📦 UPS’ reverse delivery

…and the Big Tech earnings wrap   Coming or going?? (Robert Nickelsberg/Getty Images)   [Sponsored by]( Yesterday’s Market Moves   Dow Jones 32,784 (-0.76%) S&P 500 4,137 (-1.18%) Nasdaq 12,596 (-1.76%) Bitcoin $34,118 (-1.05%) Dow Jones 32,784 (-0.76%) S&P 500 4,137 (-1.18%) Nasdaq 12,596 (-1.76%) Bitcoin $34,118 (-1.05%) Hey Snackers, Wednesday’s massacre in Lewiston, Maine, was the deadliest [US mass shooting]( of 2023 with at least 18 people killed and 13 injured. The country is on pace for the most mass shootings in a year. Our deepest sympathies go out to everyone who’s lost a loved one to gun violence. Tech titans like Meta and Alphabet fell yesterday, dragging the market to its lowest level since May. The US economy grew at a better-than-expected 4.9% annual pace last quarter (the strongest since 2021). Still, traders don’t expect the Fed will hike rates at its meeting next week. Biz quiz: Take our short [Snacks Seven quiz]( to test your knowledge of the news we covered this week. UNDELIVERED UPS buys “reverse logistics” biz Happy Returns as the send-it-back industry booms Ordering five pairs of shoes… only keepin’ one. [UPS]( is doubling down on returns. The mega shipper said yesterday that it was [buying]( Happy Returns, a “reverse logistics” company purchased by [PayPal]( in 2021. Happy Returns specializes in label-free, box-free returns (picture: just dropping off jeans at the counter). UPS said that after the deal closes this quarter, the simplified-return service will be available at 12K+ locations. - Happy Returns said it saves merchants as much as 40% on return costs like shipping, restocking, and junking (partly) by batching returns. - Lotsa orders, one return… If thousands of fans return their newly purchased Philadelphia Phillies jerseys via Happy Returns, it can then send ’em all back at once. “Free returns” ain’t free… America’s send-it-back habit was supercharged by the pandemic online shopping boom: the # of packages returned in 2020 soared 70% on the year. The National Retail Federation said that last year customers sent back about 16.5% of purchases. Now online retailers see 20% of orders returned. US end-of-year holiday returns alone are said to be worth $300B/year. Because returns are so expensive for retailers, companies like Zara and H&M have started charging for online returns (#FeeReturn). THE TAKEAWAY Returns have turned into a business… as retailers look to offer customers convenience while saving $$. Companies like Pollen Returns have stepped up for a piece of the ballooning return pie by promising to take packages directly from customers. Uber recently started letting users in dozens of US cities pay a flat $5 to have drivers take their returns to the post office. Industry insiders say the reverse-logistics market could hit $1.6T in the next decade. Sponsored by Holly An investment opportunity that puts the “star” in start-up 📽️ Pitch, please… You can now invest in the next creative community designed to disrupt the $2T entertainment industry: [Holly Entertainment](. It’s like LinkedIn for the entertainment industry. Holly connects actors and creators directly to producers and execs, cutting out expensive Hollywood agents. ⭐ Star-studded… Founded by Academy Awarded-nominated actor, Terrence Howard, to fix what’s broken in Hollywood, Holly aims to democratize access to roles, resources, and networking opportunities. 💵 Green screen… Why invest? Holly has multiple potential revenue streams, including ads and sponsorships, paid accounts for producers to find talent, and referral fees and commissions. [Learn more about the opportunity to invest in Holly for only $1 per share.]( SnackWrap Big Tech Earnings Wrap: Microsoft, Google, Meta, Amazon ☁️ (AI)l in the cloud… Microsoft flew past Wall Street’s growth estimates, notching record quarterly sales and 27% profit growth. The Word wizard benefited as the AI craze drove its Azure cloud sales up 29%. Yet Google’s stock slid after its cloud revenue fell short of expectations, and Amazon also disappointed with its AWS cloud growth. Tech heavyweights have been trying to incorporate more AI into their cloud-computing products after Microsoft’s $10B investment in OpenAI positioned it as a leader in the race. 📱 Ad-pocalypse over?… Meta posted its fastest sales growth in two years (up 23%) and a record Q3 profit, fueled by rebounding ad sales (which, btw, make up nearly 100% of its revenue). But Meta’s metaverse unit lost $3.7B and saw revenue drop 26%. Snap’s sales grew for the first time in two quarters as it attracted more ad $$ with fresh features. Snap said 200M+ people have used its My AI chatbot, which now includes sponsored links. Google’s quarterly revenue popped 11% thanks to stronger-than-expected YouTube and ad sales. 🛍️ Full e-carts… Amazon’s quarterly profit more than tripled from a year ago to $9.9B, crushing estimates. Its North American biz turned an operating profit after posting a loss last year, as consumers splurged on pumpkin-scented candles and holiday deco. The ecomm juggernaut credited its Prime Big Deal Days (including its largest two-day October holiday event) for selling “hundreds of millions” of products worldwide. Looking forward → Big Tech has been rebounding, partly because of cost-cutting measures like layoffs. AI continues to fuel growth, with forecasts saying it could boost corporate profits by a massive $4.4T/year. But tech shares tumbled this week, and Meta and Snap warned that the Israel-Hamas war could hurt ad spend this quarter. Investors have eyes on reports from Apple, AMD, Pinterest, and Qualcomm next week. SBFTX The Crypto Catch-Up… 🪙 Coins… Crypto exchanges including Coinbase and Binance are [delisting]( coins at a record pace this year. It could be in response to increased pressure from regulators like the SEC, which called 19 tokens unregistered securities. 💰 Spendy… Crypto-analytics biz Chainalysis [says]( North America is the largest crypto market by total transaction value received. But: 76% of transaction volume was from institutional investors, not mom-and-pop traders. ⚖️ Judgy… Prosecutors rested their case in Sam Bankman-Fried’s fraud trial. The former FTX CEO finally [took the stand]( yesterday (though only after the jury was sent home) as the judge decided whether SBF’s planned testimony would be admissible. What else we're Snackin' - [Truckulent]( Ford disappointed on earnings and followed GM in pulling its annual guidance. Ford said the UAW strike cost it $1.3B in lost production — but it did reach a tentative deal with the union (feat. a 25% pay bump). - [Eats]( Chipotle popped after the asada icon beat growth estimates as appetite for its burritos and bowls stayed high, despite price hikes. Piper Sandler found that Chipotle’s a top-three favorite resto for rich teens. - [Plus]( Apple TV is the latest streamer to hike prices (to $10/month), double its cost just one year ago. Apple’s also raising costs for subs like Arcade and News as it looks to offset flagging hardware sales with services. - [Helix]( 23andMe said its new $1.2K/year genetic-testing service would give customers a fuller picture of their health risks. This month, several hacks reportedly exposed millions of its customers’ genetic data. - [Rx]( Bristol-Myers and Merck kicked off Big Pharma earnings with beats. Cancer drugs took center stage: YoY, sales of Bristol-Myers’ Revlimid plunged 41% because of generic rivals, while Merck’s Keytruda grew 17%. 🍪 Thanks for Snacking with us! Want to share the Snacks? Invite your friends to sign up [here](. Snack Fact Of the Day Google reportedly paid $18B in 2021 to be Apple’s default search engine [Read more]( Friday - World Series starts - Personal spending and consumer sentiment - Earnings expected from AbbVie, Charter, Chevron, Colgate-Palmolive, Exxon, and Phillips 66 Authors of this Snacks own shares of: Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Exxon, GM, Microsoft, Snap, and Uber *Advertiser’s disclosure: Please read the [offering circular]( and [related risks]( at . This is a paid advertisement for Holly’s Regulation CF Offering. Sherwood Media, LLC produces fresh and unique perspectives on topical financial news and is a fully owned subsidiary of Robinhood Markets, Inc., and any views expressed here do not necessarily reflect the views of any other Robinhood affiliate... [See more]( [Sherwood Terms and Conditions]( • [Our Editorial Principles]( • [Contact Us](mailto:hellosnacks@sherwoodmedia.com) • [Privacy Policy]( • [Advertise with us](mailto:advertising@sherwoodmedia.com) [Unsubscribe](