9 Stories We Are Following This Morning 8-18-25 - Becker Business

Summary4 min read

Becker Business Podcast – Episode Summary

Episode: 9 Stories We Are Following This Morning 8-18-25
Date: August 18, 2025
Host: Scott Becker

Overview

In this episode, Scott Becker shares a quick, yet in-depth rundown of the "nine stories we are following this morning" in the business world. Key topics include market trends, inflation confusion, major corporate moves (from Amazon to UnitedHealth), pharmaceutical updates, insights on relationships and growth, and news of upcoming events. The episode blends serious financial analysis with lively asides and personal reflections.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Market and Inflation Confusion

[00:08]

Markets are trending "slowly down" after a positive previous week.
Inflation remains a point of confusion:
- CPI (Consumer Price Index) rose less than expected.
- PPI (Producer Price Index) increased faster than expected.
This creates uncertainty for the Federal Reserve’s next steps regarding interest rates.

"This leaves the Fed with a little bit less certainty about what to do with rates."
— Scott Becker [00:20]

2. U.S.-Ukraine Diplomacy

[00:28]

President Trump is meeting Ukrainian President Zelensky to discuss a possible ceasefire with Russia.
Scott highlights this as a significant geopolitical event to watch.

3. Amazon Under Scrutiny

[00:40]

The Motley Fool questions whether investors should "forget about Amazon."
Scott focuses less on Amazon’s rivals, more on Amazon itself:
- Concerns about slow-down in AWS (Amazon Web Services) growth, especially versus competitors like Microsoft.
- Broader question of whether Amazon’s innovation can continue at previous levels.

"Can they still go after big, big things and succeed at it?"
— Scott Becker [01:05]

4. New Weight Loss Pharmaceuticals

[01:15]

Wall Street anticipates a new weight loss pill priced similarly to Wegovy and Zepbound.
Context:
- Wegovy (by Novo Nordisk) and Zepbound (by Eli Lilly) are injectable and cost around $1,000/month to insurers; ~$500/month cash price.
- The new product may align more with cash price expectations.
- Stock performance: Eli Lilly is down 9% YTD, Novo Nordisk down a steep 39% YTD.

5. Warren Buffett’s Portfolio Moves

[01:57]

Berkshire Hathaway (Buffett’s firm) is selling shares of Apple and Bank of America.
Increasing positions in UnitedHealth Group (UNH), despite UNH's poor performance year-to-date.
- Apple: -7.5% YTD
- Bank of America: +6.8% YTD
- UnitedHealth Group: -40% YTD

"Fascinating to watch... starting to make moves into that sector."
— Scott Becker [02:20]

6. Soho House Goes Private

[02:31]

Soho House, a private members’ club, is going private in a $2.5 billion deal.
Scott shares a personal anecdote about a friend at JP Morgan joking Soho House was for “creative and cool people”—and that he wouldn’t fit in.

"Now I'm a fan but still not a member. It is what it is."
— Scott Becker [02:52]

7. Quote from Lao Tzu: Self-Transformation

[02:57]

Scott highlights a favorite inspirational quote:
- “Truly the greatest gift you have to give is that of your own self transformation.”
Stresses the value of ongoing growth.

"The constant effort to evolve and grow is so so important in all of us."
— Scott Becker [03:03]

8. Microsoft Surges

[03:12]

Microsoft’s stock is up 23% YTD, market cap near $3.9 trillion.
Last year, revenue topped $280 billion (+15% year-over-year); operating income up 17%.

9. Upcoming Startup Universe Webinar

[03:35]

Scott and team are preparing a Startup Universe webinar for founders, leaders, and investors scheduled for September.
Invitation for interested panelists and sponsors to reach out directly.

10. Quote on Relationships

[03:57]

Scott closes with another favorite quote about building positive relationships through a sense of personal fullness and generosity.

“Relationships are easier to build when you perceive your life as full... The happier you are, the better you are, [and] the better you are in relationships.”
— Scott Becker [04:03]

Memorable Quotes

“This leaves the Fed with a little bit less certainty about what to do with rates.”
[00:20]
“Can they still go after big, big things and succeed at it?”
[01:05]
“Fascinating to watch... starting to make moves into that sector.”
[02:20]
“Truly the greatest gift you have to give is that of your own self transformation.” (Lao Tzu, cited by Scott Becker)
[02:57]
“Relationships are easier to build when you perceive your life as full... The happier you are, the better you are, [and] the better you are in relationships.”
[04:03]

Episode Highlights by Timestamp

| Timestamp | Segment | |-----------|------------------------------------------------| | 00:08 | Market and inflation overview | | 00:28 | Trump-Zelensky meeting | | 00:40 | Amazon growth and innovation concerns | | 01:15 | Weight loss pharmaceuticals market update | | 01:57 | Warren Buffett’s latest portfolio changes | | 02:31 | Soho House privatization + anecdote | | 02:57 | Lao Tzu quote & reflection on self-growth | | 03:12 | Microsoft’s financial highlights | | 03:35 | Announcement: Upcoming Startup Universe webinar | | 03:57 | Quote on relationships & personal richness |

Tone & Style

Scott Becker delivers brisk, informed, and conversational commentary. He mixes financial insight with personal stories and motivational wisdom, keeping the episode relatable yet data-driven for business leaders and investors.

This summary captures the essential business themes and Scott’s unique perspective, making it easy for listeners to grasp the key takeaways and reflect on the day’s most relevant business stories.

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Transcript1 lines

[00:00]
A
This is Scott Becker with the Becker Business Podcast and the Becker Private Equity Podcast. We're going to talk through today nine stories that we're following this morning. First, the markets point slowly down today after a good week last week. There's confusion about inflation. The CPI went up a little bit less than expected, but the ppi, the Producer Price Index, sort of the Wholesale Price Index, went up a little bit faster than expected. This leaves the Fed with a little bit less certainty about what to do with rates. In addition, President Trump is meeting today with Ukraine President Zelensky to talk through potential peace what kind of a ceasefire might look like with Russia. We'll see how that goes. Second, a great piece in the Motley Fool. Should you forget about Amazon and why you might buy a different stock instead? I'm not so interested in the other stock, but I am interested in the discussion on Amazon, aside from being individual holders of Amazon stock, that there's this great question as to whether Amazon's biggest growth engine, Amazon Web Services, is slowing in its growth compared to Microsoft and some others. And second, whether or not Amazon can still be big and innovative like it's been for the last 20 years. Can they still go after big, big things and succeed at it? Third, Wall street expects a new weight loss pill to come out to be priced about the same as Wegovy and Zepbound. Again, Novo's WeGovy, Eli Lilly's Zepbound, are administered as weekly injections, about $1,000 a month for payers, about 500amonth for customers paying cash to expect these to be closer to that cash price, we'll see how it goes. Eli lilly is down 9% year to date. Novo Nordisk is down 39% year to date. Fourth, Warren Buffett continues to sell some of his shares in Apple and Bank of America, at least Berkshire Hathaway does, and starts to pile into UnitedHealth Group. Fascinating to watch. Apple is down 7.5% this year. B of A is up 6.8% year to date. UnitedHealth Group's down about 40% year to date, but starting to make moves into that sector. And fascinating watch. Fifth, the Soho house is going private in a $2.5 billion deal. You know, it's private member club. I remember years ago when I first became familiar with it, a close friend who is a JP Morgan said to me that it was really for creative and cool people and that he thought definitively I wouldn't be a good F. That's what I knew about. So how, so how House then now I'm a fan but still not a member. It is what it is. 6th I'm a huge fan of this quote. I saw this from Lao Tzu. Truly the greatest gift you have to give is that of your own self transformation and I think that's right. The constant effort to evolve and grow is so so important in all of us. Seventh, Microsoft keeps surging. It's now 23% year to date it's at 3.9 trillion mark. Yep, very close to they had a very good last year revenue grew 15% to more than 280 billion. Operating agreement rose to set rose by 17% again their fiscal year ended in June so we're just seeing all of last year's results but overall a really good year. Eighth, we're in the process of planning our September Startup Universe webinar founders, leaders and investors. For information on that or to be a panelist sponsored panelist, feel free to reach Scott Beck or sales team. I could always be reached at 773-766-5322. This is on the non healthcare side. Ninth another great quote that we saw today. Relationships are easier to build when you perceive your life as full. When you appreciate your life, you attract good people because all you want to do is share the fullness with others. It's not about what can I get from this other person, but rather what do I have to offer. So the happier you are, the better you are, the better you are in relationships. Again, those are nine of the stories that we're following today. Thank you for listening to the Becker Business Podcast and the Becker Private Equity Podcast. Thank you very much.