🧯 Market meltdown

…and Mars eyes a $30B bite of Pringles (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images) Monday scaries   Sponsored by Yesterday's market moves Dow Jones 38,703 (-2.60%) S&P 500 5,186 (-3.00%) Nasdaq 16,200 (-3.43%) Bitcoin $54,393 (-6.44%) Dow Jones 38,703 (-2.60%) S&P 500 5,186 (-3.00%) Nasdaq 16,200 (-3.43%) Bitcoin $54,393 (-6.44%) Hey Snackers, The Lone Star State is trying to add some stars… Michelin ones. Houston is paying for culinary critics to review its restaurants as Texas [looks to gain]( some Michelin-starred fame. The market had a very unhappy Monday, deepening Friday’s declines as traders moved out of riskier assets like stocks and crypto. US indexes [plunged]( as several factors combined to stoke investors’ anxiety. More on that below…   MELTDOWN [Global markets get rocked as US recession fears spark calls for emergency rate cuts]( Sea of red… Yesterday all three major US indexes closed at least 2.6% lower, with the Dow and S&P 500 posting their worst days since 2022. The tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 had its worst start to a month since 2008 as investors pulled out of high-flying mega-caps like Apple and Nvidia. And the Nasdaq Composite is in a “correction” (down 10% from recent highs). All the commotion drove the VIX — Wall Street’s “fear gauge” — to its [highest level]( since 2020. Meantime, bitcoin briefly dipped under $50K, and the crypto market lost about $367B in value. - Tokyo rift: Japan’s Nikkei index plunged 12% for its [worst day]( since 1987 as the country’s currency quickly appreciated. Last week, Japan raised its interest rates to 15-year highs, and investors unloaded popular “[carry trades](” of the Japanese yen. - Seeking shelter: Investors fled to US Treasury bonds as a safe haven from the fallout, driving the 10-year yield to its lowest level in over a year (yields fall as bond prices rise). Bad news is bad again... For a while, investors took a “bad news = good news” approach to economic data because it made Fed interest rate cuts seem more likely. But now that a September cut is widely expected, bad news is starting to stoke recession jitters. Stocks plunged after Friday’s July jobs report, which was a major bummer (unemployment hit the highest level since 2021). With rates still at 20-year highs and recession fears roiling, traders are betting the Fed will make an “emergency cut” before its next meeting. It would be the first out-of-cycle rate cut since the onset of Covid in 2020. THE TAKEAWAY Market tantrums are inevitable… Corrections are a part of investing, and they tend to happen around once every few years. After months of [AI-fueled rallies]( and record highs, investors are rotating out of riskier assets like tech stocks as expectations come back to earth. Big Tech earnings have failed to meet lofty forecasts, and there’ve been hiccups with AI innovation. Some analysts say Wall Street may be overreacting. And despite the meltdown, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq are still up nearly 10% for the year. [Read this online]( Sponsored by RAD AI Buy opportunity: An AI startup with traction With market volatility, comes opportunity. The opportunity for artificial intelligence is here to stay, and [RAD AI is a startup with traction]( that’s using its tech to execute strategic buyouts. RAD AI is backed by 7000+ investors, including Adobe Design Fund and executives from Google, Snap, Amazon, and Meta. Here’s why the demand for RAD AI is growing: [RAD AI increased revenue 3X over the last 12 months](, with as much as 3.5X ROI delivered for various Fortune 1000 clients. With over $28M raised from professional investors, VCs, and partners, this AI startup investment opportunity is still early with significant upside potential, clients, and game-changing tech. Accredited investors can [get in now at $0.396 with a 10% discount](* if you invest before 8/16, after which the share price will be going up.** Sponsored by RAD AI Buy opportunity: An AI startup with traction With market volatility, comes opportunity. The opportunity for artificial intelligence is here to stay, and [RAD AI is a startup with traction]( that’s using its tech to execute strategic buyouts. RAD AI is backed by 7000+ investors, including Adobe Design Fund and executives from Google, Snap, Amazon, and Meta. Here’s why the demand for RAD AI is growing: [RAD AI increased revenue 3X over the last 12 months](, with as much as 3.5X ROI delivered for various Fortune 1000 clients. With over $28M raised from professional investors, VCs, and partners, this AI startup investment opportunity is still early with significant upside potential, clients, and game-changing tech. Accredited investors can [get in now at $0.396 with a 10% discount](* if you invest before 8/16, after which the share price will be going up.**   SWEET [Mars looks to buy Pringles powerhouse Kellanova in a major snack-quisition]( King-size candy deal… Snickers and M&M’s maker Mars is said to be [considering buying]( Kellanova in a deal that could value the snacks biz [at $30B](, far above its current $22B market cap. Word of the possible purchase sent shares of Kellanova — which makes kitchen pantry faves like Pringles, Cheez-It, and Pop-Tarts — up 16% yesterday (while the rest of the market [saw red](). If it happens, the deal would be one of the largest ever in the packaged food game. Privately owned Mars said its revenue hit $50B last year (quadruple Kellanova’s sales). - Kellawho? Cereal colossus Kellogg split into two last year, with its snacking biz becoming Kellanova and its cereals falling under WK Kellogg. - Savory play: With cocoa prices [hitting record]( highs this year, Twix and Milky Way maker Mars may see Kellanova as a way to diversify from chocolate. - On trend: Snack-quisitions are on the rise. Last year Jif-peanut-butter maker J.M. Smucker said it [would buy]( Hostess for $5.6B. At risk of going stale… Snacking spiked during the pandemic as homebound folks stocked cupboards with nonperishable treats to enjoy on the couch. More recently, inflation-weary shoppers have been cutting back on name-brand treats. Mondelez, which makes Oreos and Ritz crackers, said last week that its second-quarter sales and volumes fell. Kellanova also reported lower Q2 sales, though North America sales ticked up. THE TAKEAWAY Spin-offs can spin up appetites… by splitting businesses into more focused pieces. Buying all of Kellogg might’ve been more than Mars could chew, but the standalone Kellanova could be a perfectly sized bite. Kellanova wouldn’t be the first spin-off to pay off: last year Johnson & Johnson’s spun-off consumer arm, Kenvue, became the [largest IPO]( in the US in nearly 18 months. [Read this online](   ON SHERWOOD [We asked an inventor of the Dollar Menu what McDonald’s new pricing reveals about the economy]( Dollar Menu was born when consumers had fewer dollars to spare. We’re there again. [Read More.](   What else we're Snackin' - [Result](: A federal judge ruled that Google broke the law to become a search monopoly. The ruling could force the ad titan to change its biz practices (like: no more paying to be the default search engine on phones). - [WarrenPeaceOut](: Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway said that last quarter it sold nearly half of its 790M Apple shares. In total, Berkshire off-loaded $75B+ worth of stocks last q, boosting its cash holdings to a record. - [Meaty](: Chicken nugget icon Tyson swung to a quarterly profit after it sold higher volumes of beef and pork (its prices were also up for both proteins). But chicken sales volumes and prices dipped. - [EarningsSzn](: Despite all the market gloom and doom, corporate profit growth is on track for its best quarter since 2021. So far, S&P 500 companies have collectively reported 11.5% earnings-per-share growth. - [Bitten](: Bitcoin mining titans Marathon Digital and Riot Platforms both missed quarterly revenue expectations. This year’s bitcoin “[halving](” has weighed on miners (their reward for mining a block was slashed).   Snack Fact of the Day [This year, back-to-college spending is expected to hit nearly $1.4K per US household](   Tuesday - US trade deficit for June - Earnings expected from Uber, Reddit, WK Kellogg, Caterpillar, Marathon Petroleum, Kenvue, Planet Fitness, Molson Coors, Yum Brands, Tempur Sealy, Hyatt Hotels, Supermicro, Rivian, Airbnb, Amgen, Instacart, Coupang, and Suncor Authors of this Snacks own bitcoin and shares of Alphabet, Apple, Nvidia, Riot Platforms, Uber, and Yum Brands Advertiser's disclosures:* The minimum investment for this round is $2000. In order to receive the discount, you must make the minimum investment. ** INVESTMENTS IN PRIVATE PLACEMENTS ARE SPECULATIVE, POSSESS A HIGH LEVEL OF RISK, ARE HIGHLY ILLIQUID, AND THOSE INVESTORS WHO CANNOT HOLD AN INVESTMENT FOR AN INDEFINITE TERM SHOULD NOT INVEST. NO ASSURANCE CAN BE GIVEN THAT INVESTORS WILL RECEIVE A RETURN OF THEIR CAPITAL. PLEASE CAREFULLY REVIEW THE [TERMS OF THIS OFFERING](, INCLUDING FEES, RISKS, AND INVESTMENT DETAILS BEFORE INVESTING.   [Instagram]( [Twitter]( [Sherwood Logo](sherwood.news) Sherwood Media, LLC produces fresh and unique perspectives on topical financial news and is a fully owned subsidiary of Robinhood Markets, Inc., and any views expressed here do not necessarily reflect the views of any other Robinhood affiliate... [See more]( [Sherwood Terms and Conditions]( [Our Editorial Standards]( [Contact Us](mailto:hello@snacks.robinhood.com) [Advertise With Us](mailto:advertising@sherwoodmedia.com) [Unsubscribe]( [Privacy Policy](