In a week of stock market newsworthiness, the hits keep coming this Friday morning. President Trump’s new Fed Chair has been announced: former Fed Governor Kevin Warsh. We also see a key wholesale inflation report hitting the tape for December, along with Big Oil companies reporting Q4 earnings results.Ahead of the opening bell, the Dow is -250 points, the S&P 500 is -35, the Nasdaq -180 and the small-cap Russell 2000 -30. This is a rather inauspicious start to the trading day, but we’re thus far flat for t ...

Core Viewpoint - Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. reported better-than-expected earnings for the fourth quarter, with adjusted earnings of $2.07 per share and quarterly sales of $975 million, surpassing market expectations [1]. Financial Performance - Adjusted earnings per share were $2.07, exceeding market estimates [1]. - Quarterly sales reached $975 million, compared to expectations of $955.819 million [1]. Stock Performance - Following the earnings announcement, Bread Financial shares fell by 0.6%, trading at $72.57 [1]. Analyst Ratings and Price Targets - Barclays analyst Terry Ma maintained an Underweight rating on Bread Financial and raised the price target from $61 to $64 [2]. - Morgan Stanley analyst Jeffrey Adelson also maintained an Underweight rating, increasing the price target from $62 to $68 [2].

Group 1 - The article does not provide any relevant content regarding company or industry insights [1]

Core Viewpoint - The appointment of Kevin Walsh to the Fed raises questions about his potential stance on interest rates, given his hawkish history during his previous tenure from 2006 to 2011, which contrasts with the current administration's preference for lower rates [2][3][4]. Market Reaction - Following the announcement of Walsh's appointment, there was an initial rise in yields and a sell-off in risk assets, indicating market confusion and uncertainty regarding his future policies [7][8]. - The market is currently pricing in an increased expectation for rate cuts this year, despite strong economic indicators such as GDP growth and elevated inflation [10][12][14]. Economic Indicators - The economy is reportedly running at a nominal GDP growth of 3.5% to 4%, with fiscal stimulus and easy financial conditions contributing to this growth [12]. - Recent PPI data suggests inflation remains elevated, which could impact future PCE readings and complicate the case for rate cuts [12][13].

Core Viewpoint - American Express Company (NYSE: AXP) is experiencing a mixed outlook among analysts, with a slight decrease in the average price target but an overall upward trend compared to last year, reflecting growing confidence in the company's future prospects [1][2][5]. Price Target Summary - The average price target for AXP decreased from $387.55 to $381 over the last month, indicating tempered optimism among analysts [2]. - Compared to last year's target of $361.96, the current price target shows a clear upward trend, suggesting increased confidence in the company's performance [2][5]. Earnings Expectations - American Express is expected to announce a 16.8% increase in earnings per share (EPS) for the fourth quarter, driven by rising network volumes, discount revenues, and card growth [3]. - Analysts believe these factors will help offset the increasing costs associated with customer engagement [3]. Analyst Concerns - Some analysts, such as Mark DeVries from Barclays, have set a lower price target of $145 for AXP, indicating caution regarding the company's ability to meet earnings expectations [4]. - The mixed signals from analysts highlight the importance of upcoming earnings reports and strategic announcements in shaping future expectations and stock price targets [4][5].

Core Insights - SoFi achieved its first billion-dollar revenue quarter, driven by cross-selling strategies that deepened member engagement in lending, deposits, and investing [1][3] - The company added a record 1 million new members in Q4, increasing total membership to 13.7 million, and introduced 1.6 million new products, raising the total to over 20 million [4] - Adjusted net revenue reached $1.013 billion, a 37% increase year over year, with total loan originations surpassing $10 billion for the first time [5] Financial Performance - Full-year adjusted net revenue for 2025 was $3.6 billion, up 38%, while adjusted EBITDA increased to $1.1 billion, a 58% rise [8] - Fee-based revenue for the quarter was $443 million, reflecting a more than 50% increase from the previous year, with annualized fee revenue nearing $1.8 billion [7] Product and Service Expansion - SoFi's crypto offerings transitioned from experimental to operational, launching international payments and consumer crypto trading, alongside the introduction of its stablecoin, SoFi USD [9][10] - The technology platform, including Galileo, is seeing increased interest from enterprise clients, particularly in the crypto space [12] Consumer Behavior and Outlook - Credit metrics remain stable, with personal loan borrowers averaging a FICO score of 746 and student loan borrowers at 765, indicating a resilient consumer backdrop [13] - For 2026, SoFi projects adjusted net revenue of approximately $4.7 billion, equating to around 30% top-line growth [14]

Kevin Warsh, 55, comes from the financial services industry (Wall Street) and public service. When he was appointed to the Federal Reserve Board at age 34 in 2006, he became the youngest member of the Fed Board. Prior to this appointment, he served as anI’m a Portfolio manager (flexible equity funds and private clients), fundamental equity research, macro and geopolitical strategy.Over 10 years across global markets, managing multi-asset strategies and equity portfolios at a European asset manager.I combine ...

SoFi Technologies, Inc. (SOFI) reported $1.01 billion in revenue for the quarter ended December 2025, representing a year-over-year increase of 37%. EPS of $0.13 for the same period compares to $0.05 a year ago.The reported revenue represents a surprise of +3.15% over the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $981.89 million. With the consensus EPS estimate being $0.12, the EPS surprise was +9.71%.While investors scrutinize revenue and earnings changes year-over-year and how they compare with Wall Street expectations ...

🚨JUST IN: KRAKACQUISITION CORP SPAC GOES LIVE, IN PARTNERSHIP WITH KRAKEN AND OTHERSCEO @RTanuku has today announced the formation of KRAKacquisition Corp. (KRAQU), in partnership with @Krakenfx, @NatCapCentral, and @Tribecap.According to the public statement, the SPAC is focused on companies building the convergence of DeFi and TradFi—payment networks, tokenization platforms, blockchain infrastructure, and compliance solutions. Companies ready to scale in the public markets.Further, KRAKacquisition Corp ha ...

Core Insights - SoFi reported record quarterly revenue and profitability in Q4 2025, with a strong outlook for continued growth in 2026 [6] Financial Performance - Combined revenue from financial services and technology platform segments reached $579 million in Q4, a 61% increase year-over-year, accounting for 57% of total revenue [1] - Adjusted EBITDA for Q4 was $318 million, up 60% year-over-year, with a margin of 31%; net income was $174 million, representing a 17% margin, and earnings per share (EPS) were $0.13 [3] - Adjusted net revenue for Q4 was $1.013 billion, marking a 37% year-over-year increase and the first "billion-dollar quarter" for the company; full-year adjusted net revenue reached $3.6 billion, up 38% year-over-year [4] Member and Product Growth - SoFi added a record 1 million members in Q4, bringing total membership to 13.7 million, a 35% increase year-over-year; the company also added 1.6 million products in the quarter, totaling over 20 million products, up 37% year-over-year [5] Revenue Segmentation - Financial services revenue for 2025 exceeded $1.5 billion, up 88% from the prior year; Q4 financial services net revenue was $457 million, a 78% increase year-over-year [7] - The Loan Platform Business (LPB) generated $194 million in adjusted net revenue in Q4, nearly three times higher than the same period last year [8] - Adjusted net revenue from lending was $486 million in Q4, up 15% year-over-year, with full-year lending adjusted net revenue exceeding $1.8 billion, a 24% increase year-over-year [9] Loan Originations and Capital Markets - Total loan originations in Q4 reached a record $10.5 billion, a 46% increase year-over-year, including $7.5 billion in personal loans, $1.9 billion in student loans, and $1.1 billion in home loans [11] - Capital markets activity was strong, with $4.5 billion in personal and home loans sold and transferred through LPB [12] Credit Performance - Personal loan borrowers had a weighted average income of $158,000 and a weighted average FICO score of 746; the annualized personal loan charge-off rate was 280 basis points, up 20 basis points sequentially but down over 50 basis points year-over-year [13] Future Initiatives and Guidance - SoFi launched several crypto-related products and plans to introduce secured lending by cryptocurrencies and a business banking offering in 2026 [14][15] - For Q1 2026, the company expects adjusted net revenue of about $1.04 billion and adjusted EBITDA of about $300 million [15] - Management provided growth expectations for 2026, including financial services revenue growth of 40% or more and lending revenue growth of approximately 23% [16] Capital Allocation - SoFi raised $3.2 billion in new capital in 2025, ending the quarter with total deposits of $37.5 billion and total company-wide cash of $5.4 billion [17][18]