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May 10, 2025

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Expedia’s cost controls offer hope, but analysts see growth hurdles ahead

4 Mins Read

Shares of Expedia Group fell sharply by more than 8.5% on Friday after the company reported first-quarter revenue that came in below Wall Street expectations, signalling a slowdown in US travel demand.

The online travel platform posted revenue of $2.98 billion, falling short of the $3.01 billion expected by analysts surveyed by LSEG.

The decline marks a concerning signal for the broader travel industry, which had been hoping for a strong summer season.

Analysts attributed the weaker-than-expected results to economic pressures weighing on consumer spending, particularly in the United States, where Expedia generates about two-thirds of its revenue.

At least 13 brokerages reduced their price targets on the stock post the earnings announcement.

Large US presence adds to the drag as inbound travel is affected

Expedia’s performance reflects growing consumer caution in the face of elevated interest rates, lingering inflation, and geopolitical uncertainty, including the impact of ongoing trade tensions.

“It’s all just a bit more pronounced in the case of Expedia, with a bigger US presence than peers,” said BTIG analyst Jake Fuller.

According to Barclays analysts, the recent results confirm that US travel has entered a slower phase.

Piper Sandler said commentary around US inbound travel and the B2C business was “discouraging”, and suggested a “tough slog from here”.

The brokerage downgraded the stock.

“Expedia will continued to have balanced risk/reward profile due to its ‘outsized exposure’ to the US demand environment, which makes up around two-thirds of its revenue,” Wedbush said in a Friday note.

US demand has demonstrated the greatest signs of uncertainty of softer consumer spending in the near term, Wedbush analysts said, lowering its price target to $165 from $180.

Analysts caution that low Canadian inbound travel to the US could dent summer play

One of the most striking data points was a nearly 30% drop in bookings to the US from Canada.

Analysts at Truist highlighted that tensions between the two countries may have begun discouraging cross-border travel.

This slump is significantly steeper than the 7% overall decline in international inbound bookings.

Analysts warned that the geopolitical strain could further dent sentiment during the summer season, especially if diplomatic ties do not stabilize.

They particularly cautioned about Canadian inbound travel to the US, which took a hit even though souring geopolitics only took hold in the final weeks of the quarter.

Core profit margin likely to be met despite weakening travel demand

Despite the gloom, Expedia Group is expected to stay on course to meet its core profit margin targets despite signs of weakening travel demand, according to a note from Oppenheimer on Friday.

The investment firm pointed to the company’s disciplined cost controls as a key factor supporting its margin resilience.

Chief Financial Officer Scott Schenkel told investors during an earnings call on Thursday that the online travel platform now anticipates its full-year EBITDA margin will expand by 75 to 100 basis points.

That marks an improvement over its earlier forecast of a 50-basis-point increase, according to a transcript from FactSet.

Despite the improved profitability outlook, Expedia revised its revenue growth guidance downward.

Management now expects revenue to rise by 2% to 4% over the full year, compared with a prior projection of 4% to 6%.

For the current quarter, the company forecasts revenue growth in the range of 3% to 5%, along with a similar 75 to 100 basis point increase in EBITDA margin.

Stock performance hinges on the macroeconomic picture

While gross bookings missed forecasts, Expedia managed to deliver adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization above expectations.

The company’s business-to-business segment showed relatively stronger performance thanks to its wider international reach.

Still, the outlook remains tepid.

The company’s second-quarter and full-year guidance fell modestly below consensus expectations.

“While Expedia investors do value profitable growth, returning to a focus on profitable growth isn’t the messaging those investors want to hear right now, even if it is the right move,” Benchmark analyst Daniel Kurnos says in a research note.

There needs to be a better growth component to the Expedia story for the stock to really work, the analyst says.

“That said, it probably wouldn’t take much for shares to pick up some low-hanging fruit as long as the broader macroeconomic picture doesn’t get worse.”

The post Expedia’s cost controls offer hope, but analysts see growth hurdles ahead appeared first on Invezz

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In World news

Investing in Uranium ETFs: 9 Options for Uranium Exposure

6 Mins Read

Exchange-traded funds (ETFs) are one of the fastest-growing investment vehicles, and as uranium’s role in the energy transition grows, investors are becoming increasingly interested in uranium ETFs and related products.

After years of dormancy, the uranium spot price zoomed past the US$100 per pound level in early 2024 on supply risks and a strong outlook for long-term demand. Although it’s since pulled back, bulls believe it still has room to run.

Supporting factors include the lack of new uranium mines, Russia’s dominance in conversion and enrichment, rising demand for low-carbon energy sources and the continued development and deployment of small modular reactors.

There is also increasing demand for uranium from China and India as both of these countries grapple with air pollution in the face of growing electricity demand. China is working to expand its nuclear power capacity, and although it ranks among the top 10 uranium-producing countries, it relies heavily on uranium imports.

Compounded, these factors are creating a mounting supply deficit.

“This year, uranium mines will only supply 75 percent of demand, so 25 percent of demand is uncovered,” Amir Adnani, CEO and president of Uranium Energy (NYSEAMERICAN:UEC), said at a January 2025 event.

Although the fundamentals are promising, the U3O8 spot price has faced pressure in 2025, with prices below US$80 since the start of the year. As supply tightens, incentivizing new projects to come online is becoming imperative.

“Next year, uranium demand is going up because there are 65 reactors under construction, and we haven’t even started talking about small and advanced modular reactors,” Adnani said. “Small and advanced modular reactors are an additional source of demand that, maybe not next year, but within the next three to four years, can become a reality.”

As mentioned, that backdrop is helping uranium ETFs and related investment products gain steam. Today there are five uranium ETFs available, as well as four investment vehicles backed by physical uranium — and perhaps more to come.

Read on to learn about the uranium ETFs and related vehicles on offer. All data was current as of May 5, 2025.

Uranium ETFs tracking uranium stocks

1. Global X Uranium ETF (ARCA:URA)

Total asset value: US$2.7 billion

The Global X Uranium ETF tracks a basket of uranium miners, as well as nuclear component producers.

The fund has an expense ratio of 0.69 percent and a yearly return of negative 17.23 percent, a decline that coincides with the recent pullback in the uranium price.

Uranium companies account for a significant portion of its portfolio, and nearly half of those companies are Canadian. The ETF’s top two uranium company holdings are major uranium producer Cameco (TSX:CCO,NYSE:CCJ) at a weight of 22.31 percent and NexGen Energy (TSX:NXE) at 5.64 percent. Interestingly, one of its top three holdings is the Sprott Physical Uranium Trust (TSX:U.U) at a weight of 8.52 percent.

2. Sprott Uranium Miners ETF (ARCA:URNM)

Total asset value: US$1.32 billion

The Sprott Uranium Miners ETF includes both uranium producers and explorers for broader exposure. The fund has an expense ratio of 0.75 percent and a yearly return of negative 34.69 percent.

Uranium stocks with market caps under US$2 billion account for 48.7 percent of the ETF’s holdings. Its top three holdings are Cameco at 15.28 percent, the Sprott Physical Uranium Trust at 13.21 percent and Kazatomprom (LSE:59OT,OTC Pink:NATKY) at 12.99 percent.

3. VanEck Vectors Uranium + Nuclear Energy ETF (ARCA:NLR)

Total asset value: US$1.02 billion

The VanEck Vectors Uranium + Nuclear Energy ETF launched in 2007 and tracks a market-cap-weighted index of stocks in the uranium and nuclear energy industries. Its expense ratio is 0.61 percent and its yearly return is negative 0.12 percent.

This uranium ETF’s top three holdings are Constellation Energy Group (NASDAQ:CEG) at a weight of 8.49 percent, Public Service Enterprise Group (NYSE:PEG) at 7.38 percent and Endesa (OTC Pink:ELEZF,SSE:ELE) at 6.95 percent.

4. Sprott Junior Uranium Miners ETF (NASDAQ:URNJ)

Total asset value: US$232.29 million

The Sprott Junior Uranium Miners ETF launched in February 2023, making it one of the newest additions to the uranium ETF universe. The ETF has an expense ratio of 0.8 percent and a yearly return of negative 15.51 percent.

It tracks the NASDAQ Sprott Junior Uranium Miners Index (INDEXNASDAQ:NSURNJ), which follows small-cap uranium companies. The fund’s 33 holdings are all uranium mining, development or exploration companies. Its top three holdings are Paladin Energy (ASX:PDN,OTCQX:PALAF) at 12.46 percent, Uranium Energy (NYSEAMERICAN:UEC) at 10.32 percent and NexGen Energy at 10.25 percent.

5. Horizons Global Uranium Index ETF (TSX:HURA)

Total asset value: US$55.08 million

The Horizons Global Uranium Index ETF was Canada’s first pure-play uranium ETF and provides exposure to uranium industry growth. It has an expense ratio of 1.06 percent and a yearly return of negative 25.2 percent.

Created in 2019, the fund’s top holdings are Cameco with a weight of 20.68 percent, Kazatomprom at a weight of 17.12 percent and the Sprott Physical Uranium Trust at 15.25 percent.

Physical uranium investment vehicles

1. Sprott Physical Uranium Trust (TSX:U.U)

Total asset value: US$4.09 billion

Of all the uranium-focused funds, this one has created the most buzz. Launched in July 2021, the Sprott Physical Uranium Trust quickly made its mark on the sector, stoking investor interest and prices for the commodity.

The fund holds 66.22 million pounds of U3O8, has an expense ratio of 0.64 percent and has a yearly return of negative 34.57 percent.

2. Yellow Cake (LSE:YCA,OTCQB:YLLXF)

Total asset value: US$983.66 million

Founded in 2018, Yellow Cake is a uranium company that provides investment exposure to the uranium spot price through its physical holdings of uranium and uranium-related commercial activities.

Yellow Cake’s current holdings total 21.68 million pounds of U3O8. Its access to material volumes of uranium at prevailing market prices comes via its long-term partnership with Kazatomprom. Through this partnership, it has the option to purchase up to US$100 million of uranium annually through 2027.

3. Zuri-Invest Uranium AMC

Total asset value: US$1.65 billion

Launched in April 2023, Zuri-Invest’s product is directly linked to physical uranium, and is the first actively managed certificate (AMC) in the sector. According to Zuri-Invest, “an AMC is a security that can be managed on a discretionary basis enabling the active management of a chosen investment strategy.”

Qualified non-US institutional and professional investors can take part in this physical uranium AMC (Swiss ISIN code CH1214916533) through their bank. The custodian of the product is Cameco, which holds the physical uranium in a secure storage facility in Canada.

4. xU3O8

Total asset value: US$5.93 million

One of the newest ways to gain exposure to physical uranium is through the token xU3O8.

Using the power of the Tezos blockchain and real-world asset tokenization, the xU3O8 token from uranium.io gives investors the ability to directly own and trade physical uranium. Launched in 2024, xU3O8’s 38,464.62 kilograms of U3O8 are stored at a secure Cameco facility, with Archax acting as trustee.

Securities Disclosure: I, Georgia Williams, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

This post appeared first on investingnews.com

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In Politics

Mexico sues Google for changing ‘Gulf of Mexico’ to ‘Gulf of America’ after Trump’s order

3 Mins Read

Mexico has filed a lawsuit against Google after it changed the label for the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America on its maps platform to match U.S. President Donald Trump’s executive order to amend the name of the body of water, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum announced Friday.

Sheinbaum said at a press briefing that the lawsuit had been filed against the tech giant, without providing additional details.

The lawsuit comes after Sheinbaum threatened in February to sue Google for the name change.

‘We are going to wait. We are already seeing, observing what this would mean from the perspective of legal advice, but we hope that they will make a revision,’ Sheinbaum said at the time.

Mexico’s Foreign Relations Ministry has also previously sent letters to Google urging it not to relabel the oceanic basin as the Gulf of America.

Trump signed an order on his first day back in the White House in January to rename the northern part of the gulf to the Gulf of America. The body of water has shared borders between the United States and Mexico, and Trump’s order only carries authority within the U.S.

Mexico has argued that the Gulf of America label should only apply to the part over the U.S. continental shelf. The U.S. has control over about 46% of the gulf, Mexico controls about 49% and Cuba controls about 5%, according to Sovereign Limits, a database of international boundaries.

‘What Google is doing here is changing the name of the continental shelf of Mexico and Cuba, which has nothing to do with Trump’s decree, which applied only to the U.S. continental shelf,’ Sheinbaum said in February.

The gulf appears in Google Maps as the Gulf of America within the U.S., as the Gulf of Mexico within Mexico and Gulf of Mexico (Gulf of America) everywhere else. It had been called the Gulf of Mexico for more than 400 years.

Google Maps began using Gulf of America for users in the U.S. shortly after Trump’s order, citing its ‘longstanding practice’ of following the U.S. government’s lead on these matters. In cases where official names vary between countries, Google’s policy says users will see their official local names.

In February, the Mexican president shared a response from Google’s vice president of government affairs and public policy, Cris Turner, who said the company would not change its policy after Trump’s order.

Sheinbaum’s announcement of the lawsuit comes after House Republicans passed the Gulf of America Act in a 211-206 vote, marking the first step in codifying Trump’s order. The legislation now heads to the Senate.

Fox News Digital has reached out to Google for comment. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

This post appeared first on FOX NEWS

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