RiverNorthPhotography/iStock Unreleased via Getty Images Hyatt Hotels ( H ) executive chairman Tom Pritzker announced that he will step down from his role and will not seek reelection to the company’s board, citing scrutiny over his past association with the late disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein. In a news release on Monday, Pritzker said , “My job and responsibility is to provide good stewards...
RiverNorthPhotography/iStock Unreleased via Getty Images Hyatt Hotels ( H ) executive chairman Tom Pritzker announced that he will step down from his role and will not seek reelection to the company’s board, citing scrutiny over his past association with the late disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein. In a news release on Monday, Pritzker said , “My job and responsibility is to provide good stewardship. That is important to me. Good stewardship includes ensuring a proper transition at Hyatt.” Following discussions with my fellow board members, Pritzker decided to quit the role he’s held since 2004. Pritzker added, “Good stewardship also means protecting Hyatt, particularly in the context of my association with Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell which I deeply regret. I exercised terrible judgment in maintaining contact with them, and there is no excuse for failing to distance myself sooner. I condemn the actions and the harm caused by Epstein and Maxwell and I feel deep sorrow for the pain they inflicted on their victims.” The board named Mark Hoplamazian, Hyatt’s president and CEO, to succeed Pritzker as chairman effective immediately. More on Hyatt Hotels Hyatt Hotels Corporation (H) Q4 2025 Earnings Call Transcript Hyatt Hotels Corporation 2025 Q4 - Results - Earnings Call Presentation Hyatt Hotels: I'd Need A Discount For This One (Downgrade) Dividend Roundup: Chevron, Microsoft, Meta, Hyatt, and more Hyatt projects 6% to 7% net rooms growth and 13% to 18% adjusted EBITDA increase for 2026 amid strong brand momentum and asset-light transition
Vachiravit Vasuponsritara /iStock via Getty Images Excluding networks like Visa ( V ) and the card-issuing banks, companies in parts of the payments food chain have taken a severe beating in the last 12 months. Year-to-date declines have also been quite steep. There are two approaches one can take. One is to avoid the sector entirely, which is a fair call. A healthy sector, much like a rising tide...
Vachiravit Vasuponsritara /iStock via Getty Images Excluding networks like Visa ( V ) and the card-issuing banks, companies in parts of the payments food chain have taken a severe beating in the last 12 months. Year-to-date declines have also been quite steep. There are two approaches one can take. One is to avoid the sector entirely, which is a fair call. A healthy sector, much like a rising tide, acts like insurance and can paper over mediocre quarterly performances. You get the opposite effect of steeper sells with a weaker industry. The second approach is to find a bottom, as some of these names will likely dive into oversold territories due to sector anxieties. As a part of this second approach, I decided to take a look at Toast ( TOST ) again. Returns profile of Payment industry names (Tunga Capital, Seeking Alpha) Q4 Print Was Strong Toast's Q4 2025 results painted the picture of a company executing brilliantly on operations even as the market demands more. Full-year revenue was up 24% to $6.15 billion with a dramatic but expected change in profitability. GAAP net income hit $342 million in FY25 compared to $19 million a year ago. Free cash flow nearly doubled year-over-year to $608 million, and the company sits on $1.35 billion in cash with no debt. Toast 2025 Free Cash Flow (Toast 4Q25 Press Release) In terms of the guidance, the adjusted EBITDA range of $775 million–$795 million was a tad softer than expected, and management flagged a 150 basis point hit on the hardware side due to higher memory chip costs in the second half of 2026. I think these are transitory issues rather than structural impairments, and if anything, the earnings proved that the company's unit economics and growth profile remain attractive. Toast Valuation Grade (Seeking Alpha) Finally, on valuations, there is a legitimate argument that the stock screens expensive. However, two contextual factors matter. FY25 was Toast's first year of meaningful GAAP profitability. So the trailing numb...
Amber Glenn, Alysa Liu and Isabeau Levito are the U.S.' best shot at winning women's figure skating gold since 2002 — and of closing out these Games on a high note. (Image credit: Jamie Squire)
Amber Glenn, Alysa Liu and Isabeau Levito are the U.S.' best shot at winning women's figure skating gold since 2002 — and of closing out these Games on a high note. (Image credit: Jamie Squire)
Wheat fell to the lowest in nearly a week as traders assessed the prospect of drier and warmer weather across US wheat-growing areas after a cold snap, boosting the supply outlook. Muted trading — with Chicago markets reopening after a long weekend and much of Asia closed for the Lunar New Year holiday — also weighed on prices. The wider grains and oilseed market also edged lower. Wheat futures fo...
Wheat fell to the lowest in nearly a week as traders assessed the prospect of drier and warmer weather across US wheat-growing areas after a cold snap, boosting the supply outlook. Muted trading — with Chicago markets reopening after a long weekend and much of Asia closed for the Lunar New Year holiday — also weighed on prices. The wider grains and oilseed market also edged lower. Wheat futures for May delivery in Chicago, the most active contract, dropped as much as 1.4% to $5.4075 a bushel. Corn and soybeans also ticked down. The US Climate Prediction Center forecasts drier and warmer weather in much of the US Plains and South — with above average temperatures in parts of Texas and Oklahoma next week — further strengthening bearish signals caused by a global wheat glut. Additionally, with much of Asia closed for the next few days “American exporters are now waiting for tangible purchase actions to validate the prospect of a new stream of business,” Argus analysts said in a note. Wheat was down 1.3% to to $5.4150 a bushel as of 9:20 a.m. in London Corn and soybean futures were also down
Rawf8/iStock via Getty Images By James Smith , Developed Markets Economist, UK UK unemployment is rising The latest UK jobs report keeps the Bank of England firmly on track for a March rate cut. The unemployment rate is rising; it now sits at 5.2%, almost a percentage point higher than a year ago. Hiring surveys are still getting worse. That said, the weakness is still heavily concentrated in cons...
Rawf8/iStock via Getty Images By James Smith , Developed Markets Economist, UK UK unemployment is rising The latest UK jobs report keeps the Bank of England firmly on track for a March rate cut. The unemployment rate is rising; it now sits at 5.2%, almost a percentage point higher than a year ago. Hiring surveys are still getting worse. That said, the weakness is still heavily concentrated in consumer-facing industries - a legacy of last year’s sizeable payroll tax (National Insurance) and National Living Wage increases. Hospitality payrolled employment may be down almost 3% since the start of 2025, but it is still 2% higher than pre-Covid levels. Yet, economic output in the sector is still 6% below - suggesting the loss of jobs may have further to run. Outside of these consumer-centric industries, the story looks more benign. Employment is still trending down across the wider private sector on a three-month average of payrolls growth, but only slightly. We’re also not seeing a particularly noticeable pick-up in redundancies across the economy. Vacancy numbers have stopped falling, too. Consumer-facing industries are seeing the sharpest falls in payroll employment (Source: Macrobond, ING) Consumer-facing = Wholesale/retail, hospitality and arts, recreation and entertainment Lower wage growth should enable further rate cuts Our base case is for further gradual attrition in job numbers, rather than a sharper deterioration. The public sector, which saw staffing numbers rise 0.6% last year, is likely to be less of an offset to private-sector weakness this year, given more muted increases in departmental spending. What about unemployment? BoE hawks would point to the sharp drop in net migration over recent months as an argument that the jobs market could re-tighten over the coming months. That remains a risk. But we think the significant increase in migration seen over the preceding few years is still the dominant story. Several (mostly low-paid) sectors like hospitality...
Battery materials technology company Nano One Materials ( NNOMF ) said that Denis Geoffroy stepped into the COO role, focusing on manufacturing scale-up, customer qualification, and commercialization using his deep battery materials experience. Alex Holmes has been promoted to president and chief strategy officer, drawing on his capital markets expertise. The company has recognized Alex's leadersh...
Battery materials technology company Nano One Materials ( NNOMF ) said that Denis Geoffroy stepped into the COO role, focusing on manufacturing scale-up, customer qualification, and commercialization using his deep battery materials experience. Alex Holmes has been promoted to president and chief strategy officer, drawing on his capital markets expertise. The company has recognized Alex's leadership as COO since 2021, during which time he supported the development of the operational and commercial foundations required to advance Nano One's technology. More on Nano One Materials Corp. Nano One: After A 24% Drop Is It A Buy? Seeking Alpha’s Quant Rating on Nano One Materials Corp. Financial information for Nano One Materials Corp.
China’s Unitree Robotics plans to ship as many as 20,000 humanoid robots this year, up from about 5,500 in 2025, according to chief executive Wang Xingxing, after the company drew global attention with its appearance at Monday night’s Spring Festival Gala. Speaking to domestic tech outlet 36Kr after the show, Wang said global humanoid robot shipments could reach “tens of thousands” this year, with...
China’s Unitree Robotics plans to ship as many as 20,000 humanoid robots this year, up from about 5,500 in 2025, according to chief executive Wang Xingxing, after the company drew global attention with its appearance at Monday night’s Spring Festival Gala. Speaking to domestic tech outlet 36Kr after the show, Wang said global humanoid robot shipments could reach “tens of thousands” this year, with Unitree accounting for roughly 10,000 to 20,000 units of that total. The projection follows another...
Steve Rosenbach/iStock Editorial via Getty Images I've been covering ZIM Integrated Shipping Services Ltd. ( ZIM ) during this year. In my last article I upgraded the stock from a sell to a buy due to increased interest in acquiring the company. Since then, MSC denied its interest for bidding for ZIM; however, ZIM confirmed an agreement with Hapag-Lloyd ( HPGLY ) that will acquire ZIM for $4.2 bil...
Steve Rosenbach/iStock Editorial via Getty Images I've been covering ZIM Integrated Shipping Services Ltd. ( ZIM ) during this year. In my last article I upgraded the stock from a sell to a buy due to increased interest in acquiring the company. Since then, MSC denied its interest for bidding for ZIM; however, ZIM confirmed an agreement with Hapag-Lloyd ( HPGLY ) that will acquire ZIM for $4.2 billion or $35 per share in cash. Background Q4 presentation ZIM Integrated Shipping Services is an Israeli liner company with a light business model that relies on chartering-in most of its ships. However, just after COVID, in 2021 and 2022, the company was one of the first to order new tonnage, placing orders for 46 newbuilds with deliveries scheduled between 2023 and 2024. This is significant because ZIM ordered those ships at historically low prices, and since then, their value has increased by more than 50% : vesselslink While ZIM doesn’t own the ships, they are chartered in under very long term charters and include purchase options as mentioned in the Q3 conference call . Moreover, for 25 of the 28 LNG vessels, our core strategic capacity, we hold options to extend the charter period as well as purchase options, giving us full control over the destiny of these vessels very much as if we were the vessel owners. Moreover, liner companies' appetite for new containerships does not seem to have any limits, with new orders reaching new highs despite record orderbook. For those companies will be much more profitable to buy ZIM than continuing ordering newbuilds with delivery scheduled for 2029. Investor presentation ZIM’s fleet consist of 129 vessels with 60% being newbuilds. Moreover, last year the company ordered ten additional newbuilds with deliveries expected between 2027 and 2028. Financial Position and Valuation Investor presentation ZIM has a solid financial position with $3 billion in cash and no traditional debt. The debt that appears in the balance sheet correspond t...