April 2023
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Gensler’s meme-stock reforms are meant to help retail traders. Some investor protection advocates aren’t so sure.
The meme-stock frenzy of 2021 focused the public’s attention on market structure with unprecedented intensity. Flush with COVID stimulus funds and hemmed indoors by pandemic restrictions, Americans took advantage of no-commission trading services like Robinhood HOOD, +2.67% to gobble up high-flying stocks made famous on social media. It was a wild ride, until the intensity…
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U.S. oil refiners looking at ‘record’ Q1 profits ahead of peak summer season
U.S. oil refiners are expected to report “record” quarterly profits during a traditionally weak season, analysts at BofA Securities said in a note Thursday, calling it a “golden age of refining.” The analysts on average raised their first-quarter earnings expectations for refiners by 9%, thanks to a “strong finish” for crack spreads, or the difference…
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‘Gaslighters have two signature moves’: Are you being gaslighted at work? Here’s how to recognize the signs.
Are you less happy at work since you befriended that new recruit? Have they told you stories about how colleagues have constantly undermined them? Maybe you have a boss who excludes you from key meetings and then asks why you did not attend a meeting even though you are pretty sure you were not invited…
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We are retired with ‘substantial’ pensions and very little debt — how much do I need in a ‘rainy day fund’?
Good morning, I recently retired with a substantial teacher’s pension. My take-home pay (after federal taxes and health insurance) is now more than when I was teaching due to no state taxes on teacher pensions and no retirement contributions being deducted. My wife is in the same position, so retirement income is not going to…
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Student loan ‘train wreck’: As return of regular payments loom, servicers have less staff to field expected deluge of calls
Borrowers are slated to resume student loan payments in a few months and if they need help, it may be harder to get someone on the phone than in the recent past. In documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Nelnet NNI, -0.18%, a publicly traded company that owns two major student loan servicers,…
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Big bank earnings in spotlight following historic failures: ‘Every income statement line item is in flux’.
JPMorgan Chase & Co. JPM, -0.11%, Citigroup Inc. C, +0.20% and Wells Fargo & Co. WFC, +2.74% — along with PNC Financial Services Group Inc. PNC, +0.37% and BlackRock Inc. BLK, +0.05% — report earnings Friday as Wall Street’s fixation on a recession continues to run deep. And following the implosion of Silicon Valley Bank…
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‘2023 is the year of the Easter potato’: High egg prices prompt some to look for holiday alternative
The soaring price of eggs has left many consumers scrambling over the past year. And it may become a bigger source of frustration for those planning on celebrating Easter with all sorts of egg-related rituals connected to the holiday, such as egg dyeing and Easter egg hunts. But one food-industry group is touting an alternative…
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This restaurant chain offers the worst bang for your buck, customers say — and it’s not even the most expensive
When it comes to dining out, customers say Shake Shack SHAK, +0.55% has gotten far too pricey for what it’s dishing out. And that’s despite the fact that it’s even not the most expensive of the fast-casual and fast-food restaurant chains. That’s the big takeaway from a study by Stifel SF, +0.82%, the wealth-management and…
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My single, 80-year-old mother is thinking of selling her Berkeley house to get some cash. How can she avoid capital gains tax?
My mother is 80, unmarried, and owns two homes on one lot in Berkeley, Calif. The property consists of one single-family home and one cottage. She lives in one and rents the other. She has never really worked and has no savings. She rents one of the houses and lives in the other, getting by…
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