Being productive

Arrival didn’t exactly cover itself in glory when it reported its most recent Q2 results. It disappointed on many fronts with more delays, which led to a huge sell off in its stock. Nonetheless, there were a couple of bright spots that are worth pointing out.

The first would be that the company saw yet another increase to its memorandum of understandings and orders, from 143k in Q1 to 149k in Q2. This now adds up to a total of approximately $6bn in potential revenue. But most importantly, it reaffirmed its commitment to start production this quarter. CEO Denis Sverdlov mentioned on the earnings call that the microfactory concept is coming to fruition, expressing his excitement and entrepreneurial spirit to radically change the traditional assembly line.

Yet another delayed Arrival

I’m afraid that’s about it for good news, unfortunately, as the rest of the report was mostly disappointing. Despite the firm confirming start of production in Q3, this is only for 20 vans, which is down from the initial 400 to 600 vans promised in the Q1 earnings report. This is because of cash preservation reasons, as well as the manufacturer only having enough parts for 200 vans currently. Arrival also doesn’t expect revenue to come in this year either due to the timing of these deliveries, which are expected to happen at the very end of the year.

To make matters worse, the company is having to dilute shareholders like myself once again. Sky-high inflation has forced the unicorn to seek additional capital. This is being done through an at-the-market (ATM) offering, worth $300m. Arrival plans to sell its shares into a secondary trading market, with $90m expected to be raised this year, and another $210m in 2023. The offering should give it enough cash until the end of 2023, with CFO John Wozniak guiding for it to finish 2023 with at least $300m in cash and equivalents.

That being said, it continued to burn through quite a substantial amount of cash in Q2. As such, it’s had to conduct some cost-cutting measures by putting its bus and car projects on pause until additional capital can be raised, while also cutting spending by 30%.

Lagging behind

Admittedly, Arrival has a great vision with wonderful economics, which was why I chose to invest in its stock. However, numerous delays and disappointments have only made me doubt whether this radical innovation can truly be executed.

With the company continuing to burn cash, profitability isn’t expected anytime soon. Although the board expects margins to reach breakeven by 2024, I can only imagine that it’s another empty promise after so many disappointments.

Arrival has had a terrible record of over promising and under delivering. So, I’m taking any future outlook with a big pinch of salt. Therefore, I don’t think the stock will be hitting $2 soon, and I won’t be adding to my position. Instead, I’ll be looking to purchase other stocks with better track records.

The post Will Arrival stock hit $2 anytime soon? appeared first on The Twelfth Magpie.

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• Will SpaceX, Nvidia, or Alphabet be the first $10trn stock?
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• With a 9.3% yield, is this an amazing opportunity to consider buying dirt-cheap Taylor Wimpey shares?
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John Choong has positions in Arrival. The Motley Fool UK has no position in any of the shares mentioned. Views expressed on the companies mentioned in this article are those of the writer and therefore may differ from the official recommendations we make in our subscription services such as Share Advisor, Hidden Winners and Pro. Here at The Motley Fool we believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors.

PayPal (NASDAQ: PYPL) stock is up over 30% in the last month. After posting excellent Q2 results, it takes the spotlight as my stock of the week. With that in mind, I think PayPal could rebound in the current stock market recovery.

Investment pays off

After the fintech firm reported its Q2 numbers, PayPal saw its stock rise by more than 10%. This was because it beat a number of analysts’ estimates on both its top and bottom lines. In fact, the company managed to surpass its own guidance on the majority of metrics!

Nevertheless, the firm’s EPS saw a substantial decline. However, this was because of lower transaction margins from eBay, and the last year’s numbers getting a boost from the release of unneeded allowances for bad loans. Taking those factors into consideration, EPS stayed flat on a year-over-year (Y/Y) basis.

Pals bring quality

Since PayPal revised its goal of bringing more quality than quantity, it’s seen user growth decline, but PTPAA has gone up steadily. This was evident in this quarter’s numbers, with minuscule NNA, but robust PTPAA growth.

The growth can be attributed to two reasons. The first is the rise in core daily active users, which has seen a rise of more than 40% since 2019. This is crucial for PayPal because 80% of its transactions come from 30% of its most active users. The second is the continued growth of Venmo, which ended up driving more than 50% of PayPal’s revenue growth in Q2.

As such, management provided a decent outlook for the rest of the year. The Nasdaq-listed firm now expects Q3 revenue of $6.8bn, with an upwardly revised non-GAAP EPS of approximately $0.95. For the full year, it expects 10% revenue growth, with a non-GAAP EPS of approximately $3.92. The board also forecasts to grow TPV by 12%, add 10m more accounts, and have a free cash flow of at least $5bn.

Long way to grow

So, is PayPal stock worth a buy? Well, all signs seem to point towards yes. Aside from the excellent numbers and guidance provided, the impact on its cost savings are yet to be realised. Interim CFO Gabrielle Rabinovitch mentioned that PayPal expects $900m worth of cost savings in FY22, and a further $1.3bn next year. She also reiterated that the payments processor expects operating margin expansion of at least 0.5% starting in Q4. And with core markets yet to be fully penetrated, PayPal still has a long way to grow as it expands its digital wallet features to more regions worldwide.

Nonetheless, it’s worth noting that PayPal sits on $10.6bn worth of debt. But with no maturities for the rest of the year and margin expansions on the horizon, I’ve no doubt that incoming CFO Blake Jorgensen will be able to navigate through its debt pile without too much hassle.

Finally, the company saw its take rate remain flat at 2% (yoy), which is great news as PayPal continues to maintain its transactional margins while seeing TPV increase and growing its market share. Therefore, I think PayPal has a position on my portfolio with an average price target of $119.29.

The post Stock of the week: PayPal outperforms in Q2! appeared first on The Twelfth Magpie.

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• With a 9.3% yield, is this an amazing opportunity to consider buying dirt-cheap Taylor Wimpey shares?
• How much do you need in a Stocks and Shares ISA to aim for £375 a week in retirement?

John Choong owns shares of PayPal. The Motley Fool UK has recommended PayPal Holdings. Views expressed on the companies mentioned in this article are those of the writer and therefore may differ from the official recommendations we make in our subscription services such as Share Advisor, Hidden Winners and Pro. Here at The Motley Fool we believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors.

Google’s parent company Alphabet (NASDAQ: GOOGL) released its earnings results after the US market closed yesterday. Although revenues in every sector showed growth, figures across the board missed analysts’ expectations. With that in mind, should I still buy Alphabet stock?

Snapping back

With Alphabet missing both its top and bottom line consensus, I was surprised to see the stock pop as high as 5% in after-hours trading. There could be several reasons for this. However, I’d attribute it to the increase in advertising revenue despite Snap’s lacklustre Q2 earnings last week, which warned of lower ad spend last quarter.

Having said that, all of Alphabet’s core businesses saw growth on a year-on-year (Y/Y) basis. These figures defied the doom and gloom Snap posted in its earnings report, which spooked the stock market into a sell-off.

Vision for the future

So, with an increase in its top line, why did the Nasdaq-listed firm see a decline in its EPS? The two main culprits were higher labour costs and further investments in tech. CEO Sundar Pichai said the tech giant is planning to continue heavily investing in developing its offerings.

The latest AI-integrated search features are already showing promise, as Multisearch and Google Lens have seen increasing levels of adoption among users. The feature brings up relevant information related to objects it identifies using visual analysis. This allows people to use text and images at the same time, while giving users the ability to ask questions about what they see.

On the YouTube front, Alphabet announced a partnership with Shopify last week. This collaboration enables Shopify merchants to feature their products across YouTube channels and content. And with YouTube Shorts continuing to grow fast, this feature could help to monetise it.

As for Cloud, I was happy to see revenues continuing to hit fresh highs. Pichai confirmed that demand for the service remains robust, with more enterprises expected to come on board as new features get added. The acquisition of Mandiant that’s expected to be completed by the end of the year should also help with this. As the bulk of the company’s capital expenditure went towards servers and data centres, I’m confident in Cloud’s long-term earnings potential.

Returning for more

Although such developments excite me as an investor, I’m well aware of the risks associated with investing in Alphabet. There’s the obvious macroeconomic headwind that’s expected to dent ad spend in the near term. This was confirmed by CFO Ruth Porat on the earnings call.

More worrying is the rise of TikTok. Google exec Prabhakar Raghavan admitted around 40% of Gen Z users prefer searching via TikTok or Instagram over Google. If it fails to improve its search features or win over users, Alphabet’s core business could be compromised.

Yet, I have confidence in this experienced team to continue developing its products and services, and fend off competition. The board has shown its ability to return value to its investors time and time again.  In fact, Q2 hosted the biggest share buyback in the company’s history. Therefore, I remain bullish and will look to buy more Alphabet stock for my portfolio while it’s cheap.

The post Should I buy Alphabet stock after its Q2 earnings? appeared first on The Twelfth Magpie.

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John Choong owns shares of Alphabet (Class A Shares). Suzanne Frey, an executive at Alphabet, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. The Motley Fool UK has recommended Alphabet (A shares), Alphabet (C shares), and Shopify. Views expressed on the companies mentioned in this article are those of the writer and therefore may differ from the official recommendations we make in our subscription services such as Share Advisor, Hidden Winners and Pro. Here at The Motley Fool we believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors.

The Alphabet (NASDAQ: GOOGL) share price just ‘lost’ 95% of its value today. The stock was trading above the $2,200 mark on Friday but is now trading just above $110. Here’s why, and whether I’ll be buying Alphabet stock for my portfolio.

Heading Dow-wards?

The sole reason for the drop in the Alphabet share price is its recent 20-to-1 stock split. Those who held the stock when the US market closed on Friday were awarded 19 additional stocks for every stock they held. The value of each stock has been divided by 20 as well.

According to the board, the reason for this split is to encourage higher trading volume while making access to Alphabet stocks easier. However, this is a double-edged sword. While a ‘cheaper’ stock encourages more volume to boost its share price, it also means that it’s more vulnerable to being shorted and driving the share price down. This is a genuine risk considering the negative sentiment surrounding the current bear market.

Nonetheless, the main prospect from the stock split is Alphabet’s potential entry into the coveted Dow Jones index. The index includes 30 of the most prominent companies listed on US stock exchanges. Given Alphabet’s prominence, analysts are predicting it’s a matter of when and not if the NASDAQ-listed firm gets inducted. If this happens, I expect the Alphabet share price to rally, as institutions tracking the index will have to purchase the stock.

What now?

Despite the excitement surrounding its stock split, the Alphabet share price is still down 20% this year. Fears of a recession have led investors to speculate that growth in advertising spending, Alphabet’s main source of revenue, will stall. As such, analysts’ earnings per share (EPS) estimates have seen downward revision over the last 90 days.

Alphabet’s stock plunged after it reported its Q1 earnings results, as some key figures fell short of analysts’ expectations. Slowing advertising spending from the Russia-Ukraine conflict along with currency headwinds were some of the reasons cited by management for the underperformance. But with Alphabet set to report its Q2 results next Tuesday, I’m hoping that there will be better news. EPS is expected to come in lower than a year ago. But I’ll be paying close attention to the guidance provided, in hopes the group is on track to achieve 15% revenue growth for the year.

Searching for profits

Alphabet stock is currently the largest holding in my portfolio, so should I be buying more? Well, the company has a flawless set of financials to begin with. A 5.1% debt-to-equity ratio and a mountain of cash ($134bn) puts it in an excellent position to grow and withstand an economic downturn. Additionally, it boasts high-quality earnings with excellent growth prospects from its latest developments. These include YouTube Shorts, Google Cloud, Google Workspace, Waymo, and even an improvement to Google Search.

So, with an average price target of $158.98, this gives the current Alphabet share price a 40% upside. As such, I’ll be looking to buy more of its stock as I believe Alphabet has the potential to substantially increase my wealth in the long term.

The post What just happened to the Alphabet share price? appeared first on The Twelfth Magpie.

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John Choong owns shares of Alphabet (Class A Shares). Suzanne Frey, an executive at Alphabet, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. The Motley Fool UK has recommended Alphabet (A shares) and Alphabet (C shares). Views expressed on the companies mentioned in this article are those of the writer and therefore may differ from the official recommendations we make in our subscription services such as Share Advisor, Hidden Winners and Pro. Here at The Motley Fool we believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors.

Arrival

Arrival (NASDAQ: ARVL) can be easily dismissed as another electric vehicle company. However, what makes this growth stock unique is its approach to producing vehicles. Arrival aims to utilise its in-house technologies to produce rapidly scalable microfactories around the world.

With an estimated cost of $50m, these factories can be set up in a matter of months. Not to mention, they are also 24 times smaller than most other factories. This model allows each factory to achieve unprecedented growth, with an annual gross margin of $100m, producing 10,000 vans a year.

Nonetheless, Arrival now trades at a mere $1.44 after losing 95% of its value from its all-time high. This was the result of an overpriced valuation, delays, and share dilution. That being said, I think the stock is now fairly priced given that its market cap ($920m) is now lower than its total assets ($1.5bn).

After numerous delays, start of production for its vans is set to begin this quarter. This leaves me excited as a long-term investor. Provided that all goes according to plan, I think this growth stock could be a huge winner for years to come.

Astra Space

Astra Space (NASDAQ: ASTR) is a company targeting a niche portion of the space launch market. The firm offers to deliver payloads that are less than 300 kg to low earth orbit (LEO) while charging the most affordable fees.

The company has experienced unprecedented growth in its route to getting to space, as it’s the fastest space launch company to reach orbit. Its cheap method of producing rockets is what sets it apart from the competition. Even with a base launch cost of $2.5m, the Alameda-based firm is twice as cheap as its nearest competitor, Rocket Lab. This has allowed Astra to secure a backlog of over 50 launches with the likes of NASA, Spaceflight, Planet, and many others.

Having said that, Astra has also suffered a monumental drop in its share price of 80% this year. The current bear market hasn’t done growth stocks any favour either. Fears of a potential recession have soured investor sentiment and kept share prices low. Nevertheless, if Astra can manage to somehow deliver on its promises of daily launches by 2025, its current share price is going to be a steal.

Stunted growth?

Given the tremendous amount of potential from these growth stocks, are they a buy? Well, it’s important to note that while these companies have the potential to deliver a monumental return on investment, they can also fail.

I’m definitely intrigued by Arrival’s growth prospects. Even so, its cash position leaves me worried. With just $500m of cash, the unicorn has proposed restructuring its business. On the other hand, Astra has gone quiet since its most recent failed TROPICS launch. With no word from management as to what lies next for the company, I think there’s too much risk involved to buy more shares. As such, I’m holding onto both my Arrival and Astra positions for the time being.

The post These 2 growth stocks could be huge winners in the next decade and beyond appeared first on The Twelfth Magpie.

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• Will SpaceX, Nvidia, or Alphabet be the first $10trn stock?
• Up 95%! This FTSE 100 stock’s outperformed Nvidia over the past year
• With a 9.3% yield, is this an amazing opportunity to consider buying dirt-cheap Taylor Wimpey shares?
• How much do you need in a Stocks and Shares ISA to aim for £375 a week in retirement?

John Choong owns shares of Arrival and Astra Space. The Motley Fool UK has no position in any of the shares mentioned. Views expressed on the companies mentioned in this article are those of the writer and therefore may differ from the official recommendations we make in our subscription services such as Share Advisor, Hidden Winners and Pro. Here at The Motley Fool we believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors.

2022 has seen the Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) share price falling nearly 40%. With ongoing supply chain issues derived from Covid-19, the firm has also seen rising pressure due to spiking inflation.

But despite these headwinds, last week saw the stock rebound by 10%. In fact, over the last month it has witnessed a 16% rise. So, after falling from its 52-week high of over $1,200, can it recover?

Tesla Q2 update

Earlier this month saw the release of Tesla’s Q2 production and delivery update. Within the period, the electric vehicle manufacturer produced over 258,000 vehicles, while it also managed to deliver over 254,000. This equated to a 27% increase year-on-year.

However, Q2 was the first time vehicle deliveries fell quarter-on-quarter in more than two years. The firm pinned this to “ongoing supply chain challenges and factory shutdowns,” as Tesla has struggled with production in recent months due to those Covid-19 restrictions hitting operations in China. Despite this, June 2022 was the highest vehicle-production month in the firm’s history.

Where next for Tesla?

So, where does the EV manufacturer go from here?

The slowing of production from Tesla falls in line with wider market struggles. Both the Nasdaq and S&P 500 have experienced large declines this year. And especially impacted have been growth stocks. This is because upward inflationary pressures tend to have the opposite effect on the price of these stocks. And as a result, the first half of this year has seen them come tumbling down. As investors tend to switch their money to ‘safer’ value stocks in volatile times, Tesla may continue to struggle in the near future.

Another issue I see with Tesla is its high valuation. For me, a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 101 shows the stock is very overvalued. With this said, its P/E has been much higher in the past.

The business may also struggle with rising competition. There’s been a large push for a faster transition to electric vehicles in recent years. For example, in 2020 the UK government announced the sale of new petrol and diesel cars will end by 2030. And as such, I can see competition heating up in the EV space. This can already be seen with rivals such as Ford, which has pledged to be all-electric by 2030. While Tesla currently holds a dominant market position, this may slip in the future.

Despite this, I won’t write off the firm. It has taken massive strides to expand its manufacturing capacity. It recently unveiled its new Giga Texas plant. And at the same time, it has also set out plans to boost European sales with the opening of a gigafactory in Berlin. While this may cost Tesla in the short term, its ambitious expansion plans could help it retain its dominant position further down the road.

What I’m doing

The firm’s expansion should help it thrive in the long run. And its ambition has seen Tesla grow massively in recent times. However, I won’t be buying the shares today. I think macroeconomic pressures could see its price slip further. And with competition heating up, Tesla may see its role as industry leader slide.

The post The Tesla share price is rising. Here’s what I’m doing appeared first on The Twelfth Magpie.

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Charlie Keough has no position in any of the shares mentioned. The Motley Fool UK has recommended Tesla. Views expressed on the companies mentioned in this article are those of the writer and therefore may differ from the official recommendations we make in our subscription services such as Share Advisor, Hidden Winners and Pro. Here at The Motley Fool we believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors.

The Fed is no Pal

Just like PayPal stock, US retail sales figures have been steadily declining since February. In fact, retail sales came in at -0.3% in May, on a month-on-month basis. This is an indication that consumer spending is decreasing as a result of higher interest rates.

The US Federal Reserve is committed to increasing interest rates until inflation retreats back down to 2%. Consequently, several analysts are pencilling the odds of a recession at 50%. If this were to happen, I expect the suffering for PayPal shareholders to get worse.

With less money flowing throughout the US economy, the platform stands to earn less from payments and transfers. This is because higher interest rates means higher borrowing costs, limiting the flow of cash around the economy.

More than just PayPal

Nonetheless, PayPal has a couple of interesting developments that could make it a fortune in the long term, as the fintech group has several brands to it. These businesses are seeing encouraging growth and progress. The list includes PayPal itself, Venmo, Braintree, Paidy, Xoom, Honey, iZettle, and Hyperwallet. I’m extremely upbeat about the group’s future prospects beyond its main business. But in particular, I have my attention focused on Venmo’s prospects as an American mobile payment service.

The company has lined up partnerships with Amazon and Doordash. These big firms are expected to integrate Venmo into their payment options later this year. If successful, I envision these collaborations to bring a flood of cash to the top line for PayPal.

Quantity over quality

Having said that, it’s worth noting that the core business still remains susceptible to harsh economic headwinds. Analysts have revised the stock’s average earnings per share down from $1.24 to $0.97 for the year.

Not to mention, its Venmo partnerships are yet to come into effect. For one, management has been silent on when the Amazon partnership will take place. Secondly, Doordash is yet to agree to business terms and conditions.

However, what concerns me most is its profit margins, which have been on a decline over the last four quarters. PayPal has to compete with the likes of Wise and Western Union, having lost market share over the years. Its current take rate is 2%, which is higher than Wise’s. Therefore, for it to continue being competitive, it’ll have to cut down its margins in order to retain/grow its transaction and customer volumes.

Thinning profit margins (Despite increasing volume) shows that PayPal is losing its pricing power and market dominance. As such, I won’t be buying more PayPal stock for now. Instead, I’ll be holding onto my shares in hopes that the Amazon partnership bears fruit.

The post Should I buy PayPal stock in July? appeared first on The Twelfth Magpie.

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John Choong owns shares of PayPal at the time of writing. John Mackey, CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. The Motley Fool UK has recommended Amazon and PayPal Holdings. Views expressed on the companies mentioned in this article are those of the writer and therefore may differ from the official recommendations we make in our subscription services such as Share Advisor, Hidden Winners and Pro. Here at The Motley Fool we believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors.

A little goes a long way

In the sea of electric vehicle companies, Arrival is still a small fish. But what makes the British unicorn so unique is its microfactory concept. Each factory can produce 10,000 vans. It is also estimated to have a low capital expenditure rate of £50m, while turning over £100m per year. This would cost much less than a traditional factory. Additionally, a microfactory only takes up 20,000 square metres. Pair this with its modular production method, and Arrival can quickly adapt to demand in an area, rent a small warehouse, and start production.

Nonetheless, this is still a concept and is yet to be proven. As such, I remain cautious. However, successful execution could very well alter the traditional assembly line that Henry Ford once pioneered, and change how vehicles are produced.

Much needed Arrival

Having achieved bus certification last month, the Nasdaq-listed firm could begin trials with one of its biggest customers, FirstGroup. Arrival also recently partnered with Enel X, a market leader in advanced energy solutions. The partnership will test Enel X’s advanced charging services on Arrival’s buses. A successful trial could results in additional orders to Arrival’s 143,000 letters of intent (LOI).

The success of these tests will be a key building block for Enel to include the Arrival Bus within its portfolio of global electrification solutions.

Source: Arrival Investor Relations

More importantly though, was the achievement of van certification this week. The van makes up 96% of the company’s current LOIs, so this was extremely good news. Consequently, Arrival shares exploded 15% on the news. This also puts the firm on track to start its van production in Q3. With 400 to 600 vans expected to be produced by the end of this year, this will bring in the company’s first batch of revenue.

Foggy road ahead

That being said, Arrival has an uncertain path ahead. While the Bicester-based company expects to finish the year with $150m to $250m of cash, it still won’t be sufficient to run its operations for 2023 and onwards. This worries me as an investor.

A stock offering is unlikely given its already low share price. Not to mention, dilution would potentially lead to its share price falling below $1, and getting delisted from the Nasdaq. Therefore, Arrival may have to take on debt, which will be costly in a high interest rate environment. This would also make its road towards profitability a much longer one, as future earnings would go towards repaying its debt.

Nevertheless, the average target price for the stock is currently $5.98, which presents a 350% upside! Although I doubt the share price will climb to such levels, I think there’s a decent chance the stock can grow by 100% if it sticks to its production guidance. This is why I’m currently holding a small position in Arrival shares.

The post Here’s how Arrival shares could double my money! appeared first on The Twelfth Magpie.

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• Will SpaceX, Nvidia, or Alphabet be the first $10trn stock?
• Up 95%! This FTSE 100 stock’s outperformed Nvidia over the past year
• With a 9.3% yield, is this an amazing opportunity to consider buying dirt-cheap Taylor Wimpey shares?
• How much do you need in a Stocks and Shares ISA to aim for £375 a week in retirement?

The Astra Space (NASDAQ: ASTR) share price has been plummeting as of late. The space launch company had already lost more than 80% of its value since its initial public offering. Nonetheless, recent events and a failed satellite deployment have plunged the Astra Space share price to an all-time low. Therefore, this could be a buying opportunity for me.

A tropical storm

After weeks of delays in getting a launch license from the US Federal Aviation Administration, Astra finally got under way on Sunday to launch its payload of satellites into space. However, despite a successful launch, the rocket’s second engine abruptly shut down. This meant that the satellites failed to reach the desired destination. While the reasons for this are still being investigated, NASA did release a statement, and has paused its next two launches with Astra.

Despite a loss of the first two of six satellites, the TROPICS constellation will still meet its science objectives with the four remaining CubeSats distributed in two orbits. With four satellites, TROPICS will still provide improved time-resolved observations of tropical cyclones compared to traditional observing methods… NASA will lend any expertise needed but would expect to pause the launch effort with Astra while an investigation is being conducted to ensure we move forward when ready. 

Source: NASA

Renowned astronomer Scott Manley gave his opinion on why the satellites didn’t reach their destination. He believes that the engine failure led to the rocket’s inability to orient itself toward the designated coordinates. As a result, the rocket overshot its target. Having said that, he isn’t sure what caused the engine to fail either.

‘Cheap’ failure

Amid all the panic, however, I think it’s important to zoom out and assess the economics and business model of Astra. The Alameda-based company offers the cheapest launch price of any of its competitors. At a base launch price of $2.5m, Astra would theoretically need to fail two out of its three launches, before its nearest competitor, Rocket Lab becomes economical. And, Astra transports satellites weighing less than 150kg (Class D), which are much easier to build than other, bigger satellites. This means that for smaller satellites, Astra still remains the straightforward option.

Nevertheless, Astra has plenty on the line. With its share price deep into penny stock territory, Astra needs to prove its worth or risks going under. Another failure would deem its following TROPICS launch redundant, and impact its already tarnished image.

Refuelling is very likely

To make matters worse, Astra isn’t in the best cash position either. With an accelerating cash burn, I am beginning to worry whether the company can survive without having to raise capital. Given its low share price already, dilution isn’t expected to happen. As such, the company is likely to take on debt. This isn’t ideal with interest rates expected to grow over the coming months.

So, is Astra Space stock a buy for me then? While many have been exiting their positions lately, it’s important to remember that the space industry is new and challenging. Elon Musk has even said so himself.

SpaceX, for all its success, had its fair share of failures too. It’s easy to forget in gloomy times that Astra is the fastest company to get its rocket to space, and it’s still this same management team that will be addressing this recent setback. Thus, I’ll be waiting for the results of the investigation before buying more. But for now, I’ll be holding onto Astra Space stock.

The post Astra Space stock is crashing. Should I buy? appeared first on The Twelfth Magpie.

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• Up 95%! This FTSE 100 stock’s outperformed Nvidia over the past year
• With a 9.3% yield, is this an amazing opportunity to consider buying dirt-cheap Taylor Wimpey shares?
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John Choong owns shares of Astra Space at the time of writing. The Motley Fool UK has no position in any of the shares mentioned. Views expressed on the companies mentioned in this article are those of the writer and therefore may differ from the official recommendations we make in our subscription services such as Share Advisor, Hidden Winners and Pro. Here at The Motley Fool we believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors.

The Alphabet (NASDAQ: GOOGL) share price is down 20% this year. Nonetheless, it has managed to outperform its index, the Nasdaq. With a number of groundbreaking features implemented to the Google search engine, and a 20-to-1 stock split coming up, the Alphabet share price could be about to rally.

Searching for direction

Alphabet is the market leader in the search engine and advertising field, by way of Google. Even so, it continues to innovate its product and service offerings. CEO Sundar Pichai introduced a multisearch feature at the company’s latest annual general meeting (AGM). The feature gives users the ability to search with images and text simultaneously. Additionally, Alphabet incorporated scene exploration into Google, which gathers insights about multiple objects within images, with local information for search being added as well. For example, this allows users to search for a product in the area.

Not only do these new features generate a much better experience, but it also allows for a better connection to form between users and merchants. As a result, this should improve advertising revenue for Alphabet.

Split coming up

At Alphabet’s latest AGM, shareholders finally approved the 20-to-1 stock split. The split doesn’t change the company’s financial position, but it does encourage an increase in trading volume. This makes the stock more accessible to investors, as its current $2,200 price tag makes the stock look expensive.

A cheaper-looking stock also makes Alphabet more lucrative to institutions and investors. One of these is Warren Buffett, who has made no secret of his regret at not buying Alphabet stock. Perhaps this could be an opportunity for the Oracle of Omaha to purchase a position in one of the world’s biggest companies.

Moreover, the reduced price tag will most probably get the tech stock into the Dow Jones index. This would result in a large volume of institutional buying, thus increasing the Alphabet share price. In the past, stock splits at big companies have often been preceded by rallies leading up to the split. So, if Amazon‘s latest run up to its stock split is anything to go by, Alphabet shares may be in for a rally.

Growth rally

While Alphabet narrowly missed earnings expectations in its Q1 results, this was down to an increase in R&D spend. This was shown in the company’s AGM, as improvements made in Google Maps, Google Assistant, Google Cloud, Google Workspace and other bets were on display. Therefore, I expect these improvements to have a positive impact on usability and future revenue.

With a forward price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 20, the Alphabet stock looks extremely lucrative to me. A market leader with healthy growth prospects and a flawless balance sheet are perfect traits I look for in a company whenever I invest.

It’s also worth mentioning that Alphabet has an excellent record of having a high return on capital employed. This gives me plenty of confidence as an investor. As such, with its share price at a 1-year low, I’ll be looking to buy more Alphabet shares for my portfolio.

The post Is Alphabet stock about to rally? appeared first on The Twelfth Magpie.

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John Choong owns shares of Alphabet (Class A Shares) at the time of writing. John Mackey, CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. Suzanne Frey, an executive at Alphabet, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. The Motley Fool UK has recommended Alphabet (A shares), Alphabet (C shares), and Amazon. Views expressed on the companies mentioned in this article are those of the writer and therefore may differ from the official recommendations we make in our subscription services such as Share Advisor, Hidden Winners and Pro. Here at The Motley Fool we believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors.