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☆ Activist investor Elliott is back at NRG Energy. Here’s how the firm plans to build value
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-03 | by ( Kenneth Squire | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

Activist Commentary: Elliott is a very successful and astute activist investor, particularly in the technology sector. In January 2017, the firm filed a 13D on NRG with a plan centered around operational improvements and portfolio actions. As part of its plan, Elliott suggested that NRG focus on its core businesses by reducing costs, monetizing non-core assets to simplify its portfolio and paying down debt. To effectively oversee this plan, Elliott believes that the board needs new independent directors with expertise in the power and energy industry. "Strong management will be key to the success of the Repower NRG Plan," and "significant changes are needed."

Persons: Elliott, Vivint, Jim Collins, Collins, Ken Squire Organizations: NRG, 13D Locations: COOs, Texas

☆ I left the U.S. for Paris 12 years ago—6 things French people do differently than Americans to live long, happy lives
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-01 | by ( Ajiri Aki | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

She says her lifestyle has been enriched by the French principle of joie de vivre, or the "joy of living." But it wasn't until I moved to Paris from New York in 2011 that I noticed the driving force behind the way French people live. As a Nigerian raised in Austin, Texas, I always thought the best things in life were reserved for the ultra-wealthy. Here's what French people do differently than Americans to cultivate joie de vivre:1. So, if you want to find joy like French people, engaging in the arts is a good place to start.

Persons: Ajiri Aki, Madame de la, It's, we'll, Jessica Antola, Naomi Campbell, I've Organizations: Madame de la Maison, UNESCO, Heritage, Humanity, Research Locations: New York City, Paris, France, New York, Austin , Texas, joie

Kinmen, Taiwan CNN —As the sun sets over Taiwan’s Kinmen islands, the neon lights of mainland China dazzle in the distance just 2.5 miles away. That lingering potential for invasion might make it seem like an unlikely place to construct a bridge to mainland China. Anti-invasion spikes along the coast of Taiwan's Kinmen islands. During a recent trip to Kinmen, Taiwan Vice President and DPP presidential candidate William Lai said he recognized the sacrifices of the islanders during decades of conflict. “The Taiwanese government looks at the Chinese military threat as something that cannot be accepted and we condemn it,” he added.

Persons: John Mees, Ko Wen, ”, Xi Jinping, Ho Chih, Sam Yeh, Kinmen, Yang Chien, ” Yang, “, Yang, Yang Pei, Huang Li, cheng, Tsai Ing, William Lai, Wu Chia, chiang, Nancy Pelosi, Kevin McCarthy, Joseph Wu, ” Wu, Maestro Wu Tseng, Maestro Wu Organizations: Taiwan CNN —, Communist, People’s Liberation Army, CNN, Democratic Progressive Party, Taiwan’s Presidential, Mainland Affairs Council, Chinese Communist Party, CCP, Mainland Affairs, Russo, Getty, Communist China's, Tourism Association, Communist Party, Xi, United States, Taiwan’s, Taiwan Locations: Kinmen, Taiwan, China, Beijing, Taipei, Taiwan’s, Xiamen –, Xiamen, Chinese, Ukrainian, Russia, Taiwan's, AFP, Jinsha, “, Fujian, California, Beijing’s

One pillow that meets every sleeper's needs seemed like a pipe dream — until I tested the Coop Sleep Goods Original Pillow. Coop Sleep Goods Original Pillow The Coop Sleep Goods Original Pillow offers thoughtful features like adjustable fill, a washable pillow cover, and an unparalleled 100-night trial that make it the best choice for most people. Shop at Amazon Shop at Walmart Shop at Coop Sleep Goods What we like Check mark icon A check mark. With the Coop pillow, the encasement acts as a barrier between your pillowcase and the inner pillow. Finally, while I think a good pillow is worth investing in, it's hard to find one at as good a price as the Coop Sleep Goods Original Pillow.

Persons: I've, I'm, Ellen Hoffman, Lauren Savoie, Lisa Sabatini, Coop, There's, it's Organizations: Business, Shop, Walmart, Coop, Branch Locations: hypoallergenic, CertiPUR, Boll

☆ TSMC or Samsung? One chipmaker is the better play on A.I., geopolitics and earnings, analyst says
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-29 | by ( Ganesh Rao | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) and Samsung Electronics have emerged as two key players in the increasingly competitive landscape of the chip-making sector. "So, on a relative basis, I think TSMC offers better quality of earnings and also a much better free cash flow margin." "So, the quality of earnings, quality of management, and shareholder return favor TSMC over Samsung," Hosseini concluded. The tech analyst said that when it comes to advanced microchip manufacturing, TSMC is pretty much the only game in town. But they are still way behind TSMC," Hosseini said.

☆ After a Surprise Debut, the Conductor Thomas Guggeis Is Rising Fast
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-27 | by ( Joshua Barone | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Now, Guggeis might read about a discovery related to something he remembers studying in school. In between classes one day, he sat in on a rehearsal of Strauss’s “Die Frau Ohne Schatten” led by Petrenko. He recalled watching the young conductor lead a rehearsal and immediately thinking he was gifted. “And he was obviously a very natural conductor. He moved his arms in a natural way, and was naturally in command.

☆ The Colorado River Is Shrinking. See What’s Using All the Water.
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-22 | by ( Elena Shao | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +6 min

This week, the states that rely on water from the Colorado River reached a temporary deal with the Biden administration on sharing what’s left. Within agriculture, livestock feed is the largest water user, at 55 percent. A limited resourceThe Colorado River system stretches across seven states in the Southwest and Mexico, and a complicated set of decades-old laws determines who gets water from the river, and how much. “But that’s not the reality.”The chart above captures both river water and groundwater withdrawals, but river water makes up the vast majority (about 87 percent) of water use in the basin, according to the study’s authors. About that alfalfaThirty-seven percent of the water used in the Colorado River basin goes toward growing alfalfa and hay used largely to feed dairy cattle.

☆ This company models itself after Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway. Analysts say it can beat the market too
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-21 | by ( Yun Li | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Founded in 1930 and with a market value today of $18 billion, Markel is first and foremost a specialty insurance company focused on niche markets like livestock and dude ranches. Some Wall Street analysts have praised Markel's recent performance against both peers and the broader market. Markel has returned 16.1% annually over the past three years while the S & P 500 has returned 12.4%, according to FactSet. "Given the favorable insurance market conditions in many of MKL's product lines, we believe the company's P/B multiple may expand if it can maintain solid profitability." Markel also has its appeal to Berkshire, which took a $600 million stake in Markel in early 2022.

☆ Moving Is a Monumental Task for Many Older Americans. These Organizers Can Help.
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-20 | by ( Paula Span | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Depending on the needs of clients, move managers’ services include sorting and organizing belongings, working with a moving company and using a floor plan to determine what can fit where in the new residence. That’s not within everyone’s means, but most clients are moving into private-pay senior living facilities, often after selling a house, and can afford the additional expense. Family members may also help shoulder the costs. “It’s not just packing and unpacking,” Ms. Buysee said. “It’s working with the clients and the family for weeks or months, going through a lifetime of possessions.

☆ Elliott proposes adding new directors to Goodyear’s board. How a margin-boosting plan might unfold
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-20 | by ( Kenneth Squire | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

To implement its plan, Elliott is recommending adding five new directors to the board. Six members of the 12-person board (including CEO Richard Kramer) have served on the board for 11+ years. This, along with the underperformance and tenure of many directors makes for a compelling case for serious board reconstitution. Based on its history, we would expect this to be a diversified and qualified group of industry and professional directors with one Elliott executive. Elliott right now is working amicably with management and recommending potential directors as opposed to threatening to nominate their own slate of directors.

☆ Defense personnel alarmed after memos reveal Air Force leadership warned about accused Pentagon leaker but let him continue working
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-19 | by ( Haley Britzky Sean Lyngaas Zachary Cohen Natasha Bertrand | Haley Britzky | Sean Lyngaas | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Teixeira was arrested on April 14 and has been charged under the Espionage Act with unauthorized retention and transmission of national defense information and unauthorized removal of classified information and defense materials. His defense lawyers have argued he didn’t expect classified information that he posted on Discord to be further spread around the internet. According to one current US service member who handles classified intelligence, the memos read as if Teixeira’s leadership was building a case for disciplinary action against him. Jobs under the 1N0 and 1N4 job codes would have given him more hands-on responsibilities with intelligence, the current service member and a former enlisted intelligence airman told CNN. But the current service member said it would not be unusual for senior non-commissioned officers to handle disciplinary matters with a junior enlisted airman like Teixeira.

☆ US military leak suspect got offer to bolster intelligence skills
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-19 | by ( Tim Mclaughlin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

As a low-level airman, Teixeira had broad access to military secrets at the Massachusetts Air National Guard’s 102nd Intelligence Wing. He received a warning, and was admonished again a month later after asking detailed questions at a briefing, according to the Justice Department. Attorneys with the Justice Department argue that Teixeira cannot be trusted to live at home with his father. Even after his warnings last year, Teixeira bragged online in early January that he had broad access to top secret information. “I have stuff for Israel, Palestine, Syria, Iran and China,” Teixeira said on social media, according to prosecutors.

☆ Bath & Body Works beats quarterly profit estimates on higher prices
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

May 18 (Reuters) - Bath & Body Works Inc (BBWI.N) beat first-quarter profit expectations on Thursday, as higher product prices outweighed cost pressures and a slowdown in demand, sending its shares up over 9% in premarket trading. Specialty retailers such as Bath & Body Works have selectively raised prices to shield profit margins from spiraling costs associated with transportation, raw materials, labor and supply chain. Ohio-based Bath & Body Works saw net sales fall about 4% to $1.40 billion in the quarter ended April 29, but were in line with analysts' average estimate, according to Refinitiv data. Excluding items, the home fragrance and personal care products maker earned 33 cents per share, topping analysts' expectations of 26 cents. Separately, Bath & Body Works in April had said its finance chief would step down in July or earlier after the company faced a potential challenge from billionaire investor Daniel Loeb's hedge fund Third Point.

☆ How to join a board of directors
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( Chris Taylor | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

NEW YORK, May 18 (Reuters) - When Hayley Woodin was thinking of giving back to the community while taking her career to the next level, one option stood out: serving on a board of directors. The Catch-22 is that companies want directors with board experience to fill board seats. Before you reach that stage, you will likely start on a volunteer board, as Hayley Woodin did. To find such opportunities, "often local boards of trade will host events designed to pair those looking for board experience, with organizations looking for board members," Woodin said. "If an organization is looking to bring someone onto their board, what is the first thing they are going to do?

☆ Disney World's costly Star Wars Galactic Starcruiser to close in late September
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( Sarah Whitten | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Disney World's Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser, a two-day hotel experience, is closing and will make its final voyage this September after being open for only more than a year. First teased during Disney's D23 Expo in 2019, the Galactic Starcruiser, located near the company's Orlando, Florida-based Disney World Resort opened in March 2022. However, the Galactic Starcruiser has been lauded as a dream come true for fans looking for the ultimate Star Wars experience. Alongside these villains there are spies, musicians, rebels and reluctant heroes, everything that makes up a Star Wars story. "Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser is one of our most creative projects ever and has been praised by our guests and recognized for setting a new bar for innovation and immersive entertainment," the company said in a statement.

☆ UBS sees a big gain for this chemical stock as lithium prices in China stabilize
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( Brian Evans | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

It's time to buy shares of Albemarle as lithium prices in China stabilize, according to UBS. "We see the current inflection in China lithium pricing and 2023 earnings reset leading to increasingly positive sentiment on the stock. Inflection of lithium prices and battery production in China is setting a much higher floor vs prior cycles," analyst Joshua Spector wrote. Now that lithium prices are finding a floor, Albemarle will be able to grow volumes as well as EBITDA, UBS said. Risks may also already be priced in to Albemarle stock, Spector added, specifically the expectation of lithium prices remaining at roughly $20 per kilogram.

☆ Gen Z Fast Fashion, Live Shopping, Clothes Addiction Destroying Planet
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-17 | by ( Eve Upton-Clark | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +13 min

The Gen Z paradoxGen Z's economic power is growing faster than other generations, according to Bank of America. In the US, fashion is the preferred category for entertainment spending among Gen Z, outranking dining out, video games, and music. A 2021 McKinsey survey found that 42% of American Gen Zers said they didn't even know what makes clothes sustainable. In addition to pushing people to buy more clothes, the buy-now, think-later model of live shopping also encourages people to buy clothes that are worse for the planet. To solve that problem, she founded Viviene New York in 2022, a Gen Z-led marketing agency that helps sustainable brands connect with Gen Z audiences through social media.

☆ How the president of Abbot Downing tried to save the Wells Fargo unit for the ultra-rich from being folded
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( Hayley Cuccinello | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Wells Fargo folded Abbot Downing, which served the bank's wealthiest clients, in late 2020. In late 2020, Wells Fargo disbanded Abbot Downing, the unit that catered to the bank's wealthiest clients. Abbot Downing was folded into Wells Fargo's private bank, which also serves rich clients, but it wasn't a safe haven. Business Wire via APGinter left Wells Fargo in September 2021 to launch a new registered investment advisor the following March. Some ex-Abbot Downing employees refer to Callan the "new Abbot Downing" for its focus on the ultra-rich set.

☆ Andreessen Horowitz and General Catalyst lead $50 million seed round in Hippocratic AI to deliver large language models to healthcare providers
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( Stephanie Palazzolo | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Hippocratic AI is a large language model company aiming to serve healthcare providers. Now, the entrepreneur is marrying his interest in healthcare with his experience as a multi-time AI founder to create Hippocratic AI, a healthcare-focused large language model company. First, Hippocratic AI tested its large language model against 114 different healthcare certifications, 105 of which its model outperformed OpenAI's GPT-4 on, Shah told Insider. Despite its intensive model training efforts and recent hefty capital infusion, Hippocratic AI has yet to release a product. "This language model business has turned software development back into a capital intensive business," he said.

☆ These European companies cut jobs this year
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

TECH* ERICSSON (ERICb.ST): the telecom equipment maker will lay off 8,500 employees globally as part of its plan to cut costs, a memo seen by Reuters said. * NOKIA (NOKIA.HE): the Finnish telecom equipment maker said on May 3 it plans to cut up to 208 jobs in Finland. * PHILIPS (PHG.AS): the Dutch medical equipment maker on Jan. 30 said it would cut 6,000 jobs to counter falling sales and after a massive recall of its respiratory machines. * SAP (SAPG.DE): the German software company said on Jan. 26 it planned to shed 3,000 jobs, 2.5% of its global workforce, to cut costs and focus on its cloud business. * EVONIK (EVKn.DE): the German specialty chemicals producer said on April 3 it would cut 200 jobs as part of restructuring of its pet food unit.

☆ Focus shifts to retailers as U.S. quarterly results hit final leg
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( Caroline Valetkevitch | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Investors are anxious to see whether the last results of the earnings season may be enough to turn the estimate for S&P 500 first-quarter earnings positive on a year-over-year basis. Results so far this earnings season have been much better than expected. Based on reports from 457 of the S&P 500 companies as of Friday and analyst estimates for the rest of the components, first-quarter S&P 500 earnings were estimated to have declined just 0.6% year-over-year, according to Refinitiv data. "The retailers are going to be important because obviously they're going to be a clear sign of where the consumer is headed. Both the S&P 500 (.SPX) and Dow (.DJI) posted losses for last week.

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☆ To my fellow Gen Xers worried AI is going to take your job: Take a chill pill
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-13 | by ( Rebecca Knight | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Some Gen Xers might worry that the fast rise of AI bodes ill for their job security. In an AI-driven workplace, Gen Xers will have new responsibilities, which could suit them well. For Gen Xers who are the experienced professionals in their organizations, these new responsibilities could turn out to suit them quite well. To be sure, Gen Xers' anxiety that AI has upended their glide path toward retirement is understandable. Gen Xers who are still uneasy about AI — angst is our specialty, after all — can take solace in the numbers.

☆ Abbot Downing's president pitched a buyout to save the Wells Fargo unit from being folded. The bank said no, and employees have fled.
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-11 | by ( Hayley Cuccinello | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

☆ Çanakkale: Where ancient Troy sits beside the modern city
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( Nick Hilden | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

CNN —An enormous wooden horse presides over the marina in Çanakkale, a small port city southwest of Istanbul. The clapboard animal is a mock-up of the Trojan Horse of mythological fame. Çanakkale (pronounced cha-na-call-ay) stands adjacent to the archaeological site that was once the ancient city of Troy, best known as the setting of the Trojan War in Homer’s “Iliad.”A giant wooden horse watches over Çanakkale. Today when you visit Truva – either via car or a short bus ride from Çanakkale – a second model of the Trojan Horse looms at the entrance. “We know that there were many wars that occurred at Troy,” Rose explains.

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