The latest Market Talks covering Technology, Media and Telecom. Published exclusively on Dow Jones Newswires at 4:20 ET, 12:20 ET and 16:50 ET.
1503 ET - Prediction markets are taking the online gaming industry by storm, with the World Cup providing the latest evidence that the category may ultimately grow larger than many investors expect, TD Cowen analysts say in a note. The analysts point to an acceleration in app downloads for Kalshi and Polymarket during the opening weeks of the tournament. Those trends are a sign that the category is attracting more interest, which should benefit DraftKings, whose experience with customer acquisition, product innovation and customer attention may ultimately outweigh the early traction of other prediction market platforms, they say. "While current engagement is concentrated among early movers, we view that as evidence of category formation rather than evidence that long-term winners have already been determined," they say. (kelly.cloonan@wsj.com)
1444 ET - Nvidia remains a top semicondcutor pick for Morgan Stanley even despite the high market cap and underperformance in the peer group, analysts write in a note following investor meetings with company executives. Even though artificial-intelligence hyperscalers, currently representing about half of data-center revenues, are looking toward custom silicon alternatives, Nvidia "will retain a large portion of the business," and there should be growth in both categories, they write. Neocloud, industrial, and sovereign data-center demand also remains strong, they add, while Vera Rubin chips should be shipped on schedule. "Our conviction remains high," the analysts write. "To be sure, the multiple is likely constrained by the large market cap and index weighting, but in our view the value disparity will revert over time." Shares gain 3.7%, to $210.26. (elias.schisgall@wsj.com)
1437 ET - Bitcoin and major cryptocurrencies in general have had a positive week, taking cues from AI and tech equities and some investors scooping up crypto tokens with prices at multi-year lows. Total cryptocurrency market capitalization rose by 2.3% this week, to $2.19 trillion according to data from CoinMarketCap. While outflows from bitcoin ETFs have resumed, they are at a slower rate than seen last month. Bitcoin ETFs had a net outflow of $95.3 million Thursday according to CoinGlass, much less than the hundreds of millions that moved out of bitcoin on daily basis in previous weeks. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com)
1345 ET - The advancement of AI models has ushered in a "headless era" for software, where a polished user interface seems less important than compatibility with AI agents, but it's very early on the adoption curve, Stifel analysts say in a note. "The ability to enable headless is a must-have, but the economic outcome of its proliferation is an open debate. Pricing power in a headless world remains the biggest question mark."(elias.schisgall@wsj.com)
1343 ET - The recent selloff of AI hardware stocks represents a reset in valuations as expectations pull ahead of fundamentals, and shouldn't be taken as a sign that demand for hardware is faltering, according to Stifel in a note. Samsung posting a 19-fold increase in its operating profit was seen by the market as "not good enough," the analysts say, but the fundamentals across the sector remain in place. "We believe that demand remains supply-gated, not demand-limited," they say. "The Samsung episode says in-line-to-slightly-above prints will be read as misses." According to the analysts, investors should consider stocks with already-compressed multiples such as Celestica, Jabil, TTM Technologies and Lumentum, or where revisions should outrun multiples, as in Ciena, Viavi and Nvidia.(elias.schisgall@wsj.com)
0856 ET - Cineplex is approaching its prepandemic levels, six years after Covid changed moviegoing and the theater experience. The Canadian movie theater chain reports 2Q box office revenue of C$176.2 million, 3% above consensus and reaching 93% of 2Q19 levels, according to TD Cowen. Analyst Derek Lessard says the quarter's performance was consistently strong, with both May and June reaching their highest levels of box office revenue since 2019. The strength was driven by a fuller slate of high-quality titles such as Super Mario, Michael, Toy Story 5, among others, Lessard says. "We still expect CGX to continue building momentum in 2H/26 on the back of strong content and sustained consumer demand," Lessard says. (adriano.marchese@wsj.com)Shopify isn't finished gaining shares in the ecommerce space, and this will likely be supported by agentic commerce and compounding gross merchandise value. Stifel analyst J. Parker Lane says Shopify has a "a realistic path to 30%-plus revenue growth in 2026 and sustained mid-20s beyond." The stock is currently down, and agentic AI is still in its infancy, which makes it an attractive entry point, "for a high-quality compounder with a widening moat and multiple growth levers to pull." He thinks that the company also boasts a disciplined operating model and capital-allocation strategy that "give the company flexibility in a rapidly evolving landscape." Stifel upgrades the stock rating to buy from hold and the price target to $150 from $110. Shares are down 23% in New York at $123.17.(adriano.marchese@wsj.com)
0720 ET - Growth in the AI industry is expected to drive long-term returns in stocks, UBS Global Wealth Management strategists say in a note. Nonetheless, investors need to adopt a diversified approach to AI investments, they say. "We favor semiconductor equipment, foundries, CPU-related computer infrastructure, and memory," they say. The strategists also prefer defensive sectors such as data center real estate investment trusts (REITS) and payment networks. (miriam.mukuru@wsj.com)
0644 ET - French billionaire Xavier Niel's purchase of a 16.2% stake in Vodafone could face regulatory scrutiny, AJ Bell's Dan Coatsworth writes in a note. Through his Vega acquisition vehicle, Niel agreed to buy e&'s entire stake in the U.K. telecoms company for around 4.4 billion pounds in cash. "Two years ago, the U.K. government said e&'s investment in Vodafone posed a national security risk to the country. The investment wasn't blocked, but national security safeguards were imposed," he says. The U.K. government could have similar concerns about Niel's purchase, he adds. Shares are up 13% at 1.11 pounds. (najat.kantouar@wsj.com)
0524 ET - Vodafone having Xavier Niel as its biggest shareholder is a positive for the telecommunications giant, Berenberg analysts say in a note. The 16% stake will raise investors' hopes that acquisition vehicle Vega's presence on Vodafone's shareholder register--and, potentially, the board--will drive incremental future cost-cutting and free cash flow growth, Berenberg says. The move could drive an acceleration in the improving operating performance of Vodafone's main European operations in the U.K. and Germany, Berenberg says. "The complexity in Vodafone's group structure is much reduced, and we believe that investors can increasingly focus on the operating assets," Berenberg says. Shares rise 11% to 108.65 pence and are up 34% over the past 12 months. (anthony.orunagoriainoff@dowjones.com)
0503 ET - The U.S. listing of SK Hynix could offer the Korean won some near-term support, Barclays analysts say in a note. Some of the support could come from hedging and ultimately conversion of part of the proceeds into won to fund domestic investments, they say. The won's rally in recent days suggests that some of the prehedging is already in the price, they add. Meanwhile, If Korean semiconductor companies fund a meaningful share of their domestic investment through the repatriation of offshore assets or overseas earnings in the future, that would create additional won demand and support the currency, the analysts say. (sherry.qin@wsj.com)
0434 ET - Markets are hoping for a "very strong" U.S. debut by SK Hynix, says Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior analyst at Swissquote. This optimism drove South Korea's Kospi 5% higher during the trading session, after the company's American depositary receipts were priced at $149 each, marking the largest-ever U.S. listing by a foreign company, Ozkardeskaya says. For the tech sector, "AI enablers have been largely responsible for the strong earnings growth since 2023, as massive AI spending--particularly by Big Tech companies--flows directly into the pockets of semiconductor companies," Ozkardeskaya adds. SK Hynix's performance on the Nasdaq will signal how much additional value the company could get from the U.S. market, given that its share price in Korea has already surged over the past year, Ozkardeskaya says. (kimberley.kao@wsj.com)
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
July 10, 2026 16:50 ET (20:50 GMT)
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