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Lululemon is expecting its situation to get a lot worse before it gets better, as it issued weak guidance for the full year. View More
In this articleLULUFollow your favorite stocksCREATE FREE ACCOUNT Customers enter a Lululemon store inside a shopping mall on May 23, 2026, in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, China. Cheng Xin | Getty Images Lululemon's troubles are far from over. The athletic apparel retailer lowered its full-year guidance and issued a weak current-quarter outlook on Thursday as interim CEO Meghan Frank blamed "negative commentary in the media" and recent product launches that failed to wow shoppers. "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 told analysts during the company's earnings call while explaining why the company's performance declined at the end of its fiscal first quarter. "And second, not all of our product launches have met our expectations. While we've had several successful launches so far this year, we've seen others as we start Q2 not generate the anticipated guest response."When pressed on what specific negative commentary led to a decline in sales, Frank pointed to Lululemon's proxy contest with founder Chip Wilson, who was outspoken in his criticism of the brand, as well as "questions about the composition" of some of its products. "These stories have died down and subsided," said Frank. "But we have not yet seen a return to our pre-disruption ... trends."She said the company is "not sitting still" and is "moving with urgency to make the necessary adjustments to reaccelerate momentum, particularly in North America."The company's shares dropped 11% in extended trading following the report. Lululemon's stock has plunged about 40% this year as of Thursday's close.Lululemon is now expecting fiscal 2026 sales to be between $11 billion and $11.15 billion, down from a previous range of between $11.35 billion and $11.50 billion. Analysts were expecting full-year sales of $11.48 billion, according to LSEG. Lululemon also cut its earnings guidance by more than $1 per share. It's now expecting earnings per share to be between $10.95 and $11.15 for the year, down from a previous range of $12.10 to $12.30. Analysts were expecting $12.30 per share, according to LSEG. The current quarter doesn't look much better. Lululemon is expecting sales to be between $2.45 billion and $2.48 billion, below expectations of $2.60 billion, according to LSEG. It's expecting earnings per share to be between $1.76 and $1.81, well below expectations of $2.68, according to LSEG. While Lululemon's guidance failed to meet forecasts, it did beat expectations on the top and bottom lines during its fiscal first quarter, albeit on expectations that have come down significantly since the retailer last reported earnings. Here's how the company performed compared with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:Earnings per share: $1.69 vs. $1.68 expected Revenue: $2.47 billion vs. $2.43 billion expected The company's reported net income for the three-month period that ended May 3 was $195 million, or $1.69 per share, compared with $314.6 million, or $2.60 per share, a year earlier. Sales rose to $2.47 billion, up about 4% from $2.37 billion a year earlier. Comparable sales grew 1%, better than expectations of 0.4%, according to LSEG. Lululemon's woes have been centered on the Americas, its largest and most important region. During the quarter, comparable sales fell 5% in the market, marking the fifth straight quarter of declines. Lululemon's overall business is still growing, but it has primarily seen that expansion in China and in other international regions, which make up a fraction of overall revenue. During the quarter, international sales grew 22% while international comparable sales grew 13%. Lululemon said it expects its declines in North America to continue. It anticipates sales will fall by a low-double digit percentage in the current quarter and by a high-single digit percentage for the full year. Meanwhile, it expects China sales will rise by a mid-to-high teens percentage during the current quarter and by about 20% for the full year.Sales have been a sore spot for Lululemon, but profitability has been an even larger challenge. During the quarter, gross margin decreased a staggering 4.1 percentage points to 54.2%, worse than expectations of 54.6%, according to StreetAccount. The company was a large beneficiary of the now defunct de minimis exemption, which allowed it to ship packages duty free across the Canadian border into the U.S., and has also been hit hard by tariffs. With fewer people coming to its stores and website to buy workout clothes, the company has also leaned more on discounting to drive sales, which has hurt its bottom line and its reputation as a premium brand. It's also spent the last six months in a dramatic proxy contest with its founder, which was costly and took management's attention away from its turnaround. In addition to all of those struggles, Lululemon, like everyone else, has also had to contend with a new conflict in the Middle East and surging gas prices, which are also increasing costs.The company said the decline in its gross margin during the quarter was primarily attributable to tariffs, which impacted margins by 2.8 percentage points, and discounts, which grew 0.4 percentage points. The company expects gross margin to fall by another 4.1 percentage points during the current quarter, driven by higher tariffs and store investments. It anticipates markdowns will be 0.5 percentage points higher. "While we continue to expect markdowns to improve modestly year over year in the second half," said Frank. "The slower expected top line trends in Q2 will necessitate additional seasonal clearance."Lululemon expects its profitability challenges will moderate in the back half of the year. For the full year, the company anticipates gross margin will fall 0.9 percentage points, with markdowns flat to slightly higher. On a full-year basis, Lululemon expects to offset nearly all of its tariff impact, Frank said.  In the three months since Lululemon last reported earnings, its made some progress on addressing some of its challenges. It hired longtime Nike veteran Heidi O'Neill to be its next CEO and settled its proxy battle with its founder. Investors are likely to be relieved Lululemon's management team no longer has to put its focus and cash behind the proxy contest, but some are still feeling sour over O'Neill's appointment, particularly because she won't be able to start until September. Under the direction of two interim CEOs, CFO Frank and Chief Commercial Officer André Maestrini, Lululemon has been working to rebuild its product assortment and address its domestic growth challenge. But the real strategy changes won't come until O'Neill starts. Given how long it takes for Lululemon to get from product idea to market, there's concern that it'll take even longer than expected to fix the challenges that have been weighing on its business. Still, Lululemon has contended that O'Neill is the right person for the job. While at Nike, O'Neill established and built Nike's women's business and grew it into a multibillion-dollar franchise. She also worked to reduce product lead times â experience that will serve her as Lululemon's chief executive. Already, the company has made progress in reducing lead times from 18-to-24 months to 15-to-16 months and is working to further bring it down to between 12 and 14 months, Frank said. Choose CNBC as your preferred source on Google and never miss a moment from the most trusted name in business news.
Trump's comment came two days after he tapped Bill Pulte, who leads the Federal Housing Finance Agency, as acting DNI to replace Tulsi Gabbard. View More
In this articleFNMAFollow your favorite stocksCREATE FREE ACCOUNT William Pulte, director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) nominee for US President Donald Trump, during a Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee confirmation hearing in Washington, DC, US, on Thursday, Feb. 27, 2025. Al Drago | Bloomberg | Getty Images President Donald Trump said Thursday that acting Director of National Intelligence Bill Pulte will not be appointed to that position permanently.Trump's comment came two days after he tapped Pulte, who leads the Federal Housing Finance Agency, as acting DNI. He is replacing outgoing DNI Tulsi Gabbard.The move sparked criticism on Capitol Hill, where lawmakers decried his lack of intelligence experience and his history as a political attack dog for Trump."It's not a permanent, he's not going to be permanent, because you know, I don't think he'd want to be permanent," Trump told reporters at the White House on Thursday when asked why he thinks Pulte is the best person for the job. Trump hinted at Pulte digging into domestic investigations, despite the U.S. intelligence community's focus on foreign targets."He's a very smart guy, and you may find out some things about the rigged elections, etc., etc."Gabbard sparked controversy in January when she showed up at an FBI raid that seized records related to the 2020 election from the Fulton County Clerk's Office in Georgia.Gabbard told congressional lawmakers that Trump "requested" that she attend the raid and that she only observed the execution of an FBI search warrant there "for a brief period of time."Trump on Thursday said, "We're interviewing people right now" for the DNI post.Pulte is "somebody just to take it over for a little while," the president said.Trump previously said Pulte would continue to lead FHFA and serve as chairman of the mortgage groups Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac while serving as acting DNI. The DNI oversees the U.S. intelligence community, which includes the Central Intelligence Agency and National Security Agency. Read more CNBC politics coverageMichael Dell courted Trump early. His company has reaped rewardsTrump DOJ âlawfareâ fund temporarily blocked by judge as suit proceedsBondi defends handling of Epstein files to House panel Trump also said Pulte had qualifications for the job, despite his lack of a background in intelligence."I think he does, actually, because he's smart," Trump said. "I wasn't greatly experienced in national security, and I think I've done a really great job with it.""I would say that Bill is a guy that will be able to figure it out very quickly," Trump said. "Again, it's short-term, but he may be very effective for a short period." Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D. on Tuesday had scoffed at Pulte's appointment."We don't need a weaponized DNI, we need professionals there," Thune said.Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., in an X post on Tuesday called Pulte "a partisan thug with no experience in intelligence." Choose CNBC as your preferred source on Google and never miss a moment from the most trusted name in business news.
Honeywell will retain a majority stake in Quantinuum and will continue to be a strategic customer and partner following the listing. View More
In this articleQNTQNTFollow your favorite stocksCREATE FREE ACCOUNT watch nowVIDEO7:5307:53Quantinuum CEO on IPO debut: We're in a transformative moment for the computing industrySquawk on the Street Quantinuum closed little changed in its Nasdaq debut on Thursday, bringing its market value to $15.7 billion. Shares opened trading at $68 per share, hitting a session high of $71.35 a share. The company raised $1.68 billion in an upsized IPO after it priced at $60 per share, above its earlier range of $53 to $55 per share. Quantinuum was founded in 2021 out of a merger of Honeywell's quantum computing division and UK-based Cambridge Quantum. The company describes itself as a "full-stack quantum computing platform," spanning both hardware and software.In its S-1 filing, which came out last month, Quantinuum said its customers span the pharmaceutical, materials science, finance, government and industrial markets, including JPMorgan Chase and Amgen."We have customers today that are using our commercially available hardware and software, our full stack, to get started with their quantum journey," Quantinuum CEO Rajeeb Hazra said in a Thursday interview with CNBC's "Squawk on the Street."Quantum computing has captured the attention of scientists and researchers for decades, but it largely remains an experimental technology. The technology uses the principles of quantum mechanics to solve complex tasks far beyond the abilities of traditional computers.Hazra said quantum adoption is still in the early stages, but that the "need for these kinds of computing resources is absolutely a given." Read more CNBC tech newsMeta is trying to sell AI agents to businesses in latest effort to diversify away from adsSpaceX targets fixed $135 IPO roadshow price at $1.75 trillion valuation, source saysOpenAI CEO Sam Altman to meet with lawmakers, Trump officials in D.C.Tesla's China-made EV sales jump nearly 40% in May as domestic market rebounds The quantum industry got an endorsement from the Trump administration last month. The Department of Commerce announced it signed preliminary agreements to provide $2 billion in funding and take equity stakes in nine companies linked to the "quantum ecosystem," including Quantinuum, which will receive $100 million. The funding for the deals comes from the 2022 Chips and Science Act. "It's a great validation of quantum, of Quantinuum, as a strategic asset for the U.S. quantum industry and we're very thankful that we have this ability now to be able to shoulder this responsibility, to take trapped ion-based computing forward," Hazra said.Quantinuum said in its prospectus that revenue decreased 73% to $5.24 million in the first quarter from $19.1 million a year earlier. The company recorded a net loss in the latest quarter of $136.5 million after losing $30.5 million during the same period one year ago.Bookings, which track total customer contract value, totaled $1.3 million during the first three months of 2026, compared to $1.9 million a year earlier. Honeywell, which is expected to retain a majority stake following the offering, will continue to be a strategic customer and partner, the prospectus states. Stock Chart IconStock chart iconQuantinuum one-day stock chart. Big tech has also ramped up bets on quantum computing in recent years. Google, Microsoft, Amazon and IBM have shelled out millions on the technology, which proponents claim will solve complex problems, including drug discovery.This week, Microsoft unveiled a new quantum chip it claims is a thousand times better than previous iterations and could help the company create a scalable quantum computer by 2029.Excitement toward the new tech has driven up shares of quantum computing stocks in recent years, but the sector is also susceptible to dramatic swings on slivers of news.Rigetti Computing shares have more than doubled year over year, while IonQ and D-Wave are up at least 50% each. The sector slumped during the first quarter's tech selloff.Infleqtion, which went public in February through a special purpose acquisition merger, is up about 25% from its debut price.Quantinuum's debut comes as the IPO market continues to heat up. Shares of AI chipmaker Cerebras popped almost 70% in their debut last month. Investors are closely watching Elon Musk's SpaceX, which is expected to start trading on the Nasdaq on June 12. Anthropic confidentially filed its IPO prospectus on Monday, and OpenAI is preparing to file its confidential IPO prospectus in the coming weeks.WATCH: An inside look at Microsoft's new Quantum computing chip watch nowVIDEO15:3515:35An inside look at Microsoftâs new Quantum computing chipNews Videos Choose CNBC as your preferred source on Google and never miss a moment from the most trusted name in business news.
Long-term unemployment can have ramifications on financial, emotional and family health that linger even after reentry into the workforce. View More
watch nowVIDEO4:3104:31Why long-term unemployment is rising in the U.S.Markets and Politics Digital Original Video Over recent weeks, Parker Taylor reached a grim milestone in his work history.The 29-year-old had been employed consistently since he was a teen, first on a factory floor and most recently in medical sales. But the St. Petersburg, Florida, resident hasn't been able to start a new gig after losing his job shortly before the 2025 Thanksgiving holiday.Taylor has become part of a group of more than 1.8 million Americans classified as long-term unemployed â which the government defines as jobless for at least 27 weeks â in a given month this year. That figure is up about 45% from 2019 and 55% from 2023, a CNBC analysis of Bureau of Labor Statistics data found."This can't go on much longer without some type of catastrophic change to my life," Taylor said. "That this era of my life could affect my long-term future â my family's future, my future children's future â is something that I go to sleep thinking about." Without a steady income, Taylor's retirement planning and long-term investing strategy has come to a "screeching halt." He's significantly cut back on spending for everything from food to social experiences to make ends meet. Taylor said he's applied to around 100 jobs and has completed several interviews to no avail.On a macro level, the growing number of Americans in this boat raises red flags about the strength of the labor market and overall economy. For the long-term unemployed, it can have ramifications on financial, emotional and family health that linger even after they reenter the workforce."It tells us a lot about economic health," said Cory Stahle, an economist at job site Indeed. "It tells us about how good of a job the labor market is doing at absorbing people." A 'devastating' situation The long-term unemployed account for roughly one out of every four jobless workers, according to the latest available U.S. government data. Friday's nonfarm payroll report will offer a fresh reading of the U.S. labor force's makeup. Reports released this week on job openings and private payrolls came in stronger than economists anticipated. Long-term unemployed workers' pay was approximately 32% lower after a decade than those who had not lost work, according to a working paper from the Boston Federal Reserve. Those who were unemployed for shorter periods took a 9% cut over the same time frame.Studies also show there may be a link between long-term unemployment and depression. A Pew Research report found that the long-term unemployed were over two times more likely to seek professional help for depression or other mental health challenges compared with those without work for under three months."Other than the death of a family member or a close friend, this is one of the most devastating things that people face," said Carl Van Horn, director of the Heldrich Center for Workforce Development at Rutgers University. "It's a very serious health problem and an economic problem."Research also shows how unemployment â particularly over long stretches â can negatively impact families and communities.Parental job loss increases the chance that their child will repeat a grade by about 15%, a working paper found. A study of Wisconsin state data found workers displaced in their prime years are less likely to participate in social and community events. Communities with a larger percentage of long-term unemployed people have a higher rate of crime and violence, the Urban Institute reported. Job seekers stand at the recruiting booth for the City of Sunrise during the Mega JobNewsUSA South Florida Job Fair held in the Amerant Bank Arena on April 30, 2026, in Sunrise, Florida.Joe Raedle | Getty Images Ana Febres-Cordero said her mental health worsened since she lost her social media job over a year ago. The 29-year-old has pulled back on outings with her friends to conserve savings and relies on her boyfriend to shoulder housing costs. The Chicago resident took up dog walking and hobbies like coloring to ensure she leaves the house and keeps a routine."I don't think people might realize how much it affects the individual," said Febres-Cordero, who estimates completing more than 300 job applications. "It breaks down your confidence."Hundreds of miles away, Lindsay Acker of Asbury Park, New Jersey, has fallen behind on student loan and credit card debt payments after losing her health industry job last year. The 38-year-old said she's moved to a Medicaid healthcare plan with marketplace insurance no longer affordable.She's dipped into her retirement account to cover necessities after her unemployment payments ended. Acker said she's delayed conversations about family planning as it now feels out of reach financially."I am not the same person I was when I lost my job," Acker said. "I've lost my spark. I've lost my happiness. I've lost my ability to see joy." A 'transformative' experience The long-term unemployed no longer qualify for most unemployment benefits, which are typically capped at 26 weeks, according to William Congdon, a labor economist and senior fellow at the Urban Institute. Even if these workers are actively job hunting, he said, they face stigma from employers due to the gaps on their resumes.A rising number of long-term unemployed workers is a feature of the "low-hire, low-fire" labor market, according to Indeed's Stahle. Federal labor data shows job opening and hiring rates have tumbled from pandemic-era peaks, signaling that work opportunities are drying up. The long-term unemployed group also includes new college graduates struggling to land their first roles, Stahle said. Recent college graduates last had an unemployment rate of 5.6%, outpacing the broader average of 4.2%, according to the New York Fed.The national economy could suffer as a result of more people being without jobs this long, Stahle said, as they will likely curtail spending. Consumer spending makes up about two-thirds of the U.S. gross domestic product.Even for those like Deborah Yu who have reentered the workforce, the stress of being without work for so long still shows up in big and small ways.The San Francisco Bay Area resident said she once bought lunch during the work week without a second thought, but now feels like it's an unnecessary expense. She pushed off considerations about buying a house out of fear of being on the hook for a monthly mortgage if she became unemployed again."It's been a transformative experience," said Yu, who began a new job in March after being laid off in mid-2025. "I think about money now on a deeper level." watch nowVIDEO1:1901:19Job openings rise to 7.62 million in April, highest since May 2024Squawk on the Street Choose CNBC as your preferred source on Google and never miss a moment from the most trusted name in business news.
Options volume is surging for Zoetis as traders look for potential stock market winners in light of a screwworm case in Texas. View More
In this article@LC.1ZTSELANFollow your favorite stocksCREATE FREE ACCOUNT watch nowVIDEO1:5901:59Options traders jump on screwworm fears with ZoetisOptions Action A flesh-eating parasite known as New World screwworm has been found in livestock in Texas, and traders are buzzing over potential winners in the stock market.Shares of Zoetis and Elanco Animal Health popped in Thursday's trading, and typically dormant options markets on the stocks woke up with a heavy bullish bias. Zoetis was last higher by nearly 4%, and Elanco was up 2% in midday trading. Stock Chart IconStock chart iconZoetis shares in the past five trading days In particular, Zoetis saw volumes surge. The company last year received conditional approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for an injectable product that treats and prevents reinfestation of the pest. Last month, the FDA extended its support by issuing emergency use authorization for the over-the-counter drug.Options volume in Zoetis jumped to almost 20 times the daily average, with just under 12,000 contracts traded and almost 11,000 in calls. More than 4,200 calls were bought, compared with 1,200 calls sold and under 300 puts bought.Early trading flows targeted the $85 level in the stock, including one trader who bought nearly $700,000 of the 80-calls expiring July 17 for about $5 per contract â a bet the stock will move another 5% higher by mid-July."Screwworm is now circulating in tens of thousands of animals across Mexico," Scott Gottlieb, senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and former commissioner of the FDA, said via text. "If cases start clustering, or we see detection in wildlife like white-tailed deer, the odds of holding this at the border drop sharply. The biggest vulnerability is the next 18-24 months."Cattle futures are so far taking the news in stride, up more than 1% on the session but in the midst of a multiyear rally, up 50% from lows in late 2024. If the parasite spreads, beef supply could be strained, but the bigger question could be whether the news alone will spook Americans out of the drive-through lane."The No. 1 preferred commodity in the U.S. is beef â Americans love their fast food so if you have any issue with the beef supply chain, it'll have some market volatility," said Ben Rand, Nebraska-based broker for Blue Line Futures and regional director of the Federal Crop Agency. "We just had a conditional use drug approved; U.S. producers can handle it." Choose CNBC as your preferred source on Google and never miss a moment from the most trusted name in business news.
President Obama's library will cost $30 to visit, making it the most expensive presidential museum or library in modern history. View More
The Barack and Michelle Obama statue outside The Obama Presidential Center in the Hyde Park neighborhood in Chicago, Illinois, May 29, 2026.Joshua Lott | The Washington Post | Getty Images For the first time, the public is getting a look inside the long-awaited Obama Presidential Center ahead of its Juneteenth opening on Chicago's South Side. The sprawling, 19.3-acre, $850 million campus blends museum exhibits chronicling former President Barack Obama's political rise and presidency with contemporary art, public gathering spaces, athletic facilities and a branch of the Chicago Public Library. The center is also poised to redefine the scale of the modern presidential project, setting new marks for construction time, cost and admission price. A general museum ticket will cost $30, making it the most expensive presidential museum or library to visit.Unlike the libraries of other modern presidents, the Obama center will not be operated by the National Archives and Records Administration. Instead, it will be privately run by the Obama Foundation. The distinction gives the center more freedom in how it presents stories and less red tape around funding. The center is also intended to serve as an economic engine for the surrounding community, from hiring local contractors to build the campus to drawing new investment to Chicago's South Side and West Side neighborhoods.â CNBC's Frank Holland contributed to this report. A drone image of the Obama Presidential Center on June 3, 2026, weeks before it opens to the public in Chicago, Illinois.Eric Cox | Reuters People tour the Obama Presidential Center.Scott Olson | Getty Images A Hope poster from the campaign of former President Barack Obama.Scott Olson | Getty Images Dresses worn by former first lady Michelle Obama are displayed.Scott Olson | Getty Images The Obama Presidential Center Branch of the Chicago Public Library.Kamil Krzaczynski | Afp | Getty Images The Museum Tower at the Obama Presidential Center is seen in Chicago, on June 3, 2026. Kamil Krzaczynski | Afp | Getty Images People tour the Obama Presidential Center.Scott Olson | Getty Images News | Getty Images A replica of the Obama-era Oval Office is seen in the museum on the Obama Presidential Center campus.Kamil Krzaczynski | Afp | Getty Images A magazine cover featuring former President Barack Obama.Scott Olson | Getty Images The interior of the Museum Tower at the Obama Presidential Center.Kamil Krzaczynski | Afp | Getty Images A basketball court in the Main Court at the Home Court building of the Obama Presidential Center.Joshua Lott | Reuters The Obama Presidential Center Branch of the Chicago Public Library.Kamil Krzaczynski | Afp | Getty Images The interior wall of the Museum Tower.Kamil Krzaczynski | Afp | Getty Images The playground area at the Obama Presidential Center.Kamil Krzaczynski | Afp | Getty Images A drone image of the Obama Presidential Center on June 3, 2026, weeks before it opens to the public in Chicago, Illinois.Eric Cox | Reuters Choose CNBC as your preferred source on Google and never miss a moment from the most trusted name in business news.
They ran hot into their prints, and "solid" was not nearly good enough to meet the lofty expectations. View More
There is no denying that waking up Thursday morning to the post-earnings declines in CrowdStrike and Broadcom is painful. It was also painful to see a similar sell-off in Palo Alto Networks in the prior session. In fact, Palo Alto stock is now riding a three-session losing streak. Ultimately, all three companies reported solid quarterly results and forward guidance, and Wall Street analysts largely increased their price targets. We did, too. However, all three ran hot into their prints, and "solid" was not nearly good enough to meet the lofty expectations of an investor base that is looking for the next Snowflake, Hewlett Packard Enterprise or Dell , all of which exploded to the upside after their guides crushed estimates. What gives? We need to put these moves in context. Think back to the end of May, when Snowflake reported its quarter. Shares of the data storage and analytics provider rocketed to the upside, more than 36% on May 28, and kicked off an enterprise software rally that saw buyers rush into the IGV, the expanded tech-software ETF . The next day, Dell guided way above expectations and saw its stock rip nearly 33% higher. Fast forward to Tuesday, and HPE, like Dell, shot higher by more than 19% on a very strong guidance raise. So, what does that get us? The answer is momentum â a market driven more by "animal spirits" than anything else, especially when it comes to AI. In a market like that, it's important to keep moves like we're seeing Thursday morning in context. Consider this: At the close on May 27, just moments before Snowflake reported its quarter that would spark the rally that ignited our stocks right into their own quarterly releases, Palo Alto Networks shares were priced at $248 each, with CrowdStrike at $645 and Broadcom at $421. All three closed at record highs this week. Based on Thursday afternoon trading, Palo Alto Networks is still up 9.3% since May 27 (based on a $271 share price), with CrowdStrike still up 7.8% (at $695 per share). Broadcom is down about 1.7% (at $414 apiece). By zooming out a week, which in the context of long-term investing is absolutely nothing, we see that the stocks were due for a breather and got way overextended. PANW CRWD,AVGO YTD mountain Palo Alto Networks, CrowdStrike, Broadcom YTD For CrowdStrike and Palo Alto, the overshoot can be attributed to Snowflake unleashing the IGV. Both names were crushed earlier this year on the incorrect notion that AI would hurt the cybersecurity business. Jim had been shooting down that narrative from the beginning, and this quarter was more evidence that he was right. AI is not disputing cyber companies. It's making them more essential than ever. Swift recoveries also tend to overshoot. For Broadcom, the overshoot comes back to hardware players Dell and HPE, providing monster guides, along with expectations that Alphabet's $85 billion equity raise would lead to more orders for Broadcom. Traders piled into Broadcom stock, betting on a huge guide that didn't materialize. Given that traders didn't get what they were looking for, it makes sense that Broadcom would give up the move that hot money produced. But, we're not traders. That's why on Thursday, Jim Cramer remained bullish on all three, saying he would be willing to buy the Broadcom dip, just not yet. He advised that investors let the stock settle down a bit before buying. We're not ready to act yet on CrowdStrike and Palo Alto Networks, which we last trimmed in May and April, respectively. He said CrowdStrike may be a buy in the coming days. What is important to understand, though, is that these stocks are still up huge, and that Thursday's price action has nothing to do with deteriorating fundamentals or anything troubling in their businesses. In fact, it's the opposite. Their fundamentals and businesses remain strong. Bottom line This is what happens when expectations and animal spirits push a stock too far, too fast, and are then met with the reality that comes with earnings. As members look to manage these positions, try not to let these one-day or two-day moves color your thinking too much. These stocks, despite their recent selloffs, are up huge on the year. The one caveat: There is a ton of stock coming to market in the form of the mega-IPOs of SpaceX, Anthropic, and OpenAI â not to mention Alphabet's massive fundraising stock sale. Jim has been warning that this huge influx of supply could lead to some selling as traders look to raise cash to put into these offerings. In long-term investing, which we espouse at the Club, near-term supply-driven stock declines are certainly something to consider, but not something to scare you out of the market. If anything, they are something to be taken advantage of. (Jim Cramer's Charitable Trust is long CRWD, PANW, AVGO. See here for a full list of the stocks.) As a subscriber to the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer, you will receive a trade alert before Jim makes a trade. Jim waits 45 minutes after sending a trade alert before buying or selling a stock in his charitable trust's portfolio. If Jim has talked about a stock on CNBC TV, he waits 72 hours after issuing the trade alert before executing the trade. THE ABOVE INVESTING CLUB INFORMATION IS SUBJECT TO OUR TERMS AND CONDITIONS AND PRIVACY POLICY , TOGETHER WITH OUR DISCLAIMER . NO FIDUCIARY OBLIGATION OR DUTY EXISTS, OR IS CREATED, BY VIRTUE OF YOUR RECEIPT OF ANY INFORMATION PROVIDED IN CONNECTION WITH THE INVESTING CLUB. 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"I think the public square is not the direction we want to go in...we're very inspired by companies like Reddit," Bluesky's Rose Wang told CNBC. View More
In this articleRDDTMETAFollow your favorite stocksCREATE FREE ACCOUNT The BlueSky logo is displayed on a mobile phone screen with its icon in back of it.Anadolu | Anadolu | Getty Images Bluesky, the social media platform that originated within Twitter, rose to prominence as a rival to the network after Elon Musk acquired the company and rebranded it as X.But, two years since its launch, the site has around just 10% of X's estimated global users. Bluesky's Chief Operating Officer Rose Wang told CNBC that the site saw its future not in rivalling X, but in taking inspiration from the online community forum Reddit."The world is changing rapidly, and we're not trying to build what social used to be and get to parity," Wang told CNBC on the sidelines of SXSW in London on Wednesday.Wang said that Bluesky would move away from the "public square" style of feed of X or Threads, and will instead be "useful" as a discovery mechanism."What we've learned through this process is that I think the public square is not the direction we want to go in. Essentially, I think it's useful as a discovery mechanism, but we're very inspired by companies like Reddit." she said. "A public square, where there's only a stage, and there's posters, like people on a stage and people who are watching, that is not social... we're in the medieval stages of the online world."Reddit launched in 2011 and billed itself as "the front page of the internet," offering "sub-Reddits" on a huge range of topics. It went public in 2024 and trades at around $170 a share. Bluesky CEO: I turned a Twitter research project into a rival companyâ'we've achieved what a lot of people said was impossible' Bluesky is built on an open-source AT Protocol, allowing developers to build apps, services, and communities with greater control over their content. Bluesky was initially founded within Twitter in 2019 and backed by Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey, but it spun off in 2021. After Musk acquired Twitter in 2022, the companies ended their service agreement.It raised $100 million in Series B funding in April 2025, but at the end of October last year, it had reportedly seen a 40% drop in daily mobile active users over the preceding 12 months.According to a former engineering lead at Bluesky who posts user statistics on the platform, Bluesky declined from a peak of 1.4 million active daily posters in late 2024 to around 600,000 today.It had 43 million global users as of March, compared to an estimated 450 million X users worldwide. Threads, the Instagram-linked platform Meta launched in 2023, surpassed 400 million active monthly users last year, per its executives.Wang said the decline "generally follows the retention curve of a lot of social companies, where there's like big outside events, and then there's a leveling out, but that leveling out is much higher than the previous bump, and so it's not all downhill."Bluesky needs to "modernize and also get to parity on video features," specifically upload speeds and the length of videos that can be published, she told CNBC."That's one area that we haven't done well in, but I do think that this is an opportunity. Our biggest challenge is our biggest opportunity," Wang said.She added that Bluesky had not definitively ruled out ads, but said other companies treated the advertising business model "as if they had discovered oil." Choose CNBC as your preferred source on Google and never miss a moment from the most trusted name in business news.
A Gen Z-led, social media-first mock political party in India that has amassed millions of followers and is set to hold an in-person protest on Saturday. View More
AAP councillors protest against the leak of undergraduate examination papers during the House meeting of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi on May 25, 2026 in New Delhi, India.Sonu Mehta | Hindustan Times | Getty Images A youth political movement in India that has gone viral on social media â and that has a cockroach as its mascot â will face its first offline popularity test on Saturday as it plans a protest in New Delhi. Within weeks of its launch in mid-May, the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) amassed over 22 million followers on Instagram.The pseudo-political CJP was launched on May 16 by political communications strategist and Boston university student Abhijeet Dipke in response to comments by India's Chief Justice Surya Kant calling some unemployed youngsters' "parasites" and "cockroaches" during a courtroom hearing.The CJP claims to have more than a million members and describes itself on its website as the "voice of the lazy and unemployed."But experts said there is little evidence of on-ground support for the mock party, adding that the scale of protest at the weekend would determine if the movement would be seen as a warning sign or a market-moving event.Similar movements led by disgruntled youth on social media in Nepal, Bangladesh, and, more recently, Indonesia have disrupted economic activity and threatened political stability. In some cases, it has also led to the ouster of the ruling party. For investors, it is important that governments "maintain confidence that the next generation will enjoy better economic prospects than the last," Reema Bhattacharya, head of Asia research at Verisk Maplecroft, told CNBC.Across Asia, this proposition "is becoming increasingly difficult to sustain," she added.At its core, the movement reflects "growing frustration over why the much-discussed demographic dividend has delivered uneven outcomes after more than a decade of political promises and expectations," Bhattacharya said.India's economy has been under strain since the start of the Iran war, as energy supply disruptions have led to the weakening of the rupee against the dollar, and there are mounting concerns about slowing growth and rising inflation. Against this backdrop, experts said job creation continues to be the biggest challenge facing the country with the world's highest youth population. In an open letter in April, global equity research firm Bernstein warned Prime Minister Narendra Modi of a deepening employment crisis in the country. The rise of generative AI is also expected to slow down hiring in India's IT sector, while manufacturing jobs have not shown significant growth.Other major economies in Asia, like China, are also facing diminished prospects for private sector jobs due to an economic slump and worsening business sentiment. The protest test Through its social media handles, the CJP posts about the lack of development and rising unemployment. But the protest on Saturday will address recent discrepancies in crucial high school and entrance exams conducted by the government, which media reports say have affected millions of students."This party, this youth movement seeks accountability from the system," a Cockroach party spokesperson said at a press conference on Wednesday. He added that the "rot" in the system runs deep, and people are being vocal about it by supporting the party on social media.The CJP is demanding the resignation of India's education minister, Dharmendra Pradhan, it said during the press conference. India's leader of the opposition, Rahul Gandhi, has also raised the issue of mis-marked exams in a May 17 post on X, stating that Pradhan "has failed every single age group of India's students at once."The discrepancies in exams have been "fairly disastrous," said Ashok Malik, partner at public policy think tank The Asia Group. "It is perhaps the biggest challenge the government has faced in 12 years," he added.He also said the performance of the government on job creation has been inadequate but said that these issues have not dented the popularity of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi so far. Last month, Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party achieved a historic election win in West Bengal, strengthening its grip on power even as the country faced economic challenges."The PM's predictability remains fairly high," Malik said, adding that if the protest on Saturday gathers a million people, it would be significant enough for investors to take notice.Last time the Modi government faced stiff protests was in 2020 when it introduced farming reforms. After yearlong protests from farmers across the country, Modi repealed the controversial laws in November 2021. His government returned to power for a third term, but lost its outright majority."I don't think India is at risk [of political upheaval] since India is a vast and complex country where for any political outfit to make an impact, it needs serious physical presence and ground mobilization," said Ronojoy Sen, a senior research fellow at the Institute of South Asian Studies."Only an online presence won't do," he added, referring to the CJP's social media handles. Choose CNBC as your preferred source on Google and never miss a moment from the most trusted name in business news.