The week has seen the market meander as it searches for its next catalyst. One possible catalyst — an interest rate cut from the Federal Reserve later this month — has been removed from the equation following sticky inflation reads.
Meanwhile, strong earnings reports this week from Netflix (NFLX) and United Airlines (UAL) haven’t done enough to excite investors to push valuations to even richer levels.
On the month, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) is up 1.1% while the S&P 500 (^GSPC) has notched a 1.8% gain. The Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) has led the way with a 2.8% advance thanks to enthusiasm on AI chip demand from the likes of Nvidia (NVDA) and Taiwan Semiconductor (TSM).
Here is everything we touched on during Yahoo Finance’s Opening Bid on Friday. Tune in live daily to Opening Bid at 9:30 a.m. ET.
The fight for Fed independence
Fed Chair Jerome Powell defended the $2.5 billion renovation to the institution’s headquarters in a letter to White House budget director Russell Vought. The remodeling job has angered President Trump and given him a new piece of arsenal in his attacks against Powell and the Fed.
Trump’s public rebuke of the Fed is triggering growing concerns on Wall Street about the near-term outlook for bond markets.
“We would not be surprised by a knee-jerk 50bp sell-off in the long end were this to take place. Subsequent price action would depend on court rulings,” a Barclays researcher said.
One top economist told me this week that, should Powell get fired, it would lead to a jump in inflation expectations — and subsequently reduce the chance of the rate cut Trump has demanded.
Netflix streams a strong quarter and outlook
The streaming giant did everything in its power on Thursday to justify its stock’s sizzling 43% run this year.
Here’s what I saw in the numbers:
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No consumer resistance to higher prices.
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Revenue and operating margin guidance lifted for 2025.
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Sequential acceleration in revenue and operating margin growth.
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Commitment on the earnings call to more live events. Upcoming events include an NFL double-header on Christmas Day.
The Street is bullish on Netflix’s trajectory into year-end due to a slew of new content, headlined by “Happy Gilmore 2.”
“Given Netflix’s track record of creating new hits, we are comfortable that viewership growth can continue and support future price increases and ad monetization,” KeyBanc analyst Justin Patterson said.
Patterson reiterated an Outperform rating on Netflix shares.
The year of the crypto craze rages on
The House voted overwhelmingly on Thursday to pass the GENIUS Act, the first-ever major legislative overhaul of crypto regulations. The bill now heads to Trump’s desk.
The act establishes guidelines for banks and other entities that issue stablecoins and safeguards for stablecoin holders.
Shares of crypto plays Webull (BULL), Coinbase (COIN), Circle (CRCL), and Robinhood (HOOD) all jumped on Friday.
“GENIUS is the stamp of approval from federal lawmakers that will make our industry unstoppable. We have no doubt that this will catalyze even more interest in stablecoins and activity across the broader crypto landscape,” said Nass Eddequiouaq, CEO of stablecoin issuer Bastion.
Amex charges forward
In yet another sign the US consumer is taking Trump tariffs in stride, American Express (AXP) smashed second quarter earnings estimates by $0.21 this morning. Sales and adjusted EPS rose a healthy 9% and 17%, respectively. The company said it saw record cardmember spending in the quarter.
Amex made no change to its full-year sales and profit outlooks.
“I think people just want to live their lives, and that’s what they’re doing. I mean, you’re seeing a little less air travel, obviously, but people are still spending and they are still traveling,” American Express CEO Stephen Squeri told me by phone on Friday.
Amex shares have been up 226% since Squeri took over as CEO from Ken Chenault on Feb. 1, 2018.
OpenAI lands Wall Street research coverage
It’s not common practice for a company to land Wall Street research coverage when it’s still private. But when you are talking about OpenAI, conventional wisdom needs to be tossed in the trash.
JPMorgan’s Brenda Duverce is initiating coverage on the AI startup today. Duverce said OpenAI stands to shake up the search market further in the years ahead, with an unrivaled brand and a $700 billion total addressable market potential.
OpenAI is the second-highest-valued private company in the world, according to Yahoo Finance private markets data. The company has an estimated valuation of $325 billion, second only to Elon Musk’s SpaceX at $443 billion.
Brian Sozzi is Yahoo Finance’s Executive Editor and a member of Yahoo Finance’s editorial leadership team. Follow Sozzi on X @BrianSozzi, Instagram, and LinkedIn. Tips on stories? Email brian.sozzi@yahoofinance.com.
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