Markets
Nikkei 225
27,248.87
▼ -191.12 / -0.70%
SSE Composite
3,429.58
▲ +68.14 / +2.03%
IBOVESPA
111,715.70
▼ -529.23 / -0.47%
Straits Times
2,589.65
▲ +50.37 / +1.98%
BMV IPC
51,255.31
▲ +110.20 / +0.22%
Dow Jones
35,089.74
▼ -21.42 / -0.06%
DAX 30
15,182.36
▲ +82.80 / +0.55%
BSE SENSEX
57,621.19
▼ -1,023.63 / -1.75%
FTSE 100
7,568.57
▲ +52.17 / +0.69%
JSE Top 40
69,151.60
▲ +472.69 / +0.69%
Last Week’s Highlights
Meta is having ‘technical difficulties’
Shares of Meta Platforms Inc, owner of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, fell more than 20% after the company released its worse-than-expected earnings results for the fourth quarter of 2021. Analysts predicted a sum of 1.95 billion daily active users and 2.95 billion monthly active users, but the numbers came in at 1.93 billion and 2.91 billion respectively. Meta’s slump is due, in part, to the rise of other social networks such as TikTok, but also to Apple’s changes to its operative system. Now it gives users the option to prevent apps like Meta’s from tracking their online activity for ads, making it difficult for advertisers who rely on data to develop new products.
Google shares to be accessible to more people
Alphabet, Google’s company, announced its shares will have a 20-for-1 stock split. The company’s board of directors approved this change last Tuesday due to the quarterly results they obtained. The new split in Alphabet’s shares would make them accessible to more people. Each share would go from costing $2,752.88 to only $137.64. Each current holder would get 19 additional shares for every one they own; this news caused a 9% rise in Alphabet’s share price. The only pending to carry out the split is the shareholders’ approval.
Coming Up This Week
Amazon is reaching its prime
Amazon reported positive fourth-quarter results driven by sales of $137.4 billion, up 9% from its previous figures. Amazon shares rose 12% to $3,097 on Friday. It was also announced that the price of Amazon Prime membership will go up for the first time since 2018. Starting February 18 for new subscribers, and March 25 for current members, Amazon will charge $14.99 per month, up from $12.99, or $139 on an annual basis. Thanks to strong AWS and advertising results, Amazon Prime price hikes, and e-commerce results that weren’t as bad as some feared, Amazon may be the cause of tech stocks regaining momentum.
Is Snap on its way to glorious days?
Snap shares soar Friday and are on track for their best day ever. Snapchat’s parent company reported a surprise fourth-quarter profit. Snap shares jumped 50% to $37.09. If this earnings trend continues, the company will have the largest percentage increase since the company went public in 2017. Snap reported daily users grew 20% during the quarter to 319 million, 2.1 million more than Wall Street estimates. Snap also reported a net income of $22.6 million, or 1 cent per share. Revenue rose 42% year-over-year to $1.3 billion.
