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Geolocation is still a pending issue regarding consumer and brands relations, to increase sales and implement marketing strategies and loyalty in real time, to be able to make decisions thanks to BigData analysis.
This challenge was one of the main objectives of the StartUp HappyShop, which closed its operations despite having raised several million dollars from angel investors and investment funds, but that did not work because its idea was way ahead of time.
Different was the destination of CornerShop, the StartUp and e-commerce platform that was acquired by Walmart. In this sense, Daniel Undurraga, Juan Pablo Cuevas and Oskar Hjertonsson are recurring serial entrepreneurs who have created other technology companies such as ClanDescuento, which was purchased by Groupon.
In the case of delivery companies such as Uber Eats, Rappi and Glovo, the challenges surrounding an IoT are even more challenging, and thanks to geolocation, companies could know a lot of information about the behaviour of their new and current customers in real time. It’s precisely this challenge that other companies are looking into tackling to be able to sell subscriptions, retail products and more.
To address these opportunities and strengths of technological innovation, the IoT Innovatech Latam 2019 event on May 2nd to 4th, 2019, at CasaPiedra Convention Center, Santiago, Chile, which will bring together the main leaders and international companies of the IoT together with the industries of the different sectors of the region in an occasion that will allow the discussion and demonstration on how the Industrial Internet of Things is revolutionizing the industries and companies; and the impacts of the benefits that these technologies and solutions mean for the different organizations – public and private – and consumers.
In partnership with the Industrial Internet Consortium – a global partnership that leads the IoT industry founded by AT & T, Cisco, General Electric, Intel and IBM – and with the collaboration of Chiletec; ACTI and Meet & Greet will develop IoT Innovatech Latam 2019, a commercial and educational platform thanks to its congress, exhibition and business conference
Some of the big global competitors in the industry that have already confirmed their participation in the event are Claro Empresas as Sponsor of Things; HP and LG in the Diamond Sponsors category; and Entel as Innovalounge Sponsor. Among the Media Partners will include Infoweek, BN Americas and the AgroWine Lab business accelerator.
The StartUp Connection
At the same time being held, will be The Startup Connection; a new instance that aims to become the platform to promote and strengthen the enterprises, thus boosting IoT growth in Latin America. The Startup Connection will bring together the most revolutionary enterprises with the industry and the different verticals that seek to adopt IoT Indiustrial solutions.
The Startup Connection will provide its participants with international networking opportunities so that they can broaden the range of their contacts, a space in the centre of the commercial exhibition to expose their solutions; and access to a series of sessions and workshops led by industry experts, entrepreneurs and investors. In its first version only 12 start-ups will be selected by the committee to participate. The value of the participation is US $ 1300 plus VAT which includes, among other things, stand, passes for the congress and exhibition; and access to the other areas of the event.
Related Industries and Businesses
Agriculture, mining, forestry, viticulture and aquaculture have great challenges around the adoption and implementation of the Internet of Things (IoT), due to the large extensions they must cover, and analyze to obtain the highest produces, in addition to anticipating complex situations of management and availability of water and future climatic conditions.
Through companies related to data transmission, satellite management and SmartAgro, a vast number of exhibitors will be invited to present their innovations.
The strategic business area of IoT Innovatech Latam 2019 will be in run by Maximiliano Morales, Regional Business Developer & Communications Evangelist, who will lead strategic meetings between the different participating organizations and the main actors of the IoT ecosystem, since, the focus is power generate interactions with the areas of agriculture, mining, forestry, viticulture and aquaculture.
Guest Country Buyer
An important and innovative milestone will be the presence of the Republic of Paraguay, the first country invited to IoT Innovatech Latam 2019. This nation hopes to establish investment and business links at government level and to build alliances with exhibitors and attendees at the meeting. The concurrence of important authorities in the areas of technology and economics, represent an important potential to achieve the most diverse agreements.
By Sergio Bustos, Fundraising Director at AgroWinelab


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October 15, 2018. The Cagayan Economic Zone Authority (CEZA) has announced that it has already issued 17 Provisional Principal Offshore Cryptocurrency Exchange Licenses and 2 Provisional Regular Licenses.
FTSOVC Principal License
CEZA issued 17 provisional principal licenses to the following companies, allowing them to conduct offshore financial technology solutions business activities and offshore virtual currency exchange activities:
- Golden Millenial Quickpay Inc. Ltd.
- Ultra Precise Investment Ltd.
- Liannet Technology Ltd.
- Rare Earth Asia Technologies Corp.
- Formosa Financial Holdings Ltd.
- Tanzer Holdings Ltd.
- Asia Premiere International Ltd.
- Orient Express Global Ltd.
- White Ranch Limited Ltd.
- Dragon Empire Developments Ltd.
- Galaxy Plus Developments Ltd.
- Tiger Wheel Ltd.
- IPE Global Pte. Ltd.
- Cr8tiv Solutions Management Ltd.
- Sino-Phil Economic Zone Agency Development and Management Corp.
- Digifin Technologies Pte. Ltd.
- Hong Kong Yuen Shing Hong Ltd.
Read More: Philippines CEZA Clarifies: No License For Ploutos Coin
FTSOVC Regular License
2 provisional licenses given to the following companies allow them to conduct virtual currency exchange activities.
- Cezex Trading Pte. Ltd.
- Unicorn Venture Investment Limited
The entire list can also be found in our article: List of Licensed Offshore Cryptocurrency Exchanges from the Philippines CEZA
CEZA has conducted road shows, including one in Tokyo, Japan to bring fintech companies to the Philippines, particularly to the Cagayan Economic Zone.

domain: news


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Anybody waiting on AMZN to come back may as well be waiting for the tooth fairyNov 03, 2022
The markets are down ahead of the Fed’s next follies. The bet is that Team Powell will raise rates another 75 basis points (0.75%) then pause.
Don’t waste your time or energy.
The only thing that matters is that YOU are prepared for what happens next and that you own the right stocks.
If the markets drop, you can go shopping. If the markets pop, you can take profits.
There’s always a path forward!
Here’s my playbook.
Private payrolls +239k, wages +7.5%
ADP reports that companies added 239,000 positions, 22.6% higher than the 195,000 expected by Dow Jones, up a skitch from last month. Most of the gains came from hospitality and leisure, which added 210,000 positions as wages jumped 11.2%. At the same time trade, transportation, and utilities jumped 84,000. (Read)
Takeaways: 1) Substantially ALL the hiring came from services-related industries. Sectors making stuff lost 20,000 manufacturing jobs. And 2) businesses with between 50 and 250 employees added 241,000 jobs proving, once again, that small businesses are the backbone.
Ergo. The economy isn’t recovering equally but spending continues.
Maersk: “that’s as good as it gets folks”
Global shipping company Maersk controls about 1/6th of all shipping worldwide. And the company just reported numbers. Most investors are focused on the fact that Maersk reported record profits yet confused by the fact that the stock is down in pre-market trading. (Read)
What really matters. CEO Søren Skou said the company believes it has seen “peak earnings” from its shipping business and that things are going to slow down in Q4. Translation, this is as good as it gets, folks.
Ruh-roh. Order your Christmas gifts now or you may not get ‘em and continue to expect higher inflation, especially for goods that arrive via boat. Which at this point is 90% of the world’s stuff according to the OECD. (Read)
Putin does a 180 on grain
Russian leader Vladimir Putin has apparently done a 180 on grain based on reports that Russia will rejoin Ukraine in a grain deal to keep exports flowing after Ukraine reportedly agreed not to attack Russian naval assets in the Black Sea Shipping lanes. Grain prices are down a skosh as you’d expect. (Read)
Putin isn’t stupid. I expect Putin to press the advantage and use the non-aggression corridor to stage, hide and otherwise ship wartime materiel. Or conduct a false flag attack that allows him to renege at a time of his choosing … probably right before he rains a crap-ton of missiles on Ukraine which continues to kick his asteroids.
Defense stocks and missile defense systems builders are the play here. I’ve recommended two of the leading choices in One Bar Ahead® and they’re performing as expected. Well. Upgrade to Paid
Anybody waiting for AMZN to come back may as well be waiting for the tooth fairy
Amazon has suffered its 5th straight losing day and the stock is down 42% YTD. Things are so bad that Amazon’s now dropped outta the trillion-dollar club. (Read)
No surprise. Consumers are spending less on “nice to have” schtuff and concentrating on “must haves” like – oh, I dunno – food, medicine, diapers and more. I told One Bar Ahead® readers to avoid Amazon last January, BTW.
Amazon may not be dead money, but my sense is that it’s close. The days where you can add a digital overlay to an otherwise linear business model are over.
Keith’s Corner: Anybody who’s relying on Amazon to come back may as well be waiting for the tooth fairy. The biggest profits will come from companies that are helping the world move forward like, not coincidentally, the one I’ll be recommending Friday. Upgrade to Paid
What Yum’s earnings really point out
Yum Brands just reported sales increased 5% crushing analyst estimates of 3.2%. (Read)
Why this matters. There comes a time in everyone’s lives when you hit a limit as to what you can afford. That’s why fast food stocks can make sense at moments like the present. They’re convenient, quick, and seemingly provide a lot of “value” for the money. Actual nutrition is debatable, but I’ll be the first to admit I’m always down for a Big Mac.
I think Uncle Ronald makes more sense.
It never feels like a great time to invest but history shows that it is almost always a great time to invest.
Let that sink in.
Then get out there and, as always, MAKE it a great day.
You got this – I promise!


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Figures showing that 80% of restaurant orders do not include a dessert underline a massive missed opportunity for the trade, said the Canary Wharf-based chef. He urged his fellow chefs to get behind the MÁ¶venpick competition to help inject more creativity and imagination into dessert menus.
"Having competed in a number of industry competitions myself, I think they offer an excellent opportunity for chefs to raise their bar and use their skills to create something truly original," said Pickett.
"The competition is also a reminder to restaurants, pubs and hotels, of the importance of a creative and interesting dessert selection, which can add a significant amount to their bottom line."
The competition, launched in partnership with the [Craft Guild of Chefs](http://www.craftguildofchefs.org/index.php), challenges chefs to come up with unique new desserts using MÁ¶venpick's gourmet ice-cream flavours. Recipes will be judged by Pickett and fellow judges chefs Matt Owens and, Christopher Basten, Stockpot editor Sheila Egglestone and Julia Jones, head of customer marketing at MÁ¶venpick.
There is still time to upload your recipe ideas before the 1 May deadline on the dedicated microsite [www.moevenpick-icecreamcompetition.co.uk](http://www.moevenpick-icecreamcompetition.co.uk)
The winner of the live cook-off by the finalists will enjoy a luxury weekend for two in Switzerland (MÁ¶venpick's homeland) while two runners-up will join a Patisserie & Deserts day course at Le Manoir Aux Quat'Saisons.
By Angela Frewin
E-mail your comments to Caterer Products here.
If you have something to say on this story or anything else join the debate at Table Talk - Caterer's new networking forum. Go to www.catererandhotelkeeper.com/tabletalk
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After a long day of classes, the quest to find food on campus can seem unbearable to some students. Now, the process to select your course of cuisine is simple. There’s an app for that.
CampusDish is a free app that offers up-to-date food services and menus to Emerson students through their iPhone, iPad, and Android.
According to an email from Christina Leal, director of food services at Emerson, the mobile app was recently made available to all campuses that partner with Aramark, Emerson’s food provider.
CampusDish, according to the App Store description, allows students to view daily menus, search for specific dishes, and find nutritional information. The app is derived from the CampusDish website that offers complete menus online.
The mobile version supplies daily menus for the 150 Café and the dining hall, which are updated monthly, according to Leal. The website, in contrast, has weekly menus for those locations and the Emerson Café and the Paramount Café.
Freshman Zoe Weston, a communication sciences and disorders major, said she has an autoimmune disease that significantly impacts her diet. She explained that she uses both versions of the program for different reasons.
“I think both the app and the website can be helpful in different ways,” said Weston. “I would look at the [weekly menu] on the website but use the app when I’m on the go and just want to quickly glance at [the menu] that day.”
The menus on both versions also offer nutritional facts such as calories, protein, and sodium content. Weston said this app is ideal for monitoring their food intake, have dietary restrictions, or are simply curious about health content.
“I think the app helps a lot because, with my food allergies, I can plan ahead and see what part of the meal I can have,” said Weston. “Once students see how helpful the app is, they will likely use it. Especially [students] with food restrictions like me.”
According to Leal, the app also includes a “search” function, allowing students to find a favorite meal without having to comb through each menu. It also allows users to search by ingredient or heath content, said Leal.
“[Students] can input the information through the app and quickly view which menu items are being served and where they are available,” said Leal.
With these features, Leal says the ultimate goal of the app is to help people on Emerson’s campus make healthy choices.
Leal also said the app offers a feedback button that allows users to communicate with CampusDish representatives. Weston said she will be using the feedback to confer with Aramark about whether or not certain foods are within her dietary restrictions.
Currently, Emerson promotes the app through ads on napkin holders in the dining hall.
“It doesn’t seem very heavily advertised,” said Weston. “I think it would be more useful if people knew about it,”


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On May 17-20, the 14th China International Foundry Expo (Metal China 2016) was held in Beijing. 2016 is the first year of the 13th five-year plan, an important year for the transformation and upgrading of China’s foundry industry. A lot of new technology, new products and orders from the world infused new vitality to this year’s session.
The total exhibition space reached 108,000m2 with 1,288 exhibitors from 26 countries and regions, as well as 83,013 visitors from more than 80 countries and regions in the world.
“Low price” is not synonymous with Chinese castings anymore. Now, more and more high-end castings have taken the large share of the market, which could be directly seen at Metal China 2016.
Among the exhibitors, KOCEL Group displayed 10 products including the new machine tool bed that produces sand molds and cores with 3D printing technology for mass production. Liaoning Fu-An Heavy Industry Co., Ltd. brought the bogies for passenger and freight dual-use locomotive to the show. FAW Jiangsu Foundry Company’s 6-cylinder head cast in vermicular graphite cast iron had controlled its vermicular graphite rate at above 90%, and the casting wall thickness is 3±0.5mm. The foundry experts were excited to see so many excellent castings on the show, such as the turbine castings from Impro Aerospace Components (Wuxi) Co., Ltd., the housing of 800KV disconnector by Fuxin Wanda Foundry Company and the 4HK1 cylinder head of Chongqing Qingling Foundry Company.
A variety of digital and smart equipment at the show attracted a large number of visitors to stop by at these stands. For example, Suzhou Hawk Foundry Equipment Company displayed its sliding-rail casting with robot servo and six axis servo core-transfer and core-remover system, WM Industry Technologies (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. presented an industrial robot automatic polishing equipment, and Zhejiang Wanfeng Technology Development Co., Ltd. showed its gravity casting unmanned production line.
With a 5,000-year history, foundry industry is keeping pace with the times. Remote design, remote control, virtual production, 3D printing and all kinds of robots have extensive application now, and even a digital foundry plant has become a reality.
Foundry E-Commerce (a B2B e-commerce platform) has created an online and offline development mode integrated with “internet+foundry”. With this internet platform and multi-media technologies, the equipment suppliers will be able to improve efficiency and receive orders worldwide. It’s a useful method to implement innovation on the supply side. Foundry E-Commerce attracted wide attention during the show, which will bring profound changes to the foundry industry.
Almost 100 concurrent activities were held during the show, such as technical seminars and a sourcing fair. A robot demonstration area and 3D printing operating and experience area were two additions, with 425m2 and 210m2 respectively. These activities integrated demonstration, teaching and entertainment. In addition, the special exhibition for the 30th Anniversary of China Foundry Association, “Belt and Road” Foundry Industry Alliance Signing ceremony also was held.
The next Metal China will be held in Shanghai together with Die Casting Exhibition in 2017.


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Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) calls the prospect of new privacy laws "a solution in search of a problem." He asserts that market pressures will spur online businesses to develop good privacy practices. "It would be my assumption that the businesses represented at the table have a lot of incentives to compete for best privacy policies," said DeMint, a former marketing executive, during a Wednesday hearing on Capitol Hill.
But Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-N.D.), who presided over the hearing, questions DeMint's logic. He says that if market forces alone were sufficient to protect consumers, there would be no need for the Food and Drug Administration to conduct inspections, because companies that sold spoiled products would simply go out of business.
Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) also expressed concern. "We don't want the government to go and examine what books we're reading at the local libraries," he said. "Right here, we have the question of whether or not we're going to let other private people within the private sector examine the same thing and then use it for a commercial advantage."
The hearing addressed concerns about behavioral targeting, or serving ads to Web users based on their online activity. Many behavioral targeting companies say they don't collect people's names, addresses or phone numbers and contend they allow people to opt out of receiving targeted ads.
Privacy advocates nevertheless are wary of online behavioral targeting, arguing that many consumers don't know or understand what ad companies do with data behind the scenes. Some find the newest variation of behavioral targeting, which involves drawing on data collected from Internet service providers, especially troublesome. Digital rights advocates fear that the vast amount of clickstream data available could compromise privacy even without people's names.
"While each piece of consumer information in a profile may not in itself be personally identifiable, the aggregation of this information in rich profiles means it may more readily be tied into a person's identity," according to Leslie Harris, president and CEO of the Center for Democracy & Technology, who testified Wednesday. Her group and others have called for companies to seek users' express consent before conducting ISP-based targeting.
Several states, including New York and Connecticut, have recently considered whether to regulate online behavioral targeting. But the federal government isn't currently mulling any privacy legislation designed to regulate online behavioral targeting.
Still, the activity at the state level has roiled some online ad industry representatives, who argue in favor of self-regulation. They maintain that any attempt to impose laws on the Web would hurt publishers' ability to offer free content and would impede the effectiveness of online advertising. Industry groups also argue that behavioral targeting doesn't harm consumers but in fact benefits them by providing more relevant ads.
Randy Rothenberg, president of the Interactive Advertising Bureau, espoused this view in New York Wednesday morning. Speaking at an industry conference, Rothenberg said the Senate Commerce Committee hearing was triggered by "spurious claims by anti-commerce, anti-advertising groups."
The Federal Trade Commission has so far come down on the side of self-regulation. Late last year, the agency proposed voluntary principles for behavioral advertising, its term for serving ads to Web users based on sites visited.
But Dorgan indicated that Congress might now get involved. "There's been some discussion about self-regulation and the principles proposed by the Federal Trade Commission. Some would suggest they are a good start, some would suggest they are short of what is necessary."
Meanwhile, two Web companies -- Microsoft and Google -- argued Wednesday at the meeting in New York in favor of a federal law to establish a privacy "baseline."
"Google supports the passage of a comprehensive federal privacy law that would accomplish several goals such as building consumer trust and protections; establishing a uniform framework for privacy, which would create consistent levels of privacy from one jurisdiction to another; and putting penalties in place to punish and dissuade bad actors," according to Jane Horvath, senior privacy counsel at Google.
The Center for Democracy & Technology's Harris said that group also supports legislation that would establish "fair information practices." Harris said such practices would support the principles that people have both the right to know what information is being stored about them and the right to opt out of having information collected and retained.
Dorgan's sharpest questions of the day were for Bob Dykes, CEO of NebuAd, a start-up that uses data from ISPs for targeting. "Isn't that just wiretapping?" Dorgan asked.
Dykes said it was not. "The information that we're looking at as people surf the Web doesn't involve any personally identifiable information," he said, adding that NebuAd doesn't store IP addresses. "We're not keeping the raw data, just qualification for market segments."
Dorgan also questioned NebuAd's decision to let users opt out of the service, as opposed to asking them to affirmatively consent to it. Dorgan said if his ISP approached him to ask if he would allow another company to view every site he visited, his answer would be an unequivocal no. "Of course it's not okay. Are you kidding me?"
Dorgan said he intends to hold a future hearing with Internet service providers. Mark Walsh in New York contributed to this report.


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While America Slept. Thursday, March 5th, 2009
We are the German government, and we are here to help you, Opel: The German government is still waiting for Opel to hand in a solid business plan that could be the basis of financial assistance. What Opel has submitted so far has been found inadequate. Finance Minister Steinbrueck today put Opel on notice that without solid information there will be no money decision. Volker Kauder, head of the CDU faction said: “It looks like they need help to come up with a concept. We’ll help ’em.”
Saab? Volvo? Bu yao! Chinese automakers Dongfeng and Geely said that they have not held any talks over a possible bid for General Motors’ Saab brand, Gasgoo says. A Dongfeng spokesman as unaware of any interest by his company in bidding for the Saab brand. A senior Geely executive, when asked about his company’s possible acquisition of Saab or other brands, told reporters: “No, we did not. We’re not interested in Saab or the other brands out there.” Media reports have also said Geely was in preliminary talks with Ford Motor about the sale of the US automaker’s Volvo car unit. This was likewise denied by Geely. This comes on the heels of the Chinese government warning their automakers to buy overseas assets.
Chery coming to Europe: DR Motor, the European importer of China’s Chery vehicles showcased 18 re-badged Chery cars at the Geneva Motor Show, Gasgoo writes. DR Motor is a subsidiary of DR Automobiles Groupe, which sells about 8,000 vehicles a year in Italy and has annual revenues of about €250 million. Since November 2007, DR Motor has been producing a version of the Chery Tiggo medium SUV from kits shipped from China. The cars are assembled at a factory in Macchia d’Isernia, Italy. The plant has capacity to produce 12,000 units a year. DR Motor sells the SUV as the DR5 in Italy. DR Motor said it would uprate the models for local requirements. The company plans to begin selling DR1 in Europe by mid-2009 and expects to sell 10,000 units of the model a year by 2010. The is a re-badged Chery Faira NN powered by Chery’s self-developed 1.3-liter ACTECO engine, which can run on petrol (83 hp) or LPG (78 hp). Max speed is 156 kmh.
Not Seat for China—yet: Volkswagen AG will postpone its introduction of Seat brand vehicles to China, Winfried Vahland, president and CEO of Volkswagen Group China said to Beijing Times (via Gasgoo.) “Seat is a popular brand with Chinese young people according to our market survey conducted in China; however, under the influence of the financial crisis, VW will postpone the Seat introduction,” Winfried Vahland said. That doesn’t mean VW will give up Seat introduction, but actually the company has put it in the long-term program, he explained.
Parts bailout may benefit Japanese makers: Japanese autoparts makers will likely be among the beneficiaries if the US government decides to offer financial support for the U.S. autoparts industry, a high-ranking industry association official has told the Nikkei [sub]. If the US government comes through with an aid package, much of it will be shared with Japanese companies, said Dave Andrea, Vice President in charge of Industry Analysis and Economics at the Original Equipment Suppliers Association. The OESA and others asked the US government last month for up to 25.5 billion dollars in financial assistance, including 10.5 billion dollars in government guarantees for the money owed to them by the nation’s Big Three automakers.
Small is big: Minivehicles continued to be the most popular cars in Japan in February, with Suzuki’s Wagon R remaining the top seller for the third straight month, according to trade figures released to the Nikkei [sub]. The top three slots of Japanese domestic sales were dominated by mini-vehicles, underscoring consumer preference for fuel economy and environmental friendliness.
Honda warns of challenging 2009: Honda forecasts a 140 billion yen group operating profit for fiscal 2008, while domestic rivals Toyota and Nissan are bracing for losses of more than 100 billion yen each. Honda Executive Vice President Koichi Kondo, who oversees the carmaker’s financial affairs, said that the firm will not earn an operating profit next fiscal year from April 1 if global auto demand remains weak and the dollar continues trading around 90 yen, the Nikkei [sub] says.
Geely goes to Mexico: Geely, China’s largest private automaker, is pushing ahead with plans to build a factory in Mexico, Gasgoo says. The company intends to sell vehicles made at the plant in Central and South America. Founder Li Shufu said last year the plant would build cars for the US-Chinese automakers who have begun to target global markets as tumbling domestic demand and rising competition crimps margins. China FAW Group Corp., the nation’s second-largest automaker, has also announced plans for a Mexican plant.
Bertel Schmitt comes back to journalism after taking a 35 year break in advertising and marketing. He ran and owned advertising agencies in Duesseldorf, Germany, and New York City. Volkswagen A.G. was Bertel's most important corporate account. Schmitt's advertising and marketing career touched many corners of the industry with a special focus on automotive products and services. Since 2004, he lives in Japan and China with his wife  Tomoko . Bertel Schmitt is a founding board member of the  Offshore Super Series , an American offshore powerboat racing organization. He is co-owner of the racing team Typhoon.
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NEW YORK—A new device that projects the position of veins directly onto a patient's skin is helping take the guesswork out of medical pricks and injections.
VeinViewer shines harmless near-infrared light onto a patient's skin. The light photons are absorbed by red blood cells inside vessels but bounced back by surrounding tissue.
The reflected photons are captured by a digital video camera and a computer creates a digital image of the vasculature, which is then projected back onto the patient's skin. The hidden veins appear on the skin as colorless lines that crisscross a rectangular patch of neon green [photo].
The technology works regardless of a patient's age, body type or skin color, VeinViewer's creators say, and it is accurate to about a quarter of an inch.
Made by Luminetx Corporation, VeinViewer is being tested in hospitals across the country and was demonstrated here last week at Wired Magazine's NextFest new-technology forum.
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Pickup trucks sold by General Motors are among the most likely of any models to be stolen, according to the Highway Loss Data Institute, an insurance industry trade group.
The institute compiled a list of the 20 models with the highest theft rates. GM trucks accounted for a quarter of the list.
“Theft risk is a problem with all pickup trucks,” said Matt Moore, the institute’s senior vice president. “They are much more likely to be stolen than other types of vehicles.”
All the vehicles on the insurance group’s most-stolen list are pricy. That’s most likely why so many trucks are high in the rankings, Moore said.
“The full-size pickup trucks have become very expensive and have become valuable for thieves. Some are being taken for parts, and some are being stolen for resale,” Moore told Trucks.com.
The institute doesn’t know why GM models are the most-stolen trucks. Moore said it’s in contrast with other GM vehicles, which are among the least likely to attract a thief.
“Whether there is a vulnerability in GM’s anti-theft technology or they are in most demand by thieves, we can’t say,” he said.
GMC SIERRA THEFT RATE
The automaker’s GMC Sierra 1500 crew cab ranked fifth among all vehicles with a relative theft claim frequency of 393. The average for all vehicles was 100. That means the Sierra gets stolen at about four times the rate of the typical auto.
The highest was the Dodge Charger Hemi sedan at 544. That’s almost 5.5 times the theft rate of other cars. The Dodge Challenger SRT followed at 529, the Infiniti Q50 SUV was next at 525, and the Infiniti QX80 SUV was at 422.
The data looked at thefts of 2016 through 2018 model-year vehicles.
Other GM-built pickup trucks making the most-stolen list include the Chevrolet Silverado 1500 crew cab, ranked eighth; the Chevrolet Silverado 1500 crew cab 4WD, ranked 14th; the Chevrolet Silverado 1500, ranked 17th; and the GMC Sierra 1500 crew cab 4WD, ranked 18th.
Pickup trucks made up 30 percent of the institute’s most-stolen vehicle list. Nissan’s Titan crew cab short bed truck was 16th.
ESCALADE THEFT REDUCTION
GM has had trouble with vehicles making previous top theft lists.
Its Cadillac Escalade previously dominated the institute’s rankings of vehicles popular with thieves. But it didn’t make this year’s list.
Cadillac added more anti-theft features beginning with the 2015 model year. They include glass-breakage sensors and motion detectors. GM also added an inclination sensor that triggers an alarm if someone tries to take the wheels off, tow the vehicle or lift it onto a flatbed truck, according to the institute.
COMPARING THEFT RATES
The insurance group publishes the report so that consumers can compare the relative theft risks among vehicles. It only looks at the theft of insured vehicles, rather than all thefts. The institute said that it provides more useful data than other most-stolen vehicle lists that report raw numbers. The most common vehicles on the road dominate those lists.
“If you live in a place where vehicle theft is a problem, you should be aware of the vehicles that are of most interest to thieves,” Moore said. “You should take that into consideration when considering what vehicle to buy.”
One trend discovered by the institute is that thieves don’t target electric vehicles. Even expensive models such as Tesla’s Model S and Model X are among the least stolen vehicles.
People typically park electric vehicles in garages for charging, and that may reduce theft rates, the group said.
Just a handful of automakers had vehicles on the 20 most-stolen cars list. Fiat Chrysler Automobiles had the most: six Dodge models and one Chrysler model. GM and Nissan – including three Infiniti vehicles – tied for second with five each. Mercedes-Benz, Jaguar Land Rover and Audi each had one vehicle.


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The Ministry of Finance of Germany signed a decree recognizing bitcoin as legal tender. The document specifies that purchases made for cryptocurrency are not taxed, Cointelegraph writes.
The decision was signed on Tuesday, February 27, and it cites the decision of the European court of 2015, which determined bitcoin currency in terms of taxation and abolished value-added tax when buying goods and services using cryptocurrency.
It should be noted that the European Court’s decision allows for a divergence of views of the EU states on the essence and regulation of the cryptocurrency. Each country can have its own opinion as to what bitcoin is: currency or commodity.
Germany now officially determines bitcoin currency – as noted in the Finance Ministry’s decree, cryptocurrencies become the equivalent of legal means of payment, as they are used by transaction participants as an alternative contractual and immediate way of payment.
It is noteworthy that earlier this year the head of the Bundesbank Joachim Wurmeling stated that digital currencies like bitcoin should be regulated by a set of international rules, and not at the level of individual nations.


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Ahead of the Tesla semi-truck premiering on November 16, Elon Musk has taken to Twitter to talk up his latest creation.
Discussing the truck, Musk said “This will blow your mind clear out of your skull and into an alternate dimension.” Fortunately, we’ve already seen the Tesla semi in full and can confidently say that our minds weren’t blown in any significant way.
The debut of the Tesla semi will come at a difficult time for the electric carmaker, currently in “production hell” trying to fulfil its promises about the entry-level Model 3.
Our intel suggests that the semi will have an all-electric range of between 200 and 300 miles, roughly the same as Daimler’s E-Fuso Vision One, ironically unveiled on October 25, the day before the Tesla semi was originally going to be introduced to the world.
Tesla Semi Truck unveil to be webcast live on Thursday at 8pm! This will blow your mind clear out of your skull and into an alternate dimension. Just need to find my portal gun …— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 12, 2017


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New-business formation exploded during the first year of the pandemic. But a paper from the National Bureau of Economic Research finds that those new businesses were concentrated in Black neighborhoods and that Black Americans were more likely than white Americans to take steps toward entrepreneurship during lockdown. Also on the show today: overcoming fear as a first-time homebuyer, how the pandemic changed city streets and a new company is enabling anyone to buy and lock up pollution permits.
Cheers to making it through this year! Donate today and celebrate the Marketplace way, with our stock market-inspired drink recipes: marketplace.org/donate


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Publisher's Note: Hold on there
By Jody Reese
While it’s laudable that the New Hampshire legislature wants to help folks out in this bad economy, it needs to be careful not to overreact and create more problems than it solves. Case in point is the effort to extend unemployment benefits.
What possibly could be wrong with helping out those who need it most in our economy?
Sadly, a lot.
Extending unemployment benefits could actually cause unemployment to stay artificially high. It incentivizes the unemployed to stay on the employment sidelines, waiting for a better job to come along. This could extend the recession and blunt new business growth.
Recessions are great incubators for small business. Many new businesses need employees but can’t pay top dollar, so they rely on the lower wages of a recession to get going (wages are lower in a recession because there are more people wanting to work than available work). Extending benefits keeps some people from looking at these lower-wage jobs, so the new small businesses struggle to find workers they can afford and unemployment stays high.
On top of that, the state would have to raise taxes on those new businesses to pay for the added unemployment benefits. It would hurt just the businesses that need the most help at this time.
It’s not the right solution. A tax credit for small businesses would be a much better solution and get people back to work and stimulate the economy.


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BlackBerry users have been predicting the death of BlackBerry 10 for quite some time, and Chen has now confirmed that there will be no further BB10 devices in the future. The company will continue to support the software and release updates for the next two years.
Speaking to the media – BlackBerry CEO and Chairman John Chen said that the company will now be focusing solely on its Android phones with the goal of producing “most secure Android smartphone for the enterprise.”
The company has stopped the production of BlackBerry 10 smartphones.
In his latest interview with Gulf News, Chen clearly stated: “We will support BB10 for minimum two more years as a lot of governments are using it, such as Canada, the U.S., Germany, and UK.”
He said that two more software updates for BB10 devices are due; this year and next year. He said BlackBerry will reassess the situation then, based on the level of security of its Android software.
“If we can make Android phone as secure as Blackberry 10, which will be difficult, but if we can make it then the two lines will merge,” Chen said. “If it doesn’t, then I have to look for an answer to the customer.”
Based on such statements, we can’t help wondering if there is a possibility that BlackBerry 10 phones will make a comeback in the future.
This may just be wishful thinking as the use of BlackBerry 10 devices outside of ultra-niche businesses has stopped years ago.
The recent withdrawal of major app support, including Facebook and WhatsApp, was also a major blow to BlackBerry.
While there is bound to be a sense of loss among the numerous BlackBerry fans who have owned BlackBerry devices for years; this is something they have been expecting for a while now.
Chen himself was open about it and mentioned on several occasions that he may be forced to exit the handset business if it doesn’t make the company any money.
BlackBerry CEO repeated the same in his latest interview, saying that while he loves the business, BlackBerry has to make handsets that justify the company’s hardware operations by bringing in profits.
With BlackBerry 10 devices on their way out; all eyes are now focused on BlackBerry’s two brand new mid-range Android smartphones. Interestingly nicknamed Rome and Hamburg; one of them will come with be a full touchscreen and the other will have a physical keyboard.


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Bandung 5/10 – The WJIS “ West Java Investment Summit 2022 ” event organized by Bank Indonesia provides a means for investors to promote investment opportunities and potential in the energy and food sectors of West Java, both domestically and internationally. The event connects national and international stakeholders according to the needs of business schemes that can be utilized specifically by each investor. The purpose of these activities is to form investments based on a green economy, with a national and West Java scale.
This opportunity is used for PT Pos Logistik Indonesia to collaborate with APINDO in utilizing logistics services, improving company services and helping each other’s business development. Currently APINDO has a focus on further developing NRE, namely energy sourced from sustainable natural processes. This is because some foreign consumers have asked for the production of products using environmentally friendly technology, namely New and Renewable Energy (EBT).
PT Pos Logistik Indonesia is in the process of transforming into Energy Logistics by replacing some of its operational vehicles with environmentally friendly electric vehicles. PT Pos Logistik Indonesia uses the latest technology in the delivery or fulfillment process by always being ready to serve 24/7. Providing domestic goods delivery services and Export/Import Clearance , which deliver to their destination and are used by thousands of APINDO members.
The MoU Ceremony was attended by the Governor of West Java, Mr. Ridwan Kamil, with several companies, including PT Kereta Api Logistik (KALOG), Nusawiru Airport and Wiriadinata Airport, at the WJIS ” West Java Investment Summit 2022 ” at the Trans Convention Center, Bandung. .
In an interview session with the CEO of PT Pos Logistik Indonesia, Mr. Ardian Cholid said, “We are currently collaborating with several companies including associations in order to realize the efficiency of low-cost logistics prices that we have planned, with APINDO later we will collaborate to support domestic and international shipments, especially delivery of NRE products”.


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146.00 +0.80 (0.55%)
After hours: 6:30PM EDT
|Bid||145.50 x 1400|
|Ask||145.20 x 800|
|Day's Range||143.59 - 147.97|
|52 Week Range||103.29 - 198.99|
|Beta (3Y Monthly)||N/A|
|PE Ratio (TTM)||N/A|
|Earnings Date||Jul 31, 2019|
|Forward Dividend & Yield||N/A (N/A)|
|1y Target Est||166.85|
iHeartMedia (IHRT), the 1 audio media company in the US, has emerged from bankruptcy and its ownership is now available to the public on the NASDAQ exchange. The debt owners have taken over the firm in a restructuring plan that wiped more than $10 billion in debt off the books.
Hardware becoming software is one of the key trends of this decade. As Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) prepares to refresh its product line for the fall of 2019, it is selling its software as a lifestyle.Source: Shutterstock The key product launch investors need to consider is the Apple Card, the company's entry into finance.While Facebook (NASDAQ:FB) wants to create its own money and replace the current Visa (NYSE:V)-dominated payment infrastructure with something cheaper, Apple Card is a gloss on MasterCard (NYSE:MA), with personal finance delivered through an app and integration with existing wireless payment technology.InvestorPlace - Stock Market News, Stock Advice & Trading TipsApple is also throwing money at original content, hoping to overwhelm Spotify (NASDAQ:SPOT) in podcasts and Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) in streaming entertainment. * 7 Stocks Top Investors Are Buying Now Apple's strategy is coming into focus. It's a lifestyle and an indenture. It's a walled garden where, in exchange for promises of privacy, Apple controls everything you have, including your cash flow. The Biggest iOS LaunchApple's biggest product launch is now going through its final beta test, iOS 12.4 beta 7. Its successor, iOS 13, was announced at the June Worldwide Developer's Conference.The key new feature supported by 12.4 is the Apple Card, on which Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) estimates it has spent nearly $275 million, transforming itself from an investment bank into a consumer bank. The card itself is designed around the app, with daily cash rewards and full integration with the Apple Wallet to track spending.The card is thus meant to change behavior, which now favors physical debit cards for most transactions. The potential bonanza here is enormous. People who pay off their cards spend an average of $1,154 with them each month, and the average user carries $6,354 of credit card debt. Goldman expects to offer $1,000 in credit to those with credit scores as low as 600, and charge Apple Card customers interest rates of 13%-24% on balances. Apple's Ho-Hum HardwareWith the next iPhone already being called a clunker, Apple has to extract more from software and services to maintain last year's 15% growth rate, with 22% of revenue hitting the net income line.The iPhone 11 design itself looks like a greatest hits album from previous iterations. Its main improvement is a bigger battery. The same is true for the latest MacBook, which only received minor tweaks on existing designs.But the hardware is the center of a software ecosystem that brings Apple profit from every corner of a customer's life. Software and services are more profitable than hardware.This extends to the Apple Watch. Given how many stores had the watch at clearance prices this month, including the Apple Watch 4, an Apple Watch 5 can't be far off. But the hardware isn't likely to change much. It will just be capable of running more software, especially health software. Health will follow cash into the Apple profit column.Critics worry the emphasis on service revenue will compromise the user experience. But people who believe in Apple tend to go all-in. The most important point about the iPhone's market share is its stability. They have half of the U.S. market and over one-fifth of the global market. The Bottom LineAn Android is a phone, a utility that offers unlimited choice. An iPhone is a lover, seducing and then demanding increasing loyalty.Once you're in the Apple ecosystem, the company wants to make it a lifestyle, handling your money, your entertainment, even your health.That's CEO Tim Cook's bet, that Apple products can be more than phones or watches or PCs, but a lifestyle for those seduced by its design and brand promise.Dana Blankenhorn is a financial and technology journalist. He is the author of a new environmental story, Bridget O'Flynn and the Bear, available now at the Amazon Kindle store. Write him at email@example.com or follow him on Twitter at @danablankenhorn. As of this writing he owned shares in AAPL. More From InvestorPlace * 2 Toxic Pot Stocks You Should Avoid * 7 Stocks Top Investors Are Buying Now * The 10 Best Cryptocurrencies to Keep on Your Radar * 7 Marijuana Penny Stocks That Could Triple (But You Won't Make Money) The post AAPL Stock: Apple Software Becomes Lifestyle appeared first on InvestorPlace.
One of the most prominent Silicon Valley VC firms, known for being among the backers of Google, Slack and Spotify, is reconfirming its interest in a local early-stage startup by pouring more capital in a newly announced round of funding.
The Disney Hub, as the companies are calling the new feature, places soundtracks from Disney's animated films, Marvel movies, "Star Wars" and other Disney properties in one place. Disney's catalog already has a strong presence on Spotify with fans spending more than 2 billion combined minutes so far in 2019 streaming soundtracks, musicals and more.
It's no secret that more and more of us are in love with our streaming entertainment from Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) and Spotify (NYSE:SPOT). But for today's investors it's time to subscribe to a pairs trade in NFLX stock and SPOT, where emerging trends on the price charts are taking center stage for bears and bulls. Let me explain.Source: Shutterstock Once again, it's that time of year where corporate confessionals are taking the spotlight. Citigroup (NYSE:C), Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) and JPMorgan Chase (NYSE:JPM) are stealing much of the early headlines with a bevy of earnings reports this week out of the financial sector. But banking stocks are far from the only show in town.Streaming video on demand or SVOD giant NFLX reports Wednesday night. And not terribly far behind, Spotify, the world's largest online music platform will release its results later this month.InvestorPlace - Stock Market News, Stock Advice & Trading TipsFor NFLX stock, consensus views compiled from 40 investment firms are forecasting profits of 56 cents compared to year-ago results of 85 cents. Sales are expected to grow to $4.9 billion from 2018's revenues of $3.9 billion. On July 31, when Spotify reports, 27 analysts expect the company to whittle down last year's quarterly loss of $2.57 to 46 cents per share. Meanwhile, sales are estimated to grow from $1.5 billion to $1.8 billion. * 10 Monthly Dividend Stocks to Buy to Pay the Bills Whether results from Netflix or Spotify will stray, good or bad, isn't known of course. Still, price action has been known to lead publicly disseminated information. And with earnings acting as a catalyst for continued momentum, subscribing to a pairs trade in emerging bearish and bullish trends in NFLX stock and SPOT looks like a good tactic today. Short NFLX Stock Click to EnlargeThere are potential reasons to be bearish on Netflix beyond headlines of password sharing problems or competition from Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL), Disney (NYSE:DIS) and others spending billions on original content to uproot Netflix's dominant SVOD position. The concern is the NFLX price chart.Five months of lagging, high-level lateral work and two failed attempts at breaking out of the base locked in-between key Fibonacci levels doesn't look good for Netflix bulls. Backing that worry, NFLX stock's stochastics has been bearishly diverging during the pattern's construction and is currently setting up for lower prices in shares.NFLX Stock Strategy: With NFLX stock confirming a lower pivot high within the base, shorting NFLX stock today looks compelling. But given the close proximity of earnings, I'd go to the Netflix options market and use a below market bear put spread to minimize and limit risk while allowing for out-sized profits from an emerging and much larger corrective move. Long SPOT Stock Click to EnlargeShares of SPOT stock have been anything but music to the ears of most investors relying on a buy-and-hold strategy. One of last year's hot IPO's, SPOT came under pressure a couple months into its life as a publicly traded company and continued to make new lows and lead the market lower during 2018's broad-based correction.But 2019 has been a solid one for Spotify with shares up about 30%. What's more, Spotify's technical fortunes just turned for the better. This week, shares of SPOT have narrowly broken out to new relative highs above resistance. The price action on the weekly chart points to an emerging uptrend in a down, but far from out leader in today's world of music. * 7 Best Stocks to Buy That Make a Student's Life Easier SPOT Stock Strategy: Ideally, I'd like to see stochastics not positioned in overbought territory. But as a stock well-suited for momentum, overbought conditions can easily beget more of the same. And with earnings still a couple weeks out, buying SPOT stock today and legging into a bullish protective strategy like a married put in front of the report is how I'd look to play Spotify.Disclosure: Investment accounts under Christopher Tyler's management do not own positions in any securities mentioned in this article. The information offered is based upon Christopher Tyler's observations and strictly intended for educational purposes only; the use of which is the responsibility of the individual. For additional options-based strategies, related musings or to ask a question, you can find and follow Chris on Twitter @Options_CAT and StockTwits. More From InvestorPlace * 2 Toxic Pot Stocks You Should Avoid * 9 Retail Stocks Goldman Sachs Says Are Ready to Rip * 7 Services Stocks to Buy for the Rest of 2019 * 6 Stocks to Buy and 1 to Sell Based on Insider Trading The post The Best Way to Play Spotify and Netflix Stock Today appeared first on InvestorPlace.
(Bloomberg) -- Apple Inc. plans to fund original podcasts that would be exclusive to its audio service, according to people familiar with the matter, increasing its investment in the industry to keep competitors Spotify and Stitcher at bay.Executives at the company have reached out to media companies and their representatives to discuss buying exclusive rights to podcasts, according to the people, who asked not to be identified because the conversations are preliminary. Apple has yet to outline a clear strategy, but has said it plans to pursue the kind of deals it didn’t make before.Apple all but invented the podcasting business with the creation of a network that collects thousands of podcasts from across the internet in a feed on people’s phones, smartwatches and computers. The Apple Podcast app still accounts for anywhere from 50% to 70% of listening for most podcasts, according to industry executives.The news sent shares of Spotify down as much as 2.7% to $150.09 in New York on Tuesday, marking the biggest intraday decline in three weeks. The stock had been up 36% this year through Monday’s close.After years without making substantial changes to its podcasting business, which first launched in 2005, Apple has recently focused on upgrading its app and has added new tools for podcast makers. Still, new entrants have encroached on Apple’s once-indomitable position, attracting new users by offering exclusive access to original podcasts.A representative for Cupertino, California-based Apple declined to comment.Podcasts AppApple launched Podcast Analytics last year, rolling out a service that gives podcast makers more insight into their listeners and performance. This year, Apple announced a dedicated Podcasts app for Mac computers and launched a web interface to expand the amount of people who can listen to podcasts through its service.Apple placed executive Oliver Schusser in charge of podcasts and music, with Ben Cave helping oversee the podcasting strategy.“You are nowhere in podcasting if you don’t have shows listed in Apple podcasts,” said Lex Friedman, the chief revenue officer of Art19, which provides services to podcast producers such as Wondery Media and Tribune. But given all of the recent activity by its competition, “it would surprise me if Apple didn’t do anything with exclusives.”Video ServiceApple has refrained from funding podcasts thus far to avoid the perception of playing favorites. But the tech giant has evinced an interest in funding some of the programming it distributes. The company is producing dozens of original TV shows and movies for a new video service called Apple TV+. The first of those series will debut later this year.Spotify Technology SA, already Apple’s largest rival in paid music streaming, has spent about $400 million acquiring podcast companies. It’s also funded original shows from comedian Amy Schumer, journalist Jemele Hill and hip-hop artist Joe Budden. Earlier this year, it announced a deal to host podcasts from a company founded by former President Barack Obama and his wife Michelle.These moves have established Spotify as the clear No. 2 player in podcasting, according to industry executives. The company has seized between 10% and 20% of listeners, and accounts for half of the audience on some shows. Other companies, including IHeartMedia, Stitcher, Pandora and Luminary, have also devoted more resources to the medium.Apple is in the midst of building a suite of media services across audio and video that tether people to its phones and other devices. Podcasting is still a small business compared with music or TV. Podcasting companies generated $479 million in advertising sales in the U.S. last year, according to the Interactive Advertising Bureau.Growing FastBut the industry has been growing. Sales have grown 65% a year for the past three years, according to the IAB, while the number of monthly listeners to podcasts has doubled over the past five years.Still, Apple doesn’t make its own money off of the Podcasts app. It doesn’t charge for the software or run its own advertising.However, growing the Podcasts app and adding exclusives could give some consumers another reason to stick to their iPhone or subscribe to complementary paid services like Apple Music. Apple also has an advertising division focused on ads in the App Store, which theoretically could eventually be applied to Podcasts if it continues to increase its user base.(Updates with Spotify shares in fourth paragraph.)To contact the reporters on this story: Lucas Shaw in Los Angeles at firstname.lastname@example.org;Mark Gurman in San Francisco at email@example.comTo contact the editor responsible for this story: Nick Turner at firstname.lastname@example.orgFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
(Bloomberg) -- Want the lowdown on European markets? In your inbox before the open, every day. Sign up here.Amazon.com Inc. faces a full-blown European Union antitrust probe as the bloc’s competition chief Margrethe Vestager prepares for a summer finale to her five-year crackdown on U.S. technology giants.The Dane, who heads the EU’s competition division, is poised to open a formal investigation into Amazon within days, according to two people familiar with the case, who asked not to be named because the process isn’t public.Vestager has hinted for months that she wanted to escalate a preliminary inquiry into how Amazon may be unfairly using sales data to undercut smaller shops on its Marketplace platform. By ramping up the probe, officials can start to build a case that could ultimately lead to fines or an order to change the way the Seattle-based company operates.“If powerful platforms are found to use data they amass to get an edge over their competitors, both consumers and the market bear the cost,” said Johannes Kleis of BEUC, the European consumer organization in Brussels.The probe comes as Qualcomm Inc. could be hit with a second hefty EU penalty as soon as next week for allegedly underpricing chips to squeeze a smaller competitor. The U.S. chipmaker was fined last year for thwarting rival suppliers to Apple Inc. and has been the subject of on-and-off antitrust scrutiny since 2005.Vestager has already slapped Google with record fines and ordered Apple to repay billions of euros in back taxes. By taking on Amazon’s Chief Executive Officer Jeff Bezos, Vestager is keeping up the pressure on big tech right to the very end of her mandate, due to expire in October.Amazon and the European Commission in Brussels both declined to comment on the plans to open the probe. Qualcomm representatives declined to immediately comment.Business ModelWhile it will be the first time the EU has directly targeted Amazon’s online retail business model, it’s the third time the company has been probed by the regulator, following tax and e-book investigations.Although Google has been fined once a year for the past three years, racking up 8.2 billion euros ($9.2 billion) in penalties, the Alphabet Inc. unit still faces early-stage inquiries into local business and jobs searches. Apple also has to contend with a complaint from Spotify Technology SA and Facebook Inc. is getting questions on how it uses and shares data from apps.To contact the reporter on this story: Aoife White in Brussels at email@example.comTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Peter Chapman at firstname.lastname@example.org, Molly SchuetzFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
“We find that approximately 82% of outstanding credit card balances are debt, or that they are revolved for a month or more,” they write. The numbers are almost as bad even among those with high credit scores, they report. In other words, over half of credit-card balances are part of debt that is being carried for more than 12 months.
Last week's gallery on breakout stocks to buy delivered big-league profits. So we're returning to the well for three more candidates that boast price charts brimming with potential.This week's targets are inspired in large part by the S&P 500, which closed at a new record high of $3,013.77 on Friday. Nothing brings buyers to the yard like a major index touching its highest price in history. It reveals optimism and a risk-on attitude.Last week's demand surge was aided in part by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's testimony before Congress that all but confirmed the market's expectation for a rate cut at the upcoming July 31 meeting. Betting markets peg the odds of a quarter-point cut at 72% and a half-point cut at 28%.InvestorPlace - Stock Market News, Stock Advice & Trading Tips * 7 Dependable Dividend Stocks to Buy Without further ado, check out these three breakout stocks to buy. 3 Breakout Stocks to Buy: Cisco (CSCO)Source: ThinkorSwim Friday's rally for Cisco (NASDAQ:CSCO) succeeded where its predecessor did not. Last month's breakout attempt over $57.50 was met with rejection and sharp selling. Friday's bid, however, powered through the ceiling and closed at a new 52-week high.With the gain, CSCO stock officially ended its three-month consolidation zone and signaled that the next stage of its uptrend is upon us. I'd use $60 as the first upside target. It would take a break below the 50-day moving average at $55 to invalidate the bullish backdrop. So until then, the path of least resistance is higher.At 41%, the implied volatility rank is fiddling in the middle of its range. Couple that with earnings coming over the next month, and I think bull call spreads are the way to go.Buy the Sep $57.50/$60 bull call spread for around $1.20. Home Depot (HD)Source: ThinkorSwim Home Depot (NYSE:HD) was one of the best stocks on the board Friday. The retailer surged 2% on heavy volume to a new all-time high. On the technical front, there's nothing not to like about its price action. The 20-day and 50-day moving averages are trending higher to confirm buyers' dominance of the short- and intermediate-term trends.A few accumulation days have cropped up over the past two weeks to signal institutions are wading into the waters. As far as options go, implied volatility is in the basement revealing an utter lack of uncertainty in the stock. That means prices for derivatives are dirt cheap. Long calls and call spreads offer great low-risk, high-reward bets right now. * 10 Best Dividend Stocks to Buy for the Rest of 2019 and Beyond If you think the good times continue to roll, then buy the Sep $220/$230 bull call spread for around $3.75. Spotify (SPOT)Source: ThinkorSwim Last week's rally ushered Spotify (NYSE:SPOT) to the cusp of a clear breakout zone. In fact, SPOT stock looks better than at any time since last year's IPO. This summer's recovery pushed shares of the streaming music service back above all its major moving averages for the first time.The base built throughout 2019 should serve as a solid foundation to build an uptrend from if buyers decide to press their advantage here.If SPOT can clear $155, look for a run toward the next ceiling of $170. To capitalize, buy the Oct $160/$170 bull call spread for around $3.30.As of this writing, Tyler Craig didn't hold a position in any of the aforementioned securities. Check out his recently released Bear Market Survival Guide to learn how to defend your portfolio against market volatility. More From InvestorPlace * 2 Toxic Pot Stocks You Should Avoid * 7 Dependable Dividend Stocks to Buy * 10 Stocks Driving the Market to All-Time Highs (And Why) * 7 Short Squeeze Stocks With Big Upside Potential The post 3 Breakout Stocks to Buy appeared first on InvestorPlace.
In the latter part of 2018, bearishness took hold of Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) stock and sent shares to the $150 range as AAPL stock investors took in the news that the company would no longer issue unit sales numbers for its iconic iPhone device.Source: Shutterstock CEO Tim Cook reasoned that subscription and app sales mattered more for profitability. By that logic, Apple could afford to offer less transparency into its business each quarter. Now that the shares have recovered, there are three reasons investors should buy Apple stock. Weaker iPhone Sales ExpectedInvestors have had more than six months to accept that unit sales for iPhones will fall. Average selling price (ASP) is significantly higher with each successive release of the device. And although loyal customers will hold off upgrading to the latest iPhone, their device will stay in the iOS ecosystem. Even if revenue falls, Apple will enjoy healthy profit margins from sales of iPhone 8, X, XR, and XS Max.InvestorPlace - Stock Market News, Stock Advice & Trading TipsExpect the total profit per user to hold steady or increase, driven by more customers signing up for Apple Music. In April, The Wall Street Journal reported that Apple had 28 million subscribers, 2 million more than Spotify Technology (NYSE:SPOT). SPOT stock trades at similar price/sales and price/book multiples compared to Apple. Yet Spotify's price/forward cash flow multiple is 75, compared to 20.5 times for Apple. * 7 Retail Stocks to Buy for the Second Half of 2019 Don't forget that Apple recently launched its News App. By sending notifications for timely news, users who use the app often may end up subscribing to the service. In doing so, they get Apple News Plus, which gives users access to premium newspapers and more than 300 digital magazines. Look for Earnings Beat on July 30When Apple reports quarterly earnings on July 30, the company may beat the Q2/2019 EPS estimate of $2.12.Source: TipranksLast year, Apple reported earnings of $2.34, topping the $2.17 estimate. Strong revenues are possible because Apple Music subscription growth is gaining momentum. The iPad and iPad Mini refresh could drive device sales higher. Conversely, the iPad Pro faces stiff competition from Microsoft's (NASDAQ:MSFT) Surface book and Surface tablet. Still, Apple has the AirPod, Watch, and HomePod to offset a drop in Pro sales.In the unlikely scenario that AAPL stock falls after reporting strong results, the drop gives investors a chance to average down. Most who invest in Apple are in it for the long term. Viewing short-term drops in the stock as entry points played out well in the last decade. * 10 Stocks to Sell for an Economic Slowdown To be sure, weak iPhone sales could spook investors and send Apple stock lower. Yet if consumers are simply holding off on upgrades in general, Apple is not losing market share. So if users are not leaving the iOS ecosystem for Android, Apple subscription and software sales will return high profits. Service Revenue Will Drive GrowthThe second quarter 2019 saw Apple report its best quarter ever for Services, as revenue topped $11.5 billion. Even as worldwide iPhone revenue fell 17%, Services grew to new heights, with more than 390 million paid subscriptions at the end of March, up 30 million in the last quarter. During 2020, Apple expects to surpass 500 million subscriptions.That is a phenomenal rate of growth. And the strong uptake of Services will include growing App sales. In Q2, the number of paid third-party subscriptions increased by over 40%. Apple has a well-diversified source of revenue from apps; the biggest third-party subscription app accounted for just 0.3% of its total Services revenue.Apple forecast revenue of $52.5 billion - $54.5 billion for the upcoming report for the June quarter. Gross margin will be around 38%. Operating expenditures will be $8.7 billion - $8.8 billion. Your Takeaway on AAPL StockApple is confident about the growing revenue from the product category level. More importantly, it expects iPhone sales improving Y/Y in the upcoming Q3 report. Cash flow generation is so strong that AAPL stock repurchase authorization and its quarterly dividend. A dividend hike is unlikely but if Apple does so, look for Apple stock continuing its uptrend.Disclosure: As of this writing, the author did not hold a position in any of the aforementioned securities. More From InvestorPlace * 2 Toxic Pot Stocks You Should Avoid * 10 Stocks to Buy for Less Than Book * 7 Marijuana Stocks With Critical Levels to Watch * The 10 Best Dividend Stocks to Buy for the Rest of 2019 and Beyond The post 3 Reasons to Buy Apple Stock Ahead of End-of-Month Earnings Report appeared first on InvestorPlace.
“This is what happens when you sign a deal at fifteen to someone for whom the term ‘loyalty’ is clearly just a contractual concept,” Ms Swift wrote. The move, while dramatic, was consistent with Ms Swift’s history. While some of Ms Swift’s younger fans may have been introduced to the concept of master recordings for the first time, she is one of a long lineage of musicians to do battle with the record labels that typically own their work.
Prior to universal access to digital technology, identifying music in restaurants, bars, or stores was difficult to nearly impossible. Founded in 2000, Shazam provided a readily-available solution to music identification.
Sure, Spotify has 100 million paid subscribers, and Apple Music has 60 million. According to Financial Times, the number of people subscribing to Amazon Music Unlimited grew roughly 70 percent in the last year. As of April, Amazon had more than 32 million subscribers across its music services, including Unlimited and Prime Music.
One of the world's largest companies -- Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) -- with one of the biggest net cash balances ever -- $122 billion -- continues to promise that it will be "net cash neutral" over time. That means AAPL still has $122 billion to deploy to buybacks, dividends, acquisitions, investments, so on and so forth.At this point in time, it seems the smartest path forward would be for Apple to use that $122 billion on a big-time acquisition. Recent quarterly numbers underscore that peak iPhone is here.While the company has nice growth initiatives through new hardware like the Apple Watch and services businesses like Apple Pay and the App Store, none of those new initiatives are groundbreaking enough to fully replace what will soon be a flat iPhone business.InvestorPlace - Stock Market News, Stock Advice & Trading TipsThus, Apple can either be a tepid growth business forever going forward, or the company can recharge growth by using its huge net cash balance to acquire a hyper-growth company.The second option sounds far more attractive, and should be the route that optimizes long-term gains for Apple stock.The list of companies Apple could buy is long. The company has enough net cash to essentially acquire any company in the world. But, the list of companies Apple should buy is short. * 10 Best Dividend Stocks to Buy for the Rest of 2019 and Beyond Indeed, I think it as short as seven companies. Thus, let's take a look at seven companies that Apple should buy as it aims to be net cash neutral over the next few years. Netflix (NFLX)The most obvious M&A use of Apple's huge net cash balance is an all-in acquisition of streaming giant Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX).Source: Shutterstock No one can really deny the momentum that Netflix has by simply being the brand name in the streaming market. Nor can they deny the huge potential of that market, as the world increasingly cuts the cord and pivots to streaming, or the competitive moat that Netflix has established through quality and diverse original content.Because of these three factors, Netflix promises to be a big growth company for a lot longer. Apple could use that growth. As the hardware business dries up, the company is doubling down on the software business, and that reportedly includes a big dive into streaming and original content.Netflix would give Apple a head-and-shoulders leader in that market. Apple can also afford that growth. Netflix is a $150 billion company. Some cash and some debt could easily fund this acquisition.Overall, Netflix is a highly attractive target for Apple as the latter pivots toward creating software services to monetize the install base. Spotify (SPOT)If Netflix is a "reach for the stars" acquisition, then Spotify (NYSE:SPOT) is a much more grounded acquisition target with still promising upside potential.Source: Spotify Spotify is trying to do in the streaming music market what Netflix did in the streaming video market. Granted, there's no original content, so the moat is much smaller. Also, Apple Music is a thing, and it has already dethroned Spotify in the U.S., Canada and Japan. Thus, this acquisition doesn't provide as much firepower or unique assets as a Netflix acquisition.But, it's also much cheaper, at just $20 billion. It would also give Apple complete control over the streaming music market, a position that AAPL could use to its advantage down the road through exclusivity agreements and price hikes. Plus, as mentioned earlier, Apple is pivoting big time into the software side of its business. Spotify fits right into that wheelhouse. * 10 Best ETFs for 2019: The Race for 1 Intensifies Overall, Spotify is a good acquisition target for Apple because the latter needs mobile software growth to offset plateauing hardware growth, and Spotify gives them just that. Disney (DIS)Apple wants to get into the streaming and original content market. But, in order to be successful in that market, Apple needs content. Right now, the company doesn't have any. But, Disney (NYSE:DIS) has a bunch of it, and all those content assets are arguably very undervalued today.Source: Baron Valium via FlickrDisney is a global media company with a brand name that is second to none. The company owns perhaps the most valuable content assets in the world, and between Star Wars, Marvel and Pixar movies, the company dominates the box office every year.The problem with Disney is that, as the world has pivoted to streaming, the company has been slow to catch on, and post box-office content distribution hasn't kept up with the times.Apple is unparalleled in terms of its digital reach to the consumer. Between iPhones, iPads, Macs and Apple Watches, most U.S. and global consumers have some digital connection point with Apple.Thus, it should be easy for Apple to push a streaming service (like Disney+ for example). But, AAPL needs the content. Disney has the content, and for only $170 billion (that includes the highly lucrative parks and box office businesses).Overall, Disney is an attractive acquisition target for Apple because, together, the two companies could create a very good streaming service that is rich with content and very easy to access. Tesla (TSLA)A lot of investors and analysts are saying that Apple's last truly revolutionary product was the iPhone, and that here hasn't been a breakthrough product ever since. Now, with the iPhone growth cycle on its last legs, those same analysts and investors are saying that Apple desperately needs to find that next breakthrough product before time runs out.Source: Shutterstock Let's say hello to Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA). This is a breakthrough company with not just one, but a portfolio of breakthrough products. That portfolio today includes the Model S, Model X and Model 3. Down the road, it will include many more Tesla vehicles, all of which share the same core electric powered characteristic.The benefits to Apple of such an acquisition would be enormous. Apple has been reportedly working on a car for a long time now, but this project hasn't materialized anything substantial to date. Acquiring Tesla would give Apple broad exposure to the auto market. * 10 Best Stocks for 2019: A Volatile First Half Plus, Apple could easily incorporate and integrate its numerous consumer-facing hardware and software products more seamlessly into Tesla vehicles. The benefits therein to both Tesla's auto business and Apple's services business would be huge.Overall, Apple should buy Tesla because Apple needs a breakthrough hardware product to replace the iPhone, and Tesla gives them a portfolio of breakthrough hardware products while also providing synergies with the services business. Shopify (SHOP)One of the markets in which Apple has a small presence today is e-commerce. But, Apple has all the resources to make a big play in the e-commerce market. If AAPL does that, a natural first step would be the acquisition of Shopify (NYSE:SHOP).Source: Shopify via FlickrShopify provides e-commerce solutions for retailers of all shapes and sizes. Essentially, the company helps anyone and everyone create an e-commerce business.This is a big growth market because: 1) e-commerce is only growing in adoption, and 2) as e-commerce grows in popularity, more retailers will shift toward digital, and the e-commerce market will become increasingly decentralized and less consolidated.As such, over the next several years, I predict a majority of e-commerce dollar volume will flow through Shopify-powered stores.Thus, Shopify has all the e-commerce merchants and transactions. Apple creates a majority of the hardware products that enable those transactions.A marriage of these two companies would make perfect sense. Apple would control the whole e-commerce process, and could adapt the iOS ecosystem so that it works seamlessly with Shopify-powered stores, thereby ushering in an era of truly friction-less e-commerce.Overall, if Apple is looking to make a play in the red-hot e-commerce market, a natural first step would be to acquire Shopify, a company that would give Apple access to a large volume of e-commerce merchants and transactions. iRobot (IRBT)Going back to the "Apple needs a breakthrough hardware product" theme, a less expensive way to accomplish this than buying Tesla, is to buy iRobot (NASDAQ:IRBT).Source: Shutterstock iRobot is a $2 billion company that is known for its robotic vacuum cleaners, Roomba. Roomba has been a huge success for iRobot as the robotic vacuum market has gradually gained traction over the past several years, and this has powered big gains in revenues, profits and the stock.But, Apple isn't interested in a robotic vacuum cleaner. That's too small of a product to move the needle. But, Apple should be interested in the entire consumer robotics space. For iRobot, robotic vacuum cleaners are just the tip of the iceberg. * 7 A-Rated Stocks to Buy for the Rest of 2019 Over the next several years, you will see robotic lawnmowers, robotic window cleaners, robotic car washers, robotic chefs, so and so forth. In sum, all these consumer robotics products provide a huge long-term opportunity. If Apple were to couple its resources and experience with iRobot's leadership position in this market, the two could create an immensely valuable consumer robotics company with multiple breakthrough automation products that become household norms over the next several years.Overall, iRobot is an attractive acquisition target for Apple because, for just $2 billion, Apple could gain entry into what could be a very large consumer robotics market that is still in the early stages of hockey stick growth. Roku (ROKU)The last entry on this list may surprise people. After all, Roku (NASDAQ:ROKU) and Apple are essentially competitors in the streaming device market. But, the synergies of an acquisition far outweigh the costs.Source: Shutterstock Despite Apple's best attempts in the streaming device market, the lion's share of this market still belongs to Roku. The company controls roughly 40% of the streaming device market, and 25% of the smart TV market. Thus, Apple trying to beat Roku in this market, while possible, is an uphill battle.Instead, Apple should just buy Roku. AAPL could absorb the entire streaming player and platform businesses into its own ecosystem, and put other competitors in this market, like Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) and Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG, NASDAQ:GOOGL), at a huge disadvantage. Buying Roku would also be pretty cheap (sub-$5 billion market cap), and it would give Apple wider reach to push a potential streaming service down the road.Overall, as opposed to trying to squash Roku, Apple should just buy them, and create a streaming platform business that is unrivaled in terms of reach and scale.As of this writing, Luke Lango was long AAPL, NFLX, DIS, TSLA, SHOP, ROKU, AMZN and GOOG. More From InvestorPlace * 2 Toxic Pot Stocks You Should Avoid * 10 Growth Stocks With the Future Written All Over Them * 7 Reasons Why Buffett's Bet on Apple Stock Is a Good One * 10 Companies That Could Post Decelerating Profits The post 7 Companies Apple Should Consider Buying appeared first on InvestorPlace.
Apple (AAPL) stock still rests 13% below its 52-week high despite its roughly 30% climb in 2019 amid trade war worries and a slowdown in iPhone sales. Now, let's peek ahead to see what investors should expect from Apple's third-quarter fiscal 2019 financial results.
The music giant's June app redesign makes podcasts easier to access, but there have been quite a few complaints about changes made to its music-listening features.
We are now on the cusp of earnings season with hundreds of companies set to release their financial results in the coming days. In general, sentiment is cautious- Wall Street expects the S&P 500's earnings to fall by 2% compared to the same quarter last year. This would represent the first such decline since 2016.However, Barclays has some good news for investors- and for tech investors in particular. The firm has just released a report revealing a bullish 2Q outlook for large cap tech stocks compared to previous prints. That’s thanks to a slew of factors. Namely: 1) sentiment is mixed following multiple quarters of decelerating growth, downward estimate revisions, and increased regulatory scrutiny; 2) valuations remain well off the previous peak; and 3) acceleration from a couple of key companies (see below) should drive sentiment higher.“In contrast to the pattern over the past 5+ years, the S&P is currently achieving new all-time highs without the leadership of large cap internet, and contrarians like us would view this as favorable for the current setup” writes top-rated Barclays analyst Ross Sandler. With this in mind, the analyst sets out his five favorite Internet stocks for this earnings season. According to TipRanks, he is ranked 370 out of over 5,200 tracked analysts for his strong stock picking skills. Here are his five favorite stock picks now: Amazon.com, Inc. (AMZN)Out of all the internet stocks covered by the firm, Amazon is the number one stock for Sandler. The e-commerce giant is set to report its earnings figures on July 25. “AMZN is our top mega-cap long idea heading into 2Q - you own the name into retail revenue growth acceleration regardless of margin compression, full stop” the five-star analyst tells investors. He is modeling for 2Q revenue of $63.3 billion and anticipates a modest acceleration for retail revenue growth. This is based on checks and data showing both organic acceleration and strong next-day shipping in several US zip codes. “3Q revenue guidance should similarly benefit from a full quarter of these trends and additional time for Prime Day” he adds.However, Sandler does expect Amazon to guide below consensus for Operating Income (OI) in 3Q. Based on management's commentary that this year will return to normal pace of investment, the analyst writes “we think the street's $4.3B for 3Q is a bit aggressive.”But at the end of the day, revenue acceleration trumps all. “In periods of accelerating growth, little else has mattered for AMZN shares historically” says Sandler. And looking out to the rest of 2019, Sandler reiterates his view that “Owning AMZN into accelerating growth in retail is a winning strategy in our view hence our optimism into 2Q, despite the step down in operating profit.”In the last three months, no less than 35 analysts have published buy ratings on AMZN. Over the same period, only one analyst has stayed sidelined. Meanwhile the average analyst price target stands at $2,244 (11% upside potential). View AMZN Price Target & Analyst Ratings Detail Facebook, Inc. (FB)Social media giant Facebook is the second top stock on the Barclays’ list. “FB seems actionable once again into 2Q as most long-only investors seem to be still watching from the sidelines, and we expect upside” enthuses Sandler. In a report titled “Facebook: Too Cheap To Ignore” the analyst reveals that he expects FB to report both revenue and EPS above his estimate and consensus. Checks remain solid around both newsfeed and stories ad revenue for 2Q, says Sandler as he forecasts 2Q revenue of $16.8 billion. That’s with estimated DAU (daily active user) growth of 7% to a whopping 1.57 billion which “could prove a tad conservative.”Bottom line: it’s worth adding to positions into the July 24 print. “As the conversation moves away from putting out privacy fires and back toward innovation, we think FB shares can continue to move higher” Sandler concludes.Like Amazon, Facebook also scores a ‘Strong Buy’ consensus from the Street. That’s with 35 recent buy ratings vs 4 hold ratings. On average, analysts see the stock rising 9% to reach $221 in the coming months. View FB Price Target & Analyst Ratings Detail Spotify Technology SA (SPOT)Music streaming service Spotify is out with its all-important numbers on July 31. “SPOT is likely to announce its new label agreements (removing a big overhang) and have solid premium net ads” predicts Sandler. The company is very close to the end of several months’ negotiation with major music labels, says Sandler, and could announce new agreements soon. This could easily act as a positive catalyst for prices.He expects SPOT to report paid subscribers, revenue and operating income towards the upper half of its guidance range, and reiterate its full year range. Specifically, Sandler is looking for 109 million premium subscribers, with at least 9 million net subscriber additions. That’s with new partnerships, geographical expansion and increased penetration all helping boost subscriber growth.“Shares have rebounded a bit since the December lows, but at 2.6x 2020 revenue and 9.5x GP, are still well below peer averages and the cadence of the business is improving” the analyst contends. The Street has a cautiously optimistic ‘Moderate Buy’ consensus on SPOT. While 9 analysts call the stock a buy, 2 rate the stock a hold and 1 a sell. Their average price target works out at $168 (11% upside potential). View SPOT Price Target & Analyst Ratings Detail Uber Technologies Inc (UBER)Ride-sharing stock Uber hit the markets in May with an unexpectedly disappointing IPO. In fact, Fortune reports that it was one of the worse-performing mega IPOs ever, with shares dropping 7.6% on the first day of trading. Things went from bad to worse when the company reported first quarter earnings and revealed a quarterly loss of over $1 billion. So what can we expect this time around on August 8? “UBER is likely to report modest upside to consensus GBs, Revenue and EBITDA losses in 2Q and potentially provide a FY EBITDA target for 2019; we would add to positions into the print” advises Sandler. In particular the analyst is looking for ‘robust growth’ in Uber Eats- the popular online food ordering and delivery platform launched by Uber in 2014. “UBER will likely accelerate in Eats revenue significantly this quarter” says Sandler, thanks to the new pricing model rolled out in mid-March. Uber split its fee into a delivery and service fee, and cleverly added a small order fee for orders under $10. However Sandler thinks the real breakout will happen when Rides take-rate starts to expand more meaningfully in 2H19. This refers to the fraction of total fares that Uber skins from trips and deliveries. “At 4.5x 2020 revenue, we think UBER is one of the few names in our coverage that could see multiple expansion and upward estimate revisions over the next year” the analyst concludes.Based on all the recent ratings, UBER holds a ‘Moderate Buy’ Street consensus. Twenty one analysts rate the stock a buy, and 8 analysts rate the stock a hold. The $53 average analyst price target translates into sizable upside potential of 22% from current levels. View UBER Price Target & Analyst Ratings Detail Snap Inc (SNAP)Photo-disappearing app maker Snap Inc has put on a whopping 178% year-to-date gain. Despite a disastrous 2017 and 2018, the company has come roaring back to life so far this year. And even at these levels Sandler is still optimistic about the stock’s potential. “For the more risk-seeking investor we like SNAP here despite the near-triple YTD share price rise on the back of accelerating DAUs (but would watch buyside expectations closely into the print)” he comments.True, DAU (daily active user) numbers may seem a little ‘frothy’ at current levels- and Sandler cautions that DAU may miss the high expectations. He is expecting 7 million daily active users versus the “+10m-15m DAU figure we've heard thrown around in buy-side conversations.” “Nonetheless, we think the company has a lot of momentum currently on the back of Android and some of the new product releases (filters, games, etc), hence we continue to view SNAP as one of our favorite small to mid-cap long ideas for 2019” sums up the analyst. He is modelling for $355m in revenue- and an upbeat tone for 2H when the company reports on July 23.The overall consensus on SNAP stock remains ‘Hold.’ Only 6 analysts call the stock a buy, with 14 hold ratings and 3 bearish sell ratings. Meanwhile the average analyst price target of $13 now undercuts the current share price by 13%. View SNAP Price Target & Analyst Ratings DetailFind the latest 'Strong Buy' stock picks with the Trending Stocks Tool
Elsewhere on Thursday, -- Jeffrey Epstein and Deutsche Bank. -- 1MDB and Deutsche Bank. -- Salvini's secret Russian oil deal. More from the Financial Times Shock Mexican resignation deepens danger for ...
The streaming platform once derided for destroying an industry is now hailed for rescuing it. Can now-public Spotify discover profits? And how does its foray into podcasts figure?


text:
Soybean Export Sales Surge on Chinese Buying
By Kirk Maltais
Sales of U.S. soybean exports exceeded the expectations of grain
traders this week, buoyed by strong buying of new crop soybeans by
In its weekly report covering sales for the week ended August
11, the USDA said that sales of soybeans across the 2021/22 and
2022/23 marketing years totaled 1.4 million metric tons. Sales in
2022/23 totaled 1.3 million tons, with 779,000 tons sold to
Soybean sales across both marketing years exceeded the forecasts
of grain traders surveyed by The Wall Street Journal this week.
Traders forecast sales to land anywhere between 300,000 tons to
Meanwhile, corn sales across both marketing years totaled
849,300 tons, and wheat sales for 2022/23 totaled 207,200 tons.
Corn sales landed on the high end of trader forecasts, while wheat
sales - which were at a marketing-year low - fell below the low end
of trader expectations.
To see related data, search "U.S. Export Sales: Weekly Sales
Totals" in Dow Jones NewsPlus.
Write to Kirk Maltais at firstname.lastname@example.org
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
August 18, 2022 09:05 ET (13:05 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2022 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.