NEWS
Market Has A Holiday Hangover

Source: Tenor.com

It was a tired day on Wall Street, with volumes low as many market participants catch up on rest before we head into a busy 2025. Although the major indexes offered little excitement, small-cap stocks were all the rage today with many familiar names experiencing consistent demand throughout the day. 👀

Today’s issue covers analysts’ Apple optimism, the economy’s K-shaped recovery, and other noteworthy pops and drops. 📰

Here’s the S&P 500 heatmap. 6 of 11 sectors closed green, with consumer staples (+0.31%) leading and consumer discretionary (-0.37%) lagging.

Source: Finviz.com

And here are the closing prices: 

Most bullish/bearish symbols on Stocktwits at the close: 📈 $PDYN, $VLN, $SES, $SPRC, $OMEX 📉 $UK, $WAFU, $IBKR, $MELI, $AKBA*

*If you’re a business and want to access this data via our API, email us.

COMPANY NEWS
Apple Approaches $4 Trillion Amid Optimism 🍏 

Consumer tech giant Apple remains in a league of its own, with its market cap at $3.91 trillion, nearly $500 billion above Nvidia which dons the second spot. 👑 

Wedbush analyst Dan Ives remains the biggest bull on Wall Street. He raised Apple’s price target to $325 and maintained an ‘Outperform’ rating. The average analyst price target is $248.14, ~4% below current levels.

Ives wrote, “We believe Apple is heading into a multiyear AI-driven iPhone upgrade cycle that is still being underestimated by the Street,” alluding to the December 11th release of the latest iPhone operating system (Cupertino 18.2). Ives believes the hundreds of applications still in development will create a multibillion-dollar annual revenue stream for Apple. 🤑 

While the fundamental continues to grab analysts’ attention, BTIG strategist Jonathan Krinsky noted that Apple’s recently had five straight weeks of a 2% or larger gain, which hasn’t happened since 2010. History suggests one-month forward returns “have been quite negative” after previous streaks.

Stocktwits users are currently also optimistic about Apple’s AI future, with 38% of those polled saying its innovation in the space drove its 2024 performance. That suggests a good portion of investors believe this will be a driver in 2025 as well. 🤖 

Source: Stocktwits.com

Time will tell what 2025 has in store. But for now, eyes are on the $4 trillion milestone, which requires a close at or above $264.63. With three trading days left, bulls are trying their best to get shares there to end the year on a high note. 🥳 

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ECONOMY
The K-Shaped Recovery Continues 🛍️ 

The latest reads on consumer spending and the labor market suggests the U.S. economy’s K-shapred recovery problem remains intact.

Overall, consumers spent 3.8% more from November 1st through December 24th this year than last, according to Mastercard SpendingPulse. Notably, this data exlucdes auto sales and doesn’t include the week after Christmas, which is a key shopping period for returns, exchanges, and belated gift giving. 💳️ 

The gains were boosted by a 6.3% YoY increase in restaurant spending. Meanwhile, online retail sales rose 6.7% YoY compared to a 2.9% rise in in-store sales.

Still, the monthly consumer sentiment data shows that the top third of income groups remains the most confident, which the middle and bottom-thirds remain less so. And comments from retailers suggests that reading is impacting behaviors, with many noting continued pressure on the low-end consumer due to higher prices for necessities like groceries, child care, rent, etc. 😬 

Newell Brands chief executive Chris Peterson echoed this sentiment, saying “We started to notice this trend where there was a real bifurcation in the market between the $50,000-and-below consumer in the U.S. market and the $100,000-and-above consumer.” 

Consumers’ selectiveness is likely to continue, as we continue to see a slow but steady softening in the labor market. U.S. continuing jobless claims reached their highest level since 2021, showing it’s taking longer for out-of-work people to find a job.

Initial claims remain low, suggesting that companies are still hesitant to separate from workers that they may need in the future. However, they’re also not hiring as rapidly or often as they previously were, causing continuing claims to trend slowly higher. 📈 

Overall, those with higher incomes and more assets continue to benefit in a world where homes, stocks, Bitcoin, and other assets are at record-high prices. For others, though, rising prices remain a key concern, as higher prices and inflation ticking up make day-to-day living all that much harder.

This will remain a key theme into 2025 as investors try to identify the biggest winners and losers in the current (and future) economy. 🔮 

PRESENTED BY STOCKTWITS
The Perfect Holiday Watch Party Movie 👀 

Remember Glauber “Pro” Contessoto, aka “The Dogecoin Millionaire?” With crypto roaring back like it’s 2021 again, his name is making a comeback alongside Dogecoin’s price as retail looks for a repeat of the ‘meme coin’ mania. 🤑 

His story was captured in a film nominated for ‘Best Documentary’ at the 2024 Astra Awards. And we’ve officially rolled it out in four digestible parts right on the Stocktwits YouTube channel, just in time for the holidays

See how THIS IS NOT FINANCIAL ADVICE exposes the risks and rewards of today’s market through expert commentary and the anxiety-inducing stories of real people trying to make millions. It’s the perfect holiday watch for market lovers. 🍿 

STOCKS
Other Noteworthy Pops & Drops 📋️ 

Volato Group (+14%): The aviation firm announced it had resolved an issue related to non-compliance with NYSE American rules. The company is implementing additional controls to avoid future violations of such NYSE rules.

Toyota Motors (+9%): The Japanese automaker’s ambitious plan to double its return on equity (ROE) target to 20% by March 2025 drove shares higher.

Nano Dimension (+7%): The digital manufacturing technology firm appointed Julien Ledermen as its interim CEO.

MicroStrategy (-4%): The company announced plans to issue more shares and buy more Bitcoin despite the cryptocurrency’s price hovering below $100k.

KULR Technology Group (+39%): The advanced energy management platform announced its first-ever Bitcoin purchase, 217 BTC, for approximately $21 million.

Palladyne AI Corp (+51%): Announced that its Palladyne Pilot AI software platform has achieved a key developmental milestone, sending shares to 2-year highs.

WISA Technologies (+13%): Announced the acquisition of CompuSystems, a privately held company focused on management services for live events.

GameStop (+5%): On Wednesday, Roaring Kitty posted a picture of a Christmas present on X, formerly known as Twitter, sparking speculation about its possible intent. As of Thursday afternoon, the post had garnered more than 4.1 million views.

Odyssey Marine Exploration (+47%): The company announced a joint venture (JV) with Capital Latinoamericano, S.A. de C.V. (CapLat) to develop a strategic fertilizer project and also disclosed that it has secured $4 million in funding.

POET Technologies (+33%): The rally was fueled by the company’s latest manufacturing deal with Globetronics Manufacturing (GMSB) to produce optical engines in Penang, Malaysia.

American Battery (+26%): The battery materials company entered into a securities purchase agreement with a couple of institutional investors to purchase and sell 3,773,586 shares of its common stock and warrants, lifting retail sentiment.

Tesla (-2%): A recent Stocktwits poll revealed that 67% of retail investors expect Tesla to end the year above $450, while 15% believe it will be in the $420 to $450 range.

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✂️ FTX executives shave serious time off their sentences

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✈️ Airlines’ wild 2024: From Boeing troubles to a bankruptcy and a merger

🎅 Elon Musk dubs himself “Ozempic Santa” as weight-loss drugs go mainstream

🧑‍💼 Richard Parsons dies: versatile media executive and former Time Warner chief was 76

🏭️ BYD’s new EV plant in Brazil suddenly halted over ‘slavery’ worker conditions [Update]

📰 OpenAI whistleblower Suchir Balaji dead at age 26; family seeks answers as death ruled suicide

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