DAILY UPDATE: Costco Gold, CPI, US Stamps and the Mexican Peso as Technology Stocks Rise and Private Equity Takes on Medicine

Posted on April 12, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

MEDICAL EXECUTIVE-POST – TODAY’S NEWSLETTER BRIEFING

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Essays, Opinions and Curated News in Health Economics, Investing, Business, Management and Financial Planning for Physician Entrepreneurs and their Savvy Advisors and Consultants

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Costco started selling gold bars to its members last August, and Wells Fargo analysts believe that the product is now bringing in between $100 million and $200 million a month. The retailer doesn’t reveal the price of the 1-ounce bullion to nonmembers online, but it’s estimated to be ~2% above the spot price gold trades at, per CNBC—and that price has soared since Costco got into the gold game. The price of gold has gone up 13% this year and reached record highs as investors pile in amid inflation worries.

The big numbers from the Consumer Price Index data released on Thursday

  • In March, inflation rose 3.5% from the year before, up from 3.2% in February.
  • The “core” CPI reading, which excludes volatile food and fuel prices, came in even higher, rising 3.8% on an annual basis. That’s the same as in February, but this time it’s serious.
  • Half of the increases came from rising gas prices and housing.

After seeing inflation fall by 3% over the course of 2023, Fed officials believed that higher inflation readings in January and February 2024 represented a hiccup in an otherwise downward trajectory. However, with the March reading also coming in hotter than anticipated, analysts say this is more than a fluke. That means hopes for a June interest rate cut are dashed. Even the US Postal Service plans to raise the price of “forever” stamps to $0.73 in July. Get yours now. And the Mexican peso is on an absolute tear, leaving the US dollar behind.

CITE: https://www.r2library.com/Resource/Title/082610254

Here’s where the major stock benchmarks ended:

  • The S&P 500® index (SPX) advanced 38.42 points (0.7%) to 5,199.06; the Dow Jones Industrial Average® ($DJI) lost 2.43 points to 38,459.08; the NASDAQ Composite gained 271.84 points (1.7%) to 16,442.20.
  • The 10-year Treasury note yield (TNX) rose nearly 2 basis points to 4.578%.
  • The CBOE Volatility Index® (VIX) fell 0.89 to 14.91.

Chip maker strength lifted the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index (SOX) more than 2% and extended the benchmark’s year-to-date gain to more than 17%. Communications services and transportation shares were also among the strongest sectors. Financial shares were mixed ahead of expected quarterly results Friday from some major banks including JPMorgan Chase (JPM), Citigroup (C), and Wells Fargo (WFC). 

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  • Big businesses such as hospital systems, insurers, and PE firms are gobbling up medical clinics.
  • Some doctors and industry experts fear corporate owners could prioritize profits ahead of patients.
  • The federal government is dialing up scrutiny of PE firms and other corporate owners in healthcare.

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QUESTION: Are Independent doctors almost a thing of the past?

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The PROSPERITY Paradox

Posted on April 12, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

Paradox of Prosperity

“A paradox of prosperity is revealed and shown to be stable in the cycles of economic advancement between generations. I would put the matter this way: If one accepts, for example, that Mr. Brokaw’s ‘Greatest Generation’ were characterized by prudence, diligence, and patriotism in deed rather than word, that very generation produced its opposite in the generation that followed it. That is to say, I have found it repeated across the ages and across cultures, that the more diligent a previous generation, as a natural propensity, the more licentious the generation that follows. Invariably therefore, the generation that exhibits the more cogent properties of character for the best sort of citizenship fails to produce a generation of the same or similar characteristics.”

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“Paradox of Prosperity” was applied as a term of analysis in the recent New York Times, Wall Street Journal bestseller Rescue America: Our best America is only one generation away (published October 2011), which Professor Morris co-authored with Chris Salamone. There the inter-generational breakdown is given a fuller exposition. Morris, who has been a careful reader of Thorstein Veblen, particularly Veblen’s masterpiece The Theory of the Leisure Class, says his own advancement of this inter-generational thesis was influenced by Veblen. “I think”, says Morris, “Veblen gave some insight as to what is produced in the generation which follows one such as Tom Brokaw described. The Greatest Generations – if by that we mean a generation characterized by prudence and sacrifice – nearly always produces a generation which can be characterized as a leisure class. They consume without manufacturing. They project feelings over principles. In general terms, they lack a spirit of sacrifice because they abhor the notion of “Objective Values” and so lack the will to re-create or advance the social ethos created by their parent’s generation.” In cultural terms, the generation that followed the “Greatest Generation” were the baby boomers (essentially, the children of the Greatest Generation between 1945–1965). The “Boomers” fit the classic definition of a “leisure class”, which Veblen described as being characterized by Conspicuous Consumption.  To quote their description of their leisure class “they move values toward behavior, rather than behavior toward values”.

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DAILY UPDATE: KPMG Fined, Aging Doctors, Water Fluoridation Outcries, Medicare Part C Down, CBO Deficit with Inflation Up as Stock Markets Crash!

Posted on April 11, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

MEDICAL EXECUTIVE-POST – Today’s Newsletter

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Essays, Opinions and Curated News in Health Economics, Investing, Business, Management and Financial Planning for Physician Entrepreneurs and their Savvy Advisors and Consultants

“Serving Almost One Million Doctors, Financial Advisors and Medical Management Consultants Daily“

A Partner of the Institute of Medical Business Advisors , Inc.

http://www.MedicalBusinessAdvisors.com

SPONSORED BY: Marcinko & Associates, Inc.

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NEW YORK (Reuters) -The U.S. accounting watchdog on Wednesday said it has hit KPMG Netherlands with a $25 million civil penalty, a record for the regulator, in response to “egregious” and widespread exam cheating at the foreign affiliate of the major audit firm.

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As millions of Americans approach age 66, they face the inevitable question, is it time to retire? The physician population is aging alongside the general population—more than 40% of physicians in the U.S. will be 65 years or older within the next decade. In the case of surgeons, there is little guidance on how to best ensure their competency throughout their career and at the same time maintain patient safety while preserving mature physician dignity.

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It is a scenario playing out nationwide. From Oregon to Pennsylvania, hundreds of communities have in recent years either stopped adding fluoride to their water supplies or voted to prevent its addition. Supporters of such bans argue that people should be given the freedom of choice. The broad availability of over-the-counter dental products containing the mineral makes it no longer necessary to add to public water supplies, they say. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says that while store-bought products reduce tooth decay, the greatest protection comes when they are used in combination with water fluoridation.

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More health systems are going to be opting out of Medicare Advantage (MA) plans, George Hill, a managing director at Deutsche Bank in Boston, predicted Monday at a “Wall Street Comes to Washington” webinar hosted by the Brookings Institution. “I think you’re going to see more large provider organizations threaten to opt out of networks, particularly as it relates to MA,” Hill said, adding that there are a number of reasons for this. “Prior authorizations are the problem, claims denials are a huge problem, delayed payments and rates are the problem — barriers in access to care in all varieties are the problem.”

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The latest budget update from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) found that the federal government has spent more on paying interest on the national debt than on the military in fiscal year 2024. The CBO’s budget report for March showed that the U.S. has spent $412 billion on military programs at the Department of Defense through the first half of FY-2024, according to preliminary figures from CBO and the Treasury Department. 

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Consumer price increases remained high last month, boosted by gas, rents, and car insurance, the government said Wednesday in a report that will likely give pause to the Federal Reserve as it weighs when and by how much to cut interest rates this year. Prices outside the volatile food and energy categories rose 0.4% from February to March, the same accelerated pace as in the previous month. Measured from a year earlier, these core prices were up 3.8%, unchanged from the year-over-year rise in February. The Fed closely tracks core prices because they tend to provide a good read of where inflation is headed.

Here’s where the major benchmarks ended:

  • The S&P 500® index (SPX) dropped 49.27 points (1.0%) to 5,160.64; the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 422.16 points (1.1%) to 38,461.51; the NASDAQ Composite® ($COMP) fell 136.28 points (0.8%) to 16,170.36.
  • The 10-year Treasury note yield (TNX) soared more than 18 basis points to 4.548%.
  • The CBOE Volatility Index® (VIX) jumped 0.82 to 15.80.

Interest-rate-sensitive sectors like banks, real estate, and utilities led Wednesday’s decliners. The KBW Regional Bank Index (KRX) tumbled 5% to its lowest point since late November. The small-cap Russell 2000® Index (RUT) lost 2.5%. Energy shares were among the few gainers as WTI Crude Oil (/CL) futures rebounded after three-straight losing sessions.

In other markets, the U.S. dollar index (DXY) jumped 1% to a five-month high amid expectations interest rates will remain elevated.

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DAILY UPDATE: Stocks Slightly Up Awaiting CPI Report

Posted on April 10, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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Boeing had yet another rough day, at one point dropping 2.5% to its lowest mark in five months after reports that the FAA is investigating a whistleblower’s claims about safety issues with the 787 Dreamliner.

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And, US stocks on Tuesday ended with small moves, weighed down by the financial sector ahead of key earnings reports later this week. Market participants also exhibited caution a day before the latest consumer inflation data. Wall Street’s three major averages opened in the green but then spent most of the day languishing in negative territory.

Finally, the tech-heavy NASDAQ Composite (COMP:IND) eventually closed 0.32% higher at 16,306.64 points, while the benchmark S&P 500 (SP500) added 0.15% to settle at 5,209.94 points. The blue-chip Dow (DJI) fell marginally by 0.02% to conclude at 38,883.67 points.

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Here’s where the major benchmarks ended:

  • The S&P 500® index (SPX) gained 7.52 points (0.1%) to 5,209.91; the Dow Jones Industrial Average® ($DJI) lost 9.13 points (0.02%) to 38,883.67; the NASDAQ Composite® ($COMP) rose 52.68 points (0.3%) to 16,306.64.
  • The 10-year Treasury note yield (TNX) fell more than 6 basis points to 4.358%.
  • The CBOE Volatility Index® (VIX) fell 0.21 to 14.98.

Financial and industrial shares led Tuesday’s decliners. Oil services stocks were also soft as WTI Crude Oil (/CL) futures dropped for a third consecutive trading session. The Philadelphia Oil Service Index (OSX) lost 0.7% and ended at its lowest point since April 1. 

In other markets, Gold (GC) futures neared $2,400 per ounce and hit a record high for the eighth consecutive trading session. Gold’s rally has been driven by factors including reports of purchases by China’s central bank as well as expectations for lower interest rates and escalating conflict in the Middle East. Bitcoin (BTC) tumbled about 3.5% and fell to less than $70,000, giving up much of Monday’s gain.

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DAILY UPDATE: U.S.A. Stock Markets Little Changed

Posted on April 9, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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Like use, investors were a little checked out yesterday, focusing on the eclipse or maybe the fact that earnings season starts later this week, and stocks were relatively flat. Diamondback Energy hit an all-time high following several other energy companies that did so last week as oil prices surge.

Here’s where the major benchmarks ended:

  • The S&P 500® index (SPX) lost 1.95 points (0.04%) to 5,202.39; the Dow Jones Industrial Average® ($DJI) eased 11.24 points (0.03%) to 38,892.80; the NASDAQ Composite® ($COMP) gained 5.44 points (0.03%) to 16,253.96.
  • The 10-year Treasury note yield rose more than 4 basis points to 4.422%.
  • The CBOE Volatility Index® (VIX) fell 0.84 to 15.19.

Bank shares were among Monday’s strongest performers, sending the KBW Regional Banking Index (KRX) up 1.5%. Consumer discretionary companies were also strong. WTI Crude Oil (/CL) futures fell sharply earlier in the session following reports Israel had removed some troops from Gaza but bounced back to end down 0.5% at around $86.47 per barrel.

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The Path to Successful Investing

Posted on April 9, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Vitaliy Katsenelson, CFA
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Something weird happened to me on Twitter a few months ago. A “follower” started lashing out at me about a stock we own. When people attack me for my views it doesn’t bother me (I wrote several chapters in Soul in the Game on this topic). I don’t let personal attacks get to me, unless people start attaching bricks to their 280 characters. 

This person’s lambasting of me was different. He was upset about the decline of a stock I had never publicly discussed in any of my newsletters or talks. This person was not a client. I didn’t know who he was; I had never met him. I was really confused why a stock my clients and I personally owned was so important to him. It’s like someone being upset about the color my wife chose to paint our kitchen.

Once gently confronted, he apologized, said he was a big fan, and explained that he had read my 13F (a form we have to file with the SEC 45 days after the quarter end, where we have to report our holdings in US stocks). He saw that the stock was one of our top holdings, and he bought it. Because I owned it, he made it a disproportionately large position.

I was truly upset about this incident. One of my principles in life is to have a net positive impact on the people I touch. If every single stock I discussed only went straight up, I wouldn’t have to worry about it. But this is not how life works.

Let me give you an example: No Shortcuts to Greatness: The Path to Successful Investing

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DAILY UPDATE: Nvidia in Medicine, IRs and the Big Banks

Posted on April 8, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

SAFE SOLAR ECLIPSE DAY

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NVIDIA is accelerating the pace of healthcare innovation! Last week they unveiled a suite of AI microservices for developers, launched cutting-edge healthcare AI tools, and deepened their collaborations with giants like Johnson & Johnson. Plus, they’re ramping up investment in clinical trials and drug design. 

Do you ever struggle with finding the best sources of information about healthcare AI? Check out my new video, where I share my favorite newsletters, websites, sub-reddits, and a list of must-follow experts. With this toolkit, you won’t miss anything important. Also, I hope you enjoyed a restful and Happy Spring Break – should you celebrate it!

Bertalan Meskó, PhD
The Medical Futurist

READ MORE: https://www.cnbc.com/2024/03/24/nvidias-ai-ambitions-in-medicine-and-health-care-are-becoming-clear.html?utm_source=The+Medical+Futurist+Newsletter&utm_campaign=f5908296a8-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2024_04_07_Resend&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_efd6a3cd08-f5908296a8-399696053&mc_cid=f5908296a8&mc_eid=40fee31c25

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Last week, several Fed officials said they were in no rush to slash interest rates in 2024, which investors have been banking on this year. Meanwhile, oil prices have risen to five-month highs due to concerns about supply shocks in key areas around the world.

And, Wall Street is preparing for a crammed week, with crucial inflation data dropping on Wednesday and big banks (JPMorgan, Wells Fargo, Citigroup) inaugurating earnings season on Friday. The pressure is on companies to post beefy profits to back up their strong stock performance in Q1.

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DOCTORS FEELING WEALTHY: How Much is [Really] Enough?

Posted on April 7, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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What does wealth mean to you?

In a recent survey by Edelman Financial Engines, 57% of respondents said they’d feel wealthy if they had $1 million in the bank. But for many people, like doctors, that may not be enough.

Among those with $500,000 and $3 million in assets, 53% said it would take over $3 million in the bank for them to feel wealthy, and 33% said it would take over $5 million. Given that these are amounts some people will never even come close to amassing in their lifetimes, it may be hard to wrap your head around these answers.

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RETIREMENT: The New “Magic Number” in 2024

Posted on April 7, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

Since 2013 – Americans believe they now need $1.46 million to retire in style

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The new magic number for retirement, found in a study by Northwestern Mutual, is 15% higher than what people thought they needed last year—and 53% higher than the amount people in 2020 pictured themselves needing to feel comfortable leaving the workforce to sit on a beach in Florida.

In fact, it’s also more than most people have socked away: On average, US adults have $88,400 saved for retirement.

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QUESTION: But what about doctors and medical professionals?

HABITS: https://medicalexecutivepost.com/2020/01/22/twenty-20-habits-of-eventual-millionaires/

DOCTORS PATH: https://medicalexecutivepost.com/2013/07/11/the-doctors-path-to-wealth/

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DAILY UPDATE: Stock Markets Surge

Posted on April 6, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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Here’s where the major benchmarks ended:

  • Markets: Stocks pulled it out for a Friday win after the government dropped encouraging economic data. But all three major indexes were still down for the week, with the Dow enduring its worst of 2024.
  • Stock spotlight: Tesla took a wild ride, plunging after Reuters reported it had scrapped plans to produce its long-awaited Model 2 affordable EV only to regain some ground after Elon Musk denied it. The company then jumped after hours because Musk said it’ll debut a robotaxi on August 8.
  • The S&P 500 index gained 57.13 points (1.1%) to 5,204.34, down 1.0% for the week; the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 307.06 points (0.8%) to 38,904.04, down 2.3% for the week; the NASDAQ Composite® ($COMP) rose 199.44 points (1.2%) to 16,248.52, down 0.8% for the week.
  • The 10-year Treasury note yield (TNX) rose more than 8 basis points to 4.392%.
  • The CBOE Volatility Index® (VIX) fell 0.32 to 16.03.

Meta Platforms (META) and Netflix (NFLX), two members of the “Magnificent Seven” mega-cap group, both jumped around 3% Friday, helping lift the S&P 500 Communication Services Index ($SP500#50) 1.6% to lead top-performing sectors. Meta shares closed at a record above $527, up 49% for the year. 

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COMPUTING: Intel, Amazon and Microsoft

Posted on April 6, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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Intel revealed that its semiconductor-making unit lost $7 billion last year. The news sent the company’s stock down.

And, Amazon is laying off hundreds of employees from its cloud computing division, including the team overseeing its cashierless tech (and not just the Just Walk Out feature it’s pulling from stores), as well as people sales and marketing roles.

Finally, Microsoft and Quantinuum said they’ve had a major quantum computing breakthrough.

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DAILY UPDATE: The “Lipstick Index” and Stock Market Crash

Posted on April 5, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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Ulta and other major beauty companies that thrived during the past few years of economic instability provided good fodder for the “lipstick index”—a duct-tape economic measure that assumes people still buy small indulgences (like lipstick) during tough times, keeping the beauty industry recession-proof.

However…it’s not. Ulta’s full-year sales growth target is just 4% to 5%, which falls below Wall Street’s estimates, and Estée Lauder announced in February it was laying off 3% to 5% of its workforce after some difficult months.

And, other consumer goods powerhouses are bracing for a slowdown, too. The parent company of Calvin Klein and Tommy Hilfiger said this week that it’s preparing for a 6% to 7% revenue drop this year.

ECONOMIC INDICATORS: “Lipstick Index” and “Cosmetic” Others?

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MORE: https://medicalexecutivepost.com/2023/09/23/economic-indicators-lipstick-index-and-cosmetic-others/

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Here’s where the major benchmarks ended:

  • The S&P 500 index dropped 64.28 points (1.2%) to 5,147.21; the Dow Jones Industrial Average® ($DJI) tumbled 530.16 points (1.4%) to 38,596.98; the NASDAQ Composite® ($COMP) sank 228.38 points (1.4%) to 16,049.08.
  • The 10-year Treasury note yield (TNX) fell more than 5 basis points to 4.303.%.
  • The CBOE Volatility Index® (VIX) surged 2.07 to 16.39.

Semiconductors were among Thursday’s weakest performers as a drop of more than 8% in Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) helped send the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index (SOX) down 3% to a two-week low. Retail shares were also soft. WTI Crude Oil futures rose for the sixth consecutive day and topped $87 per barrel, marking a gain of 4.3% so far this week. Volatility based on the VIX ended at its highest level since early November. Brent Crude Oil (/BZ) futures, the global benchmark, topped $90 for the first time since October.

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VENTURE Capitals and Investment BANKERS

Posted on April 5, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Lon Jefferies MBA CFP® CMP®

By Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP®

SPONSOR: http://www.CertifiedMedicalPlanner.org

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OUR TAKE ON PRIVATE EQUITY AND VENTURE CAPITAL

Private equity and venture capital investments typically involve ownership of shares in a company and represent title to a portion of the company’s future earnings. However, private equity is an equity interest in a company or venture whose stock is not yet traded on a stock exchange.

Venture capital is typically a special case of private equity in which the investment is in a company or venture that has little financial history or is embarking on a high risk/high potential reward business strategy.

Like real estate, private equity and venture capital investments generally share a general lack of liquidity and a lack of comparability across different individual investments. The lack of liquidity comes from the fact that private equity and venture capital investments are typically not tradable on a stock exchange until the company has an IPO.

The lack of comparability is due to the fact that most private equity and venture capital investments are the result of direct negotiation between the investor/venture capitalist and the existing owners of the company  /venture.

With widely divergent terms and provisions across different investments, it is difficult to make general claims regarding the characteristics of private equity and venture capital investments.

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HEALTHCARE PRIVATE EQUITY: Federal Regulators Launch Inquiry

Posted on April 5, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Health Capital Consultants, LLC

On March 5th, 2024, the Department of Justice’s (DOJ’s) Antitrust Division, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), announced the launch of a multi-agency inquiry – in the form of a request for information (RFI) and public workshop – focusing on the increasing control of private equity (PE) and other corporations over the healthcare industry.

This Health Capital Topics article discusses the agencies recent actions and how it appears to be in line with the government’s recent moves to crack down on anti-competitive actions in healthcare. (Read more…)

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DAILY UPDATE: Iger Survives as Ulta Beauty and Stock Markets Stall

Posted on April 4, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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Ulta Beauty plunged after its CEO revealed that, despite the resilience of the beauty category, sales have slowed.

And, Walt Disney’s current rulers will continue to oversee the kingdom. The company’s board, helmed by CEO Bob Iger, defeated activist investors and Nelson Peltz who had hoped to replace current board members and steer the company in a new direction.

Here’s where the major benchmarks ended:

  • The S&P 500 index rose 5.68 points (0.1%) to 5,211.49; the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 43.10 points (0.1%) to 39,127.14; the NASDAQ Composite® ($COMP) added 37.01 points (0.2%) to 16,277.46.
  • The 10-year Treasury note yield fell more than 1 basis point to 4.351%.
  • The CBOE Volatility Index® (VIX) declined 0.28 to 14.33.

Energy shares remained one of the market’s strongest performers behind strength in WTI Crude Oil (/CL) futures, which rose a fifth consecutive day and ended above $85 per barrel, the highest since October. The Philadelphia Oil Service Index (OSX) jumped1.6%, extending its year-to-date gain to almost 14%. 

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DAILY UPDATE: Medicare Advantage Plans Down as Stocks Crash

Posted on April 3, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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Medicare Part C papers, glasses and stethoscope.

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Humana and other managed-care stocks were down sharply in trading Tuesday after the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services announced an average 3.7% increase in revenue for Medicare Advantage plans in 2025. That amount is the same as the proposed increase the government had announced in January, but it came as a shock to investors who were hoping for a slight bump.

Humana  (HUM)  shares fell sharply in early Tuesday trading, while rivals UnitedHealth UNH and CVS Health  (CVS)  traded firmly in the red, as the health insurance industry received yet another blow to its 2024 profit forecasts. All three major health insurance groups have trailed the broader market this year, with Humana down nearly 25%, amid concern that profit margins will be hit by a surge in medical costs tied to a rise in elective procedures. Those procedures had been delayed by the Covid pandemic. 

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Here’s where the major benchmarks ended:

  • The S&P 500 index fell 37.96 points (0.7%) to 5,205.81; the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 396.61 points (1.0%) to 39,170.24; the NASDAQ Composite slipped 156.38 points (1.0%) to 16,240.45.
  • The 10-year Treasury note yield was up almost 3 basis points to 4.357%.
  • The CBOE Volatility Index® (VIX) rose 0.96 to 14.61.

Retailer, biotechnology, and regional bank shares were among the weakest performers Tuesday, leading a broad market slump in which declining stocks outnumber advancers by a greater than three-to-one ratio. The small-cap Russell 2000® Index (RUT) lost 1.8% and settled at a two-week low. 

Energy companies, by contrast, extended recent strength behind an ongoing climb in WTI Crude Oil (/CL) futures, which surpassed $85 per barrel for the first time since late October. The Philadelphia Oil Service Index (OSX) advanced 2.1% and ended at a 5-½-month high. Oil prices have surged this year due to OPEC production cuts and concern over supply disruptions stemming from the Middle East conflict.

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HOSPITALS: Private Equity Ownership Quality?

Posted on April 3, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

PATIENT COMPLICATION RATES

By Staff Reporters

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Hospitals under private equity (PE) ownership reported higher rates of patient complications when compared to other facilities, according to a recent JAMA study—raising questions about how the business model might affect staffing and subsequent quality of care.

The surveyed Medicare beneficiaries saw a 25.4% increase in “hospital-acquired conditions,” which the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services defines as falls, infections, and other adverse events, when they received treatment at a PE-acquired hospital compared to those run under other forms of ownership.

On the whole, the study found that Medicare enrollees at hospitals under PE control were not only younger and less likely to additionally qualify for Medicaid but also more likely to experience complications.

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DAILY UPDATE: Truth Social and Weak Stock Markets

Posted on April 2, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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Quote: “This is a very unusual situation. The stock is pretty much divorced from fundamentals.”—Jay Ritter, finance professor and IPO expert at the University of Florida, on the surging value of the newly public Trump Media. Truth Social, its only active product, has been shedding both users and cash. (CNN)

Shares of Truth Social owner Trump Media & Technology Group plunged Monday after the company disclosed that it lost more than $58 million and generated very little revenue in 2023. Former President Donald Trump is the company’s majority shareholder, and his net worth tumbled by more than $1 billion Monday as a result.

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Here’s where the major benchmarks ended:

Stocks started Q2 off soft yesterday, as investors continued to fret about inflation. Stock spotlight: Trump Media, the newly public company that owns Truth Social, plunged yesterday after revealing that it lost $58 million last year, generated just $4.1 million in revenue, and had 10 times fewer users than Threads.

  • The S&P 500 index fell 10.58 points (0.2%) to 5,243.77; the Dow Jones Industrial Average® ($DJI) shed 240.52 points (0.6%) to 39,566.85; the NASDAQ Composite® ($COMP) added 17.37 points (0.1%) to 16,396.83.
  • The 10-year Treasury note yield jumped 13 basis points to 4.323%.
  • The CBOE Volatility Index® (VIX) rose 0.64 to 13.65.

Banks were among the market’s weakest performers Monday, likely reflecting concern that elevated interest rates could pinch margins. The KBW Regional Bank Index (KRX) sank 2% after ending at a two-month high last week. The small-cap Russell 2000® Index (RUT) was also soft, dropping 1% after closing at a two-year high last week. 

Communication services and semiconductor shares turned in strong performances, as did energy, lifted by WTI Crude Oil (/CL) futures’ extending a rally to its highest level since late October. WTI Crude Oil is up almost 18% so far this year amid concern over supply disruptions stemming from the Russia-Ukraine war and Middle East conflict.

In other markets, the U.S. dollar index ($DXY) strengthened for the fourth straight day and reached its highest point since mid-November behind expectations the Fed will keep interest rates high.

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DAILY UPDATE: March Round-Up as Stocks End their Best First Quarter in Five Years

Posted on April 1, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

APRIL FOOL’S DAY

April Fools’ Day customs date back to at least Renaissance Europe, but it’s likely the tradition originated long before then. Some historians have linked April Fools’ Day to the ancient Roman festival of “Hilaria,” where at the end of March, people would come together to commemorate the resurrection of the god Attis. It was a celebration of renewal in which revelers would dress up in disguises and imitate others.

It’s also possible that the medieval celebration of the Feast of Fools, where a mock bishop or pope was elected and church customs were parodied, could have inspired the day.

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Stocks had their best Q1 in five years. The S&P 500 ended Thursday—the last trading day of the quarter—up by more than 10%, marking its best start to a year since 2019.

The AI craze, record corporate profits, and optimism around cooling inflation are all contributing to the stock boom. The economy got more good news yesterday when the Stocks had their best Q1 in five years reported that several key gauges, including GDP and consumer spending, grew in Q4 of last year.

And, that’s not all: Home sales bounced back after a January slump, jobless claims fell, and advertisers raised their full-year forecast. Consumer sentiment is now at its highest level since 2021.

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DAILY UPDATE: Tesla and DJT Stock Down

Posted on March 31, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

HAPPY EASTER

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Tesla had a rough quarter

The company’s stock was the worst performing in the S&P 500 in Q1, dropping 29%, amid fierce competition from Chinese electric carmakers, slowdowns from Red Sea shipping routes, arson at its German factory, Nordic labor battles, and controversies surrounding CEO Elon Musk.

Now, investors are warily watching to see what delivery numbers Tesla reports. But one group did make lots of money off the company as it lost over $230 billion in value last quarter: short sellers.

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Donald Trump’s namesake social media company burst out of the gate on its first day of trading Tuesday, opening at $70.90 and soaring as high as $79.38 as Trump fans and opportunistic traders bought up shares. But the price faded late in the session and has bounced along at lower levels ever since, ending Thursday down $4.26 at $61.96 on the NASDAQ. The stock exchange was closed Friday in observance of Good Friday.   

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DRIPS: Disadvantages, Problems and Cons

Posted on March 29, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

DIVIDEND REINVESTMENT PLANS

By Staff Reporters

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DEFINITION

DRIPs are merely an automated strategy in which a company’s dividends are reinvested into additional shares of that company. Instead of being paid dividends in cash, you get additional shares of ownership in the company.

There are three ways to get involved in DRIPs: directly through the company, through your broker, or through a transfer agent.

Company-run DRIPs are generally only available through large, blue-chip dividend stocks.That’s because smaller companies don’t want to take on the overhead costs of tracking all their shareholders and going through the paperwork headache of calculating how much each one gets in dividends and additional fractional shares. The company benefits from gaining an additional source of capital, but most of all in creating a more stable base of shareholders, ones who are less likely to panic and sell during a market decline. This can help decrease the volatility of a company’s shares.

As a result, more and more companies are deciding to use transfer agents, which are third-party DRIP administrators such as American Stock Transfer and Trust or Computershare.

Finally, most large discount brokers, such as Scottrade, TD Ameritrade, and E*Trade, also offer DRIPs, though with different requirements and limitations.

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The Case Against DRIP Plans

While dividend reinvestment is powerful, there are a couple reasons why you might not want to reinvest your dividends.

DRIPs Drawback 1: You may need the dividend income
The most obvious reason is that you need the income. If you’re in the “distribution” phase of your investing life, dividends are a perfect source of passive income. Income from qualified dividends is taxed at the long-term capital gains rate (currently 15% for investors who are in the 25% to 35% tax bracket for ordinary income, 0% for taxpayers in a lower bracket and 20% for those in the highest bracket). So if you’re going to be looking to your portfolio for income every month anyway, it makes sense to have that cash deposited in your account.

DRIPs Drawback 2: You may need to reallocate your positions
You might also choose to stop reinvesting your dividends for allocation reasons. Reinvesting your dividends, through DRIP plans or otherwise, will cause your stock positions to grow over time, and if you’ve owned a particular issue for a long time, it may already be a large enough percentage of your portfolio. Higher-yielding positions will grow faster, which can throw your allocations out of whack pretty quickly. So once a stock position is as big as you want it to get (for now) feel free to turn off dividend reinvestment for that position, and either enjoy the extra income or save up the cash to invest in other stocks.

DRIPs Drawback 3: You may not want to buy that stock at that time
Finally, you may also have stock-specific reasons not to reinvest dividends—if a stock is temporarily overvalued, or you simply don’t want to buy any more of it at current prices.

But bottom line, reinvesting dividends through a broker or by signing up for DRIP plans directly through the dividend-paying companies, is a surprisingly powerful tool to passively improve your investment returns.

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NOTE: Former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer is on pace to earn $1 billion in dividends annually from his massive 4% stake in the software company. 

  • Steve Ballmer is on pace to collect annual dividend payments of $1 billion from Microsoft.
  • He is the former CEO of Microsoft and is the largest individual shareholder of the software giant.
  • Ballmer’s Microsoft stake has surged to a value of $128 billion this year following Microsoft’s 55% stock rally.

Other dividend billionaires include: https://www.dividend.com/dividend-education/14-executives-getting-rich-off-dividends/

So yes, DRIP plans are still worth it, as long as they fit with your investing goals.

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DAILY UPDATE: Good Friday’s Impressive First Quarter Stock Market Returns

Posted on March 29, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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The stock market will be closed Friday, March 29th, for Good Friday. While Good Friday is a stock market holiday, it is not a federal holiday. As a result, the February Personal Consumption and Expenditures (PCE) Price Index will be released this Friday morning.

Yesterday, on the final trading session of March and the first quarter, the returns for major stock indexes are impressive, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 5% this quarter or 2,000 points and the S&P 500 and the tech-heavy NASDAQ up 11% apiece. Stock superlatives for 2024’s opening stretch are numerous, including each of the three indexes setting respective all-time highs and the benchmark S&P heading toward its best first-quarter return since 2019 and its second consecutive quarter of double-digit percentage gains since 2011-12.

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Here’s where the major benchmarks ended Thursday:

  • The S&P 500 index added 5.86 points (0.1%) to 5,254.35, up 0.4% for the week; the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 47.29 points (0.1%) to 39,807.37, up 0.8% for the week; the NASDAQ Composite lost 20.06 points (0.1%) to 16,379.46, down 0.3% for the week. 
  • The 10-year Treasury note yield rose one basis point to just under 4.21%.
  • The CBOE Volatility Index® (VIX) rose 0.22 to 13.00.

For the month, the S&P 500 index gained 3.1%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 2.1%, and the NASDAQ Composite added 1.8%. For the quarter, the three indexes rose 10.3%, 5.6%, and 9.2%, respectively.

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Understanding Medical Cost Accounting

Posted on March 28, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

A Subset of Managerial Accounting

By Dr. David E. Marcinko MBA CMP®

http://www.MARCINKOASSOCIATES.com

CMP logo

SPONSOR: http://www.CertifiedMedicalPlanner.org

Managerial and medical cost accounting is not governed by generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) as promoted by the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) for CPAs. Rather, a healthcare organization costing expert may be a Certified Cost Accountant (CCA) or Certified Managerial Accountant (CMA) designated by the Cost Accounting Standards Board (CASB), an independent board within the Office of Management and Budget’s (OMB) Office of Federal Procurement Policy (OFPP).

The Cost Accounting Standards Board

CASB consists of five members, including the OFPP Administrator who serves as chairman and four members with experience in government contract cost accounting (two from the federal government, one from industry, and one from the accounting profession). The Board has the exclusive authority to make, promulgate, and amend cost accounting standards and interpretations designed to achieve uniformity and consistency in the cost accounting practices governing the measurement, assignment, and allocation of costs to contracts with the United States.

Codified at 48 CFR

CASB’s regulations are codified at 48 CFR, Chapter 99.  The standards are mandatory for use by all executive agencies and by contractors and subcontractors in estimating, accumulating, and reporting costs in connection with pricing and administration of, and settlement of disputes concerning, all negotiated prime contract and subcontract procurement with the United States in excess of $500,000. The rules and regulations of the CASB appear in the federal acquisition regulations.

North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) codes are used to categorize data for the federal government.  In acquisition they are particularly critical for size standards.  The NAICS codes are revised every five years by the Census Bureau.  As of October 1, 2007, the federal acquisition community began using the 2007 version of the NAICS codes at www.census.gov/epcd/www/naics.html

Cost Accounting Standards

Healthcare organizations and consultants are obligated to comply with the following cost accounting standards (CAS) promulgated by federal agencies:

  • CAS 501 requires consistency in estimating, accumulating, and reporting costs.
  • CAS 502 requires consistency in allocating costs incurred for the same purpose.
  • CAS 505 requires proper treatment of unallowable costs.
  • CAS 506 requires consistency in the periods used for cost accounting.

The requirements of these standards are different from those of traditional financial accounting, which are concerned with providing static historical information to creditors, shareholders, and those outside the public or private healthcare organization.

AssessmentTwo Doctors

Functionally, most healthcare organizations also contain cost centers, which have no revenue budgets or mission to earn revenues for the organization.  Examples include human resources, administration, housekeeping, nursing, and the like.  These are known as responsibility centers with budgeting constraints but no earnings.  Furthermore, shadow cost centers include certain non-cash or cash expenses, such as amortization, depreciation and utilities, and rent. These non-centralized shadow centers are cost allocated for budgeting purposes and must be treated as costs http://www.CertifiedMedicalPlanner.org

MORE:  CASE MODEL EOQ 1

Conclusion

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PODCAST: Healthcare Costs are Crazy!

Posted on March 28, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Eric Bricker MD

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“STALKING HORSE” STOCK BID: Definition with 2024 Example

Posted on March 27, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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A stalking horse bid is an initial bid on the assets of a bankrupt company. The bankrupt company will choose an entity from a pool of bidders who will make the first bid on the firm’s remaining assets. The stalking horse sets the low-end bidding bar so that other bidders can’t underbid the purchase price.

CITE: https://www.r2library.com/Resource

The term “stalking horse” originates from a hunter trying to be concealed behind either a real or fake horse.

  • A stalking horse bid is an initial bid on the assets of a bankrupt company, setting the low-end bidding bar so that other bidders can’t underbid the purchase price. 
  • Other buyers can submit competing offers following the stalking horse bid. 
  • A stalking horse bidder is afforded various incentives, such as expense reimbursements and breakup fees.

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On December 17th, 2023, after defaulting on a $617 million loan, Ebix, Inc of Atlanta Georgia, declared Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Then, Ebix Reaches “Stalking Horse” Sale Agreement for Life Insurance and Annuity Business with Zinnia to Ensure Successful Recapitalization Efforts in 2024.

LINK: https://www.ebix.com/press-release/ebix-reaches-sale-agreement-for-life-insurance-and-annuity-business-with-zinnia-to-ensure-successful-recapitalization-efforts

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DAILY UPDATE: “Digital Markets Act” Violations as Stocks Slide

Posted on March 27, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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The European Union is investigating Meta, Apple, and Alphabet for potential violations of its Digital Markets Act. And its regulators have started looking into Amazon as well.

The Digital Markets Act is the EU’s law to make the markets in the digital sector fairer and more contestable. In order to do so, the Digital Markets Act (“DMA”) establishes a set of clearly defined objective criteria to identify “gatekeepers”.

And, stocks were headed for a great Tuesday before investors sent stock indexes back down and leaving the Dow largely unchanged. Meanwhile, Donald Trump’s social media company, Truth Social, surged 16% in its first day of trading, just as the former president must pay $175 million as part of his civil fraud trial.

Here’s where the major benchmarks ended:

  • The S&P 500 index lost 14.61 points (0.3%) to 5,203.58; the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 31.31 points (0.1%) to 39,282.33; the NASDAQ Composite tumbled 68.76 points (0.4%) to 16,315.70. 
  • The 10-year Treasury note yield (TNX) fell two basis points to 4.23%.
  • The CBOE Volatility Index edged up 0.05 to 13.24.

In terms of sector performance, utilities, information technology, and energy were the weakest. Health care and financials saw relative strength.

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CHECKS: Cashier V. Certified V. Money Order V. Bank Draft

Posted on March 27, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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Types of Checks

A cashier’s check is a check drawn from the bank’s own funds, not yours, and signed by a cashier or teller. Unlike a regular check, the bank, not the check writer, guarantees payment of a cashier’s check. A cashier’s check can also be called an official check.

A certified check is a personal check that the payer’s bank has certified to be legitimate and has earmarked the funds for the check. It’s a type of “official” payment. People often confuse certified checks with cashier’s checks. … Then, the bank prints a check against the funds they are holding.

MORE: https://www.gobankingrates.com/banking/checking-account/certified-check-vs-cashiers-check/#:~:text=What%20Is%20the%20Difference%20Between%20a%20Cashier%E2%80%99s%20Check,4%20Availability%20of%20Funds.%20…%205%20Safety.%20

A money order is a method of paying for something with cash using a check from a third party. You pay for the money order, and the third party issues you a check that you can give or send to someone. This person deposits the money order in their bank account or exchanges it for cash at a business or post office.

A bank draft is a negotiable instrument where payment is guaranteed by the issuing bank. Banks verify and withdraw funds from the requester’s account and deposit them into an internal account to cover the amount of the draft. A seller may require a bank draft when they have no relationship with the buyer.

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A-POLITICAL: Investing SPAC Initial Public Offering of DJT Stock

Posted on March 26, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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Markets: The stock market kicked off its short trading week down as some investors questioned the enthusiasm around the Fed’s recent assurances that it’s still planning three rate cuts this year.

But Digital World Acquisition Corporation roared as the shell company that’s merging with Donald Trump’s Truth Social and will begin trading under its new ticker, DJT, today.

Digital World Acquisition Corp. (Nasdaq: DWAC) is a special purpose acquisition company formed for the purpose of effecting a merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or similar business combination with one or more businesses.

SPACS: https://medicalexecutivepost.com/2022/06/13/spac-v-direct-listing-v-ipo/

And, it popped after Trump got good news from a New York appeals court.

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DAILY UPDATE: Wingstop and the Markets

Posted on March 25, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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Investors hope this week on Wall Street will be as enjoyable as the last, when stocks raced higher after Fed Chair Jerome Powell previewed a series of rate cuts. Wingstop stock has surged more than 380% in the last five years.

CITE: https://www.r2library.com/Resource

Here’s where the major benchmarks ended last week:

  • The S&P 500 index sank 7.35 points (0.1%) to 5,234.18, up 2.3% for the week; the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 305.47 points (0.8%) to 39,475.90, up 2% for the week; the NASDAQ Composite rose 26.98 points (0.2%) to 16,428.82, up 2.9% for the week. 
  • The 10-year Treasury note yield dipped five basis points to 4.22%, down nearly nine basis points for the week.
  • The CBOE Volatility Index edged up 0.14 to 13.06, falling 1.34 points for the week.

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PODCAST: Health Insurance Medical Policy Explained

Posted on March 25, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

GUEST

By Eric Bricker MD

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INVESTING: Putting a Charge Back into the EV Market

Posted on March 24, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Vitaliy Katsenelson CFA

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Over the last few months, electric car sales seem to have gone from hot to cold. Hertz is dumping 20% of its 100,000 Tesla fleet, and Ford is cutting production of its F-150 Lightning. Tesla has gone from raising prices to cutting them. In fact, Tesla is reducing prices so much that the CEO of Stellantis (a merger between Fiat and Peugeot) has expressed concern that if other automakers join Tesla CEO Elon Musk in implementing similar cuts, it will result in a bloodbath for the industry.

And so, are electric cars a fad, like beanie babies, pet rocks, or fidget spinners?
The short answer is no. The full answer comes with a lot of nuance. READ HERE:

Putting a Charge Back into the EV Market

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DAILY UPDATE: Weak Sock Markets Following a Good Week

Posted on March 23, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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Investors slowed their roll yesterday but the Dow still pulled off its best week of the year. Lululemon reported a disappointing forecast and slowing US sales growth. The athleisure company suffered its worst day since March 2020.

Here’s where the major benchmarks ended:

  • The S&P 500 index sank 7.35 points (0.1%) to 5,234.18, up 2.3% for the week; the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 305.47 points (0.8%) to 39,475.90, up 2% for the week; the NASDAQ Composite rose 26.98 points (0.2%) to 16,428.82, up 2.9% for the week. 
  • The 10-year Treasury note yield dipped five basis points to 4.22%, down nearly nine basis points for the week.
  • The CBOE Volatility Index edged up 0.14 to 13.06, falling 1.34 points for the week.

Utilities, information technology, and communication services were among the strongest sectors. Real estate and financials saw relative weakness Friday.

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INVESTING: A New Era of Global Tensions

Posted on March 23, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Vitaliy Katsenelson CFA

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You don’t have to worry about the market and its crazy valuations. That’s your neighbor’s problem, not yours. In building your portfolio, we are aiming for resilience.

READ: https://investor.fm/investing-in-a-new-era-of-global-tensions/?mc_cid=e9237c7145&mc_eid=671e2735cc

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DAILY UPDATE: Apple Down but Stocks Gain

Posted on March 22, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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Stocks soared again on Thursday, pushing the major indexes to new records as tech companies over performed and investors hung onto the good vibes from this week’s Fed meeting. It was a scintillating debut for Reddit, which rocketed nearly 50% in its first day as a public company.

Here’s where the major benchmarks ended:

  • The S&P 500 index added 16.91 points (0.3%) to 5,241.53; the Dow Jones Industrial Average surged 269.24 points (0.7%) to 39,781.37; the NASDAQ Composite rose 32.43 points (0.2%) to 16,401.84. 
  • The 10-year Treasury note yield (TNX) was flat at 4.27%.
  • The CBOE Volatility Index® (VIX) dropped 0.11 to 12.93.

Industrials, financials, and energy stocks were among the strongest sectors. Utilities and communication services finished modestly lower.

Apple (AAPL) was the biggest loser in the Dow Jones Industrial Average, falling 4.1% on reports the Justice Department filed an antitrust lawsuit against the company. Other widely held stocks were mostly higher: Microsoft (MSFT) added 1%, Meta Platforms (META) gained 0.4%, and Amazon (AMZN) was unchanged on the day.

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Health Care Entity: Venture Capital Funding

Posted on March 22, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

http://www.MARCINKOASSOCIATES.com

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Venture capital funding in the digital health space cooled a bit in 2022 following a red-hot 2021. Overall, digital health companies raised $15.3 billion last year, down from the $29.1 billion raised in 2021—but still above the $14.1 billion raised in 2020, according to Rock Health a seed fund that supports digital health startups.

MORE: https://marcinkoassociates.com/fmv-appraisals/

Nevertheless, analysts predict VC investors and bankers will still put a good amount of money into digital health in 2024 and 2025, especially in alternative care, drug development, health information technology technology, EMRs and software that reduces physician workload.

CITE: https://www.r2library.com/Resource

Of course. an essential first part of attracting VC interest and money is the crafting and presentation of your formal business plan [“elevator pitch”]; as well as the needed technical and managerial experience. This is crucial for success and exactly where we can assist.

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READ MORE: https://marcinkoassociates.com/welcome-medical-colleagues/

CONTACT: MarcinkoAdvisors@msn.com

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FINANCIAL PLANNING: Next Generation for Physicians Only

Posted on March 22, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA CMP™

SPONSOR: http://www.MARCINKOASSOCIATES.com

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SPONSOR: http://www.CertifiedMedicalPlanner.org

(“Informed Voice of a New Generation of Fiduciary Advisors for Healthcare”)

For most lay folks, personal financial planning typically involves creating a personal budget, planning for taxes, setting up a savings account and developing a debt management, retirement and insurance recovery plan. Medicare, Social Security and Required Minimal Distribution [RMD] analysis is typical for lay retirement. Of course, we can assist in all of these activities, but lay individuals can also create and establish their own financial plan to reach short and long-term savings and investment goals.

But, as fellow doctors, we understand better than most the more complex financial challenges doctors can face when it comes to their financial planning. Of course, most physicians ultimately make a good income, but it is the saving, asset and risk management tolerance and investing part that many of our colleagues’ struggle with. Far too often physicians receive terrible guidance, have no time to properly manage their own investments and set goals for that day when they no longer wish to practice medicine.

For the average doctor or healthcare professional, the feelings of pride and achievement at finally graduating are typically paired with the heavy burden of hundreds of thousands of dollars in student loan debt.

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You dedicated countless hours to learning, studying, and training in your field. You missed birthdays and holidays, time with your families, and sacrificed vacations to provide compassionate and excellent care for your patients. Amidst all of that, there was no time to give your finances even a second thought.

Between undergraduate, medical school, and then internship and residency, most young physicians do not begin saving for retirement until late into their 20s, if not their 30s. You’ve missed an entire decade or more of allowing your money and investments to compound and work for you. When it comes to addressing your financial health and security, there’s no time to waste.

And you may be misled by unscrupulous “advisors”.

READ HERE: https://marcinkoassociates.com/financial-planning/

RELATED: https://medicalexecutivepost.com/2023/12/15/doctor-are-you-a-financial-advisors-customer-or-client/

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DAILY UPDATE: Kroger Selling Pharma Business as Nvidia and Stock Markets Rise

Posted on March 21, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

CHERRY BLOSSOM FESTIVAL, DC.

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KROGER, the supermarket chain said it expects to close the sale of its specialty pharmacy business during the second half of 2024. Kroger said it is planning to sell its speciality pharmacy business to pharmacy benefit manager CarelonRx, a subsidiary of Elevance Health, the company just reported.

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Nvidia continues its bid for world domination with the announcement of its new B200 “Blackwell” chip. The Blackwell is 2.5 times more powerful than the “Hopper” chip which helped it become a $2 trillion company. (Bloomberg)

Here’s where the major benchmarks ended:

  • The S&P 500 index added 46.11 points (0.9%) to 5,224.62; the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 401.37 points (1%) to 39,512.13; the NASDAQ Composite rose 202.62 points (1.3%) to 16,369.41. 
  • The 10-year Treasury note yield slid two basis points to 4.27%.
  • The CBOE Volatility Index®(VIX) fell 0.77 to 13.06.
     

Health care was the biggest loser among the S&P 500 sectors. Energy was also lower after crude oil prices sank on the heels of weekly inventory data. Brent Crude Oil (/BZ) futures, the global benchmark, dropped 1.6% on the heels of five days of gains.

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DAILY UPDATE: Medicare Payment Policy and Inflation as the Stock Markets Gain

Posted on March 20, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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MEDICARE: https://www.medpac.gov/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Mar24_MedPAC_Report_To_Congress_SEC.pdf

The producer price index (PPI) rose 0.6% for the month, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics—double the Dow Jones estimate, CNBC reported. February’s larger-than-expected PPI uptick follows a more modest 0.3% increase in January and a 0.1% decline in December. On an annual basis, the PPI increased 1.6%, “the largest rise since moving up 1.8% for the 12 months ended September 2023,” according to the BLS.

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Here’s where the major benchmarks ended:

The market had a good Tuesday, with stocks climbing as investors await word from the Fed meeting today on any changes to interest rates. The bank is expected to keep rates the same for now, but could signal when (or how often) it’ll lower them later in the year. Meanwhile, Nordstrom shares surged following a report that the retailer’s founding family wants to take it private.
 

  • The S&P 500 index added 29.09 points (0.6%) to 5,178.51; the Dow Jones Industrial Average® ($DJI) gained 320.33 points (0.8%) to 39,110.76; the NASDAQ Composite® ($COMP) rose 63.34 points (0.40%) to 16,166.79.
  • The 10-year Treasury note yield (TNX) eased four basis points to just under 4.3%.
  • The CBOE Volatility Index® (VIX) lost 0.50 to 13.83. 

The energy sector was the top performer after crude oil prices notched multi-month highs ahead of weekly inventory data from the American Petroleum Institute. After a 2% rally to start the trading week, Brent Crude Oil (/BZ) futures, the global benchmark, added another 0.6% Tuesday.

Industrials, consumer discretionary, and utilities were among the other strong sectors. Communications, real estate, and materials finished modestly lower.

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DAILY UPDATE: Stock Markets Up Before FOMC Meeting

Posted on March 19, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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Stocks started the week off strong yesterday as tech companies rose. Chipotle, Progressive, and more hit all-time highs. Tesla got a boost after announcing higher prices for its Model Y in the US and parts of Europe.

Here’s where major benchmarks ended yesterday:

  • The S&P 500 index rose 32 points (0.6%) to 5,149.42; the Dow Jones Industrial Average ($DJI) gained 75.66 points (0.2%) to 38,790.43; the NASDAQ Composite jumped 130.27 points (0.8%) to 16,103.45. 
  • The 10-year Treasury note yield rose nearly four basis points to 4.34%. 
  • The CBOE Volatility Index® (VIX) dipped 0.08 to 14.33.

All but two S&P 500 sectors finished in the green, with communications, information technology, consumer discretionary, and consumer staples leading the advance. Health care and real estate finished modestly lower.

Crude oil prices rose to multi-month highs on the heels of stronger-than-expected industrial production data from China and concerns over potential supply disruptions.

According to Reuters, a Ukrainian strike sparked a fire at the Slavyansk refinery in Krasnodar on Saturday and ongoing attacks have now idled around 7% of Russia’s refining capacity so far this year. Brent Crude Oil (/BZ) futures, the global benchmark, gained 2% Monday.

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DAILY UPDATE: Salesforce Health Care AI and the National Association of Realtors Rebuke

Posted on March 18, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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Salesforce just announced new AI solutions for health-care workers that could help automate some of the manual administrative tasks that are driving physician burnout. READ MORE

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On Friday, National Association of Realtors (NAR) agreed to pay $418 million over the next four years to settle several lawsuits alleging it artificially inflated realtor commissions. Included in the deal is a policy change that will likely obliterate agents’ 5%–6% commissions.

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DAILY UPDATE: Reddit IPO

Posted on March 17, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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Stat: $748 million. That’s how much Reddit plans to raise ahead of its upcoming IPO, where the company is seeking an approximate $6.5 billion valuation. After a couple of rocky IPO years, investors have been hotly anticipating Reddit’s IPO, which would mark the first social media IPO since Pinterest’s in 2019.(CNBC)

But, The FTC is investigating Reddit’s policies of licensing data for training AI, the company said Friday as it gears up for an IPO.

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HAPPY ST. URHO’S DAY

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DAILY UPDATE: Stocks Slide

Posted on March 16, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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Stocks fell yesterday after this week’s inflation data made investors worried about high prices. Tech companies took a hosing, especially Adobe, which dropped after releasing a weak sales forecast.

Here’s where the major benchmarks ended:

  • The S&P 500 index fell 33.39 points (0.7%) to 5,117.09, down 0.1% for the week; the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 190.89 points (0.5%) to 38,714.77, down 0.02% for the week; the NASDAQ Composite fell 155.36 points (1.0%) to 15,973.17, down 0.7% for the week.
  • The 10-year Treasury note yield (TNX) rose about 1 basis point to 4.308%.
  • The CBOE Volatility Index® (VIX) rose 0.01 to 14.41.

Tech weakness sent the NASDAQ-100® (NDX), which includes the NASDAQ’s biggest non-financial companies, down 1.2% to its lowest level in over three weeks. The small-cap-focused Russell 2000® Index (RUT) bounced Friday but still ended the week with a 2.1% loss, breaking a two-week winning streak. Energy companies extended a recent rally behind climbing crude oil prices, pushing the Philadelphia Oil Services Index (OSX) up almost 5% for the week to its highest level since early November. 

In other markets, the U.S. dollar strengthened behind expectations the Fed will keep interest rates high. The U.S. dollar index ($DXY) posted a gain of 0.7% for the week.

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What is TOKENIZATION?

Posted on March 16, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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Tokenization is the process of converting an asset or the ownership rights of an asset to a unique unit called tokens. Tokens are commonly referred to when discussing blockchain technology, where they are used to indicate the ownership of a valuable asset. 

Tokens can indicate ownership of tangible assets, like art, or they can indicate ownership of intangible assets, such as shares in a company or voting rights. Tokenization can occur for any item that is deemed valuable. 

Tokens can then be used to transfer ownership of an asset, make payments and complete other financial tasks. An example of tokenization would be Bitcoin. It is a popular cryptocurrency that uses tokens to represent how much BTC a person owns.

Tokenization began as a type of data security for businesses that replaces sensitive information with unique, non-sensitive data. Tokens don’t contain the original data, but they usually share similar characters or formatting. 

A user would need access to the tokens that are connected to the separately-stored originals in order to restore the tokens and view the secured data. Otherwise, a user would not be able to decipher the token to view the data. Therefore, they can be useful for securing personal information, financial transaction data and other sensitive data.

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There are multiple types of blockchain tokenization and non-blockchain tokenization.

Blockchain Tokenization

Types of blockchain tokenization include:

  • Fungible tokenization. These are standard blockchain tokens. They have identical values, so they can easily replace one another — think of swapping one dollar for another dollar.
  • Non-fungible tokenization. These are less common blockchain tokens that do not have a set value. Instead, they represent ownership of an asset, such as digital art or real estate, that determines the value of the token.
  • Governance tokenization. These tokens represent voting rights and can be used to vote and collaborate on a blockchain system.
  • Utility tokenization. These tokens are used to give access to certain products and services on a specific blockchain, so they can be used to complete actions like paying transaction fees or operating a decentralized market system. 

Non-blockchain Tokenization

Types of non-blockchain tokenization include:

  • Vault tokenization. This is the standard type of tokenization to protect payment information, where the token is used to process payments without providing card numbers or other data.
  • Vaultless tokenization. This is a type of tokenization used for payment processing that doesn’t require a token vault for storage. Instead, it uses cryptographic devices and algorithms to convert data to a token.
  • Natural language processing tokenization. This type of tokenization breaks information down into simpler terms to make it more easily understood by computers. It includes word, sub word and character tokenization.

While tokenization began with the idea of protecting data assets using non-blockchain tokenization, it has developed into a way to protect the ownership of many other types of assets by using blockchain technology.

MORE: https://www.blockchain-council.org/blockchain/what-is-tokenization/

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DAILY UPDATE: The Ides of March as Stock Markets Slide

Posted on March 15, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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Stocks fell yesterday after another round of hotter-than-expected inflation data chilled investors. But it was a tremendous Thursday for sporting goods store Dick’s, as it soared 15% after posting its largest sales quarter in history in Q4, thanks in part to consumers buying more expensive items.

Here’s where the major stock benchmarks ended:

  • The S&P 500 index fell 14.83 points (0.3%) to 5,150.48; the Dow Jones Industrial Average® ($DJI) declined 137.66 points (0.4%) to 38,905.66; the NASDAQ Composite shed 49.24 points (0.3%) to 16,128.53.
  • The 10-year Treasury note yield (TNX) rose about 10 basis points to 4.292%.
  • The CBOE Volatility Index® (VIX) rose 0.65 to 14.40.

Technology shares remained under pressure, as a pullback in Nvidia (NVDA) and other chip makers sent the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index (SOX) down almost 2% to its lowest close of the month. Nvidia fell 3.2% Thursday and has dropped nearly 10% from a record intraday high of $974 last Friday. Banks and small-cap stocks were also among the market’s weakest performers.

“Tech shares appear to be going through a corrective phase following last Friday’s key reversal day in Nvidia. The question remains whether a potential correction in tech will spill over into the broader market or whether money will rotate into other areas of the market.”

In other markets, WTI crude oil futures (/CL) extended this week’s rally with a gain of 1.7% and ended slightly above $81 per barrel, its highest level since early November. Oil’s strength has been driven by an unexpected drop in U.S. inventories and concerns over supply disruptions after Ukrainian strikes on oil refineries in Russia.

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PI: Happy Day!

Posted on March 14, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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Each Pi Day, we recall Akira Haraguchi, who in 2016 set the unofficial world record for reciting the most digits of pi: 100,000 over more than 16 hours. He did it by mentally linking each digit with a syllable and creating a collection of epic stories from the words those syllables formed.

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DAILY UPDATE: Warm Inflation Mixes Stocks

Posted on March 14, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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DEFINITION: Creeping, or mild, inflation occurs when prices rise slowly. According to the Federal Reserve, when prices increase by 2% or less, it benefits economic growth. This kind of mild inflation makes consumers expect that prices will keep going up, which boosts demand.

And so, inflation was a bit warmer last month as consumer prices rose 3.2% in February, the Labor Department just reported, up from the 3.1% that economists expected. That marks the second straight month that inflation came in higher than forecast. The data reinforces the Fed’s position to wait until inflation is tamed before cutting interest rates. Still, the central bank is widely expected to cut rates sometime later this year despite yesterday’s less-than-ideal report. It will meet next week to continue deliberations on a potential rate reduction.

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Here’s where the major benchmarks ended:

  • The S&P 500® index (SPX) fell 9.96 points (0.2%) to 5,165.31; the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 37.83 points (0.1%) to 39,043.32; the NASDAQ Composite® (COMP) declined 87.87 points (0.5%) to 16,177.77.
  • The 10-year Treasury note yield (TNX) rose almost 4 basis points to 4.192%.
  • The CBOE Volatility Index® (VIX) fell slightly to 13.75. 

Energy shares were among the market’s strongest performers Wednesday behind gains in crude oil prices. Brent crude futures (/BZ), the global benchmark, rose above $84 to end at their highest level since early November after Ukrainian strikes on oil refineries in Russia stirred concern over supply disruptions. The S&P Energy Index ($SP500#10) jumped 1.5% and reached its highest level since late October, while the S&P 500 Materials Index ($SP500#15) rose almost 1% and ended at a record high.

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DAILY UPDATE: Inflation Upticks as Big Pharma Blocks Medicare Price Negotiations and Stocks Soar with Nvidia and Oracle!

Posted on March 13, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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Big pharma sues over California drug price law

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Pharmaceutical companies have filed a slew of suits around the country to get federal judges to invalidate a government program aimed at lowering drug costs for seniors by allowing Medicare to negotiate prices, as is the norm in many other countries, according to the Washington Post. The companies argue it’s unconstitutional and would inhibit their ability to develop new treatments.

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The Federal Reserve is looking for steady, reliable signs that inflation is simmering down before it cuts interest rates this year. So far, 2024 has not delivered. Data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics on Tuesday showed prices rose 3.2 percent over last year, slightly outpacing forecasts of 3.1 percent. Prices also rose 0.4 percent in February over the previous month — in line with expectations, but still hotter than economists would like to discern.

Stocks swung up on Tuesday as investors shrugged off a middling inflation report and looked ahead to next week’s Fed meeting. Meanwhile, Oracle went sky-high, posting its best day since 2021 after demand for AI prompted a huge increase in sales for its cloud computing business.

Here’s where the major benchmarks ended:

  • The S&P 500® index (SPX) gained 57.33 points (1.1%) to 5,175.27; the Dow Jones Industrial Average® ($DJI) added 235.83 points (0.6%) to 39,005.49; the NASDAQ Composite® (COMP) climbed 246.36 points (1.5%) to 16,265.64.
  • The 10-year Treasury note yield (TNX) rose about 5 basis points to 4.155%.
  • The CBOE Volatility Index® (VIX) fell 1.38 to 13.84.

Chip makers’ bounce-back helped boost the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index (SOX) more than 2%, as it recovered part of a 5% drop the previous two trading days. Industry leader Nvidia (NVDA) jumped over 7%. Consumer discretionary and communications services shares were also among the strongest areas. Regional banks and real estate were among the weakest sectors as the CPI data spurred an upturn in Treasury yields.

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PODCAST: Secret to Health Insurance Company Profits

Posted on March 13, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

INTER COMPANY ELIMINATIONS

By Eric Bricker MD

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DAILY UPDATE: Boeing Down as Stocks End Mixed

Posted on March 12, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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Stocks were mixed yesterday as investors looked ahead to what today’s government inflation data will bring. Boeing took a dive and the stock is down 24% this year.

Here’s where the major benchmarks ended:

  • The S&P 500® index (SPX) fell 5.75 points (0.1%) to 5,117.94; the Dow Jones Industrial Average® ($DJI) gained 46.97 points (0.1%) to 38,769.66; the NASDAQ Composite® (COMP) declined 65.84 points (0.4%) to 16,019.27.
  • The 10-year Treasury note yield (TNX) was up almost 1 basis point to 4.096%.
  • The CBOE Volatility Index® (VIX) rose 0.45 to 15.19. 

Chip maker weakness sent the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index (SOX) down 1.36% Monday following a 3.5% drop Friday, when the benchmark initially set a record intra-day high above 5,217. The index is still up 17% this year.

Other sectors outside of tech extended recent strength, including the Dow Jones Utility Index ($DJU), which gained for the fourth straight day and ended at its highest level since February 1. The S&P Energy Index ($SP500#10) reached its highest level since late October, while the S&P 500 Materials Index ($SP500#15) advanced over 1% to its highest post in nearly two years.

CITE: https://www.r2library.com/Resource

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ACOs: Participation Up in 2024

Posted on March 12, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Health Capital Consultants, LLC

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On January 29, 2024, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced that Performance Year 2024 participation increased in their various accountable care organization (ACO) initiatives. Specifically, 50 new ACOs joined the Medicare Shared Savings Program (MSSP), and 71 ACOs renewed their contracts, bringing the total participation in the MSSP to 480 ACOs.

Additionally, 245 organizations chose to continue participation in two other CMS models – the ACO Realizing Equity, Access, and Community Health (REACH) Model and the Kidney Care Choice (KCC) Model.

CITE: https://www.r2library.com/Resource

This Health Capital Topics article reviews the CMS report and implications for CMS’s ACO initiatives. (Read more…) 

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