RJ Hamster
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Executive Order 14330: Trump’s Biggest Yet (From The Oxford Club)
Dave & Buster’s Reversal Is in PLAY After Double-Bottom Breakout
Written by Thomas Hughes
Dave & Buster’s (NASDAQ: PLAY)struggles are not over, but the sell-off in its stock is, and the reversal is underway. The fiscal year 2026 (FY2026) Q3 results reveal that the CEO change, Back-to-Basics strategy, and restaurant remodels are having a positive impact. While the results missed MarketBeat’s reported consensus, the miss was slim, sequential growth was logged, and a favorable outlook was implied. The market reaction was a double-digit surge in share prices, driven by accelerated trading volume, confirming support at long-term lows and indicating a double-bottom is in play.
The double bottom is a classic reversal signal in which the market hits its bottom, rebounds, hits its bottom again, and then continues higher. In this case, signs of improving business sparked the bottom, and now, an improving outlook will likely drive the market higher over the coming weeks, months, and quarters. The question is how high the stock might climb and where the resistance points are located. The resistance points are critical for long-term investors to consider, as they represent regions where profit-taking and/or other market dynamics may lead to consolidations or price corrections, AKA opportunities to build on this position.
Results, Analysts, and Institutions Indicate Improving Market Dynamics for PLAY stock
Reasons to build on this position include its growth trajectory, which implies a return to sustainable growth as soon as the current quarter, and its ability to buy back shares. Repurchase activity in Q3 and year-to-date resulted in a nearly 12% reduction in share count, a significant gain for investors. The only bad news is that Q3 was a net loss, but the loss is offset by reinvestment in the turnaround plan and balance sheet health. The company remains well-capitalized and lightly leveraged, positioning it to continue its plans and provide value to its shareholders.
The analysts’ response to the news is tepid but otherwise favorable to investors. MarketBeat tracked only three revisions within the first few days, including a reaffirmed target, a set target, and a target reduction. However, the takeaway is that the reduced target and consensus on fresh targets lead to an above-consensus price point, implying at least a 15% upside from mid-December’s critical resistance point, the 150-day exponential moving average. The 150-day EMA is a significant pivot, signaling a shift in market dynamics from distribution to accumulation when crossed.
The institutional data aligns with such a shift. The institutions are the dominant force in this market, owning more than 90% of the stock, and sold in Q2 and Q3, then reverted to buying in early Q4. The Q4 trend is likely to remain intact, given the results and outlook improvement, and could strengthen over time. As it stands, the group provides a robust tailwind, buying at a pace of $3 for each $1 sold in the quarter’s first eight weeks.
Dave & Buster’s Weak Quarter Overlooked in Favor of Sequential Improvements
Dave & Buster’s didn’t have a strong quarter, with revenue of $448.2 million falling by 1.1% year-over-year and missing the consensus estimate. However, the miss is slim and offset by operational improvements that reduced operating costs in both core segments and by sequential monthly traffic improvements throughout the quarter.
The good news is that margin improvement will accelerate earningsrecovery in upcoming quarters; the bad news is that business spending cuts into the gains, resulting in a larger-than-expected quarterly loss. Even so, the top- and bottom-line misses are slim, the company remains in a healthy condition, and traction is expected to improve as turnaround efforts accelerate. The analyst forecasts, which are likely to be low, expect a 5% revenue gain in the subsequent fiscal year and for earnings to grow by 100%. READ THIS STORY ONLINE
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3 Finance Stocks to Buy on Rising 10-Year Treasury Rates
Written by Chris Markoch
The Federal Reserve gave investors an early Christmas present by lowering interest rates by 25 basis points (i.e., 0.25%) marking its third rate cut this year. In the past, a change like this in the “long end” of the interest rate yield curve has triggered a predictable, investable pattern.
Typically, this pattern would be bearish for finance stocks, particularly banks—investors would buy bank stocks when rates rose and sell them as rates fell.
But in 2025, this pattern hasn’t held. Even after the Fed’s third cut of the year, 10-year Treasury yields remain stubbornly high, suggesting that financial investors need to rethink old assumptions.
The interest yield curve is likely to steepen from its currently modestly positive level. This discrepancy affords banks the ability to lend to consumers at lower rates (i.e., the short end) and still offer attractive yields on products that are tied to the long end of the yield curve.
With that in mind, here are three stocks to buy for investors who believe the 10-year rates will remain higher for longer.
JPMorgan Chase: Best-in-Class Bank Built for Higher Long-Term Rates
The simplest reason to buy JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) stock is that the company is considered best-in-class among the “big banks.” The bank has a fortress balance sheet and outperforms in every category: personal banking, commercial banking, asset and wealth management corporate banking.
JPM stock is up 31.5% year-to-date (YTD) as of Dec. 11. That puts the stock within about 3% of its consensus price target.
However, those targets have been moving higher since the bank reported earnings in mid-October. JPMorgan Chase also pays a reliable dividend that has increased for 15 consecutive years.
If there’s an area of concern at the moment, it would be valuation. At around 15.6x earnings, JPM stock is slightly overvalued on a historical basis. New investors may want to wait for a better entry point.
That could come from a pullback to around $300, which has happened twice in the last month. Alternatively, investors could look for a bullish move above the stock’s 52-week high of $322.25.
Morgan Stanley: Wealth Management Strength Meets Rising Rates
Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) is another financial services company that’s been outperforming the broader market. MS stock is up approximately 44% YTD. Although this puts the stock above its consensus price target, it received an upgrade and price target increase from Weiss Research in mid-November.
The bullish sentiment is based on the company’s growing wealth and investment management franchise, which drives a majority of the firm’s earnings and high-margin revenue.
That business will continue to benefit from higher long-term rates.
Investors also anticipate a revival in initial public offerings (IPOs) as well as mergers and acquisitions (M&A) in 2026.
Like JPM stock, Morgan Stanley is trading at a slight premium to its historical average.
But with institutional investors looking to broaden this bull market, MS stock is a logical choice in the financial sector.
Prudential Financial: A Discounted Income Play for Higher Rates
Prudential Financial Inc. (NYSE: PRU) is the asymmetric play on this list of finance stocks. The company offers an appealing mix of income, defensive stability, and gradual earnings growth.
PRU stock is down 0.71% in 2025 but is up more than 10% in the 30 days ending Dec. 11. One reason for the stock’s performance is its declining year-over-year (YOY) revenue. That’s being offset by strong YOY earnings growth.
Analysts may buy into the story that higher-for-longer interest rates will expand investment income across its core retirement, annuity, and life insurance segments, supporting margin expansion.
The company is also benefiting from ongoing derisking efforts and a shift toward fee-based and international businesses that provide more stable cash flow.
Plus, at 15.7x earnings, Prudential is trading at a discount to its historical average. Investors also like the company’s high-yield dividend, which has a 4.59% yield as of this writing.
After the recent spike higher, PRU stock looks a little extended. Investors will want to wait for a pullback to around $108, which would align with the stock’s 20-day simple moving average (SMA), not shown. Alternatively, investors may want to wait for confirmation of a bullish golden cross signal, which is setting up. READ THIS STORY ONLINE
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Disney’s $1 Billion Deal Brings Its Magic to OpenAI
Written by Jordan Chussler
Starting in 2026, you may be able to create images and videos through OpenAI platforms that draw inspiration from Mickey Mouse, Cinderella, Iron Man, and hundreds of other characters that fall under Disney’s intellectual property.
On Thursday, Dec. 11, global entertainment and media conglomerate Walt Disney (NYSE: DIS) entered into an agreement with OpenAI that involves Disney licensing its content for Sora, OpenAI’s short-form generative AI video platform.
The deal, which will see Disney injecting $1 billion into OpenAI over the course of three years, serves as a significant step along the path to establishing best practices and standards for the use of AI in entertainment.
Speaking on the agreement, Disney CEO Bob Iger told CNBC that the deal gives the company “an opportunity to play a part in what is really a breathtaking growth in AI and new forms of media and entertainment.”
Iger added that the deal will enable OpenAI to put guardrails around how Disney characters are used in a rapidly evolving generative AI landscape.
For investors curious about how the partnership could impact their holdings, here is how the equity agreement could translate into notable share appreciation.
Disney’s Deal Will Bolster OpenAI’s Sora Platform
The news comes in the wake of Disney’s numerous legal threats against AI companies that have used its copyrighted material, as well as the Motion Picture Association urging OpenAI to take “immediate and decisive action” to prevent copyright infringement on Sora—its AI-powered text-to-video model created by OpenAI that generates realistic animated videos.
According to a press release from OpenAI about the landmark agreement, “it marks a significant step in setting meaningful standards for responsible AI in entertainment.”
Under the three-year licensing deal, OpenAI can use over 200 characters from Disney, Marvel, Pixar, and Star Wars franchises to create user-generated short videos through Sora. In turn, the agreement will make a selection of these fan-inspired Sora short-form videos available via streaming on Disney+, the streaming service of the consumer discretionary giant that in 2025 boasts 131.6 million subscribers and contributes $24.6 billion in direct-to-consumer revenue. Notably, the agreement excludes talent likenesses and voices.
The Disney-OpenAI Equity Agreement Is a Potential Boon for Investors
As part of the licensing agreement, the deal positions Disney to become a major investor in and customer of OpenAI. Specifically, Disney will gain access to OpenAI’s application programming interfaces (APIs) with the ability to develop new products, tools, and experiences for its Disney+ customers, as well as deploy ChatGPT for its employees.
The $1 billion equity deal also provides Disney with the right to purchase additional equity. That could ultimately prove to be a fruitful outcome for shareholders, with speculation that OpenAI is gearing up for an IPO that could come as soon as late 2026 or early 2027.
On Dec. 12, financial services firm Morningstar reported that it does not expect the Disney-OpenAI deal to “move the needle,” but added that the development “provides further support to our wide moat rating for the stock.”
Specifically, Morningstar noted that while the deal does not alleviate concerns about AI’s disruption in the media and entertainment landscape, it proves the value of Disney’s intellectual property and, importantly, its ability to adapt to a constantly shifting technological landscape.
Additionally, the firm postulates that Disney will be able to monetize engagement of these forthcoming short-form videos—something it otherwise would not have participated in—”without offering OpenAI access to long-form video entertainment, where [Disney] does participate.”
The Deal Could Bolster Disney’s Short-Term Momentum
Disney will likely be tapping into a new revenue stream beginning in early 2026 when it begins to curate Sora short-form videos and make them available on Disney+. That has the potential to fortify the stock’s recent momentum, which has seen 12 consecutive quarterly earnings beats.
While the stock is still down more than 36% over the past five years, it has also gained more than 36% since hitting its one-year low on April 4.
That sentiment is being reflected on Wall Street. Current short interest in Disney stands at just 1.09% of the float—or $2.06 billion—down significantly from the $4.79 billion worth of shares shorted in Q1 2020 when the stock had its most sizable short position over the past five years.
At the same time, institutional ownership remains healthy at more than 65%, with inflows of more than $29 billion exceeding outflows of more than $15 billion over the past 12 months. Analysts rate the stock a Moderate Buy, with the average 12-month price target implying 20.35% potential upside. READ THIS STORY ONLINE
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