The latest Market Talks covering Equities. Published exclusively on Dow Jones Newswires throughout the day.
1452 ET - Roughly two-thirds of the S&P 500 companies that conducted earnings calls between March 15 and June 11 mentioned artificial intelligence, well above historical averages, according to FactSet. The term came up in 97% of transcripts across the information technology sector, 94% of logs across the communication services sector, and 92% of calls across the financial sector, the financial data and software company says. "S&P 500 companies that have cited 'AI' on Q1 earnings calls have seen a higher average price increase compared to S&P 500 companies that have not cited 'AI' on Q1 earnings calls," the report states. (connor.hart@wsj.com)
1450 ET - More companies than ever before are talking about artificial intelligence, according to FactSet. The financial data and software company says it searched for the term "AI" in the transcripts of every S&P 500 company that held earnings calls between March 15 and June 11. Overall, the term was cited on 337 earnings calls during the period: "This number is well above the 5-year average of 164 and the 10-year average of 103," a recent FactSet report states. "In fact, this is the highest number of S&P 500 earnings calls on which 'AI' has been cited over the past 10 years." (connor.hart@wsj.com)
1433 ET - Loans to finance private-equity buyouts are getting larger and fewer, according to McKinsey & Co. Leveraged buyout financings totaled $81 billion last year, about 11% more than in 2024 and the highest level on record, while the number of such loans declined roughly 14%, to 214, the consulting firm says. "The scale of the shift toward larger deals is striking: Average LBO deal size for direct lending, for example, rose by 29%," to about $380 million. The trend was illustrated last month by the EUR6.5 billion loan, equivalent to $7.52 billion, that a group of lenders including private-equity and credit firms Blackstone and Permira provided to Norwegian online classifieds company Adevinta, the largest direct-lending deal ever, McKinsey adds, citing news reports. (luis.garcia@wsj.com; @lhvgarcia)
1324 ET - Airbnb's been hiring new leaders to make its partnership push into hotels a priority, Mizuho analysts say in a research note. The company brought in Lou Zameryka for global head of hotel enterprise and connectivity partnerships, as well as Andrea D'Amico as VP of hotels. Both spent a significant amount of time at Booking.com and were well regarded by a former employee there who spoke with the analysts. They also point to the Airbnb CEO's comments earlier this year that the appointment of Ahmad Al-Dahle as chief technology officer was "central to Airbnb's broader transformation beyond short-term rentals." (dean.seal@wsj.com)
1323 ET - Triple Flag Precious Metals' new gold stream from Australia is positive for the company but the value is tied to gold prices and reserves. In a TD Cowen report, Derick Ma says notes that internal rate of return is modest at "0.6% on our long-term gold price of $3,600/oz (or 2.4% at spot gold of $4,200/oz)" meaning the deal's value improves mainly if reserves grow or gold prices rise. The stream is expected to deliver roughly 10,100 gold-equivalent ounces a year over a 14-year mine life, with Ravenswood positioned in the first half of the cost curve of the global cost curve. Ma says that Ravenswood hosts 1.8 million ounces of additional resources, offering potential mine-life extension and further upside to the stream. (adriano.marchese@wsj.com)
1320 ET - MBX Biosciences is off 5.5% following results of a Phase 2 trial of its canvuparatide treatment for hypoparathyroidism. Mizuho says the drug achieved a 57% composite responder rate, a metric for treatment success, at 52 weeks, which is comparable to its competitor Yorvipath's 64%. That said, the analysts believe some investors might argue that Yorvipath's real benchmark rate is 80% under a more relaxed standard tied to patient use. But the analysts are still upbeat on the results and canvuparatide's once-weekly dosing schedule, which allows for 86% fewer injections and "continue to support canvuparatide's commercial potential," they say. (dean.seal@wsj.com)
1249 ET - Groupe Dynamite is likely headed for another quarter of strong growth, bucking a trend of tightening household discretionary budgets. RBC's Irene Nattel says early 1Q indicators remain strong, with same-store sales up 28% eight weeks into the quarter, with momentum carrying over from 4Q. The analyst says that the retailers value position has "proven very sticky with its core constituencies," and the company's low inventory, asset-light and strong free cash flow business model tempers enterprise risk and should provide flexibility to the clothing retailer to rapidly adjust to any unexpected pullback in demand. (adriano.marchese@wsj.com)
1237 ET - Airbnb's push into the hotel industry is going to create tailwinds that the market still doesn't fully appreciate, Mizuho analysts say in a research note. They've spoken to software connectivity partners, along with a former hotel-focused employee, and feel more bullish than ever about Airbnb's strategy of letting hotels list rooms on its app. Hotels are eager to work with the company, difficulties connecting hotel booking systems with Airbnb are being worked out and a cultural shift to prioritize hotels is underway, the analysts say. They also say they could see hotels driving a 2 percentage point tailwind to growth next year. (dean.seal@wsj.com)
1220 ET - Dollarama's Australian operations are in the growing phase, and CIBC's Mark Petrie says not to put "too much on short-term." The dollar-store chained opened eight net new stores and finished 13 renovations in Australia where it recently acquired The Reject Shop. While its own products have begun appearing on shelves, replacing former The Reject Shop products, "the rollout remains early, with management reiterating its target of 50% of SKUs in-store by end of F27." The transition is expected to weigh on sales and earnings in the region in the coming quarters, but Petrie says "the short-term financial results are not meaningful and do not offer insight into the potential earnings power." (adriano.marchese@wsj.com)
1058 ET - Lennar pulled back on discounts in its latest quarter, with incentives moderating sequentially for the first time in three years, Raymond James analysts say in a note. That helped its home sales gross margin recover, and is an encouraging sign even as new orders fell against a backdrop of elevated mortgage rates and geopolitical uncertainty, they say. Lennar falls 4%. (kelly.cloonan@wsj.com)
0955 ET - Global air passenger numbers are expected to grow at a slower rate this year than in recent years due to the war in the Middle East and subsequent higher energy prices, the International Air Transport Association says. Traffic--measured in revenue passenger kilometers--is forecast to grow by 2.1% year-on-year in 2026, the association says. Middle East traffic is expected to fall 11.4%, while Europe, Asia Pacific and North America are expected to grow 2.8%, 5.1% and 0.8%, IATA says. However, African traffic is expected to grow 10% this year. "The sharp increase in oil prices and the even greater surge in fuel costs weigh on both our industry and the macroeconomic environment," the body says. (ian.walker@wsj.com)
0953 ET - Adobe's decision to accelerate new user acquisition through a focus on its freemium offerings looks like a long-term bet, with JPMorgan analysts warning it could take time to see how the strategy will play out. "Our impression is that, fundamentally, Adobe is consciously choosing to invest to capture a larger, long-term opportunity presented by the proliferation of AI, with the trade-off being near-term ARR dollars," the analysts say. In the shorter term, investors will likely remain skeptical and wait for the strategy to actually flow through to results as AI-related uncertainties and fears persist, they say. JPMorgan cuts the price target to $340 from $420. Adobe is off 8% in early trading. (kelly.cloonan@wsj.com)
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
June 12, 2026 14:52 ET (18:52 GMT)
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