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John Curto
This episode is brought to you by Charles Schwab. Timing the market, Fighting inflation, Managing risk Financial decisions can be tricky. Investing isn't just math, it's psychology. Your neurons are playing favorites and the market doesn't care. Financial Decoder, an original podcast from Charles Schwab, can help join host Mark Riepe as he breaks down practical strategies to help overcome the mental traps that may affect your investing decisions. Listen@schwab.com FinancialDecoder
Anne Berry
Robinhood the OG platform for retail investors is now open to AI agents. From trading stocks to scoring the latest sneaker drop, we have the latest Elf, the Gen Z beauty brand. Even a billion dollar acquisition of Hailey Bieber's cosmetics company hasn't helped its share price in the long run. We explore why and Ford Motor shares hitting their highest levels in almost three years. But it's not cars driving that rally. We break it all down for Wednesday, May 27th. It's Brew Markets Daily and I'm Ann Berry. More market details to come. But first, one stocks surge has caught our eye because on the surface it seems so, so disconnected from sector headwinds that have been at play. And that shares an auto giant, Ford, which have surged nearly 30 whopping percent in just two weeks to hit their highest levels in almost three years now. That's despite the removal of EV tax credits in the United States, the impact of tariffs and consumer uncertainty when it comes to big ticket purchases. And that's because this rally isn't really being driven by car sales. It's being fueled by Ford Energy, the name of a brand new business unit launched earlier this month month to focus on battery storage systems for AI data centers, utilities and industrial customers. While the company is investing $2 billion into the venture, repurposing batteries originally intended for electric vehicles into massive stationary power systems. And this timing matters, of course, because the AI boom is creating huge demand for electricity and companies are scrambling for ways to store and manage the energy that they need. Well, investors seem to particularly like one element of execution here, which is Ford's partnership with Catl, the Chinese battery giant and the world's largest battery maker. Analysts say that this relationship could give Ford a major cost advantage in the growing energy storage market. And Ford already has a major customer lined up. That's French energy company EDF market cap $56 billion in a deal that could supply 4 gigawatt hours of storage annually. That's about 20% of Ford's total planned capacity for this starting in 2028. Well, all of this is an unusual amount of pivoting for a Detroit automaker. Don't forget Ford has been around for a very long time, and the only real comparison point may be Tesla, another car company that's convinced Wall street it's more than just an automaker and with whom Ford will compete directly in its new battery strategy. Well, just to take a look at how Tesla's been doing here, that company's energy storage and battery division is at spot fastest growing, and it's its most profitable business line. In 2025, Tesla's battery division deployed over 46 gigawatt hours of battery storage, generated nearly $13 billion in revenue and saw that division hit profit margins of nearly 29%, roughly double the margins of its automotive division. And as for Ford, one Morgan Stanley analyst estimates its energy division alone could eventually be worth $10 billion in meaningful for a car company with a market cap of 63 billion. Today, we're going to keep on watching. We're coming up in a moment, a spin through the headlines that are moving the markets today, including earnings out of Dick's Sporting Goods and a truce in Lululemon's proxy battle. But first, this episode is brought to you by Charles Schwab. Timing the market, fighting inflation, balancing risk. No one says financial decisions are easy. In fact, they can be tricky. And often the forest in your head can lead you sideways. Financial Decoder, an original podcast from Charles
John Curto
Schwab can help join host Mark Reape, head of the Schwab center for Financial Research, as he offers modern strategies to help combat the wait, what in your head, like overconfidence, loss aversion and recency bias that may cloud your investing decisions. Listen@schwab.com financialdecoder or wherever you get your podcasts.
Anne Berry
Well, markets have been bumping up and down today with stocks mixed as oil prices retreat. But with that context in commodities, let's take a quick spin through some other headlines that have been moving the markets today, kicking it all off with one earnings report, and that's that of Dick's Sporting Goods. IT shares ticket DKs, trading nearly 5% lower after the retailer missed on earnings and cut its full year guidance. Now, much of that earnings miss is attributed to costs associated with Dick's acquisition of Foot Locker last year, a deal we spent a bunch of time unpacking when it was announced.
John Curto
That's right, and its effects are still ongoing. In the most recent quarter alone, Dick's incurred nearly 100 million doll in charges related to that acquisition. That includes costs like severance and store closings and Tens of million dollars spent to clear back inventory. And that Foot Locker turnaround is taking time. Foot Locker same store sales rose just half a percent last quarter compared to a 4% jump at Dick's locations. Now to Sin City, which may be poised for a rebound. Shares in MGM Resorts were up as much as 10% today after two firms upgraded the stock based primarily on the belief that that consumers will return to the Las Vegas strip after years of challenging dynamics. JP Morgan cited the potential success of quote Value oriented Promotions. And Ann, I've recently been seeing a ton of these Vegas ads promising free parking, drink deals and all inclusive hotel packages. Very curious to see if the Strip can make a recovery.
Anne Berry
Shares in MGM are up 15% this year. Over now to tech, where Robinhood, the OG platform for retail investors has announced it is quote now open to agents. Global company has launched Agentic Trading, a new feature that lets users connect their own AI agent to the Robinhood platform to let it trade on their behalf. Users can open a dedicated account just for the agent, meaning it only touches the funds you allocate separate for the rest of the portfolio.
John Curto
And in the same announcement, Robinhood unveiled the Agentic credit card which lets AI make purchases on your behalf. I read the press release. It had some colorful examples like a sneaker head telling the agent to buy a specific pair of shoes as soon as they drop below $300. Or a food having the agent book an exclusive restaurant reservation as soon as it becomes available. Robinhood shares are trading around one and a half percent higher today.
Anne Berry
Yeah, I mean a slew of these Agentic trading headlines, it's just, you know, interesting. Try and keep some perspective as to what it actually does for these stock prices. Well, finally a quick update on the very public feud between the board of Lululemon and the founder of the company, Chip Wilson. Well, the two parties have reached a deal that will allow Wilson to name two new directors to the company's board after its annual meeting in June. Just as a reminder, Chip Wilson had been pushing to have folks join the board that had more experience in entertainment in addition to advocating to one of the co founders of on footwear brand to join the board also.
John Curto
That's right. And as part of that, the company agreed to add a third director with brand and product experience in apparel. And that person will be added October 1st.
Anne Berry
Well, this is all designed to address Wilson's complaints that the brand has, quote, lost its cool and become too generic. But trying to be all things to all people all the time. And just as a reminder Last week, the board put out a press release saying that, quote, electing any of Mr. Wilson's nominees would endorse his misguided perspectives and significantly downgrade the board's skills and expertise. Another thing that the current board has complained about was that the three candidates that Chip Wilson had put forward lacked public company experience.
John Curto
So, Anne, you have and do serve on these types of boards. Is this public posturing unusual?
Anne Berry
Yes, it is unusual. And it's good that it's come to a resolution for the sake of all Lululemon shareholders.
John Curto
And then I'll just add in my last favorite part of the agreement. For his part, Wilson, who owns nearly 9% of Lululemon shares, has agreed to stop criticizing the company for 18 months. So start the clock and we'll see what happens next.
Anne Berry
Shares in Lululemon ticker Lulu trading up 5% higher today. Well, let's take a quick break and when we come back, we take a question from the audience to explore why Elf Cosmetics shares have tumbled 75% from 2024. All time highs. John, I've noticed you're always present here at the office. No distractions.
John Curto
Thanks, Anne. I like to stay focused.
Anne Berry
But do you know who is distracted at the office?
John Curto
Employees who are financially stressed.
Anne Berry
Exactly right.
John Curto
I bet that impacts their productivity, too.
Anne Berry
It does. And it makes them more likely to miss work. Missed work can cost employers a lot in lost productivity.
John Curto
Costly, unexpected medical bills are productivity killers. But Aflac can help provide financial peace of mind. They aim to pay claims fast, accurately and fairly.
Anne Berry
Offering Aflac isn't just a nice gesture that shows you care. It can be a smart financial move, saving tax dollars when payroll deductions are pre tax.
John Curto
And businesses that offer Aflac are likely to stay with aflac. Head to aflac.com brewmarkets to learn more. That's aflac.com brewmarkets so good, so good, so good.
Anne Berry
Everything you want for summer is at Nordstrom Rack stores now and up to 60% off. Stock up and save on the brands you love like Vince, Sam, Edelman, Frame and free people. Join the NordicLub to unlock exclusive discounts. Shop new arrivals first and more. Plus buy online and pick up at your favorite Rack store for free. Great brands, great prices. That's why you rack. Well. We love to get comments and feedback from listeners. And we recently heard from one subscriber to our YouTube channel who wrote, quote, can you talk about E L F Beauty? Its share price was recently at a multi year low. Well, the answer on this one is yes. I always enjoy digging into the beauty space. And E L F is coming off a very eventful 2025 tariffs. Price hikes and a billion dollar deal to acquire Hailey Bieber's road cosmetics made headlines and caused big swings in the share price. Well, the Stock is down 75% from its all time high in 2024 and trading down about 25% year to date. Well, we'll get into that roller coaster year that was. But first, John, give us a bit of context on the company. Right.
John Curto
E L F beauty market cap near $3.5 billion ticker E L F on the New York Stock Exchange. And what does ELF stand for? It's an acronym. Eyes, Lips, face. And the company reported Q4 earnings just last week. Revenue of $450 million was up 35% year over year, beating expectations. Adjusted earnings per share of 32 cents narrowly beat expectations and earnings for the full fiscal year 2026 that just wrapped. The company said that sales were up 25% to 1.6 billion with a profit of $3.13 a share, which also beat expectations.
Anne Berry
So let's talk about what's been dragging that share price down. Supply chain clearly has been a very big part of this. Now, elf, famed actually for its reliance on China when it comes to its supply chain. But the flip side of that being exposure to high tariffs. Yes, under the new administration. Now, last October I saw spoke with ELF's Chief Financial Officer Mandy Fields on our sister podcast after earnings and she said that in previous years, production was 99% concentrated in China, but the company had worked it down to about 75% and was continuing to focus on diversifying the supply chain to get that number even lower. That being said, 75% exposure to China, better than 99% but still very high level of concentration that has worked against ELF when you look at the share price performance.
John Curto
Absolutely. Especially if you remember back to last year at the height of the trade war, tariffs were as high as 55% on cosmetics imported from China into the United States. And when she spoke with you, I remember she laid out ELF's three pillar tariff mitigation strategy. Supply chain diversification, getting down that number below 75%. Geographic diversification. She said that the company was expanding and selling in other territories that weren't exposed to the US Tariffs. Of course. And she mentioned pricing an increase in prices.
Anne Berry
Right. That specifically it was a dollar across every single item last August, which is interesting because it's a very simple pricing policy. It was an absolute dollar amount, not a percent increase. She said that Initial feedback from customers was positive because they appreciated clarity. And this really is the sort of simplest price strategy you can think of. But you know something, priced at 8 bucks, 1% is a 12 and a half percent hike on a $20 item. It's only 5 impact at scale depending on which skus you are looking at. But we'll come back to that pricing decision in just a moment.
John Curto
Yes, because the YouTube subscriber mentioned that share price low so admit that tariff uncertainty. Last August, ELF dropped its full year guidance and the stock immediately sank 13%. Then a few months later for the company's November earnings, even with the higher prices, the dollar higher on the each item, ELF missed revenue estimates and was downgraded by multiple analysts and shares plunged nearly 30% right after that revenue reporting. And if you look at the chart of the share price, that November drop is striking.
Anne Berry
So where are we now? We've had so much go on since the tariffs were announced. You've had so much go on since that road acquisition was done. And of course, if we think about what happened in February, the Supreme Court struck down the administration's use of IPA to impose certain tariffs. Amongst those from the Liberation Day announcement, a second round of global tariffs have been struck down. And on its most recent earnings call, Mandy Fields, again that's the chief financial officer of ELF, said that the company had paid nearly $59 million in IPA tariffs and was pursuing refunds. Now, the company acknowledged that the situation remains fluid, but the question here is whether we will see the rolling back of those price increases. But the real question here is even if price levels now go back down, what happens to those consumers who've already gone out and bought these items and as a result have already absorbed that price increase related to tariffs? It's not enough for a price to come down. The question is how are they going to get cash back to the specific consumers who went and bought that products? Which by the way is an issue that everyone is wrestling.
John Curto
I keep hearing that from different companies. Some companies are saying we're going to figure out how much more each consumer paid and we're going to get that back to them. But that seems impossible when you're talking about eyeshadow and individual lipstick. And in terms of that price rollback in the earnings. Last week the CEO confirmed that the company is going to be walking back those dollar price increases, acknowledging that the increase led to a unit volume drop that was bigger than expected, so more customers were broadly feeling the price pressure. He also referenced the CEO attest a price Reduction on the Halo glow skin tint. The company took $4 off an $18 product and sales jumped 40%. So no big surprise that they discounted the product. Sales went up.
Anne Berry
So is it price or product? That's sort of the billion, literally billion dollar question. Because I want to talk now about Rhode and what the coverage has been with respect to this deal. So I will roll back the clock for a moment. So last May, ELF announced the acquisition of Hailey Bieber's skin care brand Rhode for $1 billion in a combination of of cash and stock. Now that headline number absolutely blew the minds of people in the beauty industry, which is one I spend a lot of time in, both with brand and with folks playing in the manufacturing space. Now I just want to be super clear that billion dollars didn't happen all at once. As with a lot of these deals, Hailey Bieber and her team need to be there from memory for about three years and subject to hidden certain milestone milestones. Parts of this payment would be made. It's called an earn out structure. So all eyes have been on how Rhode is doing under new ownership. And just the other piece of context here. Celebrity backed brands famously go to die when they're bought by sort of big existing conglomerates. And indie brands have a tendency in popular legend to start to falter once they're absorbed into a big conglomerate. So people have been really looking to see how this integration was going. Well, the deal closed in August 2025. Road took off sales up 80% since the acquisition. And this was clever because I think ELF made sure they were going to get a win out of the gate, specifically by putting Rhode into Sephora stores in North America and the United Kingdom. So the update on last week's earnings call that came from CEO Tarang Amin is that the brand is, quote, on absolute fire Road, contributing $500 million, or about 30% of Elf's total company revenue for the fiscal year 2026, even though it was only in the portfolio for quarters of the year. Now, for comparison, and this is really, I think, the heart of why the share price has been falling for the current quarter, the company is guiding organic sales of the flagship ELF brand. So not Road actually to be down in the high single digits. And just for context here, that core ELF brand has done incredibly well over the years. I mean, it's been a juggernaut and as a result, ELF share price has been a juggernaut. So the fact that that core flagship brand is now struggling is, I think what has gotten investors very nervous about this name. Well, looking forward, the company just announced fiscal 2027 profit guidance of $3.27 a share to 332 coming in well below Wall Street's core for earnings of 3 bucks 61. They will look back at that to see how some of these one time items are being adjusted. That being said, here's the proof of the pudding. Following that earnings report last week, a slew of big banks cut their price targets for this one. J.P. morgan, Raymond James, Jefferies, Morgan Stanley, UBS, or the Blue chip folks saying, you know, we're not where we were in terms of the outlook for elf. Well, thank you very much to our listeners and to our subscriber who wrote asking if we could talk about elf. If you have any feedback or a company you'd like us to cover, then leave a comment or send an email. We do actually check those over here to Brew Markets show@morning brew.com well there it is, the closing bell. It's 4pm on the east Coast. The market's wrapping up for the day. We don't have a ticker tape, so let's throw it over to our human ticker, our producer John Both the S&P
John Curto
500 and the NASDAQ finished the day flat and The Dow was up 3. 10 of a percent for the day.
Anne Berry
Well, just as a final thought, we are continuing to get back to everyone's questions again. Brew Marketsshoworningbrew.com to email us. Also, leave comments on Spotify and leave them on Apple, wherever it is you get all your podcasts because we do check them all as well as our YouTube comments and we've had a whole bunch that we're going to continue to work through for the rest of the week. That's it for today's Brew Markets Daily.
John Curto
Brew Markets Daily is hosted by Anne Barry and produced by John Curto, Tarkov delatif, Avni Laroya and Emily Miller. Our Technical director is Uchena Waugh, Brittany Dotako is our audio engineer and the President of Morning Brew Inc. Is Devin Emery. If you enjoyed today's episode, please share with a friend. If you did not enjoy today's show, tell all of your enemies.
Anne Berry
Wake up tomorrow at the Morning Brew newsletter and tune in to Neil and Toby on Morning Brew Daily. See you back here tomorrow, same time, same place.
Episode: Ford Veers Toward AI & Is Price e.l.f.’s Problem?
Host: Ann Berry (joined by John Curto)
Podcast: Brew Markets – Morning Brew
Date: May 27, 2026
Ann Berry and John Curto break down the day’s most compelling stock stories, focusing on Ford’s surprising rally as it pivots toward AI-powered energy storage, Robinhood’s launch of agentic AI trading, controversies at Lululemon, and a deep dive into e.l.f. Beauty’s struggles following its acquisition of Hailey Bieber’s Rhode Cosmetics amid supply chain and tariff headwinds. The hosts analyze key drivers behind these market moves and address a listener’s question about e.l.f.’s plummeting share price.
[00:32 – 04:18]
Ford shares have surged nearly 30% in two weeks, hitting their highest levels in almost three years.
Strategic Pivot to Stationary Energy Storage:
Landing Major Deals:
Wall Street’s View and Tesla Comparison:
Memorable quote:
[04:38 – 06:08]
Dick’s Sporting Goods:
MGM Resorts:
“Very curious to see if the Strip can make a recovery.” – John Curto [05:57]
[06:08 – 06:58]
Robinhood announces Agentic Trading:
Agentic Credit Card:
Robinhood shares up 1.5% on the news.
[06:58 – 08:37]
Deal reached: Wilson will name two new directors; company will add a third director with apparel experience by October.
“This is all designed to address Wilson’s complaints that the brand has, quote, ‘lost its cool and become too generic by trying to be all things to all people all the time.’”
– Ann Berry [07:44]
Board previously argued Wilson’s nominees lacked public company experience.
Wilson agrees to refrain from public criticism for 18 months.
“Yes, it is unusual. And it’s good that it’s come to a resolution for the sake of all Lululemon shareholders.” – Ann Berry [08:18]
Shares up 5% on the day.
[09:39 – 18:49]
Lowered guidance (Aug 2025) → stock fell 13%.
November miss and analyst downgrades → stock dropped another 30%.
Supreme Court struck down tariff regime in Feb 2026; e.l.f. pursuing ~$59M in refunds.
Debate: Can/should price hikes be rolled back? Difficult to compensate past overpayments.
“I keep hearing…’we’re going to get that back to them.’ But that seems impossible when you’re talking about eyeshadow and individual lipstick.”
– John Curto [14:48]
Last week, CEO confirmed price increases will be walked back after a failed experiment:
[18:49 – 19:32]
This episode offered sophisticated analysis on Ford’s transformation into an energy player for the AI age, dissected e.l.f. Beauty’s challenges amid supply chain, tariff, and post-acquisition woes, and kept listeners up to speed on the latest headline movements in retail, gaming, and tech platforms. The hosts maintained a brisk, conversational tone with insightful context and actionable takeaways for investors watching these shifts.
Send questions or feedback to: BrewMarketsShow@morningbrew.com