Good Morning 👋

For most of us, this Halloween brought in a whole lot of treats despite all the spooky behavior we have seen from the stock markets and the macroeconomic environment in the last week.

The week up till now has seen a rebound that looked pretty unlikely after we saw the pessimism from the investors. S&P500 has eleven sectors, and each of those eleven sectors was higher, led by recovery for Alphabet, Google, and Amazon.

But, the big story today will be the release of economic data. We will see the September Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey and the October Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index.

All of this important news will be followed by the Fed’s policy decision and press conference with Chairman Jerome Powell. I am not expecting any rate changes from the Feds, but the message and its tone can have an impact on the markets and their interpretation, especially for the meeting in December.

Cents & Sense Perspective💪

Electric Vehicles - a problem?

Electric Vehicles (EVs) have been in the spotlight for a while, hailed as the next big thing in transportation. But recently, the journey has seen a few twists and turns. Notably, Tesla, a frontrunner in the EV market, experienced a dip in its stock value.

This wasn't an isolated event; several factors contributed to the shift. ON Semiconductor shared a cautious sales forecast, and Panasonic adjusted its 2024 outlook, hinting at challenges ahead. Additionally, automotive giants like Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen reported a deceleration in EV sales. However, it's not all concerning news.

Stellantis reported a promising surge in EV sales, and overall global interest in EVs remains robust. Market saturation and high interest rates are a problem, for sure. Yet, the inherent benefits of EVs suggest they're here to stay, shaping the future of transportation.

AMD: Twists, Turns, and AI - worth the investment?

Just when we thought we had the trajectory figured out, AMD threw us a curveball. Their stock took a little nosedive in after-hours trading, all thanks to a December quarter revenue forecast that left eyebrows raised.

Now, don't get me wrong, AMD had its moments of glory in the third quarter. They strutted in with earnings per share of 70 cents, cheekily outdoing Wall Street's prediction of 68 cents. And their revenue? A cool $5.8 billion, just nudging past the analyst's bets.

But here's where the plot thickens: AMD's crystal ball sees the fourth quarter revenue hovering around $6.1 billion. Wall Street, on the other hand, was placing its chips at an expected $6.4 billion in revenue.

CEO Lisa Su tried to bring in some optimism, shining a spotlight on their data center business. With their EPYC CPU portfolio and the buzzworthy Instinct MI300 accelerator shipments on the horizon, things are looking up.

But every story has its twists. While the client PC business was celebrating a 42% growth, the gaming segment was nursing an 8% hit. And when you tally up the numbers? A modest 4% annual revenue hike.

CFO Jean Hu gave us a peek behind the curtain, hinting at challenges, especially in the gaming segment plus for its field-programmable gate array (FPGA) chip business.

But wait, there's a silver lining!

AMD's much-anticipated MI300 accelerators are revving up for their big debut. Tailor-made for AI projects, these GPUs are set to be the talk of the town. AMD CEO expects these GPUs to bring in $400 million in Q4 and potentially skyrocket to $2 billion by 2024.

We have to consider that Ms. Su's revenue projections exceed some established Wall Street estimates. For instance, Wells Fargo analyst Aaron Rakers had previously projected a more conservative figure of $1.7 billion for AMD's data-center GPU revenue.

Despite these optimistic projections, AMD's Q4 outlook presented certain challenges, particularly within their gaming and embedded chip sectors. This forecast initially led to a 5% decline in AMD shares after-hours trading. However, the shares subsequently stabilized, reflecting a less than 1% decrease by the end of the trading session.

Zooming out, AMD's shares have seen a 14% slide over the past three months.

WeWork is dead!

WeWork, the co-working space provider that once dominated headlines for its rapid expansion and innovative office solutions, is again in the news.

Recent reports from the Wall Street Journal indicate that the company is considering filing for bankruptcy protection in the near future.

This development, while significant, is not entirely unexpected for those who have been monitoring WeWork's financial trajectory. The global pandemic severely impacted the demand for shared office spaces, and WeWork, despite its expansive footprint, was not immune to these market shifts. Furthermore, before the pandemic, the company faced scrutiny regarding its financial sustainability and corporate governance, contributing to its current predicament.

In 2019, WeWork's valuation, bolstered by substantial investments from entities like SoftBank, reached an impressive $47 billion. However, the company's subsequent attempt at an Initial Public Offering (IPO) was unsuccessful, marred by investor apprehensions about its financial losses and concerns related to its then-CEO, Adam Neumann.

The present financial landscape for WeWork is challenging. The company's stock has experienced a significant decline this year, reflecting broader market concerns about its viability. While WeWork continues to navigate these challenges, with leadership changes and potential strategic shifts, the path forward remains uncertain. Stakeholders and industry observers will be keenly watching WeWork's next moves, as they will have broader implications for the co-working space industry at large.

Headlines you might like 👀

• Meta says users and businesses have 600 million chats on its platforms every day (Tech Crunch)

• Tesla Started a Price War; Every EV Stock Is Paying the Price (Barron’s)

• Here’s how a government shutdown in November would likely impact stocks (Market Watch)

• Ford misses on earnings, as warranty costs move carmaker back near the penalty box (CNBC)

• Meta Reports Better-Than-Expected Earnings. Why the Stock Is Falling (Barron’s)

I’m Armaghan Tanveer, a numbers guy by profession and a romantic by heart. I have just started documenting my life (as a part-time content creator while managing my day job and family). I would love to have you as a part of my journey; you can follow me on my journey here.

DISCLAIMER: We are not investment advisors; this content is for educational purposes only. We don’t offer financial, legal, or tax advice. Nothing we say is a recommendation to buy or sell any assets. Trading and investing are extremely risky, so please be careful and do your research.