Overall reported sales fell 5.9% to 22.09 billion Swiss francs ($24.14 billion), just shy of a company consensus of CHF22.37 billion, but it maintained full-year guidance ahead of an expected improvement in volumes. The Swiss maker of KitKat chocolate bars and Nescafe coffee said Thursday that organic sales rose 1.4% in the first-quarter, missing a company-compiled consensus of 2.9% and compared to 9.3% in the same quarter last year. Nestle backed guidance for full-year organic sales growth of around 4% and a modest increase in underlying operating profit margin from the 17.3% it recorded in 2023. A company-consensus forecasts 2024 organic growth of 4.0%, a margin of 17.6% and RIG of 1.8%.

Deutsche Bank downgraded its rating to sell from hold, with a price target of 60 francs. Analysts noted the computer parts maker's "disappointing" recovery path as focus turns to fiscal 2025. "With a steep premium valuation unsustainable and providing little margin for error - the shares appear vulnerable into Q4-24 earnings (April 29th) where the FY-25 outlook is expected to be provided," analysts wrote.

Spotify revenue jumped 20% year over year to €3.64 billion, equivalent to $3.9 billion, and the company projected 20% growth again for the second quarter—both of which beat Wall Street’s estimates. Operating income of €168 million topped analysts’ targets by 11%, and Spotify projected a record €250 million on that measure for the second quarter. That would equate to operating earnings of €418 million for the first half of this year, which is a sharp reversal from a loss of €403 million in the same period last year.

The streaming pioneer managed to deliver another quarter of blockbuster subscriber growth. Net new paid subscribers of 9.3 million in the first quarter were nearly double the official 4.8 million analysts expected. Netflix has added more than 31 million subscribers over the past three quarters since that program began—more than double what was added in the three quarters prior. The company announced that it would no longer report subscriber data at all starting next year.

Boeing reported an adjusted loss of $1.13 a share on revenue of $16.6 billion. On that basis, analysts predicted an adjusted loss of $1.63 per share on revenue of $16.2 billion. Boeing burned through nearly $4 billion in the most recent quarter as fallout from the Alaska Airlines midair accident exacted a financial toll. The jet maker reported a $355 million loss as revenue fell 8% from a year ago in quarterly results that were slightly better than expected Boeing warned investors last month that it would take a hit of between $4 billion and $4.5 billion for the year’s first quarter, larger than it previously forecast. The company ended March with $7.5 billion of cash and investments, less than half what it had at the start of the year. Moody’s Investors Service downgraded its rating on Boeing’s unsecured debt by one notch to Baa3, the lowest investment-grade level

In the wake of a recent pullback, AMD (NASDAQ:AMD) stock is receiving a shot in the arm from HSBC's bullish upgrade. This upgrade comes after a period of decline for AMD, which investors will be hoping signals a turn-around for the chipmaker. In a note to clients, the bank said the artificial intelligence total addressable market is “more than enough to go around.” The firm upgraded AMD to Buy, raising the price target to $225 from $180 per share. HSBC is confident that AMD has enough supply capacity and demand to surpass management’s AI GPU revenue guidance of over $3.5 billion in 2024, and they think management could raise guidance to above $5 billion compared to their estimate of $6.5 billion. Furthermore, despite market concerns about Nvidia’s dominance with its GB200 platform in 2025, HSBC believes AMD’s MI300 is not a direct competitor to the GB200 but more to the existing H100 and H200 GPUs. “We expect AMD’s next generation AI chip solutions, such as the MI350/MI375/MI400 to be launched in 2H 2024, to be more direct competition to Nvidia’s GB200,” said HSBC analysts. “We also think it is unlikely for Nvidia to have 100% of the market share in AI GPU; our base case assumes AMD captures 10% share by 2025 implying potential AI GPU revenue of USD12.3bn by 2025 vs the current sell-side consensus/previous forecast of USD9.1bn/USD9.2bn.” Elsewhere, it is also noted that the non-AI momentum is showing signs of improvement into the second quarter of 2024. The bank expects non-AI momentum for both client and traditional servers to start to see improvement along with MI300 revenue of $648 million and $1.1 billion in the first and second quarters of 2024.

The Texas-based carmaker reported net income of $1.1 billion for the January-to-March period, down 55% from the year prior. Revenue fell 9% year over year to $21.3 billion, reflecting a decline in both vehicle prices and deliveries. In the U.S., Tesla delivered roughly 108,000 vehicles in the first two months of the year, according to estimates by Motor Intelligence, down from 114,000 a year ago. The analyst consensus given by FactSet has fallen a lot in recent weeks, but at 457,000 it remains much higher than the latest estimates. Currently, the consensus earnings per share for 2024 is $2.87, which compares with a share price of $180 to give a forward earnings multiple of 63. But the real multiple of what investors expect is probably a lot higher. Tesla’s stock is even more expensive than it looks.

Europe’s most valuable tech company reported orders worth the equivalent of just €3.6 billion, equivalent to $3.8 billion, for the three months through March. It said it only needs orders of €4 billion a quarter for the rest of the year to remain on track to make €35 billion in revenue in 2025—the midpoint of aggressive guidance it gave in 2022. A record 49% of ASML’s machine sales in the first quarter came from China, even though it is barred by Dutch export rules from selling much of its most advanced equipment to the country.

The Detroit-based car company on Tuesday reported a 24% rise in first-quarter profit to nearly $3 billion, driven by solid U.S. sales of pickup trucks, the company’s biggest moneymaker. GM lost $106 million for the quarter in the world’s largest car market by sales. Overall, GM’s pretax profit for the period from January to March, excluding one-time items, rose about 2% to $3.9 billion. Earnings per share of $2.62 easily surpassed analysts’ forecasts of $2.13, according to FactSet.

Coupang Inc (NYSE:CPNG) stock received an upgrade from Citi, moving from Neutral to Buy, alongside a significant increase in the price target to $26.00, up from the previous $19.00. The upgrade was prompted by the company's recent announcement on Wednesday, April 12, 2024, regarding the increase in the subscription fee for its Rocket Wow service. Coupang raised the monthly fee for Rocket Wow to W7,890 ($5.7) from the prior W4,990 ($3.6). This adjustment occurred sooner than anticipated by both the market and Citi's analyst, coming just over two years after the last fee increase in December 2021. The incremental revenue from this hike is expected to be highly profitable, as it does not incur additional costs, potentially contributing approximately $400 million to the company's annual adjusted EBITDA. The analyst at Citi highlighted three key positive outcomes from this strategic move. Firstly, the increased revenue from the subscription fee is likely to counterbalance the heightened losses stemming from new ventures in Taiwan, Eats, and FarFetch. Secondly, there appears to be potential for further increases in the subscription fee, especially when compared to Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) Prime's $14.99 monthly charge. Lastly, the recent announcement is seen as an indication of the management's commitment to margin management, especially in scenarios where new initiatives may require additional investment. This optimistic outlook on Coupang's financial strategies and the potential for increased profitability has led to the improved stock rating and price target, signaling Citi's confidence in the company's future performance. Coupang's revenue growth has been impressive, with a 23.16% quarterly increase as of Q1 2023 and an 18.46% growth over the last twelve months. This growth trajectory suggests that the company is expanding its market presence effectively. However, it is important to note that while the company is trading at a high Price / Book multiple of 8.08, indicating a potentially premium valuation, analysts predict Coupang will be profitable this year, which could justify the higher valuation to some investors.