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Hi Reader, here's what you need to know for March 3rd in 2:56 minutes.

☕️ Finimized over a piccolo latte at Abraço, New York City (🌧 7°C/45°F)

Today's big stories

The world’s biggest brewer AB InBev reported results that investors won’t be toasting
Here are four ways to climb aboard the AI express – Read Now
Salesforce shifted into top gear as activists piled on the pressure

Brewhaha

What’s Going On Here?

Brewer AB InBev reported the first drop in quarterly sales volume since the pandemic on Thursday.

What Does This Mean?

The name AB InBev might not ring any bells, but if you’ve ever cracked open a cold one like Budweiser, Corona, or Stella Artois, then you’re familiar with the world’s biggest brewer’s boozy offerings. But last quarter’s tumbling sales in the US – the firm’s biggest market – might have investors needing some Dutch courage: the harsh winter was more suited to mulled wine than beer, it turns out, and some shoppers balked at the company’s price hikes. And with the tail-end of China’s zero-Covid policies denting Asian demand too, the firm posted a surprise drop in the total amount of beer sold last quarter. Luckily, though, AB InBev had price increases and premium beers to fall back on, meaning that overall profit climbed past expectations.

Why Should I Care?

For markets: The price isn’t right.
That update left investors feeling flat, and even the prospect of bubbling demand from reopened China couldn’t fix that. See, these results show the company's hit a roadblock: prices are getting so high that they’re scaring thirsty drinkers off. And rivals Carlsberg and Heineken are feeling the pinch too, warning investors that cost-conscious consumers could make for a thorny year. In the end, even AB InBev's spoonful of sugar – an upped dividend – couldn't help its medicine go down, and shares fell by 5%.

The bigger picture: Unlucky for some.
Europeans are certainly stuck for beer money these days. Eurozone inflation slowed by less than expected last month, and core inflation – which strips out volatile costs like food and energy – hit a new record (tweet this). So watch this space: there could be even more hikes in store for the region, which would squeeze consumers even tighter.

You might also like: Stocks have another challenge ahead, but they might be cut out for it.

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Analyst Take

How To Invest In AI

Stéphane Renevier, Analyst

As disruptive technologies go, artificial intelligence (AI) may be on a scale like nothing we’ve seen before.

With a huge potential market, the tech could unleash a wave of innovation across almost every industry.

We’ve only begun to scratch the surface in terms of how we can use it, but the overnight success of ChatGPT has demonstrated one thing: the demand for AI is going to be extraordinary.

That’s today’s insight: the best ways to invest in AI now – and the pros and cons of each.

Read or listen to the Insight here

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Salesforce Sails Forth

What’s Going On Here?

Salesforce’s bumper results showed that the sun is shining on the cloud giant once more.

What Does This Mean?

Attention is nice, but getting it from activist investors – who buy a stake in a company in a bid to rejig operations and raise share prices – typically means you need to pull your socks up on the double. So with Salesforce catching the eye of no fewer than five activist investors lately, it’s no surprise the company’s had to take action. See, business has been dwindling as cost-cutting firms rein in their cloud spending, but Salesforce had an ace up its sleeve: cutting some costs of its own, especially those notorious money pits known as “employees”. That helped push one key measure of profitability to a record high for Salesforce last quarter, only topped by a surprisingly upbeat forecast for the year ahead.

Why Should I Care?

For markets: Stock superstar.
The market had a hunch that activist pressure would get Salesforce moving, with the firm’s stock performing over twice as well as the Nasdaq even before the latest results broke. And investors were understandably happy when the update proved them right – but it was the company’s plan to increase share buybacks and its murmurings about artificially intelligent offerings that really delighted them. All in all, investors sent the stock toward its biggest one-day gain since 2020, outperforming the S&P 500 by nearly 40% this year.

The bigger picture: Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes.
With more activists entering the Salesforce boardroom, the winds of change are probably going to keep on blowing. If analysts are right, Salesforce could start offloading some of the businesses it snapped up in recent years – as well as some more pesky employees – in pursuit of ever-greater profit.

You might also like: How to pick tech stocks using the rule of 40.

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💬 Quote of the day

“Originality is the fine art of remembering what you hear but forgetting where you heard it.”

– Laurence J. Peter (a Canadian educator)

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🌍 Finimize Live

🥳 Coming Up Soon…

All events in UK time.

💸 How To Pick Winning Exchange-Traded Funds: 5pm, March 7th
🌥 Do Recessions Have A Silver Lining?: 5pm, March 8th
🌎 Three Ways Long-Term Investors Can Act On Climate Change: 12pm, March 21st
🚀 What Will Be The Next Big Thing In Artificial Intelligence?: 1pm, March 22nd

🎯 On Our Radar

Hunters, gatherers, and resters. Foragers can teach us a lot about how to unwind.
The kids are alright. TikTok’s bringing in a daily time limit for minors.
Beyond “Because I said so”. Use these one-line parenting phrases when you’re at your wit’s end.
One-night stand and deliver. Brazilian men keep getting robbed on fake Tinder dates.
Dark ‘n’ soupy. Let’s revisit Campbell Soup’s forgotten beef-based cocktail.

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Finimize - 🍺 Tipples toppled

Today's big stories

Brewhaha

What’s Going On Here?

What Does This Mean?

Why Should I Care?

How To Invest In AI

The Swiss Army knife of investing

Salesforce Sails Forth

What’s Going On Here?

What Does This Mean?

Why Should I Care?

Meet your future community

🥳 Coming Up Soon…

Older messages

🛞 Rivian needs to step on it

📸 Zoom zoomed

😮 Four factors could bring stocks down

🏡 Reconsider buying that house

🚨 Morgan Stanley’s cycle model is flashing “downturn”

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