Today is Wednesday, June 17, 2026.
The Early Bird Index today is 89.86.
New to this newsletter? Sign up here
AT&T's Bad Year Gets Worse 📉
It’s been a bad year for AT&T $T ( ▼ 0.56% ). On Tuesday, the telecommunications giant fell another 0.95% in after-hours trading after announcing a leadership change.
Details: Chief Financial Officer Pascal Desroches announced his retirement, which will occur at the end of the year. The company announced that Jennifer Biry will assume the role.
Background: Investors of AT&T would probably like to forget 2026. As the stock market rises, AT&T is lagging behind with a 5% drop. Going back 12 months, the stock is down 17%.
Powering the Story: While AT&T’s financial earnings results have been fine, concerns are mounting over how much cash it is spending on its fiber network expansion. There are also growing fears about more consumers migrating towards satellite options.
Early Bird’s Nest Egg Gains: AT&T’s CFO retirement looks more like a managed transition than a red flag by itself, but in the market, it can still reinforce skepticism if investors already worry about execution and capital allocation.
Final Thoughts: At least AT&T still offers a good dividend yield of 4%, which is helpful for investors who seek immediate income.
PRESENTED BY CASH APP
3 money habits teens can start building now
With a Cash App Card, teens can take their first steps toward independence with a secure debit card. They’ll learn how to spend, save, and manage money, all with your guidance and oversight to help them get started.
Learn to spend responsibly. A debit card gives them a safe way to practice managing money under your supervision. It gives you the opportunity to teach them how to make smart spending choices.
Start saving for their goals. Setting goals can help them see how saving a little at a time can help them reach their short-term and long-term goals.
Manage their own money. Whether they get paid with direct deposit or use Cash App to get allowance or gifts, they get real experience with money.
Cash App is a financial services platform, not a bank. Banking services provided by Cash App’s bank partner(s). Prepaid debit cards issued by Sutton Bank, Member FDIC. Cash App Visa® Debit Flex Cards issued by Sutton Bank, Member FDIC, and The Bancorp Bank, N.A., pursuant to a license from Visa U.S.A. Inc. See terms and conditions for the Sutton prepaid card (https://cash.app/legal/us/en-us/card-agreement), Sutton debit flex card (https://cash. app/legal/us/en-us/debit-flex-card-agreement-sutton), and Bancorp debit flex card (https:// cash.app/legal/us/en-us/debit-flex-card-agreement-bancorp).
Notables
Notable Earnings Today: Jabil (NYSE: JBL), CarMax (NYSE: KMX), Smith & Wesson Brands (Nasdaq: SWBI).
Notable IPOs Today: Cantor Equity Partners VII, Inc. Class A Ordinary Shares (Nasdaq: CAES), Churchill Capital Corp XII Class A Ordinary Shares (Nasdaq: CXII), Nova Minerals Corp (NYSE American: NVA).
Notable Equity Crowdfunding Campaigns Ending Today: Kara Water (StartEngine), The London Tunnels (Crowdcube).
Notable Economic Events Today: Retail Sales / Core Retail Sales (8:30 a.m. ET), Retail Control (8:30 a.m. ET), Retail Inventories Excluding Autos (10:00 a.m. ET), Pending Home Sales (10:00 a.m. ET), Business Inventories (10:00 a.m. ET), Crude Oil Inventories (10:30 a.m. ET), Fed Interest Rate Decision (2:00 p.m. ET), FOMC Statement (2:00 p.m. ET), FOMC Press Conference (2:30 p.m. ET).
La-Z-Boy Plays Offense
Gif by lazboy on Giphy
Furniture manufacturer La-Z-Boy $LZB ( ▼ 7.2% ) surged 17.66% in after-hours trading on Tuesday after posting good financial earnings results.
Financials: La-Z-Boy reported earnings of $1.26 per share in the past quarter and revenue of $570 million. Both were better than expected.
Quote: “We continue to drive our own momentum and are playing offense, led by our Retail business expansion through new stores, acquisition of independent stores, and delighting consumers across our network.” - CEO Melinda D. Whittington.
Final Thoughts: This is a turnaround for La-Z-Boy. The stock was down 6% this year before these strong results.
Hyperliquid’s Bitwise Boost
As most major cryptocurrency prices fell on Tuesday, Hyperliquid $HYPE ( ▼ 5.2% ) jumped about 8%.
Powering the Story: Hyperliquid benefited from news that asset manager Bitwise, which recently launched a Hyperliquid ETF (exchange-traded fund), bought $5.2 million in tokens on Tuesday.
Final Thoughts: Hyperliquid has nearly tripled in price this year. It stands out among other cryptos that have struggled in 2026.
Trends to Watch
$3 Billion Deal Lost: Microsoft walked away from a $3 billion deal to lease Oracle cloud capacity over security concerns (Business Insider)
Rejection: Netflix Isn’t Interested in Lionsgate Despite Takeover Speculation (The Wrap)
Good Question: Bitcoin tops $67K following US-Iran peace deal: Is it a bull trap? (Cointelegraph)
Rising Like a Rocket: SpaceX valuation balloons to $2.6T, briefly passes Amazon (TechCrunch)
Odd Timing: Rivian laying off hundreds of workers amid R2 launch (CNBC)
Thank you for reading!
Forward to a friend and tell them to sign up here.
Pick winning stocks: Upgrade to Early Bird Prime.
Become a smarter investor: Get Early Bird Exclusives
Want more investing tips? Listen to the podcast.
Show Your Support: Buy Me a Coffee.
Questions or comments? Hit reply to reach out.
The contents of Early Bird are intended for informational and entertainment purposes only. They do not constitute trade or investment recommendations, and they are not financial or legal advice. Readers are encouraged to consult licensed professionals for personalized guidance regarding their financial or legal situations.
