NEW YORK — The New York Knicks survived a furious fourth-quarter comeback by the San Antonio Spurs to secure a 105-104 victory in Game 2 of the 2026 NBA Finals on Friday night, taking a commanding 2-0 series lead and extending their postseason winning streak to 13 games.
Victor Wembanyama
Karl-Anthony Towns led the Knicks with 21 points, while Jalen Brunson and Mikal Bridges each added 20 in a contest marked by momentum swings and clutch moments. Victor Wembanyama paced the Spurs with 29 points but missed a potential game-winning jumper with two seconds remaining, sealing New York’s narrow escape at Frost Bank Center.
The win moved the Knicks within two victories of their first NBA championship since 1973. No team has ever come back from an 0-2 deficit in the Finals after losing both home games. Game 3 shifts to Madison Square Garden on Monday.
Dramatic Fourth Quarter Decides Outcome
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The Spurs erased a 14-point Knicks lead in the second half with a 14-0 run that gave them their first lead of the half at 104-102 on a Wembanyama layup with 39 seconds left. However, a critical turnover and defensive lapse proved costly.
After rebounding a missed shot by Brunson with 13 seconds remaining and the score tied at 104, Wembanyama passed to a teammate who was not looking, allowing Brunson to steal the ball. Wembanyama then fouled Brunson as he fell out of bounds. Brunson made the first free throw for a one-point lead but missed the second, giving San Antonio one final chance.
De’Aaron Fox set up Wembanyama for an open 20-foot jumper, but the 7-foot-4 superstar’s shot rimmed out, ending the Spurs’ hopes.
“A great player got a great shot, it just didn’t go in,” Towns said on the ABC broadcast.
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Knicks coach Mike Brown praised his team’s resilience. “They made a run, we made a run, they made a run, we made a run,” Brown said. “We could have folded a few times but our guys just kept fighting. … No matter what run they went on, no matter the time of the game, our guys just kept uplifting one another.”
The Knicks shot 15 three-pointers successfully, many from role players who compensated for Brunson’s 7-for-25 performance. San Antonio struggled in the second quarter but mounted a desperate charge in the fourth.
Wembanyama finished 11 for 21 from the field but took only four shots in the first half, prompting Spurs coach Mitch Johnson to call the effort “not acceptable.” The young phenom had carried San Antonio through the playoffs in his first postseason, but the Knicks’ depth and physicality posed new challenges.
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The Spurs led by as many as 12 points early but went cold from the field, allowing New York to build a halftime advantage. Despite the loss, Wembanyama’s late heroics nearly forced overtime in a game many are calling an instant classic.
Knicks’ Historic Postseason Run
New York’s victory extended an impressive playoff run that includes eight straight road wins. The franchise has not reached this stage since the early 1970s, and the current roster’s blend of star power and depth has made them favorites to close out the series.
Towns and Brunson have formed a formidable inside-out duo, while Bridges and supporting cast members have delivered timely contributions. The Knicks’ ability to withstand San Antonio’s runs demonstrated the mental toughness built throughout the season.
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Series Outlook and Game 3 Implications
With the series shifting to Madison Square Garden, the Knicks will look to capitalize on home-court energy to build an insurmountable lead. The Spurs, facing elimination pressure, must find answers for New York’s perimeter shooting and interior dominance.
San Antonio’s youth and inexperience in the Finals showed in critical moments, but their resilience suggests they will not go quietly. Wembanyama’s growth under pressure remains a central storyline as the series progresses.
Broader NBA Finals Context
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The 2026 Finals pit two contrasting styles: New York’s gritty, defense-first approach against San Antonio’s modern, positionless offense led by a generational talent in Wembanyama. The Knicks’ experience and home dominance give them a clear edge, but the Spurs have proven capable of upsetting expectations.
Fans in Brooklyn celebrated wildly at local bars as the final buzzer sounded, chanting “Knicks in four!” The atmosphere at Madison Square Garden for Game 3 is expected to be electric as New York inches closer to ending a 53-year championship drought.
The series has delivered compelling basketball early, with Game 2’s late drama living up to the high stakes of the NBA’s showcase event. As the action moves east, both teams will make adjustments, but New York’s momentum and home advantage position them strongly.
The Knicks’ ability to close out games against a surging opponent bodes well for their championship aspirations. For the Spurs, avoiding an 0-3 deficit will require sharper execution and continued belief in their young core.
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As the 2026 NBA Finals unfold, the basketball world watches to see if the Knicks can complete their long-awaited journey or if the Spurs can engineer a historic comeback. Friday’s thrilling victory has set a high bar for the remainder of what promises to be a memorable series.
I’m Rob Isbitts, founder of Sungarden Investment Publishing. I run the new investing group Sungarden Investors Club, a community dedicated to navigating the modern investment climate with humility, discipline, and a non-traditional approach to income investing. I’ve been charting investments since the 1980s, and I spent decades an an investment advisor and fund manager before semi-retiring in 2020. Now, this investing group is my focus. The markets tells us a story…we just have to listen! I teach subscribers how to do that.
Analyst’s Disclosure: I/we have a beneficial long position in the shares of RAMZ either through stock ownership, options, or other derivatives. 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.
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Mumbai: India’s key stock gauges advanced more than 1% on Wednesday amid expectations that the recent sharp selloff in South Korea’s SK Hynix and Samsung could trigger a rotation of overseas fund flows into locally listed technology companies.
The Nifty rose 264 points, or 1.1%, to close at 24,250. The Sensex rose 888 points, or 1.2%, to 77,654.
Elsewhere in Asia, China advanced 0.4% and Hong Kong rose 2%, while South Korean Kospi slumped 6%,Taiwan dropped 3.8% and Japan fell 1.5%. The pan-Europe index Stoxx 600 was down 0.3% as of press time.
“The massive correction seen in the Kospi, and artificial intelligence and chip-making stocks is now expected to trigger a shift in flows from AI-focused stocks toward the Indian IT sector, and this has fuelled investor optimism,” said Rajesh Palviya, head of research, Axis Securities.
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The Kospi is now down nearly 19% and Taiwan has fallen 11% in the past week. SK Hynix has slipped 26.7% and Samsung Electronics Co is down 22.5%.
Palviya also said Nifty’s positioning was light on the first day of the new series, which, along with strong rollover activity, easing crude oil prices, a stronger rupee and expectations of relative peace in West Asia, boosted investor sentiment. Nifty’s India Volatility Index (VIX), the fear gauge, fell 4.4% to 12.01 on Wednesday, indicating relief among traders. Out of the total 4,425 stocks traded on the BSE, 2,533 advanced and 1,705 fell at close.
Agencies
Nifty Support Seen Higher “The entire month of July has seen market moves driven by crude oil prices. The markets rallied on Wednesday, supported by the decline in crude prices toward the $85 a barrel mark, along with stock-specific action, as most Q1 results have been broadly in line, with no major negative surprises,” said Sunny Agrawal, head of research at SBI Securities.
In higher beta assets, the Nifty Midcap 150 gained 0.8% and Nifty Small-cap 250 rose 1.3%.
Palviya said that since the Nifty managed to close decisively above the 24,200 level on Wednesday, its support has now moved higher to the 24,000-24,100 zone. “As long as the index holds above this range, it could move toward 24,350-24,400 in the near term,” he said. Foreign portfolio investors net bought shares worth ₹2,982 crore. Domestic institutions were buyers to the tune of ₹998 crore.
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President Trump unveils a $22 billion renovation plan for Washington, D.C.’s Dulles International Airport, aiming to transform it from the ‘worst’ to the ‘best.’
President Donald Trump and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy unveiled plans and renderings Wednesday for a $22.5 billion overhaul of Washington Dulles International Airport.
The project — developed with the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority and United Airlines — will add or renovate more than 5 million square feet at the airport, located about 25 miles west of downtown Washington, D.C., according to the U.S. Department of Transportation.
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“This transformation is another step in our ongoing efforts to make Washington, D.C., safe and beautiful again,” Trump said Wednesday from the Oval Office.
DOT said the multiyear project will create thousands of jobs, generate billions of dollars in economic activity and allow Dulles to accommodate hundreds of additional flights.
A rendering shows a proposed entrance at Washington Dulles International Airport. DOT said the multiyear project will create thousands of jobs. (U.S. Department of Transportation)
The plan calls for replacing Concourses C and D, adding gates and expanding the airport’s AeroTrain service, according to DOT.
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It also includes upgrades to security screening, baggage handling, parking and pedestrian walkways.
Under the plan, travelers would also see more seating and lounges, including additional United Club space and one of the world’s largest United Polaris Lounges.
A new central walkway would make it easier for passengers to move between concourses, while another pedestrian route would connect travelers to a new U.S. Customs facility.
Officials said the improvements would eventually allow Dulles to phase out its mobile lounges, also known as “people movers,” which transport passengers across the airport.
A rendering shows another proposed exterior view of the Dulles airport modernization.
“We are going to get rid of the people movers,” Duffy said from the Oval Office. “… These are like elevated busses. … And they’re slow, and people are angry about them.”
DOT said it selected the plan after reviewing more than 30 proposals submitted following a December 2025 request for ideas to modernize the airport.
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Construction will take place in phases over several years while Dulles remains open.
The $22.5 billion investment marks a significant increase from the $7 billion previously allocated for the airport’s modernization, according to DOT.
The project will be funded through municipal bonds, according to Reuters. Duffy said that United and other participating airlines will also contribute to the cost.
A rendering shows a proposed interior space at Washington Dulles International Airport. (U.S. Department of Transportation)
“So it’s going to be bonded for $22.5 billion,” Duffy said. “United is going to partake in part of the payment. But the airlines who participate in the project are going to pay for it.”
Duffy noted the project still requires “some permitting” but that officials hope to begin construction as early as next spring.
Modernization work on the airport is already underway. The first section of the new Concourse E is expected to open later this year with 14 United gates, direct AeroTrain access and new passenger lounges, DOT said.
Shares of Manhattan Associates surged 26.70% in Wednesday morning trading, climbing $44.90 to $213.07, after the supply chain software company reported record second-quarter results driven by strong growth in its cloud subscription business.
The Atlanta-based company reported second-quarter revenue of $297.8 million, up 9.3% from $272.4 million in the same period a year earlier and ahead of the consensus analyst estimate of roughly $293.7 million. Cloud subscription revenue, the segment investors have watched most closely as a signal of the company’s transition away from legacy licensing and services, climbed 26% year over year to $126.7 million. Services revenue came in at $133.0 million for the quarter.
On the earnings side, Manhattan Associates reported non-GAAP adjusted diluted earnings per share of $1.39, topping the analyst consensus estimate of $1.34 and improving from $1.31 reported in the second quarter of 2025. GAAP diluted earnings per share, however, declined to 85 cents from 93 cents a year earlier, with net income falling to $50.4 million from $56.8 million over the same period, a divergence that reflects differences between the company’s adjusted and unadjusted accounting measures.
The company’s remaining performance obligations, a metric that reflects contracted future revenue not yet recognized, grew 23% year over year to reach $2.5 billion as of June 30, according to the company’s earnings release. Manhattan Associates said the quarter marked its third consecutive period of record bookings, a trend executives described as reflecting sustained business momentum and effective execution of the company’s go-to-market strategy.
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Company leadership highlighted the growing role of artificial intelligence capabilities in driving the quarter’s results. Manhattan Associates said the introduction of AI-related features across its supply chain and omnichannel commerce platforms has become a meaningful differentiator in customer conversations, contributing directly to both deal activity and the company’s broader sales pipeline growth.
The company maintained an active share buyback program during the quarter, repurchasing 874,029 shares for a total of $125.0 million. Manhattan Associates ended the quarter with $186.1 million in cash and generated $90.7 million in cash flow from operations during the three-month period, according to its financial disclosures.
Manhattan Associates’ stock had already shown strength heading into the earnings report, rising 9.8% over the month prior to the release, alongside an average analyst price target of $185.45 compared with the stock’s pre-earnings price of $151.67. The magnitude of Wednesday’s rally, however, significantly exceeded the roughly 10% to 11% gains the stock initially posted in after-hours trading following the results, suggesting that additional buying interest developed as investors had more time to digest the details of the report and the strength of the underlying cloud growth trends.
Wednesday’s surge continues a broader pattern for Manhattan Associates, whose stock has repeatedly posted double-digit single-session gains following past quarterly reports when cloud revenue growth has exceeded expectations. The company posted a similar roughly 10% jump following its first-quarter 2025 results, when cloud revenue grew 21% year over year and the company subsequently raised its full-year guidance for that fiscal year.
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The company’s five-year historical sales growth rate stands at approximately 12.7% annually, according to recent analysis, though some market observers have noted that growth has moderated somewhat in more recent periods, with annualized revenue growth of roughly 6.3% over the trailing two years running below the longer five-year trend. Analysts have said that pattern reflects a broader dynamic within the enterprise software sector, where growth rates for even strong-performing companies have generally cooled from the elevated pace seen during and immediately following the pandemic-era surge in cloud software adoption.
Manhattan Associates provides supply chain management and omnichannel commerce software used by large retailers, logistics companies and other enterprises to manage complex inventory, fulfillment and distribution operations. The company has positioned its ongoing shift toward cloud-based subscription offerings as central to its long-term growth strategy, arguing that the recurring revenue model provides greater predictability and higher long-term customer value compared with the company’s legacy on-premises software licensing business.
Despite Wednesday’s sharp gain, the stock remains well below its most recent highs reached earlier in the year, having traded as much as 34% below those peak levels amid a period of broader volatility across software and technology stocks tied to shifting investor sentiment around enterprise software valuations and growth expectations more broadly.
Investors are likely to continue monitoring Manhattan Associates’ cloud revenue growth trajectory and the pace of its remaining performance obligations expansion in the coming quarters as key indicators of whether the company can sustain the kind of momentum reflected in Wednesday’s results, particularly as the broader enterprise software sector continues to navigate questions about the durability of growth rates following the initial post-pandemic acceleration in cloud adoption across the industry.
MGP Ingredients, Inc. (MGPI) Q2 2026 Earnings Call July 29, 2026 10:00 AM EDT
Company Participants
Julie Francis – CEO, President & Director Brandon Gall – CFO & Treasurer
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Conference Call Participants
Seamus Cassidy – TD Cowen, Research Division Marc Torrente – Wells Fargo Securities, LLC, Research Division Sean McGowan – ROTH Capital Partners, LLC, Research Division Mitchell Pinheiro – Sturdivant & Co., Inc., Research Division Benjamin Klieve – The Benchmark Company, LLC, Research Division
Presentation
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Operator
Good morning and welcome to the MGP Ingredients Second Quarter 2026 Earnings Conference Call with Julie Francis, President and CEO, and Brandon Gall, CFO. [Operator Instructions] Please also note this event is being recorded today.
In addition, this call may involve certain forward-looking statements. The company’s actual results could differ materially from any forward-looking statements due to a number of factors, including the risk factors described in the company’s annual and quarterly reports filed with the SEC. The company assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements made during the call, except as required by law.
This call will contain references to certain non-GAAP measures, which the company believes are useful in evaluating the company’s performance. A reconciliation of these measures to the most comparable GAAP measures is included in today’s earnings release, which was issued this morning before the markets opened and is available at www.mgpingredients.com. At this time, I would like to turn the call over to Julie Francis, President and CEO of MGP Ingredients. Please go ahead.
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Julie Francis CEO, President & Director
Good morning. I’d like to thank you all for joining us today on our second quarter 2026 earnings call. For the second quarter, sales came in at $124.4 million, down versus the prior year as expected. Adjusted EBITDA of $27.6 million and adjusted basic EPS of $0.72 also declined versus the second quarter of last year. However, both of these
Shares of telehealth company Hims and Hers Health fell sharply Wednesday after the Federal Trade Commission sued the company, alleging it misled consumers about privacy protections, billing practices and subscription cancellations.
The FTC, joined by Los Angeles County and Utah, alleged Hims and Hers shared users’ sensitive health information with online advertising platforms including Meta Platforms and Snap Inc. through tracking technologies embedded on its website. The agency said the company’s practices were inconsistent with promises it made to protect users’ health data.
The FTC also accused Hims and Hers of charging customers for prescriptions before they have spoken with a healthcare provider. The agency alleges many customers are billed after completing an intake form rather than after a consultation with a medical professional.
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The regulator further alleges the company made it difficult for users to cancel subscriptions.
Hims and Hers denied the allegation in a post on X, saying the lawsuit “disregards substantial evidence” provided during the FTC’s nearly three-year investigation into the company and “contorts the law to try to manufacture claims.”
The company said it is confident in its position and will “vigorously defend” itself.
The lawsuit comes as Hims and Hers has emerged as one of the largest telehealth providers in the fast-growing market for weight loss medications. The company offers virtual appointments and prescriptions for treatments including weight loss drugs, erectile dysfunction, hair loss and mental health medications, which are shipped directly to consumers.
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The investigation by the FTC dates back to October 2023. CNBC has reported on several probes into Hims and Hers’ business practices, including its Super Bowl ad and compounded weight loss drugs.
In April, the FTC formally communicated the findings of its probe started in 2023 to the company and settlement discussions began. In May, Hims and Hers disclosed a $15 million probable-loss accrual related to the matter, warning the final cost could be materially higher. The company said it made a settlement offer without admitting wrongdoing.
Wednesday’s lawsuit escalates that dispute, with regulators pushing new claims.
Hello, everyone. Thank you for joining us, and welcome to the Benchmark Electronics Q2 2026 Earnings Call. [Operator Instructions]
I will now hand the conference over to Paul Mansky, Benchmark Investor Relations. Please go ahead.
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Paul Mansky Investor Relations & Corporate Development Officer
Thank you, Piercy, and thanks, everyone, for joining us today for Benchmark’s Second Quarter 2026 Earnings Call. With us today are David Moezidis, our President and CEO; and Bryan Schumaker, our CFO.
After the market closed, we issued an earnings release pertaining to our financial performance for the second quarter of 2026, along with a presentation, which we will reference on this call. Both are available under the Investor Relations section of our website. This call is being webcast live, a replay of which will be available approximately 1 hour after we conclude.
The company has provided a reconciliation of our GAAP to non-GAAP measures in the earnings release as well as in the appendix to the presentation. Please take a moment to review the forward-looking statements disclosure on Slide 2 of the presentation.
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During our call, we will discuss forward-looking information. As a reminder, any of today’s remarks which are not statements of historical fact are forward-looking statements, which involve risks and uncertainties as described in our press releases and SEC filings. Actual results may differ materially from these statements. Benchmark undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements.
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