The Rundown - DOJ to Push Break-Up of Google Chrome, Walmart Raises Forecast on Strong Consumer Spending

Episode Date: November 19, 2024

Stock market update for November 19, 2024.

Public.com presents the rundown. Your daily market update in five minutes. My name is Zadadmani, and today is Tuesday, November 19th. In today's episode, we tell you how one man is single-handedly pushing up the price of Bitcoin. We also discussed the DOJ's plans to break up Google, which includes selling off Chrome. Then we recap earnings from Walmart and Lowe's and tell you why Jersey Mikes might be ruined soon. All right, let's go. Stock started the week off on a good note.

Both the S&P and NASDAQ were in the green on Monday. The Dow on the other hand was in the red, but we don't care about the Dow. Now, Bitcoin also saw a nice pop yesterday jumping above $92,000. After Micro Strategy disclosed, they bought another $4.6 billion worth of Bitcoin. The company now has over $30 billion worth of Bitcoin on their balance sheet. Their CEO, Michael Saylor, is a true Bitcoin maxi. and honestly, his buying spree might be one of the things that's keeping this Bitcoin rally alive. Also, the SEC recently approved options trading for Bitcoin ETFs.

These options are expected to start trading this week. So I wonder what impact that's going to have on Bitcoin moving forward. It could add further volatility to the crypto markets. Now, speaking of volatility, it looks like markets all over the world are being rocked this morning because of rising tensions between Ukraine and Russia. There are reports of potential nuclear escalation. And that has investors freaking out. Stock markets in Europe are down across the board. Some investors are running to safe haven assets like bonds and gold. Bond yields are dropping this morning and gold prices are up around 1% today. So definitely something to keep an eye on. Let's run through some headlines. And we have to start with Google because they might be forced to sell Chrome. See, Google lost an antitrust case earlier this year against the DOJ. And in response to losing that case, the DOJ is going to ask the judge. to force Google to sell their Chrome browser business.

I mean, this would be pretty huge because Chrome is the most popular internet browser in the world. All right, more than 66% of internet users use Chrome. And it also plays a pretty critical role as part of Google's ad business. Google can see the activity from people who use Chrome, and they can use that data to better target ads. And remember, Google makes most of their money from ads. So if Google had to sell Chrome, that could be a huge blow to their business. On top of that, Google has also been using Chrome to direct users to its AI product, Gemini.

So not only is it important for their ads business, but it's also important to promote their other products. And if Google was forced to sell Chrome, I don't really know how valuable Chrome is outside of Google. Like, web browsers don't really make much money. In fact, Firefox was relying on Google to make their money as well. So having Chrome is very advantageous for Google, but I don't know if Chrome can exist outside of Google. So we'll have to see what the judge decides to do here. But this would be a huge shake up if it ended up going through. Let's shift gears and talk about Walmart.

They just reported earnings this morning and things are looking pretty good for Walmart right now. Walmart earnings showed signs of consumers buying more fun items instead of just the necessities. It's good to see that other categories are seeing a bump in sales outside of just cheap groceries. It could be a sign that consumers are feeling a little bit better right now. Outside of groceries, Walmart's product sales had fallen for 11 quarters in a row. But that streak was finally broken. Walmart has actually benefited from the high inflation environment over the past couple years.

Consumers turned to Walmart for affordable options for groceries and other items. On top of that, their Walmart plus service is pretty good, not going to lie. On the earnings call, their CFO said that the holiday season is off to a good start, but he did warn that Walmart would be forced to raise prices if Donald Trump enacted tariffs. But overall investors are feeling pretty good about Walmart. Their shares are up around 4% this morning in reaction to these earnings. And let's talk about Spirit Airlines real quick. It is official Spirit Airlines that's filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy this week.

There was rumors of this happening for months now, but the paperwork has officially been filed in court. Now, this doesn't mean the company is shutting down. In fact, everything will be operating as normal. They're going to keep flying planes. They're going to keep selling tickets. So your $49 tickets to Vegas are still valid. So make sure you show up to the airport. The company plans to use bankruptcy, though, to restructure their debt.

They currently have over a $3.6 billion debt load. So they're going to try to shed some of that debt and hopefully come out stronger on the other end. Now, quick fun fact, this is the first time a major U.S. airline has filed for bankruptcy in more than a decade. So end of an era. Let's talk about some stocks making moves today. Shares of the crypto trading platform backed are rising after the Financial Times reported that Trump media was in talks to buy the company. Very interesting move by Trump media to say the least. I wonder how this ties into Donald Trump's plans for crypto.

But yeah, this news sent back shares soaring. The company was up 162% yesterday when this news broke, and it's up another 7% this morning. Now, on the flip side, shares of lows are down, despite the home improvement company beating Wall Street earnings expectations. Now, the revenues and profits were still down compared to last year, but it wasn't as bad as Wall Street was expecting. The company pointed to a strong home professional business

and strong online shopping sales. But despite the earnings beat, investors are concerned with Lowe's outlook moving forward. The company expects comparable sales to decline by 3 to 3.5% for the full year. There are still weak demands for pricey DIY projects right now. In fact, Home Depot said the same thing when they reported earnings last week. So as a result, Lowe's shares are down 2% in reaction to these earnings. But Lowe's stock is up more than 20% for the year, outperforming their rival Home Depot. Now, I know this sounds kind of weird, and I don't really know how to describe it,

But I just feel like Lowe's just doesn't have the same aura as Home Depot. You know what I mean? Maybe I'm just being crazy. But I think all my dad's out there know what I'm talking about. Home Depot on a Saturday morning just hits different. Let's wrap the show with a fun fact. Jersey Mikes is being bought by giant private equity firm Blackstone, according to reporting from the Wall Street Journal.

Jersey Mikes is the second largest sub-style sandwich company in the U.S. after Subway, and this deal values Jersey Mikes at around $8 billion. Now, I'll be honest with you, I've actually never had Jersey mics before. Growing up, I was always a subway guy, hard to beat the $5 foot long back in the day. And then when Subway fell off, I was big on Jimmy Johns, which also kind of fell off too. So I might need to give Jersey Mikes a shot. Now, what's interesting is that all these subplaces have been taken over by private equity. Subway sold to private equity company Rort Capital for $9.6 billion last year.

And then Jimmy Johns was bought by Inspire Brands in 2019, also backed by Private Equity. and now Blackstone is buying Jersey mics. So yeah, I definitely need to try Jersey mics before the private equity people fully get their hands on it. Well, all right, guys, that's the rundown for today. Hope you guys enjoyed today's episode. If you did and you have like eight seconds, consider leaving us a comment on Spotify or YouTube. And thank you to everyone that left a comment on yesterday's episode, wishing me a happy birthday. That really means a lot.

Even if some of you guys were surprised to find out that I was only 33, all right? I did get a couple DMs from people thinking that I was like 38 or 41. That hurt a little bit, but I'll be okay. I might be ordering some hair dye today. Thank you guys so much for listening. Shout out to Mike and Connor for all the help behind the scenes. And we'll see you guys back here tomorrow. This is the rundown.

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