Magic and Tragedy, Horror and Heroism: The Saga of The Modern Market

Sometimes big-screen entertainment is only half as interesting as what’s going on in real life… February 12, 2022 [Turn on your images.]( Magic and Tragedy, Horror and Heroism: The Saga of The Modern Market Sometimes big-screen entertainment is only half as interesting as what’s going on in real life… Disney, the “most magical place on earth,” can now also pride itself on having some of the year’s most magical earnings…and investors can get on that ride with them! maybe adults have a reason to love Disney after all! Bitcoin, the Titan of Crypto that suffered a tragic fall, is back with a vengeance, ready to assert its dominance over those who would seek to control it. Is the King of DeFi preparing for battle? Peloton, once a source of both entertainment and exercise, is now living its own personal horror story. CEOs let go, massive job cuts, hemorrhaging finances, and bad publicity…and still the bloodbath continues. --------------------------------------------------------------- [Turn Your Images On] [The Most Magical Earnings Report On Earth: Disney Smashes Expectations]( Ryan James This is Mickey Mouse’s world, and we’re all just living in it. Since the days of Mickey’s first appearance in the animated short Steamboat Willy, Disney has revolutionized the entertainment industry through beloved animated, live-action, and musical films. [Turn Your Images On] Walt Disney’s powerhouse enterprise also pioneered the selling of toys and merchandise. Anyone that has ever taken a kid to a Disney store at one of their myriads of theme parks knows what I’m talking about. For years, people have been ripping on old Walt Disney, but now old Walt is having the last laugh from beyond the grave (or inside the cryogenically frozen container that he is stored in…if you believe that rumor). I mean, Disney even owns Star Wars and Marvel now, for God’s sake! Disney smashed earnings expectations this week, proving once again that the trademark Disney magic can even bleed over into the finance world. According to Barron’s, “For its fiscal first quarter, which ends in December, Disney reported $1.06 in adjusted earnings per share—up 231% year over year and ahead of analysts’ 74-cent consensus estimate. Revenue came in at $21.8 billion, up 34%, versus Wall Street’s $20.3 billion average estimate. Fiscal first-quarter operating income was almost $3.3 billion, beating the $2.0 billion consensus and up 145% from a year earlier.” Boom! That’s impressive, and it certainly had Disney investors feeling the love tonight. [Turn Your Images On] If you happen to already be an investor, then you ain’t never had a friend like Disney. [Turn Your Images On] And that when you wish upon a star Disney’s earnings will beat expectations. Ok, ok, I’ll stop the stupid references to Disney songs, but you get the point. Disney killed it in the latest earnings report. So, how did Disney+ do? That was the question on every investor’s mind…or at least the ones that follow these earnings reports for a living. Disney+ ended the quarter with 129.8 million subscribers, up 11.7 million in just three months. Wall Street was expecting 7.3 million net adds. Impressive…most impressive indeed. [Turn Your Images On] But it wasn’t Disney+ that brought home enough loot to make Jack Sparrow squeal; it was the theme parks that made the difference. That’s right, the parks that have given us Splash Mountain, Space Mountain, and the ever-annoying, historically-obnoxious it’s A Small World ride showed that there was strong post-pandemic pent-up demand. The theme park segment of the company generated $7.2 billion in revenue, and $2.5 billion in operating profit. Analysts had been predicting a 77% year-over-year recovery from the pandemic at Disney parks, and instead got an even better result of $6.4 billion in first quarter revenue, which resulted in $1.4 billion for segment operating income. So, there you have it, Money Movers. Disney is back. No pandemic is going to stop good wholesome family fun. But hurry up! You’d better buy some shares before they are returned to the Disney Vault again, only to be released in special anniversary editions! Ok, now I am dating myself with a 90’s reference. If you know, you know. [Turn Your Images On] --------------------------------------------------------------- [Turn Your Images On]( [A Chance to Profit From Nearly Every New EV]( The number of electric vehicles (EVs) on the road is expected to soar from 3 million to 48 million in just a few years. And there’s one investment that could allow investors to profit from nearly every new EV. [Click here for the exciting details](. --------------------------------------------------------------- [Turn Your Images On] [Bitcoin Barreling Through Regulation Threats Towards Recovery]( by Shawn Ambrosino What’s the saddest movie I’ve ever seen? Glad you asked… King Kong. [Turn Your Images On] Don’t laugh. I’m serious. I saw the 1977 version in the movies as a four-year-old, and I wasn’t scared in the least…but I was a sobbing mess by the end. Why? Because Kong was happy on his island. He didn’t try to fall in love with a beautiful blonde woman, he didn’t ask to get kidnapped and turned into a sideshow attraction, and he never should’ve been shot off the top of the Twin Towers. But it happened all the same. As he lay there dying on the street, photographers stood by snapping pictures of the grotesquery of it all, and in the theater, four-year-old Shawn sobbed his eyes out as his mother tried to console him. I guess I was a sensitive kid. That’s why I’m such a fan of the 2017 movie “Kong: Skull Island.” In that one, he gets his revenge on idiots trying to take him off his island. The new Kong is WAY different from the 1977 version. This much, much bigger Kong is an unstoppable force of nature. He even went toe-to-toe with Godzilla in a 2021 follow-up! And even though he lost that fight (Godzilla has atomic breath, for Pete’s sake), he still had a good showing. [Turn Your Images On] So…why am I talking about King Kong in a financial article? Well, because just as four-year-old me was devastated to see the downfall of Kong, adult me was devastated by the collapse of a modern-day Titan: Bitcoin, the undisputed king of crypto. But just like Kong, despite taking a tragic tumble…the King can’t be kept down forever. Bitcoin, in its own way, is becoming a force of nature too. As of today (February 11, 2022), Bitcoin is adding gains again for a second straight day, trading above $45,000… That means Bitcoin has been up for 6 of the past 7 days! While this shouldn’t shock us, it is a little surprising given that regulators from around the world are working diligently to find a way to control Decentralized Finance. Governments are working to create some kind of global framework of rules and guidelines to keep cryptocurrencies under control. The Financial Stability Board–a worldwide collection of regulators, central banks, and finance ministry officials–has been tasked to create those rules, and one senior official told Reuters that these policies could be just months away. Normally, any talk about regulation negatively affects cryptos across the board, but even with the FSB researching ways to control crypto-assets, Bitcoin is moving along like Kong through the trees. That begs the question: why is there such a need for control? Even though it goes against the very idea of cryptocurrency, why is it that regulators feel they need to come up with rules and policies? Does it stem from a desire to protect the people? Because if that’s the goal, then they don’t have to do a thing. The whole goal of Blockchain is to ensure that things are above board. Sure, there are slip-ups here and there, but Blockchain is one of the most secure ways to protect your money…aside from putting it inside an FDIC-insured bank. But, even then, you’re only insured up to $100,000, and that money barely grows! Put that same $100K into the right crypto and you could watch your money multiply multiple times over–though that also brings the risk of it losing value. You have to weigh your options, but regulation isn’t as necessary as they’re making it out to be. We all know what their true aim is: control. They want to be able to control the prices and usage…but as we said, that goes against the very nature of technology. Some things were just created to be FREE from control… Free from regulations… Free to roam the jungles of their home island while they look for gigantic bananas to eat. [Turn Your Images On] Hopefully, regulators start to see the futility of their endeavor and realize that the power to control DeFi is already there. It’s in the hands of the people…which is where it belongs. --------------------------------------------------------------- [Severe Supply Shortage + Record Demand = Historic Opportunity]( Thanks to a record supply shortage and surging demand… One asset could fly off the charts, creating a decade-long boom and potentially generating fortunes for early investors. It’s safe to say wealthy elites like Larry Ellison of Oracle and Amancio Ortega of Zara see potential here — they already hold BILLIONS of dollars of this asset... [Learn how to take advantage of this historic opportunity here!]( --------------------------------------------------------------- [Turn Your Images On] [The Peloton Horror Story: CEO John Foley Let Go, 2,800 Jobs Cut]( by Ryan James Another day, another Peloton disaster. Here we are again, dear readers, discussing the latest development in the horror film that is the story of Peloton. The company famous for producing stationary bikes is struggling and has been for some time. How bad are they struggling, you ask? Good question. While it might be hard to quantify, they did just [let CEO John Foley go and then cut 2,800 jobs](. That should be an indication Adding insult to injury, as the door hit him in the behind on the way out, Foley’s departure led to stocks of Peloton jumping back up to $37. And Foley is the founder of Peloton, so that doubly hurts. Ouch! I mean, it’s not impossible for the founder of a company to be let go then come back to build a business empire. (The ghost of Steve Jobs is nodding in agreement.) One thing that Peloton and Apple have in common is that they both have been accused of cult-like following…something that I would of course never claim. It’s just something I have heard through the grapevine… CNBC reported, “The company [slashed its full-year financial targets]( as it continues to lose money. Peloton said it expects to achieve [at least $800 million in annual cost savings]( and it will cut planned capital expenditures by roughly $150 million this year. As part of these efforts, about 20% of its corporate workforce, or about 2,800 people, will lose their jobs.” It seems like it was just yesterday that I was writing an article about Peloton possibly being bought by Amazon, Nike, or Apple. Wait…it was yesterday. You can read that article [here](. As I wrote yesterday, “Now, with Peloton stuck spinning its wheels in the market, there are rumors that some big companies are considering making an offer to buy them out. That’s right, Amazon, Nike, and Apple are all considering purchasing Peloton.” Those are some mighty fine words if I do say so myself. But, hey guys, I don’t have an ego problem…I promise. (Nothing says "humble" like quoting your article within another article. That’s some Inception-like stuff. It’s like a dream within a dream…if that dream were about Peloton.) There is, however, one little impediment to Peloton being sold to the likes of Amazon or Nike: John Foley. Oh, yes, this plot is getting good. Despite being let go from his CEO job, Foley still has a large voting stake in the company, so that means that any move to sell would have to be approved by the man they just fired. Oh, the intrigue. Get the popcorn out folks, this is going to be good. Check back with Money Moves as we continue following the ever-evolving horror story of Peloton. Will Peloton survive? Will John Foley get his revenge? Is the call coming from inside the house? The plot thickens… --------------------------------------------------------------- For more quality content like this, and to learn more about the Money Moves team, visit us at [( Privacy Policy The Money & Markets, P.O. Box 8378, Delray Beach, FL 33482. To ensure that you receive future issues of Money & Markets, please add info@mb.moneyandmarkets.com to your address book or [whitelist]( within your spam settings. For customer service questions or issues, please contact us for assistance. The mailbox associated with this email address is not monitored, so please do not reply. Your feedback is very important to us so if you would like to contact us with a question or comment, please click here: [( Legal Notice: This work is based on what we've learned as financial journalists. It may contain errors and you should not base investment decisions solely on what you read here. It's your money and your responsibility. Nothing herein should be considered personalized investment advice. 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