Merger talk makes Vodafone top Communications gainer, while Roblox leads losers
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Stocks in the Communications Services sector eked out a gain as a group for the week - echoing the heavy volatility in the broader market, which rallied Friday to put a bow on trading.
Communications stocks
rose 0.54% during the week, with gainers led by some telecom names while some higher-growth momentum stocks topped the decliners list.
Vodafone (NASDAQ:VOD) was the biggest gainer, as it's clearly at the center of European tech consolidation chatter. The stock moved up 12.3% in U.S. trading for the week after M&A talk broke out last weekend over its UK unit (which could merge with CK Hutchison's Three UK) and its Italy operation (which could combine with upstart Iliad).
Later in the week, Vodafone was connected with talks with Orange and Deutsche Telekom over merging their tower units. And Friday brought the report that Swedish activist investor Cevian Capital had taken a stake in Vodafone.
T-Mobile (NASDAQ:TMUS) was the second-best gainer, rising 6.9% during the week; it doesn't report earnings until next week, but gained while rivals AT&T and Verizon declined alongside their own earnings reports. It only needed Monday's 5% gain to break what had been a seven-session streak of losses.
And Fox share classes (FOX, FOXA) and ViacomCBS (NASDAQ:VIAC) made up the rest of the top gainers. ViacomCBS (VIAC, VIACA) benefited from KeyBanc turning more bullish on Paramount+ strength, as well as box-office success from Paramount's Scream.
Fox, meanwhile, started the week on a high note as UBS upgraded to Buy pointing to several catalysts that could lead to EBITDA upside.
Roblox (NYSE:RBLX) was the week's top Communications Services decliner among large-cap stocks, falling 15.6% as it got caught up in the ongoing sell-off of stretched-out growth plays. The stock was also among top losers last week with another double-digit loss then.
Bilibili (NASDAQ:BILI) faced its own rout on Monday as it sold off with other Chinese techs; it declined 15.4% for the week, a bit better than Spotify (NYSE:SPOT), down 11.5% in a week where it was drawn into a high-profile fight with rock legend Neil Young over its Joe Rogan Experience podcast.
Sea Limited (NYSE:SE)
fell 11.5% for the week as well - also caught up in Monday's rout, and declining after being pulled from Goldman Sachs' Conviction List before joining in the late-Friday bounce.
Pinterest (NYSE:PINS)
fell 8.9% for the week. Despite a Monday rally, it couldn't shake a Tuesday to forget, where a report noted several executive departures and it saw its price target slashed at UBS.
The week's top five gainers among large-cap Communications Services stocks and larger ($10B market cap or more):
Vodafone (VOD), +12.3%;T-Mobile (TMUS), +6.9%;Fox Class A (NASDAQ:FOXA), +6.4%;ViacomCBS Class B (VIAC), +5.5%;Fox Class B (NASDAQ:FOX), +5.4%.
The week's top five decliners among large-cap Communications Services stocks and larger ($10B market cap or more):
Roblox (RBLX), -15.6%;Bilibili (BILI), -15.4%;Spotify (SPOT), -11.5%;Sea Limited (SE), -11.5%;Pinterest (PINS), -8.9%.