From Wall Street to Silicon Valley, these are the top stories that moved markets and had investors, business leaders, and entrepreneurs talking this week on Cheddar.
HARLEY-DAVIDSON DELIVERS
Harley-Davidson this week turned in its best fourth-quarter profits and sales in five years, and investors are ready to rumble. The beat comes after years of declining sales due to a lack of interest from millennials in hopping on a "hog." But the company's fortunes changed course after launching a turnaround strategy in 2020 that reduced the number bikes in its line-up, debuted a new merchandising campaign, and got started on a plan to spin off an electric motorcycle brand. This paid off in 2021, and shares surged 16 percent on Thursday.
PELOTON SHAKE-UP
After a brutal few months, Peloton might just be getting another chance. Reports that Nike and Amazon are looking into buying the company boosted the stock 30 percent in extended trading last Friday. Since then, the company has made a series of moves designed to restore investors' confidence in the connected fitness brand. CEO John Foley stepped down; Barry McCarthy, the former chief financial officer of Spotify and Netflix, stepped up to replace him; and the company announced it's cutting 2,800 jobs. The news fueled more gains throughout the week, but that didn't spare the new CEO from getting his first all-hands meeting crashed by laid-off employees.
DISNEY DOMINATES
The House of Mouse is starting to catch up with its streaming rivals HBO Max and Netflix, and the gains are helping raise the company's stock. Disney's first-quarter earnings report showed a gain of 12 million subscribers for a total of 128.8 million globally. It also showed a 34 percent increase in revenue and a 100 percent increase in profits from last year. The earnings beat lifted shares more than 4 percent this week — as the company marked the end of its first century in business.
DISCOUNT DUO
Shares of leading discount airlines Frontier and Spirit got a boost this week on the news they were planning to merge, creating a "discount juggernaut" that the companies say will be able to better compete with the biggest airlines and even bring down costs industrywide. Regulators still have to approve the deal, but their status as discount lines could help their case, as the Department of Justice has expressed an interest in the past in a discount match-up.
CHIPOTLE CHALKS IT UP AS A WIN
Chipotle Mexican Grill saw its shares pop 8 percent on Tuesday after reporting better-than-expected earnings. Investors were giving credit to the fast-casual chain for pulling off a rather tricky maneuver. The company said it was able to offset inflation with price hikes without cutting into consumer demand. Implicit in this humblebrag is the idea that Chipotle is a big enough player in the industry that its competitors didn't benefit from its higher prices.
