In the Money: 5 Things to Know

Futures higher, Couche-Tard misses, Micron beats, Walgreen’s swan song, General Mills upgrade

In the Money with Amber Kanwar is going to the Calgary Stampede! We will be filming an episode at ATB Financial with Adam Waterous – the man behind the hostile bid for MEG Energy. And I want YOU to be there! If you are going to be in Calgary on July 8th, send me a screenshot showing you are a subscriber and you could come to the live taping. Email questions@inthemoneypod.com! YEEEEHAWWWW

Why are the markets at all-time highs when everyone is so stressed out? On this episode of In the Money with Amber Kanwar, JoAnne Feeney, Partner & Portfolio Manager at Advisors Capital Management, unpacks what’s really going on beneath the surface of the S&P 500. She’s got an interesting background as a former economist and semiconductor analyst and gives her brutally honest opinion on your favourite stocks. You can listen on Apple, Spotify or here.

Fed bets: US futures are moving higher on bets that the Federal Reserve may cut interest rates sooner. Markets got an initial lift on reporting that suggested US President Donald Trump may name a successor to Jerome Powell sooner than usual. Powell’s term is up May 2026 but Trump may name a successor who is more dovish and thus markets can begin pricing that in after Powell’s term according to reporting from the Wall Street Journal. The US dollar fell and bonds are rallying. We also got a third read of GDP in the US which usually isn’t that market moving but in this case tepid Q1 growth was revised even lower (from -0.2% to -0.5%). The TSX slumped from an all-time high in yesterday’s session as energy and financials struggled. The S&P 500 failed to make a new high yesterday while the NASDAQ 100 hit fresh records.

Night owl: Watch shares of Alimentation Couche Tard at the open after it missed profit expectations on lower fuel prices and demand. The convenience store operator also gave an update on its earnings call about its pursuit of 7/eleven operator Seven & I saying they expect “certainty” on the deal “sooner than later.” Their pursuit of the deal has been an overhang on the stock because of concerns they would have to issue a bunch of shares to fund the deal. As for their results, Couche-Tard continues to struggle in the US with same-store sales falling (although not as much as 7/eleven stores in the US). “US (same-store sales) is being pressured by reduced traffic tied to a drop in tourism and ramped-up ICE enforcement,” wrote TD’s Michael Van Aelst.

Chippy: Shares of Micron are flat despite profit soaring passed expectations on stronger than expected sales and margins. The semiconductor company also posted better than expected free cash flow. Unsurprisingly data centre demand is driving the growth as AI demand more than doubled from last year. The outlook for sales and profit also came in higher than expected. So why the muted stock reaction? Some analysts believe the strong sales came from companies ordering more to get ahead of tariffs. “We view the aftermarket reaction as not about disappointment, but rather high expectations into the print,” wrote Stifel’s Brian Chin.

Swan song: Walgreens reported it’s last results as a public company and are ending on a high-ish note. Sales crushed expectations, growing 7% from last year. Walgreens is going private after accepting an offer from Sycamore partners which is expected to close later this year. While headline sales beat expectations thanks to their healthcare segment, front of store sales remained weak. Echoing the softness we saw at Couche-Tard.

Notable call: You know my toxic trait is buying stocks at multi-year lows when the market is at all-time highs by now. Enter, General Mills. The stock fell on disappointing results yesterday and closed at the lowest level since 2020. But – hear me out! RBC is upgrading the stock to outperform this morning. “While we acknowledge investor sentiment around packaged food remains poor and fundamentals have yet to fully turn, we believe (General Mills’ profit forecast) embeds enough cushion for it to deliver, despite an ongoing sluggish environment,” wrote RBC’s Nik Modi in the upgrade. On today’s podcast, JoAnne Feeney echoed that sentiment saying the stock was a buy here.