UnsubscribeThe 2026 Income Revolution is unlike any I’ve ever done (From ProsperityPub)

Why 2026 Could Be the Year D-Wave Breaks Out

Written by Nathan Reiff

The quantum computing industry has had a wild ride in 2025. Despite a pullback this fall, the leading quantum stocks have dominated the broader market this year, and D-Wave Quantum Inc. (NYSE: QBTS) has remained an eye-catching favorite among analysts and investors alike. In the last month alone, analysts at four Wall Street firms have initiated Buy or Outperform ratings for QBTS stock.

Here’s the actionable setup for investors: If you’re looking at 2026 as a potential “real commercialization” year for quantum, D-Wave stands out for its mix of early traction, a long cash runway, and fresh analyst support—but the stock also carries the valuation and execution risk that comes with an industry still proving itself.

Revenue Is Small, but the Direction Is Getting Harder to Ignore

Like most quantum-focused firms, D-Wave’s sales history does not yet match the high expectations held by investors. Revenue more than doubled year-over-year for the third quarter of 2025, reaching about $3.7 million for the quarter. The growth rate is striking, but the dollar figure remains modest—especially relative to the stock’s valuation.

Although small in absolute terms, D-Wave’s sales are on an unmistakable upward path, and analysts see the trend continuing.

Jefferies analysts, for example, expect a 73% compound annual revenue growth rate (CAGR) over the next several years.

2026 may be the year that D-Wave taps into a broader market, which could provide a catalyst to drive further revenue expansion. 

So far, D-Wave’s customers have primarily been governments and large organizations—one of its most recently announced quantum system sales involved the Italian government, for instance—but smaller clients are displaying increasing interest. 

In particular, D-Wave’s cloud quantum service could appeal to businesses looking to harness quantum technology without investing in a multi-million-dollar quantum computer.

Annealing and Gate-Model Combination Serves Broadest Possible Client Base

D-Wave’s identity has long been tied to quantum annealing, which many investors view as more specialized than the gate-model approach pursued by other quantum peers. D-Wave’s recent success in practical settings points to the promise of this alternative approach. In particular, annealing is ideal for solving optimization problems—determining the best possible approach among a huge range of possibilities—in industries like transportation, drug development, logistics, and finance, among many others.

D-Wave’s use of annealing may boost its marketability in the near term. And lest investors worry that rivals with alternative quantum approaches will later overshadow the company, D-Wave is also exploring gate-model technology. Its massive cash base of close to $1 billion, which dwarfs many of its quantum rivals, gives D-Wave the breathing room to continue developing its technology while market interest develops.

Buying QBTS on Shifting Sentiment

The autumnal sell-off across the quantum space led to some pessimistic views of D-Wave and other quantum firms. However, short interest in the company has improved, and shares of QBTS rallied in the last few weeks of the year.

To top that off, a cue from the professional investment world came in a recent report that Ken Griffin, billionaire leader of the prominent hedge fund Citadel, recently loaded up on shares of D-Wave.

Analysts are continuing to signal bullishness on D-Wave stock. A large majority of analysts on Wall Street still view D-Wave as a Buy, despite recent turbulence.

On top of the significant gains achieved this year, analysts see another 26% or so in potential upside going forward.

Investors buying in at the start of the year may find that there’s still plenty of room for this quantum giant to grow. READ THIS STORY ONLINE

Peter Thiel’s BIGGEST Investment – This Ticker Gets You Exposure (Ad)

We believe we’ve found the next Elon Musk — and so does Peter Thiel, who just made his largest investment ever: $1 billion into this man’s company. 

Unfortunately, the company is private. So unless you know Pete personally or have some deep connections… you can’t get in.

That was until we uncovered this…CLICK HERE TO UNLOCK THE PRE-IPO TICKER SYMBOL NOW — BEFORE THIS BRIEFING DISAPPEARS.

Instacart’s Pricing Tests Spark Backlash… But Investors Didn’t Care

Written by Jordan Chussler

America’s favorite grocery ordering and delivery app came under pressure earlier this month after a consumer advocacy investigation raised concerns about its pricing practices and transparency.

A joint investigation conducted by Consumer Reports and Groundwork Collaborative and published on Dec. 9, found that Maplebear (NASDAQ: CART), which does business as Instacart, conducted pricing experiments that resulted in different customers seeing different prices for identical items, a practice Consumer Reports said does not meet the definition of surveillance pricing.

The scrutiny came just days before the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced on Dec. 18 that it was levying a $60 million penalty against the company as a result of “deceiving consumers with false advertising, failure to provide refunds and unlawful subscription enrollment processes” in an unrelated enforcement action.

This year, the stock has underperformed the market, as has much of the consumer staples sector. But since its year-to-date (YTD) low on Nov. 6, Instacart is up more than 31%. 

When the news about the Consumer Reports investigation into its pricing practices broke earlier this month, the stock pulled back nearly 6%. But in the days that followed, shares had already bounced back nearly 6%.

Here’s why investors shrugged off the controversy surrounding the company’s pricing experiments and resulting consumer backlash, and why the FTC’s penalty didn’t deflate shareholders’ long-term expectations.

How Instacart’s Pricing Tests Created Price Differences

The largest online grocery ordering and delivery app, Instacart serves approximately 14.9 million customers—up from 14.4 million in 2024—while having amassed an army of shoppers numbering around 600,000. 

Like other companies leveraging AIfor various competitive advantages, Instacart turned to the technology, using short-term, randomized A/B pricing tests to evaluate consumer price sensitivity at an aggregate level. The AI model, which it implemented as far back as 2022, was used to support short-term pricing experiments rather than real-time, demand-based dynamic pricing.

But the report found that “many U.S. shoppers who order grocery deliveries through Instacart are unknowingly part of widespread AI-enabled experiments that price identical products differently from one customer to the next.”

Those prices differed by as much as 23% per individual item from one Instacart customer to the next—a technique the company refers to as “smart rounding,” according to an inadvertently released email.  

To insiders and shareholders, however, the strategy wasn’t entirely secretive. “Instacart has disclosed its pricing experiments in corporate marketing and investor materials,” Consumer Reports found, with those documents noting that shoppers were entirely unaware that they were participating in the company’s so-called pricing experiment.

Instacart says its retail partners ultimately control base prices on the platform, while Instacart provides the infrastructure used to conduct pricing tests.

Why Investors Shrugged off the Bad News

In response to the Consumer Reports investigation, Instacart denied using surveillance pricing, stating that it does not use—and does not allow partners to use—personal, demographic, or user-level behavioral data to set prices.

But charging different prices for products based on the customers isn’t illegal, nor is it a new practice in the United States. 

While the line between dynamic pricing and surveillance pricing is blurred, companies commonly maintain practices that see price fluctuations based on demand, location and a slew of factors.  

Take, for example, rideshare operators like Uber (NYSE: UBER) and Lyft (NASDAQ: LYFT). Those companiesboth employ dynamic pricing—which they refer to as surge pricing—during periods of high demand. Their platforms adjust fares based on real-time supply, demand, traffic, time of day, location and even weather.

Then, there are Instacart’s financialsto consider. Not only was the company profitable before its IPO on Sept. 19, 2023, but it has also averaged 10.15% revenue growth over its last four quarters. At the same time, the company’s net cash from operating activities increased by nearly 88%. 

From an earnings perspective, it’s much the same. Instacart has beat expectations in seven of the past eight quarters while only missing on revenue expectations twice during the same time frame.    

Wall Street Remains Bullish on CART

According to industry analysis and consultancy firm Grand View Research, the global online grocery market, which was estimated to be valued at more than $67 billion in 2024, is forecast to growat a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 36.8% from 2025 to 2033. 

That will bring the overall market to an expected value of more than $992 billion by the end of the forecast period. And of that, Instacart plays a central role. 

The result is a bullish case from Wall Street. The 27 analysts covering CART have given it a consensus Moderate Buy rating and an average 12-month price target that is nearly 14% higher than where shares are trading today. 

Institutional ownership sits at more than 63%, with the smart money injecting $3.73 billion in inflows into Instacart over the past 12 months compared to $1.4 billion in outflows. And despite short interest currently coming in at 6.58% of the float, or $537 million, that figure represents a nearly 29% decrease from the previous period when it was $734 million.  READ THIS STORY ONLINE

The 2026 Income Revolution is unlike any I’ve ever done (Ad)

One trader is kicking off a new challenge for 2026 — using a rules-based options setup designed to filter for higher-conviction trades.

At the center of the approach is a proprietary scanning tool that looks for specific options conditions and surfaces opportunities automatically. In a recent briefing, he explains how the tool works, the logic behind the setup, and why it’s built to function even during volatile market periods. READ THE FULL BRIEFING HERE

5 Stocks Using Buybacks to Drive Serious Upside Into 2026

Written by Thomas Hughes

Share buybacks are a powerful tool that companies use to provide value for shareholders. The benefits are numerous, including tax efficiency, increased demand, reduced supply, and the leverage provided to existing shareholders, not to mention the impact on market sentiment.

Share buybacks, specifically those that aggressively reduce the share count, are a sign of C-suite confidence, often reflected in analysts’ and institutional buying trends and bullish stock price trends. This is an examination of five buyback plans that fit the bill. 

Citigroup Has Tailwinds to Drive It Higher in 2026

Citigroup (NYSE: C) has numerous tailwinds to drive its stock price higher, including share buybacks. The buybacks reduced the share count by a modest single-digit figure in 2024 and are on track to exceed the pace in 2025. Among the other catalysts for the financial stock are improved safety controls in the investment business, beat-and-raise results in the Q3 fiscal year 2025 (FY2025) earnings release, and an uptrend in analysts’ sentiment.

Among the latest revisions, JPMorgan Chase analysts upgraded to Overweight from Neutral, citing the improved outlook. The takeaway for investors is that Citigroup’s buyback plan is reliable for 2026, including the dividend, and distribution increases are likely. Growing and improving cash flow quality allows for increased buyback capacity and dividend increases. 

Barrick Mining Corporation: Digging Money Out of the Ground

Barrick Mining Corporation (NYSE: B) literally digs money out of the ground, and conditions have never been better. The company’s primary input cost, fuel, is trading at long-term lows while gold prices continue to surge, providing near-record margins and cash flow. This allows for a dividend yielding about 1.5% in late 2025 and share buybacks.

The buybacks are aggressive, having reduced the count by 1% sequentially in Q3 FY2025 and 3% year-to-date (YTD), and are expected to continue. The Q3 release included a $1 billion increase to the authorization, ensuring buybacks in the next few quarters at a minimum. Other catalysts on the horizon include the potential spin-off and IPO of its US operations. 

Allison Transmission Holdings Among Most Aggressive Share Buyers

Allison Transmission (NYSE: ALSN)doesn’t provide many details on its buyback plans from quarter to quarter, but has historically reduced its count aggressively. The company has repurchased more than 63% of its shares since 2012 and is on track to reduce the count by a modest single-digit figure in 2025. Among the opportunities for investors is a long-term low in the share price, driven by revenue weakness in 2025, and the trend-following signal that it produced. 

The signal shows support in alignment with a prior high, compounded by increased trading volume and accumulative activity among analysts and institutions. Analysts rate the stock as a Hold and are leading the market into its reversal with their price target revisions. Institutions own more than 95% of the shares and have bought at a pace of $2 for each $1 sold in Q3 FY2025 and quarter-to-date in Q4. 

Abercrombie & Fitch Co.: Reversal Is in Style for 2026

Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE: ANF) stock, which is operating in fiscal year 2026, struggled in early 2025 due to growth concerns and uncertainty rather than actual weakness. The takeaway in late 2025 is that outperformance is the trend, growth remains, and cash flow is solid. The company doesn’t pay dividends but instead aggressively buys back shares, reducing the share count by 9% year-over-year (YOY) in the quarter and 7.7% YTD. 

Analyst sentiment reflects growing interest, a 70% increase in coverage, and a leading trend in price targets that is reversing the stock price action. Assuming upcoming releases remain healthy, this market could advance as much as 50% to 60% to align with record highs set in 2024.

Dick’s Sporting Goods: Core Business Is Good, Plus the Foot Locker Opportunity

Dick’s Sporting Goods’ (NYSE: DKS)share count was up YOY in Q3 FY2026 as a result of its Foot Locker acquisition; however, it won’t be for long. Dick’s Sporting Goods is an aggressive share buyer, as reflected in the core metrics. The core adjusted share count fell by more than 2% as repurchase activity nearly doubled.

Buybacks are expected to continue in the upcoming quarters due to the cash flow outlook and authorization, and will soon whittle down the reported increase. Integrating Foot Locker is a hurdle for 2026, but it is not expected to impact buyback activity. The primary concern is impairments, as underperforming stores are closed, and the cost of brand invigoration.

 READ THIS STORY ONLINE

Starlink Set to Destroy [THIS] $2 TRILLION Industry (Ad)

Speculation around the future of private space companies is accelerating as new technologies move closer to commercialization.

In a recent sponsor briefing, one analyst explores how satellite networks could reshape global connectivity and examines ways some investors are seeking indirect exposure to the space economy through publicly traded assets — without waiting for a formal IPO. The presentation outlines the concept, potential implications, and important considerations. READ THE FULL SPONSOR BRIEFING HERE

More Stories

• Broadcom Just Raised Its Dividend—But It’s Not the Only One Signaling Strength
• RKLB, ASTS, TDG: Insiders are Selling These 3 Space Stocks
• Bitcoin reserves could see a supply shock soon (Ad)
• 3 Analyst-Backed Stocks the Market Is Getting Totally Wrong
• 5 Small-Cap Stocks to Watch in 2026 as Investors Rotate Out of Big Tech
• Could These 3 Aerospace Firms Go Stratospheric in 2026?
• 3 Reasons Palantir Is Unavoidable in AI Infrastructure by 2026

The Night Owl is a financial newsletter that provides in-depth market analysis on stocks of interest to individual investors. Published by MarketBeat and Early Bird Publishing, The Night Owl is delivered around 9:00 PM Eastern Sunday through Thursday. If you give a hoot about the market, The Night Owl is the newsletter for you.

View as a Web Page

If you have questions or concerns about your account, please don’t hesitate to contact MarketBeat’s South Dakota based support team at contact@marketbeat.com.

Unsubscribe

© 2006-2025 MarketBeat Media, LLC. All rights protected.
345 North Reid Place #620, Sioux Falls, SD 57103. USA..

Further Reading: Today’s Stock of the Day (From The Early Bird)