KQQQ: Management Shifting In The Wrong Direction
Kurv Technology Titans Select ETF (KQQQ) has been downgraded to Sell as its aggressive covered‑call strategy inflates risk and undercuts performance. The fund’s distribution yield surged to 18.72% but hinges on volatile option premiums, raising sustainability concerns. A 0.99% expense ratio further erodes net returns, making more stable tech‑income ETFs attractive in today’s choppy market. Recent underperformance versus the benchmark QQQ and peer covered‑call funds underscores the management shift toward higher‑yield, riskier trades.
GOLY: Gold And Fixed-Income Exposure Wrapped In One Paying 7% Distribution Yield
The Strategy Shares Gold Enhanced Yield ETF (GOLY) combines gold, commodity, and fixed‑income exposure using leverage to deliver a trailing‑twelve‑month distribution yield near 7%. Unlike many gold‑focused ETFs, GOLY does not write options, instead relying on bond income and capital...
IAI: AI May Be Coming After Broker-Dealers (Rating Downgrade)
Analyst Mike Zaccardi downgrades the iShares US Broker‑Dealers & Securities Exchange ETF (IAI) to hold as momentum in broker‑dealer equities wanes. The fund’s price‑to‑earnings ratio improves to 19.3×, but its PEG stays above 1.5×, keeping valuation away from deep‑value levels....
Could Nvidia Double in 6 Months? Here's What History Says.
Nvidia’s stock is hovering near a 24‑times forward‑earnings multiple, its cheapest level in almost a year, as investors await the FY2026 earnings release. The company posted $130 billion in revenue last year, a 114% year‑over‑year surge, and maintains gross margins above...
Toll Brothers Nabs West Chelsea Development Site for $53M
Toll Brothers purchased the 118 Tenth Ave. site in Manhattan’s West Chelsea for $53 million. The 85,000‑square‑foot parcel, adjacent to the High Line, is one of the last undeveloped lots in the sub‑market. The acquisition follows a shift from office‑centric plans to residential...
US Interior Guts Environmental Reviews for Oil, Gas Drilling
The U.S. Department of the Interior finalized a rule on Monday that slashes the time required to secure oil and gas drilling permits on federal lands. The regulation trims environmental review periods, limiting National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) assessments to...
Trading Volumes Have Surged in Leveraged Funds, Options Since the Pandemic, Data Shows
Leveraged fund and options trading volumes have accelerated sharply since the COVID‑19 pandemic, with Direxion projecting average daily leveraged‑fund turnover of $1.41 billion in 2025—up more than 130% from 2024 and 250% from 2020. Options activity is expected to hit 58 million...
Uber’s Latest Effort to Become a Super App Is All About Parking
Uber announced it will acquire parking‑reservation platform SpotHero, integrating spot‑booking directly into the Uber app. The transaction, expected to close in the first half of 2026, does not disclose financial terms. SpotHero operates in over 400 U.S. and Canadian cities,...
Brentwood Apartments Trade for $825K Per Unit
Institutional Property Advisors arranged the sale of Luxe Villas, a 60‑unit multifamily building in Brentwood, Los Angeles, for $49.494 million, or $824,900 per unit. The transaction is one of only three post‑2000, 50‑plus‑unit deals in Brentwood over the past 25 years....
What Elon Musk Gets Right About Risk — and the 4 Investing Moves People Over 50 Should Avoid
Elon Musk’s high‑profile ventures illustrate a disciplined risk framework that can be adapted for personal finance. While Musk can absorb multi‑year burn rates, most investors—especially those nearing retirement—must manage tighter time horizons and liquidity constraints. Translating his emphasis on scenario...
Four Strong Covered Call Equity ETFs
Covered‑call equity ETFs are gaining attention for delivering yields that exceed typical equity funds while still offering modest upside potential. The article highlights four notable funds, with Amplify's DIVO standing out due to its 4.9% distribution rate, quality‑focused U.S. holdings,...
World Markets Watchlist: February 23, 2026
Global equity indexes show mixed year‑to‑date performance as of February 23 2026. Japan’s Nikkei 225 leads with a 12.9% rise, followed by the UK’s FTSE 100 (+7.6%) and Canada’s TSX (+6.5%). In contrast, India’s BSE SENSEX records the largest decline at –2.3%. The watchlist also...
GEICO Selects Development Team to Revamp Chevy Chase Campus
GEICO has agreed to sell its 26‑acre Chevy Chase campus to Bethesda‑based developer EYA, which will lead a joint venture with Washington, D.C. firm JM Zell Partners. The partnership will transform the former corporate site into a transit‑oriented development featuring...
Clean Energy Sector Sorts Out US Tariff Ruling Impacts
Last week the U.S. Supreme Court invalidated most of the tariffs imposed by the Trump administration on clean‑energy imports. The decision instantly altered market expectations for solar panels, wind turbine components, and battery materials that had been adjusting to higher...
This Desert Metro Has One of the Largest Drops in Household Size
The National Association of Realtors identified the Lake Havasu City‑Kingman, AZ metro as having the steepest decline in average household size over the past decade, dropping from 2.47 in 2014 to 1.96 in 2024—a 20.6% reduction. Median home prices hover...
State Bill Could End Tax Break for Large Digital Lenders
Washington State’s House Bill 2089 seeks to restore dwindling wildfire‑prevention funding by revoking a tax deduction that currently benefits large digital mortgage lenders. The deduction, originally crafted for community banks, generated $91.6 million in savings in 2024, with 65 % captured by...
Ryman Hospitality Properties, Inc. Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2025 Results
Ryman Hospitality Properties reported record Q4 and full‑year 2025 results, posting $737.8 million in quarterly revenue and $2.6 billion for the year. Adjusted EBITDAre rose 18.9% YoY to $224.3 million in Q4 and $794.7 million annually, while net income reached $74.5 million and $247.3 million respectively....
COFINA Bondholder Case Against Insurers Is Set Back
A federal judge in Connecticut dismissed a lawsuit filed by former COFINA bondholders against insurers Ambac, MBIA and related subsidiaries, citing a lack of personal jurisdiction. The ruling allows plaintiffs to refile a second‑amended complaint against MBIA Inc. by March 6,...
Homebuying Power Hits Highest Level in Nearly 4 Years
Homebuying power in the United States reached its highest level in nearly four years, driven by a decline in mortgage rates and modest inventory growth. A median‑income household can now afford a $331,483 home with a 20% down payment, roughly...
IShares Moves Short-Term Bond ETFs to the Big Board
iShares has moved four of its short‑term fixed‑income ETFs—SGOV, SHV, PMMF and GMMF—from the electronic NYSE Arca platform to the NYSE’s hybrid floor model. The funds total roughly $96 billion in assets, with SGOV alone managing $75 billion and attracting about $6 billion of...
Servicers Offer Support as Nonagency Gets More Competitive
Traditional lenders are eyeing the expanding non‑agency mortgage market as originations have roughly tripled in recent years, driven by growing appetite for non‑owner‑occupied and non‑QM loans. Securitization activity surged 78% in 2025, while delinquencies on non‑QM assets have risen above...
BKGI: An Outperforming ETF In An Important Asset Class
The BNY Mellon Global Infrastructure Income ETF (BKGI) delivers active, worldwide infrastructure exposure through 33 holdings and a 0.55% expense ratio. Over the past three years it generated a 19.4% annualized return, beating its S&P Global Infrastructure benchmark’s 13.6% return. The...
Fake Skincare, Phony SSA Emails and Amazon Prime Cons on the Rise
Scammers are exploiting the popularity of Korean beauty brands, the credibility of the Social Security Administration, and Amazon Prime’s reach to launch counterfeit product, phishing, and shopping fraud schemes. Fake K‑beauty listings mimic Medicube, Anua and Beauty of Joseon, often...
Poor Judgment or a Principled Stand? Susan Rice's Spat with Trump Dissected
Former U.S. national security adviser Susan Rice, a Netflix board member, publicly criticized President Donald Trump on a podcast, prompting the president to demand her removal from the board. The outburst coincides with Netflix’s $82.7 billion bid to acquire Warner Bros....
Cybersecurity Stocks Are the Latest AI Victim. Analysts Say Buy the Dip
Cybersecurity stocks slumped after Anthropic unveiled Claude Code Security, a code‑scanning AI tool, prompting the iShares Cybersecurity ETF to fall more than 3% and major names like CrowdStrike, Okta and Cloudflare to lose 8‑9% in a single day. The sell‑off continued, with...
France’s Nuclear Pivot Serves as Catalyst for NUKZ
France has reversed its plan to close 14 reactors, opting instead to extend its existing fleet and build at least six new EPR2 units. EDF’s preliminary cost estimate for the first six reactors now stands at €72.8 billion, underscoring the scale...
India’s Carbon Capture Moment Has Arrived
India’s 2026‑27 Union Budget earmarked roughly $2.4 billion (₹20,000 crore) for a national carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS) programme targeting steel, cement and other heavy‑industry emitters. The funding marks a shift from research‑only projects to a full‑scale industrial strategy, driven by...
Are the US and Iran Moving Closer to War?
U.S. forces are assembling their largest deployment since the 2003 Iraq invasion as diplomatic overtures continue with Iran. Both sides have scheduled talks for Thursday, while Tehran declares openness to dialogue but also readiness for war. President Donald Trump's mixed...
DAF Exploring Lease Opportunities for Data Centers in Alaska
The Department of the Air Force is assessing interest in leasing land at three Alaska installations—Joint Base Elmendorf‑Richardson, Eielson Air Force Base, and Clear Space Force Station—for large‑scale commercial data centers. The Request for Information, released Feb 17, seeks vendor input...
Eastern Arkansas Faces Sharp Decline in Rice Plantings
Eastern Arkansas rice growers are projected to plant only 900,000‑925,000 acres this spring, a sharp drop from the usual 1.3‑1.4 million and the lowest level since the 1983 Payment‑in‑Kind program. AgHeritage Farm Credit’s Greg Cole attributes the decline to persistently...
USDA Reports Good Start to Egg Production in 2026
The USDA reported that U.S. egg production began 2026 on a strong footing, with 9.196 billion eggs produced in January, a 2% year‑over‑year increase. Both the total number of laying hens and output per 100 hens rose about 1%, reaching 374.6 million...
Kazakh Journalists Are Being Fined for Surveying Public Opinion on the Upcoming Referendum
Kazakh authorities have fined journalists and a media outlet for conducting online polls about the March 15 constitutional referendum, citing violations of the country’s referendum‑survey law. The Prosecutor General’s Office requires pre‑approval for any poll, a rule that has blocked...
Trump’s Cuba Policy Is Backing Mexico Into a Corner
President Donald Trump issued an executive order declaring a national emergency over Cuba and threatening tariffs on any nation that continues supplying oil, effectively targeting Mexico, Cuba’s primary oil source. In response, Mexico halted its daily oil shipments to Cuba,...
Chinese Stocks And The FXI After The Supreme Court Ruling On U.S. Tariffs
The U.S. Supreme Court struck down the Trump administration’s tariffs, sparking a rally in Chinese equities and the iShares China Large‑Cap ETF (FXI). FXI now trades at a blended P/E of 13.27 and a 2.37% yield, well below the S&P...
Alphabet Sits At Center Of AI And Robotaxi Shifts
Alphabet has reached an agreement to embed its Gemini AI model in Apple’s upcoming Siri, creating a new licensing revenue stream. Simultaneously, Waymo clarified that its robotaxis are never remotely driven, with remote staff providing only high‑level guidance to address...
With Three Contestants, the Globe’s New Great Game Is On
Analysts label today’s geopolitical rivalry a "New Great Game" pitting the United States against a China‑Russia alliance. The contest spans Central Asia, the Middle East, the Arctic and the Indo‑Pacific, driven by competition for fossil fuels, rare‑earth minerals and strategic...
Soaring Tanker Costs Force West African Oil Price Cuts
West African crude traders are slashing discounts as freight rates to Asia surge to a five‑year peak and the Brent‑Dubai exchange‑for‑swaps (EFS) spread widens to about $2 per barrel. The higher shipping costs and broader EFS premium have pushed West...
David Ellison's Paramount Has some Breathing Room in Its Quest to Buy WBD Despite a Pressing Deadline
Paramount Skydance, led by David Ellison, is still courting Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) even though a shareholder vote is set for March 20. Netflix, the rival bidder, gave WBD a one‑week waiver on exclusivity, allowing direct talks with Paramount but...
Kazakhstan to Supply Fresh Uranium to India Under New Deal to Fuel Nuclear Power Plants
Kazakhstan’s state‑controlled miner Kazatomprom announced a new contract to supply fresh uranium to India, reinforcing the latter’s nuclear fuel pipeline. The deal follows earlier agreements that delivered 2,100 tonnes in 2009 and 5,000 tonnes between 2015‑19. While exact volumes were...
First Indian Diesel Cargo Arrives in Europe After New Russian Sanctions Take Effect
A tanker chartered by Reliance delivered about 100,000 tons of diesel to Rotterdam, marking the first Indian petroleum fuel cargo to reach the Amsterdam‑Rotterdam‑Antwerp hub since the EU imposed sanctions on Russian‑crude derived products. The vessel, Proteus Bohemia, loaded in India’s...
New Research Says: Apple Could Be Safe From AI Bubble Fears
Apple’s stock has outperformed the broader tech market, rising about 17% over the past six months while the Nasdaq‑100 and AI‑heavy peers lagged. Bloomberg research shows Apple’s correlation with the Nasdaq‑100 has fallen to its lowest level since 2006, suggesting...
U.S. Crop Sector Expected to Face a Challenging 2026
U.S. crop producers face a tough 2026 as input costs stay elevated and policy uncertainty squeezes margins, according to Ohio State economist Carl Zulauf. He highlights that the global stocks‑to‑use ratio now outweighs domestic ratios in determining profitability. USDA chief...
USDA Reports a Big Week for U.S. Corn Export Inspections
The USDA reported a record week of U.S. corn export inspections, with more than 2 million tons shipped out of ports during the week ending Feb 19. Japan, South Korea and Mexico accounted for the bulk of the shipments, underscoring strong Asian...
World Bank Plans to Pump $10bn Into Mozambique
The World Bank announced a $10 bn financing package for Mozambique, including $6 bn of mostly concessional public‑investment funding and an additional $4 bn earmarked for private‑sector projects. A $921 m grant from the International Development Association’s 21st replenishment is also part of the...
Govt Plans Study to Assess Impact of Formalisation on Workers
The Indian government has commissioned a study to evaluate how rapid formalisation and digital transformation are affecting workers, especially those in the informal sector. The finance ministry tasked the labour ministry and EPFO to conduct the research through the Pandit...
Tech Trying Investors’ Patience, But The Sector’s Still a Must-Own
The Nasdaq‑100 has slipped about 1.8 % year‑to‑date, yet it still boasts an 82 % gain over the past five years, prompting investors to question tech’s short‑term outlook. Bank of America stresses that the sector’s fundamentals remain strong, citing a 23.33 % return...
Beyond the Pipeline: Why Park City’s Growth Is a Function of Scale, Not Oversupply - By Katy Black
Park City is witnessing a surge of residential and hotel construction, highlighted by Deer Valley’s East Village project that will deliver 800 hotel rooms and 1,700 luxury units. The region’s skiable acreage will near 20,000 acres, outpacing the combined terrain...
Dallas Apartment Tower Sells To Kushner Cos.: The DFW Deal Sheet
Kushner Cos., the family firm of Jared Kushner, purchased the 28‑story, 330‑unit Eastline Residences luxury apartment tower in Dallas from Convexity Properties. The high‑rise has sustained roughly 95% occupancy since its 2021 delivery and posted about 4% rent growth over...
Evercore Sees Microsoft Growing FCF 5% as Hyperscaler Capex Jumps 58%
Evercore ISI projects Microsoft’s free cash flow to grow 5% in 2026 while hyperscaler capital spending jumps 58% to over $700 billion. In contrast, Amazon, Google, Meta and Oracle are expected to see FCF declines, whereas Nvidia and Apple are forecast...
Transaction in Own Shares
Shell plc announced on 23 February 2026 that it repurchased 1,028,319 of its own shares for cancellation, executing trades on six European venues. The GBP‑denominated purchases (LSE, Chi‑X, BATS) were made at volume‑weighted average prices around £29.54 per share, while...