Democrats Slam Democrats For 'Rigging' Democrat Primaries The party that won't stop lecturing America about democracy is once again rigging its own primary by endorsing - thereby biasing voters - towards certain candidates over others. On Monday, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) endorsed 12 candidates through its “Red to Blue” program to help Democrats win back the majority i...
Democrats Slam Democrats For 'Rigging' Democrat Primaries The party that won't stop lecturing America about democracy is once again rigging its own primary by endorsing - thereby biasing voters - towards certain candidates over others. On Monday, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) endorsed 12 candidates through its “Red to Blue” program to help Democrats win back the majority in the House of Representatives. “Today, the DCCC announced the first slate of 12 top-tier candidates added to its highly competitive ‘Red to Blue’ program for the 2026 cycle,” the committee said in a statement . “This initial group of candidates will receive strategic guidance, staff resources, training, and fundraising support to ensure they are in the best possible position to win in November.” The committee describes the “Red to Blue” program as a “highly competitive and battle-tested DCCC program that arms top-tier candidates with organizational and fundraising support to help them continue to develop strong campaigns.” Candidates earn spots in the program by hitting aggressive benchmarks for grassroots engagement, local support, and fundraising. Now, 17 Democratic congressional candidates are accusing the party's own campaign arm of torching the integrity of the 2026 primary process by interfering with the primary. According to a joint statement from the snubbed candidates, this early backing by the DCCC “carries significant influence in the primary process —often shaping fundraising pipelines, access, and perceived viability before voters have had the opportunity to evaluate the full field.” The statement highlighted mounting frustration among Democratic candidates nationwide, who are concerned about the increasingly aggressive pattern of early primary intervention by the DCCC, “a trend they say risks weakening voter trust and diminishing the role of voters in selecting their own nominees.” " Primaries are not an inconvenience, they are the foundation of democratic le...
Earnings Call Insights: Hawaiian Electric Industries (HE) Q4 2025 Management View Scott W. Seu, President and CEO, opened the call by highlighting progress on priorities since the Maui wildfires in 2023, including advancing the Maui wildfire tort settlement, legislative measures for wildfire risk, and implementing safety improvements that "have reduced the risk of ignition from utility equipment a...
Earnings Call Insights: Hawaiian Electric Industries (HE) Q4 2025 Management View Scott W. Seu, President and CEO, opened the call by highlighting progress on priorities since the Maui wildfires in 2023, including advancing the Maui wildfire tort settlement, legislative measures for wildfire risk, and implementing safety improvements that "have reduced the risk of ignition from utility equipment and laying the groundwork for a successful second multiyear rate period under our performance-based regulation, or PBR framework." Seu stated, "In sum, we've continued to work through the administrative steps required to see the settlement through to completion and trigger our first payment." He noted that class settlement agreements have received court approvals, and a recent Hawaii Supreme Court decision ended insurer efforts to intervene, moving the company closer to final court approval and triggering the first payment. Seu confirmed finalization of settlements resolving both the shareholder class action and shareholder derivative lawsuits related to the Maui wildfires, with obligations "fully funded by insurance proceeds." Seu highlighted that the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) approved the utility's 3-year wildfire safety strategy in December, and the company achieved many objectives ahead of schedule. "We'll continue rapidly advancing the strategy as we progress through 2026." Key financial flexibility measures included a $500 million utility debt issuance, upsizing the revolver to $600 million, and maintaining stable customer bills despite investments in wildfire safety. Strategic priorities for 2026 involve resolving remaining conditions for the tort litigation settlement and pursuing an alternative process for rate rebasing, with a joint proposal submission planned by March 6. Seu confirmed an executive transition: "Scott DeGhetto's term as HEI's CFO expires on April 1... Paul Ito, the current Treasurer and CFO of Hawaiian Electric will resume his prior role as ...
Stocks are falling, inflation is growing, the Fed may be hamstrung. What else could go wrong? At least there are bargains in business development companies whose stocks were crushed.
Stocks are falling, inflation is growing, the Fed may be hamstrung. What else could go wrong? At least there are bargains in business development companies whose stocks were crushed.
In this article XYZ Follow your favorite stocks CREATE FREE ACCOUNT Jack Dorsey, co-founder and CEO of Block, listens during the Bitcoin 2021 conference in Miami, June 4, 2021. Eva Marie Uzcategui | Bloomberg | Getty Images The tech industry has spent the last couple years debating whether artificial intelligence will actually eliminate jobs at scale or simply be used as an excuse for companies to...
In this article XYZ Follow your favorite stocks CREATE FREE ACCOUNT Jack Dorsey, co-founder and CEO of Block, listens during the Bitcoin 2021 conference in Miami, June 4, 2021. Eva Marie Uzcategui | Bloomberg | Getty Images The tech industry has spent the last couple years debating whether artificial intelligence will actually eliminate jobs at scale or simply be used as an excuse for companies to engage in mass layoffs. Block just firmly planted its flag. Jack Dorsey , co-founder and CEO of the Square parent, announced Thursday that his company is cutting about 40% of its workforce, reducing headcount from over 10,000 to just under 6,000. And he was explicit about the reason, telling investors on Block's earnings call that "intelligence tools" have fundamentally changed what it means to build and run a company. Dorsey suggested the rest of corporate America is about to follow suit, predicting that the majority of businesses will reach the same conclusion within a year. "Our business is strong," Dorsey wrote in a post on X . "Gross profit continues to grow, we continue to serve more and more customers, and profitability is improving. But something has changed." watch now VIDEO 1:48 01:48 Block shares jump as CEO Jack Dorsey links major job cuts to AI Money Movers Investors instantly embraced the message, sending the stock up about 25% in extended trading on Thursday, though the gains were muted a bit on Friday, with shares closing up 17%. Block also provided an earnings forecast for the year that sailed past estimates, even as results for the past quarter were largely inline with expectations. Morgan Stanley analysts upgraded Block to overweight, writing that AI-driven efficiencies should deliver increased profitability. Analysts at Goldman Sachs raised their price target, noting that the cuts would vault Block from middle of the pack to near the top in fintech workforce productivity. Wells Fargo kept its buy rating, calling the quarter "chock full of positive surpr...
Getty Images In my last article on Target Corporation ( TGT ) (check it here ), I mentioned that although I didn't visit any stores when I went to the U.S. (unlike Walmart ( WMT ), for example), the numbers alone had convinced me that the market was too pessimistic and that Target actually deserved a second look. At the time, the financials weren't super interesting, but the P/E was close to singl...
Getty Images In my last article on Target Corporation ( TGT ) (check it here ), I mentioned that although I didn't visit any stores when I went to the U.S. (unlike Walmart ( WMT ), for example), the numbers alone had convinced me that the market was too pessimistic and that Target actually deserved a second look. At the time, the financials weren't super interesting, but the P/E was close to single digits, practically a distressed asset. Now, TGT stock has gained a re-rating from the market; it has been given this second chance, and in a few months the stock has risen about 35%. And for me, that's enough to be a little more cautious. It's not a bad case or one without potential, but we're talking about a Target that is no longer a “deep value,” where you were paid in dividends to wait for the turnaround to happen. Target's Last Quarter Was Just Ok When I saw that TGT stock was rising, I looked at the Q3 earnings (which came out a few months ago); I expected more. I thought the market had seen some transition point, and while that may be the case (I'll explain why in the next section), the financials themselves are a little disappointing. Sales continued to fall, by about 1.5%, and I expected comp sales to be “less bad.” Note in the chart below that Q3 comp sales were worse than Q2, with Q3 declining by almost 3%. Target IR I think there was a reasonable explanation: the spending on discretionary items is still poor, but at least Target managed to grow in other segments such as beverages and toys. Macroeconomically speaking, it makes sense that the average American continues to spend at Walmart and Costco ( COST ), and with higher inflation, it becomes more difficult to spend at Target on these more “superfluous” items. Returning to last quarter's performance, Target’s operating margin, excluding some non-recurring items, was reasonable, only slightly worse than Q3 2024, and the gross margin also remained stable, a positive point in my view. Also, Target did not have...
monsitj/iStock via Getty Images Gold and silver futures rose Friday to wrap up their best-ever monthly dollar gains in February, with gold also enjoying its best monthly percentage increase since January 2012. Front-month Comex gold ( XAUUSD:CUR ) for March delivery rallied 10.9% this month to $5,230.50/oz, while front-month March Comex silver ( XAGUSD:CUR ) sizzled 18.4% in February to $92.682/oz...
monsitj/iStock via Getty Images Gold and silver futures rose Friday to wrap up their best-ever monthly dollar gains in February, with gold also enjoying its best monthly percentage increase since January 2012. Front-month Comex gold ( XAUUSD:CUR ) for March delivery rallied 10.9% this month to $5,230.50/oz, while front-month March Comex silver ( XAGUSD:CUR ) sizzled 18.4% in February to $92.682/oz, rising 3.3% and 12.5%, respectively, this week. Gold has gained for seven straight months, climbing nearly 60% in that time, and silver has increased for 10 consecutive months, skyrocketing 185% for the period. On Friday, gold added 1% and silver surged 6.5%, as markets headed into the weekend sensing a heightened risk of U.S. military action against Iran. Talks between the two countries ended Thursday without a deal, with the two sides still seen far from any agreement, and the U.S. Embassy in Israel said the State Department authorized non-emergency staff and their families to leave the country, citing safety risks. "There's a lot of nervousness surrounding geopolitics, you have all the set-up for a high probability of a military operation over the weekend, so it's a risk-off in a flight to safety," Blue Line Futures chief market strategist Phillip Streible said. Prices also have been supported by uncertainty over U.S. global tariffs and the future of existing trade deals following the Supreme Court's recent ruling, the so-called dollar debasement trade, and concerns about the Federal Reserve’s independence. On Friday, the latest U.S. data showed monthly wholesale inflation unexpectedly sped up in January, helping send U.S. 10‑year Treasury yields to a three-month low, making non-yielding gold more attractive. Gold has been helped in the near term by the return of China to markets after a pause to celebrate the Lunar New Year, and Suki Cooper of Standard Chartered sees more upside in the longer term, "continuing to expect gold to retrace its lost gains at a more modest ...
Shows like HBO’s ‘DTF St. Louis’ and ‘Rooster,’ Paramount’s ‘The Madison’ and Netflix’s ‘Peaky Blinders’ movie jump out of the gate as Emmy season gets underway
Shows like HBO’s ‘DTF St. Louis’ and ‘Rooster,’ Paramount’s ‘The Madison’ and Netflix’s ‘Peaky Blinders’ movie jump out of the gate as Emmy season gets underway