Latest news with #Cactus
Business Insider
15 hours ago
- Business
- Business Insider
Cactus (WHD) Gets a Buy from Barclays
Barclays analyst David Anderson maintained a Buy rating on Cactus (WHD – Research Report) on June 18 and set a price target of $53.00. The company's shares closed last Wednesday at $45.49. Confident Investing Starts Here: Easily unpack a company's performance with TipRanks' new KPI Data for smart investment decisions Receive undervalued, market resilient stocks right to your inbox with TipRanks' Smart Value Newsletter According to TipRanks, Anderson is an analyst with an average return of -1.0% and a 46.08% success rate. Anderson covers the Energy sector, focusing on stocks such as Baker Hughes Company, Cactus, and TechnipFMC. The word on The Street in general, suggests a Moderate Buy analyst consensus rating for Cactus with a $53.67 average price target, representing a 17.98% upside. In a report released on June 3, Stifel Nicolaus also reiterated a Buy rating on the stock with a $57.00 price target.
Forbes
09-06-2025
- Business
- Forbes
The Most Promising Startups From The First-Ever YC Spring Batch
Colourful silhouettes of rockets to symbolise new business startup launch 'Make something people want.' That's the famous Y Combinator slogan—and the results speak for themselves. Over the years, YC has launched some of the most iconic startups of our time, including Airbnb, DoorDash, Dropbox, Instacart, Stripe, and Deel. Now operating four batches per year, Y Combinator just introduced its first-ever spring batch—and the upcoming Demo Day promises to deliver. Startups are working around the clock to prepare and attract investment from top-tier VCs. Unsurprisingly, many of the YC X25 (Spring 2025) batch startups are AI-driven—but their applications span a wide range of industries. From homebuying and healthcare to solopreneur support and developer tools, this batch reflects the growing diversity of AI use cases. Cactus is addressing the operational challenges faced by solopreneurs—particularly private chefs and other service-based entrepreneurs. These businesses often rely on multiple disconnected tools and consultants, making it difficult to scale and grow. With recent advancements in AI and voice technology, there's a unique opportunity to automate and streamline these workflows. Cactus aims to be the AI Copilot that manages brand maintenance, website creation, lead qualification, proposal generation, and invoicing—freeing up solopreneurs to focus on what they do best. Ajith Govind and Avinash Joshi, co-founders of Cactus, explain: 'The idea for Cactus emerged from personal experiences. We both became fathers and started working with private chefs. We saw firsthand the intense operational demands they faced. Those shared experiences and insights into the broader challenges solopreneurs encounter inspired us to launch Cactus.' Ajith brings a strong foundation in data science and firsthand experience scaling a previous YC-backed company—giving him deep insight into business growth and operational pain points. Avinash's engineering prowess and experience in building products for major companies like Unilever, Pepsi, and Nestle make him an invaluable asset. is consumer-first and AI-native. With no downloads required, brings AI to where 97% of Americans already are multiple times a day: in their chats. And with collaborative AI features, allows groups to plan trips, book restaurants, and set reminders—seamlessly and together. Founded by three friends Rushi Shah, Prahar Patel, and Paras Maniar, was born out of frustration with how tech often adds complexity instead of reducing it. 'I built the first version just for fun—as a personal travel companion to help me find hidden vegetarian restaurants while backpacking solo in Spain and Portugal,' Rushi recalls. 'It was ridiculously simple but solved a real problem. Then friends started asking to add the AI to their group chats. The magic? No one had to download a thing. AI just showed up where they already were." Arjun Lalwani and Helly Shah, co-founders of Approval AI, are tackling one of the most frustrating parts of homeownership: the slow, opaque, and stressful mortgage process. 'The mortgage process in the U.S. is broken,' Arjun says. 'Rates aren't transparent, paperwork is repetitive, and buyers are bombarded with lender spam before they even understand what they're signing up for.' As first-time homebuyers—with technical backgrounds—they found the process confusing, inefficient, and severely lacking in transparency. That personal pain inspired the creation of Approval AI, which uses AI to streamline and simplify the mortgage journey for others. The founding team blends deep technical expertise with hands-on industry experience. Arjun built large-scale commerce products at Google, including YouTube Shopping. Helly comes from a multi-generational real estate family and has experienced the mortgage process from every angle: as a developer, broker, and buyer. She's a licensed mortgage broker, a former software engineer at Google Maps, and previously built real-time trading systems at Goldman Sachs. Bereket Engida, Co-Founder and CEO of Better Auth, is on a mission to solve one of the oldest—and still unsolved—problems in software: authentication. Deeply embedded in the TypeScript ecosystem, Bereket has built a wide range of apps and open-source libraries. Now, alongside co-founder KinfeMichael Tariku, he's developing a comprehensive, framework-agnostic authentication solution built specifically for TypeScript. 'Even though auth is one of those age-old problems,' Bereket says, 'it's still surprisingly only half-solved. It continues to be a pain to implement, and as a developer myself, I've felt that pain over and over again. It's not that there aren't options—it's just that the choices aren't great.' The goal is to empower developers to build secure, enterprise-grade authentication systems without relying on third-party services—giving teams full control over user data while accelerating innovation. Justin Lee and Linus Talacko are building Den with a bold vision: to make AI agents accessible and useful for all knowledge workers—not just engineers. The idea began when Linus, then CTO and co-founder of Lyrebird Health (one of Australia's fastest-growing startups), saw firsthand the productivity gains engineers were achieving with tools like Cursor and Windsurf. But when it came to non-technical teams, existing solutions like Slack's Agentforce and Relevance AI fell short. Frustrated, Linus started building internal agents for his entire company. What began as a side project quickly evolved into a new mission. Justin stepped in and convinced Linus to embark on a 20+ year journey to fundamentally reshape how knowledge work is done. Their long-term vision? Teams of 10 orchestrating swarms of 1,000+ AI agents—freeing up human talent to focus on creativity, judgment, and decision-making. Their mantra: empower the first 10-person unicorn. Inspired by platforms like Shopify and Atlassian that provide infrastructure for others to build on, Den aims to become the superstructure for AI-native teams to scale smarter and faster. Supreet Deshpande, Sahitya Sridhar and Rajashekar Vasantha, co-founders of SynthioLabs, are building voice AI medical reps for pharma commercial and medical teams to engage with their most important stakeholders—doctors and patients. Pharma spends billions annually on sales and medical representatives, yet most physicians—especially those in community settings, who make up the majority of the market—never hear from one. The result? Missed engagement, slower adoption, and lost revenue where it matters most. SynthioLabs is building voice AI medical reps that help pharma scale physician engagement in ways traditional field teams cannot. Their AI reps deliver compliant, on-demand medical info —and capture rich data on physician needs and concerns at scale. The team includes ex-McKinsey and ex-ZS life sciences experts, as well as AI researchers from AWS. They have worked with 10 of the top 20 pharma companies and bring over a decade of experience in life sciences. These companies are about to present their ideas on Demo Day this week—the moment they've been working tirelessly toward. But what have they learned along the way? And how has their vision evolved since the beginning? 'The community', says Justin Lee, Co-Founder of Den. 'Unmatched loyalty, generosity, and ambition.' He adds, 'It feels like having the entire world at your back—from GPs to batchmates.' Den's company vision has evolved significantly: from a no-code, multiplayer agent builder for non-engineers to building an Agent Marketplace for sharing and selling agent workflows. Supreet Deshpande, Co-Founder and CEO of SynthioLabs highlights, 'Honestly, the best part about YC is the pace and the clarity it brings.' Founders are pushed to move fast, cut out the noise, and make decisions in days rather than months. And, of course, there's the 'founder energy.' When they started, SynthioLabs focused on using AI to help pharma companies reach more physicians—especially those often overlooked. But as they went deeper, they discovered a bigger opportunity: bringing consumer-grade customer obsession to pharma. Now, they aim to become the platform for all customer engagement in pharma, closing the gap between what physicians and patients expect as consumers—and what they currently experience from the industry. Going through Y Combinator has been instrumental for Cactus, primarily by driving focus on achieving product-market fit. 'However, one of the most underrated benefits is the belief factor,' says Ajith Govind. 'It instills confidence in founders to aim higher—to see themselves as the next big success story, like Airbnb.' Cactus originally launched as a marketplace connecting private chefs with families. But the founders quickly realized the real challenge was not the connection—it was what happened afterward. That insight led to a pivot: Cactus now builds AI-powered business automation tools. The company's new vision is to develop an AI Copilot that runs an entire business on autopilot—freeing up solopreneurs to focus on what they do best and capture more opportunities. Rushi Shah, CEO of puts it simply, 'The best thing about Y Combinator is speed and focus.' He adds, 'In ten weeks, we 10x'd our user base, stayed laser-focused on product development, and pushed ourselves to get more done every week—regardless of company size, funding, or stage.' As Demo Day approaches, one thing is clear: this generation of YC founders isn't just building companies—they're reshaping industries. Fueled by urgency, guided by clarity, and supported by one of the strongest founder communities in tech, these startups are turning ambitious ideas into scalable, world-changing products. Whether it's simplifying mortgages, reimagining healthcare engagement, or putting AI in the hands of solopreneurs and everyday users, the YC spring batch (X25) is a glimpse into the future—faster, smarter, and more founder-driven than ever.
Yahoo
06-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Cactus Forms JV With Baker Hughes, Boosts International Presence
Cactus Inc. WHD recently entered into an agreement with Baker Hughes Company BKR to acquire 65% of the Baker Hughes Surface Pressure Control Business. Cactus' subsidiary, Cactus Companies, LLC, signed an agreement with the subsidiaries of Baker Hughes to form a joint venture, where BKR will offer its surface pressure control (SPC) product line. Cactus will assume operational control of the joint venture. The total valuation for the transaction is approximately $344.5 million. Baker Hughes Surface Pressure Control Business is involved in designing, manufacturing, and servicing specialized surface pressure control solutions, which mainly include wellheads and production tree systems. This business operates primarily in international markets. BKR will hold a 35% stake in the joint venture after the transaction closes. This acquisition is expected to establish WHD as a leading player in oilfield equipment manufacturing, with a diverse geographical presence. Cactus noted that this acquisition will still allow it to maintain its position as a capital-light manufacturer of highly engineered pressure control equipment, which can be sold directly to end users. The acquisition is expected to benefit Cactus in terms of diversification, as nearly 85% of SPC's revenues come from the Middle East, allowing the company to generate diversified and stable revenues from its Pressure Control segment. Furthermore, SPC's limited dependence on the U.S. market for external sales makes its revenue growth more resilient to domestic market cycles. The deal is expected to be highly accretive to major financial metrics, providing increased earnings and cash flow growth for the company. Notably, SPC boasts a backlog of more than $600 million in product and aftermarket service orders as of year-end 2024. This is expected to benefit WHD's revenues and cash flow generation. Additionally, the company intends to maintain a conservative balance sheet. Cactus mentioned that the geographic footprint of the Baker Hughes Surface Pressure Control Business complements its existing operations in international markets and provides access to new markets that are not affected by tariffs. This applies to both its Pressure Control and Spoolable Technologies product lines. The expanded footprint is expected to support the company's continued growth and help stabilize its revenue profile across different market cycles. Currently, WHD carries a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell) while BKR carries a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell). Some better-ranked stocks from the energy sector are Flotek Industries Inc. FTK and Energy Transfer ET. While Flotek Industries sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) at present, Energy Transfer carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank stocks here. Flotek Industries specializes in green chemistry, which provides innovative solutions aimed at reducing the environmental impact of the energy industry. Flotek develops specialty chemicals tailored for both domestic and international energy producers, as well as oilfield service companies. These chemicals not only help reduce the environmental impact of hydrocarbon production but also lower operational costs. Energy Transfer is a midstream player that owns and operates one of the most diversified portfolios of energy assets in the United States. Its pipeline network spans more than 130,000 miles across 44 states. With a presence in all the major U.S. production basins, ET's outlook seems positive. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Energy Transfer LP (ET) : Free Stock Analysis Report Baker Hughes Company (BKR) : Free Stock Analysis Report Flotek Industries, Inc. (FTK) : Free Stock Analysis Report Cactus, Inc. (WHD) : Free Stock Analysis Report This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research ( Zacks Investment Research
Yahoo
03-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Cactus enters agreement to acquire 65% controlling interest in Baker Hughes SPC
Cactus (WHD) announced that its subsidiary Cactus Companies has entered into a definitive agreement with certain subsidiaries of Baker Hughes Company (BKR) to acquire 65% and assume operational control of the Baker Hughes Surface Pressure Control Business, SPC. SPC designs, manufactures and services specialized surface pressure control solutions, primarily wellheads and production tree equipment, for international markets. Business Highlights: Acquisition establishes Cactus' position as a premier, capital-light and geographically diversified oilfield equipment manufacturer; Transforms Cactus' geographic footprint, with ~85% of SPC revenues generated in the Middle East and no material U.S. external sales, providing for a more diverse and stable consolidated Cactus Pressure Control revenue profile through market cycles ; Greater revenue, earnings and cash flow visibility from the acquisition resulting from SPC's $600+ million product and aftermarket service backlog as of December 31, 2024; Highly accretive to financial metrics while maintaining a conservative balance sheet; A Joint Venture will be formed to hold SPC, and Baker Hughes will retain 35% ownership in the Joint Venture post-closing Easily unpack a company's performance with TipRanks' new KPI Data for smart investment decisions Receive undervalued, market resilient stocks right to your inbox with TipRanks' Smart Value Newsletter Published first on TheFly – the ultimate source for real-time, market-moving breaking financial news. Try Now>> See the top stocks recommended by analysts >> Read More on WHD: Disclaimer & DisclosureReport an Issue Cactus Acquires Stake in Baker Hughes Business Baker Hughes, Cactus create joint venture for surface pressure control services Cactus price target lowered to $50 from $52 at JPMorgan Cactus Inc. Holds Annual Stockholders Meeting Cactus price target lowered to $52 from $54 at JPMorgan Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
02-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Baker Hughes, Cactus Create Joint Venture for Surface Pressure Control Services
Cactus to become majority owner and operator of Baker Hughes' surface pressure control product line, with Baker Hughes retaining 35% stake Joint venture combines complementary portfolios to lead technological innovation Aligns with Baker Hughes' ongoing strategy to optimize its portfolio HOUSTON and LONDON, June 02, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Baker Hughes (NASDAQ: BKR), an energy technology company, announced Monday an agreement to form a new joint venture with a subsidiary of Cactus, Inc. (NYSE: WHD, 'Cactus'), in which Baker Hughes will contribute its surface pressure control (SPC) product line. Cactus, a global manufacturer and service provider of pressure control equipment for oil and gas drilling, completion and production, will assume operational control, owning 65% of the joint venture, while Baker Hughes will retain a 35% stake. The joint venture will operate independently from Cactus' existing Pressure Control business and will focus on maintaining its leadership position in the international market for surface wellhead and production tree systems. This targeted portfolio refinement is aligned with Baker Hughes' focus on enhancing the durability of earnings and cash flow and will enable the company to reallocate capital toward higher-return opportunities, all while maintaining a strategic and disciplined approach to capital deployment. 'This transaction marks an important step in our ongoing portfolio optimization strategy, enabling us to sharpen our focus on core growth areas while continuing to drive higher returns, reinforcing our commitment to long-term value for our shareholders,' said Baker Hughes Chairman and CEO Lorenzo Simonelli. 'We remain committed to our valued SPC partners and customers whose operations we have proudly supported, and we believe this joint venture only enhances delivery of innovation and reliability in well control as the combined business will leverage Cactus' unconventional expertise and agility into international markets.' The closing of the transaction is subject to customary conditions, including regulatory approvals, and is expected to close in the second half of 2025. About Baker Hughes Baker Hughes (NASDAQ: BKR) is an energy technology company that provides solutions to energy and industrial customers worldwide. Built on a century of experience and conducting business in over 120 countries, our innovative technologies and services are taking energy forward – making it safer, cleaner and more efficient for people and the planet. Visit us at For more information, please contact: Media Relations Adrienne M. Lynch+1 Investor Relations: Chase Mulvehill+1 in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
