Split (1)

train · ~16.3M rows (showing the first 2.16M)

text stringlengths 1 675k ⌀
A Foolish Take: Crypto Makes Its Comeback Investing trends come and go, and often, popular investments come into fashion and then fall out of favor shortly thereafter. Cryptocurrencies have followed that pattern numerous times over the past decade, with the most popular token, bitcoin, having seen its price soar from pennies to more than $20,000 a year and a half ago. Each big move higher has been followed by an equally gut-wrenching fall, with the most recent erasing more than 80% of the past high by February 2019. However, cryptocurrency has come back in a major way since the winter months. Bitcoin prices have tripled, and many other popular tokens have seen even larger gains. Ethereum has almost quadrupled from its December 2018 lows, and litecoin tokens have risen nearly sixfold over the same six-month time frame. Many see the cryptocurrency comeback feeding on itself, with the recent price surge fueling more demand from investors who fear missing out on the next big run for bitcoin. Proponents of cryptocurrencies note how much utility the blockchain technology on which they're based has for the future, whether it's in financial applications or in other areas where security is paramount. Indeed, even social media giantFacebook(NASDAQ: FB)recently joined in on the cryptocurrency trend, expecting to launch anew token called Libra early next year. Yet as you can see below, despite there being thousands of crypto tokens available on the market, bitcoin still dominates the market. Data source: Coinmarketcap.com. Chart by author. Looking more broadly at available tokens, just 80 or so have values of more than $100 million. Meanwhile, bitcoin's $193 billion market cap is half again as large as the total of the next 100 tokens combined. For a long time, crypto advocates have believed that the market would eventually evolve beyond bitcoin's first-mover advantage and develop large numbers of competing tokens. For now, though, the health of cryptocurrencies relies on the health of bitcoin, and so its recent return to five-figure status spells good news for those who favor cryptocurrency development. More From The Motley Fool • 10 Best Stocks to Buy Today • The $16,728 Social Security Bonus You Cannot Afford to Miss • 20 of the Top Stocks to Buy (Including the Two Every Investor Should Own) • What Is an ETF? • 5 Recession-Proof Stocks • How to Beat the Market Randi Zuckerberg, a former director of market development and spokeswoman for Facebook and sister to its CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors.Dan Caplingerhas no position in any of the stocks or cryptocurrency tokens mentioned. The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends Facebook but has no position in the cryptocurrency tokens mentioned. The Motley Fool has adisclosure policy.
A Foolish Take: Which Mobile Payment Apps Are US College Students Using? Eighty-six percent of U.S. college students use mobile payment apps, according to arecent surveybySallie Maeand Ipsos, making it the top payment method on campuses. Debit cards ranked second at 85%, followed by cash at 81%, and credit cards at 57%. That marks a shift from 2016, when 77% of students used mobile payments. The survey also found that one company --PayPal(NASDAQ: PYPL)-- dominated campuses with its namesake app and peer-to-peerpayments app Venmo. Data source: Sallie Mae and Ipsos. Chart by author. PayPal and Venmo's popularity can likely be attributed to two factors. First, both apps run across multiple platforms.ApplePay is only integrated into the tech titan's own hardware devices, whileAlphabet's Google Pay targets Android users. PayPal also has a first-mover advantage in the online payments market, and Venmo -- which PayPal acquired through its takeover of Braintree in 2013 -- popularized peer-to-peer payments. Venmo's social component, which enables users to send money through messages, is also a natural fit for younger users. PayPal hasn't won the war yet, but it probably won't be easy for Apple, Google, and other challengers to unseat the market leader -- especially when it has a tight grip on America's Gen Z users. More From The Motley Fool • 10 Best Stocks to Buy Today • The $16,728 Social Security Bonus You Cannot Afford to Miss • 20 of the Top Stocks to Buy (Including the Two Every Investor Should Own) • What Is an ETF? • 5 Recession-Proof Stocks • How to Beat the Market Suzanne Frey, an executive at Alphabet, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors.Leo Sunowns shares of AAPL. The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends GOOGL, GOOG, AAPL, and PayPal Holdings. The Motley Fool has the following options: long January 2020 $150 calls on AAPL and short January 2020 $155 calls on AAPL. The Motley Fool has adisclosure policy.
'Dog the Bounty Hunter' Star Beth Chapman Is in a Medically-Induced Coma Photo credit: Getty From Country Living Dog the Bounty Hunter star Beth Chapman is in a medically-induced coma. Beth is battling throat cancer for the second time . Her husband, Duane "Dog" Chapman, issued a statement asking for prayers for his wife. Duane “Dog” Chapman is asking for prayers for his wife, Beth Chapman , after her admittance to the ICU amid her battle with throat cancer. Beth is currently at Hawaii’s Queen’s Medical Center, according to People . Both the outlet and Hawaii News Now reported she has been placed into a medically-induced coma. Her condition is “quite serious,” according to a representative for the family. Duane released a statement to Hawaii News Now saying the Chapmans, “humbly ask everyone to please pray for Beth.” He also issued a tweet that reiterated his comment, with an added “thank you love you” to his followers. Please say your prayers for Beth right now thank you love you - Duane Dog Chapman (@DogBountyHunter) June 23, 2019 Beth has been battling her illness since 2017 when she was first diagnosed. The couple announced in September of that year that Beth was cancer free , but in November 2018 they shared the heartbreaking news that it had returned again. Still, Beth and Duane have remained positive throughout her treatment, and even revealed the first look at their new show, Dog’s Most Wanted , in June 2019. “She has told me repeatedly that if these are her last days on earth she wants to spend every moment with me on the hunt,” Duane said in March. Beth has also been active on social media, posting makeup-free selfies and photos with affirming messages throughout her journey, proving she is far from giving up hope. “When my mess became a message to so many people around this country, I became a threat to the devil’s kingdom,” she told a crowd at The Source Church in May. “And when you do God’s work, you become the target and he throws everything he’s got at you. Everything. I battled my way, all the way to this pulpit this week. You’ll tune into the show someday, and you’ll see what we went through to get here.” ('You Might Also Like',) 60+ Grilling Recipes for an Epic Summer Cookout The Best Reese Witherspoon Movies, Ranked 70 Impressive Tiny Houses That Maximize Function and Style View comments
Is Newell Brands Inc.'s (NASDAQ:NWL) Balance Sheet Strong Enough To Weather A Storm? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! Small-caps and large-caps are wildly popular among investors; however, mid-cap stocks, such as Newell Brands Inc. (NASDAQ:NWL) with a market-capitalization of US$6.5b, rarely draw their attention. While they are less talked about as an investment category, mid-cap risk-adjusted returns have generally been better than more commonly focused stocks that fall into the small- or large-cap categories. This article will examine NWL’s financial liquidity and debt levels to get an idea of whether the company can deal with cyclical downturns and maintain funds to accommodate strategic spending for future growth. Remember this is a very top-level look that focuses exclusively on financial health, so I recommend a deeper analysisinto NWL here. Check out our latest analysis for Newell Brands Over the past year, NWL has reduced its debt from US$11b to US$8.0b , which also accounts for long term debt. With this reduction in debt, NWL currently has US$364m remaining in cash and short-term investments , ready to be used for running the business. On top of this, NWL has produced US$881m in operating cash flow in the last twelve months, leading to an operating cash to total debt ratio of 11%, indicating that NWL’s current level of operating cash is not high enough to cover debt. Looking at NWL’s US$3.6b in current liabilities, it appears that the company has maintained a safe level of current assets to meet its obligations, with the current ratio last standing at 2.12x. The current ratio is calculated by dividing current assets by current liabilities. Usually, for Consumer Durables companies, this is a suitable ratio as there's enough of a cash buffer without holding too much capital in low return investments. With total debt exceeding equity, NWL is considered a highly levered company. This is not uncommon for a mid-cap company given that debt tends to be lower-cost and at times, more accessible. Though, since NWL is currently loss-making, there’s a question of sustainability of its current operations. Running high debt, while not yet making money, can be risky in unexpected downturns as liquidity may dry up, making it hard to operate. Although NWL’s debt level is towards the higher end of the spectrum, its cash flow coverage seems adequate to meet obligations which means its debt is being efficiently utilised. Since there is also no concerns around NWL's liquidity needs, this may be its optimal capital structure for the time being. This is only a rough assessment of financial health, and I'm sure NWL has company-specific issues impacting its capital structure decisions. I suggest you continue to research Newell Brands to get a more holistic view of the mid-cap by looking at: 1. Future Outlook: What are well-informed industry analysts predicting for NWL’s future growth? Take a look at ourfree research report of analyst consensusfor NWL’s outlook. 2. Valuation: What is NWL worth today? Is the stock undervalued, even when its growth outlook is factored into its intrinsic value? Theintrinsic value infographic in our free research reporthelps visualize whether NWL is currently mispriced by the market. 3. Other High-Performing Stocks: Are there other stocks that provide better prospects with proven track records? Explore ourfree list of these great stocks here. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Kayla Rae Reid shows off postpartum body 3 days after giving birth Kayla Rae Reid is opening up about her postpartum body just three days after welcoming her second child with husband Ryan Lochte . The former Playboy model gave birth to a baby girl, Liv Rae Lochte, on June 17. Just days after posting a birth announcement where she wrote “Our bodies are truly incredible,” the 27-year-old got real about the toll that two pregnancies have taken, mentally and physically. In an Instagram post on Sunday, Reid shared a mirror picture that she took three days postpartum with “No makeup, greasy hair and engorged boobs.” Admittedly, Reid said that she was planning to keep the photo to herself to track her progress, but instead decided to share it with her followers. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Kayla Lochte (@kaylaraereid) on Jun 23, 2019 at 8:18am PDT “My body has always been a major factor for work for me. It has always been a ‘job’ to remain in shape and that’s what has always kept me motivated,” she wrote. “Having kids has had to make me work twice as hard because I am truly just not one of the people to ‘bounce back’ effortlessly.” Reid went on to recount the struggle she faced to become comfortable with her body after having her first child, Caiden, just over two years ago. She even expressed that “having the desire to look good,” isn’t a bad thing, but emphasized that women don’t need to put so much pressure on themselves to look a certain way so soon after giving birth. “I really could care less about my body at this moment because my main concern is feeding my child,” Reid wrote. “I am confident that when I am ready to put in the work, my body will reciprocate my efforts!” Plenty of women have since responded to the post to empathize or simply to thank Reid for being so honest. “Thank you for being brave enough to show us what authenticity looks like. My mother and Grandmother spoke in hushed tones about things women went through,” one wrote. “I am so proud of that beautiful body that created a human! I want my daughter to grow up looking at reality.” Story continues “This is sooo awesome of you!!! You look absolutely beautiful after just having a baby. And to reach out to help any momma who is struggle [sic] with their body image is such an inspiration!!” another said. One person called the mother-of-two “superwoman,” and praised her for bringing another life into the world. “I am proud of what my body is capable of!” Reid concluded the post. “Every postpartum journey is different and should be celebrated for creating LIFE!!!” Read more from Yahoo Lifestyle: Moms praise Amy Schumer for being 'not fake' about postpartum life: 'This s*** is bananas' Meghan Markle praised for showing off 'real' postpartum body in belted white dress days after giving birth Ali Fedotowsky gets real about belly 10 months postpartum: 'I actually kind of like my loose skin' Follow us on Instagram , Facebook and Twitter for nonstop inspiration delivered fresh to your feed, every day.
AUD/USD Price Forecast – Australian dollar heading towards resistance The Australian dollarhas rallied significantly during the trading session on Monday, breaking above the 0.6950 level. That in and of itself is relatively positive, but we do have a couple of things to pay attention to just above. The very first of course is going to be the 50 day EMA, as it is tilting lower and is just above current pricing. That being said, it’s very likely that the 0.70 level above is also resistance as it has been a scene of major selling pressure. Ultimately, signs of exhaustion should be selling opportunities as although the Federal Reserve is more than likely going to cut rates, the reality is that the RBA also could cut rates relatively soon. Beyond that, the US/China trade talks continue, and quite frankly should disappoint as per usual. If that’s going to be the case it should continue to weigh upon the Aussie dollar, so I prefer selling when giving an opportunity. Ultimately, this is a market that I think will continue to be very noisy but I also recognize that we are still well within the consolidation area. The 0.70 level would need to be broken significantly on a daily close, perhaps even a weekly close for me to become very bullish. That being said, in agreement between the Americans and Chinese over the weekend could be the catalyst for that type of move. To the downside, the 0.68 level is massive support, but if it gives way we could probably see another 300 pip drop as it would be a major breach of support at that point in time. Please let us know what you think in the comments below Thisarticlewas originally posted on FX Empire • Gold Price Forecast – Gold markets stretch again • Grains Advances Amid USDA Weak Crop Report, But Key Levels Contain Gains • Crude Oil Price Forecast – Crude oil markets continue to grind higher • E-mini S&P 500 Index (ES) Futures Technical Analysis – June 25, 2019 Forecast • Silver Price Forecast – Silver markets go back and forth on Tuesday • Gold Jumps to Highs Since 2013 at 1,440 and accumulates 10% gains in June
How Much Are OceanFirst Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:OCFC) Insiders Spending On Buying Shares? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! We've lost count of how many times insiders have accumulated shares in a company that goes on to improve markedly. On the other hand, we'd be remiss not to mention that insider sales have been known to precede tough periods for a business. So we'll take a look at whether insiders have been buying or selling shares inOceanFirst Financial Corp.(NASDAQ:OCFC). It is perfectly legal for company insiders, including board members, to buy and sell stock in a company. However, most countries require that the company discloses such transactions to the market. Insider transactions are not the most important thing when it comes to long-term investing. But it is perfectly logical to keep tabs on what insiders are doing. For example, a Columbia Universitystudyfound that 'insiders are more likely to engage in open market purchases of their own company’s stock when the firm is about to reveal new agreements with customers and suppliers'. Check out our latest analysis for OceanFirst Financial Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider purchase was by John Lloyd for US$125k worth of shares, at about US$25.07 per share. So it's clear an insider wanted to buy, even at a higher price than the current share price (being US$24.20). While their view may have changed since the purchase was made, this does at least suggest they have had confidence in the company's future. We always take careful note of the price insiders pay when purchasing shares. Generally speaking, it catches our eye when insiders have purchased shares at above current prices, as it suggests they believed the shares were worth buying, even at a higher price. In the last twelve months insiders purchased 10225 shares for US$274k. On the other hand they divested 7975 shares, for US$200k. In the last twelve months there was more buying than selling by OceanFirst Financial insiders. You can see a visual depiction of insider transactions (by individuals) over the last 12 months, below. By clicking on the graph below, you can see the precise details of each insider transaction! OceanFirst Financial is not the only stock that insiders are buying. For those who like to findwinning investmentsthisfreelist of growing companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket. We have seen a bit of insider selling at OceanFirst Financial, over the last three months. Director Samuel Young sold just US$20k worth of shares in that time. It's not great to see insider selling, nor the lack of recent buyers. But the volume sold is so low that it really doesn't bother us. For a common shareholder, it is worth checking how many shares are held by company insiders. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. Insiders own 2.3% of OceanFirst Financial shares, worth about US$28m. We've certainly seen higher levels of insider ownership elsewhere, but these holdings are enough to suggest alignment between insiders and the other shareholders. We did not see any insider buying in the last three months, but we did see selling. But given the selling was modest, we're not worried. However, our analysis of transactions over the last year is heartening. Insiders do have a stake in OceanFirst Financial and their transactions don't cause us concern. Therefore, you should should definitely take a look at thisFREEreport showing analyst forecasts for OceanFirst Financial. Of course,you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere.So take a peek at thisfreelist of interesting companies. For the purposes of this article, insiders are those individuals who report their transactions to the relevant regulatory body. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Gold Breaks New $1,400 Ground at Near 6-Year Highs Investing.com - Gold bulls are showing no slowing in their appetite for $1,400 pricing and beyond. Bubbling tensions in the Middle East and bets that the U.S. Federal Reserve was on course to its first rate cut in more than a decade continued to pull investors toward gold like a magnet on Monday. Spot gold, reflective of trades in bullion, traded at $1,419.28 per ounce by 3:49 PM ET (19:49 GMT), up 19.85, or 1.4%, on the day. Bullion earlier peaked at $1,420.26, its highest since Sept. 2013. It rose 4.3% last week and is up 9% on the month, its best advance since February 2016 Gold futures for August delivery, traded on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, settled Monday up $18.10, or 1.3%, at $1,418.20 per ounce. It earlier peaked at $1,423.75, its highest since Oct. 2013. August gold ended last week up 4.5%. For the month, it's showing a gain of 10%. Since breaking above $1,300 this month, gold has pushed into territory unseen for years, with some analysts now expecting it to even reach $1,500 an ounce and beyond in short order. ”This is the fifth day of gains in a row as demand for the precious metal remains robust due to rising tensions between the US and Iran, a dovish shift by major central banks and a widespread weakness in the greenback,” Helen Rush, senior analyst for precious metals at Capital Markets in London, said on Monday. Iran has also refused to negotiate a new nuclear deal with Donald Trump, leaving the U.S. president at wits end on how to deal with the Islamic Republic. Tehran has denied U.S. accusations that it engineered attacks on several oil tankers and energy assets in the Middle East over the past month, although it owned up last week to shooting down a U.S. surveillance drone that almost resulted in a military response from Washington. In the Fed’s case, three officials of the central bank -- Chairman Jerome Powell, St. Louis Fed Chief James Bullard and Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic – are having speaking engagements this week, creating more opportunities for gold bulls to draw on their comments toward a rate hike expected at the Fed's July meeting. Related Articles Oil Ends Mixed on U.S. Crude Draw Bets, Russian Hesitance on Cuts Challenge to Trump steel tariffs nixed by U.S. Supreme Court Russia Withholds Opinion on OPEC+ Agreement, Waiting for G20
EUR/USD Price Forecast – Euro continues to grind higher The Eurohas shot higher during the trading session on Monday but gave back the gains early and the New York session. All things been equal though, we have broken out above a major resistance barrier in the form of the 1.1350 level. It’s very likely this will continue to attract attention, so at this point I don’t have any interest in shorting this market. Even if we break down below the 1.1350 level, I think there will be plenty of buyers underneath and trying to jump in. I see the 1.1450 level above as the next major resistance barrier, and the most likely target. All things being equal though, we have seen a bit of a massive surge higher so you may look for short-term pullbacks to take advantage of a bit of value. While the ECB does remain dovish, the fact that the Federal Reserve had been hawkish until just the last few sessions means that the US dollar has to “play catch-up” in terms of dovish and is. Ultimately, I think we have seen the bottom and the EUR/USD pair, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that we go straight up in the air. Quite frankly, this can be an extraordinarily long and painful process, changing the overall trend. At this point though, it seems to be a market that you should be looking at it as offering value on pullbacks, as we have recently made a bit of a double bottom, followed by a higher low. Please let us know what you think in the comments below Thisarticlewas originally posted on FX Empire • Gold Price Forecast – Gold markets stretch again • Grains Advances Amid USDA Weak Crop Report, But Key Levels Contain Gains • AUD/USD Price Forecast – Australian dollar continues to grind higher • Forex Daily Recap – Greenback Boosts Up as Powell Reiterated his Stances • GBP/USD Price Forecast – British pound runs into major resistance • Crude Oil Price Forecast – Crude oil markets continue to grind higher
Tan Mom Tells 'Howard Stern' What She Saw While In a Coma Tan Mom says she's on the mend after being placed in a coma, and also revealed what she saw when she briefly crossed over into the afterlife. Patricia "Tan Mom" Krentcil called into Howard Stern's SiriusXM radio show on Monday morning to give a health update after falling ill and ending up in the ICU. "I was in a coma ... literally for 2 weeks," Tan Mom explained. She said, "my body went into a state of shock," and when Howard asked if she went to heaven, explained that she saw "shopping malls and beaches." Tan Mom claimed that when she woke up, "everyone was staring at me," but believes she is finding strength after the ordeal. The Blast broke the story, Tan Mom was put into a medically induced coma after suffering a cardiac arrest while dealing with a nasty bout of pneumonia. Doctors were trying to drain fluid from her lungs, which was extremely difficult after her years of being a heavy smoker. After the medical emergency, Tan Mom has vowed to quit smoking and work on improving her health. The pseudo reality star recently relocated to Florida from New Jersey to work on her music career. She has recently seen a surge of success after her hit song "Free To Be Me" debuted on the Howard Stern Show and became an anthem heard by millions of people around the world.
Best laptop and tablet deals this week: Shop iPad, Surface, Acer, and more As you may have already heard,Apple’s new iPad Airis currently on sale (which we suggest jumping on before they’re all gone), but that’s not theonlygreat deal on atabletright now. In fact, as we speak, there are tons of other great savings opportunities on other tablets (as well aslaptops) on the web. And as we always do, we found the very best ones so you don’t have to waste hours scrolling through countless retail sites in search of the perfect personal device. SEE ALSO:Which tablet to buy for your kid: These are 5 of the best out right now While picking up a newkitchen appliance, a4K TV, or a solid pair ofnoise-canceling headphonesare all fine and dandy, we really think you should put those purchases on hold and treat yourself to one of these bargains on laptops and tablets. Included in our findings are the aforementionediPad Air, theMicrosoft Surface Go, and a few deals onAcerlaptops (plus more).Read more... More aboutApple,Tablets,Acer,Laptops, andMashable Shopping
Olympia Financial Group Inc. (TSE:OLY): What Does Its Beta Value Mean For Your Portfolio? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! If you own shares in Olympia Financial Group Inc. (TSE:OLY) then it's worth thinking about how it contributes to the volatility of your portfolio, overall. In finance, Beta is a measure of volatility. Modern finance theory considers volatility to be a measure of risk, and there are two main types of price volatility. The first type is company specific volatility. Investors use diversification across uncorrelated stocks to reduce this kind of price volatility across the portfolio. The second type is the broader market volatility, which you cannot diversify away, since it arises from macroeconomic factors which directly affects all the stocks on the market. Some stocks are more sensitive to general market forces than others. Beta is a widely used metric to measure a stock's exposure to market risk (volatility). Before we go on, it's worth noting that Warren Buffett pointed out in his 2014 letter to shareholders that 'volatility is far from synonymous with risk.' Having said that, beta can still be rather useful. The first thing to understand about beta is that the beta of the overall market is one. Any stock with a beta of greater than one is considered more volatile than the market, while those with a beta below one are either less volatile or poorly correlated with the market. View our latest analysis for Olympia Financial Group Olympia Financial Group has a five-year beta of 1.07. This is reasonably close to the market beta of 1, so the stock has in the past displayed similar levels of volatility to the overall market. Using history as a guide, we might surmise that the share price is likely to be influenced by market voltility going forward but it probably won't be particularly sensitive to it. Share price volatility is well worth considering, but most long term investors consider the history of revenue and earnings growth to be more important. Take a look at how Olympia Financial Group fares in that regard, below. With a market capitalisation of CA$129m, Olympia Financial Group is a very small company by global standards. It is quite likely to be unknown to most investors. It doesn't take much money to really move the share price of a company as small as this one. That makes it somewhat unusual that it has a beta value so close to the overall market. Since Olympia Financial Group has a beta close to one, it will probably show a positive return when the market is moving up, based on history. If you're trying to generate better returns than the market, it would be worth thinking about other metrics such as cashflows, dividends and revenue growth might be a more useful guide to the future. This article aims to educate investors about beta values, but it's well worth looking at important company-specific fundamentals such as Olympia Financial Group’s financial health and performance track record. I urge you to continue your research by taking a look at the following: 1. Future Outlook: What are well-informed industry analysts predicting for OLY’s future growth? Take a look at ourfree research report of analyst consensusfor OLY’s outlook. 2. Past Track Record: Has OLY been consistently performing well irrespective of the ups and downs in the market? Go into more detail in the past performance analysis and take a look atthe free visual representations of OLY's historicalsfor more clarity. 3. Other Interesting Stocks: It's worth checking to see how OLY measures up against other companies on valuation. You could start with thisfree list of prospective options. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Jumia Food looks beyond Africa's middle class for growth By Omar Mohammed NAIROBI (Reuters) - Jumia Food, a unit of New York-listed e-commerce platform Jumia Technologies is offering cheaper menu options in its African home market to attract lower income earners as it seeks to boost growth, the delivery company said. The platform, which delivers food and drink in 11 African countries, joins other international companies such as ride-hailing firm Uber and China's Huawei Technologies who are looking to grow their customer base on the continent beyond the middle class. Jumia became Africa's first unicorn - a private company with a $1 billion-plus valuation - to test the public market for a sub-Saharan tech firm when it listed in New York in April. When it launched in 2012, Jumia Food focused on the middle class who could afford internet access but growing smartphone use and plummeting data costs are opening up the market to lower income earners. "Increasingly, convenience is also important for people who don't have a huge amount of money to spend," Joe Falter, chief executive of Jumia Food, told Reuters last week. "So one of the biggest focus areas now is to expand in (to) the type of consumer who spends a smaller amount per order and maybe does it more frequently." The platform's 2019 strategy includes working with restaurants to offer relatively cheaper meals of a maximum of 300 Kenyan shillings ($2.95). This compared with food prices of 350-600 shillings previously, the company said. CHAP CHAP UBER Jumia follows Uber, which introduced a low-cost, quick-trip option called Chap Chap to users in Kenya in 2018 and has added a motorcycle service in Uganda and rickshaws in Tanzania. Huawei also began offering a $100-200 range of smartphones two years ago in Kenya, cheaper than Apple's comparable iPhone Xs Max which sells around $1,500 in a country where the minimum monthly wage is $130. Jumia Food has about a million customers in 30 African cities including Nigeria's Lagos and Morocco's Casablanca, with Kenya its biggest market. Its platform has 4,000 restaurants offering everything from local cuisine to international fast food, from the likes of KFC, Pizza Hut and McDonald's. It is betting that as the African middle class grows -- people who average daily spending of between $2 to $20 according to the African Development Bank (AfDB) -- demand for online services will increase. Africa's growing population is expected to lead to a rise in consumer spending to $2.2 trillion by 2030 from $680 billion in 2008, according to a report by the bank, the United Nations Development Programme and the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development. "There is a huge demand for on-demand services, which includes food...groceries...pharmacies, gas, all sorts of different products," Falter said. Since its launch in 2012, orders placed on Jumia Food have grown by 7% per month. "Our active customers today, are ordering, on average, between 5 and 6 times per month," he said. Jumia's shares, which have whipsawed since they opened at $18.95 in April, were trading at $25.70 on Monday after closing at $25.62 on Friday. ($1 = 101.8000 Kenyan shillings) (Reporting by Omar Mohammed; editing by Katharine Houreld and Emelia Sithole-Matarise)
Amazon’s Merchants Are Feeling the Pain of a Trade War With China (Bloomberg) -- Over the past several years, Shanghai entrepreneur Yung Lin has built a decent business selling wrenches, screwdrivers and other tools on Amazon.com. Then President Donald Trump imposed tariffs on thousands of goods made in China, and Lin faced a difficult choice: eat the additional cost or try and pass it onto his mostly American customers. He chose to raise prices and watched sales of some products dive by as much as one third in just two weeks. Amazon.com Inc. merchants around the world are scrambling to navigate an unpredictable trade war that’s upending their proven business model of buying inexpensive goods in China and selling them at a markup in the U.S. The problem is particularly acute now as Trump weighs another $300 billion worth of tariffs, many on consumer goods. Mom and pop sellers won’t be able to wait for Trump’s decision: They have to place factory orders now and figure out pricing if they want to get their goods made in time for the lucrative Christmas shopping season, when they make as much as half their annual revenue. The most obvious solutions—raising prices, shifting production to other countries, stockpiling inventory—all have costs and complications of their own. These businesses—many of them one-person shops—are especially vulnerable because they lack big companies’ wherewithal to ride out the uncertainty as well as the negotiating power to shift tariff costs onto their suppliers. “The smaller companies have a significant problem,” says Joel Sutherland, Managing Director of the Supply Chain Management Institute at the University of San Diego. “We have an administration that says one thing today and does something else tomorrow, which poses tremendous risks.” Amazon is more insulated than the merchants in the near term but it too could take a hit if sales slow and cut into the commissions and fees the company charges merchants to use its online store. The shares were down less than 1 percent at 12:08 p.m. in New York. Much depends on whether the U.S. and China can come to terms. Trump will meet Chinese President Xi Jinping for the G20 summit in Osaka, Japan, on June 28-29, and both sides have agreed to resume trade talks after a weeks-long stalemate. But even if they hammer out an agreement, the trading relationship between the world’s two largest economies probably will never be the same. “We’re going to assume the tariffs are here to stay,” says Chuck Gregorich, who sells China-made hammocks, patio furniture and 2,000 other products on Amazon. “We can’t have this happen in a year or two and get caught with our pants down again.” Like many other importers, Gregorich tried to move up orders early last year to beat a Jan. 1 tariff hike on Chinese imports from 10% to 25%. He wound up spending an extra $400,000 on shipping only to see the tariff hike delayed. Burned once by the guessing game, Gregorich is looking to shift about 30% of his production to factories in Vietnam and elsewhere. He’s not alone. Many other Amazon merchants are considering having their goods made in India, Southeast Asia and Central America. Michael Michelini relocated to China from New York in 2007 to make Italian coffee presses and upscale bar supplies for U.S shoppers. Eight months ago he decided to move with his wife and kids to Thailand, where he’s working with a new factory to develop a line of high-end kitchenware. “Now when I think of China, I think of risk,” he says. Moving isn’t easy, however. Merchants say finding the right factory, securing raw materials and conducting product quality testing can easily eat up a year. Jerry Kavesh sells cowboys boots and hats on Amazon and recently spent months locating a factory in India that could make his products. But Kavesh discovered he would still have to import raw materials from China, negating any advantage. So as a last resort, he’s cutting his holiday inventory by about 15% and raising prices by about 12%, which he figures will spook enough customers to hurt sales. “When I hear the [U.S.] administration say just move, that's just not realistic,” says Kavesh, the chief executive officer of 3P Marketplace Solutions. “You can’t just suddenly turn all of your production over to someone new.” Even as U.S. sellers try to diversify their manufacturing base, their Chinese counterparts are looking for new customers in Europe, Japan and Australia to offset the potential hit to their U.S. business. “If you are a Chinese seller, money is money,” says Eddie Deng, a former Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. strategist who now runs an online clothing brand called Urbanic that sells Chinese-made, Western-style clothing in India. “It doesn't matter if it's from the U.S., India or the Middle East.” Amazon has said little publicly about the trade war. It wasn’t among 600 businesses including Walmart and Target that wrote the Trump administration earlier this month seeking an end to the trade war because it’s bad for U.S. shoppers. Amazon is a member of the Internet Association trade group, which signed the letter. Behind the scenes, Amazon has agreed to pay some vendors up to 10% more for products affected by tariffs, according to two people familiar with the matter. “Companies of all sizes throughout the supply chain are adjusting to increased costs resulting from new tariffs,” Amazon said in an emailed statement. “We’re working closely with vendors to make this adjustment as smooth as possible.” But that help will apply only to products Amazon buys wholesale and resells itself. The mom and pops that sell directly to consumers on Amazon’s marketplace are on their own. The hardest part is the uncertainty—the temptation to parse Trump tweets in a mostly vain effort to divine the future. “This could all be a head fake,” says Steve Simonson, who sells Chinese-made home goods and electronics and has been scouting factories in India, Vietnam and Central America. “In two months, this could all go away and all of this time and work will be wasted.” (Updates with share price. A previous version of this story corrected name of university in the fourth paragraph.) To contact the authors of this story: Shelly Banjo in Hong Kong at sbanjo@bloomberg.netSpencer Soper in Seattle at ssoper@bloomberg.net To contact the editor responsible for this story: Robin Ajello at rajello@bloomberg.net, Edwin Chan For more articles like this, please visit us atbloomberg.com ©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
Bitcoin up 170% for the Year as It Crosses $11,000 This article was originally published onETFTrends.com. Leading cryptocurrency Bitcoin crossed the $11,000 mark on Monday to hit a 15-month high amid the hype over social media giant Facebook and its latest cryptocurrency offering. Overall, Bitcoin is up 170 percent for the year to help erase memories of its unceremonious crash last year after reaching $20,000 in late 2017. Instead of checking their banks to ensure their direct deposit went through, Facebook employees could open their cryptocurrency wallets on pay day as the social media giant will be rolling out its own digital currency soon. This news is setting the cryptocurrency space abuzz with optimism as Bitcoin reached a high of $20,000 near the end of 2017 and fell over 70 percent since, but is climbing back to prominence again following this news. A year ago, the plan for Facebook to roll out its own form of cryptocurrency was set in motion when the company appointed former PayPal executive David Marcus to begin exploring the opportunity. Since then, rumors swirled that Facebook was developing its own digital currency that would allow its users to store, trade, and exchange for regular currency via apps like Messenger and WhatsApp. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg was already hinting that new ventures like cryptocurrency would help diversify the company's revenue streams, which relies heavily on advertising. “The price surge is due to two major factors, one is an increasing consensus among the investment community that bitcoin is a legitimate store of value for the digital age, and two Facebook’s Libra cryptocurrency launch has forced every CEO to take crypto seriously,” Jehan Chu, co-founder of Kenetic Capital, an investor in blockchain start-upstoldCNBC. The Non-Digital Gold Play At its height, cryptocurrency was viewed as "digital gold," but actual gold bulls can look to ETFs like theSPDR Gold Shares (GLD) andSPDR Gold MiniShares (GLDM) , while short-term traders can also play the gold market through miners via theVanEck Vectors Gold Miners (GDX) ,Direxion Daily Jr Gold Miners Bull 3X ETF (JNUG)and theDirexion Daily Gold Miners Bull 3X ETF (NUGT). The recent trade war activity may have burned an image of volatility in investors’ minds that could drive their decisions with their portfolios for the rest 2019. As far as being a predictor of what may happen in the global economy, commodities like gold might actually be a more reliable crystal ball. For investors looking for commodity ETFs as a broad-based play as opposed to just gold, theAberdeen Standard Bloomberg All Commodity Strategy K-1 Free ETF (BCI) could be a prime alternative. BCi seeks to provide a total return designed to exceed the performance of the Bloomberg Commodity IndexSM, which is calculated on an excess return basis—-the first of its kind since its inception in the first quarter of 2017. BCI is actively managed and seeks to provide a total return designed to exceed the performance of the index. With BCI offered at 25 basis points, it also offers a cost-effective solution to providing investors with exposure to commodities. Additionally, there are no K-1 tax documents issued, which is a requirement for investments in partnership interests. For more trends in the ETF space, visitETF Trends. POPULAR ARTICLES AND RESOURCES FROM ETFTRENDS.COM • SPY ETF Quote • VOO ETF Quote • QQQ ETF Quote • VTI ETF Quote • JNUG ETF Quote • Top 34 Gold ETFs • Top 34 Oil ETFs • Top 57 Financials ETFs • Could Looming Supply Cuts Be Driving Bitcoin? • The Elections and Your Portfolio • The Secure Act and Retirement Accounts • Pet Food IPO Chewy May Put Amazon On Its Heels • Mark Cuban: Success Comes From Outworking Everyone READ MORE AT ETFTRENDS.COM >
Are Investors Undervaluing Quanex Building Products Corporation (NYSE:NX) By 27%? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! Today we'll do a simple run through of a valuation method used to estimate the attractiveness of Quanex Building Products Corporation (NYSE:NX) as an investment opportunity by taking the foreast future cash flows of the company and discounting them back to today's value. This is done using the Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model. Don't get put off by the jargon, the math behind it is actually quite straightforward. Companies can be valued in a lot of ways, so we would point out that a DCF is not perfect for every situation. Anyone interested in learning a bit more about intrinsic value should have a read of theSimply Wall St analysis model. View our latest analysis for Quanex Building Products We use what is known as a 2-stage model, which simply means we have two different periods of growth rates for the company's cash flows. Generally the first stage is higher growth, and the second stage is a lower growth phase. In the first stage we need to estimate the cash flows to the business over the next ten years. Where possible we use analyst estimates, but when these aren't available we extrapolate the previous free cash flow (FCF) from the last estimate or reported value. We assume companies with shrinking free cash flow will slow their rate of shrinkage, and that companies with growing free cash flow will see their growth rate slow, over this period. We do this to reflect that growth tends to slow more in the early years than it does in later years. Generally we assume that a dollar today is more valuable than a dollar in the future, so we discount the value of these future cash flows to their estimated value in today's dollars: [{"": "Levered FCF ($, Millions)", "2019": "$53.36", "2020": "$61.22", "2021": "$63.95", "2022": "$66.47", "2023": "$68.85", "2024": "$71.14", "2025": "$73.38", "2026": "$75.59", "2027": "$77.81", "2028": "$80.05"}, {"": "Growth Rate Estimate Source", "2019": "Analyst x2", "2020": "Analyst x2", "2021": "Est @ 4.46%", "2022": "Est @ 3.94%", "2023": "Est @ 3.58%", "2024": "Est @ 3.32%", "2025": "Est @ 3.15%", "2026": "Est @ 3.02%", "2027": "Est @ 2.93%", "2028": "Est @ 2.87%"}, {"": "Present Value ($, Millions) Discounted @ 10.51%", "2019": "$48.29", "2020": "$50.12", "2021": "$47.38", "2022": "$44.56", "2023": "$41.76", "2024": "$39.05", "2025": "$36.44", "2026": "$33.97", "2027": "$31.64", "2028": "$29.45"}] Present Value of 10-year Cash Flow (PVCF)= $402.67m "Est" = FCF growth rate estimated by Simply Wall St After calculating the present value of future cash flows in the intial 10-year period, we need to calculate the Terminal Value, which accounts for all future cash flows beyond the first stage. The Gordon Growth formula is used to calculate Terminal Value at a future annual growth rate equal to the 10-year government bond rate of 2.7%. We discount the terminal cash flows to today's value at a cost of equity of 10.5%. Terminal Value (TV)= FCF2029× (1 + g) ÷ (r – g) = US$80m × (1 + 2.7%) ÷ (10.5% – 2.7%) = US$1.1b Present Value of Terminal Value (PVTV)= TV / (1 + r)10= $US$1.1b ÷ ( 1 + 10.5%)10= $388.72m The total value, or equity value, is then the sum of the present value of the future cash flows, which in this case is $791.39m. In the final step we divide the equity value by the number of shares outstanding.This results in an intrinsic value estimate of $24.09. Relative to the current share price of $17.54, the company appears a touch undervalued at a 27% discount to where the stock price trades currently. The assumptions in any calculation have a big impact on the valuation, so it is better to view this as a rough estimate, not precise down to the last cent. Now the most important inputs to a discounted cash flow are the discount rate, and of course, the actual cash flows. If you don't agree with these result, have a go at the calculation yourself and play with the assumptions. The DCF also does not consider the possible cyclicality of an industry, or a company's future capital requirements, so it does not give a full picture of a company's potential performance. Given that we are looking at Quanex Building Products as potential shareholders, the cost of equity is used as the discount rate, rather than the cost of capital (or weighted average cost of capital, WACC) which accounts for debt. In this calculation we've used 10.5%, which is based on a levered beta of 1.306. Beta is a measure of a stock's volatility, compared to the market as a whole. We get our beta from the industry average beta of globally comparable companies, with an imposed limit between 0.8 and 2.0, which is a reasonable range for a stable business. Whilst important, DCF calculation shouldn’t be the only metric you look at when researching a company. The DCF model is not a perfect stock valuation tool. Rather it should be seen as a guide to "what assumptions need to be true for this stock to be under/overvalued?" If a company grows at a different rate, or if its cost of equity or risk free rate changes sharply, the output can look very different. What is the reason for the share price to differ from the intrinsic value? For Quanex Building Products, I've compiled three fundamental factors you should further research: 1. Financial Health: Does NX have a healthy balance sheet? Take a look at ourfree balance sheet analysis with six simple checkson key factors like leverage and risk. 2. Future Earnings: How does NX's growth rate compare to its peers and the wider market? Dig deeper into the analyst consensus number for the upcoming years by interacting with ourfree analyst growth expectation chart. 3. Other High Quality Alternatives: Are there other high quality stocks you could be holding instead of NX? Exploreour interactive list of high quality stocksto get an idea of what else is out there you may be missing! PS. Simply Wall St updates its DCF calculation for every US stock every day, so if you want to find the intrinsic value of any other stock justsearch here. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Gold Price Forecast – Gold markets continue to grind higher Gold markets ralliedagain during the trading session on Monday as traders have come back from the weekend. That being the case, the $1400 level underneath should offer support now that we have gapped above it, and of course it is a large, round, psychologically significant figure. As long as we can stay above there, this market is extraordinarily bullish but quite frankly even if we do break down below there I think there are plenty of support levels underneath that should continue to keep old somewhat levitated. With the Federal Reserve changing its attitude, it’s very likely that the US dollar will shrink in the face of precious metals, especially considering that the ECB is also very loose with its monetary policy and of course the Bank of Japan has been for decades. Pullbacks should be thought of as buying opportunities, and the $1400 level will be your first support level. However, I think support extends all the way down to at least the $1350 level, maybe even the $1325 level. That being said, it seems very unlikely to happen so therefore I think it’s only a matter of time before value hunters come back in, even if we do get a little bit of a pullback. Another thing that could be driving Gold markets fire is the extreme amount of geopolitical uncertainty, which of course isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. The market certainly isn’t one that you should be trying to short, or even fade. We have obviously changed attitudes. Please let us know what you think in the comments below Thisarticlewas originally posted on FX Empire • Crude Oil Price Forecast – Crude oil markets continue to grind higher • Silver Price Forecast – Silver markets go back and forth on Tuesday • E-mini S&P 500 Index (ES) Futures Technical Analysis – June 25, 2019 Forecast • S&P 500 Price Forecast – Sock markets continue to meander • Gold Price Forecast – Gold markets stretch again • Gold Jumps to Highs Since 2013 at 1,440 and accumulates 10% gains in June
Why We Like Omnicom Group Inc.’s (NYSE:OMC) 20% Return On Capital Employed Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! Today we'll evaluate Omnicom Group Inc. (NYSE:OMC) to determine whether it could have potential as an investment idea. In particular, we'll consider its Return On Capital Employed (ROCE), as that can give us insight into how profitably the company is able to employ capital in its business. Firstly, we'll go over how we calculate ROCE. Then we'll compare its ROCE to similar companies. Then we'll determine how its current liabilities are affecting its ROCE. ROCE measures the amount of pre-tax profits a company can generate from the capital employed in its business. In general, businesses with a higher ROCE are usually better quality. In brief, it is a useful tool, but it is not without drawbacks. Renowned investment researcher Michael Mauboussinhas suggestedthat a high ROCE can indicate that 'one dollar invested in the company generates value of more than one dollar'. Analysts use this formula to calculate return on capital employed: Return on Capital Employed = Earnings Before Interest and Tax (EBIT) ÷ (Total Assets - Current Liabilities) Or for Omnicom Group: 0.20 = US$2.1b ÷ (US$25b - US$15b) (Based on the trailing twelve months to March 2019.) Therefore,Omnicom Group has an ROCE of 20%. View our latest analysis for Omnicom Group ROCE is commonly used for comparing the performance of similar businesses. Using our data, we find that Omnicom Group's ROCE is meaningfully better than the 8.5% average in the Media industry. We would consider this a positive, as it suggests it is using capital more effectively than other similar companies. Independently of how Omnicom Group compares to its industry, its ROCE in absolute terms appears decent, and the company may be worthy of closer investigation. Remember that this metric is backwards looking - it shows what has happened in the past, and does not accurately predict the future. Companies in cyclical industries can be difficult to understand using ROCE, as returns typically look high during boom times, and low during busts. ROCE is only a point-in-time measure. What happens in the future is pretty important for investors, so we have prepared afreereport on analyst forecasts for Omnicom Group. Current liabilities include invoices, such as supplier payments, short-term debt, or a tax bill, that need to be paid within 12 months. The ROCE equation subtracts current liabilities from capital employed, so a company with a lot of current liabilities appears to have less capital employed, and a higher ROCE than otherwise. To check the impact of this, we calculate if a company has high current liabilities relative to its total assets. Omnicom Group has total liabilities of US$15b and total assets of US$25b. As a result, its current liabilities are equal to approximately 59% of its total assets. Omnicom Group has a relatively high level of current liabilities, boosting its ROCE meaningfully. The ROCE would not look as appealing if the company had fewer current liabilities. Omnicom Group looks strong on this analysis,but there are plenty of other companies that could be a good opportunity. Here is afree listof companies growing earnings rapidly. If you are like me, then you willnotwant to miss thisfreelist of growing companies that insiders are buying. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
3 Reasons Why Today's Space Race Is Better Than Apollo Photo credit: The Life Pictures Collection - Getty Images From Popular Mechanics 'Tis the season to celebrate the Apollo program’s first human excursion to the lunar surface in July 1969. Fifty years later, this epic and ground-breaking achievement certainly warrants praise as it set the technological stage for generations of engineers and scientists to follow. But there is also the temptation to say that America needs another Apollo-style program to reclaim its primacy in space. This sentiment ignores both the realities of the moonshot and the amazing possibilities that the current commercial space revolution is opening. Here’s a few reasons why what’s happening now is even better than Apollo. Protected From Politics Photo credit: Universal History Archive - Getty Images Apollo was born of Cold War desperation: a political exercise that paid enormous scientific and technological dividends. After the launch of Sputnik in 1957, it became vital to beat the Soviet Union to the Moon, a geopolitical urge that created an enormous budgetary effort. The problem with politically motivated—well, anything—is that the faucet of support can be closed just as quickly as it opened. It happened to Apollo, as follow on missions were cancelled and the focus shifted to a reusable craft to service low-earth orbit. This pattern of shifting space priorities and strategies whipsawed NASA, most noticeably when the Obama administration’s cancellation of the Bush-era Constellation moon program in 2010. But multiple private companies pursuing their niches in space have an obvious redundancy. While companies may rise and fall, the very nature of a commercial effort isn't as dependent on government funding. If it’s worth doing, especially if it makes money, space industry will endure political shifts. The objectives of a well-run company do not change that much every four years. That leaves today’s NASA with a choice: Do it themselves and control everything (the traditional way), or fund private companies to develop the tech the agency needs and then allow them to sell their services to any nation, company, or individual ( the new way ). With those services on the open market, NASA would be one of many customers for a new U.S.-based space economy. Story continues This debate is boiling over right now. The ongoing effort to return to the moon, called Artemis (after Apollo’s sister), is becoming a lesson in the advantages of the commercial model. So Much Cheaper, Even NASA Noticed Photo credit: NASA One measure of Apollo’s urgency is the amount of money the government spent on it. The moonshot consumed 2.5 percent of America’s gross domestic product over a 10-year period, for a total of $25 billion, or about $150 billion in today's dollars. If we apply the same urgency to today’s GDP, a similar-sized percentage would be more than $100 billion every year. For some perspective, NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine last week said the agency will need $20 billion to $30 billion over the next five years. This is sizeable as NASA’s budget is likely to hover around $20 billion annually, so they’re looking at $5 billion or so more each year. The pushback generated by this request—it’s too much, it’s not enough—crosses the political spectrum, following Congressional district lines more than party affiliation. If only investment guaranteed results. For those who miss bloated, government-run spaceflight, there is already a NASA spacecraft mired in the old ways of thinking. The feds have sunk a lot of money into the Space Launch System, a mega-rocket built to NASA specs for deep space missions. It was supposed to fly in 2017, but we’ll be lucky to see a first flight in 2020—and it busted the $9.7 billion estimated budget, now costing about $12 billion. But something happened during these SLS delays: the commercial space industry started delivering on its promises. Most visibly, private firms have been delivering supplies to the International Space Station for years and (hopefully soon) will ferry astronauts as well. Blue Origin and SpaceX has started development of crewed spacecraft able to reach to the moon and Mars. Elon Musk even sold a moon trip to a Japanese billionaire . Photo credit: Matt Blitz The speed and relatively cheap cost of these operations has impressed Bridenstine, who sees the commercial space industry as a key enabler to accelerate the timeline. "We're going back to the Moon, but we're doing it entirely different than we did in the 1960s," Bridenstine told reporters recently. “The reason we need commercial operators is because they can drive innovation if they're competing on cost.” There are plenty of things that the private sector can provide for NASA’s moonshot, using the new model. A space station near the moon, robotic landers, and new spacesuits are all going to commercial firms, who will ultimately own the blueprints and offer proven equipment to whoever wants to pay to use them. Bridenstine has even publicly pondered the idea of using commercial space heavy rockets to reach the moon. If that happens, it will be a true death knell for the traditional, Apollo approach. A Truly Global Impact Photo credit: NurPhoto - Getty Images Planting the American flag on the moon is a big moment in human history, but it's often framed in terms of a U.S. victory over its geopolitical rivals. The moon landing was a demonstration of national power, pursued in a jingoistic fervor, as most government-funded feats of explorations tend to be. The commercial space industry is more inclusive. In fact, it has to be in order to survive. The current commercial satellite launch market survives on a similarly global customer base. Simply put, telecom companies from around the world will pay Chinese, European, or American launchers to put their spacecraft into orbit. Now extend that thinking to even more industries. There are plenty of potential customers who would pay to ride on a commercial space vehicle and orbital facility: Medical tech companies lofting research experiments, universities paying for small space telescopes, Middle Eastern and African countries sending their first astronauts to space. With NASA giving developers the ability to market their rockets, spacecraft, and orbiting stations, the entire world will enjoy the benefits of this new space age. There are many who see spaceflight as the way to bring the world together, and the commercial space industry could make that happen. It won’t be cheap, and there will undoubtedly be conflict when marketing plans clash with national priorities. But when it comes to people using and, eventually, living in space, there is no bigger chance in human history for the whole world to participate. So this summer be sure to celebrate Apollo and all those who made it happen , but also keep an eye on what’s going on now because it has the chance to become something even bigger. You Might Also Like This Device Can Send Messages Without Cell Service The Best Portable BBQ Grills for Cooking Anywhere The Best Video Game the Year You Were Born
At US$274, Is W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) Worth Looking At Closely? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! Today we're going to take a look at the well-established W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW). The company's stock received a lot of attention from a substantial price movement on the NYSE over the last few months, increasing to $316.5 at one point, and dropping to the lows of $258.56. Some share price movements can give investors a better opportunity to enter into the stock, and potentially buy at a lower price. A question to answer is whether W.W. Grainger's current trading price of $274.02 reflective of the actual value of the large-cap? Or is it currently undervalued, providing us with the opportunity to buy? Let’s take a look at W.W. Grainger’s outlook and value based on the most recent financial data to see if there are any catalysts for a price change. Check out our latest analysis for W.W. Grainger According to my valuation model, W.W. Grainger seems to be fairly priced at around 2.3% below my intrinsic value, which means if you buy W.W. Grainger today, you’d be paying a fair price for it. And if you believe the company’s true value is $280.48, then there isn’t much room for the share price grow beyond what it’s currently trading. In addition to this, W.W. Grainger has a low beta, which suggests its share price is less volatile than the wider market. Investors looking for growth in their portfolio may want to consider the prospects of a company before buying its shares. Buying a great company with a robust outlook at a cheap price is always a good investment, so let’s also take a look at the company's future expectations. W.W. Grainger’s earnings over the next few years are expected to increase by 44%, indicating a highly optimistic future ahead. This should lead to more robust cash flows, feeding into a higher share value. Are you a shareholder?It seems like the market has already priced in GWW’s positive outlook, with shares trading around its fair value. However, there are also other important factors which we haven’t considered today, such as the financial strength of the company. Have these factors changed since the last time you looked at the stock? Will you have enough confidence to invest in the company should the price drop below its fair value? Are you a potential investor?If you’ve been keeping tabs on GWW, now may not be the most optimal time to buy, given it is trading around its fair value. However, the optimistic prospect is encouraging for the company, which means it’s worth diving deeper into other factors such as the strength of its balance sheet, in order to take advantage of the next price drop. Price is just the tip of the iceberg. Dig deeper into what truly matters – the fundamentals – before you make a decision on W.W. Grainger. You can find everything you need to know about W.W. Grainger inthe latest infographic research report. If you are no longer interested in W.W. Grainger, you can use our free platform to see my list of over50 other stocks with a high growth potential. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Bernie Sanders calls for canceling $1.6 trillion in student loan debt By John Whitesides WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. presidential contender Bernie Sanders proposed a plan on Monday to cancel $1.6 trillion in student loans and pay for it with a tax on Wall Street, elevating the issue in the 2020 debate and going beyond proposals from his Democratic White House rivals. Sanders, an independent U.S. senator from Vermont, said his plan would wipe out college debt for 45 million Americans and be funded with a tax on stock, bond and derivatives transactions that would raise about $2.2 trillion over 10 years. The proposal builds on Sanders' longstanding call to make public universities and colleges tuition-free, an issue he has highlighted since his first presidential run in 2016. He said student loan debt was economically crippling young Americans. "This proposal completely eliminates student debt in this country and ends the absurdity of sentencing an entire generation, the millennial generation, to a lifetime of debt," Sanders said at the unveiling of his U.S. Senate bill. "The American people bailed out Wall Street. Now, it is time for Wall Street to come to the aid of the middle class of this country," he said. Other liberal Democrats, including presidential rivals Elizabeth Warren and Julian Castro, have taken up the call and proposed smaller student-debt cancellation plans. Warren has proposed canceling $50,000 in student loan debt for anyone with annual household income under $100,000 and give substantial cancellation to those between $100,000 and $250,000. She proposed paying for the plan with a tax on wealthy families. The Sanders proposal comes two days before the first debates involving candidates seeking the Democratic nomination for the right to challenge Republican President Donald Trump in November 2020. Ten candidates each will meet in back-to-back debates on Wednesday and Thursday nights in Miami, Florida. Sanders appeared at a news conference with U.S. Representatives Ilhan Omar and Pramila Jayapal, who joined him in proposing the legislation. (Editing by Bill Berkrot)
Silver Price Forecast – Silver markets choppy on Monday Silver marketshave gone back and forth during the trading session on Monday as traders came back from the weekend. This is a sign that the market is trying to figure out where to go next, but clearly we have broken out to the upside. With the Federal Reserve entering a loose monetary policy, it makes sense that precious metals will continue to get a bit of a boost. That being said, we are also above the 200 day EMA, which is also a bullish sign. That doesn’t mean that we are going straight up in the air, but it does suggest that we are going higher. At this point, the 200 day EMA is at the $15.14 level, and that offer a bit of support not only because of that moving average, but also because of the gap that formed at that area. The absolute “floor” of the market at this point is probably the $15.00 level. I recognize that the $15.50 level above is resistance, but I also think that it could very easily give way now. For short-term traders this will be a target, so you could see a little bit of profit taking as we have pulled back from there. Gold has also broken out, which is another reason to think that perhaps silver will go higher, as the two over time do tend to move in the same direction. Quite frankly, I don’t have any interest in shorting this market until we get well below the $15.00 level. Ultimately, I think we are probably going to go looking towards the $16.00 level. Please let us know what you think in the comments below Thisarticlewas originally posted on FX Empire • Natural Gas Price Prediction – Prices Remain Flat Despite Rise in LNG Exports • Price of Gold Fundamental Daily Forecast – Fed Speakers May Not Say Anything Markets Haven’t Priced In • E-mini S&P 500 Index (ES) Futures Technical Analysis – June 25, 2019 Forecast • US Stock Market Overview – Stocks Drop on US/Iran Conflict • GBP/JPY Price Forecast – market continues to consolidate at low levels • Natural Gas Price Forecast – Natural gas markets fall slightly on Tuesday
Trump Compares Federal Reserve To 'Stubborn Child' TheFederal Reserveopted not to cut interest rates last week, and President Donald Trump is once again expressing his displeasure with the Fed and his appointed Fed Chair Jerome Powell. Trump lashed out at the Fed Mondayon Twitter, telling followers the Fed “doesn’t know what it’s doing.” The latest tweets come after Trump ripped Powell specifically in a new interviewwith NBC. “I’m not happy with his actions,” Trump said of Powell. “No, I don’t think he’s done a good job.” Ignoring The President Trump, who was also highly critical of Powell’s predecessor Janet Yellen, appointed Powell as head of the Fed in November 2017. Despite repeated calls by Trump for lower interest rates, the Fed chose last week to maintain its rates and reject the president’s calls. “Well, let’s see what he does,” Trump said just prior to the Fed announcement when asked whether he plans to remove Powell from his position. Powell has repeatedly said he has no intention of leaving his position, implying that Trump cannot legally remove him. Powell has said he can only be removed from his position for just cause. “The law is clear that I have a four-year term, and I fully intend to serve it,” Powell said last week. National Economic Council Director Larry Kudlow said last week that, while Trump may be unhappy with Powell, he is not considering a demotion. Investors React The battle in Washington over interest rates has a direct impact on investors. Lower rates help stimulate the economy by facilitating the borrowing needed to invest in growth. Yet higher interest rates give the Fed more flexibility to combat and potentially avoid the next recession, and rate cuts potentially leave the Fed with limited options should the market take a nosedive. So far in 2019, investors haven’t been concerned about rising interest rates. TheSPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust(NYSE:SPY) is up 17.7% year-to-date. Investors also don’t seem to agree with Trump’s assessment of the Fed’s latest decision. TheSPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF(NYSE:DIA) is up 1.1% since last week’s Fed announcement. Related Links: Federal Reserve Leaves Rates Unchanged; Bullard Dissents Making The Case For A June Fed Rate Cut President Donald Trump in the Oval Office on Thursday, June 20. White House photo. See more from Benzinga • What To Expect From The S&P 500 Over The Next 20 Years • Why Slack's IPO Investor Sentiment Might Be A Good Omen • This Day In Market History: Penn Central Bankruptcy © 2019 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
Save $330 on iMac Pro and get a Magic keyboard and mouse for free TL;DR:This 27-inchiMac Profeatures one of the most powerful processors Apple has ever made, and Amazon has it on sale for $4,669.92 — a savings of about $330. When you're shopping around forlaptopsandlaptop-tablet hybrids, portability is the name of the game, and physical specs like weight and dimensions are just as important to consider (if not more so) as devices' software functionality. They're sort of like the toy poodles of the electronics world: They're just as much an accessory as they are a practical companion. But a different P-word usurps priority when you get into desktop computers, and that'spower. They're the Rottweilers of computers: Since their shtick isn't fitting into designer purses, they can be as big and brawny as you need them to be.Read more... More aboutApple,Desktop Computer,Imac Pro,Mashable Shopping, andShopping Skimlinks
Senate bill would make companies put a price on personal data Many will tell you that internet giants see your data as their most valuable resource, but politicians now want to put a number on that value. Senators Mark Warner and Josh Hawley areintroducingthe Designing Accounting Safeguards to Help Broaden Oversight and Regulations on Data Act (conveniently DASHBOARD Act for short), a bill that requires companies with 100 million or more monthly users to not only disclose the type of data they collect, but to put a monetary value on that data every 90 days. If Facebook and Google think you're worth $5 per month, they would have to say as much. The Securities and Exchange Commission would have to develop methods for calculating that value. The measure would also ask companies to disclose the aggregate value of their users' data once per year. They'd also have to give customers the option to delete all or some of their data. The senators hope the bill would help customers make more informed choices about signing up for internet services, both in terms of what they're sharing and how the companies profit from that data. You might think twice if you find that a company expects to sell your information to advertisers, for example. This could theoretically helpwith lawsuitsby assigning a tangible value to the damage done to customers. At the same time, there are concerns about the strategy. How do you put a price on data when its usefulness varies widely from service to service, and user to user? Warner doesn't think that's an issue, since companies will make gigantic acquisitions (such as Facebook'spurchase of Instagram) with an idea as to how much a company and its data might be worth. Still, it's doubtful that tech giants will relish he thought of having to generate those numbers, especially since the figures might open them to stricter rules andcalls to break them up.
When Should You Buy W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! Today we're going to take a look at the well-established W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW). The company's stock received a lot of attention from a substantial price movement on the NYSE over the last few months, increasing to $316.5 at one point, and dropping to the lows of $258.56. Some share price movements can give investors a better opportunity to enter into the stock, and potentially buy at a lower price. A question to answer is whether W.W. Grainger's current trading price of $274.02 reflective of the actual value of the large-cap? Or is it currently undervalued, providing us with the opportunity to buy? Let’s take a look at W.W. Grainger’s outlook and value based on the most recent financial data to see if there are any catalysts for a price change. View our latest analysis for W.W. Grainger The stock seems fairly valued at the moment according to my valuation model. It’s trading around 2.3% below my intrinsic value, which means if you buy W.W. Grainger today, you’d be paying a reasonable price for it. And if you believe that the stock is really worth $280.48, then there isn’t much room for the share price grow beyond what it’s currently trading. Furthermore, W.W. Grainger’s low beta implies that the stock is less volatile than the wider market. Future outlook is an important aspect when you’re looking at buying a stock, especially if you are an investor looking for growth in your portfolio. Although value investors would argue that it’s the intrinsic value relative to the price that matter the most, a more compelling investment thesis would be high growth potential at a cheap price. W.W. Grainger’s earnings over the next few years are expected to increase by 44%, indicating a highly optimistic future ahead. This should lead to more robust cash flows, feeding into a higher share value. Are you a shareholder?It seems like the market has already priced in GWW’s positive outlook, with shares trading around its fair value. However, there are also other important factors which we haven’t considered today, such as the track record of its management team. Have these factors changed since the last time you looked at the stock? Will you have enough confidence to invest in the company should the price drop below its fair value? Are you a potential investor?If you’ve been keeping an eye on GWW, now may not be the most optimal time to buy, given it is trading around its fair value. However, the positive outlook is encouraging for the company, which means it’s worth further examining other factors such as the strength of its balance sheet, in order to take advantage of the next price drop. Price is just the tip of the iceberg. Dig deeper into what truly matters – the fundamentals – before you make a decision on W.W. Grainger. You can find everything you need to know about W.W. Grainger inthe latest infographic research report. If you are no longer interested in W.W. Grainger, you can use our free platform to see my list of over50 other stocks with a high growth potential. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Does Old National Bancorp (NASDAQ:ONB) Have A High Beta? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! If you own shares in Old National Bancorp (NASDAQ:ONB) then it's worth thinking about how it contributes to the volatility of your portfolio, overall. In finance, Beta is a measure of volatility. Volatility is considered to be a measure of risk in modern finance theory. Investors may think of volatility as falling into two main categories. The first type is company specific volatility. Investors use diversification across uncorrelated stocks to reduce this kind of price volatility across the portfolio. The other type, which cannot be diversified away, is the volatility of the entire market. Every stock in the market is exposed to this volatility, which is linked to the fact that stocks prices are correlated in an efficient market. Some stocks are more sensitive to general market forces than others. Beta can be a useful tool to understand how much a stock is influenced by market risk (volatility). However, Warren Buffett said 'volatility is far from synonymous with risk' in his 2014 letter to investors. So, while useful, beta is not the only metric to consider. To use beta as an investor, you must first understand that the overall market has a beta of one. A stock with a beta below one is either less volatile than the market, or more volatile but not corellated with the overall market. In comparison a stock with a beta of over one tends to be move in a similar direction to the market in the long term, but with greater changes in price. Check out our latest analysis for Old National Bancorp With a beta of 0.99, (which is quite close to 1) the share price of Old National Bancorp has historically been about as voltile as the broader market. Using history as a guide, we might surmise that the share price is likely to be influenced by market voltility going forward but it probably won't be particularly sensitive to it. Many would argue that beta is useful in position sizing, but fundamental metrics such as revenue and earnings are more important overall. You can see Old National Bancorp's revenue and earnings in the image below. Old National Bancorp is a fairly large company. It has a market capitalisation of US$2.9b, which means it is probably on the radar of most investors. It's not overly surprising to see large companies with beta values reasonably close to the market average. After all, large companies make up a higher weighting of the index than do small companies. It is probable that there is a link between the share price of Old National Bancorp and the broader market, since it has a beta value quite close to one. However, long term investors are generally well served by looking past market volatility and focussing on the underlying development of the business. If that's your game, metrics such as revenue, earnings and cash flow will be more useful. In order to fully understand whether ONB is a good investment for you, we also need to consider important company-specific fundamentals such as Old National Bancorp’s financial health and performance track record. I highly recommend you dive deeper by considering the following: 1. Future Outlook: What are well-informed industry analysts predicting for ONB’s future growth? Take a look at ourfree research report of analyst consensusfor ONB’s outlook. 2. Past Track Record: Has ONB been consistently performing well irrespective of the ups and downs in the market? Go into more detail in the past performance analysis and take a look atthe free visual representations of ONB's historicalsfor more clarity. 3. Other Interesting Stocks: It's worth checking to see how ONB measures up against other companies on valuation. You could start with thisfree list of prospective options. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Avianca Brasil loses slots in Sao Paulo's domestic airport SAO PAULO (Reuters) - Brazil's civil aviation regulator will take back grounded airline Avianca Brasil's slots in Sao Paulo's coveted domestic airport as part of a plan to redistribute them later, according to a decision published in the government's official gazette on Monday. Avianca Brasil filed for bankruptcy in December and saw its operations progressively diminish until they were suspended in late May. The airline was Brazil's No. 4 carrier and had planned to auction its airport rights, known as slots, on July 10, in hopes of raising at least $140 million. But without the Sao Paulo slots, which represent the most lucrative portion of all the airline's slots, it is unclear whether the auction will still take place. A representative for Avianca Brasil did not have immediate comment. Brazil's top three airlines, Gol Linhas Aereas Inteligentes, LATAM Airlines Group and Azul SA, had all expressed interest in the slots, and spent millions in efforts to secure them. (Reporting by Marcelo Rochabrun; Editing by Susan Thomas)
Meet the mess: The best backpages in New York Mets history Meet the mess, meet the mess, step right up and meet the mess. It's a joke as old as time (or at least the Wilpons) for the New York Mets, one of American sports' most hilariously calamitous franchises—the Moe to the Detroit Lions' Curly, if you will. But no Mets debacle—from Bobby Bonilla pension payments to Yoenis Cespedes ranching mishaps —is complete without the perfect New York backpage to go with it, a fact emphasized on Sunday night as news of a skirmish between manager Mickey Callaway, pitcher Jason Vargas, and Newsday beat reporter Tim Healey began to spread following an 8th-inning collapse against the Cubs. By the wee hours of Monday morning, the sports world was graced with its new Sistine Chapel. You might think a backpage that good only comes a long once a lifetime, but don't worry. As the history of both the Mets and New York's rabid, frothing sports mob prove, there's plenty more where that came from... How much time do you have? The headline so nice... ...they ran it twice. Not that there's anything wrong with that. RELATED: Newman throws out first pitch at Mets-Dodgers game, Mets choke away five-run lead The more things change... RELATED: Yoenis Cespedes says playing golf could help end his slump, is a genius What can we say, the man was a goldmine. And finally, the backpage that started it all. Just a hunch, but Jones probably sucked. Originally Appeared on Golf Digest View comments
Does Old National Bancorp (NASDAQ:ONB) Have A Particularly Volatile Share Price? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! If you own shares in Old National Bancorp (NASDAQ:ONB) then it's worth thinking about how it contributes to the volatility of your portfolio, overall. In finance, Beta is a measure of volatility. Volatility is considered to be a measure of risk in modern finance theory. Investors may think of volatility as falling into two main categories. The first category is company specific volatility. This can be dealt with by limiting your exposure to any particular stock. The other type, which cannot be diversified away, is the volatility of the entire market. Every stock in the market is exposed to this volatility, which is linked to the fact that stocks prices are correlated in an efficient market. Some stocks see their prices move in concert with the market. Others tend towards stronger, gentler or unrelated price movements. Beta is a widely used metric to measure a stock's exposure to market risk (volatility). Before we go on, it's worth noting that Warren Buffett pointed out in his 2014 letter to shareholders that 'volatility is far from synonymous with risk.' Having said that, beta can still be rather useful. The first thing to understand about beta is that the beta of the overall market is one. Any stock with a beta of greater than one is considered more volatile than the market, while those with a beta below one are either less volatile or poorly correlated with the market. See our latest analysis for Old National Bancorp With a beta of 0.99, (which is quite close to 1) the share price of Old National Bancorp has historically been about as voltile as the broader market. While history does not always repeat, this may indicate that the stock price will continue to be exposed to market risk, albeit not overly so. Share price volatility is well worth considering, but most long term investors consider the history of revenue and earnings growth to be more important. Take a look at how Old National Bancorp fares in that regard, below. Old National Bancorp is a fairly large company. It has a market capitalisation of US$2.9b, which means it is probably on the radar of most investors. We shouldn't be surprised to see a large company like this with a beta value quite close to the market average. Large companies often move roughly in line with the market. In part, that's because there are fewer individual events that are signficant enough to markedly change the value of the stock (compared to small companies, at least). Since Old National Bancorp has a beta close to one, it will probably show a positive return when the market is moving up, based on history. If you're trying to generate better returns than the market, it would be worth thinking about other metrics such as cashflows, dividends and revenue growth might be a more useful guide to the future. In order to fully understand whether ONB is a good investment for you, we also need to consider important company-specific fundamentals such as Old National Bancorp’s financial health and performance track record. I urge you to continue your research by taking a look at the following: 1. Future Outlook: What are well-informed industry analysts predicting for ONB’s future growth? Take a look at ourfree research report of analyst consensusfor ONB’s outlook. 2. Past Track Record: Has ONB been consistently performing well irrespective of the ups and downs in the market? Go into more detail in the past performance analysis and take a look atthe free visual representations of ONB's historicalsfor more clarity. 3. Other Interesting Stocks: It's worth checking to see how ONB measures up against other companies on valuation. You could start with thisfree list of prospective options. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Mnuchin says Trump order will lock up billions more in Iranian assets WASHINGTON, June 24 (Reuters) - U.S. Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin said on Monday the new executive order signed by President Donald Trump will lock up billions of additional dollars in Iranian assets, squeezing the country further amid escalating tensions with Washington. Mnuchin said the order was in the works before last week's downing by Iran of a U.S. military surveillance drone but was in response to that as well as to previous Iranian actions in the Gulf. (Reporting by Steve Holland; Writing by Doina Chiacu; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)
Canntab Therapeutics Featured in the Canadian Cannabis Investor Magazine TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / June 24, 2019 /Canntab Therapeutics Limited (CSE:PILL.CN) (CTABF) (TBF1.F) (the "Company" or "Canntab"), the leading innovator in hard pill oral dose therapeutic cannabinoid and terpene blends, is pleased to announce that it is the featured company in the Canadian CannaInvestor Magazine June 2019 Issue. The Canadian CannaInvestor Magazine is the leading industry investment magazine for cannabis investors, analysts, executives, entrepreneurs, and the financial media. The digital version of the magazine is accessible and free to all subscribers who enter their email address. Canntab Therapeutics feature can be found by clicking on this linkhttps://joom.ag/Q1xa. About CanntabTherapeutics Limited Canntab Therapeutics Ltd. is a Canadian company engaged in the research and development of advanced, pharmaceutical-grade formulations of cannabinoids and terpenes in a variety of timed-release dosages, including extended release, immediate release and flash melt. In doing so, Canntab has developed a suite of precision oral dose products that are unavailable elsewhere in the marketplace. Our proprietary hard pill cannabinoid formulations will provide doctors, patients and the general consumer with a medical grade solution with all the features you would expect from any prescription or over the counter medication. Canntab trades on the Canadian Securities Exchange under the symbol PILL, on the OTCQX Best Market under the symbol CTABF, and on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange under the symbol TBF1. FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT: Canntab Therapeutics Limited Jeffrey RenwickChief Executive Officer+1 289.301.3812jeff@canntab.ca Frank CandidoBusiness Development514-969-5530 frank@canntab.ca Investor Relations Relations Publiques Paradox Inc.Jean-Francois Meilleur1-866-460-0408jfmeilleur@paradox-pr.cahttps://www.paradox-pr.ca/ Forward Looking Statements Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange (the "CSE") nor its Market Regulator (as that term is defined in the policies of the CSE) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Certain statements contained in this press release constitute forward-looking information. These statements relate to future events or future performance. The use of any of the words "could," "intend," "expect," "believe," "will," "projected," "estimated" and similar expressions and statements relating to matters that are not historical facts are intended to identify forward-looking information and are based on the Company's current belief or assumptions as to the outcome and timing of such future events. Actual future results may differ materially. The forward-looking information contained in this press release is made as of the date hereof and the Company is not obligated to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable securities laws. Because of the risks, uncertainties and assumptions contained herein, investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. The foregoing statements expressly qualify any forward-looking information contained herein. SOURCE:Cannabis Investor Magazine View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/549660/Canntab-Therapeutics-Featured-in-the-Canadian-Cannabis-Investor-Magazine
The Goodyear Tire & Rubber (NASDAQ:GT) Share Price Is Down 45% So Some Shareholders Are Getting Worried Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! For many, the main point of investing is to generate higher returns than the overall market. But in any portfolio, there will be mixed results between individual stocks. So we wouldn't blame long termThe Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company(NASDAQ:GT) shareholders for doubting their decision to hold, with the stock down 45% over a half decade. And we doubt long term believers are the only worried holders, since the stock price has declined 38% over the last twelve months. Shareholders have had an even rougher run lately, with the share price down 13% in the last 90 days. Check out our latest analysis for Goodyear Tire & Rubber While markets are a powerful pricing mechanism, share prices reflect investor sentiment, not just underlying business performance. One imperfect but simple way to consider how the market perception of a company has shifted is to compare the change in the earnings per share (EPS) with the share price movement. During the unfortunate half decade during which the share price slipped, Goodyear Tire & Rubber actually saw its earnings per share (EPS) improve by 2.5% per year. Given the share price reaction, one might suspect that EPS is not a good guide to the business performance during the period (perhaps due to a one-off loss or gain). Or possibly, the market was previously very optimistic, so the stock has disappointed, despite improving EPS. Based on these numbers, we'd venture that the market may have been over-optimistic about forecast growth, half a decade ago. Looking to other metrics might better explain the share price change. The steady dividend doesn't really explain why the share price is down. However, revenue has declined at a compound annual rate of 4.7% per year. With revenue weak, and increased payouts of cash, the market might be taking the view that its best days are behind it. The chart below shows how revenue and earnings have changed with time, (if you click on the chart you can see the actual values). We like that insiders have been buying shares in the last twelve months. Even so, future earnings will be far more important to whether current shareholders make money. So it makes a lot of sense to check out what analysts think Goodyear Tire & Rubber willearn in the future (free profit forecasts). It is important to consider the total shareholder return, as well as the share price return, for any given stock. Whereas the share price return only reflects the change in the share price, the TSR includes the value of dividends (assuming they were reinvested) and the benefit of any discounted capital raising or spin-off. It's fair to say that the TSR gives a more complete picture for stocks that pay a dividend. In the case of Goodyear Tire & Rubber, it has a TSR of -41% for the last 5 years. That exceeds its share price return that we previously mentioned. And there's no prize for guessing that the dividend payments largely explain the divergence! Investors in Goodyear Tire & Rubber had a tough year, with a total loss of 37% (including dividends), against a market gain of about 6.6%. However, keep in mind that even the best stocks will sometimes underperform the market over a twelve month period. Unfortunately, last year's performance may indicate unresolved challenges, given that it was worse than the annualised loss of 10% over the last half decade. Generally speaking long term share price weakness can be a bad sign, though contrarian investors might want to research the stock in hope of a turnaround. It is all well and good that insiders have been buying shares, but we suggest youcheck here to see what price insiders were buying at. There are plenty of other companies that have insiders buying up shares. You probably donotwant to miss thisfreelist of growing companies that insiders are buying. Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on US exchanges. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Trump is bullying the Federal Reserve — here's why the stock market cares Investors should probably wake up each day hoping President Donald Trump rips the Federal Reserve and Chair Jerome Powell a new one (again). That’s because stocks seem to react favorably when Trump pushes the Fed around in an effort to get the governing body to slash interest rates to create a pre-2020 re-election bid economic boom. Consider this: as the president has increasingly took to Twitter since May to complain about Fed policy, the major stock indices have reclaimed their record highs. The pushback to new highs can be linked to a late spring dovish turn — on FOMC decision days and in numerous press events — by Powell and his buddies at the Fed. Of course the Fed has downplayed the notion that it’s being smacked around by Trump, reiterating on numerous occasions its independence of politics. But the stock market doesn’t see it that way, plain and simple. “The president wants to get his way, and he will jawbone people, markets and countries to the point of almost bullying them,” markets insider Keith Bliss of Cuttone Securities said on Yahoo Finance’sThe First Trade. “The market is reading this as Jerome Powell and the Fed are reading the tweets. The market thinks the Fed is making its moves based upon what the president is saying to the Fed.” Bliss said he doesn’t believe that to be the case, but the market will view it that way regardless. And the president — a well-known stock market watcher — likely knows just that. So why not keep the tweet stream hot and pressure the Fed, ashe did with more biting criticism on Monday. Bliss doesn’t think the Fed is out to lunch. “I think the Fed and Jerome Powell really know what they are doing — they do have their hand on the pulse probably more than than the president does or anybody in the White House, except for maybe Larry Kudlow. I think they are trying to engineer a real nice sweet spot for interest rates,” Bliss explained. Perhaps Bliss is right in that yes, the Fed knows what it’s doing. Mr. Market can care less though — it’s clearly thinking the Fed is clueless. Meanwhile, Trump stays on the attack. Brian Sozzi is an editor-at-large and co-host of ‘The First Trade’ at Yahoo Finance. Follow Brian Sozzi him on Twitter@BrianSozzi Read the latest financial and business news from Yahoo Finance • Why Shake Shack CEO is testing a 4-day workweek • Trump's trade war with China may shock investors this summer • 2 black swans could come out of nowhere and kill stocks this summer • Why scrapping Trump's corporate tax cuts could crush businesses Follow Yahoo Finance onTwitter,Facebook,Instagram,Flipboard,SmartNews,LinkedIn,YouTube, andreddit.
Momentum, Value Meet in the VMOT ETF This article was originally published onETFTrends.com. The momentum and value factors do not often meet under the umbrella of a single exchange traded fund, but when they do, the outcome is potentially compelling for investors. Investors looking for that combination may want to consider theAlpha Architect Value Momentum Trend ETF (CBOE: VMOT). The Value Momentum Trend ETF tries to reflect the performance of the Alpha Architect Value momentum Trend Index, which utilizes a proprietary methodology developed by Empirical Finance, d/b/a Alpha Architect to select component holdings. The fund is also a fund-of-funds, so it primarily holds assets in shares of other ETFs. VMOT “combines value and momentum. Each has been an effective factor strategy over the long term, and they complement each other well,” said Morningstarin a recent note. “While this strategy incorporates standard value and momentum selection criteria, this is a distinctive portfolio that screens for quality and has more-pronounced factor tilts than many of its peers. It invests in stocks listed in both the U.S. and foreign developed markets.” A “momentum” investment style emphasizes investing in securities that have had better recent total return performance compared to other securities, whereas a “value” investment style emphasizes investing in securities that based on quantitative analysis are considered undervalue compared to other securities. Under the Hood of VMOT VMOT is an ETF of ETFs and its holdings are other Alpha Architect funds, such as the Alpha Architect ETFs, including theU.S. Quantitative Value ETF (CBOE: QVAL),International Quantitative Value ETF (CBOE: IVAL),U.S. Quantitative Momentum ETF (CBOE: QMOM)and theInternational Quantitative Momentum ETF (CBOE: IMOM). VMOT's “two value sleeves start with all stocks with a market cap of at least $2 billion (excluding financials, where Alpha Architect’s quality and value screens don’t work as well),” said Morningstar. “They first eliminate stocks with potential problems from the eligibility list, including firms with high earnings accruals. High accruals may be a sign that a company is managing its earnings, in which case reported earnings may not paint an accurate picture of the firm’s financial condition.” VMOT's momentum approach has some important differences relative to its value counterpart. “The two momentum sleeves start with a similar universe as the value sleeves, but they include financials. These portfolios rank stocks on their total returns over the past 12 months, excluding the most recent one, and screen for the top-scoring 10%. These portfolios screen those stocks on the quality of their momentum, favoring those with more consistent positive returns,” according to Morningstar. In downtrending markets, the underlying index may hedge up to 100% of the value of its long portfolio by shorting a representative broad based U.S. securities index ETF when either one or both conditions are met: First, the U.S. equity markets’ total return over a rolling twelve calendar month period is less than or equal to U.S. Treasury bill returns over the same period. Second, the U.S. equity markets’ twelve month moving average exceeds current price. For more investment strategies, visitETFTrends.com. POPULAR ARTICLES AND RESOURCES FROM ETFTRENDS.COM • SPY ETF Quote • VOO ETF Quote • QQQ ETF Quote • VTI ETF Quote • JNUG ETF Quote • Top 34 Gold ETFs • Top 34 Oil ETFs • Top 57 Financials ETFs • Could Looming Supply Cuts Be Driving Bitcoin? • The Elections and Your Portfolio • The Secure Act and Retirement Accounts • Pet Food IPO Chewy May Put Amazon On Its Heels • Mark Cuban: Success Comes From Outworking Everyone READ MORE AT ETFTRENDS.COM >
Chewy IPO Finds Its Way Into ProShares Pet Care ETF This article was originally published on ETFTrends.com. The ProShares Pet Care ETF (CBOE: PAWZ) debuted last November as the first exchange traded fund (ETF) dedicated to the pet care industry and related investment opportunities. Now, the high-flying PAWZ is making room for one of the pet care industry's most widely anticipated new stocks: Chewy, Inc. (NYSE: CHWY). Earlier this month, Chewy Inc (CHWY) , a subsidiary of PetSmart, priced the initial public offering of 46,500,000 shares of its Class A common stock at $22 per share. The newly public company joined PAWZ on Friday, June 21. PAWZ is the only ETF focused on the pet care industry, said Maryland-based ProShares in a statement out Friday. It gives investors the opportunity to gain broad exposure to public companies in the global pet care industrycompanies like Chewy that stand to potentially benefit from the proliferation of pet ownership and the emerging trends affecting how we care for our pets. PAWZ ETF Potential PAWZ includes sectors such as veterinary pharmaceuticals, diagnostics, services, and product distributors; pet and pet supply stores, and pet food and supply manufacturing. Heavy on companies with exposure to the pet healthcare industry, PAWZ is beating the largest traditional healthcare ETF by a margin of more than 2-to-1 this year. Chewy's addition to PAWZ brings the ETF's roster to 26 stocks. Chewy's wide assortment of products, competitive product prices, customizable and convenient automatic reordering, quick and efficient order delivery and top-notch customer service create a compelling customer value proposition, leading Chewy to capture a remarkable two-thirds of the online pet care industrys rapid annual sales growth in recent years, Wedbush analyst Seth Basham told Barron's . The global pet care industry could see a whopping $203 billion in sales by 2025. "Chewys IPO offers further evidence of investor interest in the pet care industry, driven by the global trend of the humanization of pets, said Steve Cohen, managing director at ProShares, in a statement. Investors are recognizing that pets are more than just loyal companions. They are big business. Story continues For more investment opportunities, visit our Core ETF Channel . POPULAR ARTICLES AND RESOURCES FROM ETFTRENDS.COM SPY ETF Quote VOO ETF Quote QQQ ETF Quote VTI ETF Quote JNUG ETF Quote Top 34 Gold ETFs Top 34 Oil ETFs Top 57 Financials ETFs Could Looming Supply Cuts Be Driving Bitcoin? The Elections and Your Portfolio The Secure Act and Retirement Accounts Pet Food IPO Chewy May Put Amazon On Its Heels Mark Cuban: Success Comes From Outworking Everyone READ MORE AT ETFTRENDS.COM >
Why The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company (NASDAQ:GT) Could Be Worth Watching Want to participate in a short research study ? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company ( NASDAQ:GT ), which is in the auto components business, and is based in United States, saw a double-digit share price rise of over 10% in the past couple of months on the NASDAQGS. As a mid-cap stock with high coverage by analysts, you could assume any recent changes in the company’s outlook is already priced into the stock. However, could the stock still be trading at a relatively cheap price? Let’s take a look at Goodyear Tire & Rubber’s outlook and value based on the most recent financial data to see if the opportunity still exists. View our latest analysis for Goodyear Tire & Rubber Is Goodyear Tire & Rubber still cheap? According to my valuation model, Goodyear Tire & Rubber seems to be fairly priced at around 20% below my intrinsic value, which means if you buy Goodyear Tire & Rubber today, you’d be paying a fair price for it. And if you believe that the stock is really worth $18.89, then there isn’t much room for the share price grow beyond what it’s currently trading. Although, there may be an opportunity to buy in the future. This is because Goodyear Tire & Rubber’s beta (a measure of share price volatility) is high, meaning its price movements will be exaggerated relative to the rest of the market. If the market is bearish, the company’s shares will likely fall by more than the rest of the market, providing a prime buying opportunity. What does the future of Goodyear Tire & Rubber look like? NasdaqGS:GT Past and Future Earnings, June 24th 2019 Future outlook is an important aspect when you’re looking at buying a stock, especially if you are an investor looking for growth in your portfolio. Although value investors would argue that it’s the intrinsic value relative to the price that matter the most, a more compelling investment thesis would be high growth potential at a cheap price. Though in the case of Goodyear Tire & Rubber, it is expected to deliver a relatively unexciting earnings growth of 1.9%, which doesn’t help build up its investment thesis. Growth doesn’t appear to be a main reason for a buy decision for the company, at least in the near term. Story continues What this means for you: Are you a shareholder? It seems like the market has already priced in GT’s future outlook, with shares trading around its fair value. However, there are also other important factors which we haven’t considered today, such as the track record of its management team. Have these factors changed since the last time you looked at the stock? Will you have enough conviction to buy should the price fluctuates below the true value? Are you a potential investor? If you’ve been keeping tabs on GT, now may not be the most optimal time to buy, given it is trading around its fair value. However, the positive outlook means it’s worth further examining other factors such as the strength of its balance sheet, in order to take advantage of the next price drop. Price is just the tip of the iceberg. Dig deeper into what truly matters – the fundamentals – before you make a decision on Goodyear Tire & Rubber. You can find everything you need to know about Goodyear Tire & Rubber in the latest infographic research report . If you are no longer interested in Goodyear Tire & Rubber, you can use our free platform to see my list of over 50 other stocks with a high growth potential . We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com . This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
SWIFT to Allow GPI Payments on Blockchain Platforms The Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunications (SWIFT) will allow distributed ledger technology (DLT) firms to use its globalpaymentsinnovation (GPI) platform, according to a recently publishedreport. In the report, SWIFT revealed that it will soon allow GPI payments on DLT-base platforms. The product will purportedly increase savings in reconciliations and boost the movement of collateral. The announcementfollowsa proof-of-concept (PoC) of a new gateway to interlink trade and e-commerce platforms with GPI, which the organizationlaunchedin collaboration with enterprise blockchain platformR3in January. The product is designed to connect various trade platforms to GPI members, allowing end-to-end payment tracking, payment authentication, and credit confirmation. CEO Gottfried Leibbrandt said at the time: “Our new GPI platform is extremely interoperable and open, and we’ve always had links to other networks [...] we are announcing later today a Proof-of-Concept with R3blockchainon trade, where you can initiate a payment on the trade platform, and then it goes into GPI. So we’re exploring interconnectivity with a lot of things.” Previously, SWIFTcarried outa blockchain-based shareholder e-voting PoC with major financial institutions, including Deutsche Bank, DBS,HSBC, Standard Chartered Bank, securities software provider SLI and the Singapore Exchange. The test aimed to establish whether DLT can simplify the management of shareholder meetings. Additionally, the existing SWIFT network and infrastructure was used to access, test and validate the applicability of the technology. • Circle to Close Its Payment App, Focus on New Financial Products • Oxfam Partners With Tech Firms to Test Dai’s Use in Disaster Aid • Ripple CEO: Bitcoin and XRP Aren’t Competitors — I’m Long BTC • Visa Set to Join the Expanding Field of Blockchain-Based International Payment Providers
3 Stocks to Buy at an All-Time High The big news last week was theS&P 500blasting to a record high. Thursday’s close of $2,958 officially eclipsed the previous peak notched on April 30 earlier this year and signals the end of the summer correction. At least, that’s what stock bulls are hoping. History proves it’s usually worth betting on continuation over reversal when record levels are reached. It certainly provides a favorable backdrop for traders seeking stocks to buy. InvestorPlace - Stock Market News, Stock Advice & Trading Tips Think of all that is implied in the simple three-word phrase, “all-time highs.” It means people are willing to pay a higher price than ever before. It means every single participant on the planet currently long the stock is sitting on a winning position. And all those who are short are experiencing more losses than ever before. Anyone who used to own the stock regrets selling too early and anyone who has never held it certainly wishes they did. • 7 Top S&P 500 Stocks of 2019 (So Far) Throw it all together, and you have an environment where demand is significant and supply small. In celebration of last week’s record-setting action, here are three stocks to buy that are each making all-time highs. Source: ThinkorSwim Thursday’s close of $142.02 marked a new record closing high forDisney(NYSE:DIS). The mouse house is well on its way to clinching a banner year for shareholders. The upside catalysts continue to stack up. From the record-smashing release ofAvengers:Endgameand the long-awaited debut of Star Wars:Galaxy Edge, to details surrounding its hotly anticipated Disney+ streaming service (set for release later this year), DIS stock has enjoyed a flurry of bullish news. Its share price is retreating just in time for today’s pick. Today’s 1% dip is ushering its price toward the rising 20-day and 50-day moving averages. With so many potential support levels looming beneath, the two-day drop has to be viewed as a potential buying opportunity. If you’re willing to bet the stock reaches $145 by August, then buy the Aug $140/$145 bull call spread for $1.80. Your risk is limited to the initial purchase price of $1.80, and the potenial reward is $3.20. Source: ThinkorSwim Purists will cry foul atCisco’s(NASDAQ:CSCO) inclusion to today’s gallery. Technically last Thursday’s $57.41 close marks a new 20-year high,notan all-time record. But, I suspect there are extremely few current shareholders that owned it back during the height of the dot-com bubble. For all but the oldest of dinosaurs, this is a new high. While Friday’s failed breakout bar might give us some pause in the short-term, the overall trend of CSCO stock looks fantastic. The past two months of chop have allowed Cisco shares to digest recent gains and build a base for its next up-leg. • The 7 Best Dow Jones Stocks to Buy for the Rest of 2019 With an implied volatility rank of 30%, option premiums aren’t really juiced enough to sell. So, we’re going with a long premium play. Buy the Aug $57.50/$62.50 bull call spread for around $1.40. The risk is limited to $1.40, and the reward is $3.60. Source: ThinkorSwim Shopify(NYSE:SHOP) is the poster child for momentum stocks. Driven by high earnings and sales growth, SHOP stock has become a monster winner for 2019, up 135%. What’s particularly impressive is the consistency of its trend. It’s toeing the technical analysis line like a champ. Every breakout has seen followthrough, and every dip has been bought. Even broader market corrections like the May drop proved unable to knock the SHOP trend. Last week’s rally launched the stock to a new record, but we’ve since seen a multi-day pullback develop. Thus far the volume has been minimal signaling a garden variety pullback and not some institutionally-driven exodus. Someday the trend will end, but if you think the good times roll for at least another month or two, then bull call spreads provide a low-cost strategy to capitalize. Buy the Aug $320/$340 bull calls spread for around $8. The risk is $8 and the reward is $12. As of this writing, Tyler Craig held bullish options positions in DIS. Check out his recently releasedBear Market Survival Guideto learn how to defend your portfolio against market volatility. • 2 Toxic Pot Stocks You Should Avoid • 7 Telecom Stocks to Set on Speed Dial • 6 Stocks to Sell in the Back Half of 2019 • 7 Top S&P 500 Stocks of 2019 (So Far) Compare Brokers The post3 Stocks to Buy at an All-Time Highappeared first onInvestorPlace.
FUCT Clothing Can Now Get Trademark Protection, Supreme Court Rules The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled in favor of a streetwear clothing line that sounds a lot like the F-word can trademark its name. In a battle for free speech, the high court on Monday said that Los Angeles-based company calledFUCTcan receive federal trademark protection after the U.S. trademark office said the company violated the law over “immoral or scandalous” trademarks. The ruling is considered a victory forlongtime streetwear clothing designer and artist Erik Brunettiwho co-founded his company selling hooded sweatshirts, loose-fitting pants, shorts, and T-shirts in 1990 with a shrewd name questioning authority and society. The FUCT name is short for “FRIENDS U CAN’T TRUST.” In a19-page opinion, the Supreme Court struck down a 100-year-old provision of a federal law banning registration of proposed trademarks that are scandalous if they are “shocking to the sense of truth, decency, or propriety” or “disgraceful, offensive, disreputable.” In a mix between liberals and conservatives, Justices Elena Kagan, Samuel Alito Jr., Clarence Thomas, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and Neil Gorsuch ruled in favor. They argued that the statute doesn’t stand because it “infringes the First Amendment” and “disfavors certain ideas.” Despite its counterculture marketing, whenever Brunetti tried to register the company’s name with the federal trademark, he was told it was too scandalous and offensive. In the favoring opinion, Kagan said while the company is pronounced as four letters, one after the other: F-U-C-T. “But you might read it differently, and if so, you would hardly be alone,” she said. The court said the century-old provision of the law is “viewpoint discrimination.” “What is scandalous?” Kagan wrote. “It goes against society’s current view of morality, and that is viewpoint discrimination.” Meanwhile, conservative Chief Justice John Roberts, and liberal Justices Stephen Breyer and Sonia Sotomayor offered partial dissents. The 6-3 ruling in the case, Iancu v. Brunetti, could lead to more requests to trademark words that may be considered lewd, profane, and vulgar. Breyer wrote that “these attention-grabbing words,” especially appearing in public spaces, could lead to “the risk of verbal altercations or even physical confrontations.” “Just think about how you might react if you saw someone wearing a t-shirt or using a product emblazoned with an odious racial epithet,” Breyer said. However, Justice Alito Jr. wrote in a concurring opinion that the high court’s opinion “is not based on moral relativism but on the recognition that a law banning speech deemed by government officials to be ‘immoral’ or ‘scandalous’ can easily be exploited for illegitimate ends. Alito Jr. also encourages Congress to adopt “a more carefully focused statute that precludes the registration of marks containing vulgar terms that play no real part in the expression of ideas.” He also admitted that such trademarks “serves only to further coarsen our popular culture,” and that the justices are “not legislators and cannot substitute a new statute for the one now in force.” Monday’s decision for Brunetti arrives nearly two years after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit alsoruled in his favor. In an interview on astreetwear magazine sitelast month, Brunetti said a Supreme Court win will give him a sense of freedom. “I’ll be able to shut down the tremendous amount of bootlegging that’s been happening for years. It will also enable me to eventually sell the brand if I so choose,” Brunetti said. “In regards to other brands, it’s going to allow Jason Dill to register his brand (F—— Awesome). Therefore he’d be able to expand from where they already are, for example.” Brunetti also told the site that he and his co-founder, pro skateboarder Natas Kaupas, thought it would be clever to call the brand FUCT and present it as very corporate. “So you had to question the pronunciation of the name based on the way it looked,” Brunetti said. “It was very premeditated. We didn’t wanna just call it FUCT to make it look crazy. We wanted it to be confusing.” —Trump’sMAGA rallies cost big bucks—and cities foot the bills —Black women voterswill be central to the 2020 election, experts predict —Can Trump fire Fed Chair Jerome Powell?What history tells us —Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s message for Democrats after“boy bye” tweet —What you need to know about theupcoming 2020 primary debates Get up to speed on your morning commute withFortune’sCEO Dailynewsletter.
Britney Spears 'totally relaxed and happy' on girls' trip with mom, Lynne: See the photos! Mother-daughter vacay! Britney Spears and her mother, Lynne Spears, jetted off to Turks and Caicos over the weekend for some much-needed time away, and the singer couldn't be happier in the photos that she shared from their trip. Spears, 37, donned a series of teeny bikinis in photos and videos taken by her mother on their tropical getaway, telling her fans that she "made it to paradise." SEE ALSO:Britney Spears' dad admits their relationship 'was always strained' An eye witness toldE! Newsthat Spears was "totally relaxed and happy" vacationing with her mom and that the mother-daughter pair was "laughing together and having a great time." See photos from Britney Spears' latest vacation in the gallery below: "Britney was so excited to get there and was giddy when she saw how beautiful the hotel, pool and beach are," the insider said. "She couldn't believe her eyes and was in awe. She said she was in paradise and didn't ever want to leave." "Britney couldn't wait to get down to the beach on Friday," the source went on. "They had chairs set up on the top of rocks overlooking the sand. [Britney and her mom] seemed very content and comfortable on their chairs watching the waves crash and the boats sail by. Britney climbed down some rocks and played in the sand." "[Britney] was dancing around and singing to herself. She had the best time in the crystal-clear water," the eye witness finished. "After the beach, they went to the pool, where they ordered lunch and relaxed together on a daybed." SEE ALSO:Inside Britney Spears' relationship with 'protector' Sam Asghari Spears' trip comes just two weeks aftershe spent the weekend in Miami with her boyfriend, Sam Asghari. The mother of two has had a very tumultuous year both behind the scenes and in the press, dealing withher father's sicknessand speculation that not all is well between her and her father. See photos of Britney Spears with her mother, Lynne: After it was announced that the singer hadvoluntarily checked into a mental health facilitythis spring,fans launched the #FreeBritney campaign, asking questions aboutwhether or not her stint in the treatment facility was truly voluntary. Once she returned to social media, people speculated that the singer was not posting new content -- or even sharing it herself -- butshe quickly put those rumors to rest. Still, the nature ofher recent social media activity has fans worried, with one person writing, "her videos are scaring me.
What Investors Should Know About OSI Systems, Inc.'s (NASDAQ:OSIS) Financial Strength Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! Small-cap and large-cap companies receive a lot of attention from investors, but mid-cap stocks like OSI Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:OSIS), with a market cap of US$2.0b, are often out of the spotlight. While they are less talked about as an investment category, mid-cap risk-adjusted returns have generally been better than more commonly focused stocks that fall into the small- or large-cap categories. Let’s take a look at OSIS’s debt concentration and assess their financial liquidity to get an idea of their ability to fund strategic acquisitions and grow through cyclical pressures. Note that this information is centred entirely on financial health and is a top-level understanding, so I encourage you to look furtherinto OSIS here. View our latest analysis for OSI Systems OSIS's debt levels have fallen from US$477m to US$381m over the last 12 months , which also accounts for long term debt. With this debt repayment, OSIS's cash and short-term investments stands at US$108m , ready to be used for running the business. On top of this, OSIS has generated US$105m in operating cash flow during the same period of time, leading to an operating cash to total debt ratio of 28%, signalling that OSIS’s current level of operating cash is high enough to cover debt. At the current liabilities level of US$426m, it seems that the business has maintained a safe level of current assets to meet its obligations, with the current ratio last standing at 1.55x. The current ratio is the number you get when you divide current assets by current liabilities. Generally, for Electronic companies, this is a reasonable ratio as there's enough of a cash buffer without holding too much capital in low return investments. OSIS is a relatively highly levered company with a debt-to-equity of 72%. This is not uncommon for a mid-cap company given that debt tends to be lower-cost and at times, more accessible. We can check to see whether OSIS is able to meet its debt obligations by looking at the net interest coverage ratio. A company generating earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) at least three times its net interest payments is considered financially sound. In OSIS's, case, the ratio of 4.67x suggests that interest is appropriately covered, which means that debtors may be willing to loan the company more money, giving OSIS ample headroom to grow its debt facilities. Although OSIS’s debt level is towards the higher end of the spectrum, its cash flow coverage seems adequate to meet obligations which means its debt is being efficiently utilised. Since there is also no concerns around OSIS's liquidity needs, this may be its optimal capital structure for the time being. I admit this is a fairly basic analysis for OSIS's financial health. Other important fundamentals need to be considered alongside. I recommend you continue to research OSI Systems to get a better picture of the mid-cap by looking at: 1. Future Outlook: What are well-informed industry analysts predicting for OSIS’s future growth? Take a look at ourfree research report of analyst consensusfor OSIS’s outlook. 2. Valuation: What is OSIS worth today? Is the stock undervalued, even when its growth outlook is factored into its intrinsic value? Theintrinsic value infographic in our free research reporthelps visualize whether OSIS is currently mispriced by the market. 3. Other High-Performing Stocks: Are there other stocks that provide better prospects with proven track records? Explore ourfree list of these great stocks here. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Is Groupon, Inc.'s (NASDAQ:GRPN) Balance Sheet Strong Enough To Weather A Storm? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! Groupon, Inc. (NASDAQ:GRPN) is a small-cap stock with a market capitalization of US$2.0b. While investors primarily focus on the growth potential and competitive landscape of the small-cap companies, they end up ignoring a key aspect, which could be the biggest threat to its existence: its financial health. Why is it important? Given that GRPN is not presently profitable, it’s crucial to assess the current state of its operations and pathway to profitability. Let's work through some financial health checks you may wish to consider if you're interested in this stock. Nevertheless, potential investors would need to take a closer look, and I recommend youdig deeper yourself into GRPN here. Over the past year, GRPN has ramped up its debt from US$230m to US$369m – this includes long-term debt. With this growth in debt, GRPN currently has US$646m remaining in cash and short-term investments , ready to be used for running the business. Moreover, GRPN has generated cash from operations of US$163m over the same time period, resulting in an operating cash to total debt ratio of 44%, signalling that GRPN’s current level of operating cash is high enough to cover debt. With current liabilities at US$794m, it appears that the company has maintained a safe level of current assets to meet its obligations, with the current ratio last standing at 1.02x. The current ratio is the number you get when you divide current assets by current liabilities. Usually, for Online Retail companies, this is a suitable ratio since there's a sufficient cash cushion without leaving too much capital idle or in low-earning investments. With debt reaching 67% of equity, GRPN may be thought of as relatively highly levered. This is a bit unusual for a small-cap stock, since they generally have a harder time borrowing than large more established companies. However, since GRPN is presently unprofitable, sustainability of its current state of operations becomes a concern. Running high debt, while not yet making money, can be risky in unexpected downturns as liquidity may dry up, making it hard to operate. Although GRPN’s debt level is towards the higher end of the spectrum, its cash flow coverage seems adequate to meet obligations which means its debt is being efficiently utilised. This may mean this is an optimal capital structure for the business, given that it is also meeting its short-term commitment. I admit this is a fairly basic analysis for GRPN's financial health. Other important fundamentals need to be considered alongside. You should continue to research Groupon to get a better picture of the small-cap by looking at: 1. Future Outlook: What are well-informed industry analysts predicting for GRPN’s future growth? Take a look at ourfree research report of analyst consensusfor GRPN’s outlook. 2. Valuation: What is GRPN worth today? Is the stock undervalued, even when its growth outlook is factored into its intrinsic value? Theintrinsic value infographic in our free research reporthelps visualize whether GRPN is currently mispriced by the market. 3. Other High-Performing Stocks: Are there other stocks that provide better prospects with proven track records? Explore ourfree list of these great stocks here. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Sri Lanka's likely to raise $2 billion via sovereign bonds - government officials By Shihar Aneez COLOMBO (Reuters) - Sri Lanka is likely to raise $2 billion through 5-year and 10-year sovereign bonds launched on Monday, two government officials told Reuters, as the Indian Ocean island nation tapped global capital markets for the second time in three months. The South Asian nation's decision to capitalise on favourable market conditions comes two months after suicide bombers killed more than 250 people in attacks at churches and luxury hotels on Easter Sunday. That attack has badly dented the Sri Lankan economy, in particular deterring many thousands of foreign tourists from coming to the island. "We are planning to raise $500 million from 5-year bonds and $1.5 billion through 10-year bonds," said a senior government official, who declined to be identified because he is not authorised to talk to media. "Both bonds have been oversubscribed three times during the day's book building process in Asia and Europe alone. We are waiting for U.S. markets to finalise the deal." A senior finance ministry official also said the total size of the bond borrowing will be $2 billion. A source who is aware of the deal said the price of 5-year bonds had tightened to near 6.4% from the initial price guidance of 6.6%, while 10-year bond price also got tightened to 7.6% from the initial price guidance of 7.8%. The sale is part of plans to raise funds via sovereign bonds, as the government seeks new funds to repay loans that are maturing. In March, Sri Lanka sold $1 billion in five-year bonds with a coupon of 6.85 percent and $1.4 billion in 10-year bonds with a coupon of 7.85 percent and the borrowing costs were lower than originally predicted. The 10-year bond sold in March last traded at 7.302% and the five-year bond last traded at 6.258%, Refinitiv data showed. BOC International, Citigroup, Deutsche Bank, HSBC, JPMorgan, SMBC Nikko and Standard Chartered Bank, who were the lead managers for the $2.4 billion borrowing in March, are the joint bookrunners for the bond sale. The sale of new global sovereign bonds comes as Sri Lanka is struggling to repay foreign loans, with a record $5.9 billion due this year, including $2.6 billion in the first quarter and more than $1.2 billion in the second, central bank data showed. All three major rating agencies downgraded Sri Lanka's debt after President Maithripala Sirisena sacked his prime minister in October and replaced him with pro-China former president Mahinda Rajapaksa, though that decision was later reversed. But the seven-week-long crisis hurt the rupee and drove sovereign bond yields higher, straining state finances. Sri Lanka is unlikely to hit its full-year economic growth target of 3-4% following the bombings, junior finance minister Eran Wickramaratne told Reuters last month. A Reuters poll has forecast growth to slump to its lowest in nearly two decades this year. (Reporting by Shihar Aneez and Ranga Sirilal; Editing by Toby Chopra)
Mayor Pete Faces the Music: RaceAhead Last week, a black South Bend, Ind. resident was shot and killed by a white police officer . His name was Eric J. Logan. He was 54 years old. The officer involved claimed that Logan approached him with a knife and ignored repeated orders to drop it. Neither the dashcam or the officer’s bodycam video had been activated. As a result, there are a lot of unknowns. The incident has inflamed existing tensions between South Bend’s young and charismatic mayor, Pete Buttigieg, and the city’s black community. Now Buttigieg, who had been winning over crowds across the country during his unlikely quest as presidential hopeful, is facing his first test of truly public leadership. “How’s he handling it?” said Oliver Davis, the longest-serving black member of the South Bend Common Council to The Washington Post . “Well, he talked to the media before the family. He skipped the family vigil, full of black residents. And then he then gave a speech to the police. So, how do you think that went over?” Those tensions came to a head during a town hall meeting yesterday afternoon with a deeply skeptical and angry majority-black hometown crowd. It went poorly for Mayor Pete. “We don’t trust you!” yelled one audience member. “Liar!” yelled another, as the meeting descended into chaos. Twitter users also followed the action closely. “Don’t treat Black folks horribly, ignore police violence against them and try to run for president thinking Black folks are just gonna fall in line & back you just because you’re a Democrat,” said one user . “Black people in South Bend wasn’t having it.” The mayor has been called out in the past for his economic development plan which razed low-income black and Latinx neighborhoods, and for his handling of police misconduct cases and lack of diversity on the police force. A quarter of the city’s 100,000 residents are black, 40 percent of whom live at or below the poverty line. Many of them showed up yesterday. “You might as well just withdraw your name from the presidential race,” said one woman in the crowd . “His presidential campaign is over… I believe that today ended his campaign.” Story continues Had Buttigieg still been the relatively unknown head of a small Midwestern city, the death of Mr. Logan and the subsequent investigation might not have made the national news. Instead, a small group of citizens, angry and ready for prime time, were able to bring their legitimate grievances to their celebrity mayor, and as a result, the rest of the world. It’s the best argument thus far for having so many people run for president. Former Vice President and current presidential candidate Joe Biden is facing his own problems with race , which we’ll cover in greater depth as they continue to plague him. Because they will. Instead, I’ll end today’s dispatch on a lighter note of race and reconciliation, courtesy of the BET Awards , which aired last night. While the show is always a joy-fest—and, this year included a magnificent tribute to slain artist Nipsey Hussle —there was one moment of inclusion that deserves a special call-out. This year, the BET family welcomed Billy Ray Cyrus to the stage , as he joined rapper Lil Nas X in a performance of his country-rap hit “Old Town Road.” Lil Nas X, resplendent in yellow fringed chaps, has found a country home in the heart of the R&B community, one that was denied him on the music charts . If you’re old enough to remember the backlash when Houston, Tex. native Beyoncé performed with the Dixie Chicks at the 2016 CMA Awards, then you understand what a moment this was. It’s nice for Cyrus to have this surprising second act. But I have to believe he’s earned the love not just for his country bona fides, but for his willingness to stand up for a talented young brother who was facing an unfair barrier to his advancement. It was an ally power move. Now that’s a leader we can believe in. On Point Focusing on just diversity numbers creates tunnel vision And that makes it difficult to create a truly inclusive workplace, writes Tim Ryan, U.S. chairman of PwC, in Fortune . “Establishing a workplace where each employee feels comfortable bringing their true selves to work is key,” he says. That’s why reforming company culture needs to be central to any diversity and inclusion strategy. These efforts shouldn’t be “tacked on as an extracurricular,” he says, but rather central to the company’s approach. To that end, CEO Action for Diversity and Inclusion—a coalition of 700 companies—has introduced a pledge for participating CEOs to present their diversity and inclusion plans to their respective boards of directors, creating a “mechanism which holds them accountable to their employees to make the workplace better for all.” Fortune A transgender Goldman Sachs employee describes how she ‘became herself at work’ “Wall Street has had a hard time kicking its reputation as a dismal place for people who aren’t straight white men,” this New York Times feature points out, but “Goldman presents itself as being ahead of the curve on lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender issues.” Although obstacles remain evident in Wall Street work culture, Goldman’s medical plan has covered gender-affirming surgery and hormone therapy since 2007. Maeve DuVally is just the second Goldman employee to officially transition at work. Following a company-hosted LGBT event, she decided to come out. DuVally says she believed from a very early age that she wanted to be a woman, “But I never, on a conscious level, thought that there was anything I could do about that.” New York Times Maysoon Zayid joins cast of ‘General Hospital’ Longtime raceAhead readers know Zayid for her work as an advocate for equity and inclusion and her non-nonsense, comedic chops—her 2013 TED Talk helped the Palestinian-American actress and comedian to raise awareness of her mad skills and the lack of representation for people with disabilities in film and television. “People with disabilities are the largest minority in the world, and we are the most underrepresented in entertainment,” she says. But now, as a no-nonsense attorney representing some shady character in some sort of custody battle, she’s become what she asked for, a powerful character on an iconic show, who just happens to have a disability. “Thank you for believing in me and for being integral in making my dream come true,” she tweeted the GH cast. Just as a reminder of what a badass Zayid is, she once defied death threats to perform a free show to delegates at the 2016 Republican National Convention. Brianne Amira on Medium The gazebo where Tamir Rice was killed has been moved to Chicago Samaria Rice, Tamir’s mother, knew the gazebo where her son was killed could not stay in Cleveland. Working with artist Theaster Gates and his nonprofit Rebuild Foundation, it’s been moved and reassembled, shingle by shingle, as the centerpiece of a temporary exhibit at the Stony Island Arts Bank, on Chicago’s South Side. The gazebo will debut this week for what would have been Tamir’s 17th birthday. Stony Island will host the gazebo for two years, which will be surrounded by a community garden. “We are humbled to house and have the opportunity to construct a space for community healing and reflection that honors the life and memory of Tamir Rice,” said Gates in a statement. Hyperallergic On Background The complicated definition of innocence Law & Order re-runs aside, today, very few criminal cases go to trial anymore. Instead, mostly innocent people are now forced into plea bargains, the often bizarre dance between a person stuck in the criminal justice system and the system that wants to extract some measure of efficient justice. But the horse-trading between prosecutors and defendants has changed dramatically. “American legislators have criminalized so many behaviors that police are arresting millions of people annually—almost 11 million in 2015,” explains The Atlantic ’s Emily Yoffe in this deep dive. Plea deals are often capricious, and thanks to them, now millions of Americans have criminal records. The Atlantic Four writers on being ‘on their meds’ There are some 44 million people living with some sort of mental illness, and roughly 19 million are being treated with some combination of medication and therapy. The stigma associated with medication remains profound, and the casual way people talk about psychiatric states—are you crazy?—can further isolate people with mental illness. “I was a 26-year-old undergraduate who could barely manage to eat or shower once a day. I eventually admitted to myself that I was not well,” writes Anthony James Williams. “But I did not know anyone black who was on medication for their mental health, and asking for any form of assistance made me feel weak.” It also means making it work at work, depending on your needs. “It’s awkward to bust out a pill bottle in the middle of a small office or classroom, but it would be more awkward to have a bipolar episode at work,” writes Diamond Sharp. The Outline On being the great-granddaughter of an Igbo slave-trader This surprising and important piece from Adaobi Tricia Nwaubani, explores the complex history of the slave trade from the Nigerian side of the equation. Some of this we already knew: Long before the Europeans took trafficking in human beings to scale, the Igbo people enslaved other Igbo people as punishment for crimes, indebtedness, or as spoils of war. But what is extraordinary to learn is the degree to which the amplification of demand impacted the community, and how the descendants of formerly enslaved Igbo people are still stigmatized to this day. For the Nigerian people who are lucky enough to know their own history, it can get complicated. “African intellectuals tend to blame the West for the slave trade, but I knew that white traders couldn’t have loaded their ships without help from Africans like my great-grandfather,” she writes. New Yorker Tamara El-Waylly helps produce raceAhead and assisted in the preparation of today’s summaries. Quote SHE DOES NOT BELONG!!!! When have they ever invited ANY country singer to their BET awards… NEVER!!!!STOP IT. I bet Alan, George and Vince think CMT has gone NUTS. —Random country music fan, angry at Beyoncé’s 2016 performance
Here's Why We Think Oak Valley Bancorp (NASDAQ:OVLY) Is Well Worth Watching Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! Like a puppy chasing its tail, some new investors often chase 'the next big thing', even if that means buying 'story stocks' without revenue, let alone profit. But as Peter Lynch said inOne Up On Wall Street, 'Long shots almost never pay off.' In contrast to all that, I prefer to spend time on companies likeOak Valley Bancorp(NASDAQ:OVLY), which has not only revenues, but also profits. While profit is not necessarily a social good, it's easy to admire a business than can consistently produce it. Loss-making companies are always racing against time to reach financial sustainability, but time is often a friend of the profitable company, especially if it is growing. See our latest analysis for Oak Valley Bancorp If you believe that markets are even vaguely efficient, then over the long term you'd expect a company's share price to follow its earnings per share (EPS). Therefore, there are plenty of investors who like to buy shares in companies that are growing EPS. Impressively, Oak Valley Bancorp has grown EPS by 34% per year, compound, in the last three years. If the company can sustain that sort of growth, we'd expect shareholders to come away winners. I like to see top-line growth as an indication that growth is sustainable, and I look for a high earnings before interest and taxation (EBIT) margin to point to a competitive moat (though some companies with low margins also have moats). I note that Oak Valley Bancorp's revenuefrom operationswas lower than its revenue in the last twelve months, so that could distort my analysis of its margins. While we note Oak Valley Bancorp's EBIT margins were flat over the last year, revenue grew by a solid 9.8% to US$44m. That's progress. In the chart below, you can see how the company has grown earnings, and revenue, over time. For finer detail, click on the image. Since Oak Valley Bancorp is no giant, with a market capitalization of US$156m, so you shoulddefinitely check its cash and debtbeforegetting too excited about its prospects. Like that fresh smell in the air when the rains are coming, insider buying fills me with optimistic anticipation. This view is based on the possibility that stock purchases signal bullishness on behalf of the buyer. Of course, we can never be sure what insiders are thinking, we can only judge their actions. Over the last 12 months Oak Valley Bancorp insiders spent US$149k more buying shares than they received from selling them. On balance, that's a good sign. It is also worth noting that it was Director Terrance Withrow who made the biggest single purchase, worth US$109k, paying US$20.91 per share. The good news, alongside the insider buying, for Oak Valley Bancorp bulls is that insiders (collectively) have a meaningful investment in the stock. To be specific, they have US$28m worth of shares. That's a lot of money, and no small incentive to work hard. Those holdings account for over 18% of the company; visible skin in the game. While insiders already own a significant amount of shares, and they have been buying more, the good news for ordinary shareholders does not stop there. That's because on our analysis the CEO, Chris Courtney, is paid less than the median for similar sized companies. For companies with market capitalizations between US$100m and US$400m, like Oak Valley Bancorp, the median CEO pay is around US$1.1m. Oak Valley Bancorp offered total compensation worth US$746k to its CEO in the year to December 2018. That comes in below the average for similar sized companies, and seems pretty reasonable to me. CEO compensation is hardly the most important aspect of a company to consider, but when its reasonable that does give me a little more confidence that leadership are looking out for shareholder interests. It can also be a sign of good governance, more generally. You can't deny that Oak Valley Bancorp has grown its earnings per share at a very impressive rate. That's attractive. On top of that, insiders own a significant stake in the company and have been buying more shares. So I do think this is one stock worth watching. Of course, identifying quality businesses is only half the battle; investors need to know whether the stock is undervalued. So you might want to consider thisfreediscounted cashflow valuationof Oak Valley Bancorp. There are plenty of other companies that have insiders buying up shares. So if you like the sound of Oak Valley Bancorp, you'll probably love thisfreelist of growing companies that insiders are buying. Please note the insider transactions discussed in this article refer to reportable transactions in the relevant jurisdiction We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
U.S. high court to rule on scope of copyright for legal codes By Jan Wolfe WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday agreed to hear a bid by Georgia lawmakers to win federal copyright protection for an annotated version of the state's legal code and to decide whether state and local governments can sue people who publish such texts without permission, much like novels or films. The justices took up an appeal by Georgia's legislature of a lower court decision holding that an annotated compilation of the state's statutes published annually is "intrinsically public domain material" that cannot be copyrighted. That decision by the Atlanta-based 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals was a victory for Carl Malamud, a California-based advocate for open access to legal documents who publishes these texts at Public.Resource.Org. Georgia holds the copyright on the annotated text, but it is developed largely by LexisNexis, a RELX PLC subsidiary, through a contract with the state. It is well-settled law in the United States that statutes and court decisions are part of the public domain and can be freely published. But Georgia's legislature has claimed copyright protection for the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, a document that includes both statutes and lengthy annotations analyzing them. Josh Johnson, a lawyer for Georgia, said in a statement that the state Georgia is pleased with the Supreme Court's decision to hear the appeal. Johnson said the 11th Circuit ruling "threatens to upend Georgia's longstanding arrangement for creating and distributing annotations useful to guide legal research, while ensuring that the state's laws are widely distributed and easily accessible - free of charge." Malamud declined to comment. The annotations at the center of the case lack the legal force of statutes, but have authoritative weight in explaining the meaning and effect of a law. The dispute dates to 2013, when Malamud's organization paid about $1,200 to purchase the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, scanned each page, and put the contents on his website. Malamud also distributed copies on thumb drives to government employees and elected officials. Story continues The state sued Public.Resource.Org for copyright infringement in 2015, requesting a court order blocking his activities. A trial court judge sided with Georgia's legislature, but the 11th Circuit reversed that ruling and cleared Malamud of copyright infringement in 2018. The court said the annotated code was "created by Georgia's legislators in the exercise of their legislative authority," and therefore "the people are the ultimate authors of the annotations." (Reporting by Jan Wolfe; Editing by Will Dunham)
PCM Spikes 42% on Acquisition Agreement Shares ofPCM(NASDAQ: PCMI), a leading provider of technology solutions, hardware, software, and services, are up 42% Monday morning after it was announced the company would be acquired byInsight Enterprises(NASDAQ: NSIT). Insight Enterprises and PCM have entered into an agreement in which the former will acquire the latter for $35 per share, a transaction valued at $581 million including cash and debt acquired. "This combination offers the ability to provide clients with greater value through the expansive solution offerings of the combined company at a time when customers increasingly need a full-service technology solutions provider to help them transform for the future," said Frank Khulusi, chairman and CEO of PCM, in a press release. Image source: Getty Images. The acquisition makes sense for Insight Enterprises, as it brings in more technical and sales resources, as well as access to thousands of new clients. The move will also improve Insight's ability to provide solutions for clients at a time when they're positioning their businesses for rapid growth. Acquiring PCM will also accelerate growth in Insight's solutions business, which includes supply chain optimization, connected workforce, cloud and data center transformation, and digital innovation. Management believes it can generate cost synergies of roughly $70 million annually by the end of 2021 and that the acquisition will add $0.70 in adjusted earnings per share in 2020, excluding transaction-related costs and restructuring expenses. More From The Motley Fool • 10 Best Stocks to Buy Today • The $16,728 Social Security Bonus You Cannot Afford to Miss • 20 of the Top Stocks to Buy (Including the Two Every Investor Should Own) • What Is an ETF? • 5 Recession-Proof Stocks • How to Beat the Market Daniel Millerhas no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has adisclosure policy.
High rollers: Eldorado buys Caesars in deal valued at $17B A casino juggernaut was formed Monday when Eldorado Resorts announced it is buying Caesars in a cash-and-stock deal valued at $17.3 billion. The acquisition will put about 60 casino-resorts in 16 states under a single name, Caesars, creating the largest gambling operator in the United States. The deal following pressure from activist investor Carl Icahn is targeted to close in the first half of 2020 if approved by gambling regulators and shareholders. It would open the doors of the Las Vegas Strip market to Eldorado. "We are incredibly excited. This is an iconic brand," Eldorado CEO Tom Reeg said referring to Caesars Entertainment during a conference call. "It's really a level of property and brand that we have not had the great fortune to control and now we will." Eldorado will pay $8.40 per share in cash and 0.0899 shares of Eldorado stock for each Caesars share, or $12.75 per share. The transaction values Caesars at about $8.6 billion, and Eldorado will pick up about $8.8 billion of the casino's debt. Shareholders of Eldorado Resorts Inc. will hold about 51% of the company's outstanding stock, with Caesars Entertainment shareholders holding the remaining and 49%. The company will be led by Reeg, along with Eldorado Chairman Gary Carano. It will be headquartered in Reno, Nevada, where Eldorado is based, and have a significant corporate presence in Las Vegas, where Caesars is based. The deal was months in the making. Icahn earlier this year revealed he had amassed an enormous stake in Caesars Entertainment and pushed for fundamental changes at the company, including board representation and a say in the replacement of the then-CEO. He argued that the company's stock was undervalued and the best way to boost it would be to sell the company. Caesars Entertainment Corp., which operates more than 30 casinos in the U.S., emerged from bankruptcy protection in late 2017, but it's been struggling since. Icahn in April appointed Caesars Entertainment's current CEO, Tony Rodio, who had the same role at the billionaire's Tropicana Entertainment, which was sold to Eldorado in 2018. He also got to pick board members. Story continues "While I criticized the Caesars Board when I took a major position several months ago, I would now like to do something that I rarely do, which is to praise a board of directors for acting responsibly and decisively in negotiating and approving this transformational transaction," Icahn said in a prepared statement Monday. "As a combined company, Caesars and Eldorado will be America's preeminent gaming company." The bankruptcy reorganization led to the creation of the real estate investment trust VICI Properties Inc. It owns the buildings and land of more than 20 casino-resorts, including Caesars Palace on the Las Vegas Strip, and leases the operations back to casino operators. Eldorado said Monday that it also reached an agreement with VICI Properties Inc. in which VICI will acquire the real estate associated with Harrah's Resort Atlantic City, Harrah's Laughlin Hotel and Casino located about 100 miles (161 km) south of Las Vegas, and Harrah's New Orleans Hotel and Casino for approximately $1.8 billion. Caesars operates three casinos in Atlantic City and Eldorado operates one. Other terms of the deal include VICI being given right of first refusals for whole asset sale or sale-leaseback transactions on two Las Vegas Strip properties and the Horseshoe Casino Baltimore. Reeg told analysts and investors the company expects to sell some properties that may allow it to avoid federal anti-trust issues. It is also evaluating whether to sell properties on the Strip. "As I sit here today, I tell you, I think that there's more Strip exposure than we would need to accomplish our goals with our regional database," he said. "So, I would expect that we would be a seller of a Strip asset, but that decision has not been made." It is uncertain whether the new company will venture into Japan, where major casino operators have set their sights after the nation legalized casino gambling last year. Reeg said "no firm decisions" have been made on the international market, but the opportunity would have to be "stupendous for us to be running in that direction." Caesars' stock jumped 16% Monday, while shares of Eldorado fell 10%. ___ Follow Regina Garcia Cano on Twitter at https://twitter.com/reginagarciakNO
Alyssa Milano Drops $10 Million Legal Battle Against Ex-Business Managers Alyssa Milano has dropped her massive legal battle after accusing her former business managers of sending her into millions of dollars in debt. According to court documents obtained by The Blast, Milano and her husband agent husband David Bugliari have dismissed their lawsuit against Hellie, Hoffer and Company, LLP. The firm has also dismissed their counter-claims against Milano and Bugliari. Both sides had been preparing for a scheduled trial but they have reached a deal to avoid going to court right before the proceedings were about to begin. Back in 2017, Milano and her agent/husband, David Bugliari, sued her former business managers at the firm for $10 million and accused them of screwing up the couple's finances and causing them to be left with millions of dollars in debt and their credit ruined. They accused the managers of negligence for failing to warn them of their financial situation. The lawsuit accused the firm of breach of fiduciary duty, fraud and theft and negligence. Milano originally hired Hellie in 2006 and worked with them until she terminated the deal in 2016, due to her discovery of late mortgage payments and messed up taxes. Milano and her husband were counter-sued by the firm, who denied they caused their finances to be ruined and claimed they warned the actress and her husband to cut back on their spending but they refused. They point to the couple's 2013 home remodel where they claimed to have been given repeated warnings that it was over budget. The money managers claimed the stars would even overspend by buying a second home in the mountains, taking private planes, keeping their country club membership and employing numerous personal staff members, like nannies and housekeepers. The trial was originally scheduled to begin in January but was pushed back after Milano pleaded for an extension, citing the California wildfires The actress requested for the trial to be moved due to her Bell Canyon home having been “adversely affected by the recent Woolsey Fire”. She claimed to need a substantial time to recover from the damage. It's unclear if there was any money that exchanged hands between Milano and her former managers, but it seems the actress is ready to move on with her life over the situation.
WarnerMedia names Ann Sarnoff as CEO of Warner Bros By Helen Coster (Reuters) - WarnerMedia on Monday said it appointed Ann Sarnoff as the chief executive officer of Warner Bros, the first woman to run one of Hollywood's most powerful studios in its 96-year history. Sarnoff, currently president of BBC Studios Americas, will take over the studio behind "Wonder Woman," "Friends" and the Harry Potter franchise, following a scandal involving its previous studio chief. “I want to work closely with colleagues across WarnerMedia and make the whole more than the part,” Sarnoff said in a phone interview. “I want to take what is a very successful legacy and history and make it even stronger going forward.” AT&T Inc, the second largest U.S. wireless carrier, acquired Warner Bros as part of its $85 billion purchase of Time Warner last year. Some Warner Bros content will be distributed on a new WarnerMedia streaming service set to launch in early 2020. The former chairman and CEO of Warner Bros, Kevin Tsujihara, resigned from the studio in March, following a report that the married executive had sought help securing roles for an actress after the two had sex. Tsujihara's attorney denied the executive played a "direct role" in the actress' hiring. Sarnoff will report to WarnerMedia CEO John Stankey. “Ann has shown the ability to innovate and grow revenues and has embraced the evolution taking place in our industry," Stankey said in a statement. Sarnoff has also held leading executive roles at the National Basketball Association, Viacom and Dow Jones. (Reporting by Helen Coster in New York and Akanksha Rana in Bengaluru; Editing by Kenneth Li, Shailesh Kuber and Leslie Adler)
IPO Editor Jannarone: Slack Poised for Strong Trading in Direct Listing – Cheddar TV In an interview withCheddar TV,IPO EdgeEditor-in-ChiefJohn Jannaroneargues that workplace messenger service Slack should find support in coming days thanks to a limited number of likely sellers and a business model with a sticky customer base, strong growth, and a large addressable market. While it may not command a multiple as high as Beyond Meat or Zoom, there’s an argument for it to hold current levels. IPO Edge also interviewedIntercom’s Co-Founder and Chief Strategy Officer, Des Traynor, who explained why Slack has become such a hit with businesses and can continue to expand and pick up more paying customers. IPO Edge:How can Slack can keep up revenue growth? (It appears to be decelerating) Mr. Traynor:“Slack is extremely popular with mid-size businesses that are experiencing massive growth. As these businesses grow, they will increasingly spend more with the company so Slack’s already large revenue will expand with its existing customer base over time. In this way, the company can experience massive revenue growth without even acquiring new customers. Additionally, Slack is leading a megatrend – messaging – and we’re just scratching the surface when it comes to widespread business adoption of that technology. We tend to see these types of megatrends first become established with consumers and then move into business, and messaging is following that wave. The bottom line is messengers have become the dominant form of communication between people and businesses, because communication is faster, more personal and more engaging. Slack has nailed down replicating messaging among friends and family to the business world and this form of communication has proven its staying power. In building out its platform of apps, Slack has positioned itself as much more than a chat or messaging tool — it’s the place where work happens. Their platform of apps has allowed Slack to move beyond chat. The strength of its platform will prove to be key. At Intercom, we think about our messaging platform in the same way, it is through our platform and partner app ecosystem that our Messenger powers much more than chat and becomes the place where customer actions or tasks, not just communication, take place.” IPO Edge: Is it turning more existing users to paying users? More new customers? Mr. Traynor:“I’m not certain how successful Slack has been in doing that as of today – I just don’t have that information – but I’m confident it will be able to turn an increasing amount of its users into paying customers over time. They’ve built a good product that solves a real problem for its customers and those ingredients tend to result in paying customers. If they focus on building a place where people communicate and collaborate in an increasingly deeper way, that will help both new and existing customers. We’ve seen many tech giants in the last ten plus years successfully monetize a massive user base and I expect Slack will be able to do the same.” Contact: www.IPO-Edge.com Editor@IPO-Edge.com Twitter:@IPOEdge Instagram:@IPOEdge
Business owner to Trump: Drop the tariffs Jason Trice has one message for President Trump: Your tariffs on Chinese goods are devastating my business. The president and CEO of Oklahoma City’sJasco Productsis one of more than 300companies testifyingbefore theU.S. Trade Representative.He told Yahoo Finance’s “The First Trade” that Jasco has already paid “millions upon millions” more to import items for sale here in the U.S. “Tariffs are taxes, and American consumers and U.S. businesses are paying the taxes,” Trice said. “Over 92% of our business has already been impacted.” Trump is expected to meet with President Xi Jinping of China this month in Japan, has escalated his trade war, increasing tariffs on $200 billion worth of imports and threatening 25% tariffs on an additional$300 billion worth of Chinese products. Jasco’s 400 employees design and distribute electrical products under the GE, Honeywell, Philips, Energizer and Disney names, ranging from Star Wars night-lights and smart home controllers to high-end cables. The products are sold at major retailers like Walmart, Target, Home Depot and Amazon. In prepared testimony, Trice said tariffs “cripple Jasco’s ability to generate profits” and warned the measures are causing “irrecoverable damage” to the business. “The administration’s over-reliance on tariffs as an all-purpose foreign policy tool creates unpredictable and artificial market disruptions that are not conducive to a healthy business environment,” he wrote. “Tariffs at 25% exceed Jasco’s operating margins and, absent efforts to mitigate and offset the financial impact, would immediately convert the business our team built from profitable to unprofitable.” Almost everything Jasco sells is made in China, and while the President Trump thinks companies like Jasco should bring manufacturing home, Trice says they simply cannot. “There’s no factories in the world that have both the technical capabilities as well as the production capacity to immediately replace all the production we’ve built in China over the last 40 years,” Trice told Yahoo Finance. “It will take years and tens of millions of dollars to redevelop our products and to ramp up production in other countries.” And even if they did, prices would go even higher and that could be the end of their business. “Consumers don’t want to pay $30 for an HDMI cable,” he said. Read more: These U.S. states are hit hardest by Trump's tariffs Trump's tariffs hit Texas manufacturers, spark fears for the future: Survey Hasbro: Tariffs could not come at a worse time for toy industry Consumer tech groups warn tariffs will hamper innovation How US importers are avoiding Trump’s tariffs Read the latest financial and business news from Yahoo Finance Follow Yahoo Finance onTwitter,Facebook,Instagram,Flipboard,LinkedIn,YouTube, andreddit.
Have Insiders Been Selling The Gap, Inc. (NYSE:GPS) Shares This Year? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! We often see insiders buying up shares in companies that perform well over the long term. The flip side of that is that there are more than a few examples of insiders dumping stock prior to a period of weak performance. So shareholders might well want to know whether insiders have been buying or selling shares inThe Gap, Inc.(NYSE:GPS). It's quite normal to see company insiders, such as board members, trading in company stock, from time to time. However, such insiders must disclose their trading activities, and not trade on inside information. Insider transactions are not the most important thing when it comes to long-term investing. But logic dictates you should pay some attention to whether insiders are buying or selling shares. As Peter Lynch said, 'insiders might sell their shares for any number of reasons, but they buy them for only one: they think the price will rise.' Check out our latest analysis for Gap In the last twelve months, the biggest single sale by an insider was when the , Sonia Syngal, sold US$312k worth of shares at a price of US$26.51 per share. We generally don't like to see insider selling, but the lower the sale price, the more it concerns us. The silver lining is that this sell-down took place above the latest price (US$18.22). So it may not shed much light on insider confidence at current levels. Sonia Syngal was the only individual insider to sell shares in the last twelve months. The chart below shows insider transactions (by individuals) over the last year. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below! If you like to buy stocks that insiders are buying, rather than selling, then you might just love thisfreelist of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them). I like to look at how many shares insiders own in a company, to help inform my view of how aligned they are with insiders. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. It's great to see that Gap insiders own 37% of the company, worth about US$2.6b. This kind of significant ownership by insiders does generally increase the chance that the company is run in the interest of all shareholders. It doesn't really mean much that no insider has traded Gap shares in the last quarter. It's heartening that insiders own plenty of stock, but we'd like to see more insider buying, since the last year of Gap insider transactions don't fill us with confidence. Of course,the future is what matters most. So if you are interested in Gap, you should check out thisfreereport on analyst forecasts for the company. Of course,you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere.So take a peek at thisfreelist of interesting companies. For the purposes of this article, insiders are those individuals who report their transactions to the relevant regulatory body. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Trump Orders More Sanctions Against Iran Affecting 'Billions In Assets' President Donald Trump signed an executive order Monday imposing additional sanctions on Iran following the country's shoot-down last week of a U.S. military surveillance drone. The United States already hassanctions on the countrythat were reimposed after pulling out of a 2015 nuclear accord that the U.S. and other nations reached with Iran in an effort to put an end to its nuclear weapons aspirations. The new sanctions will cut off Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, his office and others from financial instruments, according to CNN. “We’ve done very massive sanctions. We’re increasing the sanctions now,” the president told NBC over the weekend. What Happened Brian Hook, the U.S. special representative to Iran, said on CNBC over the weekend that the goal of tightening the screws on Tehran now is to resume negotiations. “Ultimately we would like to have a new deal that addresses Iran’s regional aggression, the missile program and its nuclear program,” Hook said. “In order to do that, it is going to take pressure. And in order to get Iran to change its behavior, it is going to take a lot of pressure. So we are going to increase our sanctions on Iran.” In addition to the attack last week on the drone, Washington blames Iran for two recent attacks on oil tankers in the Persian Gulf. American officials said the unmanned aircraft was over international waters in the Strait of Hormuz, while Iran said it was over Iranian territory. Trump approved an airstrike in retaliation, butthen backed off. Why It's Important The new sanctions will "lock up literally billions of dollars in assets," said Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin,according to CNN. Several European nations, as well as China and Russia, oppose the U.S. increasing sanctions on Iran. Oil prices were down on Monday, as was theUnited States Oil Fund LP(NYSE:USO), which was trading down more than 1% at $11.84 at the time of publication. The Standard & Poor's 500 ETF Trust was up slightly at $294.16. Related Links US Pulled Back On Iran Attack '10 Minutes' Before Strike, Trump Says In Tweet Oil Prices Moving Following Reports Of Tanker Attacks Near Iran See more from Benzinga • Bulls And Bears Of The Week: Tyson, Tesla, Crocs And More • Barron's Picks And Pans: Humana, Marriott, Boeing And More • Kroger's Q1 Draws Tepid Reaction From Analysts, Investors Pull Back © 2019 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
How Much Are The Gap, Inc. (NYSE:GPS) Insiders Taking Off The Table? Want to participate in a short research study ? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! We've lost count of how many times insiders have accumulated shares in a company that goes on to improve markedly. On the other hand, we'd be remiss not to mention that insider sales have been known to precede tough periods for a business. So shareholders might well want to know whether insiders have been buying or selling shares in The Gap, Inc. ( NYSE:GPS ). Do Insider Transactions Matter? It's quite normal to see company insiders, such as board members, trading in company stock, from time to time. However, such insiders must disclose their trading activities, and not trade on inside information. Insider transactions are not the most important thing when it comes to long-term investing. But it is perfectly logical to keep tabs on what insiders are doing. As Peter Lynch said, 'insiders might sell their shares for any number of reasons, but they buy them for only one: they think the price will rise.' See our latest analysis for Gap Gap Insider Transactions Over The Last Year In the last twelve months, the biggest single sale by an insider was when the , Sonia Syngal, sold US$312k worth of shares at a price of US$26.51 per share. While insider selling is a negative, to us, it is more negative if the shares are sold at a lower price. The good news is that this large sale was at well above current price of US$18.22. So it may not tell us anything about how insiders feel about the current share price. The only individual insider seller over the last year was Sonia Syngal. The chart below shows insider transactions (by individuals) over the last year. By clicking on the graph below, you can see the precise details of each insider transaction! NYSE:GPS Recent Insider Trading, June 24th 2019 If you are like me, then you will not want to miss this free list of growing companies that insiders are buying. Insider Ownership of Gap Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. Usually, the higher the insider ownership, the more likely it is that insiders will be incentivised to build the company for the long term. It's great to see that Gap insiders own 37% of the company, worth about US$2.6b. I like to see this level of insider ownership, because it increases the chances that management are thinking about the best interests of shareholders. Story continues So What Do The Gap Insider Transactions Indicate? The fact that there have been no Gap insider transactions recently certainly doesn't bother us. It's heartening that insiders own plenty of stock, but we'd like to see more insider buying, since the last year of Gap insider transactions don't fill us with confidence. Therefore, you should should definitely take a look at this FREE report showing analyst forecasts for Gap . If you would prefer to check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss this free list of interesting companies, that have HIGH return on equity and low debt. For the purposes of this article, insiders are those individuals who report their transactions to the relevant regulatory body. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com . This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
2 Stocks to Play the Pet Care Trend This article wasfirst published by MyWallSt. People are spending far more on their pets. In 2018 pet care spending in the U.S. was roughly $72 billion. That's an increase of 4% from 2017, with the expectation of a similar growth figure in 2019. There are a countless number of surveys that support this claim and some really interesting numbers to go with. Image Source: Getty Images Ones that stood out included: 1. $480 million was estimated as the amount paid on costumes for pets in the U.S. for 2018. 2. One in 10 dog owners has created a social media page specifically for them. 3. 71% of millennials said they would take a pay cut if they could bring their pets to work. There are a number of shifting social norms that appear to have led to this. Perhaps the most convincing argument is the age at which people are getting married. In the 1950s, the average age at which women got married in the U.S. was 20, while for a man it was 23, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Fast forward to today and couples are delaying tying to the knot until much later — 27 for women and 29 for men. Instead, they are choosing to focus on their careers and education in their early adult years. There's also been a big shift in the size of families. In his brilliant book, 'Factfulness: Ten Reasons We're Wrong About the World — And Why Things Are Better Than You Think', Hans Rosling points out that, back in 1948, women had 5 children on average. That number was stable until about 1965 when it began to fall dramatically. Today, the world average is 2.5, with that figure starkly lower in developed nations. So today we see people either delaying or completely foregoing having children, and in their place, they are adopting pets. Furthermore, in those families that have both children and pets, the families tend to be smaller and therefore the pet is elevated to a more important member of the family. When looking at this global trend here atMyWallStthere are two stocks that we like. Trupanion(NASDAQ: TRUP)is the largest pet insurer in the U.S., providing medical insurance plans for dogs and cats both in the U.S. & Canada. Even though the U.S. leads the world in pet care spending, it lags behind when it comes to pet insurance. It's estimated that only 1% of pets in the U.S. are insured. Compare this to the UK which is 10% and Scandinavia at almost 25%. Today, 90 million dogs live in 60 million U.S. homes. From the same National Pet Owners Survey, we also know there are 95 million domestic cats in 50 million households. These numbers just keep growing, year after year. Founder and CEO Darryl Rawlings, who still owns over 7% of the outstanding shares, started Trupanion because his family had to euthanize their dog in the face of a hefty vet bill. From those first days in Canada, the business expanded into the U.S. and became the first North American pet insurer licensed to provide its own underwriting. By the end of 2018, Trupanion had over 520,000 enrolled pets and have forecasted to hit between 650,000 – 750,000 by Q2 2020. With a 98.58% retention rate, Trupanion is forging a fantastic recurring revenue stream for itself, with plenty of growth opportunities in this untapped, underserved market. Idexx Laboratories(NASDAQ: IDXX)is the world leader in pet diagnostics for companion animals. Idexx sells the table-top diagnostic machines to vets for a once-off fee and then sells the testing strips on a per-use basis. This is the"razor and blade" modelthat brands like Gillette and Nespresso have perfected and is incredibly attractive, offering long-term recurring revenue and tying your customer to your product for many years. In a recent study, Idexx found that one out of every seven of these tests uncovered a significant issue in adult animals, with those numbers higher for animals in the latter part of their lives. With animals unable to tell vets what is wrong with them, diagnostic tests essentially become the "voice of the animal". Already firmly established in the U.S., growth opportunities exist in cross-selling to existing customers, as well as in Europe, where spending on pets is starting to see the kind of explosive growth that North America has witnessed over the last ten years. The company crossed the $2 billion mark in sales last year, while spending on companion animal diagnostics is predicted to grow between 6 and 8-fold over the next 25 years. Idexx are the biggest identifiable spender on research and development in this space (they have some private competitors that don't report it), have strong client relationships, and a great management team fostering innovation. If you see the trend in pet spending all around you and want to get in on the action, this is a great long-term buy-and-hold investment. Image Source: MyWallSt MyWallSt operates a full disclosure policy. MyWallSt staff currently hold long positions in Idexx Laboratories and Trupanion. Read ourfull disclosure policy here. The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends Idexx Laboratories and Trupanion. The Motley Fool has adisclosure policy.
Why Are These 3 Big Businesses Going Crypto? This article wasfirst published by MyWallSt. Whenever a radical new technology comes along, there will always be a flurry of people lining up to denounce it as no more than a passing distraction or fad. A quick look at thehistory of innovationwill reveal it to be filled with awful predictions by the gatekeepers of the old order. In 1903, to take the most famous example, president of Michigan Savings Bank advised against investing in the newly established Ford Motor Company on the grounds that "the horse is here to stay but the automobile is only a novelty." Image Source: Eftakher Alam on Unsplash Of course, it's not yet clear whether cryptocurrencies will become as ubiquitous a phenomenon as the 'horseless carriage', but a good case for its continued survival can be made by looking at how many big businesses have embraced the technology in recent months. Here are three noteworthy examples: After lots of speculation,Facebook(NASDAQ: FB)finally revealed the details of itsnew cryptocurrency platform last week. The project turned out to be far more ambitious than many had anticipated. The platform, codenamed Libra, will allow users to make purchases on Facebook's apps as well as third-party sites for almost non-existent fees. With more than two billion monthly active users, Facebook's online community is so large that Libra, at least in principle, could become the world's most widely used currency. Apparently all-too-aware of its poor reputation for privacy violations, Facebook has launched a subsidiary company to manage this cryptocurrency called Calibra, which will collect and use data independently of its core business. As a result, there should be no fear that a user's spending history is being exploited by the social network for targeted advertising (we hope). In order to build further trust, Facebook has also established the Libra Association, a collective of 28 companies that include payment rivals such asVisa(NYSE: V),Mastercard(NYSE: MA), andPayPal(NASDAQ: PYPL). Supposedly, this will allow other independent voices to veto any objectionable decisions made by the Facebook team. Facebook is no stranger to business failures (remember Facebook Gifts? Neither do we) and Libra is arguably its most ambitious project to date. But whether the global payments revolution it promises will actually take off, or indeed pay off, remains to be seen. Despite CEO Jamie Dimon's well-documented disapproval of bitcoin — which in 2017 he declared to be a "fraud" —J.P. Morgan Chase(NYSE: JPM)announced back in February that it would be the first major U.S. bank to launch its own cryptocurrency. Inventively branded 'JPM Coin', the new currency has already begun trials and will be used by the bank to instantly settle payments between clients. According to the company's head of blockchain projects Umar Farooq, there are three early applications that the bank has identified for its new project — international payments for large corporate clients, securities transactions, and replacement for dollars that large treasury services hold in subsidiaries across the world. Although Dimon predicted that bitcoin would not end well for buyers in October 2017, he would later renege on those comments, saying that there was indeed a future in the blockchain. In fact, J.P. Morgan's iteration might be somewhat safer than the bitcoin madness we witnessed back in those speculative days, considering the regulatory hurdles that both the bank and its clients have undergone. In this sense, 'JPM Coin' is not an asset like bitcoin that you'll be able to invest in, but rather an innovative tool that will be used between the bank and its big institutional clients. Social media billionaire Jack Dorsey who foundedTwitter(NYSE: TWTR)has also been making inroads into the crypto market via his payments business,Square(NYSE: SQ), and by the sounds of it, the venture is no less ambitious than Facebook's. In May, Dorsey said that Crypto Square intends simply to "improve money." The idea is to build a small team of experts that will make "open source contributions to the bitcoin and crypto ecosystem," while the main Square app will make it easier to use alternative payments for transactions. The final goal is to make "mass adoption not just possible but inevitable." Well aware of the uncertainty surrounding the likes of bitcoin, Dorsey has also emphasized the importance of design in making cryptos more accessible and easier to conceptualize for the uninitiated. And with 113.5 million users projected for 2021, Square might just be able to bring this project into the mainstream. Dorsey's vision for the future of currency seems to be an extension of the logic behind Twitter. While the social network aims, at least in theory, to foster better communication across national boundaries, Crypto Square, in his own words, hopes to build "a stateless currency that all people can access" and isn't "bounded or constrained by any one corporate entity." Image Source: MyWallSt MyWallSt operates a full disclosure policy. MyWallSt staff currently hold long positions in Facebook, Mastercard, PayPal, and Square. Read ourfull disclosure policy here. Randi Zuckerberg, a former director of market development and spokeswoman for Facebook and sister to its CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends Facebook, Mastercard, PayPal Holdings, Square, and Visa. The Motley Fool has adisclosure policy.
Sens. Warner, Hawley want social media giants to put price tag on user data Chances are you shop on Amazon, you use Google to search and you share your personal milestones and those of your friends and family on Facebook while also posting your best visuals on Instagram, among other things. Those efforts are worth a lot more than you are being given credit for, according to Senators Mark R. Warner, D-Va., and Josh Hawley, R-Mo., who were set to introduce a bill Monday that would require social media giants to disclose how they are making money off your user data. “For years, social media companies have told consumers that their products are free to the user. But that’s not true – you are paying with your data instead of your wallet,” said Warner in a statement. “Our bipartisan bill will allow consumers to understand the true value of the data they are providing to the platforms, which will encourage competition and allow antitrust enforcers to identify potentially anticompetitive practices” he added. The legislation, entitled "Designing Accounting Safeguards to Help Broaden Oversight And Regulations on Data Act" (DASHBOARD), will require the companies mining and collecting the data to tell consumers as well as financial regulators what is being gathered and how it is being used, according to the statement, which also listed the following requirements if the legislation becomes law. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX BUSINESS APP Require commercial data operators (defined as services with over 100 million monthly active users) to disclose types of data collected as well as regularly provide their users with an assessment of the value of that data. Require commercial data operators to file an annual report on the aggregate value of user data they’ve collected, as well as contracts with third parties involving data collection. Require commercial data operators to allow users to delete all, or individual fields, of data collected – and disclose to users all the ways in which their data is being used. including any uses not directly related to the online service for which the data was originally collected. Story continues Empower the SEC to develop methodologies for calculating data value, while encouraging the agency to facilitate flexibility to enable businesses to adopt methodologies that reflect the different uses, sectors, and business models. Related Articles Fmr. Notre Dame Coach Lou Holtz Predictions for Trump vs. Media Trump May Have Dropped Another Clinton Bombshell Bellhops Makes the Back-to-School Move Bearable
How to Watch the Live Reading of the Mueller Report by Hollywood Stars If you’re waiting for a cinematic adaptation of theMueller Report, you likely have a long wait ahead of you. If, however, you want to hear some of Hollywood’s biggest actors give their take on thespecial counsel‘s investigation ofDonald Trumpand interference in the 2016 election, today is your lucky day. Monday night, June 24 at 9 p.m. E.T., a gaggle of stars will give a live performance of the report, which will be live streamed on thewebsite of Law Works, a group that is hoping to raise the public’s awareness of the report’s contents and “expose current threats to core American values and electoral systems.” The Investigation: A Search for the Truth in Ten Acts, as the reading is called, was organized by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Robert Schenkkan, who also earned an Emmy for his HBO seriesThe Pacificin 2010. Among the actors who will participate in the reading are Annette Bening, Kevin Kline, John Lithgow, Sigourney Weaver, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Mark Hamill, Justin Long, Piper Perabo, Michael Shannon, and Zachary Quinto. The reading isbeing producedby SusanDisneyLord,Abigail Disney, and Timothy Disney, the grandchildren of Roy Disney and grandnieces and grandnephew of Walt Disney. —Democratic debate watch parties—and drinking games—are a thing —Meet the2020 Democratic presidential candidatesyou’ve (probably) never heard of —Issues that divide 2020 candidates going into thefirst Democratic debate —These are thetop-polling Democratic candidates —The2019 Democratic debate clashesyou won’t get to see —What to know About the2019 Democratic debate: start time, schedule, format
Stocks - Market Flat Ahead of G20 Meeting Investing.com - Stocks basically stood still on Monday after a weekend of worry about global economic concerns and relief, perhaps, the United States didn't attack Iran over the downing of a spy drone last week. But it's possible the next few days will yield more of the same as investors wait to see how a meeting between President Donald Trump and China President Xi Jinping goes. The two leaders are supposed to hold "an extensive meeting" this weekend at the G20 economic summit in Tokyo. Trump also announced new sanctions on Iran, designed to get the Islamic Republic to renegotiate its nuclear agreement from a few years ago. So far, Iran has refused to negotiate. In the meantime, the S&P 500 was off 0.2% on Monday. The Dow Jones industrials rose 0.03% and the Nasdaq Composite slipped 0.24%. Futures trading suggests the S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100 index will move only a little going forward. The Dow could push up perhaps 60 points. Something to watch: the S&P 500 closed at an all-time high on Thursday and reached a new interim high on Friday. But the Dow, the Nasdaq and other indexes have not followed through. The Dow ended Monday off 0.8% from its all-time high set in October. The Nasdaq Composite is off 2.1% from its all-time high reached at the end of April. The market was supported by tech stocks, materials stocks and consumer staples stocks like Walmart (NYSE:WMT), which hit a 52-week high. Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) and Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) also hit 52-week highs. On the downside were health-insurance companies, such as Walgreens Boots Alliance (NASDAQ:WBA) and UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH). Energy shares, including Chevron (NYSE:CVX) and Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) were lower. Discretionary stocks also fell. One was Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA), which had been up as much as 45% for the year as of Friday. Ulta, which sells beauty products and operates salons, was off 3.1% Monday after Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN) announced it was starting a service to sell beauty products to professionals. Amazon saw a modest gain on the day. Story continues Interest rates continued to move lower. The United States 10-Year yield fell to 2.02%, the lowest level since November 2016. News reports have suggested the interest-rate decline has unleashed new refinancing demand among homeowners and interest in home buying. The declines reflect an investor bet that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates at its meeting at the end of July. Investing.com's Fed Rate Monitoring Tool suggests a rate cut is certain at that meeting, with a 73% chance of another rate cut in September. Crude oil was lower for much of the day, but rebounded near the end of the session. WTI futures finished up 47 cents at $57.90 a barrel. Brent futures, the global benchmark, were off 34 cents to $64.86, but cut its loss considerably. Gold Futures continued to surge above $1,400 an ounce, settling at $1,418.20 an ounce. There was speculation the metal could drive above $1,500. Winners and Losers in the S&P 500 Gaming companies Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:EA) and Activision Blizzard (NASDAQ:ATVI) and mining giant Newmont Goldcorp (NYSE:NEM) were among the top S&P 500 performers. Pharmaceutical-maker Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY), Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies (NYSE:WAB) and biotech giant Celgene (NASDAQ:CELG) were among the S&P 500 laggards on the day. Related Articles U.S. stocks mixed at close of trade; Dow Jones Industrial Average up 0.03% Canada stocks lower at close of trade; S&P/TSX Composite down 0.01% U.S. tariffs on China-made consumer tech goods seen cutting sales, delaying upgrades
Imagine your own children there: Grim reports mount from border detention camps As more reports surfaced of inhumane conditions at the governments migrant detention facilities, the movement to label them concentration camps picked up steam with backing from a major newspaper. Dolly Lucio Sevier, a physician, and a group of lawyers visited border facilities in two Texas cities: McAllen and Clint. In an assessment obtained by ABC News , Lucio Sevier wrote that the conditions within which they are held could be compared to torture facilities. Lucio Sevier was granted access after lawyers expressed concern about a flu outbreak in the McAllen facility . Illegal border crossers detained by U.S. Border Patrol agents are seen in a jail at the Central Processing Center in McAllen, Texas, June 17, 2018. (Photo: U.S. Border Patrol/Handout/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images) Lucio Sevier described the conditions as extreme cold temperatures, lights on 24 hours a day, no adequate access to medical care, basic sanitation, water, or adequate food and added that teens there said they had no access to hand-washing. Mothers of infants said the camps lacked facilities for washing bottles. Lucio Sevier said the conditions were tantamount to intentionally causing the spread of disease. It just felt, you know, lawless, Lucio Sevier said in an interview with ABC News . I mean, imagine your own children there. I cant imagine my child being there and not being broken. On Monday, Rep. Veronica Escobar who represents the El Paso, Texas, area said that the government had moved most of the children from the Clint facility. It is unclear where they were moved. President Trump has claimed he is simply continuing the policy of separating families begun by former President Barack Obama, but that is untrue . The Obama administration did occasionally split families but did not have a blanket policy to do so. The default separations began with the declaration of a zero tolerance policy in April 2018, under which any migrant who crossed the border illegally would be referred to criminal prosecution. In interviews with CNN and NPR , former secretary of Homeland Security and White House chief of staff John Kelly said he was considering family separation as a deterrent to migration and that children would be taken care of by being put into foster care or whatever. Story continues Many of the migrants are fleeing danger in their home countries in Central America and claiming asylum in the United States, as provided under both international and U.S. law. Jerry Martinez protests the detainment of undocumented migrant children outside a Border Patrol processing center in McAllen, Texas, June 25, 2018. (Photo: Loren Elliott/Reuters) Lucio Seviers report is the latest horror story from the detainment facilities. Last week the Associated Press reported that immigration attorneys said younger children in a border facility were being left in the care of older children, including a 4-year-old in the care of an 8-year-old. In my 22 years of doing visits with children in detention, I have never heard of this level of inhumanity, said Holly Cooper, who co-directs University of California, Daviss Immigration Law Clinic and represents detained youth, in an interview with the AP. Warren Binford, one of the lawyers who visited the Clint facility last week, told the New Yorker that there were approximately 350 children at a facility built to hold 104. Many of the children being kept there told Binford that they had barely showered or been able to brush their teeth. They are worse than actual prison conditions, said Binford in an interview with NPR . It is inhumane. It's nothing that I ever imagined seeing in the United States of America. And thats why we have gone to the press. We never go to the media about our site visits. And after the second day of interviewing these children, you know, we called up the attorneys who are in charge of this case. And because of the extreme conditions that we saw there, we were given permission to speak to the media because children are dying on the border in these stations. Last week HuffPost reported that four children at the McAllen facility were so sick that lawyers demanded they be hospitalized. Per their report: The children, all under age 3 with teenage mothers or guardians, were feverish, coughing, vomiting and had diarrhea, immigration attorneys told HuffPost on Friday. Some of the toddlers and infants were refusing to eat or drink. One 2-year-olds eyes were rolled back in her head, and she was completely unresponsive and limp, according to Toby Gialluca, a Florida-based attorney. Human Rights Watch reported in February 2018 on what they called abusive conditions for women and children in U.S. Customs and Border Protection. The HRW document from February included concerns similar to those documented in many of the more recent reports: sleeping on the floor in freezing cells with limited blankets and a lack of access to soap, toothpaste or toothbrushes. A Department of Homeland Security inspection found egregious violations of detention standards, including expired food and nooses found in cells and bathrooms that were dilapidated and moldy. The DHS has also warned of dangerous overcrowding , including detainees standing on toilets in the cells to make room and gain breathing space, thus limiting access to the toilets. Per NBC News, at least seven children have died in immigration custody over the last year. Acting Customs and Border Protection commissioner John Sanders acknowledged in an interview with the AP that children needed better medical care, and urged Congress to pass an emergency funding package that would include $3 billion in funding to care for unaccompanied children. Trump and Vice President Mike Pence have blamed Congress for the conditions . Per Sanders, the agency considers 4,000 to be capacity, and they are currently holding 15,000 people. Justice Department lawyer Sarah Fabian argued last week in front of the U.S. Court of Appeals that toothbrushes, soap and blankets may be part of the definition of safe and sanitary as laid out by the 1997 Flores Settlement, which dictates the treatment of migrant children. The reported horrific conditions at the facilities have led to a war over the semantics of what to call the facilities. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was among those criticized for referring to the detention facilities as concentration camps, a term that has a technical meaning but is sometimes conflated with Nazi extermination camps. For the shrieking Republicans who dont know the difference: concentration camps are not the same as death camps, Ocasio-Cortez wrote on Twitter . Concentration camps are considered by experts as the mass detention of civilians without trial. And thats exactly what this administration is doing. Dalila Reynoso protests the detainment of undocumented immigrant children outside a Border Patrol processing center in McAllen, Texas, June 25, 2018. (Photo: Loren Elliott/Reuters) Experts agreed. We have what I would call a concentration camp system, Andrea Pitzer, author of One Long Night: A Global History of Concentration Camps, told Esquire . Whats required is a little bit of demystification of it, says Waitman Wade Beorn, a Holocaust and genocide studies historian at the University of Virginia, in the same article. Things can be concentration camps without being Dachau or Auschwitz. Concentration camps in general have always been designed at the most basic level to separate one group of people from another group. Usually, because the majority group, or the creators of the camp, deem the people theyre putting in it to be dangerous or undesirable in some way. On Sunday, the Salt Lake Tribune weighed in via its editorial page , concurring with the assessment that the facilities were concentration camps. Yes, we do have concentration camps, stated the papers editorial board. They are not work camps. They are not death camps. At least, not on purpose. Our government is not building massive gas chambers and industrial crematoria. It is not conducting sick medical experiments on members of an unfavored class. But that does not mean that the places into which we are herding tens of thousands of migrants, refugees and asylum-seekers are not properly called concentration camps. Because that is precisely what they are. Concentration camps predate Nazi Germany and were employed by Spanish colonial officials in Cuba during the war for independence in the late 19th century and by the British in South Africa during the turn-of-the-century Boer War. The United States housed Japanese-Americans, including American-born citizens, in camps around the West after the attack on Pearl Harbor. Ocasio-Cortez noted that just last week, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced that Fort Sill, an Army base in Oklahoma that was used to intern Japanese-Americans during World War II, will be used to detain as many as 1,400 children until they can be turned over to an adult relative. Read more from Yahoo News: Former top U.S. diplomat deplores policy toward Iran 'untethered to any coherent strategy' Pentagon secretly struck back against Iranian cyberspies targeting U.S. ships Trump admits his Cabinet had 'some clinkers' For Dems, there's no chickening out at Clyburn's fish fry Chore wars: Are men doing enough housework? PHOTOS: Storms bring flooding and power outages across the U.S.
A Look At The Fair Value Of The Gap, Inc. (NYSE:GPS) Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! Today we'll do a simple run through of a valuation method used to estimate the attractiveness of The Gap, Inc. (NYSE:GPS) as an investment opportunity by taking the foreast future cash flows of the company and discounting them back to today's value. I will be using the Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model. Don't get put off by the jargon, the math behind it is actually quite straightforward. We generally believe that a company's value is the present value of all of the cash it will generate in the future. However, a DCF is just one valuation metric among many, and it is not without flaws. If you want to learn more about discounted cash flow, the rationale behind this calculation can be read in detail in theSimply Wall St analysis model. See our latest analysis for Gap We are going to use a two-stage DCF model, which, as the name states, takes into account two stages of growth. The first stage is generally a higher growth period which levels off heading towards the terminal value, captured in the second 'steady growth' period. To start off with, we need to estimate the next ten years of cash flows. Where possible we use analyst estimates, but when these aren't available we extrapolate the previous free cash flow (FCF) from the last estimate or reported value. We assume companies with shrinking free cash flow will slow their rate of shrinkage, and that companies with growing free cash flow will see their growth rate slow, over this period. We do this to reflect that growth tends to slow more in the early years than it does in later years. A DCF is all about the idea that a dollar in the future is less valuable than a dollar today, so we need to discount the sum of these future cash flows to arrive at a present value estimate: [{"": "Levered FCF ($, Millions)", "2019": "$767.00", "2020": "$668.00", "2021": "$687.29", "2022": "$689.00", "2023": "$695.85", "2024": "$706.38", "2025": "$719.66", "2026": "$735.02", "2027": "$752.02", "2028": "$770.35"}, {"": "Growth Rate Estimate Source", "2019": "Analyst x7", "2020": "Analyst x7", "2021": "Analyst x7", "2022": "Analyst x1", "2023": "Est @ 0.99%", "2024": "Est @ 1.51%", "2025": "Est @ 1.88%", "2026": "Est @ 2.13%", "2027": "Est @ 2.31%", "2028": "Est @ 2.44%"}, {"": "Present Value ($, Millions) Discounted @ 11.28%", "2019": "$689.25", "2020": "$539.44", "2021": "$498.76", "2022": "$449.32", "2023": "$407.78", "2024": "$372.00", "2025": "$340.57", "2026": "$312.58", "2027": "$287.40", "2028": "$264.56"}] Present Value of 10-year Cash Flow (PVCF)= $4.16b "Est" = FCF growth rate estimated by Simply Wall St The second stage is also known as Terminal Value, this is the business's cash flow after the first stage. The Gordon Growth formula is used to calculate Terminal Value at a future annual growth rate equal to the 10-year government bond rate of 2.7%. We discount the terminal cash flows to today's value at a cost of equity of 11.3%. Terminal Value (TV)= FCF2029× (1 + g) ÷ (r – g) = US$770m × (1 + 2.7%) ÷ (11.3% – 2.7%) = US$9.3b Present Value of Terminal Value (PVTV)= TV / (1 + r)10= $US$9.3b ÷ ( 1 + 11.3%)10= $3.18b The total value, or equity value, is then the sum of the present value of the future cash flows, which in this case is $7.34b. In the final step we divide the equity value by the number of shares outstanding.This results in an intrinsic value estimate of $19.42. Relative to the current share price of $18.22, the company appears about fair value at a 6.2% discount to where the stock price trades currently. Remember though, that this is just an approximate valuation, and like any complex formula - garbage in, garbage out. Now the most important inputs to a discounted cash flow are the discount rate, and of course, the actual cash flows. You don't have to agree with these inputs, I recommend redoing the calculations yourself and playing with them. The DCF also does not consider the possible cyclicality of an industry, or a company's future capital requirements, so it does not give a full picture of a company's potential performance. Given that we are looking at Gap as potential shareholders, the cost of equity is used as the discount rate, rather than the cost of capital (or weighted average cost of capital, WACC) which accounts for debt. In this calculation we've used 11.3%, which is based on a levered beta of 1.435. Beta is a measure of a stock's volatility, compared to the market as a whole. We get our beta from the industry average beta of globally comparable companies, with an imposed limit between 0.8 and 2.0, which is a reasonable range for a stable business. Valuation is only one side of the coin in terms of building your investment thesis, and it shouldn’t be the only metric you look at when researching a company. The DCF model is not a perfect stock valuation tool. Rather it should be seen as a guide to "what assumptions need to be true for this stock to be under/overvalued?" If a company grows at a different rate, or if its cost of equity or risk free rate changes sharply, the output can look very different. For Gap, I've compiled three essential aspects you should look at: 1. Financial Health: Does GPS have a healthy balance sheet? Take a look at ourfree balance sheet analysis with six simple checkson key factors like leverage and risk. 2. Future Earnings: How does GPS's growth rate compare to its peers and the wider market? Dig deeper into the analyst consensus number for the upcoming years by interacting with ourfree analyst growth expectation chart. 3. Other High Quality Alternatives: Are there other high quality stocks you could be holding instead of GPS? Exploreour interactive list of high quality stocksto get an idea of what else is out there you may be missing! PS. Simply Wall St updates its DCF calculation for every US stock every day, so if you want to find the intrinsic value of any other stock justsearch here. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Supreme Court Declines to Hear Challenge to Trumps Tariffs The Supreme Court on Monday upheld a lower courts ruling that affirmed the constitutionality of President Trumps decision to invoke national security in implementing tariffs on steel and aluminum. Trump imposed tariffs of 25 percent on imported steel and 10 percent on imported aluminum in March of last year, irking American companies that said theyd be hurt by the decision. Earlier this year, the U.S. Court of International Trade ruled in favor of the presidents authority to cite national security as a justification for imposing the tariffs, under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962. A month later, the American Institute for International Steel and two member companies, Texas-based Sim-Tex and Kurt Orban Partners, asked that the Supreme Court hear an appeal of that decision. The companies claimed that the part of the law the Trump administration cited was not specific enough and unconstitutionally delegates legislative power to the President and that therefore the tariffs are invalid. Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle criticized Trump for the tariffs. Senator Chuck Grassley (R., Iowa), who has generally opposed the Trump administrations imposition of tariffs on various countries as a negotiating tool, announced his intention to introduce legislation after Congresss summer recess to check the presidents power to implement more tariffs. It adds up to something pretty simple: Congress has delegated too much authority to the president of the United States, Grassley said earlier this month. This is not about Trump. Its about the balancing of power. More from National Review Stocks Fall after Trumps Threat to Slap Tariffs on Mexico Coca-Cola Will Raise Soda Prices Due to Trump Tariffs Multi-Industry Business Coalition to Fight Trump Tariffs
Trump's tariffs hit Texas manufacturers, spark fears for the future: Survey Profit margins for Texas-based manufacturers are taking a dive as a result of President Trump’s trade wars, according to a survey released on Monday by the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas. According to the Dallas Fed’s survey of Texas’ manufacturing activity in June, 29% of companies surveyed reported a decrease in profit margins as a result of tariffs. That stands in stark contrast to September of last year, when only 3.9% reported increases. The central bank’s study comes against a backdrop of an ongoing trade dispute between the U.S. and China that shows no signs of de-escalating — and is visible across arange of industriesandkey gauges of the economy. According to the Dallas Fed, 58% of Texas companies surveyed currently reported that U.S. and foreign tariffs had no impact on their firm overall, while 28% reported a negative impact. Yet those numbers changed dramatically when Texas businesses were asked to project impact in 2020-2021. A whopping 37% reported the impact would be negative, while only 29% reported no impact. Manufacturers in Texas are not immune to thenationwide fearsresulting from increases in tariffs. Some 41% ofmanufacturing executives nationwidesay that their businesses have already been negatively affected by the tariffs. “It has led to austerity measures even in a year of projected overall revenue growth, but with lower margins, and to headcount/hiring freezes even with record production in some areas of the company,” one respondent told the Dallas Fed in its survey. Alarm bells are sounding on the current impact of tariffs, but many companies surveyed mentioned how future uncertainty has affected current production. “It makes planning difficult, specifically in regard to capital investment,” reported a nonmetallic mineral product manufacturer, who raised questions about what would happen if tensions were raised further. Consumer tech companieslike Best Buy (BBY) and Roku, (ROKU), along withtoy companiessuch as Hasbro (HAS) have in recent days joined thechorus of voiceslobbying the Trump administration to reconsider tariffs. Texas’ vast economy is a hub for energy and manufacturing, and sits in the middle of the pack ofstates most susceptible to tariffsfrom China, according to analysis from JP Morgan Chase. Texas’ state GDP could be affected by 2.5% by the newest round of tariffs —lower than Tennessee’s expected impact of 7.3% but far higher than Montana and North Dakota’s economies, the bank found. Many of the concerns for Texas businesses, though, are centered around how new tariffs might affect the broader economy—and their bottom line. Calder McHugh is an Associate Editor at Yahoo Finance. Follow him on Twitter:@Calder_McHugh. Trump, Sanders embrace competing versions of economic populism There's a gap between jobs and job-seekers, and a housing crisis is making it worse The jobs report is even worse than it looks in these six sectors These US industries could take the heaviest hit from new tariffs Follow Yahoo Finance onTwitter,Facebook,Instagram,Flipboard,SmartNews,LinkedIn,YouTube, andreddit.
Marijuana Investor Magazine June/July 2019 Issue Now Available ATLANTA, GA / ACCESSWIRE / June 24, 2019 /CannaInvestor Magazine, the leading industry investment magazine for cannabis investors, analysts, executives, entrepreneurs, and financial media, announced today that it has published its June/July 2019 Issue of the U.S. and Canadian CannaInvestor Magazines. All digital magazines are free to the public. The content featured in the June/July 2019 U.S. CannaInvestor Magazine includes Greenbroz, Magna Flux, SunIQ, Jenny's Baked at Home Company, FlexMod, LLC, Cannabis Stocks Technical Analysis, and the Top 25 Cannabis Companies. Please click on links to view the magazines. (https://joom.ag/yLoa) (https://joom.ag/uLoa) The content featured in the June/July 2019 Canadian CannaInvestor Magazine includes Canntab Therapeutics Limited (PILL.CN) (CTABF), Westleaf Inc. (WL.V) (WSLFF), Cannabis Stocks Technical Analysis, and the Top 30 Cannabis Companies. Please click on link to view the magazine. (https://joom.ag/Q1xa) About Cannabis Investor Magazine Cannabis Investor Magazine is a monthly subscription based digital magazine with an exclusive focus on Cannabis finance that delivers convenient insights on publicly-traded and privately-held cannabis companies through informative articles, company profiles, and market trends that inform and educate global investors. In accordance with Section 17(b) of the Securities Act of 1933, you are hereby advised that Investor Webcast & Magazine, Inc. received a fee in cash, from companies featured as compensation for investor awareness services. Please click on the magazine links above and view the the disclaimer under the Editors Note for compensation. For more information about Cannabis Investor Magazine please visit our websiteswww.cannainvestormag.comandwww.cannainvestormag.ca. Contact Investor Webcast & Magazine, Inc.1-888-575-1254, Ext. 1team@cannainvestormag.comteam@cannainvestormag.ca SOURCE:Cannabis Investor Magazine View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/549667/Marijuana-Investor-Magazine-JuneJuly-2019-Issue-Now-Available
Why We Like Oryx Petroleum Corporation Limited’s (TSE:OXC) 9.0% Return On Capital Employed Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! Today we are going to look at Oryx Petroleum Corporation Limited (TSE:OXC) to see whether it might be an attractive investment prospect. To be precise, we'll consider its Return On Capital Employed (ROCE), as that will inform our view of the quality of the business. First up, we'll look at what ROCE is and how we calculate it. Next, we'll compare it to others in its industry. Finally, we'll look at how its current liabilities affect its ROCE. ROCE is a measure of a company's yearly pre-tax profit (its return), relative to the capital employed in the business. Generally speaking a higher ROCE is better. Ultimately, it is a useful but imperfect metric. Renowned investment researcher Michael Mauboussinhas suggestedthat a high ROCE can indicate that 'one dollar invested in the company generates value of more than one dollar'. Analysts use this formula to calculate return on capital employed: Return on Capital Employed = Earnings Before Interest and Tax (EBIT) ÷ (Total Assets - Current Liabilities) Or for Oryx Petroleum: 0.09 = US$67m ÷ (US$810m - US$61m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to March 2019.) So,Oryx Petroleum has an ROCE of 9.0%. View our latest analysis for Oryx Petroleum When making comparisons between similar businesses, investors may find ROCE useful. Oryx Petroleum's ROCE appears to be substantially greater than the 5.5% average in the Oil and Gas industry. I think that's good to see, since it implies the company is better than other companies at making the most of its capital. Aside from the industry comparison, Oryx Petroleum's ROCE is mediocre in absolute terms, considering the risk of investing in stocks versus the safety of a bank account. Readers may find more attractive investment prospects elsewhere. Oryx Petroleum has an ROCE of 9.0%, but it didn't have an ROCE 3 years ago, since it was unprofitable. That suggests the business has returned to profitability. When considering ROCE, bear in mind that it reflects the past and does not necessarily predict the future. ROCE can be deceptive for cyclical businesses, as returns can look incredible in boom times, and terribly low in downturns. ROCE is only a point-in-time measure. We note Oryx Petroleum could be considered a cyclical business. If Oryx Petroleum is cyclical, it could make sense to check out thisfreegraph of past earnings, revenue and cash flow. Current liabilities are short term bills and invoices that need to be paid in 12 months or less. The ROCE equation subtracts current liabilities from capital employed, so a company with a lot of current liabilities appears to have less capital employed, and a higher ROCE than otherwise. To counter this, investors can check if a company has high current liabilities relative to total assets. Oryx Petroleum has total assets of US$810m and current liabilities of US$61m. Therefore its current liabilities are equivalent to approximately 7.6% of its total assets. Oryx Petroleum has a low level of current liabilities, which have a minimal impact on its uninspiring ROCE. If performance improves, then Oryx Petroleum may be an OK investment, especially at the right valuation. But note:make sure you look for a great company, not just the first idea you come across.So take a peek at thisfreelist of interesting companies with strong recent earnings growth (and a P/E ratio below 20). I will like Oryx Petroleum better if I see some big insider buys. While we wait, check out thisfreelist of growing companies with considerable, recent, insider buying. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
3 Dividend Stocks That Pay You Better Than Coca-Cola Does Coca-Cola(NYSE: KO)was one of the best-performing stocks of the 20th century as the company built an unrivaled and hugely profitable global beverage empire. Over the last two decades, it's lost some of that momentum amid the rise of coffee chains likeStarbucksand concerns about sugary drinks, but Coke still packs a punch for dividend investors. The company is aDividend Aristocrat, having hiked its quarterly payout for 55 straight years, and today offers a dividend yield of 3.1%. While that's higher than theS&P 500average at 1.9%, our contributors have found a few stocks that offer even better yields than Coke. Keep reading to see why they recommendTerraForm Power(NASDAQ: TERP),Philip Morris(NYSE: PM), andMacy's(NYSE: M). Image source: Macy's. Jason Hall(TerraForm Power):Over the past couple of years, few income stocks have seen their prospects improve more than those of TerraForm Power, the solar and wind energy producer which is now part of theBrookfield Asset Management(NYSE: BAM)group of entities. Since Brookfield and its subsidiaryBrookfield Renewable Partners(NYSE: BEP)took a controlling stake in the company and replaced its management team, TerraForm Power's results have improved tremendously. The improvements have come from two important sources: acquisitions and internal changes. For instance,last year's acquisition of Saetagrew its asset base by 40%, while internal housekeeping actions, such as a long-term maintenance deal withGEwill result in double-digit cost savings on its North American wind fleet, which will fall almost entirely to the company's cash flows. Add it all up, and investors have started paying attention, sending TerraForm's stock price up 59% since announcing the Brookfield majority stake: TERP Total Return Pricedata byYCharts. For the purposes of this discussion, the reinstitution of TerraForm Power's quarterly dividend in 2018 makes the stock a far better source of income than Coke. The 5.4% yield at recent prices is 77% higher than Coke's payout. Moreover, I like TerraForm Power's prospects to grow the payout for the long term. Coke has made progress to strengthen its cash flow, too, but consumption of soft drinks is on the decline in its biggest markets, while demand for renewable energy is only set to climb for decades to come. That tailwind should support management's plan to increase the payout 5% to 9% per year, giving investors a higher yield today, and what I expect will prove faster payout growth over the long term. Sean Williams(Philip Morris International):There aren't many time-tested companies that offer a safer payout than Coca-Cola, but I believe global tobacco giant Philip Morris International, which sports anearly 6% dividend yield, fits that bill. Shares of Philip Morris have been a ghastly sight for the trailing-two-year period. While the broad market made modest gains, Philip Morris lost more than a third of its value. Declining adult smoking rates in developed countries has led to weaker cigarette shipping volumes; and that threatens the livelihood of Philip Morris' core business. But this near-term pain can be investors' long-term gain. That's becausepessimists are overlooking three factorsthat should lead Philip Morris to relatively steady earnings-per-share growth. First, there's the well-known fact that nicotine is an addictive chemical, which means that Philip Morris has exceptionally strong pricing power with its tobacco products. Even with declining shipment volumes, the company can still grow sales and profits simply by passing along price hikes to consumers in select markets. Second, Philip Morris has geographic revenue diversity on its side. This is a company that has a presence in more than 180 countries worldwide (it doesn't operate in the United States). Even with more stringent tobacco laws coming to light in countries like Australia, fast-growing and emerging market economies with burgeoning middle classes give Philip Morris' tobacco operations plenty of runway to succeed. Finally, Philip Morris has a future in tobacco alternatives. The company's heated-tobacco system, known as IQOS, is only now beginning to launch outside of Japan, its primary test market. Heated-tobacco shipment volumes rose by 20% in the first quarter from the prior-year period, to 11.5 billion units, and the number of IQOS systems in use grew to more than 1 million in the European Union, more than double what was in use in the year-ago quarter. Although the growth runway for IQOS might take longer than expected, this is, nonetheless, a solid source of growth for the company. With significant pricing power, geographic diversity, and new technology at its disposal, there's no reason Philip Morris can't grow its bottom line by a high-single-digit percentage each year. That makes this high-yield stock one that income investors can consider adding to their portfolios. Jeremy Bowman(Macy's):If you're looking for a winning combination of an asset play and an income stock, I can think of few better choices than Macy's. Though investors recently have left behind retail stocks, in particular department stores, due in part to tariff concerns over the trade war with China, Macy's looks appealing for income investors for a number of reasons. First, it offers a well-funded dividend yield of 6.9%, which has been pumped up by the stock's recent slide amid the aforementioned tariff threats and middling comparable sales growth. However, Macy's is no value trap. The company has a bevy of valuable real estate that it's slowlyspinning off, creating a substantial revenue stream and answering the question about how best to "rightsize" its retail footprint in the e-commerce era. At one point, its real estate holdings were estimated by Starboard Value to be worth as much as$21 billion. That compares to the company's market cap today of less than $7 billion. Elsewhere, Macy's is making smart moves to evolve with the changing retail environment. It acquired theexperiential retail companyStory last year, showing an instinct to revamp its traditional in-store shopping format, and has been investing in alternative concepts like its Backstage off-price chain and its Bluemercury luxury beauty and spa chain. It's also remodeling and improving customer service at its top-performing stores, and boosting its omnichannel with programs like vendor direct, allowing its suppliers to ship directly to customers, and buy-online/pick up-in-store. The upshot of those initiatives is a retailer that's churning out cash and evolving to stay competitive now and in the future. Investors can take advantage of the recent sell-off and cash on the near-7% yield. More From The Motley Fool • 10 Best Stocks to Buy Today • The $16,728 Social Security Bonus You Cannot Afford to Miss • 20 of the Top Stocks to Buy (Including the Two Every Investor Should Own) • What Is an ETF? • 5 Recession-Proof Stocks • How to Beat the Market Jason Hallowns shares of Brookfield Renewable Partners L.P. and TerraForm Power.Jeremy Bowmanhas no position in any of the stocks mentioned.Sean Williamshas no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends Brookfield Asset Management. The Motley Fool has adisclosure policy.
Go for Safe-Haven ETFs Amid Rising Geopolitical Risks Geopolitical tensions between Iran and the United States flared up last week after the United States and Iranian officials said the latter downed a U.S. military drone near the Strait of Hormuz. In any case, both the countries have been in disagreement for about a year (read: Iran Downs U.S. Drone: Sector ETFs & Stocks to Gain). Last August, the United States put into effect sanctions against Iran, targeting the Islamic Republic’s currency and key industries. These sanctions are part of President Donald Trump’s initiative to put an embargo on Iran’s missile and nuclear programs, and diminish its influence in the Middle East. Then in November, the United States formally levied the second part of the sanctions that banned import of Iranian energy, though it offered temporary waivers to eight key buyers. But, in April 2019, Washington announced it won’t renew waivers previously granted on Iran oil import sanctions (read: US Tightens Sanctions on Iran: Country ETFs to Gain/Suffer). Most recently, Trump announced that the United States will levy "major" incremental sanctions on Iran in order to prevent the country from procuring nuclear weapons. It followed the announcement of Iran that said that it would surpass internationally agreed limitson its nuclear program. Things are getting sour on the US-China relation front too. Just before the G-20 meet, five additional Chinese companies are barred frompurchasing U.S.-made components. Investors should also note that stocks are near record highs amid dovish Fed comments. So, if anything negative comes out of the upcoming US-China meeting and the US-Iran relation, global equities may skid due to overvaluation. Against this backdrop, investors could bank on safe-haven ETFs. Treasury BondsiShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETFTLT Heightened global uncertainty brings this safe asset in the limelight. Rising prospects of Fed rate cuts this year and geopolitical concerns may drive treasury valuation. Safe-haven rally is likely to result in a low-rate environment. Apart from TLT, investors can consider25+ Year Zero Coupon U.S. Treasury Index Fund (ZROZ)andVanguard Extended Duration Treasury ETF (EDV). Gold SPDR Gold Trust ETFGLDGold is often viewed as a safe-haven asset offering protection against financial risks, and may perform well on heightened market volatility. Investors should note that the U.S. dollar is under pressure on a dovish central bank.Invesco DB US Dollar Index Bullish Fund (UUP)was down about 1.5% in the past five days. This should prove advantageous for gold investors as the metal’s price is usually inversely related to the greenback. GLD added about 3.3% in the past five days. Apart from GLD, investors can consideriShares Gold Trust (IAU), another popular choice in this space that has returned about 3.4% in the past month. YenCurrencySharesÂ Japanese Yen ETF (FXY) The Japanese currency, yen, is often considered a classic safe-haven asset that gained some strength lately. Also, a dovish Fed dampened the dollar to some extent and boosted yen. Investors can target this currency via FXY, which measures the value of the yen against the price of the greenback. In fact, the fund has advanced about 0.7% in the past five days (see: all the Currency ETFs here). Utilities Utilities Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLU) This sector performs great in a low-rate environment and serves better if investing sentiments are edgy. The fund XLU yields 3.3% annually. Want key ETF info delivered straight to your inbox? Zacks’ free Fund Newsletter will brief you on top news and analysis, as well as top-performing ETFs, each week.Get it free >> Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days.Click to get this free reportPIMCO 25+ Year Zero Coupon U.S. Treasury Index ETF (ZROZ): ETF Research ReportsInvesco CurrencyShares Japanese Yen Trust (FXY): ETF Research ReportsSPDR Gold Shares (GLD): ETF Research ReportsiShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF (TLT): ETF Research ReportsVanguard Extended Duration Treasury ETF (EDV): ETF Research ReportsiShares Gold Trust (IAU): ETF Research ReportsUtilities Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLU): ETF Research ReportsTo read this article on Zacks.com click here.Zacks Investment ResearchWant the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report
What Investors Should Know About Global Payments Inc.'s (NYSE:GPN) Financial Strength Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! The size of Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN), a US$25b large-cap, often attracts investors seeking a reliable investment in the stock market. One reason being its ‘too big to fail’ aura which gives it the appearance of a strong and stable investment. But, the key to extending previous success is in the health of the company’s financials. Today we will look at Global Payments’s financial liquidity and debt levels, which are strong indicators for whether the company can weather economic downturns or fund strategic acquisitions for future growth. Remember this is a very top-level look that focuses exclusively on financial health, so I recommend a deeper analysisinto GPN here. View our latest analysis for Global Payments Over the past year, GPN has ramped up its debt from US$4.7b to US$6.2b , which accounts for long term debt. With this increase in debt, the current cash and short-term investment levels stands at US$1.3b to keep the business going. On top of this, GPN has generated US$1.1b in operating cash flow in the last twelve months, leading to an operating cash to total debt ratio of 17%, indicating that GPN’s current level of operating cash is not high enough to cover debt. Looking at GPN’s US$4.5b in current liabilities, it seems that the business has maintained a safe level of current assets to meet its obligations, with the current ratio last standing at 1.03x. The current ratio is calculated by dividing current assets by current liabilities. Generally, for IT companies, this is a reasonable ratio since there is a bit of a cash buffer without leaving too much capital in a low-return environment. With total debt exceeding equities, Global Payments is considered a highly levered company. This is not unusual for large-caps since debt tends to be less expensive than equity because interest payments are tax deductible. Accordingly, large companies often have an advantage over small-caps through lower cost of capital due to cheaper financing. No matter how high the company’s debt, if it can easily cover the interest payments, it’s considered to be efficient with its use of excess leverage. Net interest should be covered by earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) by at least three times to be safe. For GPN, the ratio of 4.32x suggests that interest is appropriately covered. It is considered a responsible and reassuring practice to maintain high interest coverage, which makes GPN and other large-cap investments thought to be safe. GPN’s cash flow coverage indicates it could improve its operating efficiency in order to meet demand for debt repayments should unforeseen events arise. Though, the company exhibits an ability to meet its near-term obligations, which isn't a big surprise for a large-cap. This is only a rough assessment of financial health, and I'm sure GPN has company-specific issues impacting its capital structure decisions. You should continue to research Global Payments to get a better picture of the stock by looking at: 1. Future Outlook: What are well-informed industry analysts predicting for GPN’s future growth? Take a look at ourfree research report of analyst consensusfor GPN’s outlook. 2. Valuation: What is GPN worth today? Is the stock undervalued, even when its growth outlook is factored into its intrinsic value? Theintrinsic value infographic in our free research reporthelps visualize whether GPN is currently mispriced by the market. 3. Other High-Performing Stocks: Are there other stocks that provide better prospects with proven track records? Explore ourfree list of these great stocks here. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Bill Gates reveals his greatest mistake During a "fireside chat" with the venture capital firm Village Global, Bill Gates got extremely candid about what he considers his "greatest mistake ever" while running Microsoft. Apparently, Gates regrets letting Google become the dominant non-Apple mobile operating system. He explained that, at the time, the market had room for just one Apple alternative, and Microsoft should have been poised to produce that system. However, Gates said he engaged in "mismanagement," that led to Microsoft not competing hard enough, and letting Google "win." "In the software world, particularly for platforms, these are winner-take-all markets," Gates said. "So the greatest mistake ever is whatever mismanagement I engaged in that caused Microsoft not to be what Android is. That is, Android is the standard non-Apple phone platform. That was a natural thing for Microsoft to win."Read more... More aboutAndroid,Microsoft,Bill Gates,Windows 10, andTech
Here's Why I Think PacWest Bancorp (NASDAQ:PACW) Might Deserve Your Attention Today Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! Like a puppy chasing its tail, some new investors often chase 'the next big thing', even if that means buying 'story stocks' without revenue, let alone profit. But as Warren Buffett has mused, 'If you've been playing poker for half an hour and you still don't know who the patsy is, you're the patsy.' When they buy such story stocks, investors are all too often the patsy. In the age of tech-stock blue-sky investing, my choice may seem old fashioned; I still prefer profitable companies likePacWest Bancorp(NASDAQ:PACW). Now, I'm not saying that the stock is necessarily undervalued today; but I can't shake an appreciation for the profitability of the business itself. In comparison, loss making companies act like a sponge for capital - but unlike such a sponge they do not always produce something when squeezed. See our latest analysis for PacWest Bancorp As one of my mentors once told me, share price follows earnings per share (EPS). It's no surprise, then, that I like to invest in companies with EPS growth. PacWest Bancorp managed to grow EPS by 9.5% per year, over three years. That growth rate is fairly good, assuming the company can keep it up. I like to see top-line growth as an indication that growth is sustainable, and I look for a high earnings before interest and taxation (EBIT) margin to point to a competitive moat (though some companies with low margins also have moats). Not all of PacWest Bancorp's revenue this year is revenuefrom operations, so keep in mind the revenue and margin numbers I've used might not be the best representation of the underlying business. While we note PacWest Bancorp's EBIT margins were flat over the last year, revenue grew by a solid 4.1% to US$1.1b. That's a real positive. In the chart below, you can see how the company has grown earnings, and revenue, over time. To see the actual numbers, click on the chart. In investing, as in life, the future matters more than the past. So why not check out thisfreeinteractive visualization of PacWest Bancorp'sforecastprofits? Like the kids in the streets standing up for their beliefs, insider share purchases give me reason to believe in a brighter future. Because oftentimes, the purchase of stock is a sign that the buyer views it as undervalued. However, insiders are sometimes wrong, and we don't know the exact thinking behind their acquisitions. The good news is that PacWest Bancorp insiders spent a whopping US$1.7m on stock in just one year, and I didn't see any selling. And so I find myself almost expectant, and certainly hopeful, that this large outlay signals prescient optimism for the business. It is also worth noting that it was President Matthew Wagner who made the biggest single purchase, worth US$816k, paying US$39.01 per share. Along with the insider buying, another encouraging sign for PacWest Bancorp is that insiders, as a group, have a considerable shareholding. With a whopping US$72m worth of shares as a group, insiders have plenty riding on the company's success. This should keep them focused on creating long term value for shareholders. One positive for PacWest Bancorp is that it is growing EPS. That's nice to see. On top of that, we've seen insiders buying shareseven though they already own plenty. That makes the company a prime candidate for my watchlist - and arguably a research priority. While we've looked at the quality of the earnings, we haven't yet done any work to value the stock. So if you like to buy cheap, you may want tocheck if PacWest Bancorp is trading on a high P/E or a low P/E, relative to its industry. As a growth investor I do like to see insider buying. But PacWest Bancorp isn't the only one. You can see aa free list of them here. Please note the insider transactions discussed in this article refer to reportable transactions in the relevant jurisdiction We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
These Mistakes Could Shrink Your Social Security Benefits for Life Roughly 44 million seniors depend onSocial Securityas a major source of retirement income, and chances are, you'll do the same once your career comes to a close. But if you're not careful, you could wind up slashing your Social Security benefits and resigning yourself to a lifetime of less income than you'd otherwise be granted. Here are a few blunders that could result in years of lowered benefits. Your Social Security benefits are based on your 35 highest-paid years of wages, and while you're allowed to start collecting them as early as age 62, filing beforefull retirement agewill slash your benefits, and most likely for life. Full retirement age is a function of your year of birth, as follows: Year of Birth Full Retirement Age 1943-1954 66 1955 66 and 2 months 1956 66 and 4 months 1957 66 and 6 months 1958 66 and 8 months 1959 66 and 10 months 1960 and after 67 Data source: Social Security Administration. Surprisingly, a 2017 Fidelity survey found that an overwhelming majority of Americans --74%-- could not identify their full retirement age. If you're one of them, consult the table above and commit that age to memory so that you're able to make an informed decision about when to file for benefits. Each year, workers who pay Social Security taxes on their wages receive an earnings statement from the Social Security Administration (SSA) listing their income and estimating their retirement benefits based on data collected up until that point. If you're at least 60, you'll get your earnings statement in the mail. Otherwise, you'll need tocreate an accounton the SSA's website to access those statements. Either way, be sure to review your statements year after year, and immediately report errors that work against you. For example, if the SSA has less income on record than what you actually earned in a given year, it could impact your benefits calculation, leaving you with lower monthly payments. It's a good idea to retain documents like pay stubs, W-2s, and tax returns in case you ever need to argue your case with the SSA. If you're not a fan of physical clutter, scan these documents and store them electronically so that they're available when you need them. If your wages remain stagnant for too long, it won't just impact your day-to-day finances and quality of life; it could also hurt you in retirement. The less money you earn at your job, the lower your Social Security benefits will be once you're ready to claim them. That's why it pays tofight for raisesthroughout your career. Your best bet in this regard is often to research salary data, see how your earnings stack up, and present any shortfalls to your employer. For example, if the average salary for your job title is $65,000, and you've been at $55,000 for the past three years, it pays to put that data in front of someone (such as your manager) who's in a position to boost your wages. At the same time, don't hesitate to talk up the ways you add value to your company. You might, for example, be one of several accountants on staff, but if you're the person who's consistently called upon to solve complex problems or log in after hours when emergencies strike, that point alone could result in a higher paycheck. The more money you get from Social Security, the less financial stress you'll have in retirement. Avoid these mistakes to prevent your benefits from being needlessly slashed. More From The Motley Fool • 10 Best Stocks to Buy Today • The $16,728 Social Security Bonus You Cannot Afford to Miss • 20 of the Top Stocks to Buy (Including the Two Every Investor Should Own) • What Is an ETF? • 5 Recession-Proof Stocks • How to Beat the Market The Motley Fool has adisclosure policy.
US STOCKS-Wall St flat as healthcare losses limit tech gains (For a live blog on the U.S. stock market, click or type LIVE/ in a news window.) * Healthcare hit by losses in Celgene, Bristol-Myers * Energy stocks track oil slump * Caesars jumps as Eldorado Resorts to buy co * United Technologies up on Cowen upgrade * Dow up 0.17%, S&P flat, Nasdaq off 0.04% (Updates to early afternoon) By Shreyashi Sanyal June 24 (Reuters) - Wall Street's main indexes were flat on Monday, as losses in healthcare stocks offset gains in the technology sector, while investors awaited a high-stakes meeting between U.S. and Chinese leaders at the G20 summit later this week. Optimism over a revival in trade talks between the two largest economies and hopes that the Federal Reserve would cut interest rates to battle the impact of a trade war on economic growth helped push the S&P 500 index to a record high on Friday. The benchmark index is up 7.2% so far in June and is on track to recoup its losses from the previous month. Presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping are expected to meet at the G20 summit on June 28-29 in Japan. Although analysts are not expecting the two sides to come to a meaningful agreement, any signs of a de-escalation could boost investor sentiment. The trade-sensitive industrial sector edged 0.18% higher. But the biggest boost to the markets came from the technology sector, which rose 0.43%. "Since the trade war began more than 12 months ago, economically-sensitive parts of the global equity markets have underperformed," said Brian Koble, chief investment officer at Hefren-Tillotson, a wealth management company in Pittsburgh. "Investors could be well-rewarded should there be progress toward a trade deal." Countering gains, the healthcare sector dropped 0.41%, weighed down by a 5% decline in shares of Celgene Corp and a 7% fall in those of Bristol-Myers Squibb Co . Bristol-Myers said its planned $74 billion deal to buy drugmaker Celgene was expected to close at the end of 2019 or beginning 2020, compared with its earlier expectations of closing the deal in the third quarter. The energy sector dropped 0.73%, the most among the 11 major S&P sectors, as oil prices fell 1% on demand concerns and signs of easing tensions between the United States and Iran. At 12:55 p.m. ET the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 44.64 points, or 0.17%, at 26,763.77 and the S&P 500 was up 0.76 points, or 0.03%, at 2,951.22. The Nasdaq Composite was down 3.50 points, or 0.04%, at 8,028.21. The Nasdaq Biotechnology index fell 1.50%. Shares of casino operator Caesars Entertainment Corp jumped 15.7% after rival Eldorado Resorts Inc said it had agreed to buy the company for $8.5 billion. Shares of Eldorado fell 11.4%. United Technologies Corp gained 1.4% after Cowen & Co upgraded the building and aerospace supplier to "outperform" from "market perform". Declining issues outnumbered advancers for a 1.12-to-1 ratio on the NYSE and for a 1.55-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq. The S&P index recorded 35 new 52-week highs and four new lows, while the Nasdaq recorded 41 new highs and 57 new lows. (Reporting by Shreyashi Sanyal and Aparajita Saxena in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D'Silva)
CarMax Races Back to Growth Investors had been pushing the stock ofCarMax(NYSE: KMX)higher this year on expectations that the used-car retailer might be on the cusp of an operating rebound. The company didn't disappoint in its first quarterly report of fiscal 2019: It said on Friday that sales growth had accelerated sharply over the last few months. Other factors contributing to its strong results included favorable lending trends and restrained cost growth. The company's aggressive shift toward online selling, meanwhile, continued to show promise. Let's look at CarMax's latest earnings trends. Image source: Getty Images. The company endured falling customer traffic in 2018, which contributed to a second straight year of slowing sales growth. Comps were flat last year after rising by 2% in 2017 and by more than 4% in 2016. The good news is that CEO Bill Nash and his team said trendsbegan improving in late 2018, and this latest report gave investors evidence of the rebound strengthening. Revenue growth shot up to 10%, in fact, to mark CarMax's fastest expansion rate in more than a year. Part of this boost came from a shift in the timing of tax refunds, but the increase also points to firming market-share trends. The retailer returned to customer traffic growth this quarter while also doing a better job at turning more of those browsers into used-car buyers. The earnings report contained several encouraging signs that management is on the right track with improving its finances. Gross profit per automobile held steady on both the used and wholesale sides of the enterprise. Selling expenses dipped slightly on that basis, too, thanks to restrained growth in wages and advertising. These gains combined to help net profit rise 12%, and that boost was amplified by stock-repurchase spending so that earnings per share jumped nearly 20%. "CarMax had an outstanding first quarter," Nash said in a press release to investors, citing "strong growth in sales, gross profit, and earnings." The improving customer traffic trends bode well for the more than 200 stores in the comps base in 2019. These locations aren't likely to maintain that double-digit growth for the full year but appear set to materially improve on last year's flat result. Revenue will also be supported by an expected 14 new lot launches over the next 12 months, 9 of which are planned in major metropolitan markets. And management continues to see multichannel selling as the key to its long-term growth. To that end, it added a fully online car-buying process to most of its Florida markets this past quarter following continued strong demand in its initial test market, Atlanta. Executives believe the combination of their national store network with a robust online shopping capability will be hard for any used-car rival to match. "No other company is in a better position to deliver this omnichannel experience efficiently and profitably," Nash said. If that prediction plays out, CarMax has a shot at significantly boosting its market share in the used-car industry, which currently sits at just above 4%. More From The Motley Fool • 10 Best Stocks to Buy Today • The $16,728 Social Security Bonus You Cannot Afford to Miss • 20 of the Top Stocks to Buy (Including the Two Every Investor Should Own) • What Is an ETF? • 5 Recession-Proof Stocks • How to Beat the Market Demitrios Kalogeropouloshas no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends CarMax. The Motley Fool has adisclosure policy.
Dry States: The Decline of Alcohol in the U.S. This article wasfirst published by MyWallSt. There are certain countries that are defined, rightly or wrongly, by their most popular national beverage. In Ireland, barely a tourist passes through that doesn't sample a pint of Guinness. In France, there's champagne and, of course, wine — varieties of which echo across much of southern Europe in countries like Spain and Italy. Russia equates to vodka in the minds of many, Mexico with tequila, while over in Japan, sake forms part of the national experience for visitors. In these blunt terms, America is often associated with good old beer. Miller, Coors, Rolling Rock, Budweiser — there are a host of iconic beer brands that are deeply ingrained in the cultural image of the U.S. across TV, cinema, and music. That all looks like it's about to change, however. Image Source: Unsplash As discussed in anepisode of the Stock Club podcast, new data is emerging which signals that Americans are increasingly turning their backs on alcohol. The IWSR, an industry tracker for the drinks market, reported that total U.S. alcohol volumes dropped by 0.8% in 2018 — a slightly steeper decline than the 0.7% drop in 2017 and the third straight year of overall decline. Much of this fall is attributed to beer, the worst hit category of all alcoholic beverages. Beer sales volumes were down 1.5% in 2018 compared with a 1.1% decline in 2017. Elsewhere, growth in spirits and wine sales fell too, with wine growing by just 0.4% — down from 1% growth the year before — and spirits climbing 1.9% compared with 2.2% in 2017. These figures might seem marginal, but they are representative of a larger trend of declining alcohol consumption across the U.S. The primary reason for this is that medical research has helped us to recognize how many common activities are detrimental to our health —alcohol consumption included. A similar shift affected the tobacco industry previously, resulting in a complete sea change in cultural perception over the course of a few decades. According to recent data by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, an estimated 14% of adults in the US (34.3 million people) smoked cigarettes in 2017. This record low represents a 67% decline from the rates of smoking in 1965 when the National Health Interview Survey estimated that about 42.4% of adults smoked. Alcohol hasn't experienced such a drastic decline as tobacco because its negative effects have been countered somewhat by the belief that there were some positives too. We've all heard the stories that a glass of red wine a week can help the heart, and indeed most governments and health bodies issue alcohol consumption guidelines which indicate that, if kept within certain bounds of moderation, alcohol consumption is quite safe and even beneficial. This notion has comeunder increasing attacklately, however, as science advances and scrutiny grows. Indeed, the cancer risks associated with alcohol consumption are becoming more recognized, with the UK Chief Medical Officer Sally Davies saying in an interview on national television, "There is no safe level of drinking." Even still, it's unlikely that alcohol consumption will ever be completely eradicated, at least not in our lifetime. It is probable that people will begin to take a much more tempered and conservative approach toward consumption in the future though, with the data from the U.S. signaling the beginning of this. So how will major alcohol producers react to such a changing landscape? One notable way that alcohol companies are tackling the trend of falling alcohol consumption is a strategy called 'premiumization'. Premiumization is a 'less-but-better' approach. Instead of focusing entirely on selling high volumes of standard beer and wines, companies have shifted to selling more high-margin products — specifically premium-label spirits— at lower volumes and increased prices. Quite often, these premium beverages also contain a lower level of alcohol too.Diageo(NYSE: DEO), for example, recently launched a lower-alcohol, botanical version of Ketel One vodka, which it said has 25% fewer calories than the regular vodka and an alcohol content level of 30% compared to 40% in regular Ketel One. Diageo CEO Ivan Menezes said last year that adults opting for lower alcohol options was "an important trend over the next many years" and that the company was "putting a lot of focus behind it." Diageo also recently bought the Casamigos tequila brand founded by actor George Clooney, a bottle of which can retail between $40 to $120. This notion of premiumization extends to craft beers too and the seasonal brews that companies like theBoston Beer Company(NYSE: SAM)are renowned for. With this, they put a focus on the consumer enjoying the tasting experience rather than the act of drinking, albeit for a higher price. The ISWR report says "premiumization remains one of the single largest market drivers across most developed economies and across almost all product categories." Brown Forman(NYSE: BF.B)owns some of the world's most recognizable premium whiskey brands in Jack Daniels and Woodford Reserve. Special editions of these brands — for example, thisFrank Sinatra version of Jack Daniels— allow the company to sell its already well-known brands for a higher markup. Like tobacco and alcohol, the sugar industry is also experiencing health-related challenges. Medical research over the past few years has shown up sugar as an ingredient that has essentially no health benefits to the consumer, resulting in a worldwide drop in the sales of sugary drinks. However, companies likeCoca-Cola(NYSE: KO),Pepsi(NASDAQ: PEP), orMonster Energy(NASDAQ: MNST)haven't just rolled over and died — they've started broadening their portfolios to include non-sugar products. Brewers have taken a similar approach to nonalcoholic drinks. For example,Anheuser-Busch(NYSE: BUD)— the owners of all-American brands like Budweiser and Rolling Rock — has recently created a new global position, 'Head of Nonalcoholic Beverages', to lead its efforts to diversify into nonalcoholic drinks. This segment includes energy drinks and non-alcoholic beers and already makes up more than 10% of the companies brewer's volumes. Diageo is also racing to expand in the non-alcoholic category through its venture arm Distill Ventures. It has already invested in alcohol-free gin brand Seedlip and has made a number of undisclosed investments targeting alcohol-free beverages. Of course, there's more than one way to self-medicate. With its recent legalization in Canada and its gradual acceptance across the U.S. (10 states and counting), the burgeoning marijuana industry could very likely be the future way that the ordinary citizen uses substances to relax. Before you jump on the trend, however, it's important to remember that the sale, supply, and consumption of cannabis is still illegal at a federal level in the U.S., and this doesn't look likely to change significantly any time over the next few years. But as a long-term bet, many larger companies — brewers included — are taking significant stakes in small marijuana and CBD (cannabidiol) producers as a means of keeping abreast of this growing trend. Constellation Brands(NYSE: STZ)made a $4 billion investment into the Canadian cannabis growerCanopy Growth(NYSE: CGC)last year, meaning that they have a significant stake in the world's largest cannabis company. Future plans that the companies have outlined include crossovers between products like cannabis-infused beverages and sleep aids. Similarly,Molson Coors(NYSE: TAP)has partnered with the Canadian cannabis producer,HEXO(NYSEMKT: HEXO)(TSX: HEXO), to create a joint partnership that will "pursue opportunities to develop non-alcoholic, cannabis-infused beverages for the Canadian market." With the branding expertise and distribution channels already in place, we can expect to see many of today's major brewers become the major growers and suppliers in tomorrow's global cannabis industry. Finally, it's important to acknowledge that, in other parts of the world, alcohol consumption is still growing. With a population of almost 1.4 billion and a rapidly expanding middle-class, China might seem like the golden ticket for tech companies, but alcohol consumption is also predicted to continue growing in China through 2020. This means that China will become the primary market for many international liquor companies going forward. In the first half of 2018, for example, beer sales in China rose 34% year-on-year to hit $84 million. Sales of other types of alcohol including canned cocktails, whiskey, and wines are also growing massively in the country, with drinking culture — toasting in particular — a very important and pervasive social ritual in the country. From an American brewer perspective, China represents a lucrative future in alcohol sales, though potential tariffs from a trade war between the countries would severely damage this. But is this the end of alcohol in the U.S.? It's very unlikely, but just as tobacco consumption is falling and related activities like vaping are growing, companies involved in the production and selling of alcohol need to adapt quickly and pre-empt major shifts in consumer tastes. It's those that can adapt best which will prosper. It might be no longer feasible for brewers to push out the same old lines of beers, wines, and spirits, but there is ample opportunity for companies willing to innovate and experiment with the experience of alcohol consumption. Image Source: MyWallSt MyWallSt operates a full disclosure policy. MyWallSt staff hold long positions in Coca-Cola and Constellation Brands. Read ourfull disclosure policy here. The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends Boston Beer and Monster Beverage. The Motley Fool owns shares of Molson Coors Brewing. The Motley Fool recommends Anheuser-Busch InBev NV, Constellation Brands, Diageo, HEXO., and HEXO. The Motley Fool has adisclosure policy.
Karlie Kloss Celebrates Her Wedding With a Star-Studded Prairie Party in Wyoming The celebrating doesnt stop for Karlie Kloss and Joshua Kushner! They said I do for a second time this past weekend at the luxurious Brush Creek Ranch in Wyoming. The supermodel and founder of Kode with Klossy , a coding camp for girls, and the venture capitalist toasted their union with a group of close friends including Orlando Bloom, Katy Perry, Diane von Furstenberg, Mila Kunis, and Dasha Zhukova. In photos that have emerged from the weekend on Instagram, the bride is wearing an off-the-shoulder white Jonathan Simkhai dress (she wore two!) with lace detailing. Later that evening, she and Kushner are seen being hoisted in the air on chairs during the traditional Horah dance to Hava Nagila. Throughout the weekend, there was RTVing, line dancing, horseback riding, and other party on the prairie-themed events and activities for their western wedding. Kloss converted to Judaism last June, and the two first tied the knot in upstate New York in October 2018. To that ceremony, Kloss wore a custom Dior dress, and the couple said their vows in front of 80 friends and family in an intimate Jewish service. Afterward, they jetted off to a honeymoon in South Africa. The couple has been together since 2012, though they tend to stay out of the spotlight. They announced their engagement last July via Instagram . I love you more than I have words to express, Kloss wrote with a ring emoji. Josh, youre my best friend and my soulmate. I cant wait for forever together. Yes a million times over. See the videos. Originally Appeared on Vogue
Beleave Receives Green Light for Building Permit as Hamilton Phase 2 Expansion Moves Forward Beleave will add almost 100,000 sq. ft.for cannabis extraction, processing, and cultivation. Phase 2 expects to generate approximately $50 million in annualized revenue with an average gross profit margin of 60 percent once fully operational. Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - June 24, 2019) - Beleave Inc. (CSE: BE) (OTCQX: BLEVF) ("Beleave" or the "Company") is pleased to announce today that it has received the required building permit from the City of Hamilton for its Hamilton Phase 2 expansion. Work on Phase 2 is now underway, with construction teams already on site. The Phase 2 expansion has long been in development and represents an important moment in the Beleave story. The newly-announced building permit marks the final approval necessary to move the project forward. Last month, the Company received another approval for the project to progress at a public meeting of the Hamilton City Council. Construction of the 91,700 sq. ft. Phase 2 expansion project has begun with Beleave retaining the services of Havecon Horticultural Projects. Havecon, a leading developer of horticultural and agricultural construction and development, will manage and complete the work on site. Phase 2 will result in an additional 5,700 sq. ft. of indoor grow space and 55,000 sq. ft. of greenhouse space which would have an expected annual yield of 8,650 kilograms per year. "This expansion is a major breakthrough for Beleave and possibly one of the most important for us as we continue to execute on our strategy. This expansion, now fully greenlit, is a pivotal part of our business plan to take Beleave into the future," said Beleave CEO, Bill Panagiotakopoulos. "This marks the latest in a series of important and positive changes for our company recently. I extend my congratulations to everyone on the team who worked hard to make this possible." Beleave's Hamilton facility is a state-of-the-art hub for high-efficiency extraction, processing, and cultivation of cannabis and cannabis-derived products. The newly-approved expansion is expected to provide the ability to significantly increase current operations, distribution, and sales beyond what they are today. The construction plan has been notionally approved by Health Canada, subject to confirmation that the building has been completed, as a licensed growing facility. The work on site is expected to take roughly four months before the greenhouse is fully operational. Phase 2 includes 29,500 sq. ft. allocated to office, storage, and processing which will allow the Company to repurpose spaces in the existing facility for other uses. Beleave thanks the Hamilton City Council for their continued cooperation and support through the approval processes and looks forward to an ongoing and productive relationship with the city and the community as a whole. ABOUT BELEAVE INC. Beleave is an ISO certified, Canadian cannabis company headquartered in the Greater Toronto Area that cultivates high-quality cannabis flower, oil and extracts for medical and recreational markets. Beleave is fully-licenced to cultivate and sell medical and recreational cannabis and is leading the way through research partnerships with universities to develop pharma-grade extracts and derivatives. Beleave is developing new product lines, including cannabis-infused products, oils, vape pens, and other novel cannabis delivery methods for 2019. Beleave has developed a network of medical cannabis clinics in Ontario and Quebec under the Medi-Green banner. Through its majority ownership of Procannmed S.A.S., Beleave is fully licensed to cultivate, produce, and extract medical cannabis in Colombia positioning it to capitalize on exports and the expanding Latin American market. The Company has partnered with Canymed GmbH to supply the German market with medical cannabis. Investor Relations Contact:Kevin KeaganInterim Chief Financial OfficerPhone : 1 (647) 449 - 7352Email :kkeagan@beleave.com Forward-Looking Statements This news release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities law ("forward-looking statements"). The use of any of the words "plan", "anticipate", "continue", "estimate", "expect", "may", "will", "project", "should", "believe" and other similar words, or statements that certain events or conditions "may" or "will" occur are intended to identify forward-looking information. These statements are only predictions. Although the Company believes that the expectations and assumptions on which the forward-looking information is based are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on the forward-looking information because the Company can give no assurance that they will prove to be correct. Since forward-looking information addresses future events and conditions, by its very nature it involves inherent risks and uncertainties. This information speaks only as of the date of this news release. Actual results could differ materially from those currently anticipated due to a number of factors and risks including various risk factors discussed in the Company's disclosure documents, which can be found under the Company's profile onwww.sedar.com. To view the source version of this press release, please visithttps://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/45831
Police officer stole £65 from dead man's wallet and then tried to cover it up Wallet with cash and credit cards A serving police officer who stole £65 from a dead man’s wallet has been jailed for 15 months for trying to cover up the theft. Paul Wallace, 47, a police constable with Humberside Police, stole the money after being given the role of liaison officer to the family of the man, who had died suddenly in June 2015. He later tried to cover up the theft by planting £65 in the police property store, amending his pocket notebook and duping another officer to find the money after a complaint was made by the deceased man’s partner. Wallace, of Willowdale, Hull, pleaded guilty to perverting the course of justice at an earlier hearing and was sentenced at Grimsby Crown Court. Jonathan Sandiford, prosecuting, told the court that Wallace attended the sudden accidental death of Paul Rutter in Leconfield, East Yorkshire, in June 2015 and was assigned as family liaison officer. A general view of Grimsby Crown Court, Grimsby. He helped other officers search the property and took possession of a number of items, including Mr Rutter’s brown wallet, containing £65, which was later logged and placed in the property store at Clough Road police station in a numbered evidence bag. In the days following Mr Rutter’s death, Wallace returned the wallet to his partner, who complained to the police professional standards branch when she found it empty. The next month, Wallace was informed by email that a complaint had been made and withdrew £50 from a cash machine near the police station within half an hour of reading the message. He then placed the cash into an evidence bag, marked with the same exhibit number as the wallet, and put the bag into the property store before calling another officer to help him search for the missing money, which was found among other evidence bags and stationery. Read more from Yahoo News UK: John Prescott in hospital after suffering stroke Woman bailed after ‘trying to open plane door’ mid-air Firefighters smash window to rescue baby trapped in hot car Wallace amended his police pocket notebook by adding notes about the money being separated from the wallet. Story continues Mr Sandiford said the defendant’s actions had affected Mr Rutter’s partner by making her relive the events surrounding his death and had shattered her faith and trust in the police and other people. Judge John Thackray QC told Wallace: “A prison sentence is nearly always required to mark the affront to our justice system when a person has committed the offence of perverting the course of justice. When committed by a police officer, the offence is particularly serious.” Wallace, wearing glasses, a dark grey shirt and black trousers, showed no emotion as he was sentenced and led from the dock in handcuffs. A count of theft in respect of the stolen money was ordered to lie on file after it was accepted that it was incorporated into the more serious perverting the course of justice charge. Miranda Biddle, regional director for the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC), said: “Police officers are expected to display high levels of honesty and integrity so, when allegations are made that undermine those expectations, it is vital that they are fully investigated.” Watch the latest videos from Yahoo UK
Florida woman charged after giving husband's guns to police ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — A Florida woman's effort to protect herself from domestic violence has become a flashpoint in the debate over gun rights and victims' safety. Courtney Irby gave her estranged husband's guns to police after he was charged with domestic violence-aggravated battery, only to find herself arrested for theft. Now a Florida lawmaker and gun safety advocates are championing her cause, asking a state attorney on Monday drop the charges, while gun rights advocates want her prosecuted. Courtney Irby spent six days in jail on charges of armed burglary and grand theft after she retrieved the assault rifle and handgun from her husband's apartment and gave them to the Lakeland Police. Joseph Irby was spending one day in jail at the time, accused of ramming into her car after a June 14 divorce hearing. After her husband's arrest, Courtney Irby petitioned for a temporary injunction for protection, which was granted. Federal law prohibits people under a domestic violence restraining order from possessing guns, but it's up to local law enforcement to enforce it, according to the Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence. Courtney Irby told police that she believed he wouldn't turn in his guns himself, so she took action. According to her arrest report, she said she entered her husband's apartment through a locked door without his permission and took the guns to a police station. "So you're telling me you committed an armed burglary?" the officer asked her. "Yes, I am but he wasn't going to turn them in so I am doing it," the officer said she responded. Democratic State Rep. Anna Eskamani of Orlando tweeted that it's "ridiculous" to arrest a woman in this kind of situation. She sent a letter Monday to State Attorney Brian Haas asking that Irby not be prosecuted. She cited research showing the presence of a gun in a domestic violence situation makes it five times more likely a woman will be murdered. "Ms. Irby was seeking help from the Lakeland Police Department and taking action to protect herself and her children," Eskamani wrote. "Prosecuting Ms. Irby sets a scary precedent that if someone seeks help to escape abuse, they will be punished for it." Story continues While federal law prohibits people under domestic violence restraining orders and convicted of domestic violence from possessing guns, local law enforcement and prosecutors don't have the tools they need to enforce those restrictions, Eskamani said in her letter to the state attorney. "These loopholes are major contributors to the deadly relationship between domestic violence and firearms," Eskamani said. Joseph Irby's charges involve an altercation that began with a shouting match after the divorce hearing. According to his arrest report, they both got into their cars and then he used his vehicle to strike her back bumper several times, running her off the road. Courtney Irby told a responding officer that "she feared for her life," his arrest report said. As Joseph Irby was being placed into a patrol car, he called her "a man hater," the arrest report said. In requesting that she be released on bond, Courtney Irby's attorney argued that she didn't commit theft since she didn't take the guns for her personal use and didn't benefit by taking them. Spokesmen for the Lakeland Police Department and the State Attorney's Office didn't immediately return requests for comment on Monday. Gun rights advocates have been tweeting in favor of prosecution and trolling Rep. Eskamani's Twitter account, while Courtney Irby's supporters launched a fundraising campaign for her legal fees. She's also getting support from Fred Guttenberg, whose daughter was killed in the Parkland, Florida school shooting. Guttenberg tweeted that Irby was "an abused woman trying to protect herself from an abusive husband."
AMD Option Trader Betting The Rally Will Resume Advanced Micro Devices, Inc (NASDAQ: AMD ) shares are down about 0.6% in the past week, but at least one large option trader is betting on an AMD bounce in the near future. The Trade On Monday morning, Benzinga Pro subscribers received an option alert related to three unusually large AMD put sales. At 8:54 a.m., a trader sold 599 AMD put options at a $26 strike price that expire on August 16. The calls were sold at the bid price at $1.271 and represent a $76,132 bullish bet. Prior to the large trade, the open interest for the August 16 AMD $26 puts was only 512 contracts. At 8:56 a.m., a trader sold 1,101 AMD put options at a $27 strike price that expire on August 16. The puts were sold at the bid price at $1.651 and represent a $181,775 bullish bet. Prior to the large trade, the open interest for the August 16 AMD $27 puts was only 791 contracts. Finally, less than a minute later, a trader sold 1,352 AMD put options at a $28 strike price that expire on August 16. The puts were sold at the bid price at $2.094 and represent a $283,108 bullish bet. Prior to the large trade, the open interest for the August 16 AMD $28 puts was only 698 contracts. Even traders that focus exclusively on stocks watch the options market closely to gain insight into what options traders may be thinking. Due to the relative complexity of options trading, options traders are often seen as more advanced than the typical stock trader. Many of these options traders are institutions or wealthy individuals that may have a unique take on a company. Expectations Too Low? The bullish trading in AMD comes ahead of President Donald Trump’s meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping at this week’s G-20 summit. AMD derives more than 25% of its total revenue from China sales. In addition to trade war risks, the trader selling August puts may be anticipating an earnings beat from AMD when it reports on July 24. Expectations for chip makers are extremely low given the weak semiconductor market and disappointing results and guidance from Broadcom Inc (NASDAQ: AVGO ) earlier this month . Story continues Unfortunately, it’s impossible to be 100% certain if an option trade is a hedge or not. Stockholders often use call options to hedge against a larger bearish stock position. Given the AMD option trades’ relatively small size, it’s unlikely to be a hedge in this case. AMD shares traded around $29.26 at time of publication. Related Links: Large Option Trader Dumped PG&E Puts Minutes Before Restructuring Report How To Read And Trade An Options Alert See more from Benzinga Oppenheimer Bullish On Nvidia, Cautious On AMD, Intel Bullish Semiconductor Options Trades Suggest Trade War Fears Might Be Overblown Rosenblatt: AMD Will Be 'Much Bigger Player In High-End GPU Gaming' © 2019 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
Don't Sell Acushnet Holdings Corp. (NYSE:GOLF) Before You Read This Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! This article is written for those who want to get better at using price to earnings ratios (P/E ratios). We'll look at Acushnet Holdings Corp.'s (NYSE:GOLF) P/E ratio and reflect on what it tells us about the company's share price.Acushnet Holdings has a P/E ratio of 21.76, based on the last twelve months. In other words, at today's prices, investors are paying $21.76 for every $1 in prior year profit. Check out our latest analysis for Acushnet Holdings Theformula for price to earningsis: Price to Earnings Ratio = Share Price ÷ Earnings per Share (EPS) Or for Acushnet Holdings: P/E of 21.76 = $27.03 ÷ $1.24 (Based on the trailing twelve months to March 2019.) A higher P/E ratio means that buyers have to paya higher pricefor each $1 the company has earned over the last year. That is not a good or a bad thingper se, but a high P/E does imply buyers are optimistic about the future. P/E ratios primarily reflect market expectations around earnings growth rates. When earnings grow, the 'E' increases, over time. That means even if the current P/E is high, it will reduce over time if the share price stays flat. So while a stock may look expensive based on past earnings, it could be cheap based on future earnings. Acushnet Holdings shrunk earnings per share by 9.3% last year. But over the longer term (5 years) earnings per share have increased by 45%. One good way to get a quick read on what market participants expect of a company is to look at its P/E ratio. You can see in the image below that the average P/E (19.1) for companies in the leisure industry is lower than Acushnet Holdings's P/E. Its relatively high P/E ratio indicates that Acushnet Holdings shareholders think it will perform better than other companies in its industry classification. Shareholders are clearly optimistic, but the future is always uncertain. So investors should always consider the P/E ratio alongside other factors, such aswhether company directors have been buying shares. The 'Price' in P/E reflects the market capitalization of the company. So it won't reflect the advantage of cash, or disadvantage of debt. In theory, a company can lower its future P/E ratio by using cash or debt to invest in growth. Such spending might be good or bad, overall, but the key point here is that you need to look at debt to understand the P/E ratio in context. Acushnet Holdings's net debt is 23% of its market cap. It would probably deserve a higher P/E ratio if it was net cash, since it would have more options for growth. Acushnet Holdings has a P/E of 21.8. That's higher than the average in the US market, which is 17.9. With some debt but no EPS growth last year, the market has high expectations of future profits. When the market is wrong about a stock, it gives savvy investors an opportunity. If the reality for a company is better than it expects, you can make money by buying and holding for the long term. So thisfreevisualization of the analyst consensus on future earningscould help you make theright decisionabout whether to buy, sell, or hold. You might be able to find a better buy than Acushnet Holdings. If you want a selection of possible winners, check out thisfreelist of interesting companies that trade on a P/E below 20 (but have proven they can grow earnings). We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
What does Acushnet Holdings Corp.'s (NYSE:GOLF) Balance Sheet Tell Us About Its Future? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! Small and large cap stocks are widely popular for a variety of reasons, however, mid-cap companies such as Acushnet Holdings Corp. (NYSE:GOLF), with a market cap of US$2.0b, often get neglected by retail investors. However, history shows that overlooked mid-cap companies have performed better on a risk-adjusted manner than the smaller and larger segment of the market. GOLF’s financial liquidity and debt position will be analysed in this article, to get an idea of whether the company can fund opportunities for strategic growth and maintain strength through economic downturns. Note that this information is centred entirely on financial health and is a top-level understanding, so I encourage you to look furtherinto GOLF here. View our latest analysis for Acushnet Holdings GOLF has sustained its debt level by about US$566m over the last 12 months including long-term debt. At this constant level of debt, the current cash and short-term investment levels stands at US$43m to keep the business going. On top of this, GOLF has generated US$161m in operating cash flow over the same time period, resulting in an operating cash to total debt ratio of 28%, signalling that GOLF’s operating cash is sufficient to cover its debt. With current liabilities at US$430m, the company has been able to meet these commitments with a current assets level of US$813m, leading to a 1.89x current account ratio. The current ratio is calculated by dividing current assets by current liabilities. Generally, for Leisure companies, this is a reasonable ratio as there's enough of a cash buffer without holding too much capital in low return investments. With a debt-to-equity ratio of 55%, GOLF can be considered as an above-average leveraged company. This is not unusual for mid-caps as debt tends to be a cheaper and faster source of funding for some businesses. We can test if GOLF’s debt levels are sustainable by measuring interest payments against earnings of a company. Ideally, earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) should cover net interest by at least three times. For GOLF, the ratio of 8.38x suggests that interest is appropriately covered, which means that lenders may be inclined to lend more money to the company, as it is seen as safe in terms of payback. GOLF’s high cash coverage means that, although its debt levels are high, the company is able to utilise its borrowings efficiently in order to generate cash flow. This may mean this is an optimal capital structure for the business, given that it is also meeting its short-term commitment. I admit this is a fairly basic analysis for GOLF's financial health. Other important fundamentals need to be considered alongside. I suggest you continue to research Acushnet Holdings to get a more holistic view of the mid-cap by looking at: 1. Future Outlook: What are well-informed industry analysts predicting for GOLF’s future growth? Take a look at ourfree research report of analyst consensusfor GOLF’s outlook. 2. Valuation: What is GOLF worth today? Is the stock undervalued, even when its growth outlook is factored into its intrinsic value? Theintrinsic value infographic in our free research reporthelps visualize whether GOLF is currently mispriced by the market. 3. Other High-Performing Stocks: Are there other stocks that provide better prospects with proven track records? Explore ourfree list of these great stocks here. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Chrissy Teigen Fires Back at Mom Shamer Over Luna's Nail Polish See Her Hilarious Reply Another day, another witty comeback from Chrissy Teigen . On Saturday, the mom of two shared a video of herself and 3-year-old daughter Luna Simone lounging in their living room, watching Sesame Street , while Luna showed off her newly painted hot-pink toenails. Doing her nails is my knitting. Kid toes kill me!, Teigen, 33, tweeted alongside the cute clip . Most commenters gave the model and cookbook author props for her handiwork, but others jumped in to criticize her for putting nail polish on her daughter. In response to one since-deleted tweet, Teigen simply wrote , There she is. She also retweeted a second now-deleted post and jokingly quipped in reply, presumably about the polish itself, Well I actually had her drink it so jokes on you. Want all the latest pregnancy and birth announcements, plus celebrity mom blogs? Click here to get those and more in the PEOPLE Parents newsletter . Chrissy Teigen/Instagram. Inset: JB Lacroix/WireImage Doing her nails is my knitting. Kid toes kill me! pic.twitter.com/QOE0D5Xwcv christine teigen (@chrissyteigen) June 22, 2019 RELATED: Kim Kardashian Allows Daughter North, 5, to Straighten Her Hair: Is It Safe for Kids? Teigen has combated her fair share of mom-shaming comments lately. Last week, one commenter indirectly questioned why Luna wasnt visiting the dentist for the first time until the age of 3. So proud of my toons at her first dentist appointment!! Teigen captioned her Tuesday post , which featured Luna sitting on her grandmother Vilailuck Teigen s lap as the little girl helped brush the teeth of a plush alligator. What age do they start over there? My daughter started seeing a dentist at a yr old, the user responded quickly. But the Lip Sync Battle host seemed to have already braced herself for criticism , responding with a simple, Was waiting for this. U guys never fail me. Story continues View this post on Instagram So proud of my toons at her first dentist appointment!! A post shared by chrissy teigen (@chrissyteigen) on Jun 18, 2019 at 4:21pm PDT Teigen is no stranger to clapping back at commenters who flood her feed with negative comments regarding her parenting style for Luna and son Miles Theodore , 13 months, her two children with husband John Legend . Earlier this month, the star shared two videos of Luna bargaining with her parents over how much candy she would be allowed to have if she promised to be on her best behavior. Instead of acknowledging the toddlers expert negotiating skills, one user instead focused on Lunas appearance, commenting, Finally someone brushed her hair. Teigen quickly fired back, writing , All by herself! Maybe she can come do your makeup.
When Amazon Attacks: Why Sally Beauty Stock Dropped 13.5% Shares of beauty products retailer and distributorSally Beauty Holdings(NYSE: SBH)are down 13.5% as of 12:55 p.m. EDT. The reason: This morning,Amazon.com(NASDAQ: AMZN)announced on its Amazon Business blog that it has just launched a specialized Amazon Professional Beauty Store catering to "professional stylists, barbers, and estheticians." Image source: Getty Images. This is the latest example of "the Amazon effect," a phenomenon in which the mere suggestion by Amazon that it may intend to compete in a market can cause investors to flee, screaming, from the stocks of companies already competing in that market. According to data fromS&P Global Market Intelligence, sales to beauty industry professionals through its Beauty Systems Group account for 41% of Sally Beauty's business. These sales are now at risk. Granted, it's not as if Amazon has never sold beauty products before now. In fact, I'd bet money that from time to time in the past, one cosmetology shop or another has placed bulk purchases at Amazon -- it's just that now, Amazon says it's looking more intently at this space and targeting it, which is why investors are scared. That being said, even Amazon isn't entirely unstoppable. Nor do its ventures into new areas of business always work out. In 2015, for example, Amazon exited itsDestinationsonline travel booking business. In April 2019, Amazon abandoned efforts to break into online shopping in China. And just earlier this month, Amazon ended itsAmazon Restaurantsexperiment. By which I mean to say, Sally Beauty may be down today, but at a valuation of just six times earnings, I wouldn't necessarily count Sally Beauty stock out quite yet. More From The Motley Fool • 10 Best Stocks to Buy Today • The $16,728 Social Security Bonus You Cannot Afford to Miss • 20 of the Top Stocks to Buy (Including the Two Every Investor Should Own) • What Is an ETF? • 5 Recession-Proof Stocks • How to Beat the Market John Mackey, CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors.Rich Smithhas no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends Amazon. The Motley Fool has adisclosure policy.
Here’s What Hedge Funds Think About Banc of California, Inc. (BANC) Russell 2000 ETF (IWM) lagged the larger S&P 500 ETF (SPY) by nearly 9 percentage points since the end of the third quarter of 2018 as investors worried over the possible ramifications of rising interest rates and escalation of the trade war with China. The hedge funds and institutional investors we track typically invest more in smaller-cap stocks than an average investor (i.e. only 298 S&P 500 constituents were among the 500 most popular stocks among hedge funds), and we have seen data that shows those funds paring back their overall exposure. Those funds cutting positions in small-caps is one reason why volatility has increased. In the following paragraphs, we take a closer look at what hedge funds and prominent investors think of Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC) and see how the stock is affected by the recent hedge fund activity. Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC)was in 15 hedge funds' portfolios at the end of March. BANC has seen a decrease in support from the world's most elite money managers recently. There were 17 hedge funds in our database with BANC positions at the end of the previous quarter. Our calculations also showed that BANC isn't among the30 most popular stocks among hedge funds. Hedge funds' reputation as shrewd investors has been tarnished in the last decade as their hedged returns couldn't keep up with the unhedged returns of the market indices. Our research has shown that hedge funds' small-cap stock picks managed to beat the market by double digits annually between 1999 and 2016, but the margin of outperformance has been declining in recent years. Nevertheless, we were still able to identify in advance a select group of hedge fund holdings that outperformed the market by 40 percentage points since May 2014 through May 30, 2019 (see the details here). We were also able to identify in advance a select group of hedge fund holdings that underperformed the market by 10 percentage points annually between 2006 and 2017. Interestingly the margin of underperformance of these stocks has been increasing in recent years. Investors who are long the market and short these stocks would have returned more than 27% annually between 2015 and 2017. We have been tracking and sharing the list of these stocks since February 2017 in our quarterly newsletter. Let's take a look at the recent hedge fund action encompassing Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC). At the end of the first quarter, a total of 15 of the hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey held long positions in this stock, a change of -12% from the fourth quarter of 2018. The graph below displays the number of hedge funds with bullish position in BANC over the last 15 quarters. So, let's examine which hedge funds were among the top holders of the stock and which hedge funds were making big moves. More specifically,EJF Capitalwas the largest shareholder of Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC), with a stake worth $27.7 million reported as of the end of March. Trailing EJF Capital was MFP Investors, which amassed a stake valued at $18.4 million. Second Curve Capital, Forest Hill Capital, and Mendon Capital Advisors were also very fond of the stock, giving the stock large weights in their portfolios. Seeing as Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC) has witnessed declining sentiment from hedge fund managers, it's safe to say that there was a specific group of funds that decided to sell off their full holdings by the end of the third quarter. Interestingly, Jeffrey Hinkle'sShoals Capital Managementsaid goodbye to the biggest position of the "upper crust" of funds watched by Insider Monkey, worth close to $7.7 million in stock, and Chuck Royce's Royce & Associates was right behind this move, as the fund dumped about $2 million worth. These transactions are intriguing to say the least, as aggregate hedge fund interest fell by 2 funds by the end of the third quarter. Let's check out hedge fund activity in other stocks - not necessarily in the same industry as Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC) but similarly valued. These stocks are Weatherford International plc (NYSE:WFT), Ballard Power Systems Inc. (NASDAQ:BLDP), ConnectOne Bancorp Inc (NASDAQ:CNOB), and Lindblad Expeditions Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:LIND). All of these stocks' market caps are closest to BANC's market cap. [table] Ticker, No of HFs with positions, Total Value of HF Positions (x1000), Change in HF Position WFT,15,38444,-7 BLDP,3,367,1 CNOB,10,41185,-2 LIND,20,156753,6 Average,12,59187,-0.5 [/table] View table hereif you experience formatting issues. As you can see these stocks had an average of 12 hedge funds with bullish positions and the average amount invested in these stocks was $59 million. That figure was $92 million in BANC's case. Lindblad Expeditions Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:LIND) is the most popular stock in this table. On the other hand Ballard Power Systems Inc. (NASDAQ:BLDP) is the least popular one with only 3 bullish hedge fund positions. Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC) is not the most popular stock in this group but hedge fund interest is still above average. This is a slightly positive signal but we'd rather spend our time researching stocks that hedge funds are piling on. Our calculations showed thattop 20 most popular stocksamong hedge funds returned 6.2% in Q2 through June 19th and outperformed the S&P 500 ETF (SPY) by nearly 3 percentage points. Unfortunately BANC wasn't nearly as popular as these 20 stocks and hedge funds that were betting on BANC were disappointed as the stock returned 1.7% during the same period and underperformed the market. If you are interested in investing in large cap stocks with huge upside potential, you should check out thetop 20 most popular stocksamong hedge funds as 13 of these stocks already outperformed the market so far in Q2. Disclosure: None. This article was originally published atInsider Monkey. Related Content • How to Best Use Insider Monkey To Increase Your Returns • Billionaire Ken Fisher’s Top Dividend Stock Picks • 30 Stocks Billionaires Are Crazy About: Insider Monkey Billionaire Stock Index
Hedge Funds Have Never Been More Bullish On ADTRAN, Inc. (ADTN) Hedge fund managers like David Einhorn, Bill Ackman, or Carl Icahn became billionaires through reaping large profits for their investors, which is why piggybacking their stock picks may provide us with significant returns as well. Many hedge funds, like Paul Singer’s Elliott Management, are pretty secretive, but we can still get some insights by analyzing their quarterly 13F filings. One of the most fertile grounds for large abnormal returns is hedge funds’ most popular small-cap picks, which are not so widely followed and often trade at a discount to their intrinsic value. In this article we will check out hedge fund activity in another small-cap stock: ADTRAN, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADTN). ADTRAN, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADTN)shares haven't seen a lot of action during the first quarter. Overall, hedge fund sentiment was unchanged. The stock was in 15 hedge funds' portfolios at the end of March. At the end of this article we will also compare ADTN to other stocks including Thoratec Corporation (NASDAQ:THOR), Sohu.com Inc (NASDAQ:SOHU), and Camden National Corporation (NASDAQ:CAC) to get a better sense of its popularity. In the financial world there are a large number of tools investors have at their disposal to grade stocks. A pair of the most under-the-radar tools are hedge fund and insider trading indicators. We have shown that, historically, those who follow the top picks of the best fund managers can outperform the broader indices by a solid amount. Insider Monkey's flagship best performing hedge funds strategy returned 25.8% year to date (through May 30th) and outperformed the market even though it draws its stock picks among small-cap stocks. This strategy also outperformed the market by 40 percentage points since its inception (see the details here). That's why we believe hedge fund sentiment is a useful indicator that investors should pay attention to. Let's review the fresh hedge fund action surrounding ADTRAN, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADTN). Heading into the second quarter of 2019, a total of 15 of the hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey were long this stock, a change of 0% from one quarter earlier. On the other hand, there were a total of 11 hedge funds with a bullish position in ADTN a year ago. With hedge funds' capital changing hands, there exists an "upper tier" of key hedge fund managers who were increasing their holdings significantly (or already accumulated large positions). Among these funds,Renaissance Technologiesheld the most valuable stake in ADTRAN, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADTN), which was worth $26.5 million at the end of the first quarter. On the second spot was Millennium Management which amassed $12.1 million worth of shares. Moreover, Arrowstreet Capital, D E Shaw, and Royce & Associates were also bullish on ADTRAN, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADTN), allocating a large percentage of their portfolios to this stock. Since ADTRAN, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADTN) has witnessed bearish sentiment from hedge fund managers, logic holds that there exists a select few funds that slashed their entire stakes by the end of the third quarter. Intriguingly, David Harding'sWinton Capital Managementsold off the biggest position of all the hedgies monitored by Insider Monkey, valued at an estimated $3.1 million in stock. John Overdeck and David Siegel's fund,Two Sigma Advisors, also dropped its stock, about $0.4 million worth. These moves are intriguing to say the least, as total hedge fund interest stayed the same (this is a bearish signal in our experience). Let's go over hedge fund activity in other stocks - not necessarily in the same industry as ADTRAN, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADTN) but similarly valued. These stocks are Synthorx, Inc. (NASDAQ:THOR), Sohu.com Limited (NASDAQ:SOHU), Camden National Corporation (NASDAQ:CAC), and OrthoPediatrics Corp. (NASDAQ:KIDS). This group of stocks' market caps match ADTN's market cap. [table] Ticker, No of HFs with positions, Total Value of HF Positions (x1000), Change in HF Position THOR,5,347248,0 SOHU,9,88786,-1 CAC,6,65590,0 KIDS,8,38763,3 Average,7,135097,0.5 [/table] View table hereif you experience formatting issues. As you can see these stocks had an average of 7 hedge funds with bullish positions and the average amount invested in these stocks was $135 million. That figure was $73 million in ADTN's case. Sohu.com Limited (NASDAQ:SOHU) is the most popular stock in this table. On the other hand Synthorx, Inc. (NASDAQ:THOR) is the least popular one with only 5 bullish hedge fund positions. Compared to these stocks ADTRAN, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADTN) is more popular among hedge funds. Our calculations showed thattop 20 most popular stocksamong hedge funds returned 6.2% in Q2 through June 19th and outperformed the S&P 500 ETF (SPY) by nearly 3 percentage points. Hedge funds were also right about betting on ADTN as the stock returned 21.2% during the same period and outperformed the market by an even larger margin. Hedge funds were clearly right about piling into this stock relative to other stocks with similar market capitalizations. Disclosure: None. This article was originally published atInsider Monkey. Related Content • How to Best Use Insider Monkey To Increase Your Returns • Billionaire Ken Fisher’s Top Dividend Stock Picks • 30 Stocks Billionaires Are Crazy About: Insider Monkey Billionaire Stock Index
Did Hedge Funds Drop The Ball On Globalstar, Inc. (GSAT) ? Out of thousands of stocks that are currently traded on the market, it is difficult to identify those that will really generate strong returns. Hedge funds and institutional investors spend millions of dollars on analysts with MBAs and PhDs, who are industry experts and well connected to other industry and media insiders on top of that. Individual investors can piggyback the hedge funds employing these talents and can benefit from their vast resources and knowledge in that way. We analyze quarterly 13F filings of nearly 750 hedge funds and, by looking at the smart money sentiment that surrounds a stock, we can determine whether it has the potential to beat the market over the long-term. Therefore, let’s take a closer look at what smart money thinks about Globalstar, Inc. (PINK:GSAT). Globalstar, Inc. (PINK:GSAT)was in 15 hedge funds' portfolios at the end of the first quarter of 2019. GSAT has seen an increase in activity from the world's largest hedge funds lately. There were 12 hedge funds in our database with GSAT positions at the end of the previous quarter. Our calculations also showed that GSAT isn't among the30 most popular stocks among hedge funds. So, why do we pay attention to hedge fund sentiment before making any investment decisions? Our research has shown that hedge funds' small-cap stock picks managed to beat the market by double digits annually between 1999 and 2016, but the margin of outperformance has been declining in recent years. Nevertheless, we were still able to identify in advance a select group of hedge fund holdings that outperformed the market by 40 percentage points since May 2014 through May 30, 2019 (see the details here). We were also able to identify in advance a select group of hedge fund holdings that underperformed the market by 10 percentage points annually between 2006 and 2017. Interestingly the margin of underperformance of these stocks has been increasing in recent years. Investors who are long the market and short these stocks would have returned more than 27% annually between 2015 and 2017. We have been tracking and sharing the list of these stocks since February 2017 in our quarterly newsletter. Even if you aren't comfortable with shorting stocks, you should at least avoid initiating long positions in our short portfolio. We're going to view the latest hedge fund action encompassing Globalstar, Inc. (PINK:GSAT). At Q1's end, a total of 15 of the hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey were bullish on this stock, a change of 25% from the fourth quarter of 2018. On the other hand, there were a total of 18 hedge funds with a bullish position in GSAT a year ago. So, let's examine which hedge funds were among the top holders of the stock and which hedge funds were making big moves. The largest stake in Globalstar, Inc. (PINK:GSAT) was held byMudrick Capital Management, which reported holding $43 million worth of stock at the end of March. It was followed by Warlander Asset Management with a $18.4 million position. Other investors bullish on the company included Steelhead Partners, 683 Capital Partners, and Mason Capital Management. As aggregate interest increased, some big names have been driving this bullishness.Legion Partners Asset Management, managed by Ted White and Christopher Kiper, initiated the most outsized position in Globalstar, Inc. (PINK:GSAT). Legion Partners Asset Management had $3.4 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. Jim Simons'sRenaissance Technologiesalso made a $0.3 million investment in the stock during the quarter. The other funds with brand new GSAT positions are Ken Griffin'sCitadel Investment Groupand Dmitry Balyasny'sBalyasny Asset Management. Let's check out hedge fund activity in other stocks - not necessarily in the same industry as Globalstar, Inc. (PINK:GSAT) but similarly valued. We will take a look at P.H. Glatfelter Company (NYSE:GLT), KNOT Offshore Partners LP (NYSE:KNOP), ChipMOS TECHNOLOGIES INC. (NASDAQ:IMOS), and G1 Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:GTHX). This group of stocks' market values match GSAT's market value. [table] Ticker, No of HFs with positions, Total Value of HF Positions (x1000), Change in HF Position GLT,10,25489,4 KNOP,4,13665,-1 IMOS,2,25129,1 GTHX,11,19755,0 Average,6.75,21010,1 [/table] View table hereif you experience formatting issues. As you can see these stocks had an average of 6.75 hedge funds with bullish positions and the average amount invested in these stocks was $21 million. That figure was $95 million in GSAT's case. G1 Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:GTHX) is the most popular stock in this table. On the other hand ChipMOS TECHNOLOGIES INC. (NASDAQ:IMOS) is the least popular one with only 2 bullish hedge fund positions. Compared to these stocks Globalstar, Inc. (PINK:GSAT) is more popular among hedge funds. Our calculations showed thattop 20 most popular stocksamong hedge funds returned 6.2% in Q2 through June 19th and outperformed the S&P 500 ETF (SPY) by nearly 3 percentage points. Hedge funds were also right about betting on GSAT as the stock returned 32.6% during the same period and outperformed the market by an even larger margin. Hedge funds were clearly right about piling into this stock relative to other stocks with similar market capitalizations. Disclosure: None. This article was originally published atInsider Monkey. Related Content • How to Best Use Insider Monkey To Increase Your Returns • Billionaire Ken Fisher’s Top Dividend Stock Picks • 30 Stocks Billionaires Are Crazy About: Insider Monkey Billionaire Stock Index
Tezos court issues compromise ruling, orders SEC communication produced Disclaimer: These summaries are provided for educational purposes only byNelson RosarioandStephen Palley. They are not legal advice. These are our opinions only, aren’t authorized by any past, present or future client or employer. Also we might change our minds. We contain multitudes. As always, Rosario summaries are “NMR” and Palley summaries are “SDP". [related id=1]GGCC, LLC, et al. v. Dynamic Leger Solutions, Inc., “Order Regarding Discovery Dispute”, N.D. Cal., 17-cv-06779-RS, 6/10/2018 [SDP] Order:https://www.scribd.com/document/413985566/Tezos-Discovery-Order We covered a discovery dispute in the Tezos litigationtwo weeks ago. The Court ruled quickly, on June 10, 2018, in a mixed bag ruling that gave both parties something. On the one hand, the Court rejected Plaintiffs’ broad demand for documents that were created after the lawsuit was filed, with an exception for communication with regulators, include the SEC. The Court reasoned that “[i]t is difficult to imagine documents created months after the Tezos ICO that are relevant to whether the Tezos tokens constituted ‘securities’ at the time of the July 2017 ICO.” On the other hand, the court said “communications regarding communications between Defendants and the SEC or other governmental or regulatory agency” might be relevant. In particular, “[i] If Defendants characterized the Tezos tokens in those communications in a manner that conflicts with the manner they characterize them in this litigation, Plaintiffs are entitled to obtain those documents.” It has been a matter of speculation by some as to whether or not the current defendants are subject to any sort of regulatory or governmental investigation. If they are, the Plaintiffs will be entitled to find out and to see relevant documents. If not, Defendants will simply respond that there aren’t any (though one expects they would have already said so, as opposed to objecting to the request). Will this influence the outcome of the case? It’s hard to say for sure. If there IS an ongoing SEC investigation in progress, the Defendants would surely argue that the investigation and any resolution (if there is one) is wholly irrelevant to the outcome of this case. It’s not an argument without merit. Also, an investigation itself is typically confidential so it is certainly possible that responsive documents would be produced subject to a protective order (a confidentiality agreement) and not made public. At the same time, the absence of an investigation doesn’t prove much either, however much it might fuel speculation on social media. The Block is pleased to bring you expert cryptocurrency legal analysis courtesy of Stephen Palley (@stephendpalley) and Nelson M. Rosario (@nelsonmrosario). They summarize three cryptocurrency-related cases on a weekly basis and have given The Block permission to republish their commentary and analysis in full. Part III of this week's analysis, Crypto Caselaw Minute, is above.
Did Hedge Funds Drop The Ball On Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (SBLK) ? The latest 13F reporting period has come and gone, and Insider Monkey is again at the forefront when it comes to making use of this gold mine of data. We have processed the filings of the more than 700 world-class investment firms that we track and now have access to the collective wisdom contained in these filings, which are based on their March 31 holdings, data that is available nowhere else. Should you consider Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK) for your portfolio? We'll look to this invaluable collective wisdom for the answer. Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK)shareholders have witnessed a decrease in hedge fund sentiment recently. Our calculations also showed that SBLK isn't among the30 most popular stocks among hedge funds. According to most shareholders, hedge funds are viewed as worthless, outdated financial tools of years past. While there are greater than 8000 funds in operation at the moment, Our researchers hone in on the moguls of this club, approximately 750 funds. These money managers oversee the majority of the hedge fund industry's total asset base, and by paying attention to their matchless stock picks, Insider Monkey has identified many investment strategies that have historically outrun the market. Insider Monkey's flagship hedge fund strategy outstripped the S&P 500 index by around 5 percentage points a year since its inception in May 2014 through June 18th. We were able to generate large returns even by identifying short candidates. Our portfolio of short stocks lost 28.2% since February 2017 (through June 18th) even though the market was up nearly 30% during the same period. We just shared a list of 5 short targets in ourlatest quarterly updateand they are already down an average of 8.2% in a month whereas our long picks outperformed the market by 2.5 percentage points in this volatile 5 week period (our long picks also beat the market by 15 percentage points so far this year). Let's take a look at the new hedge fund action encompassing Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK). Heading into the second quarter of 2019, a total of 15 of the hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey held long positions in this stock, a change of -21% from the fourth quarter of 2018. By comparison, 13 hedge funds held shares or bullish call options in SBLK a year ago. So, let's find out which hedge funds were among the top holders of the stock and which hedge funds were making big moves. Among these funds,Oaktree Capital Managementheld the most valuable stake in Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK), which was worth $232.8 million at the end of the first quarter. On the second spot was Impala Asset Management which amassed $23.9 million worth of shares. Moreover, York Capital Management, Renaissance Technologies, and Marshall Wace LLP were also bullish on Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK), allocating a large percentage of their portfolios to this stock. Since Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK) has experienced declining sentiment from the aggregate hedge fund industry, it's safe to say that there exists a select few hedgies that decided to sell off their full holdings heading into Q3. Interestingly, Charles Lemonides'sValueworks LLCdumped the biggest position of the "upper crust" of funds watched by Insider Monkey, comprising close to $28.3 million in stock, and Robert Polak's Anchor Bolt Capital was right behind this move, as the fund cut about $9.5 million worth. These bearish behaviors are intriguing to say the least, as total hedge fund interest fell by 4 funds heading into Q3. Let's check out hedge fund activity in other stocks - not necessarily in the same industry as Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK) but similarly valued. These stocks are Navigator Holdings Ltd (NYSE:NVGS), Quad/Graphics, Inc. (NYSE:QUAD), Peoples Bancorp Inc. (NASDAQ:PEBO), and LeMaitre Vascular Inc (NASDAQ:LMAT). This group of stocks' market caps resemble SBLK's market cap. [table] Ticker, No of HFs with positions, Total Value of HF Positions (x1000), Change in HF Position NVGS,13,280280,1 QUAD,22,39329,2 PEBO,9,29859,1 LMAT,11,17414,5 Average,13.75,91721,2.25 [/table] View table hereif you experience formatting issues. As you can see these stocks had an average of 13.75 hedge funds with bullish positions and the average amount invested in these stocks was $92 million. That figure was $306 million in SBLK's case. Quad/Graphics, Inc. (NYSE:QUAD) is the most popular stock in this table. On the other hand Peoples Bancorp Inc. (NASDAQ:PEBO) is the least popular one with only 9 bullish hedge fund positions. Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK) is not the most popular stock in this group but hedge fund interest is still above average. Our calculations showed thattop 20 most popular stocksamong hedge funds returned 6.2% in Q2 through June 19th and outperformed the S&P 500 ETF (SPY) by nearly 3 percentage points. Hedge funds were also right about betting on SBLK as the stock returned 31.8% during the same period and outperformed the market by an even larger margin. Hedge funds were rewarded for their relative bullishness. Disclosure: None. This article was originally published atInsider Monkey. Related Content • How to Best Use Insider Monkey To Increase Your Returns • Billionaire Ken Fisher’s Top Dividend Stock Picks • 30 Stocks Billionaires Are Crazy About: Insider Monkey Billionaire Stock Index
Hedge Funds Have Never Been More Bullish On FutureFuel Corp. (FF) We can judge whether FutureFuel Corp. (NYSE:FF) is a good investment right now by following the lead of some of the best investors in the world and piggybacking their ideas. There's no better way to get these firms' immense resources and analytical capabilities working for us than to follow their lead into their best ideas. While not all of these picks will be winners, our research shows that these picks historically outperformed the market when we factor in known risk factors. FutureFuel Corp. (NYSE:FF)investors should be aware of an increase in hedge fund sentiment of late.FFwas in 15 hedge funds' portfolios at the end of March. There were 14 hedge funds in our database with FF positions at the end of the previous quarter. Our calculations also showed that FF isn't among the30 most popular stocks among hedge funds. In the financial world there are a large number of tools investors have at their disposal to grade stocks. A pair of the most under-the-radar tools are hedge fund and insider trading indicators. We have shown that, historically, those who follow the top picks of the best fund managers can outperform the broader indices by a solid amount. Insider Monkey's flagship best performing hedge funds strategy returned 25.8% year to date (through May 30th) and outperformed the market even though it draws its stock picks among small-cap stocks. This strategy also outperformed the market by 40 percentage points since its inception (see the details here). That's why we believe hedge fund sentiment is a useful indicator that investors should pay attention to. We're going to check out the new hedge fund action encompassing FutureFuel Corp. (NYSE:FF). At Q1's end, a total of 15 of the hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey were long this stock, a change of 7% from the fourth quarter of 2018. The graph below displays the number of hedge funds with bullish position in FF over the last 15 quarters. With hedge funds' capital changing hands, there exists a select group of noteworthy hedge fund managers who were adding to their holdings meaningfully (or already accumulated large positions). Among these funds,Renaissance Technologiesheld the most valuable stake in FutureFuel Corp. (NYSE:FF), which was worth $28.7 million at the end of the first quarter. On the second spot was Royce & Associates which amassed $11.1 million worth of shares. Moreover, GLG Partners, Arrowstreet Capital, and AQR Capital Management were also bullish on FutureFuel Corp. (NYSE:FF), allocating a large percentage of their portfolios to this stock. Consequently, some big names were breaking ground themselves.Winton Capital Management, managed by David Harding, established the largest position in FutureFuel Corp. (NYSE:FF). Winton Capital Management had $0.7 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. Israel Englander'sMillennium Managementalso initiated a $0.3 million position during the quarter. Let's now review hedge fund activity in other stocks similar to FutureFuel Corp. (NYSE:FF). These stocks are Plug Power, Inc. (NASDAQ:PLUG), Mobileiron Inc (NASDAQ:MOBL), The Manitowoc Company, Inc. (NYSE:MTW), and Midland States Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:MSBI). All of these stocks' market caps match FF's market cap. [table] Ticker, No of HFs with positions, Total Value of HF Positions (x1000), Change in HF Position PLUG,7,43583,1 MOBL,17,126183,1 MTW,20,113807,6 MSBI,4,1643,-3 Average,12,71304,1.25 [/table] View table hereif you experience formatting issues. As you can see these stocks had an average of 12 hedge funds with bullish positions and the average amount invested in these stocks was $71 million. That figure was $54 million in FF's case. The Manitowoc Company, Inc. (NYSE:MTW) is the most popular stock in this table. On the other hand Midland States Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:MSBI) is the least popular one with only 4 bullish hedge fund positions. FutureFuel Corp. (NYSE:FF) is not the most popular stock in this group but hedge fund interest is still above average. This is a slightly positive signal but we'd rather spend our time researching stocks that hedge funds are piling on. Our calculations showed thattop 20 most popular stocksamong hedge funds returned 6.2% in Q2 through June 19th and outperformed the S&P 500 ETF (SPY) by nearly 3 percentage points. Unfortunately FF wasn't nearly as popular as these 20 stocks and hedge funds that were betting on FF were disappointed as the stock returned -18.1% during the same period and underperformed the market. If you are interested in investing in large cap stocks with huge upside potential, you should check out thetop 20 most popular stocksamong hedge funds as 13 of these stocks already outperformed the market so far in Q2. Disclosure: None. This article was originally published atInsider Monkey. Related Content • How to Best Use Insider Monkey To Increase Your Returns • Billionaire Ken Fisher’s Top Dividend Stock Picks • 30 Stocks Billionaires Are Crazy About: Insider Monkey Billionaire Stock Index
How Many Parsley Energy, Inc. (NYSE:PE) Shares Have Insiders Sold, In The Last Year? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! It is not uncommon to see companies perform well in the years after insiders buy shares. The flip side of that is that there are more than a few examples of insiders dumping stock prior to a period of weak performance. So before you buy or sellParsley Energy, Inc.(NYSE:PE), you may well want to know whether insiders have been buying or selling. It's quite normal to see company insiders, such as board members, trading in company stock, from time to time. However, most countries require that the company discloses such transactions to the market. Insider transactions are not the most important thing when it comes to long-term investing. But equally, we would consider it foolish to ignore insider transactions altogether. For example, a Harvard Universitystudyfound that 'insider purchases earn abnormal returns of more than 6% per year.' See our latest analysis for Parsley Energy The Founder & Executive Chairman, Bryan Sheffield, made the biggest insider sale in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for US$70m worth of shares at a price of US$28.15 each. While we don't usually like to see insider selling, it's more concerning if the sales take price at a lower price. The good news is that this large sale was at well above current price of US$17.99. So it may not shed much light on insider confidence at current levels. In the last twelve months insiders purchased 16178 shares for US$332k. On the other hand they divested 3.0m shares, for US$79m. All up, insiders sold more shares in Parsley Energy than they bought, over the last year. The chart below shows insider transactions (by individuals) over the last year. By clicking on the graph below, you can see the precise details of each insider transaction! I will like Parsley Energy better if I see some big insider buys. While we wait, check out thisfreelist of growing companies with considerable, recent, insider buying. There was substantially more insider selling, than buying, of Parsley Energy shares over the last three months. In that time, Bryan Sheffield dumped US$2.0m worth of shares. Meanwhile Independent Director Jerry Windlinger bought US$35k worth. Since the selling really does outweigh the buying, we'd say that these transactions may suggest that some insiders feel the shares are not cheap. Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. Usually, the higher the insider ownership, the more likely it is that insiders will be incentivised to build the company for the long term. Parsley Energy insiders own 4.1% of the company, currently worth about US$231m based on the recent share price. This kind of significant ownership by insiders does generally increase the chance that the company is run in the interest of all shareholders. The insider sales have outweighed the insider buying, at Parsley Energy, in the last three months. And our longer term analysis of insider transactions didn't bring confidence, either. On the plus side, Parsley Energy makes money, and is growing profits. The company boasts high insider ownership, but we're a little hesitant, given the history of share sales. Of course,the future is what matters most. So if you are interested in Parsley Energy, you should check out thisfreereport on analyst forecasts for the company. Of courseParsley Energy may not be the best stock to buy. So you may wish to see thisfreecollection of high quality companies. For the purposes of this article, insiders are those individuals who report their transactions to the relevant regulatory body. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Did Hedge Funds Drop The Ball On ArQule, Inc. (ARQL) ? "Since 2006, value stocks (IVE vs IVW) have underperformed 11 of the 13 calendar years and when they beat growth, it wasn't by much. Cumulatively, through this week, it has been a 122% differential (up 52% for value vs up 174% for growth). This appears to be the longest and most severe drought for value investors since data collection began. It will go our way eventually as there are too many people paying far too much for today's darlings, both public and private. Further, the ten-year yield of 2.5% (pre-tax) isn't attractive nor is real estate. We believe the value part of the global equity market is the only place to earn solid risk adjusted returns and we believe those returns will be higher than normal," said Vilas Fund in itsQ1 investor letter. We aren't sure whether value stocks outperform growth, but we follow hedge fund investor letters to understand where the markets and stocks might be going. That's why we believe it would be worthwhile to take a look at the hedge fund sentiment on ArQule, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARQL) in order to identify whether reputable and successful top money managers continue to believe in its potential. IsArQule, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARQL)a splendid stock to buy now? Money managers are becoming hopeful. The number of bullish hedge fund positions rose by 1 in recent months. Our calculations also showed that ARQL isn't among the30 most popular stocks among hedge funds. Hedge funds' reputation as shrewd investors has been tarnished in the last decade as their hedged returns couldn't keep up with the unhedged returns of the market indices. Our research has shown that hedge funds' small-cap stock picks managed to beat the market by double digits annually between 1999 and 2016, but the margin of outperformance has been declining in recent years. Nevertheless, we were still able to identify in advance a select group of hedge fund holdings that outperformed the market by 40 percentage points since May 2014 through May 30, 2019 (see the details here). We were also able to identify in advance a select group of hedge fund holdings that underperformed the market by 10 percentage points annually between 2006 and 2017. Interestingly the margin of underperformance of these stocks has been increasing in recent years. Investors who are long the market and short these stocks would have returned more than 27% annually between 2015 and 2017. We have been tracking and sharing the list of these stocks since February 2017 in our quarterly newsletter. We're going to go over the recent hedge fund action regarding ArQule, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARQL). At the end of the first quarter, a total of 15 of the hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey were bullish on this stock, a change of 7% from the previous quarter. Below, you can check out the change in hedge fund sentiment towards ARQL over the last 15 quarters. So, let's find out which hedge funds were among the top holders of the stock and which hedge funds were making big moves. Among these funds,Nantahala Capital Managementheld the most valuable stake in ArQule, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARQL), which was worth $57.5 million at the end of the first quarter. On the second spot was Biotechnology Value Fund / BVF Inc which amassed $30.2 million worth of shares. Moreover, Millennium Management, Eversept Partners, and Pura Vida Investments were also bullish on ArQule, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARQL), allocating a large percentage of their portfolios to this stock. With a general bullishness amongst the heavyweights, key money managers were leading the bulls' herd.Marshall Wace LLP, managed by Paul Marshall and Ian Wace, assembled the largest position in ArQule, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARQL). Marshall Wace LLP had $1.6 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. Panayotis Takis Sparaggis'sAlkeon Capital Managementalso initiated a $0.5 million position during the quarter. The other funds with brand new ARQL positions are Jeffrey Talpins'sElement Capital Management, David Harding'sWinton Capital Management, and Mike Vranos'sEllington. Let's check out hedge fund activity in other stocks similar to ArQule, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARQL). We will take a look at Veeco Instruments Inc. (NASDAQ:VECO), AquaVenture Holdings Limited (NYSE:WAAS), Kimball International Inc (NASDAQ:KBAL), and Zymeworks Inc. (NYSE:ZYME). All of these stocks' market caps resemble ARQL's market cap. [table] Ticker, No of HFs with positions, Total Value of HF Positions (x1000), Change in HF Position VECO,10,123001,0 WAAS,10,21356,-1 KBAL,12,88420,2 ZYME,14,120820,3 Average,11.5,88399,1 [/table] View table hereif you experience formatting issues. As you can see these stocks had an average of 11.5 hedge funds with bullish positions and the average amount invested in these stocks was $88 million. That figure was $119 million in ARQL's case. Zymeworks Inc. (NYSE:ZYME) is the most popular stock in this table. On the other hand Veeco Instruments Inc. (NASDAQ:VECO) is the least popular one with only 10 bullish hedge fund positions. Compared to these stocks ArQule, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARQL) is more popular among hedge funds. Our calculations showed thattop 20 most popular stocksamong hedge funds returned 6.2% in Q2 through June 19th and outperformed the S&P 500 ETF (SPY) by nearly 3 percentage points. Hedge funds were also right about betting on ARQL as the stock returned 102.1% during the same period and outperformed the market by an even larger margin. Hedge funds were clearly right about piling into this stock relative to other stocks with similar market capitalizations. Disclosure: None. This article was originally published atInsider Monkey. Related Content • How to Best Use Insider Monkey To Increase Your Returns • Billionaire Ken Fisher’s Top Dividend Stock Picks • 30 Stocks Billionaires Are Crazy About: Insider Monkey Billionaire Stock Index
Here is What Hedge Funds Think About American Outdoor Brands Corporation (AOBC) Many investors, including Paul Tudor Jones or Stan Druckenmiller, have beensayingbefore the Q4 market crash that the stock market is overvalued due to a low interest rate environment that leads to companies swapping their equity for debt and focusing mostly on short-term performance such as beating the quarterly earnings estimates. In the first quarter, most investors recovered all of their Q4 losses as sentiment shifted and optimism dominated the US China trade negotiations. Nevertheless, many of the stocks that delivered strong returns in the first quarter still sport strong fundamentals and their gains were more related to the general market sentiment rather than their individual performance and hedge funds kept their bullish stance. In this article we will find out how hedge fund sentiment to American Outdoor Brands Corporation (NASDAQ:AOBC) changed recently. American Outdoor Brands Corporation (NASDAQ:AOBC)was in 15 hedge funds' portfolios at the end of the first quarter of 2019. AOBC has seen an increase in hedge fund interest in recent months. There were 14 hedge funds in our database with AOBC holdings at the end of the previous quarter. Our calculations also showed that AOBC isn't among the30 most popular stocks among hedge funds. Today there are plenty of methods investors have at their disposal to grade stocks. Some of the most innovative methods are hedge fund and insider trading interest. Our experts have shown that, historically, those who follow the best picks of the elite investment managers can outpace the market by a healthy margin (see the details here). Let's take a peek at the new hedge fund action regarding American Outdoor Brands Corporation (NASDAQ:AOBC). At Q1's end, a total of 15 of the hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey were bullish on this stock, a change of 7% from the previous quarter. By comparison, 9 hedge funds held shares or bullish call options in AOBC a year ago. With the smart money's sentiment swirling, there exists a few key hedge fund managers who were boosting their stakes substantially (or already accumulated large positions). More specifically,Renaissance Technologieswas the largest shareholder of American Outdoor Brands Corporation (NASDAQ:AOBC), with a stake worth $28.4 million reported as of the end of March. Trailing Renaissance Technologies was D E Shaw, which amassed a stake valued at $19.2 million. Arrowstreet Capital, Greenhouse Funds, and Two Sigma Advisors were also very fond of the stock, giving the stock large weights in their portfolios. As aggregate interest increased, key hedge funds were leading the bulls' herd.Greenhouse Funds, managed by Joe Milano, initiated the largest position in American Outdoor Brands Corporation (NASDAQ:AOBC). Greenhouse Funds had $8.1 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. Joe Milano'sGreenhouse Fundsalso made a $2.3 million investment in the stock during the quarter. The following funds were also among the new AOBC investors: Steve Pei'sGratia Capital, Israel Englander'sMillennium Management, and Paul Tudor Jones'sTudor Investment Corp. Let's also examine hedge fund activity in other stocks similar to American Outdoor Brands Corporation (NASDAQ:AOBC). We will take a look at Ethan Allen Interiors Inc. (NYSE:ETH), Donnelley Financial Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:DFIN), Just Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:JE), and Independent Bank Corporation (NASDAQ:IBCP). All of these stocks' market caps are similar to AOBC's market cap. [table] Ticker, No of HFs with positions, Total Value of HF Positions (x1000), Change in HF Position ETH,17,68127,2 DFIN,14,52851,-5 JE,10,20148,1 IBCP,11,47151,0 Average,13,47069,-0.5 [/table] View table hereif you experience formatting issues. As you can see these stocks had an average of 13 hedge funds with bullish positions and the average amount invested in these stocks was $47 million. That figure was $81 million in AOBC's case. Ethan Allen Interiors Inc. (NYSE:ETH) is the most popular stock in this table. On the other hand Just Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:JE) is the least popular one with only 10 bullish hedge fund positions. American Outdoor Brands Corporation (NASDAQ:AOBC) is not the most popular stock in this group but hedge fund interest is still above average. This is a slightly positive signal but we'd rather spend our time researching stocks that hedge funds are piling on. Our calculations showed thattop 20 most popular stocksamong hedge funds returned 6.2% in Q2 through June 19th and outperformed the S&P 500 ETF (SPY) by nearly 3 percentage points. Unfortunately AOBC wasn't nearly as popular as these 20 stocks and hedge funds that were betting on AOBC were disappointed as the stock returned -2.1% during the same period and underperformed the market. If you are interested in investing in large cap stocks with huge upside potential, you should check out thetop 20 most popular stocksamong hedge funds as 13 of these stocks already outperformed the market so far in Q2. Disclosure: None. This article was originally published atInsider Monkey. Related Content • How to Best Use Insider Monkey To Increase Your Returns • Billionaire Ken Fisher’s Top Dividend Stock Picks • 30 Stocks Billionaires Are Crazy About: Insider Monkey Billionaire Stock Index
Here’s What Hedge Funds Think About American Public Education, Inc. (APEI) Most investors tend to think that hedge funds and other asset managers are worthless, as they cannot beat even simple index fund portfolios. In fact, most people expect hedge funds to compete with and outperform the bull market that we have witnessed in recent years. However, hedge funds are generally partially hedged and aim at delivering attractive risk-adjusted returns rather than following the ups and downs of equity markets hoping that they will outperform the broader market. Our research shows that certain hedge funds do have great stock picking skills (and we can identify these hedge funds in advance pretty accurately), so let’s take a glance at the smart money sentiment towards American Public Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:APEI). American Public Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:APEI)has seen a decrease in hedge fund interest recently. Our calculations also showed that APEI isn't among the30 most popular stocks among hedge funds. According to most investors, hedge funds are perceived as worthless, old investment tools of the past. While there are over 8000 funds trading at present, We look at the moguls of this club, approximately 750 funds. Most estimates calculate that this group of people command the majority of the hedge fund industry's total asset base, and by keeping track of their top equity investments, Insider Monkey has formulated numerous investment strategies that have historically surpassed Mr. Market. Insider Monkey's flagship hedge fund strategy surpassed the S&P 500 index by around 5 percentage points per year since its inception in May 2014 through June 18th. We were able to generate large returns even by identifying short candidates. Our portfolio of short stocks lost 28.2% since February 2017 (through June 18th) even though the market was up nearly 30% during the same period. We just shared a list of 5 short targets in ourlatest quarterly updateand they are already down an average of 8.2% in a month whereas our long picks outperformed the market by 2.5 percentage points in this volatile 5 week period (our long picks also beat the market by 15 percentage points so far this year). Let's take a look at the fresh hedge fund action surrounding American Public Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:APEI). At the end of the first quarter, a total of 15 of the hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey were long this stock, a change of -6% from the fourth quarter of 2018. On the other hand, there were a total of 15 hedge funds with a bullish position in APEI a year ago. With the smart money's sentiment swirling, there exists a few key hedge fund managers who were upping their stakes substantially (or already accumulated large positions). More specifically,Renaissance Technologieswas the largest shareholder of American Public Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:APEI), with a stake worth $38.7 million reported as of the end of March. Trailing Renaissance Technologies was AQR Capital Management, which amassed a stake valued at $16.1 million. GLG Partners, D E Shaw, and Millennium Management were also very fond of the stock, giving the stock large weights in their portfolios. Because American Public Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:APEI) has witnessed declining sentiment from the aggregate hedge fund industry, it's safe to say that there exists a select few funds that elected to cut their positions entirely heading into Q3. It's worth mentioning that Richard Chilton'sChilton Investment Companydropped the largest position of the "upper crust" of funds tracked by Insider Monkey, worth about $0.9 million in stock. Andrew Feldstein and Stephen Siderow's fund,Blue Mountain Capital, also sold off its stock, about $0.3 million worth. These transactions are important to note, as aggregate hedge fund interest fell by 1 funds heading into Q3. Let's now take a look at hedge fund activity in other stocks similar to American Public Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:APEI). We will take a look at International Seaways, Inc. (NYSE:INSW), New Gold Inc. (NYSEAMEX:NGD), Star Group, L.P. (NYSE:SGU), and Pareteum Corporation (NASDAQ:TEUM). This group of stocks' market values match APEI's market value. [table] Ticker, No of HFs with positions, Total Value of HF Positions (x1000), Change in HF Position INSW,11,160250,3 NGD,13,47671,-2 SGU,8,99694,0 TEUM,9,17634,2 Average,10.25,81312,0.75 [/table] View table hereif you experience formatting issues. As you can see these stocks had an average of 10.25 hedge funds with bullish positions and the average amount invested in these stocks was $81 million. That figure was $76 million in APEI's case. New Gold Inc. (NYSEAMEX:NGD) is the most popular stock in this table. On the other hand Star Group, L.P. (NYSE:SGU) is the least popular one with only 8 bullish hedge fund positions. Compared to these stocks American Public Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:APEI) is more popular among hedge funds. Our calculations showed thattop 20 most popular stocksamong hedge funds returned 6.2% in Q2 through June 19th and outperformed the S&P 500 ETF (SPY) by nearly 3 percentage points. Unfortunately APEI wasn't nearly as popular as these 20 stocks and hedge funds that were betting on APEI were disappointed as the stock returned -2.2% during the same period and underperformed the market. If you are interested in investing in large cap stocks with huge upside potential, you should check out thetop 20 most popular stocksamong hedge funds as 13 of these stocks already outperformed the market in Q2. Disclosure: None. This article was originally published atInsider Monkey. Related Content • How to Best Use Insider Monkey To Increase Your Returns • Billionaire Ken Fisher’s Top Dividend Stock Picks • 30 Stocks Billionaires Are Crazy About: Insider Monkey Billionaire Stock Index
Is Chico’s FAS, Inc. (CHS) A Good Stock To Buy? You probably know from experience that there is not as much information on small-cap companies as there is on large companies. Of course, this makes it really hard and difficult for individual investors to make proper and accurate analysis of certain small-cap companies. However, well-known and successful hedge fund managers like Jeff Ubben, George Soros and Seth Klarman hold the necessary resources and abilities to conduct an extensive stock analysis on small-cap stocks, which enable them to make millions of dollars by identifying potential winners within the small-cap galaxy of stocks. This represents the main reason why Insider Monkey takes notice of the hedge fund activity in these overlooked stocks. Chico's FAS, Inc. (NYSE:CHS)investors should be aware of an increase in hedge fund sentiment recently.CHSwas in 15 hedge funds' portfolios at the end of the first quarter of 2019. There were 14 hedge funds in our database with CHS positions at the end of the previous quarter. Our calculations also showed that CHS isn't among the30 most popular stocks among hedge funds. Hedge funds' reputation as shrewd investors has been tarnished in the last decade as their hedged returns couldn't keep up with the unhedged returns of the market indices. Our research has shown that hedge funds' small-cap stock picks managed to beat the market by double digits annually between 1999 and 2016, but the margin of outperformance has been declining in recent years. Nevertheless, we were still able to identify in advance a select group of hedge fund holdings that outperformed the market by 40 percentage points since May 2014 through May 30, 2019 (see the details here). We were also able to identify in advance a select group of hedge fund holdings that underperformed the market by 10 percentage points annually between 2006 and 2017. Interestingly the margin of underperformance of these stocks has been increasing in recent years. Investors who are long the market and short these stocks would have returned more than 27% annually between 2015 and 2017. We have been tracking and sharing the list of these stocks since February 2017 in our quarterly newsletter. Let's take a gander at the latest hedge fund action regarding Chico's FAS, Inc. (NYSE:CHS). Heading into the second quarter of 2019, a total of 15 of the hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey were long this stock, a change of 7% from the previous quarter. By comparison, 22 hedge funds held shares or bullish call options in CHS a year ago. With hedge funds' positions undergoing their usual ebb and flow, there exists a select group of noteworthy hedge fund managers who were upping their stakes substantially (or already accumulated large positions). The largest stake in Chico's FAS, Inc. (NYSE:CHS) was held byRenaissance Technologies, which reported holding $26.9 million worth of stock at the end of March. It was followed by Arrowstreet Capital with a $11.8 million position. Other investors bullish on the company included AQR Capital Management, D E Shaw, and Citadel Investment Group. As one would reasonably expect, key hedge funds were breaking ground themselves.Citadel Investment Group, managed by Ken Griffin, created the largest position in Chico's FAS, Inc. (NYSE:CHS). Citadel Investment Group had $3.3 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. David Costen Haley'sHBK Investmentsalso initiated a $1.3 million position during the quarter. The other funds with new positions in the stock are Chuck Royce'sRoyce & Associates, Jonathan Soros'sJS Capital, and Jeffrey Talpins'sElement Capital Management. Let's now review hedge fund activity in other stocks - not necessarily in the same industry as Chico's FAS, Inc. (NYSE:CHS) but similarly valued. These stocks are Intrepid Potash, Inc. (NYSE:IPI), Mesoblast Limited (NASDAQ:MESO), Crawford & Company (NYSE:CRD), and Peoples Utah Bancorp (NASDAQ:PUB). This group of stocks' market valuations are similar to CHS's market valuation. [table] Ticker, No of HFs with positions, Total Value of HF Positions (x1000), Change in HF Position IPI,14,33819,-3 MESO,1,663,0 CRD,9,30505,3 PUB,5,13672,2 Average,7.25,19665,0.5 [/table] View table hereif you experience formatting issues. As you can see these stocks had an average of 7.25 hedge funds with bullish positions and the average amount invested in these stocks was $20 million. That figure was $58 million in CHS's case. Intrepid Potash, Inc. (NYSE:IPI) is the most popular stock in this table. On the other hand Mesoblast Limited (NASDAQ:MESO) is the least popular one with only 1 bullish hedge fund positions. Compared to these stocks Chico's FAS, Inc. (NYSE:CHS) is more popular among hedge funds. Our calculations showed thattop 20 most popular stocksamong hedge funds returned 6.2% in Q2 through June 19th and outperformed the S&P 500 ETF (SPY) by nearly 3 percentage points. Unfortunately CHS wasn't nearly as popular as these 20 stocks and hedge funds that were betting on CHS were disappointed as the stock returned -22.9% during the same period and underperformed the market. If you are interested in investing in large cap stocks with huge upside potential, you should check out thetop 20 most popular stocksamong hedge funds as 13 of these stocks already outperformed the market in Q2. Disclosure: None. This article was originally published atInsider Monkey. Related Content • How to Best Use Insider Monkey To Increase Your Returns • Billionaire Ken Fisher’s Top Dividend Stock Picks • 30 Stocks Billionaires Are Crazy About: Insider Monkey Billionaire Stock Index
Beth Chapman's Family Praying for a Miracle, Reality Star is 'Touch and Go' Beth Chapman is fighting for her life in the hospital, and her family is hoping for a miracle while they sit by her bedside. Sources directly connected to Dog and Beth tell The Blast the situation is "touch and go" as Chapman remains in a medically induced coma at the Queen's Medical Center in Honolulu, Hawaii. Over the weekend, the star of CMT's "Dog's Most Wanted" experienced a choking incident at her home when she was unable to "catch her breath." 911 was called and Beth was rushed to the hospital. We're told doctors felt the need to place her in a medically induced coma to allow her body to recover from the traumatic medical emergency. A ventilation tube was also inserted at the time to help with Beth's breathing. We're told doctors continue to treat her with oxygen as the family wants to make her as "comfortable as possible" while they pray for a recovery. Over the weekend, Dog the Bounty Hunter asked for "prayers" for Beth, as he sat by her side at the hospital. We're told the entire family is now with her while she remains sedated. Bonnie Chapman , Beth's daughter, also gave a small update to fans, explaining, "There's not much of an update I can give, I can say she's getting good care. I know you guys wanted more, but y'know it's a coma, much much [sic] can be updated." As The Blast first reported, Beth Chapman originally underwent surgery in September 2017 to remove a plum-sized tumor from her neck. She had previously said she was diagnosed with stage II throat cancer. Two months later, Dog revealed she was cancer-free during an episode of "Dog & Beth: Fight of Their Lives." "There is a God. This could be a miracle. This could be a healing," he said during the show. "[The doctor] said if I wasn't such a good husband, it wouldn't have worked out that great. Oh, I can breathe. Beth Chapman, you did it." In late 2018, Beth learned her cancer had returned and she underwent emergency throat surgery after doctors discovered a large blockage in her throat. Beth was also hospitalized briefly in April after the reality star had trouble breathing. At the time, a rep for the Chapmans told The Blast, "Beth was hospitalized Saturday due to an accumulation of fluid in her lungs. Doctors performed an emergency procedure to alleviate pressure that had built up."
Here’s What Hedge Funds Think About Flexion Therapeutics Inc (FLXN) Before we spend countless hours researching a company, we like to analyze what insiders, hedge funds and billionaire investors think of the stock first. This is a necessary first step in our investment process because our research has shown that the elite investors' consensus returns have been exceptional. In the following paragraphs, we find out what the billionaire investors and hedge funds think of Flexion Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:FLXN). IsFlexion Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:FLXN)the right investment to pursue these days? Prominent investors are getting more bullish. The number of bullish hedge fund positions went up by 1 lately. Our calculations also showed that FLXN isn't among the30 most popular stocks among hedge funds.FLXNwas in 15 hedge funds' portfolios at the end of the first quarter of 2019. There were 14 hedge funds in our database with FLXN positions at the end of the previous quarter. Why do we pay any attention at all to hedge fund sentiment? Our research has shown that hedge funds' large-cap stock picks indeed failed to beat the market between 1999 and 2016. However, we were able to identify in advance a select group of hedge fund holdings that outperformed the market by 40 percentage points since May 2014 through May 30, 2019 (see the details here). We were also able to identify in advance a select group of hedge fund holdings that'll significantly underperform the market. We have been tracking and sharing the list of these stocks since February 2017 and they lost 30.9% through May 30, 2019. That's why we believe hedge fund sentiment is an extremely useful indicator that investors should pay attention to. We're going to take a look at the key hedge fund action encompassing Flexion Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:FLXN). At Q1's end, a total of 15 of the hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey held long positions in this stock, a change of 7% from the previous quarter. By comparison, 15 hedge funds held shares or bullish call options in FLXN a year ago. So, let's examine which hedge funds were among the top holders of the stock and which hedge funds were making big moves. Among these funds,Kingdon Capitalheld the most valuable stake in Flexion Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:FLXN), which was worth $11 million at the end of the first quarter. On the second spot was Rubric Capital Management which amassed $9 million worth of shares. Moreover, Clearline Capital, D E Shaw, and Carlson Capital were also bullish on Flexion Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:FLXN), allocating a large percentage of their portfolios to this stock. Consequently, key money managers have been driving this bullishness.Oaktree Capital Management, managed by Howard Marks, established the most valuable position in Flexion Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:FLXN). Oaktree Capital Management had $4.4 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. Bernard Selz'sSelz Capitalalso initiated a $3.6 million position during the quarter. The other funds with brand new FLXN positions are Peter Muller'sPDT Partners, Jeffrey Talpins'sElement Capital Management, and Sander Gerber'sHudson Bay Capital Management. Let's now review hedge fund activity in other stocks - not necessarily in the same industry as Flexion Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:FLXN) but similarly valued. These stocks are FRP Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:FRPH), Energy Recovery, Inc. (NASDAQ:ERII), The Hackett Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:HCKT), and J.C. Penney Company, Inc. (NYSE:JCP). This group of stocks' market valuations are similar to FLXN's market valuation. [table] Ticker, No of HFs with positions, Total Value of HF Positions (x1000), Change in HF Position FRPH,8,43576,1 ERII,9,39697,2 HCKT,10,60507,0 JCP,13,45079,-4 Average,10,47215,-0.25 [/table] View table hereif you experience formatting issues. As you can see these stocks had an average of 10 hedge funds with bullish positions and the average amount invested in these stocks was $47 million. That figure was $48 million in FLXN's case. J.C. Penney Company, Inc. (NYSE:JCP) is the most popular stock in this table. On the other hand FRP Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:FRPH) is the least popular one with only 8 bullish hedge fund positions. Compared to these stocks Flexion Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:FLXN) is more popular among hedge funds. Our calculations showed thattop 20 most popular stocksamong hedge funds returned 6.2% in Q2 through June 19th and outperformed the S&P 500 ETF (SPY) by nearly 3 percentage points. Unfortunately FLXN wasn't nearly as popular as these 20 stocks and hedge funds that were betting on FLXN were disappointed as the stock returned -5.9% during the same period and underperformed the market. If you are interested in investing in large cap stocks with huge upside potential, you should check out thetop 20 most popular stocksamong hedge funds as 13 of these stocks already outperformed the market in Q2. Disclosure: None. This article was originally published atInsider Monkey. Related Content • How to Best Use Insider Monkey To Increase Your Returns • Billionaire Ken Fisher’s Top Dividend Stock Picks • 30 Stocks Billionaires Are Crazy About: Insider Monkey Billionaire Stock Index
Hedge Funds Have Never Been This Bullish On Jernigan Capital Inc (JCAP) You probably know from experience that there is not as much information on small-cap companies as there is on large companies. Of course, this makes it really hard and difficult for individual investors to make proper and accurate analysis of certain small-cap companies. However, well-known and successful hedge fund managers like Jeff Ubben, George Soros and Seth Klarman hold the necessary resources and abilities to conduct an extensive stock analysis on small-cap stocks, which enable them to make millions of dollars by identifying potential winners within the small-cap galaxy of stocks. This represents the main reason why Insider Monkey takes notice of the hedge fund activity in these overlooked stocks. IsJernigan Capital Inc (NYSE:JCAP)the right investment to pursue these days? The best stock pickers are getting more bullish. The number of bullish hedge fund positions advanced by 5 recently. Our calculations also showed that JCAP isn't among the30 most popular stocks among hedge funds.JCAPwas in 15 hedge funds' portfolios at the end of the first quarter of 2019. There were 10 hedge funds in our database with JCAP holdings at the end of the previous quarter. Hedge funds' reputation as shrewd investors has been tarnished in the last decade as their hedged returns couldn't keep up with the unhedged returns of the market indices. Our research has shown that hedge funds' small-cap stock picks managed to beat the market by double digits annually between 1999 and 2016, but the margin of outperformance has been declining in recent years. Nevertheless, we were still able to identify in advance a select group of hedge fund holdings that outperformed the market by 40 percentage points since May 2014 through May 30, 2019 (see the details here). We were also able to identify in advance a select group of hedge fund holdings that underperformed the market by 10 percentage points annually between 2006 and 2017. Interestingly the margin of underperformance of these stocks has been increasing in recent years. Investors who are long the market and short these stocks would have returned more than 27% annually between 2015 and 2017. We have been tracking and sharing the list of these stocks since February 2017 in our quarterly newsletter. Let's take a gander at the new hedge fund action surrounding Jernigan Capital Inc (NYSE:JCAP). At the end of the first quarter, a total of 15 of the hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey held long positions in this stock, a change of 50% from the fourth quarter of 2018. By comparison, 3 hedge funds held shares or bullish call options in JCAP a year ago. With the smart money's sentiment swirling, there exists a select group of noteworthy hedge fund managers who were adding to their stakes considerably (or already accumulated large positions). More specifically,Forward Managementwas the largest shareholder of Jernigan Capital Inc (NYSE:JCAP), with a stake worth $12.8 million reported as of the end of March. Trailing Forward Management was Shoals Capital Management, which amassed a stake valued at $8.9 million. Highland Capital Management, Ariel Investments, and Millennium Management were also very fond of the stock, giving the stock large weights in their portfolios. As industrywide interest jumped, key money managers have been driving this bullishness.Citadel Investment Group, managed by Ken Griffin, assembled the biggest position in Jernigan Capital Inc (NYSE:JCAP). Citadel Investment Group had $0.8 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. David Harding'sWinton Capital Managementalso initiated a $0.5 million position during the quarter. The other funds with new positions in the stock are Peter Rathjens, Bruce Clarke and John Campbell'sArrowstreet Capital, Thomas Bailard'sBailard Inc, and Cliff Asness'sAQR Capital Management. Let's also examine hedge fund activity in other stocks similar to Jernigan Capital Inc (NYSE:JCAP). We will take a look at CalAmp Corp. (NASDAQ:CAMP), Container Store Group Inc (NYSE:TCS), Landmark Infrastructure Partners LP (NASDAQ:LMRK), and Rigel Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:RIGL). This group of stocks' market caps are similar to JCAP's market cap. [table] Ticker, No of HFs with positions, Total Value of HF Positions (x1000), Change in HF Position CAMP,15,85365,0 TCS,12,22644,1 LMRK,5,2531,1 RIGL,15,80038,-1 Average,11.75,47645,0.25 [/table] View table hereif you experience formatting issues. As you can see these stocks had an average of 11.75 hedge funds with bullish positions and the average amount invested in these stocks was $48 million. That figure was $41 million in JCAP's case. CalAmp Corp. (NASDAQ:CAMP) is the most popular stock in this table. On the other hand Landmark Infrastructure Partners LP (NASDAQ:LMRK) is the least popular one with only 5 bullish hedge fund positions. Jernigan Capital Inc (NYSE:JCAP) is not the most popular stock in this group but hedge fund interest is still above average. This is a slightly positive signal but we'd rather spend our time researching stocks that hedge funds are piling on. Our calculations showed thattop 20 most popular stocksamong hedge funds returned 6.2% in Q2 through June 19th and outperformed the S&P 500 ETF (SPY) by nearly 3 percentage points. Unfortunately JCAP wasn't nearly as popular as these 20 stocks and hedge funds that were betting on JCAP were disappointed as the stock returned 2.3% during the same period and underperformed the market. If you are interested in investing in large cap stocks with huge upside potential, you should check out thetop 20 most popular stocksamong hedge funds as 13 of these stocks already outperformed the market so far in Q2. Disclosure: None. This article was originally published atInsider Monkey. Related Content • How to Best Use Insider Monkey To Increase Your Returns • Billionaire Ken Fisher’s Top Dividend Stock Picks • 30 Stocks Billionaires Are Crazy About: Insider Monkey Billionaire Stock Index
Should You Be Worried About Insider Transactions At Parsley Energy, Inc. (NYSE:PE)? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! It is not uncommon to see companies perform well in the years after insiders buy shares. Unfortunately, there are also plenty of examples of share prices declining precipitously after insiders have sold shares. So we'll take a look at whether insiders have been buying or selling shares inParsley Energy, Inc.(NYSE:PE). It is perfectly legal for company insiders, including board members, to buy and sell stock in a company. However, most countries require that the company discloses such transactions to the market. We don't think shareholders should simply follow insider transactions. But it is perfectly logical to keep tabs on what insiders are doing. For example, a Harvard Universitystudyfound that 'insider purchases earn abnormal returns of more than 6% per year.' View our latest analysis for Parsley Energy The Founder & Executive Chairman, Bryan Sheffield, made the biggest insider sale in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for US$70m worth of shares at a price of US$28.15 each. While we don't usually like to see insider selling, it's more concerning if the sales take price at a lower price. The silver lining is that this sell-down took place above the latest price (US$17.99). So it is hard to draw any strong conclusion from it. In the last twelve months insiders purchased 16178 shares for US$332k. On the other hand they divested 3.0m shares, for US$79m. Over the last year we saw more insider selling of Parsley Energy shares, than buying. You can see the insider transactions (by individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. By clicking on the graph below, you can see the precise details of each insider transaction! For those who like to findwinning investmentsthisfreelist of growing companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket. Over the last three months, we've seen notably more insider selling, than insider buying, at Parsley Energy. In that time, Bryan Sheffield dumped US$2.0m worth of shares. On the flip side, Independent Director Jerry Windlinger spent US$35k on purchasing shares. Because the selling vastly outweighs the buying, we'd say this is a somewhat bearish sign. Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. We usually like to see fairly high levels of insider ownership. Parsley Energy insiders own about US$231m worth of shares (which is 4.1% of the company). Most shareholders would be happy to see this sort of insider ownership, since it suggests that management incentives are well aligned with other shareholders. The insider sales have outweighed the insider buying, at Parsley Energy, in the last three months. Despite some insider buying, the longer term picture doesn't make us feel much more positive. But since Parsley Energy is profitable and growing, we're not too worried by this. The company boasts high insider ownership, but we're a little hesitant, given the history of share sales. Therefore, you should should definitely take a look at thisFREEreport showing analyst forecasts for Parsley Energy. But note:Parsley Energy may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at thisfreelist of interesting companies with high ROE and low debt. For the purposes of this article, insiders are those individuals who report their transactions to the relevant regulatory body. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.

Subsets and Splits

No community queries yet

The top public SQL queries from the community will appear here once available.