Carmen Reineke, an equities reporter and deputy team leader for U.S. equities at Bloomberg, dives into the latest market shifts. She discusses Ulta's impressive Q3 results, leading to a raised sales outlook, signaling consumer confidence in cosmetics spending. Carmen also highlights HPE's disappointing AI server sales forecast, spooking investors. Additionally, she explores Praxis Precision's small-cap volatility after positive drug study news and delves into SoFi's ambitious $1.5 billion share sale as it pivots its business strategy.
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insights INSIGHT
Consumers Still Spending On Beauty
Ulta's better-than-expected Q3 and raised full-year outlook signal resilient consumer spending on cosmetics and hair products.
Investors pushed ULTA up in after-hours trading, reflecting optimism about discretionary spending trends.
insights INSIGHT
Cautious Consumers But Selective Spending
Retail CEOs consistently describe consumers as cautious, yet pockets like Ulta and Dollar General show selective spending persists.
These mixed signals suggest consumers trade down or concentrate spending on perceived value or small discretionary treats.
insights INSIGHT
AI Hype Raises The Bar For HPE
HPE's quarterly sales outlook missed analyst expectations, suggesting AI server demand may not meet lofty hopes.
The stock fell as investors punished a company that needs outsized beats after big AI-driven gains this year.
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- Ulta (ULTA) raised its full-year outlook after reporting better-than-expected results in the third quarter, a sign that consumers are overcoming any reluctance to spend and shelling out for cosmetics and hair supplies. The company now expects comparable sales to be up as much as 4.7% in the current fiscal year. Ulta guided in August for that figure to be up as much as 3.5%. It also raised its outlook for net sales and earnings per share. The stock jumped 4.9% at 4:25 p.m. in extended trading in New York on Thursday. It has advanced 23% this year through Thursday’s close.
- HPE (HPE) gave an outlook for sales in the current quarter that fell short of analysts’ estimates, suggesting the company isn’t meeting high expectations for the sales of its AI servers. Revenue will be $9 billion to $9.4 billion and profit, excluding some items, will be 57 cents to 61 cents in the period ending in January, HPE said Thursday in a statement. Analysts, on average, projected sales $9.88 billion and profit of 53 cents, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The shares declined about 2.5% in extended trading after closing at $22.90 in New York. The stock had gained 6.7% this year through Thursday’s close.
- SoFi Technologies (SOFI) is seeking to raise $1.5 billion in a share sale, as the financial technology firm diversifies beyond lending into other products. The San Francisco-based company is working with Goldman Sachs Group Inc. on the share sale, according to a statement Thursday. SoFi is offering shares for $27.50 to $28.50 each, according to people familiar with the matter, who asked not to be identified as the information isn’t public. The price range represents a discount of as much as 7.1% to Thursday’s close of $29.60. Shares fell 5.8% to $27.89 each in after-hours trading as of 5:05 p.m. in New York. Its stock climbed 92% in the year through Thursday’s market close.
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