Google's Largest Acquisition

Plus, XRP’s strong weekend rally.

July 15, 2024

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Today is Monday, July 15, 2024.

The Early Bird Index today is 76.60.

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Google's Largest Acquisition

Google parent Alphabet (Nasdaq: GOOGL) is reportedly about to make a big acquisition before big tech earnings begin this week.

Details: The Wall Street Journal reported Sunday that Alphabet is about to acquire the startup Wiz, which operates a cloud security platform, for about $23 billion. This would be the company’s largest acquisition of all time.

  • The report said the deal could come together soon if it doesn’t fall apart.

  • Both companies have yet to comment on the deal.

Background: Google’s previous largest acquisition was Motorola Mobility, which it purchased for $12.5 billion in 2012.

Stock Price: Alphabet is up 33.90% this year, including a 4.65% gain in the last 30 days.

Early Bird’s Nest Egg Gains: Why is it good that Alphabet acquired a cloud security company? As organizations continue to embrace cloud technologies and hybrid work models, the complexity of cloud environments has grown significantly. This expansion creates more potential vulnerabilities and attack surfaces that need to be secured. Alphabet can capitalize on these trends.

Final Thoughts: Alphabet reports earnings on July 23. Other tech companies will start to report earnings this week.

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Notables

Notable Earnings Today: Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS), BlackRock (NYSE: BLK), FB Financial (NYSE: FBK), CrossFirst Bankshares (Nasdaq: CFB), Guaranty Bancshares (NYSE: GNTY), ServisFirst Bancshares (NYSE: SFBS).

Notable IPOs Today: N/A.

Notable Equity Crowdfunding Campaigns Ending Today: Windy City Mushroom Farms (Honeycomb), Breakwave Energy (Raise Green), Zing Drone Solutions (Wefunder).

Notable Economic Events Today: NY Empire State Manufacturing Index (8:30 a.m. ET), Fed Chair Powell Speaks (12:00 p.m. ET).

XRP’s Strong Weekend Rally

The price of the cryptocurrency XRP jumped about 10% this weekend due to key contributing factors.

Details: Saturday marked the first anniversary of Ripple’s win against the SEC in court, which boosted XRP’s price. Ripple is the blockchain network that uses XRP.

Also: CME Group announced a few days ago that it will soon add XRP dollar reference rates to its expanding suite of benchmarks. It is a positive sign when financial institutions recognize a new crypto.

Price: Unlike most cryptos, XRP is negative for the year. It is down 16% in 2024.

Final Thoughts: While the weekend rally is good, XRP faces challenges. Many institutions still aren’t recognizing XRP and are supporting other cryptos instead.

Bitcoin Jumps on Whale Accumulation 

Bitcoin ticked up about 2% on Sunday. This was because whales, people who own a lot of crypto, bought billions of dollars of Bitcoin.

Final Thoughts: Bitcoin is down about 5% in the last 30 days.

The Real $2 Trillion Question: Amazon Hits Prime Time for Earnings Expansion (Wall Street Journal)

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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.