Markets Defused is an easy-to-understand and straightforward recap of the day’s most engaging business and stock market news.
- DJT shares dropped on Trump's X return
- BT boosted as Indian billionaire buys 24.5% stake
- TalkTalk got debt refi greenlight
- JetBlue’s $3bn debt sale triggers rating downgraded
- Starbucks bought up amid activist investor reports
DJT shares dropped on X return ahead of Elon Musk interview
The share price of Donald Trump’s own social media company fell sharply on Monday, as he returned to X (formerly Twitter) where tonight he is being interviewed in a live interview with Elon Musk.
Trump Media & Technology Group Corp (NASDAQ:DJT), the parent company of his Truth Social app, lost around 5% in regular trading hours in New York, closing at $24.88 – having changed hands as low as $24.20 at one point.
There’s more to the story than the company’s largest shareholder and namesake appearing on the rival platfom, as the DJT company also had second quarter financial results out too.
DJT reported a $16.4 million net loss for the quarter, along with a 30% decline in year-over-year revenue to a meagre $837,000.
In truth, however, the stock’s performance has rarely reflected the fundamental financial performance metrics or traditional valuation methodologies, rather the Truth Social company has instead moved much more like a so-called ‘meme-stock’. Indeed, on Monday’s close DJT retained a market capitalisation of just over $4.73 billion.
BT Group shares boosted as Indian billionaire becomes largest shareholder
BT Group PLC (LSE:BT.A) shares gained around 7.5% in Monday’s dealing with the news that Indian billionaire Sunil Bharti Mittal, via the company Bharti Global, has become the UK telecoms firm’s largest shareholder.
Bharti has acquired a 24.5% stake in the company from French conglomerate Altice.
Analysts noted that this sale alleviates previous concerns about a potential share overhang (as Altice was seen as a potentially motivated seller of the share), and therefore presented a risk of depressing BT’s price if a large number of shares were made available in market suddenly.
The transaction is subject to regulatory approval, with the final transfer of shares expected to be completed after clearance under the UK National Security and Investment Act.
In London, BT shares climbed 9.90p or 7.59% closing Monday’s session at 140.40p.
TalkTalk got debt greenlight for £400mln refinancing
TalkTalk has announced a £400 million refinancing deal to avoid an imminent debt default.
The company, which was listed on the London Stock Exchange until its acquisition in 2021, served close to million broadband customers in the UK.
It reached an agreement with lenders to extend a debt maturity 2027, buying TalkTalk time to implement its new business plans for wholesale and consumer networks.
The deal includes an immediate £65 million capital injection from its private shareholders, along with an additional £170 million of liquidity.
It is intended to stabilize the company’s financial position.
The refinancing also ushers in leadership changes with chief executive Tristia Clarke, stepping down into a non-executive role, and, chief financial officer James Smith becoming the new chief executive.
JetBlue stock hit as $3bn debt sale sparks S&P and Moody’s downgrade
JetBlue Airways (NASDAQ:JBLU) saw its stock descend 17%, to $5.00, after it launched a $3.15 billion debt funding.
The America budget airline told investors it is designed to bolster liquidity, whilst it manages its corporate finances amid ongoing challenges.
It is to be cornerstoned through a $2.75 billion bond sale, secured against JetBlue's loyalty program, TrueBlue.
A further $400 million is expected to come through the sale of convertible debt securities, which can be exchanged for new company equity in the future.
This is the latest refinancing in the sector, following similar initiative by the likes of Delta and United, which have also used loyalty programs as collateral to raise funds.
It has, meanwhile, earned the airline a downgrade by credit ratings firms S&P and Moody’s which moved the airlines further down the ‘junk’ tiers – S&P moved to ‘B-‘ from ‘B’ whilst Moody’s moved to ‘B3’ from ‘B2’.
Starbucks stock bought up by traders amid activist investor reports
Starbucks Corp (NASDAQ:SBUX, ETR:SRB) had some pep in its step, with its stock trading on the front foot through Monday morning with the market’s attention on activist investor activity.
On Friday, it emerged that Starboard Value, an activist hedge fund, had acquired a stake albeit the precise details have yet to be confirmed.
Meanwhile, reports today claimed that the coffee chain’s management team was talking with Elliott Management, another ‘activist’ that’s built and is leveraging a stake.
Elliott has, according to reports, pushed for changes to the board and governance and has heaped pressure to perform, amidst recent commercial struggles.
In July, Starbuck reported the negative impact of slowing same-store sales in both the US and China.
The financial media reports, whilst citing sources familiar with the matter, did not receive comment from Starbucks or Elliott.
Investors and traders, meanwhile, bought the coffee shares up during Monday’s deal.
In New York, Starbucks shares were up 3.25% changing hands at $77.53.