Apple CFO, Paramount, China industrial profits

Investing.com — Wall Street is seen trading in tight ranges on Tuesday, with the focus on Apple following its management shakeup announcement. Paramount will also be in the spotlight as its acquisition nears, while Chinese data points to signs of life in the world’s second largest economy.

1. Apple is replacing its CFO

Apple (NASDAQ: ) is changing its management team, with Luca Maestri stepping down as CFO effective early 2025.

Longtime CFO Maestri, who joined Apple as corporate controller in 2013, “has enabled key investments and practiced sound financial discipline, which together have helped the company double its revenue, with services revenue growing more than fivefold ,” Apple said in a statement. statement.

Vice President of Financial Planning and Analysis Kevan Parekh would succeed Maestri as CFO and join the executive team.

However, Maestri will continue to lead the corporate services teams and report to Apple CEO Tim Cook.

During his tenure as CFO, Apple doubled its annual sales and net income and expanded its gross margin.

Apple shares have risen more than 800% since Maestri became CFO, but were down about 1% in after-hours trading on the news.

Apple also announced on Monday that its next launch event will take place on September 9, where it is likely to unveil a range of new iPhones and updates to other devices and apps as it tries to reverse slowing global sales in especially in China.

2. Stable futures as Nvidia results loom

U.S. stock futures traded in tight ranges on Tuesday, stabilizing after a volatile period ahead of this week’s eagerly awaited results from gaming giant Nvidia (NASDAQ: ).

By 03:45 ET (0745 GMT), the contract was just 5 points, or 0.1 percent, higher, up 2 points, or 0.1 percent, and up 11 points, or 0, 1%

Wall Street’s benchmarks got off to a rough start this month, but investors have since become more bullish, particularly after Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell signaled on Friday that interest rate cuts are on the way.

The blue chip hit a fresh intraday close on Monday, leading to gains of 9.4% so far in 2024. It advanced nearly 18%, while the tech heavyweight gained just over 18% .

Those gains could be tested when earnings from AI darling Nvidia come out on Wednesday, with those results likely to be a key turning point for market sentiment in what is historically a volatile time of year.

Investors will also look to quarterly results from retailer Nordstrom (NYSE: ) after the closing bell for signs of consumer health.

3. Bronfman drops out of Paramount race

Skydance Media appears to be taking control of Paramount Global (NASDAQ: ) after all, after media executive Edgar Bronfman Jr. withdrew from the race to control the media conglomerate.

Last week, a group led by Bronfman bid $6 billion to take control of Paramount, seeking to buy out its controlling shareholder, National Amusements.

However, it now appears that Bronfman was unable to come up with the necessary financing package for its bid after several of its key partners pulled out late in the process.

Its bid had threatened to derail an $8.4 billion deal struck in July by Skydance and Paramount, which is home to its namesake film studio, broadcast network CBS and cable networks such as Nickelodeon and Comedy Central.

In a statement, Bronfman said his auction group informed Paramount’s special committee late Monday of its decision to withdraw from the suit.

Bronfman’s resignation now poses no obstacles to the Skydance-Paramount merger, which will see a consortium of Skydance, RedBird Capital and KKR invest more than $8 billion in Paramount and buy media heiress Shari Redstone’s minority stake in company, owned by National Entertainments.

4. The Chinese economy is showing glimpses of life

China grew faster in July, data showed on Tuesday, offering hope for a recovery in the world’s second-largest economy, which has suffered the effects of a years-long housing crisis.

Profits in July rose 4.1 percent from a year earlier, after a 3.6 percent rise in June, data from the Office for National Statistics showed on Tuesday.

For the January-July period, it expanded slightly faster, at 3.6%, compared to 3.5% in the first half of the year.

That said, domestic consumer demand remains weak, as shown by disappointing second-quarter results from companies such as JD (NASDAQ:).com and Alibaba (NYSE: ), as well as more recently online retailer PDD Holdings (NASDAQ: ).

Shares in Temu’s parent company PDD Holdings posted their biggest one-day loss since listing on the Nasdaq, falling more than 28 percent on Monday.

5. Rough stabilization after a three-day rebound

Crude oil prices fell on Tuesday, halting after strong recent gains, with traders looking for more clues about production disruptions in Libya and a wider war in the Middle East.

By 03:45 ET, WTI futures were down 0.3% at $77.19 a barrel, while the contract was down 0.2% at $80.17 a barrel.

Both benchmarks have gained about 7% over the past three sessions, rebounding from their lowest levels since early January on expectations of a U.S. interest rate cut that could boost fuel demand, potential oil field shutdowns Libyans and concerns about a wider conflict in the Middle East. disruption of supply from the key producing region.

A likely US interest rate cut and rising geopolitical risks in the Middle East are ongoing themes, but political infighting in Libya, which could halt the country’s key export, is a new factor for crude traders to digest.

“This is important for the oil market as Libya produces between 1.1-1.2 MB/d,” analysts at ING said in a note. “How significant it is for prices will depend on the length of the shutdown. A prolonged outage will leave the market in a deeper deficit.”