Apple shares slid nearly 3% on Friday after the company trimmed its stock buyback program by $10 billion, and warned of an estimated $900 million in additional costs for the current quarter due to trade tariffs imposed under US President Donald Trump’s administration.

Chief Executive Tim Cook said the company is bracing for a significant rise in expenses for the quarter ending in June, assuming no further changes to global tariff rates.

“I’m not sure what will happen with the tariffs … It’s very difficult to predict beyond June,” Cook said.

“Tim Cook did his best to reassure investors on last night’s earnings call, but many likely came away still wanting more clarity about what lies beyond June,” said Matt Britzman, senior equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, adding that the $900 million hit to profit turned out to be smaller than many had feared.

India and Vietnam step in as Apple diversifies supply chain

To blunt the impact of new tariffs, Apple is accelerating its supply chain diversification efforts.

Cook revealed that a majority of iPhones sold in the US this quarter will be manufactured in India, while nearly all US-bound iPads, Mac computers, Apple Watches, and AirPods will originate from Vietnam.

“It looks like Apple is progressing faster than expected with its move to shift production of US phones into the region (India),” Matt said.

Analysts at Wedbush called India Apple’s “life raft supply chain” as the tech giant navigates tariff headwinds.

Despite these moves, Cook noted that China will remain the primary manufacturing base for Apple products sold outside the United States.

Nonetheless, the company has reportedly begun stockpiling US-bound inventory to avoid the full brunt of tariff increases in the near term.

Revenue outlook steady but investor nerves remain

Apple expects its revenue to grow in the low- to mid-single-digit-percentage range for the June quarter, Chief Financial Officer Kevan Parekh said, with gross margins projected between 45.5% and 46.5%.

Operating expenses are forecast between $15.3 billion and $15.5 billion.

Cook was quick to caution that the $900 million tariff-related cost should not be extrapolated to future quarters, citing “certain unique factors” in the June period.

Still, despite Cook’s efforts to calm market anxiety, investors remained cautious.

Apple’s stock has declined about 15% so far this year, underperforming peers such as Microsoft and Alphabet.

Microsoft’s shares are up nearly 1%, while Meta Platforms has fallen just 2.3% over the same period.

“The question for investors is what can replace China for Apple? This is not an easy question to answer and could threaten the long-term trajectory of Apple’s growth plan,” said Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB.

Apple faces pressure amid Big Tech divergence

While Apple grapples with production shifts and cost pressures, its Big Tech peers reported stronger earnings.

Alphabet, Microsoft, and Meta Platforms all beat quarterly expectations, aided by investments in artificial intelligence. Amazon’s cloud business, however, posted slower-than-expected growth.

In contrast, electronics firms with heavy reliance on hardware and consumer budgets—such as Qualcomm, Samsung Electronics, and Intel—have painted a gloomier picture, similar to Apple’s.

The changing landscape has also weighed on Apple’s valuation.

The company’s 12-month forward price-to-earnings ratio now stands at 27.63, slightly below Microsoft’s 28.64 but above Meta’s 21.48.

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General Motors will cut production at its Oshawa Assembly plant in Canada, moving from a three-shift to a two-shift schedule, the company and workers’ union confirmed on Friday.

The decision comes amid weakening demand for pickup trucks and continued pressure from US trade policies.

The Oshawa facility currently builds light- and heavy-duty Chevrolet Silverado pickups for the North American market.

However, these models are also manufactured at GM plants in the US and Mexico, offering flexibility to shift production based on regional demand and costs.

Tariffs and soft demand reshape GM’s plans

The reduction follows months of uncertainty triggered by US President Donald Trump’s tariff policies, which have forced automakers to reconsider their supply chains and production strategies.

GM’s move reflects a broader trend among manufacturers facing rising trade barriers and evolving market dynamics.

To realign its operations, GM plans to cut truck exports from Oshawa to the US and pivot the plant’s focus toward the Canadian market, starting this fall.

About 700 jobs affected

The shift reduction is expected to impact around 700 workers at the Oshawa plant.

While GM has not shared specifics on layoffs or redeployments, it stated that it will work with partners to support affected employees during the transition.

Unifor, the union representing roughly 3,000 GM workers at the facility, criticized the move as “reckless,” warning that it jeopardizes both jobs and the local economy.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford described the decision as “extremely tough” for workers and their families, expressing concern over the economic implications of scaling down a major industrial site in the province.

The Oshawa cutback is part of GM’s wider manufacturing strategy in North America.

The automaker is increasing output at its Fort Wayne, Indiana plant, which builds light-duty trucks, according to a Reuters report.

In a separate move last month, GM temporarily halted production of its electric commercial vans at another Ontario facility due to sluggish sales—another sign of strategic realignment in response to shifting market conditions.

As global automakers navigate inflation, shifting consumer preferences, and trade tensions, GM’s decision underscores the challenges of staying agile.

While the company repositions its Canadian operations to better serve local demand, uncertainty looms for hundreds of workers and the broader Oshawa community.

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Reddit Inc. (NASDAQ: RDDT) is strongly positioned to extend its gains further over the next few weeks, according to JPMorgan senior analyst Doug Anmuth.

Reddit shares have already rallied some 40% since early April, but an upbeat quarterly release the forum social media platform posted this week will sustain momentum moving forward, Anmuth says.

In the first quarter, the NYSE-listed firm earned 13 cents on a per-share basis (adjusted) – well above the 2 cents per share that experts had forecast.

At $392 million, RDT’s revenue also topped Street estimates by about $22 million in its fiscal Q1.

Reddit shares have upside to $145 in 2025

JPMorgan recommends owning Reddit stock at current levels as the San Francisco-headquartered firm continues to grow its daily active users at an accelerated pace.

DAUs were up another 31% in Q1, which brought sufficient confidence to Doug Anmuth in raising his price target on RDT shares to $145, since a fast-growing user base is attracting significant ad dollars to Reddit in 2025.

“Reddit continues to execute well and capture share of advertiser budgets,” he told clients in a research note this week.

Note that Reddit shares are down some 45% versus their year-to-date high at the time of writing.

RDT is well-positioned to grow its profit and revenue

According to the JPMorgan analyst, shares of the social media company could extend gains as its management continues to introduce new features like the AI-enabled Reddit Answers.

All in all, the San Francisco-based firm is strongly positioned to continue growing its profit and revenue, which may help unlock significant further upside in its share price in the months ahead.

Note that Doug Anmuth’s upwardly revised price target on RDT stock translates to about 20% upside from current levels.  

However, the social news aggregation platform does not currently pay a dividend and is, therefore, not a suitable pick for income investors in 2025.

Reddit issued upbeat guidance for its fiscal Q2

Investors could also take heart in the fact that Reddit, earlier this week, issued upbeat guidance for the current quarter at a time when tariffs and the related macro uncertainty are keeping others cautious at best.

RDT expects its revenue to fall in the range of $410 million to $430 million in Q2, handily above the $396 million that analysts had called for.

More importantly, the company’s chief executive, Steve Huffman, said in his letter to shareholders that Reddit is well-positioned to weather the ongoing macro uncertainty, adding, “We’ve grown through challenging times before – people need connection and information just as much in uncertain times.”

Note that other Wall Street firms agree with JPM on RDT shares, given the consensus rating on Reddit stock currently sits at “overweight”.

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Jeff Bezos, the founder and former chief executive of Amazon, has disclosed plans to sell up to $4.75 billion worth of shares in the e-commerce giant over the next 12 months, according to regulatory filings released Friday.

The planned sale of up to 25 million shares, set under a pre-arranged trading plan, will run through the end of May 2026.

Based on Thursday’s closing price of $190 per share, the stake amounts to roughly $4.75 billion.

Bezos, who stepped down as Amazon’s chief executive in 2021, still owns well over a billion shares and remains one of the company’s largest shareholders.

The disclosure arrived just hours after Amazon warned that its financial outlook could be clouded by the uncertainties surrounding global trade tensions, especially under the renewed threat of tariffs.

Company executives said in an earnings call Thursday evening that second-quarter net sales and operating income may fall short of Wall Street expectations.

Bezos diversifies focus toward space and media

Bezos’s planned share sale follows over $13.4 billion in stock offloaded in 2024 alone—a year that saw Amazon’s market value surge past $2 trillion on the back of investor enthusiasm over artificial intelligence.

The world’s second-richest person has increasingly focused on his space exploration company, Blue Origin, as well as The Washington Post, the US newspaper he owns.

While Blue Origin does not release public financials, people familiar with its operations estimate its costs exceed $2 billion annually.

Bezos remains its sole shareholder and has used proceeds from Amazon stock sales to fund its operations.

More recently, Bezos has also made headlines for a political pivot.

Once a vocal critic of Donald Trump, calling him a “threat to democracy,” the Amazon founder has since made efforts to rebuild the relationship.

He reportedly met Trump multiple times over the past year and attended the former president’s second inauguration with his fiancée, Lauren Sánchez.

Within the Washington Post, Bezos has directed a renewed editorial focus on themes such as free markets and personal liberty, moves that have coincided with a loss of subscribers and staff departures.

Bezos has also continued to finance philanthropic ventures, including the Day One Fund.

In March, he donated shares worth about $60 million to an unnamed non-profit, according to filings.

Despite the share sales, Bezos maintains a significant stake in Amazon and influence over its direction, even as the company navigates a more volatile geopolitical and economic landscape.

Amazon flags uncertainty in trade environment

Amazon’s chief executive, Andy Jassy, and chief financial officer, Brian Olsavsky, repeatedly cited “uncertainty” during the earnings call, a term that appeared 11 times in the transcript, according to data provider FactSet.

In contrast, the word had not appeared in either of the past two quarterly calls.

Jassy told analysts that while Amazon had not yet seen any slowdown in demand, the potential for tariffs to alter consumer behaviour and inflate costs remained a major concern.

“None of us know exactly where tariffs will settle or when,” he said, adding that the company’s vast product selection might help it weather volatility better than some peers.

Olsavsky echoed this caution, saying the company’s second-quarter guidance included a wider-than-usual range due to tariff-related uncertainty and broader concerns around consumer spending.

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Both Rigetti Computing Inc (NASDAQ: RGTI) and IonQ Inc (NYSE: IONQ) have soared about 50% over the past month as investors ran into the quantum computing stocks in hopes they’ll emerge as the next goldmines after AI in 2025.

According to some experts, quantum technology’s transformative influence on industries across the board could prove even more game-changing than artificial intelligence over the next few years.

But which one, among Rigetti Computing Inc. and IonQ stock, is a better pick for exposure to the expected meteoric growth in quantum technology moving forward? Let’s explore!

IONQ has superior technology to RGTI

IonQ shares may be a better investment for exposure to quantum technology this year, as it uses a more advanced approach than its peer, Rigetti Computing.

RGTI uses superconducting qubits, whereas IonQ employs ion-based technology that eliminates the need for excessive cooling infrastructure. Its machines are capable of operating fully at room temperature.

This is significant since it makes it easier for businesses to adopt IonQ’s technology.  

IonQ’s trapped ion qubits offer significantly better fidelity and longer coherence times compared to Rigetti’s superconducting qubits as well.

Additionally, the NYSE-listed firm allows cloud-based access to its quantum computers versus a less attractive hybrid model for RGTI.

At writing, IONQ shares are down some 40% versus their year-to-date high.

IonQ stock offers better fundamentals than Rigetti

IonQ may trump its rival Rigetti Computing for exposure to quantum technology, also because it offers significantly better financials than the latter.

In its latest reported quarter, RGTI saw its revenue tank 33% on a year-on-year basis to $2.3 million.

The company’s gross margin also crashed more than 3,000 basis points to 44% in Q4.

On the flip side, IONQ nearly doubled its revenue to about $11.71 million in its fourth financial quarter.

The company based out of College Park, MD, also took a hit to its profit margin in Q4, but the decline was much less in percentage terms compared to Rigetti.

Note that neither Rigetti Computing nor IonQ stock pays a dividend at the time of writing.

The bottom line

Given its superior technology and accelerated rate of growth, IONQ shares do look more appealing for quantum technology exposure in 2025.

Rigetti’s poor sales numbers compared to a rapid increase in IonQ’s revenue in recent quarters indicate the latter’s trapped-ion qubits are sitting much better with customers than Rigetti’s superconducting qubits.  

That said, it’s worth mentioning here that neither IonQ stock nor Rigetti Computing is particularly attractive in terms of valuation at the time of writing.

Both of those quantum stocks have price-to-sales ratios that currently sit well above 100, which is not super attractive, given the macroeconomic uncertainty in 2025.  

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