The latest Market Talks covering Equities. Published exclusively on Dow Jones Newswires throughout the day.

1023 ET - The dollar faces moderate weakness this year and next as investors diversify away from U.S. assets, RBC Capital Markets analyst Richard Cochinos says in a note. Investors could also buy more protection against the risk of the dollar depreciating as the Federal Reserve cuts interest rates, lowering the cost of such hedging, he says. Rising risk premia embedded in U.S. assets could also weigh. The increased risk premia partly reflects a wider gap between short and long-term Treasury yields, or a steepening of the yield curve, which is normally associated with currency weakness. RBC expects the euro to rise to $1.20 by the fourth quarter of 2026 and $1.24 by the final quarter of 2027, from $1.1747 currently.(renae.dyer@wsj.com)

1019 ET - The negative after-hours reaction to Carvana's 4Q print reflected investor concerns about the company's potential to improve profitability following higher reconditioning costs and an adjusted Ebitda miss, Wedbush analysts write in a note. But the reaction was overdone, they write, adding that their long-term thesis is unchanged. Gross profit per unit is expected to normalize over coming quarters, and the reconditioning costs per unit would have been $220 lower if all the company's locations were as efficient as the top 25%. "We continue to hold a favorable view of Carvana's growth trajectory and competitive position," they write. Carvana is down 5.5%. (elias.schisgall@wsj.com)

1015 ET - MTY Food is seeing opposite performance trends in the U.S. and Canada, says Chief Executive Eric Lefebvre, with U.S. casual dining under pressure and Canadian quick-service restaurants lagging. "It's hard to understand exactly where each market is going," Lefebvre says in an earnings call, noting that the company is responding by fixing weak brands and investing more heavily in the ones that are performing well. "We're trying to correct course on that on brands that are challenging and double down on the brands that are thriving." For example, at its Papa Murphy's brand, the CEO says early loyalty-program gains are encouraging, but adds that "it's the test of time that will tell whether that was successful or not." (adriano.marchese@wsj.com)

0951 ET - Shares in software company RELX continue to show signs of recovery as the stock rises 4.6% in afternoon European trade. RELX was among the first companies to suffer at the hands of investors fearing competition from artificial intelligence-powered agents early this month. The stock remains down 23% so far this year, and down 10% since Feb. 2--the day before the first wave of AI fear-induced selling. The share pushes higher today after analysts at J.P. Morgan raise their earnings per share estimate to 1.582 pounds, up from a current estimate of 1.404 pounds. (josephmichael.stonor@wsj.com)

0950 ET - Walmart's outlook for the coming year calls for net sales growth 3.5% to 4.5% as well as operating income growth of 6% to 8%, missing some investors' high expectations. CFO John Rainey says on a call with analysts, though, that it was important to start the year with a level of conservatism, given the macroeconomic backdrop is still somewhat unstable. "Our goal is to outperform this guidance," he says. Walmart says it expects continued margin expansion driven by favorable business mix, automation benefits and productivity, and less headwinds from merchandise category mix. (connor.hart@wsj.com)

0933 ET - North America is a good place to be in the construction equipment business. Deere's construction and forestry equipment business, which is concentrated in the US and Canada, logged a 34% increase in sales in F1Q. Profit more than doubled. Rival Caterpillar recently reported a 23% increase in quarterly construction equipment sales in North America. Deere nudged up its construction sales growth forecast for the year to about 15% from 10% growth projected in November. Deere surges 7.2% in early trading.(robert.tita@wsj.com)

0926 ET - Herbalife subsidiary HBL Pro2col Software scored a $7.5 million investment from soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo that will give him a 10% stake. Pro2col uses an individual's data to build a personalized wellness plan specific to the individual. Ronaldo has partnered with Herbalife since 2013 and the company says Ronaldo's investment "reflects his confidence in the future of personalized nutrition and Herbalife's ambition to make data-driven, personalized wellness accessible to communities globally." On Wednesday, the company also said its 4Q net sales rose 6.3% to $1.3 billion and guided for 2026 net sales growth of 1% to 6%. Herbalife climbs 14% premarket. (nicholas.miller@wsj.com)

0909 ET - Walmart's investments in technology are paying off, CEO John Furner says on a call with analysts. Automation efforts are cutting down labor costs, increasing productivity and improving delivery speeds. Currently, about 60% of Walmart's stores are receiving freight from automated distribution centers, and about half of the company's ecommerce fulfillment center volumes are entirely automated. At the same time, Walmart is leveraging artificial intelligence to create customer solutions, reduce friction and simplify decision making, Furner adds. Shoppers who use Sparky, Walmart's AI shopping assistant, have average order values about 35% higher than non-users. The company will continue to enhance Sparky, while also building new tools and experiences with partners like OpenAI and Alphabet. (connor.hart@wsj.com)

0906 ET - Walmart CEO John Furner says spending continues to be resilient in the U.S. That's especially true among households making over $100,000 annually, which accounted for the majority of the retailer's market share gains during the recent quarter. Meanwhile, lower-income households, or those making less than $50,000 annually, are still feeling stressed, Furner notes. "We continue to see that wallets are stretched, and in some cases, people are managing spending paycheck to paycheck," he says on a call with analysts. "That said, even these households are emphasizing convenience nearly as much as price." (connor.hart@wsj.com)

0827 ET - Kraft Heinz has paused a planned split into two companies and CEO Steve Cahillane says at the Consumer Analyst Group of New York conference that the pause is critical to improving its fundamental business. "The work to separate the business is so enormous," Cahillane says. "And the work to turn around a business that is declining is also an enormous task. Doing both of those things at the same time is very difficult, if not impossible." Cahillane says that focusing on improving the business now will create a stronger, healthier company that can then decide in the future to separate or continue. (nicholas.miller@wsj.com)

0822 ET -- Walmart has lost its long-held title as the world's largest company by revenue. The retailer reports revenue of $713.5 billion for its year ended Jan. 31. That is just below Amazon, which earlier this month reported net sales of $716.9 billion in 2025. Amazon held the runner-up spot on last year's list of largest companies by revenue, but it grew its top line at a faster clip than Walmart over the past year. Amazon's annual sales grew 12% year-over-year, compared with Walmart's 4.7% growth rate. Walmart had held the title of the world's largest company by revenue since 2014. (connor.hart@wsj.com)

0820 ET - Kraft Heinz will seek to boost sales partially by offering lower prices and more efficient promotions, says CFO Andre Maciel at the Consumer Analyst Group of New York conference. "We are not participating as much as we should be on the opening price points trend," Maciel says. The company will offer better opening prices across categories that represent about 40% of the company's U.S. portfolio, seeking to encourage new customers to try its products. The company will also seek to maximize its promotions, reallocating funds to the highest-return promotional activities, Maciel says. (nicholas.miller@wsj.com)

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

February 19, 2026 10:23 ET (15:23 GMT)

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