This was a stable week for the Fab Five (+$91 billion this week, -$28 billion so far in 2025) and the Telco Top Five (+$20 billion, -$13 billion). Apple was the only Fab Five stock to lose any meaningful value, driven by a report from Canalys that they had lost market share to Xiaomi and vivo in China. The report also indicates, however, that their total global shipments increased in Q4 while Samsung’s fell.
Each of the Telco Top Five added value this week, with T-Mobile gaining $9 billion. Everyone is waiting for quarterly earnings reports, which will start this coming Friday (Verizon). Here is the latest earnings chart for the ten stocks we track:
Last week, Bloomberg provided an interesting update on the latest telecom hack, stating that “FBI officials told agents across the country that details about their use on the telecom carrier’s network were believed to be among the billions of records stolen, according to the document and interviews with a current and a former law enforcement official. They asked not to be named to discuss sensitive information. Data from all FBI devices under the bureau’s AT&T service for public safety agencies were presumed taken…” This breach will undoubtedly go down as the worst in telecom history. More details in next week’s Brief.
Finally, two key nominations/ appointments to note with the incoming Trump administration. Longtime aide to Senator Roger Wicker (R-MS), Olivia Trusty, has been nominated to fill the vacancy left by outgoing Chair Jessica Rosenworcel. Also, Aerielle Roth, currently policy director for Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX), is expected to be named the head of the National Telecommuncations and Information Administration (NTIA), the administrator of all BEAD funding. Both of these announcements are covered in this Fierce Network article.
File is below. Happy MLK Day!
