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The T-Shirt’s Message Is Simple: ‘Everyone Watches Women’s Sports.’ 2024-06-18 13:00:17.807000+00:00 - The black T-shirt spells it out in capital letters: “Everyone Watches Women’s Sports.” In the past few months, the message has been hard to miss. Dawn Staley, the coach of the University of South Carolina’s women’s basketball team, kicked off a social media frenzy when she wore the shirt for a pregame interview in January. The comedian and actor Jason Sudeikis wore a version with yellow lettering to the women’s N.C.A.A. tournament finals in April. Jimmy Fallon got one on “The Tonight Show” as a gift from the recently retired W.N.B.A. star Sue Bird. The shirt, which was created by a company co-founded by Ms. Bird, has become an unofficial uniform as viewership of women’s basketball has soared, and women’s sports in general have seen greater momentum. Megan Ramos, 25, saw more than a dozen of the shirts at a W.N.B.A. game last month. “Shipping is a little behind,” said Ms. Ramos, who ordered hers in April, “because everyone wants them.” The short-sleeved shirt, which sells for $45, was introduced last December by Togethxr, the media and apparel company created in 2021 by Ms. Bird, the soccer player Alex Morgan, the swimmer Simone Manuel and the snowboarder Chloe Kim. (A hoodie is also available for $85.)

Beyond Meat Forecast: Is There Any Hope Left for This Stock? 2024-06-18 12:58:00+00:00 - Plant-based meat producer Beyond Meat Inc. NASDAQ: BYND has a 39.81% short interest. Sentiment is negative for the stock as it continues to fall lower, trading down more than 25% year-to-date (YTD). The stock recently provided investors with a fleeting lifeline, briefly jumping to $10.31 on a short-lived meme stock revival led by GameStop Co. NYSE: GME on May 14, 2024. Shares have since given back all the gains and tacked on more losses. Beyond Meat operates in the consumer staples sector, competing with real meat and poultry producers like Tyson Foods Inc. NYSE: TSN, Pilgrim’s Pride Co. NASDAQ: PPC, and Hormel Foods Co. NYSE: HRL. Get GameStop alerts: Sign Up BYND's Short Interest Could Spark a Short Squeeze for the Stock Beyond Meat Today BYND Beyond Meat $6.39 -0.10 (-1.54%) 52-Week Range $5.58 ▼ $19.25 Price Target $5.56 Add to Watchlist There’s very little to be positive about Beyond Meat as sales continue to slip, losses grow, and market share contracts. With the stock getting closer to its all-time low of $5.58, investors wonder if there's any meat left in this stock. However, a 39.81% short interest could explode from even the smallest spark. The same holds for the stock, as a violent short squeeze can trigger as a result of any positive news. Plant-Based Meat: A Stagnating Industry Losing Its Taste The plant-based meat category peaked in 2021, moderated in 2022, and declined in 2023, driven by inflation, tightening consumer budgets, and weak consumer engagements, according to the Good Food Institute. In a survey asking why adults didn’t try plant-based meat products again, the primary reason was “I didn’t like the taste.” While prices have fallen for plant-based meat from being 67% more expensive than real meat in 2022, they haven’t reached parity. Can Bird Flu Help Boost Beyond Meat's Sales? Not Likely The continual spread of avian influenza in the headlines, prompting an uptick in Beyond Meat sales, has yet to be a valid thesis. While the instances of bird flu among humans can be counted on one hand, the destruction of the poultry population has resulted in the termination of more than 82 million birds in the United States since 2022. In April 2024, Cal-Maine Foods Inc. (NASDAQ CALM) announced the termination of 1.6 million egg-laying hens and 337,000 pullets at its facility in Parmer County, Texas. Beyond Meat sales have continued to drop during this period, so there’s not much credence to the bird flu having a positive impact on sales trends. BYND Stock Triggers a Descending Triangle Breakdown The daily candlestick chart on BYND illustrates a descending triangle breakdown pattern. BYND squeezed to $10.31 on the May 14, 2024, meme stock revival, but it only lasted a single day as shares fell right back down to the flat-bottom support trendline at $6.99. Subsequent bounce attempts peaked at lower highs, which formed the upper descending trendline resistance. The breakdown occurred when BYND stock fell below the $6.99 support. The daily relative strength index (RSI) fell to the 37-band. Pullback support levels are at $5.98, $5.58, $5.00, and $4.51. Weak Metrics Plague Beyond Meat’s Q1 2024 Earnings Report Beyond Meat reported a Q1 2024 EPS loss of 84 cents, missing consensus analyst estimates by 17 cents. Revenues fell 18% YoY to $75.6 million, slightly beating consensus estimates of $75.24 million. Double-Digit Revenue Declines by Foodservice Channel The U.S. retail channel net revenues fell 16% to $37.1 million due to decreased product volume. This indicated soft demand in addition to the discontinuation of Beyond Meat Jerky. The U.S. foodservice channel sales dropped 16.2% YoY to $12.3 million due to a 20.7% decrease in product volume, underscoring softening demand partially offset by a 5.8% increase in net revenue per pound. International revenues dropped 12% YoY to $12.6 million due to a decrease in the volume of products sold, underscored by reduced sales of chicken products in the EU and soft demand in Canada. International foodservice revenues plunged 28.7% to $13.6 million due to decreased product volume and soft demand reflecting weaker burger and chicken products. It's Going to Get Worse Before It Gets Better for Beyond Meat Beyond Meat provided downside guidance for Q2 2024, with revenues expected between $85 million and $90 million, missing consensus estimates of $96.21 million. Full-year 2024 revenues were reaffirmed between $315 million and $345 million, compared to consensus estimates of $329.55 million. Beyond Meat CEO Sees Glass as More Than Half Full Beyond Meat CEO Ethan Brown some bullish aspects to the quarter, “In Q1, we made solid progress against our 2024 priorities, including: hitting our first quarter revenue objective; reducing operating expenses and cash consumption year-over-year; bringing production in-house to reduce costs and improve quality; and commencing shipments of Beyond IV, the fourth generation of Beyond Burger and Beyond Beef, to our customers, to the praise of nutritionists and consumers alike.” Brown concluded, “Together with measures we are exploring to bolster our balance sheet, we continue to work to position 2024 as a pivotal year as we strive to achieve sustainable and profitable operations.” Beyond Meat analyst ratings and price targets are at MarketBeat. Before you consider GameStop, you'll want to hear this. MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and GameStop wasn't on the list. While GameStop currently has a "Sell" rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys. View The Five Stocks Here

Wall Street Analysts are Bullish on Lyft Stock: Here's Why 2024-06-18 12:57:00+00:00 - It is one thing when a single Wall Street analyst decides to boost a price target on a stock; investors may or may not want to pay attention to that single view. However, it is a different trend when several analysts come together to boost a stock. Today, Wall Street’s best choice is to land on shares of Lyft Inc. NASDAQ: LYFT to reward it with a higher valuation. Lyft Today LYFT Lyft $13.78 -0.30 (-2.13%) 52-Week Range $8.85 ▼ $20.82 Price Target $18.04 Add to Watchlist It’s interesting to see how none of these rating houses went to Lyft’s arguably more famous competitor, Uber Technologies Inc. NYSE: UBER. Investors would benefit from trying to uncover the main reasons behind this preference. One reason stems from trying to find the best deals in today’s potentially overvalued marketplace. Get Chipotle Mexican Grill alerts: Sign Up What comes next is a broader overview of the U.S. economy and how its post-COVID trends are helping stocks like Lyft become more of a commodity than a luxury in today’s world. More than that, it would be wise to dig into Lyft’s financials and compare them against Uber’s in the most recent financial quarter, where the conclusion may be that Lyft is potentially undervalued. Wall Street Delivers a Wave of Upgrades for Lyft Stock Among the many that boosted Lyft stock’s valuation, a few rating houses stand out. Those at Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, Piper Sandler, Bank of America, and Barclays all sent out a range of $18 to $24 a share for Lyft’s valuation. Lyft MarketRank™ Stock Analysis Overall MarketRank™ 4.23 out of 5 Analyst Rating Hold Upside/Downside 30.5% Upside Short Interest Bearish Dividend Strength N/A Sustainability -0.37 News Sentiment 1.10 Insider Trading Selling Shares Projected Earnings Growth Growing See Full Details To prove these analysts right, the stock would need to rally anywhere from 29.5% to 72.7% from today’s price. Compared to today’s consensus price targets for Uber stock, which only implies a 20.4% upside, Lyft stock looks like the better deal for investors. Even though Uber offers economies of scale and a much bigger market capitalization of $146.3 billion, Lyft’s smaller $5.6 billion valuation gives it an open field to catch up with the industry. Investors can find a similar story when comparing Cava Group Inc. NYSE: CAVA to Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. NYSE: CMG, as the newcomer attempts to match the scale of its predecessor. Now, what is Lyft actually doing to close this gap against Uber? How Lyft's Fast Growth is Steering it Into Profitable Territory With the company’s leading key performance indicators (KPIs) and gross bookings, investors can note that Lyft delivered faster growth than Uber in the first quarter of 2024. Lyft saw gross booking growth of 21% over the year, while Uber pushed 20%. While not a landslide, it is still a significant achievement, considering how much smaller Lyft is compared to Uber. Because of this growth, Lyft’s revenue jumped by 28% in the same period, while Uber’s revenue only advanced by 15%. Driving this growth is Lyft’s recent expansion into Canadian markets, where management quotes up to double the ride amount in the region and more than double new rider activations and driver hours. Slowly, it seems Lyft is starting to achieve the type of economies of scale that allowed Uber to become the behemoth it is today. What matters most for investors is Lyft’s free cash flow (operating cash flow minus capital expenditures), which is now positive compared to last year. 2023 saw an outflow of over $100 million compared to this recent quarter, which brought over $120 million in free cash flow. Lyft, Inc. (LYFT) Price Chart for Tuesday, June, 18, 2024 Achieving profitability on a free cash flow basis is the building block for rising earnings per share (EPS), which could be one of the reasons why analysts are boosting the stock’s price target. The Vanguard Group, Lyft’s largest shareholder, saw fit to boost its stake in the stock by 2.4% in the past quarter, bringing its net investment up to $636.6 million today. Asset managers like Vanguard only buy these stocks if they are cheap enough, so here’s how Lyft compares to the rest of the Business Services sector. Lyft Stock is Discounted in All Ways That Matter On a price-to-sales (P/S) ratio, Lyft stock’s 1.2x valuation comes well below the industry’s 3.0x multiple, roughly 60% below. But that’s not the only way Lyft stock offers investors a discount today. Lyft stock trades at only 67% of its 52-week high price. In comparison, Uber remains at 85%, offering minimal incentive for those looking to buy a dip. More than that, taking analyst EPS projections for the next 12 months, Lyft is also discounted on a forward P/E basis. Though only 13.9x today, Lyft stock shows a discount of up to 57% to Uber's 32.3x forward P/E. Considering Lyft's fast growth pace, these valuation multiples may start reflecting the growth potential the stock's financials carry. Before you consider Chipotle Mexican Grill, you'll want to hear this. MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and Chipotle Mexican Grill wasn't on the list. While Chipotle Mexican Grill currently has a "Moderate Buy" rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys. View The Five Stocks Here

Boeing C.E.O. Apologizes for Quality and Safety Issues at Senate Hearing 2024-06-18 12:36:55+00:00 - Shortly after Boeing’s chief executive, Dave Calhoun, took his seat, families who lost relatives in the 2018 and 2019 crashes of the company’s 737 Max 8 planes called out to him, demanding that he turn around and acknowledge them and the photos of their loved ones. Among those behind Mr. Calhoun were the parents and brother of Samya Rose Stumo, the 24-year-old who was killed in the 2019 Ethiopian Airlines accident and the grandniece of Ralph Nader, the consumer advocate and former presidential candidate. Nearby sat the family of John Barnett, the former Boeing engineer and whistle-blower who died by suicide earlier this year in the midst of a Justice Department criminal investigation into the company. Others held photos of their loved ones lost in the crashes. “I would like to apologize, on behalf of all of our Boeing associates spread throughout the world, past and present, for your losses,” Mr. Calhoun said while facing the families. “And I apologize for the grief that we have caused.” The hearing was Mr. Calhoun’s first appearance before Congress since a January incident in which the door plug of a 737 Max 9 plane ripped off during an Alaska Airlines flight at an elevation of about 16,000 feet near Portland, Ore.

6 Reasons the S&P 500 Will Keep Rising This Year 2024-06-18 11:40:00+00:00 - The S&P 500 NYSEARCA: SPY index can keep rising this year even if many stocks within it don’t. The reasons are simple and center around the top six holdings. The S&P 500 is a market cap-weighted index, meaning those companies with the highest market cap have the most impact, and when they rise quickly, the index follows suit. The top five names are Microsoft NASDAQ: MSFT, NVIDIA NASDAQ: NVDA, Apple NASDAQ: AAPL, Amazon NASDAQ: AMZN, Meta Platforms NASDAQ: META, and Alphabet NASDAQ: GOOGL - the six horsemen of the AI apocalypse representing 31% of the total. These stocks are being led higher by results and analysts; this is a look at how high they can go before topping out. Regarding the S&P 500, the technical picture suggests the index could gain another 12% or more by the end of the year, a target that aligns with the outlook for all of these stocks. Get Alphabet alerts: Sign Up Microsoft Is #1 This Quarter Microsoft Today MSFT Microsoft $446.34 -2.03 (-0.45%) 52-Week Range $309.45 ▼ $450.94 Dividend Yield 0.67% P/E Ratio 38.64 Price Target $465.83 Add to Watchlist The top three stocks by market cap have values ranging so closely together that #1 seems to change daily. However, Microsoft was at the top at the start of the quarter and ranked in 1st position by S&P Global in this quarter’s fact sheet. It is being led higher by the analyst and could rise another $110 or about 25% above the current price action. Analysts' activity has been solid this year, including numerous revisions following the FQ3 earnings report; all were positive and led the market to the high-end range, suggesting a move to $600. The sentiment is driven by demand for Microsoft’s Azure cloud and AI products, compounded by the growing number of deals with top tech players like Oracle and Alphabet. NVIDIA Is a $3 Trillion Company NVIDIA Today NVDA NVIDIA $135.58 +4.60 (+3.51%) 52-Week Range $39.23 ▼ $136.33 Dividend Yield 0.03% P/E Ratio 79.29 Price Target $116.90 Add to Watchlist It used to be a big deal when a business hit $1 trillion, but now that milestone has fallen to the wayside. Leading companies like NVIDIA are valued at over $3 trillion and growing due to the game-changing impact of AI. NVIDIA didn’t create AI, but its technology allows it to advance, and it is advancing quickly. NVIDIA did lean hard into a full-stack approach right from the start, adding to its first-move advantage. The analysts' consensus estimate suggests this stock will fall, but there are mitigating details, including this figure lags trend, and the recent updates are much better. The revision trend has NVIDIA trading closer to $150 on a split-adjusted basis, about 7% higher, and the high estimate will likely advance as the year progresses. NVIDIA is the primary benefactor of the AI bubble, and it has yet to pop. The latest results included 500 basis points of outperformance and equal strength in the guidance, a trend likely to continue this quarter. Apple Is Late to AI But Well-Positioned Apple Today AAPL Apple $214.29 -2.38 (-1.10%) 52-Week Range $164.07 ▼ $220.20 Dividend Yield 0.47% P/E Ratio 33.33 Price Target $208.06 Add to Watchlist Apple stock struggled with traction in 2022 and 2023, but those days are behind. The recent developers' conference highlighted the company’s new focus on AI features, including embedding ChatGPT into its Mac operating system. The news led to numerous reiterated ratings and price targets and one upgrade to Buy with price points leading the market to a new high. The consensus lags that market, but the high-end range suggests a 13% to 26% upside. Amazon Stands Tall: Consumer and Cloud Business Boom Amazon stock stands tall, with strength in the consumer and cloud businesses that support its value. The stock is poised to set a new all-time high and it may come soon due to analysts' upgrades and price target revisions. The sentiment is up to Buy from Moderate Buy with a price target 17% above the current action. The analysts lead to the range's high end, good for another 1500 basis points of upside. Meta Platforms Monetizes AI Like No Other Meta Platforms is working to advance AI, but the real story is how the business rebounded from its latest low, driven by efficiency and renewed user interest. User growth and engagement are up with the help of AI and driving wider margin and earnings leverage. The earnings strength led the company to initiate a dividend and aggressively repurchase shares, which helped support sentiment and the price action. The analysts also support the price action, lifting the consensus by more than 100% in the last twelve months. The consensus assumes fair value near the recent high, but revisions lead to the high-end range or about 17% upside. Google Parent Alphabet Gets Double-Billing Alphabet Today GOOGL Alphabet $175.09 -2.15 (-1.21%) 52-Week Range $115.35 ▼ $180.41 Dividend Yield 0.46% P/E Ratio 26.85 Price Target $193.26 Add to Watchlist Google is ranked 6th in market cap weighting but also 7th because of its share class structure. The takeaway is that Google’s Class A and Class B shares account for 4% of the S&P 500 portfolio, and their price is indicated as higher. This year's trend in price target revisions has the consensus up 50% YOY and 10% above the recent price action. A move to the consensus would be an all-time high and likely lead to additional highs later in the year. Analysts expect revenue and earnings to continue growing at a double-digit pace this year and to sustain it next. Before you consider Alphabet, you'll want to hear this. MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and Alphabet wasn't on the list. While Alphabet currently has a "Moderate Buy" rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys. View The Five Stocks Here

Fresh Closing Highs for S&P, Nasdaq; Lennar Beats in Q2 2024-06-18 06:00:00+00:00 - Monday, June 17th, 2024 It was a good day in the markets to start the week. This is the official week of summer, and while the tone feels rather wistful and sunny, we still see fresh all-time closing highs on the Nasdaq and S&P 500: +0.95% on the tech-heavy index, to 17,857, and +0.77% on the Big 500, to 5473. Compare this with the still-favorable +0.41% on the Dow, now at 38,778 — still a ways from that mid-May peak just above 40K. The small-cap Russell 2000 was +0.79%, now at 2022. Mid-level homebuilder Lennar Corp. LEN posted easy beats over Q2 estimates this afternoon. Earnings of $3.45 per share outpaced the Zacks consensus by a solid quarter, while revenues of $8.77 billion surpassed the $8.57 billion analysts were expecting. The company cited +19% growth in new orders and +15% on deliveries, with the average home price at $426K. This is down -1%, but an improvement over the -8% drop a quarter ago. High mortgage rates continue to provide a steady headwind, though demand remains present. Shares are -1.8% lower in late trading, perhaps on lighter deliveries guidance going forward. Lennar is not the highest-rated homebuilder in the space. In fact, we currently see four Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stocks in the sector, all of which have already reported quarterly earnings: MI Homes MHO, PulteGroup PHM, Taylor Morrison TMHC and Tri Pointe Homes TPH. KB Home KBH, a homebuilder with an average selling price a bit higher than Lennar, currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy), and reports quarterly earnings after the closing bell on Tuesday. Tuesday morning, we see Retail Sales numbers for May. Month over month, we’re expected to tick up 20 basis points (bps) from the flat 0.0% read in April. Year over year, last time around we were at +3.0%, which was a drop of 80 bps from the prior month. We hope to be out of the range of hard-to-predict volatility in these numbers going forward — we ended last year at +5.5% in December and dropped to +0.3% in January. Moderating retail sales would be another sign the economy is cooling. We don’t expect another big economic news item beyond this until late next week. At that point, we’ll see the comprehensive Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE), the Fed’s preferred gauge of inflation. Last month we saw year-over-year headline come in at +2.65%, +2.75% on core year over year. That these figures have kept a “2-handle” now seven months in a row is a good sign. The more lower-growth signals we see — particularly without tipping into recession, at the same time — the more the Fed funds rate is going to look overpriced. Questions or comments about this article and/or author? Click here>> Story continues 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 PulteGroup, Inc. (PHM) : Free Stock Analysis Report KB Home (KBH) : Free Stock Analysis Report Lennar Corporation (LEN) : Free Stock Analysis Report Tri Pointe Homes Inc. (TPH) : Free Stock Analysis Report Taylor Morrison Home Corporation (TMHC) : Free Stock Analysis Report M/I Homes, Inc. (MHO) : Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research

Lennar's Q2 profit tops estimates on higher home deliveries 2024-06-18 04:43:00+00:00 - (Reuters) -Lennar Corp beat Wall Street estimates for second-quarter profit on Monday, helped by sustained demand for new houses as the U.S. homebuilder cut base prices to lure in skittish buyers in the face of high mortgage rates. With the popular 30-year fixed mortgage rate currently at a two-decade high of nearly 7%, existing housing supply also remains tight as a majority of homeowners are unwilling to resell their homes, having locked down home loan rates below 5% during an era of cheap debt. "Although affordability continued to be tested by interest rate movements and simultaneously challenged consumer sentiment, purchasers remained responsive to increased sales incentives," said Executive Chairman Stuart Miller. Lennar reported average price per home at $426,000 in the quarter ended May 31, down from $449,000 a year ago. The company delivered 19,690 homes versus 17,885 units a year ago. Earnings came at $3.45 per share for the quarter, compared with analysts' average estimate of $3.24 per share, according to LSEG data. The company, however, forecast third-quarter home deliveries to be between 20,500 and 21,000 homes, the midpoint of which is marginally below analysts' estimate of 20,917 homes. Shares of the company were down about 1.8% after the bell. (Reporting by Ananta Agarwal and Nathan Gomes in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar)

Say Goodbye to High U.S. Costs: Why Retiring Abroad Is the New Financial Strategy for Boomers 2024-06-18 04:15:00+00:00 - Say Goodbye to High U.S. Costs: Why Retiring Abroad Is the New Financial Strategy for Boomers From 2019 to 2022, the number of Americans receiving their Social Security benefits overseas increased from 413,000 to 760,000. With more countries opening up retirement visas, the idea of retiring abroad continues to grow in popularity. Why are so many people drawn to living in another country? Don't Miss: The average American couple has saved this much money for retirement — How do you compare ? Can you guess how many retire with a $5,000,000 nest egg? – How does it compare to the average? Beyond the novelty of traveling and experiencing a new culture, two things stand out when talking to overseas retirees: cost of living and quality of life. Laura and Chris Barnett, a couple from Fayetteville, North Carolina, told CNN about their plan to move to Portugal, and the cost was a huge factor. "[The U.S.] has set up a system where even if we have the money to cover our day-to-day expenses — rent, food, travel — all of a sudden there's this other line item called health care. That's about $1,500 a month, more than our house payment," Laura said. She continued by saying that they believe they'll be able to live on less than $3,500 per month in Portugal while still being able to travel throughout Europe. The Wall Street Journal covered a story of six people who retired overseas with savings ranging from $70,000 to $1.8 million. You don't have to be a millionaire to retire abroad. One of the couples WSJ spoke to was Halisi Vinson, 58, and Ricard Crawley, 67, who retired in Lisbon, Portugal. They saved $300,000 for retirement, and after speaking to others who had made the move and visiting Portugal for a month themselves, they moved from Denver to Lisbon. Their monthly expenses, which include rent and dining out, are about $2,600 per month. That's half what they'd expect in the U.S. Trending: The average millionaire has 7 sources of income – Here are 3 passive income opportunities you can add today. Portugal isn't the only place retirees flock to. Susan Wojcik, 62, retired in Samara, Costa Rica, and is able to cover her expenses with her $1,421 Social Security check. One retiree living in Spain told WSJ, "My stress level in Spain is much lower as a result of the lower cost of living and an overall higher quality of life." It isn't just health care, food, and rent that cost less when living abroad. Many places, particularly in Europe and Asia, have good enough public transportation that you don't need a car. Some countries focus less on consumerism, so there isn't as much pressure to buy things when going out. Story continues More people are growing concerned that they won't be able to afford basic expenses in their retirement, and many must continue to work well into their 60s to afford health care. If retiring abroad and traveling the world with a lower cost of living is your dream, by all means, go for it. Moving abroad permanently definitely has drawbacks and bureaucracy to worry about — leaving family in the U.S., taxes, visa application and renewal processes, and other paperwork — but it is doable. Whether you want to retire abroad or just plan for a comfortable retirement stateside, a good financial advisor can help you achieve financial stability. Consider arming your financial toolbelt with an advisor who can guide you in your unique retirement goals. Read Next: Warren Buffett flipped his neighbor's $67,000 life savings into a $50 million fortune — How much is that worth today? 82% of Americans aren’t using this government secured 5% passive income stream, are you one of them? "ACTIVE INVESTORS' SECRET WEAPON" Supercharge Your Stock Market Game with the #1 "news & everything else" trading tool: Benzinga Pro - Click here to start Your 14-Day Trial Now! Get the latest stock analysis from Benzinga? This article Say Goodbye to High U.S. Costs: Why Retiring Abroad Is the New Financial Strategy for Boomers originally appeared on Benzinga.com © 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.

Why Virgin Galactic's Reverse Stock Split Went Splat 2024-06-18 03:25:00+00:00 - Well, it seems I was too optimistic. Writing up Virgin Galactic's (NYSE: SPCE) 1-for-20 reverse share split announcement last week, I explained that by gluing together 20 ordinary shares into a kind of "mega-share," the company would transform its apparent share price from $0.74 (Thursday) into a new share price of $14.80 (today). Instead, Virgin Galactic's share price has plunged, and as of 11:50 a.m. ET Monday is down 17.2% at $11.34. You can't blame it for trying This was probably unavoidable. As I explained last week, and also two months prior, Virgin Galactic is a company in decline. Its sole operational spaceplane, Unity, has been retired, and the company can't fly space tourists, or make revenue from space tourism flights, until it builds a new Delta spaceplane currently in development. For the next couple of years, the only ways Virgin Galactic can conceivably pay for its ongoing operating expenses are by draining its cash reserves, taking on debt, or selling shares (and diluting its shareholders). And most likely, by some combination of the above. Is Virgin Galactic stock a sell? None of these are attractive options. None of them will make Virgin Galactic look like an attractive investment. And this situation won't change for at least another couple of years, if and when Virgin gets its Delta spaceplane built and resumes space tourism flights. Now, investors needn't lose all hope. The fact that Virgin Galactic has its reverse split out of the way and its stock price comfortably above $1 a share means it's no longer technically a penny stock, and no longer in immediate risk of delisting from the New York Stock Exchange. Virgin might also defy the odds, succeed in finding the money to keep itself afloat, and get Delta built in time to save its business. The odds are against this happening, though. If I had to guess, I'd say it's more likely the stock will continue to fall, and sooner than you may think, Virgin Galactic stock will be at risk of delisting again. Should you invest $1,000 in Virgin Galactic right now? Before you buy stock in Virgin Galactic, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Virgin Galactic wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $808,105!* Stock Advisor provides investors with an easy-to-follow blueprint for success, including guidance on building a portfolio, regular updates from analysts, and two new stock picks each month. The Stock Advisor service has more than quadrupled the return of S&P 500 since 2002*. Story continues See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of June 10, 2024 Rich Smith has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Why Virgin Galactic's Reverse Stock Split Went Splat was originally published by The Motley Fool

GameStop stock tanks 15% during shareholder meeting as few details on strategy emerge 2024-06-18 03:04:00+00:00 - GameStop stock (GME) fell as much as 15% during the struggling video game retailer's annual shareholder meeting on Monday as the company gave few details on its strategy going forward. Chairman and CEO Ryan Cohen spoke briefly during the highly anticipated gathering, emphasizing the company's focus on achieving profitability. “With respect to retail operations, we plan to continue reducing costs and focusing on profitability,” said Cohen, citing "a smaller network" of stores. “We are focused on building shareholder value over the long term. We are not here to make promises, or hype things up. We’re here to work,” he added. GameStop shares have been volatile over the past month amid the reemergence of retail trader Keith Gill, credited with sparking the meme frenzy of 2021. GameStop has capitalized on recent rallies, raising over $3 billion in proceeds from stock offerings over the past month. “Having a strong balance sheet, especially in times of economic uncertainty, is a strategic advantage,” Cohen said on Monday. Beyond Cohen's opening remarks, the company did not give any further details on its strategy or future plans. Keith Gill testifies during a virtual hearing on GameStop in 2021. (House Financial Services Committee via AP, File) (ASSOCIATED PRESS) The shareholder meeting was postponed last week after a high volume of listeners led to a technical glitch with the stream. The meme frenzy revival began last month, when GameStop rallied 180% over a span of two days after Keith Gill, known as Roaring Kitty online, posted for the first time on social media platform X since 2021. Earlier this month the stock sank nearly 40% in one day as GameStop released its quarterly results early and filed to sell millions of shares hours before millions of viewers tuned in for a YouTube livestream from Roaring Kitty. "It becomes a bet on the management. In particular, of course, Ryan, f***ng Cohen. Ryan Cohen and his crew. That's what folks should be focused on," Gill said. He added, "I see enough where I believe this guy may be able to do it." Gill also said that the screenshots of GameStop holdings posted on social media were his. "The accounts showing my positions are mine. These are my positions. I'm not working with anybody else. I'm not working with hedge funds," he said. Ines Ferre is a senior business reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow her on X at @ines_ferre.

Brace for a stock-market pullback after an epic start to the year, strategist warns 2024-06-18 02:33:00+00:00 - ekapol/Getty Images The S&P 500 is likely to fall at least 5% in the coming months, one strategist predicted. CFRA's Sam Stovall said a pullback tends to follow a great first quarter for the benchmark index. On the bright side, Stovall said the S&P's full-year gain is usually over 20% after a stellar start. Brace for stocks to take a breather and retreat by at least 5% after a breathless start to the year, one strategist warned. The S&P 500 surged by more than 10% in the first quarter. AI mania lit a fire under stocks like Nvidia and Microsoft, and cooling inflation stoked investors' hopes for a flurry of interest-rate cuts, fueling demand for stocks. Sam Stovall, CFRA Research's chief investment strategist, recently told Yahoo Finance that performance was the index's 11th-best first-quarter return since World War II. However, he noted that 14 of the top 15 returns were followed by a decline of 5% or more, and a subsequent slump of more than 12% in some cases. "I am getting increasingly concerned that we have to endure another decline of 5% or more before the year is out," Stovall said, framing the slump as a "resetting of the dials" or "digestion" after a big meal. That would slash the S&P from 5,432 points at Friday's close to about 5,160 — the same level as early March. A 12% drop would push the index down below 4,800, where it was trading in January. Stovall said the "silver lining" is that after a fantastic first quarter, the S&P 500 tends to finish the year up more than 20% on average. That suggests the index could build significantly on its 14% year-to-date gain. The Wall Street veteran, who worked as S&P Global's chief investment strategist for 27 years before joining CFRA in 2016, also outlined what might trigger a pullback. He pointed to an unpredictable event such as a war or bank failure, markets rising too quickly and becoming overstretched, or an economic slowdown that reignites recession fears among investors. Stovall noted the S&P is trading at a 30% premium to its average price-to-earnings multiple over the past 20 years, and flagged its reliance on technology stocks for its recent gains. "How long can this jumbo jet fly on only one engine?" he asked. Read the original article on Business Insider

Oil and gas pricing outlook ahead of peak summer travel 2024-06-17 23:52:00+00:00 - Oil prices (BZ=F, CL=F) are beginning to rise on Monday after recent data revealed weak crude oil demand in China. What does this mean for gas prices (RB=F) at the pump as global energy markets respond to demand trends ahead of the summer travel season? Yahoo Finance Reporter Ines Ferré joins Wealth! to break down the latest for oil and gas prices and what consumers can expect at the pumps this week. For more expert insight and the latest market action, click here to watch this full episode of Wealth! This post was written by Nicholas Jacobino Video Transcript Now let's take a look at the price of oil on the rise this morning with crude prices trading just above 79 bucks a barrel. This is a slight rebound from earlier declines after new data showed weak demand for China's crude oil for the month of May here with the latest on oil prices and how much you'll be paying at the pump. This week. We have Yahoo finances and as for Ray and as let's start on oil since we seem to have a stronger than expected start to the week. Yeah, that's right. Ali with oil right now going up about 1% for WT I and for Brent crude as well. You had that data coming out of China where industrial output was weak retail sales though did beat expectations. So the market here taking some mixed signals as far as what the China data is showing, but look what analysts are expecting for oil, which has been on a downward trend in recent weeks is that you're going to have summer demand drawing down on stockpiles of oil this summer. So you will still will have a relatively tight market when it comes to the oil prices. In fact, analysts are saying that if oil gets into the mid seventies, let's say for Brent crude, for example, then you're going to have buyers like China stepping in to scoop up some of that oil from the market. You're going to have the US stepping in to refill its spr its strategic petroleum reserve. If oil goes a little bit too high, then you're going to have ready to step in. Remember that OPEC has announced that it wants to start phasing out its voluntary cuts starting in October, something that had sort of jolted the oil markets when Opec Plus had announced that because the markets, analysts had been expecting their cuts to extend throughout the rest of the year. Voluntary cuts included as far as gasoline prices are concerned, those have been cooling. So we are seeing gasoline prices at the pump at an average of three 45 per gallon today a month ago, that was $3.60. Part of the reason why you've seen some of the cooling is because you've had wholesale prices that have been sliding again. Story continues Oil prices also trending down which has helped uh drivers at the pump alley. Thanks, keeping track of all the gas prices which we know have been a headache for consumers. Appreciate it.

FDA approves Merck vaccine designed to protect adults from bacteria that can cause pneumonia, serious infections 2024-06-17 22:08:00+00:00 - The Food and Drug Administration on Monday approved Merck 's new vaccine designed to protect adults from a bacteria known as pneumococcus that can cause serious illnesses and a lung infection called pneumonia, the drugmaker said. Merck's shot, called Capvaxive, specifically protects against 21 strains of that bacteria to prevent a severe form of pneumococcal disease that can spread to other parts of the body and lead to pneumonia. It's the first pneumococcal conjugate vaccine designed specifically for adults and aims to provide broader protection than the available shots on the market, according to the drugmaker. Healthy adults can suffer from pneumococcal disease. But older patients and those with chronic or immunocompromising health conditions are at increased risk for the illness, especially the more serious or so-called "invasive" form. Invasive pneumococcal disease can lead to meningitis, an infection that causes inflammation in the area surrounding the brain and spinal cord, and an infection in the bloodstream called bacteremia. "If you have chronic lung disease, even asthma, you have a higher risk of getting sick with pneumococcal disease, and then being in the hospital, losing out on work," Heather Platt, Merck's product development team lead for the newly cleared vaccine, told CNBC in an interview. "Those are things that have a real impact on adults and children, their quality of life." Around 150,000 U.S. adults are hospitalized with invasive pneumococcal disease each year, Platt said. Death from the more serious form of the disease is highest among adults 50 and above, Merck said in a release in December. Even after the FDA approval, the company's single-dose vaccine won't reach patients just yet. An advisory panel to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will meet on June 27 to discuss who should be eligible for the shot. Platt said Merck will support the committee's decision and is ready to supply the vaccine by late summer.

Milwaukee brewery defends home turf with "(not so) Horrible City IPA" 2024-06-17 21:57:00+00:00 - It may not become Milwaukee's new motto, but it's a slogan that's helping a soon-to-be launched craft beer sell. MobCraft Beer started taking pre-orders on Friday for the ale, dubbed "(not so) Horrible City IPA," which should be available for consumption by early July. "We wanted to do something goofy — there is so much tension around politics in our world — and we want to be a fun part," Henry Schwartz, CEO of the brewery, told CBS MoneyWatch. The idea of using a product to send a message came after reports that former President Donald Trump allegedly dismissed Milwaukee as a "horrible city" in a recent closed-to-the-press meeting with House Republicans on Capitol Hill. Trump pushed back on the reports, telling Fox News: "I think it was very clear what I meant. I said we're very concerned with crime." The presumptive Republican presidential nominee also called the story "a complete lie" on Truth Social. A Trump adviser declared on X that the candidate's words had been mischaracterized. "He was talking about how terrible crime and voter fraud are," Trump adviser Steven Cheung posted. "It's been so much fun, having Milwaukee be in the spotlight for the last few weeks; we're really excited about getting so many people into Milwaukee," Schwartz said of the upcoming Republican National Convention, a three-day affair that begins July 15. "It's more societal than political — you hear something, you believe something," added Schwartz of negative impressions formed on second-hand information. People should come visit Milwaukee and see for themselves what kind of place it really is, he added.

People say you'll regret not having kids. I don't, but I wish I had done something special to honor my decision. 2024-06-17 21:39:02+00:00 - By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . You can opt-out at any time by visiting our Preferences page or by clicking "unsubscribe" at the bottom of the email. "You'll regret it if you don't have kids," my friend's mom warned her in her 20s. Back then, in the 50s and 60s, it was assumed that everyone would have kids after they got married. Marriage itself was a foregone conclusion. Surprisingly for that era, my parents didn't pressure me. The closest either of them came was my mother once saying, "I hope you have children, because it's one of life's most beautiful experiences." She never brought it up again. Related stories In the end, I didn't have kids. I'm sure having children can indeed be one of life's most beautiful experiences, but I have no regrets. The decision we made was an important one Looking back, 45 years later, on the decision that my husband Barry and I made, I think what happens after a woman decides not to have kids is crucial. In my case, despite the fact that I never experienced any pressure to have children, it took me a while to fully inhabit my new identity as a woman without biological kids. Advertisement This was partly because I never experienced a clear, decisive moment when I woke up and said to myself, "I don't want children." Unlike me, Barry did experience such a moment of clarity. Lucky him! Even after 15 years of marriage, I hesitated to finalize the decision. Looking back, I'm puzzled that I never really honored my decision. While I wasn't remorseful or even ambivalent, neither did I rejoice. I don't mean we should've thrown a party, but rather, I wish now that we had done something simple to mark the transition. After all, this was a huge decision — the biggest in our married life. I wish we had marked it with a ritual When we got home from the hospital after Barry's vasectomy, we lay together on a futon on our patio tiles, looking up at the clouds and not saying much. That was a good start, but in my ideal world, I would have lit a candle or looked at each other and "gassho"ed, a Buddhist term meaning to bow with hands in a prayer position to acknowledge closure, gratitude, or regret. Performing a ritual has always been a profound way for me to acknowledge a transition and move forward. On the other hand, something that did help enormously was the unexpected gift I received from my younger sister, who loves children and already had two at the time. After I told her our news, without a moment's hesitation, she cried, "Oh, great!" Later, she explained that it wasn't that she didn't want us to have kids but rather that she was delighted we'd made the decision so we could embrace the next chapter in our lives. What a difference her affirmation made. Advertisement I know several women today who are on the fence about having a child, and I can imagine how tough the decision is, especially in the complex world we're in nowadays. If I were to give them advice, I'd say this: whatever choice you make, pay close attention to what happens before and after. Consider creating a ritual, and find someone you trust outside your relationship to help you affirm the decision you made, so you can claim it with all your heart.

The Supreme Court's Trump immunity case could've been over by now 2024-06-17 21:32:16+00:00 - The Supreme Court’s delays in deciding Donald Trump’s immunity case are creating a crisis — a collision between a Justice Department tradition and the necessity of an informed electorate. On one hand, voters deserve a verdict in the trial accusing Trump of attempting to interfere with the lawful transition of power after the 2020 election. On the other, the Justice Department customarily respects “election year sensitivities” — not initiating legal actions that could affect an election in the months immediately before it. This looming conflict was easily avoided. Unfortunately, however, the court’s radical conservative majority rejected three sensible ways to ensure that Trump got tried to a verdict before the election. Had it taken any of these routes, the trial easily would have concluded more than three months before the election, well ahead of Election Day. It seems the court will issue its ruling at the very end of its term, in late June or even early July. First, the court could have taken the case in December when special counsel Jack Smith petitioned for it to be heard. Second, the justices could have declined to take the case after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit comprehensively (and correctly) rejected Trump’s appeal. The case could have gone straight back to the district court for trial. Third, even when the court accepted the case in February, it could have expedited its hearing, then issued a ruling in March or April. Instead, the court set the hearing for the last possible date for oral arguments. Now it seems the court will issue its ruling at the very end of its term, in late June or even early July. Worse still, at the April 25 hearing the court signaled it could return the case to the district court to decide, via an evidentiary hearing, which actions alleged by the grand jury were “official” and which were personal, including those actions taken for campaign and re-election purposes. Requiring a lengthy evidentiary hearing and potential subsequent appeals before any trial would ensure that no trial of all the charges could occur before the election. In that case, Smith might choose a course first laid out in his brief to the Supreme Court: dismissing any allegations that might be within the “outer perimeters” of presidential responsibilities and proceeding to trial on a narrowed indictment — alleging only those allegations that are clearly outside those perimeters. Even Trump’s lawyer John Sauer conceded at the April 25 hearing that Trump would not be immune from being tried on charges that he helped orchestrate the fake elector scheme, supported false allegations of election fraud and signed verifications in court filings knowing that they were false. Smith could decide to try the case exclusively on those charges. Even a slimmed-down trial, though, would not occur immediately once the case returned to the district court in early July. Judge Tanya Chutkan has said that Trump and his lawyers would have 88 days to prepare once the case returns for a trial. That would put the trial’s beginning in October, a month before the election. Even if Chutkan cut the preparation time for Trump’s team in half — say, because Smith narrowed the charges — jury selection would begin in late August, barely more than two months before Election Day. The Justice Department’s interest in avoiding even the appearance of partisan politics is well founded and not lightly cast aside. Therein lies the collision with the Justice Department’s policy of avoiding initiating actions that could affect the election. Even though Trump solicited the delays in the first place, Attorney General Merrick Garland would find himself in the difficult position of whether to accept any recommendation from Smith that the case go to trial within a few months of the election. The department’s interest in avoiding even the appearance of partisan politics is well founded and not lightly cast aside. Yet if a trial does not take place, voters will be deprived of vital information they should have before casting their ballots — whether a jury would find Trump innocent or guilty of the Jan. 6-related crimes alleged in the federal indictment. Furthermore, if Trump were to win the election, he would have his new attorney general dismiss the case. In that scenario, it is quite likely he would never be held to account for his actions in the lead-up to and on Jan. 6. Oliver Wendell Holmes famously wrote that hard cases make bad law. But this is not a hard case. If the rule of law means anything, it is that no president can seek to overturn an election and be immune. Any contrary result eviscerates the most basic principle of our republic: No one is above the law. Yet this reactionary Supreme Court majority is proving that even easy cases can make bad law when rulings are driven by the majority’s partisan biases. And the lengths to which it is going to drag out proceedings have handed the Justice Department a monumental dilemma — for which the court is entirely responsible.

BioRestorative Therapies Enters Preclinical Assessment Of Its Patented Stem-Cell Technology Prior To First-In-Human Studies - Eli Lilly and Co (NYSE:LLY), BioRestorative Therapies (NASDAQ:BRTX) 2024-06-17 21:26:00+00:00 - Clinical-stage biotech innovator BioRestorative Therapies BRTX recently announced that it is entering a new program of preclinical metabolic testing for its patented stem cell biology technology, ThermoStem®. BioRestorative, which went public in November 2021, is currently engaged in the development of treatments for disc/spine disease and metabolic disorders. In May, the company announced that it would begin a new preclinical metabolic program focused on the treatment of obesity. Preclinical metabolic programs are detailed studies that examine the safety and efficacy of treatments and are conducted prior to the start of first-in-human (FIH) studies. The company sees significant opportunities for ThermoStem® to help treat the worldwide obesity epidemic. Morgan Stanley Research estimates that the global market for obesity drugs will be greater than $100 billion by 2030. "We believe that our proprietary ThermoStem® technology platform has immense potential to develop both best-in-class and first-in-class therapies to treat metabolic disorders such as obesity," said Lance Alstodt, BioRestorative's Chief Executive Officer, when announcing the commencement of the new program. How ThermoStem® May Be Used To Treat Obesity Brown adipose tissue (BAT) is a type of body fat that regulates temperature. Our bodies use it to convert food energy into heat. As such, BAT is also a primary target in obesity prevention strategies. Initial preclinical research indicates that increased amounts of brown adipose in animals may be responsible for additional caloric burning as well as reduced glucose and lipid levels. Researchers have found that people with higher levels of brown adipose may have a reduced risk for obesity and diabetes. BioRestorative's preclinical metabolic program is the first step in developing cell-based therapy candidates to target obesity and metabolic disorders. These therapies would use BAT derived from stem cells to mimic the naturally occurring fat that regulates metabolic homeostasis in humans. The ThermoStem® technology platform may be able to play a role in adipose metabolism by transporting proteins and the molecules that transcribe and translate the cellular processes that impact weight loss. Alstodt says that there is a significant unmet need for the types of follow-on treatments that BioRestorative's new therapeutic candidate can deliver to current weight loss drugs, such as Ozempic from Novo Nordisk NVO or Mounjaro from Eli Lilly LLY. Targeting obesity through an exosome-based biologic is a novel approach. The Emerging Role Of Exosomes As Novel Obesity Therapeutics Exosomes are nanoscale membrane vesicles used by the body to transport and transfer genetic material. They are exceptionally adept at targeting and modifying the biological activities of specific cells or tissues. Extracellular vesicles like exosomes are critical to intercellular communications. They help our bodies maintain homeostasis. Because they transfer biological messages from a donor cell to a recipient cell, exosomes present a novel platform for delivering therapeutic materials to a targeted cell or tissue. BioRestorative's Alstodt says that this may allow for lower dosing and it could help prevent or minimize the potential for muscle mass loss and negative cardiovascular effects. As such, the ThermoStem® technology platform could help develop best-in-class and first-in-class therapies to treat obesity. Preclinical data from a study conducted in collaboration with the University of Utah School of Medicine demonstrated that functional BAT derived from stem cells, formulated using BioRestorative's proprietary ThermoStem® platform, produced significant reductions in weight and blood glucose levels. More About BioRestorative Therapies: Company Brief BioRestorative Therapies develops therapeutic products using cell and tissue protocols, primarily involving adult stem cells. It owns a broad intellectual property portfolio that can be leveraged across other companies' currently approved and marketed drugs to potentially create partnership opportunities with large pharmaceutical manufacturers. BioRestorative's flagship cell therapy candidate is formulated from one’s own stem cells that can be used for the non-surgical treatment of painful lumbosacral disc disorders or as a complementary therapeutic to surgical procedures. It also has a proprietary biologic serum specifically engineered to reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles and to bring forth other areas of cosmetic effectiveness. The company expects to file a new drug master file (DMF) submission to the U.S. FDA for the treatment of obesity in the third quarter and to begin human trials before the end of 2024. Featured photo by Vika_Glitter on Pixabay. This post contains sponsored content. This content is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be investing advice.

Israeli military knew how Hamas planned to take hostages weeks before October 7: report 2024-06-17 21:17:18+00:00 - By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . You can opt-out at any time by visiting our Preferences page or by clicking "unsubscribe" at the bottom of the email. Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go. download the app Sign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. Read preview The Israeli military knew about Hamas' plans to attack southern Israel weeks before October 7 — even how many hostages the militant group planned to capture, according to a report from Israeli public broadcaster Kan. The Israel Defense Force's Gaza Division reportedly distributed an internal intelligence document on September 19, 2023, outlining the details of Hamas' planned raid, according to Kan. This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. Become an Insider and start reading now. The document, which Kan reportedly saw, states that the IDF had observed Hamas conducting a series of trainings where militant fighters practiced attacking both Israeli military stations and civilian kibbutzim communities. Related stories The IDF also knew, according to the document viewed by Kan, that Hamas trained its units on how to capture hostages and how to guard them once they were taken back to the Gaza Strip. Advertisement The IDF's Southern Command and Gaza Division also wrote in the document, according to Kan, that they expected Hamas to take between 200 and 250 hostages. The officials even had intel on how Hamas intended to treat the hostages in certain extreme circumstances and what rules Hamas set for executing hostages, Kan reported. Israel mistakenly believed, the Times of Israel reported, that Hamas would never be able to get past its high-tech border security — an "Iron Wall" composed of concrete, tunnels, and razor wire, complete with remote-controlled machine guns, that was installed two years before the attack. That oversight prevented top Israeli intelligence leaders from doing anything about the internal report detailing Hamas' plans, Kan News reported. And it wasn't just a few weeks before October 7 that Israel reportedly knew about Hamas' plans. Advertisement More than a year before the attack, Israel had a 40-page document detailing, play-by-play, exactly how Hamas would attack the southern border, The New York Times reported last year. But, Israel never took Hamas' plans seriously, assuming the militant group would never get past Israel's defenses, the Times reported. Hamas militants attacked southern Israel on October 7, killing 1,200 people and taking hundreds hostage, many of whom are still being held in captivity. The exact number of hostages Hamas took is unclear, but Israel has estimated it was around 240, with about 116 still in Gaza, the Wall Street Journal reported. Israel's subsequent airstrikes and war against Hamas in Gaza have killed more than 37,000 Palestinians, many of whom are women and children, according to Palestinian health authorities.

Federal appellate panel sends Michigan pipeline challenge to state court 2024-06-17 21:16:21+00:00 - Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel’s lawsuit seeking to shut down part of a petroleum pipeline that runs beneath the Straits of Mackinac belongs in state court, a federal appellate panel ruled Monday. The pipeline’s operator, Enbridge Inc., moved the case from state court to federal court more than two years past the deadline for changing jurisdictions. A three-judge panel from the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals found Enbridge clearly missed the deadline and ordered the case remanded to state court. Enbridge spokesperson Ryan Duffy didn’t immediately respond to an email seeking comment. Nessel filed the lawsuit in June 2019 seeking to void a 1953 easement that enables Enbridge to operate a 4.5-mile (6.4-kilometer) section of Line 5 beneath the straits, which link Lake Michigan and Lake Huron. Concerns over the section rupturing and causing a catastrophic spill have been growing since 2017, when Enbridge engineers revealed they had known about gaps in the section’s protective coating since 2014. A boat anchor damaged the section in 2018, intensifying fears of a spill. Nessel won a restraining order from a state judge in June 2020, although Enbridge was allowed to restart operations after complying with safety requirements. The energy company moved the lawsuit into federal court in December 2021. Nessel argued to the 6th U.S. Circuit panel that the lawsuit belongs in state court. During oral arguments before the panel in Cincinnati in March, her attorneys insisted the case invokes the public trust doctrine, a legal concept in state law in which natural resources belong to the public, as well as the Michigan Environmental Protection Act. Enbridge attorneys countered the case should stay in federal court because it affects trade between the U.S. and Canada. Line 5 moves petroleum products from northwestern Wisconsin through Michigan into Ontario. The judges — Richard Griffin, Amul Thapor and John Nalbandian — did not address the merits of the case. Enbridge filed a separate federal lawsuit in 2020 arguing that the state’s attempt to shut down the pipeline interferes with the federal regulation of pipeline safety and could encourage copycat actions that would impede interstate and international petroleum trading. That case is pending. Enbridge also has been working to secure permits to encase the section of pipeline beneath the straits in a protective tunnel. The pipeline is at the center of a legal dispute in Wisconsin as well. A federal judge in Madison last summer gave Enbridge three years to shut down part of Line 5 that runs across the Bad River Band of Lake Superior’s reservation. The company has proposed rerouting the pipeline around the reservation and has appealed the shutdown order to the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. That case is pending.

Biden plans to announce new policy shielding undocumented spouses of U.S. citizens from deportation 2024-06-17 21:09:00+00:00 - On Tuesday, the Biden administration plans to announce an executive action protecting undocumented spouses of American citizens that would shield about 500,000 immigrants from deportation, according to four sources familiar with the matter. “This is the biggest thing since DACA,” said one of the sources, an immigration advocate, adding that it was a smart political move by the Biden administration. The four sources, which include advocates and Capitol Hill staffers, said that lawmakers have been briefed and at least some have been invited to the White House for the announcement. NBC News reported last week that an executive action protecting the spouses was likely to be announced soon. The program, known as “parole in place,” would also make it easier for some undocumented immigrants to get a green card and a path to U.S. citizenship. The sources also say that the undocumented spouses would be allowed to obtain work permits on a case-by-case basis. Two of the sources said that the undocumented spouses will have to have lived in the U.S. and been married for at least 10 years before being eligible to apply for the work permit. Three of the sources said that President Joe Biden will also announce a new action regarding DACA recipients who earned degrees in higher education and are seeking a job in that same field. The planned actions come after immigration advocates and Democratic lawmakers urged the administration to prioritize long-term undocumented immigrants and as Biden tries to court Latino voters in crucial battleground states such as Nevada and Arizona. The moves are expected to be challenged in court.