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What customers should know about AT&T's massive data breach 2024-04-01 18:55:00+00:00 - Millions of current and former AT&T customers learned over the weekend that hackers have likely stolen their personal information and are sharing it on the dark web. AT&T on Saturday said it doesn't know if the massive data breach "originated from AT&T or one of its vendors," but that it has "launched a robust investigation" into what caused the incident. The data breach is the latest cyberattack AT&T has experienced since a leak in January of 2023, that affected 9 million users. By contrast, Saturday's much larger breach impacts 73 million current and former AT&T account holders. AT&T has seen several data breaches over the years that range in size and impact. Until more details of the investigation arise, here's what customers should know about the most recent data breach. How many people were impacted by the AT&T data breach? AT&T said the breach on Saturday affects about 7.6 million current and 65.4 million former AT&T customers. What type of information was taken from AT&T? AT&T said Saturday that a dataset found on the dark web contains information such as Social Security and passcodes. Unlike passwords, passcodes are numerical PINS that are typically four-digits long. Full names, email addresses, mailing addresses, phone numbers, dates of birth and AT&T account numbers may have also been compromised, the company said. The impacted data is from 2019 or earlier and does not appear to include financial information or call history, it added. Was my information affected by the AT&T data breach? Consumers impacted by this breach should be receiving an email or letter directly from AT&T about the incident. The email notices began going out on Saturday, an AT&T spokesperson confirmed. What has AT&T done so far to help customers? Beyond notifying customers, AT&T said that it had already reset the passcodes of current users. The company also said it would pay for credit-monitoring services where applicable. What's the best way to protect my personal information? Start by freezing your credit reports at all three major agencies — Equifax, Experience and TransUnion. Then sign up for 24-7 credit monitoring and enable two-factor authentication on your AT&T account, said WalletHub CEO Odysseas Papadimitriou, a former senior director at Capital One. If you receive a notice about a breach, it's a good idea to change your password and monitor your account activity for any suspicious transactions. The Federal Trade Commission offers free credit freezes and fraud alerts that consumers can set up to help protect themselves from identity theft and other malicious activity. —The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Former NFL cornerback Vontae Davis, 35, found dead at Florida mansion, police say 2024-04-01 18:53:00+00:00 - Former NFL cornerback Vontae Davis was found dead in a Florida mansion, police said Monday. He was 35. Officers were called Monday morning to a residence in the 6000 block of SW 178th Avenue by the house assistant, who discovered Davis' body, the Davie Police Department said in a statement. "Preliminary information suggests that foul play is not involved," the department said. Details on how Davis died were not released. Broward County property records indicate the nearly $3 million home is owned by Adaline Davis, identified by NBC South Florida as Davis' grandmother. Davis, who played in the NFL from 2009 until retirement in 2018, suited up for the Miami Dolphins, the Indianapolis Colts and the Buffalo Bills. Tributes for the former defensive standout began pouring in Monday afternoon from each team as well as the league. The NFL said in a post on X that it "is heartbroken to hear about the passing of Vontae Davis. Our thoughts are with his family and loved ones." Indianapolis Colts’ owner Jim Irsay also expressed condolences on the platform X. In one post, Irsay posted a picture of Davis in a Colts’ uniform with a heart emoji above the photograph. In a second post, Irsay wrote: “Extremely saddened to hear of the passing of Vontae Davis. A great guy, teammate, player. My prayers to Vontae’s family.”
Trump Media Shares Slump as Early Fervor Fades 2024-04-01 18:47:42+00:00 - Shares of former President Donald J. Trump’s social media company slumped just over 20 percent on Monday, as the fervor around the company’s debut on public markets last week appeared to subside. The sell-off cut the market value of Trump Media & Technology Group, which trades under the ticker “DJT,” by some $2 billion, to about $6.5 billion. The value of Mr. Trump’s majority stake in the company fell to about $3.7 billion, from over $6 billion at its peak last week. Still, shares of Trump Media were higher than they were immediately before the firm merged with a public shell company on Tuesday and began trading on the Nasdaq. Strong support for the merged company after it began trading pushed its market value as high as $10 billion at one point last week.
Tropicana Las Vegas Closing Tuesday to Make Way for a Baseball Stadium 2024-04-01 18:30:38+00:00 - The famous Tropicana Las Vegas resort, which held the city’s longest-running cabaret and was known for its lavish midcentury décor, will close on Tuesday as it prepares for demolition to make way for a new Major League Baseball stadium. The resort’s gaming floor will close at 3 a.m. on Tuesday, and the hotel’s last guests will be required to check out by noon that day, according to the website for the resort, which is owned by Bally’s Corporation, the gaming, betting and entertainment company. After the demolition, about nine acres of the 35-acre parcel will be granted to the Athletics baseball team for the construction of a 30,000-seat stadium, the resort said. The stadium is expected to host the team beginning in 2028. There was discussion last year that the Tropicana would be redeveloped to make room for an integrated resort, casino and ballpark complex. Specific designs are still being finalized, according to the resort.
Thames Water hires restructuring advisers amid fears of collapse 2024-04-01 18:10:00+00:00 - Thames Water has assembled a team of City experts to lead urgent restructuring talks this week amid fears that its parent company may collapse by the end of the month. The crunch talks are expected to take place days after Thames Water’s investors signalled they would not put further funds into the company to secure its short-term cashflow, according to a source. Britain’s biggest water company is understood to have appointed experts at Teneo, the adviser that managed the collapse of Bulb Energy, amid an investor standoff that has raised fresh fears for the future of its parent company, the Kemble Water Group. Thames is also continuing to work with advisers at Rothschild to explore potential financing options for the company. Thames said last week that Kemble’s owners – which include the major pension funds Omers and USS, and Abu Dhabi and Chinese sovereign wealth funds – had hired restructuring advisers at Alvarez & Marsal, which oversaw the Chapter 11 bankruptcy of WeWork in the US last November. Teneo declined to comment. Rothschild and Alvarez & Marsal did not respond to requests for comment. The talks to steer a future for the heavily indebted water company, which were first reported by the Financial Times, come after Kemble’s owners pulled the plug on £500m of emergency funding amid an impasse with the industry regulator over calls to raise household bills. The company has more than £18bn of debt and Kemble is due to repay a £190m loan by the end of this month, which has heightened concerns that the parent company could become insolvent without government intervention. Thames could be placed into special administration, which would result in the government stepping in and temporarily renationalising the company. It is understood that Teneo would be in line to oversee this process. The government is understood to be eager to avoid this outcome ahead of a general election expected later this year. Chris Weston, Thames Water’s chief executive, told BBC Radio 4 last week that special administration was “a long way off” and could be avoided if shareholders agreed to provide funds. Thames said it has £2.4bn of cash and access to other facilities that means it could continue operating until 2025, and that it would pursue all options to secure new investment “from new or existing shareholders”. Thames and Kemble declined to comment further. Sarah Olney MP, the Liberal Democrat Treasury spokesperson, accused the government of being “asleep at the wheel for years” and called on ministers to put the company into special administration. skip past newsletter promotion Sign up to Business Today Free daily newsletter Get set for the working day – we'll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning Enter your email address Sign up Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Privacy Policy . We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. after newsletter promotion “Now Thames Water customers are facing the worst of all worlds, with water bills set to skyrocket while local rivers are ruined by sewage. Ministers must step in before it’s too late,” she said. “It’s time they put Thames Water into special administration and turned it into a public benefit company, to prevent customers and the environment paying the price for this calamity.” James Wallace, a campaigner for River Action, said: “Whatever Thames Water tries to do in their final death throes we will be guaranteed of one thing: putting shareholders greed before customer needs. Following decades of rampant profiteering of a privatised geographic monopoly, this is the price we pay for deregulation and cutting so-called red-tape, AKA environmental protection.” The government and the industry regulator, Ofwat, declined to comment.
The flaws inherent in a triple lock on the bedrock of the welfare state 2024-04-01 17:52:00+00:00 - The triple lock needs reform, but the wealth tax suggested by Owen Jones as a way of recouping revenue from wealthy pensioners will create other problems (The poor need the money, the rich may not – but I say hands off the state pension triple lock, 27 March). One of the flaws in the existing triple lock is that the annual increase is determined as the greater of the yearly inflation rate and average wage increases in the year, with an underpin of 2.5%. But a one-off jump in inflation one year can easily be followed by a greater wage increase the next as salaries catch up, so the state pension benefits from two larger-than-usual increases rather than one. This can easily be mitigated by basing the state pension on the greater of cumulative inflation and wage increases rather than just using the yearly figures. The existing system effectively includes an element of means-testing in that the pension is subject to income tax, so those in higher tax bands do return a proportion of their pensions to the Treasury. A wealth tax would create undue stress for pensioners on low incomes with few liquid assets living in properties whose value has soared in recent years – a particularly acute problem in the south-east. Inheritance tax rates might be a less draconian means of achieving a similar result. Jan Kamieniecki London Owen Jones suffers from the delusion that owning your own house makes you rich. He talks of pensioners “sitting on golden eggs”. Being rich means having lots of money to spend. Owning your own house puts nothing into your bank account. The only way you can make money from your house is by selling it, and then you’re either living on the street or spending all that money buying another house. House-owners may be wealthy, but they’re not necessarily rich. Michael Bulley Chalon-sur-Saône, France Owen Jones’s excellent summary of why a universal state pension is the bedrock of the welfare state falls into the trap of assuming that, because a majority of older people voted Tory at the last election, they always will. In 1997, people aged 65 and over voted 41% Labour and 36% Conservative. I would urge Labour not to write off older voters but to focus on the grandparent vote. We care more about our children’s and grandchildren’s wellbeing than our own. This chimes well with Labour’s agendas on the environment, health and workers’ rights. If Labour could add a radical policy on social care, putting it on an equal footing with the NHS, that would go a long way towards securing a majority among older voters. Prof Alan Walker University of Sheffield Owen Jones gives a very balanced view of the issue, but how can he almost ignore the “3 million pensioners with household wealth valued at over £1m?” Money is being thrown at 3 million people who clearly don’t need it. He describes means-testing as “expensive and bureaucratic”, but that is no longer the case thanks to the huge bank of data that is in the public domain. The powers that be know that I own a detached house in the Cotswolds. They know that I have inherited a holiday flat in north Wales and they know full well that I receive a teacher’s pension. Those three facts alone prove that I don’t need to benefit from a triple-locked state pension, let alone a winter fuel allowance. Until a fairer way of apportioning pension funds is devised, the triple lock will continue to be a wasteful use of public money. Bob Forster Shipton-under-Wychwood, Oxfordshire
Person Infected With Bird Flu in Texas After Contact With Cattle 2024-04-01 17:45:48+00:00 - At least one person in Texas has been diagnosed with bird flu after having contact with dairy cows presumed to be infected, state officials said on Monday. The announcement adds a worrying dimension to an outbreak that has affected millions of birds and sea mammals worldwide and, most recently, cows in the United States. So far, there are no signs that the virus has evolved in ways that would help it spread more easily among people, federal officials have said. The patient’s primary symptom was conjunctivitis; the individual is being treated with an antiviral drug and is recovering, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
You Can Bet on Caitlin Clark Making Threes. The N.C.A.A. Isn’t Happy. 2024-04-01 17:30:36+00:00 - Iowa crushed its opponent to start the N.C.A.A. women’s basketball tournament this year, with Caitlin Clark, the sport’s shining superstar, finishing with 27 points to help the Hawkeyes cruise past Holy Cross. But for many, Clark blew it. She scored six and a half points fewer than what many bettors expected she would, in what’s known as a prop bet, which allow gamblers to wager on outcomes beyond the results of the game. As Iowa faces Louisiana State tonight, in a widely anticipated rematch of last year’s national championship, betting on an individual’s performance has increasingly been on the rise. How many three pointers Clark will make. How many assists Alabama’s point guard will accumulate. How many rebounds L.S.U. forward Angel Reese will pull down. On FanDuel, one of the main gambling sites, there is a tab on the main page just for Clark’s games. The wagering is the latest signal of the growing popularity of women’s basketball. According to BetMGM, there have been 2.5 times as many bets placed on women’s basketball as last year. Clark has received the second-most bets of any player, man or woman, in both events. Americans will legally wager $2.7 billion on the men’s and women’s N.C.A.A. tournaments this year, according to the American Gaming Association.
Betty Cole Dukert, Top ‘Meet the Press’ Producer, Dies at 96 2024-04-01 17:25:29+00:00 - Betty Cole Dukert, who began her career in Washington as a secretary in the 1950s and later became the top producer of the weekly NBC News public affairs program “Meet the Press,” died on March 16 at her home in Bethesda, Md. She was 96. Her late husband’s niece Barbara Dukert Smith said the cause was complications of Alzheimer’s disease. In her 41 years at “Meet the Press,” a Sunday-morning fixture on the NBC schedule, Mrs. Dukert booked politicians, diplomats, foreign dignitaries, cultural figures and heart surgeons to be interviewed by a moderator and a panel of journalists; sought out the most capable reporters for the panel; and researched the subjects to be discussed. “She was the main point of contact on Capitol Hill for the show,” said Betsy Fischer Martin, who started on “Meet the Press” as an intern and became the program’s executive producer in 2002. “She worked the phones constantly. It wasn’t an era when you could send off an email to book someone.”
Google to destroy billions of data records to settle "incognito" lawsuit 2024-04-01 17:14:00+00:00 - Google cracking down on cookies Google cracking down on cookies 00:40 Google will destroy a vast trove of data as part of a settlement over a lawsuit that accused the search giant of tracking consumers even when they were browsing the web using "incognito" mode, which ostensibly keeps people's online activity private. The details of the settlement were disclosed Monday in San Francisco federal court, with a legal filing noting that Google will "delete and/or remediate billions of data records that reflect class members' private browsing activities." The value of the settlement is more than $5 billion, according to Monday's filing. The settlement stems from a 2020 lawsuit that claimed Google misled users into believing that it wouldn't track their internet activities while they used incognito. The settlement also requires Google to change incognito mode so that users for the next five years can block third-party cookies by default. "This settlement is an historic step in requiring dominant technology companies to be honest in their representations to users about how the companies collect and employ user data, and to delete and remediate data collected," the settlement filing states. Although Google agreed to the initial settlement in December, Monday's filing provides more details about the agreement between the tech giant and the plaintiffs, consumers represented by attorney David Boies of Boies Schiller Flexner and other lawyers. Neither Google nor Boies Schiller Flexner immediately replied to a request for comment. "This settlement ensures real accountability and transparency from the world's largest data collector and marks an important step toward improving and upholding our right to privacy on the Internet," the court document noted. —With reporting by the Associated Press.
Tornadoes and snow possible as spring storm system moves across the U.S. 2024-04-01 16:53:00+00:00 - Tornadoes, heavy rain, strong winds and snow are in the forecast this week as a spring storm system makes its way across a large portion of the U.S. About 38 million people from Texas to Illinois are at risk for severe storms that are predicted to fire up Monday afternoon and last through the night, according to forecasters. The latest models indicate Indianapolis could see severe weather from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. and again from midnight to 5 a.m. Tuesday; Oklahoma City, from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.; Dallas, from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m.; Austin, Texas, from 9 p.m. to midnight; and St. Louis, from 11 p.m. to 4 a.m. Tuesday. "All forms of severe weather will be possible" in these areas, according to the National Weather Service, including damaging winds gusting up to 60 mph, EF2 tornadoes and "very large" hail possibly 2 inches in diameter. EF2 tornadoes could bring wind gusts of 111 to 135 mph, according to the weather service. The biggest threat for the strong tornadoes is an area from northeast Oklahoma to central Missouri. The tornadoes could come after dark, creating a dangerous situation. Studies have found that nighttime tornadoes are twice as deadly as daytime ones. “Be prepared to take action if watches and warnings are issued for your area,” the weather service advised. What to expect Monday: Intense storms from Texas to Illinois; heavy rain and flood risk increases in the Ohio River Valley. Tuesday: Severe risk shifts east into Tennessee and the Ohio River Valley; heavy downpours could lead to localized flooding. Wednesday: Heavy wet snow likely to develop for New England. Upward of 18 inches of snow is possible from the Great Lakes all the way into interior New England and into Maine. On Tuesday, the risk shifts east into Tennessee and the Ohio River Valley, moving into the mid-Atlantic and Northeast, where rain is expected to last through Wednesday. Eight million people are under flood watches through Tuesday across the Ohio River Valley into the Appalachians, including Cincinnati and Columbus in Ohio and Charleston in West Virginia. "There is a sight risk of excessive rainfall over parts of the Middle Mississippi and Ohio Valleys on Monday and over Eastern Ohio, Tennessee Valleys and Central Appalachians on Tuesday," according to the weather service. Localized areas of severe flooding are possible from middle Mississippi to the central Appalachians. When the storm shifts east Tuesday, rainfall could total up to 3 inches from Kansas City, Missouri, to New England. And parts of the north from the Great Lakes to New England could see up to 18 inches of snow Wednesday. The same system brought torrential downpours to California over Easter weekend. In Santa Barbara County, some drivers were left stranded after severe flooding shut down a highway. Twila Douglas was driving up from Los Angeles when traffic came to a standstill. "We heard this like raging water sound, and we’re like, this is not good at all," she said after the experience. A portion of the state's scenic Highway 1 collapsed into the ocean during heavy rain, stranding drivers and shuttering a part of the highway near Big Sur. Around noon Sunday, crews determined that travel in the northbound lane was safe, and authorities began periodically escorting motorists around the damaged section. About 300 cars were waiting to travel northbound when officials led the first convoy through the area, the San Francisco Chronicle reported. Some stranded motorists had to sleep in their cars while others were sheltered at the nearby Big Sur Lodge, the newspaper said. Two people were hospitalized with unspecified injuries. Video from San Jose showed lightning striking scarily close to an airplane. Up north in Truckee, which got 14 inches of snow this weekend, two people were killed in a single-engine plane crash while attempting to land Saturday. The victims were identified as Liron and Naomi Petrushka by UpWest, a company they invested in that supports Israeli entrepreneurs. Liron Petrushka was a senior adviser at the seed fund, according to the company's website. The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the crash. Truckee is about 100 miles northeast of Sacramento.
Trump Media auditor warns that losses 'raise substantial doubt' about company's ability to continue 2024-04-01 15:56:00+00:00 - An auditor has raised doubts about the ability of Donald Trump's publicly traded company to stay in business, according to a new regulatory filing. Trump Media and Technology Group, which operates the Truth Social platform, reported it lost $58.2 million in 2023 while generating total revenues of $4.1 million, according to the Monday filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Trump Media listed its largest expense for the year as interest payments totaling more than $39 million. The filing includes a note from an independent accounting firm, Colorado-based BF Borgers CPA PC, warning that Trump Media's "operating losses raise substantial doubt about its ability to continue as a going concern." The firm has worked with Trump Media since 2022. The note is dated March 25, the day before Trump's company started trading on the Nasdaq stock exchange under the symbol DJT, surging at first and earning comparisons to so-called meme stocks. Shares of the company fell more than 21% to $48.66 on Monday. Its market value stood at more than $6.5 billion. A spokesperson for Trump Media did not immediately respond to a request for comment. In the filing, the company acknowledged that it expects to operate at a loss for the "foreseeable future" as it works to expand Truth Social's user base and attract more advertisers. It said it would be "premature" to predict when it will attain profitability and positive cash flows from its operations. It said it would need bridge funding of between $5 million and $60 million. As of the end of 2023, Trump Media had about $2.6 million in cash on hand and total liabilities of $70.1 million, according to the filing. The company received an infusion of about $300 million from its merger a week ago with shell company Digital World Acquisition Corp. Trump Media went public last week and gave the former president a paper net worth of around $7 billion. However, Trump is barred from selling the shares he owns in the company for six months. Even before the latest losses were revealed, analysts said the value of the company would plummet if Trump were to sell his shares. “If he goes ahead [with selling], it could sink DJT by at least 15% to 40% based on option pricing,” said Ben Emons, senior portfolio manager and head of fixed income at NewEdge Wealth, in a research note. Analysts also expect trading in the stock to be volatile while the legal and political fortunes of the former president shift as he seeks a new term in the White House. John Rekenthaler, vice president for research at Morningstar financial services group, likened the company's stock to a cryptocurrency. "As with bitcoin, people buy Trump Media not for future cash flows but because: 1) they expect its price to rise, and 2) they feel an affiliation for the asset," Rekenthaler wrote. "Bitcoin owners are members of a club. So, too, are Trump Media investors, to an even greater degree. For them, DJT shares represent a currency by which they can express their beliefs and commitment."
Fast fashion retailer Shein doubles profits as it awaits IPO approval 2024-04-01 15:50:00+00:00 - Shein, the online fast fashion retailer founded in China, has more than doubled its profits to more than $2bn (£1.6bn) as it awaits approval for a stock market listing in New York or London. The company, which is growing rapidly around the world by using social media to promote its goods, recorded sales of about $45bn last year, according to a report in the Financial Times based on information from sources close to the company. Shein, which has moved its headquarters to Singapore, is among the most profitable fashion companies in the world, the figures suggest, making more than the Swedish fashion group H&M and the UK’s Primark and Next. However, profits at Inditex, the Spanish owner of Zara, Bershka and Massimo Dutti, remain higher at €6.9bn (£5.9bn) last year. The UK chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, reportedly held talks with the Shein boss, Donald Tang, in February to try to persuade him to float the company on the London Stock Exchange. The company is thought to be considering a London listing because it believes that the US Securities and Exchange Commission is unlikely to approve its initial public offering (IPO). If it were to go ahead, it would be one of London’s biggest ever corporate listings, valued at up to $90bn. The rapid rise of Shein, which bought the Missguided online brand from Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group last year after recording sales of £1.1bn in 2022 for its UK entity, has piled pressure on UK online fashion specialists including Asos and Boohoo. The new competitor is gaining ground just as the UK online groups grapple with a squeeze in the market after the pandemic boom. Shein partly benefits from sending goods directly to shoppers, including to the UK and US, from China so they attract fewer taxes. The tactic has proved controversial, prompting calls for a change in tax rules. Founded by the entrepreneur Chris Xu, the company continues to run most of its operations from China but sells all its goods outside the country. It reached a valuation of $100bn in an April 2022 fundraising round, making it the third most valuable startup in the world. skip past newsletter promotion Sign up to Business Today Free daily newsletter Get set for the working day – we'll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning Enter your email address Sign up Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Privacy Policy . We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. after newsletter promotion By May last year the company’s value had dropped to just over $60bn, but Shein has reportedly told investors it is hoping for a valuation of as much as $90bn if it goes ahead with a public listing. Shein declined to comment.
Analysts are Bullish on These 4 Oversold Large Cap Stocks 2024-04-01 15:37:00+00:00 - Key Points Oversold large-cap stocks with favorable analyst ratings are attracting attention amidst market shifts, presenting potential buying opportunities. Lululemon's stock is down 23% YTD but beat estimates by $0.29 in its latest earnings report, with analysts predicting 27% potential upside. Despite Snowflake's 20% YTD losses, its earnings report surpassed expectations, with analysts foreseeing a 25% potential increase. 5 stocks we like better than NIKE As the first quarter unfolded, the semiconductor sector's resounding success has dominated the stock market narrative, propelling the broader market nearly 10% higher. However, a notable shift occurred as the quarter drew to a close. Defensive sectors like utilities and consumer staples began to gain traction and break out, hinting at a potential redirection of focus towards oversold large-cap stocks positioned favorably for a rebound. Amidst this shifting landscape, an exciting proposition is identifying extremely oversold stocks with favorable analyst ratings and predicted upside. Nike, Lululemon, Snowflake, and Adobe have all found themselves in the spotlight, not for their recent highs, but for their significant pullbacks. While the market has been fixated on the surge of the semiconductor sector and high-flying tech names, these companies have quietly slipped into highly oversold territory, potentially catching the attention of investors seeking value amidst volatility. Get NIKE alerts: Sign Up So, let's look closer at these stocks to assess whether they present compelling buying opportunities despite their current oversold conditions or whether further downward pressure looms. Nike, a powerhouse in athletic apparel, has endured a challenging year, with shares down nearly 14% year-to-date. However, its latest earnings report on March 21st, 2024, offered a ray of hope. Nike beat expectations with earnings per share of $0.98, surpassing estimates by $0.29, and recorded revenue of $12.43 billion, exceeding forecasts. Despite this year's weakness, analysts remain bullish on Nike, projecting nearly 25% upside potential. This indicates confidence in its resilience and growth prospects. The stock's RSI of 34.79 indicates it might be highly oversold and entering a skewed risk: reward scenario to the long side. After its latest earnings announcement, the stock experienced a downward gap and continued to trade lower, resulting in year-to-date losses nearing 20%. Despite this, the cloud-based data storage, computer, and analytics company exceeded analysts' expectations by reporting an EPS of ($0.44), $0.05 higher than the consensus estimate of ($0.49). Additionally, the firm generated $774.70 million in revenue for the quarter, surpassing analysts' projections of $759.86 million. Following weeks of substantial selling pressure, the RSI currently stands at 35, indicating significantly oversold conditions in the short term. Analysts anticipate a considerable upside for the stock, issuing a moderate buy rating and setting a price target suggesting a nearly 25% potential increase. Lululemon, a leader in athletic apparel, has had a rough start to the year. Its stock is down over 23% year-to-date, pushing it into bear market territory. Following its latest earnings report on March 21st, 2024, the stock experienced a significant downward gap, returning to its 2023 trading range. Lululemon reported earnings per share of $5.29 for the quarter, beating estimates by $0.29. Revenue was $3.21 billion, surpassing expectations and marking a 15.6% year-over-year increase. However, the earnings selloff has left the stock in highly oversold territory, with an RSI of 28. Analysts remain bullish on Lululemon, with a moderate buy rating based on twenty-nine analyst ratings and a consensus price target indicating almost 27% potential upside. Following its recent earnings report, Adobe experienced a notable decline, with the stock gapping lower to a significant level of previous support at $500, a level last seen in 2023. On March 14th, 2024, Adobe released its quarterly earnings results, reporting earnings per share (EPS) of $4.48 for the quarter. This surpassed analysts' consensus estimates by $0.10. Additionally, the company generated $5.18 billion in revenue during the quarter, slightly exceeding analyst estimates of $5.14 billion, reflecting an 11.3% year-over-year increase in quarterly revenue. Despite the decline prompted by the earnings report, Adobe retains a moderate buy rating. Based on the consensus price target, analysts forecast a 23% potential upside. Furthermore, the company projects earnings growth of close to 13% for the entire year ahead, indicating confidence in its ability to capitalize on market opportunities and drive continued growth. Before you consider NIKE, you'll want to hear this. MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and NIKE wasn't on the list. While NIKE currently has a "Moderate Buy" rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys. View The Five Stocks Here
5 Tech Stocks to Buy Now, Ahead of the Q1 Reports 2024-04-01 15:12:00+00:00 - Key Points Tech results were mixed for Q4, with many outperforming but offering light guidance that caused their markets to implode. Over-eager analysts and hopeful investors overran reality, leading to the market downturn, but the long-term outlook is still robust. Tech stock markets have been reset and are now set up to move higher and may sustain rallies through 2025. 5 stocks we like better than Palo Alto Networks The Q1 reporting season brought mixed results from tech stocks for Q4. The ultimate takeaway is that digitization continues, cloud growth accelerates, and AI drives a robust outlook. The problem was that greed led analysts and markets to overrun reality and price in every bit of possible growth before the market could mature. The result is that many markets were reset. The reset returned many tech stock prices to reasonable ranges and opened up attractive buying opportunities. Opportunities to position for the 2nd half of this year and 2025. This is a look at five of the most promising. Get Palo Alto Networks alerts: Sign Up Palo Alto Networks Invests In the Future Palo Alto Networks NASDAQ: PANW is the largest and leading cybersecurity firm on the market, and it is investing in the future. The FQ2/CQ4 results highlighted a shift in the focus that led to its stock price implosion. The shift includes offering numerous free or reduced services to attract new clients and cement its position as the market leader. The near-term takeaway is that revenue, margin, and earnings will be impacted, while the long-term is that growth will be sustained and margins widened due to the platformization of services, an increased client base, and deepening penetration of services in an increasingly dangerous cyber world. There was some negative analyst activity following Palo Alto’s announcement, but not enough to alter the community outlook. The consensus sentiment held firm at Moderate Buy while the price target increased. The consensus target is up in the twelve-, three-, and one-month comparisons and now 12% above the action, in a position to lead the stock price higher. ZScaler Follows Palo Alto Networks Into the Buy Zone Zscaler’s NASDAQ: ZS stock price began to move lower in tandem with PANW and accelerated after the release of Q4 results. The strong results included improved guidance, but the analysts and market secretly hoped for more. The result is that shares are down about 25% from their highs and trading at a critical support target at the midpoint of a trading range. Because analysts remain bullish on the stock and the post-release revisions are net-positive, with the consensus target rising and 20% above the current action, support should hold at this level. Zscaler’s next report is due in late May. The thirty-three analysts covering it have all revised their targets upward but may still underestimate the company, expecting growth to slow to 28%. MongoDB Positioned for Long-Term Growth of Cloud and AI MongoDB’s NASDAQ: MDB price action fell due to its guidance, which fell short of the consensus. However, guidance remains solid and expects double-digit growth that may underestimate business strength in 2024. Regardless, the company is well-positioned to compete in the rapidly growing cloud industry and is a leader in AI-powered services and services for AI businesses. Analysts weren’t enthused by the news and issued mixed reviews, but the net result was positive for investors. A downgrade to Sell was offset by an upgrade to Outperform and several price target increases, with consensus up compared to last month, last quarter, and last year, nearly 100% higher than the previous year. UiPath Is On Track to Complete a Reversal UiPath NYSE: PATH shares are edging lower following its report, but the move is tepid and aligns with the budding uptrend. Assuming the market sustains support at the current levels, it should rebound soon. In this scenario, the market would confirm a reversal that began last year and set itself up to sustain a rally this year and next. The analysts were impressed with the results and guidance and issued more than a dozen positive revisions advancing the range's low-end, mid-point, and high-end. The low end of the analysts' range assumes a low-single-digit upside, while consensus is closer to 22%. Snowflake Falls Back to Earth Snowflake’s NYSE: SNOW share price fell more than 30%, aided by Palo Alto’s implosion, weaker-than-expected guidance, and an unexpected CEO change. The most worrisome news is that CEO Frank Slootman is retiring. However, he will remain board chairman, and incoming CEO Sridhar Ramaswamy has ample experience. He came to the company in 2023 with the acquisition of Neeva and was the head of Snowflakes AI division. Analysts' revisions were slow to start, but the pace is picking up with numerous price targets and rating upgrades to offset fewer negative actions. Analysts rate this stock at Moderate Buy and see it advancing 25% at the consensus midpoint. Before you consider Palo Alto Networks, you'll want to hear this. MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and Palo Alto Networks wasn't on the list. While Palo Alto Networks currently has a "Moderate Buy" rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys. View The Five Stocks Here
13 workers trapped in collapsed gold mine declared dead in Russia 2024-04-01 14:36:00+00:00 - Authorities in Russia's Far East on Monday called off a rescue effort for 13 workers trapped deep underground in a collapsed gold mine and declared them dead. The miners got trapped on March 18 at a depth of about 400 feet when part of the mine collapsed in the Zeysk district of the Amur region, about 3,000 miles east of Moscow. About 200 rescuers used powerful pumps to try to take out water that flooded the mine, posing a challenge to the salvage operation. In this photo taken from video released by Russia Emergency Situations Ministry press service on Monday, March 25, 2024, Russia Emergency Situations employees walk inside the gold mine in Zeysk district, Amur region, eastern Russia. / AP Regional authorities and the mine operator announced the termination of rescue efforts on Monday, saying that the mine remained flooded and more of its sections could collapse, jeopardizing emergency responders. The company that operates the mine, one of Russia's largest, said it would pay compensation to victims' families. Officials didn't immediately say what caused the accident. Most mining accidents in the past have been blamed on violations of safety rules. The accident comes just weeks after at least 16 people died when the mud wall of an illegal gold mine collapsed in the jungles of southern Venezuela. In January, an unregulated gold mine collapsed in Mali, killing more than 70 people. As of Friday, the price of gold was $2,232.75 per ounce, according to American Hartford Gold.
5 Cheap Dividend Stocks: Which to Buy Now 2024-04-01 13:55:00+00:00 - Key Points Marketbeat's screening tools include the Cheap Dividend Stock list, a treasure trove of investment ideas. Investors need to apply additional due diligence when using this or any screening tool. Four of the top five listed stocks are solid candidates for income investors. 5 stocks we like better than Big 5 Sporting Goods Among Marketbeat’s numerous investor resources are screener pages seeking hard-to-find investments. One of those tools is the screener page for Cheap Dividend Stocks, which is a veritable treasure trove of candidates. It roots out stocks trading within 20% of their 52-week lows that pay 3% or more in yield. Investors can use the list as a starting point for their research and apply other criteria to weed bad from the good. This is a look at the top 5 stocks on the list and whether they are a buy, sell, or hold. Get Big 5 Sporting Goods alerts: Sign Up #5 AdvisoryShares Dorsey Wright Short ETF Made the Cut AdvisoryShares Dorsey Wright Short ETF NASDAQ: DWSH made the cut, regarding its trading status and dividend yield, but investors should think twice before buying into this one. This actively managed ETF focused on short strategies has only trended lower since its launch in 2019. It pays a dividend but has made only one payment and is an excellent example of why screener lists of any kind shouldn’t be trusted with blind faith. This is a candidate to sell. #4 Ambev’s High Yield Trades at Rock Bottom Ambev’s NYSE: ABEV high-yielding stock is trading at rock bottom and is attractive for several reasons. The dividend yields about 10% with shares trading at this level, but there is risk to the payout. The company pays at least 40% of annual adjusted profits, so the distribution can be erratic. The mitigating factor is that the company is expected to pivot back to YOY growth as soon as the current quarter and extend the series of annual distribution increases to three years. Ambev is a candidate for Dividend Capture Strategies because it pays annually. This means investors may target the stock to buy before the expected dividend announcement and then sell it after the ex-dividend date, capturing the entire yield in the shortest possible time. Seven analysts rate ABEV at Hold and see it advancing at least 15% at the low end of their target range. ABEV is a candidate to Buy. #3 Big 5 Sporting Goods is a Deep Value Big 5 Sporting Goods NASDAQ: BGFV headwinds have left the stock trading at a multi-year low. The low is partly due to a recent distribution cut that shaved more than 50% off the payout. However, the stock yields more than 5% and is a value play for investors. Big 5 should pivot back to growth and sustained profitability by the end of the fiscal year, and the new payout will be reliable until then. The company’s balance sheet is a fortress with no debt and the ability to invest in growth. Big 5 plans to open five new stores this year while closing four as part of its optimization program. One analyst rates BGFV at Hold and sees the stock advancing 170%. #2 Cullman Bancorp, Inc. Is a Solid Yield For Small Cap Investors Cullman Bancorp NASDAQ: CULL is a small bank in Alabama that pays a safe and reliable 1.2%. The company made a distribution cut in 2021 but can sustain the payment, and today’s outlook includes potential for distribution growth. The payout ratio is less than 20% of cash flow, with deposits and revenue up substantially over the two- and three-year periods. No analysts rate this stock, but institutional activity is interesting. Institutional buying increased last year, and activity was sustained in Q1 2024, led by Vanguard. The institutions own about 25% of the stock and may continue to purchase because shares are near a 13-year low. #1 Hanover Bancorp: Better Yield and Value For Smallcap Investors Hanover Bancorp NASDAQ: HNVR is a small-cap bank in New York that offers better value and yield than Cullman Bancorp. It trades at less than half the value, near 8X, pays 150 basis points more in yield, and has a similar financial standing and outlook. One analyst tracked by Marketbeat has a rating on this stock. Piper Sandler boosted its target to $21 from $20 in January this year, implying a 40% upside for investors. Before you consider Big 5 Sporting Goods, you'll want to hear this. MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and Big 5 Sporting Goods wasn't on the list. While Big 5 Sporting Goods currently has a "Hold" rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys. View The Five Stocks Here
Republicans push new case to halt Biden’s student loan debt relief 2024-04-01 13:39:03+00:00 - As a candidate in 2020, President Joe Biden promised to prioritize student loan debt relief, and whether one agrees with the goal or not, it’s clear that the Democrat’s pledges weren’t just hollow campaign rhetoric. The trouble, of course, is that the GOP keeps pushing back in the opposite direction. Last year, for example, Republican-appointed Supreme Court justices, responding to a Republican-backed lawsuit, effectively killed Biden’s $400 billion plan to cancel or reduce federal student loan debts for millions of Americans. In the months that followed, the Democratic White House continued to take additional and incremental steps to assist those with crushing student loan debts, including launching the SAVE Repayment Plan in January. Republicans want to kill it, too. My MSNBC colleague Clarissa-Jan Lim explained over the weekend: Several Republican-led states have filed a lawsuit against the Biden administration over its plan to provide relief to millions of Americans burdened by student loan debt, accusing President Joe Biden of bypassing Congress and exceeding his authority. Filed by Kansas and 10 other states, the federal lawsuit claims that the administration’s income-driven SAVE Repayment Plan is similar to Biden’s previous student loan forgiveness plan in its government overreach, an argument that won at the Supreme Court last summer. Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach — who was narrowly elected in 2022, despite his unfortunate background — is spearheading the effort, though GOP attorneys general from Alabama, Alaska, Idaho, Iowa, Louisiana, Montana, Nebraska, South Carolina, Texas and Utah have joined the effort. In the 2020 elections cycle, exit polling showed Biden defeating then-incumbent Donald Trump by a wide margin among voters under the age of 30. More recent polling has been all over the place, but the latest survey data nevertheless suggests the Democrat is struggling to duplicate his success among these younger voters in 2024. It’s against this backdrop that Kobach and his partisan cohorts are setting the stage for a legal fight that crystalizes an election-year dispute: Biden wants to offer student loan debt relief to millions of young Americans, and Republicans are fighting tooth and nail — again — to stop him. I’m not saying this will definitely pay political dividends for the incumbent president, but the lawsuit probably won’t help the GOP’s outreach efforts to 18- to 25-year-old voters.
3 Leading Stocks as Consumer Sentiment Hits Peak Since 2021 2024-04-01 13:25:00+00:00 - Key Points The U.S. consumer sentiment readings reached levels not seen since 2021, a trend that could foreshadow certainty in coming rate cuts. Three stocks stand out as potential portfolio picks to ride the wave in consumer discretionary spending. Analysts like them; prices could be ripe for a buying order spree. 5 stocks we like better than Ermenegildo Zegna The United States economy just entered into a new cycle. Because markets shift according to their six to nine-month expectations, three stocks in the consumer discretionary sector are leading the way in this new rotation. Now that the Federal Reserve (the Fed) has announced its intentions to cut interest rates in 2024, retail investors would benefit from hopping on the wave. Traders are now pricing these potential interest rate cuts to kick in by May or June 2024. Investors can follow this sentiment by keeping track of the FedWatch tool CME Group Inc. offers NASDAQ: CME. Lower interest rates and a brand-new high for consumer sentiment readings (not seen since 2021) could impact specific stocks. Get Ermenegildo Zegna alerts: Sign Up Names like The Home Depot Inc. NYSE: HD, Starbucks Co. NASDAQ: SBUX, and even Nike Inc. NYSE: NKE are likely to call on a few investment dollars during the upcoming rotation. After all, the Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR Fund NYSEARCA: XLY needs to catch up to the rest of the S&P 500, as it reads an underperformance of 7% over the past 6 months. Home Depot’s Management is On Point Home Depot’s management looked outside of its tried-and-tested business model to spur growth by spotting the newest trends in the real estate sector. Announcing a $18 billion acquisition of SRS Distribution, a roofing company, Home Depot is letting retail investors know where the money is. Lower interest rates could make mortgage financing more accessible for new homebuyers. The construction stocks that Warren Buffett had been buying, like D.R. Horton Inc. NYSE: DHI, drive the way in a new race to prepare housing inventory before these buying sprees hit. Home Depot is already set to benefit from the do-it-yourself demand and is looking to ride this construction tailwind in the roofing space. Since November 2023, United States building permits have been rising, so builders and bankers may feel comfortable starting projects injected into the housing market when rates are cut. Analysts at Mizuho Financial Group Inc. NYSE: MFG see Home Depot going as high as $415 a share. This valuation has yet to reflect the potential upside from the SRS acquisition. Asset managers running the consumer ETF agree that Home Depot is now the third largest holding in the fund for good reason. Starbucks Drinks Back in Budget What is more discretionary than a cup of Starbucks coffee? After the stock declined to 79% of its 52-week high, some investors aware of the company’s value could be circling with buying orders. While consumers may have cut back on spending due to stubbornly high inflation rates in the U.S., Starbucks came out on top. With consumer sentiment at new cyclical highs, the average ticket amount at the coffee giant increased by 4%. Comparable sales in the U.S. rose by 5%, meaning consumers bought more products and were comfortable paying more for each trip to Starbucks. That is the pricing power that a deeply penetrated brand carries; after all, stocks like The Coca-Cola Co. NYSE: KO can raise prices to keep up with inflation with very little impact on their sales. Investors can see this pricing power live inside Starbucks’ financials. With a 27% gross margin, above average by all means, Starbucks has ample room to keep raising prices to combat rising input costs from inflation. More than that, sound management efficiency allows the stock to compound its capital at an average return on invested capital (ROIC) rate of over 20% during the past five years. Analysts on Wall Street want to see the stock at $110 a share, 20% above today’s price. More than that, EPS is expected to grow by 16% in the next 12 months, which no $100 billion company can achieve unless backed by strong consumer and fundamentals. Nike Stock’s Triple Bottom Another behemoth opening itself for a potential buying spree is Nike. After declining to 73% of its 52-week high price, the stock formed a triple-bottom pattern along the $90-$95 range. Surprisingly, Nike underperformed the Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR Fund NYSEARCA: XLY by as much as 49% in the past 12 months, creating an even wider gap for investors to fill. Because of Nike’s international presence, the stock may offer an additional layer of safety in front of potential interest rate cuts coming from the Fed. If these cuts unexpectedly hurt the dollar, companies with an international presence, like Nike or Ermenegildo Zegna NYSE: ZGN, could cushion a slump with stronger currencies, such as the Euro or Yen. With a $116.5 share price target today, Wall Street sees up to 24% upside in this timeless brand. More than that, even after bearish momentum, only 1.5% of total shares are shorted. Not even bears dare go against Nike this cycle. Before you consider Ermenegildo Zegna, you'll want to hear this. MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and Ermenegildo Zegna wasn't on the list. While Ermenegildo Zegna currently has a "Hold" rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys. View The Five Stocks Here
This Underrated Natural Gas Stock Could Rally Double-Digits Soon 2024-04-01 13:15:00+00:00 - Key Points Natural gas prices have yet to catch up with the rallies in other energy commodities like oil. Demand for natural gas could surge in the coming months, making Natural Gas Services stock a considerable buy target. Institutions are buying into it, and markets suggest it could rally by double-digits soon. 5 stocks we like better than Kinder Morgan A new commodity cycle is approaching for energy stocks; leading the way in this momentum gauge is the Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund NYSEARCA: XLE. The exchange-traded fund (ETF) outperformed the broader S&P 500 by 2% in the past quarter. While not much to speak of, this performance gap may show the beginning of a new trend that could last much longer. Oil prices broke out – and stood comfortably – above their $79 a barrel ceiling. Now breaking above the $83 a barrel mark, predictions made by analysts at The Goldman Sachs Group Inc. NYSE: GS could come true. The investment bank thinks oil prices could go as high as $100 in 2024. Get Kinder Morgan alerts: Sign Up However, natural gas prices, which tend to follow oil prices, are now at a four-year low. This wide gap is counter to historic trends, and a catch-up in natural gas prices could make stocks like Natural Gas Services Group Inc. NYSE: NGS break out into new highs. Wall Street institutions see the opportunity, which starts here. Once in a Cycle Now that the Federal Reserve (the Fed) is considering cutting interest rates this year, money is getting ready to rotate. Because interest rates could be detrimental to the dollar index, commodities like gold and oil have started and amplified their rallies. More than that, a weaker dollar could make American exports more attractive to foreign buyers, such as European nations and even Japan, as their currencies would become stronger relative to the dollar. Apart from being basic economic theory, there is actually a sound bit of evidence behind this trend. In its 2024 macro outlook report, Goldman Sachs also mentions the expectation for a manufacturing sector breakout in the U.S. Export orders advanced by 6% in February's ISM manufacturing PMI index, the largest expansionary reading. Natural gas is used as a raw material (feedstock) when manufacturing products like plastics and chemicals. The manufacturing industry as a whole is going to have to ramp up production to meet these export orders, making the natural gas trade a reality more than a thesis. Natural Gas Services: The Momentum Replacement Being a $242 million company has its perks. Smaller companies are often outside the purview – and buying power – of the significant funds and banks on Wall Street, where the retail investor can gain an advantage. Not only that, quants at PGIM think that the ‘momentum trade’ is now overbought in large capitalization stocks, making small capitalization names the only place to squeeze further momentum in this cycle. This thesis is at play for Natural Gas Services stock, as Barclays NYSE: BCS increased its position in the stock by 745% in the past quarter. As mentioned, the bank can’t take a significant stake in the stock as it would create unnecessary scrutiny. Still, a $360,000 investment in the company can be a vote of confidence. Northern Trust Co. NASDAQ: NTRS and the Royal Bank of Canada NYSE: RY are other names that are buying the stock. Northern came in with a $470,000 investment, while the Royal Bank saw fit to have $150,000 in exposure to the stock. The rest of the market is behind the stock’s prospects, as the following factors have been blown above the industry. Decoding The Market’s Message for Natural Gas Services Stock The Oil and Gas industry trades at an average forward price-to-earnings (forward P/E) ratio of 14.5x, placing Natural Gas Services stock at a 173% premium to its peers. “It must be expensive for a reason” is a saying that applies here; the stock is ‘expensive’ because of its future prospects. Analysts think its earnings per share (EPS) can grow by as much as 182% in the next 12 months, significantly above the industry’s expected 47% growth rate this year. Natural Gas Services provides the equipment necessary for companies like Kinder Morgan Inc. NYSE: KMI to operate their natural gas pipelines and processing facilities. This is why Natural Gas Services trades at 96% of its 52-week high while pushing out a 12-month performance of 92.4%. As it is the first to get paid in anticipation of a rally in natural gas (which could mean more profits for Kinder Morgan), markets are willing to overpay today for the future EPS projections for the company. When natural gas prices peaked in 2014, the stock reached $35 a share. Now that the fundamentals and economic tailwinds align to make a new ceiling a potential reality for the stock, history could repeat itself. Before you consider Kinder Morgan, you'll want to hear this. MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and Kinder Morgan wasn't on the list. While Kinder Morgan currently has a "Hold" rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys. View The Five Stocks Here