Big Business This Week is a guided tour through the biggest market stories of the week, from winning stocks to brutal dips to the facts and forecasts generating buzz on Wall Street.
OPEN AI SHAKEUP
The big news that broke late in the trading day Friday was the ouster of Open AI CEO and co-founder Sam Altman. In a statement, the board said Altman had not been "consistently candid" in his communications with them. They have replaced him for the time being with CTO Mira Murati. Open AI does not trade on the exchanges, but they've been working very closely with Microsoft to move artificial intelligence forward. The news came as a surprise to many; earlier this month, Altman headlined the company's first developer conference and took the stage with Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella. Microsoft stock did see the impact of the news, with the stock dipping at the very end of the day. It ultimately closed for the week, but just barely.
BIG BOX MIXED BAG
While Target and Walmart both announced choppy waters in the retail space right now, with shoppers cutting back on unnecessary spending, Wall Street was more willing to embrace the story from one of them. Target shares jumped after its earnings call on Tuesday after it announced a big earnings beat, even though its revenue dropped. Investors were relieved to see the company has stabilized after holding on to too much inventory last year, requiring significant price cuts to move items off of shelves. Walmart reported positive financial results in its earnings report, but its shares dropped. At the end of the week, Target shares were up a whopping 20 percent at the end of the week. Walmart shares were down nearly 7 percent.
BUYING HYUNDAIS VIA AMAZON
Want to order your car on Amazon (along with everything else you need)? The online retailer is trying something new with Hyundai: you'll be able to start buying cars from local dealerships through the platform next year. Amazon won't be selling the cars via their own warehouses; many states have laws requiring purchasers to buy vehicles through dealerships. The news was great for Hyundai which saw its stock jump nearly 12 percent this week. Amazon was up 2 percent for the week.
MACY'S ON PARADE
While Macy's iconic Thanksgiving Day Parade will be televised for all to see next Thursday, the company already drew plenty of eyes on Wall Street this week with its Q3 earnings report. Sales dipped last quarter, but not as much as expected. Even better, they adjusted their guidance up for the rest of the year, causing investors to buy in; the stock was up 33 percent this week. Up next, the department store will be trying to open 30 small locations, which the company hopes will make it easier to put stores closer to more customers.
BIG BOEING BUY
The Dubai Air Show opened this week with a big order for Boeing. Emirates Airlines signed a deal to purchase $52 billion of aircraft from the U.S.-based maker. The stock jumped 4 percent on the news. FlyDubai, Emirates' budget sister-carrier, also signed on for an $11 billion order of its own. Boeing stock ended the week up 2 percent
