Paramount Skydance Corp. is a worldwide media entertainment company. Paramount Global merged into Skydance Media on August 7, 2025. The publicly held Class B shares trade under the ticker symbol PSKY, comprise 30% of the equity of Paramount Skydance, and have no voting rights. An investor consortium led by the Ellison family and private-equity firm RedBird Capital hold a 70% equity interest and 100% of the voting rights in the company. Paramount produces and distributes television and cable programming over its networks, including the flagship CBS broadcast network; a stable of basic cable channels, including MTV Networks, VH1, Nickelodeon, Country Music Television, Comedy Central, and BET; a network of owned and affiliated local CBS broadcast television stations; and two digital streaming video platforms, its flagship Paramount+ service and advertising-supported Pluto TV. Paramount also produces and distributes theatrical films through its Paramount Pictures studio and owns a minority 12.5% share in the CW network. The company's businesses and trademarks also include the Showtime cable network and CBS Television Distribution.

Stock indices saw minor gains on Wednesday and, once again, the fireworks were in individual names. There also was an explosion in the metals, crypto currencies, and the U.S. Dollar Index (USD). All the action was driven by headlines -- and for a day in August when we are supposed to be in the summer doldrums, things were quite newsy. The Treasury made a surprise announcement that it would at least double its long-term bond buyback operations, which sent the USD tumbling almost 0.9%. Bitcoin popped 8%, Ethereum soared 18%, and Solana spiked 13% on the greenback dive, a heavy dose of short covering, and hopes for market-structure legislation. Bitcoin poked its head above its bear-market trendline off the peaks since October 2025, with both Ethereum and Solana surging above their bear line. Gold (GLD) surged almost 4% and ran right into its 200-day average, while Silver (SLV) bolted 4.5% and remains 7% under its 200-day. GLD has broken its bear-market trendline off the peak since January 2026 while SLV stopped right at its bearish trendline.

Paramount Skydance operates in three global business segments: TV media, filmed entertainment, and direct to consumer. The TV media business includes television production studios and various broadcast and cable networks, including CBS, 15 owned CBS affiliates, Paramount, Nickelodeon, MTV, BET, and VH1. Filmed entertainment consists of multiple film studios, most importantly Paramount Pictures. The film studios produce and distribute movies that they license to movie theaters and other media outlets. Direct to consumer includes the Paramount+, Pluto TV, and BET+ streaming services. Much of the content on Paramount’s streaming platforms is created by the production studios housed within the firm’s other two business segments.

Berkshire Hathaway is a holding company with a wide array of subsidiaries engaged in diverse activities. The firm's core business segment is insurance, run primarily through Geico, Berkshire Hathaway Reinsurance Group, and Berkshire Hathaway Primary Group. Berkshire has used the excess cash thrown off from its operations to acquire Burlington Northern Santa Fe (railroad), Berkshire Hathaway Energy (utilities and energy distributors), and the companies that make up its manufacturing, service, and retailing operations (which include Precision Castparts, Lubrizol, Clayton Homes, Marmon, and IMC/ISCAR). The conglomerate is unique in that it is run on a completely decentralized basis. Berkshire is expected to generate close to $375 billion in revenue in 2025.