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Funding Frenzy, Shopping Spree, and Squaring Off

  • Funding Frenzy – Q2 2025 venture funding reached $91 billion, which is a $9 billion increase from Q2 2024. However, Q2 2025 funding did fall compared to Q1 2025’s funding of $114 billion, which was the largest quarter funding since Q3 2022 (source: Crunchbase).
  • Shopping Spree – Amazon’s Prime Day event resulted in a 30.3% boost in online spending across U.S. retailers to $24.1 billion, beating estimates projecting a 28.4% growth (source: Bloomberg).
  • Parcels Please – FedEx released its fourth quarter earnings report for the period ended May 31, 2025, citing a 1% year-over-year increase in consolidated revenue. At the same time, FedEx solidified a $2.2 billion cost savings over the fiscal year ended May 31, 2025 (source: The Motley Fool).
  • Squaring Off – Shareholders of Meta Platforms, the parent company that owns Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, have launched an $8 billion lawsuit against CEO Mark Zuckerberg. Zuckerberg is accused of using Facebook as an illegal enterprise to harvest users’ data without their consent. The non-jury trial is set to begin on Wednesday, July 16, 2025 (source: Yahoo Finance).
  • Hill’s Hefty Valuation – McGraw Hill, an education publisher, is seeking a $4.2 billion valuation in its initial public offering. McGraw Hill sold to Platinum, a private equity investment firm, in 2021 for $4.5 billion. The company reports that 99% of U.S public K-12 districts and 82% of U.S. higher education institutions use McGraw Hill products (source: Reuters).
  • Profitable Paychex – Paychex released its fourth quarter earnings report for the period ended May 31, 2025, reporting a 10% increase in total revenue in Q4. Similarly, adjusted diluted earnings per share increased by 6% during fiscal year 2025 (source: The Motley Fool).
  • Blocked Acquisition – President Donald Trump blocked the acquisition of Jupiter Systems, an audiovisual equipment supplier, by Suirui International, a Hong Kong company, after the U.S. Treasury Department found Suirui to be a national security risk. Jupiter’s products are used in U.S. military and infrastructure environments (source: Reuters).
  • Generous Giving – Warren Buffett donated $6 billion in Berkshire stock to the Gates Foundation and four other family charities, which is his biggest annual donation since he began giving away his fortune. Buffett still owns 13.8% of Berkshire’s stock (source: Reuters).
  • Draft Day – Eli Willits was the first overall pick in the 2025 MLB Draft. The shortstop will head to the Nationals. This is the third time in franchise history that the Nationals have had the top pick in the draft (source: MLB).
  • Internet Epidemic – The Pew Research Center found that the number of teens being online “almost constantly” has doubled since 2014-15. Today, roughly 46% of teens surveyed are “almost constantly” online compared to 24% in 2014-15. Similarly, 96% of U.S. teens agree that they use the internet every day (source: Pew Research Center). In June 2025, the Dow Jones Industrial Average increased by 4.3%, the S&P 500 rose by 4.5%, and the Nasdaq Composite jumped by 5.9% (source: Bloomberg).

*Definitions and Indexes

This newsletter is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice or a recommendation regarding any specific product or security. Past performance is not indicative of future results. You cannot invest directly in an index. All references to tax or legal matters are provided for informational purposes only. You should consult your legal or tax professional regarding your specific situation. All investing is subject to risk, including possible loss of principal.

For current fund holdings, please click on the related fund links included above.

Originally published July 18, 2025

For more news, information, and strategy, visit the Leveraged & Inverse Content Hub.

An investor should carefully consider a Fund’s investment objective, risks, charges, and expenses before investing. A Fund’s prospectus and summary prospectus contain this and other information about the Direxion Shares. Click here to obtain a Fund’s prospectus and summary prospectus or call 866-476-7523. A Fund’s prospectus and summary prospectus should be read carefully before investing.

Leveraged and Inverse ETFs pursue daily leveraged investment objectives which means they are riskier than alternatives which do not use leverage. They seek daily goals and should not be expected to track the underlying index over periods longer than one day. They are not suitable for all investors and should be utilized only by sophisticated investors who understand leverage risk and who actively manage their investments.

Direxion Funds Risks — An investment in the Funds involves risk, including the possible loss of principal. The Funds are non-diversified and include risks associated with concentration risk which results from the Funds’ investments in a particular industry or sector and can increase volatility over time. Active and frequent trading associated with a regular rebalance of a fund can cause the price to fluctuate, therefore impacting its performance compared to other investment vehicles. For other risks including correlation, compounding, market volatility and risks specific to an industry or sector, please read the prospectus.

Direxion Shares ETF Risks — An investment in the ETFs involves risk, including the possible loss of principal. The ETFs are non-diversified and include risks associated with concentration that results from an ETF’s investments in a particular industry, sector or company, which can increase volatility. The leveraged and inverse ETF utilize derivatives, such as futures contracts and swaps which are subject to market risks that may cause their price to fluctuate over time. The leveraged and inverse ETFs do not attempt to, and should not be expected to, provide returns which are a multiple of the return of their respective index or underlying security for periods other than a single day. The leveraged and inverse ETFs may also subject to leverage, correlation, daily compounding, market volatility and risks specific to an industry, sector or company. The non-leveraged ETFs are subject to certain risks, including imperfect index correlation and market price variance, which may decrease performance. The non-leveraged ETFs may invest in a relatively small number of issuers and, as a result, be subject to greater risk of loss with respect to its portfolio securities. The non-leveraged ETFs may experience greater fluctuation in its net asset value as compared to other investments. The non-leveraged ETFs may be appropriate for investors with a long-term investment time horizon, who primarily seek capital growth, and who are able to tolerate periods of prolonged price declines. Please read each ETF’s prospectus for a more complete description of the investment risks. There is no guarantee that an ETF will achieve its investment objective.

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