🏦 Jamie Dimon's Big Warning

JP Morgan's CEO is officially worried about the economy, here's why, why SoFi shares shot higher today and more

Author

Brooks Dyroff
April 08, 2024

Happy Monday Zingernation! It wasn’t a particularly eventful day on Wall Street, but that doesn’t mean it wasn’t an eventful Monday overall. North America got the last solar eclipse until 2044 and we’ll get to watch Purdue face off against UConn in the NCAA Men’s National Championship game tonight.

Worried you may have damaged your eyes watching the moon block out the sun? Well, you’re not alone. More than 150 million Americans viewed the solar eclipse in 2017, with thousands rushing to the ER or doctor worried that they damaged their eyes. But, there were only 100 or so total cases of actual eye damage caused by the eclipse. So, chances are you’ll be fine.

Today’s Price Action:

$SPY: +0.06%
$QQQ: +0.03%
$DIA: +0.06%

Also, don’t miss out on your opportunity to easily invest in vacation and rental homes through today’s partner.

And, did someone forward you this email? Click here to subscribe to this Benzinga newsletter and more.

TODAY’S MOST VOLATILE STOCKS
TODAY’S TOP STORY

Briefly: Jamie Dimon, chairman and CEO of JPMorgan Chase, remains concerned about stickier inflationary pressures and higher interest rates than investors currently expect.

Zooming In: In his latest shareholder letter, Dimon identified several inflationary factors including the need for increased spending, the shift towards a greener economy, the restructuring of global supply chains, heightened military expenditures, and rising healthcare costs. Dimon’s letter also cited the ongoing conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine, increasing terrorist threats, and escalating tensions with China.

Overall: Despite these challenges, Dimon praised the U.S. economy’s resiliency, underscored by robust consumer spending. However, he remains skeptical regarding the prevalent market optimism for a soft economic landing.

Quoted: â€śMarkets seem to be pricing in at a 70% to 80% chance of a soft landing — modest growth along with declining inflation and interest rates. I believe the odds are a lot lower than that,” he said.

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FIVE MOVERS

SoFi’s stock moved higher today, closing up nearly 5% following bullish analyst coverage and price target raises from multiple banks.

Ulta Beauty shares closed slightly higher today, trying to make up some gains after the cosmetic giant slipped more than 10% on weak guidance last week.

Eco Wave Power Global’s stock soared higher, closing up more than 100% after announcing the company was selected to run energy feasibility studies on the coastline of the U.S.

Smart For Life shares closed higher by more than 30% today after announcing a new acquisition. 

Fastly’s stock moved higher in today’s session as investors appear to have taken bullish positions on the company ahead of its earnings report due later this week.

ONE TRADE IDEA FOR TOMORROW
Home Run Baseball GIF by MLB

In Short: A potential merger between media companies Skydance and Paramount Global has dominated headlines and could see further consolidation in the media sector.

The Details: A shareholder of Paramount Global is calling out the merger efforts, which could provide cash to Shari Redstone and leave Paramount shareholders with a diluted value.

What Happened: Skydance entered into an exclusive negotiating window with Paramount Global, according to reports. A potential merger would see Redstone's National Amusements, which owns 77% of voting shares of Paramount, receive $2 billion in cash. Paramount Global would acquire Skydance in an all-stock deal valued at around $5 billion, according to reports.

Why It Matters: Current Paramount shareholders would receive shares in the newly merged company and have diluted ownership. Paramount shareholder Matrix Asset Advisors sent a letter to the media company's board of directors sharing its disgust in the consideration of "actions that are only in the interest of one shareholder."

PRESENTED BY ARRIVED

Arrived's mission is to empower everyone to build wealth through modern real estate investing. We created an investor experience simplifying the complex decision-making traditionally associated with real estate — and lowered the barriers to entry — so anyone can do it.

With Arrived, investors can browse individual single-family residential homes and vacation rentals (pre-vetted based on their appreciation and income potential), choose how much to invest, and start building a highly-tailored portfolio of hand-selected investment properties in minutes.