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☆ Mark Penn's Stagwell Group is on the hunt for adtech as the ad company continues its acquisition spree
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-23 | by ( Lara O'Reilly | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Stagwell Group, the advertising agency holding group operated by Mark Penn, a former advisor to Bill and Hillary Clinton, is actively looking to buy adtech companies as it continues to grow through acquisitions. Penn's theory is that by bringing such adtech in-house, Stagwell can offer more self-service software to advertisers who want it while also shrinking those clients' ad prices and expanding its own margins. Challenger brand Stagwell is competing for bigger contractsPenn founded Stagwell Group in 2015 with $250 million in funding from investors, including former Microsoft Chief Executive Steve Ballmer. Stagwell recently made a near-$700-million bid for S4 Capital, another challenger ad company founded by longtime WPP CEO Martin Sorrell, The Wall Street Journal reported. Publicis Groupe has the biggest market capitalization of the largest holding companies, at $28.2 billion, while Stagwell is trading at around $1.6 billion.

Persons: Mark Penn, Bill, Hillary Clinton, Penn, we're, Stagwell, Penn didn't, Ana Milicevic, Milicevic, Brian Wieser, Wieser, Steve Ballmer, Sunny, GALE, Allison, Martin Sorrell, they're Organizations: Stagwell, Penn, Business, Google, Harris Poll, Next Partners, Sparrow, Madison, Challenger, Stagwell Group, Microsoft, MDC Partners, WPP, Publicis Groupe, Veritas, S4 Capital, Street Journal, S4, EMEA Locations: adtech, London

☆ Meet Neema Raphael, the data whiz overseeing Goldman Sachs' army of engineers and scientists key to the bank's AI ambitions
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-06 | by ( Bianca Chan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

We always use this code: garbage in, garbage out," Raphael, chief data officer and Goldman partner, told Business Insider. As Goldman goes all-in on AI, Raphael is emerging as a key player impacting the bank's future. How Raphael's data platform team is leading the way for AI innovation at GoldmanEven though Raphael's day can vary greatly, it always starts the same. AdvertisementOne is the data platform team, which oversees the entire data stack, including infrastructure and how people access data. For Goldman, AI is not new.

Persons: Goldman Sachs, Raphael, Goldman, It's, SecDB, That's Organizations: Service, Business, Goldman, JPMorgan, UC Berkeley, Engineering SWAT, Curation

Traders work on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S., November 17, 2023. Wall Street indexes ended marginally higher on Tuesday after Fed Governor Christopher Waller, deemed a hawk, hinted at lower interest rates in the months ahead if inflation continued to ease. Other similar positive comments sent Treasury yields tumbling, with the yield on the benchmark 10-year note last at an over two-month low of 4.2840%. Fed Governor Michelle Bowman on Tuesday alluded to the possibility of another rate hike. Reporting by Shristi Achar A and Amruta Khandekar in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini GanguliOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Brendan McDermid, Christopher Waller, Governor Bowman, Charalampos Pissouros, Michelle Bowman, Thomas Barkin, Shristi Achar, Shinjini Organizations: New York Stock Exchange, REUTERS, General Motors, Dow, Nasdaq, Treasury, Federal Reserve, XM, Nvidia, Richmond Fed, Dow e, CrowdStrike Holdings, Thomson Locations: New York City, U.S, Bengaluru

☆ NetApp lifts annual profit forecast on upbeat cloud service demand
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Nov 28 (Reuters) - NetApp (NTAP.O) raised its annual profit forecast on resilient demand for its cloud-based data solutions as companies push on digital transformation projects, sending its shares up 10% after the bell on Thursday. Rise of artificial intelligence applications has also boosted spending on cloud computing, including storage solutions like the ones provided by NetApp. The company expects full-year adjusted profit per share between $6.05 and $6.25 compared with $5.65 to $5.85 it had previously projected. NetApp forecast net revenue for the third quarter to be between $1.51 billion and $1.67 billion, the mid-point of which was above analysts' estimate of $1.56 billion. It expects adjusted profit between $1.64 and $1.74 per share, above market expectation of $1.53.

Persons: George Kurian, Harshita Mary Varghese, Arun Koyyur Organizations: NetApp, Web Services, Google, Thomson Locations: Bengaluru

☆ Australia's AI firm Appen mulls selling part or whole of business
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Nov 21 (Reuters) - Australia's AI firm Appen (APX.AX) said Tuesday it is mulling the sale of a part or whole of its business. Appen, which was one of the world's largest AI training providers, has implemented a raft of cost-saving initiatives and has seen its executive team being entirely replaced over the last two years. The company on Tuesday announced an equity raise of A$30-million ($19.52 million), aimed at boosting its working capital. It also announced an additional $14 million of cost reduction, boosting its cost-saving initiatives this year to $60 million. ($1 = 1.5366 Australian dollars)Reporting by Nausheen Thusoo in Bengaluru; Editing by Mrigank DhaniwalaOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Nausheen, Mrigank Organizations: Thomson Locations: Bengaluru

☆ Verisk tops third-quarter expectations on resilient demand from insurers
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Nov 1 (Reuters) - Verisk Analytics (VRSK.O) beat market expectations for third-quarter revenue and profit on Wednesday, as more insurance companies used its products to assess risk. The data analytics company's products cater to insurers across sectors ranging from real estate to manufacturing. A rebound in markets is set to help insurers post higher returns from their investments, improving their capacity for enterprise expenditure. Underwriting revenue, which comes from providing property-specific underwriting and rating information and data solutions, was up nearly 9% at $475.2 million. Verisk posted adjusted profit of $1.52 per share for the quarter, compared with analysts' estimate of $1.48 per share.

Persons: Chubb, Verisk, Arsheeya, Shilpi Majumdar Organizations: Insurance, Thomson Locations: New Jersey, Bengaluru

☆ Wealthy buyers are flocking to Florida to rebuild mansions where modest homes were destroyed by hurricanes
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-01 | by ( Erin Snodgrass | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Rich buyers have the funds to rebuild mansions that are more likely to survive future storms. Fort Myers Beach, Florida, has seen an influx of new buyers following Hurricane Ian last year. The storm killed 21 people and washed away a third of the homes and businesses located on the skinny sand strip that makes up Fort Myers Beach, many of which were modest, middle-class homes. Candy Rahn, 69, told the outlet she and her husband were forced out of Fort Myers after Ian when her uninsured cottage was destroyed. The wealthy companies and people who swoop in to buy up empty lots in Fort Myers Beach are in some ways helping disaster survivors by padding their pockets with thousands of dollars.

Persons: Rich, Ian, —, Candy Rahn, Fort Myers, Rahn, Jesse Keenan Organizations: Bloomberg, Service, Fort Myers, Attom Data, University of Delaware's, Research, Tulane University Locations: Florida, Fort Myers Beach , Florida, Estero, Fort Myers Beach, Fort, Fort Myers, New Orleans

☆ Clinical data is a goldmine — but Europe's startups are struggling to grow
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-14 | by ( Riddhi Kanetkar | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Big Pharma and biotech companies often outsource clinical trials to external companies. Europe's early-stage clinical trials startups are flush with funds but they're struggling to grow. The fate — and market cap — of a biotech company often lies with a successful clinical trial. The COVID-19 pandemic also spotlighted another promising alternative to carry out these trials — startups. While the US touts around a dozen clinical trials unicorns valued at $1 billion or higher, per Dealroom estimates, Europe's startups are lagging behind.

Persons: BEN, Janssen, Christoph Ruedig, Maya Zlatanova, Europe hasn't, Matt Wilson, Wilson, Christoph Massner, it's, Ruedig Organizations: Big Pharma, pharma, Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Tempus, Venture, Albion VC, US, Earlybird Ventures Locations: Europe, New York, American

☆ These 10 states are running America's best economies for residents
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( Scott Cohn | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

To determine which states have the best economy, we look at overall economic growth and annual job growth on a percentage basis, as well as the health of state finances. We measure the breadth of each state's economy by looking at how many major corporations are headquartered there. IndianaWhile the Hoosier State's economy is hardly a barnburner, Indiana offers stability. The state's debt rating is solid. UtahThe Beehive State's economy just keeps buzzing.

Persons: Christina, Dupont De Nemours, Incyte Carlos Hernandez, Eileen T, Meslar, Eli Lilly, Kyle Green, Lucas Jackson, George Frey, Zions, Tim Aeppel, —, Justin Sullivan, Lindsey Nicholson, Matthew Busch, payrolls, Jim Watson Organizations: Companies, Business, Getty, Bureau, AAA, Reuters, Indiana, Hoosier, Federal Housing Finance Agency, National Association of Realtors, Simon Property, Bloomberg, Gem, Data Solutions, Micron Technology, Lamb Weston Holdings, South, South Carolina, Union Pacific, Automotive Designs, . Tennessee The Volunteer State, Headquarters, FedEx, Tractor, Delta Airlines, Peach State, Assurant, Intercontinental Exchange, Universal, North, Bank of America, Duke Energy, Just Energy Group, Texas, Lone Star State, Oracle, Tesla, AFP Locations: U.S, States, Wilmington , Delaware, Delaware, Middlebury , Indiana, , Indiana, CBH, Calvary Springs, Nampa , Idaho, Idaho, California, York County , South Carolina, South Carolina, Palmetto, South, Salt Lake City , Utah, Utah, Bristol , Indiana, Tennessee, Alpharetta , Georgia, Georgia, Denver , North Carolina, North Carolina, Houston , Texas, The Texas, Texas, New York, Miami , Florida, Florida

☆ With a world-class workforce and a booming economy, North Carolina repeats as America's Top State for Business in 2023
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-11 | by ( Scott Cohn | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

North Carolina Gov. North Carolina ranks first in the all-important Workforce category of CNBC's study. Strong workers fuel GDP, solid state finances North Carolina's strong workforce helped feed its performance in other categories. "It's clear that the Republican legislature is aiming to choke the life out of public education," Cooper said on May 24. Abortion rights demonstrators gather to protest in Raleigh, North Carolina, after the Supreme Court's decision in the Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health case, June 24, 2022.

Persons: Bosch, Roy Cooper, Joe Biden's, Melissa Sue Gerrits, Josh Wright, Charlotte, it's, You've, Wright, Cooper, Tricia Cotham, Cotham Organizations: State, Business, North Carolina, CNBC, North Carolina Gov, Getty, Apple, Triangle, Democrat, Raleigh, U.S . Labor Department, Commerce Department, Federal Housing Financing Agency, Census, ATTOM Data, Technology, Innovation, Capital, Republican, Republicans, General, Jackson, Anadolu Agency Locations: North Carolina, Lincolnton, Greensboro, Goldsboro, American, Durham, Wolfspeed, Durham , North Carolina, East Coast, America, Alaska, Massachusetts, North, Raleigh , North Carolina, Dobbs

☆ Planet stock drops after satellite imagery and data venture lowers annual revenue guidance
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-08 | by ( Michael Sheetz | In Michaeljsheetz | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Shares of Planet fell after the satellite-imagery and data-analysis company cut its annual revenue guidance following when it reported first-quarter results Thursday. The company lowered its guidance for its current fiscal-year 2024 revenue to a range of $225 million to $235 million, down from its previous forecast of between $248 million and $268 million. She added the company's balance sheet "is strong," with $375 million in cash and equivalents and no debt. For the first quarter, Planet reported revenue of $52.7 million, up 31% from $40.1 million in the same period a year ago, but effectively flat from the prior quarter. Its customer base is split into three parts by revenue: 44% is defense and intelligence, 29% is commercial and 27% is civil government.

Persons: Will Marshall, Ashley Johnson

☆ TipRanks reveals the top 10 health care sector analysts of the past decade
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-21 | by ( Tipranks.Com Staff | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

TipRanks leveraged its Experts Center tool to recognize the ones with a high success rate. We also analyzed each stock recommendation made by health care sector analysts in the past decade. TipRanks' algorithms calculated the statistical significance of each rating, average return and the analysts' overall success rate. The buy recommendation generated a return of 397.9% from May 12, 2020 to May 12, 2021. Boris Peaker - TD CowenBoris Peaker has the 10th spot on the list, with a success rate of 47%.

☆ When Is The Best Time to Buy a House?
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-03 | by ( ) www.wsj.com time to read: +8 min

By Michele LernerAs with much else in real estate, the best time of year to buy a house depends on location, market conditions—and you. “But the best time of year to buy a house depends a lot on the type of buyer.”The spring housing marketTraditionally the housing market’s most active season, spring can be the “best” time of year to buy or the “worst” time of year to buy, depending on your perspective. Best time to buy for: Buyers who hope to move before the holidays or at least before the end of the year. Best time to buy for: Buyers and investors looking for a better deal. “Sometimes it’s the right time to buy a house when you’ve found ‘the one’ that feels right for your family and your circumstances,” Bloch says.

☆ Homebuyers, take note: 21 spots across the US where prices may fall
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-11 | by ( Aj Latrace | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Real-estate data firm Attom evaluated which counties across the country are most vulnerable. Attom's researchers looked at a number of key indicators to determine the overall health of a region's real-estate market. Home prices that are out of reach for many locals suggests they are overly elevated. One is that the counties around major cities such as Chicago and New York are particularly vulnerable. Out of the 581 counties Attom analyzed, here's a look at the 21 counties that are most vulnerable to a decline.

☆ A housing downturn is causing a reckoning in the once-hot cluster of proptech startups that let homebuyers pay all cash and win bidding wars
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-09 | by ( Alex Nicoll | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

In that market, all-cash offers were king to sellers because they ensured quicker, stress-free closings. According to Redfin, all-cash offers quadrupled the chances that a homebuyer would win a bidding war. Ribbon has since paused its all-cash offering, but some of the other firms that Insider featured last year are still making all-cash offers. FlyhomesFlyhomes is a real-estate brokerage that featured all-cash-offer services for years and distinguished itself in December 2021 with a free all-cash-offer product. "The value to the buyer is different than in a seller's market," Garg said in the email.

☆ Bank of America says A.I. 'is the new electricity’, names its top picks to play the breakout trend
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-28 | by ( Samantha Subin | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Just like the internet and the smartphone, artificial intelligence could dramatically alter the world we live in. And, Bank of America has some pointers for investors looking to play this burgeoning trend revolutionizing the tech industry. Given this backdrop, Bank of America highlighted 15 stocks poised to benefit from AI tailwinds in a seperate note to clients Tuesday. Along with AI frontrunners Alphabet and Microsoft , Bank of America sees Nvidia as one of the biggest AI beneficiaries. Adobe and Baidu , which plans to launch its own artificial intelligence chatbot, were also included in Bank of America's list.

☆ An Ohio real-estate investor who boasted about his home-flipping portfolio on TikTok is projecting a $30,000 loss on one deal — and issued a somber warning to anyone trying to best the housing market
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-20 | by ( Dan Latu | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Austin Rutherford told his 700,000 followers he will likely take a loss on a recent flip in Ohio. Real estate investor Austin Rutherford, who has over 700,000 followers on TikTok, has talked at length about the opportunities for wealth in real estate investing since the start of the pandemic. But, in a recent video, he breaks down how his latest deal will likely result in a $30,000 loss. The iBuyer firm OpenDoor has been losing money on homes in pandemic real estate hotspots Austin, Atlanta, and Phoenix. Flippers see home values slidingA Pickerington, Ohio house that Rutherford predicts will take a loss in this tough market.

☆ More Americans Tap Home Equity for Financial Safety Net
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( Veronica Dagher | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

As high interest rates drive up the cost of borrowing money, more people are tapping the equity in their homes. Americans took out $66 billion in home-equity lines of credit, or HELOCs, in the second quarter, a 40% increase from a year ago and the largest amount in almost three years, according to data from real-estate analytics firm Attom Data Solutions. These accounts, which allow homeowners to borrow against the value of their house, are making a comeback as higher rates make it less favorable to refinance a mortgage.

☆ More Homeowners Using Helocs as Financial Safety Net
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( Veronica Dagher | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

As high interest rates drive up the cost of borrowing money, more people are tapping the equity in their homes. Americans took out $66 billion in home-equity lines of credit, or Helocs, in the second quarter, a 40% increase from a year ago and the largest amount in almost three years, according to data from real-estate analytics firm Attom Data Solutions. These accounts, which allow homeowners to borrow against the value of their house, are making a comeback as higher rates make it less favorable to refinance a mortgage.

☆ Partners Group buys data center platform EdgeCore Digital with $1.2 bln investment
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-11 | by ( Krystal Hu | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Nov 11 (Reuters) - Swiss private investment company Partners Group Holding AG (PGHN.S) is investing up to $1.2 billion in U.S. data center operator EdgeCore Digital Infrastructure, the private equity firm told Reuters. Partners Group will use the fund to acquire a majority stake in EdgeCore and help it build out new data center sites across the United States, the latest of Partners' investment in data center assets. Some of the themes include cloud computing, machine learning, artificial intelligence, 5G and mobile," said Ed Diffendal, managing director at Partners Group. In 2021, Partners Group made four digital infrastructure investments, including acquiring atNorth, the largest data center operator in Iceland. Founded in 1996, Partners Group manages $119 billion across private equity, real estate, infrastructure, credit and secondaries globally.

☆ What Cramer is watching Monday — BofA nice beat and my informal poll says people hate the market
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-17 | by ( Jim Cramer | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

WFC price target hikes at BMO Capital and Piper Sandler. Citi lowers price target on American Airlines (AAL) to $15 per share from $16. Mizuho cuts price target on Dow Inc. (DOW) to $46 per share from $62, pricing is falling apart. RBC Capital cut price target on Datadog (DDOG) to $105 per share from $125, getting more conservative. As a subscriber to the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer, you will receive a trade alert before Jim makes a trade.

☆ This founder went from scoring millions in Battery Ventures investments to joining the firm as a VC. Here are his tips for how to land a deal.
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-04 | by ( Paayal Zaveri | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Battery Ventures is bringing on the Guidewire Software cofounder Marcus Ryu as a new partner. The venture-capital firm Battery Ventures is bringing on a new investing partner with hands-on startup experience. The move is rare given that Battery Ventures doesn't bring on new partners very often, and Ryu is the founder of one of Battery's portfolio companies. Battery Ventures invested in the firm's $24.8 million Series C round before it went public. He's not focused on investing at any particular stage in a company's journey, since Battery Ventures invests across stages.

☆ How an oil fracking boom to bust startup plans to thrive in the climate change era
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-23 | by ( Eric Rosenbaum | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +17 min

And in a way, Duncan thought the science wasn't a good match for the blunt process of oil and gas drilling. The Covid downturn in 2020 capped close to a decade of a bear market for oil and culminated in the negative spot prices in the oil market in May 2020. Oil and gas was changing from a growth business to a value business, and oil company management were much more focused on fiscal discipline. That concentration of equipment and infrastructure's resulting reduced costs was not good for an oil services company. And there have been a lot of surprises along the way – how the shale boom became its biggest business, followed by how quickly the science became commoditized in the oil market.

☆ The US cities where home values are most likely to plummet in a recession
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-16 | by ( Jordan Hart | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

The report — published on Wednesday — is based on data from nearly 600 counties in the US. Nine counties around New York City were included in the top 50 most vulnerable. ATTOM spokesperson says a recession seems 'more likely' than getting inflation under control. On Wednesday, real estate data company, ATTOM Data Solutions, published its Special Housing Risk Report for the second quarter of 2022. The report listed nearly 600 US counties vulnerable to value decline, based on "home affordability, underwater mortgages, foreclosures and unemployment," the report says.

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