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.
0817 GMT - A report that the U.S. is considering a ban on imports of Chinese optical transceivers reinforce the view that U.S. and Chinese technologies and supply chains will continue to diverge over the long term, BNP Paribas's William Bratton says in a note. He says both countries' efforts to reduce their reliance on each other will lead to a technological split, creating two separate ecosystems. For investors, this means companies exposed to the technology investment theme will remain vulnerable to geopolitical risks. Meanwhile, the divide will likely raise costs for countries in the middle seeking to maintain access to both ecosystems while accelerating their push for technological independence and resilience, creating new investment opportunities, Bratton adds.(jason.chau@wsj.com)
0809 GMT - Wolters Kluwer has delivered a solid first-half performance, Citi analysts write in a note. The Dutch information services company maintained its full-year guidance after it reported higher net profit in the period. The company's shares have partially recovered over the past month despite being weighed down by concerns about artificial intelligence, the analysts say. "This de-rating has gone too far with regards to the AI concerns and we think Wolters's competitive moats remain robust," they add. Shares are down 1.5% at 70.54 euros. (najat.kantouar@wsj.com)
0801 GMT - Infineon Technologies is expected to witness an acceleration in revenue and margin growth in the fiscal year to the end of September 2027, Jefferies analysts write in a research note. The German chip maker's segment result--a closely watched profitability metric--rose to 797 million euros in the three months to the end of June from 668 million euros a year earlier, with its margin up to 19.1% from 18%. "We expect the rising trend in segment margin to continue," analysts say. Infineon concluded multiyear capacity agreements with several AI customers and is in negotiations for more. Analysts point out those deals have cumulative revenue in a high-single-digit billion-euro amount. Infineon shares trade 4% lower at 61.18 euros. (mauro.orru@wsj.com)
0743 GMT - Infineon Technologies missed elevated margin expectations in its fiscal third quarter and guidance for the current quarter, Citi analysts write in a research note. The German chip maker's segment result--a closely watched profitability metric--came in at 797 million euros with a 19.1% margin for the three months to the end of June, below Vara Research consensus of 809 million euros and 19.6%. Guidance for a roughly 23% margin in the current quarter is also below consensus of 23.7%. "While the revenue beat and guidance is positive and supports the fundamentals moving in the right direction, market expectations have moved even quicker given the improving cycle and peer results, and hence the lower margins may be the focus this morning," analysts say. Infineon shares trade 3.6% lower at 61.40 euros. (mauro.orru@wsj.com)
0712 GMT - Infineon Technologies' figures for its fiscal third quarter and guidance for the current quarter are mildly disappointing, JPMorgan analysts write in a research note. The German chip maker said revenue for the three months to the end of June grew 13% from a year earlier to 4.17 billion euros, above Vara Research consensus of 4.13 billion euros. However, Infineon's segment result--a closely watched profitability metric--came in at 797 million euros with a 19.1% margin, below consensus of 809 million euros and 19.6%. Meanwhile, guidance for a roughly 23% margin in the current quarter is also below consensus of 23.7%. Infineon shares trade 5.4% lower at 60.27 euros. (mauro.orru@wsj.com)
0407 GMT - A potential U.S. ban on Chinese optical transceivers will hit both U.S. hyperscalers and Chinese suppliers, says Counterpoint Research's Neih Shah in a note. The U.S. Federal Communications Commission is drafting a proposal to ban imports of new Chinese optical transceivers, according to a media report. Chinese suppliers-including Zhongji Innolight and Eoptolink-- account for nearly two-thirds of global unit supply. While Innolight controls 27% of the global market, U.S.'s Coherent Corp. holds the second-largest share at 17%, followed by Eoptolink, Shah estimates. Western competitors like Coherent and Lumentum will be unable to absorb Innolight and Eoptolink's volume within a 12-to-24-month horizon. A blanket ban on Chinese makers could create a significant near- to mid-term operational bottleneck for U.S. cloud service providers, Shah adds. (sherry.qin@wsj.com)
0201 GMT - WuXi AppTec's robust 1H growth and margin expansion is likely to support its ambitious targets, says Deutsche Bank's Cyrus Ng in a note, referring to the pharmaceutical-services company raising its 2026 guidance. The Chinese contract research, development, and manufacturing company has a leading position in late-stage and commercial projects, which offer strong earnings visibility and growth certainty, the analyst says. He raises his 2026-2027 revenue forecasts by 13%-17% and profit projections by 17%-18%. The stock also trades at an undemanding valuation, he says, despite broader industry recovery. Deutsche Bank raises its target price to 207.40 Hong Kong dollars from HK$167.40 and reiterates its buy rating. Its Hong Kong-listed shares rise 1.8% to HK$184.30. (megan.cheah@wsj.com)
Advanced Micro Devices posted its fifth consecutive quarter of record server CPU revenue amid rising demand for agentic AI. AMD expects increasing demand for CPUs to continue, projecting the server CPU market will grow more than 50% annually to about $220 billion by 2030, Chief Executive Lisa Su says during a call with analysts. "For AMD, this larger opportunity, combined with the strength of our portfolio and growing customer visibility, is creating a steeper growth trajectory for our data center business," Su says. (kelly.cloonan@wsj.com)
2252 GMT - Advanced Micro Devices posted better quarterly results than Wall Street expected, with both profit and sales coming in above consensus estimates. But investors were focused elsewhere: on SpaceX's disclosure that it would no longer buy AMD's chips, and instead build exclusively on chips from its rival Nvidia. "We think the Blackwell architecture is the best architecture," SpaceX CEO Elon Musk says during an earnings call. AMD shares slid 8.9%, to $472.70 in late trading. (kelly.cloonan@wsj.com)
2239 GMT - SpaceX CEO Elon Musk offers ambitious revenue targets for the newly public company, telling investors on a Tuesday call that he expects an annualized revenue run rate of at least $100 billion by year's end. "That's what we would achieve if we basically did nothing," Musk says. "It probably will be higher than that." Musk also pulls forward SpaceX's $1 trillion revenue target to 2030 from 2031, and says it isn't unthinkable that the target could be hit in 2029. The company is planning for dramatic revenue increases from next-generation Starlink satellites, as well as strong growth in both the space and artificial-intelligence businesses. Shares of SpaceX fall 6.8% after-hours. (elias.schisgall@wsj.com)
2206 GMT - SpaceX has big plans for its move toward mobile connectivity, COO Gwynne Shotwell says on a call. The "Big Three" telecommunications providers -- Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile -- together do around $600 billion in business each year, Shotwell says. "I anticipate us to be able to acquire quite a few of their customers because I think our service will be better," she says. Starlink mobile satellites should begin flying next year, she says, and the company has access to 65 megahertz of spectrum through a deals with EchoStar. Shares of the Big Three fall in after-hours trading, and SpaceX stock is down 7.6%. (elias.schisgall@wsj.com)
2149 GMT - SpaceX's first earnings release as a public company fails to impress traders, with shares down 7.6% after-hours after rallying 9.4% during the regular session. This is despite a 92% increase in second-quarter revenue to $7.8 billion, along with Starlink subscribers doubling and revenue from SpaceX's artificial-intelligence business tripling year-over-year. The company posted $18.4 billion in capital expenditures during the quarter, with executives projecting similar capital spending through the rest of the year. Both the space and AI segments continued operating at a loss during the quarter. In recent weeks, Wall Street has punished companies who spend heavily on AI without showing clear returns.
Comments