Friday Wrap: Chips Slide, Autos Report, and Index Clocks Tick Down

US: NVDA Leads a Broad Tech Retreat

NVDA has shed $1.39 trillion in market cap since its October peak. The stock is down 7% year-to-date, though analysts still see 63% upside from current levels. Options expiries stack up weekly through January 2027, pointing to heavy hedging rather than confidence. Crypto miner IREN fell 31% over the week, with its RSI at 31, deep in oversold territory.

Defence also had a rough week. Karman Holdings dropped 23% in seven days. Analysts are cutting targets on the stock in a move that echoes broader caution on the sector.

Hertz Global Holdings reports earnings today with its cost to borrow at a punishing 317% APR. Short interest sits at 73.5% of free float and availability is effectively zero, making new short positions almost impossible to open.

JP Morgan issued a wide set of target changes on Friday. Costco got the biggest lift, with its target raised $135 to $1,150. FICO took the sharpest cut, down $100 to $800.

Global Autos: Mixed Signals on the Road

Today is the busiest day of earnings season for carmakers. Honda Motor, Mitsubishi Motors, Mazda, Isuzu and Mahindra all report Friday. ORTEX's Japanese car registration data, which leads Honda's revenue by 65 days with a strong fit, is running 10% below the same quarter last year. Mazda's German registration indicator tells a different story, running 32% above the year-ago quarter across all three months. Nissan follows Monday, with its Japanese registration indicator running 21% ahead of last year.

Europe: Recordati Exit and MSCI Deadline Loom

CVC Capital Partners' cash tender offer for Italian pharma group Recordati carries a 93% completion probability. An index announcement is expected today, with an effective exit from the FTSE MIB on 10 November, forcing an estimated $220 million of selling.

The MSCI World November review announcement lands Tuesday. Flutter Entertainment and Textron are the furthest below the exit line, at 78% and 79% deletion probability respectively, with forced selling estimates of $734 million and $1 billion. Moderna looks set to join on the addition side, with $6.9 billion of estimated buying to follow.

Italy's HICP inflation hit 5.6% in October, the highest October reading in three years. European hybrid car registrations fell to their weakest October in four years, adding to the pressure on the continent's auto sector.