Markets

Magnificent 7’s best week since January 2023 powers US stocks higher

Megacap tech carried US stocks higher on Friday, as they did for the week as a whole. Markets had a midday jitter after President Donald Trump reiterated that he won’t unilaterally drop tariffs on China, but then shrugged off his mixed messages to finish at or near their highs of the day.

The S&P 500 rose 0.7%, the Nasdaq 100 gained 1.1%, and the Russell 2000 brought up the rear, going flat.

The Magnificent 7 Index and Nasdaq 100 are now less than 1.5% shy of levels seen before the Rose Garden tariff announcements. The Mag 7 cohort had its best week since January 2023, rising 9.1%.

Alphabet shares ticked higher after the Google parent topped Q1 earnings estimates and highlighted strong engagement for its new AI-powered features. Tesla jumped nearly 10% after US transportation officials rolled out a national framework to fast-track government use of self-driving cars.

Meanwhile, more earnings continued to roll out:

Charter led S&P 500 performers after the broadband and pay-TV provider lost fewer subscribers than expected in Q1 and topped revenue estimates.

Pure-play wireless provider T-Mobile slid more than 7% after the company missed its Q1 subscriber growth targets, despite dropping a solid earnings beat and raising its full-year forecast.

AbbVie climbed higher after the pharma giant raised its 2025 profit outlook and posted a Q1 sales beat, though demand for its popular Botox and Juvederm face-filler treatments came in below estimates.

Colgate-Palmolive shares slipped after the consumer staples behemoth trimmed its full-year forecast and warned tariffs could add $200 million to costs in 2024.

Meanwhile, Intel continued to slide after the chipmaker warned it wouldn’t deliver earnings per share in Q2, and projected sales of $11.2 billion to $12.4 billion, also missing estimates.

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Lululemon’s stretch getting tested: Stock plunges after after outlook is cut

Lululemon shares are down double digits in premarket trading after the company cut its full-year sales and profit outlook, overshadowing a Q1 beat and raising fresh concerns about the brand’s turnaround efforts.

The company now expects fiscal 2026 revenue to be flat to down 1%, compared with its prior forecast for 2% to 4% growth. Guidance for full-year diluted earnings per share was dragged down to a range of $10.95 to $11.15, below the company’s previous guidance of $12.10 to $12.30 and well below Wall Street’s estimate of $13.26.

Key numbers for Q1:

  • EPS of $1.69 vs. the $1.68 expected.

  • Revenue of $2.47 billion vs. the $2.43 billion expected.

The modest top-line beat masked a widening divergence between Lululemons geographic markets. While international revenue rose 22% overall with a 30% increase in Mainland China, the bigger problem remains North America, where revenue fell 5%.

Interim co-CEO and CFO Meghan Frank acknowledged during the earnings call that recent product rollouts underperformed. A highly anticipated yoga campaign failed to generate its expected halo effect across broader product lines.

Profitability metrics took a major hit, with gross margins contracting by 410 basis points to 54.2% due to mounting tariff costs and promotional markdowns. Operating income consequently fell 37% year over year to $276.9 million.

“We experienced spikes of negative commentary in the media and on social channels with regard to our brand, which had an impact on traffic and overall top-line performance,” Frank said during the earnings call. “And second, not all of our product launches have met our expectations. While we have had several successful launches so far this year, we have seen others as we start Q2 not generate the anticipated guest response.”

Lululemons valuation has already been steadily compressing for years. While it was once one of retails richly valued stocks, investors have been questioning whether the company can return to the double-digit growth era.

The results also arrive during a leadership transition. Lululemon announced back in April that former Nike executive Heidi ONeill is set to take over as CEO in September, with investors looking to her to revive growth in North America and restore the brands growth.

As Lululemon faces both macroeconomic pressure and brand-specific challenges, its stock has dropped around 40% year to date.

markets

US job growth skyrocketed in May, blasting past expectations

The US economy added 172,000 jobs in the month of May, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday, sending 10-year Treasury yields higher.

The strong May job market surprised economists. Experts had predicted only 85,000 new jobs — just half the reported number. The unemployment rate held steady at 4.3%, as expected.

The job growth story is a hopeful spot for the economy as consumers continue to feel inflationary pressure from the Iran war.

Job gains were buoyed by the leisure and hospitality sector, which added 70,000 jobs, as well as local government, healthcare, and education.

Both the March and April jobs reports were revised upward, making them collectively 93,000 higher than previously reported.

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