The latest Market Talks covering Technology, Media and Telecom. Published exclusively on Dow Jones Newswires at 4:20 ET, 12:20 ET and 16:50 ET.

1518 ET - The movie industry is one of the sectors that usually demonstrates resilience during challenging geopolitical and economic times, which should benefit Imax, Benchmark analysts say in a research note. Historical data indicate that during six of the last eight recessions, box office sales experienced growth, suggesting that consumers continue to seek affordable entertainment options even in challenging times, the analysts say. Consensus estimates on Imax's global box office stand at $269 million, and Benchmark analysts believe Imax is on track to meet or exceed this market estimate. Overall, Imax is well-positioned for sustained box office growth in 2025 and 2026, supported by an exceptional pipeline of high-profile releases, the analysts add. (sabela.ojea@wsj.com; @sabelaojeaguix)

1510 ET - Beacon Roofing Supply may not have had the upper hand the company thought it had when it came to negotiating a deal with QXO, Raymond James analyst Sam Darkatsh says in a research note. "Despite Beacon's Board's prior and repeated assertions that QXO's $124.25 previous offer 'significantly undervalued' the equity, the paltry (read: "face saving") $0.10 increase in per share deal value suggests that the Board increasingly found its bargaining position vs QXO to be weak," he writes. Beacon's weak positioning may have stemmed from its soft 4Q, disappointing 1Q outlook or growing conflict among its board, Darkatsh adds. Beacon shares rise 6.9% and QXO shares slip 1.9% after the companies say they have launched discussions about a potential combination. (connor.hart@wsj.com)

1401 ET [Dow Jones]--Fintechs and banks are increasingly working together thanks to opportunities provided by economic and political volatility, says J.P. Morgan Payments' Jason Clinton says in a panel at the MoneyLIVE Summit in London. Fintechs' penetration of the market was a wakeup call for banks at first, though this has now evolved and strategic partnerships between the two types of actors are common, he says. JP Morgan is partnering with 60 fintechs globally on several initiatives to drive efficiencies and look at client solutions. Fintechs provide innovation and agility while banks have reliable infrastructure, regulatory expertise, scale and trust. "Going forward it will be far more the ecosystem will be far more a hybrid model whereby you've got fintechs and banks playing to their strengths," Clinton adds. (elena.vardon@wsj.com)

1243 ET - Investors will be looking for Oracle's remaining performance obligations and backlog to jump when it reports its fiscal 3Q results after the bell, J.P. Morgan analysts say in a research note. That is in part because the cloud-software company noted during its most recent quarter that it had several large deals lined up for the back half of its fiscal 2025. The analysts say it is also because Microsoft reported a large chunk of bookings in its latest quarter, driven by OpenAI-related business, leading investors to expect the same from Oracle, since its involvement in the Stargate initiative also relates to OpenAI. Oracle will face a few hurdles, though, as DeepSeek might have soured investor sentiment around the company's AI models, and TikTok--a significant Oracle customer--remains a wild card, analysts note. Shares fall 4.8%. (connor.hart@wsj.com)

1216 ET - Discussions between Beacon Roofing Supply and QXO signal a deal could be reached within weeks, Jefferies' Philip Ng says in a research note. The two companies earlier Monday said they're negotiating a definitive agreement in which QXO would pay $124.35 a share for the roofing and building products distributor. "We believe the increased macro uncertainty and shifting market sentiment in building products influenced Beacon's board to engage late last week," says Ng. The analyst expects Beacon's board to rescind its poison pill if an agreement is reached, making the path to clearing more than 50% shares through QXO's tender offer easier. (denny.jacob@wsj.com; @pennedbyden)

0954 ET - Cryptocurrencies had a down week, with total market cap off 1.8% in the past 24 hours and down roughly 13% in the past 30 days, according to data from CoinMarketCap. In the past week, the market seems to have been selling off following President Trump's announcement of a strategic bitcoin reserve--including a crypto summit held at the White House on Friday. Markets appear underwhelmed with the news out of Washington, but the fall of bitcoin to a recent low of roughly $82,000 may soon turn around, says Nigel Green of the deVere Group. "The market's reaction betrays a short-sightedness that will likely be corrected as investors digest the broader implications of the move," says Green in a note. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com)

0802 ET - Deliveroo's Hong Kong assets could become more profitable under rival Delivery Hero's Foodpanda, potentially boosting pricing power and profitability, says Mwb research analyst Alexander Zienkowicz. Deliveroo's exit from Hong Kong and the sale of some of its assets to Foodpanda will strengthen the latter's market position in an increasingly competitive market, he writes in a note to investors. KeeTa, the international arm of China's biggest food delivery app, Meituan, dominates the Hong Kong market with 43% of order volume, Zienkowicz notes. The analyst says he doesn't expect Delivery Hero to overpay. Shares in Deliveroo are up 2% at 1.28 pounds, while shares in Delivery Hero are down 3% at 27.96 euros.(cristina.gallardo@wsj.com)

0726 ET - Futures linked to the tech-heavy Nasdaq-100 are down on Monday after President Trump refused to rule out the U.S. economy could be entering a recession this year in a weekend Fox News interview. The E-mini Nasdaq 100 futures contract is down 1.3%. Nvidia and Apple shares are down 2.4% and 1.4% premarket, respectively. In Europe, semiconductor stocks are in decline, with Dutch supplier of semiconductor-making equipment ASML Holding down 1.8%, smaller rival ASM International losing 3.2% and German chip maker Infineon Technologies shedding 3.1%. (mauro.orru@wsj.com)

0709 ET - Deliveroo has best served the interests of its shareholders by exiting Hong Kong and avoiding a fightback against Keeta, Jefferies analysts say. Keeta, the international arm of China's biggest food delivery app Meituan, entered that market in May 2023. In mid-January, U.K.'s Deliveroo said it was seeing a decline in its gross transaction value--a closely watched industry metric--in Hong Kong, the analysts note. With Deliveroo's exit, Hong Kong once again becomes a duopoly, but they don't expect Deliveroo's exit nor the sale of customer relationships to rival foodpanda, owned by Delivery Hero, to be blocked by antitrust authorities, the analysts say. Shares in Deliveroo are up 1.7% at 1.27 pounds. (cristina.gallardo@wsj.com)

0514 ET - 2025 could be a key year for humanoid robots launches, Daiwa analysts say in a research note. Some Chinese robot makers, like Unitree and AgiBot, have already reduced unit costs to around 100,000 yuan, with the potential for further reductions of more than 50% upon mass-production, they say. Daiwa expects more than one million humanoid robot units to be produced by 2030, while further AI breakthroughs could enhance robots' responsiveness and accelerate their adoption. They anticipate that humanoid robots will be initially used in manufacturing and logistics before expanding into the construction and mining industries. Several leading global tech companies, including Huawei and Meta, have already announced humanoid robot products. Daiwa expects these development to boost sentiment, establish an entirely new supply chain, and particularly benefit component suppliers. (sherry.qin@wsj.com)

0505 ET - Deliveroo's exit from Hong Kong feeds the long-term bear hypothesis that the British online food delivery company could be pushed out of some of its smaller markets by bigger, better-funded competitors, Panmure Liberum analyst Sean Kealy says. Deliveroo's Ebitda and gross-transaction-value growth rate are set to benefit from the group's exit from Hong Kong, which was one of its most discount-sensitive markets. Panmure Liberum reiterated its buy recommendation on the stock, saying that the company can generate a level of cash flow over the long term that is currently under-appreciated by the market. Shares are up 1.1% at 1.26 pounds. (cristina.gallardo@wsj.com)

0247 ET - Chinese equity markets have better priced in the AI theme now, Goldman Sachs analysts say in a research note. The valuation premium between U.S. and China tech proxies has narrowed from 152% at the beginning of the year to 71% now after the emergence of DeepSeek, they note. "Profitability improvements and earnings upgrades are probably needed to drive further gains in the AI-Tech universe," they say. Meanwhile, Chinese policymakers' clear signals of a pro-growth policy stance and low tolerance for systemic risk during the NPC meeting are critical for "anchoring growth expectations and keeping policy risk premium in check," GS adds. However, GS cautions that U.S.-China trade tensions could be a major risk factor in the coming months. (sherry.qin@wsj.com)

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

March 10, 2025 16:50 ET (20:50 GMT)

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