CLOSING BELL
TikTok Deal: Signed, Sealed, In Transit

The market fell for a third consecutive day, held back by Enui, and lack of substantial news to drive a climb. Macro data released on Thursday morning was positive, showing the economy expanded at a 3.8% rate in Q2 after contracting in Q1. Initial jobless claims came in lower in the past week, but in times of rate cuts, that might mean less weight on the scale to cut.

Ken Griffen of Citidel Securities had some words of warning at an event in Miami on Thursday. He said the Trump Admin was ‘picking winners’ in buying stakes of companies, and when the government does that, “all of us lose.” He also said the worst of tariff inflation is not here yet. 👀

Today’s RIP: Costco beat earnings, CarMax missed, and car sales suck, TikTok order signed but China needs to approve, and more. 📰

1 of 11 sectors closed green, with energy $XLE ( ▲ 0.9% ) leading and healthcare $XLV ( ▼ 1.66% ) lagging.

 $SPY ( ▼ 0.46% )  $QQQ ( ▼ 0.43% )  $IWM ( ▼ 0.96% )  $DIA ( ▼ 0.35% ) 

EARNINGS
Costco Beats With Growing Members, CarMax Misses As Car Market Slows 🛍️ 🚘️ 

Costco $COST ( ▼ 0.21% ) reported EPS and revenue above estimates after the closing bell on Thursday. The big-box shopping club, known for its bulk items and affordable hot dogs, reported that same-store sales increased 6.4% in the past quarter. Revenue was $86.6B, with profit at $5.87 a share.

CFO Gary Millerchip said its average customer was getting younger, and younger buyers were snatching up membership fees. Costco raised its membership $5 last year. The higher ticket cost to ride the bulk-buying ride brought in $1.7B, up 14% from last year.

For the full year, Costco's net sales grew 8.1% to $269.9B. CostCo did not post updated 2026 guidance, and said it was still working out ways to keep costs low in the face of tariffs.

Strangely enough, the beat wasn’t a win for traders betting on a beat… on Polymarket. Polymarkets’ main stakes for the Costco results were based on adjusted earnings, though the firm does not report adjusted. The contract for ‘will Cosctco beat EPS estimates’ dropped from 80% to 1% today, when users found out. 

Carmax $KMX ( ▼ 20.07% ) shares dropped Thursday, the lowest decliner on the S&P 500 after the in-person used car seller reported angsty consumers held back from buying cars in the past quarter.

The largest seller of used cars reported that sales declined in Q2, and Chief Bill Nash stated that buyers accelerated their demand in Q1, anticipating the worst from tariffs and inflation.

"The consumer has been distressed for a little while. I think there's some angst," Nash said. He also said customers with better credit are waiting on the “sidelines.”

Unlike $CVNA ( ▼ 0.92% ), CarMax operates a ton of retail spaces, 250 to be exact. Sales fell 5.4% from last year, and revenue fell nearly 6% from earlier in the year to $6.5B.

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DEALS
TikTok Deal Approved By Trump In Oval Office Signing 🖊️ 

President Trump greeted reporters in the Oval Office to sign an executive order approving the TikTok takeover deal on Thursday after the market closed.

The deal values the U.S. business at $14B dollars, according to VP Vance. China still needs to approve its end, but it would give the U.S. a 45% stake in TikTok, and ByteDance investors 35%, according to CNBC.

Oracle $ORCL ( ▼ 5.55% ) will provide cloud security and computing, and Trumpo said Chief Larry Ellison is taking a big role. The valuation is a bit low; TikTok’s U.S. arm previously fetched a $30-$35B price tag. If China approves, and Trump said President Xi has already given the thumbs up, it would be the better choice over a complete shutdown slated for Dec. 16.

It’s the second massive media deal to get close to home plate in the past months, and the second by an Ellison, after Skydance Media’s David Ellison agreed to take over Paramount $PSKY ( ▼ 0.99% ), the owner of CBS, MTV, and the Hollywood film studio. That deal closed Aug. 7th. Trump said the Murdochs, with succession recently organized under Rupert’s prized son, Malcom, in yet another media deal, may take part in the deal.

If that weren’t enough, Trump said yet another billionaire was vested in the TikTok deal, Michael Dell. Birds of a feather… 🦜 

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POPS & DROPS
Top Stocktwits News Stories 🗞️ 

•  Oklo dropped 9% intraday after coolant test.

• PepGen surged 121% intraday on DM1 trial data.

• CoreWeave fell 5% intraday on $6.5B OpenAI deal.

• World Liberty Financial listed on Robinhood.

• IBM rose 5% intraday on HSBC quantum trial.

• AtlasClear surged 23% intraday on $5M funding close.

• Cipher fell 17% intraday on $3B Fluidstack deal.

• IonQ fell 6% on AQ 64 breakthrough.

• Predictive Oncology fell 19% intraday on reverse split news.

• Evaxion surged 32% on a Merck vaccine deal.

Don’t miss a story! Follow @StocktwitsNews for a live feed in real time. ✍️ 

PRESENTED BY STOCKTWITS
September has been consistently brutal for crypto and the worst month on record for $BTC.X 📉

If you removed every September since 2010, Bitcoin’s total returns would be 112% higher 👀 Check out what Cryptotwits’ Jonathan_Morgan has to say:

WHAT’S ON DECK
Tomorrow’s Top Things 📋

Economic data: PCE Price Index (8:30 AM), Michigan Consumer Expectations (10:00 AM), Atlanta Fed GDPNow Q3 (11:30 AM) 📊
Pre-Market Earnings: Inventiva ($IVA). 🛏️

P.S. You can listen to all of these earnings calls on Stocktwits.

Links That Don’t Suck 🌐

📈 Trump signs memo targeting ‘domestic terrorism’ amid fears of leftwing crackdown

🎩  Starbucks announces significant store closures and layoffs

😨 OMB orders preparation for mass firings of federal workers if government shuts down

Dallas shooter sought to 'terrorize' ICE workers, official says

🧓 Former Fed Chairs Urge Supreme Court To Stop Trump From Firing Lisa Cook

📺️ Cook warns Supreme Court that siding with Trump on Fed firing risks 'chaos and disruption' for markets

👀 U.S. fighter jets scrambled to intercept Russian warplanes near Alaska

*3rd Party Ad. Not an offer or recommendation by Stocktwits. See disclosure here. 

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