Update: Market Chatter: Pledged US Investments of Tech Companies Depend on Research Tax Break, Industry Says

Apple (AAPLE) has been asked to include Epic Games' Fortnite on the App Store in the US, Fortnite said on social media platform X Friday.

Fortnite said it has submitted its request to Apple for review.

Apple removed Fortnite from its App Store in 2020, leading to a court battle between Apple and the video game and software developer.

Epic Games said it will be launching two purchasing options when Fortnite returns to the App Store so players will be able to purchase games either through Apple's in-app purchase or Epic's payment system.

To entice players, Epic Games said it is offering a 20% reward bonus on using its payment system for buying certain games.

Mackenzie Tatananni

Shares of The Trade Desk soared on Friday after the digital-advertising company posted strong first-quarter numbers following a dramatic revenue miss in the fourth quarter.

Adjusted earnings per share of 33 cents came in above the 25 cents analysts were expecting, according to FactSet. Revenue of $616 million handily topped the $575 million Wall Street had forecast.

Shares were up 22% to $73.01 on Friday, on pace for the largest same-day percent gain since a 32% jump in February 2023, according to Dow Jones Market Data, after a strong fourth-quarter report.

The benchmark S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite were down 0.1% each.

The latest results drew a sharp contrast to Trade Desk's performance in the fourth quarter. Shares sank in February after revenue missed estimates for the first time in 33 quarters.

The miss was largely attributed to slower-than-anticipated adoption of Kokai, the company's artificial intelligence-equipped platform. However, Kokai gained traction with users in the most recent quarter, leaving bulls cautiously optimistic.

Morgan Stanley analysts led by Matthew Cost reiterated an Overweight rating on the shares while raising their price target to $80 from $60.

The first-quarter print indicates "the company may have greater control of its key growth drivers than the market had previously feared," the analysts wrote in a report. In other words, "reports of its death were greatly exaggerated."

The latest results indicate the fourth-quarter miss may have been the result of transitory factors, rather than a sign of structural headwinds, Morgan Stanley posited.

That's not to play down stiff competition from key players such as Amazon.com, and the debate surrounding Trade Desk's relationships with ad agencies, which will take quarters to unfold, the team said.

But the company's second-quarter guidance for 17% revenue growth is encouraging, especially considering it accounts for weakness in certain brand budgets like automotive and consumer-packaged goods.

KeyBanc Capital Markets analysts led by Justin Patterson reiterated an Overweight rating on Trade Desk stock, and lifted their price target to $80 from $67.

The firm views Trade Desk as a leading independent ad-tech company that's positioned to seize on "significant opportunities" in connected TV and retail media.

KeyBanc noted that Kokai has been adopted by roughly two-thirds of the company's clients, and management remains confident that all clients will have Kokai in their toolbox by the end of 2025.

Structural changes within the organization were equally encouraging, the analysts continued. Management indicated that "the business and product and engineering teams are more in sync than they have been in years," and that productivity was ramping.

"When viewed in tandem with the aforementioned Kokai point, we believe several of the factors contributing to 4Q's rare miss have resolved," KeyBanc wrote.

Seaport Research Partners analyst Aaron Kessler maintained a Neutral rating on Trade Desk stock, but provided similarly upbeat commentary.

While Trade Desk does expect some macro softness in the current quarter, this was factored into its guidance, Kessler wrote in a report. With that being said, he believes "the risk-reward remains balanced" with shares trading at 10 times Seaport's estimates for 2026 revenue.

Write to Mackenzie Tatananni at mackenzie.tatananni@barrons.com

This content was created by Barron's, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. Barron's is published independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.

By Angela Palumbo

Pinterest stock was climbing after the photo sharing platform gave better-than-expected revenue guidance despite continued uncertainty in advertising.

Pinterest reported first-quarter adjusted earnings of 23 cents a share on revenue of $855 million. Analysts surveyed by FactSet were expecting earnings of 26 cents a share on revenue of $846.5 million.

Despite the mixed results, shares were up 5.8% in afternoon trading on Friday to $29.52.

Pinterest management said on its earnings call that it expects second-quarter revenue to be between $960 million and $980 million. That is above Wall Street expectations of $958.2 million.

Pinterest's strong revenue guidance is a standout since — according to the company's latest 10-K filing — it makes a substantial amount of its revenue from advertising. Other companies that rely on advertising have warned that ad spending, specifically from Asia-based companies, is showing signs of weakness.

This comes after the Trump administration removed the de minimis exemption, which previously allowed low-cost items to come into the U.S. without being exposed to tariffs.

Asia-based companies spend a lot on advertising their inexpensive products, and if customers shop those products less as they increase in price, advertisers may pull back spending.

Fellow social media company Snap also makes a lot of money from advertising, but withheld second-quarter guidance "given the uncertainty with respect to how macro economic conditions may evolve in the months ahead." Meta Platforms and Alphabet also noted during their latest earnings conference calls that they are seeing weakness with Asia-based advertiser spending.

Pinterest CFO Julia Donnelly said on the earnings call that the company has seen a reduction in "spend from Asia-based e-commerce retailers in the U.S. given the change in the de minimis exemption."

"However, we've also seen a geographic diversification from some of those Asia-based retailers to our European and Rest of World user regions. And that's a theme that has continued to play out over multiple quarters now and continues today," Donnelly added.

Write to Angela Palumbo at angela.palumbo@dowjones.com

This content was created by Barron's, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. Barron's is published independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.