Day: February 23, 2026

Evercore lifted its price target to $153 from $130 while maintaining an Outperform rating. The firm pointed to Walmart Digital’s 27% growth reaching approximately $100 billion in the U.S. and $150 billion globally as evidence the company’s 6% earnings per share growth guidance may be conservative, News.az reports, citing Telegraph.
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The analyst noted that faster growth in higher-margin segments including advertising, membership fees, and digital operations with double-digit variable margins should position Walmart to grow even as other retailers face challenges. Fourth-quarter results showed accelerating traffic of 2.6%, U.S. comparable sales of 4.6% with over 500 basis points from e-commerce, and 10 basis points of global operating income margin expansion.
Evercore highlighted Walmart Plus membership, currently in approximately 20 million households, as comparable to Amazon Prime in 2014. The firm raised its base case to $135 from $130, citing favorable business mix including 30% growth of a $6.4 billion global advertising business and double-digit growth in marketplace fulfillment income to $4.3 billion from Walmart Plus.
The firm adjusted its earnings per share estimates down 1% to $3.00 and $3.35 respectively to account for liability claims, reduced other income, and grocery price investments. Evercore removed its Underperform tactical allocation position issued on February 17 after the stock declined 7% while the S&P 500 rose 1%.

Barclays maintained its Overweight rating and raised its price target to $132 from $125. The firm noted strong unit share gains driven by aggressive price investments, acceleration in e-commerce penetration including WMT Connect growth, and strong underlying flow-through masked by tariffs that will anniversary in coming months.

Barclays said guidance came in at $2.96 as expected but sees potential for earnings per share of $3.15 or higher throughout the year while still signaling management is targeting stronger flow-through.

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Trading in PayPal shares was briefly halted due to volatility, News.az reports, citing CNN.
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According to Bloomberg News, citing people familiar with the matter, the San Jose, California-based company has held meetings with banks amid unsolicited interest from suitors. At least one large rival is examining a potential acquisition of the entire company, while other interested parties are focused on specific PayPal assets, the people said.
The sources cautioned that buyer interest remains at a preliminary stage and may not result in a transaction. A PayPal representative declined to comment on the report.
The sharp stock movement reflects market reaction to the potential takeover scenario, which comes after a significant decline in PayPal’s share price over the past year. The stock has declined approximately 46% over the past 12 months, bringing the company’s market value to around $38.4 billion.

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Stifel analyst Ruben Roy told investors in a preview note that his expectations for the fiscal fourth quarter are quite consistent with his view three months ago, noting the company is still navigating “a well-understood demand acceleration story against longer-term concerns on the sustainability of AI infrastructure spend,” , News.Az reports, citing CNBC.
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He added that Stifel remains bullish, arguing Nvidia is “still in the early innings of what we expect to be a long-tailed investment cycle for AI infrastructure.” 
Roy said conversations with management at CES and higher hyperscaler capital-expenditure outlooks for 2026 suggest estimates are “likely moving higher post the 4Q report.”
Meanwhile, KeyBanc’s John Vinh forecasts fourth-quarter revenue of $69 billion and first-quarter guidance of $74 billion to $75 billion, citing tailwinds from the ramp-up of Blackwell B300/GB300 shipments, which carry higher average selling prices. 
He estimates China-bound H200 shipments will add $3 billion to $3.5 billion in the quarter and another $2 billion to $3 billion in the April quarter. Vinh also expects data centre revenue to rise 24% sequentially and compute revenue to climb 27%, though he warned that GDDR memory shortages could weigh on gaming.

Peter Corey, Chief Market Strategist at Pave Finance, said in comments to Investing.com that “NVIDIA’s upcoming earnings should reflect strong results and a confident outlook, with recent channel checks appearing broadly optimistic.”

“While DRAM shortages and power bottlenecks remain potential obstacles, the demand data we’re seeing doesn’t suggest those constraints are materially dampening end demand at this stage,” Corey added. “If NVIDIA delivers solid earnings and the market continues to sell off – particularly across KKR, BLK, OWL and IGV – then that divergence would be a reason to become more defensive, as it would imply the tape is trading more on risk appetite than fundamentals.”
Focusing on the stock price ahead of the results, David Morrison, senior market analyst at Trade Nation, told Investing.com that Nvidia shares have been trapped between $170 and $195 for months as investors weigh questions about AI investment returns and competitive threats. 
But he acknowledged that Wednesday’s update could provide a catalyst. “There is an opportunity for a breakout in the share price,” he said, noting the market will focus on data centre revenue, cloud spending and margins. 
“The initial headlines will be around revenues and earnings per share, and how these match up to expectations,” he added. “In addition, Nvidia has often surprised investors with bullish forward guidance. If there’s good news here, then that should underpin the share price.”
Morrison stated that “data centre revenue, chip demand and hyperscale cloud spending are all important elements,” while competition and margins will also feature. 

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Arianto Tawakal, 14, was allegedly assaulted by a police officer in Maluku province. The police officer claimed he was monitoring illegal street racing. The family denied the allegations that the boy was speeding, News.Az reports, citing The Independent.
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The videos, which have been widely circulated on social media, show the boy covered in blood.
Amnesty International Indonesia’s executive director, Usman Hamid, described the attack as a “serious violation of human rights”, according to local news reports.
Local reports said he was assaulted by a member of the Indonesian National Police’s Mobile Brigade (Brimob), second brigadier Masias Siahaya, who struck him with a helmet, leading to his death.

The victim’s family said the teenager was riding a motorcycle with his older brother, Nasri Karim, on the pillion seat when the officer allegedly jumped out from behind a tree and struck the rider in the face with his tactical helmet, Amnesty reported.
The boy lost control of his motorcycle and the two were sent hurtling forward, with Tawakal’s head dragging along the asphalt.
He was taken to the Karel Sadsuitubun Regional Hospital but was pronounced dead due to severe brain haemorrhaging.
Police said Mr Siahaya swung his helmet in the air several times to signal the boy to stop. However, the helmet allegedly struck the teenager on the temple, causing him to lose control and crash into another vehicle ahead.
Rijik Fikri Tawakal, the victim’s father, denied the claim that his son had been given any warning to stop and said there was a crowd at the scene.
“My son (Arianto) was shocked when this officer raised his helmet and immediately struck his face,” Mr Rijik said.
“What I regret is that they lifted my child as if he were an animal,” he said.
Mr Hamid said the case shows a pattern, highlighting a previous death of student Gamma Rizkynata Oktavandy in Semarang.
“This amateurish approach reminds us of the police violence case that claimed the life of a student in Semarang, Gamma. Instead of acting firmly and thoroughly uncovering the facts, the police accused Gamma of being involved in a brawl,” Mr Hamid said.
“Their cover-up of the truth only further undermines public trust in the police,” he said.
Mr Siahaya was detained by the police soon after the incident, said public relations head of the Maluku Regional Police, senior commissioner Rositah Umasugi.
“He is being detained to be held accountable for his actions in accordance with the applicable legal processes,” Ms Rositah said, according to Tempo, adding that he will undergo both criminal and ethical proceedings.
If found guilty, he would face dismissal without honour, she added.
Police said they are still investigating the incident, establishing the sequence of events, including the claim of illegal street racing.
Police said there were witnesses at the spot who say vehicles were racing and that the officer took preventive action.
“However, whether the actions taken were in accordance with procedures or not is what we are currently investigating,” said Tual police chief Whansi Des Asmoro.

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Oseguera was the mastermind of the powerful Jalisco New Generation Cartel, a major fentanyl supplier to the United States, News.Az reports, citing Reuters.
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Here is a timeline of events as detailed by Mexican officials on Monday:
FEBRUARY 20: TRAILING ‘EL MENCHO’
Following a tip-off from a trusted associate of one of Oseguera’s romantic partners, who was unnamed, authorities tracked the romantic partner to a facility in the town of Tapalpa in Jalisco state where Oseguera was staying. Officials have not provided further details on the site.
FEBRUARY 21: PREPARATION FOR RAID
The romantic partner left the facility. Mexican intelligence confirmed that Oseguera remained on-site, protected by his bodyguards.
Mexico’s army, backed by National Guard military police, special forces, military aircraft and six helicopters, were sent to the area in a top-secret operation.
A new U.S.-military-led task force specializing in intelligence collection on drug cartels played a role in the raid, a U.S. defense official told Reuters.
FEBRUARY 22: THE OPERATION
Prepared for a siege, Mexican ground forces encircled the area before dawn. Cartel gunmen opened fire but special forces repelled this attack, leaving eight suspected cartel members dead.
Oseguera and his inner circle fled to a cabin complex in a nearby wooded area. Special forces pursued them into the undergrowth, where a second exchange of gunfire took place.
After taking control of the situation, Mexican security forces found Oseguera and two bodyguards injured. A helicopter was called to dispatch them to a nearby medical facility, but Oseguera died during the flight.
By this time, the operation had triggered widespread violent retaliation by cartel members, and the helicopter was unable to land in the Jalisco state capital Guadalajara. It was diverted to Morelia airport in nearby Michoacan state, and Oseguera’s body was then transferred to a military plane bound for Mexico City.

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The passenger bus, carrying 44 people on board, fell around 200 meters below the highway into the Trishuli River, killing 19, including one Chinese citizen. As many as 25 people, including another Chinese citizen, are receiving treatment in the hospital, News.az reports, citing Xinhua.
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“The government is coordinating with hospitals to ensure the injured receive proper treatment,” the statement said.

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Earlier this month an 18-year-old with mental health problems shot eight people in a western town and then committed suicide, News.Az reports, citing Reuters.
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OpenAI said it had banned the killer’s account last year on the chatbot ChatGPT for policy violations which it said did not meet internal criteria for reporting to law enforcement.

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Netflix chief Ted Sarandos on Monday dismissed President Donald Trump’s demand that the streaming giant fire former national security adviser Susan Rice from its board, or “pay the consequences,” as the company is embroiled in a high-profile merger fight that will decide the fate of Warner Bros. Discovery, News.Az reports, ciitng Politico.
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Trump decried Rice as a “political hack” in a Saturday Truth Social post, hitching onto an earlier post from far-right activist Laura Loomer that called Netflix “anti-American” for associating with Rice, who was national security adviser during President Barack Obama’s second term. Rice served on Netflix’s board from 2018 to 2020, and rejoined in 2023 after working for the Biden administration.
“@POTUS must kill the merger,” Loomer later wrote on X.
“This is a business deal. It’s not a political deal,” Sarandos told BBC’s Amol Rajan in an interview. “[Trump] likes to do a lot of things on social media.”
Trump’s Truth Social post about Rice is his latest in a series of interventions in the industry-reshaping deal. In December, he said he’ll “be involved” in the review process, before reversing course early this month, telling NBC that he wouldn’t wade into the bitter bidding war. 
Paramount Skydance — the parent company of CBS, which is controlled by the Trump-friendly Ellison family — is challenging Netflix’s $83 billion bid for WBD. The showdown has set off a lobbying bonanza in Washington, as each media company attempts to curry favor. Meanwhile, the Justice Department is probing Netflix’s proposed takeover, concerned that such a deal would grant monopoly powers to the streaming giant.
Sarandos has already made a direct plea to the president. The two men met in November, Bloomberg first reported, and Sarandos pitched Trump on the economic windfall that would result from Netflix’s deal.
“We’re buying assets that we don’t currently have,” Sarandos told BBC. “We’re buying a movie studio and a distribution entity that we don’t currently have. We’ll be adding to the market.”
“There’s five major studios left in Hollywood,” he continued. “If the Paramount deal were to go through, it would be four. … This industry will be much smaller under that ownership.”

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On Monday, Sky News reported that Nomani, a prominent pro-Palestine activist with links to Hizb ut-Tahrir, had resigned from the board of Sydney’s Malek Fahd Islamic School after the outlet uncovered the disturbing video, News.Az reports, citing foreign media.
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The NSW Education Standards Authority then initiated an investigation, and there have also been calls for the federal Education Minister to step in, given the school is predominantly funded by the federal government.
Nomani shared the video of Hamas on his public Instagram account on February 15 with the caption “Ameen. Ameen. Ameen”.
The prayer in the video asks Allah to give victory to the fighters, “make them catch the neck of their enemies… make their shots hit the targets…” and consider those who died a “martyr”.

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