Retire rich or die tryin’ 😤💸

April 19, 2025 | Read Online | Subscribe

All this tariff talk is getting tiresome, so let's talk about something more exciting:

Figma recently filed for an IPO. Valued at $12.5B with $600M of revenue for last year, this one is worth keeping an eye on.

What we've got in this edition:

Retirement fund. Find out how much you need saved to retire.
Tech Stocks. The tech market has taken a hit, but some companies are still going strong.
Mixed signals. Americans are confused about domestic manufacturing.

DISCLAIMER: The content in this newsletter is not monetary advice; it is for educational and informational purposes only. Stocks can be risky and speculative. Please do your own research before investing.

Week of April 14, 2025

▲ S&P 500	5,282.70	+0.52%
▼ Nasdaq	16,286.45	-0.44%
▼ DOW	39,142.23	-0.89%
▲ FTSE 100	8,275.66	+4.58%
▼ Bitcoin	$84,433.09	-0.22%
▼ Ethereum	$1,587.84	-2.21%

*Stock data as of market close on April 17, 2025. Cryptocurrency data as of 8:00pm PT.

Markets

Stocks ended the shortened trading week on a mixed note. The Dow sank the second half of the week, while the Nasdaq and S&P 500 struggled to stay out of negative territory. The S&P 500 squeaked by with a win.
Bitcoin climbed to its weekly high of ~$86k on Apr 15, dropped to a weekly low of ~$83k the following day, and finished the week by tapering off at around $84k.
Fear and Greed Index rose to 21 points. Market volatility is slowly converging to its 50-day moving average.

Earnings

ASML ($ASML) ➡️ Beat EPS expectations (22.2%) ➕ Beat revenue expectations (4.34%)

Netflix ($NFLX) ➡️ Beat EPS expectations (14.8%) ➕ Beat revenue expectations (0.29%)

TSMC ($TSM) ➡️ Beat EPS expectations (2.73%) ➕ Beat revenue expectations (0.77%)

Economic Reports

Sales of new vehicles spiked 30% in March for the highest volume total in about four years.

US consumer confidence plunged for the fourth consecutive month in April, with inflation expectations soaring to 6.7%, the highest since 1981.

The magic number Americans need for retirement is $1.26 million. Here’s how much you need to save every month to hit that number, divided by age range.

📊 CHART

📈 Medium Cap Stock Pick

$IDCC (InterDigital, Inc.)
📆 Publicly traded since 1981
💰 Specializes in wireless, video, and AI technologies
📍 Headquarters in Wilmington, Delaware

Financial Green Flags

Based on Earnings Report:

✅ Net income is up 241% Year-over-Year

✅ Diluted EPS are up 188% Year-over-Year

✅ Return-on-equity (ROE) is 15.5%

Things to Consider

💡 With an ROE of over 15% and a strong EBITDA margin of 78%, InterDigital is highly profitable and efficient at generating returns for its equity shareholders.

💡 In early March, the company signed a new multi-year licensing deal with a major Chinese smartphone vendor, increasing its annualized recurring revenue outlook by $40 million.

The Bottom Line

With a beta value of 1.4 (and due to tariff talk), InterDigital's stock has expectedly declined YTD. However, the company's significant growth metrics and strategic partnership put it in a strong defensive position against market instabilities and uncertainty.

📈 Medium Cap Stock Pick

$PATH (UiPath)
📆 Publicly traded since 2021
💰 Specializes in robotic process automation (RPA)
📍 Headquarters in New York, New York

Financial Green Flags

Based on Earnings Report:

✅ Net income is up 52.7% Year-over-Year

✅ Diluted EPS are up 50% Year-over-Year

✅ Has exceeded EPS expectations for the last 4 quarters by double digits

Things to Consider

💡 With a market capitalization of $7.3 billion, UiPath is well-positioned to capitalize on the growing demand for AI-driven automation solutions.

💡 Speaking of automation solutions, the company's expansion into process mining is expected to make its offerings more attractive as they will allow customers to identify and prioritize automation opportunities, thereby enhancing operational efficiency.

The Bottom Line

While it's true that UiPath operates in a competitive market with rapidly evolving AI technologies, it has successfully implemented a "land-and-expand" strategy where it initially secures a smaller deal with a client, then leverages that relationship to expand into larger, more profitable opportunities. This sales approach is reflected in their gradual movement towards profitability as an enterprise.

🤖 Artificial Intelligence

OpenAI released two new models, o3 and o4-mini, which combine simulated reasoning capabilities with access to functions like web browsing and coding. They can use every ChatGPT tool simultaneously.

💾 Big Data

Apple electronics supplier TDK recently unveiled a breakthrough device that supposedly combines optical, electronic, and magnetic technologies to speed up AI data transfers by 10x.

💊 Biotechnology

Boston-based Syntis Bio created a daily pill that mimics the effects of gastric bypass without actual surgery. It changes the way the body absorbs food and leaves people feeling fuller from eating less.

🧠 Neurotechnology

Brain tech startup Nudge released "Nudge Zero", an MRI-compatible helmet that can deliver targeted treatments to deep brain regions that currently require invasive surgery to access.

Equity Crowdfunding

Invest in Biostate AI, the company that is using AI to predict diseases and tailor effective treatments (investing round closes on Apr 30 @ 11:59 PM ET).

Invest in Sensate, the company that will lower your stress by activating your body's naturally intelligent calming system (investing round closes on Apr 25 @ 11:59 PM ET).

Note: If you're serious about investing in any of these startups, do a Porter's Five Forces Analysis first.

Venture Capital

🤖 Safe Superintelligence, an AI research lab lead by OpenAI co-founder Illya Sutskever, raised $2B at a valuation of $32B.

⚡️ Mainspring Energy, a company that develops and manufactures linear generators that convert fuel into electricity, raised $258M at an unknown valuation.

⛓️ Auradine, a web infrastructure platform intended to offer blockchain and AI infrastructure solutions, raised $153M at an unknown valuation.

Insights from Google Trends...

🐂 Search volume for “webull” shot up by 200% on Apr 14:
➡️ The stock trading platform went public on Apr 11 via SPAC merger and soared 500%.

📺 Search volume for “netflix stock” shot up by 300% on Apr 16:
➡️ The company posted record profits even in the face of tariffs. No shit. Have you seen their membership plan costs?!