Reprints at 1-800-843-0008 or visit www.djreprints.com.# Big Tech's Spending Spree Is About Far More Than CapexBy [Adam Levine]ShareResize---ReprintsIn this article[AMZN][MSFT][GOOGL][META] [AAPL]Amaz ...

Alphabet (GOOGL) recently posted robust fourth-quarter and full-year results, with its annual revenue surpassing the $400 billion mark for the first time in its history. Growth accelerated across Alphabet’s core businesses, driven largely by artificial intelligence (AI)-led capabilities, while its backlog expanded meaningfully. While its strong Q4 performance should have propelled the stock higher, Alphabet’s share price instead lost steam. The primary reason is due to investor concern over capital expen ...