If you're feeling good about the market, you're not alone. Take my hand as we go over some of this week's more uplifting headlines.
1. Tesla beats Edison, again
Range anxiety is real, and it's what keeps many drivers from making the switch to electric cars.
What happens if they run out of battery life on the open road? Will a cross-country road trip ever be feasible?
Well, Tesla Motors (TSLA 12.06%) is doing its part. The fast-growing maker of electric cars announced on Wednesday that it was dramatically expanding its Supercharger network. These are charging stations that allow Tesla Model S drivers to recharge their speedsters for free. Ramping up its fleet of charging stations will allow more customers to plan long treks without having to worry about range anxiety.
Now if only Elon Musk could do something to cure the "Are we there yet?" anxiety.
2. Amazon wants to direct
The return this past weekend of Arrested Development may have been a big deal for Amazon.com's (AMZN -1.64%) streaming rival, but the leading online retailer isn't asleep at the wheel when it comes to original programming.
Amazon revealed the five shows that it will be green-lighting for a slate of fresh episodes. Alpha House, Betas, and three children shows made the cut after Amazon gave viewers a few weeks to check out several pilots to determine what shows it should bankroll.
Production will now begin on the five shows, and they will begin streaming exclusively through Amazon Prime Instant between later this year and early next year.
3. Another notch for K-Cups
Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (GMCR.DL) has done surprisingly well for a company that lost patent protection governing its Keurig K-Cup portion packs last year.
A couple of months ago it was Lipton striking a deal to get its signature teas out in K-Cup form directly through Green Mountain, and now The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf -- the country's oldest and largest privately held specialty coffee and tea retailer -- has squared away a deal for Keurig owners to begin brewing the company's signature beverages come early next year.
These deals may not be material needle-movers for Green Mountain financially, but they once again validate going through the company itself and its growing distribution muscle than to chance it with a third-party distributor.
4. This friend request was long overdue
It was a rare streak for Facebook (META -0.52%) shares, trading lower for seven consecutive trading days.
The unfortunate run came to an end on Thursday after BMO Capital Markets and Jefferies & Co. upgraded the shares. The news sent the stock 5% higher, making up some of the ground that it had lost in the previous days.
Both analysts are also nudging their price targets slightly higher on Facebook, encouraged by the improving state of the leading social networking website's ability to monetize its growing number of page views.
5. Everything checks out
The Fresh Market (TFM) saw its shares pop 8% higher on Wednesday after posting strong quarterly results.
The upscale grocer saw sales and earnings climb 13% and 15%, respectively, for the quarter, fueled by healthy same-store sales growth and a widening of gross profit margins.
The near-term future is encouraging, and the supermarket operator is boosting its comps guidance by 50 basis points on both ends. The Fresh Market now sees same-store sales rising 2.5% to 4.5% for the entire year.
That's fresh!
