Free Republic

As the economy weakens and The Federal Reserve tightens (to fight inflation), we are seeing the lowest level of S&P 500 equity risk premiums since before the financial crisis. Call this map of the East Palestine, Ohio derailment and explosion of toxic chemicals (by Norfolk Southern Railroad) “The Buttigieg Retreat.” And how toxic chemicals are flowing through the US river system. Way to go, Mayor Pete amd Dementia Joe!

Shares of Pfizer suffered their biggest monthly decline since 2009 in January as investors anticipated a troubled path ahead for the drugmaker’s Covid products. The stock has slumped 15% this month, erasing $43 billion in market value. In its earnings report on Tuesday, Pfizer presented a weaker-than-estimated sales outlook for its Covid vaccine and pill, and its shares fluctuated. “PFE was already widely expected to guide below consensus – and the ’23 guide delivered on that,” Barclays analyst Carter Gould, who has a hold-equivalent rating on the stock, wrote in a note. Given the stock’s decline so far this month,...

Meta shares popped in extended trading on Wednesday after the company reported fourth-quarter revenue that topped estimates and announced a $40 billion stock buyback. Here are the results. Earnings: $1.76 per share Revenue: $32.17 billion vs $31.53 billion expected, according to Refinitiv Daily Active Users (DAUs): 2 billion vs 1.99 billion expected, according to StreetAccount Monthly Active Users (MAUs): 2.96 billion vs billion expected, according to StreetAccount Average Revenue per User (ARPU): $10.86 vs $10.63 expected, according to StreetAccount

Representative Nancy Pelosi's decision to sell her Google stocks just a month before the Department of Justice (DOJ) and eight states sued the tech giant has raised eyebrows as to whether she knew a massive antitrust lawsuit was coming. The DOJ announced Tuesday that it was suing Google for abusing a monopoly over a "wide swath" of online advertising tools and corrupting "legitimate competition in the ad tech industry" by doing so. Shortly after the announcement, some social media users noticed that Pelosi sold up to $3 million of her Google stocks four weeks earlier. Congressional filings show that the...

Bed, Bath & Beyond is reportedly facing bankruptcy and this week began another round of layoffs. Apparently ‘security’ was part of those layoffs as a Florida Man apparently walked into the store on Cleveland Avenue in Fort Myers and casually walked off without paying. The take? $5500.00 in Dyson vacuums. He left the plaza in a dark blue SUV. Dyson vacuums can run upwards of $750. If you see someone selling one on facebook marketplace “still in box”, be on alert. Buying stolen merchandise is illegal and under Florida law, they can try to charge you. Anyone with information regarding...

Jim Cramer appeared to choke up during Thursday’s broadcast of CNBC’s “Squawk on the Street” as the investor apologized to viewers for previously recommending they buy shares of Meta — which tumbled to their lowest levels in six years. “Let me say this,” a somber Cramer told the CNBC co-panelists in a clip that went viral on Twitter, addressing a Thursday rout in Meta shares that sent them plunging 25% in a single trading session. “I made a mistake here,” Cramer said, his voice halting and trembling as he spoke. “I was wrong.”

Sept 23 (Reuters) - The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down more than 20% from its Jan. 5 intraday record high on Friday amid worries that aggressive policy tightening by the Federal Reserve will push the economy into a recession. The index would confirm it has been in a bear market if it closes more than 20% below the record high close, according to a widely used definition.

FedEx FDX –0.07% stock was tumbling after the company doubly disappointed investors Thursday by announcing weak quarterly results earlier than expected while withdrawing its full-year financial guidance. The stock was down 20% in premarket trading Friday after FedEx (ticker: FDX) said it earned $3.44 a share from $23.2 billion in sales in its fiscal 2023 first quarter which ended in August. Wall Street was looking for $5.10 in per-share earnings from $23.5 billion in sales. Sales were close, but management said revenue was impacted by “global volume softness.” The economy is slowing. Costs are also a problem. The company is...

Amazon shares powered higher Monday ahead of the first day of trading following a 20-for-1 split of the online retailing giant's stock that will bring its nominal price closer in line with mega-cap tech peers such as Apple and Meta . Amazon said shareholders of record on May 24 received 19 extra shares of the group for each one held after the split, which was first made public in March. The split -- the first for the company in three decades -- was formalized after the close of trading Friday and will begin changing hands on the adjusted basis later...

Stock markets plunged to their lowest level in more than a year on Monday, extending a five-week rout as investors weighed the prospect of interest rate hikes and China's COVID-19 lockdowns. The Dow fell 654 points, or nearly 2%, to close at 32,246. The broad-based S&P 500 fell 3.2%, to 3,991, while the heavy-tech Nasdaq lost 4.3%. It's the fifth straight week of losses for the S&P 500 — its longest losing streak since 2011, according to data provider FactSet.

Paul Pelosi, the husband of Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, purchased nearly $2.2 million worth of Tesla stock on March 17, according to a new congressional financial disclosure. Pelosi's husband, an investor and venture capitalist by trade, is an active stock investor personally. In January, Paul Pelosi invested $2.9 million worth of American Express, Apple, PayPal, and Walt Disney stocks. He's made tens of millions of dollars in stock trades during the past few years, congressional records indicate. Under current laws, members of Congress are required by law to disclose all individual stock trades and those of their immediate family...

Meta employees look to ditch jobs amid stock crash Shares of Facebook and Instagram parent Meta have plummeted more than 40% over the past six months — and some employees saddled with underwater stock options are eyeing the exits. “Joined Meta near [all time stock high], now feeling like s—t,” one Meta employee said this week in a popular thread on Blind, a corporate message board with verified members. “What should I do?” “Leave this crap place,” another “Metamate” responded. “Same boat,” a third said, adding that they’re “already interviewing” at other companies. “Duh, you’re supposed to think Meta, Metamates,...

The Department of Justice and Securities and Exchange Commission are investigating whether moguls Barry Diller, David Geffen and Alexander von Furstenberg violated insider trading laws by buying Activision Blizzard options shortly before the video game company announced an acquisition by Microsoft, the Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday—but Diller says they didn’t have prior knowledge of the impending deal. [archived version] https://archive.ph/EfWpu#selection-3339.0-3347.80

President Biden said he expected the Russian stock market to blow up the second it reopens in response to crippling sanctions that have been imposed on the country in response to its invasion of Ukraine. “You know what the value of a ruble versus a dollar? You need 200 rubles to equal $1 today. 200,” Biden boasted to a conference of House Democrats in Philadelphia on Friday. “The totality of our economic sanctions and controls are crushing, crushing the Russian economy,”

Facebook stock chart in Comment #1. All time high = $384. Market Cap High = $1.05 trillion. Close today = $187. Market Cap Today = $510 billion.

Walter Shaub A congressional stock trading ban is likely to pass. So some members are trying to push competing bills with a spousal loophole that they can drive a truck through. Let’s be clear: a congressional stock trading ban is worthless if it doesn’t cover spouses.

Did Big Tech get a little smaller? The Washington Post reports on a “startling” loss of active subscribers at Meta/Facebook — enough of a loss for investors and advertisers to take a big notice. Whatever the reason, Facebook’s active-subscriber numbers are falling by mid-six figures a day globally. Has the social-media giant become passé? Facebook parent Meta’s quarterly earnings report on Wednesday revealed a startling statistic: For the first time ever, the company’s growth is stagnating around the world. Facebook lost daily users for the first time in its 18-year history — falling by about half a million users in...

Facebook shares tumbled more than 20% in extended trading on Wednesday after the company reported disappointing earnings, gave weak guidance and said user growth has stagnated. Here are the results: Earnings per share: $3.67 vs $3.84 expected, according to a Refinitiv survey of analysts Revenue: $33.67 billion vs $33.4 billion expected, according to Refinitiv Facebook also missed estimates with user numbers. Daily Active Users (DAUs): 1.93 billion vs 1.95 billion expected by analysts, according to StreetAccount Monthly Active Users (MAUs): 2.91 billion vs 2.95 billion expected by analysts, according to StreetAccount Average Revenue per User (ARPU): $11.57 vs $11.38 expected...

"Former President Donald Trump's social media site TRUTH Social could be launched as soon as February 21, as the former president marks more than one year since he was booted off Twitter. The move comes as Twitter has experienced a decline in its stock price over the past month and some conservatives have moved to alternative platforms such as Gettr and Gab. ..."

The White House refused to take a stance on the ethical considerations of members of Congress trading stock while a proposed ban is gaining steam in the U.S. Senate. White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki told reporters on Tuesday that President Joe Biden “believes that everyone should be held to the highest standard,” but did not say whether the president supports or opposes a ban on congressional stock trading.