Axios PM: It's a great time to sell stock — Commuter worries grow — AirPod showers

1 big thing: It's a great time to sell stock | Thursday, December 10, 2020

Open in app View in browser   Presented By Morgan Stanley   Axios PM By Mike Allen ·Dec 10, 2020 Good afternoon: Today's PM — edited by Justin Green — is 584 words, a 2-minute read. ✡ Hanukkah begins at sunset. In these trying times, wishing peace and light to you and yours. 🚨Situational awareness: 💉 Herd immunity should arrive once 75%–80% of people get vaccinated against COVID-19, Anthony Fauci tells Axios. Go deeper. Disney+ now has 86.8 million subscribers, its CEO told media and investors. The streaming platform launched in November 2019. Go deeper.     1 big thing: It's a great time to sell stock Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky today at the Nasdaq MarketSite in New York. Photo: Mark Lennihan/AP Now's a great time to sell astonishing quantities of new equity, as evidenced by today's monster Airbnb IPO. The company rocketed from its $68/share IPO price to nearly $145 at market close, cracking the $100 billion valuation on its first day of public trading. Why it matters: DoorDash, Airbnb and Tesla have all done multibillion-dollar equity offerings in 2020, but they still account for less than 4% of the IPO and follow-on issuance this year, notes Axios' Felix Salmon. If you include special-purpose acquisition companies (SPACs) and convertibles, these deals are less than 2.5% of the total. As Axios' Courtenay Brown notes, the number of U.S. public companies turning to the equity markets to raise cash is at the highest level in at least 10 years. The big picture: "The exuberance is a sharp turnaround from last year, when a lackluster I.P.O. from the ride-hailing giant Uber and a failed I.P.O. attempt from the office company WeWork humbled the tech industry," the N.Y. Times notes. It's also a turnaround from earlier this year, when Airbnb did mass layoffs during the early months of the pandemic. "Everything that we were pursuing that we put on pause we could bring back," Chesky told Dan Primack on Axios Re:Cap today. (Listen here) "We were reminded of a very valuable lesson in the crisis, and that's one of focus." The bottom line: "For less than 1% dilution, it probably makes sense" to raise $5 billion, said Tesla CEO Elon Musk.     2. Commuting fears rise A passenger rides a commuter train out of Union Station in Chicago. Photo: Scott Olson/Getty Images   The people who've kept the lights on during COVID-19 are increasingly unnerved about getting to work. Why it matters: The millions of essential workers who rely on trains and buses are noticing more incidents of maskless people getting on board, AP reports. "You hear people muttering, 'Why is this guy not wearing a mask?' But there's no confrontation. People just move away," Hipolito Andon told AP. Andon rides the subway to Manhattan where he works as a porter. He and his wife, who takes a bus to her school cooking job, are diabetic.     A message from Morgan Stanley 2021 global strategy outlook: riding the recovery     2020 has seen social and economic disruptions of historical proportions, not to mention some of the fastest market declines and rallies on record. But for investors, 2021 could be defined by a much-needed return to normal. The upshot? Global equities and credit look favorable for the year ahead.     3. Catch up quick Nancy Pelosi gestures to a sign listing the American COVID-19 death toll during her weekly news conference today. Photo: Drew Angerer/Getty Images   House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said she doesn't have "any concern" about Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.), after an Axios investigation revealed the congressman was targeted by a suspected Chinese spy. Go deeper. The U.K. and EU are bracing for a no-deal Brexit cliff as trade talks falter. Go deeper. President-elect Biden will name former national security adviser Susan Rice to head the Domestic Policy Council. Go deeper. Biden also announced Denis McDonough — who served as chief of staff for former President Barack Obama — as his nominee to run Veterans Affairs. Go deeper. Morocco has agreed to establish full diplomatic relations with Israel as part of a deal that includes U.S. recognition of the disputed territory of Western Sahara as part of Morocco. Go deeper. CBS News White House correspondent Weijia Jiang, who grew up in rural West Virginia, is working on a memoir about her experiences as a Chinese American. (AP) Vice President-elect Kamala Harris' husband, Doug Emhoff, is joining the faculty at Georgetown Law.     4. Has it happened to you? Photo: Getty Images/Stock   "For some, AirPod showers are an accident, an everyday lapse, like forgetting sunglasses are on your head. For others, they are a deliberate choice, a modern take on the shower radio," reports The Wall Street Journal's Kenny Wassus. Why it matters: "Wearable technology has made it commonplace for people to stay connected to their phones nearly every waking hour. " One solution from 23-year-old FSU student Jasmine Ali: "Cover her AirPods with a $1 shower cap from Walmart."     A message from Morgan Stanley 2021 global strategy outlook: riding the recovery     2020 has seen social and economic disruptions of historical proportions, not to mention some of the fastest market declines and rallies on record. But for investors, 2021 could be defined by a much-needed return to normal. The upshot? Global equities and credit look favorable for the year ahead.     Axios thanks our partners for supporting our newsletters. Sponsorship has no influence on editorial content. 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