Bombshell Sexual-Harassment Suit Against JPM's Lorna Hajdini Called "Complete Fabrication" The British tabloid newspaper Daily Mail first broke the story earlier this week about a former JPMorgan staffer who claimed that an executive director on JPM's leveraged finance team turned him into a "sex slave" by drugging him with Rohypnol and Viagra, according to a bombshell lawsuit. However, it now app...
Bombshell Sexual-Harassment Suit Against JPM's Lorna Hajdini Called "Complete Fabrication" The British tabloid newspaper Daily Mail first broke the story earlier this week about a former JPMorgan staffer who claimed that an executive director on JPM's leveraged finance team turned him into a "sex slave" by drugging him with Rohypnol and Viagra, according to a bombshell lawsuit. However, it now appears that the sexual harassment suit was "fabricated," according to a new report. The New York Post reported late Thursday that Chirayu Rana, now a principal at Bregal Sagemount, filed the suit under the pseudonym "John Doe," alleging that Lorna Hajdini drugged him, forced him to have sex, and threatened his bonus. "Rana has been accused of making fabricated sexual-harassment claims against a high-ranking executive at the bank after an internal investigation found no evidence of wrongdoing ," the NYPost said, citing sources. Hajdini's lawyers issued this statement to NYPost: " Lorna categorically denies the allegations . She never engaged in any inappropriate conduct with this individual of any kind and has never even been to the location where the alleged sexual assault supposedly took place." Rana apparently filed an internal complaint in May 2025 with JPM, alleging race- and gender-based harassment and abuse of power before his exit. During this time, he allegedly tried to negotiate a payoff that ran into the "millions," sources said. He also accused JPM of retaliation and of failing to investigate properly. A JPM spokesperson told the outlet that its HR and legal teams reviewed phone records and emails, and interviewed employees, but found no merit to the claims. The bank said Rana refused to participate in the investigation or provide key facts. " Following an investigation, we don't believe there's any merit to these claims ," the spokesperson said. "While numerous employees cooperated with the investigation, the complainant refused to participate and declined to prov...
Nexstar Media ( NXST ) declares $1.86/share quarterly dividend , in line with previous. Forward yield 3.57% Payable May 29; for shareholders of record May 15; ex-div May 15. See NXST Dividend Scorecard, Yield Chart, & Dividend Growth. More on Nexstar Media Nexstar Stuck In Limbo As Judge Halts Tegna Integration Nexstar Media's Aim For Scale Drives Instant Value, But Shares No Longer Cheap Nexstar ...
Nexstar Media ( NXST ) declares $1.86/share quarterly dividend , in line with previous. Forward yield 3.57% Payable May 29; for shareholders of record May 15; ex-div May 15. See NXST Dividend Scorecard, Yield Chart, & Dividend Growth. More on Nexstar Media Nexstar Stuck In Limbo As Judge Halts Tegna Integration Nexstar Media's Aim For Scale Drives Instant Value, But Shares No Longer Cheap Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NXST) Presents at Deutsche Bank 34th Annual Media, Internet & Telecom Conference Transcript Nexstar-Tegna TV merger in doubt as judge blocks the $6.2B deal Nexstar to replace local network news with NewsNation content -- Bloomberg
BalkansCat/iStock Editorial via Getty Images Through a series of acquisitions, Franklin Resources, Inc. ( BEN ) has transformed from a value-oriented asset manager into a diversified platform with ~$1.7 trillion managed across asset classes like equities (40%), fixed income (26%), and alternatives (17%). Franklin Resources Despite its enhanced scale, Franklin Resources has been a perennial underpe...
BalkansCat/iStock Editorial via Getty Images Through a series of acquisitions, Franklin Resources, Inc. ( BEN ) has transformed from a value-oriented asset manager into a diversified platform with ~$1.7 trillion managed across asset classes like equities (40%), fixed income (26%), and alternatives (17%). Franklin Resources Despite its enhanced scale, Franklin Resources has been a perennial underperformer through the years. As I highlighted before , some of this was down to challenged industry dynamics, as fee rates continue to compress and clients rotate out of higher-fee active funds into lower-fee passive funds. But idiosyncratic issues, for instance, poor acquisitions and integration ( Western Asset Management being a case in point), haven’t helped either. Data by YCharts Still, these concerns have been well-known for some time now. Instead, the market has begun assigning credit to a turnaround at Franklin over the last year. This week’s earnings update only added to the optimism, driving another big pop in the stock price. In fact, if you’d held BEN for the last year, you’d be up nearly 60% on your investment, all while clipping a steady ~4% dividend yield. Data by YCharts The question then is, has the Franklin story become investable again? An Impressive Quarter for Flows There are really two key drivers to Franklin’s top line: 1) fund flows and 2) the % fee it charges on those flows. For a long time, both were headed in the wrong direction. Acquisitions like Western Asset Management, which suffered some very significant redemptions due to alleged misconduct by star manager Ken Leech, only exacerbated this trend. The good news, judging by Franklin’s more recent assets under management (or AUM) updates, is that the worst is likely over. To recap, the headline “long-term net inflows” (i.e., flows excluding short-term cash movements net of outflows) was positive yet again at +$16.9bn in fiscal Q2 2026. More importantly, adjusting out the troubled Western Asset Man...
AutoNation press release ( AN ): Q1 Non-GAAP EPS of $4.69 beats by $0.08 . Revenue of $6.55B (-2.1% Y/Y) misses by $100M . Record Q1 After-Sales gross profit; total store growth of 5% Record Q1 CFS gross profit per unit Substantial portfolio and profitability growth at AN Finance Sequential improvements in new and used vehicle unit profitability Share repurchases of $300 million in Q1 More on Auto...
AutoNation press release ( AN ): Q1 Non-GAAP EPS of $4.69 beats by $0.08 . Revenue of $6.55B (-2.1% Y/Y) misses by $100M . Record Q1 After-Sales gross profit; total store growth of 5% Record Q1 CFS gross profit per unit Substantial portfolio and profitability growth at AN Finance Sequential improvements in new and used vehicle unit profitability Share repurchases of $300 million in Q1 More on AutoNation AutoNation: AI To Disrupt The Dealership's Cash Cow AutoNation: Shifting Gears Toward Higher-Margin Growth AutoNation: Resilience And Buybacks Can Drive Upside (Upgrade) AutoNation Q1 2026 Earnings Preview Wholesale used car prices jump to more than a two-year high in March
April 29 was, arguably, the most important day of the second quarter for Wall Street -- and I'm not talking about the four members of the "Magnificent Seven" that reported their operating results on that date. It marked the final Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting with Jerome Powell as Fed chair. May 15 represents the end of Powell's second term as Fed chair, and presumably paves the way...
April 29 was, arguably, the most important day of the second quarter for Wall Street -- and I'm not talking about the four members of the "Magnificent Seven" that reported their operating results on that date. It marked the final Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting with Jerome Powell as Fed chair. May 15 represents the end of Powell's second term as Fed chair, and presumably paves the way for President Donald Trump's nominee to succeed Powell, Kevin Warsh , to begin his first term. For the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDICES: ^DJI) , S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC) , and Nasdaq Composite (NASDAQINDEX: ^IXIC) , this shift may constitute a dubious turning point. Fed Chair Jerome Powell delivering remarks. Image source: Official Federal Reserve Photo. Continue reading
Virtus Investment press release ( VRTS ): Q1 Non-GAAP EPS of $5.38 misses by $0.29 . Revenue of $199.5M (+1.0% Y/Y) beats by $20.07M . Cash and equivalents at March 31, 2026 of $136.6 million declined from $386.5 million at December 31, 2025 primarily due to the closing payment for Keystone, seasonal employment expenses, and return of capital to shareholders. Working capital at March 31, 2026 was ...
Virtus Investment press release ( VRTS ): Q1 Non-GAAP EPS of $5.38 misses by $0.29 . Revenue of $199.5M (+1.0% Y/Y) beats by $20.07M . Cash and equivalents at March 31, 2026 of $136.6 million declined from $386.5 million at December 31, 2025 primarily due to the closing payment for Keystone, seasonal employment expenses, and return of capital to shareholders. Working capital at March 31, 2026 was $54.0 million. During the quarter, the company repurchased 73,463 shares for $10.0 million and paid its quarterly dividend which totaled $17.9 million. Gross debt at March 31, 2026 was $448.0 million, which included $50 million drawn on the company's credit facility. Net debt was $311.4 million, or 1.1x EBITDA. More on Virtus Investment Virtus Newfleet Multi-Sector Short Term Bond Fund Q4 2025 Commentary Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. (VRTS) Q4 2025 Earnings Call Transcript Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. 2025 Q4 - Results - Earnings Call Presentation Vulcan Value Partners Small Cap Portfolio adds RYAN, TRU; exits CCK, VRTS among Q1 moves Virtus Investment Partners sees AUM of $149B as of March end