The Motley Fool

FEBRUARY 12, 2024

The major indexes are surging so far this year. The blue chip-heavy S&P 500 index has already broken out to several new highs, while the tech-centric Nasdaq Composite is not far behind. Investors are voting with their dollars, and it appears they've decided on the industry that will likely generate the most growth in the next decade. Leading tech companies involved in artificial intelligence (AI) have outperformed the market over the last 12 months and continue to show strength in 2024.

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Blackstone News

FEBRUARY 14, 2024

New York & Fayetteville, Ark. – February 14, 2024 – Blackstone (NYSE:BX) today announced that Blackstone Growth and affiliated funds (collectively “Blackstone”) have made a growth equity investment in 7 Brew Coffee, the next generation drive-thru beverage business. Blackstone’s investment seeks to help enable 7 Brew to accelerate its already-rapid expansion across the U.S., in collaboration with its premier franchise partners.

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The Big Picture

FEBRUARY 14, 2024

 At the Money: Is War Good for Markets? (February 14, 2024) What does history tell us about how war impacts the stock market? What is the correlation between geopolitical conflict and inflation? Can these patterns inform us of future bull market behavior? In this episode, I speak with Jeffrey Hirsch about what happens to equities after global conflicts.

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FinSMEs

FEBRUARY 15, 2024

Fever, a Stockholm, a Sweden-based company building an API-centric platform for virtual power plants, raised €10M in Seed funding. The round, which brought the total amount to €11.6M, was led General Catalyst, with participation from previous investors, including La Famiglia and Norrsken VC. The company intends to use the funds to accelerate its expansion plans, […] The post Fever Raises €10M in Seed Funding appeared first on FinSMEs.

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The Motley Fool

FEBRUARY 12, 2024

Artificial intelligence (AI) investing is a trend that's not going away anytime soon. AI has presented itself as a way to assist us in everything we do, making us more efficient. Greater efficiencies lead to higher profits for businesses, so management teams are pursuing as many ways as possible to implement AI in their processes. While many companies benefit from AI adoption, not all are great buys due to extreme optimism.

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A Wealth of Common Sense

FEBRUARY 15, 2024

Josh Brown joined me again this week to discuss questions about career advice for younger advisors, when it makes sense to hire a financial advisor for retirement, 401ks vs. brokerage accounts and how to deploy cash in the face of all-time highs in the stock market. Further Reading: How Rich Are the Baby Boomers? The post When Should You Hire a Financial Advisor?

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FinSMEs

FEBRUARY 12, 2024

Reken, a San Francisco, CA-based AI and cybersecurity company, raised $10M in Seed funding. The round was led by Greycroft and FPV Ventures with participation from Firebolt Ventures, Fika Ventures, Omega Venture Partners, Homebrew, and JAZZ Venture Partners. Google DeepMind executive Jon Steinback (Sequoia Capital Scout Fund) and Vishal Vasishth (co-founder, Obvious Ventures) also invested […] The post Reken Closs $10M Seed Funding appeared first on FinSMEs.

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The Motley Fool

FEBRUARY 11, 2024

Sometimes, the best stock buys are hiding in plain sight. Microsoft shares, for example, gained 1,000% in the past decade, even though the company was already an entrenched software leader back in 2014. It relied on competitive advantages, like its economies of scale and valuable brand, to reach today's massive $3 trillion market capitalization -- likely creating many millionaire shareholders along the way.

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Insight Partners

FEBRUARY 16, 2024

This article originally appeared on Fortune.com. We have all been through a lot in the past four years. In early 2020, the NASDAQ was at or near record for most of January and February. Things felt great. Then COVID-19 broke out. The rapid adaption of tech, fueled by remote work, led to a massive tech boom and supercharged adoption, innovation, employment, and valuations from the second half of 2020 through Q1 of 2022.

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A Wealth of Common Sense

FEBRUARY 13, 2024

There are now six stocks in the S&P 500 with trillion-dollar valuations: Microsoft ($3.1 trillion) Apple ($2.9 trillion) Nvidia ($1.8 trillion) Amazon ($1.8 trillion) Google ($1.9 trillion) Facebook ($1.2 trillion) The numbers are getting so big it’s almost hard to comprehend. Bank of America noted in a research piece last week that Nvidia by itself is now worth more than the entire Chinese stock market.

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FinSMEs

FEBRUARY 13, 2024

Skylo Technologies, a Mountain View, CA-based direct-to-device satellite connectivity service provider, raised $37M in funding. The round saw participation from from investors including Intel Capital, Innovation Endeavors, BMW i Ventures, Samsung Catalyst, Next47, and Seraphim Space. David Johnson of Intel Capital joined the board. The company intends to use the funds to support its direct-to-device satellite connectivity solution […] The post Skylo Technologies Raises $37M in Funding appe

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The Motley Fool

FEBRUARY 11, 2024

She's at it again: Cathie Wood, the head of Ark Invest, is snapping up shares of Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) with purchases worth more than $160 million so far in 2024. Is it a brilliant move or a huge mistake? Here's what you need to know. What's going on As noted above, Wood and her team have purchased over $160 million worth of Tesla stock since the start of the year.

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XY Planning Network

FEBRUARY 12, 2024

We're excited to share another member story from our "How I Did It" series. Deciding to take the leap to start your own financial planning firm can be very scary. And actually "leaping" can feel overwhelming. There are so many decisions and responsibilities. How am I going to make this work? What business model should I use? How do I manage compliance?

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A Wealth of Common Sense

FEBRUARY 16, 2024

Early on in my savings journey I prioritized tax-deferred retirement accounts over all else. I like the ease and simplicity of 401k contributions coming out of my paycheck before it ever even touches my checking account. It’s easy to automate. The set-it-and-forget-it nature of a workplace retirement plan is one of my favorite features. Plus, I like the fact that it’s difficult to get the money out of these ac.

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FinSMEs

FEBRUARY 16, 2024

Flower Labs, a San Francisco, CA-based provider of an open-source framework, ecosystem and community for training to accelerate the mainstream adoption of federated and decentralized AI, raised $20M in Series A funding. The round was led by Felicis, with participation from First Spark Ventures, Factorial Capital, Beta Works, Y Combinator, Pioneer Fund, Mozilla Ventures, and […] The post Flower Raises $20M in Series A Funding appeared first on FinSMEs.

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The Motley Fool

FEBRUARY 11, 2024

After a terrible 2022, one that saw the market tank amid rapidly rising interest rates, investors benefited from a bounce-back year in 2023. And the momentum has continued into 2024. Just look at the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDICES: ^DJI). The widely followed index rose 13.7% in 2023. And it just hit a fresh all-time high on Feb. 2. Investor optimism is certainly on the way up.

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Top 1000 Funds

FEBRUARY 12, 2024

After 23 years in charge, CalSTRS departing CIO Chris Ailman has more stories from the investment frontline than most. He shares personal recollections of the GFC, his fears of the scale of the climate emergency and why worrying levels of US debt hold new risk and opportunity for investors.

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Financial Times M&A

FEBRUARY 13, 2024

Billionaire says options for OCI Group include selling off all assets and turning it into cash shell for new acquisitions

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FinSMEs

FEBRUARY 13, 2024

Document Crunch, an Atlanta, GA-based provider on AI-powered contract platform, raised $9M in Series A funding. The round was led by Navitas Capital with participation from Zacua Ventures, Fifth Wall, Argonautic Ventures, and Ironspring Ventures. The company intends to use the funds to grow its team and further develop contract compliance solutions for project teams, […] The post Document Crunch Raises $9M in Series A Funding appeared first on FinSMEs.

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The Motley Fool

FEBRUARY 11, 2024

Image source: Getty Images If you like to travel and fly with JetBlue, there's some news that you'll want to know. The airline recently started charging an additional seat selection fee. This fee applies to aisle and window seats in more favorable parts of its planes. While you can avoid this cost, it's worth knowing before booking your next JetBlue flight.

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Financial Times - Banking

FEBRUARY 16, 2024

Remuneration of $31mn comes after boss pared back bank’s lossmaking push into retail banking

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Financial Times M&A

FEBRUARY 13, 2024

Diamondback Energy’s $26bn takeover of Endeavor furthers drive towards efficiency and lower production costs

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FinSMEs

FEBRUARY 15, 2024

Lambda, a San Jose, CA-based GPU cloud company, raised $320M in Series C, at over $1.5 Billion valuation. The round was led by Thomas Tull’s US Innovative Technology with participation from new investors B Capital, SK Telecom, funds and accounts advised by T. Rowe Price Associates, Inc., and existing investors Crescent Cove, Mercato Partners, 1517 […] The post Lambda Raises $320M At Over $1.5 Billion Valuation appeared first on FinSMEs.

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The Motley Fool

FEBRUARY 11, 2024

Image source: Getty Images When you sign up for auto insurance, you typically have to maintain a minimum amount of coverage designated by the state where you live. And in most cases, the minimum amount of coverage isn't nearly enough to make sure you're truly protected in the event you're found responsible for an accident or are hit by an underinsured motorist.

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Financial Times: Moral Money

FEBRUARY 11, 2024

University’s exposure has risen despite landmark 2020 commitment to divestment

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Investing 105

A Wealth of Common Sense

FEBRUARY 11, 2024

I enjoy studying market history not because it makes it any easier to predict the future but because it can set helpful baseline assumptions. For example, there have been permabears predicting a massive financial crisis and stock market crash every single year since the Great Financial Crisis in 2008. A crash is always a possibility, of course. But there have only been five crashes in the 50% or worse range over the past.

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FinSMEs

FEBRUARY 15, 2024

Merit Medicine, an Austin, TX-based health tech startup, raised $2M in Seed funding. The round was led by LiveOak Ventures. The company intends to use the funds to expand operations and development efforts. Led by Founder and CEO Ali Panjwani, Merit Medicine is a health tech startup that leverages advanced AI insights to help self-funded […] The post Merit Medicine Announces $2M Seed Round appeared first on FinSMEs.

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The Motley Fool

FEBRUARY 16, 2024

In recent years, about one-quarter of new retirees claimed Social Security at age 62, meaning they started as soon as possible. And another one-quarter claimed Social Security between ages 63 and 65. That means about half of new retirees started benefits before age 66. Statistically speaking, the vast majority of those people are leaving money on the table.

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Sara Grillo

FEBRUARY 12, 2024

There’s nothing I hate worse than when I see a financial advisor chase around a CPA or estate attorney, only to get taken, referring their clients to them with zero reciprocity. Kirk Chisholm is the principal of Innovative Advisory Group and he’s here to talk with us about how to be successful getting referrals from CPAs and other centers of influence.

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Financial Times: Moral Money

FEBRUARY 14, 2024

JPMAM’s move is latest exit from an environmental investing coalition amid pressure from US Republicans

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FinSMEs

FEBRUARY 15, 2024

LeoLabs, a Menlo Park, CA-based space safety, security, and sustainability company, raised $29M in funding. Backers included GP Bullhound, 1941, Dolby Family Ventures, and existing investors including Insight Partners, Velvet Sea Ventures, Space Capital, MDSV Capital, and the AngelList Syndicate led by Dylan Taylor. The company intends to use the funds to scale up its insight […] The post LeoLabs Raises $29M in Funding appeared first on FinSMEs.

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The Motley Fool

FEBRUARY 16, 2024

Artificial intelligence (AI) is all the rage surrounding tech stocks. The technology has ever-evolving applications and is quickly disrupting businesses around the globe. One of the most important pillars in AI is semiconductors. High-performance graphics processing units (GPUs) from the likes of Nvidia and Advanced Micro Devices are critical for sophisticated models specializing in machine learning or quantum computing.

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The Big Picture

FEBRUARY 11, 2024

Avert your eyes! My Sunday morning look at incompetency, corruption and policy failures: • Over Three Decades, Tech Obliterated Media : My front-row seat to a slow-moving catastrophe. ( New York Magazine ) • A $560 Billion Property Warning Hits Banks From NY to Tokyo : Lenders face debt maturities, lower values after thaw in deals; Multifamily also a focus following change in New York rent law ( Bloomberg ) • Anxiety, Mood Swings and Sleepless Nights: Life Near a Bitcoin Mine : Pushed by an adv

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The Motley Fool

FEBRUARY 16, 2024

Image source: Getty Images It can be tricky to know where the best place to put your money is, especially if you're new to managing your money, or you're just earning more this year. There are tons of options, from savings accounts to brokerages, to the underside of your mattress (though, that one's probably not the best option, if we're splitting hairs).

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