Bloomberg Stock Movers
2026-09-25 · Hosted by — · Bloomberg / iHeartMedia
Executive Summary
Akamai shares jumped 20% in pre-market trading after signing an $11.6 billion, seven-year deal with Anthropic to provide GPU compute access, building on a nearly $2 billion deal the two companies struck earlier this year. The deal also grants Anthropic a warrant convertible into nearly 8 million Akamai Class B shares just above $111 each, and marks the largest contract in Akamai's history as it pivots from its traditional content-delivery and cybersecurity base into compute.
Key Stories & Changes
1. Akamai Signs $11.6 Billion Compute Deal with Anthropic
Shares up 20% in pre-market trading
Seven-year contract; Akamai will provide CPU/GPU compute access to Anthropic
Deal includes a warrant convertible into nearly 8 million Class B shares at just above $111 each
Builds on a prior ~$2 billion deal between the companies earlier this year
Largest contract in Akamai's history; reflects the company's shift from content delivery and cybersecurity into compute
2. Meta Extends Historic September Rally
Shares up 36% this month, the best month since 2013
Added nearly half a billion dollars in market cap during September, pushing total market value to nearly $2 trillion
Stock is within 2% of its record high set over a year ago
Mark Zuckerberg's net worth climbed to $274 billion, moving him to #4 on the Bloomberg Billionaires ranking, about a billion behind Jeff Bezos
3. People Inc. / MGM Reversal
One day after reports that Barry Diller's People Inc. would not pursue taking MGM private, the Wall Street Journal reported MGM is now in discussions to acquire People Inc.
People Inc. shares up nearly 10% in pre-market trading
People Inc. owns a 27% stake in MGM worth about $2.4 billion — roughly $300 million less than People Inc.'s total market cap
Reported rationale: the deal could let MGM buy back a large chunk of itself while acquiring other assets at an attractive price
4. Costco Fiscal Q4 Earnings
Shares roughly flat, down about 0.2% in pre-market trading
Beat both top- and bottom-line estimates for the fiscal fourth quarter
Gasoline sales had a record year as consumers sought value
Membership growth has slowed but new member sign-ups continue
Shares up 4% year-to-date; Walmart down about 3% over the same period, suggesting Costco has outperformed a key cost-conscious peer
AKAM: Akamai — +20% (pre-market) — $11.6B, 7-year Anthropic compute deal — largest in company history
META: Meta Platforms — +36% (September) — Best month since 2013; added ~$500B in market cap
PPLI: People Inc. — +10% (pre-market) — Reportedly in talks to be acquired by MGM Resorts
COST: Costco — ~flat — Beat Q4 estimates; membership growth slowing but still positive
Trends Identified
1. AI Compute Deals Continue to Reshape Infrastructure Providers
Akamai's pivot from content delivery/cybersecurity into compute, sealed by its largest-ever contract with Anthropic, reflects a broader pattern of legacy infrastructure companies repositioning around AI compute demand rather than their historical core businesses.
2. Meta's AI-Driven Rally Reshaping Wealth Rankings
Meta's Muse-driven rally isn't just a stock story — it's materially moving personal wealth rankings, with Zuckerberg's net worth gain illustrating how concentrated the AI rally's benefits have become among a small number of mega-cap leaders and founders. ---
Sentiment Analysis
Overall Market Sentiment: Bullish on AI-Linked Deals
The tone throughout was upbeat, focused on concrete deal-making and earnings beats rather than macro risk.
Risk Factors Highlighted
Deal-dependent stock concentration: Akamai's largest-ever contract with a single customer (Anthropic) raises concentration risk if that relationship changes.
M&A uncertainty: The People Inc./MGM situation reversed within 24 hours, highlighting the volatility and unpredictability of ongoing deal talks.
Membership growth deceleration: Costco's slowing membership growth, even amid a headline earnings beat, signals a maturing core growth driver.
Concentrated AI wealth effects: Meta's rally-driven market cap gains are concentrating gains in a small number of AI-exposed mega-caps and their founders.
This episode was covered in today's [The Market Signal — 2026-09-25](https://marketsignal.beehiiv.com/p/the-market-signal-2026-09-25), a cross-source synthesis of multiple podcast reports.