Raphael Stevens

SpaceX headquarters in Los Angeles, California.AaronP/Bauer-Griffin | GC Images | Getty ImagesA SpaceX engineer pleaded guilty to a Department of Justice charge of insider trading, the agency announced on Thursday, after using information obtained on the dark web to trade public securities with non-public information.The DOJ’s criminal case against James Roland Jones of Hermosa Beach, California, came following an investigation by the F.B.I. in 2017.The government’s announcement of the plea agreement identified Jones as a SpaceX engineer, although the agency did not specify whether he currently works for the space company, and whether he did at the time of the fraud.The Securities and Exchange Commission simultaneously charged Jones with “perpetrating a fraudulent scheme to sell what he called ‘insider tips'” on the dark web in exchange for bitcoin. The SEC did not name SpaceX in its complaint.SpaceX, the DOJ and the SEC did not immediately respond to CNBC’s requests for comment.The DOJ said Jones used the moniker “MillionaireMike” to purchase information – such as address, dates of birth, and social security numbers – on the dark web. The dark web, as defined by the SEC, “refers to anything on the internet that is not indexed by, or accessible via, a search engine like Google.”Jones then used this information to conduct financial transactions on material, non-public information, the DOJ alleges. In April 2017, an undercover FBI agency gave Jones “purported insider information related to a publicly traded” company, the DOJ said.”From April 18, 2017, until May 4, 2017, Jones and a conspirator conducted numerous securities transactions based on this purported insider information,” the DOJ said.The SEC charged Jones with antifraud violations of federal securities law. Jones agreed to bifurcated settlement with the SEC, and faces a maximum penalty of five years in federal prison under his plea with the DOJ.”This case shows that the SEC can and will pursue securities law violators wherever they operate, even on the dark web,” SEC’s Fort Worth Regional Office Director David Peavler said in a statement. More

A man walks in front of a Nike products exhibit, on February 22, 2021 in New York City.John Smith | Corbis News | Getty ImagesNike on Thursday reported higher third-quarter profits even though sales growth was hurt by widespread port congestion in the United States and ongoing store closures in Europe.Although the global health crisis still leaves an overhang of uncertainty, Nike said it anticipates lockdowns will start to ease in Europe in April, and delivery windows will slowly improve in North America through the remainder of the year.Its shares dropped nearly 4% in after-hours trading.Here’s how Nike did during the quarter ended Feb. 28, compared with what analysts were expecting, based on a survey by Refinitiv:Earnings per share: 90 cents vs. 76 cents expectedRevenue: $10.36 billion vs. $11.02 billion expectedNike reported net income of $1.45 billion, or 90 cents per share, compared with $847 million, or 53 cents per share, a year earlier. That was better than the 76 cents per share that analysts were expecting, based on Refinitiv data.Total sales rose to $10.36 billion from $10.1 billion a year earlier. That was lower than the $11.02 billion forecast by analysts.In North America, revenue dropped 10% year over year, hurt by shipment delays that Nike said have been dragging on for more than three weeks. That also meant sales at its wholesale partners were affected, as businesses such as department stores and sporting goods outlets didn’t receive goods on time. They’ll likely now need to discount some of that merchandise to make space on the shelf for more in-season styles.Backlogged West Coast ports, a global container shortage, and a truck driver shortage in the U.S. continue to be headaches for businesses from Nordstrom to Urban Outfitters to Peloton. Many have said they expect these issues to drag on until the second half of the year.In its Europe, Middle East and Africa region, Nike said, sales at its brick-and-mortar retail stores dropped due to pandemic-related closures and restrictions while digital sales in those markets grew 60% in the latest period. It said about 60% of its stores in the region are open today, with some operating on reduced hours.In Greater China, a region that is further along in recovering from the pandemic, sales climbed 51%.Nike offered an outlook for the current quarter and fiscal year that anticipates inventory transit times will improve slowly across North America from here and lockdowns will ease across Europe come April.It’s forecasting fiscal 2021 revenue to rise by a low-to-mid-teens percentage from the prior year. Analysts had been calling for full-year revenue growth of 15.9%, according to Refinitiv.Fourth-quarter sales are expected by the company to be up 75% year over year, as the company laps a period when 90% of its owned stores were shut due to the pandemic. Analysts had been looking for growth of 64.3%.Online sales get a boost from livestreamingNike’s direct-to-consumer business grew 20% year over year, to $4 billion. And online sales for the Nike brand surged 59%, as consumers looked to add new sneakers and athletic gear to their wardrobes, even if they were stuck at home. The company said it booked $1 billion in sales online in North America for the first time.”We continue to see the value of a more direct, digitally-enabled strategy, fueling even greater potential for Nike over the long term,” Chief Financial Officer Matt Friend said.Nike’s e-commerce business is still on track to account for at least 50% of sales in the coming years, the company said. Nike has been investing more in digital, including its popular SNKRS app, to reach younger consumers online and reduce its reliance on third-party partners.It also said it has recently had success testing new livestreaming formats, which remain more popular in Asia than in the U.S. But other companies, including Nordstrom and Walmart, are experimenting in America, too. During the third quarter, Nike said it started livestreaming in Japan, Germany and Italy.”We’re seeing phenomenal engagement for this live interaction, with average viewing doubling,” Chief Executive Officer John Donahoe said.Nike shares are up more than 110% over the past 12 months, as of Thursday’s market close. It has a market cap of more than $225 billion.Find the full press release from Nike here. More

Williams-Sonoma shares jumped to new highs Thursday after the home goods retailer posted better-than-expected results for its fourth quarter.The company’s e-commerce business played a key role in growing sales to make up for lost business in physical stores. But CEO Laura Alber is anticipating a strong recovery in brick-and-mortar sales as the U.S. economy emerges from the pandemic.”The store traffic’s coming back,” she said on CNBC’s “Mad Money.” “I think people don’t realize the upside we have in retail.”Williams-Sonoma, known for selling products for the kitchen, generated $2.3 billion in revenues in its most recent quarter that ended Jan. 31. It was the third-straight quarter of year-over-year growth, following a dip in sales early last year when sweeping Covid-19 lockdowns took effect.The San Francisco-based retailer also reported full-year results from its 2021 fiscal year. Despite pandemic-era business disruptions, the company had its best year of growth in almost two decades.Online sales grew 45% during the fiscal year, compared to a 24% drop in in-person sales. Still, Alber said the company won’t give up on its brick-and-mortar strategy.”We talk about e-commerce, and that will be our growth, but this retail recovery is a big part of the story as well,” she said.Shares of Williams-Sonoma popped 18.46% on Thursday, closing at $161.57.Questions for Cramer? Call Cramer: 1-800-743-CNBCWant to take a deep dive into Cramer’s world? Hit him up! Mad Money Twitter – Jim Cramer Twitter – Facebook – InstagramQuestions, comments, suggestions for the “Mad Money” website? [email protected] More

Dr. Peter Hotez is siding with one of the nation’s top doctors following a showdown between Republican Sen. Rand Paul and Dr. Anthony Fauci on Capitol Hill over masks. “Dr. Fauci is absolutely right, Senator Paul is absolutely wrong, and that’s the way it’s been for the last 14 months,” Hotez said.Paul claimed that people are not at risk of Covid after they have recovered or have been vaccinated, and, therefore, do not need to wear masks. The Kentucky Senator also asserted that Fauci was wearing two masks simply for show.The White House chief medical advisor emphatically pushed back against Paul’s comments Thursday during a Senate hearing examining the nation’s coronavirus response efforts.″Can I just state for the record that masks are not theater,” Fauci said. “I totally disagree with you.”In a Thursday evening interview on “The News with Shepard Smith” Hotez noted that eventually “masks may need to come off,” but that it’s too soon and “we’re still trying to understand the full performance characteristics of the vaccines.””We’re only now getting a glimmer that it interrupts asymptomatic transmission,” Hotez said. The debate over masks comes as nearly half the country is experiencing a surge in Covid cases. Twenty-three states reported an increase in cases, as a seven-day average, over the past week, according to Johns Hopkins. Half a dozen states are also seeing hospitalizations trend higher, according to the Department of Health and Human Services. Hotez, co-director of the Center for Vaccine Development at Texas Children’s Hospital, told host Shepard Smith that the spikes could be the result of highly transmissible new variants. “The key now is to vaccinate ahead of the variants as fast as we can,” Hotez said. More

The National Football League has finalized its new 11-year media rights agreement with a pact that will run through 2033 and could be worth over $100 billion.The league announced Thursday it’s renewing TV rights with all of its existing broadcast partners and adding Amazon Prime Video as an exclusive partner for its Thursday Night Football package. It’s the first time a streaming service will carry a full package of games exclusively. Amazon is paying about $1 billion per year, according to people familiar with the matter. Amazon’s deal runs 10 years and begins in 2023.ViacomCBS, Fox and Comcast (which owns NBCUniversal) are all paying more than $2 billion per year for their 11-year-long packages, while Disney (which owns ESPN and ABC) will pay around $2.7 billion annually, according to people familiar with the matter.  Using these numbers, the NFL’s new agreement projects to be more than $100 billion — the richest U.S. sports league media deal.The NFL declined to comment on the total amount of the agreements. ViacomCBS is paying $2.1 billion for its package and NBCUniversal is paying about $2 billion, the lowest of any of the partners, but the highest increase over its previous deal, the people said. NBCUniversal paid $1.1 billion for its previous package, including playoff games.Fox is also projected to pay over $2 billion in its new contact, but will save $660 million as it relinquishes the Thursday Night Football package. Morgan Stanley estimates that contact will be averaging $400 million in annual losses in 2023 when Fox’s agreement expires.Disney is paying more and receiving more NFL content, including rights to exclusively air an international game each year, beginning in 2022, one of the people said.  In this pact, the ESPN network keeps the Monday Night Football package and also has rights to air two Super Bowls on its ABC network. Disney can stream all NFL games that air on ABC and ESPN on ESPN+, the league said. Disney will now carry 23 games instead of 17 in its previous deal. ABC will air three Monday Night Football games, which will not be double-headers with ESPN because the timing of the games will overlap, one of the people said. ABC will also carry two Saturday games the last week of the NFL season, which could turn into a new Week 18 if the NFL moves forward with adding a week. Disney will also receive a new divisional round playoff game, said the person.”These new media deals will provide our fans even greater access to the games they love,” said NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell in a statement. “We’re proud to grow our partnerships with the most innovative media companies in the market. Along with our recently completed labor agreement with the NFLPA, these distribution agreements bring an unprecedented era of stability to the league and will permit us to continue to grow and improve our game.””NFL games are the most watched live programming in the United States, and this unprecedented Thursday Night Football package gives tens of millions of new and existing Prime members exclusive access to must-watch live football on Prime Video,” said Mike Hopkins, Senior VP of Prime Video and Amazon Studios, in a statement.The league’s National Football Conference (NFC) games will remain with Fox, and CBS Sports will continue to host American Football Conference (AFC) games and stream those contests on its Paramount+ service. NBCUniversal will keep the Sunday Night Football package and use its Peacock service to stream games.The NFL’s Super Bowl rotation is as follows:CBS: 2023, 2027, 2031FOX: 2024, 2028, 2032NBC: 2025, 2029, 2033ESPN/ABC: 2026, 2030The NFL’s Covid-19 Super Bowl in February attracted 96.4 million viewers watching the Tampa Bay Buccaneers beat the Kansas City Chiefs, 31-9. The game was the lowest watched Super Bowl since 2007 when the Indianapolis Colts played the Chicago Bears. That game attracted 93.1 million viewers, according to Octagon’s media division data provided to CNBC. More

Boxes containing the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine are prepared to be shipped at the McKesson distribution center in Olive Branch, Mississippi, U.S. December 20, 2020.Paul Sancya | ReutersFedEx on Thursday reported better-than-expected profits and revenues in its most recent quarter after what its CFO called an “unprecedented” peak holiday shipping season, despite severe weather in February that impaired operations at several of its largest hubs.FedEx shares jumped roughly 3% in after-hours trading Thursday.Here’s how FedEx did compared with what investors are expecting for the fiscal third quarter 2021, ending Feb. 28, based on estimates compiled by Refinitiv:Adjusted EPS: $3.47 per share vs. $3.23 expected.Revenue: $21.51 billion vs. $19.97 billion expected.Revenue rose 23% from $17.49 billion during the same quarter last year. The company said the increase was due to “strong volume growth” in its domestic residential package delivery business and international shipping services.CEO Fred Smith said in a statement that the company expects “demand for our unmatched e-commerce and international express solutions to remain very high for the foreseeable future.” FedEx reported net income of $939 million, or $3.47 per share, compared with $371 million, or $1.41 per share, during the same quarter a year ago.However, severe weather in February that hit several of the company’s operating hubs, including its primary FedEx Express hub in Memphis, Tennessee, cut its operating income by roughly $350 million, the company said.FedEx Chief Financial Officer Michael Lenz said the improvement in the company’s third-quarter results reflects the “momentum in our business which continued through an unprecedented peak season.”The Memphis-based logistics giant has become a key component in the U.S.’ Covid-19 vaccine distribution efforts, alongside rival UPS. Smith called the effort “the most important work in the history of FedEx.”FedEx said in early March that it started shipping the third authorized vaccine, from Johnson & Johnson, and expects a “significant uptick” in volume in the coming months.”As manufacturers obtain approval to ship COVID-19 vaccines with greater temperature ranges and varying dosing allotments, we anticipate more of these packages moving to more places through our global network,” FedEx Express CEO Don Colleran said in a March 1 statement.Find the full press release from FedEx here.Correction: This story has been updated to reflect the latest EPS and revenue estimates for FedEx, as forecast by Refinitiv consensus estimates. More