Latest News
See the latest news and get GPT analysis of articles
Why Schools Are Racing to Ban Student Phones 2024-08-11 09:00:49+00:00 - Cellphones have become a school scourge. More than 70 percent of high school teachers say student phone distraction is a “major problem,” according to a survey this year by Pew Research. That’s why states are mounting a bipartisan effort to crack down on rampant student cellphone use. So far this year, at least eight states have passed laws, issued orders or adopted rules to curb phone use among students during school hours. The issue isn’t simply that some children and teenagers compulsively use apps like Snap, TikTok and Instagram during lessons, distracting themselves and their classmates. In many schools, students have also used their phones to bully, sexually exploit and share videos of physical attacks on their peers.
Can Free Rent Revive Downtown San Francisco? 2024-08-11 09:00:37+00:00 - There’s a buzz of energy in downtown San Francisco from a source that has been missing for years: occupied storefronts. One of those shops is Paper Son Coffee, a roaster with flavors popular among Latin and Asian American communities that has been operating in the South of Market neighborhood since June. Before that, the space had been empty for nearly three years. “People who work or live in the neighborhood stop in and are like, ‘Wow, there is something here!’” said Alexander Pong, an owner of Paper Son. “They’re excited.” Paper Son is part of an initiative to help San Francisco return to the days before it became a devastating example of what could go wrong with U.S. cities during the pandemic. The company was chosen to participate in Vacant to Vibrant, a program initiated last year by the city’s mayor, London Breed, to fill empty space downtown, which largely makes up several blocks straddling Market Street in the Financial District and South of Market neighborhoods. Downtown San Francisco has the highest concentration of vacant storefronts in the city.
Families of Brazilian plane crash victims gather in Sao Paulo as French experts join investigation 2024-08-11 05:16:48+00:00 - SAO PAULO (AP) — More than 40 families of victims of an airliner crash in Brazil gathered Sunday at a morgue and hotels in Sao Paulo as three French government investigators arrived in the country. Forensics experts worked to identify the remains of the 62 people killed. Sao Paulo state government said in a statement Sunday morning that the searches ended at 10:45 p.m. on Saturday, 33 hours after the crash, with the remains of all 34 males and 28 females among the victims recovered. It added that the wreckage remains at the site, so investigators can continue their work. The ATR 72 twin-engine turboprop operated by Brazilian airline Voepass was headed for Guarulhos international airport in Sao Paulo with 58 passengers and four crew members aboard when it went down Friday in Vinhedo, 78 kilometers (49 miles) north of the city. Voepass said that three passengers who held Brazilian identification also carried Venezuelan documents and one had Portuguese identity. Brazilian authorities worked Saturday to piece together what exactly caused the plane crash in Sao Paulo state the previous day that killed all 62 people on board. Local airline Voepass’ plane, an ATR 72 twin-engine turboprop, was headed for Sao Paulo’s international airport in Guarulhos with 58 passengers and 4 crew members when it went down in the city of Vinhedo. (AP Video/Andre Penner and Maycron Abade) ATR is a French-Italian company. International aviation protocols recommend that investigators from the country of origin of the airplane maker follow inquiries on foreign soil whenever a crash involving one of those planes takes place. Local authorities said that the three French investigators in Brazil work at BEA, the European country’s body for civil aviation security. The bodies of the pilot, Danilo Santos Romano, and his co-pilot, Humberto de Campos Alencar e Silva, were the first to be identified. Another 10 have been identified since, local authorities said. One body is already set for burial, and another seven are expected to follow on Sunday, Sao Paulo’s state government said. The airliner said in a statement to The Associated Press that Romano had just finished his first full year as commander. He was hired by the Brazilian company in November 2022 as a co-pilot. His experience with Voepass included 5,202 flying hours, all in planes of the ATR model, the only one the company owns. Locator map showing the departure, destination and crash sites of a Brazilian commercial airplane that crashed on Friday Aug. 9, 2024. (AP Digital Embed) At least eight physicians were aboard, Paraná state Gov. Ratinho Júnior said. Four professors at Unioeste university in western Paraná were also confirmed dead. Liz Ibba dos Santos, a 3-year-old girl who was traveling with her father, was the only child known to be on the passenger list. The remains of Luna, a dog that was traveling with a Venezuelan family, were also found in the wreckage. Sao Paulo’s morgue began receiving the bodies Friday evening, and it asked victims’ relatives to bring in medical, X-ray and dental records to help identify the bodies. Blood tests were also done to help identification efforts. The few family members speaking about the tragedy did so on social media. Relatives from victims of the plane crash arrives at the headquarters of the institute of legal medicine for the recognition of victims, in Sao Paulo, Brazil, Saturday, Aug. 10, 2024. (AP Photo/Ettore Chiereguini) Tânia Azevedo, who lost her son Tiago in the crash, was put up in one of the hotels in Sao Paulo, but said that she was waiting to go to the morgue. “I believe Tiago is somewhere trying to help the other people wounded who also need light and love,” she said. “I couldn’t go there (to the morgue). I am here waiting. It is dark here, I need some light and love myself.” Images recorded by witnesses showed the aircraft in a flat spin and plunging vertically before smashing to the ground inside a gated community, leaving an obliterated fuselage consumed by fire. Residents said that there were no injuries on the ground. It was the world’s deadliest airline crash since January 2023, when 72 people died on a Yeti Airlines plane in Nepal that stalled and crashed while making its landing approach. That plane also was an ATR 72, and the final report blamed pilot error. Police vehicles used to carry bodies leave at the gated community where a plane crashed in Vinhedo, Sao Paulo state, Brazil, Saturday, Aug. 10, 2024. (AP Photo/Andre Penner) Metsul, one of Brazil’s most respected meteorological companies, said Friday that there were reports of severe icing in Sao Paulo state around the time of the crash. Local media cited experts pointing to icing as a potential cause for the crash. A video shared on social media channels Saturday shows a Voepass pilot telling passengers on a flight from Guarulhos to the city of Cascavel that the ATR 72 has flown safely around the world for decades. He also asked passengers to be respectful to the memory of his colleagues and the company, and asked for prayers. “This tragedy doesn’t hit only those who perished in this accident. It hits all of us,” the unidentified pilot said. “We are giving all our hearts, all our best to be here and fulfill our mission to take you safely and comfortably to your destination.” Police restricted access to the main entrance of the Sao Paulo morgue where bodies from the crash were being identified. Some family members of the victims arrived on foot, others came in minivans. None spoke to journalists, and authorities requested that they not be filmed as they came. The debris at the site where an airplane crashed with 61 people on board, in Vinhedo, Sao Paulo state, Brazil, early on Saturday, Aug. 10, 2024. Brazilian authorities are working to piece together what exactly caused the plane crash in Sao Paulo state the previous day, killing all 61 people aboard. (AP Photo/Andre Penner) A flight carrying more family members from Paraná state landed Saturday afternoon at Guarulhos airport. A minivan sponsored by the airline was provided to transport them to the morgue. Sao Paulo’s state government said that 26 families have already gone to the morgue for identification efforts, with more expected on Sunday. An American Eagle ATR 72-200 crashed on Oct. 31, 1994, and the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board determined the probable cause was ice buildup while the plane was circling in a holding pattern. The plane rolled at about 8,000 feet (2,500 meters) and dove into the ground, killing all 68 people on board. The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration issued operating procedures for ATRs and similar planes telling pilots not to use the autopilot in icing conditions. Brazilian aviation expert Lito Sousa cautioned that meteorological conditions alone might not be enough to explain why the Voepass plane fell in the manner it did on Friday. “Analyzing an air crash just with images can lead to wrong conclusions about the causes,” Sousa told the AP by phone. “But we can see a plane with loss of support, no horizontal speed. In this flat spin condition, there’s no way to reclaim control of the plane.” Brazil’s air force said Sunday that both of the plane’s flight recorders had been analyzed at its laboratory in the capital, Brasilia, and their content has been transcribed. The results of its investigations are expected to be published within 30 days, it said. Marcelo Moura, director of operations for Voepass, told reporters Friday night that while there were forecasts for ice, they were within acceptable levels for the aircraft. In an earlier statement, the Brazilian air force’s center for the investigation and prevention of air accidents said that the plane’s pilots didn’t call for help or say they were operating under adverse weather conditions. A military fire truck used to carry bodies leave at the gated community where a plane crashed in Vinhedo, Sao Paulo state, Brazil, Saturday, Aug. 10, 2024. (AP Photo/Andre Penner) The ATR 72, which is built by a joint venture of Airbus in France and Italy’s Leonardo SpA. is generally used on shorter flights. Crashes involving various models of the ATR 72 have resulted in 470 deaths going back to the 1990s, according to a database of the Aviation Safety Network. Earlier on Sunday, Pope Francis said during a public mass at the Vatican there should be prayers for the victims of the air crash. ___ Tatiana Pollastri reported from Vinhedo.
US colleges are cutting majors and slashing programs after years of putting it off 2024-08-11 04:01:20+00:00 - Christina Westman dreamed of working with Parkinson’s disease and stroke patients as a music therapist when she started studying at St. Cloud State University. But her schooling was upended in May when administrators at the Minnesota college announced a plan to eliminate its music department as it slashes 42 degree programs and 50 minors. It’s part of a wave of program cuts in recent months, as U.S. colleges large and small try to make ends meet. Among their budget challenges: Federal COVID relief money is now gone, operational costs are rising and fewer high school graduates are going straight to college. The cuts mean more than just savings, or even job losses. Often, they create turmoil for students who chose a campus because of certain degree programs and then wrote checks or signed up for student loans. “For me, it’s really been anxiety-ridden,” said Westman, 23, as she began the effort that ultimately led her to transfer to Augsburg University in Minneapolis. “It’s just the fear of the unknown.” At St. Cloud State, most students will be able to finish their degrees before cuts kick in, but Westman’s music therapy major was a new one that hadn’t officially started. She has spent the past three months in a mad dash to find work in a new city and sublet her apartment in St. Cloud after she had already signed a lease. She was moving into her new apartment Friday. For years, many colleges held off making cuts, said Larry Lee, who was acting president of St. Cloud State but left last month to lead Blackburn College in Illinois. College enrollment declined during the pandemic, but officials hoped the figures would recover to pre-COVID levels and had used federal relief money to prop up their budgets in the meantime, he said. “They were holding on, holding on,” Lee said, noting colleges must now face their new reality. Higher education made up some ground last fall and in the spring semester, largely as community college enrollment began to rebound, National Student Clearinghouse Research Center data showed. But the trend for four-year colleges remains worrisome. Even without growing concerns about the cost of college and the long-term burden of student debt, the pool of young adults is shrinking. Birth rates fell during the Great Recession of 2007 to 2009 and never recovered. Now those smaller classes are preparing to graduate and head off to college. “It’s very difficult math to overcome,” said Patrick Lane, vice president at the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education, a leading authority on student demographics. Complicating the situation: the federal government’s chaotic overhaul of its financial aid application. Millions of students entered summer break still wondering where they were going to college this fall and how they would pay for it. With jobs still plentiful, although not as much as last year, some experts fear students won’t bother to enroll at all. “This year going into next fall, it’s going to be bad,” said Katharine Meyer, a fellow in the Governance Studies program for the Brown Center on Education Policy at the nonprofit Brookings Institution. “I think a lot of colleges are really concerned they’re not going to make their enrollment targets.” Many colleges like St. Cloud State already had started plowing through their budget reserves. The university’s enrollment rose to around 18,300 students in fall 2020 before steadily falling to about 10,000 students in fall 2023. St. Cloud State’s student population has now stabilized, Lee said, but spending was far too high for the reduced number of students. The college’s budget shortfall totaled $32 million over the past two years, forcing the sweeping cuts. Some colleges have taken more extreme steps, closing their doors. That happened at the 1,000-student Birmingham-Southern College in Alabama, the 900-student Fontbonne University in Missouri, the 350-student Wells College in New York and the 220-student Goddard College in Vermont. Cuts, however, appear to be more commonplace. Two of North Carolina’s public universities got the green light last month to eliminate more than a dozen degree programs ranging from ancient Mediterranean studies to physics. Arkansas State University announced last fall it was phasing out nine programs. Three of the 64 colleges in the State University of New York system have cut programs amid low enrollment and budget woes. Other schools slashing and phasing out programs include West Virginia University, Drake University in Iowa, the University of Nebraska campus in Kearney, North Dakota State University and, on the other side of the state, Dickinson State University. Experts say it’s just the beginning. Even schools that aren’t immediately making cuts are reviewing their degree offerings. At Pennsylvania State University, officials are looking for duplicative and under-enrolled academic programs as the number of students shrinks at its branch campuses. Particularly affected are students in smaller programs and those in the humanities, which now graduate a smaller share of students than 15 years ago. “It’s a humanitarian disaster for all of the faculty and staff involved, not to mention the students who want to pursue this stuff,” said Bryan Alexander, a Georgetown University senior scholar who has written on higher education. “It’s an open question to what extent colleges and universities can cut their way to sustainability.” For Terry Vermillion, who just retired after 34 years as a music professor at St. Cloud State, the cuts are hard to watch. The nation’s music programs took a hit during the pandemic, he said, with Zoom band nothing short of “disastrous” for many public school programs. “We were just unable to really effectively teach music online, so there’s a gap,” he said. “And, you know, we’re just starting to come out of that gap and we’re just starting to rebound a little bit. And then the cuts are coming.” For St. Cloud State music majors such as Lilly Rhodes, the biggest fear is what will happen as the program is phased out. New students won’t be admitted to the department and her professors will look for new jobs. “When you suspend the whole music department, it’s awfully difficult to keep ensembles alive,” she said. “There’s no musicians coming in, so when our seniors graduate, they go on, and our ensembles just keep getting smaller and smaller. “It’s a little difficult to keep going if it’s like this,” she said. ___ The Associated Press’ education coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.
Vance Vs. Walz: Iraq Combat Claims And Military Honors Battle Heats Up 2024-08-10 21:06:00+00:00 - With Tim Walz recently named as Kamala Harris’ vice-presidential candidate, his military record has come under intense scrutiny. Republican JD Vance, a military veteran himself, has reignited old accusations, claiming that Walz deliberately avoided combat in Iraq by resigning just before his unit was deployed, according to BBC News. Vance has also accused Walz of dishonesty regarding his military service, stating, “When Tim Walz was asked by his country to go to Iraq, you know what he did? He dropped out of the army and allowed his unit to go without him,” as reported by BBC. This claim has intensified debates over Walz’s service history. Several former National Guard colleagues have publicly expressed frustration over Walz’s departure from their unit right before their deployment to Iraq. Also Read: Vance Vs. Walz: Comparing Net Worth Of Trump And Kamala Harris’ VP Picks However, others dispute the notion that Walz left to evade combat, suggesting that there might be other reasons for his decision. Walz served 24 years in the Army National Guard, a component that primarily responds to domestic emergencies but also serves as a reserve for the U.S. Army. Walz retired from the National Guard in May 2005, explaining later that he chose to retire to focus fully on his congressional campaign. Vance served four years in the U.S. Marine Corps and was deployed to Iraq for about six months in 2005 as a military journalist, although he did not engage in combat, BBC News added. Vance himself has noted in his 2016 memoir, “I was lucky to escape any real fighting.” Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors. Read Next:
Donald Trump Rips Into Jon Tester: 'Radical Left Lunatic' 2024-08-10 19:41:00+00:00 - Donald Trump attacked Sen. Jon Tester, who is in a tough reelection race, during a campaign event in Montana, labeling Tester a “radical left lunatic” and criticizing his congressional record on issues such as the U.S. southern border. “For years, Tester has been telling Montana that he’s a moderate while he votes with Biden, Harris, and Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren,” Trump told a large crowd of supporters in Bozeman, Montana, reported The Hill. Trump accused Tester of supporting “mass amnesty” while opposing the border wall and the “Remain in Mexico” policy, which mandates that asylum seekers stay in Mexico during their case processing. Trump also alleged that Tester backed legislation contributing to inflation and voted against the Keystone XL Pipeline, The Hill added. Trump also criticized Tester’s physical appearance, remarking, “He’s got the biggest stomach I have ever seen.” Also Read: Donald Trump’s Claim Of Near-Fatal Helicopter Ride Questioned By Willie Brown Tester is one of the two Senate Democrats from states Trump won in 2020 who is seeking re-election this year. He faces Republican Tim Sheehy, who attended Trump’s rally. Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors. Read Next: Photo: Wikimedia Commons
U.S. Vs. China: New Semiconductor Rules Threaten Global Tech Balance 2024-08-10 18:57:00+00:00 - The Biden administration is working to overcome resistance from allied nations and the tech industry as it seeks to impose stricter regulations on semiconductor exports to China. The new rules aim to limit China’s access to advanced chip-making technology, potentially bolstering Beijing’s military capabilities. Proposed regulations would restrict exports of semiconductor production machinery and software to China if they involve American technology, along with certain semiconductor types, reported The New York Times. This move is intended to close loopholes Chinese chipmakers have exploited to acquire technology despite existing international restrictions. The U.S. has been pressuring allies such as Japan and the Netherlands to tighten their own tech export controls to China. These countries, home to major chip-making machinery firms like ASML and Tokyo Electron, have faced U.S. diplomatic pressure, including during a recent Japanese state visit to Washington. Also Read: Biden Administration’s Tariffs On China-Made EVs To Protect Domestic Automakers Pushed Back However, there is growing concern among industry stakeholders that these restrictions might disadvantage U.S. companies, The New York Times added. New rules are expected to exempt over 30 allied countries, including the Netherlands, South Korea, and Japan, leading to fears of an uneven playing field for American firms. While U.S. officials continue to negotiate with allies to strengthen these restrictions, some analysts are skeptical about achieving these goals. In response, China has criticized the U.S. for allegedly misusing export controls and hopes other nations will resist American economic pressure. Details of the policy remain uncertain and could change, but the forthcoming rules are clearly aimed at reinforcing existing measures to curb China’s development of cutting-edge AI chips. Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors. Read Next:
Latest Bodycam Footage Reveals Chaotic Response To Trump Assassination Attempt: Report 2024-08-10 18:41:00+00:00 - Newly released Pennsylvania police footage sheds new light on the moments leading up to the attempted assassination of Donald Trump in July. In the body-camera video, a local officer reveals he had notified the Secret Service in advance to secure the building used by the gunman, reported BBC News. Another video captures the moment an officer is lifted onto a rooftop and spots the gunman just seconds before he opens fire at the Trump rally. The shooting resulted in one fatality, two severe injuries, and a bullet grazing Trump. The Butler Township Police Department released body and dashboard footage to media outlets on Thursday, capturing moments of frustration, confusion and miscommunication before and after the assassination attempt. Also Read: Trump Shooting Recalls Memories Of Reagan Assassination Attempt: Here’s How Markets React To Political Violence In one video, a local officer reveals he had requested the Secret Service to secure the building from which the gunman later fired, days before the rally. In one video obtained by The Wall Street Journal, the officer said, “I told them they need to post guys over there.” At the open-air rally on Saturday, July 13, the officer, visibly frustrated, informed his colleagues that he had asked the Secret Service to secure the building. Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, was fatally shot by a Secret Service counter-sniper team after he fired eight rounds at Trump from a rooftop outside the rally’s security perimeter. The attacker was on a building within a “secondary ring” of security, patrolled by local and state officers, not the Secret Service. While Trump was on stage addressing supporters, he was grazed in the ear by a bullet before quickly ducking and being pulled offstage by Secret Service agents. A video footage has been released by AP News as well. In a statement this week, Secret Service spokesperson Anthony Guglielmi indicated that the agency is currently reviewing the footage. “The U.S. Secret Service appreciates our local law enforcement partners, who acted courageously as they worked to locate the shooter that day,” he said, BBC News noted. “The attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump was a U.S. Secret Service failure, and we are reviewing and updating our protective policies and procedures in order to ensure a tragedy like this never occurs again,” Guglielmi added. The FBI and a bipartisan House panel of 13 lawmakers are also investigating the incident. Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors. Read Next: Photo: Shutterstock
Tim Walz Roasts Donald Trump's Crowd Size Obsession As Kamala Harris Packs Arizona Rallies 2024-08-10 17:11:00+00:00 - On Friday, Tim Walz poked fun at Donald Trump as Walz and Kamala Harris attracted another large crowd during their campaign stop in Arizona. Walz, speaking to a crowd of about 15,000 in Phoenix, praised the turnout and noted that a similar-sized audience had gathered in Detroit the day before, reported The Hill. “But Arizona — just couldn’t leave it alone, could you?” Walz said. “It’s not as if anybody cares about crowd sizes or anything.” Throughout the week, the Harris campaign has consistently attracted larger crowds than any previous Democratic events this election cycle, reflecting the growing enthusiasm for her White House bid following Joe Biden‘s withdrawal. The Hill added that the large crowds and extensive media coverage of Harris’ events annoyed Trump, who usually attracts thousands to his campaign rallies. Also Read: Tim Walz Could Be Good For Electric Vehicle Stocks: ‘You Need To Skate Where The Puck Is Going To Be. The Puck Is Going To Be In EVs’ During a Thursday news conference, Trump was asked if he was concerned about the size of Harris’ crowds and responded with a dismissive remark. “Oh, give me a break,” Trump said. Friday was Harris’ first visit to Arizona and the Sun Belt since launching her presidential campaign in July. She was accompanied by Rep. Ruben Gallego, the Democratic nominee for Arizona’s open Senate seat, and Sen. Mark Kelly, who was a finalist to be Harris’ running mate. Kelly, a veteran himself, criticized Trump in response to some Republicans’ attacks on Walz’s military service. Walz, who served 24 years in the National Guard, left the service just months before his unit was deployed overseas to run for office. “Trump calls those who served suckers and losers. And he has zero respect for any of us who have worn the uniform,” Kelly said, The Hill reported. In 2016, Trump won Arizona by about three percentage points. However, he lost the state to Biden in 2020 by approximately 11,000 votes. Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors. Read Next:
Donald Trump's Claim Of Near-Fatal Helicopter Ride Questioned By Willie Brown 2024-08-10 15:56:00+00:00 - Donald Trump claimed this week that he once had a near-fatal helicopter ride with former San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown. Trump’s account, delivered during a news conference, described a harrowing emergency helicopter landing with Brown, who once dated Kamala Harris, reported Reuters. “We thought maybe this is the end,” Trump recounted. “This was not a pleasant landing, and Willie was, he was a little concerned.” Trump also alleged that Brown shared negative comments about Harris. However, Brown denied the incident ever took place, telling The San Francisco Chronicle that he had never been in a helicopter with Trump and had never made any disparaging remarks about Harris. Also Read: Former White House Aide Anita Dunn Reveals Why President Joe Biden Left The Race Against Trump: ‘It Was 24 Days Of Unremitting Negative, Horrible Attacks’ Nate Holden, a former Los Angeles city councilman and state senator, told Politico that Trump mistakenly identified him as Willie Brown. Holden, who was actually on a similar helicopter ride with Trump around 1990, recalled the experience vividly. Holden, now 95, was involved with Trump’s team during the 1990s when Trump was developing a project on the site of the historic Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles, a project Holden supported. “He either mixed it up, or he made it up,” Holden said. Barbara Res, Trump’s former executive vice president of construction and development, was also on board and confirmed to Politico that she remembers the flight well and even detailed it in her book, All Alone on the 68th Floor. Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors. Read Next:
Susan Wojcicki, former YouTube CEO, dies at 56 after cancer battle 2024-08-10 15:03:00+00:00 - Susan Wojcicki, who served as CEO of YouTube for nine years and was one of Google's first hires, died on Friday at age 56 after a battle with cancer, her family announced. Wojcicki's husband, Dennis Troper, announced her death in a post on Friday evening on Facebook. "It is with profound sadness that I share the news of Susan Wojcicki passing. My beloved wife of 26 years and mother to our five children left us today after 2 years of living with non-small cell lung cancer," Troper wrote in the post. "Susan was not just my best friend and partner in life, but a brilliant mind, a loving mother, and a dear friend to many. Her impact on our family and the world was immeasurable." "We are heartbroken, but grateful for the time we had with her. Please keep our family in your thoughts as we navigate this difficult time," he added. Former CEO of YouTube Susan Wojcicki has died after a two-year battle with cancer. Mateusz Wlodarczyk/NurPhoto via Getty Images Wojcicki joined Google in 1999 as the company's 16th employee, becoming the search engine's first marketing executive. She helped launch Google Video and oversaw the company's 2006 purchase of YouTube, a then-fledgling rival video-upload site, Variety reported. She was named CEO of YouTube in 2014 and led the video-sharing platform through immense growth. She stepped down in February 2023 to "start a new chapter focused on my family, health, and personal projects." YouTube CEO Neal Mohan paid tribute to his predecessor in a post on social media. "I had the good fortune of meeting Susan 17 years ago ... I am forever grateful for her friendship and guidance," Mohan wrote in part. "I am forever grateful for her friendship and guidance. I will miss her tremendously. My heart goes out to her family and loved ones." Sundar Pichai, the CEO of Google and Alphabet, said in a post on that he was "unbelievably saddened by the loss" of Wojcicki. "She is as core to the history of Google as anyone, and it's hard to imagine the world without her." Pichai wrote. "She was an incredible person, leader and friend who had a tremendous impact on the world and I'm one of countless Googlers who is better for knowing her. We will miss her dearly. Our thoughts with her family. RIP Susan." Wojcicki was born on July 5, 1968 in Santa Clara, California. Her father, Stanley Wojcicki, was a physics professor at Stanford and her mother, Esther Wojcicki, was a teacher. She attended Harvard University and earned a master's degree in economics at the University of California, Santa Cruz. She received an MBA from the UCLA Anderson School of Management. Wojcicki is survived by her husband and four children. Her son Marco, 19, died of a drug overdose at UC Berkeley in February.
Cassava Sciences: A Hot Stock to Trade, Invest, or Avoid? 2024-08-10 11:00:00+00:00 - Cassava Sciences Today SAVA Cassava Sciences $21.85 -4.17 (-16.03%) 52-Week Range $8.79 ▼ $42.20 Price Target $119.00 Add to Watchlist Cassava Sciences NASDAQ: SAVA has become a hot topic among traders and active market participants thanks to its recent surge in volatility, liquidity, and overall market performance. Over the past month, shares have climbed 133% and are now more than 190% above their 52-week low. With its recent spike and increasing volatility and popularity in the headlines, the question arises: Is this a stock to avoid, trade, or invest in? Let's take a closer look at the catalysts driving this surge, the heightened short interest, volatility, and significant analyst price targets that make SAVA an exciting topic. Get Cassava Sciences alerts: Sign Up What is Cassava Sciences? Cassava Sciences, Inc. is a clinical-stage biotechnology company that develops drugs for neurodegenerative diseases. Its lead therapeutic product candidate is simufilam, a small molecule drug that has completed Phase 2 clinical trials and is now in Phase 3 clinical studies. The company also works on SavaDx, an investigational blood-based biomarker/diagnostic to detect Alzheimer's disease. Formerly known as Pain Therapeutics, Inc., Cassava Sciences rebranded in March 2019. According to the company's website, they "translate novel scientific insights into new medicines," with a primary focus on creating first-in-class treatments for debilitating neurodegenerative conditions. Their mission is to detect and treat Alzheimer's disease. SAVA's Recent Challenges and Catalysts Cassava Sciences has faced significant legal challenges, including issues involving former consultant Dr. Hoau-Yan Wang, who was indicted for allegedly making false statements in grant applications related to the early development of simufilam. Despite these legal hurdles, the company continues its clinical trials for Alzheimer's drugs, with investors closely monitoring these developments. Earlier this month, Cassava ended its defamation lawsuit against four short sellers who had expressed doubts about its experimental Alzheimer's drug. This move followed the indictment of Dr. Wang, whose research underpinned the treatment, on charges of fraud. The company decided to drop the lawsuit, stating that "pursuing this defamation lawsuit is an unnecessary distraction from our mission of developing a treatment for Alzheimer's disease." Cassava's Earnings Overview Yesterday, on August 8th, Cassava Sciences reported its Q2 2024 financial results, showing a net income of $6.2 million, a significant turnaround from the $26.4 million net loss in the same period last year. The company used $37.4 million in operations during the first half of 2024, consistent with previous guidance. For the second half of 2024, Cassava expects to use between $80 and $90 million in net cash, including a $40 million loss contingency related to advanced discussions with the SEC regarding their investigation. Research and development (R&D) expenses were $15.2 million in Q2 2024, down from $25.0 million in Q2 2023, mainly due to the completion of patient screening and enrollment for the Phase 3 clinical program in late 2023. Cassava Sciences, Inc. (SAVA) Price Chart for Sunday, August, 11, 2024 Overall Sentiment for SAVA: Analyst Ratings and Short Interest Cassava Sciences Stock Forecast Today 12-Month Stock Price Forecast: $119.00 444.62% Upside Moderate Buy Based on 2 Analyst Ratings High Forecast $131.00 Average Forecast $119.00 Low Forecast $107.00 Cassava Sciences Stock Forecast Details The overall sentiment surrounding Cassava Sciences is a complex mix of pessimism, caution, and optimism. Critical factors like analyst ratings, consensus price targets, and short interest reflect this. For example, the stock has an abnormally sizeable short interest of 33.6%, making it one of the most heavily shorted names with a market capitalization of over $1 billion. This high short interest is a bearish indicator, suggesting that a significant portion of the market is betting against the stock. On the other hand, analyst ratings have shown a shift towards optimism. Based on two analyst ratings, the stock currently has a Moderate Buy rating, an upgrade from its hold rating just a month ago. The consensus price target is $119, forecasting an impressive 357% potential upside from current levels. This mix of contradicting sentiments—bearish short interest and optimistic analyst ratings—has recently added to the stock's volatility, making it a particularly intriguing play for traders and investors alike. Cassava: Trade, Invest, or Avoid? The volatility in Cassava Sciences' stock may be enticing for traders looking to capitalize on rapid price movements. However, from a long-term perspective, the company faces numerous challenges, including ongoing legal issues and the inherent risks of developing a treatment for a complex disease like Alzheimer's. While the potential rewards could be substantial if the company's treatments prove successful, the risks are equally significant. Investors should weigh these factors carefully before deciding whether to trade, invest, or avoid SAVA altogether. Before you consider Cassava Sciences, 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 Cassava Sciences wasn't on the list. While Cassava Sciences currently has a "Moderate Buy" rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys. View The Five Stocks Here
MarketBeat Week in Review – 8/5 - 8/9 2024-08-10 11:00:00+00:00 - A volatile week is ending with a whimper. All the major indices were bouncing between narrow gains and narrow losses on low volume and likely lower conviction. Investors are now awaiting the latest read on inflation which is due next week. Investors are hoping for confirmation that inflation is moving lower which would likely cement a rate cut in September. Next week will also be the start of retail earnings and Walmart Inc. NYSE: WMT is one of the first to report. The headline numbers won’t be as important as the company’s guidance which will provide a glimpse into the state of the broader economy. Summer is winding down and that means institutional investors will soon be increasing volume. That means that investors can expect more sector rotation as institutions look for the sectors of the market that will benefit from a rate cut. The MarketBeat team will continue to be on top of the stocks and stories that are moving the market. Here are some of our most popular articles from this week. Get AST SpaceMobile alerts: Sign Up Articles by Jea Yu If you’re looking for an under-the-radar stock in the emerging space economy, you’ll want to read what Jea Yu wrote about AST SpaceMobile Inc. NASDAQ: ASTS. The company’s mission is to create a global space-based cellular network that will help to remove the gaps left by traditional cellular coverage. This is a pre-revenue company, but it has partnerships in place with several major wireless carriers. Yu also explained the reason behind the sell-off in ARM Holdings plc NASDAQ: ARM after its second quarter earnings report. The stock sold off sharply as investors feared a greater chip sell-off, but the price action in ARM stock this week supports Yu’s thesis that this is a buyable dip. And in a year when restaurant stocks are getting pummeled, Yu explains why Texas Roadhouse Inc. NASDAQ: TXRH is an anomaly. The company is managing to deliver premium food to customers with real value that is showing up in growing same-store sales. Articles by Thomas Hughes Super Micro Computer Inc. NASDAQ: SMCI is a volatile stock, but its earnings report created enhanced volatility. One reason is that the company announced a 10-for-1 stock split, the first in the company’s history. That pushed the SMCI stock 10% higher before it tumbled over 15% the following day. Thomas Hughes writes about what the split means and why the market may be overreacting to the company’s report. Hughes also sees dip buying ahead for e.l.f. Beauty Inc. NYSE: ELF. Perhaps aligning with the broader market sell-off, shares of the cosmetic company dropped even after a beat and raise quarter. However, with analysts raising their price targets, Hughes explains why a rebound is expected soon. Even big oil stocks like Exxon Mobil Inc. NYSE: XOM haven’t been exempt from the broad market sell-off. But Hughes explains why, in 2024, investors shouldn’t be too quick to dismiss Exxon as “just an oil stock.” The company’s investments in carbon capture and lithium are two ways the company will drive value and return over time. Articles by Sam Quirke Now that all of the Magnificent 7 technology stocks have been reported, it’s a good time for traders to see which stocks may offer an opportunity. This week Sam Quirke made the case for Alphabet Inc. NASDAQ: GOOGL and Amazon.com Inc. NASDAQ: AMZN. In the case of Alphabet, the stock is down sharply in the last month and a stellar earnings report has done little to improve that sentiment. However, Quirke explains the technical signals that may point to a significant upside for the remainder of 2024. Amazon's stock price performance is partially due to a rare revenue miss in the company’s earnings. However, analysts are reaffirming their bullish sentiment for AMZN stock, and investors may be getting a rare buy-the-dip opportunity. Quirke was also picking through the disastrous earnings report issued by Intel Corporation NASDAQ: INTC to give investors any idea if there was hope for better days. The company has work to do to convince long-term investors. But traders may want to take advantage of oversold signals that could create an opportunity in a beaten-down stock. Articles by Chris Markoch After the brutal market sell-off on Monday, Palantir Technologies Inc. NYSE: PLTR gave investors a bright spot with a stellar earnings report. The stock is up more than 19% and Chris Markoch wrote why a $30 price target may be too low as sentiment is rising about the company’s possible inclusion in the S&P 500. Markoch was also writing about the price action in Owens Corning NYSE: OC after it reported earnings on August 7. Analysts expressed concern about the company’s cautious guidance. But the company’s fundamentals look strong and technical analysis shows that it’s usually a good decision to buy dips in OC stock. Articles by Ryan Hasson During times of market volatility, information and analysis can make all the difference. We love providing that at MarketBeat, and that’s what investors got from Ryan Hasson this week. Many investors heard the words “carry trade” for the first time this week. Hasson explains what the carry trade is and why it played a key role in the market sell-off. Speaking of that sell-off, investors know that it can create opportunities. In a separate article, Hasson summarized how specific sectors of the market were performing during this broad market pullback. One area where investors may be looking to invest is in defensive stocks. This week, Hasson had his eye on three defensive stocks that were posting gains while the rest of the market was selling off. Articles by Gabriel Osorio-Mazilli Another term investors have been hearing a lot of is sector rotation. That’s all well and good until you hear that Warren Buffett sold half of his stake in Apple Inc. NASDAQ: AAPL. As Gabriel Osorio-Mazilli explained this week, the stated reason for Buffett’s move may have more to do with tax policy than a rotation out of tech, but some of Oracle’s buys may suggest otherwise. Osorio-Mazilli was also writing about the recent crash in the price of Hims & Hers Health Inc. NYSE: HIMS stock. The stock is under pressure because sales of its weight loss products did not meet expectations. But Osorio-Mazilli explains why that may be meaningful for short-term traders. Investors have reasons to believe in the future outlook for HIMS stock. Osorio-Mazilli also explains why a similar setup appears to be shaping up for Airbnb Inc. NASDAQ: ABNB. The company’s stock is dropping after it issued cautious guidance for the coming quarters. However, Osorio-Mazilli explains that the company’s strong key performance indicators (KPIs) should give investors more than enough reason to stay long on ABNB stock. Articles by Leo Miller Weight loss drugs continue to rival artificial intelligence as one of the hottest sectors in 2024. This week Leo Miller analyzed two stocks that give investors distinct ways to play the sector. Novo Nordisk A/S NYSE: NVO stock went on a wild ride over concerns of slowing demand for their GLP-1 drugs. However, the stock recovered after Eli Lilly & Co. NYSE: LLY delivered earnings that showed strong demand. These companies are 1 and 1A in the GLP-1 market right now, but Miller explained why Amgen Inc. NASDAQ: AMGN is developing its own GLP-1 candidate, MariTide, that may differentiate it from the leaders. Miller was also analyzing the earnings report for Constellation Energy Co. NASDAQ: CEG. The company is one of the leading providers of nuclear energy in the United States and its report confirmed that data center demand is building the nuclear narrative. Before you consider AST SpaceMobile, 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 AST SpaceMobile wasn't on the list. While AST SpaceMobile currently has a "Buy" rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys. View The Five Stocks Here
Résumé gaps don't have to kill your job search — here's what to say about them 2024-08-10 10:38:02+00:00 - By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . You can opt-out at any time by visiting our Preferences page or by clicking "unsubscribe" at the bottom of the email. When Vicki Salemi's father got sick, she cut back on her work as a freelance writer to spend time with him. After he eventually died in late 2012, she was devastated. "He was my best friend," Salemi told Business Insider. As she tried to recover, she faced another problem: There was a hole in her résumé that made clear she hadn't been working for a while. This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. Become an Insider and start reading now. Advertisement So Salemi, now a career expert for Monster, added a line to her CV to show that the monthslong gap existed for good reason. She didn't want anyone to wonder what she'd been up to — or question it and risk derailing her momentum in an interview she might otherwise be crushing. "I didn't want to get asked about it because I was knee-deep in grief," she said. Salemi isn't alone in having a résumé where the end of one job doesn't align neatly with the start of the next. Between layoffs, gig work, and the economic and social quagmire of the pandemic, many workers have blank spots in their formal work history. But that doesn't have to be a dealbreaker when it comes to finding another role. The pandemic poked holes in work The trick to dealing with résumé gaps is to have an explanation, career experts told BI. Sometimes, it's best to put the reason on the résumé itself, Salemi said. One bright spot for her after her father died was that she ultimately got the job. Advertisement "I remember when I had that phone interview with my future boss, she was like, 'Oh, I'm so sorry to hear that,'" Salemi said. "She just addressed it, acknowledged it, and then moved right on." Julia Toothacre, chief career strategist at ResumeTemplates.com, told BI that her advice on résumé gaps is far different from what she would have said a decade ago. Breaks in work experience are often just a thing now and don't necessarily have to be papered over. Related stories That's because the pandemic threw so many people out of work and disrupted so much about the labor force that everything got a bit messy. In her experience, Toothacre said, most people doing the hiring are more sympathetic to the vagaries of the job market now. "Any recruiter or hiring manager worth anything understands what's been going on in the world of work. It does not matter what sector you're in," she said. Advertisement It's OK to say you were laid off Toothacre said that, unlike in the past, it's generally not as detrimental to be up front about a work drought on a résumé. That doesn't mean some people in charge of hiring won't ding applicants for it. But she said that itself can be a useful red flag for job seekers. "If that's a situation that you're in, you don't want to work for that person anyway," Toothacre said. She recommends that if you were laid off, note that on your résumé. Or, she said, you could add a section that talks about being off work for personal reasons like having to care for someone. Depending on the grounds for the break, it can be wise to be somewhat circumspect, she said. If you were off because of a protracted illness, it might be smart not to go too deep into it. Even though employers shouldn't discriminate against people for, say, having young kids who need attention, it can happen. Advertisement Yet Toothacre said the decision by LinkedIn to let users add a career break to their profile has helped normalize the idea that not all formal work unfolds without interruption. Salemi, from Monster, said in her experience more job seekers have gaps than don't. And many people tend to overthink how to address them, she said. Her advice is to be prepared to talk about the breaks — and use that explanation to move the conversation forward. Even for workers who were fired, they could say something like, "I was the last one in, first one out," Salemi said. Then comes the pivot. One example she offered: "But the past three months really gave me clarity for this job I'm pursuing because my strengths are in sales," she said. Don't dwell on the gap Salemi said the key is to address the hiatus so an interviewer doesn't get stuck on it. For those who might have done something like get additional education, build their skills, or work on a side hustle, it can be OK or even beneficial to talk about it, she said. Advertisement There are other ways job seekers can downplay fallow spots in their formal work history. One is to perhaps not list start dates and end dates using months. Instead, Salemi said, consider using only years. Another technique is to position the skills up top instead of first listing work history in reverse chronological order. That can help a busy recruiter focus on what's most important, Lee Woodrow, owner and principal consultant at Bigger Fish Executive Branding, previously told BI. Salemi said it's no surprise that having too many gaps can be a problem. But for most breaks, explain it and move on. If possible, do it in a single sentence with two parts. The first portion is why the gap exists, and the second is why you're the best person for the job, she said. "Especially if you're a top candidate, it's not necessarily a liability for you," Salemi said.
Trump Media says its second-quarter revenue plunged 30% to under $900,000 2024-08-09 22:56:00+00:00 - Trump Media and Technology Group, the social media business owned by former President Donald Trump, said its second-quarter revenue plunged 30% to $836,900 from a year earlier. The company, whose main asset is the social media network Truth Social, also reported losing $16.4 million during the quarter, representing a narrower shortfall from its $22.8 million loss in the year-earlier period, according to a Friday regulatory filing. Trump Media, which trades under the ticker DJT — Trump's initials — has drawn a base of small investors who are acolytes of the former president, with many following the stock's ups and downs on Truth Social. While company shares have plunged 51% in the last three months, Trump Media still commands a valuation of about $5 billion, according to financial data firm FactSet. That lofty valuation, as well as wild swings in its stock price, have prompted some analysts to compare the business with meme stocks, or companies that trade on social media buzz instead of traditional financial yardsticks such as revenue growth and profitability. In a Friday statement, CEO Devin Nunes said the company's plans are to build out a Truth+ streaming service and "explore numerous other possibilities for growth, including mergers and acquisitions." In the regulatory filing, the company said all second-quarter revenue stemmed from advertising on the Truth Social platform. It also blamed the 30% plunge in ad sales to a change in revenue sharing with one of its advertising partners, which it didn't name. "Additionally, revenue has varied as we selectively test a nascent advertising initiative on the Company's Truth Social platform," it added. Trump Media describes itself as a tech company that has "experienced substantial growth" since Truth Social debuted in 2022, according to the regulatory filing. While losses are common for tech startups, institutional investors typically want fledgling businesses to post strong revenue growth, which suggests they'll be able to turn a profit at some point. The regulatory filing warned that the company expects to incur operating losses "for the foreseeable future" as it works to add more users and attract more advertisers.
Wendy's pilots Spanish-speaking AI at drive-thrus in 2 states 2024-08-09 21:13:00+00:00 - Is the dollar menu making a comeback? Is the dollar menu making a comeback? 00:53 Wendy's is testing Spanish-speaking AI capabilities in the drive-thrus of 28 company-operated restaurants in Florida and Ohio to further appeal to its diverse customer base, the fast-food chain said. While still in its early testing stages, the new Wendy's FreshAI Spanish-language ability is helping the burger seller "better serve Spanish-speaking customers through technology," the Dublin, Ohio-based company said in a news release. To begin an order in Spanish, customers simply need to say "Spanish" or "Español" into the Wendy's FreshAI microphone to prompt the new pilot language. The system will then speak and process the full order entirely in Spanish, according to Wendy's. "We've embraced generative AI at the drive-thru to assist Wendy's crew members while evolving the technology to meet our customers' needs," Matt Spessard, Wendy's CIO, stated. "I'm energized by our partnership with Google Cloud to continue pushing this technology forward with new Spanish-language capabilities designed to expand access, reshaping the drive-thru experience for our Wendy's fans today and in the future." The company known for its square hamburgers and Frosty dessert first began testing AI-powered order taking at a Columbus, Ohio, drive-thru in June 2023. Taco Bell is expanding its use of voice AI technology to hundreds of the Mexican-themed chain's drive-thru locations by the end of the year, parent company Yum Brands announced late last month. But not all quick-service restaurants are embracing the use of artificial intelligence to take drive-thru orders, as the technology has yielded mixed results for McDonald's. The Golden Arches in June said it was pulling the plug on its Automated Order Taker pilot, which used AI in drive-thrus to expedite orders at about 100 U.S. locations.
5 key lessons for investors after this week's wild stock market ride 2024-08-09 20:56:00+00:00 - Investors have had a wild ride this week, with the S&P 500 swinging from its biggest one-day loss in almost two years to its best performance in the same period. Aside from delivering whiplash, the stock market is also sending some important signals to ordinary investors, savers and consumers alike, experts say. The recent bout of volatility was sparked by concerns that the U.S. economy is slowing – or could even buckle into a recession — after some weak economic data, including the disappointing August 2 employment report. The slowdown in hiring is raising the specter that the Federal Reserve has acted too slowly to cut interest rates, which the central bank last month maintained at their highest level in 23 years. The stock market rout, with the S&P dropping 6% in a three-day period, was especially unsettling for employees trying to save for retirement and for current retirees, as well as for people socking away money to buy a home or make another big-ticket purchase. The roller-coaster in stocks carries some key lessons for investors and consumers alike. First, expert say, it is important to resist the urge to join the herd of panicked investors rushing for the exit. Second, investors should be preparing for expected rate cuts from the Federal Reserve. "It's definitely been a big week for market moves — and also emotions," Ainsley Carbone, a retirement strategist at UBS, told CBS MoneyWatch. "This is a time when you feel like you want to take action, but this is typically the time when you shouldn't take any action." Here are five lessons from investment experts about this week's market swings. Don't try to time the market Market timing, or trying to buy and sell stocks to capture gains and avoid losses, is notoriously difficult and can lead to lost opportunities, Charles Schwab research has found. This week's wild swings are a textbook example. An investor who sold during the market selloff on Monday likely wouldn't have foreseen the market snapback only three days later, when the S&P 500 rose 2.3%. As of Friday afternoon, the index has largely regained its losses from the rout earlier in the week. "A lot of times people think, 'This is definitely the time for me to sell,' but you have to to make a decision about when to get back into the market, and that can be even more difficult," Carbone noted. Have a long-term plan Develop a long-term plan for your investments and retirement savings, and stick with it, said Alex McGrath, chief investment officer for NorthEnd Private Wealth. "No. 1 is I would tell you to turn off the TV so you don't get Jeremy Siegel screaming on CNBC that we need 150 basis points of emergency cuts," McGrath said, referring to the Wharton economist's call earlier this week for the Fed to execute an emergency intra-meeting rate cut followingf the market rout. Sticking with your long-term investment and broader financial goals can help you avoid making knee-jerk reactions like selling stocks when everyone else is panicking, he noted. "The day-to-day market moves don't matter as much" when you stick with your investment plan, McGrath said. Similarly, avoid the temptation to check your portfolio frequently, especially if you tend to react emotionally to seeing the impact of a market downturn on your portfolio, Carbone advised. Volatility is normal Periods of heightened volatility like the market experienced this week are normal, noted Kevin Khang, head of Vanguard's global economic research team. "For most people who are saving for retirement, the investment horizon is much longer than a year. So these episodic volatility events have a way of working themselves out," he told CBS MoneyWatch. Sharp swings in the market usually recede over a period of weeks or months, although some experts note that discrete events can also cause volatility to spike, such as the U.S. presidential election and conflict in the Middle East. Watch the economic data Although experts caution against obsessively checking your portfolio or trying to time the market, McGrath does recommend that investors keep tabs on broad economic data to monitor the health of the U.S. economy. That may be especially important at a time when some economists see mounting risks that U.S. could slip into a recession. "Definitely keep an eye on the macro data — it serves as a good guidepost, and it's available," McGrath said. "You can you can look at the underlying economy and that should help everyone in their allocation goals," such as whether to shift investments into different types of assets. Prepare for Fed interest-rate cuts Following this week's extreme market volatility and uneven economic data, the Fed is widely expected to ease rates in September, which would marking the first cut since March 2020. Cutting the federal funds rate could result in lower yields for savers, who have benefited from high-interest savings accounts and certificates of deposit during the last year given that the Fed's benchmark rate has held steady at a 23-year high since July 2023. As a result, savers might want to look at ways to lock in those higher yields ahead of the Fed's September 17-18 meeting, Carbone said. For instance, some experts recommend buying a long-term CD before next month to capture those high rates. Likewise, rates for mortgages and auto loans could follow the Fed's move, providing an opportunity for buyers who have been sidelined by high borrowing costs to reenter the home or auto market. Interest rates "could move back significantly in the next six months," McGrath said.
Indian airline tests feature that lets women book seats away from men 2024-08-09 18:52:00+00:00 - India's largest budget carrier, IndiGo, is the first airline to trial a feature that lets female passengers book seats next to other women to avoid sitting shoulder-to-shoulder with a man in a move designed to make flying more comfortable for female passengers, according to a CNBC report. The airline's booking process is fairly standard except for the seat map which highlights seats occupied by women with the color pink. This information is not visible to male passengers, according to the airline, CNBC reported. IndiGo did not immediately respond to CBS MoneyWatch's request for comment on the new feature. IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers told CNBC that so far, customers seem to like the new option, which the airline has been piloting on all flights in May. All IndiGo passengers provide the airline with their gender, along with other personal information, when they purchase tickets and book seats. Customers seem to enjoy it, too, IndiGo's CEO told CNBC. "We have a significant share of female travelers. And, basically, technology is now enabling some things which were not able in the past ... We brought it up as a test for female travelers to check in and see where they can sit next to another female traveler, and actually it has resounded very, very well of course with our customers, but also internationally," CEO Pieter Elbers said in an interview with CNBC. Indeed, passengers of all genders have complained of male seat mates "manspreading," or encroaching on others' space by keeping their legs far apart. Worse, some passengers across airlines have complained of men touching them inappropriately in-flight. Not everyone is cheering the move, though. Some critics on social media wondered how the policy would apply to people who identify as nonbinary, saying the feature could be considered sexist and discriminatory. "This doesn't take into account that women can be predators too," a commenter posted on a Reddit thread.
Perrigo recalls infant formula sold by H-E-B and CVS in 12 states 2024-08-09 17:56:00+00:00 - New England teacher "ecstatic" to be semifinalist in CBS Mornings Mixtape Music Competition New England teacher "ecstatic" to be semifinalist in CBS Mornings Mixtape Music Competition 08:09 Perrigo Company is recalling of a batch — or 16,500 cans — of powdered baby formula sold by H-E-B grocery and CVS Health stores in 12 states due to elevated levels of vitamin D, the company said in a notice posted by federal regulators. The voluntary recall involves cans labeled H-E-B Baby Infant Premium Infant Formula Milk-Based Powder with Iron and CVS Health Infant Premium Infant formula with Iron Milk-Based Powder, the company stated. The recalled product was shipped to H-E-B groceries in Texas and CVS stores in the following states: California, Florida, Indiana, Michigan, Missouri, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia. Image of recalled H-E-B branded baby formula. U.S. Food and Drug Administration Levels of Vitamin D were found to be above the maximum allowed during routine testing, Perrigo noted. "For the vast majority of infants, short-term consumption of the affected lot codes is unlikely to cause adverse health implications. In a small subset of physiologically vulnerable infants (e.g., impaired renal function), there is the potential that consumption of the recalled product could result in health complications," the firm stated. The impacted products include cans shipped to CVS Health starting Feb. 6, 2024, with a use-by date of Nov. 11, 2025, and a UPC code: 050428318034. The recall also includes formula shipped to H-E-B beginning Feb. 2, 2024, with use-by dates of Nov. 9, 2025, and Nov. 11, 2025, and the UPC code: 041220164578. Image of recalled CVS Health brand infant formula. U.S. Food and Drug Administration Parents and caregivers can check if they purchased the recalled products by looking for the lot codes and use-by dates at the bottom of the package, the notice stated. People with questions or concerns can call Perrigo at 1-800-538-9543, Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time. The development is the latest in a string of recalls and other troubles involving infant formula, including a nationwide shortage that had parents rationing supplies in 2022. The move by Perrigo follows a far larger recall early this year of hundreds of thousands of cans of Reckitt/Mead Johnson Nutrition infant formula potentially contaminated with bacteria. The same germ, Cronobacter sakazakii, was behind an outbreak tied to Abbott's infant formula in 2020 that led to millions of cans getting recalled.
Amazon’s Stock Plunge: Is a Prime Buying Opportunity Knocking? 2024-08-09 15:18:00+00:00 - It’s not often you see a $1.75 trillion market cap stock drop nearly 20% in just two sessions, but that’s exactly what went down with Amazon.com Inc NASDAQ: AMZN this week. It was the biggest selloff in a long time, and what made it all the more complicated for investors was that there were several factors in play. The first was the broader softening seen in equities since early July, with tech stocks like Amazon affected in particular. This meant that though Amazon started the month with a record high, as NVIDIA NASDAQ: NVDA started to pick up an alarming downward pace, investors were forced to reconsider their other tech positions. Get Amazon.com alerts: Sign Up This risk-off sentiment gathered more momentum than last week, with a combination of lower-than-expected job numbers and the implosion of Intel NASDAQ: INTC injecting some real fear. Concerns that the Fed may have been too slow to cut rates and, by being so, have risked pushing the economy into a recession, which had an immediate effect. And so anytime a benchmark index like the S&P 500 drops 10%, you can be sure that even a behemoth like Amazon is going to feel some pressure. Amazon's Lackluster Earnings Amazon.com Stock Forecast Today 12-Month Stock Price Forecast: $221.69 32.80% Upside Buy Based on 41 Analyst Ratings High Forecast $251.00 Average Forecast $221.69 Low Forecast $160.00 Amazon.com Stock Forecast Details In addition to the broader market turning down and investors being a bit more risk-averse, Amazon also delivered a lackluster earnings report. They managed to land a solid beat on analyst expectations for their EPS, which came in 22% higher than expected, but they missed on revenue. The latter print was still up 10% year on year, but it was a rare and worrying miss. In addition, Amazon’s forward guidance was also mixed, to put it mildly. Against a consensus for $158.33 billion in third-quarter net sales, Amazon’s leadership forecasted between $154 billion and $158.5 billion. There were some bright spots, such as year-on-year growth of 19% in the company’s AWS unit, against expectations on the street for this to be closer to 17%. All this conspired to send Amazon shares down 17.5% between last Thursday and Monday, which meant they’d shed as much as 25% from July’s all-time high. This is a confirmed correction, and worryingly for the bulls at least, it put Amazon back trading below where it had spent much of the pandemic. Analysts Reaffirm Bullish Ratings for Amazon However, there are several reasons to think this drop was overdone and that it’s actually a solid buying opportunity. For starters, several analysts reiterated their Buy ratings on the stock this week, with Morgan Stanley and Rosenblatt Securities weighing in with price targets of $210 and $221, respectively. Considering Amazon was trading for less than $170 during Friday’s session, that’s pointing to a targeted upside of at least 30%. They’re not alone in their optimism either, with Barclays, Wedbush, Bank of America, and Piper Sander, to name just a few, all also reiterating their Buy, Overweight, or Outperform ratings, and all with price targets well above $200. Taking Advantage of Amazon's Stock Dip For those of us considering taking advantage of the dip and buying into this theory that the drop is way overdone, the consistently higher closes from last Monday’s low lend a lot of weight. While the pessimist will say that the stock is still down more than 15% from July, the optimist could say it’s actually up 10% since Monday. There’s also the fact that Amazon’s relative strength index (RSI), a popular technical measure of how overbought or oversold a stock is, was screaming extremely oversold as recently as Wednesday. This week’s gains have pulled it out of the danger zone, as buyers have been more than willing to step in and snap up shares at discounted prices. A higher close next week would all but confirm the recovery rally is underway, putting Amazon on a clear track back toward the $200 level. Amazon.com, Inc. (AMZN) Price Chart for Sunday, August, 11, 2024 Before you consider Amazon.com, 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 Amazon.com wasn't on the list. While Amazon.com currently has a "Buy" rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys. View The Five Stocks Here