Roman Tiraspolsky/iStock Editorial via Getty Images Blackstone ( BX ) said the funds it manages have invested $250M in the UAE-based newly established payments and data intelligence technology platform, Advanced Digital Gaming Technology. The news comes amid the Iran war, which has adversely impacted the region's financial markets. The new platform was established through a strategic partnership b...
Roman Tiraspolsky/iStock Editorial via Getty Images Blackstone ( BX ) said the funds it manages have invested $250M in the UAE-based newly established payments and data intelligence technology platform, Advanced Digital Gaming Technology. The news comes amid the Iran war, which has adversely impacted the region's financial markets. The new platform was established through a strategic partnership between Blackstone, Abu Dhabi-based investment company Raya Holding, and technology partners NRT Technology and Sightline Payments to support regulated digital markets globally. ADGT is a premier payments and compliance technology provider to the commercial gaming market. It is the only licensed platform able to contract directly with both land-based venues and online digital platforms. Abu Dhabi-headquartered ADGT plans to initially focus on deployments across the UAE, the Middle East, Africa, and select international corridors. Shares were -2.20% Thursday pre-market to $106.00. Blackstone has had a presence in the UAE since 2010. "We see significant opportunity to deploy capital at scale in the UAE to build companies that can grow both domestically and internationally, despite near-term headwinds," said Blackstone COO Jon Gray. Dear readers: We recognize that politics often intersects with the financial news of the day, so we invite you to click here to join the separate political discussion. More on Blackstone Wall Street Lunch: Private Credit Funds Face $10B Investor Exit Wave Avoiding Blackstone And Blackstone Secured Lending Even Before BCRED Redemption Surge Blackstone: An Alternative Asset Compounder Built To Outperform Blue Owl, peers push back on private credit risks amid market jitters Blackstone, David Blitzer bet big on Indian Premier League with $1.8B RCB buy
Cars line up outside a gas station early in the morning in Portland, Ore., in 1973. Photo: Smith Collection/VCG Global markets in early 2026 are gripped by a resurrected fear: stagflation. As rate-cut expectations evaporate — and in some quarters, pivot toward hikes — global liquidity is tightening at the top. Nearly all major asset classes outside of energy are buckling. Amid this confusion, trad...
Cars line up outside a gas station early in the morning in Portland, Ore., in 1973. Photo: Smith Collection/VCG Global markets in early 2026 are gripped by a resurrected fear: stagflation. As rate-cut expectations evaporate — and in some quarters, pivot toward hikes — global liquidity is tightening at the top. Nearly all major asset classes outside of energy are buckling. Amid this confusion, traders are blowing the dust off their 1970s playbooks. The two great stagflationary shocks of that decade certainly offer valuable clues. Yet, too many investors are indiscriminately applying 50-year-old lessons to today’s wildly different macroeconomic architecture. The recent lackluster performance of gold is a glaring example.
hapabapa/iStock Editorial via Getty Images Thesis An opportunity to purchase the 8.375% 2027 senior unsecured high-yield notes of iHeartMedia ( IHRT ) exists for a sizeable yield to maturity & yield to worst of 18%. The company currently finds itself in a transition from legacy multiplatform audio to digital audio & podcasting. Given the $270 million cash on hand, $500 ABL facility, and the tempor...
hapabapa/iStock Editorial via Getty Images Thesis An opportunity to purchase the 8.375% 2027 senior unsecured high-yield notes of iHeartMedia ( IHRT ) exists for a sizeable yield to maturity & yield to worst of 18%. The company currently finds itself in a transition from legacy multiplatform audio to digital audio & podcasting. Given the $270 million cash on hand, $500 ABL facility, and the temporal seniority enjoyed by the notes coupled with cross-default protection, it is highly likely that the 2027 notes will pay out without any issues. Furthermore, the company is growing into its cash flows, and fears over non-payment of the notes may be misplaced. The notes may also be mispriced, currently sitting at a spread of over 1,300 bps over the 10Y treasuries owing to illiquidity and its de minimis size of the original issue and total debt outstanding for iHeartMedia. Given the transition, downside protection and safety of returns appear guaranteed by the notes as compared to the volatile equity of the company. Data by YCharts Executive Summary The 2027 notes are callable and can be put back to the company in case of a "101 Change of Control" event or any covenant violation. The notes were issued by iHeart Communications in 2019, when it was restructuring after coming out of bankruptcy in 2018. Given that COVID-19 accelerated the transformation of many businesses, iHeart is currently transitioning from being a multiplatform legacy radio broadcaster to digital broadcasting and analytics. Coverage ratios for the company (Sanket Karve and Company Filings (10K, 10Q)) Although the multiplatform revenue has been declining at an average of 4.5%, the digital audio segment has been growing at a clip, with an average 25% growth, and also boasts an ROA of over 60% compared to the 10% average of the legacy broadcasting segment. The digital audio segment currently makes up 34.30% of the revenue mix, with legacy broadcasting at 58.6% and media services at 7.03%. The fixed charge cove...
Lemon_tm/iStock via Getty Images I previously covered Alphabet Inc., aka Google ( GOOG , GOOGL , GOOG:CA ) in November 2025, discussing its robust monetization cadence across advertising and cloud segments, with those efforts likely to drive the company's long-term growth prospects. Even so, thanks to the clarity arising from the antitrust ruling and the consequently outsized stock price performan...
Lemon_tm/iStock via Getty Images I previously covered Alphabet Inc., aka Google ( GOOG , GOOGL , GOOG:CA ) in November 2025, discussing its robust monetization cadence across advertising and cloud segments, with those efforts likely to drive the company's long-term growth prospects. Even so, thanks to the clarity arising from the antitrust ruling and the consequently outsized stock price performance, I was of the opinion that GOOG might be overbought at prior levels, warranting a downgraded Buy rating then. In this article, I shall discuss why I am reiterating my Buy rating for the GOOG stock, albeit upon a further correction nearer to my Buy Zones of $270s or the 200 day moving averages of $262s for an improved margin of safety. My optimism is attributed to the improved risk/reward and the cheaper valuations from the prior Bull Trap in early February 2026, the robust, diversified profitable growth prospects, and their ability to sustainably fund their growth ambitions through the rich cash flows/healthy balance sheet. GOOG Proves Its AI & Advertising Beneficiary Status GOOG 1Y Stock Price ( TradingView) Since my last downgraded rating to Buy, GOOG has gone ahead and charted a new high of $349s by early February 2026, before losing part of those gains to retest the $290s by the time of writing - with a similar correction also observed in its Big Tech peers in varying degrees. 1. Market Rotation Much of their headwinds may be attributed to the market rotation " out of high-multiple technology names and into more defensive corners of the market, including consumer staples, energy, and utilities, as investors seek stability amid heightened volatility." I am of the opinion that GOOG's pullback has been a boon indeed, since it has brought the stock nearer to my prior Buy Zones of $255s along the September/October 2025 top and/or the prior 50 day moving averages. This is especially since the stock has previously hit a new P/E non-GAAP valuation high of 32.09x in early Feb...
The Fidelity MSCI Consumer Staples Index ETF (NYSEARCA:FSTA) stands out for its lower expense ratio, broader portfolio, and recent performance, while the First Trust Nasdaq Food & Beverage ETF (NASDAQ:FTXG) is less diversified but offers a higher yield. Both funds target the U.S. consumer staples sector, but they take different approaches. FSTA tracks a broad consumer staples index, while FTXG con...
The Fidelity MSCI Consumer Staples Index ETF (NYSEARCA:FSTA) stands out for its lower expense ratio, broader portfolio, and recent performance, while the First Trust Nasdaq Food & Beverage ETF (NASDAQ:FTXG) is less diversified but offers a higher yield. Both funds target the U.S. consumer staples sector, but they take different approaches. FSTA tracks a broad consumer staples index, while FTXG concentrates its portfolio on food and beverage companies. This comparison highlights cost, returns, risk, and portfolio differences to help clarify which may appeal more to investors seeking defensive sector exposure. Beta measures price volatility relative to the S&P 500; beta is calculated from five-year monthly returns. The 1-yr return represents total return over the trailing 12 months. Continue reading
Welcome to Next Africa, a daily newsletter on where the continent stands now — and where it’s headed. Sign up here to have it delivered to your email. In today’s edition, we look at the state of law enforcement in South Africa, and: Governments say they have enough fuel Morocco is looking to add more hotel rooms Finally, Ghana pushes for reparations for slavery Police and Crime This was a dark wee...
Welcome to Next Africa, a daily newsletter on where the continent stands now — and where it’s headed. Sign up here to have it delivered to your email. In today’s edition, we look at the state of law enforcement in South Africa, and: Governments say they have enough fuel Morocco is looking to add more hotel rooms Finally, Ghana pushes for reparations for slavery Police and Crime This was a dark week for South Africa’s criminal-justice system. On an overcast Monday morning in downtown Johannesburg, Chinette Gallichan was gunned down by unknown assailants as she stepped out of her car. The 35-year-old lawyer was about to represent her employer in a labor dispute, and the suspicion is she was killed due to her work. On Wednesday, the country’s most senior policeman, Fannie Masemola, was summoned to answer claims linked to a health-services contract, allegations that came out of a judicial commission of inquiry into police corruption. That a top cop would be implicated in a crime would shock most countries, but Masemola — who denies wrongdoing — adds to a long list of South African police bosses to face possible charges. This time, the chief will be joined by 12 of his most-senior officers. Meanwhile, Police Minister Senzo Mchunu is currently suspended after being accused by a provincial commissioner of sabotaging a unit set up to investigate political assassinations. Elsewhere, a separate probe into why cases haven’t been brought against perpetrators of crimes during apartheid heard that political interference in the prosecuting authority may have been responsible. When the police protect criminals, responsibility for seeking justice can fall onto lawyers, insolvency experts, tax consultants, accountants and other professionals. Many of them — just like Gallichan — have paid an appalling price . It all paints a gloomy picture of a society in which the police are seemingly powerless to halt rampant crime, where private-security firms and even the army are called in to pa...
cagkansayin/iStock via Getty Images The Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF ( SCHD ) is one of the largest dividend growth ETFs out there, competing with other similar multi-billion peers such as the Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF ( VIG ) and the iShares Core Dividend Growth ETF ( DGRO ). Now, one of the reasons why I have always preferred SCHD over these other alternatives is that SCHD strikes a ...
cagkansayin/iStock via Getty Images The Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF ( SCHD ) is one of the largest dividend growth ETFs out there, competing with other similar multi-billion peers such as the Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF ( VIG ) and the iShares Core Dividend Growth ETF ( DGRO ). Now, one of the reasons why I have always preferred SCHD over these other alternatives is that SCHD strikes a beautiful balance between growth and current dividend yield. Namely, it can compound the current income streams without requiring investors to dilute their portfolios with immaterial yield exposures. For example, the current yield for SCHD stands at 3.45%, while for VIG and DGRO it is 1.67% and 2.13%, respectively. One might think here that SCHD's higher yield comes at the expense of quality and dividend growth prospects. Well, based on how SCHD has responded to the flight-to-quality trade, I doubt that we can discount the embedded quality component in this ETF: YCharts Similarly, if we look at the historical 5-year dividend growth, we will find SCHD to be superior as well: YCharts Plus, the key fundamental parameters of SCHD are just as competitive and solid as for the aforementioned peers (and also on a stand-alone basis), such as: ~$84 billion in AuM. The expense ratio is only 0.06%. Portfolio diversification is robust (100 individual holdings). Value-oriented (mid-cap value) stock selection, which takes into account cash flow to total debt, ROE, dividend yield, and historical dividend growth (picks stocks that hit the highest score). Eligible stocks must have sustained at least 10 consecutive years of dividend payments and have a minimum market cap of $500 million. Having said that, the notable YTD share price growth of SCHD has certainly done its thing - i.e., made the yield less attractive due to the higher valuations (higher share prices). However, we have to contextualize SCHD and its offering with the current market dynamics, which have changed a lot since my previ...
The geopolitical conflict in the Middle East has the world watching oil and natural gas prices. The daily flow of news can drive energy prices higher or lower, depending on how fast-changing events are perceived by financial markets. This geopolitical conflict is unique, but this dynamic is not new. If you are looking to invest in the energy sector because oil and natural gas prices are rising, yo...
The geopolitical conflict in the Middle East has the world watching oil and natural gas prices. The daily flow of news can drive energy prices higher or lower, depending on how fast-changing events are perceived by financial markets. This geopolitical conflict is unique, but this dynamic is not new. If you are looking to invest in the energy sector because oil and natural gas prices are rising, you need to think beyond the current geopolitical events. Which is why most long-term investors will prefer a business like Chevron (NYSE: CVX) . And why a stock like Devon Energy (NYSE: DVN) could be higher risk than you may think. Chevron and Devon are both well-respected energy companies . However, they have vastly different production profiles. Devon is focused on the onshore U.S. market, with exposure to five energy-producing regions. The recently announced plan to acquire Coterra Energy (NYSE: CTRA) will eventually extend that to six. The direction of U.S. energy prices is what drives Devon Energy's business, not Brent Crude, the global energy benchmark. Continue reading
(RTTNews) - Marex Group plc (MRX) Thursday announced a surge in reported profit before tax for the full year, while revenues gained from the previous year. In the pre-market session, shares are gaining 1.60 percent at $39.48. On Wednesday MRX has closed at $37.55.
(RTTNews) - Marex Group plc (MRX) Thursday announced a surge in reported profit before tax for the full year, while revenues gained from the previous year. In the pre-market session, shares are gaining 1.60 percent at $39.48. On Wednesday MRX has closed at $37.55.