William Wilkes — Reporter, Bloomberg (2 trade ideas)

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Also known as: will wilkes
Date Ticker Direction Thesis Source
Feb 12, 2026 SHORT Siemens raised its outlook and is seeing strong demand from data centers/automation. Conversely, Mercedes stock dropped ~4% on margin pressure, citing tariff uncertainty and fierce Chinese competition. This is a pair trade within the German economy. Siemens has successfully pivoted to industrial software (high margin, AI-linked), while automakers are trapped in a capital-intensive, low-margin war with China that they are losing. LONG the Industrial Software winner (Siemens); SHORT the Legacy Auto losers. A surprise removal of tariff threats or a sudden recovery in Chinese luxury auto demand. Bloomberg Markets
Nuveen to Buy Schroders in Near £10 Billion D...
Feb 12, 2026 AVOID Mercedes missed estimates, margins are under pressure, and they face "fierce competition" in China, their most important market. Legacy auto is in a "death spiral" of high costs and declining pricing power. Unlike Siemens, which pivoted to software, Mercedes is stuck with hardware exposure in a market (China) where domestic brands are dominating. Avoid or Short. The luxury strategy is failing to offset volume declines. Unexpected stimulus in China boosting luxury car purchases. Bloomberg Markets
Trump Rebuked Over Canada Tariffs as Midterm ...