Prius power (Paul Bersebach/Getty Images) |
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Hey Snackers, Staff at a wildlife center in Virginia wore fox masks while bottle-feeding an orphaned kit, doing their best to act like mother foxes. It's either the cutest or creepiest animal rescue ever. The S&P 500 ended its three-day losing streak yesterday, lifted by AI optimism. Nvidia kicked off its developer conference, which is being referred to as "AI Woodstock." The Fed's expected to keep interest rates steady at its meeting tomorrow, and investors will be watching Jerome Powell's conference for clues about the likelihood of a June rate cut. |
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Following the money… and getting 55 miles per gallon. Hybrid vehicles — which use both a gas-fueled engine and an electric motor — have silently accelerated into the hottest cars on the market. US hybrid sales jumped 50% in January and February, significantly outpacing full-electric cars. Hybrid's are spending just 25 days at dealerships on average, selling nearly three times faster than EVs. As car buyers look to go green but not that green, automakers are betting on old tech — and winning. |
- Greenish: Ford and Toyota hedged their EV investments with a hybrid fall-back plan. Ford's hybrid sales jumped 32% last month and it plans to 4X sales in the next five years. Prius pioneer Toyota forecast record profits this year on the popularity of its hybrids.
- Quietly merging: Four years ago, GM and Volkswagen were saying goodbye to hybrids. Now, GM plans to introduce plug-in hybrids (which can cruise 20 to 40 miles on battery alone) in the US, and Volkswagen's considering it.
- EV ain't EZ: As sales growth cools, automakers are downshifting their electric optimism. Carmakers including Ford and GM have put billions in EV investments on ice, and Tesla warned of slower growth this year. Yesterday, EV startup Fisker said it would pause production.
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In the Goldilocks lane… Dealers have been begging carmakers for hybrids, citing buyers' desire for something between gas guzzlers and EVs. Hybrids offer drivers a cheaper option (they cost $42.5K on average last fall, compared to $47.5K for gas cars and $60.5K for EVs). Adding to the hybrid hype: automakers have made 'em sexier. Toyota gave its Prius a sporty upgrade, while Stellantis began offering a plug-in version of its popular Jeep Wrangler. |
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 THE TAKEAWAY
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Car buyers want a green situationship… not a full commitment. Hybrids don't come with the range anxiety, home charging investment, or cold-weather issues of EVs but they do offer savings at the pump and an eco-friendly edge. As the electric transition finds its pace, automakers may keep leaning on hybrids to bridge the commitment gap. |
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High-yield. Low effort. What if you saved as often as you spend? With Apple Card, you can earn up to 3% back on every purchase you make — and it's real cash. Simply open a high-yield Savings account through Apple Card to automatically grow your Daily Cash at 4.50% APY. Savings you can count on. Savings from Apple Card has no minimum deposits and you're covered with FDIC insurance. It's not only for your Daily Cash back, either. You can add to Savings from a linked bank account whenever you like. All your account info lives right in Wallet, accessible via iPhone. Apply for Apple Card in a few easy steps. Disclosure: Terms apply. Savings provided by Goldman Sachs Bank USA. Member FDIC. |
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High-yield. Low effort. What if you saved as often as you spend? With Apple Card, you can earn up to 3% back on every purchase you make — and it's real cash. Simply open a high-yield Savings account through Apple Card to automatically grow your Daily Cash at 4.50% APY. Savings you can count on. Savings from Apple Card has no minimum deposits and you're covered with FDIC insurance. It's not only for your Daily Cash back, either. You can add to Savings from a linked bank account whenever you like. All your account info lives right in Wallet, accessible via iPhone. Apply for Apple Card in a few easy steps. Disclosure: Terms apply. Savings provided by Goldman Sachs Bank USA. Member FDIC. |
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Lost the thread… Joann filed for bankruptcy yesterday after its losses piled up like a ruffled hem. The 81-year-old craft store chain, which IPO'd for the second time in 2021, specializes in fabrics sold by the yard. Like many retailers that catered to homey hobbies, Joann thrived during the pandemic as folks took up knitting and embroidery. But it struggled to retain sales after people stopped sewing "Team Moderna" face masks. |
- Unravel: Joann's loss widened to nearly $22M in its last reported quarter, and it's sitting on $2.4B in debt. Unable to patch up falling sales, the company announced layoffs in September.
- Stitched up: Joann said it doesn't expect to close any of its 800+ stores, and it'll return to being a private company as soon as next month when the bankruptcy process wraps up. FYI: rival Michaels also went private in 2021.
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Back in the junk drawer… Shoppers are spending less on nonessentials including color-by-numbers painting, dog-hat knitting, and other pandemic hobbies. The go-to ecomm site for homemade goods, Etsy, saw its revenue double in 2020 as the craft-economy boomed. But late last year it announced layoffs as it faced "stiff headwinds." Etsy's coping with what one expert calls "digestion years" following the stuck-at-home-economy boom. Similarly, Lowe's and Home Depot sales struggled as Americans stopped re-tiling their kitchen backsplashes. |
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THE TAKEAWAY |
It can be better to go wide than deep… Joann says it's the national leader for fabric and sewing, and that niche may be putting the company in a pinch. Larger rivals like Amazon and Target offer a wider selection of home-hobby goods, plus products beyond the craft aisle that provide a hedge against changing shopping habits. Specialty retailers Bed Bath & Beyond, Christmas Tree Shops, and Tuesday Morning all filed for bankruptcy last year. |
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- AiPhone: Bloomberg reported that Apple's in talks to license Google's Gemini AI model to power upcoming iPhone features. Google stock popped on the possibility, which would be a big boon for its troubled Gemini engine.
- MrPrime: Star YouTuber MrBeast said he'll film "the largest game show in history" for Amazon's Prime Video. Facing cutthroat streaming competition, companies have reached for unique deals to gain an edge.
- GLP: Novo Nordisk's popular weight-loss drug Wegovy was approved for heart health in the US. Health plans hesitant to cover the drug because of its $1.3K/month cost may be forced to reevaluate.
- Ride$: A law firm for taxi drivers said Uber will pay $178M to settle a class-action suit which argues that the app operated illegally in Australia, hurting cabbies' earnings. In the US, Uber has started listing taxis in its app.
- MuskTV: In a tense interview with Don Lemon, Elon Musk discussed his ketamine prescription and content moderation on X. It was supposed to be the debut episode of a talk show on X, but Musk ditched the deal.
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According to one report, nearly half of parents financially support their adult children |
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- First day of spring. NCAA men's March Madness tournament starts
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Authors of this Snacks own shares of: Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, GM, Nvidia, Tesla, and Uber |
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