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2026-10-12 03:20 • The Motley Fool Positive Axe Cap view: Selective

Ethena (ENA) and NEAR Protocol (NEAR) are positioned for significant growth in 2026 and beyond. Ethena's synthetic dollar token USDe generates substantial reserve yields and has approved revenue buybacks once supply reaches $7.5B, with analyst price targets of $0.42 by end-2026 and $2 by end-2028. NEAR's Intents protocol enables efficient cross-chain asset swapping, generating $1.9M in protocol revenue monthly, and has attracted institutional interest with Bitwise launching a NEAR ETF and forecasting a 2030 base case of $155 per token.

Axe note: Ethena and NEAR Protocol offer growth potential, yet South African investors must weigh currency risks and limited local exposure.

2026-10-12 01:30 • The Motley Fool Positive Axe Cap view: Selective

Morgan Stanley projects the humanoid robot market could reach $5 trillion by 2050. Three stocks are positioned to benefit: Micron Technology provides essential memory chips for AI inference and sensor processing; Tesla's Optimus robots are well-developed with CEO Elon Musk targeting a $25 trillion company valuation; and Alphabet has multiple avenues including Google Cloud, Gemini AI, custom chips, and Waymo's autonomous robotaxi operations.

Axe note: While the humanoid robot sector is set for massive growth globally, South African investors should be cautious given limited local exposure.

2026-10-12 00:23 • The Motley Fool Neutral Axe Cap view: Selective

Microsoft's stock is trading near its record close ahead of earnings on Oct. 28, 2026. The company needs Azure cloud revenue to grow faster than 40% year-over-year to satisfy investors, as historical data shows the market penalizes growth at or below 40% with significant stock declines. Management guided for 44-45% Azure growth with over $50 billion in capital spending, but margins have been declining and investors will scrutinize whether the massive capex investments are translating into sufficient revenue growth.

Axe note: Microsoft needs Azure cloud to grow over 40% to justify its lofty valuation.