Midday Fly By: Verizon reports ‘beat and raise,’ Shell to acquire ARC

The major averages were broadly lower amid stalled peace negotiations between the U.S. and Iran as well as new escalation in the Strait of Hormuz. Investors are also balancing continued strength in corporate earnings and AI-driven optimism with rising geopolitical tension and macro uncertainty.

Claim 55% Off TipRanks

The collapse of U.S-Iran peace talks has pushed oil prices higher, raising fresh concerns about inflation and global growth. Of note, Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson has said that no meeting between the U.S. and Iran is currently planned.

Get caught up quickly on the top news and calls moving stocks with these five Top Five lists.

1. STOCK NEWS:

• Verizon (VZ) provided a “beat and raise” report for Q1
• Domino’s Pizza (DPZ) reported downbeat Q1 results and announced an additional $1B share repurchase program
• Shell (SHEL) agreed to acquire ARC Resources (AETUF) for C$32.80 per share
• Sun Pharma (OGN) for $14 per share in an all-cash transaction
• China has blocked Meta‘s (META) acquisition of AI startup Manus

2. WALL STREET CALLS:

• Snap (SNAP) upgraded to Buy at Rothschild & Co Redburn
• Rothschild (PINS) to Neutral from Buy
• Mizuho (ADBE) on intensifying competition from AI
• Mizuho (CRWD), citing “numerous exciting growth avenues”
• Campbell’s (CPB) downgraded to Market Perform at Bernstein

3. AROUND THE WEB:

• Samsung (SSNLF) plans to withdraw from China’s home appliance and television market this year, Nikkei Asia reports
• Amazon (AMZN) has entered a multiyear licensing deal with Oprah Winfrey, NY Times reports
• Big tech companies are preparing to spend hundreds of billions of dollars on AI infrastructure, with most of their plans dependent on ASML (ASML), WSJ says
• South Korea and Google (GOOGL) have agreed to establish an AI campus in Seoul to strengthen collaboration with local engineers and startups, Reuters reports
• Bayer (BAYRY) is hoping the U.S. Supreme Court can reduce or simplify the lawsuits over its Roundup weedkiller and potentially corral litigation that has cost the company over $10B, Bloomberg says

4. MOVERS:

• Veradermics (MANE) gains after announcing its Phase 2/3 trial of VDPHL01 met all primary and secondary endpoints
• RE/MAX Holdings (RMAX) increases after announcing it will be acquired by Real Brokerage for $13.80 per share
• Nokia (NOK) higher in New York after Argus upgraded the stock to Buy from Hold
• Compass Therapeutics (CMPX) lower after reporting additional results from its COMPANION-002 study
• Poet Technologies (POET) falls after announcing the cancellation of Celestial AI purchase orders

5. EARNINGS/GUIDANCE:

• Lakeland Financial (LKFN) reported Q1 results, with CEO David Findlay commenting, “We started 2026 with robust, record net income for the second consecutive quarter”
• HBT Financial (HBT) reported Q1 results, with EPS and revenue beating consensus
• Repay Holdings (RPAY) reported preliminary Q1 results and reaffirmed its guidance for FY26
• WW (WW) reaffirmed its Q1 subscriber estimates and FY26 financial guidance
• Gold Royalty (GROY) reported preliminary Q1 results

INDEXES:

Near midday, the Dow was down 0.25%, or 123.57, to 49,107.14, the Nasdaq was down 0.28%, or 68.97, to 24,767.63, and the S&P 500 was down 0.14%, or 9.68, to 7,155.40.