Breakfast News: 7th Straight S&P 500 Spike

• Potential tariff impacts: On the back of Tuesday’s results, Best Buy (BBY -0.11%) fell 4.9%, while Dick's Sporting Goods (DKS 2.61%) started well but closed 1.4% down. Kohl's (KSS -2.39%) slumped by 17%. General Motors (GM -1.88%), which manufactures vehicles in Canada and Mexico, fell 9%.
• New appointments: President-elect Donad Trump has named Kevin Hassett, keen on tax cuts, as director of the White House National Economic Council. The U.S. trade representative role will be filled by Jamieson Greer, a tariffs hawk.

In Rule Breakers analyst Karl Thiel’s view, solar tax incentives will remain in place under a second Trump presidency, making First Solar (FSLR -3.34%) particularly compelling.

• A geographic edge: With potential Chinese panel tariffs looming, First Solar's predominantly U.S.-based production (and notably zero China exposure) positions it uniquely well.
• “None of this would be a good enough reason to single the company out if it wasn't also doing very well already”: The company projects revenue growth of 25% year over year to $4.1 billion-$4.25 billion.

• Downgraded guidance: However, net new annual recurring revenue fell by 31%, and the company now expects Q4 EPS between 84 cents and 86 cents, below analysts’ 87 cents forecast. 
• “Following this summer’s incident as a company we were tested”: CEO George Kurtz said CrowdStrike responded with “speed, care and resolve,” as customer retention hit 97% in the quarter, indicating that customers are sticking around. Since its first Stock Advisor recommendation in 2020, CrowdStrike has beaten the S&P 500 by 173%.

• Weak demand for traditional PCs: Dell (DELL -1.62%) is down 11% before the market opens today, after the company missed Q3 forecasts and lowered its Q4 revenue outlook. However, management has been extremely vocal about AI adoption: Is the market too focused on the stock’s short-term prospects today?
• “Some of that will have to go to consumers”: HP (HPQ -0.65%) CEO Enrique Lores is waiting to see what effect trade tariffs will have, after the company posted a Q4 sales beat but an EPS miss. In post-market trading, the stock was down over 7% in response.