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Lucy Brewster

brewmarkets.com

Delta Air Lines has arrived, and brought a new earnings season along with it.

: Not only did the airline beat top- and bottom-line earnings expectations, but its Q3 profit rose 11% year over year. Delta also projects adjusted earnings per share will land between $1.60 and $1.90 per share in Q4, above the $1.65 analysts were expecting, while full-year EPS should hit $6, higher than Wall Street forecasts of $5.80.

Delta credited increased travel demand for the boost, especially from premium and corporate customers: Delta’s Q3 corporate sales jumped 8%, while premium revenue increased 9%. In fact, the company thinks 

 will outpace sales from coach cabin seats next year.

Delta’s enjoying a nice tailwind during a year of serious turbulence.

The airline originally issued full-year guidance of $7.35 late last year, but withdrew that outlook after President Trump announced a slew of tariffs that rocked the economy. It was one of the first companies to pull guidance, setting the stage for a domino effect of withdrawn forecasts across the market as companies struggled to keep up with the moving tariff target.

Today, management seems confident that it can better anticipate what lies ahead, while investors could interpret Delta’s solid earnings as a bellwether of good things to come for the rest of the airlines sector.

But maybe investors are celebrating a little too soon, given a major headwind for the industry just arrived: The government shutdown is adding more pressure to the already-fragile air travel ecosystem. Air traffic controllers and TSA screeners still have to work during the shutdown, but they aren’t getting paid until it ends. That’s why air traffic controllers are beginning to 

, leading to staffing shortages and subsequent delays at airports nationwide.

Air travel is a tight-margin business, so airlines don’t leave much time between flights—meaning that one delay or cancellation can start a chain reaction that throws off an entire schedule.

Delta had a great third quarter, but the longer the shutdown lasts, the tougher it’ll be to make up for lost flights this quarter.

image of delta airline boeing plane taking off

Delta Air Lines kicks off earnings season

Delta reported a great quarter, but a government shutdown threatens flights.

Delta takes off

Lithium Americas is putting up meme stock numbers today.

The Canadian mining company exploded 95.77% after 

 that the Trump administration was considering taking a 10% stake in the business. The White House proposed the deal while Lithium America renegotiated the terms of its $2.3 billion loan from the Department of Energy for its Nevada-based Thacker Pass mine, according to Reuters.

 Lithium is a key raw material for making all kinds of tech, particularly the batteries used in everything from EVs to AI data centers. The Thacker Pass project, which is 

 between Lithium Americas and General Motors, is expected to be the biggest lithium mine in the US when it opens its doors in late 2027.

Critical minerals mining has become a national security issue lately, with the US rushing to shore up its own supply chain so it doesn’t have to rely on China. Back in July, the Department of Defense invested $400 million in rare earths miner MP Materials to reduce its dependence on its geopolitical rival, and becoming a shareholder in Lithium Americas furthers that agenda.

Today’s news is also just the latest example of the White House 

 in a publicly traded company, as it did with Intel in August. It’s a trend that has worried analysts and investors alike because it could cause conflicts of interest and tie a company’s fortunes to politics.

Then again, investors didn’t seem too bothered today: Other lithium producers popped this afternoon in the hopes of similar government interest, including Albemarle Corp, which jumped 1.81%, and Sigma Lithium Corp, which rose 7.38%.

Should you invest in Lithium Americas, too?

For all of today’s hype, you might be surprised to learn that Lithium Americas has neither profits nor any revenue, given the Thacker Pass project isn’t operational right now. Until that mine opens up, the company will have to rely on borrowed money and borrowed time, and if there are any delays in development, it could spell disaster. And don’t forget, the final details of the US deal haven’t even been agreed upon yet.

On the other hand, Lithium Americas does already have the perfect name to be a state-controlled entity.—

The US government could take a stake in Lithium Americas

The miner isn't profitable, but shares soared today on reports of government interest.

America may soon own Lithium Americas

Warren Buffett just did a U-turn on one of his most successful investments to date.

BYD sank 3.79% today after CNBC first reported that Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway has completely 

 in the Chinese EV maker—but not before pocketing a roughly 3,890% gain over the last 17 years.

Back in 2008, Berkshire Hathaway bought 225 million shares of the fledgling carmaker for $230 million, giving Buffett a roughly 10% stake in the company—though Buffett credited Charlie Munger with bringing the investment to Berkshire Hathaway in the first place.

Since then, BYD has grown into one of China’s largest EV companies and has made a name for itself as a formidable competitor to Elon Musk’s Tesla.

Buffett started trimming Berkshire’s position in BYD in 2022, after its stock surged 41% that year, and by last June, Berkshire had sold over three quarters of its original stake in the company.

Buffett hasn’t explicitly explained his rationale for selling, but while he was shedding shares in 2023 he told CNBC that, although BYD is an “extraordinary company,” he was looking for better uses of his money.

Once again, Buffett’s timing was perfect: CNBC reports that, as of March 31 of this year, Berkshire had exited its position completely. In the last six months, shares have tumbled over 21%.

Turns out, BYD has some problems under the hood. While the carmaker has made headlines for 

, it’s facing increasing domestic competition rolling out even cheaper EVs, not to mention ongoing 

In addition, BYD’s domestic sales (which make up 80% of its shipments) fell for the 

 in August, according to Reuters. On top of that, BYD’s quarterly profit dipped for the first time in three and half years 

Time for BYD to put the pedal to the metal.—

Warren Buffett has exited his BYD position

Berkshire Hathaway sold its entire stake of the Chinese EV maker.

Buffett bails on BYD

Mark Reeth

Global tariffs have disrupted both import and export businesses—but what about the guys in between who are doing all the shipping to and fro?

Turns out, they’re OK actually. FedEx reported 

 after the close yesterday evening, beating both EPS and sales forecasts and projecting revenue growth of 4% to 6% next year, well above Wall Street’s expectations of 1.2%. Shares rose 2.12% to $231.75 today.

That said, it wasn’t all good news. Management noted that international package volume fell, even though domestic volume helped make up the difference. They also warned of a $1 billion headwind this year due to global trade volatility.

But the real question hanging over FedEx was the end of the de minimis exemption last month, which suddenly made small, cheap packages more expensive for customers. While the company was able to anticipate the loophole being closed and prepare accordingly, it still faces another problem: the all-important holiday shopping season, and what higher costs might do to FedEx’s business in the coming months.

Management seemed confident that FedEx will be fine, but analysts remain skeptical: Morgan Stanley maintained its “underweight” rating and $200 price target today, while Bank of America raised its price target to $244 but kept its “neutral” rating in place.

FedEx delivers earnings surprise

The shipping giant had a good quarter, though questions remain about the holiday season.

Delivering an earnings surprise

A whole new race to corner the weight-loss drug market has begun—and Eli Lilly is pulling ahead of its rivals.

Big pharma companies are developing GLP-1 

 as opposed to the injections that are currently on the market. The reason that matters is pretty intuitive: A daily pill is much easier to take than a weekly shot, and 

, too. That would open up the weight-loss drug market to a whole new swath of potential customers and avert the supply chain challenges that have nagged the industry over the past few years.

In fact, oral weight-loss drugs could one day account for roughly a third of the overall GLP-1 market—a market that Guggenheim analysts predict could be worth 

There are no FDA-approved GLP-1 pills on the market right now, but that’s set to change in the next few months.

Eli Lilly announced yesterday that its new oral drug beat Novo Nordisk’s in 

, saying that it helped patients with Type 2 diabetes lower their blood sugar more than Novo's over 52 weeks. In addition, Eli Lilly’s pill caused those patients to lose 9% of their body weight, compared to 5% from Novo’s drug.

But Novo didn’t take the news lying down: The Danish pharma giant revealed its own numbers today, arguing that its “Wegovy pill” helped patients lose nearly 17% of body weight 

Novo Nordisk popped 6.29% today, while Eli Lilly rose 0.35%.

Novo Nordisk had the early lead in the GLP-1 market, but blew it after a slew of supply chain issues slowed down its rollout. It’s hoping to regain the top spot during the oral drug era, but analysts believe that Eli Lilly has a roughly three-year lead in the race to develop a pill.

But that race is far from over: Other pharma heavyweights like AstraZeneca and Structure Therapeutics are also developing their own versions of these pills.—

Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly race for perfect pill

Both pharma giants are working to create new obesity pills.

Slimming down is big business

Stocks can pop at a moment’s notice if the right person says the right thing at the right time. For example, in his testimony before Congress yesterday, FBI Director Kash Patel was answering questions about buying stocks while in office—specifically Krispy Kreme and ON Semiconductor.

“I just follow certain industries, and I thought they would be a good investment,” Patel said.

While ON Semi barely budged, Krispy Kreme soared 11.5% as soon as the words 

—only for the donut purveyor to come tumbling back to earth and finish the day up just 0.96%.

, the latest batch of meme stocks to catch retail traders’ attention this year, and jumped 27% at one point in July. While the stock has given up nearly all of those gains since, apparently it still has a little meme juice left in the tank, with retail investors all too happy to take Patel at his word and buy shares.

Whether or not Krispy Kreme really is a “good investment” is up for some debate, however. Of the eight Wall Street analysts who cover the stock, five have a “hold” rating on the company, as they wait to see the fallout from Krispy Kreme’s failed partnership with McDonald’s and whether or not the company can turn its struggling business around.

Krispy Kreme's short-lived rally

FBI director Kash Patel sparked a pop for the struggling meme stock.

Talk about a sugar rush

 for big IPOs: Klarna popped 15% on the day of its public debut, Gemini Space Station rose 14.29% on day one, and Black Rock Coffee jumped 38%. And it’s not just September: Ritholz Chief Market Strategist Callie Cox recently noted that, through the end of August, shares of new companies surged 

 on their first day of trading. That makes 2025 the best year for public debuts since 2000.

It’s gotten to the point that IPOs seem to be sure things—so you might be surprised to see that StubHub fell 6.38% on its first day of trading today. Who could have seen that coming?

Actually, we did. Brew Markets podcast host Ann Berry warned earlier this week that StubHub’s valuation didn’t make sense considering how profits have been trending down while marketing expenses are rising dramatically.

She dove into the company’s S-1 filing to learn more about StubHub’s business model—

 to learn more about why she didn’t like what she found.