—— Market Panic Rises as U.S. Stocks Fall; Employees at All Big Three Automakers Go on Strike; iPhone 15 Sells Out Quickly; Discover to Sell Student Loan Unit; Planet Fitness Shares Hit Record Low; Instacart Raises IPO Price; TikTok Fined €345 Million
1. Market Panic Rises as U.S. Stocks Fall
Today, $4 trillion in stock options expired, adding massive volatility to U.S. equities.
Shares of tech giants like Nvidia and Meta fell more than 3.5%. The S&P 500 erased all of its weekly gains, while the Nasdaq dropped nearly 2%.
Wall Street’s fear gauge, the VIX, which had recently hit its lowest level since 2020, started rising again.
According to Bank of America, investor confidence in the economy led global equities to attract $25.3 billion in inflows this week — the most in 18 months.
Analysts warn the simultaneous strikes at the Big Three automakers could pose real economic risks.
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2. Employees at All Big Three Automakers Go on Strike
Today, workers represented by the United Auto Workers (UAW) union went on strike at Ford, GM, and Stellantis.
The union says it will decide on expanding strike locations depending on the progress of labor contract negotiations. UAW strategically selected Ford’s plant in Michigan, GM’s in Missouri, and Stellantis’ in Ohio — all of which produce the automakers’ most profitable vehicles while costing the union less to strike.
UAW President Shawn Fain said this is the first time in history the union is striking all three auto giants simultaneously — a move to strengthen its bargaining position.
The UAW represents 150,000 workers. After four years of soaring profits for the companies, employees want a bigger share.
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3. iPhone 15 Sells Out Quickly
At 8 AM Eastern Time this morning, pre-orders opened for Apple’s new iPhone 15 lineup.
The $1,199 iPhone 15 Pro Max sold out quickly. The earliest delivery date for the most popular titanium version of the iPhone 15 Pro has already been pushed back to November 13.
Delivery times in Canada and India have also been delayed by up to two months, and could extend further with more preorders coming in. Currently, only the pink version of the iPhone 15 has shorter delivery times.
Compared to last year, the base price of the iPhone 15 Pro Max increased by $100 — but judging from today’s launch, the price hike hasn’t cooled demand.
Apple’s Store app even briefly crashed due to high traffic.
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4. Discover to Sell Student Loan Unit
Sources say Discover Financial Services is considering selling its student loan unit as it looks to streamline its core business.
Discover is one of the few companies still offering private student loans.
The unit manages $10.2 billion in private loans, and potential buyers may include asset managers or other student loan platforms.
Last month, Discover CEO Roger Hochschild unexpectedly resigned. Board member John Owen has been appointed interim CEO.
Filings show student loan delinquencies are lower than those for credit cards and personal loans.
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5. Planet Fitness Shares Hit Record Low
Chain gym operator Planet Fitness announced today that CEO Chris Rondeau will step down immediately, though he will remain on the board.
Previously, 90% of analysts rated the stock a “buy,” with an average upside target of 50%. The news caught analysts by surprise.
Stifel analysts said new leadership could reignite growth. Baird’s Jonathan Komp said the company remains attractively valued and reiterated his bullish stance.
Shares plunged as much as 16%, hitting their lowest level since 2020.
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6. Instacart Raises IPO Price
Following chip designer Arm’s successful IPO this week — which saw shares surge as much as 25% on debut — online grocery delivery giant Instacart raised its IPO target price range by 7% to $28–$30 per share.
At the top end, Instacart could raise up to $660 million, higher than the previous $616 million.
Arm’s IPO has rekindled investor interest in new listings and suggests a recovery in the IPO market. In the coming weeks, Birkenstock and software firm Klaviyo are also expected to go public.
Even with the price bump, Instacart’s valuation remains just a quarter of what it was two years ago.
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7. TikTok Fined €345 Million
Ireland’s Data Protection Commission announced today that TikTok violated rules concerning the processing of data for users aged 13 to 17, and imposed a €345 million fine.
Earlier this year, Meta was fined €1.2 billion for transferring user data to the U.S. Instagram, owned by Meta, was previously fined €405 million for failing to protect children’s data.
TikTok has 134 million monthly users in Europe.
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This content is sourced from Financial Times, Bloomberg, and The Real Deal, among other financial news outlets.