The Market -- February 9, 2023

Updates

Later, 10:44 a.m. PST: well, that was fast. The initial response to Bob Iger this morning? A 300-point rally in the Dow but as I suggested in the original post, it was all smoke and mirrors or snake oil and once analysts really listened to what Iger said realized Disney's prospects were not that good, and the Dow went negative.

Original Post

Proxy fight for Disney: it's over ... from the horse's mouth at 6:49 a.m. PST. Wow. Amazing to actually hear this in live-time. 

• DIS up $5.49; up 4.91%.

My biggest dilemma:

• whether to subscribe to Barron's; it's now down to $1/week for a full year; cancel anytime
  

Not on my bingo card today: pre-market, the Dow is up 230 points.

• Time to check in on live CNBC / Hulu.
• first time I've logged into live CNBC in several weeks
  
• Wow, wow, wow.
• NVDA: up 2%; up $4.30
• CVX: up a smidge
• That's all I need to know.
• market open: SCCO up almost 2%.
  
• what's moving the market: DIS
  
• more to follow as the morning moves on.

DIS:

• big story breaking
• DIS up almost 6% in pre-market trading
  
• announces re-structuring
• announces 7,000-cut in employees
• beat earnings estimate
• the interview
  
• wow, wow, wow: if you listen to the CNBC interview with Bob Iger this morning, this did not instill a lot of confidence; no free cash flow for at least a year and Iger says they are already talking about re-instating the dividend
• Iger's talk on debt reduction was ... akin to vaorware 
• open-minded on Hulu -- but wasn't forthcoming; obviously in negotiations to buy what DIS doesn't already own -- or sell it ...??? I wasn't quite sure what Iger said on this issue
  

On the agenda today:

• Covid.  
• Weekly data will be posted later.
  
• Variant roundup.
  

Backstory links:

• AAPL: now beta-testing BNPL;
• SCCO: huge;
• INTC: update;
• Homelessness;
• Books;