AnalytixInsight

Despite markets falling on Friday after a strong jobs report, Dow Jones was up 0.3% for the week, S&P 500 rose 1.3%, and Nasdaq composite gained 2.4%. Both NASDAQ and S&P set all-time highs. Nvidia’s market cap passed Apple, putting it just behind Microsoft. The company’s stock price increase could have been aided by a “gamma squeeze”, (a bulk buying of call options) according to analysts. The Company also said its next-generation AI chip platform will be rolled out in 2026. Online fashion retailer Shein is close to filing an application to list on the London Stock Exchange. Bakkt Holdings, the digital-asset marketplace backed by the parent company of the New York Stock Exchange, is working with a financial advisor to explore strategic options, including a potential sale or breakup. Robinhood has agreed to buy Bitstamp, one of the oldest crypto exchanges, for about US$200 million in cash. Humane is reportedly trying to sell itself to HP for US$1 billion. The U.S. has cleared the way for antitrust investigations into Microsoft, OpenAI and Nvidia, as federal regulators have reached an agreement on how to divide up the responsibilities for the probes. In Canada, Sophic Client OneSoft, announced its first customer in South America. Sophic Clients, Kraken Robotics was featured in a prominent Canadian tech blog, and Xcyte Digital Corp. presented at the Spring MicroCap Rodeo Conference on June 6, 2024. Shopify acquired popular no-code checkout customizer Checkout Blocks. Cohere recently secured US$450 million from Nvidia, Salesforce Ventures, Cisco and Canadian pension fund PSP Investments. Québec-based hardware startup Vosker closed $171.2 million in debt financing. McRock Capital announced an initial $111 million close of its third fund.

While Nasdaq topped 17,000 for the first time, earnings losers hit tech names hard. Nasdaq was down 1.1% for the week, despite a strong bounce into the close. S&P 500 lost 0.5%, and Dow Jones fell 1%. Cloud computing startup CoreWeave is preparing for a 2025 IPO. The company was last valued at US$19 billion. AI Startup Perplexity is in talks to raise money at a US$3 billion valuation (3x last round). Elon Musk’s xAI has completed a US$6 billion fundraising round. Salesforce stock plunged 16% after the company warned that a cautious attitude among buyers of enterprise software. MongoDB shares dropped 26% on weak growth. Trading app Robinhood said it would repurchase shares worth up to US$1 billion over a two to three year period starting from Q3. Bloomberg journalist Mark Gurman reported in his Power On newsletter that Apple and OpenAI have reached a deal for OpenAI to provide chatbot functionality in iOS 18. OpenAI two months ago revived a robotics team it disbanded four years ago. Chinese Tesla rival BYD says its new hybrid cars can go 1,250 miles without stopping for gas or charging. In Canada, Sophic Client UGE, entered into an arrangement agreement for a going-private transaction. The all-cash consideration of $2.00/sh represents a 270% premium to the closing price of the stock on the last trading day immediately prior to the announcement. Tribe Property Technologies will acquire Toronto-based DMSI Holdings, and announced a private placement led by PROPELR Growth Fund. Sophic Clients, Kraken and Plurilock reported record Q1 2024 financial results. Sophic Client, Ionol reported continued growth in Q1 2024. Sophic Client, Clear Blue reported Fiscal 2023 financial results.

Last week was mixed despite Nvidia’s stellar earnings and guidance. Nasdaq composite rose 1.4% for the week (fifth straight weekly gain, and an all-time record). S&P 500 index closed marignally higher (after a brief record high Thursday). Dow Jones lost 2.3% last week. Nvidia revenue rose 262% to US$26 billion in the quarter that ended in April as its artificial intelligence chip sales helped the company beat its revenue projection for the quarter by more than 30% for the second quarter in a row. Free cash flow rose by nearly 6 times to US$14.9 billion in the April quarter compared to the same quarter a year ago. And the company gave another strong revenue projection for the current fiscal quarter, which ends in July, saying sales would rise about 107% from last year. Anduril is seeking a US$12.5 billion valuation after doubling revenue. SpaceX is weighing a plan to sell shares at US$200 billion valuation. Shares of database provider Snowflake fell 5% on Thursday after the company said a day earlier that revenue growth had “moderated” in April. Microsoft unveils new AI ‘agents’ to automate workplace tasks and AI focused PCs. U.S. approved NASDAQ and NYSE requests to list Ether ETFs. Ether has jumped nearly 30% in recent days on the anticipation of the SEC decision. In Canada, Blackline announced a $20 million bought deal and $10 million concurrent private placement. Sophic Capital client, Kraken Robotics completed a $20 million bought deal equity financing. Sophic Clients, ADM Endeavors, Legend Power Systems, OneSoft Solutions reported quarterly results. ADM’s focus is now on expanding operational capacity from its new facility in 2024. LPS closed on some large deals, has a strengthened balance sheet, and a growing pipeline. OneSoft reported 30%+ y/y revenue growth, and estimates 2024 in the range of $15 – $16 million, 44% to 54% y/y growth.

Last week, Dow Jones, S&P 500 and Nasdaq all hit record highs. Dow Jones rose 1.2% during the week, S&P 500 gained 1.5%, and Nasdaq composite was up 2.1%. CoreWeave, an upstart cloud provider that rents out servers with Nvidia’s artificial intelligence chips, raised US$7.5 billion in debt financing led by Blackstone, the company said Friday, adding that it was the largest deal of its kind. OpenAI on Monday launched a new AI model and desktop version of ChatGPT, along with an updated user interface. Google is expanding conversational search results that summarize answers instead of just listing links to other websites. Snowflake is said to be discussing buying AI startup Reka AI for US$1 billion. Squarespace said Monday it had agreed to a buyout by private equity firm Permira for US$44 a share in cash, in a deal that values the company at US$6.9 billion including debt. Reddit shares surged as it struck a content deal with OpenAI. Meta is reportedly working on camera-equipped AI earphones. Netflix said it plans to launch its own advertising technology platform to allow advertisers to buy ads on the streaming service. Millennium, Point72 and Elliott are among Bitcoin ETF buyers, according to a Bloomberg analysis of Q1 13F filings of roughly 1,000 filers. In Canada, Xybion Digital, and CloudMD were both taken out — as we’ve highlighted previously, we expect small to mid cap Canadian listed companies to be acquired unless the valuation gap with US listed companies narrows. Sophic Client, Xcyte Digital released its “Xperience” subscription service. Xperience, the first-of-its-kind service, gives subscribers the flexibility to select the most suitable technologies for hosting events bringing together a global ecosystem of event technology. The Xperience partner ecosystem is intended to be distributed globally and offered to, among others, large multinational enterprises, which is expected to broaden Xcyte’s reach into major worldwide markets.