Weekly Digest
Dow narrowly averts bear market
The blue-chip Dow just managed to end less than 20% below its record high, avoiding an official bear market status confirmation.
The three major indexes continued to fall last week as the U.S. Fed raised interest rates and reaffirmed its hawkish stance to tame rising prices. Investors need to exercise patience amid a challenging global macroeconomic environment plagued by geopolitical tensions in eastern Europe, surging interest rates and an energy crisis in Europe.
Top Stories
- Qualcomm’s booming automotive business
- Costco’s market-beating quarterly results
- Raytheon beats rivals to win a $985 million contract
Qualcomm’s booming automotive business
Chipmaker Qualcomm (QCOM) has been gaining popularity among automakers as it sees automotive contracts worth $30 billion in the pipeline – higher than the $19 billion announced in July. Joining carmakers like Hyundai, Volvo, BMW and Stellantis, is the latest entrant Mercedes that will use tech giant’s Snapdragon platforms in its vehicles.
- Analyst consensus: MSN Money has a consensus “buy” rating with a $184.23 price target on Qualcomm shares. The stock closed at $121.19 on Friday.
- Future outlook: Qualcomm anticipates its target automotive market size to grow as much as $100 billion by 2030.
Costco’s market-beating quarterly results
Despite soaring inflation, Costco Wholesale (COST) reported quarterly earnings that beat Wall Street’s expectations on topline and bottomline. Robust demand for its groceries and fuel offerings helped the membership-only retailer post a 15% jump in its quarterly sales.
- Analyst consensus: MSN Money has a consensus “buy” rating with a $565.43 price target on Costco shares. The stock closed at $466.40 on Friday.
- Future outlook: The warehouse retailer plans to have 25 net new openings in the fiscal year 2023, including its first location in New Zealand and Sweden.
Raytheon beats rivals to win a $985 million contract
Raytheon Technologies Corporation (RTX) received a $985 million contract from the U.S. Air Force to develop a hypersonic attack cruise missile. The defence giant outbid its rivals Lockheed Martin (LMT) and Boeing (BA) to become a leading supplier of strategic weapons.
- Analyst consensus: MSN Money has a consensus “buy” rating with a $109.31 price target on Raytheon shares. The stock closed at $82.03 on Friday.
- Future outlook: The delivery of the hypersonic attack cruise missile is expected in 2027.