Happy Friday afternoon to everyone on The Street. Here's a snapshot of where markets ended the trading session, plus tomorrow's trade idea delivered to you today.

• 🟨 | US stocks were mixed on Friday. Some positive momentum carried over from Thursday, but traders are also skeptical about what feels like a bit of tech-driven frothiness in the markets.  

• 📈 | One Notable Gainer: Shares of Block bounced higher by 16% after the payments company reported a surprise quarterly profit.

• 📉 | One Notable Decliner: Shares of Warner Bros. Discovery dropped 10% after the media company posted disappointing fourth-quarter results

• 🏦 | Tomorrow's Trade: Public Access to Private Funds. Scroll down for more.

Plus, this company makes speaking with a vetted financial advisor more accessible and convenient than ever.

MARKET MOVERS

Carvana, Bloomin’ Brands, & Rivian

CVNA (+32%) Carvana stock surges on first annual profit, pair of analyst upgrades (CNBC)

MELI (-10%) MercadoLibre posted strong top-line growth but a tax liability marred its profit. (Motley Fool)

RIVN (-12%) Elon Musk says Rivian needs to ‘cut costs massively’ and its execs should ‘live in the factory’ for the struggling Tesla rival to survive (Fortune)

BLMN (+3%) Bloomin’ Brands’ adjusted Q4 profit beats estimates but it lowers its Q1 view on impact from bad weather (MarketWatch)

DKNG (+1%) DraftKings’ stock picks up an upgrade at Barclays, with analyst cheering potential in online casino games, parlay bets (MarketWatch)

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OVERHEARD ON THE STREET

YF: Nvidia hit $2 trillion in market value on Friday, riding on an insatiable demand for its chips that made the Silicon Valley firm the pioneer of the generative artificial intelligence boom.

Variety: Tyler Perry‘s planned $800 million studio expansion in Atlanta has been put on the back burner due to his growing concerns over developments in artificial intelligence.

The Verge: Mercedes-Benz is backing off its plan to only sell electric vehicles after 2030, the company said.

BBG: JPMorgan Chase & Co. Chief Executive Officer Jamie Dimon and his family sold $150 million worth of the bank's stock.

BI: Jeremy Grantham says the AI bubble will burst and take the stock market down with it.

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TOMORROW’S TRADE IDEA, TODAY

How Everyday Investors Can Get Access To Private Credit

Business is A-Boomin

Most people are aware that interest rates are high.

This has led many companies to look to private credit firms rather than public lenders. As a result, there has been a major surge in the private credit industry.

According to Preqin, total private credit assets are sitting at $1.6 trillion, having almost doubled since 2020. This figure is expected to grow to $2.3 trillion by 2027.

Increasing Accessibility

Private credit firms are rising in popularity because they help companies raise funds fast. As a high-yield alternative to fixed income, they also offer more flexibility than institutions like banks.

The average investor doesn’t typically have the capital to buy into large private credit funds. But retail investors can still get a piece of the pie by purchasing private lenders’ stocks.

As the industry gets hotter and hotter, there are opportunities for investors to get in on the action.

Top Picks

Take Apollo Global Management (APO), for example. Its stock is up over 56% over the past year.

Morgan Stanley (MS) analyst Bruce Hamilton is bullish on a few other private lending stocks. These include Ares (ARES), KKR (KKR), and Blackstone (BX). Ares and KKR are also up over 50% over the past year. 

Blackstone is the analyst’s favorite pick, and for good reason. It boasts $1 trillion in assets, making it one of the largest private investment firms in the US. The company’s stock is up over 35% over the past 12 months. 

There’s no doubt that the lending industry is changing. Investors might be able to take advantage of the shifting landscape and gain exposure to a growing sector.

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ON OUR RADAR

NBC: As of last summer, the average Gen Zer or millennial was dropping over $400 a month on nonessentials, compared to about $250 for Gen Xers and less than $200 for baby boomers, a Morning Consult report found.

FT: US banks now hold $1.40 in reserves for every dollar of delinquent commercial real estate loans, down from $2.20 a year ago, according to the FDIC data, and the lowest cover banks have had to absorb potential commercial real estate loan losses in more than seven years.

Reuters: German commercial property prices fell 12.1% in the final three months of 2023 compared with a year earlier in their biggest-ever drop.

Federal Reserve Bank of New York: Consumer debt swelled by $212 billion in the last quarter of 2023.

Fortune: Millennial and Gen Z wealth has grown by 80% in recent years, according to the NY Fed. They're still $94 trillion behind boomers. Real wealth for Americans under age 40 grew by 80% between Q1 2019 and Q3 2023, according to the New York Federal Reserve.

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