Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN) reported better-than-expected profits for the first quarter but slowing Amazon Web Services (AWS) revenue growth saw its shares pull back afterhours on Thursday.
AWS sales increased 17% year-over-year to $29.3 billion, slightly below analyst expectations of revenue in the range of $29.4 billion to $29.45 billion.
Microsoft Corp (NASDAQ:MSFT) has earned a price target boost from analysts at Wedbush following its earnings report, with analysts citing broad-based strength and powerful AI-driven momentum across the company's Cloud portfolio.
“We are raising our price target from $475 to $515 following this robust Microsoft quarter while maintaining our ‘Outperform’,” analysts wrote, calling the results “an Aaron Judge-like quarter featuring beats across the board.”
Meta Platforms Inc (NASDAQ:META, ETR:FB2A, SWX:FB) is “humming along” according to Wedbush analysts, who raised their price target on the stock to $750 from $610 following a better-than-expected first quarter and an upbeat revenue outlook for Q2.
Shares of Meta traded up 4.7% at $575 in the early afternoon on Thursday.
Nvidia Corp (NASDAQ:NVDA, ETR:NVD) shares added more than 5% to lead a rally among chipmakers after Meta and Microsoft reaffirmed their aggressive investment plans in AI.
Meta said it now expects its 2025 capital expenditures to range between $64 billion and $72 billion, a significant increase from previous forecasts to account for increased AI investments.
Ocean Power Technologies Inc (NYSE-A:OPTT) has shipped a Merrows-capable PowerBuoy as part of a demonstration aimed at validating the system’s survivability and suitability for defense and security applications, including surface and subsea monitoring.
The shipment marks a key milestone following the company's teaming agreement signed last year with a major international defense contractor.
McDonald's Corp (NYSE:MCD, ETR:MDO) shares fell 1.2% on Thursday morning after the fast-food giant posted its biggest drop in US same-store sales since the height of the pandemic, as economic uncertainty continued to weigh on consumer spending.
Comparable sales in the United States, the company’s largest market, fell 3.6% in the first quarter ended March 31, well below analysts’ expectations for a 0.98% decline.
Qualcomm Inc (NASDAQ:QCOM, ETR:QCI) shares fell almost 8% in early trade on Thursday as weak guidance drew focus from better-than-expected results for the fiscal second quarter.
The company projected fiscal third quarter revenue between $9.9 billion and $10.7 billion, at the midpoint of $10.3 billion below Wall Street estimates of $10.34 billion.
Eli Lilly and Co (NYSE:LLY) shares fell as much as 7.7% at the open on Thursday after the drugmaker cut its 2025 profit forecast, overshadowing booming sales of its blockbuster weight-loss drugs.
The pharmaceutical giant reported a 45% year-over-year jump in first-quarter revenue to $12.73 billion, slightly above Wall Street expectations, driven by surging demand for its GLP-1 drugs Mounjaro and Zepbound. Adjusted net income rose 29% to $3 billion.
Itaconix PLC (AIM:ITX, OTCQB:ITXXF) shares rose 6% in afternoon trading on Thursday after the plant-based polymer specialist said it remained on track to meet its 2025 targets, despite growing trade uncertainty in the US.
The AIM-quoted company, which supplies sustainable ingredients used in products like laundry detergents, acknowledged that new tariffs would raise some input costs but said the impact should be modest.
Shares in Mirriad Advertising PLC (AIM:MIRI, OTCQX:MMDDF) plummeted 78% on Thursday after the company warned it may soon run out of money and could enter administration within days unless fresh funding is secured.
The AIM-quoted virtual product placement specialist revealed that talks over a potential takeover had collapsed at the end of April, leaving the board scrambling for alternatives to keep the business afloat.