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3M Surprises and Rebound Accelerates: It Isn’t Too Late To Get In 2024-07-26 13:22:00+00:00 - 3M’s NYSE: MMM rebound is gaining momentum because of surprisingly good results. Today’s story is that repositioning efforts are taking hold and driving improved profitability while litigation risks dwindle. The takeaways from the Q2 report include better-than-expected top and bottom-line results, organic sequential growth in all segments, improved margin, and increased guidance that affirms the shift in analysts' sentiment. That shift points to higher share prices and the potential for a sustained rally that could last several quarters. Analysts have yet to revise their estimates and targets based on the Q2 results but will likely increase them because the trend leading into the report is bullish. It includes numerous upgrades and price target revisions that are leading the market higher, lifting the sentiment to Moderate Buy from Hold and the price target by 10% in the last ninety days. Get 3M alerts: Sign Up The most recent targets have the stock trading between $110 and $140, which puts consensus near $125 and more than 10% above the post-release price action. Post-release price action is bullish, taking the stock up more than 5% to set a fresh multi-year high. Because the move breaks resistance at a critical level, a complete technical reversal is in play; this stock could trend higher for the next four to six quarters, possibly rising 60% to 70% to reclaim the $170 level. 3M’s New CEO is Already Paying Off for Investors 3M Today MMM 3M $127.16 +23.77 (+22.99%) 52-Week Range $71.12 ▼ $128.02 Dividend Yield 2.20% Price Target $112.17 Add to Watchlist 3M got a new CEO as part of its restructuring efforts, which is already paying off. The company contracted slightly compared to last year, about 0.5%, but primarily due to the spin-off of the medical unit earlier this year. The organic, ongoing business is the significant detail today, growing contrary to expectations. The company reported $6 billion in adjusted revenue, up 1.1% compared to last year, outpacing the consensus estimate by 290 basis points. The strength is due to organic growth in all segments aided by pricing actions to offset inflation. Another area of strength is margin. The company widened its GAAP and adjusted operating margins due to improved cost structures, internal efficiencies, and the declining impact of litigation costs. The salient details are that GAAP earnings from continuing operations are up 100%, while adjusted EPS from continuing operations is up 39%. Adjusted earnings outpaced the Marketbeat.com consensus estimate by $0.25, and cash flow was robust. The catalyst for higher share prices was the guidance. The strength in earnings led management to improve its guidance by raising the low end of the EPS target range. 3M now expects full-year earnings to range from $7.00 to $7.30, a range whose midpoint exceeds market expectations. Another increase may come next quarter. 3M Is Back On Track for Distribution Increases 3M MarketRank™ Stock Analysis Overall MarketRank™ 4.43 out of 5 Analyst Rating Hold Upside/Downside 11.8% Downside Short Interest Healthy Dividend Strength Strong Sustainability -2.89 News Sentiment 0.83 Insider Trading N/A Projected Earnings Growth 8.48% See Full Details 3M recently cut its dividend payout to preserve capital and aid the turnaround but is already back on track for distribution growth. The current payout is $2.80 annually and $.70 quarterly, with a 65% free cash flow payout ratio in Q2, including repurchases, which leaves room for accelerated returns. The dividend is attractive as it is, yielding about 2.75%, with shares in the lower portion of a trading range and reliable. However, the earnings outlook, cash flow, and balance sheet suggest that increases will come soon. Accelerating capital return will be a catalyst for higher share prices. The balance sheet highlights include a reduction in shareholder equity, but this is due to Solventum's NYSE: SOLV spinoff. The offsetting factors are the cash-flow positive quarter, a doubling of cash reserves, and debt reduction. Leverage remains low, below 3X equity, and should improve as the year progresses, improving the outlook for distribution increases. The repurchases were slowed in 2023 due to pending litigation but are ramping higher. Repurchases failed to offset dilutive actions on a YOY basis but have reduced the count sequentially and are expected to continue. 3M Breaks Resistance: Opens Door for a Sustained Rally 3M’s price action is significant because it broke critical resistance. Critical resistance is near $105 and consistent with lows set in 2020 and a support break in 2022/2023. The takeaway is that this market is now above the baseline of a Head & Shoulders reversal that could quickly add another $30 to the stock price. Critical support is now at $105; a move to retest that level should result in a solid buy signal, but there is risk. A move below $105 could keep this stock range bound for the foreseeable future. Before you consider 3M, 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 3M wasn't on the list. While 3M currently has a "Hold" rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys. View The Five Stocks Here

Skechers Stock Shows Strength Among Consumer Discretionary Sector 2024-07-26 12:39:00+00:00 - Some names in the retail and apparel sectors have made a splash in investors’ monitors in recent weeks, even months. Unfortunately, the attention is founded on seriously bearish price action, like the fact that shares of Lululemon Athletica Inc. NASDAQ: LULU are now trading at only 48% of their 52-week high, which is dangerously close to making a new 52-week low. Another unlikely name to be trading near a 52-week low is Nike Inc. NYSE: NKE. Management issued lower-than-expected financial guidance for the rest of the year, sending the stock into a shock selloff. Nike stock is now trading at 58% of its 52-week high, or within 1% of a new 52-week low, to match the bearish price action seen in Lululemon shares. Get XLY alerts: Sign Up But, there is one other mention inside the Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR Fund NYSEARCA: XLY, one that hasn’t been suffering from that much of a bearish price action lately. Shares of Skechers Inc. NYSE: SKX trade much closer to their 52-week highs, at 85%, to show investors a different side of the consumer discretionary sector. Here’s why Skechers stock might see an even brighter future ahead. Financial Momentum Paves the Way for Higher Stock Prices Skechers U.S.A. Today SKX Skechers U.S.A. $64.72 +1.01 (+1.59%) 52-Week Range $45.58 ▼ $75.09 P/E Ratio 17.03 Price Target $76.08 Add to Watchlist The company recently announced its second quarter 2024 earnings results, showing the market just why Skechers stock is worth considering. In the press release, management proudly mentioned the company's record sales, up to 7.2% growth to a net $2.16 billion. However, the benefits don't stop there for shareholders; Skechers' gross margins rose by 220 basis points in the year, reaching a net 54.9% gross margin. The shoe behemoth operates on a much lower 44.6% gross margin compared to Nike's financials. Retaining this much capital from each sale enables Skechers management to safely and effectively reinvest into other business growth areas. Looking at the past 12 months of returns, Skechers generates up to 11.3% return on invested capital (ROIC) rates, which is probably why the stock outperforms others in the sector. Annual stock price performances tend to match the ROIC rate over time, and the path is paved for Skechers to continue to create high returns on capital to do this. This confidence is simple: the company has more exposure to international markets. It relies on more than just American demand. With gold prices hitting a new all-time high, as nations stockpile gold reserves, investors can take this behavior as a vote of no confidence on the U.S. dollar and the economy, so stocks with a higher international sales exposure could become a preference. This confidence is also quantified for investors, valued at up to $1 billion. That's how much management will allocate toward Skechers' share buyback program, representing over 10% of the company's market capitalization. This is a very aggressive rate, signaling that insiders believe the stock to be cheap today. And that opinion doesn't stop with management; others on Wall Street would agree. Wall Street Shows Optimism for Skechers Stock Overall, Wall Street analysts forecast up to 13.9% EPS growth in the next 12 months for Skechers stock, which aligns with Nike's projections for 13.1% despite Skechers being a fraction of Nike's size. Leaning on these growth projections, other analysts, such as those at Morgan Stanley, found it easier to value Skechers stock. These analysts set a price target of $80 a share, daring it to rally by 25.6% from its current price. As another quality stamp check, investors can note that the Vanguard Group (Skechers' biggest shareholder) boosted its stake in the company by 0.8% in the past quarter. While this may not sound like much in percentage terms, that increase would translate into a net $779.5 million investment today. If that wasn't enough for investors to consider another look into Skechers stock, then decrypting the market's message might do it. Outlying valuations can sometimes be the market's way of saying that it likes – or dislikes – a stock, depending on where that valuation multiple is. Skechers U.S.A., Inc. (SKX) Price Chart for Sunday, July, 28, 2024 On a price-to-earnings basis (P/E), Skechers' 16.8x multiple will command a premium of nearly 100% compared to the footwear industry's average 8.9x P/E. There's typically a good reason why markets are willing to bid a stock up in its valuation multiples and why this stock will, in turn, trade near its 52-week highs. Seeing all of the evidence on a fundamental and technical level, investors could consider adding Skechers to their watchlists. Before you consider Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR Fund, 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 Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR Fund wasn't on the list. While Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR Fund currently has a "Hold" rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys. View The Five Stocks Here

Tech Stocks Tumble, These Stocks Present Buying Opportunity 2024-07-26 12:24:00+00:00 - As earnings season unfolds and several mega-cap tech stocks, including members of the "Magnificent Seven," have reported, the overall market and tech sector have seen significant declines in recent weeks. The XLK technology sector ETF has dropped nearly 6% this month and is now down over 10% from its recent 52-week highs. Similarly, the broader market, represented by the SPY ETF, is down nearly 5% from its 52-week high and over 2.5% this week. Several well-known tech stocks have experienced sharp declines in this environment, making headlines. Specifically, CrowdStrike NASDAQ: CRWD, Advanced Micro Devices NASDAQ: AMD, and HubSpot NASDAQ: HUBS have all seen their share prices drop close to or over 30% from their 52-week highs. Given this rapid selloff, is it time to consider buying shares of these companies on the dip? Get CrowdStrike alerts: Sign Up Advanced Micro Devices Advanced Micro Devices Today AMD Advanced Micro Devices $139.99 +1.67 (+1.21%) 52-Week Range $93.11 ▼ $227.30 P/E Ratio 205.87 Price Target $194.97 Add to Watchlist AMD's stock has sharply declined, falling nearly 40% from its 52-week high and down over 6% year-to-date. This decline comes amidst concerns that the Biden administration may impose stricter regulations on products imported from overseas that use American technology. While such export controls could impact sales in the short term, they are unlikely to dampen the growing demand for advanced chips, particularly those used in data centers and artificial intelligence (AI) model training—a lucrative market for AMD. Over the past year, analysts have significantly raised their earnings forecasts for AMD, highlighting the company's strong growth prospects. AMD's data center revenue is a crucial driver, having surged 80% year-over-year in the latest quarter. Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) is set to release its next quarterly earnings report on Tuesday, July 30th, 2024. The consensus forecast for this quarter's earnings per share (EPS) is $0.47, up from $0.40 reported for the same quarter last year. Currently, the stock has a Moderate Buy rating based on twenty-nine ratings, with a consensus price target of $194.97, forecasting a whopping 41% upside. HubSpot, Inc. HubSpot Today HUBS HubSpot $492.72 -3.04 (-0.61%) 52-Week Range $407.23 ▼ $693.85 Price Target $633.88 Add to Watchlist HubSpot, a $25 billion company, provides a cloud-based customer relationship management (CRM) platform for businesses across the Americas, Europe, and the Asia Pacific. The stock fell sharply after Google parent Alphabet walked away from acquisition talks, causing HUBS to drop 28% from its 52-week high and nearly 15% for the month. Despite the setback, this dip could present a buying opportunity for a company with a strong track record of steady revenue growth and a growing global customer base of over 215,000 small to medium-sized businesses. While enterprise software spending faces challenges due to economic uncertainties, HubSpot's revenue grew 23% year over year last quarter, showcasing its resilience. The company reported earnings on May 8th, 2024, posting $0.01 EPS, significantly beating the consensus estimate of ($0.26) by $0.27, with revenue of $617.41 million, exceeding expectations of $597.12 million. HubSpot is scheduled to release its following earnings report on August 7th. CrowdStrike Holdings CrowdStrike Today CRWD CrowdStrike $256.16 +2.01 (+0.79%) 52-Week Range $140.52 ▼ $398.33 P/E Ratio 483.33 Price Target $359.16 Add to Watchlist CrowdStrike Holdings, a $61 billion cybersecurity giant specializing in cloud-native endpoint protection, has recently faced a significant drop in its stock price. The company has seen its value plummet over 35% from its 52-week high and 34% this month alone. This sharp decline is primarily due to a faulty update to its Falcon platform, causing a global IT outage that affected a wide range of critical sectors, including banks, airports, hospitals, retailers, businesses, and government agencies. The incident has led to considerable disruption and raised questions about CrowdStrike's reliability and prospects. Despite the recent setback, CrowdStrike's core business remains strong, with projected earnings growth of 55% for the year. In its latest earnings report on June 4th, 2024, CrowdStrike reported an EPS of $0.20, just shy of the $0.21 consensus, with revenue of $921.04 million surpassing expectations. The company has shown impressive annual sales growth of 66.22% over the past five years, with a 33% increase in quarterly sales compared to the previous quarter. However, the fallout from the Falcon update incident has created uncertainty, making CrowdStrike a potentially volatile investment. Despite recent challenges, this dip-buy opportunity may appeal to those with a higher risk appetite who are confident in the company's long-term prospects. Before you consider CrowdStrike, 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 CrowdStrike wasn't on the list. While CrowdStrike currently has a "Moderate Buy" rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys. View The Five Stocks Here

Is Now the Time to Invest? ServiceNow Stock Sent to New Highs 2024-07-26 11:08:00+00:00 - ServiceNow Today NOW ServiceNow $827.61 -1.18 (-0.14%) 52-Week Range $527.24 ▼ $850.33 P/E Ratio 88.51 Price Target $842.22 Add to Watchlist ServiceNow Inc. NYSE: NOW, a leading provider of cloud-based software solutions, has recently made headlines with a notable 15% surge in its stock price following a strong earnings report. This impressive gain brings its year-to-date performance to nearly 20%, and the stock has just broken out of a lengthy consolidation, indicating potential momentum and trend shift on a higher timeframe. So, with NOW bucking the market and its sector's short-term trend, is now the time to buy it? Let's take a closer look at the stock and its recent report. Get ServiceNow alerts: Sign Up What is ServiceNow? ServiceNow MarketRank™ Stock Analysis Overall MarketRank™ 4.49 out of 5 Analyst Rating Moderate Buy Upside/Downside 1.8% Upside Short Interest Healthy Dividend Strength N/A Sustainability -0.80 News Sentiment 0.56 Insider Trading Selling Shares Projected Earnings Growth 28.46% See Full Details ServiceNow is a prominent enterprise software company specializing in digital workflows and automation. Its core offering, a platform-as-a-service (PaaS), allows businesses to create custom applications and workflows to streamline and enhance their operations. The company's solutions are designed to digitize and automate business processes, improving efficiency and productivity. The company has a $173 billion market capitalization and is a member of the S&P 500 index. Notably, the stock is also on the Top-Rated Stocks list, as analysts hold the company in high regard. Based on 27 analyst ratings, the stock has a Moderate Buy rating and, following its most recent earnings report, has received a flurry of praise and positive analyst actions. For example, following its report, analysts at JPMorgan boosted its target from $780 to $820. Similarly, analysts at Stifel Nicolaus, among many other analysts, boosted its target considerably from $820 to $900. ServiceNow's Strong Financial Performance in Recent Quarter The company's recent earnings report exceeded expectations, showcasing its strong financial performance and growth. For the quarter that ended June 30, the company reported adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $3.16, up 33% from the previous year and beating the consensus estimate of $2.83. Revenue also grew 22% year over year to $2.627 billion, surpassing the forecasted $2.607 billion. Notably, subscription revenue rose 23% to $2.54 billion, slightly above expectations. The company's current remaining performance obligations (CRPO), a critical sales growth metric, increased by 22% to $8.78 billion, exceeding the $8.68 billion forecast. CRPO reflects deferred revenue and order backlog, providing insight into future sales growth. Looking ahead, ServiceNow has updated its full-year guidance, projecting subscription revenue between $10.575 billion and $10.585 billion, slightly above its prior outlook. The third-quarter forecast anticipates subscription revenue of $2.660 billion to $2.665 billion, closely aligning with analysts' expectations. ServiceNow, Inc. (NOW) Price Chart for Sunday, July, 28, 2024 Analyzing ServiceNow's Growth Potential and Value Proposition ServiceNow's stock recently broke above a significant resistance level at $800, a barrier it had struggled with throughout the year. This breakout, coupled with the stock trading at 52-week highs, indicates strong upward momentum. However, potential investors should note the company's high current P/E ratio of 153, suggesting a premium valuation. The forward P/E ratio of 52.48 may offer a more balanced view of its growth potential and value proposition, especially if the stock pulls back, which would see that premium shrink and deliver a better entry for the long term. The company's strong earnings performance and bullish technical indicators make it an attractive prospect for investors. However, the stock's high valuation may warrant discipline and patience for new buyers or, at the very least, additional and thorough due diligence into its growth prospects. As the company continues to grow and expand its market position, it remains a crucial player in the enterprise software space, especially with its growing focus on AI-driven products and solutions. Before you consider ServiceNow, 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 ServiceNow wasn't on the list. While ServiceNow currently has a "Moderate Buy" rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys. View The Five Stocks Here

Macro hedge funds to dump $45 billion in equities, says Morgan Stanley 2024-07-26 05:54:00+00:00 - By Carolina Mandl NEW YORK (Reuters) - Computer-driven macro hedge fund strategies on Wednesday sold $20 billion in equities and are set to shed at least more $25 billion over the next week after the stock rout, in one of the largest risk-unwinding events in a decade, Morgan Stanley said in commentary to institutional clients on Thursday. After disappointing earnings reports from Tesla and Alphabet, investors heavily ditched stocks on Wednesday, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite dropping 3.6% in its worst day since October 2022. "The volatility of the last two weeks started out being very rotational," said the bank, referring to a recent investors' rotation to small- from mega caps. "But that has now morphed into a broad index deleveraging (on Wednesday)." If volatility persists in the coming days, the sell-off would rapidly increase, Morgan Stanley said in their commentary, declining to comment further. An additional 1% day-drop in global equities could spark sales of $35 billion and macro hedge funds could dump up to $110 billion in a 3% day fall. The main U.S. stock indexes were positive on Thursday afternoon, after stronger-than-expected GDP data. James Koutoulas, chief executive officer at hedge fund Typhon Capital Management, told Reuters that even after Wednesday’s sell-off, momentum stocks remain trading above their intrinsic value. Historically, he said interest rate hikes have been followed by economic downturns. "It seems like investors are betting on bucking that trend," he said in a note to clients. Hedge funds are turning more bearish, as they are mainly reducing their long positions, or bets stocks will rise, while keeping, and in some cases increasing, bets on shares they believe will fall, according to Morgan Stanley. Portfolio managers mostly sold shares in the information technology, consumer staples and material sectors. Goldman Sachs also said its clients increased short positions in the so-called macro products, such as large cap and corporate bond exchange traded funds (ETFs). PERFORMANCE Following the market bloodbath, hedge funds' performance ended Wednesday in the red, although overall they were able to pare losses compared to the main stock indexes. Global hedge funds fell 0.67% on average, according to Morgan Stanley, with equities long/short hedge funds in Americas down the most, 1.04%. The MSCI All Country World fell 1.67% on Wednesday, while the S&P 500 was down 2.31%. "Hedge funds are in the middle of the worst drawdown of an otherwise positive year," said Mario Unali, head of investment advisory at Kairos Partners. Story continues (This story has been corrected to fix James Koutoulas’ comments to reflect he said that stocks remain trading above their intrinsic value, not overweight, in paragraph 6) (Reporting by Carolina Mandl, in New York; editing by Diane Craft)

Stock market news today: Nasdaq, S&P 500 slide into the close, capping volatile day on Wall Street 2024-07-26 05:51:00+00:00 - US stocks attempted an unsuccessful rebound on Thursday as the Nasdaq and S&P 500 added to Wall Street's latest Big Tech sell-off, fueled by concerns the artificial intelligence trade could be losing steam. The Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC), which wobbled between losses and gains throughout the trading day, closed down about 0.9% after coming off the worst day for the tech-heavy index since October 2022. The benchmark S&P 500 (^GSPC) dropped 0.5%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) remained the only major index in the green, up a modest 0.2%. Stocks are running into a wall as Wall Street starts to question when tech companies' huge investments in AI will start to pay off. Unimpressive earnings from Alphabet (GOOGL, GOOG) and Tesla (TSLA) earlier in the week have dented hopes that Big Techs can live up to their AI-fueled sky-high valuations. At the same time, concerns about the robustness of the US economy are emerging as big-name earnings misses cast doubt on how consumers are holding up in the face of historically high borrowing costs. Given that, traders are now pricing in bigger cuts by the Federal Reserve — a reduction of about 30 basis points by September, and of almost 70 basis points over 2024, according to money markets. Odds on an earlier-than-expected rate cut in July have also ticked up, CME FedWatch data showed. Read more: 32 charts that tell the story of markets and the economy right now Still, an advance estimate of gross domestic product (GDP) showed the US economy grew at an annualized pace of 2.8% during the second quarter. That was well above the 2% growth expected by economists surveyed by Bloomberg. The Personal Consumption Expenditure Price Index update for July on Friday will give the Federal Reserve another data point to consider regarding rate cut timing.

Edwards Lifesciences Stock Plummeted Today. Here's Why 2024-07-26 05:23:00+00:00 - Pavlo Gonchar / SOPA Images / LightRocket via Getty Images Key Takeaways Edwards Lifesciences cut sales-growth estimates for its biggest source of revenue, a heart valve replacement treatment. The heart disease and critical care monitoring company also missed expectations with its second-quarter earnings. Edwards Lifesciences stock lost almost a third of its value on Thursday, the worst performer in the S&P 500. Edwards Lifesciences (EW) shares swooned Thursday, dropping after the company damped expectations for heart valve replacement sales growth on Wednesday. The company said it expects full-year sales growth of 5% to 7% for its transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) treatment, down from the 8% to 10% forecast earlier. TAVR involves replacing a diseased heart valve using a catheter rather than through open-heart surgery. Full-year sales of transcatheter mitral and tricuspid therapies (TMTT) are expected to come in on the higher end of Edwards’ previously issued range of $320 million to $340 million. The company reiterated its surgical sales growth projection of 6% to 8%. Shares of Edwards plunged 31% to finish at $59.76 Thursday, leaving them down about 22% this year. The stock was the day's worst performer in the S&P 500. In the second quarter, Edwards posted earnings per share (EPS) of 61 cents, falling short of the 74 cents expected by analysts, according to Visible Alpha. Revenue was $1.39 billion, below expectations. TAVR revenue rose 5% year-over-year to $1 billion. Read the original article on Investopedia.

CrowdStrike CEO Involved In Another Global Tech Disaster Years Ago? Unbelievably, Yes 2024-07-26 04:00:00+00:00 - CrowdStrike CEO Involved In Another Global Tech Disaster Years Ago? Unbelievably, Yes George Kurtz, the CEO of cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike, is under the spotlight for a massive tech failure. Last Friday, a faulty update from CrowdStrike caused a worldwide tech outage that disrupted banks, airlines, retailers, and more. Shockingly, this isn’t Kurtz’s first rodeo with a tech catastrophe. Don't Miss: From 2009 to 2011, Kurtz was the Chief Technology Officer at McAfee, another major name in cybersecurity. In 2010, McAfee released a flawed update that mistakenly identified a critical Windows file, “svchost.exe,” as a virus. This critical error crashed millions of computers and got them stuck in reboot loops. Just like last week, the only fix was a manual intervention, and similarly, that whole debacle created chaos for countless users and businesses. See Also: Don’t miss out on the next Nvidia – you can invest in the future of AI for only $10. The Ripple Effects Of The CrowdStrike Update Mess The impact of CrowdStrike’s faulty update was massive. According to Business Insider, major airlines like American, United, and Delta had to ground flights, leaving thousands of passengers stranded and causing travel chaos. European airlines, like Ryanair, also faced big delays and told passengers to arrive early to deal with the mess. The UK’s National Health Service (NHS) reported issues with appointment and patient record systems, even canceling medical procedures and appointments. In Germany, hospitals were forced to also cancel elective operations, adding to the strain on health care providers already dealing with other pressures. Retail operations were not spared either. Some Speedway gas stations in the U.S. had to close because digital gas pumps failed, and others could not accept payments. Trending: This Jeff Bezos-backed startup will allow you to become a landlord in just 10 minutes, and you only need $100. Why Did This Happen? CrowdStrike is actively working with customers impacted by a defect found in a single content update for Windows hosts. Mac and Linux hosts are not impacted. This is not a security incident or cyberattack. The issue has been identified, isolated and a fix has been deployed. We... — George Kurtz (@George_Kurtz) July 19, 2024 The root cause of the disaster was a defect in a single update for Windows provided by CrowdStrike that led to widespread system failures. The issue was not the result of a cyberattack but rather a critical flaw in the update’s coding. When released, it triggered a series of malfunctions in less than 1% of Windows machines. Story continues Despite the relatively small percentage, the number of systems affected was enough to create global chaos. In response to Kurtz’s tweet, one Twitter user pointed out how little it takes to “bring down half the computers around the world.” CrowdStrike’s immediate response included identifying the issue, isolating it, and deploying a fix. However, Microsoft stated that some users fixed their problems by rebooting the system 15 times. CrowdStrike’s admission that such a huge error was not caught during testing has raised serious questions about its internal processes and safeguards. Trending: Rory McIlroy’s mansion in Florida is worth $22 million today, doubling from 2017 — here’s how to get started investing in real estate with just $100 History Repeating Itself This incident has brought George Kurtz’s past into sharp focus. In 2010, as McAfee’s CTO, Kurtz was at the helm during another significant tech failure. The problem was eerily similar, and the fallout was substantial, with McAfee facing severe criticism and a loss of customer trust. Since Thursday, the day before the outage, CrowdStrike stock has lost around 21% of its value, and Kurtz’s net worth plummeted from $3.2 billion to $2.6 billion on Wednesday, the 24th, according to Forbes. Given this history, many are now wondering how Kurtz, with all his experience, let something like this happen again at CrowdStrike. The company has promised to investigate thoroughly to determine how the mistake happened and to implement measures to prevent it. However, fixing the damage to its reputation might take a while. 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 CrowdStrike CEO Involved In Another Global Tech Disaster Years Ago? Unbelievably, Yes originally appeared on Benzinga.com © 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.

Why Ford Motor Company Stock Crashed 17% Today 2024-07-26 03:14:00+00:00 - Stock of Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F), one of America's Big Three automakers, collapsed 16.7% through 12:45 p.m. ET Thursday after the company reported a huge earnings miss last night. Analysts had forecast Ford would earn $0.68 per share on $44 billion in Q2 sales. While Ford exceeded the revenue number easily, with $47.8 billion in quarterly sales, profits came in short of expectations at just $0.47 per share. Ford's Q2 earnings decline Not all the news was bad. Ford sold 1.14 million vehicles in this year's Q2, 23,000 more than last year's Q2. Revenue rose 6% year over year. Operating cash flow grew 10%, to $5.5 billion, as did automotive free cash flow, rising to $3.2 billion, and Ford remained profitable on the bottom line. Still, profits per share shrank by $0.01, instead of growing with growing sales, and the reason was profit margins. Ford's net profit margin contracted by 40 basis points, to 3.8%. Management explained the hit to profits came mostly "from an increase in warranty reserves," but that it hopes to work that number down "though efforts to lift the quality of new products." In other words, this was an earnings miss entirely of Ford's own making. If it built better-quality vehicles, they wouldn't break as often -- and Ford wouldn't so much lose money from having to repair broken trucks under warranty. Is Ford stock a sell? Still and all, Ford management put a happy face on its results, saying the company should end up with "solid" results by year-end. The company forecasts pre-tax profit of anywhere from $10 billion to $12 billion, and automotive free cash flow in the $7.5 billion to $8.5 billion range. With Ford stock currently valued at about $47.4 billion, that works out to a price-to-free cash flow ratio of about 5.9x, which hardly seems expensive -- especially when you consider that Ford stock is paying a 5.7% dividend yield! Assume any positive earnings growth at all, and it's hard to see Ford stock as anything but a buy at today's prices. Should you invest $1,000 in Ford Motor Company right now? Before you buy stock in Ford Motor Company, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Ford Motor Company wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $700,076!* Stock Advisor provides investors with an easy-to-follow blueprint for success, including guidance on building a portfolio, regular updates from analysts, and two new stock picks each month. The Stock Advisor service has more than quadrupled the return of S&P 500 since 2002*. Story continues See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of July 22, 2024 Rich Smith has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Why Ford Motor Company Stock Crashed 17% Today was originally published by The Motley Fool

Here's why Southwest is assigning seats — and what it means for customers 2024-07-25 22:00:00+00:00 - Southwest Airlines is putting an end to its open seating policy Southwest Airlines is putting an end to its open seating policy 02:13 Southwest will start selling assigned seats, marking a major shakeup of a signature policy that has set the low-cost carrier apart from airlines for half a century. The new policy, announced Thursday, will make flying Southwest look and feel remarkably different for customers. The shift will affect how customers of the discount carrier select seats and board planes. Southwest passengers, including longtime fans of the open seating policy, will also be able to choose different types of seats for a price, including those offering more legroom. These changes could affect ticket costs across the board, according to experts, although Southwest has not addressed pricing or indicated that regular seat costs will change. Some experts are cheering the move, saying it amounts to an improvement for both passengers and the airline. "Southwest's decision to start assigning seats and plan to add extra-legroom seats prove an old dog can learn new tricks," Henry Harteveldt, president of Atmosphere Research Group, told CBS News. "It will make their flights more orderly and comfortable. And it should also improve the airline's bottom line as well." Southwest will begin selling tickets with assigned seats beginning in 2025. The airline will reveal additional details around changes to the flight boarding process in September. Here are three ways flying Southwest could change. Assigned seats Southwest is ending its open seating policy, in which customers find a cabin seat on a first-come, first-serve basis. When the changes go into effect next year, customers will purchase tickets with assigned seating, eliminating some of the stress associated with the current boarding process. "It's a pretty big change for Southwest, which always had an open seating system, and you had to run into the cabin and try to find the seat you want," Clint Henderson, managing editor of The Points Guy, told CBS MoneyWatch. Henderson said this turned off some business travelers like himself from choosing to fly Southwest, and he predicted the change could attract a new crop of customers to the airline. "Many business travelers don't want to fight for a seat and deal with the drama that sometimes entails," Henderson said. Tensions can run high on airplanes too, with testy passengers quibbling over limited and sometimes shared real estate. "Since the pandemic, airline passengers may be less cordial and less amicable," said airline customer experience analyst Marbue Brown. "There are certainly benefits to environments where there is no ambiguity about who owns a seat." Some seats will have more leg room In addition to assigned seats, Southwest will introduce premium seating, offering passengers extended legroom on one-third of a cabin's seats. Southwest already lets customers pay to be first in line to board aircraft, "but this is a much bigger change now, with premium seats available for purchase," Going.com's Keyes said. The airline is likely responding to travelers' penchant for more premium travel experiences following the pandemic, according to Keyes. "The demand is for premium economy, business class and better seats, which Southwest doesn't have to offer," he said. Southwest's seats already offer more legroom than traditional carriers', which has been a selling point for the airline. They come with 32 inches of space, versus the industry standard of 30-31 inches. It's possible Southwest's new cabin configuration could shrink its current standard of 32 inches of space, some experts said. "They haven't announced the new cabin design, but the most likely outcome is we're going to see that 32 inches of legroom to start to shrink for main cabin, and for it to be more like 31 or 30," Scott Keyes, founder of Going.com, told CBS MoneyWatch. "That's normal for people who are used to flying American or United, but cramped for people who fly Southwest." Price changes The new cabin configurations could drive up ticket prices across the board because Southwest's aircraft might contain fewer number of total seats, industry analysts said. On the other hand, the dramatic policy changes could be price-neutral, depending on how Southwest redesigns its plane cabins. "Some folks will pay more for extra legroom, and, based on how you reconfigure planes, you might not have to raise prices on other seats," Brown said. What remains to be seen is whether Southwest will introduce a bare-bones, basic economy-type offering. Currently, all tickets come with free checked bags and free changes. "But might they start to offer an economy package that includes more restrictions on baggage? That's something we'll have to wait and see," Keyes said.

Crew mistakes and inadequate safety standards led to the crash that destroyed a $450 million B-1B bomber, an Air Force probe found 2024-07-25 21:41:47+00:00 - By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . You can opt-out at any time by visiting our Preferences page or by clicking "unsubscribe" at the bottom of the email. Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go. download the app Sign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. Read preview A B-1B Lancer valued at more than $450 million that crashed in South Dakota at the start of this year missed the runway by 100 feet, a mistake accident investigators attributed to the aircrew's shortcomings as well as the poor training culture within units at Ellsworth Air Force Base . The scathing crash investigation report shared with Military.com pointed to "failure to perform standard crew resource management," along with adverse weather conditions, ineffective flying operations supervision, lack of awareness, and "an unhealthy organizational culture that permitted degradation of airmanship skills" as contributing factors in the January 4 crash. This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. Become an Insider and start reading now. That incident led Ellsworth to temporarily close down its runway and relocate roughly 250 crew members and Lancers to Dyess Air Force Base near Abilene, Texas. The B-1B Lancer, which was on a training mission, crashed roughly 100 feet shy of the runway, skidded more than 5,000 feet down the tarmac, and was then engulfed in flames from the crash. Advertisement The charred remains of the B-1B Lancer after it crashed near the runway of Ellsworth Air Force Base. US Air Force Aircraft Accident Investigation Board The four crew members all ejected, but two of them suffered injuries as a result. Both were medically treated and later released, according to Air Force Global Strike Command, which commissioned the crash investigation report. The Lancer was destroyed, and the damage to the aircraft and the runway was estimated to be more than $456 million. Related stories The report also points out that one crew member who was injured during the ejection was not wearing all the proper flight equipment. And the other injured crew member's weight was reportedly above both the ejection seat's recommended limit of 211 pounds and the Air Force's recommendation of 245 pounds. They weighed in at nearly 260 pounds during medical treatment, which "likely contributed to the severity of the injuries noted from the mishap." The B-1B was performing a training mission with another Lancer aircraft on January 4 when both came in for low-visibility approaches toward the runway with low cloud cover. The first aircraft landed successfully amid dense fog, while the second Lancer came up short due to "a failure by the crew to properly manage the aircraft's airspeed and angle of approach," Air Force Global Strike Command detailed. Advertisement Aircrew members prepare a B-1B Lancer for deployment at Ellsworth Air Force Base at night. US Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Jake Jacobsen "Changes in local wind direction during landing should have prompted the crew to adjust throttles and maintain proper airspeed, but a lack of situational awareness and ineffective crew communication resulted in the aircraft falling below-required airspeed to maintain a safe approach," the command said. Col. Erick Lord, the accident board investigation president, pointed to the crew's shortcomings and harped on the one crew member's weight as examples of larger cultural problems within Ellsworth Air Force Base's 34th Bomb Squadron and the 28th Operations Support Squadron. "The preponderance of the evidence revealed an ineffective and unhealthy culture, which directly contributed to the mishap," he wrote. "Specifically, the [34th Bomb Squadron's] overall lack of discipline, inadequate focus on basic airmanship skills, and failure to properly identify and mitigate risk, coupled with the [28th Operations Support Squadron's] ineffective communication, inadequate program management, and lack of supervisory oversight, set conditions that allowed this mishap to occur by directly leading to the mishap's cause and its three non-weather-related, substantially contributing factors." An aircrew member directs a B-1B Lancer onto the runway at Ellsworth Air Force Base in South Dakota. US Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Dylan Maher Retired Col. JF Joseph, a Marine Corps pilot who is now an aviation consultant and expert witness, told Military.com in an interview that those crew members could receive any variety of punishment or administrative actions in the wake of the report but noted that the statements about safety culture at the base are significant. Advertisement "There appears to be some degree of supervisory error that they're making comments on, and the basis for that is predicated on what we call safety culture," the former aviator said. "It sounds like what they looked at was essentially a top-to-bottom review, but it really seems as though they're focusing on the culture aspect of it." Air Force Global Strike Command said the chain of command is "in the process of responding to the report and taking the appropriate corrective actions."

2 lions made a mile-long swim across a crocodile-infested channel in search of mates. It's a sign of how desperate the animals are getting. 2024-07-25 21:34:07+00:00 - By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . You can opt-out at any time by visiting our Preferences page or by clicking "unsubscribe" at the bottom of the email. Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go. download the app Sign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. Read preview Two lions recently proved that there's no river wide enough to keep them from potential mates. In February, the pair of brothers, Jacob and Tibu, swam for nearly a mile across a channel between two lakes in Uganda's Queen Elizabeth National Park. They had to turn back several times because the water was likely full of crocodiles, according to Alexander Braczkowski, a conservation biologist with Griffith University who filmed the animals' epic swim. This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. Become an Insider and start reading now. Not only is this the longest swim for lions on record, but one of the brothers, Jacob, previously lost a leg when a poacher's trap caught his foot, making his feat all the more impressive. Advertisement "We didn't know lions could do this," Braczkowski, told Business Insider in an email. Lions will wade or swim short distances, he said, "but nothing like what you see in the video." The males were likely seeking out lionesses, Braczkowski and his fellow researchers reported in a recent paper in the peer-reviewed journal Ecology and Evolution. Though the brothers made it to the channel's other side, it's unclear if they reached their goal of mating. Advertisement Jacob, the lion with three legs, is a survivor Jacob lost a limb when a poacher's snare trapped his foot. Alexander Braczkowski Competition for mates is fierce because the lion population in the area has been cut in half in the past five years, Braczkowski said. Only 39 remain, with roughly two males for every female, New Scientist reported. In a healthy lion population, that ratio would be flipped. Related stories An estimated 60,000 people live in the park, which has contributed to the decline in the animals' numbers. "The main stressor is people," Craig Packer, founder and director of the University of Minnesota's Lion Center who was not involved in the research, told Business Insider. The lions hunt livestock and are killed in retaliation, he said. Jacob is a reflection of the tension between humans and lions. Not only did he lose a limb, but poachers poisoned his family. And unrelated to humans, he also survived a buffalo goring. Advertisement "Jacob is a true symbol of the challenge lions face in Uganda but also their immense resilience," Bosco Atukwatse, a co-author of the paper, said. A coalition of lions It's common for two male lions who grew up together to become life-long companions. Alexander Braczkowski Despite what Disney's "The Lion King" taught many of us about brotherly dynamics between the big cats, the close relationship between Jacob and Tibu is pretty typical. "Lions are the only social cat," Packer said. Female lions live in prides, and they often give birth at the same time, Packer said. They raise their cubs together in a type of lion nursery, called a crèche. Male cubs who grow up together, whether they're brothers or cousins, will stay together their whole lives in what's known as coalitions. "A coalition of two is not at all unusual," Packer said. Advertisement In fact, it's pretty necessary for their survival, Packer said. "It's scary being a male lion if you don't have a partner," he said. "And so you really need to look after your partner." Just the roar of a second lion might be enough to chase off any competition for territory from other male lions. And when it does come down to a fight, Jacob probably wouldn't be all that helpful to Tibu, Packer said, "but he's still better than nothing."

Cold storage giant Lineage raises $4.4 billion in largest IPO of 2024 2024-07-25 21:30:05+00:00 - Cold storage leader Lineage just had the biggest IPO of 2024. It boasts a valuation of $19 billion, Bloomberg reported. Once obscure, cold storage has grown in demand in recent years. Sign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. Read preview Thanks for signing up! Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go. download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . You can opt-out at any time by visiting our Preferences page or by clicking "unsubscribe" at the bottom of the email. Advertisement Cold-storage leader Lineage just clinched the largest public offering of the year. The Michigan-headquartered logistics giant sold 57 million shares Wednesday at $78 apiece, raising a total of $4.4 billion. It initially pegged share prices between $70 and $82. Lineage — which has 480 warehouses across North America, Europe, and the APAC region — now boasts a market value of $19 billion, according to Bloomberg. This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. Become an Insider and start reading now. Have an account? Log in .

NY fights to save Trump hush-money sentencing, saying it's a harmless error if evidence he's immune from entered the case 2024-07-25 21:21:22+00:00 - By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . You can opt-out at any time by visiting our Preferences page or by clicking "unsubscribe" at the bottom of the email. Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go. download the app Sign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. Read preview Manhattan prosecutors are fighting to keep Donald Trump's September 18 hush-money sentencing on track, saying in a new filing Thursday that it was "harmless error" if evidence he's now immune from entered the case. Trump's recent US Supreme Court immunity victory "has no bearing on this prosecution," lawyers for District Attorney Alvin Bragg argue in a 69-page court filing. This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. Become an Insider and start reading now. "That holding has no bearing here because, as defendant does not dispute, the charges in this case all involve purely personal conduct, rather than official presidential acts," the filing says. But Trump would have been indicted and convicted even if evidence the defense calls "official" were removed, the filing adds. Advertisement Trump was indicted in April, 2023, and convicted in May, 2024, on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. Trump falsified 34 Trump Organization records throughout 2018 in order to hide hush money he paid to porn actor Stormy Daniels as part of a conspiracy to illegally influence the 2016 election. The DA's filing is a response to defense arguments that prosecutorial immunity voids not just his conviction, but the hush-money indictment in its entirety. The SCOTUS decision found that using official-act evidence in prosecuting a current or former president violates their constitutional rights. Related stories The defense argued the grand jurors who voted to indict Trump and the trial jurors who voted to convict him were all shown significant evidence involving Trump's official acts, and that this evidence is now retroactively inadmissible. Donald Trump at his arraignment, with Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg seated behind him. Reuters/Jane Rosenberg On Thursday, Bragg responded in papers signed by Matthew Colangelo, an assistant district attorney who was a lead prosecutor on the case. Advertisement The filing argues that Trump is wrong in now stamping much of the prosecutor's case "official act evidence." The defense is challenging four incriminating 2018 tweets shown to jurors from Trump's personal Twitter account, in which he referred private payments to Daniels by his then-personal attorney, Michael Cohen. But these tweets describe unofficial acts unrelated to Trump's official duties, and for which he has no immunity, the prosecution filing now argues. "Trump was not performing, or even describing, any official presidential act in conveying his personal opinions about his personal attorney and a private nondisclosure agreement entered into prior to his Presidency," the filing says of the four tweets. "No Presidential decision-making was involved." The defense is also challenging trial testimony by Hope Hicks, Trump's former White House communications director, who described an incriminating 2018 Oval Office conversation in which Trump expressed relief that Daniels' claims to a one-night sexual encounter surfaced only after the 2016 election. Advertisement But this conversation again involved a hush-money scheme that "was entirely personal and largely committed before the election, and it had no relationship whatsoever to any official duty of the presidency," the prosecution filing continues. Additional challenged evidence — an incriminating government ethics form Trump signed in 2018, and snippets of trial testimony by Cohen and by Madeleine Westerhout, Trump's former White House assistant — all likewise concerned private, not presidential, matters, prosecutors argue. But even if the challenged evidence was removed from the trial, "the error was harmless in light of the overwhelming evidence of defendant's guilt," the filing argues. As for tossing the underlying indictment — a move that would take Trump off the hook entirely — the prosecution filing argues that Trump would have been indicted even without what the defense calls "official act" evidence. Advertisement The submission of some inadmissible evidence during the grand jury presentation "is held to be fatal only when the remaining legal evidence is insufficient to sustain the indictment," the filing says, quoting caselaw from 1996. Still, "the indictment in this case was not 'based on' any evidence of immune conduct," prosecutors argue. Lawyers for Trump did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the prosecution filing. The trial judge, state Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan, has said he will issue a written decision on September 6 on whether the indictment and conviction survive this challenge. Advertisement If they do, Trump will be sentenced September 18 as planned, the judge has said.

Dexcom shares plummet almost 40% after company misses on revenue, lowers guidance 2024-07-25 21:13:00+00:00 - The Dexcom logo is seen on a smartphone screen and in the background. Shares of Dexcom tumbled almost 40% in extended trading Thursday after the diabetes management company reported disappointing revenue for the second quarter and offered weak guidance. Here's how the company did: Earnings per share: 43 cents adjusted vs. 39 cents expected by LSEG 43 cents adjusted vs. 39 cents expected by LSEG Revenue: $1 billion vs. $1.04 billion expected by LSEG Dexcom's revenue increased 15% from $871.3 million a year earlier, according to a release. The company reported net income of $143.5 million, up from the $115.9 million in the same period last year. For the third quarter, Dexcom expects revenue of $975 million to $1 billion to account for "certain unique items impacting 2024 seasonality," the release said. Dexcom updated its full fiscal year guidance and now expects revenue of $4 billion and $4.05, down from the $4.20 billion to $4.35 billion it forecast last quarter. Dexcom offers a suite of tools like continuous glucose monitors (CGMs) for patients that have been diagnosed with diabetes. On the earnings call, Dexcom CEO Kevin Sayer attributed the challenges to a restructuring of the company's sales team, fewer new customers than expected and lower revenue per user. Some of the shortfall had to do with customers taking advantage of rebates for the new CGM called the G7. Additionally, the company said it underperformed in the durable medical equipment (DME) channel. "The DME distributors remain important partners for us in our business, and we've not executed well this quarter against these partnerships," Sayer said on the call. "We need to refocus on those relationships." In March, Dexcom announced its new over-the-counter CGM called Stelo had been cleared for use by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Stelo is designed for patients with Type 2 diabetes who do not use insulin. Dexcom said Thursday it will officially launch in August. Prior to Thursday's close, Dexcom shares were down 13% for the year, while the S&P 500 is up 13% over that stretch. At the beginning of the Q&A portion of the earnings call, JPMorgan analyst Robbie Marcus asked for more details on the substantial drop in guidance, expressing "shock" at how much disruption could be caused by a change in the structure of the sales force. "I feel like there has to be more going on," Marcus said, and asked whether the surging popularity of GLP-1 weight-loss treatments is having an impact. Sayer responded by saying the company is "short a large number of new patients as to where we thought we would be at this point in time." He said the sales force reshuffling, which led to changes in geographic coverage, was more dramatic than expected as physicians were now dealing with different reps. With respect to the DME struggles, Sayer said the company lost customers "who have the highest annual revenue per year." And he added that G7 rebate eligibility was three times faster than over the prior product, the G6. Jereme Sylvain, Dexcom's finance chief, said all that adds up to a $300 million shortfall in the company's guidance for the year at the top end. "Certainly not something we're happy about," Sylvain said. He said that in the interest of "full transparency," the company needed to provide clarity "about what the impact is for the balance of the year." WATCH: Dexcom CEO Kevin Sayer

A small, low-cost airline you may not have heard of just announced 18 new routes and its first international destinations 2024-07-25 21:06:49+00:00 - Avelo Airlines launched in 2021. On Wednesday, the airline announced 18 new routes with prices starting at $52. The new routes include Avelo's first international routes to Jamaica and Mexico. Sign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. Read preview Thanks for signing up! Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go. download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . You can opt-out at any time by visiting our Preferences page or by clicking "unsubscribe" at the bottom of the email. Advertisement Avelo Airlines announced plans for 18 new routes this fall, including its first two international destinations, for as low as $52 one-way. It's impressive growth for the Texas-based low-cost carrier that only started flying in 2021. "The expansion we are announcing today is the most substantial in our airline's three-year history," Avelo Airlines founder and CEO Andrew Levy said in a press release. This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. Become an Insider and start reading now. Have an account? Log in .

What's Next For Spotify? More Price Hikes Could Be Coming After Strong Q2 Performance - Spotify Technology (NYSE:SPOT) 2024-07-25 21:00:00+00:00 - In Tuesday’s second-quarter earnings call, Spotify Technology SA‘s SPOT CEO Daniel Ek and interim CFO Ben Kung hinted at the possibility of future price increases, despite not providing a concrete timeline. This comes on the heels of substantial hikes in 2023 and 2024, where the price of an individual plan in the U.S. rose from $9.99 to $11.99 per month. See Also: Spotify Smashes Gross Margin Guidance, Analysts Expect ‘Continued Momentum’ Subscribers Stay Despite Price Hikes Spotify’s strategic decision to raise prices did not result in subscriber loss or revenue decline. In the second quarter of 2024, Spotify added 7 million new subscribers, surpassing its own expectations by 1 million. The company reported a revenue of €3.8 billion ($4.15 billion), marking a 20% year-over-year increase. These gains helped Spotify swing from a €247 million ($269 million) operating loss in Q2 2023 to a €266 million ($290 million) operating profit in Q2 2024. According to Billboard, Ek said that the company saw “less churn in this round of increases than we did in our prior one, which was already very low by any measure.” Kung added that churn rates following the recent price hikes were “better than expected.” Enhanced Value and Retention Ek attributes the low churn rates to the enhanced value Spotify has delivered over the years. The streaming giant has evolved into a comprehensive audio platform, adding popular features like the year-end Wrapped recap and Discovery Weekly playlists. The company’s significant investments in podcasts and audiobooks have also broadened its appeal. Ek added: “Access to all of this content would cost a user approximately $26 — significantly more than a Spotify subscription. Spotify remains a pretty outstanding deal.” Engagement Fuels Future Increases Subscriber engagement remains crucial for Spotify’s strategy. Kung noted: “The most important thing in the near term is just making sure that audiobooks are driving incremental engagement for the platform, and we're seeing this happening in a way that makes us feel good about the path that we're on here.” Ek also suggested that developing markets, which currently favor ad-supported listening, show high engagement levels that could justify future price increases. “The high engagement in [developing] markets gives us tremendous confidence in our ability to raise prices,” he said. The HiFi Experience Spotify is also targeting a subset of subscribers willing to pay more for an enhanced experience. After initially announcing a high-quality audio tier called HiFi in 2021 and subsequently delaying it, Ek confirmed its impending launch. “ The plan here is to offer a much better version of Spotify,” he stated. This premium tier is expected to be priced around $17-$18 per month, offering superior control and quality. Read Next: Image credits: Diego Thomazini on Shutterstock.

Abbott warns that some of its blood sugar monitors may need replacement due to incorrect readings 2024-07-25 20:57:06+00:00 - Abbott is warning that sensors on some of its blood sugar monitoring systems may need to be replaced to prevent inaccurate readings. Testing showed that some sensors on the FreeStyle Libre 3 system may incorrectly report high blood sugar levels, the medical device maker said Thursday. An inaccurate high blood sugar reading can prompt patients to take insulin when they don’t need it. The devices were distributed in the first half of May in the United States. Abbott estimates that less then 1% of U.S. users are affected. Customers who live outside the country or use other versions of its FreeStyle Libre system are not affected, the company said. The continuous glucose monitoring system uses a sensor, a reader and an app to help people with diabetes check their blood sugar without having to draw drops of blood from their fingers. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration first approved the Abbott devices in 2017. Abbott said it will replace the sensors at no charge. The company said people should check its website to confirm whether their sensor is affected. The sensor came from these three lot numbers, the company said: T60001948, T60001966, T60001969. ___ The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science and Educational Media Group. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

'Let's go': Harris agrees to debate Trump, accuses him of 'backpedaling' on Sept. 10 date 2024-07-25 20:48:00+00:00 - Vice President Kamala Harris speaks to reporters upon arrival at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland on July 25, 2024. De facto Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris said on Thursday she is "ready to debate" her Republican rival, former President Donald Trump. "I think that voters deserve to see the split screen that exists in this race on a debate stage, and so I'm ready," Harris told reporters on an airport tarmac outside Washington. "Let's go." Harris, the vice president, said she has agreed to face off with Trump on Sept. 10. ABC News had been scheduled to hold a debate on that date with Trump and President Joe Biden, who withdrew from the race on Sunday. "Now it appears he's backpedaling," Harris said of Trump on Thursday afternoon. "But I'm ready." Trump signaled in a press call earlier this week that he did not "like the idea" of participating in a debate hosted by ABC, which he called "fake news." But he said he "absolutely" would want to debate Harris if she becomes the Democratic nominee. "I would be willing to do more than one debate, actually," Trump said on the Tuesday afternoon call.

The Olympians with the most medals in history 2024-07-25 20:46:50+00:00 - The 2024 Olympics kick off in Paris this week. Swimmer Michael Phelps holds the record for most Olympic medals of all time, with 28. Athletes like Katie Ledecky could join the world's 19 athletes with 12 or more Olympic medals. Sign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. Read preview Thanks for signing up! Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go. download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . You can opt-out at any time by visiting our Preferences page or by clicking "unsubscribe" at the bottom of the email. Advertisement The 2024 Olympics in Paris have arrived, and more than 10,000 athletes from around the world have a chance to make Olympic history. One such athlete is swimmer Katie Ledecky. With 10 medals already under her belt and a chance to win four more this year, she could become the third-most decorated female Olympian of all time and the second-most decorated Olympic swimmer behind only Michael Phelps. This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. Become an Insider and start reading now. Have an account? Log in .