The Federal Reserve held rates steady yet again today, at 3.5% to 3.75%. But the meeting wasn’t as milquetoast as the ultimate result implies. The vote came in at 9-3, as a handful of regional presidents pushed for a quarter-point hike to fight inflation that has topped the 2% target for more than 5 years.

Good thing the intrigue was baked in, because the new central bank regime won’t throw Wall Street any other morsels to chew on. Fed Chair Kevin Warsh offered no forward guidance, in keeping with his communication overhaul. Nothing gets us anticipating the next meeting like radio silence.

— Brooks & The Street Sheet Team

With Warsh swearing off forward guidance, the rest of us are left guessing when the next hike lands.

Markets lean toward September, given three FOMC members just voted for one. Whatever the case, Kalshi traders put heavy odds on a hike before 2027.

The Fed’s not be telling markets what it will do, so markets are happy to fill in the blanks.

📉 | Caterpillar (CAT) was downgraded to Neutral by Baird on rising data center opposition.

📈 | GE HealthCare (GEHC) topped earnings estimates and reaffirmed full-year guidance.

📉 | Lemonade (LMND) plummeted after reporting a 30% jump in Q2 gross spending.

📈 | Manhattan Associates (MANH) beat Q2 estimates and raised full-year forecasts.

📉 | Vertiv (VRT) posted organic revenue growth well below consensus.

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KeyBanc analyst Justin Patterson has an answer for anyone wondering which social platform survives the AI age: Reddit.

He initiated coverage with an Overweight rating, arguing the platform's trusted communities make it complementary to search, social, and LLMs, rather than a casualty.

Patterson thinks the company is on pace to hit its long-term goal of 1B users, with a boost from AI models citing Reddit as the source in their answers.

That durable traffic, he says, can be monetized twice over: through ads and data licensing.

He sees sustained annual revenue growth above 30%. With capex under 1% of revenue, he expects Reddit's growing EBITDA margin to convert into free cash flow. In other words, an asset-light way to ride the AI boom.

The Street mostly agrees. LSEG data shows 20 of 30 analysts rate the stock a Buy or Strong Buy. Shares have rallied over the past three months but remain in the red year to date.

For KeyBanc, however, the upvotes are just getting started.

🌍 | Iran fired five ballistic missiles at US forces in Jordan, all intercepted, and Trump vowed retaliation.

⚖️ | Todd Blanche's attorney general nomination is in jeopardy after Sen. John Cornyn canceled a meeting over concerns with the Trump-IRS settlement.

📉 | Short sellers now hold nearly 13% of SK Hynix's (SKHY) US-listed ADR float, just weeks after its debut.

✈️ | Blended-wing jet startup JetZero reached a preliminary deal with the US Export-Import Bank for up to $3B in loans and guarantees to build its first factory, challenging Boeing (BA) as effectively the sole US passenger plane maker.

🥪 | Jersey Mike's is set to debut on the NYSE tomorrow under ticker JMKE at an $8B valuation, 18 months after Blackstone (BX) bought it for about $6B.

Do you own any shares of Bending Spoons (BSP)?

▇▇▇▇▇▇ 🐂 Yup, I'm holding

▇▇▇▇▇▇ 🐻 Nope, not interested

▇▇▇▇▇▇ 👀 No, but I'm interested

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