• Investinq
  • Posts
  • 😔 Estée’s Empire Builder Dies

😔 Estée’s Empire Builder Dies

+ A Teen’s Garden Game Just Grew Roblox to a 52-Week High

June 16, 2025

In partnership with

Good afternoon! In China, it’s all about “pay now, buy later.” Unlike the West’s BNPL craze, Chinese consumers are prepaying for goods and services, like salon packages or prepaid store cards, in exchange for bonus credits or future discounts. It’s so common, these reverse credit cards now drive over 10% of the country’s retail sales.

But there’s a downside. If the business closes, your money disappears too. Nearly 50% of users in one survey said they lost prepaid funds to closures. And with minimal regulation, scammers are getting in on the action. It’s a high-risk loyalty game paid upfront.

MARKETS

*Stock data as of market close*

  • Stocks snapped back Monday as Wall Street wagered the Israel-Iran conflict might not spiral into a broader war. Investors breathed a sigh of relief as oil prices, which had spiked on fears of escalation, cooled off—helping stabilize sentiment after a rocky stretch.

  • The Dow climbed 317 points, the S&P 500 gained 0.9%, and the Nasdaq soared 1.5% as traders shifted focus to the Fed’s upcoming policy meeting. With geopolitical nerves momentarily soothed, markets were back to parsing rate clues and economic signals.

Outsmart college costs

Ready for next semester? June is a key time to assess how you’ll cover college costs. And considering federal aid often isn’t enough, you might have to consider private student loans.

You’re just in time, though—most schools recommend applying about two months before tuition is due. By now, colleges start sending final cost-of-attendance letters, revealing how much you’ll need to bridge the gap.

Understanding your options now can help ensure you’re prepared and avoid last-minute stress. View Money’s best student loans list to find lenders with low rates and easy online application.

STOCKS
Winners & Losers

What’s up 📈

  • EchoStar exploded 49.11% after President Trump pushed the FCC to resolve its ongoing spectrum dispute with the satellite company. ($SATS)

  • Sage Therapeutics soared 35.37% after announcing it will be acquired by Supernus Pharmaceuticals in a $795 million deal. ($SAGE)

  • Kering popped 12.22% after the luxury giant lured Renault’s CEO to lead the company. ($PPRUY)

  • Roku jumped 10.43% after announcing an exclusive advertising partnership with Amazon. ($ROKU)

  • Advanced Micro Devices rose 8.81% after Piper Sandler raised its price target, citing a strong AI growth outlook. ($AMD)

  • MGM Resorts climbed 8.10% after its BetMGM unit raised revenue guidance for the year. ($MGM)

  • Estée Lauder rose 10.82% and Coty gained 6.77% amid strong sales in China and speculation around M&A activity. ($EL, $COTY)

  • Celsius rallied 5.94% after TD Cowen upgraded the stock to Buy, citing confidence in the brand’s growth. ($CELH)

  • U.S. Steel gained 5.10% after Trump approved its merger with Japan’s Nippon Steel. ($X)

  • Meta Platforms rose 2.00% after the company announced new monetization plans for WhatsApp ads and channels. ($META)

What’s down 📉

  • Sarepta Therapeutics plunged 42.12% after reporting a second patient death linked to its Elevidys gene therapy. ($SRPT)

  • Energy Stocks dropped after oil prices fell on reports that Iran wants to de-escalate with Israel:
    • APA Corp fell 2.43%. ($APA)
    • ConocoPhillips dropped 2.02%. ($COP)
    • Devon Energy declined 1.4%. ($DVN)

LEGACY
Leonard Lauder, Who Turned His Mother’s Beauty Business Into a Global Empire, Dies at 92

The man behind the lipstick boom and the billion-dollar brushstroke is sadly gone.

Leonard Lauder, who turned a family cream business into a global beauty empire, passed away Saturday at age 92. He spent over 60 years shaping Estée Lauder into one of the world’s biggest cosmetics companies — and did it with a mix of business savvy, art-world flair, and the kind of department store dominance most CEOs only dream about.

Joining the company in 1958, Lauder took the reins from his mother and scaled the business from $800,000 in annual revenue to over $7 billion by the time he stepped down as chairman in 2009. Along the way, he snapped up beauty giants like MAC, Bobbi Brown, Aveda, and La Mer, and took the company public in 1995 — the stock jumped 33% on day one.

From Queens Kitchen to Global Counters

Lauder didn’t just grow the brand. He reshaped the modern beauty playbook. He pushed Estée Lauder into Europe and Asia, kept brands running independently to spark internal competition, and famously coined the “Lipstick Index” the idea that lipstick sales go up in a recession as shoppers trade down from luxury bags to luxury gloss.

His leadership style blended meticulous suits with a sharp sense of humor and an even sharper eye for talent especially women, whom he credited with driving much of the company’s success. “I tried to find people smarter than me,” he said. “Most were women.”

An Artful Exit: Outside of cosmetics, Lauder was known for his billion-dollar Cubist collection, his support of the Met and Whitney museums, and his philanthropy in Alzheimer’s research and breast cancer awareness — a cause close to home after the death of his wife Evelyn in 2011.

Estée Lauder stock surged over 10% Monday following the news of his passing — a bittersweet bump for a company he shaped, defended, and loved for more than half a century.

The Legacy Lives On: Lauder is survived by his sons William and Gary, his wife Judy, and a sprawling family — both at home and within the walls of Estée Lauder’s still-growing global beauty empire. From a Queens kitchen to over 150 countries, the business he helped build is now worth billions. The suits are still sharp, the lipsticks still selling — and the vision, very much alive.

NEWS
Market Movements

GAMING
A Teen’s Garden Game Just Grew Roblox to a 52-Week High

A Teen’s Garden Game Just Grew Roblox to a 52-Week High

What happens when “GTA 6” gets delayed and a 16-year-old builds a farming simulator in three days? Roblox stock pops 3% and hits its highest level since 2021.

“Grow a Garden,” a blocky, delightfully simple game where users plant seeds, sell crops for digital shekels, and upgrade their farms, just broke Fortnite’s record for concurrent players—peaking at 16.5 million. That’s more than the populations of Sweden and Denmark combined, all planting virtual tomatoes. Roblox shares are up 72% since March 31, the day the game started gaining traction.

After its initial viral growth, the game was picked up and polished by Janzen Madsen, a prominent Roblox creator, and later backed by Do Big Studios. Together, they turned the project into a full-blown phenomenon.

Analysts are already calling it a game-changer. Wedbush’s Michael Pachter says it’s sparked a 75% spike in concurrent users since December and could set up Roblox for a record-breaking second quarter.

For a platform that pays out nearly $300 million to its creators each quarter, “Grow a Garden” shows the power of low-budget creativity—and maybe the urgency of launching GTA 6 before every teenager becomes a farming tycoon.

Calendar
On The Horizon

Tomorrow

The market’s calendar looks sleepy until Tuesday rolls in like a data dump truck. That’s when a trio of key reports will test Wall Street’s vibe check on the economy.

First up: retail sales. If American consumers are still swiping like it’s Black Friday, investors can breathe easy. But a pullback in spending could rattle growth expectations. Next comes homebuilder sentiment, a pulse check on a housing market stuck between sky-high rates and low supply. And finally, import prices will drop, offering a glimpse into how global trade is holding up amid all the tariff tension. Buckle up.

NEWS
The Daily Rundown

  • 🧭 G7 Summit Opens in Canada Amid War and Tariffs: G7 leaders are convening in Alberta with the Israel–Iran war topping the agenda. President Trump’s looming July 9 trade deadline is also under scrutiny. Ukraine’s Zelensky and NATO chief Rutte are expected to join midweek.

  • 📉 Fed Meeting Expected to Hold Rates Steady: The Fed is likely to hold rates steady at its Wednesday meeting, despite Trump calling Powell a “numbskull” for not cutting sooner. Inflation remains low and the labor market is cooling, fueling speculation of a potential rate cut in the coming months.

  • 🗳️ NYC Primary Voting Begins: Early voting has begun in New York’s Democratic mayoral primary, with ranked-choice voting in effect. Frontrunners include former Gov. Andrew Cuomo and socialist Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani. Mayor Eric Adams will skip the primary to run as an independent in November.

  • 🚨 Attack on Minnesota Lawmakers Leaves 3 Dead: Minnesota State Sen. John Hoffman and his wife were shot multiple times in a politically motivated home attack. A second shooting at Rep. Melissa Hortman’s home left her and her husband dead. A manifesto found at the scene listed 50–70 abortion-rights supporters as targets. The suspect, Vance Luther Boelter, was captured after a 24-hour manhunt.

  • 📲 Influencers Outpace Agencies at Cannes: For the first time, ad revenue from user-generated content is expected to outpace professionally produced content, according to WPP Media. At the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, marketers are showing record interest in creators. Unilever even pledged to hire 20x more influencers as consumers grow skeptical of traditional corporate branding. The creator economy is now valued at $33 billion, up 36% year-over-year.

  • 🧑‍🌾 ICE Pauses Farm and Restaurant Raids: The Biden administration issued new guidance instructing ICE to pause worksite arrests at farms, restaurants, and hotels. The move came after pressure from Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins and influential donors. Trump acknowledged concerns over losing “good, long-time workers” on Truth Social. Raids at other locations, such as garment factories, remain in effect.

  • 🐉 ‘How to Train Your Dragon’ Wins Box Office: Universal’s $250 million live-action remake of How to Train Your Dragon took the weekend with $84 million in domestic earnings. The IP anchors Universal’s new theme park Epic Universe and could kickstart a new franchise era alongside Minecraft and Lilo & Stitch, which lead the 2025 box office.

  • 🏛️ “No Kings” Protest Draws Millions Nationwide: Over 200 groups organized protests in all 50 states under the “No Kings” banner, countering the U.S. Army’s 250th birthday parade and Trump’s 79th birthday. The protests, attended by an estimated 5 million people, targeted strongman politics and corruption. In DC alone, more than 6,000 soldiers and 128 tanks marched as part of the official celebration.

  • ✈️ Paris Air Show Under Cloud of Tragedy: The global aviation trade event opens this week with a somber tone following last week’s deadly Air India crash. Industry players are expected to unveil commercial jet orders and tech updates amid mounting safety concerns.

  • 🏀 NBA Finals Heat Up: The Indiana Pacers and Oklahoma City Thunder are tied 2–2 as Game 5 tips off tonight in a tightly contested NBA Finals series.

  • 🚕 Tesla Robotaxi Launch Planned for Sunday: Elon Musk says Tesla will finally launch its long-awaited robotaxi service in Austin, Texas, this Sunday, after six years of promises. Details on the rollout remain limited.

  • 🌡️ Alaska Issues First-Ever Heat Advisory: The National Weather Service in Alaska issued its first-ever heat advisory for Fairbanks, with temps forecasted to reach 85–89°F. Although similar heat occurred before, this is the first time it’s being formally classified as a heat advisory, reflecting heightened concern over warming trends.

  • 🏌️ J.J. Spaun Wins First Major at U.S. Open: Spaun claimed his first major title at Oakmont, surviving a bogey-filled, rain-delayed final round to edge the field by two strokes. He credited a mid-round tip from Tiger Woods for turning things around late.

  • 📽️ Pope Leo XIV Delivers Video Message in Chicago: At a packed Mass at Rate Field, the first American pope addressed thousands via video, urging youth to be “a light of hope” and support community unity. It marked a historic hometown moment for the Chicago-born pontiff.

REFERRAL
Share Investinq 🤝 Acquire Swag

If you love reading our newsletter, don’t be selfish — share it. Odds are your favorite finance bro, trader, investor, or stock market fanatic will too.

Don’t keep all the market news to yourself — share the love using the unique link below.

We deliver you all the news for free every single day (go on… help us out ;)

And here’s the kicker: every referral you make gets you entered into a raffle to win some awesome prizes listed below. Just share the link below and you’ll be entered once they sign up.

RESOURCES
The Federal Reserve Resource

Join our small yet growing subreddit 🚀: https://www.reddit.com/r/investinq/

Wall Street Reads 💎 (Best Books):

Check out our latest issues 🎯: https://investinq.beehiiv.com