Drug Trial Wins Drive Gains, Margins Crack in Transport, and Freelance Platforms Can’t Bill Enough

Strong drug trial results powered biotech gains, while margin pressure in transport and a major earnings miss in the freelance platform space weighed on other names.

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Wall Street was undecided as investors rotated during a busy earnings session, taking profits in tech while rewarding stronger reports elsewhere. Softer retail sales pushed Treasury yields lower, helping blue chips but weighing on growth names, leaving the Dow up and the Nasdaq down.

Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ: GOOGL) just cleared the final major regulatory hurdle for its $32 billion acquisition of Wiz, the largest deal the company has ever made. The EU approved it unconditionally, confirming that the acquisition does not raise competition concerns.

When a deal this size sails through without conditions, it tells you the strategic logic was hard to argue against. Google is making a massive structural move to reshape how it competes in cloud computing, where it has been running third for years.

Cloud Needs a Security Story

Google has the infrastructure and the AI talent, but cybersecurity has become the feature that enterprise clients evaluate before everything else. Wiz brings exactly that, a cloud security platform that has grown at an extraordinary pace and already sits inside some of the largest organizations in the world.

Bolting that capability directly into Google Cloud changes the pitch. Instead of selling compute and storage, Google now walks into your enterprise conversation with security baked in from the start.

Third Place Just Got More Dangerous

Running behind in the cloud has been Google's most visible competitive gap for years. This acquisition does not close that gap overnight, but it changes the trajectory.

When the number three player spends $32 billion to add the hottest cybersecurity platform on the market, you stop thinking about the ranking and start paying attention to the momentum.

Wells Fargo (NYSE: WFC) is projecting loan growth across its consumer business in 2026, with credit cards and auto lending leading the charge. This is the first full year without the $1.95 trillion asset cap the Federal Reserve imposed after the fake accounts scandal, and the difference is already visible.

For years, Wells Fargo watched competitors grow while operating under a balance-sheet ceiling. That ceiling is gone now.

Cards Are Carrying the Momentum

Credit card growth has been consistent for several quarters, driven by newer products launched over the past few years. The bank is now pushing further with cards aimed at wealth management clients and segments it has not fully tapped yet.

When you see a bank this size building a card strategy around newer products rather than legacy portfolios, it signals a business purposefully rebuilding its revenue mix.

Auto Lending Finds Its Lane

The auto business returned to growth in 2025, driven by stronger originations and rising loan balances. Preferred financing partnerships with major automakers have added steady volume, and that momentum is expected to carry through this year.

Uncaged and Moving

This is a different Wells Fargo than the one stuck in damage control for the better part of a decade. The asset cap defined your perception of this bank for years, and now the constraint is gone.

If you have been waiting for the moment Wells Fargo shifts from cleanup to competition, this is what the early innings look like.

This is time-sensitive.

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Welltower Inc (NYSE: WELL) just completed $23 billion in transactions to reshape the company completely. Buy $14 billion in premium senior housing, sell off a $7 billion outpatient medical portfolio, and come out the other side as a business that earns most of its income from one sector.

Senior housing now accounts for the mid-80s of operating income. That is not diversification. That is conviction.

The Demographic Math Is Loud

The oldest baby boomers turn 80 this year, and senior housing occupancy is projected to cross 90% for the first time in two decades. New supply is barely trickling in, sitting at its lowest level since 2006.

You do not need a spreadsheet to see what happens when demand surges and supply stays flat. Welltower timed this pivot to ride that wave directly.

One Direction, No Hedging

Most companies this size spread their bets. Welltower concentrated almost everything into senior housing at the exact moment the demographic tailwind picks up speed. Your read on that depends on how inevitable you think the aging wave really is.

Built to Operate, Not Just Own

Welltower sees itself as an operator wrapped in real estate. Twelve consecutive quarters of 20%-plus growth in its senior housing portfolio back that up.

When you stack operational momentum on top of a generational shift with almost no new competition being built, the setup stops looking like a bet and starts looking unavoidable.

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Evommune Inc [EVMN] $28.96 (+70.45%)

Evommune surged after reporting highly statistically significant Phase 2a results for its atopic dermatitis drug EVO301, demonstrating strong efficacy and a clean safety profile in moderate-to-severe patients.

Nektar Therapeutics [NKTR] $56.00 (+51.07%)

Nektar rallied after announcing positive long-term Phase 2b maintenance data for rezpegaldesleukin in atopic dermatitis, showing sustained disease control and deepening responses through one year.

Ichor Holdings Ltd [ICHR] $45.27 (+32.72%)

Ichor gained after posting a surprise quarterly profit and beating revenue estimates, while an improving earnings outlook prompted a favorable Zacks rating upgrade.

Proficient Auto Logistics Inc [PAL] $7.77 (-25.57%)

Proficient Auto Logistics fell after reporting a sharp swing to an operating loss driven by a $27.8M goodwill impairment, while margins weakened and revenue per unit declined in a tougher pricing environment.

Gilat Satellite Networks Ltd [GILT] $15.04 (-21.95%)

Gilat dropped despite a revenue beat as GAAP earnings declined year over year and operating profit lagged sales growth, raising concerns about margin pressure.

Upwork Inc [UPWK] $15.21 (-19.08%)

Upwork, an online work marketplace, slipped after missing earnings expectations by a wide margin, with profits falling sharply from a year ago despite a slight revenue beat.

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— Adam G.
Elite Trade Club

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