Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) is one of the AI Stocks Shaping Wall Street’s Next Big Rally. On October 6, Baird reiterated the stock as “Outperform” stating that “improving [Amazon Web Services] growth should help sentiment.” “On this ‘Open AI Monday’, we are opportunistic buyers of AMZN with likely acceleration in AWS growth in coming quarters, along with solid ongoing growth in high-margin Advertising and Services.” Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN) is an American technology company offering e-commerce, cloud c ...

Core Insights - Alibaba's stock has rebounded significantly following its latest earnings call, driven by a shift in focus towards cloud computing, artificial intelligence, and international growth, despite ongoing challenges in its core e-commerce business [1][24]. Earnings Overview - For Q1 FY2026, Alibaba reported revenue of RMB 247.7 billion (US$34.6 billion), reflecting a modest year-on-year increase of approximately 2%. Excluding divested businesses, the growth rate appears stronger at around 10% [2]. - Operating income decreased to RMB 35.0 billion, with adjusted EBITA down 14% year-on-year due to heavy investments in Taobao Instant Commerce and technology upgrades [3]. - Net income surged 76% year-on-year to RMB 42.4 billion, bolstered by investment gains and the sale of Trendyol. However, non-GAAP net profit fell 18% to RMB 33.5 billion compared to RMB 40.7 billion in the same quarter of 2024 [3]. Cash Flow Analysis - Operating cash flow declined to RMB 20.7 billion, a decrease of about 39% from the previous year, while free cash flow turned negative at RMB 18 billion, contrasting with a positive figure a year earlier [4]. - Despite cash flow challenges, Alibaba ended the quarter with RMB 585.7 billion (US$81.8 billion) in cash and investments, providing a buffer for continued growth funding [6]. Growth Drivers - The earnings call highlighted a strategic pivot towards cloud computing and AI, with the cloud division experiencing a year-on-year growth of approximately 26%, breaking a trend of disappointing results [9][10]. - Sales from AI products have reportedly increased at triple-digit rates for eight consecutive quarters, indicating that Alibaba is successfully monetizing its AI initiatives [11][12]. - The introduction of Qwen3-Max, a large language model with over a trillion parameters, and a partnership with Nvidia to develop practical AI tools were also announced [14][15]. Market Dynamics - The ongoing price war in food delivery and instant commerce, particularly between Alibaba's Ele.me and Meituan, has led to cash burn from subsidies and free deliveries, impacting margins [19][20]. - Regulatory intervention from the government aims to curb irrational price cuts, which could alleviate margin pressures for Alibaba's core e-commerce business [21][22]. - A more balanced competitive landscape may allow Alibaba to strengthen its Taobao and Tmall platforms, enhancing recovery prospects [23][26]. Conclusion - Alibaba's stock performance is attributed more to its strategic narrative around cloud, AI, and international growth rather than just financial metrics, with ample cash reserves enabling continued investment in new initiatives while stabilizing its core operations [24][27].

This AI stock has plenty of room to run...Artificial intelligence (AI) stocks -- from new-to-market players like CoreWeave to 30-year-old companies like Nvidia -- have soared in recent times. CoreWeave has surged more than 200% since its March initial public offering, and Nvidia has advanced more than 1,300% over the past three years. This is as investors recognize the potential of this technology to deliver efficiency and growth to companies over time -- and they aim to get in on possible winners early in ...

Core Investment Themes - The theme of artificial intelligence (AI) has significantly driven stock market gains, contributing to record highs in the S&P 500 over the past two years, with AI stocks being a focal point for investors aiming for a potential trillion-dollar market [1][2] Investor Actions - Philippe Laffont of Coatue Management, a prominent investor, has made notable moves in the second quarter, including selling his entire position in Super Micro Computer and increasing investments in four key AI companies [3][4] Portfolio Adjustments - Coatue Management's actions in the second quarter included: - Selling 8,866,735 shares of Super Micro Computer, which constituted 1.3% of the portfolio [9] - Opening a new position in Oracle with 3,857,262 shares, representing 2.4% of the portfolio [9] - Increasing its position in Nvidia by 34% to 11,488,529 shares, now 5% of the holdings [9] - Lifting its position in CoreWeave by 23% to 17,797,573 shares, making up 8% of the portfolio [9] - Increasing its position in Broadcom by 58% to 5,647,507 shares, which is 4.3% of the portfolio [9] AI Infrastructure Growth - The AI infrastructure buildout is projected to see spending reach $3 trillion to $4 trillion by the end of the decade, indicating a strong demand for AI capacity [5] - Nvidia is positioned to benefit from this growth as a leading AI chip designer, while Broadcom is expected to play a crucial role in providing networking equipment for AI data centers [6] Company-Specific Insights - CoreWeave, while currently unprofitable, is seen as a significant investment by Laffont, reflecting a belief in its long-term potential despite its early-stage growth [7] - Super Micro Computer faced challenges last year related to accounting issues, but these have been resolved, and the company may have a promising future as AI demand increases, although Laffont chose to exit this investment [10]

Group 1: CoreWeave - CoreWeave is an AI stock backed by Nvidia, which has become the largest holding in Philippe Laffont's portfolio, accounting for 8% [2] - The company reported a revenue surge of 207% to $1.2 billion in the second quarter, with non-GAAP operating income increasing 135% to $200 million [9] - CoreWeave's revenue backlog increased by 86% due to expanded contracts with OpenAI and a major hyperscale customer, likely Microsoft or Alphabet [9] - The company has a substantial amount of debt due to its rapid expansion of AI data centers, with interest expenses erasing over 20% of revenue in the second quarter [10] - Wall Street expects CoreWeave's revenue to grow at an annual rate of 90% through 2027, making its current valuation of 15 times sales appear reasonable [11] Group 2: Amazon - Amazon holds a significant market share, accounting for over 40% of U.S. e-commerce sales and 15% of digital ad spending, while AWS represents 30% of cloud infrastructure spending [3] - The company reported second-quarter financial results that exceeded estimates, with revenue rising 13% to $167 billion, driven by strong growth in advertising and cloud services [5] - Amazon's operating margin expanded by 1.5 percentage points, and GAAP net income increased by 33% to $1.68 per diluted share [5] - Wall Street estimates that Amazon's earnings will grow at an annual rate of 18% over the next three years, making its current valuation of 34 times earnings seem fair [6] Group 3: AI Industry - AI has become integral to growth strategies across various sectors, including retail, advertising, and cloud computing, enhancing inventory management, demand forecasting, and campaign creation [4] - CoreWeave is recognized as a leader in the emerging GPU cloud sector, specifically designed for AI workloads, distinguishing itself from traditional cloud providers [7] - The close partnership with Nvidia provides CoreWeave with early access to the latest GPUs, enhancing its competitive edge in the AI cloud services market [8]

Core Insights - The event "The Dialogue on AI & Cyber Governance" is focused on the theme of "The New Reality of Corporate AI Security" [1] - Tuya Smart, a global AI cloud platform service provider, delivered a keynote address titled "Pioneering AI Security: Lessons from the Frontlines" [1] - The company shared insights on the latest developments in AI implementation and analyzed global AI cybersecurity dynamics [1] Company Insights - Tuya Smart is positioned as a leader in AI cloud platform services, showcasing its cutting-edge practices in AI security [1] - The keynote address highlighted the importance of learning from real-world experiences in AI security [1] Industry Insights - The event reflects the growing importance of AI security in corporate governance as the physical AI transformation accelerates [1] - The discussions at the event are indicative of the prevailing global dynamics in AI cybersecurity [1]

Core Insights - Gold has reached a record high just below $4,000 an ounce, driven by factors such as the US government shutdown, fluctuations in technology stocks, and political instability in Japan and France [1][2] - The price of gold has increased over 50% this year, influenced by trade and geopolitical changes initiated by President Donald Trump, leading to a shift away from the dollar [2][4] - Central banks have been significant buyers of gold, and the recent Federal Reserve rate cut has prompted investors to turn to gold-backed exchange-traded funds [2][4] Group 1: Market Dynamics - The US government shutdown has delayed key economic data, complicating the Federal Reserve's rate-cutting strategy, while concerns about the sustainability of the AI-driven market rally are emerging [1][3] - Spot gold prices rose to $3,996.11 an ounce, with the Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index remaining steady, indicating a stable demand for gold amidst market fluctuations [3] Group 2: Investor Sentiment - The narratives surrounding de-dollarization and de-globalization have significantly increased demand for gold, although there are concerns that speculators may take profits after the rapid price increase since mid-August [3][5] - Billionaire investors like Ray Dalio have emphasized gold's status as a safer asset compared to the dollar, drawing parallels to the 1970s when gold prices surged amid high inflation and economic uncertainty [4][5] Group 3: Future Outlook - Analysts predict that the rally in gold prices may continue, with Goldman Sachs raising its forecast for December 2026 to $4,900 an ounce, reflecting ongoing bullish sentiment in the market [2] - The current surge in gold prices is attributed to increasing safe-haven demand and growing distrust in paper assets due to rising fiscal risks and geopolitical tensions [5]

As a smaller company than these technology giants, it has a longer runway to grow.Investors focused solely on the gigantic artificial intelligence (AI) beneficiaries need to expand their horizons. There are more stocks than Nvidia, Palantir, or Amazon that you can own in your investment portfolio, including ones that benefit from the AI revolution.On such stock is Coupang (CPNG -0.42%). The technology company focused on e-commerce and emerging cloud computing provider keeps posting impressive growth and is ...

Market Overview - Major indices in the U.S. experienced a decline, with the S&P 500 down approximately 0.4% and the Nasdaq composite down 0.7% [6][7] - The Philadelphia Semiconductor index fell by 2%, while the Russell 2000 lost about 1.1% [7] - Despite the pullback, the S&P 500 is up more than 30% year-to-date, indicating strong momentum in the market [7][8] Company-Specific News - Salesforce shares dipped by 2.4% after the company announced it would not pay a ransom related to a data breach, marking the first public disclosure of the incident [4][5] - Oracle's shares fell by 2.5% due to reports of lower-than-expected profit margins in cloud computing, with a gross margin of 67.3%, the lowest in over a year [15] - Ford shares dropped by 6.1% following a fire at a New York State aluminum plant, which is expected to disrupt supply chains [16] - Applovin saw a recovery, gaining 7.6% after a previous decline, amid ongoing scrutiny from regulators regarding its data collection practices [11][13] - AMD shares rose nearly 4% as the company continues to gain momentum from its partnership with OpenAI to develop AI infrastructure [14] Sector Performance - The technology sector experienced a decline of about 0.5%, influenced by Oracle's performance [9] - Consumer staples emerged as the top-performing sector, up by approximately 0.9%, reflecting a defensive market sentiment [9] - Financials also performed well, contributing to the overall sector performance [9]

Financial Performance - Oracle's cloud business is growing exponentially, but gross profit margins are razor thin [2] - Wall Street anticipates lower gross profit margins due to rising power and labor costs for data centers [2] - Remaining performance obligations (cloud contracts backlog) jumped 359% year-over-year [3] Market Dynamics & Investment - Oracle is becoming a key enabler in AI data center buildout, renting out NVIDIA chips [2] - Bank of America analysts cautioned that long-term profitability visibility is unclear [3] - Market is trying to understand how much margins will be impacted in the short term due to increased capital expenditure, with the stock down nearly 6% [4] - Questions emerge around better deal economics from Nvidia for high-performing AI chips [5] Company Strategy & Future Outlook - Oracle World is upcoming, with expectations for more information on growth trajectory from co-presidents and founder Larry Ellison [5] - Oracle has a history of being a leading software platform, which should translate to building value for AI workloads [4]