Streetbeat News

Partnerships

NLCP

NewLake Capital Partners, Inc. (NLCP) is investing $16M in a Connecticut marijuana cultivation facility, expanding its partnership with C3 Industries. The investment includes a $4M purchase price and a $12M construction allowance for retrofitting a former cold-storage facility. This marks the second collaboration between NewLake and C3, following a previous partnership on a Missouri cultivation facility. The new Connecticut facility aims to produce high-quality indoor cannabis and drive economic development. The investment comes amid news that the DEA may reclassify marijuana, potentially benefiting the cannabis sector.

Portfolio Pulse from Jelena Martinovic

May 08, 2024 | 8:01 pm

MSFT

Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ:MSFT) has secured agreements to add Lords of the Fallen and Sniper Ghost Warrior Contracts 2 to its Xbox Game Pass service, as confirmed by CI Games. The games are expected to be available on both Xbox and PC Game Pass. Lords of the Fallen, developed by Hexworks, and Sniper Ghost Warrior Contracts 2, developed by CI Games, are the highlighted additions. This announcement comes amidst a restructuring within Microsoft's gaming division, including the closure of several Bethesda studios.

Portfolio Pulse from Franca Quarneti

May 08, 2024 | 7:38 pm

EQNR

SLI

Equinor ASA has formed a strategic partnership with Standard Lithium Ltd, investing up to $160 million in Standard Lithium's sustainable lithium projects in the Smackover Formation. Equinor acquires a 45% stake in these projects, including a $30 million initial payment and up to $130 million in contingent investments. This partnership aims to accelerate the development of these projects, with Equinor funding significant portions of the development and exploration costs. Standard Lithium will remain the majority owner and operator, benefiting from Equinor's expertise in project development and financing. The deal strengthens Standard Lithium's financial position and marks Equinor's entry into the lithium market.

Portfolio Pulse from Shivani Kumaresan

May 08, 2024 | 7:01 pm

OWL

The NFL is considering a rule change to allow teams to sell up to 30% of their franchise to private equity, potentially opening investment opportunities in NFL teams. The Green Bay Packers are currently the only publicly traded NFL team, offering a ceremonial investment. A special committee is reviewing the rule change, with a decision expected by October. Private equity firms would need NFL approval and possibly a dedicated fund for team ownership. This change could help teams capitalize on rising valuations and fund new ventures. NFL team valuations are increasing, with recent sales setting records. Private equity firms like RedBird Capital Partners, Ares Management Corp., and Arctos Partners have shown interest in sports team investments. Blue Owl Capital (NYSE:OWL), owning Dyal Homecourt, could benefit from this rule change by potentially investing in NFL teams, similar to its NBA team investments.

Portfolio Pulse from Chris Katje

May 08, 2024 | 6:56 pm

DNUT

MCD

McDonald's Corp (NYSE:MCD) has formed a Death Cross, a bearish signal, amid a 9.8% decline over the past year and a 9.66% decrease year-to-date. Despite a 4.6% YoY sales increase in Q1, adjusted EPS missed estimates, leading to a 2% stock drop since the earnings report. The company faces challenges such as competition and rising costs, impacting margins. Analysts have lowered price targets but maintain an Outperform rating. McDonald's has also expanded its partnership with Krispy Kreme Inc (NYSE:DNUT).

Portfolio Pulse from Surbhi Jain

May 08, 2024 | 6:50 pm

AMZN

DDOG

GOOG

GOOGL

MSFT

Analysts from Morgan Stanley, Truist Securities, and DA Davidson provided optimistic outlooks for Datadog, Inc. (DDOG), citing strong Q1 2024 performance, product innovation, and AI-driven growth potential. Price targets range from $115 to $155. The company's alignment with cloud hyperscalers like Microsoft Azure, Alphabet's GCP, and Amazon AWS is noted as a key growth driver, with AI and new product adoption expected to sustain and accelerate growth.

Portfolio Pulse from Anusuya Lahiri

May 08, 2024 | 6:26 pm

PUBM

RBLX

Roblox Corp. (NYSE:RBLX) is set to report its Q1 financial results on May 9, 2024, with analysts expecting bookings of $922.98 million and a loss of 53 cents per share. The company has surpassed bookings estimates in four of the last five quarters and earnings per share estimates in three of the past five quarters. Guidance for Q1 bookings is between $910 million and $940 million, with full-year bookings expected to be between $4.14 billion and $4.28 billion. JPMorgan upgraded Roblox to Overweight, raising the price target to $48, citing consistent bookings growth and potential in advertising, particularly through a partnership with Walmart for virtual e-commerce and efforts to boost video ad sales with PubMatic Inc (NASDAQ:PUBM). Analysts are optimistic, with several issuing Buy ratings and price targets ranging from $50 to $55.

Portfolio Pulse from Chris Katje

May 08, 2024 | 5:47 pm

BYND

MCD

Beyond Meat has re-issued a press release announcing the launch of McPlant Famous Meals in McDonald's Germany, featuring a menu with McPlant Burger and McPlant Nuggets. This collaboration highlights the expansion of plant-based options in McDonald's menu, potentially increasing Beyond Meat's visibility and market share in the fast-food industry.

Portfolio Pulse from Benzinga Newsdesk

May 08, 2024 | 5:11 pm

FNCL

IYG

JPM

WFC

ZION

Mastercard Inc is collaborating with major U.S. banks and financial institutions to test a shared-ledger technology for the unified settlement of tokenized assets, aiming to simplify and speed up transactions while reducing errors and fraud. The technology supports commercial bank money, wholesale central bank money, and securities like investment-grade debt on a single system. Participants include Citigroup Inc, JPMorgan Chase & Co, US Bancorp, Wells Fargo & Co, Visa Inc, Swift, TD Bank NA, Zions Bancorp, with contributions from Bank of New York Mellon Corp and the International Swaps and Derivatives Association. Mastercard's stock gained 18% in the last 12 months, and investors can also gain exposure through IShares U.S. Financial Services ETF and Fidelity MSCI Financials Index ETF.

Portfolio Pulse from Anusuya Lahiri

May 08, 2024 | 5:05 pm

BYND

MCD

A post on Beyond Meat's website announcing a Beyond Burger for McDonald's was removed after briefly appearing. The initial announcement had indicated a collaboration for the McPlant famous meals in Germany.

Portfolio Pulse from Benzinga Newsdesk

May 08, 2024 | 5:04 pm