Over the past week, the CE 100 Index’s 2.1% rally outpaced its benchmarks, driven by gains across all pillars.
Porch Group led advancing names in the Index, surging more than 14.4%. Investing sites such as Tipranks reported that sell-side Wall Street firm Stephens boosted its price target on the company to $10 from $8 while keeping its “overweight” rating on the make (which is equivalent to a “buy” rating). Analysts maintained that Porch’s operational execution and strategic focus should help the company navigate any further macro pressures.
Tencent’s 11.6% rally led the Pay and Be Paid segment of the CE 100 Index to nearly 3% higher. Fourth quarter earnings detailed that revenues in the quarter were up 11% year on year to about $23.9 billion, as the games segment in China showed a 23% revenue surge. The company also noted that it is seeing growth in its AI-related drive to improve and enhance operations. In a statement that accompanied the results, management stated that “these stepped-up investments will generate ongoing returns via uplifting productivity in our advertising business and longevity of our games, as well as longer term value from accelerated consumer usage of our AI applications and enterprise adoption of our AI services.”
Visa’s stock was 1.1% higher. The company announced that, in connection with Worldpay, the payments network has launched a new Click to Pay with Visa checkout feature for online merchants in the U.K. The joint efforts allow customers to complete a transaction with a single click, eliminating the need to manually enter card details.
And Block, which helped lead the Pay and Be Paid segment of the CE 100 Index 2.9% higher, saw its shares gain 6.8%. The company had said earlier in the month that As had been reported last week, Block said that its Square Financial Services industrial bank has been approved by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. to make consumers loans directly to borrowers, using Cash App Borrow. The announcement represents a shift, as the firm had previously made the loans through its external banking partner. By bringing the loan originating and servicing functions in house, Block retains the revenue streams associated with that lending, PYMNTS noted.
Affirm shares slipped 0.4%.
Affirm said Wednesday (March 19) that it plans to begin furnishing information about all of its payment plans to Experian on April 1. The expanded data will include biweekly payment plans, Pay in 30 (single installment), Pay-in-2 and Pay-in-6 offerings. Affirm has maintained that expanded credit reporting will help consumers build their credit histories and enable both consumers and lenders to make more informed decisions. That data may be included in new credit scoring models developed in the future, according to the announcement.
Nike shares led to the downside among the few names that declined in the CE 100 Index, off 5.2%
The company posted results this past week that saw declines across most metrics, and management commentary projected that tariffs will have a near term, negative impact on margins. Revenues were down 9% year over year to $11.3 billion, while the Street had expected a double digit-drop to the $11 billion level. CFO Matthew Friend said tariffs on imports from China and Mexico will hit margins by 4% to 5%. And revenues will decline in the midteens range, per guidance. Nike Direct revenues were $4.7 billion, down 12%, and driven by a 15% decline in Nike digital sales, and a 2% dip at the companies stores. Digital traffic is slated to be down by double digit percentage points in the current fiscal year.
Overall, CFO Matthew Friend said, “We are also navigating through several external factors that create uncertainty in the current operating environment, including geopolitical dynamics, new tariffs, volatile foreign exchange rates and tax regulations, as well as the impact of this uncertainty and other macro factors on consumer confidence.”
FedEx’s quarterly results spurred investors to send the shares 4.9% lower.
In the company’s earnings report, and as PYMNTS reported, for a third consecutive quarter, FedEx cut its full-year and revenue outlook.
“Our revised earnings outlook reflects continued weakness and uncertainty in the U.S. industrial economy, which is constraining demand for our business-to-business services,” said John Dietrich, FedEx Corp. executive vice president and chief financial officer. The latest revenues of $22.7 billion were down 3.8% year on year. FedEx Express, the company’s largest revenue driver, experienced a 4% decline, settling at $10.5 billion. FedEx Ground saw a 3% dip to $7.8 billion tied to an eCommerce deceleration.
