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Jeff Bezos Buys $90 Million Florida Mansion To Live In While His Other Newly Purchased $147 Million Homes Are 'Demolished' For A Mega Mansion 2024-04-04 02:45:00+00:00 - Jeff Bezos, the world's second-richest individual with a net worth of $203.7 billion, has made significant real estate moves in Florida's exclusive Indian Creek Island, known colloquially as "Billionaire Bunker." Bezos's acquisition spree began with two mansions purchased for a combined total of $147 million. Not stopping there, Bezos recently added a third property to his collection for $90 million. The home, featuring six bedrooms and nine bathrooms, was acquired by Bezos through an off-market deal. Property records show the house was last sold in 1998,= for $2.5 million to banker Javier Holtz. Despite its luxurious attributes, the property's valuation by Zillow stands at approximately $41 million, significantly lower than the price Bezos agreed to pay for it. This discrepancy highlights the premium Bezos placed on the property, possibly because of its location, exclusivity or potential as a custom home site beyond the estimated market value. Don't Miss: Investing in real estate just got a whole lot simpler. This Jeff Bezos-backed startup will allow you to become a landlord in just 10 minutes, and you only need $100. Miami is expected to take New York's place as the U.S. Financial Capital. Here's how you can invest in the city with as little as $500 before that happens. Bezos’s latest property acquisitions are located next to the homes of Ivanka Trump and her husband Jared Kushner as well as the famed NFL quarterback Tom Brady. Situated in one of the most expensive neighborhoods in the United States, Indian Creek is home to just 80 residences, each set in expansive mansions. These homeowners enjoy exclusive amenities, including a private golf course and country club, highlighting the area’s luxurious lifestyle. The latest reports from Bloomberg suggest an ambitious plan: Bezos intends to demolish the first two properties to make way for a massive mansion. However, this plan has not been officially confirmed by Bezos himself. Story continues Beyond the sphere of luxury real estate, Bezos's relocation to Florida is strategically savvy, coinciding with selling approximately $8.5 billion worth of Amazon shares. Florida's tax environment, known for its absence of a state income tax, offers a significant tax advantage, particularly for high-net-worth individuals handling large transactions like Bezos. Bezos's latest real estate dealings and his decision to sell Amazon stock open a new chapter in his life, blending personal desires with a move to Florida, known for its favorable tax laws. His relocation to Miami, bringing him closer to family and his aerospace company Blue Origin, highlights a mix of reasons for the move, including personal, professional and tax-related benefits. While Bezos's real estate moves are out of reach for most people, getting into the real estate industry doesn't require millions. You can find opportunities to start investing in real estate with as little as $100 through this Bezos-backed company, real estate investment trusts (REITs) or crowdfunding websites, which offer a way for individuals to invest in property and real estate projects with minimal initial capital. These options provide a way for almost anyone to get a foot in the door of the real estate market, democratizing the ability to invest in this traditionally high-barrier industry. Read Next: Collecting passive income from real estate just got a whole lot simpler. A new real estate fund backed by Jeff Bezos gives you instant access to a diversified portfolio of rental properties, and you only need $100 to get started. Whole Foods' landlord has delivered a 15% net IRR for its investors since 2015. Check out the latest investment opportunities added to its platform. "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 Jeff Bezos Buys $90 Million Florida Mansion To Live In While His Other Newly Purchased $147 Million Homes Are 'Demolished' For A Mega Mansion originally appeared on Benzinga.com © 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.

Biden Says Economy Is 'Strong,' But 50% Of Voters Say Their Financial Situation Is Getting Worse As Markets And Employment Hit Record Highs 2024-04-04 02:38:00+00:00 - Nearly every metric for measuring economic prosperity backs President Joe Biden's proclamation in his State of the Union address in early March that "the state of our union is strong and getting stronger." As the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Stock Market raced toward all-time highs, Biden posted on X in mid-February, "The stock market going strong is a sign of confidence in America's economy." A strong market means that people’s 401(k)s are growing in value every day, and there's extra money to be made in the market. However, that also requires people to have extra money to put into the stock market or save for retirement. When their stock price is up, companies are more inclined to take risks and spend money because they can leverage their increased stock price to get more cash as needed. Don't Miss: Long overdue disruption in the moving industry is underway. Here’s how to invest in it with just $100 . Executives and founders of Uber, Facebook and Apple are bullish on this wellness app that you can coinvest in at $1.15 per share. But that's not the only marker. Unemployment statistics have reportedly hit all-time lows. The unemployment rate was 3.61% in 2022 — a record at that time, according to CNN. It dropped even lower in 2023 to 3.6%. Inflation also continues to drop. Lower inflation doesn't mean things are getting cheaper; it means things are getting more expensive at a slower rate, which can give consumers time to allow wages to catch up to inflation. Gross domestic product (GDP) has also continued to grow at a relatively respectable rate. GDP grew 2.5% in 2023, an increase from 1.9% in 2022. Much of this indicates a strong economy in which consumers would seemingly be thriving. But according to a recent Harris Poll by American Political Studies (CAPS) at Harvard University, nearly 1 in 2 voters say their financial situation is "getting worse." In June 2022, the same poll showed 64% of respondents saying their financial situation was getting worse. While the number of respondents saying their situation is declining has slowly dropped over the past 18 months, that's a year and a half of voters struggling financially. Story continues Trending: This startup coined “eBay for gamers” with a breathtaking track record has opened up a window to invest in its future growth. Most groups said their financial situation was getting worse, with the exception of Democratic voters, those ages 35 to 44, urban voters and Black voters who say their situation is "improving." More than half of female voters — 53% — said their situation is getting worse, compared to only 21% saying it's improving. Hispanic and Republican voters saw the largest disparity, with 65% of GOP voters saying it's getting worse compared to 14% saying it's improving. Twenty percent of Hispanic voters reported their situation is improving and 60% say it's getting worse. Male respondents were relatively evenly spread with 34% improving, 41% getting worse and the rest with "just as well off." Young voters ages 18 to 24 have a relatively wide disparity with only 30% saying it's improving while 51% noting it's getting worse. While some of this disparity can be explained by politics, with Democratic voters saying their situation is getting better under Biden, there might be some indications of broader issues. Household debt has skyrocketed alongside increases in interest rates to levels well beyond those of the 2008 crash. Americans now have $1.13 trillion in credit card debt and $4.89 trillion in nonhousing debt. As interest rates rise, consumers spend substantially more on interest, decreasing expendable income. In 2008, nonhousing debt reached $2.71 trillion. Similarly, debt associated with housing has also continued to skyrocket. U.S. households now hold a record $12.61 trillion in household debt, up from $9.99 trillion in 2008. Interest rates have begun slowly coming down in recent months, with the Federal Reserve signaling rate cuts will begin later this year. This could ease the situation among voters going into the 2024 election. Read Next: "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 Biden Says Economy Is 'Strong,' But 50% Of Voters Say Their Financial Situation Is Getting Worse As Markets And Employment Hit Record Highs originally appeared on Benzinga.com © 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.

Abdallah Candies issues nationwide recall of almond candy mislabeled as not containing nuts 2024-04-03 22:41:00+00:00 - How Abdallah Candies grew from mom-and-pop shop to national company How Abdallah Candies grew from mom-and-pop shop to national company 02:49 A Minnesota candy company is recalling a product sold nationwide because the boxes containing the treats are mislabeled and don't list nuts as an ingredient, posing a serious health risk to those with allergies. Abdallah Candies is recalling 8-ounce boxes of "sea salt almond alligators" with a chocolate covered cherries label and the code 0315 on the bottom, the Apple Valley, Minn.-based maker of chocolate, caramels and candy said Tuesday in a notice posted by the Food and Drug Administration. "People who have an allergy or severe sensitivity to almonds run the risk of serious or life-threatening allergic reaction if they consume these products," the recall states. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, food allergies are a growing food safety and public health concern that affects 6% of adults and an estimated 8% of children in the U.S. Food allergies are behind tens of thousands of emergency department visits each year, and as many as 200 Americans die from anaphylaxis, a sudden and severe allergic reaction, the federal agency said. Image of a box of the recalled "sea salt almond alligators." Food and Drug Administration The recalled candy was distributed nationwide and sold in specialty retail stores, grocery shops and other retail outlets from March 1, 2024, to March 29, 2024. Consumers who bought the recalled candy were advised to destroy the product or return it to the place of purchase. Consumers with questions can call Abdallah Candies Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Central time at (952) 890-4770 or (800) 348-7328. Image of back of the box of recalled Abdallah Candies sea salt almond alligators. U.S. Food and Drug Administration

California woman's fatal poisoning from hemorrhoid cream highlights lead risks 2024-04-03 22:15:00+00:00 - The fatal poisoning of a California resident who had ordered a Vietnamese herbal ointment for hemorrhoids online is a recent example of lead — a dangerous and toxic metal — showing up in imported products. The list in recent months has included items ranging from apple sauce, ground cinnamon and bracelets to sippy cups, water bottles and dark chocolate. Local officials issued a public health alert after a woman in Sacramento developed severe lead poisoning and died after using a hemorrhoid ointment from Vietnam called Cao Boi Tri Cay Thau Dau. The California Department of Public Health tested a sample of the ointment and found it contained what it described as "a highly dangerous amount of lead," or 4%, according to the county's alert. The deceased woman had purchased the ointment on Facebook, and it was mailed to the U.S. by a relative in Vietnam, the agency stated in a news release. It was not immediately clear if people can buy the ointment directly in the U.S. But any consumers with the ointment should stop using it and get their blood tested for lead, California health officials advised. The product is marketed primarily through Facebook groups in Vietnamese as a so-called "miracle" treatment for hemorrhoids, according to a post by California's Calaveras County Public Health. Alert posted by Calaveras County Public Health. Calaveras County Public Health The Food and Drug Administration did not respond to a request for comment. Lead-based paints have been banned in the U.S. since 1978, but the metal can show up when paint peels or cracks in homes built before then, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Yet lead can also be found in some products such as toys, jewelry, candies or traditional home remedies and has shown up in drinking water and in soil contaminated by industrial and other sources, the agency said. The metal has been found in certain spices imported from countries including Vietnam, India and Syria, and has also been found in powders and tablets given for ailments from arthritis to menstrual cramps, the CDC noted. The first three months of the year has seen a discomforting number of consumer warnings and/or recalls of products tainted with the toxin, including croquet sets made in India and sold on Amazon, jewelry made in China and sold at Skechers stores nationwide and child tiaras embedded with lead-tainted rhinestones, that were made in China and sold on Amazon. Advocacy groups have long sounded alarms about lead. A study released in September by international nonprofit Pure Earth found excessive levels of lead in 18% of more than 5,000 consumer and food products from 70 marketplaces in 25 countries. "Lead pollution knows no boundaries," Richard Fuller, Pure Earth's president, said in a statement announcing the study. "Our research indicates that hundreds of millions of people have elevated blood lead levels due to continuous, long-term exposure to household lead sources increasing serious health risks across lifespans. More people are dying from cardiovascular disease caused by lead exposure than by cholesterol." Long-term exposure to even small amounts of heavy metals can lead to a slew of health issues, including developmental problems and brain development in young children, experts say. Most people do not show obvious immediate symptoms of lead exposure, but prolonged exposure to the metals is considered unsafe. Exposure to lead in utero, infancy and early childhood can lead to harmful neurological effects like learning and behavior disabilities and lowered IQ. For adults, chronic lead exposure is linked to kidney dysfunction, hypertension and neurocognitive effects.

Diablo 4 Season 4 Preview Available: Here's How To Install PTR - Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) 2024-04-03 22:13:00+00:00 - Loading... Loading... Microsoft Corp.’s MSFT Blizzard has just launched the first Public Test Realm (PTR) for Diablo 4, giving a select group of players the chance to get a sneak peek at what’s coming in Season 4. This PTR, announced in late March, runs from April 2 to April 9. It’s only available to those with a PC Battle.net account. Players who are part of the PTR get early access to test out new features and updates, giving them a chance to provide feedback before Season 4 officially launches. See Also: Diablo 4 Season 4 Delayed to Incorporate Player Feedback – Here’s What To Expect However, there has been a bit of a setback. Season 4 has been pushed back from its original April 16 release date to May 14, as revealed by Diablo Community Lead Adam Fletcher in a recent Campfire Chat episode. Season 4 is shaping up to be a game-changer for Diablo 4, with significant changes planned for itemization that promise to shake up the gameplay experience. While Season 3 brought some tweaks, like Class Changes, Season 4 is expected to have a much bigger impact. For those who’ve recently joined the Diablo 4 community through Xbox Game Pass, there are a few things to note. Unfortunately, there’s no Xbox achievement support, and PC Game Pass users must install Battle.net to access the game. Step-by-Step Guide for Early Access In order to join the PTR for Diablo 4 and gain early access to Season 4, follow these steps: Open the Blizzard Battle.net App and locate Diablo IV in your Games list. Above the Play button, find the game version drop-down menu and select ‘Public Test Realm’. Click on ‘Install’ to download and install the PTR client. The button will change to ‘Play’ once installation is complete. Click ‘Play’ to log in to the PTR, then choose any available Test Server. Create a new test character within the game. Enter the game and start exploring Season 4! For PC Game Pass or Game Pass Ultimate users, accessing the PTR is also possible. Simply access the Battle Net client through the Xbox App, then proceed to access the PTR through Battle Net as usual. Read Next: Diablo IV Expansion In 2024: Is There A New Class On The Horizon? Image courtesy of Blizzard via Steam.

Hunterbrook Media Shorts United Wholesale Mortgage: UWM Casts Doubt On New Firm's Integrity - UWM Hldgs (NYSE:UWMC) 2024-04-03 22:13:00+00:00 - Loading... Loading... Hunterbrook Media, a new hedge fund that doubles as a news organization, released its first short report on UWM Holdings Corp UWMC on Tuesday. Hunterbrook alleges in the report that UWM unfairly incentivized mortgage brokers to push business to the firm — and Hunterbrook encouraged a class action lawsuit against UWM, the country's largest mortgage lender. What Is Hunterbrook Media? Hunterbrook is a hybrid between a hedge fund and a news organization founded by two Harvard graduates, Nathaniel Brooks Horwitz and Sam Koppelman. Hunterbrook's first report, which outlines what it said are unfair and deceptive practices from UWM, discloses the fact that Hunterbrook took a short position out on UWM and a long position on its biggest competitor, Rocket Companies Inc RKT. The Short Report: Hunterbrook said in the report that UWM misled its customers by saying that independent brokers shop around to find the best deal for homebuyers and end up going to UWM because UWM can offer the best prices. In reality, these “independent brokers” push more than 99% of their business to UWM, the report said. UWM responded to the report, questioning Hunterbrook's journalistic practices and the validity of the report. "Hunterbrook is not a news organization. It is a hedge fund sensationalizing public information to manipulate the stock market to enrich themselves and their investors," UWM said in a statement. "Buried deep in their ‘report,’ and prior to its publication, Hunterbrook ‘went short $UWMC, long $RKT and purchased derivatives.' As you would expect a hedge fund masquerading as journalism would knowingly mislead the public, the report itself is riddled with inaccuracies and incorrect information,” UWM’s statement said. “A hedge fund scheme using journalists to short a stock is not only unethical, it may be fraudulent." Read Also: Are You A Housing Market Lock-In? High Mortgage Rates Result In ‘People Not Living In Homes They Would Prefer’ UWMC Price Action: UWM shares gained 1.67% Wednesday, closing at $6.10. Mortgage illustration by Jens Neumann from Pixabay.

NCAA Men's Final Four Betting Preview: What To Know About The Teams That Made It Through The Madness Of March - DraftKings (NASDAQ:DKNG) 2024-04-03 22:00:00+00:00 - Loading... Loading... 68 teams entered the 2024 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament, and only four remain. Here’s what you need to know ahead of this weekend’s Final Four games. And Then There Were 4: This year’s Final Four includes two top seeds, one No. 4 seed and a Cinderella story. The No.1 seeded Purdue Boilermakers will face off against No. 11 seed North Carolina State in the first matchup of the weekend, with tip off set for 6:09 p.m. ET on Saturday. The No. 1 seed UConn Huskies will take on No. 4 seed Alabama immediately after at 8:49 p.m. ET. Saturday’s Final Four games will settle who gets to play in the National Championship game on April 8, and also bring us one step closer to seeing who won their office bracket challenges. As previously reported by Benzinga, the odds of a perfect bracket in March Madness are 1 in 9.2 quintillion. Sadly, no perfect brackets were left after just the first two days of games in the first round. However, many people still have a chance to get the tournament winner correct. Heading into the tournament, UConn was the most popular pick in Walt Disney Co’s DIS ESPN Tournament Challenge, with 24.7% of the 22 million brackets having selected the Huskies as the last team standing. If the UConn Huskies win this weekend, the team will have an opportunity to become the first program to win back-to-back National Championships since the Florida Gators in 2006-2007. See Also: Sports Betting Surge Fuels Gambling Stocks As Scandals Raise Concerns, This Star College Athlete Says, ‘It’s Definitely A Little Out Of Hand’ Purdue was the third most popular pick to win it all in the ESPN Tournament Challenge with 10.1% of brackets having selected the Boilermakers. Alabama was chosen by just 0.9% of bracket challenge participants and NC State was picked by a whopping 0.4%. Place Your Bets: The betting lines heading into the weekend currently have both No. 1 seeds as heavy favorites to make it to the championship game. DraftKings Inc DKNG Sportsbook has Purdue listed as a nine-point favorite over North Carolina State. The total for the game is set at 146. Interestingly enough, this is Purdue’s first trip to the Final Four, but it will mark the fourth appearance for NC State, who went on to win the National Championship in two of its previous three trips to the Final Four. DraftKings has an even bigger spread on the UConn-Alabama game. The Huskies are currently 12-point favorites to beat the Crimson Tide On Saturday. The total for the game is set at 160. Loading... Loading... UConn is coming off of a National Championship in last year’s tournament and is making its seventh Final Four appearance. The team has won a remarkable five championships and all of them have occurred since 1999. Alabama will be playing in the Final Four for the first time. Here’s a look at the betting odds for each remaining team to win the Men’s National Championship: UConn: -195 Purdue: +205 Alabama: +1600 North Carolina State: +1600 Both Final Four games and the National Championship will be aired on TBS, TNT and truTV, which are owned by Paramount Global PARA. The games can also be streamed via Paramount+. Read Next: Atlanta Braves Stock Could Be Undervalued Based On MLB Team Valuations, Did Warren Buffett Spot Another Value Stock? This illustration was generated using artificial intelligence via MidJourney.

Toll Brothers Opens Four New Luxury Model Homes in Folsom, California - Toll Brothers (NYSE:TOL) 2024-04-03 22:00:00+00:00 - Loading... Loading... FOLSOM, Calif., April 03, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Toll Brothers, Inc. TOL, the nation's leading builder of luxury homes, today announced the grand opening of its model homes at Oak Trails and Heritage Trails at Preserve at Folsom Ranch, a new luxury community of single-family homes in Folsom, California. The public is invited to attend a model home grand opening event this Saturday, April 6 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at 4005 Boulder Creek Way in Folsom. Preserve at Folsom Ranch opened for pre-sale last fall with tremendous interest from home buyers. The highly anticipated Oak Trails and Heritage Trails model homes feature innovative architecture tastefully complemented by stunning interior design, showcasing the perfect blend of luxury and iconic Californian contemporary design. The Oak Trails collection in Preserve at Folsom Ranch offers three luxury two-story home designs. The Heritage Trails collection offers four luxury home designs, including single-story and two-story floor plans with grand entries featuring ceilings soaring up to 20-feet. Both collections feature open-concept floor plans, expansive kitchens, indoor/outdoor living spaces, lofts, spacious primary suites, and 2- or 3-car garages. Home prices start in the $900,000s for the Oak Trails collection and $1 million for the Heritage Trails collection. Home buyers can choose from an exceptional list of personalization options including multi-paneled stacking doors, primary suite decks, indoor and outdoor fireplaces, and more. Home buyers will experience one-stop shopping at the Toll Brothers Design Studio. The state-of-the-art Design Studio allows home buyers to choose from a wide array of selections to personalize their dream home with the assistance of Toll Brothers professional Design Consultants. "With floor plans designed for today's buyers and unrivaled personalization options, Preserve at Folsom Ranch offers residents the best in luxury living in one of Folsom's most desirable communities," said Scott Esping, Division President of Toll Brothers in Sacramento. "We are excited to open our four new model homes to the public and bring these stunning new home collections to this very special community." The well-established city of Folsom boasts ample shopping, dining, and entertainment options just minutes from this exclusive community. With tree-lined open space, natural creeks and streams, and miles of meandering trails and bikeways just beyond their door, residents can find ideal space and style against a backdrop of pristine natural beauty when they call Preserve at Folsom Ranch home. Residents will also enjoy the convenience of being located near Folsom Historic Downtown District, Folsom Lake and State Park, CSUS Aquatic Center, Folsom Public Library, Folsom Lake College, Mercy Hospital, Folsom Sports Complex, and more. For more information and to attend the grand opening event and tour the new Toll Brothers model homes at Preserve at Folsom Ranch, call 844-849-5263 or visit TollBrothers.com/SAC. About Toll Brothers Toll Brothers, Inc., a Fortune 500 Company, is the nation's leading builder of luxury homes. The Company was founded 57 years ago in 1967 and became a public company in 1986. Its common stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol "TOL." The Company serves first-time, move-up, empty-nester, active-adult, and second-home buyers, as well as urban and suburban renters. Toll Brothers builds in over 60 markets in 24 states: Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, and Washington, as well as in the District of Columbia. The Company operates its own architectural, engineering, mortgage, title, land development, smart home technology, and landscape subsidiaries. The Company also develops master-planned and golf course communities as well as operates its own lumber distribution, house component assembly, and manufacturing operations. In 2024, Toll Brothers marked 10 years in a row being named to the Fortune World's Most Admired Companies™ list. Toll Brothers has also been named Builder of the Year by Builder magazine and is the first two-time recipient of Builder of the Year from Professional Builder magazine. For more information visit TollBrothers.com. Loading... Loading... From Fortune, ©2024 Fortune Media IP Limited. All rights reserved. Used under license. Contact - Andrea Meck | Toll Brothers, Director, Public Relations & Social Media | 215-938-8169 | ameck@tollbrothers.com Photos accompanying this announcement are available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/dd22cfad-adca-49ee-b9d4-53e0a518b301 https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/86359740-b6fa-422f-8ed4-3b1e9fd2dd40 Sent by Toll Brothers via Regional Globe Newswire (TOLL-REG)

Genco Shipping & Trading Limited Files Preliminary Proxy Statement - Genco Shipping & Trading (NYSE:GNK) 2024-04-03 21:59:00+00:00 - Loading... Loading... NEW YORK, April 03, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Genco Shipping & Trading Limited GNK ("Genco" or the "Company"), the largest U.S. headquartered drybulk shipowner focused on the global transportation of commodities, today announced that it has filed its preliminary proxy materials with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") in connection with its upcoming Annual Meeting of Shareholders. In its preliminary proxy statement, the Genco Board of Directors recommends that shareholders vote for the re-election of the seven nominees currently serving on the Board – James G. Dolphin, Paramita Das, Kathleen C. Haines, Basil G. Mavroleon, Karin Y. Orsel, Arthur L. Regan and John C. Wobensmith – at the 2024 Annual Meeting. With the re-election of all seven directors, Genco's Board will comprise seven highly qualified individuals, all of whom bring a well-balanced skillset and significant experience in areas relevant to our business, including shipping, fleet management, commercial and technical management, as well as capital allocation management, financial reporting and M&A. In regards to the Board's recommendation, Genco issued the following statement: The Genco Board and management team are committed to maintaining strong corporate governance while creating long-term value for all shareholders. Our focus on enhancing our industry-leading governance practices is showcased by the recent addition of Paramita Das, a respected global business leader with vast experience in commodities markets, to Genco's Board. Furthermore, due to prudent and well-executed initiatives overseen by our Board in recent years, Genco is attractively positioned to advance its differentiated approach to capital allocation to drive value through drybulk shipping market cycles. We remain focused on delivering on the three pillars of our Comprehensive Value Strategy, including continuing to pay compelling quarterly dividends, reducing the Company's financial risks through deleveraging and maximizing the Company's ability to pursue accretive growth opportunities. As previously disclosed, George Economou, through his entity GK Investor, LLC, has nominated two directors for election to the Board. He also submitted a proposal to repeal certain provisions of, or amendments to, Genco's By-Laws adopted after March 28, 2023. Genco has not adopted any By-Laws provisions or amendments after March 28, 2023 and currently has no intentions to do so. Following engagement with Mr. Economou and a thorough evaluation of his nominees, the Board unanimously rejected the proposed nominations and determined that including them would neither be additive to our already strong, focused and experienced Board nor in the best interests of the Company or its shareholders. In its preliminary proxy materials, the Board also recommends that shareholders vote against Mr. Economou's proposal because it could repeal a future amendment that the Board determines to be in Genco's and its shareholders' best interests, which may be in response to future events not yet known. Genco's preliminary proxy materials can be found here as well as on the Company's website at https://www.gencoshipping.com/. The Company's definitive proxy materials will be mailed to all shareholders eligible to vote at the 2024 Annual Meeting. Shareholders may receive materials, in the mail or otherwise, from GK Investor. The Genco Board recommends that shareholders discard any proxy materials from GK Investor and vote using the WHITE proxy card they will receive as part of the definitive proxy materials that will be delivered by the Company. Loading... Loading... Jefferies LLC is acting as financial advisor to Genco, and Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel LLP is serving as legal counsel. About Genco Shipping & Trading Limited Genco Shipping & Trading Limited is a U.S. based drybulk ship owning company focused on the seaborne transportation of commodities globally. We provide a full-service logistics solution to our customers utilizing our in-house commercial operating platform, as we transport key cargoes such as iron ore, grain, steel products, bauxite, cement, nickel ore among other commodities along worldwide shipping routes. Our wholly owned high quality, modern fleet of dry cargo vessels consists of the larger Capesize (major bulk) and the medium-sized Ultramax and Supramax vessels (minor bulk) enabling us to carry a wide range of cargoes. We make capital expenditures from time to time in connection with vessel acquisitions. As of April 3, 2024, Genco Shipping & Trading Limited's fleet consists of 17 Capesize, 15 Ultramax and 12 Supramax vessels with an aggregate capacity of approximately 4,659,000 dwt and an average age of 11.8 years. "Safe Harbor" Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 This letter contains certain forward-looking statements pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements use words such as "expect," "intend," "plan," "believe," and other words and terms of similar meaning in connection with a discussion of potential future events, circumstances or future operating or financial performance. These forward-looking statements are based on management's current expectations and observations. For a discussion of factors that could cause results to differ, please see the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including, without limitation, the Company's Annual Report on form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023, and the Company's reports on Form 10-Q and Form 8-K subsequently filed with the SEC. We do not undertake any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Important Additional Information Regarding Proxy Solicitation Genco intends to file a definitive proxy statement and associated WHITE proxy card with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") in connection with the solicitation of proxies for Genco's 2024 Annual Meeting of Shareholders (the "Proxy Statement"). Genco, its directors and certain of its executive officers will be participants in the solicitation of proxies from shareholders in respect of the 2024 Annual Meeting of Shareholders, including John C. Wobensmith (Chief Executive Officer and President), Peter Allen (Chief Financial Officer), Joseph Adamo (Chief Accounting Officer), Jesper Christensen (Chief Commercial Officer), and Genco's directors other than Mr. Wobensmith, namely James G. Dolphin, Paramita Das, Kathleen C. Haines, Basil G. Mavroleon, Karin Y. Orsel, and Arthur L. Regan. Investors and security holders may obtain more detailed information regarding the Company's directors and executive officers, including a description of their direct or indirect interests, by security holdings or otherwise, under the captions "Management," "Executive Compensation," and "Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management" in Genco's preliminary proxy statement for its 2024 Annual Meeting of Shareholders, filed with the SEC on April 3, 2024 (the "Preliminary Proxy Statement"), which is available here. To the extent holdings of such participants in Genco's securities changed since the amounts described in the Preliminary Proxy Statement, such changes will be reflected on Initial Statements of Beneficial Ownership on Form 3 or Statements of Change in Ownership on Form 4 filed with the SEC. These documents are available free of charge as described below. Details concerning the nominees of Genco's Board of Directors for election at the 2024 Annual Meeting of Shareholders are included in the Preliminary Proxy Statement. BEFORE MAKING ANY VOTING DECISION, INVESTORS AND SHAREHOLDERS OF THE COMPANY ARE URGED TO READ ALL RELEVANT DOCUMENTS FILED WITH OR FURNISHED TO THE SEC, INCLUDING THE PRELIMINARY PROXY STATEMENT, THE COMPANY'S DEFINITIVE PROXY STATEMENT AND ANY SUPPLEMENTS THERETO AND ACCOMPANYING WHITE PROXY CARD WHEN THEY BECOME AVAILABLE, BECAUSE THEY WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION. Investors and shareholders will be able to obtain a copy of the Preliminary Proxy Statement, the Company's definitive Proxy Statement and other relevant documents filed by Genco free of charge from the SEC's website, www.sec.gov. Genco's shareholders are able to obtain, without charge, a copy of the foregoing documents and any amendments or supplements to such documents by directing a request by mail to Genco Shipping & Trading Limited, 299 Park Avenue, 12th Floor, New York, NY 10171 or from the Investors section of Genco's website at www.gencoshipping.com. MEDIA/INVESTOR CONTACT: Peter Allen Chief Financial Officer Genco Shipping & Trading Limited (646) 443-8550 Aaron Palash / Carleigh Roesler / Jenna Shinderman Joele Frank, Wilkinson Brimmer Katcher (212) 355-4449

Despite AI startup hype, U.S. venture deals slumped to lowest level since 2017 in first quarter 2024-04-03 21:50:00+00:00 - The trading floor of the New York Stock Exchange prepares for the initial public offering of social media platform Reddit on March 21, 2024, in New York City. Even with hot artificial intelligence startups scoring hefty investment rounds at massive valuations, the broader venture funding environment remains ice cold. Deal volume for U.S. venture investments in the first quarter sank to its lowest level since 2017, according to data published this week by PitchBook. The story was similar across the globe, with worldwide volume reaching its lowest since 2016 and total deal value falling to a level not seen since 2019. The dearth of dealmaking shows that, despite a rebound in tech stocks last year and continuing hype around generative AI, venture capitalists are still largely on the sidelines. Startup financings soared to record levels in 2021, before slowing dramatically the following two years as inflationary concerns and rising interest rates pushed investors into safer assets and forced money-losing tech companies to focus on efficiency over growth. The Federal Reserve has indicated that cuts to its benchmark interest rate are likely coming in 2024, but for the moment they remain steady. Fed Chairman Jerome Powell said Wednesday it will take a while for policymakers to evaluate the current state of inflation, keeping the timing of potential interest rate cuts uncertain. "Sticky inflation has pushed hope of interest rate cuts to the back half of the year, and recession remains a possibility," PitchBook analysts wrote in an email accompanying the firm's data. "We don't expect deal activity to pick up in a meaningful way in the near term." There were 2,882 venture deals in the first quarter, the lowest since the third quarter of 2017, according to PitchBook. The value of those deals totaled $36.6 billion, down 62% from a peak of $97.5 billion in the fourth quarter of 2021. The latest quarter was about even with the number from the third quarter of last year, but otherwise marks the lowest since the end of 2019. Globally, the 7,520 deals were the fewest since the third quarter of 2016. And at $75.9 billion, investment was the lowest since mid-2019. The analysts said VCs across the globe have had trouble returning funds to limited partners over the past two years, which has made many reluctant to reinvest. Some positive signs for the market came in the form of IPOs. Social media site Reddit and Astera Labs , which sells data center connectivity chips to cloud and AI infrastructure companies, held their debuts in March, the first two venture-backed tech companies to go public in the U.S. since September. Rubrik, a data security software vendor, filed its IPO prospectus this week. According to PitchBook, Reddit and Astera made up 73.4% of the total exit value in the U.S. in the first quarter. "The prospect of increasing IPO activity created buzz in the market narrative because of how slow exits have been for two years," the PitchBook analysts wrote. WATCH: Y Combinator CEO Gary Tann on Reddit IPO

Trump loses late bid to delay New York hush money trial 2024-04-03 21:44:00+00:00 - Former U.S. President Donald Trump speaks after attending a wake for New York City Police Department (NYPD) officer Jonathan Diller, who was shot and killed while making a routine traffic stop on March 25 in the Far Rockaway section of Queens, in Massapequa Park, New York, U.S., March 28, 2024. A judge on Wednesday rejected a last-ditch effort by former president Donald Trump to delay his hush money trial scheduled to begin in New York on April 15. Trump had asked Judge Juan Merchan to postpone the trial until after the U.S. Supreme Court rules on where he has presidential immunity in another criminal case in Washington, D.C. federal court, which is related to his efforts to reverse President Joe Biden's victory in the 2020 election. Merchan, in shooting down that request, said Trump had "myriad opportunities" to make an argument that he was immune in the hush money case before March 7, when his attorneys first raised that claim. "Defendant's motion is DENIED as untimely," Merchan wrote in his decision. The judge also wrote that he declined to consider whether the doctrine of presidential immunity precludes the introduction of evidence by prosecutors of purportedly official presidential acts at the trial. Those acts include statements Trump made on social media and in interviews about potential witnesses in the case, when he was president from 2017 to early 2021. Trump is charged in the Manhattan Supreme Court case with falsifying business records related to a hush money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels shortly before the 2016 presidential election. He has pleaded not guilty to multiple felony counts. Trump's then-lawyer and fixer Michael Cohen paid Daniels $130,000 in exchange for her silence about an alleged one-time sexual tryst with Trump a decade earlier, to avoid her damaging his chances of winning the White House. Trump denies having sex with Daniels. in his ruling, Merchan wrote that Trump's lawyers "fail to explain why Defendant waited long past" a statutory deadline of 45 days before trial to make a pre-trial motion seeking a delay. The trial had been scheduled to begin on March 25, butMerchan postponed it.

Judge in Trump hush money case rejects attempt to delay trial with immunity defense 2024-04-03 21:29:00+00:00 - The judge presiding over Donald Trump's falsifying business records case shot down his bid to use presidential immunity as part of his defense, finding the former president waited too long to raise the issue. In his ruling Wednesday, Judge Juan Merchan also denied Trump's motion to delay the trial's start date until the U.S. Supreme Court rules on his immunity claims in the federal election interference case in Washington, D.C. Trump had contended in a New York filing last month that he’s immune from state prosecution based on “official acts,” and that some of the evidence against him should be kept out of the impending trial because they were official presidential acts — including his tweets and public comments. Merchan rejected the request, saying Trump had waited too long to raise the argument. "This Court finds that Defendant had myriad opportunities to raise the claim of presidential immunity well before March 7, 2024" but failed to do so, the judge wrote. The evidence Trump's attorneys are trying to keep out of the case pertains to statements that he made while in office about two key prosecution witnesses: former Trump attorney Michael Cohen and adult film star Stormy Daniels. Merchan said Wednesday Trump had been on notice that prosecutors planned to use the evidence for several months. "The Defendant had ample notice that the People were in possession of, and intended to use, the various statements allegedly made by Defendant on social media, in public, and in various interviews. He was also well aware that the defense of presidential immunity, even if unsuccessful, might be available to him," the judge wrote. Trump's lawyers also argued in last month's filing that the trial, now scheduled to start April 15, should be put on pause pending the Supreme Court’s ruling on Trump’s immunity arguments. The high court is scheduled to hear those arguments on April 25. Merchan rejected that request in Wednesday's ruling as well.

Wolf kills a calf in Colorado, the first confirmed kill after the predator’s reintroduction 2024-04-03 21:19:57+00:00 - DENVER (AP) — A wolf has killed a calf in Colorado, wildlife officials said Wednesday, confirming the first livestock kill after 10 of the predators were controversially reintroduced in December to the aggrievement of the state’s rural residents. Colorado Parks and Wildlife confirmed after an investigation that the wounds of the calf killed Tuesday, and nearby wolf tracks, were consistent with a wolf kill, what they refer to as a “depredation.” “The field investigation found multiple tooth rake marks on the calf’s hindquarters and neck, and hemorrhaging under the hide, consistent with wolf depredation,” Jeromy Huntington, one of the agencies wildlife managers, said in a statement. The agency did not say how many wolves were involved, or if it was one of the recently released animals. In the past few years, a handful of wolves have wandered down from Wyoming and killed livestock. The calf’s owner can be compensated by the state for the animal’s market value, up to $15,000. Still, ranchers argue it’s just not enough. “The incident, which resulted in the loss of livestock, underscores the ongoing challenges faced by ranchers in managing conflicts between livestock and wildlife,” Tatum Swink, spokesperson for Colorado Cattlemen’s Association said in a statement. Colorado’s reintroduction of wolves, which narrowly won in a 2020 ballot measure, created political shockwaves throughout the state. Ranchers and farmers lambasted the proposal as “ballot biology,” arguing that the animals would chomp into their businesses and the industry at large. Even nearby Republican states including Wyoming, Idaho and Montana refused to provide wolves to Colorado, which eventually got them from Oregon. Proponents argued that the apex predators would reestablish an ecological balance in the area. Wolves were largely hunted out of the state by the 1940s. Gray wolves killed some 800 domesticated animals across 10 states in 2022, including Colorado, according to a previous Associated Press review of depredation data from state and federal agencies. While the losses can impact individual ranchers, it’s a fraction of the industry at large, only about 0.002% of herds in the affected states, according to the analysis. In Colorado, 10 wolves were released in December at undisclosed locations in the Rocky Mountains. Bounding out from their cages after long plane flights, the first five disappeared into the forest as Gov. Jared Polis, wildlife officials, biologists and journalists looked on. Strategies to deter wolves from livestock include tying streamers or blinking lights to fences to make the predators wary of crossing into ranches. Wolves can eventually get used to the strategies, so they can only be used in over short periods and aren’t airtight. ___ Bedayn is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.

Jim Cramer sees Ford and Costco nearing buy levels. Here's the story behind each 2024-04-03 21:16:00+00:00 - Ford and Costco are approaching good levels to pick up additional shares, according to Jim Cramer. Both companies depend on how Americans are feeling about the economy, which reached its highest reading since July 2021, according to the University of Michigan consumer sentiment survey for March. "Costco shares have given back some recent gains but business is strong," said Jeff Marks, the Club's director of portfolio analysis. "Ford's stock has been slowly moving up on improving business fundamentals." Ford fundamentals Shares of Club name Ford rose 2.8% to $13.65 each Wednesday after vehicle sales in the first quarter grew 6.8%. The automaker's pivot to high-margin hybrid vehicles continued to pay off. Hybrid sales were up 42% in Q1, which was the best figure in more than two decades. Electric vehicle sales were up 86% despite some industry signs of dampening EV demand. "These numbers do not show the profitability of Ford," Jim said Wednesday, suggesting investors should value the company at higher levels. Ford shares need to catch up to crosstown rival General Motors , he argued. Shares of GM were up 25.8% year to date, compared with Ford's 11.98% gain. "I want to run with it," he added on Ford stock. F 1Y mountain F stock's 1-year performance. Usually, we think of buying stocks when they are going down. But in the case of an embattled stock like Ford, it's sometimes better to see whether a nascent recovery like Ford shares have enjoyed this year will take hold against business improvements. Our Club price target on Ford is $15 per share. In the meantime, we're holding Ford because it's making some of the most in-demand hybrids. Ford's hybrids, which include a sought-after F-150 pickup version, carry higher margins that have been helping offset losses in the company's Model e business, which houses its fleet of electric vehicles. Another incentive to own the stock has been its annual dividend yield — currently around 4.4%. Costco opportunity Club holding Costco caught some heat Wednesday, falling 0.8% in the session, after it was downgraded by Gordon Haskett along with three other retailers: Five Below , Dollar Tree and Lowe's . The analysts cut their Costco rating to accumulate from buy but held their price target at $775 per share. Gordon Haskett was "waving a yellow flag" after Costco's more-than-40% rally over the past 12 months. While still optimistic about 2024 given the positive macro backdrop of low unemployment, real wage growth, and moderating inflation, the analysts cite a "notable wall-of-worry" on recent gas price increases, election risk, and fewer shopping holidays. That call didn't change our bullish long-term view on Costco. "I'm not going to back away. Costco is really great," Jim said, while suggesting that pullbacks present a buying opportunity. "Costco's chart is really bad and yet as I said [Tuesday] if this thing goes under $700, I want people to start accumulating it." Costco shares are up nearly 7% year to date. The stock has pulled back about 10% after closing at an all-time high of $785.59 on March 7. The reason: second quarter results for fiscal 2024 that didn't clear the very high bar set by Wall Street. As we said at the time, a slight miss on sales and margins was not a thesis-changing event. In fact, we raised our price target to the current $800 per share from $770 after the report. COST 1Y mountain COST stock's 1-year performance. The fact the membership-only retailer has a new CEO and CFO after veteran executives Craig Jelinek and Rich Galanti retired is certainly a wrinkle to the Costco story. But given our view that Costco has a strong company culture and the new CEO, Ron Vachris, was promoted from within, we don't see the departures impacting operations or execution. Kroger's former finance chief, Gary Millerchip, took over the same job at Costco in mid-March. Costco has drifted lower in recent weeks even with a key catalyst on the horizon. An earlier catalyst that we'd been waiting to see, a special cash dividend, was finally declared in December and totaled $15 a share. The looming spark for the stock is a membership fee increase, which typically occurs every five years or so. It's a matter of "when, not if" management will decide to raise fees. When this happens, some of that additional fee income could flow directly to profits. But a majority of the extra cash would likely be reinvested back into the business to keep product prices down, which drives store traffic and market share. (Jim Cramer's Charitable Trust is long F, COST. 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 logo of car manufacturer Ford is pictured in Inwood, New York, on February 5, 2024. Charly Triballeau | AFP | Getty Images

How Microsoft Azure Arc Brings Cloud Solutions to Hybrid Environments 2024-04-03 21:15:54+00:00 - Effectively managing and securing an organization's data estate can be a complex process. And as data has exploded in size, it also lives in more places than ever before. "To cloud or not to cloud" is no longer the question — it's almost always both. In fact, 73% of enterprises today are deploying hybrid cloud solutions, according to Flexera's "State of the Cloud" report. Getting a better handle on data, no matter where it lives, is a critical step to any innovation journey. Organizations need a bridge connecting their environments to drive efficiencies, reduce risk, and enable them to focus on driving their organization forward. That's why Microsoft is committed to meeting customers wherever they are, with adaptive solutions that bring their data together from the ground to the cloud, with Azure Arc. This solution can help organizations view their entire SQL data, from one place. This means organizations can streamline critical tasks like governance, security, and manageability. The World Bank is working tirelessly to end extreme poverty and boost prosperity on a livable planet. To achieve its mission, the organization offers lending services in developing countries around the world. The World Bank is among the world's largest sources of funding and financial knowledge for 189 developing countries. The World Bank IT team was using multiple cloud providers and tools to manage the complex backend of the global institution. "It was completely non-centralized. There were three, four different tools and places to go to monitor things. Even the security office was using different software to monitor security risks for all our servers," said Chandra Kala Macha, Information Officer II, World Bank. "We wanted to implement Azure Arc so we could utilize all the features and manage all our on-premises and cloud servers, including the AWS ones, from one location," Kala Macha added. "With Azure Arc, we can manage everything at the operating level and on the SQL Server side as well—all from a single pane of glass. It's made a huge difference in our efficiency." As of 2023, World Bank had connected about 25% of its SQL Server estate to Azure Arc. The organization plans to triple the instance count in 2024 based on initial results. Today, performance, insights, security, and compliance can all be managed in a single, centralized tool. All monitoring can be done in one location, making it simpler for teams to manage issues and requirements around vulnerabilities. Deploying Azure Arc has also had some notable financial benefits. For example, the IT team was using decentralized tools that were not capable of monitoring the entire SQL infrastructure (both on-premises and cloud). Plus, the team was only able to use the licensed tools on a few on-premises servers. For the same cost, World Bank can now enable Azure Arc on more than 300 SQL servers — 10 times more than the previously licensed tools — to monitor performance, security, compliance, and more (a cost savings of 90%). Today, World Bank and Microsoft are working together on additional functional elements to improve optimization of Azure Arc. "We've already seen how Azure Arc can make us more efficient and reduce our operating costs. Now, we want to see how we can do more and save more," Kala Macha said. "Because every dollar saved on the operation side is one more dollar that can go towards eradicating poverty." Delivering access and innovation anywhere Azure Arc extends the features and services that make the cloud so attractive to an organization's entire IT environment, even if that includes other clouds. This allows customers to connect once-disparate environments while helping to manage, govern, and secure in one unified integrated solution. In the case of The World Bank, it meant the ability to bring together its SQL Server databases. And when organizations are ready to take that next step, there are tools available with Azure Arc to simplify the migration process, providing sizing and destination recommendations. By accelerating these workloads with Intel® Xeon® Scalable processors, organizations can ensure superior performance for their mission-critical applications, while Intel® Virtualization Technology enables easier migration between clouds and across generations of servers. Customers who are running SQL Server 2022 can realize even faster backups of their SQL Server databases, with lower CPU utilization, using Intel® QuickAssist Technology (or Intel® QAT). Intel QAT is built into the 4th Gen Intel Xeon processor for more efficient hardware-accelerated compression — even while the database is running. Azure Arc also provides customers with a consumption-based billing model: Instead of fixed licensing costs, customers can pay for only what they use, adding the flexibility to innovate with payments based on usage for a consistent and customized SQL experience regardless of location. "We've already seen how Azure Arc can make us more efficient and reduce our operating costs. Now, we want to see how we can do more and save more. Because every dollar saved on the operation side is one more dollar that can go towards eradicating poverty." Chandra Kala Macha, Information Officer II, World Bank. For organizations like the World Bank, who need centralized management along with fast and reliable data availability, Azure Arc offers a powerful and cost-effective solution. Azure Arc is the necessary bridge, enabling businesses to easily manage, govern, and secure their mission-critical data, while reducing costs and focusing on driving their mission forward. Find out more about Azure Arc. This post was created by Insider Studios with Microsoft and Intel.

Nearly half of Levi's sales are happening online and in its shops, a shift as department stores fade 2024-04-03 21:13:00+00:00 - Levi Strauss , which has long relied on wholesalers like Macy's and Kohl's to drive its business, is now doing nearly half of its sales through its own website and stores, the company said Wednesday when reporting fiscal first quarter earnings. In the three months ended Feb. 25, direct-to-consumer sales made up a record 48% of overall sales at Levi's, up from 42% in the year-ago period and 25% higher on a two-year basis, the retailer said. The shift is a boon for Levi's profits. But it raises questions about the company's relationships with its wholesale partners and whether it will hurt those retailers as they grapple with their own existential challenges. Levi's also beat Wall Street's earnings and revenue estimates and raised its full-year guidance. Shares rose as much as 10% in extended trading. Here's how the blue jeans maker did in its first fiscal quarter compared with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG, formerly known as Refinitiv: Earnings per share: 26 cents adjusted vs. 21 cents expected 26 cents adjusted vs. 21 cents expected Revenue: $1.56 billion vs. $1.55 billion expected The company swung to a net loss of $10.6 million, or 3 cents per share, during the quarter, compared with a net income of $114.7 million, or 29 cents per share, in the year-ago period. Excluding one-time costs related to Levi's restructuring, the company reported earnings per share of 26 cents, ahead of Wall Street's estimates. Sales fell to $1.56 billion, down about 8% from $1.69 billion a year earlier. The sales slump was primarily attributed to a shift in Levi's wholesale orders, which boosted profits by about $100 million in the year-ago period. Levi's still expects full-year sales to rise between 1% and 3% as it contends with a slowdown in discretionary spending and an uncertain economy. But it anticipates profits will be higher than it previously thought. The retailer now expects adjusted earnings per share to be between $1.17 and $1.27, up from a previous range of $1.15 to $1.25. Analysts had expected sales to grow 2.4% on a full year basis and earnings per share of $1.21, according to LSEG. For the last couple of years, Levi's has been moving away from wholesalers and doing more and more of its sales through its own stores and website. Selling directly to consumers is better for Levi's profits and gives it better data on its customers and their shopping patterns. Perhaps more importantly, shifting away from wholesalers also gives Levi's greater control over its own destiny and reduces its exposure to department stores, which are continuing to shrink and face an uncertain future in the U.S. In late February, Macy's – a key wholesale partner for Levi's – announced it would close 150 stores as activist investors from Arkhouse Management look to buy the department store and take it private. The firm primarily invests in real estate and looks to be more interested in monetizing Macy's sprawling store footprint than running a retail business. In an interview with CNBC, CEO Michelle Gass – who took the helm of Levi's about two months ago – said wholesale continues to be an important part of the company's strategy. If Macy's store closures or other challenges to department stores affects Levi's business, she expects direct-to-consumer sales will offset those losses. "We work very closely with our key customers because we're important to them, they're important to us, and strategically, wholesale is critical for us to amplify reach to the consumer," said Gass. "While there are pressures, these wholesale customers serve millions of consumers and so there's still a lot of opportunity to drive market share within that channel." Levi's previously said it's working to get direct-to-consumer sales to account for 55% of all sales, but if that number can get higher, the company is "all for it," said finance chief Harmit Singh. In the meantime, Gass said Levi's is working "closely" with its key wholesale customers to ensure the brand is showing up in the "absolute best way." During the quarter, global wholesale revenues were down 9% compared to the prior year when adjusted for the shift in wholesale orders that happened in the year-ago period. That weakness was driven by Europe, which Gass said saw a "tough" quarter. "As we look forward, we are feeling optimistic. Our pre-books for the second half in Europe wholesale are positive based on the innovation and fashion that we're bringing," said Gass. Levi's has also been in the process of transforming itself into a retailer that does a lot more than just sell jeans. It's working to offer more skirts, dresses and tops, and wants to be viewed as a denim lifestyle business – not just a blue jeans company. During the quarter, sales of things like denim skirts, dresses and tops were up 19% in Levi's direct-to-consumer channel, said Gass. The products also performed well in wholesale, she said. Levi's efforts come at a time when consumer spending for discretionary products like clothes and accessories has been under pressure as shoppers look to use their extra dollars on things like eating out and traveling or paying down debt. In late January, Levi's said it would cut 10% to 15% of its global corporate workforce, which is expected to save the company about $100 million during the fiscal year.

Microsoft really blew it, says government report on Chinese hacks 2024-04-03 20:59:38+00:00 - By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . You can opt-out at any time. 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 Microsoft's security culture needs work, a government-backed cybersecurity board says in a new report. And the tech giant's lackluster security allowed a group of hackers associated with China to breach the company's networks, including senior US officials' emails, in a preventable attack last summer, the report says. The US Department of Homeland Security released the report from the Cyber Safety Review Board (CSRB) on Tuesday. In it, the board details a "cascade" of "avoidable errors" in Microsoft's security systems. This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. Become an Insider and start reading now. Related stories Specifically, the board said that the hackers — an espionage group affiliated with the Chinese government called Storm-0558 — were able to exploit several flaws in Microsoft's authentication system, allowing them to sign in to "essentially any Exchange Online account anywhere in the world." Advertisement Because Microsoft didn't adequately protect the signing keys, the hackers gained access to the email accounts of senior US diplomats, including Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, United States Ambassador to the People's Republic of China R. Nicholas Burns, and Congressman Don Bacon, the report says. The report also blames Microsoft for not detecting the compromised accounts on its own and only realizing something was wrong when a customer reported a problem. "The Board finds that this intrusion was preventable and should never have occurred," the Cyber Safety Review Board wrote in its report. "The Board also concludes that Microsoft's security culture was inadequate and requires an overhaul, particularly in light of the company's centrality in the technology ecosystem and the level of trust customers place in the company to protect their data and operations." In a statement to Business Insider, a spokesperson for Microsoft said "recent events have demonstrated a need to adopt a new culture of engineering security in our own networks." Advertisement "While no organization is immune to cyberattack from well-resourced adversaries, we have mobilized our engineering teams to identify and mitigate legacy infrastructure, improve processes, and enforce security benchmarks," the Microsoft spokesperson said. The board also reprimanded Microsoft for announcing in September 2023 that it had found the root cause of the attack. But two months later it admitted to the board that it was wrong about the cause — and didn't update the announcement to reflect that inaccuracy until March 2024, the report said. The CSRB concluded that because Microsoft's systems are essential to national security and the global economy, the company must fix its security vulnerabilities quickly and substantially.

Voters in Oklahoma ousted a City Council member with white nationalist ties 2024-04-03 20:58:39+00:00 - Voters in Enid, Oklahoma, ousted a City Council member after a group of residents launched a monthslong effort to inform voters about his ties to white nationalist groups. After Judd Blevins won his February 2023 race for Enid City Council by a mere 36 votes in an election with low turnout, a group of local activists quickly formed a committee to recall him. On Tuesday, he was ousted from his City Council seat in a decisive vote. The activists highlighted Blevins' participation in the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, in 2017 and his past leadership of a local chapter of Identity Evropa, an alt-right movement that the Southern Poverty Law Center has designated a hate group. As NBC News reported, the effort led to months of efforts bringing together a diverse group of activists. Members of the Enid Social Justice Committee had agreed to forgo a recall election if Blevins admitted to his history with white nationalist groups and renounced them. But Blevins declined to do so, at least in public. He denied that he was a white supremacist, but days before the recall vote said at a community forum that his involvement with Unite the Right and Identity Evropa was to bring attention to “the same issues that got Donald Trump elected in 2016,” including “securing America’s borders” and fighting “anti-white hatred.” Blevins lost his recall election on Tuesday to Cheryl Patterson, also a Republican. Afterward, he blamed his defeat on what he suggested was an orchestrated campaign by "leftists and moderates," as well as local, state and national media.

Two brothers plead guilty to insider trading charges related to taking Trump Media public 2024-04-03 20:56:00+00:00 - What to know about Trump Media's stock market debut What to know about Trump Media's Nasdaq debut What to know about Trump Media's Nasdaq debut Two Florida brothers pleaded guilty Wednesday to insider trading charges, admitting making over $22 million illegally before the public announcement in 2021 that an acquisition firm was taking former President Donald Trump's media company public. Michael and Gerald Shvartsman entered their pleas to a single count of securities fraud in Manhattan federal court, where Judge Lewis J. Liman set sentencing for July 17. The men said that they knew they were committing a crime when they made trades in October 2021 through a New York broker, buying shares of Digital World Acquisition Corp., a so-called blank check company designed to take another company public without an IPO. The pair had been tipped off that Digital World had planned to merge with Trump Media & Technology, whose main asset is the social media network Truth Social. In October 2021, shares of Digital World soared more than 800% after the deal with Trump Media was announced. The indictment against the brothers did not in any way implicate Trump — who is again seeking the presidency this year — or Trump Media & Technology Group, which last week began trading on the Nasdaq stock market and currently has a value of about $6.7 billion. Trump owns about 57% of the company. "I've made a terrible mistake," Gerald Shvartsman told the judge as he pleaded guilty. He added that it was "wrong and the mistake I will pay for dearly the rest of my life." His brother told the judge that he knew that his securities trades were wrong and illegal. According to the indictment, the men invested millions of dollars in Digital World, and then sold the securities for $22 million in profits after the news about the Trump Media business was made public. Sharing secrets with friends At the time, Michael Shvartsman owned Rocket One Capital LLC, a venture capital firm, according to court papers. According to court papers, the men shared their secrets with friends and employees, who also bought tens of thousands of units of securities ahead of the merger announcement with Trump Media & Technology Group. The merger and public trading of Trump Media & Technology Group was eagerly anticipated by Trump's political supporters, who viewed the Truth Social platform as a worthy response to Trump's temporary ejection from some social media platforms after the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. Michael Shvartsman, 53, of Sunny Isles Beach, Florida, and his brother Gerald Shvartsman, 46, of Aventura, Florida, remain free on bail while they await their sentencings. They were both arrested last June. Federal sentencing guidelines in plea letters signed by the men recommended that Michael Shvartsman receive about four years in prison and his brother spend at least three years behind bars. The deals also call for Michael Schvartsman to forfeit $18.2 million in profits and for his brother to relinquish $4.6 million. In a release, U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: "Insider trading is cheating, plain and simple, and today's convictions should remind anyone who may be tempted to corrupt the integrity of the stock market that it will earn them a ticket to prison."

Apple reportedly exploring personal home robots 2024-04-03 20:51:00+00:00 - Apple CEO Tim Cook (2nd R) greets customers as he arrives for the release of the Vision Pro headset at the Apple Store in New York City on February 2, 2024. Apple is exploring the development of personal home robots after ditching its electric vehicle project, Bloomberg reported Wednesday. Engineers at Apple have been looking into a robot that can follow users around their homes and a tabletop device that uses robotics to adjust a display screen, Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the research team. Apple in February shut down its team working on electric cars, called Special Projects Group, another one of its moonshots. Reports of the secretive program, which employed thousands of employees, first surfaced in 2014 after Apple recruited automotive engineers among others in relevant roles. Apple's car project was part of an internal effort to expand into new product markets. In recent years, the company has also invested heavily in products and services like its Apple Watch and Vision Pro virtual reality headset. The Vision Pro, however, will likely take years to create meaningful revenue. Apple's hardware engineering division and its artificial intelligence and machine learning group are overseeing the work on personal robotics, Bloomberg reported. The home robot project is still in the early research and development phase, according to the report. Other tech companies have also explored home robots. Amazon introduced its $1,600 Astro home robot in 2021, which is essentially a smart display on wheels that can answer Alexa commands. Almost three years from its debut, the device remains available in limited quantities on an invite-only basis. An executive overseeing the project departed Amazon last May, and in November, the company launched a version of Astro for businesses akin to a roving security guard. Apple declined to comment. Read Bloomberg's full report here. — CNBC's Kif Leswing and Annie Palmer contributed reporting.