Markets & Finance

Reports confirmed by a person familiar with the matter indicate AstraZeneca and Bristol Myers Squibb held preliminary combination discussions, though no agreement, transaction structure, or offer price has been disclosed. A combined entity would carry a combined market capitalization of roughly $400 billion and would rank as the world's largest drugmaker by revenue, but no formal regulatory or company filings have confirmed a transaction is underway. AstraZeneca shares fell approximately 9% on August 3 following the reports, their steepest single-day decline since 2020.

Palantir Technologies posted Q2 2026 revenue of $1.935 billion, a 93% year-over-year increase, driven by U.S. commercial revenue of $764 million, up 149%, and U.S. government revenue of $809 million, up 90%. GAAP net income reached $1.062 billion at a 55% margin, while the company raised its full-year 2026 revenue guidance to $8.150–$8.158 billion, implying 82% annual growth. The results show that both commercial and government segments are expanding at an accelerating pace, with U.S. commercial remaining deal value of $6.238 billion signaling substantial contracted future revenue.

Sterling Infrastructure reported Q2 2026 revenue of $1.17 billion, a 90% year-over-year increase driven by roughly 50% organic growth and $250.8 million from acquisitions, with adjusted EBITDA rising 104% to $256.7 million. The company raised its full-year 2026 revenue guidance to $4.00–$4.15 billion, up from $3.70–$3.80 billion, and lifted adjusted diluted EPS guidance to $19.70–$20.30 from $18.40–$19.05. Mission-critical projects including data centers, manufacturing, and semiconductor facilities accounted for 92% of E-Infrastructure backlog at quarter-end, with signed backlog up 116% year-over-year.

Jazz Pharmaceuticals recorded $1,208.3 million in Q2 2026 revenue, a 16% year-over-year increase driven by Xywav, Epidiolex, and Zepzelca sales, plus the addition of Modeyso following its August 2025 FDA approval. The company raised its full-year 2026 revenue guidance to $4.60–$4.75 billion, up from a prior range of $4.25–$4.50 billion. GAAP net income swung to $192.8 million from a $718.5 million loss in Q2 2025, largely reflecting the absence of prior-year charges that had weighed on results.

Onsemi posted $1.60 billion in Q2 2026 revenue, a 9% year-over-year increase, while free cash flow of $425.4 million pushed its free-cash-flow margin from roughly 7% to 27% over the same period. The Power Solutions Group led segment growth at 19% year over year, and AI data-center demand drove a 34% sequential jump in the company's 'Other' revenue category. For Q3 2026, onsemi guided revenue to $1.65–$1.75 billion with non-GAAP gross margin projected at 40.0%–42.0%.

Between July 27 and August 2, 2026, Strategy bought back 912,143 shares of its STRC perpetual preferred stock for $81.2 million, funding the purchase with $52.3 million from bitcoin sales and $28.9 million from MSTR common stock sales. The transaction leaves an estimated 103.7 million STRC shares outstanding on a transaction-reconciled basis, representing roughly 0.87% of pre-repurchase count, with $893.8 million still available under the Digital Credit Securities Repurchase Program. The company also declared two consecutive $0.50-per-share dividends payable in August and September, consistent with STRC's 12% annual rate.

Ardent Health reported Q2 2026 net income of $16.9 million, down from $72.9 million a year earlier, with diluted EPS of $0.12 missing analyst consensus estimates of $0.17 to $0.19. The company attributed the earnings decline largely to a prior-year outlier: two quarters of New Mexico state-directed-payment program benefits recorded in Q2 2025 due to a delayed renewal. Ardent reaffirmed its 2026 revenue and adjusted-EBITDA guidance while cutting its full-year net income and EPS outlook, citing lower volume expectations and risks from expiring marketplace insurance subsidies.

Talos Energy reported Q2 2026 revenue of $664.8 million, net income of $149.7 million, and adjusted EBITDA of $402.4 million, with oil production of 68.6 MBo/d exceeding the top of its prior guidance range. The company raised its full-year 2026 oil production guidance to 64–68 MBo/d and total production to 87–91 MBoe/d. Separately, Talos is pending a roughly $450–$500 million net cash acquisition of Shell deepwater Gulf of America assets, including operatorship of the Coulomb field, expected to close by end of 2026.

Parker-Hannifin will release its fiscal 2026 fourth-quarter and full-year financial results before market open on August 6, 2026, followed by a conference call at 11:00 a.m. Eastern Time. The release will be measured against full-year guidance that included 7% reported sales growth, a 27.2% adjusted segment operating margin, and adjusted EPS of $31.20. The most recent disclosed quarter showed record sales of $5.486 billion and a $12.5 billion backlog, setting the baseline against which the final annual figures will be assessed.

Cogent Communications will release second-quarter 2026 results at 7:00 a.m. ET on August 6, followed by a conference call at 8:30 a.m. ET. The disclosure arrives against a Q1 2026 baseline of $239 million in service revenue, a 29.3% adjusted EBITDA margin, and $2.4 billion in gross debt, with no Q2 figures available ahead of the release. Investors will also be watching for details on the June 2026 sale of 10 data center facilities to an I Squared Capital entity for $225 million, whose proceeds allocation was not disclosed at closing.