Welcome to the Wall Street Week newsletter, bringing you stories of capitalism about things you need to know, but even more things you need to think about. I’m David Westin , and this week, and this week we went to People Inc. to see how its content business is faring in the AI era, and to the Dominican Republic to visit the commercial spaceport being built to catch up with satellite demand. If yo...
Welcome to the Wall Street Week newsletter, bringing you stories of capitalism about things you need to know, but even more things you need to think about. I’m David Westin , and this week, and this week we went to People Inc. to see how its content business is faring in the AI era, and to the Dominican Republic to visit the commercial spaceport being built to catch up with satellite demand. If you’re not yet a subscriber, sign up here for this newsletter. Could AI End the Age of the Internet? The Internet has become a rich source of news, information and entertainment, powered in no small part by Google searches. But now, that system is being disrupted by AI, as those chatbots start just giving us the answer, instead of referring us to the underlying content. Caitlin Petre, author of the book “All the News That’s Fit to Click,” warns that “most people don’t click on the links,” which means publishers are “seeing, in some cases, very dramatic decreases in the traffic they’re getting from Google.” That poses a problem because publishers have been getting paid for their content through advertising that now may be going unseen. But companies such as People Inc., the largest online and print publisher in the country, are finding new ways to support their content financially. Neil Vogel, People’s CEO, says the company saw the profound differences AI would make to their business, made adjustments, and now “we’re very profitable.” Why US and China Need Latin America for Space About 14,000 satellites are orbiting the Earth, a number that’s projected to rise to 100,000 by 2030, creating a big demand for space launches and the need for a lot more capacity. Launch On Demand is a US-based company seeking to meet some of that demand by building a commercial spaceport in the Dominican Republic. Its founder and CEO, Burton Catledge, learned the business while working as a US Air Force colonel overseeing Cape Canaveral launches, and he’s building a business based on the “large appe...
watch now VIDEO 6:27 06:27 Can Trump outdo Obama's Iran nuclear deal? Politics President Donald Trump on Friday defended the continued lack of a war-ending deal with Iran by once again trashing the prior nuclear agreement brokered by Barack Obama , his predecessor and longtime political foe. "They've dealt with very weak and ineffective leadership on behalf of the United States" and others "that a...
watch now VIDEO 6:27 06:27 Can Trump outdo Obama's Iran nuclear deal? Politics President Donald Trump on Friday defended the continued lack of a war-ending deal with Iran by once again trashing the prior nuclear agreement brokered by Barack Obama , his predecessor and longtime political foe. "They've dealt with very weak and ineffective leadership on behalf of the United States" and others "that allowed them to get away with murder," Trump said of Iran in an NBC News interview. He was asked why Iran is still holding out in negotiations if they are desperate to reach an agreement, as Trump insists that they are. "It takes a little while … This should have been done long ago," Trump said when pressed. He then brought up the Obama-era nuclear deal — the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, or JCPOA — which Trump withdrew the U.S. from in 2018 and did not renegotiate . "That deal was tantamount to giving them a nuclear weapon. It was a horrible deal given by Barack Obama, and really penned by him," Trump told NBC. "It was a horrible deal." It was hardly the first time Trump has excoriated the JCPOA, which was reached in 2015 by an international coalition including the U.S. "The DEAL that we are making with Iran will be FAR BETTER," Trump wrote in a Truth Social post on April 20, adding a few minutes later that such a deal will come "relatively quickly!" US President Donald Trump speaks with the press aboard Air Force One as he flies from Joint Base Andrews in Maryland to Eau Claire, Wisconsin, June 5, 2026. Saul Loeb | AFP | Getty Images It's become a frequent refrain from Trump as the Iran war, which he initially said would last four to six weeks, stretches into its fourth month without a short-term peace deal, let alone one that solves the Iran nuclear threat. Trump often claims had he not pulled the U.S. out of the JCPOA, Iran would have already obtained and used nuclear weapons. But many national security experts say the deal, while not perfect, succeeded in its main...
U.S. commercial oil inventories may be too low for comfort as the war with Iran enters its fourth month far from a clear resolution — and a lot is riding on how much longer the conflict drags on.
U.S. commercial oil inventories may be too low for comfort as the war with Iran enters its fourth month far from a clear resolution — and a lot is riding on how much longer the conflict drags on.
littleclie/iStock via Getty Images Co-authored by Kody's Dividends PwC released its 2026 ETF outlook. In it, it highlighted that both ETFs that follow the American market, as well as ETFs that look at the overall global market, are expected to see extremely strong growth as far as assets under management . ETFs now equal or outnumber the total number of available common equity of companies in the ...
littleclie/iStock via Getty Images Co-authored by Kody's Dividends PwC released its 2026 ETF outlook. In it, it highlighted that both ETFs that follow the American market, as well as ETFs that look at the overall global market, are expected to see extremely strong growth as far as assets under management . ETFs now equal or outnumber the total number of available common equity of companies in the market. ETFs provide you with a way to slice up the market into different categories or access other markets, like the bond market. As a total returns-focused dividend investor, I'm looking to buy into companies that are trading at attractive valuations and of extreme quality. For many, they choose to buy a passive market-wide ETF or leverage different funds to meet their goals, whether that's focused on getting a lot of dividends up front as income or different types of options trading. There is an ETF that meets almost every type of goal an investor may have and may not meet the goals of other investors effectively. For me, though, I would rather sidestep an ETF and own a company that is producing massive sums of positive cash flow and is focused on rewarding shareholders. I can find great value in buying a company that oversees a lot of different ETFs. Let's look at one of those today. A Market-Beating Yield And Double-Digit Earnings Growth Potential MSCI Inc. Q1 2026 Earnings Press Release When we last covered MSCI Inc. ( MSCI ) with a Buy rating in February , there was a lot we liked about the company. Its investment models, technology, research, and data help investment professionals to make better, data-driven decisions. We also appreciated that almost all the company’s revenue was recurring revenue. High retention was another positive. The Q1 2026 earnings report released on April 21 validated our investment thesis. MSCI’s operating revenue climbed 14.1% higher year-over-year to $850.8 million during the quarter. Predictably, this level of growth was made possible b...
Dorin Puha/iStock via Getty Images Purpose I look at the high frequency weekly indicators because while they can be very noisy, they provide a good nowcast of the economy, and will telegraph the maintenance or change in the economy well before monthly or quarterly data is available. They are also an excellent way to "mark your beliefs to market." In general, I go in order of long leading indicator...
Dorin Puha/iStock via Getty Images Purpose I look at the high frequency weekly indicators because while they can be very noisy, they provide a good nowcast of the economy, and will telegraph the maintenance or change in the economy well before monthly or quarterly data is available. They are also an excellent way to "mark your beliefs to market." In general, I go in order of long leading indicators, then short leading indicators, then coincident indicators. A Note on Methodology Data is presented in a "just the facts, ma'am" format with a minimum of commentary so that bias is minimized. Where relevant, I include 12-month highs and lows in the data in parentheses to the right. All data taken from St. Louis FRED unless otherwise linked. A few items (e.g., Financial Conditions indexes, regional Fed indexes, stock prices, the yield curve) have their own metrics based on long-term studies of their behavior. Where data is seasonally adjusted, generally it is scored positively if it is within the top 1/3 of that range, negative in the bottom 1/3, and neutral in between. Where it is not seasonally adjusted, and there are seasonal issues, waiting for the YoY change to change sign will lag the turning point. Thus I make use of a convention: data is scored neutral if it is less than 1/2 as positive/negative as at its 12-month extreme. With long leading indicators, which by definition turn at least 12 months before a turning point in the economy as a whole, there is an additional rule: data is automatically negative if, during an expansion, it has not made a new peak in the past year, with the sole exception that it is scored neutral if it is moving in the right direction and is close to making a new high. For all series where a graph is available, I have provided a link to where the relevant graph can be found. Recap of Monthly Reports May data started out almost all positive, with a solidly positive jobs report, although nonsupervisory wages were weak. The ISM manufacturing a...
Ekkasit Jokthong/iStock via Getty Images As I said in my last article on Columbus McKinnon ( CMCO ), the company’s acquisition of Kito Crosby was a big bet on adding scale in legacy lifting products going into an industrial recovery. Since then, there have been increased concerns about the pace of industrial capex spending, and CMCO’s modest near-term growth and elevated leverage have led more inv...
Ekkasit Jokthong/iStock via Getty Images As I said in my last article on Columbus McKinnon ( CMCO ), the company’s acquisition of Kito Crosby was a big bet on adding scale in legacy lifting products going into an industrial recovery. Since then, there have been increased concerns about the pace of industrial capex spending, and CMCO’s modest near-term growth and elevated leverage have led more investors to head to the sidelines. CMCO shares are down almost 40% since my last update , dramatically underperforming a flattish industrial sector, while rival Konecranes ( KNCRY ) (KCR.HE) has lost about 10% of its value and industrial automation and motion control manufacturer Regal Rexnord ( RRX ) has declined slightly. If CMCO can generate mid-single-digit long-term revenue growth and pair that with EBITDA margin improvement into the low 20%’s, the shares are meaningfully undervalued today. That margin improvement could prove to be an unreachable “if,” though, and the company’s high leverage (5.9x net debt to the low end of FY27 EBITDA guidance) gives the company far less leeway to disappoint with respect to post-deal synergies and performance. Mixed Results In A Messy Quarter Given the closing of the Kito Crosby deal in the quarter, this was always going to be a messy quarter relative to sell-side expectations. That said, underlying results were nevertheless mixed, with concerns about weak organic volume growth and core margins likely to persist for at least the next few quarters. Reported revenue was massively impacted by the Kito deal and beat published sell-side estimates, but underlying organic revenue growth was about 3%, more or less in line with sell-side expectations. Within that, pricing (up 3.4%) played an unexpectedly positive role, and volume contraction of 0.5% was a negative surprise, with management noting some sales force “distraction” from the Kito deal and the divestiture of the U.S. power chain hoist business. Gross margin declined 250bp on an adjuste...
Our first glimpse of the new AI Siri came all the way back at WWDC 2024. Apple has been on its back foot , AI-wise, for the past few years. But in a strange way, playing from behind might not be such a bad move. At WWDC on Monday, Apple appears to be getting ready to reintroduce us to the new Siri . Again. As a reminder, we met the new Siri in 2024 when Apple "launched" Apple Intelligence. Siri ca...
Our first glimpse of the new AI Siri came all the way back at WWDC 2024. Apple has been on its back foot , AI-wise, for the past few years. But in a strange way, playing from behind might not be such a bad move. At WWDC on Monday, Apple appears to be getting ready to reintroduce us to the new Siri . Again. As a reminder, we met the new Siri in 2024 when Apple "launched" Apple Intelligence. Siri came with a new glowing border, different voice options, and the ability to punt questions to ChatGPT. The whole "Intelligence" bit of the Siri redesign was coming soon, Apple promised. It didn't. In fact, its promotion around Apple Intelligence was so misleading that the company is settling a class-action lawsuit and has t … Read the full story at The Verge.
Hi, friends! Welcome to Installer No. 131, your guide to the best and Verge -iest stuff in the world. (If you're new here, welcome, happy last week of productivity before the World Cup starts, and also you can read all the old editions at the Installer homepage .) This week, I've been reading about the World Cup and peptides and parasocial media , catching up on Clarkson's Farm ahead of the new se...
Hi, friends! Welcome to Installer No. 131, your guide to the best and Verge -iest stuff in the world. (If you're new here, welcome, happy last week of productivity before the World Cup starts, and also you can read all the old editions at the Installer homepage .) This week, I've been reading about the World Cup and peptides and parasocial media , catching up on Clarkson's Farm ahead of the new season, buying literally every single new item in The Verge Shop , watching so so so many BTS concert clips on my social feeds, brainstorming ways to resurrect my old Facebook Portal , testing Spokenly to see if it's the dictation app for me, and ponying … Read the full story at The Verge.
The chipmaker made its name selling the world's top AI processors, and its GPUs still lead the market. But more recently, a much bigger story has been unfolding behind the scenes.
The chipmaker made its name selling the world's top AI processors, and its GPUs still lead the market. But more recently, a much bigger story has been unfolding behind the scenes.
The market is on its longest winning streak since 1985, AI enthusiasm is running at levels one strategist calls “unbelievable,” and the IPO window has cracked open wide. Into that backdrop, Robert Teeter, Chief Investment Strategist at Silvercrest Asset Management, walked onto CNBC on June 5, 2026, with a measured message: a reality check would ... Top Wall Street Strategist: AI ‘Reality Check’ Is...
The market is on its longest winning streak since 1985, AI enthusiasm is running at levels one strategist calls “unbelievable,” and the IPO window has cracked open wide. Into that backdrop, Robert Teeter, Chief Investment Strategist at Silvercrest Asset Management, walked onto CNBC on June 5, 2026, with a measured message: a reality check would ... Top Wall Street Strategist: AI ‘Reality Check’ Is Coming as Bond Market Flashes Warning Signs
Phiwath Jittamas/iStock via Getty Images Alliance Resource Partners Coverage Alliance Resource Partners ( ARLP ) isn't a name that I am unfamiliar with. I've actually owned it in the past, but it was under a different company at the time. Today, I actually think the stock is more attractive because of the moves the company has made to de-risk its business and its cheap valuation and strong yield. ...
Phiwath Jittamas/iStock via Getty Images Alliance Resource Partners Coverage Alliance Resource Partners ( ARLP ) isn't a name that I am unfamiliar with. I've actually owned it in the past, but it was under a different company at the time. Today, I actually think the stock is more attractive because of the moves the company has made to de-risk its business and its cheap valuation and strong yield. The forward P/E is 11.87, and the EV/EBITDA is 5.2, both below the sector medians, according to its Seeking Alpha valuation page. Looking further out to 2028, you'll see the forward P/E ratio falls to 8.5x. When you consider those low multiples with its distribution yield of 9%+ - a number that's looking pretty sustainable - you have a stock that is worth a much closer look. The bear case on ARLP is a story you've probably heard countless times before. This is a coal company. Over a long enough time horizon, coal will most certainly be phased out. But we've been hearing that story for over a decade now, and coal usage has actually increased outside of the U.S. Over the next three to five years, I think coal remains a profitable business, and management is wisely using that window to build something beyond coal. Coal Demand Isn't Going Anywhere Soon Trading Economics Thermal coal prices are soaring lately, trading close to $150/ton. Prices ran far higher during the COVID-era squeeze, but $147 is still a healthy number for a low-cost Illinois Basin producer. Demand surprised to the upside last year, too. The U.S. consumed about 10% more coal in 2025. And guess what? Rising electricity demand - which can be at least partially attributed to the AI and data center buildout - kept coal plants running harder. Overseas, it's a completely different (and more bullish) story. China burns roughly 30% more coal than the rest of the world combined. India's growth rate remains around 3% a year as industrial production and electricity demand climb, and Southeast Asia is adding to the total...
Jacobs Stock Photography Ltd/DigitalVision via Getty Images Many people like the company Annaly Capital Management ( NLY ) as a mortgage REIT but may not want to take on all the risk from the common stock. We’ve spent a great deal of time trading in the preferred shares from mREIT (mortgage REIT) companies, and the preferred shares carry materially less risk than the common stock. Of all the prefe...
Jacobs Stock Photography Ltd/DigitalVision via Getty Images Many people like the company Annaly Capital Management ( NLY ) as a mortgage REIT but may not want to take on all the risk from the common stock. We’ve spent a great deal of time trading in the preferred shares from mREIT (mortgage REIT) companies, and the preferred shares carry materially less risk than the common stock. Of all the preferred shares we cover in the sector, we believe the NLY preferred shares carry the least amount of risk. I would give DX-C ( DX.PR.C ) the same rating (or even slightly better) based on fundamentals, but NLY is much larger. So investors should expect the NLY and Dynex Capital ( DX ) preferred shares to be among the least volatile in the sector. Preferred Share ( NLY.PR.G ) NLY-G has routinely been out of our buy range, and as of now it is well out of our buy range: The REIT Forum The shares only have a yield of 8.22% and a negative yield to call. The only impressive thing about the yield to call is that shares are valued so highly. I didn’t think we would see a negative yield to call on these shares and I believe it should be pretty rare. Okay, there was a decent change that it might happen at some point. But I would’ve expected that to be more of a very short-term liquidity event. Not an event that lasted long enough for me to write a public article on Seeking Alpha about it. If short-term rates fell, that would allow the dividend rate to drop even more in percentage terms. The spread NLY-G has over the floating rate is the lowest of any of the preferred shares we cover. The low spread is a major factor when evaluating this preferred share. The REIT Forum The stripped yield is materially lower than the yield to maturity on most baby bonds. Investors interested in NLY-G should consider baby bonds as an alternative. They get more income and most of the baby bonds even win on yield to call. Note: Presently there is one baby bond with an even worse yield to call. Most of the ba...
Chinese authorities plan to enhance regulation of programme trading to clamp down on market misconduct, the head of the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) said on Saturday. Hedge funds and institutional investors are increasingly managing their portfolios in China via programme trading, which involves using algorithms to automatically execute a large volume of securities orders based on...
Chinese authorities plan to enhance regulation of programme trading to clamp down on market misconduct, the head of the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) said on Saturday. Hedge funds and institutional investors are increasingly managing their portfolios in China via programme trading, which involves using algorithms to automatically execute a large volume of securities orders based on predetermined conditions. “Programme trading has become an important trading method in our country...
As Congress debates new regulations around artificial intelligence and cryptocurrency, lawmakers' stock portfolios have surged in recent years toward investments in these sectors.
As Congress debates new regulations around artificial intelligence and cryptocurrency, lawmakers' stock portfolios have surged in recent years toward investments in these sectors.
Since the 2020 election, local law enforcement has increasingly been playing a bigger role in helping local officials secure elections. (Image credit: Ronda Churchill)
Since the 2020 election, local law enforcement has increasingly been playing a bigger role in helping local officials secure elections. (Image credit: Ronda Churchill)