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TebNad/iStock via Getty Images Noble Corp. ( NE ) +4.6% in Monday's trading after announcing new contract awards for nine rigs totaling ~$1.3B of backlog, including a three-year deal that marks the company's entry into Norway’s harsh-environment floater market. The largest award is a three-year contract for the previously idle Noble GreatWhite semisubmersible with Aker BP for offshore Norway, expected to begin in Q2 2027, representing ~$473M in total value; it marks the rig's first campaign in Norway and a significant step in expanding the company's presence on the Norwegian Continental Shelf. Noble ( NE ) also said the Noble Gerry de Souza drillship was awarded a two-year contract by Exxon Mobil ( XOM ) in Nigeria, with options for up to three additional years; operations are targeted for mid-2026 and the contract is expected to add $292M in backlog. In Guyana, Exxon ( XOM ) awarded two additional rig years under an existing commercial enabling agreement, extending contracts evenly across four drillships - Noble Sam Croft , Noble Don Taylor , Noble Tom Madden , and Noble Bob Douglas - through February 2029. The company also said the Noble Endeavor semi-submersibile was awarded an 11-well contract with an undisclosed operator in South America, expected to begin in late 2026 at a $300K dayrate with the potential for additional revenue from a performance incentive provision, and the Noble Developer semi-submersible was awarded a three-well contract with estimated duration of 240 days with BP in Trinidad , scheduled to begin in Q1 2027 at a $375K dayrate with options for up to three additional wells with estimated combined duration of 240 days. Also, the Noble BlackRhino drillship was awarded a contract for one workover well with Beacon Offshore Energy in the U.S. Gulf, scheduled to begin in March 2026 with an estimated duration of 50 days. "The redeployment of four currently idle deepwater rigs should drive a meaningful utilization improvement across our fleet, with 9...

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While Trump has delivered on his pledges to slash regulations and cut taxes for corporations and wealthy Americans, Wolfers noted that other policies are less consistent with the economies of recent Republican presidents. The Trump administration has approached some companies by leveraging the government’s regulatory power, by weighing in at times on antitrust cases, or casting doubt on mergers that require federal approval, as regulators have done to discourage firms from enacting DEI policies . Wolfers has previously compared Trump’s economy, particularly its tariff regime, to the U.K.’s departure from the European Union. “Brexit is a lovely case study for my friends over here in the United States,” he told CNN last year. Wolfers has criticized Brexit’s isolationist effect on the U.K., resulting in years of stagnant growth and higher unemployment. “That’s pretty much the script America’s gonna have to follow as well,” he said, amid the U.S.’s escalating trade war rhetoric last spring directed at the U.K. and Europe. (In fact, Wolfers has compared Trump’s election to Brexit as far back as 2016, although even then, he warned the former would likely be worse.) Wolfers—whom the IMF once named one of the 25 young economists in the world “shaping the way we think about the global economy”—said that Trump’s undermining of federal institutions’ independence and propensity to insert himself in private sector decisions is reorienting the economy away from a productive and predictable path. The result, Wolfers warned, could be a generation of missed opportunities and lost growth. “This is the most interventionist government of my lifetime,” Justin Wolfers, an economist at the University of Michigan, told progressive news network MeidasTouch in an interview released Sunday. “It’s the least conservative government of my lifetime.” In 2024 Donald Trump based his reelection campaign’s rhetoric on deregulation and tax cuts to free the private sector from burdensome regulations an...

格隆汇1月27日｜美国天然气期货涨超33%，突破美元/百万英热，创下自2022年12月以来的最高水平，因气温骤降导致油井冻结，产量降至两年来最低水平。

Image source: The Motley Fool. Tuesday, October 22, 2024 at 4:30 p.m. ET CALL PARTICIPANTS Chief Executive Officer — Eddie Capel Chief Financial Officer — Dennis Story Executive Vice President, Operations — Mike LeFevre TAKEAWAYS Total Revenue -- $267 million, up 12%, with performance led by strong cloud and services growth. -- $267 million, up 12%, with performance led by strong cloud and services growth. Cloud Subscription Revenue -- $86 million, up 33%, with continuous expansion across all regions. -- $86 million, up 33%, with continuous expansion across all regions. Remaining Performance Obligation (RPO) -- $1.7 billion, up 27%, and up 5% sequentially, with management reiterating confidence in achieving the high end of $1.75 billion to $1.8 billion for 2024. -- $1.7 billion, up 27%, and up 5% sequentially, with management reiterating confidence in achieving the high end of $1.75 billion to $1.8 billion for 2024. Adjusted EPS -- $1.35, up 29%. -- $1.35, up 29%. GAAP EPS -- $1.03, up 30%. -- $1.03, up 30%. Adjusted Operating Margin -- 37.1%, an increase of 670 basis points. -- 37.1%, an increase of 670 basis points. Operating Cash Flow -- $62 million, up 6%, resulting in a 23% free cash flow margin and a 38% adjusted EBITDA margin. -- $62 million, up 6%, resulting in a 23% free cash flow margin and a 38% adjusted EBITDA margin. Deferred Revenue -- $253 million, an increase of 18%. -- $253 million, an increase of 18%. Quarter-End Cash Position -- $215 million, with zero debt reported. -- $215 million, with zero debt reported. Share Repurchases -- $50 million invested during the quarter, $198 million year-to-date, and Board approval to replenish $75 million in repurchase authority. -- $50 million invested during the quarter, $198 million year-to-date, and Board approval to replenish $75 million in repurchase authority. Win Rate -- Approximately 70% across global pipeline, which is at record levels. -- Approximately 70% across global pipeline, which is at record leve...

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Image source: The Motley Fool. Thursday, October 24, 2024 at 9 a.m. ET Call participants President and Chief Executive Officer — Patrick L. Ryan Chief Financial Officer — Andrew Hibshman Chief Retail Banking Officer — Darleen Gillespie Chief Lending Officer — Peter Cahill Need a quote from a Motley Fool analyst? Email [email protected] Takeaways Loan Growth -- Total loans increased by $89.5 million, with about 60% of that growth from commercial and industrial (C&I) and owner-occupied segments. -- Total loans increased by $89.5 million, with about 60% of that growth from commercial and industrial (C&I) and owner-occupied segments. Deposit Growth -- Deposits grew $82.4 million for the quarter, with $19.3 million growth in non-interest-bearing demand accounts and annualized deposit growth rate of over 11% from the prior quarter. -- Deposits grew $82.4 million for the quarter, with $19.3 million growth in non-interest-bearing demand accounts and annualized deposit growth rate of over 11% from the prior quarter. Net Income -- Reported net income was $8.2 million, or $0.32 per diluted share, and a normalized net income estimate was $9.7 million after adjusting for nonrecurring and unusual items. -- Reported net income was $8.2 million, or $0.32 per diluted share, and a normalized net income estimate was $9.7 million after adjusting for nonrecurring and unusual items. Net Interest Margin (NIM) -- Net interest margin declined to 3.49% compared to 3.62% in the previous quarter due to higher deposit costs and lower average loan yields. -- Net interest margin declined to 3.49% compared to 3.62% in the previous quarter due to higher deposit costs and lower average loan yields. Provision for Credit Losses -- Credit loss expense was $1.6 million, primarily related to loan growth, with asset quality remaining strong. -- Credit loss expense was $1.6 million, primarily related to loan growth, with asset quality remaining strong. Non-Interest Expenses -- Non-interest expense totaled ...

Baker Hughes Co. , one of the world’s biggest oilfield contractors, said it plans to double its data center equipment order target to $3 billion over a three-year period, driven by surging demand for power to run artificial intelligence. The company expects to book roughly $3 billion of data center-related orders between 2025 to 2027 and is also on track to double its NovaLT natural gas turbine capacity by the first half of 2027, Chief Executive Officer Lorenzo Simonelli said on a call Monday discussing fourth-quarter results . “We feel very good about the overall outlook for power generation and electricity consumption and it doubling over the course of now to 2040,” Simonelli said during an interview on Bloomberg Television on Monday. Simonelli sees relatively soft oil demand in 2026, he added. Shifting its offerings toward data centers and liquefied natural gas alongside oil and gas production has helped Baker Hughes offset declines in its oilfield services and equipment business and outperform peers , he said. “We are benefiting from a portfolio that allows us to play in both,” Simonelli said in the interview. Baker Hughes is also working closely with US President Donald Trump ’s administration on plans to broaden its business in Venezuela, with employee safety as its top priority, Simonelli said. Baker Hughes shares rose as much as 4.3% to $56.25, the highest intraday price in more than eight years, at 11:58 a.m. in New York. Read More: White House Pushes Quick Repairs to Revive Venezuela Oil Output

tobiasjo/E+ via Getty Images Introduction At our Conservative Income Portfolio service, besides locating very undervalued preferred stocks and baby bonds, we look for special situations offering high returns. This article presents an example of the kind of special situation that we look for. So let’s dig in and look at the companies TWO and UWM in this example. Company website TWO Harbors ( TWO ) TWO Harbors is an agency mortgage REIT (mREIT). Agency mREITs only buy government-guaranteed mortgages, which means they take on no credit risk when they purchase mortgages for investment. They make money by borrowing at lower short-term rates and using that money to buy mortgages that pay a higher rate of interest. So they make money on the spread between their cost of borrowing and the yield on the mortgages they buy. TWO also invests in mortgage servicing rights (MSRs). TWO earns fees for servicing mortgages. The primary risk of MSRs is that interest rates fall and some homeowners refinance their mortgages that TWO is servicing, and TWO loses the fee for servicing those mortgages. However, currently the average interest rate on the mortgages TWO services is 3.96%. TWO bought a lot of their MSRs when rates were lower, and nobody who has this mortgage rate is going to be looking to refinance when current rates are over 5.25%. So MSRs look to be a relatively stable investment currently with low prepayment rates. RoundPoint A couple of years ago, TWO bought RoundPoint. Prior to the purchase of RoundPoint, TWO contracted out the mortgage servicing, which meant that they didn’t get to keep all the mortgage servicing fees but had to pay some of it to the contractor who actually did the servicing work. RoundPoint brought the servicing in-house so that TWO can keep the complete fees paid for servicing their mortgages for which they have servicing rights. Having a direct line to the borrower now lets TWO know when the borrower is looking to refinance. Thus, TWO can offer to provid...

'Signal-Gate': Anti-ICE 'Insurgency Command' Chat Was Highly Organized What appears to be unfolding in Minneapolis , particularly following the emergence of " Signal-Gate " on Sunday via citizen journalists on X, extends well beyond any conventional protest activity . The evidence so far suggests coordinated pressure campaigns against federal agents exhibiting characteristics of a low-level insurgency, with direction, tasking, and information flow routed through encrypted messaging apps, implying an organized command-and-control structure functioning as a shadow revolutionary force. What's more, former Tim Walz campaign adviser Amanda Koehler, as well as Minneapolis City Council Member Aurin Chhowdhry, have allegedly been identified as a key figures in the now-leaked Signal group chat. 🇺🇸 Aurin Chowdhry, a Minneapolis City Council member, has been linked to the top of an Anti-ICE Signal group chat. This revelation is fueling calls for a major investigation into her and other city officials allegedly involved. Source: @TheSCIF https://t.co/P8SCTFtIAI pic.twitter.com/IhwgGDGAR7 — Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) January 26, 2026 Koehler has gone dark, deleting social media accounts and making her website private . Amanda Koehler’s Instagram is no longer active🤣 pic.twitter.com/2kZXrzISVZ — Politikal Kat-Tales (@PolitiKatTales) January 26, 2026 The group even had a 'Signal Chat Guide' advising anti-ICE protesters: The Signal chat was exposed by journalist Cam Higby, who published a bombshell report on Sunday after infiltrating multiple groups across Minneapolis with the stated aim of tracking federal agents and impeding, assaulting, or obstructing their operations . The report sparked a wildfire across X overnight. 🧵🚨 MINNEAPOLIS SIGNAL INFILTRATED I have infiltrated organizational signal groups all around Minneapolis with the sole intention of tracking down federal agents and impeding/assaulting/and obstructing them. BUCKLE UP ALL WILL BE REVEALED Each area of the city has...

President Donald Trump says Canada could be hit with100% tariffs if it signs a trade deal with China. Bloomberg's Tyler Kendall reports. (Source: Bloomberg)

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If you want to solve climate change, there are few better places to start than cities. “The city is kind of like this beautiful vampire squid that sucks in all the resources,” Jacob Bro, co-founder and partner at 2150, told TechCrunch. “They basically aggregate all the prosperity in the world — 80% of GDP — but also 70% of emissions and all the other resources, all the waste, and all the downsides of the good life.” Plenty of investors have raised large funds to tackle climate change in recent years, with many measuring success by returns and carbon reductions. 2150 does the same, but to find fertile ground for investments, it starts by looking at problems and opportunities in cities, specifically. “If we look at all the stuff we consume, all the stuff we need to build, to make the urban platform of prosperity operate and thrive, you can identify technologies and the bottlenecks,” Bro said. The climate angle helps give the fund an edge, he said. “Sustainability, if done well, is just better business, right? It’s cheaper, faster, and more independent from geopolitics.” That dual focus has helped 2150 raise a new €210 million second fund from a range of institutional investors and family funds, including Chr. Augustinus Fabrikker, Church Pension Group, the Danish sovereign fund EIFO, Fund of Funds Carbon Equity, Novo Holdings, Islandbridge Capital, Security Trading Oy, and Viessmann Generations Group. The new fund brings the European firm’s assets under management to €500 million. In total, the new fund has 34 limited partners, said Christian Hernandez, co-founder and partner at 2150. “Pretty meaty checks,” he added. Techcrunch event Disrupt 2026 Tickets: One-time offer Tickets are live! Save up to $680 while these rates last, and be among the first 500 registrants to get 50% off your +1 pass. TechCrunch Disrupt brings top leaders from Google Cloud, Netflix, Microsoft, Box, a16z, Hugging Face, and more to 250+ sessions designed to fuel growth and sharpen your edge. Co...

This article first appeared on GuruFocus. BYD Co. (BYDDF) is increasingly leaning on international markets as growth conditions at home become more complicated, even after its overseas expansion helped it surpass Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) as the world's largest electric-vehicle maker last year. At a media briefing in Shanghai, Li Yunfei, general manager of BYD's brand and public relations division, outlined a target of selling 1.3 million vehicles outside China in 2026, suggesting close to 25% growth from the 1.05 million units delivered overseas last year. The renewed focus abroad comes as momentum in China appears to be facing headwinds. Demand is coming under pressure as some government incentives supporting EV purchases are being scaled back, while competition among domestic manufacturers continues to intensify. Against that backdrop, overseas markets could be playing a more central role in supporting BYD's growth trajectory, even as the company navigates a tougher and more competitive environment in its home market. That said, the stated overseas target may land below some prior market expectations. Citigroup said in November that BYD had discussed a goal of expanding overseas sales to between 1.5 million and 1.6 million vehicles in 2026, following meetings with management. The latest guidance could therefore be interpreted as more measured, possibly influencing how investors frame the pace and ambition of BYD's global expansion plans.

Bank of Scotland has been fined £160,000 by the UK’s sanctions watchdog after opening a bank account and processing payments for an ally of the Russian president, Vladimir Putin. Dmitrii Ovsiannikov, who became the first person to be prosecuted for circumventing UK sanctions last year, made 24 payments totalling £77,383 to or from a personal current account during February 2023. The Russian, who the UK government has included on its sanctions list, held senior positions in Russian government such as being the former governor of Sevastopol, in Russian-occupied Crimea. On 21 November 2017, the European Union made Ovsiannikov a designated person under its sanctions legislation, saying that his work had compromised or threatened the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine. This restricted him from entering or accessing funds in member states including the UK, then still an EU member. He was subsequently added to the UK’s list once the country left the bloc. The EU annulled Ovsiannikov’s designation in 2022 but he has remained on the UK list. On 4 August 2022, he made an online application from Turkey for a UK passport, having travelled from Russia to Turkey three days earlier, the court heard during his criminal prosecution. In the banking case, the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI) found that Ovsiannikov opened an account at Halifax, part of Bank of Scotland, on 6 February 2023, using his UK passport that contained a spelling variation of his name that differed from those on the sanctions list. This meant the account was not flagged as a potential match by the bank’s automatic sanctions screening system. The account remained unrestricted until 24 February 2023 when the bank identified him as a designated person as part of a politically exposed person screening. The penalty for Bank of Scotland, which is part of Lloyds Banking Group, was cut by 50% because it voluntarily disclosed the breaches a month after the payments were made...

格隆汇1月27日｜中国地震台网正式测定：1月27日1时06分在巴布亚新几内亚发生5.6级地震，震源深度30千米。

Kenneth Cheung/iStock Unreleased via Getty Images Zoom Communications ( ZM ) shares jumped more than 10% on Monday as investment firm Baird highlighted its stake in generative artificial intelligence darling Anthropic ( ANTHRO ). “While we (and the market) have been primarily focused on ZM's ability to gradually reaccelerate revenue growth and capture AI opportunities, the quieter, hidden gem might be its $51 million investment in Anthropic,” Baird analyst William Power wrote in a note to clients. Power reiterated his Outperform rating and $95 price target on Zoom. Zoom invested in Anthropic, which makes the popular Claude family of AI models, in 2023, via its venture capital arm. Earlier this month, it was reported that Anthropic is in discussions about raising $10B at a $350B valuation. The company recently surpassed $9B in annual revenue run rate, according to Bloomberg . More on Zoom Communications and Anthropic Zoom: Discounted For A Reason - Wait For More Growth Zoom: RPO Acceleration, Buybacks Picking Up Steam Zoom: Setup Remains Fundamentally Solid BNP Paribas highlights Salesforce, other software stocks ahead of earnings China does not lag West in AI tech, says Mistral CEO: report

Chris Madel , a Republican running for governor of Minnesota, is dropping out of the race, saying the GOP can’t win and calling the federal immigration crackdown that left a second person dead in Minneapolis over the weekend “an unmitigated disaster.” “I cannot support the national Republican stated retribution on the citizens of our state, nor can I count myself a member of a party that would do so,” Madel said in a video posted Monday on social media. Madel’s withdrawal adds to the bipartisan backlash over the Jan. 24 killing by a federal agent of Alex Pretti, an ICU nurse whom Trump administration officials portrayed as a violent agitator despite video evidence to the contrary. It’s a dramatic shift in tone for Madel, who has provided legal assistance to a different federal agent who fatally shot Renee Good earlier this month. In his video, Madel said that “weaponizing criminal investigations against political opponents is unconstitutional regardless of who is in power.” Madel was one of several Republicans who entered the field with hopes of unseating two-term Governor Tim Walz, who ended up dropping out of the race as well. Mike Lindell , the MyPillow founder, has announced he will seek the Republican nomination, and Democratic Senator Amy Klobuchar has filed paperwork to explore a run as well. Read More: Trump Deploys Border Czar Homan to Minnesota Amid Protests (2)

Image source: The Motley Fool. Tuesday, October 28, 2025 at 10 a.m. ET CALL PARTICIPANTS Chief Executive Officer — Scott Kingsley Chief Financial Officer — Annette Burns President, NBT Bank — Joseph Stagliano Treasurer — Joe Ondesko TAKEAWAYS Operating Return on Assets -- 1.37%, reflecting year over year and sequential improvement. -- 1.37%, reflecting year over year and sequential improvement. Return on Equity -- 12.1%, higher than both the linked prior quarter and comparable 2024 quarter. -- 12.1%, higher than both the linked prior quarter and comparable 2024 quarter. Return on Tangible Common Equity (ROTCE) -- 17.6%, increasing on a sequential and annual basis. -- 17.6%, increasing on a sequential and annual basis. Tangible Book Value Per Share -- $25.51 at September 30, up 7% from last year and above pre-merger levels. -- $25.51 at September 30, up 7% from last year and above pre-merger levels. Net Interest Margin -- 3.66%, up 7 basis points quarter over quarter; sixth consecutive quarterly increase. -- 3.66%, up 7 basis points quarter over quarter; sixth consecutive quarterly increase. Net Interest Income -- $134.7 million, an increase of $10 million from prior quarter and $33 million over Q3 2024. -- $134.7 million, an increase of $10 million from prior quarter and $33 million over Q3 2024. Revenue Growth -- Total revenues grew 9% quarter over quarter and 26% year over year, driven by net interest income and Evans integration. -- Total revenues grew 9% quarter over quarter and 26% year over year, driven by net interest income and Evans integration. Noninterest Income -- $51.4 million (excluding securities gains), up 9.8% quarter over quarter and 13.5% year over year. -- $51.4 million (excluding securities gains), up 9.8% quarter over quarter and 13.5% year over year. Dividend Increase -- Quarterly dividend raised 8.8%, marking 13 consecutive years of increases. -- Quarterly dividend raised 8.8%, marking 13 consecutive years of increases. Share Repurchase Autho...

'165 FPS On Integrated Graphics' – Intel Could Steal The Handheld Crown from AMD With Panther Lake IGN

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Image source: The Motley Fool. Tuesday, Jan. 28, 2025 at 8:30 a.m. ET CALL PARTICIPANTS President & Chief Executive Officer — Sanjay Mirchandani Chief Financial Officer — Jen DiRico Vice President, Investor Relations — Michael Melnyk Need a quote from a Motley Fool analyst? Email [email protected] TAKEAWAYS Total Revenue -- $263 million, up 21% year over year, attributed to higher subscription revenue and robust software transaction activity. -- $263 million, up 21% year over year, attributed to higher subscription revenue and robust software transaction activity. Subscription Revenue -- $158 million, an increase of 39% year over year, driven by SaaS and term software momentum. -- $158 million, an increase of 39% year over year, driven by SaaS and term software momentum. Total ARR (Annual Recurring Revenue) -- $890 million, up 18%, with $911 million on a constant currency basis, representing 21% growth. -- $890 million, up 18%, with $911 million on a constant currency basis, representing 21% growth. SaaS ARR -- $259 million, up 71%, with 75% growth in constant currency, indicating continued acceleration in SaaS adoption. -- $259 million, up 71%, with 75% growth in constant currency, indicating continued acceleration in SaaS adoption. Subscription ARR -- $734 million, representing 83% of total ARR, and a 29% increase. -- $734 million, representing 83% of total ARR, and a 29% increase. Clumio Contribution -- $24 million incremental ARR and approximately $6 million in quarterly revenue. -- $24 million incremental ARR and approximately $6 million in quarterly revenue. Customer Additions -- Over 1,000 new subscription customers (including Clumio), lifting the total to more than 11,000 globally, with over 7,000 SaaS customers. -- Over 1,000 new subscription customers (including Clumio), lifting the total to more than 11,000 globally, with over 7,000 SaaS customers. SaaS Net Dollar Retention Rate -- 127% for the quarter, with up-sell comprising approximately two-thirds, an...

JetBlue suffered the brunt of cancellations on Monday.

Tim Robberts/DigitalVision via Getty Images Latin American stocks have been on a rip-roaring rally over the past 12 months—even with the steep Liberation Day drawdown tossed in the mix. The iShares Latin America 40 ETF ( ILF ) is up 64% from a year ago, outperforming both the S&P 500 and the ex-U.S. equity index ETF. One of the largest South American stocks, MercadoLibre ( MELI ), is higher by just 17% YoY, however. I was bullish on the stock heading into its Q3 report late last year, and I reiterate a “Buy” rating with the Q4 report on the doorstep. The valuation remains compelling in light of growth trends, while the technicals paint a more mixed picture. MELI Lags Latin American Stocks YoY StockCharts.com Back in October, MELI reported a mixed set of quarterly results. Q3 GAAP EPS of $8.32 missed the Wall Street consensus expectation of $9.30, while revenue of $7.4 billion, up a very strong 40% from the same period a year earlier, was a material $200 million beat. Its Total Payment Volume (TPV) reached $71.2 billion, up 41% YoY, and Gross Merchandise Volume (GMV) was $16.5 billion, up 28%. The company reported 72 million fintech monthly active users and 77 million unique active buyers in the quarter. Shares initially traded lower when the report hit the tape, but the bulls stepped in, leading to a +2.8% earnings-date performance, the fourth consecutive post-earnings rally. Looking ahead to the February Q4 report, the options market prices in a moderate 6.9% earnings-related stock price swing based on the at-the-money straddle expiring soonest after the release. Shares of the $108 billion Consumer Discretionary company trade with 36% implied volatility, while short interest is low at 1.80%. Looking back on the quarter that was, MELI’s Q3 was solid on the top line, but softer profitability occurred as a result of heavy investment and capex. Still, EBIT rose 30% YoY, while EPS was a 6% climb. Shipping costs, marketing expenses, and Argentine FX losses weighed on the...

The Russell 2000 just did something it hasn't done in nearly 30 years. For the first 14 days of the trading year, the small-cap index outperformed the S & P 500 . That's the longest streak since May 1996. Analysts went into 2026 expecting upside for small-cap stocks, which have lagged large caps since the start of the bull market in 2022. Hopes for stronger U.S. economic data and a more dovish Federal Reserve improved investor sentiment around the stocks, leading some analysts to predict small caps will outperform their larger peers for the first time since 2020. "Obviously I did not think we were going to get 830 basis points of outperformance in 15 trading sessions, it's incredible," said Steven DeSanctis, U.S. small- and mid-cap strategist at Jefferies, who in December predicted small caps would beat large in 2026. While the Russell 2000 on Friday broke its outperformances streak, the index is up 7.5% in its best start to a year since 2021. At one point, it was up more than 10% year to date. The S & P 500, meanwhile, is up just 1%. And while small caps have outperformed at times in the last few years, just to see those relative gains dissipate, the Street thinks this time may be different. "This breakout is not just another fluke and should translate into further outperformance from small-cap equities through 2026," wrote Canaccord Genuity portfolio strategist Martin Roberge in a Wednesday note. Driving this surge could be a " January effect ," according to Jeffrey Hirsch, editor of the Stock Trader's Almanac. Investors, he said, are dipping into small caps to start the year. Tom Lee, managing partner and head of research at Fundstrat Global Advisors, agreed with Hirsch's assessment. "When the year starts, everyone sort of says, 'what's going to work this year? They look at the large caps, and people talk about how the market's been doing well for so long," he said. "So in their minds, small caps … are shinier places to allocate." Investors expect more rate cuts ...

Image source: The Motley Fool. Tuesday, October 22, 2024 at 5 p.m. ET CALL PARTICIPANTS Chief Executive Officer — David Fisher Chief Financial Officer — Steven Cunningham Need a quote from a Motley Fool analyst? Email [email protected] TAKEAWAYS Total Originations -- $1.6 billion, up 28% year over year and 15% sequentially, with small business representing over $1 billion for the first time. -- $1.6 billion, up 28% year over year and 15% sequentially, with small business representing over $1 billion for the first time. Consumer Originations -- $569 million, rising 19% year over year and 16% sequentially, reaching a record level. -- $569 million, rising 19% year over year and 16% sequentially, reaching a record level. Combined Loan and Finance Receivables -- $3.8 billion, up 23% year over year, with small business products making up 62% of the portfolio and consumer 38%. -- $3.8 billion, up 23% year over year, with small business products making up 62% of the portfolio and consumer 38%. Total Revenue -- $690 million, marking a 25% increase year over year and 10% sequentially. -- $690 million, marking a 25% increase year over year and 10% sequentially. Small Business Revenue -- $269 million, up 38% year over year and 7% sequentially, ending with $2.4 billion in small business receivables (27% growth year over year). -- $269 million, up 38% year over year and 7% sequentially, ending with $2.4 billion in small business receivables (27% growth year over year). Consumer Revenue -- $411 million, an 18% year-over-year increase and up 12% sequentially, with $1.4 billion in consumer receivables (18% year-over-year growth). -- $411 million, an 18% year-over-year increase and up 12% sequentially, with $1.4 billion in consumer receivables (18% year-over-year growth). Adjusted EBITDA (non-GAAP) -- $172 million, showing 42% growth year over year. -- $172 million, showing 42% growth year over year. Adjusted EPS (non-GAAP) -- $2.45 per diluted share, increasing 63% from the prior ye...

That noise? The sound of the barrel getting scraped. Only last summer, Reform insiders were briefing the rightwing media that the party would never welcome Suella Braverman into its ranks. Too much baggage. Too out of control. Reform wasn’t a convalescent home for disgraced and failed Tory MPs. Surely not? Heaven forbid. So it was only a matter of time before the MP forced to resign from Liz Truss’s cabinet as home secretary for breaking the ministerial code – imagine the shame of being sacked by Liz – and then fired by Rishi Sunak for criticising Scotland Yard’s policing of protests was welcomed by Nigel Farage. Let’s face it: if Kemi Badenoch weren’t already leader of the Tory party, she’d almost certainly be next in line to defect. “I feel like I’ve come home,” said Suella. And in a sense she had. There are now more members of the Truss cabinet in Reform than there are in Kemi’s shadow team. This after Nige had hijacked what had been intended as a rally for military veterans to welcome her on stage. Nige just can’t help himself. There again, he might have welcomed the distraction. Farage is on dodgy ground trying to champion veterans’ causes after his close mate Donald Trump had personally insulted British service personnel last week. Someone might have got round to asking why the Reform leader so admires the US president. It was the surprise that wasn’t a surprise. The most undramatic drama from Reform yet. The stunt that bombed. Most people in the east London hall had to remind themselves that Braverman hadn’t already defected long ago. She was Reform long before Reform even existed. An accident waiting to happen. Suella then set about winning over hearts and minds. In her own very special way. You have put your lives on the line, she said to the vets. Out of love for your country. And she knew what that was like. Because in her own way she had put her own life on the line out of love for her country. All this without a trace of embarrassment. She really does b...