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One Concern and Veolia sign a three-year partnership that uses digital twin technology to increase resilience strategy in the water sector through risk analysis and simulation
MENLO PARK, Calif., June 29, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- One Concern, a climate analytics company, and Veolia, the global champion of ecological transformation, announced today a three-year partnership agreement that establishes One Concern in Japan as a primary supplier of resilience and climate risk analytics. Veolia and One Concern Domino™ will work together to analyze the company's project's exposure to earthquakes and floods to further enhance maintenance planning, crisis response and business continuity planning.
One Concern Domino is a digital twin simulation platform for adverse weather and climate conditions. Domino estimates and forecasts the potential implications of climate and weather catastrophes across physical structures and infrastructure, such as the power grid, transportation networks and community.
"Japan needs resilient water systems; we're excited to provide Veolia climate risk assessment insights to further analyze water and wastewater systems resilience and risk exposure," said Ahmad Wani, Co-Founder and CEO, One Concern. "We look forward to delivering the latest in climate and data science to support Japan's local communities."
"Innovative risk modeling will allow Veolia to better protect and maintain water infrastructure and stress test facilities resilience," said Olivier Tridon, Global Head of Open Innovation for Business, Veolia. "At Veolia we support innovation and digital transformation of the water sector and our partnership with One Concern is a part of that strategy."
Veolia Group aims to become the benchmark company for ecological transformation. Present on five continents with nearly 220,000 employees, the Group designs and deploys useful, practical solutions for the management of water, waste and energy that are contributing to a radical turnaround of the current situation. Through its three complementary activities, Veolia helps to develop access to resources, to preserve available resources and to renew them. In 2021, the Veolia group provided 79 million inhabitants with drinking water and 61 million with sanitation, produced nearly 48 million megawatt hours and recovered 48 million tonnes of waste. Veolia Environnement (Paris Euronext: VIE) achieved consolidated revenue of 28,508 billion euros in 2021. www.veolia.com
We're a technology company building the digital infrastructure for global risk. We map, analyze and monitor every piece of the world's built environment and its connection to the global economy. Our mission is to make disasters less disastrous. www.oneconcern.com For media inquiries: PR@oneconcern.com
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SOURCE One Concern | https://www.wibw.com/prnewswire/2022/06/29/one-concern-veolia-join-forces-foster-climate-resilience-water-sector-japan/ | 2022-06-29T10:27:20Z |
- Revenue of $2.4 billion, down 9% on an as-reported basis and down 6% on an FX-Neutral basis
- Gross Merchandise Volume of $18.5 billion, down 18% on an as-reported basis and down 14% on an FX-Neutral basis
- GAAP and Non-GAAP EPS per diluted share of $(0.96) and $0.99, respectively, on a continuing operations basis
- GAAP and Non-GAAP operating margin of 21.7% and 28.7%, respectively
- Returned over $1.4 billion to shareholders in Q2, including approximately $1.3 billion of share repurchases and $121 million paid in cash dividends
SAN JOSE, Calif., August 3, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- eBay Inc. (Nasdaq: EBAY), a global commerce leader that connects millions of buyers and sellers around the world, today reported financial results for its second quarter ended June 30, 2022.
"Once again I am pleased to report another strong quarter. Our team delivered better than expected financial results across the board while continuing to make significant progress on our long-term initiatives," said Jamie Iannone, Chief Executive Officer of eBay. "Our focus category strategy is working, and payments and advertising are driving further growth. eBay is in a stronger position today than it was when we entered the pandemic. Despite rising inflation, and an uncertain macro environment, we remain on track to deliver on our 2022 commitments."
- Revenue was $2.4 billion, down 9% on an as-reported basis and down 6% on a foreign exchange (FX) neutral basis.
- Gross merchandise volume (GMV) was $18.5 billion, down 18% on an as-reported basis and down 14% on an FX-Neutral basis.
- GAAP net loss from continuing operations was $536 million, or $(0.96) per diluted share primarily driven by the change in fair value of our equity investments.
- Non-GAAP net income from continuing operations was $554 million, or $0.99 per diluted share.
- GAAP and Non-GAAP operating margin of 21.7% and 28.7%, respectively.
- Generated $577 million of operating cash flow and $466 million of free cash flow from continuing operations.
- Sold a portion of our shares in Kakao Bank for $242 million and a portion of our shares in Adyen for $129 million.
- Returned over $1.4 billion to shareholders, including approximately $1.3 billion of share repurchases and $121 million paid in cash dividends.
- eBay joined an investment consortium led by The Chernin Group (TCG), which made a strategic investment in Funko. As part of this investment, Funko and eBay are entering into a commercial agreement under which eBay will become the preferred secondary marketplace for Funko, and the companies will partner on creating exclusive product releases.
- eBay acquired KnownOrigin, a non-fungible token (NFT) marketplace that provides artists a place to create unique, authentic, digital collectibles, in the form of NFTs. An early pioneer in the NFT space, KnownOrigin's innovative technology and talented team, together with eBay's reach and reputation, will empower a new wave of NFT creators, sellers and buyers.
- eBay announced it is taking steps to close GittiGidiyor, the company's marketplace business in Turkey. The company regularly reviews its business operations globally and made this strategic decision based on the ongoing dynamics in the market. While the closure of GittiGidiyor will not have a material impact on eBay's revenue and operating income going forward, there are approximately 3 million active buyers included in the company's Q2 active buyer count from the Turkish marketplace.
Revenue Initiatives
- eBay's first party advertising products, primarily driven by Promoted Listings, delivered $232 million of revenue in the second quarter, up 2% on an as-reported basis and up 6% on an FX-Neutral basis.
- The company's total advertising offerings generated approximately $275 million in revenue in the second quarter, representing roughly 1.5% of GMV.
- The company expanded its Buyer FX program to include additional payment options, allowing more flexibility for eBay buyers to purchase in the currency of their choice and further reducing transactional friction for customers.
- During the quarter, eBay rolled out Klarna invoicing and installment payment methods to buyers in Germany.
Tech-Led Reimagination of the Platform
- The company opened the eBay vault, a state-of-the-art facility and digital marketplace for collectors. The vault is now open for single, graded trading cards and graded, pack-pulled autograph cards for $500+, enabling collectors to streamline and secure their assets. The eBay vault is the latest in a series of significant innovations eBay has introduced to its enthusiasts, bringing together physical and digital capabilities that makes collecting more advanced than ever.
- Through a strategic partnership with Professional Sports Authenticator (PSA), eBay expanded its Authenticity Guarantee program for trading cards to include graded trading cards sold on eBay for $500+.
- eBay also expanded its Authenticity Guarantee program for sneakers and handbags to Australia and the U.K. In Australia, the company also hosted eBay's Museum of Authentics which showcased a collection of rare sneakers, and partnered with Afterpay's Australian Fashion Week to engage influencers and highlight the marketplace's authentication services for luxury handbags.
- In April, eBay Motors held the first ever New York Auto Parts Show, designed to demonstrate how car enthusiasts can build, fix or maintain their dream car. In the face of unprecedented supply chain challenges, the show debuted a line of "Re-Concept cars" assembled in partnership with some of the industry's top builders and biggest stars, demonstrating the best 'new' car on the road can start with one that already exists.
- In April, the company expanded its eBay Refurbished program across multiple condition grades for tablets, smartwatches, laptops, desktops and more. Hundreds of thousands of items will be added to the program this year, enabling eBay to meet consumer needs at every price point, without sacrificing quality and trust. The expansion included the launch of eBay Refurbished in Canada, giving buyers access to like-new products ranging from moderate wear to pristine condition, all backed by a one- or two-year warranty.
- The company piloted eBay Live beta, a dedicated shopping platform that gives people a new way to browse and buy products in a live, interactive environment. The new beta technology combines entertainment with instant purchasing on one of the world's largest marketplaces.
- eBay collaborated with Snapchat to create a quick, easy way to share eBay listings to Snapchat right from the eBay app. With just a few taps, users can create a Snapchat-ready design with listing details, an image and a clickable link back to the eBay listing.
- eBay announced a partnership with U.K. reality show Love Island, and is now the show's first ever pre-loved fashion partner.
Impact
- eBay published its 2021 Impact Report detailing progress toward its 2025 and 2030 economic empowerment and sustainability goals. For the first time, the company also released its methodology for calculating the environmental and financial benefits of keeping products in circulation, preventing them from immediate disposal to landfill or incineration.
- eBay released its sixth annual Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DE&I) Report outlining how the company has remained committed, open and transparent, acknowledging both the wins and the areas in need of improvement.
- eBay, in partnership with GLIDE, hosted its 21st and grand finale Power of One Charity Auction Lunch with Warren Buffett. The auction made history with a record-breaking bid of over $19 million, bringing the total funds raised to more than $53 million over almost two decades to support GLIDE's transformative programs and services that lift people out of poverty, hunger and homelessness.
- eBay for Charity contributed nearly $56 million globally during the quarter, up 52% year-over-year.
- Through the company's matching gifts program, the eBay Foundation matched over $0.5 million in employee donations and volunteer time to causes and communities around the world.
- During the quarter, eBay received three Women's Choice Awards as a Best Company for Diversity, Best Company for Women and Best Company for Millennials. The company was also recognized as one of LinkedIn's Top Companies in Retail, and received the Early Talent Award by Handshake, recognizing eBay's early career program.
Other Selected Financial and Operational Results
- Operating margin – GAAP operating margin decreased to 21.7% for the second quarter of 2022, compared to 27.4% for the same period last year. Non-GAAP operating margin decreased to 28.7% in the second quarter of 2022, compared to 32.8% for the same period last year.
- Taxes – The GAAP effective tax rate for continuing operations for the second quarter of 2022 was 26.3%, compared to 26.6% for the second quarter of 2021. The non-GAAP effective tax rate for continuing operations for the second quarter of 2022 was 16.5%(1).
- Cash flow – The company generated $577 million of operating cash flow and $466 million of free cash flow from continuing operations during the second quarter of 2022.
- Capital returns – The company repurchased approximately $1.3 billion of its common stock, or roughly 25 million shares, in the second quarter of 2022. The company's total repurchase authorization remaining as of June 30, 2022 was $3.4 billion. The company also paid cash dividends of $121 million during the second quarter of 2022.
- Cash and cash equivalents and non-equity investments – The company's cash and cash equivalents and non-equity investments portfolio totaled $4.5 billion as of June 30, 2022.
Business Outlook
eBay is providing the following guidance for continuing operations for the third quarter and full year 2022.
Dividend Declaration
- eBay's Board of Directors has declared a cash dividend of $0.22 per share of the company's common stock. The dividend is payable on September 16, 2022 to stockholders of record as of September 1, 2022.
(1) We use a non-GAAP tax rate for evaluating our operating results. Based on our current long-term projections, we are using a non-GAAP tax rate of 16.5%. This non-GAAP tax rate could change for various reasons including significant changes in our geographic earnings mix or fundamental tax law changes in major jurisdictions in which we operate.
eBay Inc. will host a conference call to discuss second quarter 2022 results at 2:00 p.m. Pacific Time today. Investors and participants can access the call by dialing (888) 655-9638 in the U.S. and (289) 514-2913 internationally. The passcode for the conference line is 7435074. A live webcast of the conference call, together with a slide presentation that includes supplemental financial information and reconciliations of certain non-GAAP measures to their nearest comparable GAAP measures, can be accessed through the company's Investor Relations website at https://investors.ebayinc.com. In addition, an archive of the webcast will be accessible for at least three months through the same link.
eBay Inc. uses its Investor Relations website at https://investors.ebayinc.com as a means of disclosing material non-public information and for complying with its disclosure obligations under Regulation FD. Accordingly, investors should monitor this website, in addition to following our press releases, SEC filings, public conference calls and webcasts.
eBay Inc. (Nasdaq: EBAY) is a global commerce leader that connects millions of buyers and sellers in more than 190 markets around the world. We exist to enable economic opportunity for individuals, entrepreneurs, businesses and organizations of all sizes. Founded in 1995 in San Jose, California, eBay is one of the world's largest and most vibrant marketplaces for discovering great value and unique selection. In 2021, eBay enabled over $87 billion of gross merchandise volume. For more information about the company and its global portfolio of online brands, visit www.ebayinc.com.
All growth rates represent year-over-year comparisons, except as otherwise noted. All amounts in tables are presented in U.S. dollars, rounded to the nearest million, except as otherwise noted. As a result, certain amounts may not sum or recalculate using the rounded dollar amounts provided. References to "revenue" refer to "net revenues" as reported in the company's consolidated statement of income.
This press release includes the following financial measures defined as "non-GAAP financial measures" by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC): non-GAAP net income, non-GAAP earnings per diluted share, non-GAAP operating margin, non-GAAP effective tax rate, free cash flow and FX-Neutral basis. These non-GAAP financial measures are presented on a continuing operations basis. These measures may be different from non-GAAP financial measures used by other companies. The presentation of this financial information, which is not prepared under any comprehensive set of accounting rules or principles, is not intended to be considered in isolation of, or as a substitute for, the financial information prepared and presented in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP). For a reconciliation of these non-GAAP financial measures, except for figures in this press release presented on an "FX-Neutral basis," to the nearest comparable GAAP measures, see "Business Outlook," "Non-GAAP Measures of Financial Performance," "Reconciliation of GAAP Operating Margin to Non-GAAP Operating Margin," "Reconciliation of GAAP Net Income to Non-GAAP Net Income and Reconciliation of GAAP Effective Tax Rate to Non-GAAP Effective Tax Rate" and "Reconciliation of Operating Cash Flow to Free Cash Flow" included in this press release. For figures in this press release reported "on an FX-Neutral basis," we calculate the year-over-year impact of foreign currency movements using prior period foreign currency rates applied to current year transactional currency amounts. We define Organic FX-Neutral revenue growth as reported revenue growth, excluding incremental revenue from acquisitions or dispositions for the twelve-month period following such acquisitions or dispositions and foreign exchange rate effects.
This press release contains forward-looking statements relating to, among other things, the future performance of eBay Inc. and its consolidated subsidiaries that are based on the company's current expectations, forecasts and assumptions and involve risks and uncertainties. These statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the future performance of eBay Inc. and its consolidated subsidiaries, including management's vision for the future of eBay and our ability to accomplish our vision, expected financial results for the third quarter and full year 2022 and the future growth in its business, the effects of COVID-19 on our business and operations and our ability to respond to such effects, operating efficiency and margins, reinvestments, dividends and share repurchases. Actual results could differ materially from those predicted or implied and reported results should not be considered as an indication of future performance. Other factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to: changes in political, business and economic conditions, including impacts from the ongoing war in Ukraine, the duration of the COVID-19 pandemic and the effects of COVID-19 on our business and operations and on the general economy, including effects on our sellers and customers, any regional or general economic downturn or crisis and any conditions that affect e-commerce growth or cross-border trade; the company's ability to realize expected growth opportunities in payments intermediation and advertising; fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates; the company's need to successfully react to the increasing importance of mobile commerce and the increasing social aspect of commerce; an increasingly competitive environment for its business; changes to the company's capital allocation, including the timing, declaration, amount and payment of any future dividends or levels of the company's share repurchases, or management of operating cash; the company's ability to increase operating efficiency to drive margin improvements and enable reinvestments; the company's ability to manage its indebtedness, including managing exposure to interest rates and maintaining its credit ratings; the company's need to manage a large enterprise with a broad range of businesses of varying degrees of maturity and in many different geographies; the ability to successfully intermediate payments on our marketplace platform; the company's need and ability to manage regulatory, tax, data security and litigation risks; the company's ability to timely upgrade and develop its technology systems, infrastructure and customer service capabilities at reasonable cost while maintaining site stability and performance and adding new products and features; and the company's ability to integrate, manage and grow businesses that have been acquired or may be acquired in the future.
The forward-looking statements in this release do not include the potential impact of any acquisitions or divestitures that may be announced and/or completed after the date hereof.
More information about factors that could affect the company's operating results is included under the captions "Risk Factors" and "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" in the company's most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and subsequent quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, copies of which may be obtained by visiting the company's Investor Relations website at https://investors.ebayinc.com or the SEC's website at www.sec.gov. Undue reliance should not be placed on the forward-looking statements in this press release, which are based on information available to the company on the date hereof. The company assumes no obligation to update such statements.
eBay Inc.
Non-GAAP Measures of Financial Performance
To supplement the company's condensed consolidated financial statements presented in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, or GAAP, the company uses non-GAAP measures of certain components of financial performance. These non-GAAP measures include non-GAAP net income, non-GAAP earnings per diluted share, non-GAAP operating margin, non-GAAP effective tax rate, free cash flow and figures in this press release presented on an "FX-Neutral basis." These non-GAAP financial measures are presented on a continuing operations basis.
These non-GAAP measures are not in accordance with, or an alternative to, measures prepared in accordance with GAAP and may be different from non-GAAP measures used by other companies. In addition, these non-GAAP measures are not based on any comprehensive set of accounting rules or principles. Non-GAAP measures have limitations in that they do not reflect all of the amounts associated with the company's results of operations as determined in accordance with GAAP. These measures should only be used to evaluate the company's results of operations in conjunction with the corresponding GAAP measures.
Reconciliation to the nearest GAAP measure of all non-GAAP measures included in this press release, except for figures in this press release presented on an "FX-Neutral basis," can be found in the tables included in this press release. For figures in this press release reported "on an FX-Neutral basis," the company calculates the year-over-year impact of foreign currency movements using prior period foreign currency rates applied to current year transactional currency amounts. The company defines organic FX-Neutral revenue growth as reported revenue growth, excluding incremental revenue from acquisitions or dispositions for the twelve-month period following such acquisitions or dispositions and foreign exchange rate effects.
These non-GAAP measures are provided to enhance investors' overall understanding of the company's current financial performance and its prospects for the future. Specifically, the company believes the non-GAAP measures provide useful information to both management and investors by excluding certain expenses, gains and losses, or net purchases of property and equipment, as the case may be, that may not be indicative of its core operating results and business outlook. In addition, because the company has historically reported certain non-GAAP results to investors, the company believes that the inclusion of non-GAAP measures provides consistency in the company's financial reporting.
For its internal budgeting process, and as discussed further below, the company's management uses financial measures that do not include stock-based compensation expense, employer payroll taxes on stock-based compensation, amortization or impairment of acquired intangible assets, impairment of goodwill, amortization of deferred tax assets associated with the realignment of its legal structure and related foreign exchange effects, significant gains or losses from the disposal/acquisition of a business, certain gains and losses on investments including changes in fair value, changes in foreign currency exchange rates and the impact of any related foreign exchange derivative instruments, gains or losses associated with a warrant agreement that the company entered into with Adyen, restructuring-related charges and the income taxes associated with the foregoing. In addition to the corresponding GAAP measures, the company's management also uses the foregoing non-GAAP measures in reviewing the financial results of the company.
The company excludes the following items from non-GAAP net income, non-GAAP earnings per diluted share, non-GAAP operating margin and non-GAAP effective tax rate:
Stock-based compensation expense and related employer payroll taxes. This expense consists of expenses for stock options, restricted stock and employee stock purchases. The company excludes stock-based compensation expense from its non-GAAP measures primarily because they are non-cash expenses that management does not believe are reflective of ongoing operating results. The related employer payroll taxes are dependent on the company's stock price and the vesting of restricted stock by employees and the timing and size of stock option exercises, over which management has limited to no control, and as such management does not believe it correlates to the company's operation of the business.
Amortization or impairment of acquired intangible assets, impairment of goodwill, certain amortization of deferred tax assets and related foreign exchange effects, significant gains or losses and transaction expenses from the acquisition or disposal of a business and certain gains or losses on investments. The company incurs amortization or impairment of acquired intangible assets and goodwill in connection with acquisitions and may incur significant gains or losses from the acquisition or disposal of a business and therefore excludes these amounts from its non-GAAP measures. The company also excludes certain gains and losses on investments. The company excludes the non-cash amortization of deferred tax assets associated with the realignment of its legal structure, which is not reduced by the effects of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, and related foreign exchange effects. The company excludes these items because management does not believe they correlate to the ongoing operating results of the company's business.
Restructuring. These charges consist of expenses for employee severance and other exit and disposal costs. The company excludes significant restructuring charges primarily because management does not believe they are reflective of ongoing operating results.
Other certain significant gains, losses, or charges that are not indicative of the company's core operating results. These are significant gains, losses, or charges during a period that are the result of isolated events or transactions which have not occurred frequently in the past and are not expected to occur regularly or be repeated in the future. The company excludes these amounts from its results primarily because management does not believe they are indicative of its current or ongoing operating results. These amounts include changes in fair value and the related change in foreign currency exchange rates of equity securities with readily determinable fair values, globally.
Change in fair market value of warrant. These are gains or losses associated with a warrant agreement that the company entered into with Adyen, which are attributable to changes in fair value during the period.
Income tax effects and adjustments. We use a non-GAAP tax rate for evaluating our operating results. Based on our current long-term projections, we are using a non-GAAP tax rate of 16.5%. This non-GAAP tax rate could change for various reasons including significant changes in our geographic earnings mix or fundamental tax law changes in major jurisdictions in which we operate.
In addition to the non-GAAP measures discussed above, the company also uses free cash flow. Free cash flow represents operating cash flows less purchases of property and equipment. The company considers free cash flow to be a liquidity measure that provides useful information to management and investors about the amount of cash generated by the business after the purchases of property, buildings, and equipment, which can then be used to, among other things, invest in the company's business, make strategic acquisitions, repurchase stock and pay dividends. A limitation of the utility of free cash flow as a measure of financial performance is that it does not represent the total increase or decrease in the company's cash balance for the period.
*Presented on a continuing operations basis
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SOURCE eBay Inc. | https://www.wibw.com/prnewswire/2022/08/03/ebay-inc-reports-better-than-expected-second-quarter-2022-results/ | 2022-08-03T20:33:56Z |
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — For the 48th time over 47 years of unparalleled coaching, Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski took the slow walk to midcourt and shook the hand of the North Carolina coach who beat him.
After that, he found his wife, Mickie, and they made the slow, sad walk, hand-in-hand, off the Superdome floor. Saturday night’s 81-77 setback in the national semifinal showdown between archrivals marked Coach K’s last loss, and one of his toughest losses, too.
And thanks to the Tar Heels — those dadgum Tar Heels — the 75-year-old coach will have plenty of time to get over it.
“I’m sure at some time, I’ll deal with this in my own way,” said the coach, who had announced before the start of the season that 2021-22 would be his last.
Krzyzewski’s remarkable career came to gut-wrenching close after Caleb Love made a key 3-pointer and three late free throws to lift the Tar Heels to their thrill-a-minute victory.
This was the 258th, most consequential and maybe, just maybe, the very best meeting between these teams, whose arenas are separated by a scant 11 miles down on Tobacco Road.
The eighth-seeded Tar Heels (29-9), of all teams, pinned the 368th and final loss on Krzyzewski. He finished with 1202 wins. His lifetime record against North Carolina fell to 50-48. Losses No. 47 and 48 are ones Carolina fans will treasure forever. They were partying early into Sunday morning on Franklin Street in Chapel Hill. This latest win came exactly four weeks after the Tar Heels ruined the going-away party in Coach K’s final home game at Cameron Indoor Stadium.
That loss hurt. “Unacceptable,” he called it, still knowing there was time to regroup for one last run into March Madness. They made that run, but the last loss stopped that all in its tracks — one agonizing win short of a title game and a chance at his sixth championship.
Krzyzewski said he had a locker room full of crying players when it was over.
“It’s not about me,” he insisted. “Especially right now. I’ve said my entire career that I wanted my seasons to end where my team was either crying tears of joy or tears of sorrow. Because then you knew that they gave everything.”
They gave everything all the way through the nip-and-tuck contest — neither team led by more than seven — that concluded with an edge-of-the-seat stretch run that Duke played without a timeout. When the final buzzer of his career blared, Krzyzewski shook the hand of Carolina’s rookie coach, Hubert Davis.
Instead of Krzyzewski going for his sixth title, on Monday, Carolina will try to win its seventh. It will be Davis, Love, who led the Tar Heels with 28 points, and R.J. Davis, who scored 18, going against Kansas, which beat Villanova 81-65 earlier in the undercard.
“Dwelling on the two wins against Duke doesn’t help us against Kansas,” said Hubert Davis, who took over for Roy Williams this season and has now brought Carolina to its 12th title game.
Maybe not, but what a game — as good as any these teams have played in an ancient rivalry that has so-often determined conference titles, or, at the very least, bragging rights in a state where basketball is king. Their first-ever meeting in the NCAA Tournament, this one, featured 18 lead changes and 12 ties.
It also featured another breakout performance from Love, whose 28 points after an 0-for-4 start were one more than what he put up in the second half of a win last week against UCLA in the Sweet 16.
“It means everything to me,” Love said of his key 3 with 25 seconds left.
There was so much to talk about in this instant classic, one that Krzyzewski, clad in his blue pullover with a “D” embroidered on the chest, watched most of while perched on a stool situated on the sideline above the Duke bench.
At around the 2-minute mark, the teams traded three straight 3s. Wendell Moore Jr.’s 3-pointer with 1:19 left ended the flurry and gave Duke a 74-73 lead. It was the last lead of Krzyzewski’s career.
R.J. Davis came back with two free throws, then after Duke’s Mark Williams, in foul trouble all night, missed a pair from the line, Carolina worked the ball around the perimeter.
Tar Heels guard Leaky Black set a pick — make that threw a block — on Trevor Keels to free up Love, who drained a 3 from near the top for a 78-74 lead and what felt like breathing room in this one.
Love made three more free throws down the stretch, and then it was over. Krzyzewski and his wife walked off the floor together, same as they had after four wins during the run to his record 13th Final Four.
Near the other bench, Hubert Davis was crying again — just like Ol’ Roy — much as he did last weekend when North Carolina punched its ticket to its record 21st Final Four.
“I felt like over the last two or three years , North Carolina wasn’t relevant,” said Davis, whose biggest win came a year to the date Williams announced his own retirement. “North Carolina should never be irrelevant. It should be front and center with the spotlight on them.”
Freshman Paolo Banchero led the Blue Devils with 20 points and his classmate, Keels, had 19. Another freshman, A.J. Griffin, never really got untracked, finishing with only six points.
Chances are Griffin and Banchero will be following Krzyzewski out the door. They are the latest in his revolving door of “One and Done” players, though neither they nor Zion Williamson in 2019 could lead Duke back to the promised land.
North Carolina is back on the verge again, playing in its third final since 2016 and looking for its second title since 2017 Win or lose, though, 2022 will always be remembered as the year North Carolina sent Coach K packing for good.
One team’s joy is another team’s pain.
“When you’re in the arena, either you’re going to come out feeling great or feel agony, but you always will feel great about being in the arena,” Krzyzewski said. “I was in the arena for a long time, and these kids made my last time in the arena an amazing one.”
FOUL TROUBLE
Carolina big man Armando Bacot finished with his seventh straight double-double — 11 points and 21 boards — despite fouling out down the stretch. Duke’s Williams played the entire game in foul trouble. He finished with four buckets for eight points — all of them on dunks.
FAMILIAR FOES
Monday will mark the fourth meeting in the season’s final week between Kansas and North Carolina, but the first in the national final since 1957, before the tournament had become what it is today.
Carolina won the title game in triple overtime over Wilt Chamberlain and the Jayhawks. The Tar Heels won in 1993 on the way to the title and Kansas returned the favor in 2008, then also went on to take the championship.
___
More AP coverage of March Madness: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness and https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-mens-bracket and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25 | https://cw33.com/sports/ap-sports/krzyzewski-k-od-north-carolina-takes-down-duke-81-77/ | 2022-04-03T18:42:50Z |
How Congress plans to buoy your retirement savings
(CNN) - Congress is taking action to help avoid a potential retirement crisis.
A bill expected to reach President Joe Biden’s desk later this year could bring about new rules involving 401(k) programs and could impact your retirement savings.
“Part of this overhaul is to actually force people into saving in the 401(k) plan,” said Ted Jenkin, Financial expert & CEO at oXYGen Financial.
If passed and signed, the legislation, Secure Act 2.0, could require most employer-sponsored retirement plans to enroll eligible workers automatically at a 3% level.
That would increase by 1% until you’re contributing 10% of your paycheck annually, but workers would have the option to opt out or change their contribution level.
“Most people do not understand something called the ‘pay yourself first’ rule, and that means put money in your retirement plan before you start spending money on things like entertainment and travel,” Jenkin said.
The plan would also delay mandatory withdrawals and limit penalties for those who fail to withdraw on time.
The proposed act could also make it easier for those with student loans to save and for older workers to make catchup contributions.
It’s also a major change for part-time workers, who would be able to contribute to 401(k) plans for the first time.
With pension plans nearly extinct and the social security trust fund facing a 75-year deficit, experts said 401(k) plans are more critical than ever.
“The three-legged stool of retirement has basically turned into a pogo stick, and it’s going to be on your back and your responsibility to save money,” Jenkin said.
Copyright 2022 CNN Newsource. All rights reserved. | https://www.wibw.com/2022/04/14/how-congress-plans-buoy-your-retirement-savings/ | 2022-04-14T15:03:22Z |
New Pizookie® Pass Debuts August 29, 2022; Get Ready for $5 Pizookies® Beginning October 1, 2022
HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif., Aug. 26, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The Pizookie® fanbase is enthusiastic, loyal, and devoted to the delicious dessert for life. Now, BJ's Restaurants, Inc. (NASDAQ: BJRI) is rolling out two irresistible ways for guests to indulge their passion and take a bite out of the world-famous dessert. With BJ's first-ever $10 Pizookie® Pass in September and $5 Pizookies® beginning October 1st, BJ's promises to offer new ways to satisfy every sweet tooth.
Beginning August 29, just 200 coveted Pizookie® Passes will be available for purchase online at www.PizookiePass.com for $10 each. The wait is short, but the anticipation is high to activate the coveted Pizookie® Pass. Beginning September 1st, the ticket to dessert heaven entitles passholders to a warm and gooey Pizookie® smothered in ice cream every day for the entire month.
On October 1st, the party continues, with ALL Pizookies® available for dine-in guests for just $5. There's no better excuse to treat yourself to your favorite dessert or take a satisfying bite out of your very first Pizookie®—a taste that will introduce a sweet new obsession!
"Here at BJ's, we're as obsessed with the Pizookie® as our guests, and we're excited to celebrate and share even more ways to indulge in our world-famous dessert," said Heidi Rogers, Senior Vice President of Marketing at BJ's Restaurants, Inc. "Our two new promotions will help us meet our goal of satisfying every sweet tooth!"
For fans of the legendary Peanut Butter S'mores Pizookie®—recently brought back by popular demand—or the other delectable flavors in the BJ's Pizookie® lineup, BJ's Restaurant & Brewhouse is the perfect place to satisfy your sweet tooth. The BJ's Pizookie menu has something for everyone, with flavors including Hot Fudge Brownie, Chocolate Chunk, Peanut Butter, Strawberry Shortcake, White Chocolate Macadamia Nut, Cookies 'n' Cream, Salted Caramel, Triple Chocolate Made with Ghirardelli®, Monkey Bread, Sugar Cookie, and Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip. In addition to the above initiatives, all available Pizookie® flavors are available for just $4 every Tuesday year-round for dine in, take out or delivery.
For more information on BJ's Restaurant & Brewhouse, visit https://www.bjsrestaurants.com/. For more information on the Pizookie® Pass, or to purchase, please visit www.PizookiePass.com.
BJ's Restaurants, Inc. ("BJ's") is a national brand with brewhouse roots and a menu where Craft Matters®. BJ's broad menu has something for everyone: slow-roasted entrees, like Prime Rib, BJ's EnLIGHTened Entrees® including Cherry Chipotle Glazed Salmon, signature deep-dish pizza and the often imitated, but never replicated world-famous Pizookie® dessert. BJ's has been a pioneer in the craft brewing world since 1996 and takes pride in serving BJ's award-winning proprietary handcrafted beers, brewed at its brewing operations in five states and by independent third-party craft brewers. The BJ's experience offers high-quality ingredients, bold flavors, moderate prices, sincere service, and a cool, contemporary atmosphere. Founded in 1978, BJ's owns and operates 214 casual dining restaurants in 29 states. All restaurants offer dine in, take out, delivery, and large-party catering. For more information on BJ's Restaurant & Brewhouse, visit http://www.bjsrestaurants.com.
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SOURCE BJ’s Restaurants, Inc. | https://www.kxii.com/prnewswire/2022/08/26/bjs-restaurant-amp-brewhouse-kicks-off-two-back-to-back-pizookie-promotions-satisfy-every-sweet-tooth/ | 2022-08-26T16:21:31Z |
Pair arrested after deputies led on chase through North Topeka
TOPEKA, Kan. (WIBW) - Two men are behind bars after they led deputies on a chase through North Topeka on Tuesday night.
The Shawnee County Sheriff’s Office says Zachary A. Ford, 22, and Michael R.P. Wilkins, 29, both of Topeka, are behind bars after a chase that started near NE Meriden and NE Grantville Rd. late on Tuesday night, April 19.
Just after 11 p.m., deputies said they saw a red 1994 Mercury Cougar with a Kansas temporary tag that did not belong to that vehicle. They said they tried to stop the car, however, the driver took off and started a chase south through North Topeka.
Eventually, deputies said the vehicle came to a stop in the 2200 block of NE Grantville Rd. when two of its tires were deflated crossing the railroad tracks. Both the driver and passenger ran from the vehicle.
Multiple officers from the Sheriff’s Office, Topeka Police Department and Kansas Highway Patrol searched the area. With the help of the KHP aircraft, deputies said the pair was found.
Deputies said the driver, Ford, was booked into the Shawnee Co. Dept. of Corrections for three warrants, including two misdemeanors and one felony, as well as felony flee or attempt to elude, interference with law enforcement, possession of methamphetamine, possession of drug paraphernalia and displaying a license plate not assigned to that vehicle.
The passenger, Wilkins, was booked for a felony warrant and felony interference with law enforcement, as well as possession of drug paraphernalia.
The incident remains under investigation.
Copyright 2022 WIBW. All rights reserved. | https://www.wibw.com/2022/04/20/pair-arrested-after-deputies-led-chase-through-north-topeka/ | 2022-04-20T18:14:40Z |
Julius Pegues, first Black player at Pitt, dies at 86
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Julius Pegues, the first Black basketball player at the University of Pittsburgh, has died following a battle with cancer. He was 86. The school said Pegues died at John Hope Franklin Center for Reconciliation in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The 6-foot-3 guard joined Pitt in 1954. He played one year on the freshman team before earning a scholarship and moving to the varsity. He averaged 13.6 points and 4.9 rebounds in 77 career games for the Panthers. Twice he helped the Panthers to the NCAA Tournament, including a 31-point performance in a first-round loss to Miami (Ohio) in 1958. | https://localnews8.com/sports/ap-national-sports/2022/04/02/julius-pegues-first-black-player-at-pitt-dies-at-86/ | 2022-04-03T00:58:32Z |
TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Israel and Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip were exchanging fire Saturday in the worst bout of cross-border violence since an 11-day war between Israel and Hamas last year.
Israeli airstrikes have killed 11 people, including a senior commander from the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, an Iran-backed militant group, who was slain in a targeted attack.
That came following the arrest this week of another senior Islamic Jihad leader in the West Bank in what’s been a monthslong Israeli operation to round up Palestinians suspected of attacks.
Militants have fired dozens of rockets at Israeli cities and towns, disrupting life for tens of thousands of people.
Here’s a look at the latest round of violence:
IN HAMAS’ SHADOW
Islamic Jihad is the smaller of the two main Palestinian militant groups in the Gaza Strip, and is vastly outnumbered by the ruling Hamas group. But it enjoys direct financial and military backing from Iran, and has become the driving force in engaging in rocket attacks and other confrontations with Israel.
Hamas, which seized control of Gaza in 2007 from the internationally recognized Palestinian Authority, is often limited in its ability to act because it bears responsibility for running day-to-day affairs of the impoverished territory. Islamic Jihad has no such duties and has emerged as the more militant faction, occasionally even undermining Hamas’ authority.
The group was founded in 1981 with the aim of establishing an Islamic Palestinian state in the West Bank, Gaza and all of what is now Israel. It is designated a terrorist organization by the U.S. State Department, European Union and other governments. Like Hamas, Islamic Jihad is sworn to Israel’s destruction.
THE IRANIAN CONNECTION
Israel’s archenemy Iran supplies Islamic Jihad with training, expertise and money, but most of the group’s weapons are locally produced. In recent years, it has developed an arsenal equal to that of Hamas, with longer-range rockets capable of striking central Israel’s Tel Aviv metropolitan area. Air raid sirens went off in the suburbs just south of Tel Aviv on Friday, although no rockets appear to have hit the area.
Although its base is Gaza, Islamic Jihad also has leadership in Beirut and Damascus, where it maintains close ties with Iranian officials.
Ziad al-Nakhalah, the group’s top leader, was in Tehran meeting Iranian officials when Israel began its operation in Gaza on Friday.
TARGETING COMMANDERS
This isn’t the first time Israel has killed Islamic Jihad leaders in Gaza. The commander it killed Friday, Taiseer al-Jabari, replaced Bahaa Abu el-Atta who was slain by Israel in a 2019 strike. His death had been the first high-profile assassination of an Islamic Jihad figure by Israel since the 2014 war in the Gaza Strip.
Al-Jabari, 50, was a member of Islamic Jihad’s “military council,” the group’s decision-making body in Gaza. He was in charge of the Islamic Jihad militant activities in Gaza City and the northern Gaza Strip during the 2021 war. Israel said he was preparing to launch an anti-tank missile attack against Israel.
His death came on the heels of the arrest by Israel of a senior Islamic Jihad commander in the West Bank earlier this week. Bassam al-Saadi, 62, is a senior Islamic Jihad official in the northern West Bank. According to Israeli media, al-Saadi was working to deepen the group’s reach in the West Bank and expand its capabilities.
Al-Saadi spent a total of 15 years over several stints in Israeli jails for being an active Islamic Jihad member. Israel killed two of his sons who were also Islamic Jihad militants in separate incidents in 2002, and destroyed his home during a fierce battle in the West Bank city of Jenin the same year.
“Once you will hit the commanders it will affect immediately all the organization,” said Zvika Haimovich, the former head of the Israeli military’s air defense force.
“It immediately creates a big mess in the Jihad.”
A DELICATE BALANCE
Since seizing power in 2007, Hamas has fought four wars with Israel, often with support from Islamic Jihad fighters. Aside from a flare-up earlier this year, the border has largely been quiet since last year’s 11-day war and Hamas appears to be staying on the sidelines of this current conflagration, which might keep it from spilling over into all-out war.
Islamic Jihad militants have challenged Hamas by firing rockets, often without claiming responsibility, to raise its profile among Palestinians while Hamas maintains the cease-fire. Israel holds Hamas responsible for all rocket fire coming from Gaza.
Hamas must walk a tightrope between restraining Islamic Jihad’s fire at Israel while avoiding the ire of Palestinians if it cracks down on the group. Like in past flare-ups, Hamas will have the final say in how long — and how violent — this round of fighting will last.
CARETAKER LEADER
The current fighting comes as Israel is mired in a protracted political crisis that is sending voters to the polls for the fifth time in less than four years in the fall.
Caretaker leader Yair Lapid took over earlier this summer after the ideologically diverse government he helped form collapsed, triggering the new elections.
Lapid, a centrist former TV host and author, lacks the security background many Israelis see as essential for their leadership. His political fortunes could rest on the current fighting, either gaining a boost if he can portray himself as a capable leader or take a hit from a lengthy operation as Israelis try to enjoy the last weeks of summer.
Lapid hopes to edge out former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, a security hawk who is on trial for corruption charges, in the upcoming vote.
___
Akram reported from Gaza City, Gaza Strip. Associated Press writer Emily Rose in Jerusalem contributed. | https://cw33.com/news/international/ap-international/explainer-what-is-driving-the-current-israel-gaza-violence/ | 2022-08-06T11:41:31Z |
- Option would add three dispensaries, increasing AWH's footprint in Ohio to five, the maximum permitted in the state -
NEW YORK, Aug. 15, 2022 /PRNewswire/ - Ascend Wellness Holdings, Inc ("AWH," "Ascend," or the "Company") (CSE: AAWH.U) (OTCQX: AAWH), a multi-state, vertically integrated cannabis operator, announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement (the "Agreement") providing AWH the option to acquire 100% of the equity of Ohio Patient Access LLC ("OPA"), which owns and will operate three provisionally licensed dispensaries that are in the process of being built in Cincinnati, Piqua, and Sandusky. Exercising this option would increase AWH's footprint in Ohio to five, the maximum permitted in the state.
"This transaction represents an ideal opportunity to maximize our dispensary footprint in Ohio, a state that has near-term potential for adult-use cannabis sales," said Abner Kurtin, Chief Executive Officer, Chairman, and Founder of Ascend. "Going deep in the states in which we operate and being a top provider in each state is critical to sustainable growth and margin expansion. OPA's dispensaries will be situated in populous, limited-license markets that provide us with a contiguous footprint across the state. We look forward to closing this transaction once authorized under Ohio law and to potential adult-use legalization in the mid-term."
AWH's current Ohio footprint includes two dispensaries, one in each of Coshocton and Carroll, as well as a Tier 2 cultivation facility with 2,000 square feet of canopy. There are currently 58 dispensaries in Ohio, approximately one for every 4,800 registered patients.1 Ohio medical cannabis sales were $381 million in 2021, a 72 percent increase over 2020.1
The Agreement is subject to regulatory review and approval.
1. Ohio Board of Pharmacy Patient and Caregivers. Note: Ohio Pharmacy Board recently approved an additional 70 provisional dispensary licenses not included in this number.
AWH is a vertically integrated multistate cannabis operator with licenses and assets in Illinois, Michigan, Ohio, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. AWH owns and operates state-of-the-art cultivation facilities, growing award-winning strains and producing a curated selection of products for retail and wholesale customers. AWH produces and distributes its in-house Simply Herb, Ozone, and Ozone Reserve branded products. For more information, visit www.awholdings.com.
Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange, nor its Regulation Services Provider accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
This news release includes forward-looking information and statements, which may include, but are not limited to, information and statements regarding the plans, intentions, expectations, estimates, and beliefs of the Company. Words such as "expects", "continue", "will", "anticipates" and "intends" or similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are based on the Company's current projections and expectations about future events and financial trends, and on certain assumptions and analysis made by the Company in light of experience and perception of historical trends, current conditions and expected future developments and other factors management believes are appropriate.
Forward-looking information and statements involve and are subject to assumptions and known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors which may cause actual events, results, performance, or achievements of the Company to be materially different from future events, results, performance, and achievements expressed or implied by forward-looking information and statements herein. Such factors include, among others: the risks and uncertainties identified in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2021, and in the Company's other reports and filings with the applicable Canadian securities regulators and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Although the Company believes that any forward-looking information and statements herein are reasonable, in light of the use of assumptions and the significant risks and uncertainties inherent in such information and statements, there can be no assurance that any such forward-looking information and statements will prove to be accurate, and accordingly, readers are advised to rely on their own evaluation of such risks and uncertainties and should not place undue reliance upon such forward-looking information and statements. Any forward-looking information and statements herein are made as of the date hereof, and except as required by applicable laws, the Company assumes no obligation and disclaims any intention to update or revise any forward-looking information and statements herein or to update the reasons that actual events or results could or do differ from those projected in any forward-looking information and statements herein, whether as a result of new information, future events or results, or otherwise, except as required by applicable laws.
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SOURCE Ascend Wellness Holdings, Inc. | https://www.mysuncoast.com/prnewswire/2022/08/15/awh-enters-definitive-agreement-providing-option-acquire-ohio-patient-access-llc/ | 2022-08-15T12:54:58Z |
Man accused of hiding girlfriend’s body behind bed, police say
ASHLAND, Ky. (WSAZ/Gray News) – A man in Kentucky is facing charges after being accused of intentionally hiding his girlfriend’s body behind a bed, police said.
According to WSAZ, the criminal complaint states a corpse was found in Whitney Filion’s home tucked away behind a bed and a wall.
Officers reported the body appeared to have been there for an extended period of time and Filion was still living inside the home.
Ashland Police said Filion knew the victim was deceased and intentionally did not call emergency crews for assistance and hid the corpse from other people in the home with blankets.
“The corpse was placed in a way that would outrage ordinary family sensibilities,” the criminal complaint states.
According to the coroner, there were no signs of trauma to the woman’s body. Officials do not believe it was a homicide and are waiting for the results of toxicology tests.
Filion was charged with abuse of a corpse.
Copyright 2022 WSAZ via Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved. | https://www.wibw.com/2022/07/20/man-accused-hiding-girlfriends-body-behind-bed-police-say/ | 2022-07-20T21:24:32Z |
ATLANTA, Ga. and WILMINGTON, Mass., Aug. 22, 2022 /PRNewswire/ - Liberty Defense Holdings Ltd. ("Liberty" or the "Company") (TSXV: SCAN) (OTCQB: LDDFF) (FRANKFURT: LD2A), a leading technology provider of detection solutions for concealed weapons and threats, is pleased to announce that today it has officially begun beta testing the HEXWAVE™ system at its first beta site, one of the largest Hindu temples in the United States.
The HEXWAVE walkthrough security detection system uses millimeter wave, video-rate 3D imaging, and artificial intelligence to detect and identify weapons and other dangerous items, including both metal and non-metal threats such as 3D-printed ghost guns. HEXWAVE does not require people to divest coats, cell phones, keys, or other benign items. The system provides security operators with an automatic go/no-go decision, and a seamless experience for venue patrons.
"Visitors and worshipers should not have to worry about their safety," said Dixit Suthar, security system administrator for the temple. "The temple receives thousands of visitors each week. The goal of increasing security screening is to stay ahead of threats today and promote peace of mind. With HEXWAVE, we were drawn to the potential of enhanced detection of metallic and non-metallic objects with a better view of new types of threats beyond guns and knives. Non-metallic explosives are a concern, be they liquid, powder, or plastic, as they are not detectable by other walkthrough screening technology on the market today. We are excited to trial the HEXWAVE and partner with Liberty."
As a global Hindu religious and social organization with 3,300 temples around the world, the organization has several temples located throughout North America and is the first house of worship to sign on with Liberty to test HEXWAVE. The beta testing will be conducted by screening visitors and worshipers inside the temple, as well as controlled testing that will be compared with Liberty's own internal data.
"After over six years of development and significant investment in the technology, we are very pleased to announce that today we have achieved a major milestone on Liberty's path to commercialization," said Bill Frain, CEO of Liberty Defense. "We are thrilled to have the HEXWAVE system in the field and operated by security staff of key industry-leading organizations representing our target verticals. Collecting data and market feedback during the beta trial period will be invaluable to our success."
As previously announced, the Company will also deploy beta units in several settings, including an MLB stadium, a large state university, and major airports for airline employee screening. Beta testing will continue over the coming 12 weeks.
For updates and news, please visit the Company website to subscribe to email alerts or follow Liberty Defense on social channels.
On Behalf of Liberty Defense
Bill Frain
CEO & Director
Liberty Defense (TSXV: SCAN, OTCQB: LDDFF, FRANKFURT: LD2A) provides multi-technology security solutions for concealed weapons detection in high volume foot traffic areas and locations requiring enhanced security such as airports, stadiums, schools, and more. Liberty's HEXWAVE product, for which the company has secured an exclusive license from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), as well as a technology transfer agreement for patents related to active 3D radar imaging technology, provides discrete, modular, and scalable protection to provide layered, stand-off detection capability of metallic and non-metallic weapons. Liberty has also recently licensed the millimeter wave-based, High-Definition Advanced Imaging Technology (HD-AIT) body scanner and shoe scanner technologies as part of its technology portfolio. Liberty is committed to protecting communities and preserving peace of mind through superior security detection solutions. Learn more: LibertyDefense.com
When used in this press release, the words "estimate", "project", "belief", "anticipate", "intend", "expect", "plan", "predict", "may" or "should" and the negative of these words or such variations thereon or comparable terminology are intended to identify forward-looking statements and information. Although Liberty believes, in light of the experience of their respective officers and directors, current conditions and expected future developments and other factors that have been considered appropriate, that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements and information in this press release are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on them because the parties can give no assurance that such statements will prove to be correct. Such statements and information reflect the current view of Liberty. There are risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from those contemplated in those forward-looking statements and information.
By their nature, forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause our actual results, performance or achievements, or other future events, to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. There are a number of important factors that could cause Liberty's actual results to differ materially from those indicated or implied by forward-looking statements and information. Such factors include, among others: currency fluctuations; limited business history of the parties; disruptions or changes in the credit or security markets; results of operation activities and development of projects; project cost overruns or unanticipated costs and expenses; and general development, market and industry conditions. The parties undertake no obligation to comment on analyses, expectations or statements made by third parties in respect of their securities or their respective financial or operating results (as applicable).
Liberty cautions that the foregoing list of material factors is not exhaustive. When relying on Liberty's forward-looking statements and information to make decisions, investors and others should carefully consider the foregoing factors and other uncertainties and potential events. Liberty has assumed that the material factors referred to in the previous paragraph will not cause such forward-looking statements and information to differ materially from actual results or events. However, the list of these factors is not exhaustive and is subject to change and there can be no assurance that such assumptions will reflect the actual outcome of such items or factors. The forward-looking information contained in this press release represents the expectations of Liberty as of the date of this press release and, accordingly, are subject to change after such date. Liberty does not undertake to update this information at any particular time except as required in accordance with applicable laws.
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this press release.
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SOURCE Liberty Defense Holdings Ltd. | https://www.kxii.com/prnewswire/2022/08/22/liberty-defense-commences-beta-testing-hexwave-system/ | 2022-08-22T13:23:47Z |
Philanthropic foundation to enhance donor insight with best-in-class reporting on account activity, fee transparency, and investment performance
GAITHERSBURG, Md., Sept. 12, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- GreenHill today announced that the Jewish Community Foundation (JCF) of San Diego has selected its investment performance reporting services to provide enhanced transparency and insight to the foundation's donor network. GreenHill's offering, together with its strategic partnership with the GiftingNetwork, represents a best-in-class level of reporting transparency and detail that offers JCF donors enhanced visibility into account activity, fee transparency, and investment performance measurement.
JCF combines donor-driven philanthropy, investing and education for maximum benefit in the community. Pursuing these goals, the organization seeks to keep donors updated at all times on all gifting and investment detail. GreenHill Investment Performance Reporting will help JCF in their mission to provide full oversight to their donors.
"Through our integration partnership with the GiftingNetwork's donor-advised fund platform, we are pleased to be able to provide the Jewish Community Foundation with the first-class performance reporting tools and solutions their donors have come to expect," said Bill McFadden, President of GreenHill. "We applaud and support their mission to leverage donor-driven philanthropy, investing, and education to enable individuals and organizations to effectively dedicate their resources for maximum benefit in the community."
"Communication and clarity are important to our donors," said Jeremy Pearl, J.D., LL.M., Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. JCF Eli Landau, Director of Finance, added "granting, gifting history, and investment performance are among the top details our donors seek when they access JCF Connect. They expect transparency to administrative items like fees, especially if fees have been bundled in the past. GreenHill enables us to deliver our donors timely investment information, including performance measurement, that correlates directly to their fund and cash flows."
In September of 2021, GreenHill and the GiftingNetwork announced a strategic partnership to bring integrated investment performance reporting to participating nonprofit organizations, blending GreenHill's personalized investment analysis, reporting and monitoring services with the GiftingNetwork's donor advised SaaS platform to provide nonprofits tracking and reporting solutions catered to their needs.
"GreenHill is a welcome value add we can present to our donors and many community partners who entrust us with their funds. JCF views itself as a leader in the community foundation space and has earned a degree of trust in its selection of partners. We have a reputation in the community for being very conservative and very mindful of excellence in governance. When we put a partner's label on something and we select a partner for an important need, there's a high bar and an expectation that there is a gold seal of approval. We are confident that GreenHill represents that high standard for the benefit of our donors and of our organization," added Pearl.
Jewish Community Foundation San Diego builds flourishing Jewish communities and advances sustainable, just, and vibrant societies in San Diego, Israel, nationally, and around the globe. Founded in 1967, the Jewish Community Foundation is the oldest community foundation in the region. The Jewish Community Foundation collaborates with individuals and organizations and leverages philanthropic capital for positive impact. Guided by Jewish values, the Jewish Community Foundation combines donor-driven philanthropy, investing, and education with trusted, personalized service, enabling individuals and organizations to effectively dedicate their resources for maximum benefit in the community. To learn more, please visit JCFSanDiego.org.
GreenHill started in 1991 by bringing investment performance reporting to the wealth management industry. Over the last 30 years, GreenHill leveraged its extensive investment consulting experience to deliver personalized investment analysis, reporting and monitoring services designed to keep pace with the changing needs of the industry. As an independent provider, GreenHill services a breadth of clients across channels – bank and independent trust companies, RIA, not-for-profit, family offices, law firms and endowments. To learn more, please visit GHill.com.
GreenHill
Jack Curran
EVP, Sales
Tel: (301) 444-1908
Email: jack.curran@ghill.com
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SOURCE GreenHill Investment Reporting | https://www.wibw.com/prnewswire/2022/09/12/greenhill-brings-investment-performance-reporting-jewish-community-foundation-san-diego-donors/ | 2022-09-12T15:45:07Z |
VIDEO: Police officers rush to save unconscious newborn baby at gas station
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE/Gray News) - Police in Louisville helped prevent a situation involving a baby from possibly turning deadly.
The Louisville Metro Police Department reports its officers were at a gas station on Monday night when a man rushed inside and told them a baby wasn’t breathing.
WAVE shared a dramatic video from the department of the call involving officers Noah Cole and Nick Greene.
The video showed the two officers running out to assist the family. One of the officers performed back blows on the unconscious child until she began breathing and crying.
Police said baby Emma was taken to the hospital for evaluation and has since been taken home.
Family members thanked the officers for their work and said Emma is happy and healthy.
Copyright 2022 Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved. | https://www.wibw.com/2022/07/01/video-police-officers-rush-save-unconscious-newborn-baby-gas-station/ | 2022-07-01T21:59:39Z |
DALLAS (KDAF) — North Texans finally have a timeline for when the new Major League Cricket Stadium in Grand Prairie will finish construction and open up to the public.
Officials say the stadium is set to open in the spring of 2023 and that it will play host to the Major League Cricket’s Texas franchise.
Work began this week on the $20 million dollar renovation of the Grand Prairie Stadium which used to be the home of the Texas AirHogs. The renovation will transform the stadium’s former baseball diamond into a cricket field with a natural grass turf wicket.
Seating will also be expanded during renovation. Current plans say that the conversion will increase permanent capacity to more than 7,000 with the ability to expand to a capacity of more than 15,000 for major events.
“I am excited to see the vision of bringing Major League Cricket to the US and to North Texas is beginning with the construction of the Grand Prairie Stadium,” Anurag Jain, Managing Partner of Perot Jain, LP and Chairman of Access Healthcare, said in a news release. “What has been a grassroots sport with tremendous support, will now have a home stadium with world-class professional matches for many fans to watch. It will be exciting to watch a tremendous rise in interest for the game among North Texas sports fans once the stadium opens.”
This stadium will be the most extensive, fully-dedicated cricket facility in the nation and will be a base for USA Cricket National Teams. For more information, click here. | https://cw33.com/news/local/heres-when-the-major-league-cricket-stadium-in-grand-prairie-is-set-to-open/ | 2022-07-27T19:48:06Z |
NEW YORK, July 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- YPO, the global leadership community of more than 30,000 chief executives in 142 countries, announces the election of Rafi Demirjian to YPO's highest elected office, chairman of the YPO Board of Directors.
Demirjian, whose term began on 1 July 2022, is the 70th member to hold this office and succeeds YPO Chairman Anastasios (Tassos) Economou.
A member of YPO Lebanon, Demirjian is the executive chairman of Demirjian Global, a family-owned consortium focusing on trading in various capital markets, longer-term investments, real estate and alternative assets.
"I am honored to have been chosen to serve my YPO peers as chairman," says Demirjian. "This organization has impacted every aspect of my life, and I look forward to working together with YPO's board of directors, our outstanding community of member volunteers and our dedicated management team to continue delivering an exceptional experience to our global leadership community."
Demirjian continues the legacy of YPO's founder and first president, Ray Hickok, who set the standard for peer leadership.
"YPO is a global community of changemakers, and Rafi embodies that spirit," says Economou. "Through his leadership and passion, I know he will create immense impact across the organization. I look forward to working alongside him to deliver the utmost value to our peers across the world."
Demirjian joined YPO in 2003 at the age of 27 and has been an active member at the chapter, regional and global levels.
During his tenure, Demirjian is spearheading the reimagining of YPO EDGE, the organization's flagship event after a pandemic-instigated hiatus and is repositioning it as the foremost global peer learning event for chief executives. This one-of-a-kind event will bring together 3,000 chief executives from around the world for a three-day deep dive into the pressing and important issues facing business leaders today and tomorrow.
Demirjian will also continue to foster and create unique and exclusive peer-to-peer learning and thought leadership opportunities for the YPO community, designed to help support leaders at every stage of their professional and personal journeys.
In addition to his service to YPO and supporting the organization's mission of making an impact in businesses, communities and beyond, Demirjian devotes his time towards empowering youth and alleviating poverty serving on several NGO boards in Lebanon.
About YPO
YPO is the global leadership community of more than 30,000 chief executives in 142 countries who are connected by the shared belief that the world needs better leaders and that business can be a driving force for good. Each of our members has achieved significant leadership success at a young age. They lead businesses and organizations that collectively employ more than 22 million people around the globe and generate over USD9 trillion in combined revenue. YPO members come together to learn and exchange ideas to make a difference in the lives, businesses and communities they impact. Visit ypo.org for more.
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SOURCE YPO | https://www.wibw.com/prnewswire/2022/07/13/ypo-elects-rafi-demirjian-2022-2023-ypo-chairman/ | 2022-07-13T07:55:10Z |
SHIJIAZHUANG, China, Sept. 15, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- China International Digital Economy Expo 2022 is scheduled to be held in Shijiazhuang, capital city of north China's Hebei Province in mid-November. This conference will provide exhibitors with a high-standard and high-level exhibition platform and full chain services such as achievements display, new launches, networking and matchmaking, forum speeches, media publicity and booth services, according to the Industry and Information Technology Department of Hebei Province.
In recent years, Hebei has taken China International Digital Economy Expo as an important platform to promote digital industrialization and industrial digitalization, facilitating the deep integration of digital economy and real economy, and promoting the steady and high-quality development of economy.
The expo was held in Shijiazhuang in October 2019 and September 2021 respectively, which brought new impetus to digital economy, exhibition economy and related industries in Hebei.
At last year's expo, more than 180 projects were signed with a total investment of more than 120 billion yuan. The investment enthusiasm of market players inspired people's imagination of the digital economy's growth potential. Many industry experts held dialogues over 30 events held in three days, generating new ideas that refreshed people's understanding of the digital economy's development.
The China International Digital Economy Expo has provided strong impetus for the rapid and high-quality development of Hebei's digital economy.
In 2020, Hebei's industrial digitalization index ranked 10th in the country, with enterprises in steel, automobile, petrochemical and other fields rushing onto the road of digital transformation.
The province's industrial Internet helped drive its economic growth index to reach 73.5 in 2020, much higher than the national average of 48.8. The application rate of industrial cloud-computing platforms increased by 10.5 percent, and the cloud-computing rate of enterprise industrial equipment was 15.94 percent, ranking second in the country.
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SOURCE Industry and Information Technology Department of Hebei Province | https://www.kxii.com/prnewswire/2022/09/15/annual-global-expo-empowers-northern-chinese-province-hebeis-digital-economy/ | 2022-09-15T05:44:54Z |
NORFOLK, Va., June 6, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- PRA Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: PRAA), a global leader in acquiring and collecting nonperforming loans, today announced it will partner with Truist to offer U.S. employees a financial wellness program to build financial confidence.
The 2018 National Financial Capability Study found that financial literacy had decreased by 8% over a nine-year period, and that 72% of Americans felt financial stress. PRA Group will help address these challenges among employees with the Truist Momentum initiative.
"As debt-buyers, we work with people every day who are struggling with their financial situations. Financial literacy education is important to us because it can help people avoid some of the challenges we witness daily," said Kevin Stevenson, president and CEO of PRA Group. "Our employees drive our success and make us who we are. We are thrilled to give back with a program that will have a lasting impact and help our teammates reach their long-term financial goals."
The financial wellness program includes self-directed online modules as well as personal financial management and coaching through an online learning center, accessible from any device. PRA Group will cover 100 percent of the costs associated with Truist's services for employees and their immediate family members.
The program will give employees access to support as they:
- Plan to buy a home and budget for home ownership,
- Invest for retirement,
- Increase their savings and prepare for emergencies,
- Build their credit scores,
- Budget for charitable giving and
- Save for a vacation, to name a few.
Truist reports that after completing the program, 72% of participants feel prepared for an unexpected expense and 54% feel more enjoyment due to the relief of managing money well.
"Knowing first-hand how hard it can be to create a firm financial foundation, we are thrilled to be making this investment in our employees' futures and to be building financial confidence among the people who make it possible for us to help others," said Katie Jones, chief human resources officer for PRA Group.
PRA Group offers a variety of benefits programs, professional development courses and opportunities to engage with leadership and the community. To learn more about building a career with PRA Group, visit pragroup.com/careers.
As a global leader in acquiring and collecting nonperforming loans, PRA Group returns capital to banks and other creditors to help expand financial services for consumers. With thousands of employees worldwide, PRA Group companies collaborate with customers to help them resolve their debt. For more information, please visit www.pragroup.com.
News Media Contact:
Elizabeth Kersey
Senior Vice President, Communications and Public Policy
(757) 961-3525
Elizabeth.Kersey@PRAGroup.com
Investor Contact:
Lauren Partin
Senior Vice President, Finance and Investor Relations
(757) 431-7913
IR@PRAGroup.com
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SOURCE PRA Group | https://www.wibw.com/prnewswire/2022/06/06/pra-group-expands-employee-benefits-include-financial-wellness-program/ | 2022-06-06T15:16:19Z |
Tennessee bill aims to not require teachers to use students’ preferred pronouns
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV/Gray News) – A new bill is traveling through Tennessee legislature Tuesday, calling for education leaders not to be required to use students’ preferred pronouns.
Introduced by Senator Mike Bell, SB2777 is a bill that will not legally require teachers or staff to use a student’s preferred pronouns, absolving them of any discriminatory accusations.
“A teacher or other employee of a public school or LEA is not required to refer to a student using the student’s preferred pronoun if the pronoun does not align with the student’s biological sex,” the bill reads.
It continues that a teacher or employee would be protected from “civil liability and adverse employment action for referring to a student using the pronoun aligned with the student’s biological sex instead of the student’s preferred pronoun.”
In a fiscal note for SB2777, lawmakers acknowledged that if the bill is found to violate federal law, this could jeopardize federal funding for the 2022-23 school year.
The note references a fact sheet issued by the U.S. Department of Education in June 2021 titled “Supporting Transgender Youth in School,” which includes “Adopting policies that respect all students’ gender identities, such as the use of the name a student goes by, which may be different from their legal name, and pronouns that reflect a student’s gender identity, and implementing policies to safeguard students’ privacy, such as maintaining the confidentiality of a student’s birth name or sex assigned at birth if the student wishes to keep this information private unless the disclosure is legally required.”
The Tennessee bill has moved onto the Senate Finance, Ways, and Means Committee and will be further discussed on Tuesday.
Copyright 2022 WSMV via Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved. | https://www.wibw.com/2022/04/20/tennessee-bill-aims-not-require-teachers-use-students-preferred-pronouns/ | 2022-04-20T18:15:13Z |
It is not often that one speech urging the creation of a national public interest law firm, driven by seasoned trial lawyers, would move from words to deeds, from oratory to action.
That is just what happened following my address in June 1980 to the Michigan Trial Lawyers Association. I spoke of a gap in trial practice that needed to be filled. There was a pressing need to bring cases against the many corporate abuses, which included non-enforcement of regulatory laws. Without the prospect of a contingent fee after a successful outcome, trial lawyers were unlikely to take on these uncertain cases or structural reform cases on behalf of tenants, farm workers or cruel prison conditions.
I noted the assault of corporations on “the biosphere, personal injury law from trauma to toxics.” The corporate lobby was blocking legislative proposals to strengthen consumer class action rights, digging deeper for unconscionable corporate welfare payments and funding corporatist politicians. To challenge these damaging corporate power plays, I suggested a full-time core of public interest attorneys supported by a sabbatical program for trial lawyers who wanted to take a year off from their regular practice and come to Washington, D.C., to advance justice and refresh themselves.
It turned out that there were some leading trial lawyers — Scottie Baldwin, J.D. Lee, Bill Colson and Dean Robb — who were dissatisfied with the slow pace of the American Trial Lawyers Association, then controlled by a small clique of smug members. They took this proposal to the ATLA convention and convened a meeting of like-minded attorneys. With the determined assistance of Joan B. Claybrook, who was with Public Citizen, the nonprofit Trial Lawyers for Public Justice was born.
In the ensuing 40 years, TLPJ, renamed Public Justice in 2007, has shown that there are opportunities for widespread justice successes so long as the peoples’ advocates are on the field of action.
Public Justice has taken on a wide range of cases from going up against mountain-top removal and the coal industry’s poisoning of fresh water in West Virginia, to industrial agricultures’ toxic contaminations, to making sure Title IX is enforced to open wide the doors for women participating in intercollegiate athletics.
Today, led by Paul Bland, Public Justice is celebrating its 40th anniversary. The firm has a $7 million annual budget (which is about three and a half weeks’ pay for the miserly Tim Cook, CEO of Apple), 23 staff on its legal team and a total staff size of 46.
Look at Public Justice’s docket of lawsuits (at https://www.publicjustice.net/what-we-do/access-to-justice/). They have challenged court secrecy, fought compulsory arbitration and federal pre-emption of good state laws and the weakening of class actions. Students subjected to harassment and discrimination have found a champion in Public Justice, as have consumers cheated in so many ways by devious commercial thieves.
Special is Public Justice’s stand against what it calls the “Debtor’s Prison Project.” Here governments try to cash in by imposing fees on charged defendants trapping them in cycles of poverty, with PJ arguing that “no one should lose their freedom because they lack the means to pay a fine.”
A large vacuum is filled by Public Justice in its Worker Justice Project. Giant agri-business, Public Justice asserts with abundant evidence, “has always capitalized on the exploitation of workers, since its origins in plantation agriculture that relied on the forced labor of enslaved Africans. Today, meatpacking workers are subject to some of the most brutal working conditions in the labor market.”
When COVID-19 viruses came to America, Public Justice went to the defense of food-system workers who were not given protection and care and therefore their industry facilities “quickly became epicenters of outbreaks.”
Paul Bland and his colleagues teamed up with other public interest groups on some cases, including Toward Justice and the Heartland Center for Jobs and Freedom.
Within today’s right-wing, corporatist judicial system, Public Justice still wins cases, deters wrongdoing because companies know it is on watch, and even raises the visibility of issues when they lose.
Like any 40-year-old institution, it must remain alert to becoming too settled, too risk-averse and instead continue to be a pioneering organization and break new ground with bold causes of action as if there is no tomorrow. Hear that younger attorneys? Your burden is to keep your unique law firm as fresh as a cool mountain breeze caressing a gushing mountain brook. For more information visit the Public Justice website: https://www.publicjustice.net/. | https://www.albanyherald.com/opinion/ralph-nader-public-justice-standing-40-years-against-corporate-power/article_30cf978a-ce08-11ec-82bf-eb5cd3f6f60f.html | 2022-05-07T22:41:45Z |
Abortion rights supporters try again to block enforcement of Texas’ 6-week abortion ban
By Ariane de Vogue, CNN Supreme Court Reporter
Supporters of abortion rights filed a new federal lawsuit Tuesday in the latest bid to prevent enforcement of Texas’ six-week abortion ban, which has dramatically reduced access to the procedure in the country’s second largest state.
Critics of the Texas law suffered a huge loss in December, when the US Supreme Court allowed the novel law — written with the intent to make it almost impossible to challenge — to remain in effect.
RELATED: Why the Republican offensive on abortion is escalating
In Tuesday’s lawsuit, an abortion fund that helps Texas residents pay for the cost of abortion care and three donors, including former Democratic state Sen. Wendy Davis, are seeking to sue private individuals who have promised to try to enforce the controversial law against the funds, their donors, employees and volunteers.
In court papers they call the law “blatantly unconstitutional” and say it “incentivizes vigilante harassment of anyone who assists abortion patients.”
Under the law, state officials are generally barred from enforcing the statute. Instead, individuals from anywhere in the country can file suit against someone they think might be helping a woman obtain the procedure. They can also collect damages of more than $10,000. The threat of such lawsuits has discouraged doctors from performing abortions after six weeks. Since the decision, other states have moved to pass similar laws.
The lawsuit comes as states hostile to abortion rights are moving aggressively to pass harsher restrictions. In addition, the Supreme Court is currently considering a request from Mississippi to overturn Roe v. Wade in the most important abortion-related case the justices have heard in some 30 years.
If Roe were overturned or fundamentally weakened, 21 states have laws or constitutional amendments already in place to attempt to ban abortion as quickly as possible, according to the Guttmacher Institute, which favors abortion rights. An additional five states are likely to ban abortion as soon as possible without federal protections. As of this month, 536 abortion restrictions have been introduced in 42 states.
The abortion fund behind the suit is called the Stigma Relief Fund. It is represented in court by Stephanie Toti of The Lawyering Project. In court papers, Toti is asking the court to hold that the law is unconstitutional and “unenforceable.”
In court papers, Toti says the law has had an “immediate and devastating impact” on all Texans, “which is felt most acutely by the marginalized communities that abortion funds serve.”
The fund is suing Texan resident Mistie Sharp, who has sworn in court that she intends to sue abortion funds, as well as Sadie Weldon and Ashley Maxwell “because they have taken aggressive steps to sue certain Texas abortion funds and their donors, employees, and volunteers.”
Even if the fund prevails in the lawsuit, however, it may not stop other individuals from attempting to enforce the law.
The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2022 Cable News Network, Inc., a WarnerMedia Company. All rights reserved. | https://localnews8.com/politics/cnn-us-politics/2022/04/19/abortion-rights-supporters-try-again-to-block-enforcement-of-texas-6-week-abortion-ban/ | 2022-04-20T01:56:48Z |
Inaugural Creative Council Members Include Award Winning Broadway Actors, Singers and Creators Who Will Serve as The Broadway Exchange's Bridge to the Theatre Community
NEW YORK, July 6, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, The Broadway Exchange (BWAYX.com), the premiere digital collectibles marketplace for theatre fans, announced the inaugural members of its Creative Council.
Creative Council members are artists and creators dedicated to building support across the theatre community and developing content that engages fans, performers, and producers. The Creative Council will provide important guidance on the needs of the theatre community as The Broadway Exchange continues to grow.
The Broadway Exchange builds on the tradition of theatre merchandise by creating authorized digital collectibles crafted from the IP of production partners. The collectibles are sold on The Broadway Exchange (BWAYX.com) NFT marketplace. Proceeds from the sales of the collectibles are shared with the theatre community.
"The Broadway Exchange partnership with the theatre community is vital to deepening our insight into what they need to thrive," said Larry Rogowsky, co-founder of The Broadway Exchange. "Our mission is firmly rooted in supporting the community by creating new and equitable revenue sources for the people who make live theater happen. Each of these council members are making important contributions to the theatre industry, and we are thrilled to have them onboard as we continue our journey."
Ninety percent of the profits of all sales made through The Broadway Exchange go to shows and are shared directly with actors, writers, directors, designers and other members of the creative community. Additionally, The Broadway Exchange commits 3% of all gross sales to charitable organizations, including Broadway Cares and The Entertainment Community Fund (formerly known as The Actors Fund).
The inaugural members of The Broadway Exchange's Creative Council include:
Jeannette Bayardelle is a Tony-nominated Broadway actor and the founding member of The Creative Council. Bayardelle has long supported financial literacy for artists through her organization From Broadway to Wall Street. She has traveled to over fifty countries throughout Africa, Asia, Europe, North America and the Caribbean, sharing her gift of acting. Her credits include Girl from the North Country, The Color Purple, Hair and Shida.
Jason Veasey is a New York-based actor and singer who is currently starring in the critically acclaimed, Tony Award and Pulitzer Prize Award-winning A Strange Loop. Veasey's other credits include Broadway's Lion King as well as Chicago Fire and Insomnia on screen.
Robert Creighton is a New York-based actor who has most recently starred as Weselton in Disney's Broadway production of Frozen. He is the co-author and star of the hit musical Cagney that played off-Broadway at the Westside Theatre. Creighton's Broadway credits include Lion King, Little Mermaid, The Mystery of Edwin Drood, Anything Goes, and Chicago. Television appearances include The Good Fight (recurring guest star), Elementary, Law & Order, The Family, and Life on Mars.
Cara Ricketts is an award-winning actor who has performed on stages across Canada and the U.S. Ricketts began on screen acting after completing her fourth season at the Stratford Festival, where she received the Best Actress Award for her role in Pinter's The Homecoming. She has been an advisor on several NFT projects and is an XR enthusiast.
For more information about The Broadway Exchange, please contact Jacquelyn Grant by email at jacquelyn@thetascgroup.com or by phone at 203-512-4388.
The Broadway Exchange is a digital collectibles marketplace dedicated to helping live theatre thrive in the digital economy so that everyone benefits. We partner with the theatre community to create, promote and sell compelling digital collectibles and amazing experiences that build deeper connections between fans and creators.
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SOURCE The Broadway Exchange | https://www.wibw.com/prnewswire/2022/07/06/broadway-exchange-announces-formation-creative-council/ | 2022-07-06T16:38:54Z |
DALLAS (KDAF) — Texas is known for its love of all things barbecue, especially steak and according to this study, this Dallas steakhouse just might be the best in Texas.
Eat This, Not That released an article detailing the best steakhouses each state has to offer and, according to them, Pappas Bros. Steakhouse in Dallas is the best steakhouse in Texas.
Their website says, “Pappas pays such attention to their steak that they can’t help but be our favorite Texas steakhouse. The beef is corn-fed and dry-aged, cut by one of the two full-time butchers in the restaurant.”
Do you agree with this? Are there other places you think are more deserving of this title? Or are you a “the best steak comes from your own kitchen” kind of person.
Regardless, I think we can all agree, that steak is great.
For their full report, visit eatthis.com. | https://cw33.com/news/local/report-says-this-dallas-steakhouse-is-the-best-steakhouse-in-texas/ | 2022-05-16T22:13:26Z |
SINGAPORE, Aug. 10, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- DomainDAO, a new community-driven DAO that aims to bid on the .dao top-level domain, just closed its phase I crowdfunding on Juicebox Protocol with over 200 ETH contributions within one month in the roughest crypto winter yet. Key participants include individual DAO enthusiasts and renowned crypto venture capitals.
The monopoly DomainDAO aims to disrupt
The crypto space never ceases to innovate, with the latest spotlight on neither the NFT craze nor the GameFi Play-to-Earn fever, but on a new movement revolting against a traditionally monopolized yet overlooked sector: the domain space. Many modern-day prominent domains such as .io and .finance are dominated by private companies or government-backed agencies, and DomainDAO wants to disrupt that with decentralization.
Founded by web3 professionals and enthusiasts, DomainDAO wants to decentralize the governance of top-level domains (TLD), starting by proposing and bidding on a new top-level domain - .dao under ICANN's regulatory framework. More DAOs are being created than ever before and might soon become the mainstream structure for organization governance.
DomainDAO wants to think ahead on how DAOs will identify themselves in the digital space with the traditional TLD setup, hence its mission of owning .dao for DAOs, by a DAO. DAOs would be able to show off their DAO entities with their domains upon successful application. Makerdao.com would conveniently become maker.dao, and that applies to all other DAOs.
The roadmap ahead: DomainDAO's now and future
True to its DAO identity, DomainDAO referenced ConstitutionDAO and took its phase I funding to Juicebox to gather community support for decentralized domain ownership. Phase II funding had immediately kick-started afterward for early supporters of DomainDAO. With the angel round funding, the team focuses on preparing the ICANN application from all perspectives, including operation, legal, marketing, partnerships, etc.
DomainDAO has recruited more than twenty DAOs to form a tight-knit community, including popular ones like Cult DAO, City DAO, PleasrDAO, etc. All founding partners will receive exclusive DomainDAO NFTs as proof to reserve their preferred .dao secondary domains with $DOMAIN before DomainDAO successfully bid the TLD. The partnerships have proven a strong demand for the .dao TLD, and DomainDAO wants to ultimately build a DAO ecosystem that encourages, supports, and fosters the development of DAOs.
Ways to contribute to DomainDAO
There are multiple ways one can contribute and steer this revolution.
- Be an Angel investor: participate in DomainDAO's phase II funding on Juicebox and contribute $ETH for $DOMAIN.
- Be an active community member: Propose, connect, and share ideas on Discord and Twitter. DomainDAO is a DAO after all, and some of its key decisions will be voted on and decided by its community.
- DAOs should not hesitate to reach out for any collaboration and partnership. DomainDAO is always looking to expand its community, and anyone can reserve a .dao TLD for future usage.
About DomainDAO
Website: https://thedomaindao.org/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/theDomainDao
Discord: discord.gg/DuAP2yKx66
Juicebox: juicebox.money/#/p/domaindao
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SOURCE DomainDAO | https://www.wibw.com/prnewswire/2022/08/11/domaindao-secured-200-eth-phase-i-funding-build-domain-space-future/ | 2022-08-11T03:05:58Z |
DALLAS (KDAF) — Party on everybody the weekend is here and even if you have to work during it you can still get your drink on over in Fort Worth!
If you frequent downtown Cow Town, you more than likely have your go-to spots or a perfect route for you crawl you and your friends stick to when enjoying a night or day on the town. Yelp, however, wants to make sure you don’t miss some of the very best spots in Metro Fort Worth.
They’ve put together a list of the best drinking spots in the area for you and your friends to truly experience this one-of-a-kind North Texas haven. Get this, if you aren’t into alcohol, there are plenty of other great options on this list for a more chilled environment! If you love coffee, this list was made for you.
“Sure, you’ll see your obvious local favorites on the list, but it’s also chock full of hidden gems and off-the-beaten-path joints like Daiquiri Stop, tucked away in Hurst and known for its colorful menu of frozen daiquiris you can take home by the gallon,” Yelp said.
Here’s a look at some of the spots on the list, for the full top 25, click here:
- 151 Coffee
- Turning Point Beer
- The Bearded Monkey
- Sikhay Thai Lao Cuisine
- CRUDE Craft Coffee Bar
- HopFusion Ale Works
- Feng Cha
- Kahunas
- Pouring Glory
- Acre Distilling Co. | https://cw33.com/lifestyle/food-and-drink/yelp-says-these-are-top-spots-to-drink-in-fort-worth/ | 2022-08-19T20:08:13Z |
HOUSTON, July 12, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Breakwater Energy Partners, LLC ("Breakwater") is pleased to announce that it has further developed its commercial and noncommercial recycling network across the Midland Basin to meet rising customer demand for sustainable water solutions.
Breakwater expanded its Big Spring Recycling System ("BSRS") in Howard and Martin counties with two additional multi-year produced water offtake and recycling agreements. BSRS is one of the largest recycling networks in the Permian Basin, currently recycling more than four million barrels of produced water per month with aggregation, distribution, and recycling capacity of up to 300,000 barrels per day.
The BSRS facility connects seven separate operator-owned produced water disposal networks into a central hub-and-spoke model to aggregate produced water and distribute recycled water through large diameter pipelines. Breakwater paired this physical network with advanced cloud-based data-management and GIS tools which are vital for water balancing and optimization across the multi-operator network. BSRS physically serves two seismically sensitive areas of the Midland Basin near the cities of Stanton and Knott with sustainable water management solutions.
Breakwater is also pleased to announce it has begun commercial operation at its Morita Commercial Recycling System which serves southern Howard and northern Glasscock counties. Morita is Breakwater's second Texas Railroad Commission Division 6 H-11 commercially permitted facility built for the receipt, storage, handling, treatment, and transportation of produced and recycled water. Breakwater is also actively developing two additional commercial recycling facilities in the Midland Basin to serve central Midland, Glasscock, and northern Upton counties. Breakwater currently owns or operates 14 recycling facilities and recycles about 500,000 barrels of produced water per day in the Midland Basin.
"Operators are looking for more sustainable alternatives to high pressure wastewater injection within seismically sensitive areas." said Jason Jennaro, Chief Executive Officer of Breakwater. "Breakwater's hub-and-spoke water model concurrently provides operators access to high volumes of recycled water within SRAs and disposal outlets outside of them, whichever is more efficient."
Headquartered in Houston, Texas, Breakwater is a leading provider of sustainable water supply chain solutions to the oilfield. Breakwater's management team has been providing environmentally focused water management solutions to customers across the United States since 1994 including large-scale sewer rehabilitation projects, wastewater treatments plants and related services for major municipalities.
Breakwater's water recycling segment is the market-leading provider of water reuse services in the Permian Basin. Breakwater formed its water recycling segment in 2016 by acquiring Waterstone Resources, which began operations in 2013. Breakwater's water recycling operations in the Permian Basin have the installed capacity to process more than three million barrels of water per day for a customer base comprised mostly of large E&P operators.
Breakwater's midstream division develops and operates large-scale recycling systems across the Permian Basin and integrates them into its water supply, transfer, and recycling capabilities. Breakwater operates two commercial and numerous separate noncommercial recycling facilities in the Midland Basin.
Breakwater's water transfer division owns more than 350 miles of lay flat hose, 150 water transfer pumps and in-basin accommodations for 300 employees. It has become one of the largest providers of transfer services in the Eagle Ford and Permian basins.
For more information, please visit www.breakwaterenergy.com.
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SOURCE Breakwater Energy Partners, LLC | https://www.kxii.com/prnewswire/2022/07/12/breakwater-announces-further-expansion-its-midland-basin-recycling-network/ | 2022-07-12T11:08:06Z |
Webster Bank is the exclusive bank partner for this first-of-its-kind savings program.
HOUSTON, May 31, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Save®, a fintech company that helps people earn higher yields on their spending and savings, announced that they have signed an agreement with Webster Bank, N.A., a leading bank in the Northeast that provides a wide range of digital and traditional financial solutions to consumers and commercial clients. Webster Bank will make savings accounts available to Save customers who participate in this product offering on Save's innovative Savetech platform.1
Save, an SEC-registered investment adviser, expects the return potential of its Market Savings program to be higher than traditional high-yield interest savings accounts. Customers can expect average annual return potential between 1.50% to 7.70% depending on the program term, without risk to customer deposits.2 The Market Savings program seeks to provide returns to customers through an investment by Save into a diversified portfolio of ETFs representing stocks, bonds, real estate, and commodities based on the customer's investment profile. The yield is not guaranteed but will vary according to market performance. Customers' deposits will be held in savings accounts at Webster Bank that are FDIC insured up to the standard maximum deposit insurance amount, which is currently $250,000 per depositor, per FDIC-insured bank, per ownership category. Save expects to add a range of investment portfolios including sustainable investments and alternative asset portfolios.
"We're excited to work with Webster Bank to build an entirely new approach to savings," said Michael Nelskyla, Founder and CEO of Save. "By adding the Market Savings program to our platform, we're able to better support our customers' financial and savings goals at a time when low rates, high inflation, and market volatility are top of mind."
Save currently has over 25,000 customers signed up for its services and expects the U.S. Market Savings program and its Savetech platform to help attract several billion dollars in savings over the next three years.
"We look forward to working with Save on this innovative savings product. Save is focused on innovative, digital offerings and has an approach that differentiates Save in the consumer space," said Matthew Smith, Executive Managing Director at Webster Bank.
"Save is on a mission to change the way people build wealth," said Adam Watts, President and COO of Save. "Our Savetech platform can fundamentally change how people save."
About Webster
Webster Bank ("Webster") is a leading commercial bank in the Northeast that provides a wide range of digital and traditional financial solutions across three differentiated lines of business: Commercial Banking, Consumer Banking, and its HSA Bank division, one of the country's largest providers of employee benefits solutions. Headquartered in Stamford, CT, Webster is a values-driven organization with $65 billion in assets. Its core footprint spans the northeastern U.S. from New York to Massachusetts, with certain businesses operating in extended geographies. Webster Bank is a member of the FDIC and an equal housing lender. For more information about Webster, including past press releases and the latest annual report, visit the Webster website at www.websterbank.com.
About Save®
Save® Advisers, LLC ("Save®") is an SEC-registered investment advisor and banking solutions provider that is bringing sophisticated investments to consumers looking for higher returns on their savings without risks of the stock market. Save was created by a team of financial industry veterans and technologists with experience at such well-respected financial firms and organizations as Goldman Sachs, UBS, and NASA. Learn more at www.joinsave.com. Follow and connect with Save on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
1 To obtain FDIC insurance coverage, customer funds provided will be deposited into non-interest bearing accounts at Webster Bank. FDIC insurance coverage for funds deposited at Webster Bank is limited to not more than $250,000 per depositor, per FDIC-insured bank, per ownership category. Actual deposit insurance coverage may be lower if you have other funds deposited at Webster Bank, N.A.. Customers are responsible for determining the amount deposited in each account at Webster Bank, N.A., and for monitoring the total amount of their deposits at Webster Bank, N.A., to determine the extent of available FDIC insurance coverage in accordance with FDIC rules. Learn more at: https://www.fdic.gov/deposit/deposits. Only the funds customers' provide and deposit with Webster Bank, N.A. will be eligible for FDIC insurance. When customers deposit funds into accounts at Webster Bank, N.A., Save will purchase for its customers investment contracts that will be held separately in, and generate market returns from, an Apex Clearing Corporation account. Webster Bank is not providing any investment advice or responsible for the purchase or performance of any investment contracts. The funds held in the Apex Clearing Corporation accounts are not FDIC-insured, are not bank guaranteed, and may lose value with a minimum return of zero. Maximum balance and transfer limits apply. Neither Save Advisers, LLC, nor its affiliates, are a bank. Apex Clearing Corporation is a member of the Securities Investor Protection Corporation ("SIPC"), formed by Congress to protect "customers" of broker-dealers and to promote public confidence in the U.S. securities markets. Customers of a SIPC Member that fails financially are afforded certain benefits under the Securities Investor Protection Act ("SIPA"). These benefits are relevant only if the broker-dealer that "carries" a customer's account fails and is liquidated under SIPA. At Apex Clearing Corporation, your investments are protected by SIPC up to a maximum of $500,000 total, including $250,000 in cash balances. Coverage limitations apply. To learn more about SIPC coverage, visit the SIPC website at www.sipc.org.
2 Average annual returns are based on hypothetical back-tested performance by Save of the Save Moderate Portfolio from 2006 to present. Hypothetical back-tested performance is no guarantee of future performance and actual results will vary. Returns are subject to change daily. Minimum return will always be at least 0%. All return figures shown are for informational purposes only and are not actual customer returns. Returns are not derived from the Webster Bank savings account. More information relating to Save's hypothetical back-tested performance can be found here: https://joinsave.com/hb-moderate
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SOURCE Save | https://www.mysuncoast.com/prnewswire/2022/05/31/save-announces-innovative-partnership-with-webster-bank-launch-saves-market-savings-program/ | 2022-05-31T22:42:20Z |
Rudy Giuliani ordered to testify in Georgia 2020 election probe
ATLANTA (AP) — A judge in New York has ordered Rudy Giuliani to appear next month before a special grand jury in Atlanta that’s investigating whether former President Donald Trump and others illegally tried to interfere in the 2020 general election in Georgia.
New York Supreme Court Justice Thomas Farber on July 13 issued an order directing Giuliani, a Trump lawyer and former New York City mayor, to appear before the special grand jury on Aug. 9 and on any other dates ordered by the court in Atlanta, according to documents filed Wednesday in Fulton County Superior Court.
Giuliani’s lawyer did not immediately return a call and email seeking comment Wednesday.
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis began her investigation early last year, and a special grand jury with subpoena power was seated in May at her request. In a letter requesting the special grand jury, she said her team was looking into “any coordinated attempts to unlawfully alter the outcome of the 2020 elections in this state.”
Earlier this month, she filed petitions to compel seven Trump associates, including Giuliani and U.S. Sen Lindsey Graham, to testify before the special grand jury.
Because they don’t live in Georgia, she had to use a process that involves getting a judge in the state where they live to order them to appear.
Giuliani had been summoned to appear in court in New York on July 13 to present any reasons why a subpoena should not be issued for him to testify in Atlanta, but he failed to show up for the hearing, Farber wrote in his order.
In a court filing Wednesday, Willis informed the judge overseeing the special grand jury that Giuliani had been served with Farber’s final order instructing him to appear before the special grand jury.
It’s possible that Giuliani could file a motion with the court in Atlanta to try to avoid testifying.
Graham, who has denied any wrongdoing, reached an agreement with Willis yesterday that said he would file any challenge to the attempt to compel his testimony in Georgia, either in Fulton County Superior Court or in federal court in Atlanta, rather than in South Carolina or Washington, where Willis was planning to try to get a judge to issue a subpoena.
U.S. Rep. Jody Hice filed a challenge to a subpoena issued for his testimony in federal court in Atlanta. He has argued that his actions after the election were done in his role as a member of Congress and are shielded from legal proceedings and inquiry. A judge is set to hear arguments on that next week.
Georgia’s lieutenant governor and a former state lawmaker also challenged subpoenas. Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney, who’s overseeing the special grand jury, declined to quash the subpoenas but did set guidelines for the questions they could be asked based on their status as members of the General Assembly.
In the petition for Giuliani’s testimony, Willis identified him as both a personal attorney for Trump and a lead attorney for his campaign.
As part of those efforts, she wrote, he and others presented a Georgia state Senate subcommittee with a video recording of election workers that Giuliani alleged showed them producing “suitcases” of unlawful ballots from unknown sources, outside the view of election poll watchers.
Within 24 hours of the hearing on Dec. 3, 2020, Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger’s office had debunked the video and said that it had found that no voter fraud had taken place at the site. Nevertheless, Giuliani continued to make statements to the public and in subsequent legislative hearings claiming widespread voter fraud using that debunked video, Willis wrote.
“There is evidence that (Giuliani’s) appearance and testimony at the hearing was part of a multi-state, coordinated plan by the Trump Campaign to influence the results of the November 2020 election in Georgia and elsewhere,” the petition says.
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. | https://www.wibw.com/2022/07/20/rudy-giuliani-ordered-testify-georgia-2020-election-probe/ | 2022-07-20T16:10:32Z |
Houston-Based Fast-Casual Brand to Open Four Locations in Minnesota, Marking Entry into the State
HOUSTON, Aug. 30, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Sweet Paris Crêperie & Café, the ultra-popular restaurant brand specializing in sweet and savory crêpes, hot drinks and more, announced a multi-unit deal that will bring four stores to Minnesota, specifically the Minneapolis and St. Paul areas. With this entrance into a new state, these units will increase Sweet Paris' total store count to 25 locations in the near future, with 15 in various stages of development.
Behind this momentous deal is a group of partners with more than 55 years of restaurant franchise experience combined: Dan and Brenda Vansteenburg, Dustin Wetzel and Pete Thelen. Dan and Brenda Vansteenburg, a dynamic husband and wife duo, started their restaurant career with Jimmy John's in 2001. They currently own and operate 35 stores in the Twin Cities market. The Vansteenburgs found a sweet spot in franchising but weren't always involved in the industry. Dan began his professional career as a special education teacher and then worked for an information technology firm. Throughout his various roles, a passion for people has always remained centric and played a crucial role in building a franchise empire.
"After our first visit with the Sweet Paris leadership team in Houston, we knew this was a concept we wanted to pursue and bring to the Twin Cities," said Dan Vansteenburg. "Everything about the brand, from the authentic menu to the charming store design that transports you to the streets of Paris, brings a unique experience that the people of Minnesota will be excited about."
With this robust growth, Sweet Paris is now present in eight metropolitan areas across the nation: Houston TX, Austin, TX, San Antonio TX, Dallas/Fort Worth, TX, Miami, FL, Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN, Oklahoma City, OK and Tulsa, OK. Additionally, the brand is present in College Station, TX and Nuevo Vallarta, Mexico.
"We are thrilled to take Sweet Paris to the wonderful people of Minnesota," said Allison Chavez, co-founder of Sweet Paris. "We believe the state is a prime market to grow the brand and we are honored to be working with local business leaders such as Dan, Dustin and Pete to propel the Sweet Paris brand further north, contributing to our goal of nationwide expansion."
The recent success of Sweet Paris has not gone unnoticed as the brand was recently ranked on Entrepreneur Magazine's 2022 Top New and Emerging Franchises. The brand also made history when it secured a place on Entrepreneur's esteemed Franchise 500® list for the first time in January. Also, co-founders Allison and Ivan Chavez recently landed on Global Franchise Magazine's 10 Emerging Leaders to Watch in 2022, and Allison was included in Nation's Restaurant News' annual Power List, an exclusive group of 50 leaders who are identified as the most innovative and inspiring people in the restaurant industry.
The brand has quickly become one of the hottest restaurant franchises in Texas with an extravagant ambiance and delicious food and drinks made of the highest quality ingredients and bold flavors. Made from scratch, the dishes are as delicious as they are beautiful. The lavish interiors and the artful food and drinks make Sweet Paris a favorite place for haute social media influencers.
ABOUT SWEET PARIS:
Sweet Paris Crêperie & Café is a fast-growing restaurant franchise specializing in sweet and savory crêpes, waffles, salads, hot drinks and more. On a mission to "Revive the Art of Eating Crêpes" one crêperie at a time, Sweet Paris is seeking qualified Strategic Partners, especially those with a background in hospitality, to expand the concept in new markets. For more information about the brand, please visit www.sweetparis.com, and for more information on Strategic Partnership Opportunities, visit www.sweetparisfranchise.com.
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SOURCE Sweet Paris | https://www.kxii.com/prnewswire/2022/08/30/sweet-paris-crperie-expands-midwest-presence-with-multi-unit-deal-minnesota/ | 2022-08-30T16:28:02Z |
The new CPO, CFO and VP of Business Systems demonstrate commitment to scaling operations to support ongoing growth
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. and KARLSRHUE, Germany, July 19, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Revalize, the worldwide leader in revenue operations software for manufacturers, their distributors, and their specifiers, announced today the appointment of three key executives to drive the continued success of the company.
David Kuhl, joining as Chief People Officer (CPO), will be a champion of the Revalize values, drive clarity and alignment across the global organization, and leverage people analytics to improve overall company performance. Kevin McAdams joins as Chief Financial Officer (CFO) to drive effective planning, reporting & forecasting, implement business systems and controls, and guide the in-house legal function. Among Kevin's direct reports will be Don Stockslager, who joins as VP of Business Systems. In this role, Don will drive internal efficiencies, enable a positive customer experience, and swiftly integrate newly acquired businesses onto the Revalize business systems platform.
"We are pleased to have David, Kevin and Don join us as we look to steer the company towards continued growth and scale," says Jim Contardi, CEO of Revalize. "With the creation of a Chief People Officer role specifically, we are being intentional about the importance of people and our need to attract and retain top talent. All three of these roles contribute a critical capability to the company, and I am confident that they will quickly create value and deliver on the experience we envision for our employees and customers."
Each executive joins Revalize with extensive industry experience:
David Kuhl, CPO, brings significant experience in human resources, general management, and law. Most recently, he was General Manager of Salo, a large talent firm; before that, he served as Chief People Officer for ACI Worldwide, ABRA Auto, and Ventyx/ABB. David started his career as an employment law attorney for Littler Mendelson P.C. in San Francisco.
Kevin McAdams, CFO, is a CPA who began his career in public accounting with KPMG. Kevin most recently served as CFO of Aptean, a global enterprise software company, where he successfully executed an extensive Finance transformation while helping the company drive significant organic and inorganic growth.
Don Stockslager, VP of Business Systems, was most recently VP of Strategy & Transformation at Equifax, where he improved experiences for consumers seeking to improve their credit score or protect themselves from identity theft. Previously, Don spent twenty years at First Data Corporation driving change in technology, operations and product management.
Learn more about Revalize and its solutions, as well as employment opportunities globally, at www.revalizesoftware.com.
About Revalize
Revalize is the global leader in sector-specific software that helps manufacturers optimize revenue operations through design applications, engineering simulations, product selection, CPQ, PLM, visualization, and data analytics. Headquartered in Jacksonville, FL, the company serves over 15,000 customers across the globe. Revalize is a portfolio company of TA Associates and Hg. Learn more at www.revalizesoftware.com.
MEDIA CONTACT:
Laura Gula
Revalize
laura.gula@revalizesoftware.com
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SOURCE Revalize | https://www.mysuncoast.com/prnewswire/2022/07/19/revalize-expands-leadership-team-with-key-hires/ | 2022-07-19T13:38:56Z |
VANCOUVER, BC, Aug. 29, 2022 /PRNewswire/ - Argentina Lithium & Energy Corp. (TSXV: LIT) (FSE: OAY3) (OTC: PNXLF), ("Argentina Lithium" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has retained PI Financial Corp. ("PI") to provide market making services in accordance with TSX Venture Exchange policies.
PI will trade the securities of the Company on the TSX-V for the purposes of maintaining an orderly market. In consideration of the services provided by PI, the Company will pay PI a monthly cash fee of $4,000 for minimum term of three months and renewable thereafter. The Company and PI are unrelated and unaffiliated entities. PI will not receive shares or options as compensation and does not hold any shares in the Company for long term investment purposes for the benefit of PI Financial. The capital used for market making will be provided by PI.
About Argentina Lithium
Argentina Lithium & Energy Corp is focused on acquiring high quality lithium projects in Argentina and advancing them towards production in order to meet the growing global demand from the battery sector. The management group has a long history of success in the resource sector of Argentina and has assembled a first rate team of experts to acquire and advance the best lithium properties in the "Lithium Triangle". The Company is a member of the Grosso Group, a resource management group that has pioneered exploration in Argentina since 1993.
ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD
"Nikolaos Cacos"
_______________________________
Nikolaos Cacos, President, CEO and Director
Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
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SOURCE Argentina Lithium & Energy Corp. | https://www.mysuncoast.com/prnewswire/2022/08/29/argentina-lithium-appoints-pi-financial-market-maker/ | 2022-08-29T21:59:03Z |
Graham appeals order to testify in Georgia election probe
ATLANTA (AP) — U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham has formally appealed a judge’s order requiring him to testify before a special grand jury investigating whether former President Donald Trump and others illegally sought to overturn his 2020 election defeat in Georgia.
The South Carolina Republican’s appeal had been expected following a judge’s Monday ruling that he comply with prosecutors’ efforts to compel him to testify Aug. 23 about his phone calls to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger and his staff in the weeks following the election.
The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals will consider Graham’s request, filed late Wednesday. Graham’s legal team also asked a federal judge to put his special grand jury appearance on hold during the appeal process.
Graham’s appeal was made the same day that another Trump associate, former campaign attorney Rudy Giuliani, spent roughly six hours before the special grand jury. The former New York mayor spread false claims of election fraud in Fulton County as he led efforts to challenge the election results in Georgia.
Met by an Associated Press reporter at the airport as he returned to New York on Wednesday, Giuliani said that he had “satisfied his obligation under the subpoena” from prosecutors but gave no further details of his testimony.
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis has indicated she is interested in the details of a phone call between Graham and Raffensperger shortly after the 2020 election. At the time, Raffensperger said that Graham asked if he had the power to reject certain absentee ballots and that he interpreted the question as a suggestion to toss out legally cast votes.
Graham also “made reference to allegations of widespread voter fraud in the November 2020 election in Georgia, consistent with public statements made by known affiliates of the Trump Campaign,” Willis wrote in a court filing.
Graham has argued that calls were part of his duties as chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, with his legal team — which includes former Trump White House counsel Don McGahn — arguing that Graham’s position in Congress protects him from having to appear before the grand jury.
Willis opened her probe into post-election actions by Trump and his allies after the disclosure of a remarkable Jan. 2, 2021, phone call between Raffensperger and Trump in which the then-president suggested the state official could “find” the exact number of votes that would be needed to flip the election results in Georgia.
Denying any wrongdoing, Trump has described the call as “perfect.”
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, meanwhile, had received a subpoena to appear before the special grand jury on Thursday. But his lawyers on Wednesday filed a motion to quash it, and Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney said the governor doesn’t have to appear while that motion is pending, Kemp spokesperson Katie Byrd said.
___
Kinnard reported from Columbia, South Carolina, and can be reached at http://twitter.com/MegKinnardAP.
More on Donald Trump-related investigations: https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. | https://www.wibw.com/2022/08/18/graham-appeals-order-testify-georgia-election-probe/ | 2022-08-18T17:05:15Z |
Man taken to hospital after single-vehicle crash in northeast Topeka
TOPEKA, Kan. (WIBW) - A man was taken to a local hospital after he was injured in a single-vehicle crash Wednesday afternoon in northeast Topeka, authorities said.
The crash was reported at 4:28 p.m. Wednesday at 710 N.E. US-24 highway. The location was near the intersection of N.E. US-24 highway and Meriden Road.
According to the Kansas Highway Patrol, a 2014 Jeep sport utility vehicle was westbound on US-24 when it left the right -- or north -- side of the road.
The Jeep then went over a curb, causing it to go up an electrical guy wire. The Jeep then came to rest on its driver’s side.
The driver, Dustin L. Welcher, 22, of Topeka, was taken by American Medical Response ambulance with suspected minor injuries.
The patrol said Welcher, who was alone in the vehicle, was wearing a seat belt.
Copyright 2022 WIBW. All rights reserved. | https://www.wibw.com/2022/06/02/man-taken-hospital-after-single-vehicle-crash-northeast-topeka/ | 2022-06-02T16:20:04Z |
LOS ANGELES, May 30, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Senior Match is a senior dating site for older women and mature men seeking the like-minded elite singles at the same age. It aims to create an inclusive and friendly online dating site for senior over 50 to find love and meet new friends. SeniorMatch is based on a sophisticated and precise matching system that enables users to easily find their matches in a few simple steps.
Recently, SeniorMatch lists the top cities for senior singles looking for dating and romance as below:
- New York
- California
- Texas
- Alabama
- Georgia
- Florida
- Illinois
- Texas
- Nevada
- Arizona
- Washington
- Massachusetts
- Colorado
- Florida
- Pennsylvania
- North Carolina
- Virginia
- Maryland
- Ohio
- Indiana
Since 2001, SeniorMatch has successfully hosted over 1 million singles above the age of 50. It prevents the entrance of low-quality and younger people to join in, with the aim of developing an exclusive and professional community for seniors. It launched prompts to allow users to answer specific questions that showcase their unique personalities and describe the sort of relationship they are looking for, alongside incorporating their important interests to better finetune the selection of potential partners.
A "Friendly Senior Jokes" feature is being rolled out to allow uploading jokes that resonate with people of that age group. These jokes are vital to fostering healthy connections between users and finding potential matches.
"Jokes for seniors are more vital than ever, as many seniors can't connect with their families the way they used to due to social distancing guidelines. It helps senior singles to show more about their personality and find potential matches." Stated Rachel Palmer, the spokesperson of SeniorMatch.
About SeniorMatch
Founded in 2001, SeniorMatch is a professional senior dating site targeting older women and senior men who are on the lookout for like-minded singles.
For more information about the website, please visit SeniorMatch.com.
Press@SeniorMatch.com
1-416-628-1072
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SOURCE SeniorMatch.com | https://www.kxii.com/prnewswire/2022/05/30/seniormatch-reveals-top-cities-senior-singles-looking-dating-romance/ | 2022-05-30T14:48:01Z |
- Genesis GV70 ranked first in Compact Premium SUV segment in its first year of eligibility
- Genesis G80 ranked first in Upper Midsize Premium Car segment
- Genesis ranked second overall among premium brands
FOUNTAIN VALLEY, Calif., July 21, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, the Genesis GV70 SUV and G80 executive sedan were named as top-ranked models in their respective segments in the J.D. Power 2022 U.S. Automotive Performance, Execution and Layout (APEAL) Study. Genesis was also ranked second overall among premium brands.
"At Genesis, we create our products with bold designs, the latest technological innovations, refined performance, and class-leading safety & driver assistance features," said Claudia Marquez, chief operating officer of Genesis Motor North America. "We are pleased with our customers' passion for their vehicles, as demonstrated through their responses in the study."
GV70 is the award-winning second SUV from Genesis and receives this accolade in its first year of eligibility. It comes to market with the brand's latest Athletic Elegance design language: a bold and distinct look for Genesis with its signature two-lined Quad Lamps. GV70 provides a dynamic driving experience and exceptional comfort, all while incorporating the latest technologies and advanced safety features.
G80 is at the core of the Genesis sedan lineup and offers a perfect balance of comfort and refined performance. For the 2022 model year, the brand introduced the G80 Sport, adding bold new styling, available new suspension tuning, available rear wheel steering, and other features to the executive sedan. Later this year, the brand will launch its Electrified G80, the first Genesis EV sedan and second all-electric model, as the brand pursues a 100% electric lineup by 2030.
The J.D. Power U.S. APEAL Study examines new-vehicle owners' assessments of their experiences with their new vehicle after 90 days of ownership. The study data provides insight on experiences with design, performance, safety, usability, comfort, and other factors.
Genesis Motor North America
At Genesis, we put the customer at the center of every decision we make. Genesis is a global automotive brand that delivers the highest standards of performance, design, safety, and innovation while looking towards a more sustainable future. Genesis designs customer experiences that go beyond products, embodying audacious, forward-thinking, and distinctly Korean characteristics within its unique Athletic Elegance design identity. With a growing range of award-winning models — including G70, G80, and G90 sedans, along with GV60, GV70, and GV80 SUVs — Genesis aims to lead the age of electrification, starting with its Electrified G80 and GV60 electric models. Genesis has stated its commitment to becoming an all-electric vehicle brand by 2030 and to pursuing carbon neutrality by 2035.
Please visit our media site for the latest news at www.genesisnewsusa.com (United States) and www.genesisnews.ca (Canada).
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SOURCE Genesis Motor America | https://www.kxii.com/prnewswire/2022/07/21/genesis-gv70-g80-earn-top-marks-jd-power-2022-us-apeal-study/ | 2022-07-21T17:25:35Z |
PITTSBURGH, July 1, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The board of directors of The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE: PNC) declared a quarterly cash dividend on the common stock of $1.50 per share. The dividend will be payable Aug. 5, 2022, to shareholders of record at the close of business July 13, 2022.
The board also declared a cash dividend on the following series of preferred stocks:
- Series B: a quarterly dividend of 45 cents per share, with a payment date of Sept. 10, 2022, will be payable the next business day to shareholders of record at the close of business Aug. 19, 2022.
- Series O: a quarterly dividend of $1,268.58 per share ($12.6858 per each depositary share, 100 of which represent one share of Series O preferred stock) at a quarterly rate of 1.26858% will be payable Aug. 1, 2022, to shareholders of record at the close of business July 13, 2022.
- Series P: a quarterly dividend of $1,368.12 per share ($0.34203 per each depositary share, 4,000 of which represent one share of Series P preferred stock) at a quarterly rate of 1.36812% will be payable Aug. 1, 2022, to shareholders of record at the close of business July 13, 2022.
- Series T: a quarterly dividend of $850.00 per share ($8.50 per each depositary share, 100 of which represent one share of Series T preferred stock) will be payable Sept. 15, 2022, to shareholders of record at the close of business Aug. 31, 2022.
- Series U: a quarterly dividend of $1,816.67 per share ($18.1667 per each depositary share, 100 of which represent one share of Series U preferred stock) will be payable Aug. 15, 2022, to shareholders of record at the close of business Aug. 1, 2022.
The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. is one of the largest diversified financial services institutions in the United States, organized around its customers and communities for strong relationships and local delivery of retail and business banking including a full range of lending products; specialized services for corporations and government entities, including corporate banking, real estate finance and asset-based lending; wealth management and asset management. For information about PNC, visit www.pnc.com.
CONTACTS
MEDIA:
Marcey Zwiebel
(412) 762-4550
media.relations@pnc.com
INVESTORS:
Bryan Gill
(412) 768-4143
investor.relations@pnc.com
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SOURCE PNC Financial Services Group | https://www.kxii.com/prnewswire/2022/07/01/pnc-declares-dividend-150-common-stock/ | 2022-07-01T16:07:45Z |
Best Lawyers in America recognizes Nachawati Law Group founder for national leadership in personal injury litigation
DALLAS, Aug. 18, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Peer lawyers in Texas and the research staff at Best Lawyers in America have selected veteran trial lawyer Majed Nachawati among the nation's best for high-stakes personal injury litigation.
One of oldest peer-review guides in the nation, Best Lawyers compiles its list from surveys of tens of thousands of attorneys nationwide followed by a rigorous vetting by the magazine's research staff.
Under Mr. Nachawati's leadership, Dallas-based Nachawati Law Group has developed a national reputation for representing individuals injured by dangerous and defective products, including cancer-causing chemicals like Monsanto's glyphosate-based Roundup weedkiller, talc-based products including Johnson's Baby Powder, and paraquat-based herbicides.
Mr. Nachawati has been an outspoken voice in these mass torts and multidistrict litigation and many more. He has helped coordinate opposition to a controversial ploy by Johnson & Johnson to shed its liabilities to thousands of women who developed ovarian cancer after using talcum-based products like Johnson's Baby Powder. He currently sits on a committee monitoring the J&J bankruptcy.
Mr. Nachawati also took a stand on behalf of a group of cities and counties in lawsuits against makers, distributors and retailers of highly addictive prescription opioid painkillers. Those efforts resulted in a key appellate ruling earlier this year that allowed plaintiffs to move their lawsuits from federal court back to the state trial courts where they were originally filed. He also led opposition to controversial attempts by Monsanto to settle thousands of Roundup cancer lawsuits.
Earlier this year, Mr. Nachawati was honored by the National Law Journal as a Plaintiffs Trailblazer based on his work in mass torts and multidistrict litigation.
The Nachawati Law Group represents individuals in mass tort litigation, businesses and governmental entities in contingent litigation, and individual victims in complex personal injury litigation. One of the largest and most diverse products liability law firms in the nation, the Nachawati Law Group ranks No. 1 nationally in federal court products liability filings over the past three years, according to Lex Machina. For more information, visit https://www.fnlawfirm.com.
Media Contact:
Robert Tharp
800-559-4534
Robert@androvett.com
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SOURCE Nachawati Law Group | https://www.wibw.com/prnewswire/2022/08/18/veteran-trial-lawyer-majed-nachawati-honored-among-nations-best/ | 2022-08-18T20:19:57Z |
First Quarter Highlights
- Operating income(1) of $117.7 million increased 91.6% from $61.4 million in the prior-year quarter
- Combined ratio of 93.4%; combined ratio, excluding catastrophes(2) of 89.8%
- Net premiums written increase of 9.7%*, with strong growth from each segment
- Rate increases(3) of 6.3% in Core Commercial, 8.4% in Specialty, and 2.7% in Personal Lines
- Renewal price change(3) up 9.7% in Core Commercial, 12.6% in Specialty and 4.3% in Personal Lines
- Catastrophe loss ratio of 3.6%, below the company's first quarter catastrophe assumption by 1.2 points
- Current accident year loss and loss adjustment expense ("LAE") ratio, excluding catastrophes(4), of 59.2%, as continued favorable loss frequency in personal auto and the earning-in of rate increases across commercial lines businesses were offset by the impact of higher property severity in Personal Lines
- Net investment income of $76.9 million, in line with the prior-year quarter, as both periods benefited from similar elevated levels of partnership income
- Book value per share of $79.58, down 10.2% from December 31, 2021, driven by a decrease in the fair value of fixed maturity investments resulting from higher interest rates. Book value per share, excluding net unrealized depreciation on fixed maturity investments, net of tax(5), increased 2.0% from December 31, 2021
WORCESTER, Mass., May 3, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE: THG) today reported net income of $104.8 million, or $2.90 per diluted share, in the first quarter of 2022, compared to $92.7 million, or $2.51 per diluted share, in the prior-year quarter. Operating income was $117.7 million, or $3.26 per diluted share, for the first quarter of 2022. This compared to operating income of $61.4 million, or $1.66 per diluted share, in the prior-year quarter.
"Our strong first quarter results are compelling evidence that our strategic initiatives are delivering across our business," said John C. Roche, president and chief executive officer at The Hanover. "We continued to build on our positive momentum, achieving operating return on equity(6) of 15.7% and record first quarter operating income per diluted share of $3.26. Our distinctive and winning agency strategy demonstrated its effectiveness, leading to profitable growth of 9.7%, with contributions from each of our business segments. We are laser focused on ensuring pricing adequacy across our business in light of heightened inflationary trends. This discipline is reflected in expanded renewal price increases in each of our business segments, with Core Commercial up 9.7%, Specialty up 12.6%, and Personal Lines up 4.3%, and we believe the market continues to react rationally. The Personal Lines market is firming rapidly and favoring carriers that have shown more pricing discipline in the recent past. As we look ahead, we remain on track with our long-term targets for underwriting returns and operating ROE, which will likely be augmented by stronger net investment income. We are focused on driving profitable growth across our portfolio, enabling us to continue to innovate and modernize our business, and create increased value for our shareholders, agents, customers, and other stakeholders."
"We delivered an ex-CAT combined ratio of 89.8%, the eighth sequential quarter of a sub-90s ratio, with broad-based profitability and contributions from all segments," said Jeffrey M. Farber, executive vice president and chief financial officer at The Hanover. "Our focus on driving additional operational efficiencies resulted in a 31.1% expense ratio(7), a 50-basis-point decrease compared to last year's first quarter and solidly in-line with our full year target. Our high-quality diversified investment portfolio generated significant pre-tax net investment income of $77 million, and we look forward to increased fixed income portfolio contributions in a rising interest rate environment. We're confident that our team's talent and commitment to excellence will further propel our robust, profitable growth and earnings improvement, as we execute on our differentiated agency- and customer-focused strategy."
First Quarter Operating Highlights
Core Commercial
Core Commercial operating income before taxes was $67.5 million in the first quarter of 2022, compared to an operating loss of $14.8 million in the first quarter of 2021. The Core Commercial combined ratio was 93.0%, compared to 111.7% in the prior-year quarter. Catastrophe losses in the first quarter of 2022 were $19.7 million, or 4.1 points of the combined ratio. This compares to catastrophe losses of $94.4 million, or 21.7 points, in the prior-year quarter.
First quarter 2022 results included $6.4 million, or 1.3 points, of net favorable prior-year reserve development, driven primarily by continued favorability in workers' compensation. This compared to net favorable prior-year reserve development of $2.7 million, or 0.6 points, in the first quarter of 2021.
Core Commercial current accident year combined ratio, excluding catastrophes, decreased 0.4 points to 90.2% in the first quarter of 2022, from 90.6% in the prior-year quarter. The current accident year loss and LAE ratio, excluding catastrophes, decreased by 0.2 points to 57.4%, as the earning-in of rate increases was partially offset by property large loss experience in commercial multiple peril.
The expense ratio decreased by 0.2 points to 32.8% in the first quarter of 2022, primarily attributable to fixed cost leverage from premium growth.
Net premiums written were $526.6 million in the quarter, up 9.6% from the prior-year quarter, primarily driven by strong growth of 10.3% in small commercial and growth of 8.7% in middle market. Core Commercial average rate increased 6.3% in the first quarter, while renewal price change averaged 9.7%.
The following table summarizes premiums and the components of the combined ratio for Core Commercial:
Specialty
Specialty operating income before taxes was $50.0 million in the first quarter of 2022, compared to $17.0 million in the first quarter of 2021. The Specialty combined ratio was 87.7%, compared to 98.8% in the prior-year quarter. Catastrophe losses in the first quarter of 2022 were $7.6 million, or 2.7 points of the combined ratio. This compares to catastrophe losses of $24.4 million, or 9.5 points, in the prior-year quarter.
First quarter 2022 results included $13.2 million, or 4.7 points, of net favorable prior-year reserve development, with contributions from multiple lines across multiple accident years. This compared to net favorable prior-year reserve development of $0.6 million, or 0.2 points, in the first quarter of 2021.
Specialty current accident year combined ratio, excluding catastrophes, increased 0.2 points to 89.7% in the first quarter of 2022, from 89.5% in the prior-year quarter. The current accident year loss and LAE ratio, excluding catastrophes, increased by 0.7 points to 54.3%, as the benefit from earning-in rate increases was offset by a few large property losses in the company's specialty property and casualty subsegment.
The expense ratio decreased 0.5 points to 35.4% in the first quarter of 2022, primarily attributable to fixed cost leverage from premium growth.
Net premiums written were $302.8 million in the quarter, up 9.4% from the prior-year quarter, driven primarily by rate and exposure increases. Specialty average rate increased 8.4% in the first quarter, while renewal price change averaged 12.6%.
The following table summarizes premiums and the components of the combined ratio for Specialty:
Personal Lines
Personal Lines operating income before taxes was $36.3 million in the first quarter of 2022, compared to $81.8 million in the first quarter of 2021. The Personal Lines combined ratio was 97.1%, compared to 87.0% in the prior-year quarter. Catastrophe losses in the first quarter of 2022 were $18.2 million, or 3.6 points of the combined ratio, compared to $14.5 million, or 3.1 points of the combined ratio, in the prior-year quarter.
First quarter 2022 results included net unfavorable prior-year reserve development of $13.6 million, or 2.7 points, driven by higher severity and longer cycle times in homeowners repair activity, primarily related to fourth quarter 2021 claims, which resulted in an increase of supplemental payments on closed claims. This compares to net favorable prior-year reserve development of $5.2 million, or 1.1 points, in the first quarter of 2021, driven by auto.
Personal Lines current accident year combined ratio, excluding catastrophe losses, increased 5.8 points to 90.8% in the first quarter of 2022, from 85.0% in the prior-year quarter. The current accident year loss and LAE ratio, excluding catastrophes, increased 6.6 points to 63.6%, attributable to increased property severity and, to a lesser extent, lower frequency benefit in auto due to the unusually suppressed level of claims in the first quarter of 2021. Loss frequency in auto remains below pre-pandemic levels. The increase in homeowners property severity in the first quarter of 2022 was partially offset by fewer large fire losses and more benign non-catastrophe weather losses in the quarter, compared to the first quarter of 2021.
The expense ratio decreased by 0.8 points to 27.2% in the first quarter of 2022, primarily attributable to fixed cost leverage from premium growth and lower performance-based agency compensation.
Net premiums written were $482.9 million in the quarter, up 10.1% from the prior-year quarter, driven by higher renewals and new business. Personal Lines renewal price change averaged 4.3% in the first quarter of 2022, while average rate increases were 2.7%.
The following table summarizes premiums and components of the combined ratio for Personal Lines:
Investments
Net investment income was $76.9 million for the first quarter of 2022, in line with the prior-year quarter of $76.8 million, with both periods including a similar level of elevated partnership income. Total pre-tax earned yield on the investment portfolio for the quarter ended March 31, 2022, was 3.52%, down from 3.74% in the prior-year quarter. The average pre-tax earned yield on fixed maturities was 2.95% and 3.11% for the quarters ended March 31, 2022, and 2021, respectively.
Net realized and unrealized investment losses recognized in earnings were $15.9 million in the first quarter of 2022, driven by the change in fair value of equity securities. This compares to net realized and unrealized investment gains recognized in earnings of $37.5 million in the first quarter of 2021.
The company held $9.0 billion in cash and invested assets on March 31, 2022. Fixed maturities and cash represented approximately 85% of the investment portfolio. Approximately 95% of the company's fixed maturity portfolio is rated investment grade. Net unrealized losses on the fixed maturity portfolio as of March 31, 2022, were $262.6 million before taxes, a decrease in fair value of $471.7 million since December 31, 2021, primarily due to higher interest rates. The majority of net unrealized losses on fixed maturities were within the company's higher quality and longer duration investments.
Shareholders' Equity and Capital Actions
On March 31, 2022, book value per share was $79.58, down 10.2% from December 31, 2021, driven by a decrease in the fair value of fixed maturity investments. Book value per share, excluding net unrealized depreciation on fixed maturity investments, net of tax, increased 2.0% from December 31, 2021.
During the quarter, the company repurchased approximately 119,000 shares of common stock in the open market for $16.3 million. Additionally, through May 2, the company repurchased approximately 22,000 shares of common stock in the open market for $3.3 million. The company has approximately $341 million of remaining capacity under its existing share repurchase program.
Earnings Conference Call
The company will host a conference call to discuss its first quarter results on Wednesday, May 4, at 10:00 a.m. E.T. A PowerPoint slide presentation will accompany the prepared remarks and has been posted on The Hanover's website. Interested investors and others can listen to the call and access the presentation through The Hanover's website, located at www.hanover.com in the "Investors" section. Investors may access the conference call by dialing 1-844-413-3975 in the U.S. and 1-412-317-5458 internationally. Webcast participants should go to the website 15 minutes early to register, download and install any necessary audio software. A re-broadcast of the conference call will be available on The Hanover's website approximately two hours after the call.
About The Hanover
The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. is the holding company for several property and casualty insurance companies, which together constitute one of the largest insurance businesses in the United States. The company provides exceptional insurance solutions through a select group of independent agents and brokers. Together with its agent partners, the company offers standard and specialized insurance protection for small and mid-sized businesses, as well as for homes, automobiles, and other personal items. For more information, please visit hanover.com.
Definition of Reported Segments
Continuing operations include four operating segments: Core Commercial, Specialty, Personal Lines and Other. The Core Commercial segment includes commercial multiple peril, commercial automobile, workers' compensation and other commercial lines coverages provided to small and mid-sized businesses. The Specialty segment includes four divisions of business: Professional and Executive Lines, Specialty P&C, Marine, and Surety and Other. Specialty P&C includes coverages such as program business (provides commercial insurance to markets with specialized coverage or risk management needs related to groups of similar businesses), specialty industrial and commercial property, and excess and surplus lines. The Personal Lines segment markets automobile, homeowners and ancillary coverages to individuals and families. The "Other" segment includes Opus Investment Management, Inc., which provides investment management services to institutions, pension funds and other organizations, the operations of the holding company, as well as a block of run-off voluntary property and casualty pools business in which the company has not actively participated since 1995.
Financial Supplement
The Hanover's first quarter news release and financial supplement are available in the "Investors" section of the company's website at hanover.com.
The following is a reconciliation from operating income to net income(8):
Forward-Looking Statements and Non-GAAP Financial Measures
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements in this document and comments made by management may be "forward-looking statements" as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements, other than statements of historical facts, may be forward-looking statements. Words such as, but not limited to, "believes," "anticipates," "expects," "may," "projects," "projections," "plan," "likely," "potential," "targeted," "forecasts," "should," "could," "continue," "outlook," "guidance," "modeling," "moving forward" and other similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements by their nature address matters that are, to different degrees, uncertain. The company cautions investors that any such forward-looking statements are estimates, beliefs, expectations and/or projections that involve significant judgment, and that historical results, trends and forward-looking statements are not guarantees and are not necessarily indicative of future performance. Actual results could differ materially from those anticipated.
These statements include, but are not limited to, the company's statements regarding:
- The company's outlook and its ability to achieve components or the sum of the respective period guidance on its future results of operations including: the combined ratio, excluding or including both prior-year reserve development and/or catastrophe losses; catastrophe losses; net investment income; growth of net premiums written and/or net premiums earned in total or by line of business; expense ratio; operating return on equity; and/or the effective tax rate;
- The continued impacts of the global pandemic ("Pandemic") and related economic conditions on the company's operating and financial results, including, but not limited to, the impact on the company's investment portfolio, changes in claims frequency as a result of fluctuations in economic activity, severity from higher cost of repairs due to, among other things, supply chain disruptions, inflation, declines in premium as a result of, among other things, credits or returns to the company's customers, lower submissions, changes in renewals and policy endorsements, public health guidance, and the impact of government orders and restrictions in the states and jurisdictions in which the company operates;
- Uses of capital for share repurchases, special or ordinary cash dividends, business investments or growth, or otherwise, and outstanding shares in future periods as a result of various share repurchase mechanisms, capital management framework, especially in the current environment, and overall comfort with liquidity and capital levels;
- Variability of catastrophe losses due to risk concentrations, changes in weather patterns including climate change, wildfires, severe storms, hurricanes, terrorism, civil unrest, riots or other events, as well as the complexity in estimating losses from large catastrophe events due to delayed reporting of the existence, nature or extent of losses or where "demand surge," regulatory assessments, litigation, coverage and technical complexities or other factors may significantly impact the ultimate amount of such losses;
- Current accident year losses and loss selections ("picks"), excluding catastrophes, and prior accident year loss reserve development patterns, particularly in complex "longer-tail" liability lines, as well as the inherent variability in short-tail property and non-catastrophe weather losses;
- Changes in frequency and loss severity trends;
- Ability to manage the impact of inflationary pressures, as a result of the Pandemic, global market disruptions, geopolitical events or otherwise, including, but not limited to, supply chain disruptions, labor shortages, and increases in cost of goods, services, and materials;
- The confidence or concern that the current level of reserves is adequate and/or sufficient for future claim payments, whether due to losses that have been incurred but not reported, circumstances that delay the reporting of losses, business complexity, adverse judgments or developments with respect to case reserves, the difficulties and uncertainties inherent in projecting future losses from historical data, changes in replacement and medical costs, as well as complexities related to the Pandemic, including legislative, regulatory or judicial actions that expand the intended scope of coverages, or other factors;
- Characterization of some business as being "more profitable" in light of inherent uncertainty of ultimate losses incurred, especially for "longer-tail" liability businesses;
- Efforts to manage expenses, including the company's long-term expense savings targets, while allocating capital to business investment, which is at management's discretion;
- Risks and uncertainties with respect to our ability to retain profitable policies in force and attract profitable policies and to increase rates commensurate with, or in excess of, loss trends;
- Mix improvement, underwriting initiatives, coverage restrictions and pricing segmentation actions, among others, to grow businesses believed to be more profitable or reduce premiums attributable to products or lines of business believed to be less profitable; balance rate actions and retention; offset long-term and/or short-term loss trends due to increased frequency; increased "social inflation" from a more litigious environment and higher average cost of resolution, increased property replacement costs, and/or social movements;
- The ability to generate growth in targeted segments through new agency appointments; rate increases (as a result of its market position, agency relationships or otherwise), retention improvements or new business; expansion into new geographies; new product introductions; or otherwise; and
- Investment returns and the effect of macro-economic interest rate trends and overall security yields, including the macro-economic impact of the Pandemic, inflationary pressures and corresponding governmental and/or central banking initiatives taken in response thereto, and geopolitical circumstances on new money yields and overall investment returns.
Additional Risks and Uncertainties
Investors are further cautioned and should consider the risks and uncertainties in the company's business that may affect such estimates and future performance that are discussed in the company's most recently filed reports on Form 10-K and Form 10-Q and other documents filed by The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") and that are also available at www.hanover.com under "Investors." These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to:
- The severity, duration and long-term impact related to the Pandemic, including, but not limited to, actual and possible government responses, legislative, regulatory and judicial actions, changes in frequency and severity of claims in Core Commercial, Specialty and/or Personal Lines, impacts to distributors (including agent partners), and the possibility of additional premium adjustments, including credits and returns, for the benefit of insureds;
- Changes in regulatory, legislative, economic, market and political conditions, particularly in response to COVID-19 and the Pandemic (such as legislative or regulatory actions that would retroactively require insurers to cover business interruption or other types of claims irrespective of terms, exclusions or other conditions included in the contractual terms of the policies that would otherwise preclude coverage, mandatory returns and other rate-related actions, as well as presumption legislation in regards to workers' compensation);
- Heightened volatility, fluctuations in interest rates (which have a significant impact on the market value of our investment portfolio and thus our book value), inflationary pressures, default rates and other factors that affect investment returns from the investment portfolio;
- Data security incidents, including, but not limited to, those resulting from a malicious cyber security attack on the company or its business partners and service providers, or intrusions into the company's systems or data sources;
- Adverse claims experience, including those driven by large or increased frequency of catastrophe events (including those related to terrorism, riots and civil unrest), and severe weather;
- The uncertainty in estimating weather-related losses or the long-term impacts of the Pandemic, and the limitations and assumptions used to model other property and casualty losses (particularly with respect to products with longer-tail liability lines, such as casualty and bodily injury claims, or involving emerging issues related to losses incurred as the result of new lines of business, such as cyber or financial institutions coverage, or reinsurance contracts and reinsurance recoverables), leading to potential adverse development of loss and loss adjustment expense reserves;
- Litigation and the possibility of adverse judicial decisions, including those which expand policy coverage beyond its intended scope and/or award "bad faith" or other non-contractual damages, and the impact of "social inflation" affecting judicial awards and settlements;
- The ability to increase or maintain insurance rates in line with anticipated loss costs and/or governmental action, including mandates by state departments of insurance to either raise or lower rates or provide credits or return premium to insureds;
- Investment impairments, which may be affected by, among other things, the company's ability and willingness to hold investment assets until they recover in value, as well as credit and interest rate risk, and general financial and economic conditions;
- Disruption of the independent agency channel, including the impact of competition and consolidation in the industry and among agents and brokers;
- Competition, particularly from competitors who have resource and capability advantages;
- The global macroeconomic environment, including actions taken in response to the Pandemic, inflation, global trade disputes, war, energy market disruptions, equity price risk, and interest rate fluctuations, which, among other things, could result in reductions in market values of fixed maturities and other investments;
- Adverse state and federal regulation, legislative and/or regulatory actions (including recent significant revisions to Michigan's automobile personal injury protection system and related litigation, and various regulations, orders and proposed legislation related to business interruption and workers' compensation coverages, premium grace periods and returns, and rate actions);
- Financial ratings actions, in particular, downgrades to the company's ratings;
- Operational and technology risks and evolving technological and product innovation, including risks created by remote work environments, and the risk of cyber-security attacks on or breaches of the company's systems and/or impacting our outsourcing relationships and third-party operations, or resulting in claim payments (including from products not intended to provide cyber coverage);
- Uncertainties in estimating indemnification liabilities recorded in conjunction with obligations undertaken in connection with the sale of various businesses and discontinued operations; and
- The ability to collect from reinsurers, reinsurance pricing, reinsurance terms and conditions, and the performance of the run-off voluntary property and casualty pools business (including those in the Other segment or in discontinued operations).
Investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date they are made, and should understand the risks and uncertainties inherent in or particular to the company's business. The company does not undertake the responsibility to update or revise such forward-looking statements.
Non-GAAP Financial Measures
As discussed on page 37 of the company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2021, the company uses non-GAAP financial measures as important measures of its operating performance, including operating income, operating income before interest expense and income taxes, operating income per share, and components of the combined ratio, both excluding and/or including, catastrophe losses, prior-year reserve development and the expense ratio. Management believes these non-GAAP financial measures are important indications of the company's operating performance. The definition of other non-GAAP financial measures and terms can be found in the 2021 Annual Report on pages 63-66.
Operating income and operating income per share are non-GAAP measures. They are defined as net income excluding the after-tax impact of net realized and unrealized investment gains (losses), gains and/or losses on the repayment of debt, other non-operating items, and results from discontinued operations. Net realized and unrealized investment gains (losses), which include changes in the fair value of equity securities still held, are excluded for purposes of presenting operating income, as they are, to a certain extent, determined by interest rates, financial markets and the timing of sales. Operating income also excludes net gains and losses from disposals of businesses, gains and losses related to the repayment of debt, costs to acquire businesses, restructuring costs, the cumulative effect of accounting changes, and certain other items. Operating income is the sum of the segment income from: Core Commercial, Specialty, Personal Lines, and Other, after interest expense and income taxes. In reference to one of the company's four segments, "operating income" is the segment income before both interest expense and income taxes. The company also uses "operating income per share" (which is after both interest expense and income taxes). It is calculated by dividing operating income by the weighted average number of diluted shares of common stock. The company believes that metrics of operating income and operating income in relation to its four segments provide investors with a valuable measure of the performance of the company's continuing businesses because they highlight the portion of net income attributable to the core operations of the business. Income from continuing operations is the most directly comparable GAAP measure for operating income (and operating income before income taxes) and measures of operating income that exclude the effects of catastrophe losses and/or reserve development should not be misconstrued as substitutes for income from continuing operations or net income determined in accordance with GAAP. A reconciliation of operating income (loss) to income from continuing operations and net income for the relevant periods is included on page 10 of this news release and in the Financial Supplement.
Operating return on equity ("ROE") is a non-GAAP measure. See end note (6) for a detailed explanation of how this measure is calculated. Operating ROE is based on non-GAAP operating income. In addition, the portion of shareholder equity attributed to unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on fixed maturity investments, net of tax, is excluded. The company believes this measure is helpful in that it provides insight to the capital used by, and results of, the continuing business exclusive of interest expense, income taxes, and other non-operating items. These measures should not be misconstrued as substitutes for GAAP ROE, which is based on net income and shareholders' equity of the entire company and without adjustments.
The company may also provide measures of operating income and combined ratios that exclude the impact of catastrophe losses (which in all respects include prior accident year catastrophe loss development). A catastrophe is a severe loss, resulting from natural or manmade events, including, but is not limited to, hurricanes, tornadoes, windstorms, earthquakes, hail, severe winter weather, freeze events, fire, explosions, civil unrest and terrorism. Due to the unique characteristics of each catastrophe loss, there is an inherent inability to reasonably estimate the timing or loss amount in advance. The company believes a separate discussion excluding the effects of catastrophe losses is meaningful to understand the underlying trends and variability of earnings, loss and combined ratio results, among others.
Prior accident year reserve development, which can either be favorable or unfavorable, represents changes in the company's estimate of costs related to claims from prior years. Calendar year loss and loss adjustment expense ("LAE") ratios determined in accordance with GAAP, excluding prior accident year reserve development, are sometimes referred to as "current accident year loss ratios." The company believes a discussion of loss and combined ratios, excluding prior accident year reserve development, is helpful since it provides insight into both estimates of current accident year results and the accuracy of prior-year estimates.
The loss and combined ratios in accordance with GAAP are the most directly comparable GAAP measures for the loss and combined ratios calculated excluding the effects of catastrophe losses and/or reserve development. The presentation of loss and combined ratios calculated excluding the effects of catastrophe losses and/or reserve development should not be misconstrued as substitutes for the loss and/or combined ratios determined in accordance with GAAP.
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SOURCE The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. | https://www.wibw.com/prnewswire/2022/05/03/hanover-reports-strong-first-quarter-net-income-operating-income-290-326-per-diluted-share-respectively-net-operating-return-equity-140-157-respectively/ | 2022-05-03T21:06:45Z |
DALLAS (KDAF) — Everyone has that childhood memory of trying a root beer float for the first time. This delicious drink/dessert is the perfect combination of sweet and savory.
In celebration of this delectable drink, Saturday, Aug. 6 is National Root Beer Float Day, “It’s National Root Beer Float Day, after all — a time to enjoy one of the best beverage/dessert combos on the planet, as stated on NationalToday.com.
If you want to get in on all the fun, here are the best places to get a Root Beer Float in Dallas according to Foursquare:
- Dairy-ette
- American Girl Dallas
- Grub Burger Bar
- Lucky’s Cafe
- The Mermaid Bar at Neiman Marcus
- Coolhaus
- Mama’s Daughters’ Diner
- Hunky’s
- Neuhaus Cafe
- J Macklin’s Grill
- Pocket Sandwich Theatre
For more suggestions, visit Foursquare. | https://cw33.com/news/local/these-are-the-best-places-to-get-a-root-beer-float-in-dallas-according-to-foursquare/ | 2022-08-06T18:25:13Z |
BERLIN, Germany, June 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Following a successful tree-planting event in June's Journey®, the #1 highest grossing hidden object game worldwide* from Playtika® studio and mobile games developer Wooga®, Wooga has committed to plant 200,000 trees in 2022. This is a result of June's Journey's participation in the 2022 Green Game Jam, a vital player-driven initiative to highlight the important role we can all play in protecting the world we live in. This is the second year in a row that Wooga has joined the Green Game Jam, this year committing to plant 8 times more trees versus 2021 as Wooga decided to significantly scale up the initiative following last year's success when June's Journey players succeeded to reach the targeted number of planted trees within a mere 90 minutes.
Between 5th-6th June, Wooga, in collaboration with search engine Ecosia and as part of this year's Green Game Jam, saw trees planted virtually via June's Journey player contributions. The popular free-to-play mobile game offered players the opportunity to re-forest in-game while collectively promoting direct climate action and planting trees in locations across the globe where they are needed most. Ecosia, tasked with coordinating the tree-planting in the real world, supports over 60 tree planting projects across more than 30 countries worldwide, prioritizing biodiversity hotspots - areas with a particularly large number of rare species.
The Green Game Jam is an initiative from the Playing for the Planet Alliance which is facilitated by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP). It aims to leverage participants' player bases to inspire people to learn and act in support of the environment through green activations in games. The 2022 Jam themes are Food, Forests and our Future and the collective goal amongst participating gaming studios is to shift one million players' food choices for the environment and plant and protect one million trees. This year saw the largest edition of the Green Game Jam to date, featuring roughly 40 studios worldwide.
Nai Chang, Managing Director at Wooga, said: "Given the overwhelming enthusiasm and passion demonstrated by our players during our 2021 Green Game Jam initiative it was clear to us that in 2022 we can and should aim much higher. We are over the moon that we managed to 8X the number of trees to be planted this year! This fits our belief at Wooga in the importance of creating awareness of, and taking action against, climate change; the least we all ought to do as individuals, consumers and responsible businesses."
Sam Barratt, Chief of Youth, Education and Advocacy in UNEP's Ecosystems Division, said: "It's great to see Wooga's growing contribution to restoring landscapes as a result of the Green Game Jam. We look forward to seeing what more Wooga can do to restore landscapes through the power of play in the coming years."
Jon Marks, Head of Business Development at Ecosia, said: "We're delighted to provide a simple way for June's Journey players to be climate active as they come together for the Green Game Jam. Partnering with conscious companies like Wooga enables us to continue to fund and protect reforestation in biodiversity projects around the world to future-proof our planet."
Alongside this year's tree-planting event, Wooga continues to create awareness for this year's Green Game Jam with activities on its social media, is conducting pre- and post-campaign surveys to better understand players' opinions towards green activations in games and invites the player community to participate in a forest-themed quiz with a chance to win exciting in-game bonuses.
This follows the successful participation of Wooga in the Green Game Jam last year which saw real-world trees planted for the purchase of in-game tree decorations at June's Journey up to 25,000 trees - this Wooga initiative received the 2021 'Player's Choice' award. This was in addition to Wooga's in-game fundraising campaign organized with TreeSisters on Earth Day 2021 when ~116,000 trees were planted as part of the charity campaign Root to Rise.
Wooga has been building its corporate social sustainability (CSR) efforts in recent years, becoming a carbon neutral mobile games developer since 2020 and increasingly promoting eco-friendly and climate-active messaging across its games while implementing small yet meaningful acts across at its Berlin-based studio such as stopping the use of bottled water and switching to entirely green energy.
June's Journey is available to download for free on the App Store and Google Play.
* Between January 2020 and April 2022, June's Journey was #1 by Consumer Spend within the Hidden Object (Puzzle) Subgenre across Worldwide iOS & Google Play, according to Data.ai.
About Wooga®
Wooga GmbH, the Berlin-based mobile games developer established in 2009, has created successful and unique mobile app games including June's Journey, Pearl's Peril® and Switchcraft®. In 2018, Wooga was acquired by social games company Playtika.
About June's Journey®
June's Journey invites players to relax with a story of romance, intrigue, and mystery in a glamorous hidden object game straight from the roaring 20s. Players have the opportunity to step into the role of amateur detective June Parker and set out on a journey and escape to a bygone age as they search for hidden object clues, from the parlors of New York to the sidewalks of Paris.
About Playtika®
Playtika Holding Corp. (NASDAQ: PLTK) is a mobile gaming entertainment and technology market leader with a portfolio of multiple game titles. Founded in 2010, Playtika was among the first to offer free-to-play social games on social networks and, shortly after, on mobile platforms. Headquartered in Herzliya, Israel, and guided by a mission to entertain the world through infinite ways to play, Playtika has offices worldwide and employs over 4,000 employees.
About Green Game Jam
The first Green Game Jam was born out of the gaming industry's commitments at the 2019 Climate Action Summit, after which many of the members of the Playing for the Planet Alliance wanted to do more to leverage the power of gaming. The Playing for the Planet Alliance was created to support the video gaming industry to achieve the following core objectives: 1. To rally the industry to reduce its carbon footprint and to ensure it has the tools to measure, reduce, and set targets to decarbonise. 2. To inspire environmental action through green activations in games. 3. To share the learnings of the initiative so that others in the industry can follow suit. 4. To explore new strategies for the future around new games and approaches to storytelling.
About Ecosia
Ecosia is the search engine that plants trees, planting in 30+ countries with local organizations. Ecosia restores and protects biodiversity hotspots and, instead of monocultures, it grows over 500 different native species where they are needed most – always shoulder-to-shoulder with local communities.
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SOURCE Playtika | https://www.kxii.com/prnewswire/2022/06/13/gamers-fighting-climate-change-wooga-commits-plant-200000-trees-following-successful-in-game-tree-planting-event-with-junes-journey-players/ | 2022-06-13T13:58:42Z |
Drawing nears for $1.1 billion Mega Millions jackpot
Published: Jul. 28, 2022 at 11:14 PM CDT|Updated: 1 hour ago
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A $1.1 billion lottery prize will be on the line as numbers are drawn for the Mega Millions game.
The giant jackpot is the nation’s third-largest prize and is the result of 29 consecutive drawings without anyone matching all of the game’s six numbers.
Before rushing out to spend $2 on a ticket ahead of Friday night’s drawing, keep in mind that the odds of winning the Mega Millions jackpot are a staggering 1 in 302.5 million.
The $1.1 billion prize is for players who get their winnings through an annuity, paid annually over 29 years. Nearly all winners take the cash option, which for Friday’s drawing is an estimated $648.2 million.
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. | https://www.kxii.com/2022/07/29/drawing-nears-11-billion-mega-millions-jackpot/ | 2022-07-29T05:34:42Z |
BURLINGTON, Mass. and FRISCO, Texas, July 7, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Keurig Dr Pepper Inc. (NASDAQ: KDP) will release its financial results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2022 before the market opens on Thursday, July 28, 2022. The Company will also host a conference call on Thursday, July 28, 2022 at 8:00 AM (ET) to discuss the results with members of the investment community.
Investors and analysts may access the call by dialing (877) 270-2148 within the United States or Canada and (412) 902-6510 internationally and referencing the Keurig Dr Pepper call. A replay of the call will be available, beginning July 28, 2022 at approximately 11:00 AM (ET) until August 11, 2022, by dialing (877) 344-7529 or (412) 317-0088 and referencing the conference ID: 4242636.
Access to a live audio webcast and replay of the event will be available in the Investors section of the Company's corporate website, www.keurigdrpepper.com.
Investors:
Steve Alexander
Keurig Dr Pepper
T: 972-673-6769 / steve.alexander@kdrp.com
Chethan Mallela
Keurig Dr Pepper
chethan.mallela@kdrp.com
Media:
Katie Gilroy
Keurig Dr Pepper
T: 781-418-3345 / katie.gilroy@kdrp.com
ABOUT KEURIG DR PEPPER
Keurig Dr Pepper (KDP) is a leading beverage company in North America, with annual revenue approaching $13 billion and approximately 27,000 employees. KDP holds leadership positions in soft drinks, specialty coffee and tea, water, juice and juice drinks and mixers, and markets the #1 single serve coffee brewing system in the U.S. and Canada. The Company's portfolio of more than 125 owned, licensed and partner brands is designed to satisfy virtually any consumer need, any time, and includes Keurig®, Dr Pepper®, Green Mountain Coffee Roasters®, Canada Dry®, Snapple®, Bai®, Mott's®, CORE® and The Original Donut Shop®. Through its powerful sales and distribution network, KDP can deliver its portfolio of hot and cold beverages to nearly every point of purchase for consumers. The Company is committed to sourcing, producing and distributing its beverages responsibly through its Drink Well. Do Good. corporate responsibility platform, including efforts around circular packaging, efficient natural resource use and supply chain sustainability. For more information, visit www.keurigdrpepper.com.
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SOURCE Keurig Dr Pepper Inc. | https://www.kxii.com/prnewswire/2022/07/07/keurig-dr-pepper-report-second-quarter-2022-results-host-conference-call/ | 2022-07-07T21:32:13Z |
Pollution caused one in six deaths worldwide in 2019, a new study has revealed -- more than the annual global tolls for war, malaria, HIV, tuberculosis, drugs or alcohol.
The study, published Tuesday by the Lancet Commission on pollution and health, found pollution kills 9 million people every year -- nearly three quarters of them due to harmful air.
According to the study, deaths caused by air pollution and toxic chemical pollution increased by 66% over the past two decades, fueled by uncontrolled urbanization, population growth and a dependence on fossil fuels.
"The health impacts of pollution remain enormous, and low- and middle-income countries bear the brunt of this burden," said Richard Fuller, the study's lead author. "Despite its enormous health, social and economic impacts, pollution prevention is largely overlooked in the international development agenda."
After air pollution, water pollution was the next most fatal threat, causing 1.36 million premature deaths in 2019. Lead pollution was next, followed by "toxic occupational hazards."
The study builds on a 2015 report by the same commission, drawing on data from the Global Burden of Disease Study, an international collaborative effort based at the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation.
In the four years between, the deadly impact pollution has on the world did not improve -- making it the largest environmental risk factor for diseases and premature deaths, the study said. It added that an "absence of adequate national or international chemical policy" has exacerbated the deaths.
More than 90% of the deaths occurred in low- and middle-income countries unable to make pollution a priority, such as India and Nigeria, according to the study. High-income countries, meanwhile, had controlled the "worst forms of pollution," the study said.
"It is clear that pollution is a planetary threat, and that its drivers, dispersion, and health impacts transcend local boundaries and demand a global response," said Rachael Kupka, co-author and executive director of the Global Alliance on Health and Pollution.
"Global action on all major modern pollutants is needed."
India tops the list
India recorded the largest number of air pollution-related deaths in 2019, with more than 1.6 million people killed in the nation of 1.3 billion, according to the study.
Pollution levels in nearly all of India are far above World Health Organization guidelines, it added, forcing millions to breathe toxic air every day.
Last year, six of the world's 10 most polluted cities were in India, according to monitoring network IQAir. Bad air could be reducing the life expectancy of hundreds of millions of Indians by as much as nine years, according to a recent study by the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago.
In 2019, the Indian government announced a national clean air campaign, with an aim to reduce particulate pollution by up to 30% by 2024. Specific plans were created for each city; in the capital, Delhi, those plans included measures to reduce road traffic, burn-offs and road dust, and to encourage the use of cleaner fuels.
But in the past few years, India's pollution problem has worsened, partly due to the country's dependency on fossil fuels -- and in particular, coal. At last year's COP26 climate summit in Glasgow, India was among a group of countries that pushed for an 11th-hour amendment to the agreement to phase "down" coal rather than phase it "out".
Meanwhile, Africa saw a decline in deaths from traditional pollution such as unsafe water or poor sanitation practices, the study said -- largely due to improvements in sanitation, water quality and antibiotics. However, the number of air pollution deaths is starting to rise, with economic growth prompting greater urbanization in many African countries.
The Lancet committee urged action with eight recommendations, including increased government funding for pollution control, better pollution data collection, and an independent global body overseeing pollution similar to the United Nations' Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2022 Cable News Network, Inc., a WarnerMedia Company. All rights reserved. | https://www.albanyherald.com/news/one-in-six-killed-by-pollution-worldwide-study-finds/article_f41c8390-f3ea-5730-8f35-2d541d37565b.html | 2022-05-18T09:31:54Z |
– With the strategic investment, Yanolja Cloud expands its hospitality solution lineup on the global front to cover the full-service hotel segment ranging from mid-sized hotels to large global chains
– Yanolja Cloud aims to lead the digitalization of the global hospitality and travel industry with its SaaS technology and diversified product lineup
SEOUL, South Korea, May 3, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The AI-based SaaS (Software-as-a-service) company, Yanolja Cloud (CEO Jongyoon Kim) strategically invested in InnKey Infosystems Pvt. Ltd. (CEO Viral Shah, hereinafter InnKey), a provider of cloud-based enterprise PMS platform for premium hotels and chains, to accelerate its global hospitality solution business.
InnKey, started in 2013 and headquartered in India, is a provider of a widely used hospitality technology solution. It currently provides its integrated cloud-based PMS platform to many full-service hotels and chains both in India and abroad. With its cutting-edge cloud technology, extensive breadth of features, and attractive market pricing, InnKey is helping many large hotels and chains to simplify their operations, increase revenues, maximize profits, and deliver an exceptional guest experience. Thanks to its strong domain knowledge, InnKey provides tremendous value to all its clients ranging from a 50-room independent boutique hotel to a 500-room luxury global hotel chain.
Yanolja Cloud decided to strategically invest in InnKey with a right to acquire to enhance and complement its global SaaS solutions business, leveraging and maximizing the value and synergies among its group affiliates, including eZee Technosys and ZEN Hospitality Solutions. Yanolja Cloud, together with its subsidiaries, is offering hospitality management solutions to more than 43,000 clients in over 170 global markets in 60 languages. It has also expanded its business vertical for its solutions business not only catering to the travel industry, but also to leisure, and residential-based spaces based on the robust scalability of its cloud and AI technology.
InnKey's integrated cloud-based PMS platform brings everyone in the hotel together, from reservations all the way to financial accounting, which allows for information to flow seamlessly through various departments for business analysis and effective use. Everything can be accessed anytime, anywhere – there is no need for any additional hardware or servers, eliminating costs and unnecessary hassles. By replacing multiple on-premise and disparate systems with one integrated cloud platform, InnKey helps hotels deliver an exceptional guest experience. Hotel chains can bring all their hotels on a single platform and can take advantage of centralized operations and real-time data consolidation, making InnKey a perfect fit for any hotel or chain looking for a one-stop solution.
With this investment, Yanolja Cloud will further enhance its hotel solutions lineup, especially for the premium segment of hotels in the global arena. Based on Yanolja Cloud's expertise, InnKey will further evolve into a one-stop platform offering a full range of hotel management solutions beyond the integrated PMS, creating and delivering new value and choice to the global hospitality industry, truly assisting hotels to be worry-free, focus on connecting with their guests, and delivering a personalized guest experience that today's guests deserve.
"At InnKey, our vision has always been to disrupt the way large hotels and chains have operated globally. With InnKey's product expertise and Yanolja Cloud's global reach and ecosystem, we will be focusing on further enhancing our cloud platform and expand globally as we look to transform the global hospitality industry," said Viral Shah, co-founder and CEO of InnKey.
"We decided to invest in InnKey with a path to acquisition based on their deep domain knowledge, a robust product, and a passionate management team, which we saw as the key formula in expanding and accelerating the business opportunity with an enhanced solutions lineup catering to all types of hotels," said Andrew Kim, Director of Global Solutions Business at Yanolja Cloud. "With constant research and development in SaaS technology at Yanolja Cloud, we will continue to grow our global solution business and lead the digital transformation of the global hospitality and travel industry."
About Yanolja Cloud
As an AI-based global SaaS (Software-as-a-service) company, Yanolja Cloud leads the digitalization of various spaces such as accommodations, leisure, F&B, and residences. Based on the advantages of SaaS with installation and operation efficiency, the range of solutions has been expanded, and the solution is currently being provided in more than 60 languages to 43,000 hotel customers in 170 countries around the world. Through innovative technologies such as AI, IoT, and blockchain and partnerships with global leading companies, Yanolja Cloud is building a cloud solution ecosystem that meets the needs of all partners, reservation channels, and customers.
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SOURCE Yanolja Cloud | https://www.kxii.com/prnewswire/2022/05/04/yanolja-cloud-invests-innkey-an-enterprise-grade-pms-platform-premium-hotels-accelerate-its-global-hospitality-solution-business/ | 2022-05-04T06:25:11Z |
Court: California’s under-21 gun sales ban unconstitutional
LOS ANGELES (AP) — A U.S. appeals court ruled Wednesday that California’s ban on the sale of semiautomatic weapons to adults under 21 is unconstitutional.
In a 2-1 ruling, a panel of the San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said Wednesday the law violates the 2nd Amendment right to bear arms and a San Diego judge should have blocked what it called “an almost total ban on semiautomatic centerfire rifles” for young adults.
“America would not exist without the heroism of the young adults who fought and died in our revolutionary army,” Judge Ryan Nelson wrote. “Today we reaffirm that our Constitution still protects the right that enabled their sacrifice: the right of young adults to keep and bear arms.”
The Firearms Policy Coalition, which brought the case, says the ruling makes them optimistic other age-based gun bans will be overturned.
Attorney General Rob Bonta did not immediately comment.
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. | https://www.kxii.com/2022/05/11/court-californias-under-21-gun-sales-ban-unconstitutional/ | 2022-05-11T21:35:15Z |
‘Guardian angel’: Family thanks officer who saved their dad ‘s life with CPR
OMAHA, Neb. (WOWT/Gray News) - An Omaha family met the man they call their guardian angel after a near-fatal incident happened in a Subway restaurant.
WOWT reports the situation started with a trip to an area Walmart on May 6 for Michael Freeman.
“I really don’t remember the trip to Walmart, but my wife said I called her and asked if she wanted something from Subway,” Michael Freeman said.
Moments later, Freeman went into cardiac arrest.
“The next thing I remember was waking up in the emergency room,” Michael Freeman said.
Just feet away from him was off-duty Omaha police officer Keith Lampert, and the 17-year police veteran rushed to help.
“I saw Mike was laying on the ground, arms out, stretched looking at the ceiling,” Lampert said. “We went right into CPR and gave him chest compressions. He came back and started breathing slowly.”
Freeman was rushed to a nearby hospital in rough shape but alive, and after days of treatment, he was able to return home.
On Wednesday, the two men had an emotional reunion. The Freeman family embraced the officer who gave them more time with their dad.
Freeman’s son, Marlon, said in a time when you hear so much about race relations and police, the near-tragedy comes with an important reminder for the entire community.
“I feel like there’s a lot of officers out there just doing their jobs who are really genuinely good people,” Marlon Freeman said.
The Freeman family said they have a forever bond with the officer they call their guardian angel.
“When we greeted, we shook hands, and when I got up, I realized shaking hands wasn’t enough. I wanted to give him a hug,” Michael Freeman said.
Michael Freeman’s recovery continues, and his family said he is scheduled to undergo surgery in the coming weeks to unclog an artery.
Copyright 2022 WOWT Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved. | https://www.mysuncoast.com/2022/05/14/guardian-angel-family-thanks-officer-who-saved-their-dad-s-life-with-cpr/ | 2022-05-14T21:36:55Z |
Annual golf tournament to benefit Stormont Vail’s Simulation Lab
TOPEKA, Kan. (WIBW) - The 22nd annual Big Hearts Golf Tournament hosted by the Stormont Vail Foundation is scheduled for Monday, September 19, at the Topeka Country Club.
Stormont Vail says that the tournament will have an 8 a.m. morning flight and a 1 p.m. afternoon flight. The event will also feature a dinner and awards ceremony after the tournament.
More than $230,000 in sponsorships, gifts, and registrations has already been raised by tournament, according to Stormont. The proceeds made from the tournament will go to benefit the relocation and expansion of Stormont Vail Health’s Simulation Lab.
Stormont says that, so far, 234 players are registered to join this year.
The Simulation Lab was created for physicians and team members to learn about the latest surgical techniques and state of the art technology to prepare them for a real emergency and ensure that patients receive exceptional care.
“Our tournament sponsors and friends recognize the vital importance of our Simulation Lab training and have responded generously,” said Tina Long, Stormont Vail Foundation Development Officer. “Thanks to their support, we will be able to bring this valuable training tool to more providers and team members, which will transfer to the high-quality care our patients receive in and around our region for decades to come.”
According to Stormont Vail, each member has logged around 26,000 hours to train for its patients.
If you would like to learn more about the Stormont Vail Foundation, the Big Hearts Tournament, or how you make a difference, click HERE.
Copyright 2022 WIBW. All rights reserved. | https://www.wibw.com/2022/09/15/annual-golf-tournament-benefit-stormont-vails-simulation-lab/ | 2022-09-16T00:07:48Z |
Sony Bluetooth headphones
A solid pair of headphones improves any audio listening experience, whether it is music during a workout, a podcast on a commute or even a videoconference during work. This is especially true for Bluetooth-connected headphones, which offer more versatility and portability without the cumbersome nature of a wire. Sony is a significant name in electronics that has several different Bluetooth headphones available. However, knowing which pair from Sony is best for any specific set of needs can be difficult.
Sony Bluetooth headphones features to consider
Before buying a pair of headphones, knowing what features are important to you can make a big difference.
Earbuds or on/over-ear headphones
The first choice any user has to make is what type of headphones to buy. On and over-ear headphones provide superior audio quality and have a longer battery life than wireless earbuds. On or over-ear headphones usually possess better noise-canceling. Earbuds are more portable and are typically less expensive than their counterparts.
Noise cancellation
Sony has several different pairs of headphones that come equipped with noise-cancellation technology. For loud environments, noise-cancellation can help a user focus on just the audio coming from the headphones. Some headphones come equipped with multiple levels of noise-canceling to tailor to any volume or place perfectly.
Audio quality
One of the most critical factors for any pair of headphones is the audio quality. While nearly all products on the Sony line have high-quality audio, some of the more expensive headphones have a superior sound. On and over-ear headphones generally have better overall sound quality.
Battery life
For wireless headphones, one of the most significant factors to consider is the battery life. Battery life for earbuds tends to be short, with most pairs having anywhere between 4-8 hours on a single charge. However, many earbuds come with portable charging cases for a quick charge on the go. On and over-ear headphones usually have longer battery lives, with an average pair providing 8 hours on the lower end and over 30 hours on the high end.
Comfort and durability
The comfort of a pair of headphones can significantly impact users who will be wearing them for extended periods. Some headphones have specialized ear cups or uniquely designed earbuds that contour to the user. Durability is also an essential factor, especially for active users.
The best Sony Bluetooth headphones
Best of the best Sony Bluetooth earbuds
Sony WF-1000XM4 Noise Canceling Wireless Earbud Headphones
What you need to know: One of the best pairs of wireless earbuds on the market, it has top-of-the-line sound quality and noise-canceling technology.
What you’ll love: These have 8 hours of battery life and an additional 16 hours of battery in the portable carrying case. The earbuds are also water and sweat-resistant for active use.
What you should consider: The earbuds do not contour the user’s ears which can be uncomfortable after extended wear.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Best bang for your buck Sony Bluetooth earbuds
Sony WI-C310 Wireless in-Ear Headset/Headphones
What you need to know: These are affordable headphones with up to 15 hours of battery life for a full day of listening.
What you’ll love: The built-in microphone and touch controls make these earbuds great for hands-free use without having to use the connected device.
What you should consider: The headphones have a lower quality build making them less durable to water and sweat.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon and Dell
Honorable mentions
Sony WF-1000XM3 Noise Canceling Truly Wireless Earbuds
What you need to know: These high-quality earbuds have noise-canceling technology and multiple ear tip sizes to fit perfectly with every user.
What you’ll love: The rapid charging feature allows for users to gain 90 additional minutes of listening in just 10 minutes.
What you should consider: Even at a full charge, the earbuds only offer 7 hours of playtime. The microphone also lacks clarity.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon and Dell
Best of the best Sony Bluetooth on/over-ear headphones
Sony WH-1000XM4 Wireless Noise-Cancelling Over-the-Ear Headphones
What you need to know: One of the most well-rounded headphones on the market is equipped with solid noise-canceling technology and excellent sound quality.
What you’ll love: Equipped with 30-hour battery life, these earbuds have a rapid charge that provides users with an additional five hours of battery life in just 10 minutes.
What you should consider: The built-in microphone has poor quality, with some users reporting muffled voices and loud background noises.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon and Dell
Best bang for your buck Sony Bluetooth on/over-ear headphones
Sony Wireless Headphones WH-CH510
What you need to know: Affordable and comfortable headphones, these headphones boast solid audio quality and strong noise reduction technology.
What you’ll love: They have an impressive 35 hours of battery life on a single charge, as well as a swivel design for better portability and storage.
What you should consider: The headphones lack durability with no water resistance and a slightly cheaper outer shell meaning the devices are far more susceptible to damage.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Honorable mentions
Sony WHXB700 Wireless Extra Bass Bluetooth Headset/Headphones
What you need to know: A solid pair of headphones with 30 hours of battery life and a built-in microphone for taking calls seamlessly.
What you’ll love: The headphones have an impressive amount of bass, which greatly enhances music listening, especially for techno and electronic music enthusiasts.
What you should consider: Some users report connection issues with certain video conferencing apps and susceptibility to damage from dropping or other physical impacts. The headphones also sacrifice other portions of its audio quality for an emphasis on bass.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
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Copyright 2022 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved. | https://cw33.com/reviews/br/electronics-br/headphones-br/best-sony-bluetooth-headphones/ | 2022-07-15T19:03:50Z |
(The Hill) – A French scientist apologized for a joke he posted on Twitter, in which he claimed a photo of a chorizo was that of a star.
Etienne Klein, who is the research director of the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission, posted a photo last week that he claimed was of Proxima Centauri, the closest star to the sun, taken by the James Webb Space Telescope.
The telescope sent back its first full-color image showing the deepest view of the universe ever seen last month, after reaching its destination almost 1 million miles from Earth earlier this year.
Klein pointed to the level of detail in the image he posted and said that a “new world” is being revealed.
But he commented on his post about an hour later to reveal the joke, saying that modern cosmology states that no object from “Spanish charcuterie” exists outside of Earth.
After receiving some comments critical of the joke, Klein commented that it was meant for amusement.
“Let us learn to be wary of arguments from authority as much as of the spontaneous eloquence of certain images,” he said.
On Wednesday, Klein posted a real image of a few galaxies located 500 million light years away that the telescope took. He also apologized for the joke, saying he wanted to urge caution about images that appear to speak for themselves. | https://cw33.com/news/nexstar-media-wire/french-scientist-admits-to-joke-tweeting-picture-of-chorizo-not-space-telescope-image/ | 2022-08-05T21:54:58Z |
Hot afternoon “feels like” temperatures this afternoon before a few storms build
SARASOTA, Fla. (WWSB) - High pressure will continue to bring a warm east wind today and prevent only but a few late-day storms.
The storms that do punch through the relatively stable atmosphere will have a small potential to become severe thunderstorms, with hail and gusty winds as the main hazard. The storms will develop late in day, which will be too late to prevent the feels-like temperatures from reaching 102 to 104 today.
Stay hydrated and take breaks if you have to be outside working in the heat of the day.
Expect generally west-moving storms that build inland and then fall apart as they move into the Gulf waters by sunset.
Tomorrow the rain chances will also be slightly higher than what we have seen over the last few days. We will then end the week with high pressure expanding and lowering rain chances. Another disturbance, in the form of a back-door cold front, will increase rain chances for Sunday and Monday.
Copyright 2022 WWSB. All rights reserved. | https://www.mysuncoast.com/2022/06/15/hot-afternoon-feels-like-temperatures-this-afternoon-before-few-storms-build/ | 2022-06-15T11:57:57Z |
Two detained as search warrant served at Topeka cannabis shop on 4/20
TOPEKA, Kan. (WIBW) - 13 NEWS is on the scene of an active search warrant at a local CBD shop.
Deputies with the Shawnee County Sheriff’s Office served a search warrant at a CBD shop in the area of 29th and Oakley on Tuesday afternoon, April 20.
Officers on the scene told 13 NEWS the business is called the Guardian MMJ Recreational Cannabis Dispensary.
Officers said they were unable to disclose what the search warrant was for.
A man and woman were seen taken in handcuffs from the shop, however, police have not released any more information as this is an ongoing investigation.
The shop’s website states that it sells THC products, all of which are currently illegal in Kansas.
This is an ongoing investigation, more information will be as it becomes available.
Copyright 2022 WIBW. All rights reserved. | https://www.wibw.com/2022/04/20/one-arrested-search-warrant-served-topeka-cannabis-shop-420/ | 2022-04-20T18:14:33Z |
AZOUR, Israel, May 24, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Ituran Location and Control Ltd. (NASDAQ: ITRN) announced that the Board of Directors approved the distribution of a cash dividend in the amount of $0.14 per share, totaling approximately US$3 million. The dividend will be paid to shareholders of record as of June 29, 2022. The Company will pay the dividend out on July 14, 2022 net of taxes at the rate of 25%.
In its decision to approve the distribution of the cash dividend, the Board of Directors examined whether the Company meets the distribution criteria according to Israeli law. The Board of Directors concluded that the abovementioned distribution will not undermine the Company's ability to keep performing in its current course of business or future plans, and is able to meet its undertakings when due.
Retained earnings as of March 31, 2022, prior to the distribution was US$149.1 million and retained earnings will reach US$146.1 million after the distribution. The Board of Directors emphasized that as of March 31, 2022, the Company had a cash balance in hand of US$43.3 million (this amount is prior to the payment of a dividend of US$3 million which was issued for the fourth quarter 2021 and was paid out in April 2022). The Company also had long-term loan of US$8.6 million and credit from banking institutions of US$17.9 million. As of March 31, 2022, the Company's current assets (excluding cash and cash equivalents) were in the sum of US$126.3 million and current liabilities were in the sum of US$105.3 million.
About Ituran
Ituran is a leader in the emerging mobility technology field, providing value-added location-based services, including a full suite of services for the connected-car. Ituran offers Stolen Vehicle Recovery, fleet management as well as mobile asset location, management & control services for vehicles, cargo and personal security for the retail, insurance industry and car manufacturers. Ituran is the largest OEM telematics provider in Latin America. Its products and applications are used by customers in over 20 countries. Ituran is also the founder of the Tel-Aviv based DRIVE startup incubator to promote the development of smart mobility technology.
Ituran's subscriber base has been growing significantly since the Company's inception to approaching 2 million subscribers using its location based services with a market leading position in Israel and Latin America. Established in 1995, Ituran has approximately 3,000 employees worldwide, with offices in Israel, Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, Ecuador, Columbia, India, Canada and the United States.
For more information, please visit Ituran's website, at: www.ituran.com
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SOURCE Ituran Location and Control Ltd. | https://www.mysuncoast.com/prnewswire/2022/05/24/ituran-location-control-ltd-announces-distribution-3-million-dividend/ | 2022-05-24T12:50:08Z |
LONDON (AP) — British prosecutors said Thursday they have charged actor Kevin Spacey with four counts of sexual assault against three men.
The Crown Prosecution Service said Spacey “has also been charged with causing a person to engage in penetrative sexual activity without consent.”
The alleged incidents took place in London between March 2005 and August 2008, and one in western England in April 2013. The alleged victims are now in their 30s and 40s.
Rosemary Ainslie, head of the service’s Special Crime Division, said the charges follow a review of evidence gathered by London’s Metropolitan Police.
Spacey, a 62-year-old double Academy Award winner, was questioned by British police in 2019 about claims by several men that he had assaulted them. The former “House of Cards” star ran London’s Old Vic Theatre between 2004 and 2015.
Spacey won a best supporting actor Academy Award for the 1995 film “The Usual Suspects” and a lead actor Oscar for the 1999 movie “American Beauty.”
His celebrated career came to an abrupt halt in 2017 when actor Anthony Rapp accused the star of assaulting him at a party in the 1980s, when Rapp was a teenager. Spacey denies the allegations.
The charges were announced as Spacey was testifying in a courtroom in New York City in the civil lawsuit filed by Rapp. He was on the witness stand Thursday and not immediately available for comment.
A criminal case brought against him, an indecent assault and battery charge stemming from the alleged groping of an 18-year-old man at a Nantucket resort, was dismissed by Massachusetts prosecutors in 2019. | https://cw33.com/entertainment-news/ap-entertainment/kevin-spacey-charged-in-uk-with-4-counts-of-sexual-assault/ | 2022-05-26T16:30:36Z |
CARSON, Calif. (AP) — Jermell Charlo had to exercise incredible patience during his quest to become the first undisputed super welterweight champion.
After a split draw in his first bout with Brian Castaño last year was followed by a three-month postponement of their rematch because of an injury for Castaño, Charlo had to wait again Saturday night because Castaño showed up late to the arena.
When the showdown finally began, Charlo survived Castaño’s early attacks and waited for the moment to pounce.
The moment arrived in the 10th round, and Charlo emphatically seized it.
Charlo became the first man to hold every 154-pound title in the four-belt era when he stopped his Argentine opponent with two knockdowns in the 10th. He completed his remarkable quest by becoming just the seventh fighter to reign as the undisputed champ of any weight class since the four-belt era began in 1988.
“This is legacy,” Charlo said. “This is something that is legendary. I’m a legend. This is a beautiful thing.”
After an entertaining bout with ample toe-to-toe action, Charlo (35-1-1, 19 KOs) dropped Castaño twice in rapid succession in the 10th. Charlo leaped onto the ropes in celebration while the referee was still counting out his opponent, celebrating the addition of Castaño’s WBO super welterweight title to his WBC, WBA and IBF belts.
Charlo survived several impressive early rounds by Castaño (17-1-2) in the rematch of the fighters’ split draw 10 months ago in Texas.
“I got in my bag around the seventh round,” said Charlo, the Houston native and twin brother of middleweight champ Jermall Charlo. “I started sitting down a little bit more instead of boxing so much and moving around. I saw that he was wearing down a little bit, and I was breaking him down. I just saw my punches being more effective. I get stronger in the later rounds, if they didn’t know.”
Charlo executed a tactical, counterpunching game plan impressively under a nearly full moon at Dignity Health Sports Park, the famed outdoor stadium south of downtown Los Angeles.
Castaño’s aggression and Charlo’s sharp responses led to big exchanges in almost every round, highlighted by a sensational fifth round of relentless action. But Castaño’s early pace slowed in the middle rounds, and Charlo ended it in dramatic fashion at 2:33 of the 10th.
After catching Castaño with a right uppercut and a left hook for the first knockdown, Charlo dropped Castaño again seconds later with two left hands to the head and a left to the body, leaving Castaño on the canvas.
“We showed that we are warriors,” Castaño said through a translator. “We both were fighting back and forth. It was power back and forth, and then his right hand came over and stopped the fight. He’s a champion. He hit me. He got me. But I’m OK.”
After unbeaten Philadelphia welterweight Jaron Ennis stopped Custio Clayton with a vicious right hand in the second round of the show’s penultimate bout, the main event was slightly delayed because Castaño showed up late to the arena, according to the fight’s promoters.
Traffic and parking were terrible around the sports complex, which hosted a match for Major League Soccer’s LA Galaxy at the same time as the fight card in the tennis arena that shares the property with the soccer stadium, but it wasn’t clear whether that was the reason Castaño was tardy.
Both fighters still came out eager for exchanges, with Castaño again pressing forward and Charlo counterpunching adroitly. Charlo was sharp off the ropes, but Castaño got the better of him in back-and-forth action during a thrilling fourth round.
The fifth round was even better, with devastating shots thrown by both fighters. Charlo then buckled Castaño’s knees with a huge left hand in the seventh, but Charlo curiously didn’t move in to pursue a finish.
Turns out Charlo had a better plan after all.
Charlo’s victory is a landmark moment in the history of top fighters between middleweight and welterweight.
The 154-pound division was created in 1962, and talents ranging from Thomas Hearns and Terry Norris to Felix Trinidad and Winky Wright have excelled at the weight. But no boxer had held every major title at super welterweight since the WBO formed and inaugurated the four-belt championship era in 1988.
Charlo won his first version of a 154-pound title in 2013, and he claimed the WBC belt in May 2016. He lost it to Tony Harrison in December 2018, but reclaimed it with a knockout victory in the rematch and swiftly added the WBA and IBF belts by stopping Jeison Rosario in September 2020.
Castaño has carved out an impressive career fighting out of Buenos Aires, although he has trained in Los Angeles since January. He held versions of the WBA 154-pound title for three years before claiming the WBO strap last year.
Castaño got agonizingly close to an impressive upset in his first meeting with Charlo last July with a similarly aggressive strategy. But the judges in Charlo’s native Texas couldn’t decide, with one scoring it for each fighter and the third seeing a draw.
___
More AP boxing: https://apnews.com/hub/boxing and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports | https://cw33.com/sports/ap-sports/jermell-charlo-stops-castano-claims-4th-belt-at-154-pounds/ | 2022-05-15T06:06:46Z |
How a recount would be triggered in Pennsylvania’s GOP Senate primary
By Rachel Janfaza
Hours after Tuesday’s primary, Mehmet Oz and Dave McCormick are locked in a tight race for the GOP nomination for Pennsylvania’s US Senate race, which could be key to determining control of the chamber in November. The race, which is yet to be called, could be headed for a recount.
So how would that happen in the Keystone State? If the final margin is close enough, a recount is triggered automatically, although the candidates would have the option to waive it. CNN spoke to the Pennsylvania Department of State about when and how such a recount could happen.
How is a recount triggered in Pennsylvania?
“Pennsylvania’s Election Code requires the Secretary of State to order all county boards of elections to conduct a recount if a candidate in a statewide election was defeated by one-half of one percent (.5%) or less of the votes cast for the office,” the Pennsylvania Department of State told CNN via email Wednesday.
Defeated candidates have the option to waive the recount. Neither Oz nor McCormick has suggested they’ll be giving up easily.
At his election night event on Tuesday, Oz told supporters, “When all the votes are counted, we will win.”
McCormick’s campaign has also projected confidence. “Dave will win this race,” Jeff Roe, chief strategist to the campaign, wrote in a message on Twitter early Wednesday morning.
Under the Election Code, the Pennsylvania Department of State said, “the order would need to be issued by 5 p.m. of the second Thursday after the election, in this case by 5 p.m. Thursday, May 26, 2022.”
The automatic recount provision has been triggered six times since it was enacted in 2004, according to the department, though only three recounts were carried out (the other three were waived).
A recount was triggered last November in the race for an open seat on Pennsylvania’s statewide Commonwealth Court between Democrat Lori Dumas and Republican Drew Crompton.
None of the three previous recounts changed the result of the election, the department said.
“The law requires county board of elections to recount all ballots using a different method than the initial tabulation. This could be by hand or using a different mechanical or electronic device,” the department said, adding that “the recount is conducted transparently” and “affected candidates are entitled to be present or be represented by an attorney to observe the recount proceedings.”
Should the candidates forgo the waiver and the recount be triggered, “the secretary will issue the order and the department would assist each of Pennsylvania’s 67 counties to ensure a smooth and timely process,” the department said.
What is the acting secretary of state saying?
Pennsylvania Acting Secretary of State Leigh Chapman told CNN’s Kate Bolduan on Wednesday that counties will send their unofficial returns to her office next Tuesday, and she “will make a determination as to whether or not we want to move forward with the automatic recount.”
“A candidate can waive the recount if they … choose to do so, which could happen,” she said.
Chapman said her office had not been in touch with either Oz or McCormick about a potential waiver. “We haven’t received any communication from either of the candidates around that process,” she said.
She emphasized that during a recount, “counties are required to count on a different type of machine, or they could hand count. It just has to be different from the original type of tabulation that they’re currently doing right now.”
While all of the votes may not be counted by next Tuesday, Chapman said she will “have a very good sense” by then about whether the commonwealth is headed for a recount.
“I’m required by law to send out a press release 24 hours before that Thursday deadline, so we’ll have a good sense Tuesday and Wednesday whether or not we’re going to have an automatic recount in Pennsylvania,” she said.
The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2022 Cable News Network, Inc., a WarnerMedia Company. All rights reserved. | https://localnews8.com/politics/cnn-us-politics/2022/05/18/how-a-recount-would-be-triggered-in-pennsylvanias-gop-senate-primary/ | 2022-05-19T02:59:15Z |
Guests can add Espresso or Cold Brew to any smoothie on the menu for a delicious and nutritious boost any time of the day
DALLAS, Aug. 30, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Smoothie King, the leader in purposeful smoothies, has been on the leading edge of the industry since being founded in 1973. Today, Smoothie King announced the launch of a proprietary Espresso. The new Espresso offering compliments the brand's current Cold Brew smoothies, plus, guests will have the option to add Espresso or Cold Brew to any smoothie on the menu.
To celebrate this historic moment, beginning August 30, guests can take advantage of Smoothie King's latest offer: Buy any 20oz. Espresso or Cold Brew blended smoothie before 11:00am for just $5!
The launch of Espresso further positions the brand as a competitor in the coffee landscape, with the goal of helping guests feel energized while providing a nutritious and delicious alternative to blended coffee offerings from other major brands. With the number of Americans drinking coffee each day rising to 66% according to the National Coffee Association, Smoothie King sees an opportunity to provide guests with a healthy and delicious blended coffee option that will improve their overall health and wellness while giving them the boost they need to take on each day.
"As we dive back into our busy routines with Summer winding down, Smoothie King's new Espresso and Cold Brew smoothies will give you the needed boost to take on the day," said Smoothie King CEO Wan Kim. "Smoothie King has always promoted a healthy and active lifestyle and we're ecstatic to offer nutritional Espresso and Cold Brew options that put the wrap on frappes."
Smoothie King's King of Coffee Campaign
To announce Smoothie King's new Espresso offering, the brand has developed and launched the first fully integrated campaign in partnership with their recently appointed Brand & Advertising Agency of Record, GERTRUDE. The campaign will feature vivid video and static assets, developed by GERTRUDE, that will showcase that the blended coffee smoothies are made from completely clean ingredients and are so good that after one sip, guests might start calling the brand the King of Coffee.
Campaign assets will run across digital, out-of-home, and social media channels – TikTok, Twitter and Instagram – and is the first campaign designed to transform Smoothie King from a quick service restaurant into a health-conscious lifestyle brand. This is a natural transition for the brand as they have always been passionate about offering purposely blended, nutritional, clean ingredient smoothies. The brand is planning to develop and launch additional offerings and campaigns in 2023 and beyond that aim to provide guests with the nutrition needed to reach their goals and keep climbing.
Bold Flavor Through Bold Innovation
Smoothie King is reinventing the coffee experience by giving guests more healthy choices. Guests can choose from a selection of Espresso – 159mg of caffeine per 20oz. – or Cold Brew – 83mg of caffeine per 20oz. – recipes. They can also add Espresso or Cold Brew to any smoothie of their choosing. Both are a great option as all smoothies are packed with real nutrition and no artificial flavors.
- Vegan Coffee Mocha Smoothie: Sunwarrior® Organic plant-based protein, banana, dates, Califia Farms® Oat Milk, 100% cocoa and choice of Espresso or Cold Brew coffee.
- The Activator ® Recovery Coffee: A fitness blend that features Espresso or Cold Brew coffee, coconut water, banana, Gladiator® Protein, nonfat milk, and protein blend to help hydrate, recover and shape up.
- The Hulk ™ Coffee: Made with Smoothie King's special blend, this coffee combo fuels muscles without slowing you down.
- Keto Champ ™ Coffee: A great option for guests looking for a keto-friendly blend, this smoothie provides an extra caffeine boost alongside Smoothie King's keto protein blend.
- Coffee D-Light ™ Mocha: An Espresso or Cold Brew coffee blended smoothie that helps consumers get moving with 100% cocoa, nonfat milk, whey protein, dairy whey blend, and dates.
- Coffee D-Lite ™ Vanilla: A blend featuring Espresso or Cold Brew coffee, nonfat milk, turbinado, dairy whey blend, and vanilla frozen yogurt.
- Coffee High Protein Almond Mocha: A perfect little pick-me-up, this high-protein coffee-based smoothie features more protein for even more energy.
- Coffee High Protein Vanilla: Featuring Espresso or Cold Brew coffee, dates, nonfat milk, dairy whey blend, almonds and whey protein, this blend is great for vanilla lovers looking for a boost.
Make This Fall Less Basic with Organic Pumpkin Smoothies
To provide guests with a wide range of delicious and nutritious smoothie offerings, Smoothie King is carving out a new patch for pumpkin-loving fans with the delicious new Pumpkin smoothie line-up. Made with real, organic pumpkin puree and containing 12 grams or more of protein, Smoothie King's Pumpkin smoothies are a better tasting, nutritional alternative to other national coffeehouse Pumpkin Spice Lattes and will be your new Fall pumpkin obsession.
- Keto Champ™ Pumpkin: A smoothie made with organic pumpkin, Califia Farms® almond milk, almond butter, keto protein blend and seasonal spices. Includes 9 net grams carbs, 20+ grams protein and no added sugar.
- Pumpkin Coffee High Protein: A fitness-focused blend to get the morning caffeine kick and build muscle. Made with organic pumpkin, cold brew coffee, dates, almonds, non-fat milk, two kinds of protein and seasonal spices.
- Vegan Pumpkin: An entirely plant-based blend made with organic pumpkin, Califia Farms® Oat Milk, bananas, dates, Sunwarrior ® organic plant-based protein, stevia and seasonal spices.
- Slim-N-Trim™ Pumpkin: An under 300 calories in a 20oz. pumpkin smoothie, but still has 15g of protein. Made with ingredients like organic pumpkin, bananas, dates, protein, a fiber blend and seasonal spices.
- Pumpkin D-Lite®: This "Enjoy a Treat" blend is made with organic pumpkin, dates, vanilla frozen yogurt, nonfat milk, protein and seasonal spices for a better-for-you pumpkin indulgence.
For more information on the smoothies that are hitting Smoothie King locations this fall, visit www.SmoothieKing.com or download the Healthy Rewards App, available on the App Store and Google Play.
About Smoothie King Franchises, Inc.
Smoothie King Franchises, Inc., the original U.S. smoothie franchise, is a privately held, Dallas-based franchise company with over 1,300 locations worldwide, including in the United States, Korea, Grand Cayman, and Trinidad. Founded in 1973, Smoothie King has made it its mission to inspire people to live a healthy and active lifestyle. By blending each smoothie with a purpose, Smoothie King makes it simple and enjoyable for guests to achieve their individual health and fitness goals. Smoothie King has been recognized No. 13 overall on Entrepreneur's prestigious Franchise 500 list in 2022 and ranked one of the "Fastest Growing Franchises." For more information about franchising with Smoothie King, visit SmoothieKingFranchise.com or follow the brand on social media @SmoothieKing.
CONTACT:
Brett Garrison
bgarrison@kwtglobal.com
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SOURCE Smoothie King | https://www.wibw.com/prnewswire/2022/08/30/smoothie-king-launches-delicious-new-espresso-smoothies-give-guests-better-way-do-coffee/ | 2022-08-30T12:58:36Z |
- Order intake rose by almost 50 percent year-on-year, marking a new 6M-high with €4.7 billion
- Sales volume increased by almost 50 percent to €3.4 billion
- Adjusted EBIT increased by approximately two thirds to €202 million; adjusted EBITDA rose to €222 million, plus over 60 percent
- Global workforce increases to almost 8,600 employees
- Updated year-end outlook: sales of almost €7.0 billion expected
STUTTGART, Germany, Aug. 16, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Exyte GmbH (Exyte), a global leader in the design, engineering, and delivery of high-tech facilities, continues its strong performance during the first half of fiscal year 2022 successfully progressing on its accelerated growth path, its "Pathway to Ten."
In the first half of 2022, Exyte recorded an increase of almost 50 percent year-on-year both in sales and order intake. Sales amounted to €3.4 billion (6M/2021: €2.3 billion) due to large scale projects in the EMEA and APAC regions. Order intake reached €4.7 billion (6M/2021: €3.2 billion) driven by strong client demand especially in Southeast Asia.
Exyte's profitability further improved resulting in an adjusted EBITDA of €222 million (6M/2021: €136 million) and adjusted EBIT of €202 million (6M/2021: €122 million). The adjusted EBITDA margin improved by 0.6 percentage points to 6.6 percent (6M/2021: 6.0 percent). With 6.0 percent, the adjusted EBIT margin is also 0.6 percentage points higher compared to previous year (6M/2021: 5.4 percent).
"We are pleased with our increased sales as well as the robust growth in incoming orders in the first six months of 2022," says Dr. Wolfgang Büchele, CEO of Exyte. "Despite the economic headwind, we are able to continue our growth path, our 'Pathway to Ten.' To support our ambitious journey, we need highly motivated and skilled employees. We increased our global workforce by another 1,100 employees to almost 8,600 since the beginning of 2022. At the end of the year Exyte expects to have more than 9,000 employees worldwide. Together with our growing, highly dedicated workforce we are taking Exyte to the next level."
Financial targets for 2022 will be outperformed despite uncertainties
"Notwithstanding the current global geopolitical and economic uncertainties with inflation, supply shortages, and impending energy scarcities and rising prices, we expect to outperform our financial targets reaching annual sales of almost €7.0 billion by the end of 2022," states Peter Schönhofer, CFO of Exyte. Of course, neither Exyte, nor its clients can escape the current tense situation. "Consequently, we need to monitor global and local developments very closely in the coming weeks and months and react appropriately if necessary," adds Schönhofer.
In accordance with an increase in sales, a respective rise in adjusted EBITDA and adjusted EBIT is expected – envisaging a forecasted adjusted EBITDA of approximately €450 million, respectively an adjusted EBIT above €400 million for the full year of 2022. Exyte is constantly progressing on its "Pathway to Ten" with the goal of reaching €10.0 billion annual sales in 2027. The high order backlog of €8.2 billion is the base for future sales growth. Incoming orders in 2022 are assumed to be on a comparable high level as in 2021.
Continued growth realized in all business segments; Advanced Technology Facilities remains the main growth driver, however Biopharma & Life Sciences is a strategic growth segment for Exyte
In the first six months of 2022 all three business segments acquired substantial new projects across all regions. With a sales share of around 86.8 percent of the group's total sales, the business segment Advanced Technology Facilities recorded a sales increase to €2.9 billion (6M/2021: €2.0 billion). Incoming orders increased to €4.2 billion (6M/2021: €2.7 billion). The segment continues to benefit from the constantly growing demand for semiconductor facilities especially driven by major players in Asia-Pacific. New Advanced Technology Facilities projects include semiconductor facilities for the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the USA and semiconductor facilities for AT&S (Austria Technologie & Systemtechnik AG) in Malaysia and Austria, among others.
The business segment is also benefiting from the increasing demand for battery powered electric vehicles. In Germany, Exyte is currently building the first plant outside of China for a major Chinese battery manufacturer.
Biopharma & Life Sciences is a strategic growth segment for Exyte. Due to major projects in Singapore and Malaysia (amongst others a major Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (API) facility for Pfizer), the segment's sales reached €291 million (6M/2021: €170 million), accounting for 8.7 percent of total sales of the group (6M/2021: 7.6 percent). Order intake totaled €283 million. In Germany, Exyte is building the mRNA competence center for Wacker Chemie AG. The new facility is a lighthouse project for the business segment Biopharma & Life Sciences.
Benefiting from projects in Germany and Israel, sales of the Data Center segment almost doubled reaching €114 million (6M/2021: €59 million). The order intake rose by almost 50 percent to €233 million (6M/2021: €158 million). In addition to the projects in Germany and Israel, the business segment currently implements data center projects in Austria, Denmark, Malaysia, and Taiwan, amongst others.
Key Financial Figures at a glance
*The percentage is calculated based on the values in million.
For more details about the 6M-results 2022 please visit the website.
About Exyte
Exyte is a global leader in the design, engineering, and delivery of ultra-clean and sustainable facilities for high-tech industries. With cutting-edge expertise developed over more than a century, we serve clients in the sophisticated markets of semiconductors, battery cells, pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, and data centers. Exyte offers a full range of services from consulting to managing the implementation of turnkey solutions with the highest standards in safety and quality to our customers worldwide. We create a better future by enabling key industries to enhance the quality of modern life. In 2021, Exyte generated sales of EUR 4.9 billion with around 7,400 employees worldwide.
Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1487100/Exyte_Logo.jpg
Contact:
René Ziegler
Vice President, Corporate Communications & Investor Relations
+49 711 88044606
+49 172 5838786
rene.ziegler@exyte.net
www.exyte.net
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SOURCE Exyte | https://www.mysuncoast.com/prnewswire/2022/08/16/profitable-growth-continues-exyte-with-remarkable-6m2022-results-uplifted-year-end-outlook/ | 2022-08-16T08:51:02Z |
The body of a missing 15-year-old boy was recovered from the Mississippi River
By Amanda Musa, CNN
The body of a 15-year-old boy was recovered from the Mississippi River on Monday, New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell said in a statement Monday.
The mayor’s announcement came a week after the Coast Guard said they were suspending their search for three children — a 15-year-old boy and two girls; 14 and 8 — who were last seen entering the river in New Orleans last month.
The body of 15-year-old Kevin Poole, Jr., was identified by the Orleans Parish Coroner Dr. Dwight McKenna on Monday.
The recovery of his body was “absolutely heartbreaking,” the mayor said in her statement. Poole’s body was found in the river along the Piety Street Wharf on Monday, according to Jason Melancon, a spokesperson for the coroner’s office.
“No parent should have to endure the tragedy of losing a child,” Cantrell added. “Words can never be enough in such a devastating moment, but my thoughts and my prayers are with his family at this time as they will be for some time to come.”
Officials have not said how and why the children entered the water, but CNN affiliate WDSU has reported it appears the children were playing and one of the girls fell into the water and the other two tried to save her.
A spokesperson for the Coast Guard told CNN the force is “ready to assist at the request of the New Orleans Police Department (NOPD) who is the lead agency coordinating recovery operations.”
CNN has reached out to the department for an update on the search but has not heard back.
The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2022 Cable News Network, Inc., a WarnerMedia Company. All rights reserved.
CNN’s Joe Sutton contributed to this report. | https://localnews8.com/news/national-world/cnn-national/2022/05/03/the-body-of-a-missing-15-year-old-boy-was-recovered-from-the-mississippi-river/ | 2022-05-04T03:33:09Z |
Posted: Jul 20, 2022 / 09:19 AM CDT Updated: Jul 20, 2022 / 09:19 AM CDT SHARE WALTERBORO, S.C. (AP) — Alex Murdaugh pleads not guilty to murdering wife and son, lawyers agree to keep evidence secret amid media attention. Close Modal Suggest a Correction Your name(required) Your email(required) Report a typo or grammatical error(required) Submit Δ Suggest a Correction | https://cw33.com/news/u-s-news/ap-us-headlines/alex-murdaugh-pleads-not-guilty-to-murdering-wife-and-son-lawyers-agree-to-keep-evidence-secret-amid-media-attention/ | 2022-07-20T23:24:40Z |
Wow! Woman finds $36K hidden in couch from Craigslist
LOS ANGELES (KABC) - A woman in Southern California found thousands of dollars hidden inside a couch she recently got from an online listing.
Vicky Umodu said she found $36,000 in the couch she got for free from a seller on Craigslist.
Umodu found several envelopes filled with money once she got the couch home. At first, she said she didn’t realize what she had found.
“I was so excited, I was screaming, ‘It’s money,’” Umodu said.
The California woman said she did return the cash to the original owners, who told her they got rid of the couch after the recent death of a loved one.
But the owners were so grateful that they gave Umodu $2,200 as a thank you.
The family also said they ended up finding hundreds of dollars hidden around the house where the couch was located.
Copyright 2022 KABC via CNN Newsource. All rights reserved. | https://www.mysuncoast.com/2022/06/03/wow-woman-finds-36k-hidden-couch-craigslist/ | 2022-06-03T02:26:58Z |
2 Louisiana women receive state proclamations for their 107th birthdays
SHREVEPORT, La. (KSLA/Gray News) - Two Louisana women were honored with a state proclamation and a special guest at their 107th birthdays on Monday.
Louisana Lt. Gov. Billy Nungesser made a special stop to visit Geneva Moore and Elvira Helaire-Davis, KSLA reported.
Born in the summer of 1915, both women are longtime residents of Shreveport and have lived through it all. It was the second year of World War I when they were born, Woodrow Wilson was president and Babe Ruth hit the first of his 714 Major League home runs.
“One hundred and seven, what they’ve seen in their lifetime, just the fact that they’re still in good shape at 107 is incredible,” Nungesser said.
Nungesser said their birthday celebration was one he couldn’t miss.
“A school teacher, and to know what they went through in their lifetime, back then, it’s just incredible,” he said. “And to be here and celebrate 107 years, I had to be here.”
Copyright 2022 KSLA via Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved. | https://www.kxii.com/2022/08/09/2-louisiana-women-receive-state-proclamations-their-107th-birthdays/ | 2022-08-09T16:38:31Z |
LOS ANGELES, May 17, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The Schall Law Firm, a national shareholder rights litigation firm, reminds investors of a class action lawsuit against FAT Brands Inc. ("FAT Brands" or "the Company") (NASDAQ: FAT) for violations of §§10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 promulgated thereunder by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
Investors who purchased the Company's securities between December 4, 2017 and February 18, 2022, inclusive (the ''Class Period''), are encouraged to contact the firm before May 17, 2022.
If you are a shareholder who suffered a loss, click here to participate.
We also encourage you to contact Brian Schall of the Schall Law Firm, 2049 Century Park East, Suite 2460, Los Angeles, CA 90067, at 310-301-3335, to discuss your rights free of charge. You can also reach us through the firm's website at www.schallfirm.com, or by email at bschall@schallfirm.com.
The class, in this case, has not yet been certified, and until certification occurs, you are not represented by an attorney. If you choose to take no action, you can remain an absent class member.
According to the Complaint, the Company made false and misleading statements to the market. FAT Brands and the family of CEO Andrew Wiederhorn engaged in transactions with "no legitimate corporate purpose." The Company ignored warning signs related to such transactions. Members of the Company's senior management were under investigation in relation to these transactions. Based on these facts, the Company's public statements were false and materially misleading throughout the class period. When the market learned the truth about FAT Brands, investors suffered damages.
Join the case to recover your losses.
The Schall Law Firm represents investors around the world and specializes in securities class action lawsuits and shareholder rights litigation.
This press release may be considered Attorney Advertising in some jurisdictions under the applicable law and rules of ethics.
CONTACT:
The Schall Law Firm
Brian Schall, Esq.,
www.schallfirm.com
Office: 310-301-3335
info@schallfirm.com
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SOURCE The Schall Law Firm | https://www.kxii.com/prnewswire/2022/05/17/final-deadline-alert-schall-law-firm-encourages-investors-fat-brands-inc-with-losses-100000-contact-firm/ | 2022-05-17T16:24:25Z |
- Earnings Call to Begin at 8:00 A.M. EDT -
SINGAPORE, July 27, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- China Yuchai International Limited (NYSE: CYD) ("China Yuchai" or the "Company"), announced today that it will be releasing its 2022 unaudited first half financial results on Wednesday, August 10, 2022 before the market opens for trading.
A conference call and audio webcast for the investment community has been scheduled for 8:00 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time on August 10, 2022. The call will be hosted by the President and Chief Financial Officer of China Yuchai, Mr. Weng Ming Hoh and Mr. Choon Sen Loo, respectively, who will present on and discuss the financial results and business outlook of the Company followed with a Q&A session.
Analysts and institutional investors may participate in the conference call by registering at: https://register.vevent.com/register/BI7e8fd96be075437a82ae4672ba6b0a40 at least one hour before the call. A return email will be sent with instructions and numbers to join the call.
For all other interested parties, a simultaneous webcast can be accessed at the investor relations section of the Company's website located at http://www.cyilimited.com. Participants are requested to log into the webcast at least 10 minutes prior to the scheduled start time. The recorded webcast will be available on the website shortly after the earnings call.
About China Yuchai International
China Yuchai International Limited, through its subsidiary, Guangxi Yuchai Machinery Company Limited ("GYMCL"), engages in the manufacture, assembly, and sale of a wide variety of light-, medium- and heavy-duty engines for trucks, buses, passenger vehicles, construction equipment, marine and agriculture applications in China. GYMCL also produces diesel power generators. The engines produced by GYMCL range from diesel to natural gas and hybrid engines. Through its regional sales offices and authorized customer service centers, GYMCL distributes its engines directly to auto OEMs and retailers and provides maintenance and retrofitting services throughout China. Founded in 1951, GYMCL has established a reputable brand name, strong research and development team and significant market share in China with high-quality products and reliable after-sales support. In 2021, GYMCL sold 456,791 engines and is recognized as a leading manufacturer and distributor of engines in China. For more information, please visit http://www.cyilimited.com.
Safe Harbor Statement:
This news release may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The words "believe", "expect", "anticipate", "project", "targets", "optimistic", "confident that", "continue to", "predict", "intend", "aim", "will" or similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. All statements other than statements of historical fact are statements that may be deemed forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements including, but not limited to, statements concerning China Yuchai's and the joint venture's operations, financial performance and condition are based on current expectations, beliefs and assumptions which are subject to change at any time. China Yuchai cautions that these statements by their nature involve risks and uncertainties, and actual results may differ materially depending on a variety of important factors such as government and stock exchange regulations, competition, political, economic and social conditions around the world and in China including those discussed in China Yuchai's Form 20-Fs under the headings "Risk Factors", "Results of Operations" and "Business Overview" and other reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission from time to time. Among others, if the COVID-19 pandemic is not effectively and timely controlled, our business operations and financial condition may be materially and adversely affected due to a deteriorating market for automotive sales, an economic slowdown in China and abroad, a potential weakening of the financial condition of our customers, or other factors that we cannot foresee. All forward-looking statements are applicable only as of the date it is made and China Yuchai specifically disclaims any obligation to maintain or update the forward-looking information, whether of the nature contained in this release or otherwise, in the future.
For more information:
Investor Relations
Kevin Theiss
Tel: +1-212-510-8922
Email: cyd@bluefocus.com
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SOURCE China Yuchai International Limited | https://www.kxii.com/prnewswire/2022/07/27/china-yuchai-international-announce-2022-unaudited-first-half-financial-results-august-10-2022/ | 2022-07-27T11:03:58Z |
RICHARDSON, Texas, Sept. 12, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Fossil Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: FOSL) (the "Company" or "Fossil"), a global design, marketing, distribution, and innovation company, today announced that Lisa Marie Pillette has joined the Company as Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer.
Lisa brings extensive marketing and brand expertise to Fossil from Lacoste, Ralph Lauren, and Levi Strauss. She most recently served as Chief Marketing Officer for direct-to-consumer brand Casper. Her successful relaunch of the Casper brand earned her acclaim as a 2021 Brand Innovators "Top 100 Women in Brand Marketing" and 2021 CMO Award for "Creativity & Storytelling."
"Lisa has tremendous depth and breadth of marketing experience with iconic brands, an innovative lens on what marketing of the future looks like, and a compelling track record of delivering insight-led solutions," said Holly Briedis, Executive Vice President and Chief Digital Officer. "Pairing her distinctive expertise with our global digital capabilities allows us to think holistically about the consumer experience."
In her role, Lisa will lead the Company's global marketing and center of excellence capabilities, including marketing strategy and innovation, CRM, creative and content operations, and go-to-market readiness.
"I am excited to join a company with such great brand heritage. Since its inception, Fossil has had a strong focus on innovation and craftsmanship and to be given the opportunity to tell these stories and steward such meaningful brands is a marketer's dream," said Ms. Pillette.
In addition to her professional work, Lisa is an active mentor and advisor. She serves on the boards of TRIPTK, a brand transformation group owned by Havas, and Best Pets, and she is also a member and mentor for Chief, a membership network focused on female executives, and for the New York Chapter of Women 50/50 on Boards.
About Fossil Group, Inc.
Fossil Group, Inc. is a global design, marketing, distribution and innovation company specializing in lifestyle accessories. Under a diverse portfolio of owned and licensed brands, our offerings include traditional watches, smartwatches, jewelry, handbags, small leather goods, belts and sunglasses. We are committed to delivering the best in design and innovation across our owned brands, Fossil, Michele, Relic, Skagen and Zodiac, and licensed brands, Armani Exchange, Diesel, DKNY, Emporio Armani, Kate Spade New York, Michael Kors, PUMA and Tory Burch. We bring each brand story to life through an extensive distribution network across numerous geographies, categories and channels. Certain press releases and SEC filing information concerning the Company is also available at www.fossilgroup.com.
©2022 Fossil Group | All rights reserved
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SOURCE Fossil Group, Inc. | https://www.kxii.com/prnewswire/2022/09/12/fossil-group-inc-announces-appointment-lisa-marie-pillette-chief-marketing-officer/ | 2022-09-12T13:50:03Z |
TAMPA, Florida (WFLA) — Heartache swept the nation Tuesday when Americans learned multiple children had been killed in Texas, gunned down in their own classrooms.
The massacre of at least 19 students and two teachers at Robb Elementary School in the Texas town of Uvalde sent shockwaves across the country.
Throughout the afternoon, more and more details were released, each one worse than the last.
The facts were unfathomable. While the massacre prompted endless questions, one was asked over and over again: Why would someone do this?
For Zaxh Hibschman, the circumstances were achingly familiar and hit close to home.
Hibschman has been living with a similar pain for four years. He survived the mass shooting at Marjorie Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, on Feb. 14, 2018.
He was inside the school that day. He heard the gunshots come closer and closer, his heart pounding so rapidly that he could hear it in his ears.
Hibschman was a junior when the shooting happened, and he remembers with vivid detail the exact moment he heard the unmistakable sound of gunshots.
They came in succession, one after the other. And they kept coming.
“I had the thought that I might not make it out of that school alive,” he said.
He said within seconds, he felt the intensity of a “fight or flight” response propelling him to find a safe place. He described what happened next as “chaos.”
He heard screaming students, their shoes rapidly hitting the pavement as gunfire chased them through buildings and classroom.
Friends and classmates ran past each other in a horrifying blur, racing for cover.
Hibschman said he knew his only chance for survival was to get to his homeroom, a seemingly impossible task. But the will to live, he says, was instinctual, based on raw emotion and crippling fear.
The combination would save his life. His homeroom became his fortress. He was crammed into a tiny closet with 15 people.
They would spend hours in the dark.
When law enforcement found Hibschman and his classmates, the shooting had ended, but the fear had not.
Hibschman remembers the immense relief he felt when he heard the sound of SWAT team members approaching, their voices breaking the uneasy silence.
Hibschman’s emotions over that moment eventually gave way to others, including anxiety and fear of crowds and concerts.
Hibschman is now in his senior year at the University of Florida, and he still suffers from PTSD.
When he heard what happened in Texas on Tuesday, all the emotions and fear from Parkland came back.
He said he knows countless families are hurting right now, and his heart goes out to them.
His message to Texans: Lean on each other because that’s where you find strength. But, he says, it will take time.
“Grieving is not a sprint, it’s a marathon. Cherish the moments you have with everyone,” he said.
He added that he hopes families and survivors reach out for compassion and support.
“It’s definitely in these moments you realize love is stronger than hate. A strong and loving community is everything,” he said. | https://cw33.com/news/nexstar-media-wire/parkland-survivor-says-texas-shooting-gave-him-flashbacks/ | 2022-05-25T18:29:11Z |
Philadelphia faces lawsuit over return of mask mandate
By Liam Reilly, CNN
The City of Philadelphia was sued Saturday by a group of business owners and residents alleging its upcoming mask mandate is illegal, court documents show.
Philadelphia is the first major US city to reinstate its indoor mask mandate, which went into effect last week, with enforcement beginning today.
The new mandate comes as the city announced Level 2 Covid-19 response levels, which were triggered when the city saw an increase in confirmed Covid-19 cases more than 50% than the previous 10 days.
Level 2 precautions mean masks are required in all public indoor spaces in Philadelphia, including schools, businesses and restaurants. Businesses can stay mask-free if they require everyone to provide proof of vaccination.
The city’s Public Health Department issued the mandate by emergency order April 11.
The group filing the lawsuit says the mandate violates the state’s Constitution and flouts guidelines established by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
“The regulations imposed by Philadelphia are arbitrary and capricious,” the attorney representing petitioners, Thomas W. King III told CNN in an interview Sunday. “Philadelphia jettisoned the CDC regulations and is inventing its own. Philadelphia violated the Pennsylvania Constitution. Things that apply in Philadelphia must apply statewide, but that’s not what’s happening.”
The lawsuit alleges Philadelphia’s Health Commissioner, Dr. Cheryl Bettigole, usurped the General Assembly’s authority by issuing the emergency order. And the CDC currently has no mask mandate in place.
CNN reached out to Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney’s office and the city’s Health Department for comment but has not heard back.
The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2022 Cable News Network, Inc., a WarnerMedia Company. All rights reserved. | https://localnews8.com/news/national-world/cnn-national/2022/04/18/philadelphia-faces-lawsuit-over-return-of-mask-mandate-2/ | 2022-04-18T15:13:22Z |
Patient Communications Startup Recognized for Breadth and Depth of Customer Adoption and Driving Positive Outcomes Throughout the Patient Journey
SANTA BARBARA, Calif., July 5, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Well Health Inc.,a SaaS digital health leader in patient communications and the 2021 and 2022 Best in KLAS winner in Patient Outreach, has been recognized as a top performer across multiple areas of the KLAS "Patient Communications Landscape 2022" report. The study found the WELL Health platform is frequently deployed across multiple use cases, deeply adopted by providers, and a top performer when it comes to ease of use for both patients and office staff. WELL Health earned a 91.7 overall performance score from its customers, ranking it among the top patient communication vendors evaluated.
The new study examines the landscape of patient communications solutions—including how they are used; how easy they are to set up, customize, and use on an ongoing basis; and what outcomes they are helping organizations to achieve.
Throughout the report, WELL Health consistently ranks among the top patient communication vendors across all four of the report categories, for example:
- Ease of Use for Office Staff: WELL Health - 8.1 score (9 point scale)
- Ease of Use for Patients: WELL Health - 8.5 score (9 point scale)
- Overall Performance: WELL Health - 91.7 score (100 point scale)
- Breadth and depth of customer adoption: Validated for 17/17 measured use cases (with at least 26% adoption for each)
- Part of long-term plans: 96% of customers responded "yes"
When it comes to ease of use, one surveyed customer commented, "WELL does everything well and is simple to use." Another customer reported, "the solution is very user friendly for both my team members and patients. It is self-explanatory, and it doesn't take long to train new people on it."
Since 2015, WELL Health has partnered with providers to engage patients throughout their care experience, from pre-visit intake forms to post-visit care follow up. Evidence of WELL's impactful role throughout the care journey is the study's findings that customers realize outcomes across clinical, administrative and financial categories thanks to their partnership with WELL Health. Customer use cases which garnered the highest adoption among those surveyed include:
- Post-visit follow ups
- Wellness/care-gap reminders
- Patient/provider messaging
- Patient surveys
- Appointment reminders
According to one WELL Health customer quoted in the KLAS report, "The platform facilitates my ability to drive clinical outcomes." Another customer reported, "WELL has reduced the administrative staff's communication time by maybe 80% or 90%."
"The cornerstone of WELL Health is partnering with our customers to discover what's most important to them, and in turn delivering a product and service that meets - and often surpasses - those needs," said Meg Aranow, Platform Evangelist, WELL Health. "This report, and our consistently high rankings throughout it, demonstrates our team's consistent efforts to listen first, partner second, and then deliver the best product and service in the marketplace so that our customers deliver seamless communication experiences to their patients."
This Patient Communications Landscape report builds on KLAS research published earlier this year which named WELL Health Best in KLAS in "Patient Outreach" for the second consecutive year. The prestigious ranking is part of the 2022 Best in KLAS: Software and Services Report which is based on anonymous, quality-checked reviews from healthcare providers who use WELL Health technology.
For more information regarding the KLAS 2022 Patient Communications Landscape report, please visit the KLAS report landing page, here.
WELL Health® is a SaaS digital health leader in patient communications and the 2021 and 2022 Best in KLAS winner in Patient Outreach. The WELL Health intelligent communications hub is the only two-way digital health solution engaging patients throughout their entire care experience. WELL Health enables conversations between patients and their providers through secure, multilingual messaging in the patient's preferred communications channel: texting, email and telephone. WELL Health helps 400 healthcare organizations facilitate more than 1.1 billion messages for 40 million patients annually. By unifying and automating disjointed communications across healthcare organizations, WELL Health reduces unnecessary provider stress and potential errors, while increasing patient visits and loyalty.
Founded in 2015, WELL Health is based in Santa Barbara, California. WELL Health has been named No. 10 on the 2021 Forbes America's Best Startup Employers list, No.133 fastest-growing company in North America on the 2021 Deloitte Technology Fast 500, and ranked on the Inc. 5000 list of fastest-growing private companies for two consecutive years.
KLAS is a data-driven company on a mission to improve the world's healthcare by enabling provider and payer voices to be heard and counted. Working with thousands of healthcare professionals, KLAS collects insights on software, services and medical equipment to deliver reports, trending data and statistical overviews. KLAS data is accurate, honest and impartial. The research directly reflects the voice of healthcare professionals and acts as a catalyst for improving vendor performance. To learn more about KLAS and the insights we provide, visit KLASresearch.com.
This Patient Communications Landscape 2022 study examines and defines the current landscape of patient communications solutions—including how they are used; how easy they are to set up, customize, and use on an ongoing basis; and what outcomes they are helping organizations to achieve. The report data comes from two sources: (1) KLAS' standard quantitative evaluation for healthcare software, and (2) a supplemental evaluation tailored specifically for the patient communications market. The report reviewed 14 patient communications vendors to help providers better understand and differentiate the solutions in the market.
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SOURCE Well Health Inc. | https://www.kxii.com/prnewswire/2022/07/05/well-health-ranks-top-performer-klas-patient-communications-report/ | 2022-07-05T11:37:25Z |
LAS VEGAS, Aug. 10, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Panorama Mortgage Group (PMG), a multi-brand national mortgage company headquartered in Nevada, announced today that Lone Peak Lending has joined the PMG family and Donovan Stamps will lead the company as president.
Lone Peak Lending is a full-service lender that is focused on expanding homeownership opportunities in the state of Texas and will be leveraging PMG's innovative mortgage platform to accomplish that goal.
"Lone Peak Lending is the perfect fit for our growing PMG brand family in that it shares our commitment to customer service excellence and transparent communications with consumers throughout the loan process," said Sarah Gonzalez, PMG President, and COO. "We're excited to welcome Donovan and his team and work with them throughout the onboarding process and beyond."
A 27-year industry veteran, Stamps is a proven performer in the Mortgage Banking sector with combined lending and servicing management experience and a consistent record for exceeding established business objectives in a highly competitive environment. Throughout his career, Stamps has held several leadership roles where he positioned companies for growth through optimal results in productivity and operational excellence.
"The most attractive thing about becoming part of PMG is having the resources to build a world-class, customer-centric organization the right way – one that is centered around partnering with Realtors® and consumers," said Stamps. "We are well positioned to educate consumers about the loan process and help them overcome whatever challenges that may arise. Broadening homeownership opportunities and serving our customers well is what we're all about."
To support its long-term strategy, the company will leverage PMG's comprehensive platforms including human resources, finance, technology, legal and compliance services – to make Lone Peak Lending one of several prominent mortgage companies under the PMG umbrella of recognized brands.
Panorama Mortgage Group (PMG) is a multi-brand national mortgage company that began in 2007. PMG originated from Alterra Home Loans, whose mission is to increase family wealth through homeownership for first-time Hispanic homebuyers. Having grown to over $1.3B in annual originations, Alterra was voted by Mortgage Tech Magazine as one of the top tech-savvy companies and recognized by the Hispanic Business magazine as one of the fastest-growing Hispanic businesses. In 2019, PMG grew its mission-driven focus by adding two new brands: Legacy Home Loans, which focuses on increasing the extremely low black homeownership rate in America, and Inspiro Financial, a joint venture between PMG and one of the country's largest real estate firms. In 2022, the company added Prosperity Capital Mortgage and Vision Mortgage Group to its group of brands. Its core platform is to partner with exceptional mortgage leaders and grow brands that are both strategically focused and mission driven.
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SOURCE Panorama Mortgage Group | https://www.mysuncoast.com/prnewswire/2022/08/10/lone-peak-lending-joins-panorama-mortgage-group-brand-family-names-donovan-stamps-president/ | 2022-08-10T15:34:14Z |
ANDOVER, Mass., Aug. 4, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- TransMedics Group, Inc. ("TransMedics") (Nasdaq: TMDX), a medical technology company that is transforming organ transplant therapy for patients with end-stage lung, heart and liver failure, announced today the upsize and pricing of an underwritten public offering of 3,250,000 shares of its common stock at a price to the public of $40.00 per share. All of the shares are being offered by TransMedics.
The gross proceeds from the offering, before deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and other offering expenses payable by TransMedics, are expected to be $130 million. The offering is expected to close on August 9, 2022, subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions. In addition, TransMedics has granted the underwriters a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 487,500 shares of common stock at the public offering price, less underwriting discounts and commissions.
J.P. Morgan, Morgan Stanley and Cowen are acting as joint lead book-running managers for the offering. Canaccord Genuity is acting as lead manager for the offering.
The securities described above are being offered by TransMedics pursuant to its automatically effective shelf registration statement on Form S-3ASR filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") on August 3, 2022. Before you invest, you should read the prospectus in the registration statement and related prospectus supplement for more complete information about TransMedics and this offering. An electronic copy of the preliminary prospectus supplement and accompanying prospectus relating to the offering are available on the SEC's website at www.sec.gov. An electronic copy of the final prospectus supplement and accompanying prospectus will be available on the SEC website at www.sec.gov or, when available, may also be obtained from J.P. Morgan Securities LLC, c/o J.P. Morgan Securities LLC, Attention: Broadridge Financial Solutions, 1155 Long Island Avenue, Edgewood, New York 11717, or by telephone, at (866) 803-9204; from Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC, Attention: Prospectus Department, 180 Varick Street, 2nd Floor, New York, New York 10014; or from Cowen and Company, LLC, c/o Broadridge Financial Solutions, Attention: Prospectus Department, 1155 Long Island Avenue, Edgewood, New York 11717, by telephone at (833) 297-2926, or by email at PostSaleManualRequests@broadridge.com.
This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification of these securities under the securities laws of any such state or jurisdiction.
TransMedics is the world's leader in portable extracorporeal warm perfusion and assessment of donor organs for transplantation. Headquartered in Andover, Massachusetts, the company was founded to address the unmet need for more and better organs for transplantation and has developed technologies to preserve organ quality, assess organ viability prior to transplant, and potentially increase the utilization of donor organs for the treatment of end-stage heart, lung, and liver failure.
This press release contains forward-looking statements. Investors are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, including statements about the completion, timing and size of the proposed public offering of our common stock. Each forward-looking statement is subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in such statement. Applicable risks and uncertainties include those related to market conditions and satisfaction of customary closing conditions related to the proposed public offering. There can be no assurance that we will be able to complete the public offering on the anticipated terms, or at all. Applicable risks also include those identified under the heading "Risk Factors" and in our annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2021, and in our quarterly reports on Form 10-Q for the quarters ended March 31, 2022 and June 30, 2022, or under the heading "Risk Factors" included in the prospectus supplement related to the proposed public offering and in any subsequent filings with the SEC. Additional information will be made available by our annual and quarterly reports and other filings that we make from time to time with the SEC. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this press release. Factors or events that could cause our actual results to differ may emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for us to predict all of them. We undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise, except as may be required by applicable law.
332-895-3222
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SOURCE TransMedics Group, Inc. | https://www.kxii.com/prnewswire/2022/08/05/transmedics-announces-upsize-pricing-public-offering-common-stock/ | 2022-08-05T00:47:48Z |
Emergency responders searching for missing teen swimmer in Red River
Published: May. 2, 2022 at 11:22 AM CDT|Updated: 1 hour ago
BRYAN COUNTY, Okla. (KXII) - Emergency responders are searching for a teen who went missing while swimming in the Red River on Sunday.
According to Rock Creek Public Schools, the missing swimmer is a senior at Rock Creek High School.
Rock Creek Schools said additional counseling resources are available to students.
This is a developing story and more information will be provided as it becomes available.
Copyright 2022 KXII. All rights reserved. | https://www.kxii.com/2022/05/02/emergency-responders-searching-missing-teen-swimmer-red-river/ | 2022-05-02T17:57:10Z |
NEW YORK, June 30, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Levi & Korsinsky, LLP notifies investors in Amazon.com, Inc. ("Amazon" or the "Company") (NASDAQ: AMZN) of a class action securities lawsuit.
CLASS DEFINITION: The lawsuit seeks to recover losses on behalf of Amazon investors who were adversely affected by alleged securities fraud between February 1, 2019 and April 5, 2022. Follow the link below to get more information and be contacted by a member of our team:
AMZN investors may also contact Joseph E. Levi, Esq. via email at jlevi@levikorsinsky.com or by telephone at (212) 363-7500.
CASE DETAILS: The filed complaint alleges that defendants made false statements and/or concealed that: (i) Amazon engaged in anticompetitive conduct in its private-label business practices, including giving Amazon products preference over those of its competitors and using third-party sellers' non-public data to compete with them; (ii) the foregoing exposed Amazon to a heightened risk of regulatory scrutiny and/or enforcement actions; (iii) Amazon's revenues derived from its private-label business were in part the product of impermissible conduct and thus unsustainable; and (iv) as a result, the defendants' public statements throughout the class period were materially false and/or misleading.
WHAT'S NEXT? If you suffered a loss in Amazon during the relevant time frame, you have until July 5, 2022 to request that the Court appoint you as lead plaintiff. Your ability to share in any recovery doesn't require that you serve as a lead plaintiff.
NO COST TO YOU: If you are a class member, you may be entitled to compensation without payment of any out-of-pocket costs or fees. There is no cost or obligation to participate.
WHY LEVI & KORSINSKY: Over the past 20 years, the team at Levi & Korsinsky has secured hundreds of millions of dollars for aggrieved shareholders and built a track record of winning high-stakes cases. Our firm has extensive expertise representing investors in complex securities litigation and a team of over 70 employees to serve our clients. For seven years in a row, Levi & Korsinsky has ranked in ISS Securities Class Action Services' Top 50 Report as one of the top securities litigation firms in the United States.
CONTACT:
Levi & Korsinsky, LLP
Joseph E. Levi, Esq.
Ed Korsinsky, Esq.
55 Broadway, 10th Floor
New York, NY 10006
jlevi@levikorsinsky.com
Tel: (212) 363-7500
Fax: (212) 363-7171
www.zlk.com
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SOURCE Levi & Korsinsky, LLP | https://www.kxii.com/prnewswire/2022/06/30/amzn-lawsuit-alert-levi-amp-korsinsky-notifies-amazoncom-inc-investors-class-action-lawsuit-upcoming-deadline/ | 2022-06-30T11:08:38Z |
Active police response in Idaho Falls
IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) - The Idaho Falls Police Department reports there is an active police response in the area of the 1400 block on Benton Street.
Officials ask members of the public to avoid the area.
This is a breaking story and will be updated as more information is released. | https://localnews8.com/news/crime-tracker/2022/05/03/active-police-response-in-idaho-falls/ | 2022-05-03T21:17:28Z |
Separatists say shelling killed Ukrainian prisoners of war
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — At least 40 Ukrainian prisoners of war captured during the fighting for Mariupol have been killed by Ukrainian shelling, Russia-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine said.
Daniil Bezsonov, a spokesman for the Russia-backed separatists in the Donetsk region, said that at least 40 Ukrainian prisoners of war were killed and 130 were injured Friday when Ukrainian shelling hit a prison in the town of Olenivka.
There was no immediate comment from the Ukrainian authorities to the report.
The Ukrainian troops were taken prisoner after the fierce fighting for Ukraine’s Azov Sea port of Mariupol, where they holed up at the giant Azovstal steel mill for months.
The Azov Regiment and other Ukrainian units defended the steel mill for nearly three months, clinging to its underground maze of tunnels. They surrendered in May under relentless Russian attacks from the ground, sea and air.
Scores of Ukrainian soldiers were then taken to prisons in Russian-controlled areas such as the Donetsk region, a breakaway area in eastern Ukraine which is run by Russia-backed separatist authorities.
In other developments:
— Ukrainian officials said Russian forces shelled the country’s second-largest city, Kharkiv.
City mayor Ihor Terekhov said a central part of the northeastern city was hit, including a two-story building and a higher education institution. Terekhov said the strike occurred just after 4 a.m. on Friday.
“The State Emergency Service is already working — they are sorting out the rubble, looking for people under them,” Terekhov said in a Telegram update.
___
Follow the AP’s coverage of the Russia-Ukraine war at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. | https://www.mysuncoast.com/2022/07/29/separatists-say-shelling-killed-ukrainian-prisoners-war/ | 2022-07-29T09:03:11Z |
NEW YORK, July 25, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- LivePerson, Inc. (Nasdaq: LPSN), a global leader in conversational AI, today announced the planned release of its second quarter financial results after the market close on Monday, August 8, 2022. CEO Robert LoCascio and CFO John Collins will host a conference call later that day, at 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time.
The conference call will be simulcast live and can be accessed by logging onto the investor relations section of the Company's web site at Investor Relations | LivePerson, Inc.
To participate via telephone, callers should dial in five to ten minutes prior to the 5:00 p.m. Eastern start time; domestic callers (U.S. and Canada) should dial 1-877-407-0784, while international callers should dial 1-201-689-8560, and both should reference the conference ID "13731592."
If you are unable to participate in the live call, the teleconference will be available for replay approximately two hours after the call until August 22, 2022. To access the replay, call 1-844-512-2921 (U.S. and Canada) or 1-412-317-6671 (international); please reference the conference ID "13731592."
About LivePerson, Inc.
LivePerson (NASDAQ: LPSN) is a global leader in customer engagement solutions. We create AI-powered digital experiences that feel Curiously Human. Our customers — including leading brands like HSBC, Orange, and GM Financial — have conversations with millions of consumers as personally as they would with one. Our Conversational Cloud platform powers nearly a billion conversational interactions every month, providing a uniquely rich data set to build connections that reduce costs, increase revenue, and are anything but artificial. Fast Company named us the #1 Most Innovative AI Company in the world. To talk with us or our Conversational AI, please visit liveperson.com.
Investor Relations Contact
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SOURCE LivePerson, Inc. | https://www.wibw.com/prnewswire/2022/07/25/liveperson-announce-second-quarter-2022-financial-results-august-8-2022/ | 2022-07-25T22:14:44Z |
ROCKVILLE, Md. and SUZHOU, China, Sept. 4, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Innovent Biologics, Inc. (Innovent) (HKEX: 01801), a world-class biopharmaceutical company that develops, manufactures and commercializes high quality medicines for the treatment of oncology, metabolic, autoimmune, ophthalmology and other major diseases, announces that the first participant has been successfully dosed in the higher-dose cohort of a phase 2 clinical trial of mazdutide (R&D Code: IBI362), a glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor (GLP-1R) and glucagon receptor (GCGR) dual agonist, in Chinese adults with obesity.
This randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled study (ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT04904913) was designed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of mazdutide in Chinese participants with overweight or obesity. Results for the low dose cohorts (3.0 mg, 4.5 mg and 6.0 mg) were disclosed in June of this year and the primary endpoint was met. At Week 24, each dose of mazdutide showed significant efficacy on body weight loss compared with placebo in a dose-dependent manner and brought multiple cardio-metabolic benefits to participants; meanwhile, mazdutide was well tolerated and the overall safety profile was similar to other drugs of the same class. In addition, mazdutide titrated to 9 mg showed a good safety profile and a 12-week body weight loss of 11.7% in the phase 1b study (ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT04440345). Based on these results, Innovent will further evaluate the efficacy and safety for a higher dose (9.0 mg) mazdutide in Chinese patients with obesity (BMI ≥ 30 kg/m2). A total of 80 participants are planned to be enrolled and will be randomized in a 3:1 ratio to receive mazdutide 9.0 mg or placebo for 24 weeks. The primary endpoint was the percent change from baseline in body weight at Week 24.
Professor Linong Ji, the principal investigator of the study, Peking University People's Hospital, stated, "Obesity is associated with a variety of chronic non-communicable diseases and is listed as one of the important risk factors affecting the disease burden. The prevalence and growth rate of obesity in China rank first in the world[1], and drugs that can achieve effective and safe weight loss are therefore urgently needed in the clinic. Clinical studies of mazdutide in overweight or obese population have demonstrated significant efficacy on body weight loss and comprehensive metabolic improvement. Treatment of mazdutide 6.0 mg for 6 months resulted in 11.6% body weight loss in participants in the low-dose cohorts of the phase 2 study, demonstrating its best-in-class potential. I am confident that a 9.0 mg dose of mazdutide will show even more satisfactory efficacy on body weight loss and will offer a new treatment option for participant with moderate to severe obesity."
Dr. Lei Qian, Vice President of Clinical Development at Innovent, stated, "In the Phase 2 study in Chinese participants with overweight or obesity, low-dose mazdutide showed robust efficacy on body weight loss and multiple improvement in metabolic parameters, reflecting the Best-in-Class potential of mazdutide among GLP-1 receptor agonists and co-agonists. To further extend its clinical utility, we will continue to explore the clinical benefit of mazdutide 9.0 mg in adults with obesity (BMI ≥ 30 kg/m2). The result of the phase 1 study suggests that mazdutide is the first single-agent anti-obesity molecule, among all approved or under development, that achieves a 12-week body weight loss by more than 11.5%. We hope that the higher-dose mazdutide will provide a safer, bariatric surgery-like and more accessible treatment option to patients with obesity."
About Overweight and Obesity
China has the largest obese population in the world, with obesity rate likely to increase. Obesity can lead to a range of complications or related diseases that impact life expectancy and deteriorate quality of life. In more severely obese patients, the incidence and mortality of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and certain tumors increase significantly. Obesity is a chronic disease that requires long-term management, and there is a lack of long-term effective and safe treatments. Lifestyle intervention is the first choice and basic treatment for patients with overweight or obesity. However, a considerable percentage of patients fail to achieve the desired weight loss goal upon lifestyle intervention due to various reasons and may require pharmacological intervention. Traditional anti-obesity drugs have limited weight-loss effects and are associated with safety issues.
About Mazdutide
Innovent entered into a licensing agreement with Eli Lilly and Company (Lilly) for the development and potential commercialization of OXM3 (also known as mazdutide), a GLP-1R and GCGR dual agonist, in China. In parallel, Lilly is developing OXM3 outside China. Mazdutide is a long-acting synthetic peptide related to mammalian oxyntomodulin (OXM), which uses a fatty acid side chain to prolong the duration of action and allow once-weekly administration. Mazdutide is thought to exert its biological effects by activating GLP-1 receptor and glucagon receptor in human beings, which improves glucose tolerance and induces weight loss, mimicking the effects of endogenous oxyntomodulin.
In addition to the effects of GLP-1 receptor agonists on promoting insulin secretion, lowering blood glucose and reducing body weight, mazdutide may also increase energy expenditure and improve hepatic fat metabolism through the activation of glucagon receptor. The treatment of metabolic diseases by activating multiple metabolism-related targets simultaneously is currently the worldwide trend in drug development.
About Innovent
Inspired by the spirit of "Start with Integrity, Succeed through Action," Innovent's mission is to develop, manufacture and commercialize high-quality biopharmaceutical products that are affordable to ordinary people. Established in 2011, Innovent is committed to developing, manufacturing and commercializing high-quality innovative medicines for the treatment of cancer, autoimmune, metabolic, ophthalmology and other major diseases. On October 31, 2018, Innovent was listed on the Main Board of the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited with the stock code: 01801.HK.
Since its inception, Innovent has developed a fully integrated multi-functional platform which includes R&D, CMC (Chemistry, Manufacturing, and Controls), clinical development and commercialization capabilities. Leveraging the platform, the company has built a robust pipeline of 34 valuable assets in the fields of cancer, metabolic, autoimmune disease and other major therapeutic areas, with 7 products – TYVYT® (sintilimab injection), BYVASDA® (bevacizumab biosimilar injection), SULINNO® (adalimumab biosimilar injection), HALPRYZA® (rituximab biosimilar injection), Pemazyre® (pemigatinib oral inhibitor) , NAILIKE (olverembatinib) and Cyramza® (ramucirumab), 3 asset under NMPA NDA review, 4 assets in Phase 3 or pivotal clinical trials, and an additional 20 molecules in clinical studies.
Innovent has built an international team with advanced talent in high-end biological drug development and commercialization, including many global experts. The company has also entered into strategic collaborations with Eli Lilly and Company, Sanofi, Adimab, Incyte, MD Anderson Cancer Center and other international partners. Innovent strives to work with many collaborators to help advance China's biopharmaceutical industry, improve drug availability and enhance the quality of the patients' lives. For more information, please visit: www.innoventbio.com. and www.linkedin.com/company/innovent-biologics/.
Note:
TYVYT® (sintilimab injection) is not an approved product in the United States.
BYVASDA® (bevacizumab biosimilar injection), SULINNO®, and HALPRYZA® (rituximab biosimilar injection) are not approved products in the United States.
TYVYT® (sintilimab injection, Innovent)
BYVASDA® (bevacizumab biosimilar injection, Innovent)
HALPRYZA® (rituximab biosimilar injection, Innovent)
SULINNO® (adalimumab biosimilar injection, Innovent)
Pemazyre® (pemigatinib oral inhibitor, Incyte Corporation). Pemazyre® was discovered by Incyte Corporation and licensed to Innovent for development and commercialization in Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan.
CYRAMZA® (ramucirumab, Eli Lilly). Cyramza® was discovered by Eli Lilly and licensed to Innovent for commercialization in Mainland China.
Disclaimer:
1. This indication is still under clinical study, which hasn't been approved in China.
2. Innovent does not recommend any off-label usage.
Forward-looking statement
This news release may contain certain forward-looking statements that are, by their nature, subject to significant risks and uncertainties. The words "anticipate", "believe", "estimate", "expect", "intend" and similar expressions, as they relate to Innovent, are intended to identify certain of such forward-looking statements. The Company does not intend to update these forward-looking statements regularly.
These forward-looking statements are based on the existing beliefs, assumptions, expectations, estimates, projections and understandings of the management of the Company with respect to future events at the time these statements are made. These statements are not a guarantee of future developments and are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors, some of which are beyond the Company's control and are difficult to predict. Consequently, actual results may differ materially from information contained in the forward-looking statements as a result of future changes or developments in our business, the Company's competitive environment and political, economic, legal and social conditions.
The Company, the Directors and the employees of the Company assume (a) no obligation to correct or update the forward-looking statements contained in this site; and (b) no liability in the event that any of the forward-looking statements does not materialise or turn out to be incorrect.
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SOURCE Innovent Biologics | https://www.kxii.com/prnewswire/2022/09/05/innovent-announces-first-participant-dosed-higher-dose-cohort-phase-2-clinical-trial-mazdutide-chinese-adults-with-obesity/ | 2022-09-05T00:21:30Z |
NASA is still aiming for a June launch after a second attempt at a final test for its Artemis I mission to the moon was scrubbed on Monday.
"We're not ready to give up" on the June launch window, Artemis mission manager Mike Sarafin told reporters in a Tuesday news conference.
On Monday, NASA made its second attempt at what it calls a wet dress rehearsal, which simulates every stage of launch without the rocket actually leaving the launchpad. The rehearsal is a crucial step in the first phase of NASA's Artemis program, which is expected to return humans to the moon and land the first woman and the first person of color on the lunar surface by 2025.
The test was stopped Monday before it was completed because of an issue with a panel on the mobile launcher that controls the core stage vent valve, said Charlie Blackwell-Thompson, Artemis launch director for NASA's Exploration Ground Systems program. The valve relieves pressure from the rocket's core stage while tanking of the propellant is underway, according to NASA.
The team attempted to resolve the issue by trying both the primary and secondary valves, but they were unable to fix it.
Due to the time of day, officials decided to stop operations so a team could look at the panel, Blackwell-Thompson said.
"This was a test, and the purpose of the test is to fully understand our systems in a day-of launch configuration," she said. "Our team accomplished quite a bit."
There is no word yet on when the next attempt at a wet dress rehearsal will take place, but Sarafin said he expects it "in short order."
The test was originally scheduled to be completed on Sunday but was put on hold before the propellant was loaded. That was due to problems with two fans used to provide pressure to the mobile launcher -- the movable tower which the rocket sits upon before it lifts off.
NASA said Monday it was able to resolve the malfunction of the fans, which are needed to pressurize enclosed areas inside the launcher and keep out hazardous gases.
The results of the wet dress rehearsal will determine when the uncrewed Artemis I will launch on a mission that goes beyond the moon and returns to Earth.
During the flight, the uncrewed Orion spacecraft will launch atop the SLS rocket to reach the moon and travel thousands of miles beyond it -- farther than any spacecraft intended to carry humans has ever traveled. This mission is expected to last for a few weeks and will end with Orion splashing down in the Pacific Ocean.
Artemis I will be the final proving ground for Orion before the spacecraft carries astronauts to the moon, 1,000 times farther from Earth than where the International Space Station is located.
After the uncrewed Artemis I flight, Artemis II will be a crewed flyby of the moon, and Artemis III will return astronauts to the lunar surface. The time line for the subsequent mission launches depends on the results of the Artemis I mission.
The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2022 Cable News Network, Inc., a WarnerMedia Company. All rights reserved. | https://www.albanyherald.com/news/nasa-still-hopes-to-launch-moon-mission-in-june-despite-two-scrubbed-trials/article_2be689e6-8459-592b-a823-31353975ab68.html | 2022-04-06T02:12:01Z |
Psychiatrist says Sandy Hook parents fear for their lives
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — The parents of a Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting victim live with a complex form of post-traumatic stress disorder and a constant fear that followers of conspiracy theorist Alex Jones will kill them, a psychiatrist testified Monday at Jones’ defamation trial.
Neil Heslin and Scarlett Lewis, parents of 6-year-old Jesse Lewis, have sued Jones and his media company Free Speech Systems over the harassment and threats they and other parents say they’ve endured for years while Jones and his Infowars website claimed the 2012 attack that killed 20 first graders and six school staffers was a hoax or faked.
“The overwhelming cause of their pain is what Jones is doing,” said Roy Lubit, a forensic psychiatrist hired by the plaintiffs to review the trauma faced by the parents.
The post-traumatic stress disorder the parents suffer from is not based on a single event, but on constant trauma, and is similar to that endured by soldiers in war zones or child abuse victims, Lubit said.
Heslin and Scarlett Lewis are consumed not just with the memory of their son’s horrific death, but the denials and attacks on them and their son’s legacy they’ve endured for years. He noted the security the parents hired to protect them at the two-week trial.
Lubit said Heslin has had guns fired at his home and has been accosted on the street. Scarlett Lewis told Lubit that she installed sophisticated surveillance equipment at her home and sleeps with a gun, a knife and pepper spray at her bedside.
“They are very, very frightened (that) someone, some follower of Jones is trying to kill them,” Lubit said.
Jones’ attorney Andino Reynal tried to attack the credibility of Lubit’s testimony and whether he is biased in favor of the parents, who are seeking at least $150 million in the case. He noted that Lubit briefly ran for Congress in Connecticut as a Democrat in 2018.
“You don’t like Alex Jones, do you?” Reynal asked.
“I don’t like what he does,” Lubit answered.
Monday’s testimony also included videotaped depositions from an Infowars reporter who said that at the website, there was no fact-checking, source-vetting, verifying information through second sources or training about journalistic standards.
Jones, who has attended only some of the trial, was not in the courtroom for Monday morning’s testimony. Heslin, Lewis and their older son J.T. Lewis, who was in middle school when his younger brother Jesse was killed, might testify in the afternoon.
The trial is in Texas because Jones lives in Austin and his media company, Free Speech Systems, is based there. The company filed for federal bankruptcy protection, though defense attorneys say that should not disrupt the trial, which is in its second week.
Free Speech Systems, which operates Infowars, listed $14.3 million in assets. That includes almost $1.16 million in cash and almost $1.6 million in property and equipment, as of May 31.
It also listed $79 million in liabilities, with a $54 million debt owed to PQPR Holdings.
Sandy Hook families have separately sued Jones over the $54 million debt listing, arguing that PQBR is a Nevada-registered company owned by Jones and his family through shell entities. That lawsuit in state court is still pending.
Courts in Texas and Connecticut have already found Jones liable for defamation for his portrayal of the Sandy Hook massacre as a hoax involving actors aimed at increasing gun control. In both states, judges issued default judgements against Jones without trials because he failed to respond to court orders and turn over documents.
___
For more of the AP’s coverage of school shootings: https://apnews.com/hub/school-shootings
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. | https://www.mysuncoast.com/2022/08/01/psychiatrist-says-sandy-hook-parents-fear-their-lives/ | 2022-08-01T19:41:45Z |
The brand will provide premium doorstep trash and recycling services to residents.
TAMPA, Fla., June 6, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Trash Butler, the revolutionary doorstep valet trash service and recycling solution designed for multi-family apartment communities, is now offering its world-class service and competitive terms to Asset Living, which will bring the premium service to more than 175,000 units nationwide.
"We're excited to offer our properties and residents an additional amenity through our new partnership with Trash Butler," said David Walther, Chief Revenue Officer of Asset Living. "This is another available service for our teams to provide residents with the highest quality living experience in the industry."
Asset Living is ranked No. 4 on NMHC's Top Manager List for multi-family living, as a preferred national provider for its more than 175,000 units nationwide. The company was also recently ranked as the eighth largest management company of affordable multi-family properties in the U.S. by the National Affordable Housing Management Association's (NAHMA) 2022 Affordable 100 List and for 11 years in a row, Asset Living has been ranked No. 1 in student housing third-party property management by Student Housing Business. This partnership with Trash Butler will help to keep Asset Living communities clean and sanitary while giving residents the benefits of flexible scheduling for service days on a five-to-seven-night basis.
"We are thrilled to continue expanding our national footprint with this new partnership," said Nick Friedman, Co-Founder of Trash Butler. "Asset Living is an industry leader in multi-family management, and Trash Butler looks forward to increasing the net operating income, asset values, and resident experience at their communities."
Founded in 2013, Trash Butler currently services over 200,000 units across 33 states in the country and is recognized as one of the top national doorstep providers. Trash Butler has made a pledge to donate one meal to U.S. Hunger per month for every unit it services, and this partnership will help provide thousands of additional meals per month.
To learn more about Trash Butler, visit www.trashbutler.com.
Founded in 1986, Asset Living ("Asset") is a Houston-based real estate management firm. With a growing portfolio that includes a multitude of properties across the nation, Asset provides services to a variety of clients that include property management, asset management, receivership, and investment services. Asset is a member of The Institute of Real Estate Management (IREM) and is recognized as an Accredited Management Organization (AMO).
To learn more about Asset Living, please visit www.AssetLiving.com
Trash Butler was originally founded by the same entrepreneurs who started the established nationally recognized brand, College Hunks Hauling Junk. They currently service over 200,000 units across the United States and have been voted one of the top amenities by residents and property managers. Trash Butler has been featured in The Wall Street Journal, TIME Magazine and CNBC. They are a purpose-driven, values-based, socially conscious, tech-enabled, and results-obsessed enterprise that helps increase apartment NOI and makes residents' lives easier by removing the burden of taking out the trash. Leave the heavy lifting to us so you and your residents can breathe a sigh of relief.
For more information, visit www.trashbutler.com
Media Contact:
Amanda Rast
Amanda.rast@assetliving.com
Photos: HERE
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SOURCE Trash Butler | https://www.mysuncoast.com/prnewswire/2022/06/06/trash-butler-increases-units-served-with-asset-living-partnership/ | 2022-06-06T15:50:55Z |
A world-famous author, a decorated film director, a Guatemalan-American producer, and a global ed-tech software leader are betting that Chicago will be the next big film production town—and that their technology can power the next generation of filmmaking.
CHICAGO, May 6, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- A stealth-mode startup called SHOWRUNNER (https://showrunner.tech) announced that venture capitalists from coast to coast have invested $4 million to fund its film production technology that promises to make billion-dollar waves in the entertainment industry.
The software company, which recently moved its headquarters from New York City to Chicago, was significantly oversubscribed with investors wanting to join the funding round. The round was led by Lightbank, with Craft Ventures, Gaingels, Allen Gannett (author of The Creative Curve), and several other angel investors participating.
SHOWRUNNER's funding comes at a time when the streaming video industry is spending more on content than ever.
The company's software tools aim to help both industry giants and independent creators to produce film content more efficiently—and to fulfill the company's founding mission of getting Hollywood to treat their crews better.
"Film is an industry that everyone wants to work in because the end product is magic," says SHOWRUNNER CEO Shane Snow. "We think it's time to stop taking advantage of crews' love of film and actually start making the job easier—so they can focus on being creative and get home in time for dinner. And we think technology is the key to that."
SHOWRUNNER's goal of bringing efficiency to Hollywood may sound challenging, but in an industry ballooning with costs and notoriously overworked crews, it's a promise that has investors excited.
"Film and TV production is incredibly inefficient," says Arra Malekzadeh, partner at Craft Ventures. "SHOWRUNNER is tackling that inefficiency with software, connected devices, and data so crew members can focus on their art."
Though its tech was born in NYC, SHOWRUNNER's team performed an exhaustive analysis of film and streaming trends around North America to determine the ideal place to build its home base, including a high-tech showroom.
"We looked closely at Mexico City, Salt Lake, and other regions where we think the film industry is about to see outsized growth," says Snow. "And after all that research, we're all-in on Chicago. This city is going to be the next big production hotspot."
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SOURCE SHOWRUNNER | https://www.mysuncoast.com/prnewswire/2022/05/06/new-york-film-tech-upstart-showrunner-raises-4m-top-vcs-moves-hq-chicago/ | 2022-05-08T03:02:56Z |
Employee led initiative assists in addressing pressing social issues
KNOXVILLE, Tenn., June 15, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- GiveSmart by Community Brands employees awarded two organizations addressing pressing social issues with one year of fundraising technology and service at no cost as part of its Community Brands Creates Change program. Employees participated in a three-month process culminating with the selection of Fit Club MKE (Milwaukee, Wis.) and the National Coalition of 100 Black Women Harrisburg Chapter (Harrisburg, Pa.) as this year's recipients.
Both Fit Club MKE and the National Coalition of 100 Black Women Harrisburg Chapter will receive a GiveSmart champion bundle that includes unlimited fundraising campaigns and access to all events and auctions features. Each organization also receives continuous product updates, personalized training, a dedicated customer success manager, and access to an expansive network of non-profit leaders in the GiveSmart Community.
"GiveSmart customers have raised over $5.3 billion through our fundraising platform and Community Brands employees are proud to partner in aiding such a wide variety of missions," said Steve Greanias, GiveSmart General Manager. "Fit Club MKE and the National Coalition of 100 Black Women Harrisburg Chapter exemplify GiveSmart's commitment to the greater good. We are pleased to recognize the work of these organizations and the roles they play in supporting growth of their online and event-based fundraising initiatives."
Fit Club MKE inspires Milwaukee's youth to become the leaders of tomorrow through fitness, financial wellness, and culturally responsive academic programming. Through introducing baseball, with plans to add golf and soccer in the future, to underexposed communities at an early age, participating youth are empowered to succeed emotionally and academically. Fit Club MKE increases representation in these sports while focusing its values on fitness, integrity, collaboration, learning, unity, and bravery.
"Thanks to GiveSmart software, Fit Club MKE will have a more professional approach to appeal to our donors in 2022," said Fit Club MKE founder and executive director Marcellus Dawson. "We are excited to launch our first online fundraising campaign and auction to promote our B-Three (Books, Baseball, and BBQ) event. Proceeds will go toward the youth in our organization and for future events like baseball and golf skills, wellness camps, and providing necessary baseball equipment and books to our underserved youth, along with other program needs."
The National Coalition of 100 Black Women Harrisburg Chapter advocates on behalf of Black women and girls to promote leadership development and gender equity in the areas of health, education, and economic development in Pennsylvania's capital city. Through advocacy, its membership of professional women work as change agents to influence policy and make a difference on critical issues impacting the present and future. The NCBW Inc. Harrisburg Chapter has served over 15,000 women and girls through its programs and engagements and represent a group of women with a shared goal to advocate, empower, and enhance the lives of women with the vision of seeing Black women and girls living in a world where socio-economic inequity does not exist. The National Coalition of 100 Black Women is committed to being a united voice for more than 20 million Black women in the United States.
"GiveSmart fundraising software will be instrumental in breathing new life into our hybrid fundraising efforts by providing innovative ways to increase donations, streamline processes, and build valuable and strong relationships with supporters and donors," said National Coalition of 100 Black Women Harrisburg Chapter President Tiffany Brown. "We are extremely excited to use GiveSmart this year for total event management of our fourth annual fundraiser, A Tribute to Trailblazers Awards Gala. Any ability to maximize donations allows NCBW Inc. Harrisburg Chapter to continue speaking up and standing up for our community of Black women and girls by providing programs and support."
For additional information about the Community Brands Gives Back program please visit https://www.givesmart.com/givesmart-gives-back/.
Community Brands is the leading provider of cloud-based software and payment solutions to associations, nonprofits, and K-12 schools powering organizations to engage the people they serve through programs and events, raise funds to enable their mission, and manage their financial operations. The Community Brands portfolio provides the industry's most complete set of software solutions for nonprofits and K-12 schools of all sizes with purpose-built award-winning solutions. Community Brands' products are bound by a common purpose to serve the organizations that make communities a better place to live. To learn more, visit communitybrands.com or follow on Twitter and LinkedIn.
GiveSmart is a fundraising management system that enables organizations to accelerate fundraising through configurable, mobile-friendly campaigns, peer-to-peer giving, auction and event management, and secure payment processing. Our mission is to help nonprofits and organizations reach their fundraising goals while creating an engaging, exciting, and easy giving experience for their donors. Learn more at www.givesmart.com.
Media contact: David Brauer, Manager, PR & Influencer Marketing -david.brauer@communitybrands.com
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SOURCE Community Brands | https://www.mysuncoast.com/prnewswire/2022/06/15/community-brands-creates-change-program-awards-givesmart-fundraising-software-milwaukee-harrisburg-pa-organizations/ | 2022-06-15T18:23:09Z |
Russia presses Ukraine assault as Putin marks Victory Day
ZAPORIZHZHIA, Ukraine (AP) - Russian forces pushed forward Monday in their assault on Ukraine, seeking to capture the crucial southern port city of Mariupol as Moscow celebrated its Victory Day holiday.
Determined to show success in a war now in its 11th week, Russian troops pummeled a seaside steel mill where an estimated 2,000 Ukrainian fighters are making their last stand in the port city of Mariupol.
The mill is the only part of the city not overtaken by the invaders. Its defeat would deprive Ukraine of a vital port and allow Russia to establish a land corridor to the Crimean Peninsula, which it seized from Ukraine in 2014.
The Ukrainian military’s General Staff warned of a high probability of missile strikes and said that Russian troops were seizing “personal documents from the local population without good reason” in Russian-controlled areas of Zaporizhzhia — the city where many fleeing Mariupol have gathered. The military alleged Russian troops were seizing documents to force residents to join in Victory Day commemorations.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned the anniversary, which marks the Soviet Union’s triumph over Nazi Germany in 1945, could bring a renewed onslaught.
“They have nothing to celebrate,” Linda Thomas-Greenfield, U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, said of the Russians, speaking on CNN. “They have not succeeded in defeating the Ukrainians. They have not succeeded in dividing the world or dividing NATO. And they have only succeeded in isolating themselves internationally and becoming a pariah state around the globe.”
Speaking Monday at a military parade marking the holiday, Russian President Vladimir Putin sought to justify his invasion, by claiming that it was necessary to ward off what he described “an absolutely unacceptable threat just next to our borders.” He has repeatedly alleged that Ukraine was planning to attack Russia — which Kyiv has flatly denied.
“The danger was rising by day,” he claimed, adding that “Russia has preemptively repulsed an aggression.”
Putin again scolded the West for failing to heed the Russian demands for security guarantees and a rollback to NATO’s expansion, arguing that it also left Moscow no other choice but to invade.
But he did not — at least so far — give any signal as to the next phase of the conflict nor did he claim the complete capture of Mariupol, which his forces have bombarded and besieged for weeks.
Ukrainian fighters in the steel mill in the port city have rejected Russian-set deadlines for laying down their arms, even as attacks continued by warplanes, artillery and tanks.
“We are under constant shelling,” said Capt. Sviatoslav Palamar, deputy commander of the Ukrainian Azov Regiment, a unit holding the steel mill.
Lt. Illya Samoilenko, another Azov Regiment member, said a couple hundred wounded soldiers were in the plant. He declined to say how many able-bodied fighters remained. Fighters lack lifesaving equipment and are having to dig by hand to free people from bunkers that collapsed under shelling.
“Surrender for us is unacceptable because we cannot grant such a gift to the enemy,” Samoilenko said.
The last of the civilians who had taken shelter with fighters at the plant were evacuated Saturday. They arrived Sunday night in Zaporizhzhia, the first major Ukrainian city beyond the frontlines, and spoke of constant shelling, dwindling food, ubiquitous mold — and using hand sanitizer for cooking fuel.
Britain’s Defense Ministry warned in a daily intelligence report on Twitter that Russia was running short of precision-guided munitions and increasingly is using inaccurate rockets and bombs, subjecting Ukrainian towns and cities to “intense and indiscriminate bombardments with little or no regard for civilian casualties.”
More than 60 people were feared dead after a Russian bomb flattened a Ukrainian school being used as a shelter in Bilohorivka, an eastern village, Ukrainian officials said.
About 90 people were sheltering in the school’s basement when it was attacked Saturday. Emergency crews found two bodies and rescued 30 people, but “most likely all 60 people who remain under the rubble are now dead,” Serhiy Haidai, governor of Luhansk province, wrote on the Telegram messaging app.
Russian shelling killed two boys, ages 11 and 14, in the nearby town of Pryvillia, Haidai said. Luhansk is part of the Donbas, the industrial heartland in the east that Russia’s forces are working to capture.
Explosions echoed across the major Black Sea port of Odesa.
Keeping up their dogged resistance, Ukraine’s military struck Russian positions on a Black Sea island that was captured in the war’s first days. A satellite image by Planet Labs showed smoke rising from two sites on the island.
But Moscow’s forces showed no sign of backing down in the south. Satellite photos show Russia has put armored vehicles and missile systems at a small base in the Crimean Peninsula.
Ukraine’s military also warned some 19 Russian battalion tactical groups were stationed just across the border in Russia’s Belgorod region. Those groups likely consist of some 15,200 troops with tanks, missile batteries and other weaponry.
The most intense combat in recent days has taken place in eastern Ukraine. A Ukrainian counteroffensive in the northeast near Kharkiv, the country’s second-largest city, was making “significant progress,” according to the Institute for the Study of War, a Washington think tank.
However, the Ukrainian army withdrew from the embattled eastern city of Popasna after two months of fierce fighting. Rodion Miroshnik, a representative of the pro-Kremlin, separatist Luhansk People’s Republic, said its forces and Russian troops had captured most of the city.
The Kharkiv regional administration said three people were killed in shelling of the town of Bogodukhiv, about 50 kilometers (30 miles) from Kharkiv.
South of Kharkiv, in Dnipropetrovsk province, the governor said a 12-year-old boy was killed by a cluster munition that he found after a Russian attack. An international treaty bans the use of such explosives, but neither Russia nor Ukraine has signed the agreement.
“This war is treacherous,” Gov. Valentyn Reznichenko wrote on social media. “It is near, even when it is invisible.”
As Victory Day turned attention toward Putin, Western leaders showed new signs of support for Ukraine.
The Group of Seven industrial democracies pledged to ban or phase out imports of Russian oil. The G-7 consists of the U.S., Canada, Britain, Germany, France, Italy and Japan.
The United States announced other new sanctions, cutting off Western advertising from Russia’s three biggest TV stations, banning U.S. accounting and consulting firms from providing services, and cutting off Russia’s industrial sector from wood products, industrial engines, boilers and bulldozers.
U.S. first lady Jill Biden met with her Ukrainian counterpart. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau raised his country’s flag at its embassy in Kyiv. And U2′s Bono, alongside bandmate The Edge, performed in a Kyiv subway station that had been used as a bomb shelter, singing the 1960s song “Stand by Me.”
The acting U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, Kristina Kvien, posted a picture of herself at the American Embassy, and described plans for the eventual U.S. return to the Ukrainian capital after Moscow’s forces abandoned their effort to storm Kyiv weeks ago.
Zelenskyy released a video address marking the day of the Allied victory in Europe 77 years ago. The black-and-white footage showed him in front of a ruined apartment block in Borodyanka, a Kyiv suburb.
Drawing parallels between Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the evils of Nazism, Zelenskyy said generations of Ukrainians understand the significance of the words “Never again,” a vow not to allow a repeat of the horrors of the Holocaust.
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Gambrell reported from Lviv, Ukraine. Yesica Fisch in Bakhmut, David Keyton in Kyiv, Yuras Karmanau in Lviv, Mstyslav Chernov in Kharkiv and AP staff around the world contributed to this report.
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Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine: https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. | https://www.kxii.com/2022/05/09/russia-presses-ukraine-assault-putin-marks-victory-day/ | 2022-05-09T10:07:56Z |
MONTGOMERY, Ala., July 20, 2022 /PRNewswire/ - Premier Tech announces a 33 million investment for the construction of a new facility in Montgomery, Alabama, for its Systems and Automation business group. Through this major investment, Premier Tech Systems and Automation is creating its headquarters for the United States, strengthening its presence in America, and therefore reconfirms its commitment toward its customers and the American market.
The construction of this 165 000-square-foot facility began early spring 2022 and will further improve the overall experience for American customers — through the design and manufacturing of innovative end-of-line packaging and palletizing solutions that help increase capacity and optimize manufacturing facilities in the nutrition, industrial, organic and agriculture market sectors.
This stronger American presence will enhance the customer experience, easing project execution through proximity for on-site visits and factory acceptance tests. This bright, clean, and safe new installation will include air conditioning and a technical floor allowing equipment to be fully tested according to the actual production parameters required by customers. There will also be an innovation, research and development area as well as a training centre. This facility will serve as a customer solutions hub for the American market, as well as a spare parts distribution centre, which will accelerate the delivery of spare parts for customers in the US. The operations will start gradually as of March 2023 and the moving will be completed at the beginning of the summer.
"The design of our new facility will allow an increase in production capacity that will sustain our future growth. It will also allow us to better serve the American market," according to André Noreau, president and chief executive officer of Premier Tech Systems and Automation. "Team members will have a world-class manufacturing environment and this new construction will become the cornerstone of equipment manufacturing and customer solutions in the United States."
"We are grateful for a global company like Premier Tech who has committed to invest in Montgomery and deepen their roots with innovative end-of-line packaging and the creation of new jobs for our community," said Montgomery Mayor Steven L. Reed.
Since the launch of the modernization plan in 2020, 55 jobs have been created and 78 have been secured at the current Montgomery site — for a total of 133 production and office team members. The configuration of this new facility could foster further investments that would help double the workforce by 2028.
"We are so honored that Premier Tech has expanded since selecting Montgomery as one of their homes in 28 countries all over the world," said Montgomery Chamber Chair Cedric Campbell. "Partnership and teamwork are key to this kind of economic growth, and we are grateful for the impact this kind of investment will have on the entire region."
"We are proud to welcome Premier Tech to its newest facility in Montgomery County. Its investment showcases that Montgomery is on the world stage for innovation and technology," said County Commission Chair Doug Singleton.
This construction in Montgomery aligns with Premier Tech's commitment to modernize its installations in the United States to enhance the customer experience across the country, strengthen its local footprint by creating jobs and support its growth. Another 12-million-dollar investment is underway for a manufacturing infrastructure project in Salt Lake City as part of this installation modernization initiative.
Making a difference, this is what we are all about at Premier Tech. One team driven by a shared passion to deliver solutions that will better the lives of people, businesses and communities. At Premier Tech, People and Technologies connect in lasting, transformative ways, giving life to products and services that help feed, protect and improve our world. We are committed to creating sustainable solutions that help bring beautiful gardens to life, increase crop yields, improve the efficiency of manufacturing facilities, treat and recycle water, and much more as we keep innovating.
For nearly a century, Premier Tech has been growing internationally, driven by the collective power of its 5 200 team members in 28 countries. Backed by more than a quarter-century-long track record of solid growth, Premier Tech today records sales of more than one billion dollars.
For more information about Premier Tech, visit www.premiertech.com and follow twitter.com/_PremierTech. To learn more about the presence of Premier Tech Systems and Automation in Montgomery visit www.premiertech.com/montgomery-career
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SOURCE Premier Tech ltée | https://www.wibw.com/prnewswire/2022/07/20/premier-tech-invests-33m-construction-new-facility-montgomery/ | 2022-07-20T17:06:50Z |
(The Hill) – The House committee examining last year’s attack on the Capitol accused former President Trump on Monday of lying purposely to the public in order to stay in power and raise money from sympathetic supporters — an orchestrated effort the panel said led directly to the deadly insurrection of Jan. 6.
Gathered on Capitol Hill for the second in a series of public hearings into its investigation, the select committee leaned heavily on the testimony of some of the leading figures in Trump’s political orbit to hammer home the notion that, not only were Trump’s claims of rampant voter fraud false, but also that he knew them to be so.
Leading the charge was former Attorney General Bill Barr, who delivered a damning portrait of the former president as someone increasingly “detached from reality” following the election.
Barr said his Justice Department was forced to play “whack-a-mole” with the flood of false fraud allegations pouring in from Trump supporters around the country. One by one, the department investigated the claims but found no wrongdoing. The accusation that Dominion Voting Systems, a voting machine company, had installed software to flip votes from Trump to Joe Biden was “idiotic,” Barr said, while another claim — that more people voted in Philadelphia than there are voters in the city — was “absolute rubbish.”
“And I told him that the stuff that his people were shoveling out to the public was bull—-, I mean, that the claims of fraud were bull—-,” Barr told the committee in an earlier interview that was aired during Monday’s hearing. “And, you know, he was indignant about that.”
Testimony presented Monday showed a clear fracture behind the scenes between Trump and some of his top aides, who told the committee they confronted Trump directly about his claims of widespread fraud in the weeks after the 2020 election, only to be ignored.
“The election fraud claims were false. Mr. Trump’s closest advisors knew it. Mr. Trump knew it,” Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.) said at the outset of the hearing. “That didn’t stop him from pushing the false claims and urging his supporters to, ‘fight like hell’ to ‘take back their country.’”
The committee used video clips of Trump making fabulous claims of rampant fraud, and contrasted them with interviews with White House and campaign aides disputing those assertions.
They showed Trump laying the groundwork for his ultimate assertion — that only fraud could deal him an election loss — as early as April 2020, a thread he revisited when he claimed victory on election night, then amplified heading into Jan. 6.
Former deputy attorney general Richard Donoghue testified that he personally explained to Trump that DOJ officials had looked into claims of fraud in Georgia, Nevada and elsewhere, but that much of the information the president was receiving was inaccurate. In response, Trump would shift his focus to other claims of fraud.
“There were so many allegations that when you gave him a very direct answer on one of them, he wouldn’t fight you on it, he’d move to another one,” Donoghue said.
Former Trump campaign manager Bill Stepien, who was promoted to that role in July 2020, was scheduled to testify in-person on Monday but backed out after his wife went into labor.
In his absence, the committee used clips of Stepien’s private deposition, in which he discussed his effort to convince Trump of the benefits of mail-in voting, of the amount of time it would take to count ballots and declare a winner in the 2020 election, and of the need to let votes be counted before declaring victory. As part of that effort, he brought in House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) to help make the case. It fell on deaf ears.
“My recommendation was to say that votes are still being counted. It’s too early to tell, too early to call the race,” he said.
“I don’t recall the particular words. He thought I was wrong. He told me so. And you know, that they were going to, he was going to go in a different direction.”
Trump instead relied on the counsel of Rudy Giuliani, a key promoter of the Dominion conspiracy theory who emerged as one of the leading public champions of Trump’s lie about a stolen election.
The committee used footage of Giuliani on Fox News and appearing before a Pennsylvania panel claiming dead people had voted for Biden in large numbers and that ballots were brought in to erase Trump’s lead in Michigan — both of which were dispelled by witnesses on Monday.
“There were two groups, my team and Rudy’s team. I didn’t mind being part of ‘Team Normal,'” Stepien told the committee, saying he did not believe the tactics encouraged by Giuliani were “honest or professional.” In a surprising moment in Monday’s hearing, the panel showed former Trump campaign adviser Jason Miller testifying that Giuliani was “definitely intoxicated” on Election Night.
The committee also spent considerable time on the “red mirage” concept, an historic trend predicting that Republicans will perform well early in the vote-counting process due to their preference for same-day, in-person voting, while Democratic vote totals kick up later as early and absentee ballots are counted in the days after the polls close.
Chris Stirewalt, former political editor at Fox News, said that trend was expected again in November in 2020, but Trump’s willingness to use that “quirk” led the network to alter its approach to Election Night coverage.
“Basically, in every election, Republicans win Election Day, and Democrats win the early vote,” Stirewailt testified. “We had gone to pains — and I’m proud of the pains we went to — to make sure that we were informing viewers that this was going to happen. Because the Trump campaign and the president had made it clear that they were going to try to exploit this anomaly.”
Trump’s advisors said they informed him of those vote-counting dynamics, but it did nothing to prevent Trump from claiming immediate victory.
“We want all voting to stop. We don’t want them to find any ballots at 4 o’clock in the morning,” Trump said on Election Night, a clip played during Monday’s hearing.
But what were Trump’s chances of winning at that point, Lofgran asked Stirewalt, who had assisted in the controversial Fox News decision to call Arizona for Biden.
“None,” he responded.
As Trump continued to press his claims of election fraud, his fundraising apparatus kicked into gear, the committee argued. Senior counsel Amanda Wick found the Trump campaign sent more than 1 million emails to supporters soliciting donations under the pretense of fighting election fraud between Election Day and Jan. 6.
Ultimately, Trump and his allies raised roughly $250 million. But a so-called Election Defense Fund that Trump had promoted did not exist, and former campaign staffers admitted it was merely a marketing tool. Instead, millions of dollars were funneled to conservative groups run by Trump allies, including his former chief of staff Mark Meadows.
“Throughout the committee’s investigation we found evidence that the Trump campaign and its surrogates misled voters as to where their funds would go and what they would be used for. So not only was there the big lie, there was the big rip off,” Lofgren said.
Mychael Schnell contributed. | https://cw33.com/news/nexstar-media-wire/trumps-inner-circle-testifies-his-claims-were-bogus/ | 2022-06-13T20:43:04Z |
Medicare is now paying for at-home Covid-19 tests from retailers
By Tami Luhby, CNN
Medicare enrollees can now obtain home Covid-19 tests from certain pharmacies and providers at no cost, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services announced Monday.
The move comes more than two months after the Biden administration began requiring health insurers to cover the cost of home tests for most Americans with private insurance.
Medicare was not initially included in the directive, sparking an outcry from seniors and people with disabilities. More than 59 million Americans are enrolled in Medicare.
The delay stemmed from the fact that traditional Medicare had never covered over-the-counter tests before. CMS announced in February that it would add a new payment program so it could expand reimbursement to Medicare enrollees starting in the early spring.
“This is all part of our overall strategy to ramp-up access to easy-to-use, at-home tests free of charge,” Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra said in a statement.
Up to eight tests a month
Under the initiative, Medicare enrollees can receive up to eight home tests a month at no cost from participating pharmacies and providers, which Medicare will reimburse directly.
Those in Medicare Advantage plans may need to show their federal Medicare cards to receive the free tests, which are being covered by Medicare Part B, not health insurers. Some Medicare Advantage plans may cover Covid-19 tests as a separate benefit.
National pharmacy chains that are participating include: Albertsons, Costco, CVS, Food Lion, Giant Food, Hannaford, H-E-B, Hy-Vee, Kroger, Rite Aid, Shop & Stop, Walgreens and Walmart.
Enrollees can also check with their local pharmacies or providers to see if they are participating or call 1-800-MEDICARE to find locations.
The coverage will last until the public health emergency ends. It is currently set to expire in mid-April but is expected to be renewed for at least another three months.
Other testing options
Medicare enrollees, like all Americans, can request two free sets of four at-home Covid-19 tests from the federal government through Covidtests.gov.
They also have access to no-cost tests through health care providers at more than 20,000 testing sites.
And Medicare enrollees can get tests performed at a laboratory at no charge when ordered by a doctor, pharmacist or other health care provider.
The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2022 Cable News Network, Inc., a WarnerMedia Company. All rights reserved. | https://localnews8.com/politics/cnn-us-politics/2022/04/04/medicare-is-now-paying-for-at-home-covid-19-tests-from-retailers/ | 2022-04-04T20:22:57Z |
Did you lose money on investments in Energy Transfer? If so, please visit Energy Transfer LP Shareholder Class Action Lawsuit or contact Peter Allocco at (212) 951-2030 or pallocco@bernlieb.com to discuss your rights.
NEW YORK, June 29, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Bernstein Liebhard LLP, a nationally acclaimed investor rights law firm, reminds investors of the deadline to file a lead plaintiff motion in a securities class action lawsuit that has been filed on behalf of investors who purchased or acquired the common shares of Energy Transfer LP ("Energy Transfer" or the "Company") (NYSE: ET) between April 13, 2017 and December 20, 2021, inclusive (the "Class Period"). The lawsuit was filed in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York and alleges violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.
Energy Transfer, a Delaware company headquartered in Dallas, Texas, was founded in 1996 and became a publicly traded partnership in 2006. The Partnership was formerly known as Energy Transfer Equity, L.P. and changed its name to Energy Transfer LP in October 2018. Energy Transfer is a company engaged in natural gas and propane pipeline transport. Energy Transfer LP, through its subsidiaries, provides transportation, storage, and terminalling services for products like natural gas, crude oil, Natural Gas Liquids ("NGL"), and refined products.
In the Complaint, Plaintiff alleges that Defendants made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (a) Energy Transfer had inadequate internal controls and procedures to prevent contractors from engaging in illegal conduct with regards to drilling activities, and/or failed to properly mitigate known issues related to such controls and procedures; (b) Energy Transfer, through its subsidiary Rover Pipeline, LLC ("Rover"), hired a third-party contractor to conduct Horizontal Directional Drilling Activities ("HDD") for the Rover Pipeline Project (the "Project"), whose conduct of adding illegal additives in the drilling mud caused severe pollution near the Tuscarawas River when a large inadvertent release took place on April 13, 2017 (the "April 13 Release"); and (c) Energy Transfer continually downplayed its potential civil liabilities when the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission ("FERC") was actively investigating Energy Transfer's wrongdoing related to the April 13 Release and consistently provided it with updated information about FERC's findings on this matter. These issues were foreseeably likely to subject Energy Transfer to increased governmental scrutiny and enforcement, as well as increased reputational and financial harm, and would also materially impact Energy Transfer's financial results.
On August 8, 2019, Energy Transfer filed its quarterly report on Form 10-Q with the SEC, reporting the Partnership's financial and operating results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2019 (the "2Q19 10-Q"). The 2Q19 10-Q disclosed that two years earlier, in mid-2017, FERC Enforcement Staff began a non-public formal investigation "regarding allegations that diesel fuel may have been included in the drilling mud at the Tuscarawas River HDD."
As a result of this news, the price of Energy Transfer stock declined 4.6% over two trading days, to close at $13.38 on August 12, 2019.
Then on December 16, 2021, FERC publicly issued to Energy Transfer an Order To Show Cause And Notice of Proposed Penalty (the "FERC Order"), which proposed a $40 million fine for the inadvertent release incident. On this news, the price of Energy Transfer shares declined 2.8% over the course of two trading days, to close at $8.25, on December 20, 2021.
If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff, you must move the Court no later than August 2, 2022. A lead plaintiff is a representative party acting on behalf of other class members in directing the litigation. Your ability to share in any recovery doesn't require that you serve as lead plaintiff. If you choose to take no action, you may remain an absent class member.
If you purchased ET common shares, and/or would like to discuss your legal rights and options please visit Energy Transfer LP Shareholder Class Action Lawsuit or contact Peter Allocco at (212) 951-2030 or pallocco@bernlieb.com.
Since 1993, Bernstein Liebhard LLP has recovered over $3.5 billion for its clients. In addition to representing individual investors, the Firm has been retained by some of the largest public and private pension funds in the country to monitor their assets and pursue litigation on their behalf. As a result of its success litigating hundreds of lawsuits and class actions, the Firm has been named to The National Law Journal's "Plaintiffs' Hot List" thirteen times and listed in The Legal 500 for ten consecutive years.
ATTORNEY ADVERTISING. © 2022 Bernstein Liebhard LLP. The law firm responsible for this advertisement is Bernstein Liebhard LLP, 10 East 40th Street, New York, New York 10016, (212) 779-1414. Prior results do not guarantee or predict a similar outcome with respect to any future matter.
Contact Information:
Peter Allocco
Bernstein Liebhard LLP
https://www.bernlieb.com
(212) 951-2030
pallocco@bernlieb.com
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SOURCE Bernstein Liebhard LLP | https://www.mysuncoast.com/prnewswire/2022/06/29/energy-transfer-lp-nyse-et-shareholder-class-action-alert-bernstein-liebhard-llp-reminds-investors-deadline-file-lead-plaintiff-motion-securities-class-action-lawsuit-against-energy-transfer-lp-nyse-et/ | 2022-06-29T21:46:50Z |
Temple College came back for a walk-off win early Saturday but fell behind quickly in Game 2 and remained there despite mounting chances in splitting a Northern Junior College Athletic Conference doubleheader with Ranger at windy Danny Scott Sports Complex.
After leading most of the way in Game 1, the Leopards (21-15, 5-11) had to take it to extras to pull out a 3-2 win in eight innings before dropping an 8-4 decision in the end-cap, during which they left 12 runners on base, eight of which were stranded in scoring position.
“We’re in a situation right now as far as our record and everything else where we have to win ballgames,” Temple head coach Craig McMurtry said. “Obviously getting a split isn’t terrible but we’re at a point with where our record’s at now where we have to win several games.
“The guys are still playing hard; we’re just not getting timely hits. Somebody has to come up with a hit in those situations. It’s just one of those deals where we’re not doing what we need to do to win ball games and I think, more importantly, we need to get out there and compete a bit better.”
Temple got an Andre Jackson single up the middle to plate Zane Spinn for the walk-off win in the opener after allowing the Rangers (29-13, 14-6) to tie the game at 2 with two outs in the seventh when Kade Wood’s grounder was misplayed by Leopards third baseman Raithen Malone.
Temple reliever Hagen Rose, a Troy product, struck out three while working the final three frames in relief of starter Davis Pratt. Rose picked up the win, which snapped Temple’s brief two-game slide after Ranger defeated the Leopards both times in a Wednesday doubleheader in Ranger.
The Rangers, however, swiftly got back on track in Game 2, assuming a six-run lead through the first three innings. They got started when three-hole hitter Alex Olivo crushed the first pitch he saw in the first inning high over the left-field fence — letting some of the outward-blowing 20 mph gusts help his cause — to stake his team to an early 2-0 lead.
Olivo finished 2-for-2 with a homer, double, walk and three RBIs to lead Ranger’s offense, which saw each starter get at least one hit.
After Olivo and Gilberto Torres scored on the play, McMurtry asked the umpires to convene, saying that Olivo passed Torres while trotting the base paths, which would’ve ruled him out. But after talking it out, the umpires ruled Olivo safe, after which McMurtry left his dugout to argue with the home plate umpire, who ejected the coach during the course of their discussion.
Without their head coach, the Leopards kept searching for a spark but didn’t find it until they already trailed by eight runs in the fourth.
It was Jackson who struck again to drive in Temple’s first run when he doubled to plate Hogan Heller, who had ripped a long, opposite-field double to right to start the fourth.
Jackson finished 4-for-7 over the two games as the only Leopards player with at least two hits in each affair. He later scored when Spinn, a Holland grad, knocked a two-run single through the right side to cut the gap to 8-3 with no outs in the fourth.
Spinn’s hit chased Ranger starter Gabriel Seviillano, who looked sharp early — striking out five straight batters at one point — but allowed five consecutive runners to reach in the fourth.
Leopards pinch hitter Bryan Williams, a Temple High grad, was hit by a pitch to load the bases with no outs but was quickly picked off first by Ranger catcher Chris Kean for the first out. Reliever Gentry Busch, who got the win in 1 1/3 innings of work, escaped without any further damage by getting a strike out and ground out.
Temple left the bags loaded again in the fifth and sixth frames, getting only a Williams RBI-walk to show for it.
Ranger’s Eli Breeder, who picked up a save in 1 1/3 innings, finished off the Leopards quietly in the seventh, getting Travis Chestnut to strike out on a breaking ball for the final out.
The two teams have been on diverging paths in the last 20 games, in which the third-place Rangers went 15-5 compared to 7-13 for Temple.
The Leopards will travel to UMHB to take on its JV at 3 p.m. Monday before returning to conference action at Hill for a Wednesday noon doubleheader. | https://www.tdtnews.com/sports/article_31dfadcc-b869-11ec-b1df-d3d900d60b58.html | 2022-04-10T06:52:41Z |
GREENVILLE, S.C. (AP) — A woman accused in the case of two dead infants found decades ago in South Carolina, including a baby girl who later became known as “Julie Valentine,” has entered an Alford plea to three charges.
Brook Graham entered the plea Thursday to two counts of unlawful conduct of a child and one charge of improperly disposing of remains, news outlets reported. The plea means she maintains her innocence but acknowledges that the state has enough evidence to find her guilty of the charges.
The charges arise from the discovery of remains of a baby boy in woods in 1989 and those of infant girl the next year who came to be known in South Carolina’s Greenville County as Julie Valentine. The county is in the state’s northeast.
The girl’s tiny body was discovered the day before Valentine’s Day in 1990. Authorities say a man picking wildflowers for his wife found a vacuum cleaner box holding a baby with black hair who weighed 6 pounds (2.7 kilograms).
Greenville Police investigators tracked buyers of the vacuum cleaner. They said two names could not be ruled out and that Graham’s was one of them. Yet they could not make a case until former Police Chief Ken Miller ordered DNA testing, which authorities said had determined Graham was the biological mother of both infants.
When tests on the infant girl came back, it was determined the baby was half-Vietnamese and half-European, according to an attorney with the solicitors’ office. That office added that police went back through the file and saw where the defendant and her Vietnamese boyfriend had bought the type of vacuum box the baby was left in.
“Greenville County had also located a baby boy in April 1989 in a trash bag left in a wooded area that was the year prior,” the solicitor’s office said in a statement.
The solicitors’ office said the infant’s father and the woman’s sister never knew Graham was pregnant.
Police announced Graham’s arrest in April 2019.
“The state, under the facts, that we were able to investigate with law enforcement, only allowed us to charge her with unlawful neglect and the desecration of human remains. She had initially been charged with murder, and we dismissed those cases because no medical examiner could prove how the children actual died, and if in fact they were actually living at the time of birth,” Solicitor W. Walter Wilkins said.
Wilkins added that because of the delay in finding the bodies and their state of decomposition, medical experts and technology could not determine whether the children were “alive or not at birth.”
Graham is free on bond until a pre-sentence investigation is completed. A sentencing range was not immediately available.
Her attorney David Braghirol told The Stateon Friday that the full story has not been told but would come out in a pre-sentencing report conducted by a probation officer. He said there is no doubt Graham is the mother, but he added both babies were born dead.
Wilkins called the case very unique one and said of the final charges, “unfortunately this is the best evidence that we have to get justice for these two children that were left abandoned 30 years ago. We’re just glad to have this case moving forward in the right direction and we will be getting ready and getting prepared for sentencing.”
In the years since, Julie Valentine has become a symbol for child abuse prevention in Greenville County, memorialized with a sculpture in a local park and included in the name of an organization that works with abuse survivors.
Julie Valentine is buried in at a cemetery where the headstone reads “Baby Jane Doe” and under that, “Julie Valentine Feb. 1990.”
Terry Christy, one of the original investigators, told The State the woman’s plea does not bring closure for him. He thinks of the little girl often and sometimes goes by her grave when he visits the graves of relatives in the same cemetery. His wife, Julianna, was a victim witness coordinator who had worked years ago seeking to identify the infant girl and for whom Julie Valentine was named. | https://cw33.com/news/u-s-news/ap-u-s-headlines/mother-of-2-dead-babies-found-decades-ago-enters-alford-plea/ | 2022-05-14T17:40:36Z |
NAPA, Calif., June 3, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- James Bagian, MD, PE, a former NASA astronaut well known for bringing his systems safety insights from aerospace engineering into the patient safety arena, will be a featured speaker in a webinar series on hospital safety and quality hosted by TDC Group.
Dr. Bagian—a NASA astronaut for over 15 years, veteran of two Space Shuttle missions, former registered professional engineer, and founding Director of the Center for Healthcare Engineering and Patient Safety as well as the Center for Risk Analysis Informed Decision Engineering at the University of Michigan and member of The Doctors Company Board of Governors—will join moderator David L. Feldman, MD, Chief Medical Officer of Healthcare Risk Advisors and TDC Group, in the webinars.
The series, which highlights leading voices in healthcare, premieres at noon (EDT) June 7 with Dr. Bagian and Rohit Bhalla, MD, MPH, Chief Clinical and Quality Officer, Stamford Health, Stamford, Connecticut, speaking on "Understanding and Preventing Adverse Events." They will discuss reporting systems, advancing transparency, the study of near misses, and what's lacking in root cause analyses. Registration is now open for the free webinar, which also will be available on demand after the live event.
Upcoming webinars will feature:
- Rosanne Raso, DNP, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN, Vice President and Chief Nursing Officer, New York-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center, New York City, who will join Dr. Bagian in discussing "Engaging the C-Suite in Safety and Quality."
- Brijen Shah, MD, Associate Professor, Icahn School of Medicine and Vice President, Medical Affairs, Mount Sinai Health System, New York City, who will converse with Dr. Bagian about "Teaching Safety and Quality."
"Despite more than 20 years of focus on patient safety, many hospitals and healthcare professionals still struggle with advancing the safety and quality agenda in their institutions. Therefore, we are pleased to share the expertise of Dr. Bagian and other leading voices in healthcare with hospital leaders and clinicians nationwide," said Dr. Feldman.
Dates and times for future webinars featuring Dr. Bagian can be found at www.thetdcgroup.com.
The TDC Group of companies (TDC Group) is the nation's largest physician-owned provider of insurance, risk management, and healthcare practice improvement solutions. Serving the full continuum of care, from individual physicians to academic medical systems, we help healthcare professionals overcome the complexities of today's practice environment. TDC Group (thetdcgroup.com) delivers proven solutions constantly refined through tireless innovation. We are defined by our depth of experience, commitment to service, unparalleled product offering, and broad distribution capabilities. With annual revenue of $1 billion, over $6.5 billion in assets, and offices nationwide, TDC Group serves over 100,000 healthcare professionals and organizations throughout the United States.
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SOURCE TDC Group | https://www.mysuncoast.com/prnewswire/2022/06/03/physician-astronaut-featured-webinar-series-hospital-safety-quality/ | 2022-06-03T14:43:26Z |
BEIJING, July 27, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- In 2021, aiming to tap into a wider market of 7.5 billion in population, Chinese construction machinery giant SANY launched 128 new products for international markets, representing 83% year-on-year growth. In the near future, SANY's internationalization efforts will revolve around the development of large equipment, Euro-American markets and the compilation of product literature, all of which are important elements to propel SANY's internationalization progress forward.
So far, SANY's product portfolio coverage in high-end markets in Europe and America has reached 64%. SANY's all-star team is shining in global markets, starring: the 45 m pump truck which fills a gap in the European market; the excavator SY225C-10HD which generated many orders at bauma India; the drilling rig SR235MV which is a strong newcomer in the North American market; and the wheeled crane SAC600E, a bestselling high-tech model in Europe, America, Korea and Australia.
Apart from new products, SANY lodged 179 PCT international patent applications in 2021.
SANY ensures all available resources around the globe, including talent, technologies, R&D, manufacturing facilities and management, are mobilized to enrich product diversity and enhance their competitiveness. Launched in 2021, the Global Coordinated Design Platform realized the joint development of the first-generation PS/SP dual-branded 45 m pump truck by SANY and Putzmeister.
SANY's R&D incorporates rich global intellectual resources, with Kunshan Global R&D Center being a good example and all machinery divisions having their own research institutes. R&D centers have been established in North America, Europe, Japan and India, where nearly 200 top local experts are working in the field of local law, customer research and the localization of spare parts, allowing SANY to serve local markets better.
In China, the number of SANY's R&D staff specialized in international products reached 864 in 2021, a year-on-year growth of 89%. Among them, 150 are regularly dispatched to the frontlines around the world to gain real-time insights of market trends.
Manufacturing-wise, SANY is planning to build more lighthouse factories in Europe and Southeast Aisa.
All of SANY's R&D and cultivation efforts led to a remarkable global performance in 2021, with a sales growth of 50% year on year and doubled sales in over 50 countries and regions. While SANY excavators and concrete machinery remain global bestsellers, concrete machinery, cranes and drilling machinery enjoyed a sales growth of 24%, 137% and 121% respectively.
Di Wu,
wud43@sanyglobal.com
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SOURCE SANY Group | https://www.mysuncoast.com/prnewswire/2022/07/27/growth-spurt-sanys-international-product-lines-128-new-products-released/ | 2022-07-27T07:37:15Z |
UK’s Boris Johnson awaits judgment of ‘partygate’ report
By SYLVIA HUI and JILL LAWLESS
Associated Press
LONDON (AP) — British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been shadowed by career-threatening scandal for months — but so far has escaped unscathed. This week he faces one more threat to his political future. A comprehensive report into lockdown-breaching parties in government offices that is expected to be published within days. Senior civil servant Sue Gray is due to release her findings on “partygate,” the scandal over gatherings in Johnson’s 10 Downing St. residence and nearby buildings during the pandemic. Johnson is one of 83 people to have been fined by police over the parties. Johnson has apologized, but insisted that he did not knowingly break the rules. But he could face new challenges to his leadership if Gray’s report is highly critical. | https://localnews8.com/news/ap-national-business/2022/05/23/uks-boris-johnson-awaits-judgment-of-partygate-report/ | 2022-05-23T13:22:36Z |
Graham appeals order to testify in Georgia election probe
ATLANTA (AP) — U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham has formally appealed a judge’s order requiring him to testify before a special grand jury investigating whether former President Donald Trump and others illegally sought to overturn his 2020 election defeat in Georgia.
The South Carolina Republican’s appeal had been expected following a judge’s Monday ruling that he comply with prosecutors’ efforts to compel him to testify Aug. 23 about his phone calls to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger and his staff in the weeks following the election.
The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals will consider Graham’s request, filed late Wednesday. Graham’s legal team also asked a federal judge to put his special grand jury appearance on hold during the appeal process.
Graham’s appeal was made the same day that another Trump associate, former campaign attorney Rudy Giuliani, spent roughly six hours before the special grand jury. The former New York mayor spread false claims of election fraud in Fulton County as he led efforts to challenge the election results in Georgia.
Met by an Associated Press reporter at the airport as he returned to New York on Wednesday, Giuliani said that he had “satisfied his obligation under the subpoena” from prosecutors but gave no further details of his testimony.
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis has indicated she is interested in the details of a phone call between Graham and Raffensperger shortly after the 2020 election. At the time, Raffensperger said that Graham asked if he had the power to reject certain absentee ballots and that he interpreted the question as a suggestion to toss out legally cast votes.
Graham also “made reference to allegations of widespread voter fraud in the November 2020 election in Georgia, consistent with public statements made by known affiliates of the Trump Campaign,” Willis wrote in a court filing.
Graham has argued that calls were part of his duties as chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, with his legal team — which includes former Trump White House counsel Don McGahn — arguing that Graham’s position in Congress protects him from having to appear before the grand jury.
Willis opened her probe into post-election actions by Trump and his allies after the disclosure of a remarkable Jan. 2, 2021, phone call between Raffensperger and Trump in which the then-president suggested the state official could “find” the exact number of votes that would be needed to flip the election results in Georgia.
Denying any wrongdoing, Trump has described the call as “perfect.”
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, meanwhile, had received a subpoena to appear before the special grand jury on Thursday. But his lawyers on Wednesday filed a motion to quash it, and Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney said the governor doesn’t have to appear while that motion is pending, Kemp spokesperson Katie Byrd said.
___
Kinnard reported from Columbia, South Carolina, and can be reached at http://twitter.com/MegKinnardAP.
More on Donald Trump-related investigations: https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. | https://www.mysuncoast.com/2022/08/18/graham-appeals-order-testify-georgia-election-probe/ | 2022-08-18T17:06:16Z |
Compelling evidence that chronic neuroinflammation induces neurodegeneration in Parkinson's disease (PD)
Hypothesized that microglial inflammasome activation propagates chronic neuroinflammation in PD
IC 100, a CNS-penetrating monoclonal ASC Inhibitor, targets multiple types of inflammasomes to block initiation and perpetuation of damaging chronic inflammation
WESTON, Fla., July 27, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- ZyVersa Therapeutics, Inc. (ZyVersa), a clinical-stage specialty biopharmaceutical company developing first-in-class drugs for treatment of inflammatory and renal diseases, is honored to receive a grant from The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research (MJFF) to determine if IC 100 inhibition of inflammasomes and ASC specks blocks microglial-mediated inflammation in a PD model. The research will be conducted at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine in the labs of IC 100 inventors, Drs. Robert W. Keane and Juan Pablo de Rivero Vaccari. Dr. Keane is Professor, Departments of Physiology and Biophysics, Neurological Surgery and Microbiology, Immunology, and The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. Dr. de Rivero Vaccari is an Associate Professor in the Department of Neurological Surgery and The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis, and a Distinguished Faculty Member of the Center for Cognitive Neuroscience and Aging at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine.
"We are grateful to The Michael J. Fox Foundation for funding this research," says Dr. Robert Keane. "This project will be the first to determine if α-synuclein preformed fibrils (PFF) and ASC specks trigger microglial inflammasome activation, causing them to shift to a detrimental phenotype and whether inflammasome inhibition with IC 100 prevents this shift by inhibiting ASC speck formation."
"There is a significant unmet need for therapies that can delay or halt the progression of Parkinson's disease, which impacts the lives of around one million people in the U.S. and more than six million globally," stated Stephen C. Glover, ZyVersa's Co-founder, Chief Executive Officer, and Chairman. "This research will help determine the potential of IC 100 (inflammasome ASC inhibitor) to block the damaging neuroinflammation that induces neural degeneration in Parkinson's disease, similar to what we have seen in other CNS conditions. In animal models of multiple sclerosis, aging, traumatic brain injury, spinal cord injury, and stroke, IC 100 has been shown to interfere with CNS inflammasome signaling, resulting in improved histopathological and behavioral outcomes."
"MJFF continues to fund therapeutic research to improve the lives of people with Parkinson's disease," said Jessica Tome-Garcia, Ph.D., Associate Director of Research Programs at MJFF. "We are optimistic in funding ZyVersa's research to further our understanding of neuroinflammation pathways and to see if the IC 100 inhibition of inflammasomes will block the gateway of activation."
ZyVersa is a clinical stage specialty biopharmaceutical company leveraging advanced, proprietary technologies to develop first-in-class drugs. Our focus is on patients with inflammatory or renal diseases who have significant unmet medical needs. Our development pipeline includes a novel inflammasome ASC inhibitor with potential to treat multiple CNS and other inflammatory diseases. It also includes phase 2a-ready VAR 200, a cholesterol efflux mediator for treatment of rare kidney disease, focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS). VAR 200 has potential to treat other kidney diseases, such as Alport Syndrome and Diabetic Kidney Disease. For more information, please visit www.zyversa.com.
As the world's largest nonprofit funder of Parkinson's research, The Michael J. Fox Foundation is dedicated to accelerating a cure for Parkinson's disease and improved therapies for those living with the condition today. The Foundation pursues its goals through an aggressively funded, highly targeted research program coupled with active global engagement of scientists, Parkinson's patients, business leaders, clinical trial participants, donors, and volunteers. In addition to funding $1.5 billion in research to date, the Foundation has fundamentally altered the trajectory of progress toward a cure. Operating at the hub of worldwide Parkinson's research, the Foundation forges groundbreaking collaborations with industry leaders, academic scientists and government research funders; creates a robust open-access data set and biosample library to speed scientific breakthroughs and treatment with its landmark clinical study, PPMI; increases the flow of participants into Parkinson's disease clinical trials with its online tool, Fox Trial Finder; promotes Parkinson's awareness through high-profile advocacy, events, and outreach; and coordinates the grassroots involvement of thousands of Team Fox members around the world. For more information, visit us at www.michaeljfox.org, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn.
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SOURCE ZyVersa Therapeutics, Inc. | https://www.mysuncoast.com/prnewswire/2022/07/27/zyversa-therapeutics-university-miami-awarded-grant-michael-j-fox-foundation-determine-if-inhibition-microglial-inflammasome-activation-with-ic-100-blocks-neuroinflammation-driving-parkinsons-disease-pathology/ | 2022-07-27T12:24:01Z |
DALLAS, Aug. 5, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Access Healthcare, leading technology and business process service provider, has been named in the Top 100 Healthcare Technology Companies of 2022 by The Healthcare Technology Report. With the inclusion, Access joins an illustrious list of organizations that are changing the face of the industry.
Arvind Perumbala, SVP of Solutions & Strategy at Access Healthcare, says, "The inclusion in the Top 100 Healthcare Technology Companies of 2022 list is a testament to our focus on developing technology products and services to help our clients do more with fewer resources. By leveraging technology to build automation solutions to improve business processes, we help our clients focus on delivering what they do best – provide exceptional care. Further, we have taken our applications services capabilities to our customers and now have competencies across application development, testing, support, and maintenance."
Access Healthcare's technology stack includes its robotic process automation platform echo, which leverages machine learning and AI to develop configurable bots using a designer studio. Using echo, Access has automated many processes, including eligibility and benefits verification, payments processing, and customized automation for various RCM workflows. With echo, the company takes a "full service" approach to help clients realize the benefits of automation faster as against the long implementation times and substantial CAPEX requirements of other commercial solutions. The echo solutions portfolio also includes echosmrt, an intelligent analytics solution to help entities visualize the state of their revenue cycle through powerful dashboards.
Access Healthcare's arc.in solution is a business process management suite comprising 16 tools to manage workflows, client collaboration, enterprise knowledge, automated rewards, recruitment, training, employee engagement, and more.
Prabhakar Munusamy, SVP of Applications Services at Access Healthcare, says, "As a business process services provider, we understand the effort it takes to process each transaction, attend each phone call, and many of the associated wasteful process activities. Our technical competency is a result of the vision of our team to eliminate process waste. echo is a manifestation of our unrelenting focus on developing automated solutions. We have now empowered our people with configurable tools to automate processes on the go with limited involvement of technology resources."
Access Healthcare's application services portfolio covers all stages of the application life cycle, including development, management, maintenance, and modernization. The holistic solutions approach enables the company's clients to achieve better outcomes, reduce costs, and accelerate growth and innovation.
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SOURCE Access Healthcare | https://www.mysuncoast.com/prnewswire/2022/08/05/access-healthcare-named-top-100-healthcare-technology-companies-2022/ | 2022-08-05T16:48:33Z |
“No problem.”
That is how I used to reply to people who thanked me for holding the door open for them or for offering some other small gesture. I don’t know where I got into the habit of saying this to people, but I do not say it anymore.
“No problem.”
That is how I used to reply to people who thanked me for holding the door open for them or for offering some other small gesture. I don’t know where I got into the habit of saying this to people, but I do not say it anymore.
My mannerly response of choice now is the one my mother taught me over and over again as a child: “You’re welcome.”
You may see no difference between the modern, slangy reply “no problem” and “you’re welcome,” but there is one, slight though it may be. So why not make the change back to the traditional response? After all, any time you are more polite to your fellow human beings you spread the desire for them to be more polite to others.
Politeness is infectious — almost as infectious as rudeness is.
Consider: If someone cuts you off in traffic, then gives you a very rude gesture with his middle finger, are you not filled with instant anger and aggression? Are you then more likely to be rude to some other stranger?
“Incivility is a virus,” says Christine Porath, a Georgetown professor and author of “Mastering Civility: A Manifesto for the Workplace.” She explains to NBC News that rude reactions tend to create more rude behavior, creating a big negative spiral and a negative culture.
Being mannerly is especially important now. We live in a time of increasing rudeness — thanks in no small part to the way we treat each other on social media. Social media has resulted in more group-think — whereby we are certain that we and our friends are 100% correct about any particular issue and those with whom we disagree are not only wrong but are stupid and evil.
Group-think has given us license to lash out at others without restraint. Thirty years ago if you said some of the things to a stranger that some people say all the time to others on Facebook, you’d likely get punched in the face. But the days in which there were consequences for such rudeness are long over.
Psychology Today says there is one key reason why people are so much ruder today: a lack of eye contact. We behave differently hiding behind a fictitious online name when we do not have to make face-to-face contact with whomever we are verbally criticizing or attacking.
One solution: let’s be more mindful of being mannerly — online and off.
As a kid, I had it drummed into my head to say “please” and “thank you.” Now, when I phone the electric company or a client, I always ask, “How are you today?” It throws people off. Most of the time, they reply, “I’m great. How are you?”
And off we go, with a touch of civility established, to tend to our business.
I have to work hard at being polite — particularly in traffic — because I do have a temper and I do respond with aggression if someone gives me the middle-finger gesture after cutting me off. A better way to respond, my wise mother keeps telling me, is to smile and wave — gestures that suggest “my bad” even though I did nothing wrong.
Truth be told, I’ve only managed to do this once. But boy, does it instantly confuse and disarm rude people. Polite behavior always does.
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Tom Purcell is a Pittsburgh Tribune-Review humor columnist. Email him at Tom@TomPurcell.com.
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A receipt was sent to your email. | https://www.albanyherald.com/opinion/tom-purcell-confuse-a-rude-person-be-kind-to-them/article_703521aa-35f1-11ed-aaec-1388ebac2dfe.html | 2022-09-18T00:16:56Z |
Woman injured by propeller on Broken Bow Lake
MCCURTAIN COUNTY, Okla. (KXII) - A woman was taken to the hospital after being cut on the leg by a propeller Monday afternoon.
The Oklahoma Highway Patrol said it happened on Broken Bow Lake, south of the Firefly Area Boat Ramp at 12 p.m.
Troopers said 47-year-old Vanessa Renee Taylor, of Idabel, was attempting to back a ski boat off of the beach, when she gave it too much gas causing it to accelerate quickly in a clockwise direction.
27-year old Brandon Kelly Anderson, of Broken Bow, was swimming to the north of where the boat was beached, and attempted to get away from the boat by kicking the back of it, but was cut on the leg by the propeller.
Troopers said Anderson was transported to LSU Medical Center with leg injuries and is in stable condition.
Copyright 2022 KXII. All rights reserved. | https://www.kxii.com/2022/05/31/woman-injured-by-propeller-broken-bow-lake/ | 2022-05-31T16:30:24Z |
- Total revenue of $166 million, representing 42% year-over-year growth –
- Upstaza™ gene therapy granted marketing authorization by European Commission for treatment of AADC deficiency with first commercial patient treated –
SOUTH PLAINFIELD, N.J., Aug. 4, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- PTC Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ: PTCT) today announced a corporate update and financial results for the second quarter ending June 30, 2022.
"We made significant progress in the second quarter toward achieving our ambitious goals for 2022. We continued to generate strong revenue growth, to expand our product portfolio, and to advance our pipeline," said Stuart W. Peltz, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer, PTC Therapeutics, Inc. "PTC has a broad and deep pipeline across a range of diseases, and we eagerly anticipate important results for several registration-directed studies during the next six to twelve months and this will continue our transformational growth."
Key Corporate Updates:
- The Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) franchise continued to show strong growth, with second quarter total net product revenue of $134 million, or 32% year-over-year growth.
- The FDA approved a label extension for Evrysdi® (risdiplam) to include infants under 2 months old with SMA. Evrysdi is a product of the SMA collaboration among PTC, the SMA Foundation and Roche.
- In July 2022, Upstaza™ (eladocagene exuparvovec), our gene therapy for AADC deficiency, received marketing authorization by the European Commission.
- First group purchase order for Tegsedi® in Brazil was fulfilled.
Key Clinical/Regulatory Updates:
- PTC recently announced positive topline results of the placebo-controlled portion of Study 041 for Translarna. The Study 041 results add to the totality of evidence demonstrating the clinical benefit of Translarna.
- PTC will update topline results of FITE-19 study of emvododstat for COVID-19 on second quarter call.
- PTC continues to make progress in additional ongoing clinical studies:
Second Quarter 2022 Financial Highlights:
- Total revenues were $165.5 million for the second quarter of 2022, compared to $116.7 million for the second quarter of 2021.
- Total revenue includes net product revenue across the commercial portfolio of $143.7 million for the second quarter of 2022, compared to $103.1 million for the second quarter of 2021. Total revenue also includes royalty revenue of $21.8 million in the second quarter of 2022, compared to $13.6 million for the second quarter of 2021.
- Translarna net product revenues were $77.0 million for the second quarter of 2022, compared to $52.6 million for the second quarter of 2021. These results reflect an increase in net product sales coming from new patients in existing geographies and continued geographic expansion.
- Emflaza net product revenues were $56.8 million for the second quarter of 2022, compared to $49.1 million for the second quarter of 2021. These results reflect new patient starts, broader access, continued high compliance, and appropriate weight-based dosing.
- Roche reported year to date 2022 Evrysdi sales of approximately CHF 500 million, resulting in royalty revenue of $21.8 million to PTC in the second quarter of 2022, as compared to $13.6 million for the second quarter of 2021.
- Based on U.S. GAAP (Generally Accepted Accounting Principles), GAAP R&D expenses were $157.3 million for the second quarter of 2022, compared to $125.5 million for the second quarter of 2021. The increase reflects increased investment in research programs and advancement of the clinical pipeline.
- Non-GAAP R&D expenses were $143.5 million for the second quarter of 2022, excluding $13.8 million in non-cash, stock-based compensation expense, compared to $112.0 million for the second quarter of 2021, excluding $13.4 million in non-cash, stock-based compensation expense.
- GAAP SG&A expenses were $79.9 million for the second quarter of 2022, compared to $68.9 million for the second quarter of 2021. The increase reflects our continued investment to support commercial activities including our expanding commercial portfolio.
- Non-GAAP SG&A expenses were $66.0 million for the second quarter of 2022, excluding $13.9 million in non-cash, stock-based compensation expense, compared to $56.6 million for the second quarter of 2021, excluding $12.3 million in non-cash, stock-based compensation expense.
- Change in the fair value of deferred and contingent consideration was a $15.2 million gain for the second quarter of 2022, compared to a $0.7 million loss for the second quarter of 2021. The change in fair value of deferred and contingent consideration is related to the fair valuation of potential future consideration to be paid to former equity holders of Agilis Biotherapeutics, Inc. (Agilis) in connection with PTC's acquisition of Agilis, which closed in August 2018.
- Net loss was $152.1 million for the second quarter of 2022, compared to net loss of $118.4 million for the second quarter of 2021.
- Cash, cash equivalents, and marketable securities was $505.5 million on June 30, 2022, compared to $773.4 million at December 31, 2021.
- Shares issued and outstanding as of June 30, 2022 were 71,505,889.
PTC Reaffirms Full Year 2022 Financial Guidance:
- PTC anticipates total revenues for the full year 2022 to be between $700 and $750 million.
- PTC anticipates net product revenues for the DMD franchise for the full year 2022 to be between $475 and $495 million.
- PTC anticipates GAAP R&D and SG&A expense for the full year 2022 to be between $915 and $965 million.
- PTC anticipates Non-GAAP R&D and SG&A expense for the full year 2022 to be between $800 and $850 million, excluding estimated non-cash, stock-based compensation expense of $115 million.
Non-GAAP Financial Measures:
In this press release, the financial results of PTC are provided in accordance with GAAP and using certain non-GAAP financial measures. In particular, the non-GAAP financial measures exclude non-cash, stock-based compensation expense. These non-GAAP financial measures are provided as a complement to financial measures reported in GAAP because management uses these non-GAAP financial measures when assessing and identifying operational trends. In management's opinion, these non-GAAP financial measures are useful to investors and other users of PTC's financial statements by providing greater transparency into the historical and projected operating performance of PTC and the company's future outlook. Non-GAAP financial measures are not an alternative for financial measures prepared in accordance with GAAP. Quantitative reconciliations of the non-GAAP financial measures to their respective closest equivalent GAAP financial measures are included in the table below.
Acronyms:
AADC: Aromatic L-amino acid decarboxylase
ALS: Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis
DMD: Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy
FDA: U.S. Food and Drug Administration
PKU: Phenylketonuria
R&D: Research and Development
SG&A: Selling, General and Administrative
SMA: Spinal Muscular Atrophy
Today's Conference Call and Webcast Reminder:
To access the call by phone, please click here to register and you will be provided with dial-in details. To avoid delays, we recommend participants dial in to the conference call 15 minutes prior to the start of the call. The webcast conference call can be accessed on the Investor section of the PTC website at https://ir.ptcbio.com/events-presentations. A replay of the call will be available approximately two hours after completion of the call and will be archived on the company's website for 30 days following the call.
About PTC Therapeutics, Inc.
PTC is a science-driven, global biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of clinically differentiated medicines that provide benefits to patients with rare disorders. PTC's ability to globally commercialize products is the foundation that drives investment in a robust and diversified pipeline of transformative medicines and our mission to provide access to best-in-class treatments for patients who have an unmet medical need. The company's strategy is to leverage its strong scientific expertise and global commercial infrastructure to maximize value for its patients and other stakeholders. To learn more about PTC, please visit us at www.ptcbio.com and follow us on Facebook, on Twitter at @PTCBio, and on LinkedIn.
For More Information:
Investors:
Kylie O'Keefe
+1 (908) 300-0691
kokeefe@ptcbio.com
Media:
Jeanine Clemente
+1 (908) 912-9406
jclemente@ptcbio.com
Forward-Looking Statements:
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements contained in this release, other than statements of historic fact, are forward-looking statements, including the information provided under the heading "PTC Reaffirms Full Year 2022 Financial Guidance", including with respect to (i) 2022 total revenue guidance, (ii) 2022 net product revenue guidance for the DMD franchise and (iii) 2022 GAAP and non-GAAP R&D and SG&A expense guidance, and statements regarding: the future expectations, plans and prospects for PTC, including with respect to the expected timing of clinical trials and studies, availability of data, regulatory submissions and responses and other matters; expectations with respect to Upstaza and other programs within PTC's gene therapy platform, including any regulatory submissions, commercialization and manufacturing capabilities; advancement of PTC's joint collaboration program in SMA, including any regulatory submissions, commercialization or royalty or milestone payments; PTC's expectations with respect to the licensing, regulatory submissions and commercialization of its products and product candidates; PTC's strategy, future operations, future financial position, future revenues, projected costs; and the objectives of management. Other forward-looking statements may be identified by the words, "guidance", "plan," "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "expect," "intend," "may," "target," "potential," "will," "would," "could," "should," "continue," and similar expressions.
PTC's actual results, performance or achievements could differ materially from those expressed or implied by forward-looking statements it makes as a result of a variety of risks and uncertainties, including those related to: expectations with respect to the COVID-19 pandemic and related response measures and their effects on PTC's business, operations, clinical trials, regulatory submissions and approvals, and PTC's collaborators, contract research organizations, suppliers and manufacturers; the outcome of pricing, coverage and reimbursement negotiations with third party payors for PTC's products or product candidates that PTC commercializes or may commercialize in the future; expectations with respect to Upstaza and other programs within PTC's gene therapy platform, including any regulatory submissions and potential approvals, commercialization, manufacturing capabilities and the potential financial impact and benefits of its leased biologics manufacturing facility and the potential achievement of development, regulatory and sales milestones and contingent payments that PTC may be obligated to make; expectations with respect to the commercialization of Evrysdi under our SMA collaboration; PTC's ability to maintain its marketing authorization of Translarna for the treatment of nmDMD in Brazil, Russia, the European Economic Area (EEA) and other regions, including whether the European Medicines Agency (EMA) determines in future annual renewal cycles that the benefit-risk balance of Translarna authorization supports renewal of such authorization; PTC's ability to complete Study 041, which is a specific obligation to continued marketing authorization in the EEA; PTC's ability to utilize results from Study 041, a randomized, 18-month, placebo-controlled clinical trial of Translarna for the treatment of nmDMD followed by an 18-month open-label extension, to support a marketing approval for Translarna for the treatment of nmDMD in the United States; expectations with respect to the commercialization of Tegsedi and Waylivra; the results of PTC's clinical trial for emvododstat for COVID-19; significant business effects, including the effects of industry, market, economic, political or regulatory conditions; changes in tax and other laws, regulations, rates and policies; the eligible patient base and commercial potential of PTC's products and product candidates; PTC's scientific approach and general development progress; PTC's ability to satisfy its obligations under the terms of its lease agreements, including for its leased biologics manufacturing facility; the sufficiency of PTC's cash resources and its ability to obtain adequate financing in the future for its foreseeable and unforeseeable operating expenses and capital expenditures; and the factors discussed in the "Risk Factors" section of PTC's most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K, as well as any updates to these risk factors filed from time to time in PTC's other filings with the SEC. You are urged to carefully consider all such factors.
As with any pharmaceutical under development, there are significant risks in the development, regulatory approval and commercialization of new products. There are no guarantees that any product will receive or maintain regulatory approval in any territory, or prove to be commercially successful, including Translarna, Emflaza, Upstaza, Evrysdi, Tegsedi or Waylivra.
The forward-looking statements contained herein represent PTC's views only as of the date of this press release and PTC does not undertake or plan to update or revise any such forward-looking statements to reflect actual results or changes in plans, prospects, assumptions, estimates or projections, or other circumstances occurring after the date of this press release except as required by law.
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SOURCE PTC Therapeutics, Inc. | https://www.wibw.com/prnewswire/2022/08/04/ptc-therapeutics-provides-corporate-update-reports-second-quarter-financial-results/ | 2022-08-04T20:57:54Z |
Partnership with Lancaster Independent School District provides innovative curriculum and additional for resources for K-12 students
PLANO, Texas, June 9, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Toyota Financial Services (TFS) is working to grow equity in underserved communities by partnering with schools that seek equal access to quality education, tools and resources. At the beginning of the 2021–2022 school year, TFS launched the Toyota Leadership Academy, created in partnership with the Lancaster Independent School District (ISD) in North Texas. This program prepares students for personal, academic and professional success by providing a specialized curriculum designed to increase high school graduation rates, improve college, career and leadership readiness and introduce students to job opportunities in the global workforce.
Toyota Leadership Academy's curriculum is rooted in the Toyota Way principles of Acting for Others and Showing Respect for People and incorporates educational best practices customized for students in each grade level, elementary through high school. Teacher and administrator feedback was essential in tailoring Academy course offerings. Over 200 Lancaster educators received training in new educational techniques.
"The Toyota Leadership Academy aligns with our district's vision of every student being a success. Additionally, the program's collaborative effort delivers significant benefits to our scholars," said Dr. Katrise Perera, Lancaster ISD superintendent. "The program helps ensure our students have the skillset needed to thrive in a global community, while equipping them with knowledge and resources they will utilize throughout their school career and beyond."
Academy components are delivered via a unique hybrid in-classroom and virtual learning approach. Toyota team members provide mentoring to the students on campus and through online meetings.
"Mentoring is a vital part of the Leadership Academy," said Darryn Hyman, manager of the Toyota Leadership Academy. "It allows Toyota team members to share real-world experiences with students. And, since we are able to leverage technology, students can benefit from mentors who aren't even in the Dallas area."
Lancaster ISD was an ideal partner to pilot Toyota Leadership Academy, based on the district's size, location, the region's economic need and, most importantly, its interest in exploring new solutions to benefit its student population. Lancaster educators, like so many around the nation, dedicate themselves to providing exceptional learning experiences while managing limited resources.
"Not everyone recognizes that most educators are highly proficient in finding innovative solutions to engage and inform students," said Patonia Bell, chief of access and accountability, Lancaster Independent School District. "During COVID, we've had to embrace new technologies to support learning. And that's on top of the already significant changes that teachers make each year to ensure their teaching methods are up to date. Our profession is constantly changing out of necessity. Teachers are always going that extra mile to help their students succeed."
This focus on innovation and maximizing efficiency are attributes educators share with Toyota, renowned for its hyper-efficient production systems. When approached by TFS, Lancaster ISD leaders expressed an interest in joining with the company to develop innovative educational solutions.
"When Toyota gets involved with a community project, we try to share our knowledge as well as resources," said Mark Templin, president and CEO of Toyota Financial Services. "We aim to partner with communities to understand their needs so that we can work together — bridging our expertise and theirs to create the right solutions."
"At TFS, we view education as a priority. We're focused on educating today's students to build tomorrow's leaders," added Ellen Farrell, TFS group vice president, chief legal and compliance officer, and program sponsor. "We support students throughout the life of their education — from elementary to high school and beyond. Our education community partnerships help us develop programs that empower students to learn, achieve and succeed."
The Toyota Leadership Academy's first school year was a success. Over 60 first and second graders received special tutoring in reading from Toyota team members. These students saw improved reading comprehension scores. Math enrichment programs with additional tutoring helped 175 third and sixth graders. And 1,500 high school students received curriculum in their choice of business administration, engineering, cybersecurity or programming and software development. TFS is now working with Lancaster School District on program expansion, including introducing financial literacy courses.
At the close of the school year, TFS was proud to be a supporter of the Lancaster ISD STEM Expo Hack-a-thon. Lancaster High School teams competed to create an innovative STEM application that could better their community. The winning team of three students developed an application that would help adults track missing children and pets. TFS was proud to award each student a $2,500 scholarship to be used for tuition at any accredited post-secondary institution of higher learning.
"There's an African proverb that says it takes a village to raise children," said Shelia Benskin, director of Career and Technical Education for Lancaster ISD. "In education, we cannot do this alone. What I see with Toyota is that opportunity to bring other people into this large village with us to help our students pursue excellence in education and begin the journey to a future career in business and industry."
The Toyota Leadership Academy is a further example of Toyota's commitment to education. The automaker recently announced its Driving Possibilities program, a new nationwide $110 million education and community-focused initiative to create innovative educational programs and improve access to opportunities where barriers exist. For more information on Toyota's commitment to education, please visit Toyota Newsroom.
Toyota Financial Services (TFS) is the brand for finance and related products for Toyota in the United States, offering retail auto financing and leasing through Toyota Motor Credit Corporation (TMCC) and Toyota Lease Trust. TFS also offers vehicle and payment protection products through Toyota Motor Insurance Services (TMIS). The company services Lexus dealers and customers using the Lexus Financial Services brand.
As of March 31, 2022, TFS employed approximately 3,700 team members nationwide, and had assets totaling over $135 billion. It is part of a worldwide network of comprehensive financial services offered by Toyota Financial Services Corporation, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Toyota Motor Corporation.
We announce material financial information using the investor relations section of our website (www.toyotafinancial.com) and SEC filings. We use these channels, press releases, and social media to communicate about our company, our services and other issues. While not all information we post on social media is of a material nature, some information could be material. Therefore, we encourage those interested in our company to review our messages on Twitter at www.twitter.com/toyotafinancial and posts on Facebook at www.facebook.com/toyotafinancial/.
Media Contact:
Derrick Brown
469-486-9065
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SOURCE Toyota Financial Services | https://www.wibw.com/prnewswire/2022/06/09/toyota-financial-services-celebrates-toyota-leadership-academy-scholars/ | 2022-06-09T15:20:40Z |
Research provides context and framework for identifying appropriate metrics for financial institutions to track
PLANO, Texas, June 1, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Alkami Technology, Inc. (Nasdaq: ALKT) ("Alkami"), a leading cloud-based digital banking solutions provider for banks and credit unions in the U.S., announced the release of its newest research report, "2022 Digital Banking Performance Metrics," an exclusive report for banks and credit unions that gives financial institution executives the context they need to measure and manage their digital investments, channels, and operations.
Created in collaboration with Cornerstone Advisors, the report draws on a study of 66 financial institutions (FIs) with an average asset size of $5.2 billion. The report shares metrics and benchmarks to help bank and credit union executives:
- Understand key metrics related to digital banking operations and performance; and
- Establish goals and targets based on high-performing financial institutions.
"Our analysis revealed what we are calling 'the 11 hallmarks of high-performing institutions,' which represent metrics FIs should be using as a benchmark to assess their own performance," said Mary Nelson, chief client officer of Alkami. "The data clearly shows that consistently, high-performing FIs meaningfully outperform other institutions in these areas. By strategizing using these metrics, FIs will be able to focus their efforts to achieve superior digital banking results, and thereby overall business performance."
The full report includes:
- Performance segmentation. Five key business metrics used to segment the FI data set into high-, middle- and low-performing categories.
- 11 hallmarks of high-performing institutions. Areas in which high-performing institutions performed meaningfully better than their peers.
- Emerging digital metrics. Data FIs should be tracking into the future as an indication of digital channel success.
- Digital banking metrics framework. A structure to help FIs identify appropriate metrics to focus on and track.
"The report will help financial institutions think strategically about the role and performance of the digital channel," added Ron Shevlin, chief research officer, Cornerstone Advisors. "There is no end to the number of performance metrics a company can define and measure. This study provides a digital banking metrics framework to help FIs focus on the metrics that will move the needle now and in the future."
Access the full report here.
About Alkami
Alkami Technology, Inc. is a leading cloud-based digital banking solutions provider for financial institutions in the United States that enables clients to grow confidently, adapt quickly and build thriving digital communities. Alkami helps clients transform through retail and business banking, digital account opening and loan origination, multi-payment fraud prevention, and data analytics and engagement solutions. To learn more, visit www.alkami.com.
About Cornerstone
Cornerstone Advisors is a management and technology consulting firm, bringing innovative insights and strategic execution to banks, credit unions and fintechs, helping them reach the next level of performance.
Media Relations Contact
Jennifer Cortez
jennifer.cortez@alkami.com
Katie Schimmel
katie@outlookmarketingsrv.com
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SOURCE Alkami Technology, Inc. | https://www.wibw.com/prnewswire/2022/06/01/new-alkami-cornerstone-advisors-report-reveals-key-metrics-banks-credit-unions-measure-manage-digital-success/ | 2022-06-01T14:23:03Z |
Dear Heloise: I read your column daily in the Houston Chronicle. A woman wrote of all the uses for a potato masher. I do similar things with my U-shaped wire pastry blender, which I inherited from my parents. It is a wall hanging decoration in my kitchen, with its Bakelite handle. But I take it down and use it to mash guacamole, stir ingredients into meatloaf, etc. It is a vintage treasure that is also a useful kitchen tool. I don’t often make pastry or pie crust, but it sometimes is used for its intended purpose. It brings back great family memories.
— Rusti Stover, Houston
Taking care of plants while away
Dear Heloise: Get a child’s wading pool, fill it halfway with water and place it under a tree. Set your potted plants in the water, and the plants will be in good shape when you return. I read your column in the Houston Chronicle.
Send your tips and tricks to: Heloise, P.O. Box 795001, San Antonio, TX 78279-5000; or email Heloise@Heloise.com. | https://www.tdtnews.com/life/advice_columns/article_73156040-f3c7-11ec-b56e-eff7c26fd84d.html | 2022-06-26T09:37:49Z |
VANCOUVER, BC and SANTIAGO, Chile, July 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ - Today Apply Digital, a global innovation, products, and experiences company, announced the acquisition of Reign, a Chile-based digital services company.
"Since the beginning, we have had ambitions to build an international organization. We were on the look out for a strong, like-minded tech partner with whom we could deliver excellent services on a global scale," said Gautam Lohia, Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Apply Digital. "Reign is a great fit for us in every way and we couldn't be more excited to work with them. Our culture and values are deeply aligned, their MACH engineering capabilities deepen our current capacity and expertise in the area, and our strength in strategy, design, and data will help them move upstream. With this integration, we are now in a position to have a global delivery model to better serve our clients' digital needs."
Following the integration, Apply Digital will have over 450 employees based in eight global offices across Canada, the US, Mexico, Chile, and the Netherlands. The Reign integration will help Apply Digital continue its growth and transform complex problems into simple digital solutions through human-centric designs and modern tech stacks.
"We know through our existing collaborations with Apply Digital and positive client feedback that we make a strong team," said Reign Chief Executive Office Juan Claudio López. "This integration will give our people the chance to work for international brands and an opportunity to be a part of a global organization. We look forward to a collaboration that will put people first and develop products and platforms that will impact customers across the world"
About Apply Digital
Founded in Vancouver, British Columbia, in 2016, Apply Digital is an innovation, products, and experiences company that builds successful digital solutions to help its clients gain a competitive advantage. The company has a human-centric design approach and leverages modern composable technologies for a roster of long-term clients that includes Moderna, Tishman Speyer, Lululemon, and Kraft Heinz.
Apply Digital has proven success in many sectors including Entertainment, Healthcare, Retail, Gaming, and Insurance, and has received international recognition for its work. The company received a growth investment from Interlock Equity in December 2021 and is one of the fastest-growing technology services companies in North America. For more information, visit www.applydigital.com.
About Reign
Founded in Chile, Santiago, in 2015, Reign delivers digital transformation through ideation, design, and development of web and mobile applications. The company has helped clients like Socofar, Coca-Cola Embonor, Tigo, and Atlassian create smarter business solutions.
With offices in Santiago, Chile, and Miami, Florida, Reign knows that their diverse, focused, talented team of 175+ employees makes them a highly effective organization and helps them bring a fresh and open attitude to everything they do. They are also internationally recognized for their capabilities and recently won the inaugural MACH Awards. For more information, visit https://www.reign.cl/en/
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SOURCE Reign | https://www.kxii.com/prnewswire/2022/07/13/apply-digital-acquires-reign-further-strengthen-capabilities-service-global-brands/ | 2022-07-13T20:38:04Z |
MENDOTA, Ill., May 11, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Tri-County Financial Group, Inc. (The Company) (OTCQX: TYFG) today announced financial results for the first quarter of 2022.
Net income for the first quarter of 2022 was $1.9 million ($0.75 per share), compared to $3.6 million ($1.47 per share) during the first quarter of 2021.
Net interest income was $10.5 million during the three months ended March 31, 2022, compared to $10.2 million in the same period of 2021, an increase of $349,000. The net interest margin was 3.21% for the first quarter of 2022 compared to 3.65% in the same quarter a year ago.
Noninterest income was $2.8 million for the first quarter of 2022, a decrease of $3.2 million, or 53%, compared to $6.0 million during the same period a year ago. First State Mortgage net income decreased by $1.6 million compared to the first quarter of 2021.
Noninterest expense was $10.3 million during the quarter ended March 31, 2022, compared to $10.6 million in the same quarter of 2021, a decrease of $353,000, or 3%. The decrease is primarily related to lower levels of mortgage production costs in 2022.
Total loans increased $33.7 million, or 3%, to $1.026 billion at March 31, 2022, up from $992 million at March 31, 2021. There were $0 in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans remaining in loan balances at March 31, 2022. Loan demand in the first quarter rose modestly from the previous quarter as agricultural lending activity was strong. Nonperforming loans as a percent of total loans were 0.27% as of March 31, 2022, down from 0.55% at March 31, 2021.
The provision for loan loss remains unchanged at $450,000 for the first quarter as asset quality remains stable. The allowance for loan loss ended at $16.6 million at March 31, 2022 and represented 1.59% of gross loans, compared to 1.53% at March 31, 2021.
Deposits increased $55.6 million, or 5%, year-over-year, with the majority of the growth due to CARES Act economic relief programs and PPP proceeds. Part of this excess liquidity was used to increase the investment portfolio which rose $141.5 million or 116% year over year and totaled $263.9 million at March 31, 2022.
The Company's capital levels remain solid as of March 31, 2022, with a Tier 1 leverage ratio of 9.03%, up from 8.81% last year.
On March 8, 2022, the Board of Directors declared a regular dividend of $0.20 per share payable April 14, 2022, to shareholders of record on March 31, 2022.
In announcing the results, President and CEO, Tim McConville, stated "Our first quarter numbers reflected the slowdown in mortgage activity that had supplemented our results the last two years. Mortgage activity remains an important part of our business and we expect continued earnings contributions from this line of business. Asset quality as measured by nonperforming loans to total loans is stable. We believe that our diversified balance sheet and lines of business are well-positioned given increases in short term rates by the Federal Reserve."
Tri-County Financial Group, Inc. is the parent holding company for First State Bank, with offices in Mendota, Batavia, Bloomington, Geneva, LaMoille, McNabb, North Aurora, Ottawa, Peru, Princeton, Rochelle, Shabbona, St. Charles, Streator, Sycamore, Waterman and West Brooklyn. First State Bank is the parent company of First State Mortgage, LLC and First State Insurance. Tri-County Financial Group, Inc. shares are quoted under the symbol TYFG and traded on OTCQX.
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SOURCE Tri-County Financial Group, Inc. | https://www.kxii.com/prnewswire/2022/05/11/tri-county-financial-group-inc-reports-first-quarter-2022-financial-results/ | 2022-05-11T19:23:53Z |
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