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Citi analysts reaffirmed a Buy rating and a $385.00 price target for Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META). The analysts noted that Reels ad loads have reached 19% quarter-to-date, up from 17% in the second quarter, based on their proprietary tracking. They believe Meta is gaining a larger share of the online advertising market due to increased ad units, strong advertiser demand, and a healthier online advertising environment.
According to their data, ad loads have grown to 18% in July, 19% in August, and around 20% in September. The analysts anticipate further upside potential as engagement continues to rise, especially with the growing popularity of Reels’ Lo-Fi ad environment.
Citi also initiated a 90-day Positive Catalyst Watch ahead of Meta Connect on 09/27, where they expect to receive more information about Meta’s GenAI plans and results in late October. Overall, Meta remains Citi’s top pick in the Internet sector, and they would recommend buying on any significant share price pullback.
Truist upgraded International Paper Company (NYSE:IP) from Hold to Buy and has raised the price target from $30 to $43 per share in a note to clients. According to the analysts, the containerboard market has broken free from its constraints, and they are optimistic now that the trough has been reached.
The analysts believe the containerboard market is at a turning point, ready for recovery due to improving demand after destocking and more balanced inventories. Despite the slow absorption of new containerboard supply, economic growth, and rising demand should counteract this, leading to stable pricing.
Truist considers IP the preferred stock for participating in this market recovery, citing greater operating leverage and more potential upside compared to peers.
Barclays analysts reiterated an Equalweight rating on Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) and maintained a price target of $260. The analysts anticipate that Tesla’s Q3 deliveries will fall short of Street expectations, with the company delivering around 455,000 units compared to the Street estimate of 463,000 units.
The analysts also noted that Q3 production is expected to be around 435,000 units, a significant decrease from the previous quarter. The analysts suggest that Tesla’s inventory may have decreased due to ongoing discounting and slowed production. Additionally, they highlighted that margins will be closely scrutinized, with questions about whether the second quarter represented the low point. Looking ahead, the analysts suggest that Q4 may see some recovery from the weaknesses observed in Q3.
Las Vegas Aces center A’ja Wilson is the WNBA Defensive Player of the Year for the second straight season.
Wilson received 32 of the 60 votes from a nationwide panel of sportswriters and broadcasters. Connecticut Sun forward Alyssa Thomas finished second (24 votes) and Washington Mystics guard Brittney Sykes was third (three votes).
Wilson, 27, led the league and set career highs in both total blocks (89) and blocked shots per game (2.2). She ranked third in defensive rebounds per game (7.5) and 10th in steals per game (1.40).
The two-time WNBA MVP helped the defending champion Aces (34-6) set a single-season record for wins. Top-seeded Las Vegas since has advanced to the WNBA semifinals against the Dallas Wings, starting Sunday.
The 6-foot-4 Wilson also ranked second in the league in rebounding (9.5) and third in scoring (22.8).
Wilson also headlined the WNBA All-Defensive first team, joining Thomas, Sykes, New York Liberty forward Breanna Stewart and Los Angeles Sparks guard Jordin Canada.
The All-Defensive second team featured Liberty guard-forward Betnijah Laney, Seattle Storm center Ezi Magbegor, Sparks forward Nneka Ogwumike, Minnesota Lynx forward Napheesa Collier and Chicago Sky center-forward Elizabeth Williams.
The Boston Celtics agreed to terms with free agent forward Lamar Stevens, The Athletic reported on Friday.
Stevens, 26, started 25 of his 62 games with Cleveland last season, averaging 5.3 points and 3.3 rebounds.
Undrafted out of Penn State in 2020, he appeared in 165 games (38 starts) over three seasons with the Cavaliers. He was part of a three-team trade with the Cavaliers, San Antonio Spurs and Miami Heat on July 6, and was waived by the Spurs on July 17.
Known for his defensive skills, Stevens can help offset the loss of Marcus Smart in a June trade to the Memphis Grizzlies.
Michael Andretti’s operation, Andretti Global, is the last remaining contender to become a Formula 1 team, Motorsport-Total.com reported.
F1 did not comment Friday on the report, which said that three other teams that submitted applications and reached the final stage were rejected. Those teams are Hitech and Rodin Carlin from F2 and start-up LKYSUNZ.
The FIA selection process does not guarantee expansion from the 10 existing teams, which race 20 cars in each grand prix. The bidders face a $200 million “anti-dilution” fee that existing teams want to triple to at least $600 million.
LKYSUNZ, with financial support from a new American investor, announced Friday in a press release that it was prepared to pay the higher fee.
“We are still in dialogue with the FIA,” LKYSUNZ CEO Benjamin Durand said. “But I can’t go into details at the moment because we are bound by an NDA which we respect.”
The bidding teams must show sufficient financial resources as well as how they will be environmentally sustainable in order to meet the requirement of net zero CO2 emissions by 2030. The applicants also had to address social issues such as more diversity in racing staff.
Andretti filed an application in 2022 to enter an Andretti Global team into F1 in 2024. Andretti partnered with General Motors in January and formally announced their intent to compete under the Cadillac brand, reportedly eyeing an entry as early as 2025.
There is currently no American team in F1. Andretti planned to sign at least one American driver if it succeeds in entering F1.
Andretti currently competes in IndyCar, Formula E and other open-wheel competitions.
Democratic Sen. Robert Menendez and wife indicted on federal corruption charges. FBI seized $500K cash at home.
Robert Menendez, 69, is the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations committee and was elected to a third term in the Senate in 2018.
The FBI has recently indicted the senator and his spouse, alleging serious wrongdoing. As the investigation unfolds, authorities have made an astonishing discovery: a substantial sum of $500,000 in cash was seized from the couple’s residence. $100,000 worth of gold bars were also found at the home with fingerprint evidence on the items found. A luxury high-end Mercedes and various other luxury items were found at the home.
US Attorney SDNY
The alleged corruption revolves around a complex web of financial transactions, political favors, and influence-peddling. Authorities claim that the senator and his wife engaged in a series of questionable activities that violated federal laws and ethics regulations.
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During their investigation, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) executed a search warrant at the Menendez residence. During the raid, agents uncovered a substantial amount of cash—$500,000.
US Attorney SDNY
Allegedly, sensitive government information has also been found to be given to Egypt. Allegedly the wife of Sen. Menendez, Nadine, collaborated with Mr. Hana, one of the three New Jersey businessmen, to introduce the senator to Egyptian military and intelligence personnel. Prosecutors claim that Egyptian-born Mr. Hana and Ms. Menendez spoke via thousands of text messages that the latter later destroyed from her phone.
The senator is accused of engaging in a variety of domestic and international corrupt schemes in the three-count indictment, which also names the senator’s wife and three New Jersey businesspeople. In two others, he attempted to sway the criminal investigations of two New Jersey businessmen, Wael Hana, Jose Uribe and Fred Daibes. One of whom was a longtime supporter of Mr. Menendez. In one, he sought to help the government of Egypt, including by surreptitiously giving it critical U.S. government information.
Menendez has already been accused of collecting bribes from a wealthy patron in New Jersey in the form of campaign donations, private flights, and other perks in exchange for favors, but a 2017 trial resulted in a deadlocked jury.
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CWEB Summarized Business Newsletter September 22, 2023
Nearing the close of a week in which the stock market fell sharply, the S&P 500 showed little movement on Friday afternoon. While the Nasdaq Composite was nearly unchanged, the broader market index fell by 0.1%. A decline of 63 points (or 0.2%) was seen in the Dow Jones Industrial Average.
On Wednesday, the Biden administration said that, since the Covid virus continues to spread across the country, it will once again begin providing free at-home tests to American households beginning on Monday. According to a press release, Americans will soon be able to visit COVIDtests.gov to request four free tests.
Franchisees of McDonald’s who expand by opening new outlets may soon be subject to increased royalties. Starting in 2019, the fast-food behemoth will charge a whole percentage point more for these services. McDonald’s is increasing its royalty fees for the first time in over three decades.
As the streaming sector struggles with a slowdown in membership growth since the pandemic, Amazon (AMZN) Prime Video will join rivals next year in rolling out commercials and providing a higher-priced ad-free tier. The American tech giant announced on Friday that starting in the first quarter of 2024, advertisements will be shown in the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, and Canada.
Walmart (WMT) is investigating the veterinary and grooming industries. The largest store in the United States has opened its first pet services center and has ambitions to expand the concept. In addition to its current service, which allows users to automate orders of dog food, cat litter, and other recurring pet-related purchases, the test locations will also offer veterinary care and grooming services.
The paid verification badge on Meta is now available for company profiles. The special tools and assistance were once only available to individual producers on Facebook and Instagram, but the social media giant is now making them available to corporate accounts as well. However, businesses will have to pay $12 to $15 more per month to use Facebook or Instagram, totaling $22.
Uber Eats plans to use a chatbot powered by Google to expand. The company has announced that later this year, chatbot support will be available to consumers in the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, and Canada. Assistance driven by generative AI will first aid consumers in locating discounts, reordering favorites, and other tasks related to dining out.
Microsoft(MSFT) announced the official release date and demonstrated some of the features of its AI-powered Copilot feature. Overreliance on its generative software, which was shown making blog posts, photos, and emails based on user inputs, was warned against by business leaders during a “Responsible AI” discussion that followed the unveiling.
Expanded in-app payment possibilities are part of WhatsApp’s ongoing commercial drive in India. In an effort to expand its commercial offers in its biggest market, India, the messaging app will start supporting in-app credit card purchases and services from competing digital payment providers.
The announcement of Rupert Murdoch’s departure as chairman of Fox and News Corp. boosted the stock price of both firms. At the age of 92, the conservative media mogul is handing up control of his enterprises to his eldest son, Lachlan Murdoch, who will serve as the only chairman of both.
YouTube has introduced a set of AI-enhanced creation tools. Google’s video platform, YouTube, announced many noteworthy features at its Made-on YouTube event. These features include the ability to use artificial intelligence to build photo and video backgrounds, topic suggestions for videos, and music searches. In addition to such capabilities, it demonstrated an AI-powered dubbing function that enables content creators to add subtitles in multiple languages simultaneously.
The world’s fifth-largest economy will get billions of dollars in inflows to help fund its current account and fiscal deficits after JPMorgan (JPM) decided to include India in its widely followed emerging market debt index.
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission has issued a recall for Novaform ComfortGrande and DreamAway mattresses sold exclusively at Costco due to possible mould exposure during production.
Stocks to watch with positive momentum and Buy Rating:
Image Alex Murdaugh (Hampton County Sheriff’s Office)
In federal court on Thursday, disgraced lawyer Alex Murdaugh admitted guilt to 22 counts of financial fraud and money laundering. Murdaugh was convicted in March of murdering his wife, Maggie, and their youngest son, Paul, in June 2021 near the family’s estate. He is currently receiving a life sentence for these crimes. The former attorney was indicted on 22 counts by a federal grand jury in May for bank fraud, wire fraud, money laundering, and conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud.
In state court, Murdaugh still faces roughly 100 different accusations. Authorities said he tried to have him killed so his living son could receive $10 million in life insurance, but the bullet missed Murdaugh’s head and he was not killed, according to the authorities. Murdaugh allegedly managed a narcotics and money laundering operation, stole settlement money from a number of customers and his family’s legal practice, and failed to pay taxes on the money he stole, according to investigators.
At least some of those charges will be the subject of his trial at the end of November. State prosecutors have resolutely reiterated that they want him to answer each of them.
Griffin expected that Murdaugh’s drug use will probably have a significant impact on the sentencing report that will be prepared before his subsequent hearing. Until that report is finished, neither side would specify how long they expect Murdaugh will be imprisoned.
Judge Clifton Newman softly ripped #AlexMurdaugh to pieces before sentencing the convicted murderer with the maximum penalty of two consecutive life sentences. “You had such a lovely family,” Newman said. pic.twitter.com/ebNvGozvBp
— Law&Crime Network (@LawCrimeNetwork) March 3, 2023
Murdaugh entered a plea of guilty to 14 charges of money laundering, five charges of wire fraud, one charge of bank fraud, one charge of conspiracy to commit wire and bank fraud, and one charge of conspiracy to commit wire fraud.
The maximum sentence for each offense is at least 20-30 years in jail.
Murdaugh must also return the $9 million he is alleged to have stolen, as part of the plea agreement’s additional conditions. The money must be immediately turned over to federal authorities, which could lead to conflict given that the state currently controls the assets Murdaugh still owns.
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The Biden administration announced a major initiative to protect Americans from medical debt on Thursday, outlining plans to develop federal rules barring unpaid medical bills from affecting patients’ credit scores.
The regulations, if enacted, would potentially help tens of millions of people who have medical debt on their credit reports, eliminating information that can depress consumers’ scores and make it harder for many to get a job, rent an apartment, or secure a car loan.
New rules would also represent one of the most significant federal actions to tackle medical debt, a problem that burdens about 100 million people and forces legions to take on extra work, give up their homes, and ration food and other essentials, a KFF Health News-NPR investigation found.
“No one in this country should have to go into debt to get the quality health care they need,” said Vice President Kamala Harris, who announced the new moves along with Rohit Chopra, head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, or CFPB. The agency will be charged with developing the new rules.
“These measures will improve the credit scores of millions of Americans so that they will better be able to invest in their future,” Harris said.
Enacting new regulations can be a lengthy process. Administration officials said Thursday that the new rules would be developed next year.
Such an aggressive step to restrict credit reporting and debt collection by hospitals and other medical providers will also almost certainly stir industry opposition.
At the same time, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which was formed in response to the 2008 financial crisis, is under fire from Republicans, and its future may be jeopardized by a case before the Supreme Court, whose conservative majority has been chipping away at federal regulatory powers.
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But the move by the Biden administration drew strong praise from patients’ and consumer groups, many of whom have been pushing for years for the federal government to strengthen protections against medical debt.
“This is an important milestone in our collective efforts and will provide immediate relief to people that have unfairly had their credit impacted simply because they got sick,” said Emily Stewart, executive director of Community Catalyst, a Boston nonprofit that has helped lead national medical debt efforts.
Credit reporting, a threat designed to induce patients to pay their bills, is the most common collection tactic used by hospitals, a KFF Health News analysis has shown.
“Negative credit reporting is one of the biggest pain points for patients with medical debt,” said Chi Chi Wu, a senior attorney at the National Consumer Law Center. “When we hear from consumers about medical debt, they often talk about the devastating consequences that bad credit from medical debts has had on their financial lives.”
Although a single black mark on a credit score may not have a huge effect for some people, the impact can be devastating for those with large unpaid medical bills. There is growing evidence, for example, that credit scores depressed by medical debt can threaten people’s access to housing and fuel homelessness in many communities.
At the same time, CFPB researchers have found that medical debt — unlike other kinds of debt — does not accurately predict a consumer’s creditworthiness, calling into question how useful it is on a credit report.
The three largest credit agencies — Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion — said they would stop including some medical debt on credit reports as of last year. The excluded debts included paid-off bills and those less than $500.
But the agencies’ voluntary actions left out millions of patients with bigger medical bills on their credit reports. And many consumer and patient advocates called for more action.
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The National Consumer Law Center, Community Catalyst, and some 50 other groups in March sent letters to the CFPB and IRS urging stronger federal action to rein in hospital debt collection.
State leaders also have taken steps to expand consumer protection. In June, Colorado enacted a trailblazing bill that prohibits medical debt from being included on residents’ credit reports or factored into their credit scores.
Many groups have urged the federal government to bar tax-exempt hospitals from selling patient debt or denying medical care to people with past-due bills, practices that remain widespread across the U.S., KFF Health News found.
Hospital leaders and representatives of the debt collection industry have warned that such restrictions on the ability of medical providers to get their bills paid may have unintended consequences, such as prompting more hospitals and physicians to require upfront payment before delivering care.
Looser credit requirements could also make it easier for consumers who can’t handle more debt to get loans they might not be able to pay off, others have warned.
“It is unfortunate that the CFPB and the White House are not considering the host of consequences that will result if medical providers are singled out in their billing, compared to other professions or industries,” said Scott Purcell, chief executive of ACA International, the collection industry’s leading trade association.
About This Project
“Diagnosis: Debt” is a reporting partnership between KFF Health News and NPR exploring the scale, impact, and causes of medical debt in America.
The series draws on original polling by KFF, court records, federal data on hospital finances, contracts obtained through public records requests, data on international health systems, and a yearlong investigation into the financial assistance and collection policies of more than 500 hospitals across the country.
Additional research was conducted by the Urban Institute, which analyzed credit bureau and other demographic data on poverty, race, and health status for KFF Health News to explore where medical debt is concentrated in the U.S. and what factors are associated with high debt levels.
The JPMorgan Chase Institute analyzed records from a sampling of Chase credit card holders to look at how customers’ balances may be affected by major medical expenses. And the CED Project, a Denver nonprofit, worked with KFF Health News on a survey of its clients to explore links between medical debt and housing instability.
KFF Health News journalists worked with KFF public opinion researchers to design and analyze the “KFF Health Care Debt Survey.” The survey was conducted Feb. 25 through March 20, 2022, online and via telephone, in English and Spanish, among a nationally representative sample of 2,375 U.S. adults, including 1,292 adults with current health care debt and 382 adults who had health care debt in the past five years. The margin of sampling error is plus or minus 3 percentage points for the full sample and 3 percentage points for those with current debt. For results based on subgroups, the margin of sampling error may be higher.
Reporters from KFF Health News and NPR also conducted hundreds of interviews with patients across the country; spoke with physicians, health industry leaders, consumer advocates, debt lawyers, and researchers; and reviewed scores of studies and surveys about medical debt.
KFF Health News is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the core operating programs at KFF—an independent source of health policy research, polling, and journalism. Learn more about KFF.
Noam N. Levey
September 21, 2023
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