Plus, it may be too soon to pop the champagne on a U.S. – China trade deal, WeWork is weighing bailout options, and Facebook’s Libra cryptocurrency is losing support.
Stocks were little changed Monday morning with the Dow up just 15 points. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq both traded just below the flatline.
The U.S. and China reached what President Trump called a “very substantial phase one trade deal,” which sent stocks soaring on Friday. China reportedly agreed to buy $40 to $50 billion worth of U.S. agricultural products and remove ownership limits in its financial services sector, while the U.S. suspended its tariff increase planned for October 15. But cracks emerged this morning when Bloomberg reported that China wants to hold another round of trade talks this month before Chinese President Xi Jinping will agree to sign anything. Chinese state media were also cautious about calling Friday’s agreement a deal, with China Daily writing on Sunday that “while the negotiations do appear to have produced a fundamental understanding on key issues and the broader benefits of friendly relations, the Champagne should probably be kept on ice, at least until the two presidents put pen to paper.”
U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s latest attempt to secure a Brexit deal ran into some trouble this weekend after the European Union warned that last week’s talks between Johnson and Republic of Ireland counterpart Leo Varadkar were still a long way from breakthrough. EU negotiator Michel Barnier said the plan to solve the Irish border issue lacked detail and risked leaving the single market vulnerable to fraud. The clock is now racing for the U.K. and EU to come to an agreement ahead of the EU leaders’ summit on Thursday. If no deal is reached by then, Johnson will be required by law to delay Brexit, something he has vowed he will not do. European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker indicated that he will approve another delay if one is requested.
WeWork is considering two bailout options to raise some much needed cash. The board could meet today to discuss both options, one of which will hand operating control over to SoftBank, while the other would include a $5 billion debt deal with JPMorgan. Either option would rescue the office-sharing company from a cash crunch that could leave it short of funds as early as next month. WeWork parent We Co. had been headed toward one of the most hotly anticipated IPOs of 2019 before investors began raising concerns about its fluctuating valuation and odd corporate governance. It announced that it was formally postponing its IPO last month after founder and CEO Adam Neumann was forced to step down.
Apple shares are up this morning after TF Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said the company will release new and more affordable iPhone models in the first quarter of next year that will start at $399. Kuo said the new model, which he calls the iPhone SE2, will have the same processor as the iPhone 11 and will have a similar design to the iPhone 8. The analyst said the new phone will be a “key growth driver” for Apple next year as the lower-budget model will attract customers still using the iPhone 6 and 6s, which Kuo says are still being used by as many as 200 million people.
Facebook’s Libra cryptocurrency plans are in trouble as several big-name partners have abandoned the project over the last week. PayPal was the first to announce its withdrawal as government regulators continue to scrutinize the social media giant’s plans. On Friday, Ebay, Stripe, Mastercard, Visa, and Mercado Pago all announced they were jumping ship as well. Then this morning, Booking Holdings became the latest partner to drop out. The Libra Association is scheduled to meeting in Geneva today, where remaining members will review the organization’s charter and appoint a board of directors. Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin said to CNBC this morning that these companies likely searched government action. “I think they realized that they’re not ready, they’re not up to par,” Mnuchin said. “And I assume some of the partners got concerned and dropped out until they meet those standards.”
Stocks We’re Watching
ServiceNow (NYSE: NOW): ServiceNow shares are up nearly 52% so far this year and more than 1% over the last week. On Friday, UBS analyst Jennifer Lowe said that while worries about the U.S. economy persist, companies including ServiceNow are prioritizing digital projects that will help transform their business models. “While macro fears likely remain the overarching source of debt moving through earnings season, we think ServiceNow’s exposure to Digital Transformation themes and strong cash flow profile should help the company’s results and stock hold up better than most.”
Workday Inc (NASDAQ: WDAY): Shares of Workday are up nearly 4% over the last week after Goldman Sachs analyst Heather Bellini upgraded the stock to Buy from Neutral. Bellini said that the HR software company’s sell-off since July represents a good buying opportunity for the stock. “The current selloff creates an attractive entry point,” Bellini wrote of Workday, with “building momentum in SaaS adoption,” especially for financial enterprise applications. “While Workday has had success in cross-selling its Financials business to existing human-capital management (HCM) customers, reaching 25% penetration of its core HCM base, our industry conversations indicate that over the past year, Workday has had success landing new customers with Financials and is steadily building a list of referenceable large enterprise customers, while expanding the company’s international market presence.”