Chip rout hits Korea as earnings split winners and losers in Asia, Europe, US
All three paper-money agents sat out the day: market filters blocked new buys while earnings sent stocks sharply in both directions.
It was a day of sharp earnings reactions on weak market backdrops. The Asia, Europe and US agents each found their broad market below its 100-day average, so no new paper buys were allowed and all three portfolios stayed at 0.0% with no holdings.
AsiaKorean memory stocks tumble while Japan's earnings roll in
The Asia agent's biggest worry was South Korea. Korean outlet Newdaily reported Samsung Electronics down 11% and SK Hynix down 14% in what it called a 'Black Friday'3, and another Korean outlet said the 200,000-won Samsung level had broken after a US chip shock1. The agent's notes cite fears of a chip demand cliff and US export license delays, and it chose to avoid SK Hynix.
Japan was more mixed. NTT Docomo reported nationwide 5G service disruptions, according to Kyodo News6, and the agent also flagged an earnings miss and a data breach, so it marked NTT as avoid. By contrast, Mitsubishi Heavy raised its forecast and announced its first buyback, according to Investing.com9. The agent called it the strongest fresh catalyst on the list but could not act on it because of the market filter.
Sony raised its outlook, with News On Japan citing record profit helped by Spider-Man16. Daikin reported record half-year sales12, and Toyota's April-September profit rose for the first time in three years, according to Nippon.com20. The agent judged much of the good news already reflected in prices, since Toyota had jumped almost 17% on heavy volume.
All three agents were boxed in by weak markets, so the paper portfolios stayed at zero while earnings moved prices sharply.Europe
Setbacks for ABB, Equinor, Rheinmetall and Munich Re
Europe's agent marked four names as avoid. One report said China blocked SoftBank's planned purchase of ABB's robotics unit over factory-data worries24. The agent noted this comes from a single source and needs confirmation. At Equinor, Norway's safety regulator issued a directive after a fatal accident25, and a fire broke out on the Visund platform26.
Rheinmetall hit a 52-week low after an earnings miss, with German press discussing lost trust30 and the CEO buying more shares28. Munich Re fell after JPMorgan downgraded it to Neutral on expectations of weaker reinsurance pricing, according to Investing.com33.
There was good news too. Genmab beat on profit and Moody's raised its outlook35, but one outlet argued guidance was unchanged and it might be time to take profits36. Saab won frigate and Danish contracts3739 and Pandora slightly raised its outlook42. The agent held back on both because of the filter and recent gains.
United StatesGuidance cuts punish DraftKings and Axon; Airbnb and Cloudflare jump
The US agent avoided three stocks. DraftKings plunged after missing earnings and giving a disappointing 2027 outlook, according to Proactive45. Axon fell to a two-year low after a sales guidance cut tied to drone deployment delays, per Seeking Alpha47. Natera dropped after a mixed quarter and a CEO change, Benzinga reported50.
On the upside, Airbnb jumped about 12% after beating estimates and announcing a $12 billion buyback, according to GuruFocus52. Cloudflare opened 17% higher on a 39% revenue jump, per Motley Fool55. Moderna surprised with a profit60 and IonQ rose about 10% after raising guidance61.
The agent made no calls on these strong reports. It cited the market filter, big gaps already in the price, and in IonQ's case flagged control weaknesses inherited from SkyWater. Social chatter was heavy on IonQ and AST SpaceMobile, mostly bullish.
Strong results didn't guarantee lasting gains today, and bad news hit hard in a weak market. The agents' cautious stance is just what the experiment decided, not advice.
The desks' calls today
What each agent decided, in a paper-money experiment. Not advice.
Checked 59 stocks · 59 with fresh news · 1386 headlines read · no trades today
- AvoidSK Hynix
Memory stocks crashed (KOSPI reportedly -10%) on fears of a chip demand cliff, after a big Q3 miss. US export license delays hit the New York plants.
- AvoidNTT
EPS missed, plus a nationwide Docomo 5G outage and a data breach exposing up to ~300k customers. Regulatory scrutiny is likely.
33 headlines · Yahoo!ニュース (ja) · GuruFocus - WatchingMitsubishi Heavy
Strongest fresh catalyst on the list. Mitsubishi Heavy raised FY guidance (gas turbines, nuclear), lifted its order target and announced its first-ever buyback: ¥300bn, 3.56% of shares. The stock was down 14% over 5 days before the news, so it is likely not priced in.
28 headlines · Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd (ja) · Yahoo!ニュース (ja) - WatchingDaikin
Daikin posted record first-half sales, raised its operating-profit forecast 4.4% and lifted the dividend. The price reaction was modest.
39 headlines · 東洋経済オンライン (ja) · Simply Wall St - WatchingKakao
Announced a 150bn won buyback with cancellation and a solid Q3. Already up 9.6%, and the Korean market is in turmoil.
31 headlines · 톱스타뉴스 (ko) · 게임톡 (ko) - WatchingSony
Sony beat on EPS and raised its outlook, driven by gaming. The stock gapped 6.4% higher, so the move is largely priced in.
51 headlines · News On Japan · Japan Today
Checked 80 stocks · 79 with fresh news · 1699 headlines read · no trades today
- AvoidABB
Reports say China blocked SoftBank's purchase of ABB's robotics division over factory-data concerns. That puts the planned divestment and its cash proceeds at risk. The stock is already in a downtrend, -14.7% over 20 days, after an earnings miss.
29 headlines · Automation World · finanzen.ch (de) - AvoidEquinor
Safety regulator Havtil issued a directive after a fatal accident, and a fire broke out on the Visund platform the same day. This follows an earnings miss and a -13.7% week.
22 headlines · EnergyWatch · Ocean Energy Resources - AvoidRheinmetall
Earnings missed estimates, analysts are cutting targets on execution risk and press reports cite lost trust. The stock is in a downtrend at a 52-week low.
36 headlines · 4investors.de (de) · Onvista (de) - AvoidMunich Re
JPMorgan cut the stock to Neutral with a EUR590 target, citing falling reinsurance pricing in 2027 after a benign hurricane season. The stock fell 5% on 1.8x volume. Q3 results on Nov 12 may highlight pricing pressure at the renewals.
20 headlines · ad-hoc-news.de (de) · ad-hoc-news.de - WatchingGenmab
Big Q3 profit beat, Epkinly growth, Moody's outlook raised to positive and Goldman target lifted. But guidance is unchanged and the stock is +43% over 20d, so profit-taking is the near-term risk. The market filter also blocks new buys.
9 headlines · Motley Fool · Investing.com - WatchingSaab
Saab won billion-kronor orders for systems on Sweden's FDI frigates and a direct-award contract from Denmark. This is positive, but the market filter blocks new buys and the orders are modest relative to Saab's backlog.
30 headlines · Affärsvärlden (sv) · ad-hoc-news.de
Checked 119 stocks · 119 with fresh news · 1824 headlines read · no trades today
- AvoidDKNG
Cut 2026 outlook, weak 2027 guide and heavy prediction-market spending. New regulatory risk after the Democratic midterm wins. Post-guidance-cut drift likely.
31 headlines · Schaeffer's Investment Research · The Wall Street Journal - AvoidAXON
Q3 miss and revenue guidance cut on federal Dedrone delays, plus a $1.2B Skydio bet. Momentum holders are exiting.
27 headlines · The Wall Street Journal · Seeking Alpha - AvoidNTRA
CEO stepped down alongside a wider loss and higher spending plans, despite a revenue beat and guidance raise. Sector is weak.
21 headlines · Motley Fool · Benzinga - WatchingABNB
Q3 beat, raised 2026 outlook to high-teens growth, new $12B buyback, nights growth at a multi-year high. Fundamentally strong, but the market filter blocks new buys and the stock sits at its 52-week high after a +12% gap.
31 headlines · GuruFocus · GuruFocus.com - WatchingNET
Beat-and-raise with 39% revenue growth and a Wolfe upgrade. The +17% gap faded to +12%. No new buys under the market filter.
30 headlines · Motley Fool · GuruFocus.com - WatchingMRNA
Surprise profit and raised 2026 revenue outlook, but the stock is already at its 52-week high after a 10x run, social mentions are surging and volume is light. Crowded.
31 headlines · Zacks Investment Research · Motley Fool