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☆ Banks are in limbo without a crucial lifeline. Here's where cracks may appear next
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-19 | by ( Hugh Son | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

Most of the banks deemed to be potentially challenged are community lenders with less than $10 billion in assets. These banks need to either raise capital, likely from private equity sources as NYCB did, or merge with stronger banks, Graham said. There are other signs of mounting stress among smaller banks. They ranged in size from $90 billion in assets to under $1 billion, according to Fitch. He predicts a surge in merger activity from lenders between $3 billion and $20 billion in assets as smaller firms look to scale up.

Persons: Klaros, Steven Mnuchin, Brian Graham, Graham, you've, PacWest, Banks, Jerome Powell, Powell, Fitch, Brendan Mcdermid, I've, Chris Caulfield, West, Spencer Stuart, You've, Frank Sorrentino, Stephens, It's, that's, Sorrentino Organizations: Silicon Valley Bank, Federal Reserve, Klaros Group, York Community Bank, ex, Fitch, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Traders, New York Stock Exchange, Reuters, U.S, First Republic, Mercer Capital, Bank, Dominion Bank, Capital, Regulators Locations: Silicon, California, New York City, U.S, Toronto, West Monroe, FirstSun, Seattle

☆ US Marines don skis in joint NATO exercises in the critical Arctic battleground
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-17 | by ( Cameron Manley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Last month, II MEF attended a 10-day training course in the hills near the Norwegian town of Setermoen. "I think that's one of the things that we see with our marines and sailors in this training," said II MEF commander, Lt. AdvertisementThe II MEF, the US military's rapid response group, was ordered to delay the hypothetical enemy so that "reinforcements" had time to arrive. The Arctic is a key locationThe Arctic itself is already a critical region for Russia and NATO. AdvertisementPutin has snapped back at the West following French President Emmanuel Macron's suggestions that NATO could send troops to Ukraine.

Persons: —, Ted Driscoll, David A, JONATHAN NACKSTRAND, Grant Schapps, Pål Jonson, Mark Stephens, Vladimir Putin, Putin, Emmanuel Macron's, Sergei Naryshkin, General Carl, Johan Edstrom, it's Organizations: Service, US Marines, Marine Expeditionary Force, NATO, Marines, Business, NBC News, Nato Nordic, Getty, Reuters, NBC, Norwegian Communication Authority, Brookings Institution, Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service, BBC Locations: Alaska, Norway, Norwegian, Setermoen, Iraq, Afghanistan, AFP, Russia, Ukraine, Finland, Sweden, North America, Europe, Russian

☆ See how badly your home could be hit by heat, wind, and bad air over the next 30 years
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-13 | by ( Dan Latu | Catherine Boudreau | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Realtor.com has unveiled a set of climate risk tools that homeowners and homebuyers alike can use to learn the specific climate risks of a property. The tools, called Heat Factor, Wind Factor, and Air Factor, are available starting Wednesday and can map out a neighborhood's risks of above-normal days on the heat index, chances of experiencing wind gusts over 50 mph, and days of poor air quality. More than 40% of US homes, valued at a combined $20 trillion, are vulnerable to extreme heat, wind, and poor air quality, according to a Realtor.com analysis. Understanding your home's climate riskPrior to releasing the heat, wind, and air quality tools, Realtor.com already provided fire and flood risks for properties based on data from First Street. First Street, a climate-risk firm, is also behind the data on extreme heat, wind, and air quality now added to listings.

Persons: Realtor.com, Oscar Seikaly, Bob Stephens, homebuyers, Danielle Hale, Hale, Z, Redfin, we've Organizations: Service, Factor, Air Factor, Business, San, Sun Locations: Florida , California, Texas, Miami, San Francisco, California, Florida

☆ Opinion | Israel Has No Choice but to Fight On
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-12 | by ( Bret Stephens | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

On Saturday, President Biden warned that Benjamin Netanyahu’s approach to the war in Gaza was “hurting Israel more than helping Israel.” The Israeli prime minister replied the next day that Biden was “wrong.” The rift between the two leaders means that Israel risks losing its most important pillar of military and diplomatic support. I’ve argued that Israel has no choice but to destroy Hamas as an effective fighting force. Thousands of Gazan civilians, many of them children, have now been killed, bombed in their homes or out of them. Now they face a humanitarian catastrophe in the form of medicine and food shortages, even starvation. But I blame Hamas, not Israel, for the devastation.

Persons: Biden, Benjamin Netanyahu’s, ”, I’ve Organizations: Hamas Locations: Gaza, Israel

I think it’s safe to say that Joe Biden’s confident performance at the State of the Union has put to rest any doubts that he’ll be the Democratic nominee, with Kamala Harris as his running mate. But the great thing about the speech, Bret, wasn’t that he changed people’s minds about who to vote for in November. Bret: He also did a very good job defining the stakes of the election. Will we support the free world against Vladimir Putin or abandon it to him? Also, I marveled at the many ways Mike Johnson, the speaker of the House, managed to approximate the expressions of a constipated turtle.

Persons: Bret Stephens, Gail, Joe Biden’s, he’ll, Kamala Harris, Gail Collins, Bret, wasn’t, he’d, Vladimir Putin, Mike Johnson Organizations: State, Union, Democratic, Biden Locations: It’s

☆ How Did Biden Do at the State of the Union? Readers Weigh In. - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-08 | by ( New York Times Opinion | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

We asked 10 Times columnists and contributors to watch the State of the Union address on Thursday and rate President Biden’s performance. (A rating of one meant that the night was a disaster, 10 that it was a triumph.) “Where has this Joe Biden been hiding these past three years?” Bret Stephens asked. While I support most of President Biden’s positions, the delivery came across as an old man yelling at kids to get off his lawn. I wanted more calm and confidence to reinforce he is still up to the job.

Persons: Joe Biden, ” Bret Stephens, Michelle Goldberg, Joe, ”, Samuel Alito, Marguerite Dee, Biden’s, — Mike Wade Organizations: Republicans Locations: Tampa, Fla, Berlin, Md

☆ Opinion | The New Rape Denialism
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-05 | by ( Bret Stephens | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

On Oct. 7, Hamas invaded Israel and filmed itself committing scores of human-rights atrocities. Some of the footage was later captured by the Israeli military and screened to hundreds of journalists, including me. The “pure, predatory sadism,” as Atlantic writer Graeme Wood described it, is bottomless. I’ll get to that in a moment, but first it’s worth looking at the forms this denialism takes. A third is to treat anything an Israeli says as inherently suspect.

Persons: Graeme Wood Organizations: United Locations: Israel, Atlantic, West, United Nations

Gail Collins: So, Bret — are you gonna miss Mitch McConnell? Bret Stephens: I guess it all depends on who succeeds him. If it’s a fairly traditional Republican, like John Cornyn of Texas or John Thune of South Dakota, I don’t think it will make much of a difference. But lately, McConnell has certainly seemed more civilized than a lot of the other Republican leaders. Bret: A first — Bret is harder on Mitch than Gail is.

Persons: Gail Collins, Bret —, Mitch McConnell, Bret Stephens, John Cornyn of, John Thune of, Rick Scott, Nicholas II, Gail, Trump, McConnell —, Barack, Merrick Garland, McConnell, Bret, Trump’s, Gail :, who’s Organizations: Republican Locations: John Cornyn of Texas, John Thune of South Dakota

Goldman Sachs lowered its rating on Estée Lauder to neutral, and its new price target calls for a slight decline going forward. Elsewhere, Daiwa raised its price target on Nvidia, which points to more than 10% upside over the next 12 months. The firm stood by its outperform rating on the chipmaker stock, but lifted its price target to $900 from $535. FLYW YTD mountain FLYW in 2024 Faucette accompanied his downgrade by lifting his price target to $30 from $27. He also lifted his price target on the stock to $40 from $30, implying upside of 24.6% from Thursday's close.

Persons: Goldman Sachs, Estée Lauder, Jefferies, Root, Daiwa, Brad Sills, Sills, — Lisa Kailai Han, Stephens, Vita Coco, Coco, Jim Salera, COCO, Lisa Gill, Gill, Louis Miscioscia, Miscioscia, Lisa Kailai Han, Piper Sandler downgrades, Piper Sandler, Mark Fitzgibbon, Fitzgibbon, Morgan Stanley downgrades Flywire, Morgan Stanley, James Faucette, Faucette, Goldman Sachs downgrades Estée Lauder, Lauder, Goldman, Yaron Kinar, Kinar, Fred Imbert Organizations: CNBC, Nvidia, Bank of America, of America, Vertex, Accenture, RSM, BDO, JPMorgan, Daiwa, Markets, Riding, AMD, Intel, York Community Bancorp, York Community, New York Community Bancorp, Travel, B2B, U.S, Jefferies Locations: York, Canada, Asia, China, Hainan, Thursday's

☆ Here are Friday's biggest analyst calls: Nvidia, Apple, Dell, Netflix, Micron, Broadcom, Eli Lilly, New York Community Bancorp & more
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-01 | by ( Michael Bloom | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

"We are initiating coverage of Evolent Health with an Outperform rating and $45 price target." Goldman Sachs downgrades Estee Lauder to neutral from buy Goldman downgraded the stock and said it's under "sizeable pressure." "We are upgrading Annexon (ANNX shares) to Overweight from Neutral and establishing a December 2024 price target of $11." Bank of America reiterates Eli Lilly as buy Bank of America raised its price target on the stock to $1000 per share from $800. "Following 4Q23 earnings we are upgrading GoodRx from Neutral to Overweight and increasing our December 2024 price target from $7 to $10."

Persons: Davidson, Campbell, Morgan Stanley, JD, TD Cowen, Parker, Dell, Goldman Sachs, Goldman, Louise Singlehurst, Tom Ford, Jefferies, Root, AVGO's, Stephens, Vita Coco, COCO, Piper downgrades, Piper, Redburn, Oppenheimer, Daiwa, Morgan Stanley downgrades Flywire, Goldman Sachs downgrades Estee Lauder, Estee Lauder, Dwight, Wells, Eli Lilly, Lilly, D.A Organizations: Apple, Vulcan, Merck, Vertex Pharmaceuticals, Bank of America, Broadcom, York Community Bancorp, Netflix, Micron, Mizuho, MU, Citi, EV, Health, Nvidia, Dwight, Hewlett Packard Enterprises, JPMorgan, biosciences, " Bank of America Locations: York, Davidson, Oshkosh, Minneapolis , MN

☆ I quit my blue-collar job and grew 2 ecommerce brands to over $1M in revenue. I finally have financial freedom.
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-01 | by ( Perri Ormont Blumberg | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

I commuted two hours a day to a dirty, physical job and felt unfulfilled. E-commerce fit all these requirements, but besides selling digital albums on iTunes, I had zero experience trying to sell anything. I got started on YouTubeOne night, I found a nearly five-hour-long YouTube video tutorial on private-label brands by Dan Vas. AdvertisementI looked for products to sell that had a balance of great sales potential and low competition. Try not to fall victim to shiny object syndromeAt the beginning of my e-commerce journey, I started three other brands that didn't pan out.

Persons: —, Sydney Bencriscutto, Dan Vas, Dad, Robert T, Ryan Stephens Organizations: Service, Business, iTunes, YouTube Locations: Milwaukee

☆ Opinion | Nikki Haley’s Last Ditch
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-27 | by ( Bret Stephens | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

to lie in the last Ditch; intimating, that he would dispute every Inch of Ground with the Enemy, and at last would die defending the Liberties of his Country.”And that’s how it seems we got the phrase “the last ditch.”Nikki Haley, too, is in her last ditch. As I write, it looks like Donald Trump will trounce her in the G.O.P.’s Michigan primary by an even wider margin than in his South Carolina victory on Saturday. The Koch network has withdrawn its financial support for her. Super Tuesday is next week, and chances are strong that Trump will sweep all 15 states in play, along with those he’s already won. Too bad only 27 percent of voters bother to participate in party primaries on average, according to a 2022 analysis, ceding the field to the most motivated partisans.

Persons: William of Orange, “, ”, Daniel Defoe, ” Nikki Haley, Donald Trump, Koch, he’s, Haley, she’s “, Joe Biden Organizations: Liberties, Trump Locations: Dutch Republic, ’, Michigan, South Carolina

I know we’ll get around to talking about Donald Trump’s big South Carolina primary win, but first I want to pick your brain about Joe Biden’s State of the Union address. It isn’t happening till next week, but I’m guessing the White House speechwriters are working hard on it now. Any advice on what the president should say and how he should say it? Gail: Then at some point he’ll turn to foreign affairs. Biden’s already laced into that one once, but he was so … vigorous that I’m hoping for a repeat.

Persons: Bret Stephens, Gail, Donald Trump’s, Joe, Gail Collins, Bret, Will, Biden’s Organizations: Carolina, NATO Locations: Joe Biden’s State, Russia, United States

☆ 2 startups posted big membership growth in the lucrative senior health plan business — after other young insurers failed
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-21 | by ( ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Just a few years ago, a crop of venture-backed health insurance startups embarked on planting a flag in the crowded but lucrative health plan business for seniors. Bright Health, which has exited the insurance business entirely as of this year, sold its Medicare Advantage plans in December. However, there are signs that the Medicare Advantage business isn’t as much of a goldmine as it used to be. It takes an enormous amount of capital to grow big in the insurance business, Fidel said. Its Medicare Advantage membership totals about 4 million.

Persons: haven’t, Stephens, underscoring, Oscar Health, Clover, Cowen, Gary Taylor, didn’t, Scott Fidel, it’s, they’ll, Fidel, UnitedHealthcare Organizations: Alignment Healthcare, Medicare, Business, Bright, Oscar, Services, Humana, CVS Health, Aetna, CVS Locations: California, New Jersey

☆ Opinion | How Biden Can Avenge Navalny’s Death
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-20 | by ( Bret Stephens | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

President Biden said last week that he was “looking at a whole number of options” to make good on his 2021 warning to Vladimir Putin that Russia would face “devastating” consequences if Aleksei Navalny were to die in prison. As several close Russia watchers told me, however, there’s much more to be done about the first. Browder is best known as the moving force behind the Magnitsky Acts, which put sanctions on Russian officials implicated in corruption and other abuses. And it’s been resisted by U.S. government officials who fear that it exceeds what American law allows and would encourage a flight from dollar assets. As for the flight-from-the-dollar argument, it might otherwise be persuasive if the need to save Ukraine and punish Russia weren’t more urgent.

Persons: Biden, Vladimir Putin, Aleksei Navalny, Putin, ” Bill Browder, Browder, it’s, Larry Tribe, Kaplan, Fink Organizations: Finances, Putin, U.S, Harvard, Heckler, Democracy Locations: Russia, Ukraine

Gail Collins: So Bret, Donald Trump gets a roughly $355 million fine for fibbing about his fortune. Bret Stephens: Gail, I would never want to stop you from chortling, but here goes: I think the case was ridiculous and the verdict outrageous. It lends credence to the Trumpian belief that the justice system is rigged, which will help him politically. Gail: I know you’re worried all this will make him look like a martyr to a whole lot of voters. But I can’t help thinking a string of 91 pending felony counts has to also look pretty darned messy.

Persons: Gail Collins, Bret, Donald Trump, Bret Stephens, Gail, ”

DOHA, Qatar (AP) — China's Pan Zhanle backed up his world record in the swimming relays by winning the men's 100-meter freestyle at the World Aquatics Championships on Thursday. The 19-year-old Pan swam the fastest 100 in history with a time of 46.80 seconds in the lead-off leg of China’s gold medal-winning 4x100 relay team. HIGH DIVINGWith a huge final dive, Britain's Aidan Heslop claimed the men's title off the 27-meter tower at Doha Old Port. WATER POLOCroatia advanced to the Saturday championship in men's water polo with a 17-16 semifinal victory over France on penalties. Italy claimed the other spot in the final with an 8-6 victory over Spain.

Persons: Zhanle, Pan, didn't, ” Pan, let's, ”, Caeleb Dressel, Kyle Chalmers, Alessandro Miressi, Hungary's Nandor Nemeth, Britain's Laura Stephens, Helena Rosendahl Bach, Lana Pudar, Rachel Klinker, ” Stephens, “, Sarah Sjöström, Swede, Aidan Heslop, France's Gary Hunt, Catalin, Petru Preda, James Lichtenstein, Heslop, you’ve, ” Heslop, ___ Organizations: Paris, Olympic, Doha, Doha Old Port, Croatia Locations: DOHA, Qatar, Paris, Australia, Italy, Denmark, Bosnia, Herzegovina, Doha, United States, France, Croatia, Spain

☆ The richest man you've never heard of isn't sure what to do with his billions
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-15 | by ( Camilo Fonseca | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Autry Stephens is set to be one of the world's richest people after selling his oil business. The sale is set to create one of the biggest drillers poised to take advantage of Texas' oil boom. download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . Autry Stephens sold his company, Endeavor Energy Resources, to Diamondback Energy earlier this week. Asked by the Journal what he would do with his newfound billions, Stephens said that he hadn't really thought about it yet.

Persons: Autry Stephens, —, Stephens, he's, Lyndal Greth, wasn't, Nvidia's Jensen Huang, Mark Zuckerberg Organizations: drillers, Service, Endeavor Energy Resources, Diamondback Energy, Bloomberg, Wall Street, Endeavor, ExxonMobil, ConocoPhillips —, Cruiser, Southwest Airlines, University of Texas Austin, UT Austin Locations: Texas

☆ Here are Tuesday's biggest analyst calls: Nvidia, Disney, Walmart, Apple, Arista, Ford, Rivian, Block & more
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-13 | by ( Michael Bloom | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

Morgan Stanley initiates Ford as a top pick Morgan Stanley said it's standing by its top pick status on Ford. Morgan Stanley initiates Dynatrace as equal weight Morgan Stanley initiated the software stock with an equal weight and said patience is needed. Morgan Stanley reiterates Disney as overweight Morgan Stanley said Disney's participation in a sports streaming bundle is 'low-risk." Morgan Stanley adds Huntington Bancshares to the financials finest list Morgan Stanley added the regional bank to its financials finest list. Morgan Stanley reiterates Rivian as overweight Morgan Stanley said it's standing by its overweight rating on the stock, but that the company will need "substantial funding" to complete its Georgia plant.

Persons: Goldman Sachs, Goldman, ANET, hyperscaler, Morgan Stanley, Ford, it's, Dynatrace, Redburn, Evercore, Susquehanna, Piper Sandler, Trimble, Piper, Riley, Bernstein, Disney, Huntington Bancshares, Huntington, Banks, Stephens, Cantor Fitzgerald, Stratasys, Cantor, Rivian Organizations: Arista Networks, Ford, downgrades, Airlines, UBS, Nvidia, NextEra Energy Partners, Taiwan Semiconductor, Apple, Apple Services, DIS, FOX, Deutsche Bank, Walmart, Citi, GSK, " Bank of America, of America Locations: NVDA's, North America, NAPA, Georgia

☆ Biden Has a Week He Would Like to Forget - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-12 | by ( Gail Collins | Bret Stephens | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

It was a no good, very bad week for the “well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory” who happens to be the 46th president. We’re talking, of course, about the report a Justice Department special counsel filed on President Biden’s handling of classified material — the same kind of material Donald Trump left piled around the toilet. Bret: I used to joke that Trump’s behavior gave new meaning to the term “anal retentive.” Maybe we can start describing Biden as mnemonically challenged. Gail: While Trump’s behavior with classified documents was inexcusable, Biden’s was a lot less serious — inadvertently leaving stuff in the garage. But the counsel who cleared Biden of any serious misbehavior — a Republican — did seem to feel compelled to add that Biden’s excuse was “diminished faculties in advancing age.”

Persons: Bret Stephens, Gail, Gail Collins, gosh, Bret, We’re, Biden’s, Donald Trump, Biden, mnemonically, —, Republican —, ” Organizations: Republican

Remington is consolidating its operations in Georgia, a state the company says is friendlier to the firearms industry. Mayor John Stephens meets with village board members under a seal portraying Eliphalet Remington holding a long gun. The four-story, brick plant by Armory Street and Remington Avenue looms over the community about 55 miles (90 kilometers) east of Syracuse. The Ilion plant went to a group of investors called the Roundhill Group as part of a $13 million bid. After months of union negotiations, the firearms plant reopened in the spring of 2021.

Persons: — Remington, Eliphalet Remington, Sandy, Remington, it’s, ”, Jim Conover, Mayor John Stephens, Conover’s, Frank “ Rusty ” Brown, “, Brown, RemArms, Ken D’Arcy, “ They've, Daniel Mendez, Stephens, Michael Disotelle, Sandy Hook, we’re, ” Stephens Organizations: Remington, Mayor, Street, United Mine Workers of America, Remington Firearms, Republican, New, Smith & Wesson, Cerberus Capital Management, Remington Arms, Bushmaster Firearms, Co, Vista Locations: Mohawk, Georgia, Sandy Hook, Detroit, Syracuse, New York, New York City, Tennessee, Springfield , Massachusetts, LaGrange , Georgia, Erie, Ilion

☆ Chipotle shares pop on Q4 beat
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-06 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

In this videoShare Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailChipotle shares pop on Q4 beatJoshua Long, Stephens restaurant and food distribution analyst, joins 'Closing Bell Overtime' to talk Chipotle earnings after the company beat on the top and bottom line.

Persons: Joshua Long, Stephens

Gail Collins: So, Bret — more than 350,000 new jobs in January without an inflation surge! I guess that means the Biden plan is really working out, hehehehe. First, prices for groceries are still too damn high — up 25 percent in the last four years, according to The Washington Post. That practically amounts to a campaign ad for Donald Trump every time people are at checkout. Gail: Well, it’s a pretty good sign for Biden that an economic conservative like you so desperately wants him to win.

Persons: Gail Collins, Bret —, Biden, Bret Stephens, Donald Trump, Peter Coy, Joe, Gail Organizations: The Washington

☆ Earnings playbook: Your guide to another big week of reports, including Disney and Ford
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-04 | by ( Fred Imbert | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

This quarter: The fast food giant is expected to report earnings and revenue growth in the high-single digits, per LSEG. What history shows: McDonald's beats earnings expectations 57% of the time, according to Bespoke Investment Group. What history shows: Ford earnings exceed expectations 69% of the time, Bespoke data shows. Disney is set to report earnings after the bell. What history shows: Disney shares have risen in each of the last two earnings days, and the company beats earnings expectations 78% of the time, Bespoke data shows.

Persons: McDonald's, Dennis Geiger, Stephens, Joshua Long, Ford, Morgan Stanley, Adam Jonas, Jonas, Ronald Josey, Kannan Venkateshwar Organizations: Technologies, CNBC, UBS, Investment, Tuesday, Management, Wall, Ford, UAW, U.S, automakers, Citi, Disney, Barclays Locations: U.S

☆ 'Size and scale' will help Starbucks prevail in China, says analyst
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-31 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

In this videoShare Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via Email'Size and scale' will help Starbucks prevail in China, says analystJoshua Long from Stephens says China remains a long-term opportunity for Starbucks despite increasing competition and potential trade tensions between the U.S. and China.

Persons: Joshua Long Organizations: Starbucks, U.S Locations: China, Stephens

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