The most recent Market Talks focusing on Technology, Media, and Telecom. Released solely on Dow Jones Newswires at 4:20 AM, 12:20 PM, and 4:50 PM ET.
09:29 ET – In April, U.S. firms were drawn to the European credit market due to improved financing opportunities within the Eurozone currency, according to Matthias Schell, a senior credit analyst at LBBW, who commented in a report. Issuance from American corporations accounted for more than one-third of the total monthly activity in this sector, as noted by him.
Tech giant Alphabet issued five Euro-denominated bonds amounting to €6.75 billion ($7.58 billion), marking “the biggest euro corporate debt deal in half a decade,” as stated by Schell. Following closely behind was Visa with Europe’s second most significant financial operation last month involving four Euro bonds valued at €3.5 billion.
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05:54 AM ET – According to Jefferies analysts’ report, Xiaomi continues to be a favored technology choice in China because of robust expansion bolstered by its unique ecosystem, limited influence from tariffs affecting their operations, and freedom from risks associated with ADR de-listing. They mention that Xiaomi’s presence in the smartphone sector shows continuous growth and holds prospects for even more extension. However, the firm’s stock faced some downward pressure attributed partly to slower SU7 demand increase and rising friction between the U.S. and China. Analysts also noted generally favorable reactions from investors; concerns raised were mainly about elevated expectations and potentially postponed unveiling of their SUV model. Despite these factors, Jefferies upholds its “buy” recommendation on Xiaomi shares along with setting a targeted valuation at HK$63.25 per share. At the close of trading yesterday, Xiaomi’s stocks stood at HK$51.35.
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04:17 ET – Despite ongoing shifts in the global supply chain and potential prospects for renewed U.S.-China trade talks, China’s exports aren’t expected to decline sharply soon. According to researchers at ANZ, stronger semiconductor shipments might explain why Chinese foreign trade figures outperformed expectations in April. The report indicates that both export and import volumes of semiconductors surged by approximately 20% and 11%, correspondingly, compared to last year. It appears that China boosted its chip exports to ASEAN nations and India more than 20%, mainly for assembling purposes. Additionally, they possibly acquired specific types of chips from Taiwan, South Korea, and the U.S., potentially routed via Hong Kong and South Africa. This points towards the complexity involved in disentangling China from the international supply network due to their significant involvement in production activities, as highlighted by the financial institution.
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0341 ET – Xiaomi is likely to report another round of solid earnings in 1Q, thanks to increased profitability in the electric-vehicle and Internet-of-Things sectors, HSBC Global Research analysts write in a note. The bank expects a “beat and raise” set of numbers with net profit hitting 10 billion yuan, more than double from a year earlier, thanks to around 50% on-year revenue growth in its IoT business and robust EV sales, they say. Profit margins are also likely to improve across business segments. In addition, high operating leverage will likely be a key driver for unlocking its earnings potential since Xiaomi is expected to have lower operating expenses in the first half of the year, they add. HSBC Global Research maintains a buy rating on the stock and raises its target price to HK$73.50 from HK$70.40. Shares are last at HK$51.00. (
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03:28 ET – According to Jefferies analysts’ report, Cellnex Telecom’s financial performance during Q1 indicates a consistent beginning towards 2025; however, attention will probably still center around possible asset divestitures. Additional sell-offs could prove beneficial for this Spanish telecom infrastructure firm as they may facilitate lower debts and increased payouts to shareholders, according to these analysts. They also mentioned that the corporation had finished 93% of an €800 million share repurchase initiative. “Cellnex started off steadily, meeting profit and cash flow projections fairly accurately along with maintaining their forecasted indicators,” states Jefferies. Despite this, shares dropped by 4.1%.
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03:26 ET – It’s improbable that Kakao will see a substantial uplift in valuation from anticipated increases in ad revenue later this year, according to HSBC analyst Junhyun Kim in his report. He forecasts the firm’s advertisement growth could reach around 9% YoY during H2, after seeing approximately a 4% rise in H1. While new formats like feed-based and video advertisements might drive more robust expansion, these aren’t expected to be sufficient to significantly enhance corporate valuations owing to insufficient clear earning plans. Consequently, HSBC has revised their recommendation on the stock from “buy” to “hold,” reducing the target share price by 16%, setting it now at KRW41,000. Currently, shares have dipped slightly by 0.1% to trade at KRW36,950.
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1411 ET – A prerequisite for Peloton to further scaling internationally is cost effectively translating programming, CEO Peter Stern says during the company’s analyst call. “A typical season of a TV show has somewhere, let’s say between 8 to 12 episodes. Last quarter, Peloton produced 3,300 classes, so, a traditional approach to translation just isn’t going to cut it,” Stern says. Peloton launched AI-powered subtitles starting with its existing languages in English, Spanish, and German in March and is now translating roughly 100 classes per day, he says. The company currently operates in the US, UK, Canada, Germany, Austria, and Australia, he says. (
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