Welcome to "#SocialStocks," The Fly's weekly recap of Wall Street's reactions to social media stock news.
FACEBOOK ANNOUNCES FACEBOOK SHOPS: Facebook (FB) said in a statement on May 19, "Right now many small businesses are struggling, and with stores closing, more are looking to bring their business online. Our goal is to make shopping seamless and empower anyone from a small business owner to a global brand to use our apps to connect with customers. That's why we're launching Facebook Shops and investing in features across our apps that inspire people to shop and make buying and selling online easier." It added, "Facebook Shops make it easy for businesses to set up a single online store for customers to access on both Facebook and Instagram. Creating a Facebook Shop is free and simple. Businesses can choose the products they want to feature from their catalog and then customize the look and feel of their shop with a cover image and accent colors that showcase their brand. This means any seller, no matter their size or budget, can bring their business online and connect with customers wherever and whenever it's convenient for them."
Commenting on Instagram Shops, the company said, "This summer, starting in the U.S., we're introducing Instagram Shop, a new way to discover and buy products you love in Instagram Explore. You can get inspired by collections from @shop, browse selections from your favorite brands and creators, filter by categories like beauty and home, and purchase the looks you love all in one place. And later this year, we're adding a new shop tab in the navigation bar, so you can get to Instagram Shop in just one tap."
Facebook added, “We're also working more closely with partners like Shopify (SHOP), BigCommerce, WooCommerce, ChannelAdvisor (ECOM), CedCommerce, Cafe24, Tienda Nube and Feedonomics to give small businesses the support they need. These organizations offer powerful tools to help entrepreneurs start and run their businesses and move online. Now they'll help small businesses build and grow their Facebook Shops and use our other commerce tools. We hope these tools can relieve some of the pressure small businesses are facing right now and help businesses of all sizes prepare for the future."
APPALOOSA TAKES STAKE IN TWITTER, CUTS STAKES IN FACEBOOK AND ALPHABET: On May 15, David Tepper's Appaloosa Management disclosed in an SEC filing its holdings as of March 31. Appaloosa's new buys during the first quarter included Twitter (TWTR), Netflix (NFLX), Qualcomm (QCOM), HCA Healthcare (HCA), and Tesla (TSLA). Appaloosa reduced its stakes in Facebook (FB), Alphabet Class C (GOOG), PG&E (PCG), Alibaba (BABA), and Amazon (AMZN). Appaloosa's top holdings as of March 31, in order of size, were Amazon, Alibaba, Alphabet Class C, Facebook, and Micron.
Ticker changed to META
+12.17 (+5.61%)
Shopify
+13.8 (+1.83%)
ChannelAdvisor
+0.465 (+3.71%)
+1.73 (+5.79%)
Alphabet
+29.63 (+2.15%)
Alphabet
+31.48 (+2.29%)