Pre-market Update: Meta Platforms and Amazon Lead the Way, Apple and Tesla Decline!

Top News in US Stocks

1. A reporter from The New York Times asked a question at a press conference of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs: Do you expect the leaders of China and the United States to hold a phone call in the spring of this year or in the coming months?

Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Wang Wenbin responded, "Regarding the specific question you mentioned, I don't have any information to provide."

1. Meta Platforms announced a $50 billion share repurchase program and its first dividend, with better-than-expected fourth-quarter performance and first-quarter guidance. Amazon's fourth-quarter net sales exceeded expectations, and its first-quarter performance guidance is also roughly better than expected. Apple's fourth-quarter revenue, including that of Apple, was better than market expectations, but the revenue decline in the Greater China region was worse than expected.

2. NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang stated that as many countries around the world strive to establish and operate their own artificial intelligence infrastructure locally, this will increase the demand for NVIDIA products.

3. Intel responded to the delay of its $20 billion chip manufacturing project: Fab 1 has started construction, and the construction progress is steadily advancing.

4. MEITUAN CEO Wang Xing announced a new organizational structure adjustment: integrating the Home Services Group, In-Store Services Group, MEITUAN Platform, and Basic Research, all reporting to MEITUAN Senior Vice President Wang Puzhong. Dianping, SaaS, Cycling, and Power Bank businesses will be led by MEITUAN Senior Vice President Zhang Chuan. Other organizations remain unchanged.

5. VisionY Technology is currently debugging a new Micro OLED production line for Apple Vision Pro under Apple's guidance. This new production line will serve as an alternative capacity for Vision Pro and is expected to start in June 2023, with a construction period of about 10 months.

Pre-market Movement

In pre-market trading, the three major stock index futures showed mixed movements, with a significant drop in the fear index.

Bitcoin is currently trading at $42,952, up nearly 2% in the past 24 hours; Ethereum is trading at $2,308, also up nearly 2% in the past 24 hours.

Tech stocks are generally rising in pre-market trading, with Meta Platforms leading the gains with a rise of over 16%. Amazon is up over 6%, AMD and NVIDIA are up over 1%, Microsoft is up 1%, Apple is down over 2%, and Tesla is down 1%.

Chinese concept stocks are generally falling, with JD.com, Nio, XPeng, and Bilibili down over 1%, Li Auto and Pinduoduo down nearly 1%, and Alibaba slightly down.

In terms of individual stocks, GoPro briefly rose over 9% as Q2 sales increased significantly and the full-year guidance was raised.

Microchip Technology briefly fell over 2% as Q4 guidance was weak and far below expectations, adopting a cautious attitude towards recent demand.

Skechers briefly fell 13% as Q4 wholesale sales declined by 8% and performance guidance was below expectations. New York Community Bank rose nearly 3%.

Strategy Review

1. Why did Apple fall instead of rise despite better-than-expected earnings?

Due to factors such as the decline in Apple's sales in the Chinese market and lower-than-expected revenue from various businesses, Wall Street is concerned about Apple's long-term profit prospects, despite its strong short-term profitability.

2. What signal does the largest organizational restructuring in 6 years send for MEITUAN?

After this adjustment, Wang Xing will shoulder both of MEITUAN's core businesses, which is unprecedented in the company's development history. Compared to Wang Xing, Zhang Chuan has not experienced leading a team to fight tough battles and winning against formidable opponents. Douyin is the strongest competitor he has faced during his years at MEITUAN.

3. Hidden concerns behind the success of Vision Pro

17 years ago, Steve Jobs introduced the iPhone, which permanently changed the traditional mobile phone industry in the following two years. However, based on the current situation, Vision Pro lacks mobile convenience and is unlikely to replicate Apple's brilliance.

4. US stocks on the edge of a cliff! Will the Federal Reserve repeat its mistakes?

Although other Wall Street strategists are hopeful about a soft landing and perfect anti-inflation measures, Smead believes that the Federal Reserve is in a dangerous situation of repeating the mistakes of the 1970s when it started cutting interest rates too early after seeing a cooling in inflation.

5. The most powerful US stock industry this year is not chips!

The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index ETF (SOXX) has only risen 6% year-to-date, while the Uranium ETF has risen 20% and the Cannabis ETF (MSOS) has even approached a 50% increase.