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Apple Plays It Safe With iPhone 13
Investors are not amused.
Steven Lerner 15.Sep.2021
Today is Wednesday, September 15, 2021
Shares of Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) fell 0.96% Tuesday after the tech giant unveiled the iPhone 13 and several other products during its annual September event in California.
Tech: Apple also introduced its newest iPad and Apple Watch at the event, as well as software updates. The announcements were not unexpected.
Downfall: It wasn't just Apple stock that suffered yesterday from the lackluster iPhone announcement. Shares of wireless telecommunication stocks AT&T (NYSE: T), Verizon (NYSE: VZ), and T-Mobile (Nasdaq: TMUS) all slipped Tuesday. Even iPhone suppliers such as Skyworks (Nasdaq: SWKS), Qualcomm (Nasdaq: QCOM) and Corning (NYSE: GLW) saw their stock prices decrease as well.
Bigger Picture: While the iPhone 13 has some impressive features, there were very few surprises that investors could get excited about.
Final Thoughts: It will be interesting to see if there's an increase or decrease in iPhone sales for the holiday season this year.
Notable Earnings Today: JinkoSolar (JKS), Weber (NYSE: WEBR).
Notable IPOs Today: Dutch Bros (NYSE: BROS), On Holding AG (NYSE: ONON), PROCEPT BioRobotics Corp. (Nasdaq: PRCT), Thoughtworks Holding Corp. (Nasdaq: TWKS), Tyra Biosciences, Inc. Common Stock (Nasdaq: TYRA), DICE Therapeutics, Inc. Common Stock (Nasdaq: DICE), Pasithea Therapeutics Corp. Common Stock (Nasdaq: KTTA), Definitive Healthcare Corp. Class A Common Stock (Nasdaq: DH).
Notable Equity Crowdfunding Campaigns Ending Today: Digital Eclipse (Republic), Elemeno Health (StartEngine), Immersive Underwatch Safari (Wefunder), Golfkicks (Republic), AutoBeam (StartEngine), Island Brands (StartEngine).
Notable Economic Events Today: Import/Export Price Index (8:30 a.m. ET), NY Empire State Manufacturing Index (8:30 a.m. ET), Industrial Production (9:15 a.m. ET).
Credit Card Stocks Face Buy Now, Pay Later Threat
Credit card stocks could be at risk as more consumers consider using Buy Now, Pay Later (or BNPL, a new option for short-term financing).
Generational Gap: 75% of BNPL users are millennials or in Gen Z. Could there be an entire generation of consumers that relies more on BNPL and less on credit cards?
Stock Prices: Shares of Visa (NYSE: V) and American Express (NYSE: AXP) are up in 2021, but shares of Mastercard (NYSE: MA) are down this year.
Usage: Consumer credit card debt is up, suggesting that overall credit card usage has not been impacted by BNPL...yet.
Final Thoughts: Credit card companies could still be fine now, but keep an eye on future disruption.
Fidelity Presses SEC to Approve Bitcoin ETF
Financial services company Fidelity Investments asked the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) last week to approve its bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF), according to documents dug up by Bloomberg.
Background: Fidelity filed an application for a Bitcoin ETF in March. This was part of a push to go into digital assets.
Bigger Picture: About a dozen other financial companies have submitted similar applications to the SEC. All of them are still pending. The SEC does not appear to be moving towards approval anytime soon.
Experts Weigh In: In August, an analyst with Bloomberg predicted that the SEC will approve of a Bitcoin Futures ETF as early as October.
Final Thoughts: A Bitcoin ETF or a Bitcoin Futures ETF provides a way for more investors to get exposure to cryptocurrency investments.
Evil Tech: Facebook Knows Instagram Is Toxic for Teen Girls, Company Documents Show (The Wall Street Journal)
Make it Rain: Amazon hikes average U.S. starting pay to $18, hires for 125,000 jobs (Reuters)
Dividend Growth: Microsoft boosts dividend 11%, sets new $60 billion buyback (Seeking Alpha)
If You Can't Beet Them: Online Investment Platform Invesdor Offers First Tokenized Securities Offering for Beets & Roots (Crowdfund Insider)
Crypto IRA: It's possible to invest in cryptocurrency in an IRA, but experts warn against it (CNBC)