What's going on?

There were big moves in the share prices of several household names on Wednesday: WW (formerly Weight Watchers) slimmed down 34%, while Best Buy got 16% better.

What does this mean?

WW released fourth-quarter earnings late on Tuesday � but the Oprah-backed company�s profit was well off its target weight, and it shed subscribers for the third quarter in a row. WW also said that 2019 wasn�t going as well as hoped, lowering its forecast for the year. WW hasn�t just changed its name: it�s in the middle of rebranding itself as a wellness company. Either that�s not working so well � or it�s working too well, and its subscribers don�t need it anymore.


US electronics retailer Best Buy, meanwhile, bested expectations and raised its 2019 forecast, citing powerful demand for wearables, appliances, and games consoles (for now). The good news was a welcome relief for investors after Home Depot and Macy�s reported lackluster results � and retail bellwether Walmart neglected to raise its own 2019 forecast last week.

Why should I care?

For markets: Another day, another earnings report.

Campbell Soup�s stock rose 8% on Wednesday after its quarterly results beat expectations, making up the value that evaporated last week on news of rival Kraft Heinz�s sloppy performance. But shares of German Nivea owner Beiersdorf fell 10% after it jumped on the costly restructuring bandwagon � with the CEO�s warning of dire threats from niche competitors dragging down other European consumer goods giants (tweet this) like Nestl� and Unilever.

Zooming out: Sometimes a big buyer can push prices down.

The Dutch government unexpectedly announced on Wednesday it�d upped its stake in Air France-KLM � and the company�s stock fell 12%. The Dutch government said it wanted to match France�s ownership of the airlines in order to protect national interests. But investors were likely worried that two big shareholders with conflicting priorities could slow down growth � as well as Air France-KLM�s own restructuring plan.