Landon Capital

Intel’s cumulative software sales could hit $1 billion by 2027 end, CTO says.

Intel’s (NASDAQ: INTC) software initiative is progressing well, with the company potentially reaching a cumulative software revenue of $1 billion by the end of 2027, the company’s CTO Greg Lavender told Reuters.

In 2021, the year Lavender joined Intel from VMware under CEO Pat Gelsinger, Intel generated over $100 million in software revenue. Since then, the chipmaker has acquired three software companies.

“I have a goal of getting to $1 billion of software and developer cloud subscription revenue,” Lavender reportedly said in the interview. “I think I’m on track to hit this goal by the end of 2027 … maybe sooner.”

Lavender’s strategy focuses on services in AI, performance, and security, with Intel investing heavily in these areas. Moreover, he noted strong demand for Intel’s upcoming Gaudi 3 chip, which he believes will help the company secure second place in the AI chip market.

Intel is also backing open-source initiatives aimed at developing software and tools for a variety of AI chips, with anticipated breakthroughs in the coming months.

Among those is Triton, an OpenAI-led project to create an open-source programming language that improves code efficiency across AI chips. AMD (NASDAQ: AMD) and Meta (NASDAQ: META) are also involved in this project.

Triton is already operational on Intel’s current graphics processing units and will be compatible with the next generation of AI chips.

“Triton is going to level the playing field,” Lavender said.

Intel and AMD have struggled to significantly challenge the dominance of market leader Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA) (NVDA, which controlled approximately 83% of the data center chip market in 2023. Nvidia’s success is partly attributed to its software, CUDA, which keeps developers loyal to Nvidia chips.

 

Unilever to cut a third of office jobs in Europe, FT reports.

 

(Reuters) – Unilever (LON: ULVR) plans to cut a third of all office roles in Europe by the end of next year as new CEO Hein Schumacher forges ahead with a plan to boost growth at the struggling consumer goods giant, the Financial Times reported on Friday.

The company told senior executives on Wednesday that as many as 3,200 roles would be cut in Europe by the end of 2025, according to details of a company-wide call shared with the FT.

The report added that the cuts were a part of the cost-savings programme announced in March, which included as many as 7,500 layoffs.

“The expected net impact in roles in Europe between now and the end of 2025 is in the range of 3,000 to 3,200 roles,” Constantina Tribou, a chief human resources officer, said during the video call, the FT reported.

Schumacher, who became CEO last year, laid out plans in October to win back investor confidence by simplifying the business after admitting Unilever had underperformed in recent years.

 

Wells Fargo stock falls as Q2 net interest income decreases due to higher rates.

 

Wells Fargo (WFC) reported a second-quarter earnings beat, with an adjusted EPS of $1.33, surpassing the analyst consensus of $1.28. Despite the positive earnings surprise, the bank’s stock experienced a notable decline, falling 5.57% following the announcement.

CEO Charlie Scharf highlighted the bank’s transformation efforts, which were evident in the growth of fee-based revenue, strong performance in investment advisory, trading, and investment banking fees.

However, net interest income saw a 9% decrease due to higher interest rates affecting funding costs and lower loan balances, partially mitigated by higher yields on earning assets. Noninterest income rose by 19%, driven by higher trading revenue and investment banking fees, among other factors.

The bank’s noninterest expense increased by 2%, attributed to higher operating losses, including customer remediation accruals for historical matters and increased revenue-related compensation, particularly in Wealth and Investment Management.

A modest decrease in the provision for credit losses was reported, with a higher allowance for credit card loans offset by lower allowances for most other loan portfolios.

Wells Fargo also announced an expected dividend increase to $0.40 per share for the third quarter of 2024, up from $0.35, pending Board approval. This follows the completion of the 2024 Comprehensive Capital Analysis and Review stress test process, with an anticipated stress capital buffer of 3.8% for the period from October 1, 2024, to September 30, 2025.

Scharf emphasized the bank’s continued focus on risk and control as its top priority, alongside strategic efforts to enhance customer service and drive higher returns. He noted the launch of new credit cards and investments in the branch network and commercial businesses as part of these initiatives.

 

NANO Nuclear Energy Announces Pricing of Upsized $18 Million Underwritten Offering (Updated)

 

NANO Nuclear Energy Inc. (NASDAQ: NNE) (“NANO Nuclear”), a vertically integrated advanced nuclear energy and technology company developing portable clean nuclear energy solutions, today announced that it has priced an upsized firm commitment, registered underwritten public offering of 900,000 shares of common stock and warrants to purchase 450,000 shares of common stock.