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Stock market today: Wall Street’s ugly April gets even worse as it tumbles across the finish line 2024-04-30 05:56:50+00:00 - NEW YORK (AP) — More worries about inflation and interest rates staying high knocked U.S. stocks lower on Tuesday, as the market closed out its worst month since September. The S&P 500 tumbled 1.6% to cement its first losing month in the last six. Its momentum slammed into reverse in April, falling as much as 5.5% at one point, after setting a record at the end of March. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 570 points, or 1.5%, and the Nasdaq composite lost 2%. Stocks began sinking as soon as trading began, after a report showed U.S. workers won bigger gains in wages and benefits than expected during the first three months of the year. While that’s good news for workers and the latest signal of a solid job market, it feeds into worries that upward pressure remains on inflation. AP AUDIO: Stock market today: An ugly April for Wall Street is closing with some more losses. The stock market opens with a loss of momentum. Here’s more from AP’s Seth Sutel. It followed a string of reports this year that have shown inflation remains stubbornly high. That’s caused traders to largely give up on hopes that the Federal Reserve will deliver multiple cuts to interest rates this year. And that in turn has sent Treasury yields jumping in the bond market, which has cranked up the pressure on stocks. Tuesday’s losses for stocks accelerated at the end of the day as traders made their final moves before closing the books on April, and ahead of an announcement by the Federal Reserve on interest rates scheduled for Wednesday afternoon. No one expects the Federal Reserve to change its main interest rate at this meeting. But traders are anxious about what Fed Chair Jerome Powell may say about the rest of the year. Traders are now mostly betting the Fed will cut rates either one or zero times through the balance of 2024, according to data from CME Group. That’s a big letdown after traders came into the year forecasting six or more cuts. The Fed itself was earlier penciling in three cuts to rates during 2024, but top officials have recently hinted rates may stay high for longer as they wait for more confirmation inflation is heading down toward their 2% target. The Fed’s main interest rate is sitting at the highest level since 2001, which puts downward pressure on the economy and investment prices. Without the benefit of easing interest rates, companies will need to deliver bigger profits in order to support their stock prices, which critics have called broadly too expensive following their run to records. GE Healthcare Technologies tumbled 14.3% after it reported weaker results and revenue for the latest quarter than analysts expected. F5 dropped 9.2% despite reporting a better profit than expected. Its revenue fell short of forecasts, and it said customers were remaining cautious and forecasting largely flat IT budgets for the year. McDonald’s slipped 0.2% after its profit for the latest quarter came up just shy of analysts’ expectations. It was hurt by weakening sales trends at its franchised stores overseas, in part by boycotts from Muslim-majority markets over the company’s perceived support of Israel. Helping to keep the market’s losses in check was 3M, which rose 4.7% after reporting stronger results and revenue than forecast. Eli Lilly climbed 6% after turning in a better profit than expected on strong sales of its Mounjaro and Zepbound drugs for diabetes and obesity. It also raised its forecasts for revenue and profit for the full year. Stocks of cannabis companies also soared after The Associated Press reported the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration will move to reclassify marijuana as a less dangerous drug in a historic shift. Cannabis producer Tilray Brands jumped 39.5%. All told, the S&P 500 fell 80.48 points to 5,035.69. The Dow dropped 570.17 to 37,815.92, and the Nasdaq composite fell 325.26 to 15,657.82. This earnings reporting season has largely been better than expected so far. Not only have the tech companies that dominate Wall Street done well, so have companies across a range of industries. That’s a change from the recent past, and it helped push strategists at Deutsche Bank to raise their forecast for full-year earnings growth for the S&P 500. Many companies are topping forecasts because they’ve been able to wring more profit out of each $1 of revenue than analysts were expecting, according to Binky Chadha, chief strategist at Deutsche Bank. Such strength could support stock prices even if interest rates end up staying high, according to Kristy Akullian, head of iShares Investment Strategy, Americas. “Equities don’t need Fed rate cuts for the rally to continue, all they need is solid earnings growth,” she said. In the bond market, the yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 4.68% from 4.61% just before the morning release of the report on employee wages and benefits. The two-year Treasury yield, which more closely tracks expectations for the Fed, jumped back above the 5% level to 5.03% from 4.97% late Monday. In stock markets abroad, Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 1.2% after reopening following a holiday. The government reported stronger-than-expected gains in industrial production for March. Indexes were mixed across much of the rest of Asia but lower in Europe. ___ AP Business Writers Yuri Kageyama and Matt Ott contributed.
AMD to report Q1 earnings Tuesday as Wall Street looks for jump in AI and PC sales 2024-04-30 03:25:00+00:00 - Chip giant AMD (AMD) will report its first quarter earnings after the bell on Tuesday. The announcement follows rival Intel’s disappointing report last week. While Intel (INTC) beat on the top and bottom lines, the company provided lower-than-anticipated revenue guidance for the current quarter, sending shares sliding. Investors and analysts will be looking at two key metrics during AMD’s report: AI chip sales and PC market performance. The company released its MI300 line of AI accelerators in December 2023 and began shipping units shortly thereafter. How well those chips are selling could have a large impact on AMD’s shares following the earnings announcement. Wall Street expects earnings per share (EPS) of $0.61 on revenue of $5.45 billion. That would mark a slight increase from the same quarter last year when AMD reported EPS of $0.60 on revenue of $5.35 billion. AMD’s MI300 chips are meant to go head-to-head with Nvidia’s (NVDA) best-selling H100 line of accelerators. The company previously said that its MI300X beats out Nvidia’s chips, a claim Nvidia rejected. Intel is also chasing Nvidia’s H100 platform with its Gaudi 3 accelerators. Lisa Su, CEO of AMD, speaks onstage during Vox Media's 2023 Code Conference at The Ritz-Carlton, Laguna Niguel on Sept. 26, 2023, in Dana Point, Calif. (Jerod Harris/Getty Images for Vox Media) (Jerod Harris via Getty Images) Nvidia, however, announced its follow-up to the H100, the Blackwell platform, during its GTC conference in March. This platform should offer better performance than its predecessor. The AI arms race isn’t slowing anytime soon, either. Microsoft (MSFT), Google (GOOG, GOOGL), and Meta (META) each announced that they’re pouring money into AI data center capabilities to build out and support their various software offerings. But whether AMD can steal significant market share away from market leader Nvidia remains to be seen. According to UBS Global Research analyst Timothy Arcuri, MI300X sales should bring in billions this year. “We still very much see $5 billion to $6 billion as still conservative for MI300 revenue this year and we also see guidance being fine,” he wrote in an investor note ahead of earnings. For the quarter, Wall Street is anticipating Data Center revenue of $2.31 billion, which would equate to a year-over-year increase of 78% versus the same period last year. Outside of AI sales, Wall Street will be looking at the recovery in the PC market and its impact on AMD’s sales. According to IDC, global PC shipments grew 1.5% in the first quarter of 2024, marking the first quarter of growth after two years of declines. Intel already reported a 31% year-over-year bump in Client Group revenue, the company’s PC chip segment, in its latest quarter. That should bode well for AMD. Both companies are pushing their own AI PCs, or laptops and desktops that can run generative AI apps locally rather than via the web. Story continues Analysts are calling for AMD Client revenue, the segment that includes PC chip sales, to jump 74% year over year to $1.29 billion in the quarter. But Intel and AMD aren’t the only companies pushing for a slice of the AI PC market. Qualcomm (QCOM) is angling for its own cut with its new Snapdragon X Elite and Snapdragon X Plus chips for laptops. Despite healthy growth projections for its Data Center and Client segments, Wall Street is expecting the company’s Gaming and Embedded divisions to tumble 45% and 40%, respectively. Subscribe to the Yahoo Finance Tech newsletter. (Yahoo Finance) Email Daniel Howley at dhowley@yahoofinance.com. Follow him on Twitter at @DanielHowley. For the latest earnings reports and analysis, earnings whispers and expectations, and company earnings news, click here Read the latest financial and business news from Yahoo Finance.
Asana CEO calls Tesla the next Enron and says Elon Musk has misled customers 2024-04-30 03:12:00+00:00 - Asana CEO Dustin Moskovitz has been a critic of Elon Musk and Tesla for years, but his latest jabs at the billionaire CEO and his EV giant were a bit more pointed than usual. “I know I sound crazy to most people who don't follow $TSLA closely but at this point it really needs to be said. This is Enron now, folks,” he wrote in a Thread on Friday. “It may keep going, but people are going to jail at the end.” Moskovitz’s comparison of Tesla to Enron, the Houston-based energy-trading and utility company that went bankrupt in 2001 after one of the biggest accounting scandals in history, is serious, to be sure. Enron used fraudulent accounting practices to overstate its revenues by 95%, but it took years for regulators to discover the scandal. Fortune’s Bethany McLean was the first to raise questions about Enron in a March 2001 article, ultimately leading to the company’s downfall. While Musk and Tesla have not been accused of overstating revenues, Asana’s Moskovitz alleges they are outright lying about their full self-driving technology (FSD). “The data is presented in fraudulent ways, and it doesn't say what they claim it says even when they make it up,” he wrote. “Tesla has committed consumer fraud on a massive scale, from lying about FSD, ranges, and (recently, unconfirmed!) even inflating odometers…also securities fraud.” Representatives for Asana and Tesla did not immediately respond to Fortune’s request for comment on Moskovitz’s claims. However, Musk responded to Moskovitz on X.com on Friday. “What a retard,” he wrote, following that up with: “I’d like to apologize to Dustin Moskowitz [sic] for calling him a “retard.” That was wrong. What I meant to say is that he is a pompous idiot whose his head is so far up his own ass that he is legally blind. I wish him the best and hope that someday we can be friends.” Moskovitz cofounded Facebook before starting the work management software company Asana in 2008 and has become a prominent critic of Musk in recent years. The tech entrepreneur believes Musk has overpromised when it comes to Tesla EVs’ range and technology advantage over competitors, duping investors and his employees. Moskovitz, who has been a major donor to the Democratic Party in the past, is also a critic of Musk’s politics, even calling on the Tesla CEO to resign after he called an anti-Semitic post “the actual truth” last year. This time, Moskovitz pointed to irregularities in a graph that detailed miles driven by Tesla’s full self-driving technology in the company’s first-quarter earnings call, labeling it “fraudulent.” Story continues “The graph Tesla AI released yesterday was manipulated to show an exponential growth trend,” he argued, adding that this likely was done to support Tesla’s robo-taxi announcement. Earlier this month, Musk announced that Tesla will reveal its robo-taxi at an Aug. 8 event, and teased a ride-sharing function in Tesla’s app. Musk and Tesla certainly have a long history of making predictions that turn out to be, at the very least, a bit premature, particularly when it comes to self-driving. Back in 2015, Musk told Fortune that Tesla’s cars would have level 4 autonomy, which would allow for unmonitored self-driving, in two years. In 2019, the billionaire CEO followed up that prediction by saying that he was “very confident” there would be 1 million fully autonomous Tesla robo-taxis on the road by 2020. While Tesla made immense progress on its self-driving tech since 2015, today the company only has a level 2 autonomous driving system, which means the car can control some functions, but the driver still must have hands on the steering wheel. Tesla has also faced legal challenges because of some of its full self-driving claims recently. Attorneys from Pomerantz LLP alleged that Tesla’s tech is a fraud in a case filed in federal court in California this month. The attorneys claim that Tesla tricked investors by overselling its full self-driving software, exposing them to regulatory risk and reputation harm due to the threat of accidents or injuries. The lawsuit comes after the California Department of Motor Vehicles accused Tesla of false advertising in regards to its full self-driving technology. For Moskovitz, Tesla’s history of making dubious claims is just an example of why investors should maintain a healthy amount of skepticism. “And I guess just a PSA to investors out there: You only get eventual justice with the SEC, if you even get that. You shouldn't assume you're being told the truth by any of these public companies,” he wrote. “We tell the truth at Asana, but empirically that is not true of other companies and I don't know anymore how to tell which is which.” This story was originally featured on Fortune.com
Want To Retire Early? Dave Ramsey's Surprising Tip to Fast-Track Your Retirement 2024-04-30 01:54:00+00:00 - Want To Retire Early? Dave Ramsey's Surprising Tip to Fast-Track Your Retirement Benzinga and Yahoo Finance LLC may earn commission or revenue on some items through the links below. Retiring early might sound like a fantasy, especially in today’s economic climate, but financial guru Dave Ramsey assures us it’s entirely possible with the right strategies—one of the most potent being an investment in real estate. In his recent article, “How to Retire Early: Everything You Need to Know,” Ramsey outlines several pivotal steps for those aiming to leave the workforce sooner rather than later. Beyond the basic financial adjustments, like slashing expenses and augmenting income, Ramsey highlights the transformative power of investing in real estate. Why Real Estate? According to Ramsey, investing in real estate offers a robust pathway to generate passive income and build wealth steadily over time. While traditional retirement accounts like 401(k)s and IRAs are essential, they come with age restrictions and penalties that might not align with early retirement plans. Real estate, on the other hand, can provide continuous cash flow, whether through rental income or appreciation, positioning it as an excellent ‘bridge’ investment to fund your early retirement years. Start Investing In Real Estate With Any Budget Understanding the power of real estate is one thing, but not everyone has the capital to buy properties outright. This is where Arrived, a platform backed by industry giants including Jeff Bezos, revolutionizes the investment landscape. With Arrived, you can buy shares in rental properties with as little as $100, making investment real estate accessible regardless of your budget. Arrived has already made significant strides in democratizing the real estate market. It has fully funded over 370 properties and boasts more than 580,000 registered investors. In the first quarter of 2024 alone, the platform paid out over $1 million in rental dividends, contributing to a total of $4.5 million so far. How Does Arrived Work? Arrived simplifies the investment process. Investors choose properties they trust, buy shares and earn dividends from the rental income. Each property is professionally managed, which means you gain all the benefits of being a landlord without any of the hassles typically associated with property management. Whether you're a seasoned investor or new to the scene, Arrived provides a transparent and straightforward path to growing your real estate portfolio. Ramsey advises to always pay for investment properties in full, and most of Arrived's property offerings have zero leverage, significantly reducing risks. Story continues Take Action Today Ramsey's advice is clear: if you’re serious about retiring early, integrating real estate into your investment portfolio is not just an option; it’s a necessity. With platforms like Arrived, getting started is easier and more affordable than ever. Why wait? Begin your journey towards early retirement and financial independence today by exploring the possibilities with Arrived Homes. Click here to explore Arrived's offerings and start working toward that goal of early retirement. Image by Gage Skidmore via Flickr This article Want To Retire Early? Dave Ramsey's Surprising Tip to Fast-Track Your Retirement originally appeared on Benzinga.com © 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
SoFi Stock Earnings Surprise: I Was Wrong 2024-04-30 00:56:00+00:00 - In this video, I will be going over SoFi Technologies' (NASDAQ: SOFI) first-quarter earnings report, which blew everyone's expectations out of the water, including my own. *Stock prices used were from the trading day of April 26, 2024. The video was published on April 29, 2024. Should you invest $1,000 in SoFi Technologies right now? Before you buy stock in SoFi Technologies, 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 SoFi Technologies 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 $537,557!* 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*. See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of April 22, 2024 Neil Rozenbaum has positions in SoFi Technologies. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Neil is an affiliate of The Motley Fool and may be compensated for promoting its services. If you choose to subscribe through his link, he will earn some extra money that supports his channel. His opinions remain his own and are unaffected by The Motley Fool. SoFi Stock Earnings Surprise: I Was Wrong was originally published by The Motley Fool
Minerals Technologies Inc. Announces Completion of Sale of Subsidiary's Talc Business - Minerals Technologies (NYSE:MTX) 2024-04-29 22:42:00+00:00 - Loading... Loading... NEW YORK, April 29, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Minerals Technologies Inc. MTX ("MTI" or "the Company") today announced that its subsidiary, Barretts Minerals Inc. ("BMI"), has completed the sale of all the talc assets to Riverspan Partners ("Riverspan") for $32 million. The go-forward company will conduct business under the Barretts Minerals brand. The United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas (the "Court") approved the sale, which includes an agreement to assume certain Assumed Liabilities, on March 25, 2024 as part of the ongoing Chapter 11 process of Barretts Minerals Inc. ("BMI") and Barretts Ventures Texas LLC (together, "BMI"). Proceeds from the sale will be used to fund BMI's ongoing Chapter 11 case including the repayment of its debtor-in-possession funding and the anticipated creation of a section 524(g) trust. No other subsidiaries or business units of MTI are included in the Chapter 11 filing or the sale and, as such, all are operating business as usual and will continue to do so. "This is an important step in MTI's exit from the talc business, and represents forward progress in BMI's Chapter 11 process," said Douglas T. Dietrich, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of MTI. "This sale not only delivers value and certainty to BMI's various stakeholders, it also enables MTI to move forward with a clear focus on achieving our long-term strategic objectives." Riverspan Partners is a Chicago-based investment firm focused on lower middle market companies in the industrials sector, including engineered materials and advanced manufacturing. Leveraging its deep domain expertise, Riverspan seeks to work with management teams to accelerate growth and build durable, long-term success. Dave Thomas, Partner and Co-Founder at Riverspan, said, "Riverspan is committed to the long-term success of Barretts, and we are excited to partner with the organization and its leaders in the next phase of the company's growth. We are excited to acquire these high-quality assets, which are bolstered by a very talented employee base and a strong safety culture. We look forward to providing financial support and operational expertise as the business expands its product portfolio and continues to deliver excellent service to its customers." BMI is advised by Latham & Watkins LLP, Jefferies LLC, and M3 Partners. Additional information about the Chapter 11 cases can be found at: https://cases.stretto.com/BMI. Riverspan is advised by Milbank LLP, McDermott Will & Emery LLP, and Holland & Hart LLP. FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS This press release may contain "forward‐looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements provide current expectations and forecasts of future events such as new products, revenues and financial performance, and are not limited to describing historical or current facts. They can be identified by the use of words such as "believes," "expects," "plans," "intends," "anticipates," and other words and phrases of similar meaning. Forward-looking statements are necessarily based on assumptions, estimates and limited information available at the time they are made. A broad variety of risks and uncertainties, both known and unknown, as well as the inaccuracy of assumptions and estimates, can affect the realization of the expectations or forecasts in these statements. Actual future results may vary materially. Significant factors that could affect the expectations and forecasts include worldwide general economic, business, and industry conditions; the cyclicality of our customers' businesses and their changing regional demands; our ability to compete in very competitive industries; consolidation in customer industries, principally paper, foundry and steel; our ability to renew or extend long term sales contracts for our satellite operations; our ability to generate cash to service our debt; our ability to comply with the covenants in the agreements governing our debt; our ability to effectively achieve and implement our growth initiatives or consummate the transactions described in the statements; our ability to successfully develop new products; our ability to defend our intellectual property; the increased risks of doing business abroad; the availability of raw materials and access to ore reserves at our mining operations, or increases in costs of raw materials, energy, or shipping; compliance with or changes to regulation in the areas of environmental, health and safety, and tax; risks and uncertainties related to the voluntary petitions for relief under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code filed by our subsidiaries Barretts Minerals Inc. and Barretts Ventures Texas LLC; claims for legal, environmental and tax matters or product stewardship issues; operating risks and capacity limitations affecting our production facilities; seasonality of some of our businesses; cybersecurity and other threats relating to our information technology systems; and other risk factors and cautionary statements in our 2023 Annual Report on Form 10‐K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Current Reports on Form 8-K and other reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward‐looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise. Investor Contact: Lydia Kopylova, (212) 878-1831 Media Contact: Jennifer Albert, (212) 878-1840
NSSF Project ChildSafe Program Celebrates 25 Years; Announces $250,000 Fundraising Goal for Firearm Safety 2024-04-29 22:42:00+00:00 - Loading... Loading... WASHINGTON, April 29, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- This year marks the 25-year anniversary of Project ChildSafe®, the firearm safety and education program of NSSF®, The Firearm Industry Trade Association. Since its inception, Project ChildSafe has raised awareness about safely handling and securely storing firearms when not in use, along with educating children about firearm safety. Since its inception, Project ChildSafe has raised awareness about safely handling and securely storing firearms . . . . As part of recognizing this milestone, NSSF aims to raise $250,000 over the next year to provide more free gun locks and educational materials to gun owners across the country. Started in 1999, Project ChildSafe began in just five cities in the U.S. and has grown to serve all 50 states and the five U.S. territories. To date, Project ChildSafe has distributed more than 41 million safety kits, which include a cable-style gun-locking device and educational brochures available at no cost to gun owners. The firearm safety kits are distributed through partnerships with more than 15,000 local law enforcement agencies and 13,000 organizational partners. "For 25 years, Project ChildSafe has operated on both the national and local levels to provide genuine firearm safety solutions to communities that need them most," said Joe Bartozzi, NSSF President and CEO. "Since its launch, fatal firearm accidents have dropped to historic lows. The program also aims to prevent firearm thefts and suicide." "Prevention can be challenging to measure, but over the years we've heard stories firsthand of how our safety kits have saved lives by preventing accidents and suicides," said Bill Brassard, NSSF's Senior Communications Director. "Project ChildSafe continues to evolve and expand its resources, adding materials on mental health, suicide prevention and assisting parents with having conversations about gun safety with their children." To commemorate this exciting milestone in Project ChildSafe's history, NSSF has set a new goal to raise $250,000 in funding for the program over the next year, which will support the development and availability of new educational resources, gun locks and city-level firearm safety coalitions in communities with particularly high rates of firearm-related accidents and suicides. Individual supporters and organizations are invited to donate to Project ChildSafe. Project ChildSafe is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt nonprofit organization, and all donations to the organization are tax deductible to the extent allowed by law. To donate, go to projectchildsafe.org/donate/25th-anniversary. Project ChildSafe's 25-Year History https://projectchildsafe.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/PCS-25YearTimeline.pdf About Project ChildSafe: NSSF, The Firearm Industry Trade Association, launched Project ChildSafe in 1999 (originally as Project HomeSafe). Since 1999, the program has provided more than 41 million free firearm safety kits and gun locks to firearm owners in all 50 states through partnerships with thousands of law enforcement agencies across the country. That's in addition to the more than 70 million free locking devices manufacturers have included, and continue to include, with new firearms sold since 1998. While helping to prevent accidents among children is a focus, Project ChildSafe is intended to help adults practice greater firearm safety in the home. More information is available at projectchildsafe.org. About NSSF: NSSF is the trade association for the firearm industry. Its mission is to promote, protect and preserve hunting and the shooting sports. Formed in 1961, NSSF has a membership of thousands of manufacturers, distributors, firearm retailers, shooting ranges, sportsmen's organizations and publishers nationwide. For more information, visit nssf.org. SOURCE NATIONAL SHOOTING SPORTS FOUNDATION
Paramount CEO Bob Bakish to step down amid sale discussions 2024-04-29 22:12:00+00:00 - Paramount Global said Monday that CEO Bob Bakish is stepping down from his role, a major management shift at the media and entertainment company as it considers a potential merger or sale. Paramount said in a statement on Monday that it is creating an Office of the CEO to replace Bakish. The role will be filled by three Paramount Global executives: CBS CEO George Cheeks; Showtime/MTV Entertainment Studios and Paramount Media Networks CEO Chris McCarthy; and Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon CEO Brian Robbins. "I have tremendous confidence in George, Chris and Brian," Shari Redstone, chair of the board, said in the statement. "They have both the ability to develop and execute on a new strategic plan and to work together as true partners." Paramount Global is the parent company of CBS News. Bakish's departure comes at a pivotal moment for Paramount, with the company exploring a merger and other deals with several potential partners. In recent weeks, the company has held exclusive discussions with Skydance Media, a media firm founded by David Ellison, the son of Oracle founder Larry Ellison, according to published reports. The discussions are complicated by Paramount's ownership structure, as Shari Redstone — the daughter of the late company founder Sumner Redstone — effectively controls 77% of its voting shares. Under a proposed deal with Ellison, Redstone would sell her voting stake to Skydance for $2 billion, while other Paramount shareholders would receive stock in a newly merged company, the Journal reported. The company didn't address its merger discussions in the statement, although the board of directors said it is looking "forward to working with George, Chris and Brian as they execute on key initiatives to enhance performance and value creation at Paramount Global." Bakish's exit marks the end of a long career at Paramount that began in 1997 at Viacom, the movie studio's predecessor company. He was eventually tapped to lead Viacom, and then oversaw the merger of Viacom and CBS in 2019. In 2022, ViacomCBS changed its name to Paramount Global. In an email sent to Paramount Global employees, Bakish said, "When I was asked to serve as interim CEO in 2016, I thought it would be a month-long gig. Seven years later, I can truly say the opportunity to lead this incredible company has been an unexpected but most welcome gift, and the greatest honor of my professional life." Separately, Paramount reported a first-quarter loss of $554 million, significantly narrower than its $1.12 billion loss in the year-ago period. Revenue rose 6% to $7.69 billion, buoyed by strong advertising demand for CBS' Super Bowl broadcast in February as well as the addition of 3.7 million new subscribers to the Paramount+ streaming service. The company said Paramount+ ended the quarter with 71 million subscribers, while the service's loss narrowed to $286 million, compared with $511 million in the year-earlier period.
Biden administration faces onslaught of lawsuits as business groups claim regulatory overreach 2024-04-29 22:01:00+00:00 - WASHINGTON — When the Federal Trade Commission finalized a rule earlier this month banning non-compete clauses, the blowback was swift: Within 24 hours, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce led a handful of business groups to file a lawsuit seeking to block the ban. They argued that the FTC lacked the authority to impose it in the first place. The playbook is becoming a familiar one: The Biden administration finalizes a new rule regulating business, and the Chamber and industry lobbying groups immediately sue to stop it by arguing that the agency has overstepped its authority. So far this year, the administration has finalized seven rules, addressing everything from independent contractors to credit card late fees and climate disclosure requirements, only to see them met with near-immediate lawsuits by the Chamber and other groups. In all, the Chamber expects to file at least 22 lawsuits against the Biden administration before the end of President Joe Biden's current term, a dramatic increase from the three suits it filed against the Trump administration and the 15 it filed during Obama's first term. And they are not alone. The American Bankers Association, another influential lobbying group in Washington, has signed on to four lawsuits against banking regulators since Sept. 2022, after not signing on to any legal challenges to federal policy for roughly a decade before that. Officials at both the Chamber and ABA emphasize that litigation is always a last resort. But they see it as a necessary step when agencies issue regulations that go outside the scope of their authority. "It's not just about a single regulation, right? It's about the 1,000 regulations that are going to go final this year. It's about the 200-plus regulations that have an economic impact of more than $200 million a year," Neil Bradley, executive vice president at the Chamber, told CNBC in an interview.
Local senators slam FAA bill provision that would add long-haul flights to a key DC-area airport and benefit lawmakers: 'Ridiculous and dangerous' 2024-04-29 21:47:57+00:00 - Many lawmakers on Capitol Hill have been pushing for long-haul flights at National Airport for years. But the senators from Virginia and Maryland are firmly against the provision, pointing to safety concerns. The provision was included in a FAA reauthorization bill being negotiated in Congress. NEW LOOK Sign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. Read preview Thanks for signing up! Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go. download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . You can opt-out at any time. Advertisement For many members of Congress, the allure of adding long-haul flights to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) is impossible to resist. The Arlington, Va., airport is easily accessible by car and public transit, and its proximity to Capitol Hill makes it a favorite of lawmakers. National Airport, which served nearly 26 million passengers last year, has long had to abide by a 1,250-mile perimeter restriction, effectively boxing out long-haul flights that would greatly benefit lawmakers from Western states. But on Monday, congressional negotiators put forward a Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization bill that would add 10 long-haul slots to the already-strained airport, which led the US senators from both Virginia and Maryland to quickly blast the move. Related stories In a joint statement, Democratic Sens. Mark Warner and Tim Kaine of Virginia and Ben Cardin and Chris Van Hollen of Maryland criticized the proposal, arguing that passenger safety could potentially be put at risk by such a decision. Advertisement "We are deeply frustrated that Committee leadership with jurisdiction over the FAA Reauthorization Act — none of whom represent the Capital region — have decided to ignore the flashing red warning light of the recent near collision of two aircraft at DCA and jam even more flights onto the busiest runway in America," they said, referring to a near miss at the airport earlier this month. "It should go without saying that the safety of the traveling public should be a higher priority than the convenience of a few lawmakers who want direct flights home from their preferred airport," the senators continued. "We will continue to fight against this ridiculous and dangerous provision." While Delta Air Lines has thrown its support behind the long-haul provision, United Airlines has opposed the push. The quartet of senators from Virginia and Maryland have voiced their opposition to the proposed provision since last year. Advertisement However, for many lawmakers, a trip from Capitol Hill to National Airport reigns supreme. Washington Dulles International Airport and Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport, while fully equipped to handle long-haul flights, are miles outside of Washington, DC. And missing a flight due to a delayed vote can mean waiting until the next day to travel back home. Still, Kaine, Warner, Cardin, and Van Hollen remain opposed to the potential provision in the FAA reauthorization. "The senators representing the region and the people who most use this airport stand uniform against a provision negotiated without us that will guarantee more unacceptable delay and compromise passenger safety," they added.
Target's CEO made 719 times the median employee's pay last year 2024-04-29 21:46:40+00:00 - Target CEO Brian Cornell received total compensation of $19.2 million last year. The median compensation for associates was $26,696, according to Target's annual proxy statement. Cornell's pay is behind Walmart CEO Doug McMillon and ahead of former Costco CEO Craig Jelinek. NEW LOOK Sign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. Read preview Thanks for signing up! Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go. download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . You can opt-out at any time. Advertisement Brian Cornell has come a long way since his days of scrubbing Tropicana trucks and coaching high school football to pay his bills. The Target CEO received total compensation last year of more than $19.2 million, up $1.6 million from the year before, according to the company's annual proxy statement filed Monday with the SEC. The pay package consisted of $1.4 million in base salary, $14.7 million in stock awards, and about $3.1 million in other compensation. Related stories Cornell also made $303,197 worth of use of Target's company-owned airplane "for security reasons," the filings say. Advertisement The 65-year-old New York native is now in charge of 415,000 workers across 1,956 retail stores across the US, and annual revenues of $107.4 billion. Of those 415,000 workers, the median employee was paid $26,696 last year, up 2.7 percent from the previous year. Cornell's compensation is 719 times that amount. By comparison, Walmart CEO Doug McMillon's most recently disclosed compensation package was $26.9 million, while Craig Jelinek made $16.8 million in his final year as Costco CEO. Their pay ratios were 976 and 336, respectively. Under a new calculation that companies are required to disclose as of last year, Cornell saw his net worth grow by nearly $10.7 million last year after adjustments to recognize the gains and losses of his stock awards. Advertisement Do you work for Target? Contact Dominick Reuter via email or text/call/Signal at 646-768-4750. Responses will be kept confidential, and Business Insider strongly recommends using a personal email and a non-work device when reaching out.
Trump's jurors hardly look at him. Trial experts say that's a good sign for everyone. 2024-04-29 21:44:57+00:00 - Trump's New York hush-money trial starts its second week of testimony on Tuesday. Each day, jurors file back and forth past the most famous person on earth — without looking at him. That's actually a good sign for the justice system, veteran trial attorneys say. NEW LOOK Sign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. Read preview Thanks for signing up! Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go. download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . You can opt-out at any time. Advertisement Reporters at Donald Trump's New York hush-money trial watch him continually. They crane to glimpse the back of his head. A few aim little binoculars at the courtroom's overhead screens to better gauge his expressions — and his alertness. But the 12 jurors and six alternates hardly look at Trump at all as they file back and forth past the defense table. At most, the eyes of one or two jurors may dart in Trump's direction as they enter and leave for breaks or for the day. Trump, likewise, does not appear to pay his jurors much attention at all as they pass within six feet of him. Advertisement He'll stand, like everyone else, at a court officer's cry of "All rise! Jury entering." But he'll either whisper with his lawyers or scowl indistinctly into space as they pass by. It seems remarkable. Trump is the most famous person on the planet, and the jurors hardly look at him, even from the jury box. Meanwhile, the jurors hold his potential criminal record in their hands, but Trump doesn't watch them much, either. Business Insider described this strange-seeming, mutual coyness to veteran Manhattan trial attorneys. They didn't find it terribly strange at all. In fact, they said, this may be a sign that, at least where the jury is concerned, the wheels of justice are turning as they should. Advertisement "My guess is that they're not looking at him because everyone on the jury has heard of Donald Trump, and they understand that this is a case that is being given worldwide attention," said Diana Florence, a former Manhattan financial crimes prosecutor. The jurors don't want to be seen as gawking at him, Florence and other attorneys said. "They've all taken an oath to judge the case solely on the evidence," said Florence, who is now in private practice. "So I think the fact that he is such a bold-faced name and they're not staring at him is probably a good sign for our jury system," she added. Advertisement "You especially don't want to look like a fan boy or fan girl" with a room full of reporters watching, agreed Jeremy Saland, another former Manhattan prosecutor. "As a juror, if you nod your head at Trump, you're in the papers," Saland said. And if you nod at the prosecutors? "You have Jesse Watters saying liberals have infiltrated the jury," he added. Advertisement Jurors did look at Gotti Jr. and El Chapo Jeffrey Lichtman has repped many mobsters and drug lords in his career. He wondered if jurors might be too intimidated to look at Trump. "I had John Gotti Jr., and El Chapo, and it doesn't get any more intimidating than that," Lichtman said of two of his more famous clients. Related stories "Jurors looked at both of them," he said. Gotti's federal racketeering charges were dropped after a third mistrial in 2006, and El Chapo was convicted of drug trafficking and conspiracy in 2019. "But I think they looked at them as if they were animals in a zoo," Lichtman conceded. Advertisement Still, it's not uncommon for jurors to avoid looking at the defendant, said Lichtman and other trial-practice veterans. More potentially significant, they said, was that Trump was failing to look at his jury, at least not with anything approaching respect and appreciation. "It's imperative that he stop with the 'Blue Steel' stare," Lichtman said. "You want them to like you, and you don't want to intimidate them," he said. Advertisement "You think you're being inconvenienced by being there? So are the jurors. This is an inconvenience for them, too." Donald Trump in court for opening statements in his Manhattan hush-money trial. Yuki Iwamura-Pool/Getty Images It's not enough for defense lawyer Todd Blanche to say in opening statements that Trump is "a person, just like you and me." They have to try to show the jurors this, not just tell them, Lichtman said. "It's very important that the jury see the defendant and the lawyers laughing and smiling together throughout the trial," Lichtman said. "I was very clear on Gotti and El Chapo that I would go up to them during the summation and put my arm around them," he said. Advertisement "You touch them, you humanize them," he said. "I don't think anyone wants to look at a guy's face who's scowling." No 'resting scowl face' Trump's defense team is doing him a disservice by not convincing him to look a little friendlier, other lawyers told Business Insider. "They should be telling him that a 'resting scowl face' doesn't help him at all," said Saland, the former prosecutor, now in private practice. Advertisement The lawyers should also be "reeling him in outside the courtroom," Saland said. Prosecutors have alleged Trump has violated his gag order at least 14 times in the past month by making statements targeting his jury and witnesses Michael Cohen and Stormy Daniels. A hearing on Manhattan prosecutors' most recent contempt-of-court allegations is set for Thursday morning. For each violation, Trump faces fines of up to $1,000 and, less likely, jail of up to 30 days. Advertisement A lawyer for Trump declined to comment for this story. "They're letting him do his thing," Saland said of the defense team, noting that Trump has turned the trial into a stop on his campaign trail, where he rages against his political enemies. "After all, it's a heck of a lot cheaper to run afoul of the gag order at $1,000 a pop," Saland said, "than to run a 30-second spot on national news."
A longtime Apple skeptic warms up to the stock. Why we're not cheering the call just yet 2024-04-29 21:10:00+00:00 - A longtime Apple skeptic upgraded the iPhone maker, sending the struggling Club stock higher in Monday's session. Perhaps counterintuitively, Jim Cramer is not willing to celebrate the call just yet. Bernstein analyst Toni Sacconaghi upgraded Apple to buy-equivalent rating from market perform and maintained a price target of $195 per share, representing 15% upside from Friday's closing level. The call turned heads on Wall Street because the analyst had held a market-perform rating since early 2018 . Now, after Apple's rough start to the year, Sacconaghi contends "the pullback provides an attractive entry point." Apple shares ended last week down about 12% year to date, compared with a nearly 7% gain for the S & P 500. The Club's wariness around the upgrade stems from the timing. The tech giant reports quarterly results after the close Thursday, and now the challenged stock has found momentum. Including their 2.5% gain Monday, shares of Apple have climbed about 5% since their 2024 lows on April 19 and outperformed the S & P 500 in that stretch. "Apple got distorted today by an upgrade [from] someone who historically has been incredibly wrong" about the stock, Jim said on Monday. He added, "It's jacked it up to a point where if you were a trader, you'd probably sell some." AAPL YTD mountain Apple (AAPL) year-to-date performance In Monday's upgrade, Sacconaghi offered a largely upbeat view on Apple's long-term prospects – a view that we share. Despite some investor concern about the company's business in China being "structurally impaired," Sacconaghi said the firm believes "Apple's business prospects are largely unchanged." In addition to being cheap versus its recent history, Bernstein pointed to generative artificial intelligence features in the upcoming iPhone 16 as a positive for Apple stock – a call Jim's iterated many times in recent months . Integration of the nascent tech into the company's flagship device should lead to an upgrade cycle for the iPhone as customers trade in their gadgets for the newest model. We received more AI-related headlines around Apple late Friday. Bloomberg reported , citing people familiar with the matter, that the tech giant has renewed talks with Microsoft -backed startup OpenAI about integrating its technology into the upcoming iPhone's operating system. Apple remains in conversation with Alphabet -owned Google about a potential AI deal, Bloomberg also reported. The Club is waiting until Apple's annual developer conference in June before speculating too much on management's AI strategy. (Jim Cramer's Charitable Trust is long AAPL, GOOGL and MSFT. See here for a full list of the stocks.) As a subscriber to the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer, you will receive a trade alert before Jim makes a trade. Jim waits 45 minutes after sending a trade alert before buying or selling a stock in his charitable trust's portfolio. If Jim has talked about a stock on CNBC TV, he waits 72 hours after issuing the trade alert before executing the trade. THE ABOVE INVESTING CLUB INFORMATION IS SUBJECT TO OUR TERMS AND CONDITIONS AND PRIVACY POLICY , TOGETHER WITH OUR DISCLAIMER . NO FIDUCIARY OBLIGATION OR DUTY EXISTS, OR IS CREATED, BY VIRTUE OF YOUR RECEIPT OF ANY INFORMATION PROVIDED IN CONNECTION WITH THE INVESTING CLUB. NO SPECIFIC OUTCOME OR PROFIT IS GUARANTEED. The Apple logo. Costfoto | Nurphoto | Getty Images
Israel's strike showed Iran's air defenses were 'woefully unprepared.' Here's what Tehran may do next. 2024-04-29 21:05:28+00:00 - Israel showed it can take out a key part of Iran's air defenses with a single missile. The S-300 damaged is the most advanced air defense system Iran has acquired from Russia. Iran must field better air defenses like Russia's S-400 to stand a chance against a barrage. NEW LOOK Sign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. Read preview Thanks for signing up! Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go. download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . You can opt-out at any time. Advertisement In the early hours of April 19, Israel sent a message to Iran with an air-launched ballistic missile that took out a critical part of its air defense network: a radar belonging to one of its advanced Russian S-300 missiles. The Israeli missile scored a direct hit, and the next day Iran tried to cover up the damage with an inferior replacement radar, according to images obtained by the Economist. The incident in the city of Isfahan may force Tehran to upgrade its air defenses, possibly from more advanced Russian systems, to defend itself from the possibility of larger Israeli missile attacks. "I think it's quite clear that Iran is woefully unprepared for such attacks unless it receives significant help from Russia, which it has failed to do so far," Arash Azizi, senior lecturer in history and political science at Clemson University and author of "The Shadow Commander: Soleimani, the US, and Iran's Global Ambitions," told Business Insider. "The attacks will also have given valuable operational information to the Iranians in charge of missile defense in that they'll have a better sense of their limits," Azizi said. Advertisement Israel is known to possess ballistic missiles it can launch from fighter jets. One example is its 15-foot-long Rampage missile. Weighing 1,200 pounds, the supersonic missile can hit targets up to 186 miles away. Britain has shown interest in buying it. Freddy Khoueiry, a global security analyst for the Middle East and North Africa at the risk intelligence company RANE, believes it's possible Israel used the Rampage on April 19. However, he noted that missile debris uncovered in neighboring Iraq suggests it was more likely Israel used Blue Sparrow missiles, which have a purported 1,250-mile range. "Either way, the debris in Iraq and local reports of fighter jet activities over Iraqi airspace that same night suggest Israeli fighter jets possibly fired the missiles from a distance closer to the Iranian borders," Khoueiry told BI. While Iranian air defenses failed to stop Israel's strike they have hugely improved in recent years. In the early 2000s, Iranian radars couldn't detect American and Israeli drones operating inside Iranian airspace. Even bulky US tankers supporting missions in Afghanistan and Iraq flew over parts of Iranian airspace undetected. Advertisement An Israeli F-16I fighter flew over the border area with south Lebanon on March 12, 2024. Jalaa Marey/Getty Images That's all changed. Iran shot down a sophisticated American RQ-4A Global Hawk surveillance drone flying at high altitude in 2019, claiming it used its indigenous 3rd Khordad system. "For the past few years, Iran has heavily invested in its air defense capabilities but simultaneously knows that it might not be enough against the technologically advanced Israeli or US weapons in a potential conflict," Khoueiry said. Related stories That's one reason Iran has placed its most sensitive installations in mountainous regions. "I believe the April 19 Isfahan strike will likely make the Iranians think more in terms of countering Israel's radar-evading systems by improving their radar capabilities while continuing to improve their air defenses, especially because we did not see Iran's best air defense equipment on display," Khoueiry said. Advertisement The S-300PMU-2 is the most advanced air defense system Iran has acquired from Russia. Following the Isfahan strike, it's likely Tehran will conclude it needs more advanced Russian systems, such as the S-400 they've by some accounts been asking for. Khoueiry doesn't rule out the prospect of Iran seeking the S-400, given its "more advanced stealth capabilities" and ability to track aircraft at lower altitudes. These capabilities are "crucial" for defending vital Iranian installations, especially given the S-300's failure to intercept Israeli weapons on April 19. Clemson University's Azizi believes an S-400 acquisition remains "crucial" for Iran and one of its "best bets." Therefore, he anticipates Tehran will continue pushing for it. "I think the April episode will certainly have convinced Iranians that they need to be more serious about getting help from Russia," Azizi said. "But I think they ultimately have very little leverage unless Moscow wants to play Israel and the West by giving help to Iran." Advertisement Iran has a strong card to play. It's become a major supplier of Russia's war against Ukraine via thousands of Shahed loitering munitions and hundreds of short-range ballistic missiles. But this may not be enough. "Moscow will be the key decision-maker here, not Tehran," Azizi said. "The drone help is important for Moscow but not indispensable." Iran could have a local solution in the form of indigenous systems, such as the 3rd Khordad that felled a Global Hawk and the Bavar 373. "Theoretically these Iranian systems should do better than the S-300 given that the Iranians upgraded the Bavar 373 in 2022, claiming that it's now a competitor of the S-400," Khoueiry said. "In practice, this could go either way, depending on the amount of Israeli missiles that would be hypothetically launched and from where." Advertisement Khoueiry anticipates that early detection by Iranian air defenses could give these Iranian-made systems "more chances" against Israeli missiles. Conversely, Azizi believes these systems are "quite unlikely" to fare any better than their Russian counterparts. "These are impressive systems for Iran to have devised on its own but they are ultimately no match for Israel's significant offensive capabilities," Azizi said.
Paramount says CEO Bob Bakish is stepping down, will be replaced by a trio of executives 2024-04-29 20:59:00+00:00 - In this article PARA Follow your favorite stocks CREATE FREE ACCOUNT Bob Bakish, president and chief executive officer of Viacom, attends the fourth day of the annual Allen & Company Sun Valley Conference, July 11, 2023 in Sun Valley, Idaho. David A. Grogan | CNBC Paramount Global CEO Bob Bakish is stepping down, the company announced Monday, as merger negotiations with Skydance Media continue. Bakish climbed the corporate ladder after joining Viacom in 1997, until he became CEO of the company in 2016. Following the merger of Viacom and CBS, he became CEO of the combined company in 2019, which was later renamed Paramount Global. He is also leaving the company's board of directors, Paramount said Monday. Bakish will be replaced by what the company called an "Office of the CEO." Paramount will now be led by CBS president and CEO George Cheeks; Chris McCarthy, president and CEO of Showtime/MTV Entertainment Studios and Paramount Media Networks; and Brian Robbins, the head of Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon. The company said the three executives will work closely with Paramount CFO Naveen Chopra and the board. In the release Monday, Paramount said the new leadership is "working with the board to develop a comprehensive, long-range plan to accelerate growth and develop popular content, materially streamline operations, strengthen the balance sheet, and continue to optimize the streaming strategy." Paramount also reported its first-quarter earnings after the bell Monday and held an earnings call during which the newly appointed company heads gave a brief statement and said they would be back "in short order" to share details on future plans. Chopra led the call, which lasted under 10 minutes and didn't include questions from analysts. Streaming boost The company posted mixed results for the first quarter, beating on earnings but missing on revenue. Paramount reported 62 cents per share for the period, excluding items, versus estimates of 36 cents a share, according to analysts polled by LSEG. For revenue the company posted $7.69 billion versus analyst estimates of $7.73 billion, according to LSEG. Overall revenue was up 6% compared with the same period last year, propelled by streaming and the Super Bowl. The company's direct-to-consumer streaming segment, which includes flagship service Paramount+, Pluto TV and BET+ saw revenue rise 24% to about $1.88 billion. Paramount said it added 3.7 million Paramount+ subscribers during the quarter, bringing the total to 71 million. Losses related to streaming narrowed to $286 million compared with losses of $511 million during the same period last year. Advertising revenue in the streaming segment was up, largely due to the Super Bowl, which aired in February on CBS, cable TV channel Nickelodeon and Paramount+. Similarly, advertising revenue in Paramount's TV media unit, which includes broadcaster CBS and cable TV channels such as MTV and Nickelodeon, grew 14% due to the Super Bowl. The top NFL event provided a boost during what has been a sluggish advertising environment for traditional TV networks. Still, streaming platforms and digital companies have reported advertising revenue growth, indicating the market is rebounding, at least for those areas. Overall, TV Media revenue was up 1% to $5.23 billion. Affiliate and subscription revenue fell 3% as cord-cutting continued, and licensing and other revenue dropped 25%, including the impact of the Hollywood writers' and actors' strikes on content available for licensing. Revenue for Paramount's filmed entertainment unit increased 3% to $605 million due to the releases of "Mean Girls" and "Bob Marley: One Love." Bakish departure
Bonds offer income and some volatility protection. Pick out the right bond fund for your portfolio 2024-04-29 20:59:00+00:00 - Travelism | E+ | Getty Images Having a diversified portfolio means you should have some of your money in bonds. The assets can offer not not some protection against market volatility, but also generate income. Yet deciding how to construct the fixed income portion of your portfolio may seem confusing, especially after the bond rout in 2022 and continued volatility last year. In October, the 10-year Treasury yield crossed 5%. Bond yields move inversely to prices, so when yields rise, prices decline. This year, investors are closely watching the Federal Reserve to see if and when it will begin to cut interest rates. "As the Fed pivots toward cutting rates, stock and bond returns should once again move in opposite directions, re-establishing a mix of the two as an attractive risk-return profile," Morgan Stanley said in its 2024 bond market outlook. However, investors shouldn't try to time the market, said Morningstar senior analyst Mike Mulach. "Try to have as much diversification as you can," he said. "There will be some volatility; there's been more volatility lately. But there will be a time when you can't just sit in cash." Bonds vs. bond funds If you want to own individual bonds, only do so with high-quality ones, said certified financial planner Chuck Failla, founder of Sovereign Financial Group. For instance, Treasurys can be bought through the TreasuryDirect website. "When you go into individual bonds, you have a very predetermined duration," Failla said. Along the way, you will collect income and you get your principal back when the bond matures. If you're going this route, ladder the bonds — which means staggering maturities — to meet your specific time goal, he said. That said, in general, most investors would be best served buying a diversified bond fund, said Mulach. "It doesn't have to be super fancy in terms of using a sector fund, but just focusing on high-quality bonds and high-quality bond funds that will traditionally provide the best diversification benefit against riskier assets, like equities, in your portfolio," he said. What to look for in bond funds There are several factors to consider when investing in a bond fund. "Narrowing your choices to the cheapest in the universe is a great place to start," Mulach said. Yet price alone isn't a barometer. Investors should be aware of interest rate risk, which is the impact of interest rate changes on the asset's underlying price. The best way to assess this is through the bond fund's duration, Mulach said. Then there is credit risk. The higher the quality of a bond, the less credit risk for investors. "Those investment-grade bonds, high-quality bond portfolios tend to offer the greatest diversification benefits relative to the equities in your portfolio," he explained. You'll also have to decide if you want a fund that is actively managed, which typically comes with higher fees, or a passive fund, which is tied to a specific index. Active bond funds outperformed their passive peers last year, according to Morningstar. Because of that outperformance, Mulach generally recommends actively managed funds. Still, it isn't that simple. Both Mulach and Failla said it is important to look for funds that have high-quality managers. "Look at the track record, but don't rely on it," Failla said. Also look at the default rate, how long the managers are tenured with the funds and what their process is for selecting assets, he added. "You want to make sure that they have a real process in place … to mitigate the risks that are in that space," he said. "There are a lot of good managers out there, you just have to do your homework." Mulach suggests sticking with intermediate-core, short-term and ultra-short term Morningstar categories. Ultra-short funds typically have durations less than one year, while short-term funds stick with one to 3.5 year durations. Intermediate-core durations typically range between 75% and 135% of the three-year average of the effective duration of the Morningstar Core Bond Index. "Even within those categories, just mak[e] sure they're diversified strategies, mainly investing across … investment-grade government-backed securities, corporate-debt securities and securitized-debt securities," he said. Here are some of Morningstar's top actively managed bond funds. Top Morningstar Bond Funds Ticker Fund Morningstar Category Type 30-day SEC yield Adj. Expense Ratio BUBSX Baird Ultra Short Bond Fund Ultra Short Mutual fund 4.89% 0.40% MINT PIMCO Enhanced Short Maturity Active ETF Ultra Short ETF 5.30% 0.35% BSBSX Baird Short-Term Bond Fund Short-term Mutual fund 4.42% 0.55% FLTB Fidelity Limited Term Bond ETF Short-term ETF 5.27% 0.25% BAGSX Baird Aggregate Bond Fund Intermediate-Term Core Mutual fund 4.11% 0.55% FBND Fidelity Total Bond ETF Intermediate-Term Core Plus ETF 5.31% 0.36% HTRB Hartford Total Return Bond ETF Intermediate-Term Core Plus ETF 4.67% 0.29% BCOSX Baird Core Plus Intermediate-Term Core Plus Mutual fund 4.30% 0.55% Source: Morningstar, Fund websites In some cases there are managers who have success rates lower than 50%, according to Morningstar's active/passive barometer. "If you're throwing a dart at the category, maybe you're better off picking a passive strategy," Mulach said. For instance, the iShares Core U.S. Aggregate Bond ETF can be a great option to simply replicate that index, he said. It can also be a way to avoid any extra risk, since active mangers typically take on more risk to beat their benchmark, he said. Stock Chart Icon Stock chart icon iShares Core U.S. Aggregate Bond ETF year to date
Peacock raising prices by $2 ahead of the Summer Olympics as streaming wars rage on 2024-04-29 20:53:00+00:00 - NBCUniversal streaming service Peacock plans to raise prices for its ad-free service by $2 to $13.99 a month ahead of this summer's Olympic Games in Paris as competition for online viewership intensifies. Peacock’s ad-supported option will also increase by $2, to $7.99 a month. The annual price for ad-free will cost $139.99, while the version with ads will be $79.99. The price changes will take effect for new subscribers starting July 18, one week ahead of the 2024 opening ceremony. Existing customers will see the new pricing on or after Aug. 17. Even with the latest increases, Peacock still stands on the lower end of streaming platform price ranges. Netflix's top-tier subscription now costs $22.99 a month, while ad-free Hulu is $17.99 and premium Max (formerly HBO Max) is $19.99. Peacock's newest prices will match those of Disney+ once the changes take effect. Peacock currently has 34 million subscribers, giving it about 1.3% of the total TV market according to Nielsen data. That compares with 1.2% for Max, 1.9% for Disney+ — and 7.7% for Netflix. Overall streaming viewership continues to climb, rising 12% in March year-on-year according to Nielsen, and now commands nearly 40% of all TV consumption. Yet the platforms are still aggressively fighting for viewers. The latest casualty of that battle is Bob Bakish, who is stepping down as CEO of Paramount as that company continues to push its Paramount+ service, with mixed results. While traditional media companies represent the main players in the streaming race, it is a traditional tech company that now dominates: YouTube, which is owned by Google-parent Alphabet, attracts the largest share among streaming platforms, with some 10% of the entire market alone. Sreaming platforms continue to raise prices even in the face of "subscription fatigue," a phenomenon that other players have begun capitalizing on with the introduction of advertising-based video-on-demand (AVOD) channels like Pluto TV and Tubi. “Because we know that subscription fatigue is setting in, people will only pay so much for subscriptions," Pluto TV CEO Tom Ryan said in a speech last fall. "You need the ability to actually expand your bundle for free.” While the service is not yet profitable, Peacock continues to add users at a steady clip. It received an outsized bump in users thanks to the NFL playoff game it showed last season, most of whom have stayed with the service, executives said on Peacock-parent Comcast's most recent earnings call. Peacock is also set to exclusively stream the 2024 NFL season's kickoff game September 6 in Brazil. Streaming platforms have also sought to protect their revenues from password sharing. While Peacock has not done so, many apps continue to announce new limits on the practice. In March, Max, which is owned by Warner Bros. Discovery, said it would start limiting individual account access in 2025, following on the heels of similar announcements by Netflix and Disney+. Disclosure: Comcast is the parent company of NBCUniversal and NBC News.
Russian advances could give it a shot at Ukraine's eastern 'fortress belt,' war analysts warn 2024-04-29 20:49:34+00:00 - Russian forces are poised to advance toward the "fortress belt" of four eastern Ukrainian cities. The cities are a stronghold for Ukraine in Donetsk Oblast just northwest of Avdiivka. Russia has been making gains in the area, forcing Ukrainian troops to withdraw. NEW LOOK Sign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. Read preview Thanks for signing up! Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go. download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . You can opt-out at any time. Advertisement Russian troops appear to be making tactical advances just northwest of Avdiivka toward a so-called "fortress belt" of Ukrainian cities, war analysts report. Though it remains to be seen whether Russian command will turn its focus its troops on that area, they're setting the stage for offensive operations in that direction. And they've long aimed to capture these four cities. With Russian forces continuing to solidify their positions northwest of Avdiivka, a war-torn town they captured in February, they now have choices on which objectives to pursue. Ukraine has repeatedly warned that Russia seeks to capture Pokrovsk, southwest of Bakhmut. Related stories But according to a new assessment from The Institute for the Study of War, a Washington DC-based think tank that has followed the conflict closely, Russia has the option "to conduct possible complementary offensive operations" around Chasiv Yar, a city near Avdiivka that "is operationally significant because it would provide Russian forces with a staging ground to launch offensive operations" near two of the "four major cities that form a fortress belt" for Ukraine in the Donetsk Oblast. Advertisement Chasiv Yar, another town under tremendous pressure, is close to Duzhkivka and Kostyantynivka, the two southernmost cities in the belt. The other two, Slovyansk and Kramatorsk, are located a bit more north, but still along the same highway. "The Russian military command could decide that advances north along the H-20 highway would allow Russian forces to conduct subsequent complementary offensive operations from the east and south against the southern edge of the Ukrainian fortress belt in Donetsk Oblast," ISW wrote. But the effort wouldn't be rapid or easy for Russia, the analysts added. And they may still yet decide to prioritize advancing toward the west, going after the borders of Donetsk Oblast, rather than heading northwest out of Avdiivka towards the fortress belt. At the moment, ISW reported, Ukrainian officials say Russia has deployed as many as four brigades, "roughly a reinforced division's worth of combat power," northwest of Avdiivka to stabilize sections of the front and support penetration operations. Advertisement The Russian situation is not without its challenges though. Ukraine appears to have slowed down Russian gains near Avdiivka with reconstituted reinforcements in the area, despite facing a severe manpower shortage and disadvantages overall. That said, in recent days, Ukrainian military officials have acknowledged Russian tactical gains in the area, reporting a dire situation as they wait for the arrival of US aid. The potential for advances in this sector comes ahead of an expected Russian offensive this summer, when Moscow's troops could have the opportunity to make significant gains in the Chasiv Yar area and beyond. At this time, it remains unclear what weapons packages and security assistance Ukraine will have received by then and whether the country's forces will be able to sufficiently defend against a Russian offensive.
Democratic mayor joins Kentucky GOP lawmakers to celebrate state funding for Louisville 2024-04-29 20:47:07+00:00 - The amount of state funding headed to Kentucky’s largest city to support downtown renewal, education, health care and other priorities shows that the days of talking about an urban-rural divide in the Bluegrass State are “now behind us,” Louisville’s mayor said Monday. The new two-year state budget passed by the Republican-dominated legislature will pump more than $1 billion into Louisville, reflecting the city’s role as an economic catalyst that benefits the entire state, lawmakers said. Republican legislators and Louisville’s first-term Democratic mayor, Craig Greenberg, spoke of the collaboration they achieved during the 60-day legislative session that ended two weeks ago. “For far too long, folks have talked about this urban-rural divide that has divided Louisville and the rest of the state,” Greenberg said at a news conference attended by a number of lawmakers in downtown Louisville. “We may not agree on every issue,” he said. “What we have shown this session is that’s OK. There is so much common ground. There is so much that we do agree on.” There was no mention of divisive issues — past and present — that prompted some Democratic lawmakers and others to proclaim that the predominantly rural GOP legislature was waging a “war on Louisville.” During the just-ended session, Republican lawmakers enacted a measure to make mayoral elections nonpartisan in Louisville, the state’s most Democratic city. And lawmakers undid efforts in Louisville and Lexington to ban landlords from discriminating against renters who use federal housing vouchers. Perhaps the most explosive issue is still pending. Lawmakers agreed to create a task force to review the public school system that encompasses Louisville. The review could potentially lead to efforts next year to split up Jefferson County Public Schools, the state’s largest school system. Sen. Gerald Neal, the state Senate’s top-ranking Democrat, noted at Monday’s event that there remain “some unanswered questions” regarding the legislature’s relationship with Louisville. But Neal praised his colleagues for approving the funding for his hometown, referring to the $100 million over two years for downtown Louisville as a “home run.” Other projects winning legislative funding will make improvements at Louisville’s airport, support a community center for teens and adults with disabilities, build on the Louisville Orchestra’s statewide presence and support the Kentucky Exposition Center, which hosts trade shows throughout the year. University of Louisville President Kim Schatzel said the session produced historic levels of funding for the school. The budget supports development of a new health sciences building in downtown Louisville that will produce more health professionals and advance cutting-edge research, she said. The state also will help develop a cybersecurity center at UofL that will put the city and state “on the map as a national leader in this emerging and incredibly important technology field,” Schatzel said. “Construction and cranes on campus, well, they warm a president’s heart like nothing else, as they signal confidence in a very bright future for the university and the communities that we serve,” she said. Lawmakers passed a more than $128 billion main budget for the state executive branch over the next two fiscal years. They also approved tapping into the state’s massive budget reserves for nearly $3 billion in spending on one-time investments in infrastructure and community projects. House Speaker David Osborne said the Louisville investments resulted from disciplined budgeting since the GOP gained House control in 2017, consolidating Republican dominance of the legislature. For successive budget cycles after that, “this legislative body has spent less money than we have taken in,” the Republican speaker said. “That is not an easy thing to do.” Republican Senate President Robert Stivers said that Louisville serves a mission stretching far beyond its boundaries in education, health care, transportation, tourism and the humanities. Stivers, who represents an eastern Kentucky district, said the state’s investments in Louisville were a matter of economics. “You don’t turn away from 18 to 19% of your population and your revenues that you take in to the state coffers,” he said.
Seeking nominations for our inaugural list of sports betting's rising stars 2024-04-29 20:43:53+00:00 - Business Insider is compiling its first list of rising stars in the US sports-betting industry. We're looking for early-to-mid-career staffers behind key efforts at operators, suppliers, and more. Submit nominations through the form below by May 13, 2024. NEW LOOK Sign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. Read preview Thanks for signing up! Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go. download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . You can opt-out at any time. Advertisement We're seeking nominations for our inaugural list of rising stars in the US sports-betting industry, and we want to hear from you. As the industry expands in North America, we've highlighted the leaders shaping it, from DraftKings' Jason Robins and FanDuel's Amy Howe to sports-betting executives at the major leagues, media companies, and industry suppliers to top investors. Now we're spotlighting up-and-comers who are working behind the scenes to solve some of the industry's toughest problems and making waves in the sector. We're looking for early-to-mid-career staffers focused on the US market at operators, industry suppliers, or media companies in sports betting. These people also have big ambitions to be the future leaders in the industry. Related stories Please submit your nominations here or through the form below by Monday, May 13, 2024, at 6 p.m. ET. Advertisement Criteria and methodology We will consider several factors to determine who to spotlight in this list, including the nominee's specific role and responsibilities and the person's impact on the industry. We will also consider what leadership efforts the person has demonstrated. Please include as much detail as possible about the nominee's role when submitting a nomination below.