🐻 Amazon’s bearish forecast

… and MrBeast’s (almost) billion-dollar empire [Disclosures](   Amazon’s spooky earnings (Patrick T. Fallon/Getty Images)   Yesterday’s Market Moves   Dow Jones 32,033 (+0.61%) S&P 500 3,807 (-0.61%) Nasdaq 10,793 (-1.63%) Bitcoin $20,389 (-1.86%) Dow Jones 32,033 (+0.61%) S&P 500 3,807 (-0.61%) Nasdaq 10,793 (-1.63%) Bitcoin $20,389 (-1.86%) Hey Snackers, Some dress up as vampires for Halloween, while others buy vampire caskets: Titan Caskets is gaining sway in the funeral industry with [pop culture]( branding, from a Taylor Swift music-video cameo to TV-show-themed designs. Lackluster tech earnings dragged the Nasdaq and S&P 500 down ([Meta]( plunged 25%). The Dow perked up on news that the US economy grew 2.6% last quarter after shrinking in the first half of the year. Also: Elon Musk now [runs]( [Twitter](. Sink Amazon shares tumble on a bummer forecast, highlighting a Q3 theme for tech titans Primed for a slowdown… Yesterday [Amazon]( became the latest techie to deliver uninspiring third-quarter earnings. The ecomm staple missed both sales and profit expectations, but what disappointed investors most was a weak forecast for this quarter. After the bell, Amazon shares tumbled by as much as 20%. - The bull(ish): Amazon’s sales returned to double-digit growth, and it posted its first profit of the year (though it was 9% lower than last year). - The bearish: Amazon expects this holiday quarter’s sales to be up just 2% to 8% from last year — a major growth slowdown from previous quarters. - The bear: Investors sent Amazon shares plunging, marking the second time this year the stock has suffered a double-digit-percentage selloff. Quote of the quarter… from the mouth of Amazon CEO Andy Jassy to investors’ ears: “There is obviously a lot happening in the macroeconomic environment.” Amazon’s much-lower-than-expected Q4 sales guidance includes a big hit from the strong US dollar. - Because the USD has appreciated relative to other currencies, foreign earnings are now worth less in USD. That’s a problem, because S&P tech giants earn about 60% of their revenue abroad. - Amazon’s international sales fell 5% year over year, but they would’ve been up 12% if it weren’t for changes in foreign exchange rates. THE TAKEAWAY Big Techies are in the same boat… Oil titans like [Shell]( are still reporting booming profits, while big food staples like [Coke]( are raising their outlook on upbeat earnings. But for the likes of Amazon, [Google]( and Meta, the pandemic growth spurt is over — and the “macroeconomic” problems have landed. Now investors’ expectations are being adjusted as forecasts come back down to earth. Viral YouTube star MrBeast could hit billionaire status with the help of VC funding, as investors look to “fans as a service” Spend 100 days in a circle, win $500K… typical MrBeast. YouTube star MrBeast has 107M+ subscribers thanks to viral videos featuring elaborate stunts and giveaways (his “Squid Game” [reenactment]( has nearly 300M views). Now he’s said to be [looking]( for $150M in fresh funding to expand his Beast-based businesses: - In January: MrBeast launched his snacks biz (dubbed: Feastables), which has already made $10M+ in sales. - Last month: The first MrBeast Burger restaurant opening attracted 10K fans, and the burger brand is forecast to earn millions this year. - Beasty billions: The desired funding round would value MrBeast’s empire at $1.5B — the largest valuation for an influencer-led biz. Venture capital → creator capital... Investors are racing to put their money in social-media startups as overnight sensations emerge from platforms like TikTok and YouTube. VC funding for creator startups has already topped $637M this year, on pace to beat last year’s record. Now some of the biggest social stars want in: - TikTok big shot Charli D’Amelio and her family launched a venture-capital fund called 444 Capital in March. - Last year a venture firm invested $15M in startup Pietra, which helps influencers launch their own product lines (think: skincare). THE TAKEAWAY Creators offer fans-as-a-service… Social-media stars are ripe targets for investors given their ability to make content, build audiences, and capitalize on both — all in a self-promoting cycle of content, eyeballs, and products. Mega-creators like MrBeast can offer their empires on a platter, which could translate to big returns. Last year, MrBeast generated $54M in revenue, or $147K/day. Bark The Crypto Catch-Up… - 🤖 Techy… [Apple]( stepped in it (it = NFT community). It seemingly embraced NFTs by saying apps could list and sell the tokens. The [catch]( purchases have to go through the App Store (read: Apple wants its 30% cut). - 🪙 Coins… Sam Bankman-Fried said his crypto exchange, FTX, would "[very likely]( launch a stablecoin. The exchange is the world's third largest, and would likely be well positioned to compete with stablecoin giants [Tether]( and Circle. - 📜 Policy… Bring on the rules: a recent survey found that slightly over half of US voters want greater crypto [regulation](. Stability and fraud-fighting were called out as the desired top priorities of any future regs. What else we're Snackin' - [Shiny]( [Apple]( reported expectation-beating record sales, but the news wasn't all good: iPhone and services revenue came in low. Inflation may’ve played a role in tempering scrolly-tappy sales. - [Faceplant]( [Meta]( said it's laying off staff and slowing hiring as it looks to cut costs. Meanwhile, the VR-loving biz is set to invest $15B in the metaverse this year — with no immediate plans to cut those costs. - [$hell]( Energy behemoths [Shell]( and [Total]( reported monster earnings (almost $10B each). Oil and gas prices boosted by Russia’s war on Ukraine helped push their profits to more than double what they were last year. - [Treat]( [Hershey’s]( stock is up over 20% this year, while the S&P 500 is down 20%. One reason: the chocolate icon grew investor appetite by buying brands like Pirate's Booty (salty + sweet = winning combo). - [Happy]( [McDonald's]( beat earnings expectations as customers kept McOrdering. Execs credited price hikes and higher-income diners opting for McD's instead of full-service spots. 🍪 Thanks for Snacking with us! Want to share the Snacks? Invite your friends to sign up [here](. Snack Fact Of the Day After plunging yesterday, Meta was worth less than Home Depot [Read more]( Friday - Earnings expected from: Exxon, Chevron, AbbVie, NextEra Energy, and Colgate Authors of this Snacks own: shares of Amazon, Apple, Exxon, and Google ID: 2562365 Robinhood Snacks newsletters reflect the opinions of only the authors who are associated persons of Robinhood Financial LLC (Member [SIPC]( and do not reflect the views of Robinhood Markets, Inc. or any of its subsidiaries or affiliates. They are for informational purposes only, and are not a recommendation of an investment strategy or to buy or sell any security, digital asset (cryptocurrency, etc) in any account. They are also not research reports and are not intended to serve as the basis for any investment decision. Any third-party information provided therein does not reflect the views of Robinhood Markets, Inc., Robinhood Financial LLC, or any of their subsidiaries or affiliates. 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