CBC Daily Digest

Top performers in US stocks: A glimpse 

1. Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) 10.42+1.42(+15.78%)

Recently Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA) reported a good change in their stock prices for the following reasons-

• Better-than-expected financial results: Operating outside of the U.S, one-off costs such as $508m in restructuring charges, $227m in asset impairment charges and other special items such as $286m contributed to Walgreens’ fourth-quarter loss of $3.48 per share. Also, the company’s quarterly sales rose 6% to $37.5bn; these figures were above estimates.

• Cost management and debt reduction: Expected and actual net debt level For fiscal 2024, net debt was further reduced with over$1 billion cost savings doing the Wallgreens successfully. This enhanced financial discipline probably contributed to the higher investors’ confidence.

• Strategic restructuring: The firm said it was embarking on a process of ‘square footage reduction’ of about 1200 stores in the next three years. This strategy undertakes the process of eradicating non core activities so as to enhance profitability which is an indicator of company stabilization plans

• Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ) (ERIC) 8.53+0.99(+13.13%)

Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (ERIC) recently posted an over 13% stock increase due to following reason:-

• Strong Financial Performance in North America: Overall, the company has recently reported a slight diminution of its sales, although in Q3 of 2024, the company has recorded a 55% increase in the sales in North America. This growth raises the company for it to meet the needs of the advanced telecommunications such as in 5G technologies.

• Improved Profitability: Show that have the fettered networks gross margin boosted to nearly 49% and the gross margin of the overall company including that of Ericsson also increase. This, coupled with a net income of 3.9 billion SEK after a prior year loss from operations proved that the company has increased its operating effectiveness.

• 3Strategic Initiatives: The Company also established new licensing for its 5G patents and a new network joint venture for APIs. These have been expected to increase its long-term revenues and increase its hold on the telecom sector.

3. Hims & Hers Health, Inc. (HIMS) stock

Shares of Hims & Hers Health, Inc. (HIMS ) was on the rise and below are some of the factors that can explain the rally-

• Strong Financial Performance: The company has probably filed improved third quarter revenues in proportion to telehealth services customer base with better or improved profitability.

• Expanding Product Offerings: It’s possible that since its formation, Hims & Hers either launched new products or services or extended its reach in telemedicine as well as the wellness sector, which appealed to both – investors and consumers as it fueled future company growth.

Regulatory Developments: The FDA said that it would delay its proposed restriction on compounded weight-loss drugs after being sued by the Outsourcing Facilities Association. This reconsideration means that compounding pharmacies, including Hims & Hers, can continue the production of clones of such popular treatments for obesity as Mounjaro and Zepbound, as people’s demand for weight loss products remains high.

Analysing the Trending stocks for this week

1. ASML Holding N.V. (ASML) 730.43-141.84(-16.26%) At close: 4:00 PM EDT 736.02+5.59

ASML Holding N.V. (ASML) has been on an upward trend in the recent past due to certain factors that have influenced its stock price-

• Accidental Earnings Release and Weak Outlook: ASML released its Q3 2024 results a day early revealing a poor proforma for 2025. The company also trimmed projected sales, which remained pinched by capacity utilization apprehensions in semiconductor, resulting into heavy selling in the share.

• Export Restrictions to China: ASML has been under pressure to experience export restrictions and more recently, they affected exports to China that is among the markets for the products. The Biden administration is still in the plans of limiting the sales of superior AI chips to China thus limiting ASML growth prospects.

• Sector-Wide Impact: The semiconductor industry has not been immune to the challenges currently facing ASML. Other significant semiconductor companies like Nvidia and AMD have also felt the impact of ASML’s cut as well as doubts over future traffic around the chip.

2. Bright Minds Biosciences Inc. (DRUG) 38.49+36.00(+1,445.78%) At close: 4:00 PM EDT 37.00

Bright Minds Biosciences Inc. (DRUG) saw an extraordinary spike in its stock in a day when it increased by more than 1,400% for several reasons:

• Positive Clinical Trial Developments: Bright Minds Biosciences is currently undergoing Phase 2 clinical trials of the compound, BMB-101 for the treatment of drug-resistant epilepsy, and other neurological disorders. This compound, a selective 5-HT2C receptor agonist, has been exhibiting favourable efficacy in treating refractory epilepsies and we saw that excited the investors.

• Increased Market Attention: Newspaper and magazine articles on the company also rose, as did conversations across social media and especially the Redditt forum – WallStreetBets – regarding the company’s stock. This served to create heightened social media awareness that sought to drive the demand for the stock further.

• Regulatory and Technical Factors: The stock also traded with a LULD pause, meaning there was a limit up limit down—a possibility that make traders and investors to focus more on big jumps in the stock prices. The halt thus provided an opportunity to re-base the stock price through which it continued it steep climb.

3. Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) 10.42+1.42(+15.78%) At close: 4:00 PM EDT 10.40

Recently, the stock price of Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) has risen sharply for the following reasons-

• Positive Financial Results: Though Walgreens incurred a Q4 2024 loss, Walgreens’ actual adjusted earnings per share came $0.39 more than what experts expected per share. Some of the changes include this, they say, helped increase investor confidence in the company’s ability to generate sustainable and stable revenues and profits.

• Cost-Saving Measures: Net debt decreased to $1.9 billion; more than $1 billion of costs were declared and committed to reduce. All these moves towards financial efficiency have been positively received by the market

Restructuring Plans: It announced its plans to shutter 1,200 outlets as the part of the company’s footprint rationalization plan which helped investors to uplift the long term business viability notion.