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Analyst’s Disclosure: I/we have no stock, option or similar derivative position in any of the companies mentioned, and no plans to initiate any such positions within the next 72 hours. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.

Seeking Alpha’s Disclosure: Past performance is no guarantee of future results. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. Any views or opinions expressed above may not reflect those of Seeking Alpha as a whole. Seeking Alpha is not a licensed securities dealer, broker or US investment adviser or investment bank. Our analysts are third party authors that include both professional investors and individual investors who may not be licensed or certified by any institute or regulatory body.

A DoorDash delivery driver praised President Donald Trump at the White House, saying his “no tax on tips” policy helped her family “immensely” and delivered more than $11,000 in savings ahead of Tax Day.

The driver, Sharon Simmons, met Trump during a delivery to the White House, where she thanked him directly, telling him it had made a significant difference for her household.

“It has helped my family out immensely and I definitely appreciate it,” Simmons said, referring to the administration’s push to eliminate taxes on tips.

Simmons, who has worked as a full-time DoorDash driver since 2021, said tips make up a major portion of her income. She told the president she saved more than $11,000 under the policy, calling the amount “very surprising” when asked if the total exceeded her expectations.

IRS GUIDANCE FOR TRUMP’S NO TAX ON TIPS’ AND OVERTIME DEDUCTIONS: WHAT TO KNOW

The savings came at a critical time for her family. According to information shared during the event, Simmons’ husband reduced his work hours while undergoing cancer treatment, leaving her income – and the tips she earned – as a key source of financial support. The additional money has helped cover medical-related expenses, offset lost income and pay for travel to visit family.

Trump used the moment to highlight his broader tax agenda, pointing to Simmons’ experience as an example of what he described as widespread relief for working Americans.

“So the reason for this is the fact that I heard you picked up an extra $11,000 because the tax bill was so big – the refund was the biggest you’ve ever had,” Trump said, crediting the “Great Big Beautiful Bill.” He also referenced similar anecdotes from other taxpayers who, he said, received larger-than-expected refunds under his policies.

IRS REVEALS 2026 TAX ADJUSTMENTS WITH CHANGES FROM ‘BIG, BEAUTIFUL BILL’

The “no tax on tips” initiative is part of a broader tax package the administration says is aimed at boosting take-home pay for service industry workers and others who rely on variable income.

According to the White House, millions of Americans have already benefited from the provision, with average deductions reaching into the thousands of dollars.

During the exchange, Trump also emphasized that the reported savings did not include potential additional benefits tied to overtime provisions, another component of his tax plan.

SOCIAL SECURITY COMMISSIONER FRANK BISIGNANO NAMED IRS CEO

The interaction carried a lighter moment as well, when a reporter asked whether the White House was known for tipping delivery workers. Trump paused before handing Simmons a tip and replied, “Yes, very.”

At one point, Trump gestured to the scene and joked, “This doesn’t look staged, does it?” as he continued to promote the policy and its impact.

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For Simmons, the focus remained on the tangible difference the tax change made in her daily life – and the stability it provided during a difficult year for her family as she balanced work and caregiving responsibilities.

Haitong has initiated a coverage on One 97 Communication (Paytm) with an ‘Outperform’ rating for a target of Rs 1,410, implying an upside of 26%. The Hong Kong-based brokerage is betting on Paytm‘s leadership position in retail digital payments in India which is only growing. It has estimated a 4X jump in its net profit over FY26-28E while 12% uptick in its return on equity (ROE) by FY28E.

The coverage comes at a time when Paytm shares have corrected 20% from its 52-week peak of Rs 1,381 on the NSE. This year, the stock has plunged 15% as domestic and global markets remain hit with Iran-Israel/US war that has now completed 44 days and the issues remain unresolved.

Notwithstanding the recent correction, the stock is trading 31% higher on a one-year basis, witnessing a sharp rebound of 16% in April.

One 97 shares are currently trading above their 50-day simple moving average (SMA) of Rs 1,096 while slipping below their 200-day SMA of Rs 1,173.

4 things that work for Paytm:

1) Leading fintech with strong monetization

Paytm is 3rd largest player in UPI (P2P+ P2M) value share of 6.9% (February 2026) transaction processed. Paytm’s ecosystem evolved from customer to merchant centric with improving monetization capability as indicated by steady rise in revenue per MTU to Rs 1,155 (annually for December 2025 quarter.
“Rise in monetization capability is driven by strong distribution network, diversified product portfolio and strong brand recall. Its vast
active merchant base (48 million December 2025), leadership position within faster growing UPI-P2M and moat in merchant lending should continue drive strong revenue growth of 25% CAGR over FY26-28e,” Haitong note said.Payments contributes 60% of total revenue and should continue dominate revenue mix as per Haitong’s estimates.

2) Strong moat in merchant lending (ML) distribution

Paytm’s financial services distribution has rebounded strongly, with revenue rising 59% YoY in 9MFY26 and its share increasing to 30%, driven largely by merchant lending. Its tech-led collection model and wide sales network create a strong moat, attracting lending partners. With only ~7% of merchants currently using lending services (target: 20%), there remains significant growth potential.

3) Levers for margin momentum

Paytm’s net payments revenue is expected to grow at a 38% CAGR over FY26–28, outpacing GMV growth of 25%, driving margins to 10 bps+ by FY28. The expansion will be led by a higher share of MDR-yielding instruments, rising EMI transactions, growth in Paytm Postpaid, and regulatory approval as a Payment Aggregator. While near-term EBITDA may see some impact from PIDF adjustments, management remains confident of offsetting this over the long term.

Also read | BSE loses ‘cheap’ tag post 80% rally in one year. Can Q4 performance, NSE IPO drive rerating?

4) Operating leverage

Paytm turned core EBITDA (ex-other income) positive in June 2025 quarter and reported core-EBITDA margin of 6% driven by benefits from operating leverage and reported profit before tax (PBT) of Rs 590 crore in 9MFY26.

“Paytm should continue on its journey to optimize its cost and we expect core EBITDA/PAT to grow by 49%/ 44% CAGR over FY26-28e. We expect Paytm to deliver core-EBITDA (%) of 17% core EBITDA (%) by FY28 broadly in-line with management guidance,” Haitong note said.

5) Peer comparison

Within the payments space, Paytm has built a strong business model at merchants’ end and it has strong moat around distribution of lending products vis-a-vis PB Fintech, PhonePe, Pine Labs, Groww and Moneyview, this brokerage said.

Paytm and PhonePe reported similar revenues, but Paytm stands out with positive core EBITDA (5.3%) versus PhonePe’s losses, while PineLabs remains smaller but profitable. Paytm has also improved efficiency, sharply reducing employee costs and maintaining relatively lower marketing spends. However, it continues to invest more in technology compared to most peers.

(Disclaimer: The recommendations, suggestions, views, and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times.)

So the Iranians wouldn’t give up their uranium enrichment or dismantle their enrichment facilities. Or hand over their already enriched uranium. So President Trump turned the tables, applied some Trumpian Jiu-Jitsu, and put a United States naval blockade on the Strait of Hormuz that will be enforced in the Gulf of Oman.

I’m not sure anybody yet knows how this is all going to go down, but at least beginning today, here’s what America’s Central Command said: “Any vessel entering or departing the blockaded area without authorization is subject to interception, diversion, and capture. The blockade will not impede neutral transit passage through the Strait of Hormuz to or from non-Iranian destinations.”

To my way of thinking, what that means is that anybody that does business with Iran is going to have their ships blockaded. And if the Iranian motorboats take pot shots at our Navy, we will obliterate them just the way we did with all those Venezuelan drug boats. To a large extent, Mr. Trump has adopted the Venezuela model. Iran sells no oil, makes no money, therefore can’t disperse any money they don’t have, and America takes de facto control of the whole Persian Gulf area.

The president had to say about all of this: “It’s called all in, and all out.” He added: “We think that numerous countries are going to be helping us with this also, but we’re putting on a complete blockade. We’re not going to let Iran make money on selling oil to people that they like, and not people that they don’t like or whatever it is. It’s going to be all or none,” and “I predict they come back and give us everything we want.”

I say good. Then there’s the question of when will Iran go completely bankrupt? Some quick numbers from several sources, including TIPP Insights and Foundation for Defense of Democracies more than 90 percent of Iran’s nearly 110 billion in annual trade transits the Persian Gulf, crude oil alone was earning $139 million per day before the war started. Petrochemicals earn another $54 million per day.

So at $435 million a day in lost revenues, that comes to $159 billion over a year. That $159 billion loss of revenues is roughly 50 percent more than the entire Iranian budget which comes to roughly $100 billion. At what point does bankruptcy come into play? I honestly don’t know yet.

According to sources, on-shore oil storage in Iran begins to top out in about 13 days. So that means the infrastructure shutting will cause permanent damage. Whether this economic obliteration will bring Iran back to the negotiating table remains to be seen.

There’s a couple of Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps crazies that seem to be leaders right now, Mojtaba Vehedi, and Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf. So I wouldn’t be so sure about any benevolent regime change. The big question is how long will it take to starve them out?

HOUSTON — Intuitive Machines Inc. shares rose more than 2% in early trading Monday to $24.14 as the lunar exploration company continued to draw investor interest following its recent $180.4 million NASA contract win and ambitious full-year 2026 revenue guidance of $900 million to $1 billion, nearly five times 2025 levels.

The modest gain came amid ongoing enthusiasm for commercial space plays, with Intuitive Machines benefiting from renewed focus on NASA’s Artemis program and the company’s expanding role in delivering payloads and infrastructure to the lunar surface. The stock has shown significant volatility in recent weeks, surging as much as 37% in early April after the major NASA award before experiencing some pullback.

Intuitive Machines announced the $180.4 million Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) task order from NASA on March 24. The contract calls for the company to deliver seven science and technology payloads — including an Australian Space Agency lunar rover and technologies from Blue Origin’s Honeybee Robotics — to the lunar South Pole region using its larger Nova-D class lander. This marks the company’s fifth CLPS task order and the first requiring the heavier cargo-class lander, expanding its operational capabilities on the Moon.

The award adds substantial visibility to Intuitive Machines’ backlog, which stood at approximately $943 million as of late February after incorporating the Lanteris Space Systems acquisition and other program wins. About 60-65% of the backlog is expected to convert to revenue in 2026, providing a strong foundation for growth.

In its fourth-quarter and full-year 2025 earnings released March 19, Intuitive Machines projected 2026 revenue between $900 million and $1 billion, with positive adjusted EBITDA for the year. The outlook reflects contributions from lunar missions, national security contracts such as the Space Development Agency’s Tranche 3 Tracking Layer, and diversified services following strategic acquisitions.

The company has successfully completed two lunar missions — IM-1 and IM-2 — demonstrating its Nova-C lander’s ability to achieve soft landings and conduct operations on the lunar surface, including the southernmost operations to date. IM-3 remains on track for a 2026 launch, with IM-4 and the newly awarded IM-5 missions following in subsequent years.

Intuitive Machines has also broadened its portfolio beyond pure lunar landers. The acquisition of Lanteris Space Systems (formerly Maxar Space Systems) for roughly $800 million in early 2026 added satellite manufacturing capabilities, while the purchase of KinetX Aerospace strengthened its space navigation and flight dynamics expertise. These moves have diversified revenue streams into national security and commercial satellite programs.

A $175 million strategic equity investment announced earlier in 2026 provided additional capital to support growth initiatives, including expansion of its Space Data Network for persistent lunar connectivity. The company launched EchoStar XXV and continues to pursue opportunities in in-space data processing and communications.

Despite the strong top-line momentum, challenges remain. Fourth-quarter 2025 revenue came in at $44.8 million, missing some estimates, and the company continues to manage cash burn as it scales operations. Free cash flow use improved year-over-year to $56 million in 2025, but profitability remains a focus as higher-margin service revenue grows.

Analysts have responded positively to the NASA contract and guidance. Several firms raised price targets following the March announcements, with consensus leaning bullish on the long-term runway in lunar infrastructure. The stock hit all-time highs near $24.30 in early April amid the contract news and broader excitement around NASA’s Artemis II crewed lunar flyby mission.

Intuitive Machines’ technology emphasizes scalable lunar landers, autonomous surface operations and communications networks designed to support sustained human and robotic presence on the Moon. Its Space Data Network aims to provide reliable connectivity across the lunar surface and cislunar space, a critical enabler for future Artemis missions and potential commercial activities such as resource utilization.

The company’s Houston headquarters positions it at the heart of NASA’s lunar ambitions, with strong ties to the agency’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services initiative. Success on IM-1 and IM-2 has built credibility, helping secure larger and more complex task orders.

Broader sector tailwinds have supported the stock. Renewed U.S. commitment to returning astronauts to the Moon, combined with commercial interest in lunar economy opportunities, has lifted valuations across space infrastructure names. Intuitive Machines stands out for its proven landing track record and expanding payload delivery capabilities.

Risks include execution on complex missions, potential delays in launch schedules, competition from other CLPS providers and the capital-intensive nature of space hardware development. The stock remains highly volatile, typical for small-cap space companies with binary mission outcomes and heavy reliance on government contracts.

As of Monday, trading volume appeared moderate, with the 2.44% gain reflecting continued optimism rather than fresh catalysts. Investors will watch for updates on IM-3 preparations and any additional contract awards in the coming months. First-quarter 2026 results are expected in early May.

Intuitive Machines has evolved rapidly from a startup focused on lunar landings to a broader space infrastructure and services provider. Its backlog growth, successful missions and strategic acquisitions have transformed its profile, attracting both retail momentum traders and institutional interest in the commercial space sector.

For long-term believers, the company’s path hinges on converting its substantial backlog into revenue while maintaining operational excellence on upcoming lunar flights. Positive execution could validate the aggressive 2026 guidance and support further re-rating of the stock.

Monday’s modest advance kept the shares trading near recent highs, underscoring sustained investor appetite for companies playing key roles in humanity’s return to the Moon. With multiple missions on the horizon and a diversified business base, Intuitive Machines appears well-positioned to benefit from the next phase of lunar exploration and commercialization.

This article was written by

Analyst’s Disclosure: I/we have no stock, option or similar derivative position in any of the companies mentioned, and no plans to initiate any such positions within the next 72 hours. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.

Seeking Alpha’s Disclosure: Past performance is no guarantee of future results. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. Any views or opinions expressed above may not reflect those of Seeking Alpha as a whole. Seeking Alpha is not a licensed securities dealer, broker or US investment adviser or investment bank. Our analysts are third party authors that include both professional investors and individual investors who may not be licensed or certified by any institute or regulatory body.