Time’s Almost Up For $TUP

Many businesses were failing ahead of the pandemic, but the COVID-19 financial market frenzy gave them a second life. As rates normalized, however, investors refocused on their poor business fundamentals and sent shares lower again. 🕵️

That’s happened with Bed Bath & Beyond, AMC, and others, including…Tupperware Brands.

Shares of the home products company fell nearly 99% from mid-’17 through March ’20. They then rallied about 3,300% through January ’21. And they’ve fallen 97% back to their all-time lows since.

Zooming into today’s action, the stock fell 50% after the company issued a regulatory filing late Friday saying there’s “substantial doubt about the company’s ability to continue as a going concern.” Of course, things generally aren’t great when a company releases news late on a Friday. However, this filing also alerted investors because it was done on a day when the market was closed. 📝

The company said it will not have enough cash to fund its operations if it cannot secure additional financing. While management is exploring cost-cutting measures, its asset-light business model leaves it with few opportunities to raise cash quickly. The New York Stock Exchange also warned the company that it remains in danger of being delisted for not filing an annual report. ⚠️

Last November, the company issued another “going concern” warning and has failed to turn things around since then. The seventy-seven-year-old company used to thrive on its innovative kitchen gadgets but has lost its touch and is struggling to attract the younger consumer demographic. Despite a new partnership with Target, the company’s sales remain dismal.

Speaking of struggling businesses, Bed Bath & Beyond issued important information ahead of its Special Meeting of Shareholders on May 9. Shares were down over 4%. 🔻

Boeing Loses Altitude (Again)

If you’re an investor in airlines or airplane manufacturers, this is not the type of headline you want to wake up to. Unfortunately for Boeing and several others, the news is not great. So let’s dig into it. 👇

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Pfizer’s Flop Continues

It’s been a rough ride for pharmaceutical giant Pfizer since the end of the pandemic, and that rollercoaster ride continues today. 🎢

The company last announced earnings in October but needed to update Wall Street on its 2024 forecast. It cited weak demand for its Covid products as the reason for a weaker-than-anticipated revenue and earnings forecast.

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Justice Department Targets UnitedHealth

With the upcoming presidential election looming, the current administration is itching to accomplish more before a potential shakeup. While antitrust regulators have had a field day with big tech, airlines, grocery chains, and others this year, they’re taking another look at UnitedHealth, especially given its recent cybersecurity issues. 🕵️‍♂️

The Justice Department is poking around to figure out the relationship between the company’s UnitedHealthcare insurance unit and its Optum health-services division. They’ve asked how UnitedHealth’s acquisitions of doctor groups might affect competitors and consumers. 🤔

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AI’s Copyright Crisis Begins

We all knew copyright law would be a key issue at the heart of the artificial intelligence (AI) revolution, but we didn’t know when. Well, the time has come. ⌛

Today, The New York Times filed a lawsuit against Microsoft and OpenAI, accusing them of infringing copyright and abusing the newspaper’s intellectual property. In its court filing, the publisher said it looks to hold the two companies accountable for the “unlawful copying and use of The Times’s uniquely valuable works,” claiming billions in statutory and actual damages.

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