America's biggest banks are ending 2025 on top with big growth goals and markets 'wide open'

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America's biggest banks are ending 2025 with their stock prices at record highs, more assets on their balance sheet, and a level of regulatory freedom they haven't seen in 15 years.

In the year ahead, the industry and its top firms plan to turn that momentum into a growth story.

Bank of America, the nation's second-largest bank, saw its stock hit a record high in December, finally surpassing its pre-crisis peak reached in 2006.

Shares of JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo, the nation's largest and fourth-largest banks, respectively, are trading at record highs.

Citigroup's (C) stock surpassed the net worth of its assets - known as its book value per share - for the first time in seven years. Citi shares remain 80% lower than their peak reached in 2000. Yahoo Finance reports.

🪴 Pot stocks keep blazing after Trump says he’s ‘very strongly’ looking at rescheduling cannabis

Shares of U.S. and Canadian cannabis stocks continued their rally on Tuesday, after President Donald Trump a day earlier said he was “very strongly” weighing an executive order to reschedule the drug - a move that would lift some regulations on the substance.

Curaleaf Holdings and Trulieve Cannabis, which produce cannabis in multiple U.S states, finished up 23.2% and 12.6%, respectively.

Canadian producer Tilray Brands jumped 27.5%, while rival Canopy Growth moved 10.2% higher. MarketWatch reports.


📊 Children's Place 3Q sales fall as turnaround plan hits snags

Children's Place had lower sales for the fiscal third quarter as its strategic plan to expand brick-and-mortar sales hit some snags. The kids' apparel company on Tuesday swung to a loss of $4.32 million, or 19 cents a share, in the quarter, compared with a profit of $20.1 million, or $1.57 a share, a year earlier.

Stripping out certain one-time items, the adjusted per-share loss was 18 cents.

Sales fell 13% to $339.5 million. Same-store sales were down 5.4%.

The decline was driven by a decrease in wholesale revenue due to lower order commitments as a result of higher purchases earlier in the fiscal year, Children's Place said. MarketWatch reports.


🤖 Micron Technology earnings loom, analyst targets jump to $300+

Micron will hold its Fiscal First Quarter 2026 earnings call on December 17, 2025 at 4:30 PM EST (2:30 PM Mountain Time), per the company’s investor relations schedule and earnings announcement.

That timing matters because MU stock is coming into the print with elevated expectations. As of Wednesday morning, MU was around $232.51, according to MarketBeat’s listing.

This isn’t just an earnings report. For MU, it’s a referendum on three huge themes:

1. AI infrastructure demand, especially high-bandwidth memory (HBM)
2. DRAM and NAND pricing power in a tight supply environment
3. Whether Micron can keep executing while the market debates if the broader “AI trade” is overheated

TechStock reports.


📦 FedEx (FDX) Q4 earnings preview: what to look for

Parcel and cargo delivery company FedEx (NYSE:FDX) will be reporting earnings this Thursday after market close. Here’s what to expect.

FedEx beat analysts’ revenue expectations by 2.7% last quarter, reporting revenues of $22.24 billion, up 3.1% year on year.

It was a very strong quarter for the company, with a solid beat of analysts’ adjusted operating income estimates and an impressive beat of analysts’ revenue estimates. Yahoo Finance reports.


💊 Kyverna Therapeutics extends decline premarket following launch of $100 million stock offering

Kyverna Therapeutics' (KYTX) shares were down over 16% in Wednesday's premarket activity following the launch of a $100 million offering of common shares.

The company said late Monday it plans to grant a 30-day overallotment option to the underwriters to acquire up to an additional $15 million of the shares.

Shares of the company closed 5.4% lower in the regular trading session on Tuesday. MarketScreener reports.

(All pricing and percent gains are based on Early Pre-Market from 4:00 AM to 7:00 AM Eastern Time)
Stock Analysis reports.

1) YCBD: cbdMD, Inc.
Total gain: +48.95%

2) DBVT: DBV Technologies S.A.
Total gain: +36.54%

3) AZI: Autozi Internet Technology (Global) Ltd.
Total gain: +21.93%

4) HUT: Hut 8 Corp.
Total gain: +20.76%

5) CGEN: Compugen Ltd.
Total gain: +13.42%

The closing price of the top three market percent gainers trading near or above $3 on December 16.
Stock Analysis reports.

*All pricing and percent gains are based on regular market trading hours from 9:30am to 4:00pm Eastern Time

1) AMCI: AMC Robotics Corporation
Total gain: +101.51%
The company announced several significant technology advancements. These include the opening of the third commercial scale plant in China using LanzaTech NZ, Inc’s technology, as well as several new commercial partnerships, further validating LanzaTech NZ, Inc’s technology across a wide array of end markets and applications. Globe Newswire reports.

2) RILY: B. Riley Financial, Inc.
Total gain: +53.76%
The company announced the filing of its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the three-month period ended June 30, 2025. PR Newswire reports.

3) CPAC: Cementos Pacasmayo S.A.A.
Total gain: +52.22%
The company announced today that the Swiss company Holcim, the world's leading cement company, has signed an agreement to purchase Inversiones Aspi S.A. of the Hochschild Group, which controls 50.01% of Cementos PACASMAYO. The valuation of S/ 5,100 MM has been made at a multiple of nine times EBITDA based on the twelve-month period ending in September 2025, which set an all-time EBITDA record for the company. This transaction provides high profitability for shareholders, as it offers a significant premium over the Company's current market capitalization. Businesswire reports.

Time (ET)/ Report/ Period

8:15 AM Fed - governor Chris Waller speaks - N/A
9:05 PM - New York Fed President John Williams opening remarks - N/A
12:30 PM - Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic speaks - N/A