Good morning and welcome to the stock market today! Investors are thriving on social media beef, cryptocurrency prices are in flux and billionaires are definitely feeling the heat. So what all will the stock market do today?
- The S&P 500 is down 0.08%
- The Dow Jones Industrial Average is down 0.09%
- The Nasdaq Composite is up 0.13%
So what will the stock market do today? Here are some of the top stories.
r/WallStreetBets Apes Are Hungry for Summer Salad
The latest stock stirring up a frenzy on r/WallStreetBets simply makes a lot of sense. Today, it seems that retail investors are hungry for gains with fast-food chain Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) and WEN stock.
Importantly, Wendy’s does not follow the same formula as many other stand-out picks like GameStop (NYSE:GME) and AMC Entertainment (NYSE:AMC). Unlike these stocks, Wendy’s does not have a particularly high short interest. In fact, WEN stock boasts a short volume ratio of just 6%.
However, there is one reason why the retail crowd may be genuinely interested in Wendy’s. The restaurant chain is interested in theme. While GameStop and AMC have embraced retail investors after the fact, Wendy’s has been all about memes and a strong social media presence. Back in February 2021, the company was not winning on r/WallStreetBets. However, it was gaining traction with its Twitter followers, getting into beef with the corporate GameStop account. Beyond that incident, Wendy’s is known for having a particularly sharp social team in general. In a meme-dominated world, that makes WEN stock a sensical pick.
— GameStop (@GameStop) February 4, 2020
Plus, we all know r/WallStreetBets is all about tendies.
Before you roll your eyes and brush WEN stock off as just another fad, InvestorPlace contributor Robert Lakin has a compelling argument for the Wendy’s fundamentals. The restaurant chain is looking to come back from the Covid-19 pandemic in a meaningful way. Revenue and earnings per share are up, and Wendy’s is moving forward with plans to open 250 locations by the end of 2021. Its latest strawberry summer salad announcement also plays to consumer trends.
So what is the bottom line? Wendy’s is certainly not the best investment on Wall Street, but it represents an attractive intersection of retail investor interests and rebounding fundamentals.
Biden Plans to Talk Crypto
Yesterday the big news was that U.S. investigators had retrieved $2.3 million in Bitcoin (CCC:BTC-USD) that the operators of the Colonial Pipeline paid out to hackers. This put the Colonial Pipeline in a unique situation among victims of cyber attacks, and it raised a lot of questions about cryptocurrencies.
Namely, President Joe Biden has taken a special interest in crypto following the ransomware attack on the Colonial Pipeline. He has called on investigators to strengthen their crypto analysis abilities. According to CoinTelegraph, he will also publicly discuss crypto and the blockchain for one of the first times at a big venue… the upcoming G-7 summit. There, Biden plans to discuss the relationship between cryptocurrencies and cyber attacks, and how other countries can combat cyber criminals.
With regulators already interested in putting pressure on cryptocurrency and figures like former President Donald Trump linking Bitcoin to the world of scams and white-collar crimes, the Colonial Pipeline news has raised some concerns over privacy. If officials can track crypto transactions and even retrieve funds, is Bitcoin really a solution for privacy?
What Else We’re Watching
- A massive outage at content delivery network (CDN) Fastly (NYSE:FSLY) brought a series of key news sites down on Tuesday morning. Impacted sites include Reddit, CNN, FT, New York Times and Bloomberg. FSLY stock is currently up 6%.
- MicroStrategy (NASDAQ:MSTR) is selling $400 million in debt to be able to add more Bitcoin to its balance sheet. Investors should note that MicroStrategy expects to post a nearly $300 million loss due to the fluctuating nature of Bitcoin prices.
- Other space stocks like Virgin Galactic (NYSE:SPCE) and Holicity (NASDAQ:HOL) are continuing to gain thanks to Jeff Bezos. It seems that the billionaire and his big bet on Blue Origin are sparking new confidence in the future of space tourism.
On the date of publication, Sarah Smith did not have (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.com Publishing Guidelines.
Sarah Smith is the Editor of Today’s Market with InvestorPlace.com.
