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☆ This semiconductor ETF is headed for its best quarterly gain in a year. Here are the winners
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-28 | by ( Samantha Subin | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Semiconductor stocks are off to another hot start to the year. The VanEck Semiconductor ETF (SMH) is up 28.5% in the first three months of 2024. That puts the SMH on pace for its biggest quarterly gain since the first quarter of 2023, when it jumped 30%. The stock is up more than 30% to start 2024. Shares have skyrocketed more than 39% to start 2024, helped by strong sales in high bandwidth memory necessary in AI infrastructure.

Persons: Ken Mahoney, Nvidia, Hendi, Management's Paul Meeks, Andrew Garthwaite cautioning Organizations: VanEck Semiconductor, Asset, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing, Nvidia, Qualcomm, Apple, Devices, JPMorgan, PHLX Semiconductor, Intel, Micron Technology, Micron, UBS, Universal Locations: Taiwan

☆ Notable UBS strategist Garthwaite sees stocks ending 2024 flat as 'difficult phase' approaches
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-26 | by ( Brian Evans | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Equity strategist Andrew Garthwaite warned investors could be in for a "difficult phase" and end the year flat. The S & P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average reached record highs last week, with the former breaking above 5,100 for the first time on an intraday basis. The S & P 500 and Nasdaq are both up more than 6% this year, and the Dow has climbed 3.8%. Garthwaite admitted his downbeat outlook could be wrong, as productivity gains from AI could lead to a 15% to 20% advance for the S & P 500. Market breadth is also typically better when stocks reach new highs, according to Garthwaite.

Persons: Andrew Garthwaite, Dow, Garthwaite Organizations: UBS, Equity, PPI, Dow Jones, Nasdaq, Nvidia Locations: Japan

REUTERS/Andrew Kelly/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsNov 29 (Reuters) - Cigna (CI.N) and Humana (HUM.N), two of the biggest U.S. health insurers, are in talks for what could be the largest merger announced in 2023, according to a source familiar with the matter. A Humana and Cigna combination would give the merged company the scale to rival UnitedHealth Group (UNH.N) and CVS Health (CVS.N). In July 2016, the Justice Department filed lawsuits against two health insurance mergers on the same day, saying they would lead to less competition and higher prices for Americans. Health insurers have been facing higher medical costs as people return for procedures they had put off during the pandemic. Humana in February said that it would sell its commercial business but keep its Medicare Advantage products.

Persons: Andrew Kelly, Cigna, Cigna's, Aetna, Bill Baer, Andre Barlow of Doyle, Barlow, Mazard, Bernstein, Lance Wilkes, Craig Garthwaite, Manas Mishra, Diane Bartz, Deena Beasley, Caroline Humer, Bill Berkrot Organizations: Humana Inc, REUTERS, Street Journal, UnitedHealth, CVS Health, Humana’s, Medicare, Affordable, Justice Department, Humana, U.S ., Reuters, Northwestern University, Thomson Locations: Queens , New York City, U.S, Cigna, Bengaluru, Washington, Los Angeles

☆ Weight-loss drugs just got cheaper — and better
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-11 | by ( Hilary Brueck | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Eli Lilly just debuted its powerful new weight-loss drug, Zepbound. Normally, when newer, better drugs are introduced, they match the price of similar drugs already available or come at a premium . Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk have said that about 50 million people have some level of insurance coverage for weight-loss drugs. But some experts were skeptical, because employers and insurers don't typically pay the list price for drugs. Craig Garthwaite, an economist at Northwestern University, argued competition will drive the net prices of weight-loss drugs lower still.

Persons: Eli Lilly, —, Wegovy, LLY, It's, Mike Mason, coinsurance, Antonio Ciaccia, Crystal, We're, David Risinger, Dave Ricks, David Ricks, Eli Lilly's Mason, Mason, Craig Garthwaite, Garthwaite Organizations: Service, pharma, Nordisk's Wegovy, Ozempic, Deutsche Bank, 46brooklyn Research, Crystal Cox, Novo Nordisk, Zepbound, Wegovy, American Enterprise Institute, Northwestern University Locations: Mounjaro

☆ U.S. market is too heavily reliant on pricey 'Magnificent Seven' stocks for gains, says Credit Suisse strategist
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-13 | by ( Brian Evans | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

"We struggle to believe that the US at currently [circa] 60% of global market cap can continue its inexorable rise." The Shiller P/E ratio is a measure of how undervalued or overvalued the broader stock market is. Garthwaite attributed the overvalued nature of the market to the meteoric rise of technology stocks this year, especially the so-called Magnificent Seven, which includes Alphabet , Amazon , Apple , Meta , Microsoft , Nvidia and Tesla . This means the U.S. market is essentially overexposed to these seven stocks, which are seeing "extreme levels" for relative valuations, he said, in a note to clients that advised investors to underweight U.S. stocks. While Credit Suisse is still bullish on technology stocks, current high price-to-earnings multiples for the Magnificent Seven will be difficult to maintain, he said.

Persons: Andrew Garthwaite, Garthwaite, — CNBC's Michael Bloom Organizations: Apple, Meta, Microsoft, Nvidia, Tesla, Credit Suisse, Tech Locations: U.S

☆ A Blockbuster-era video law is being used to ding big-name brands like General Mills, Geico, and Chick-Fil-A with privacy lawsuits
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-07 | by ( Ryan Joe | Lara O'Reilly | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Brands like Chick-Fil-A and Geico are being accused of violating 1980s privacy law the VPPA. Broadcasters have long been wary of running afoul of a 1988 privacy law called the Video Privacy Protection Act that went into effect after the video rental history of then-Supreme Court nominee Judge Robert Bork was leaked to a newspaper. Since November last year, brands as diverse as Hallmark, Folgers, Mattel, Chick-Fil-A, General Mills, Mars, La-Z-Boy, Geico, and Fossil have faced lawsuits accusing them of VPPA violations. But these dismissals don't completely neutralize the threat of VPPA lawsuits. At least 70 VPPA class action lawsuits have been filed in the past year, according to Bloomberg Law.

Persons: Chick, Robert Bork, VPPA, Mills, General Mills, Scott Ferrell, FloSports, Smucker, Keith Carroll, Rebeka Rodriguez, Melissa Fox, Eversheds Sutherland, Labaton Sucharow, Corepower, Garthwaite, Fox, Julie Rubash Organizations: ., Broadcasters, Hallmark, Mattel, Pacific, Hulu, Bloomberg Law, Meta, Protection Law, Facebook, AMC, Us, GameStop, Disney, United States, Court, Southern, of Locations: Mars, California, Virginia, of New York

That has made it tricky to predict consumer spending. The swirl of confusing trends tees up a closely watched retail earnings season that could offer more clarity about consumers and the economy. As inflation cools, the growth of average hourly earnings has begun to outpace the rise in the consumer price index. He called low unemployment "the big offset that's helped consumer spending hang in." "I thought with all of the revenge travel that's been happening, that would impact consumer spending on goods," she said.

Persons: Aditya Bhave, that's, Andrew Garthwaite, That's, Levi Strauss, Chip Bergh, Michael Baker, Davidson, splurge, Baker, Taylor Swift, Davidson's Baker, Nikki Baird, she's, I'm, Corie Barry, headboards Organizations: Getty, Bank of America, Target, Walmart, JPMorgan, Wall, Federal Reserve, Credit Suisse, U.S, of Labor Statistics, CNBC, . Bureau, Labor, D.A, New York Federal Reserve, Federal Reserve Board Locations: Waterbury , Connecticut, U.S, Italy

☆ Credit Suisse's top market strategist says recession is still coming and stocks may have peaked
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-08 | by ( Jesse Pound | In Jesse-Pound | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The U.S. economy is still likely to fall into a recession and that will soon drag down stocks, according to Credit Suisse. The S & P 500 closed at its highest level of the year July 31, at 4,588.96. .SPX YTD mountain The S & P 500 has slipped off its highs of the year in August. Some major investment banks, including Goldman Sachs , have recently reduced the odds of a recession, while Oppenheimer hiked its S & P 500 target to 4,900. Still, there are areas of concern that support Credit Suisse's recession case.

Persons: Andrew Garthwaite, Garthwaite, Garthwaite's, Goldman Sachs, Oppenheimer, Moody's, CNBC's Michael Bloom Organizations: Credit Suisse, Global Locations: U.S

One rainy spring evening, a young Iranian mother with a mangled arm, her husband and their 3-year-old daughter met a smuggler near the Iraqi border who gave them a stern ultimatum: Ensure the child’s silence or leave her behind. The mother, Sima Moradbeigi, 26, recalled that she dashed to a pharmacy for a bottle of cough syrup to drug her daughter into a stupor. Under the cover of night, the family followed the smuggler out of Iran along mountain paths, sometimes crouching or crawling through muddy scrubland to avoid border guards stalking their route with flashlights. Hours later, Ms. Moradbeigi and her husband said, they arrived safely at a mosque outside the city of Sulaimaniya in Iraq’s northern Kurdistan Region. The Islamic Republic — the theocracy that arose after Iran’s 1979 revolution — was never hospitable to women who rebelled against its strict religious codes for dress and behavior.

Persons: Sima Moradbeigi, Moradbeigi, Juan, —, Mahsa Amini Locations: Iranian, Iran, Sulaimaniya, Iraq’s, Kurdistan Region, Republic

☆ Japan is in a 'Goldilocks' position, Credit Suisse says. Here's how to play it
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-01 | by ( Jesse Pound | In Jesse-Pound | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The Japanese economy appears to be on stable footing and its stock market should continue to climb, according to Credit Suisse. Read more: Japan stocks are on fire this year. Ways to play it The simplest way for U.S-based investors to add exposure to Japan is through exchange-traded funds. The biggest U.S. ETF that tracks Japan is the iShares MSCI Japan ETF (EWJ) . When the yen falls versus the dollar, that can mute the returns of Japanese stocks for U.S. investors.

Persons: Andrew Garthwaite, Garthwaite, Read, BlackRock's iShares, — CNBC's Michael Bloom Organizations: Credit Suisse, Global, U.S, JPMorgan BetaBuilders Japan, JPMorgan, Japan Hedged Equity Locations: Japan, U.S

☆ Markets next week may keep thinking about what could go right
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-19 | by ( Scott Schnipper | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

At least that's the thinking of a small but growing chorus of voices on Wall Street who outline the case for further stock market gains after both the S & P 500 and Nasdaq Composite touched nine-month highs this past week. The VIX was trading around 16-17 late this week, signaling no great fear among professional traders. Walmart and other retailers this week highlighted consumers are spending less freely, but they're still spending , and that drives two thirds of the economy. Even Mark Haefele, chief investment officer at UBS Global Wealth Management, wrote late this week that he has to entertain what could go right in markets, despite the fact his own view is fundamentally bearish. If that "upside scenario" happens, UBS sees global stocks moving 13% higher by the end of December, and the S & P 500 surging another 6% — to north of 4,400.

☆ Chip stocks posted their best quarter since 2020. What's next for the sector and why the rally may fade
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( Samantha Subin | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

Chip stocks made a breathtaking comeback in the first quarter, but don't be surprised if the rally gives up some of its gains, investors warn. The semiconductor sector on Friday wrapped up its best quarter since 2020 as investors rotated back into the downtrodden industry, with names like Nvidia notching its best quarterly stretch since 2001. The recent tear in semiconductor stocks brings the sector into overbought territory versus non-financial cyclicals, said Credit Suisse's Andrew Garthwaite in a recent note. Like many investors, Niles views Nvidia as a dominant AI play despite its rich valuation . While the stock's given those gains, many investors viewed the print as a sign of a bottom.

☆ Moderna plans 400% increase in price of Covid vaccine
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailModerna plans 400% increase in price of Covid vaccinePublic Citizen Access to Medicines Director Peter Maybarduk and Northwestern healthcare economist Craig Garthwaite joins CNBC’s Brian Sullivan and ‘Last Call’ to discuss the debate over Moderna’s decision to raise the price of its Covid vaccine.

☆ Credit Suisse thinks this is still just a bear market rally and gives the history to back it up
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( John Melloy | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Andrew Garthwaite, global equity strategist at Credit Suisse, believes this U.S. stock market comeback is still a bear market rally and not the start of a new bull market, despite its significant magnitude and achievement of a notable chart milestone. The S & P 500 is up 11% from its low close in October, including a 3% gain in 2023. History shows, Credit Suisse found, that bear market rallies of this size are not that unusual and some have traded above the 200-day average before falling back into a bear market again. "Bottom line: this is close to the average bear market rally but bear market rallies can be larger and longer," Garthwaite wrote in the report. Credit Suisse also cited bear market rallies on the Nasdaq and Japanese markets to back up its claim that this is just a bounce to be faded.

☆ The era of health insurance disruptors is over
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-02 | by ( ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

Today, they're mostly the poster children of just how challenging it is to break into the insurance industry. Clover Health; Bright Health; Oscar Health; Olivia Reaney/Business InsiderOscar, founded in 2012, and Bright, in 2015, set out to sell health plans to people buying coverage through the Affordable Care Act marketplace. Elevance Health, the parent company of Anthem health plans, is No. Health insurance remains overly complex and mind-numbingly frustrating. Established health insurers haven't been able to stem the rise in health costs, which are mostly determined by the prices for medical care.

☆ Here's why 2023 could be another solid year for dividend stocks — and how to play it
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-23 | by ( Jesse Pound | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Dividend stocks proved valuable for investors in a turbulent 2022, and many investment professionals are sticking with the group for next year. The SPDR Portfolio S & P 500 High Dividend ETF (SPYD) was down just about 1% for the year on a total return basis, easily outpacing the broader market. And with consensus expectations pointing to high interest rates and slow or even negative economic growth in 2023, dividend stocks could have quite a while left in the spotlight. Many major shops on Wall Street are bullish on dividend stocks in one form or another heading into 2023. Credit Suisse's strategist Andrew Garthwaite said in a note to clients that he was overweight dividend aristocrats, or stocks that have a long track record of growing their payouts. To be sure, investing in dividend stocks can be tricky during economic downturns, as falling profits can lead to dividend cuts or even suspensions.

[1/3] FILEPHOTO: Executive Chairman of the Walt Disney Company, Bob Iger arrives at the world premiere for the film 'The King's Man' at Leicester Square in London, Britain December 6, 2021. In his 15 years as Disney chief executive, Iger postponed his retirement four times, sidelining would-be successors. read more Part of his mandate, according to Disney, is to work with the board to develop a successor to lead the company. Chapek was among a shortlist of internal candidates vying for Iger's job, according to a source familiar with discussions. Another seen as a top contender was Kevin Mayer, Disney's longtime head of strategic planning who had shepherded the successful launch of Disney+, according to sources.

Insider asked 12 top VCs what ad and marketing tech companies excited them the most this year. Check out the 19 most promising adtech startups, and what they do that makes them unique. It hopes to raise a Series A funding round in the coming months. Emperia is currently raising its next funding round. Why it's on the list: Tech companies are being scrutinized for their wasting energy consumption, and the digital advertising industry is no exception.

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