Walgreens Buyout, Bitcoin’s White House Test & Ford’s EV Struggles

📈 Market Indices Update

S&P 500: ↓ 3.1% to 5,770 – Volatile week amid economic concerns and trade policy.

Dow Jones: ↓ 2.4% to 42,801 – ​Industrial stocks lagged amid U.S. tariffs.​

Nasdaq: ↓ 3.5% to 18,196.22 – ​Tech stocks slumped as investors rotated into safer assets.​

Gold: ↓ 0.3% to $2,917.70 – ​Safe-haven demand rises as market volatility spiked.​

EUR/USD: ↑ 2.8% to 1.08 – Euro gained strength against the dollar.

USD/JPY: ↓ 1.8% to 147.60 – Yen strengthened as the pair trended downward.

10-Year Treasury Yield: 4.3% – Fluctuated amid economic uncertainty and rate considerations.

Bitcoin: ↓ 3.6% to $87,000 – Broader market sell-offs and U.S. regulatory uncertainties.

^{_{Data as of market close, 4:00pm ET}}

📢 Top 3 Market Stories You Should Care About

1️⃣ Walgreens $WBA ( ▼ 2.11% ) Goes Private in $24 Billion Deal (FT)

• Sycamore Partners acquires Walgreens BA for $23.7 billion.

• Shareholders to receive $11.45 per share, a 30% premium.

• VillageMD, Walgreens' primary care unit, could add an extra $3 per share.

​Why It Matters: This move ends Walgreens' 97-year public run, signaling major shifts in the pharmacy retail landscape.​

2️⃣ U.S. Adds 151,000 Jobs in February (WSJ)

• Job growth falls short of 170,000 (!) expectations.

• Unemployment rate edges up to 4.1%.

• Healthcare sector adds 52,000 jobs.

​🔎 Takeaway: Slower job growth and a rising unemployment rate could give the Fed more room to cut rates later this year, but strong hiring in healthcare suggests parts of the economy remain resilient.

3️⃣ White House Hosts First Crypto Summit (Reuters)

• President Trump invites industry leaders to discuss cryptocurrency policies.

• Executive Order establishes a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve with ~200,000 BTC.

• Market Reaction: Bitcoin dropped 6% as traders were disappointed that the reserve consists only of seized assets, rather than new government purchases.

​Key Question: How will this summit influence U.S. leadership in the crypto industry?​

🔎 What 5 Rich & Powerful Are Buying

📉 Alexander Karp – CEO, Palantir ($PLTR ( ▲ 1.62% )) (Source)
→ Sold ~$45 million worth of shares
→ Adds to the $2 billion he sold in 2024
→ Represents 21% of his total stake

📉 Nikesh Arora – CEO, Palo Alto Networks ($PANW ( ▼ 0.57% )) (Source)
→ Sold 69,947 shares, totaling ~$143.8 million
→ Average price per share $182.45
→ Palo Alto Networks is a leading cybersecurity firm

📉 Robyn Denholm – Chairwoman, Tesla ($TSLA ( ▲ 4.07% )) (Source)
→ Sold 112,390 shares, totaling $33.7 million
→ Follows previous $117M in sales over the past three months
→ Tesla remains the largest EV manufacturer in the world

📉 Top Executives at SentinelOne ( $S ( ▼ 0.49% ) ) (Source)
→ T. Weingarten (CEO) sold 39,477 sh, aprox. $789,540
→ R. Smith (President, Prod Tech & Ops) sold 20,188 sh, aprox. $403,760
→ Keenan Conder (Chief Legal Officer) sold 7,045 shares,  aprox. $140,090
→ SentinelOne specializes in AI-driven cybersecurity solutions

📉 Robinhood Executives ( $HOOD ( ▼ 1.89% ) ) (Source)
→ S. Quirk (Chief Brokerage Officer) sold 123,272 sh, ~$6.88 million
→ Jeffrey Pinner (CTO) sold 5,853 shares, totaling ~$273,981
→ Robinhood remains a key player in the retail trading space

🔍 Big money is making moves—watch these stocks for potential momentum shifts! 🚀

🔥 Underrated Stock of the Week: $NU

📚 Company Overview: Nu Holdings Ltd. is a leading digital financial services platform in Latin America. Founded in 2013, the company offers a range of financial products - digital accounts, credit cards, loans, and insurance- serving over 114 million customers across Brazil, Mexico, and Colombia. ​

📊 Key Financials & Metrics:

• Stock Price: $10.81​

• P/E Ratio: 27.0

• Market Cap: $52 billion​

• Revenue Growth: +58% YoY (FY 2024) ​

• Sales Growth: 18% current quarter

• Analysts’ 12-Month Target: $14.56 (+35%)​

• 30-Day Change: -21%​ | YTD Change: +4.3%​

💪 Pros:

• High Growth: Strong revenue surge, recently turned profitable.

• Massive Customer Base: Largest neobank in LatAm, leveraging digital efficiency for high margins.

• Expanding Offerings: Moving into SME banking, crypto, telecom, and more, with global expansion in sight.

💩 Cons:

• FX & Macro Risks: Heavy exposure to Brazil/Mexico economies; currency fluctuations impact earnings.

• Regulatory & Competitive Pressure: Increasing oversight and competition from banks and fintechs.

💰 Hot Take: Ford Motor Company $F

📚 Company Overview: Ford is a legacy automaker with a strong presence in gas-powered, hybrid, and electric vehicles.

📊 Key Financials & Metrics:

• Stock Price: $9.26

• P/E Ratio: 6.8X

• Market Cap: $39B

• Revenue Growth: +5% YoY

• Analysts’ 12-Month Target: $10.80 (+17%)

• 30-Day Change: +7.1% | YTD Change: 0%

💰 Hot Take: Is Ford Overvalued Amid Rising Competition?

• Chinese EV Pressure: BYD and Xiaomi are aggressively expanding, offering cheaper, advanced EVs, putting legacy automakers at risk.

• Strategic Setbacks: Ford canceled plans for an all-electric SUV, writing off $1.9B, highlighting challenges in EV profitability.

• Leadership Concerns: CEO Farley faced backlash for driving a Chinese-made EV, raising concerns over Ford’s own EV lineup.

📊 One Chart That Explains Everything

🚀 Biggest Market Movers

📈 Top 3 Winners

• Gap Inc. ($GAP) +19% – Reported better-than-expected Q4 earnings and issued upbeat guidance.

• Tuya Inc. ($TUYA) +14.2% – Strong quarterly results driven by robust demand for IoT solutions.

• Broadcom Inc. ($AVGO) +8.6% – Solid Q1 earnings, fueled by growth in AI product sales.

📉 Top 3 Losers

• Marvell Technology ($MRVL) -20% – Issued weak revenue outlook due to softer demand in data-center markets.

• Hewlett Packard Enterprise ($HPE) -12% – Provided disappointing annual guidance due to pricing pressure and tariff concerns.

• Reddit Inc. ($RDDT) -11.0% – Declined amid concerns about slowing ad revenue growth.

_{Prices as of market close, March 7, 2025.}

📅 Upcoming Economic Events to Watch

📊 Key Economic Data:

• U.S. CPI (Mar 12): Crucial inflation report shaping Fed rate expectations.

• ECB Interest Rate Decision (Mar 14): Will the ECB hint at rate cuts?

• Japan & UK GDP (Mar 14): Signals on global economic growth.

💰 Major Earnings Reports:

• Oracle ($ORCL ( ▲ 0.42% )) – Mar 11: AI & cloud growth in focus.

• Adobe ($ADBE ( ▲ 0.52% )) – Mar 12: Subscription & digital media outlook.

• Dollar General ($DG ( ▲ 0.98% )) & Dollar Tree ($DLTR ( ▲ 0.41% )) – Mar 13: Consumer spending trends.

💡 Financial Term of the Week: Yield Curve Inversion

📌 Definition: A yield curve inversion occurs when short-term interest rates exceed long-term rates, signaling potential economic slowdown or recession.

📊 Example: In 2019, the U.S. 10-year Treasury yield fell below the 2-year yield, an early warning of the 2020 recession.

🔎 Why It Matters: An inverted yield curve often indicates that investors expect lower future growth and potential Fed rate cuts.