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Today we are watching…
1. Toyota (#toyota)
This Japanese automaker does $270 billion in annual revenue as the world’s tenth-largest company. Its movements are tracked to a tee by investors, and now markets have it on good authority that it’s releasing the Mirai, a next-gen hydrogen fuel cell car. It won’t be directly powered by electricity or gasoline, but rather a fuel cell running on convert a rare form of hydrogen. With faster fill-up times and glowing testimonials from big names in the tech space, this new-age niche is tipped by many to balloon. However, hydrogen is far from cheap! There remains a lack of refueling infrastructure, and customers still won’t be able to recharge their cars at home or in many gas stations. It’s a big ask, but if Toyota commercializes hydrogen fuel cell technology for affordable vehicles, it will stun electrolysis-based car-makers like Tesla.
2. Best Buy (#bestbuy)
Eighteen-billion-dollars of shareholder value created or not; the rules are the rules. Corie Barry, CEO of Best Buy, helped her big-box retailer on its way to more than 80% gains in 2019. However, word on the inside is that following a whistleblower’s damning letter, an investigation is underway into possible misconduct. Love is the alleged offense. Romantic relationships with co-workers are off-bounds, especially at the very top. But do outside investors care much about that? Probably not. Do outside investors care much about multi-billion-dollar increases in market value? Almost certainly! If evidence is brought forward against Barry, the Best Buy board will have a massive decision on its hands.
