The latest Market Talks covering Equities. Published exclusively on Dow Jones Newswires throughout the day.
1159 ET - The value of Maple Leafs Sports & Entertainment based on Rogers Communications' acquisition of Kilmer Sports' stake is now C$17.4 billion, says National Bank of Canada's Adam Shine. He says in a report that the price was above other assessments, where "Forbes aggregated to C$15 billion, while the figure was C$14.5 billion per Sportico." That's also a big step from when Rogers bought BCE's 37.5% MLSE stake, where the implied value was C$12.5 billion. "That's a +39% jump in less than two years," Shine says. But it isn't clear why the price came in higher than expected. Shine says the higher price could have been used to expedite the deal with Kilmer Sports, or perhaps recent Canadian-dollar depreciation, but it is still unclear. (adriano.marchese@wsj.com)
1128 ET - Rogers Communications bought out Larry Tanenbaum's MLSE share sooner than expected. TD Cowen's Vince Valentini says the price of C$4.35 billion is a premium, likely "in return for Rogers getting a deal done quickly." The expedience could be a positive. Valentini says any delay to purchase Tanenbaum's Kilmer Sports' stake "could have delayed the important deleveraging event of selling a minority interest in sports and media to new private investors." Next on the docket for Rogers is likely going to be to formalize negotiations with new potential private investors in the full sports-and-media entity, for an estimated "C$6.5 billion in proceeds (25-30% stake), so that the net of the two transactions should be debt reduction of about C$2.1 billion." (adriano.marchese@wsj.com)
1053 ET - Investors are not surprised about Strategy Inc. confirming fresh sales from its bitcoin treasury, but the news may be having a psychological effect on how traders approach the market. "Each actual sale weakens the 'never sell' perception around the BTC treasury model and brings capital structure pressure back into focus," says Lacie Zhang of Bitget. "So today's reaction is probably less about the size of the sale itself, and more about the narrative discount that comes from making those sales real." Zhang adds that while the hit to sentiment is spurring bitcoin selling, there are other signs of prices rebounding longer-term. Bitcoin is down 1.1% to just above $62,000, according to data from LSEG. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com)
1025 ET - Bitcoin ETFs entered the holiday weekend on a positive note, according to data from CoinGlass. They posted a net inflow of $223.5 million on July 2, the first such inflow for these ETFs since June 12. Bitcoin had a mostly-positive holiday weekend, rising to as high as nearly $64,000, according to CoinGlass data, but is trading below $62,000 this morning. Part of the pressure is coming from sales of BTC by Michael Saylor's Strategy Inc.--although the market did have some advanced warning. "The market's reaction may be more muted than in the past following the company's recently introduced policy," says Christopher Tahir of Exness in a note. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com)
1015 ET - Despite Bitcoin climbing as high as $64,000 over the holiday weekend, prices are down 1.8% to $61,593 this morning in response to two sales by Strategy Inc. The firm sold a total of 3,588 BTC on two occasions--one last week and one confirmed this morning. The sales brought in roughly $215 million, but Strategy's stockpile remains enormous, at 843,775 BTC with an average price of $75,476. Strategy remains underwater on its bitcoin holdings by roughly $11.8 billion. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com)
1010 ET - Apotex Health has a leading position in Canada's pharmaceutical space, and an upcoming loss of patent exclusivity cycle will likely push it even further ahead. ATB Cormark's Frederico Gomes says in a report that the company, which went public last month, offers a mix of resilient organic revenue growth, supported by expansion in the prescription pharmaceuticals and branded consumer health and wellness markets. What's more, Gomes predicts a wave of brand patent expirations are projected to surge across both the U.S. and Canada, and generic drug manufacturers like Apotex are positioned to capture it. ATB Cormark initiates coverage with an outperform rating and a price target of 40 Canadian dollars. Shares are up 4% to C$35.30. (adriano.marchese@wsj.com)
0951 ET - Sterling's recent rise against the euro appears driven by a short-squeeze due to a lack of new negative political developments, Societe Generale analysts say in a note. That means traders who were previously betting against sterling are buying back the currency as it rises. U.K. politicians are careful not to scare the market since former Prime Minister Liz Truss caused turmoil with unfunded tax cuts, the analysts say. Sterling is now a "little stretched" relative to the euro but "not significantly out of line," suggesting modest softness from here, they say. SocGen expects the euro to rise to 0.87 pounds by year-end. The euro falls 0.2% to 0.8552 pounds, having reached a one-year low of 0.8544 Thursday, LSEG data show. (renae.dyer@wsj.com)
0936 ET - Ocado will have difficulty finding a new CEO given the current issues facing the business, but the time-frame enables the company to find the right candidate, Bernstein analysts write. The U.K. grocery-technology company said it started the process to search for a new CEO and that it expects to complete the search around the start of fiscal 2028, when Tim Steiner will step down and move to a founder role. Bernstein says the move could provide the catalyst for further rationalization of the business and possible sale of its retail joint venture to Marks & Spencer. Shares are down 2% at 180.10 pence, and 24% lower over the year to date. (ian.walker@wsj.com)
0927 ET - H&M's top line continues to raise questions, and UBS remains cautious on growth and the gross margin. The bank says the company's restructuring hints at efficiencies to come and UBS recognizes a lot of improvements in the H&M business model, which have resulted in a better gross margin, stronger cost control and better inventory control. Revenue remains a challenge and second-quarter update continued this trend, with soft local currency sales and flat sales at the start of the third quarter. However, gross margin continues to benefit from supply-chain efficiencies and tight operating expenditure control, UBS adds. The bank trims its price target to 168 Swedish kronor from 169 kronor and keeps neutral rating on the stock. Shares fall 0.6% to 165.65 kronor. (dominic.chopping@wsj.com)
0908 ET - Ferrari could report a solid second quarter, with an EBIT margin of 30.5% versus consensus at 30.6% and compared with 29.7% in the first quarter, Bank of America Securities analysts write. The bank expects support from a stronger product mix and slightly higher average selling prices. Volumes should be slightly down, as the 296 GTB phases out and the 849 Testarossa and Amalfi are only starting to phase in. "We expect a modest FY26 guidance raise, likely on revenues and possibly on EBIT margin." The company has announced a new limited edition 12Cilindri Manuale, which should help offset risk from the Luce electric-vehicle, BofA adds. The bank raises its price objective on the stock to 400 euros from 350 euros and keeps at buy. Shares rise 2.3% to 338.90 euros. (dominic.chopping@wsj.com)
0808 ET - ITV is unlikely to disappear from the public market altogether, ITV Chief Executive Carolyn McCall says in a media call. Comcast's Sky has agreed to buy ITV's media-and-entertainment unit for up to$2.14 billion. Under the agreement, ITV Studios will be separated and listed in London. McCall says shareholders are supportive of ITV Studios becoming a listed independent business. The deal also allows the studios division to emerge as an independent global content player, unlocking value, she adds. Some media have reported that ITV Studios could be a takeover target. ITV shares are up 1.5% at 83 pence. (najat.kantouar@wsj.com)
0805 ET - easyJet's pending sale to U.S. investment group Castlelake reinforces concerns around London's "shrinking role as a home for publicly traded businesses," Wealth Club's Susannah Streeter writes. The airline accepted in principle a $7 billion offer that would take the company private, following a slew of U.K. companies delisting as a result of takeovers. International investors are wagering that London-listed stocks trade at a discount, underlining the valuation gap between U.K. stocks and their international peers, Streeter writes. "The loss of another established public company would be another blow to the depth and diversity of the U.K. stock market," she adds. EasyJet shares rise 9.6% in afternoon European trade. (josephmichael.stonor@wsj.com)
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
July 06, 2026 12:00 ET (16:00 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2026 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
Comments