Markus Andrews

Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. 

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Here’s what CNBC TV’s producers were watching as Nvidia lifted the Nasdaq Composite, and what’s on the radar for the next session.

Nvidia

Nvidia reports after the bell on Wednesday.
The stock ended Tuesday at $147.01, up nearly 5% on the day. It was just shy of the $149.77 high it hit on Nov. 8.
The stock is up 13% in three months.
It is up 196% so far in 2024.

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Nvidia shares in 2024

Target

The retail giant reports Wednesday before the bell.
The stock is up nearly 8% over the past three months.
Target is up 9.5% in 2024.
Walmart reported solid results Tuesday morning and raised guidance. The stock was up 3% and hit a new high. Shares are marginally lower in after hours.

Goldman Sachs

CEO David Solomon will be on CNBC TV Wednesday in the 11 a.m. hour ET.
The stock is 4.25% from last week’s high.
Goldman Sachs is up 12.3% in November.

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Goldman Sachs in 2024

Delta Air Lines

Ed Bastian, the airline’s CEO, will be on in the 6 a.m. hour.
The company is holding an investor meeting.
Delta Air Lines is up 13% in November and up about 61% so far in 2024.
United Airlines hit a high mark not seen since July 2019. It is up 122% in three months, and the stock added another 4.3% on Tuesday.

Blackstone

The investment firm is buying Jersey Mike’s Subs. The news broke Tuesday morning.
Blackstone was up 1% in the session, hitting a new high.
It is up 10% in November.
The stock was a big winner in the second half of Donald Trump’s first term as president. It was up 470% from 2019 to 2021.

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Blackstone shares in the past three months

War

The U.S. admiral in charge of American forces in the Asian-Pacific region was talking about the U.S. supply of air defense anti-missiles on Tuesday. Reuters reported that Admiral Sam Paparo said overseas fighting is “eating into stocks and to say otherwise would be dishonest.” He said it is hurting the readiness of U.S. forces to respond if something bad were to start happening in his region of responsibility.
By now, you also know that Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a change in official nuclear policy that seemingly lowers the threshold for when it might consider using those weapons.
RTX is the main maker of the Patriot missile system, which is capable of shooting down enemy missiles. The stock is 7.6% from the 52-week high hit last month.
Lockheed Martin has contracts with the military. It is expected to increase anti-missile production in the next few years. The stock is 14% from the October high.
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries does the same thing involving the Patriot Missile System in Japan. The stock is 5% from the October high.
This isn’t directly related to missile defense, but AeroVironment makes drones. CEO Wahid Nawabi was on “Mad Money” Tuesday night with Jim Cramer. The stock is 17.6% from the high hit just last week.

Utilities

Three utility companies hit all-time highs on Tuesday: NiSource, Sempra and Vistra.
NiSource is up 15.5% in three months. They have natural gas customers in the great state of Maryland, Virginia, Ohio, Kentucky, Pennsylvania and Indiana.
Shares of Sempra are also up 15.5% in three months. The company’s customers are mostly in California and Texas.
Vistra is up about 92% in three months, and it has gained nearly 24% in November alone. Vistra owns nuclear power plants and solar facilities. More

Lenders often encourage federal student loan borrowers to enroll in automatic payments, offering them a slightly lower interest rate if they do so.
But a new report from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau shows that the companies can pull incorrect amounts from borrowers’ bank accounts, and that wait times for refunds can stretch on for months.

Boogich | E+ | Getty Images

Lenders often encourage federal student loan borrowers to enroll in automatic payments. It can seem like a good idea to do so: Borrowers don’t need to worry about missing a payment and often get a slightly lower interest rate in exchange.
However, the decision can backfire in a lending space plagued by problems that have “harmed millions of borrowers,” according to a new report by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

“Unfortunately, autopay errors were one of the most widespread, basic and consequential servicer errors we saw this year,” CFPB Student Loan Ombudsman Julia Barnard told CNBC. “These errors are incredibly costly and completely unacceptable.”
In some cases, borrowers had money pulled from their bank accounts despite never consenting to autopay, Barnard said. Other autopay users saw incorrect amounts taken or were charged multiple times in the same month.
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CNBC wrote in 2023 about a woman who was supposed to have a $0 monthly student loan payment under the plan she was enrolled in, but was charged $2,074 one month. After that unexpected debit, she worried she wouldn’t be able to pay her mortgage.
In March, one borrower told the CFPB that their student loan servicer took $6,897 from their account when they only owed $1,048.

“Borrowers have told the CFPB that these errors have made it hard or impossible for them to cover basic needs like food, medical care and rent,” Barnard said.

What borrowers can do about autopay errors

Despite the issues some student loan borrowers experience, higher education expert Mark Kantrowitz recommends that people remain enrolled in the automatic payments.
After all, it’s one of the only ways to get an interest rate discount, he said. The savings is typically 0.25%.
In addition, he said, “they are less likely to be late with a payment.”
But some borrowers on a tight budget may prefer to forgo those benefits to make sure they’re not overcharged, experts said.

There are steps you can take to protect yourself from incorrect billing, Kantrowitz said.
You can set up an alert with your bank and get notified whenever a debit occurs over a certain amount. If you set that amount a little under what your student loan bill should be, you can use that alert to check that the debit was correct each month and also have a record of your payment history, which can be especially helpful to those working toward loan forgiveness, Kantrowitz said.
If your loan servicer takes the wrong amount from your bank account, you should immediately contact the servicer and demand a refund, Kantrowitz said. You should also ask your servicer to cover any late fees from bounced checks or an overdraft, he said.
Unfortunately, Barnard says, the CFPB has heard from borrowers who weren’t able to get a timely refund.
“We’ve seen instances where borrowers have waited months or even years to receive a refund related to autopay errors,” she said.
As a result, she also suggests borrowers reach out to their bank about the incorrect payment.
“The borrowers’ financial institution may be able to quickly resolve errors in autopay amounts,” she said, so long as the borrower notifies them within 10 business days of the amount being debited.
If you run into a wall with your servicer, you can file a complaint with the Education Department’s feedback system at Studentaid.gov/feedback. Problems can also be reported to the Federal Student Aid’s Ombudsman, Kantrowitz said. More

Congressional lawmakers will soon debate expiring tax breaks and new promises from President-elect Donald Trump.
The debate could be complicated amid competing priorities and concerns over the federal budget deficit.
“This is a lot more complicated than just the reds against the blues,” said Howard Gleckman, a senior fellow at the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center.

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with House Republicans at the Hyatt Regency hotel in Washington, D.C., on Nov. 13, 2024.
Allison Robbert | Via Reuters

Congressional lawmakers will soon debate expiring tax breaks and new promises from President-elect Donald Trump.
Agreeing on cuts and spending, however, could be a challenge.

With a majority in the House of Representatives and Senate, Republican lawmakers can pass sweeping tax legislation through “reconciliation,” which bypasses the Senate filibuster. Republicans could begin the budget reconciliation process during Trump’s first 100 days in office.
But choosing priorities could be difficult, particularly amid the federal budget deficit, policy experts said Tuesday at a Brookings Institution event in Washington.
Legislators will be “representing their districts, not their party,” Howard Gleckman, a senior fellow at the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center, said Tuesday in a panel discussion at the Brookings event.
“This is a lot more complicated than just the reds against the blues,” he said.
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‘Political divisions’ could be a barrier

With a slim majority in Congress, Republican lawmakers will soon negotiate with several blocks within their party. Some of these groups have competing priorities.
Enacted by Trump in 2017, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, or TCJA, is a key priority for the next administration.
Without action from Congress, trillions of tax breaks from the TCJA will expire after 2025. These include lower tax brackets, higher standard deductions, a more generous child tax credit, bigger estate and gift tax exemption, and a 20% tax break for pass-through businesses, among other provisions.

The more things you try to bring in, the more potential political divisions we have to navigate.

Molly Reynolds
senior fellow in Governance Studies at Brookings Institution

Tax bill could take longer than expected

Since budget reconciliation involves multiple steps, policy experts say the Republican tax bill could take months.
Plus, Congress has until Dec. 20 to fund the government and avoid a shutdown. A stopgap bill could push the deadline to January or March, which could take time from Trump’s tax priorities.
“The idea that they’re going to do this in 100 days, I think, is foolish,” Gleckman said. “My over-under is Dec. 31, 2025, and that might be optimistic.”
However, the bill could get through by Oct. 1, 2025, which closes the federal government’s fiscal year, other policy experts say.

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The Education Department said the 2025-26 FAFSA is now available to all students and families, ahead of schedule.
Students should file the FAFSA as soon as they can, experts say.

This week, the new Free Application for Federal Student Aid expanded its “phased rollout” so all students can now apply for aid for the upcoming academic year.
Up until Monday, the 2025-26 FAFSA was only available to limited groups of students in a series of beta tests that began on Oct. 1.

Now, the form is open to all and the Department of Education has said it will be out of testing entirely by Nov. 22 — which puts the official launch ahead of schedule. Since Monday, more than 50,000 forms have been successfully submitted, according to a department official.
Typically, all students have access to the coming academic year’s form in October, but last year’s new simplified form wasn’t available until late December after a monthslong delay.
This year, the plan was to be available to all students and contributors on or before Dec. 1.
Students who submit a form during this final “expanded beta” phase before Nov. 22 will not need to submit a subsequent 2025–26 FAFSA form, the Education Department said.
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There are still some issues with the new form, some of which also plagued last year’s college aid application cycle, but they all have workarounds, according to higher education expert Mark Kantrowitz.
Altogether, this year’s rollout is “much better than last year,” he said. 
Last year, complications with the new form resulted in some students not applying at all. Ultimately, that meant fewer students went on to college.

Why it’s important to file the FAFSA early

“Students should take full advantage of the early rollout and submit their FAFSA as soon as possible,” said Shaan Patel, founder and CEO of Prep Expert, which provides Scholastic Aptitude Test and American College Test preparation courses.
The earlier families fill out the form, the better their chances are of receiving aid, since some financial aid is awarded on a first-come, first-served basis, or from programs with limited funds.
“The earlier you apply, the better your chances of securing more aid that doesn’t need to be repaid,” Patel said.
“Submitting early also means you’ll receive your financial aid award letters sooner,” he said. “This gives you ample time to compare offers from different schools and make an informed decision without feeling rushed. Finally, knowing your child’s financial aid status earlier reduces stress and allows your family to focus on other important aspects of college preparation.”

For many students, financial aid is key.
Higher education already costs more than most families can afford, and college costs are still rising. Tuition and fees plus room and board for a four-year private college averaged $58,600 in the 2024-25 school year, up from $56,390 a year earlier. At four-year, in-state public colleges, it was $24,920, up from $24,080, the College Board found.
The FAFSA serves as the gateway to all federal aid money, including federal student loans, work-study and especially grants — which have become the most crucial kind of assistance because they typically do not need to be repaid.
Submitting a FAFSA is also one of the best predictors of whether a high school senior will go on to college, according to the National College Attainment Network. Seniors who complete the FAFSA are 84% more likely to enroll in college directly after high school, according to an NCAN study of 2013 data. 

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Few Americans — even millionaires — feel confident about their financial standing.
High costs and home prices and have made it harder to feel rich.

Inflation is cooling and wages are rising. Yet, few Americans — including millionaires — feel confident about their financial standing.
Across all income and asset levels, 89% of Americans said they do not consider themselves wealthy, according to Fidelity Investments’ State of Wealth Mobility study. Fidelity polled 1,900 adults in August.

“Only one-tenth of Americans consider themselves wealthy today — despite many having considerable wealth,” said Rich Compson, head of wealth solutions at Fidelity Investments.
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For most Americans, the definition of what it means to be wealthy is relatively modest, with 71% saying being wealthy is simply the ability to not have to live paycheck to paycheck.
Roughly 57% said wealth also entails traveling and taking vacations, while 56% said it’s being able to pass down money to the next generation.
Nearly half — 49% — said feeling wealthy meant the ability to own a home, Fidelity found.

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For high-net worth individuals, or those with $1 million or more in savings and investable assets not including real estate or retirement funds, more households associated wealth with traveling and fewer said a major criterion for feeling wealthy was not living paycheck to paycheck.
Surprisingly, the same share — 49% — said being wealthy meant owning a home.

Obstacles to feeling wealthy

Housing affordability has become a major hurdle.
High home prices and higher mortgage rates along with low inventory have put ownership just out of reach for many households.
One “silver lining” is that affordability has improved somewhat since October 2023, when mortgage rates were near 8%, according to a new analysis by Freddie Mac.

Jose Luis Pelaez Inc | Digitalvision | Getty Images

Although vacationing has also gotten more expensive, Americans are still determined to travel.
Travel spending among households continues to outpace its pre-pandemic levels, some reports show.
However, concerns about high prices are playing a larger role in keeping some would-be vacationers home. Those that are travelling have had to adjust their budgets accordingly, spending roughly 10% more compared to 2023, according to another study by Deloitte.

Rising debt is another threat to wealth

At the same time, rising consumer debt has weighed on household balance sheets. Nearly half, 44%, of Americans said credit card debt is the biggest threat to their ability to build wealth, according to a separate report by Edelman Financial Engines.
Americans now owe a record $1.17 trillion on their credit cards, and the average balance per consumer stands at $6,329, up 4.8% year over year, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and TransUnion, respectively.

“High interest rate credit card debt, more than other sorts of debt, is a savings killer, because when you have it, you have to feed the beast. You can’t save, you can’t invest,” Jean Chatzky, personal finance expert and CEO of HerMoney.com, told CNBC in September.
“That stands in the way of people building actual wealth and therefore feeling wealthier,” she said.

What it would take to feel rich

Most people — roughly 65% of those polled — said they would need $1 million in the bank to consider themselves wealthy, although 28% said it would take at least $2 million and 19% put the bar at $5 million or more, Edelman Financial Engines found.
Among current millionaires, 68% said they would need at least $3 million and 40% said feeling wealthy would require $5 million of more.
Edelman Financial Engines polled more than 3,000 adults over age 30 from June 12 to July 3, including 1,500 affluent Americans with household assets between $500,000 and $3 million.
When it comes to their salary, 58% of all of those surveyed said they would need to earn $100,000 on average to not worry about everyday living expenses, and a quarter said they would need to earn more than $200,000 to feel financially secure.
In most cases, feeling financially secure is not based on how much you earn, but rather a commitment to save more than you spend, maintain a well-diversified portfolio and work with a financial advisor, experts often say.
“Having confidence in being able to invest strategically is what often separates those who feel they are wealthy from those who don’t,” said Fidelity’s Compson. “Improved confidence starts with education and planning.”
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Some last-minute holiday travelers are leaning into so-called “Travel Tuesday” — or the Tuesday after Cyber Monday and Black Friday.
Travel Tuesday falls on Dec. 3 this year. 
Yet there may be some limitations. Here’s what to know.

If you still haven’t booked your holiday travel plans, take note: Prices tend to rise the closer you get to the days you’re looking to travel. 
To afford holiday trips, about 50% of respondents are cutting back on other expenses while 49% are picking up discounts and deals, according to the 2024 Holiday Travel Outlook by Hopper, a travel site.

Some last-minute holiday travelers are leaning into so-called “Travel Tuesday” — or the Tuesday after Cyber Monday and Black Friday — which falls on Dec. 3 this year.
Search interest for Travel Tuesday rose more than 500% from 2021 to 2023, according to a recent report by McKinsey and Company.
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There’s a reason why shoppers are searching for the term.
Last year, 83% more deals were offered on Travel Tuesday versus Cyber Monday and 92% more than Black Friday, according to Hopper data.

Yet, there may be some limitations on the deals available, experts say.
“The challenge for a lot of people is, ‘Do I wait?'” said Sally French, a travel expert at NerdWallet. 
For travelers who are set on specific days and places to visit, the answer might be “no.”
“While airlines and online travel agencies are going to offer flight deals on Travel Tuesday, there is no reason to wait,” said Phil Dengler, co-founder of The Vacationer, a travel platform.
How much you benefit from potential discounts on Travel Tuesday will depend on your flexibility, experts say. 
“If you have zero flexibility,” said Hayley Berg, economist at Hopper, then “if you see a good deal before Travel Deal Tuesday, feel free to book it.” 

How Travel Tuesday works

People wait in line for security checkpoints ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday at O’Hare International Airport in Chicago, Illinois, U.S. November 22, 2023. 
Vincent Alban | Reuters

Similar to Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales, Travel Tuesday deals sometimes begin to roll out before the day itself, said Dengler. They might even stretch into the day after. 
Nonetheless, you will typically need to book the flight, hotel stay or cruise trip by the end of the day in order to reap the benefits, he said. 
As you shop, make sure to read the fine print in case discounts only apply for certain routes and days, Dengler explained. 
Retailers often have a limited stock for Black Friday and Cyber Monday doorbusters. With Travel Tuesday, there may be a limited number of airline seats or hotel rooms, NerdWallet’s French said.
“They’re not going to fly two planes on the same route at the same time,” she said.

‘Be ready’ to book

Travel Tuesday might be better suited for deciding when and where you’ll go for an upcoming vacation in 2025, versus a very specific itinerary home over the holidays.
If you are not flexible on the days and destinations you plan to travel to and you find a flight available at a price you’re comfortable with, “book that trip right now,” French said. 
“If you wait until Travel Tuesday, then that deal could be gone,” she said. “You don’t want to wait for Travel Tuesday for it to be sold out.”
In some cases, it doesn’t hurt to book ahead and keep browsing for potential price drops, experts say.
You typically have 24 hours from booking to cancel for a full refund as long, as it’s seven days before a flight’s scheduled departure time, Dengler said. Plus, some airlines don’t have change fees for non-basic economy fares, he said.
If those terms are in your favor, “if you see a better deal on Travel Tuesday, simply cancel your current bookings and book the Travel Tuesday offer,” Dengler said.

On the flip side, if you’re less tied to specific dates and places, but have a general sense of where and when you want to travel, then holding off until discount days may be worthwhile.
“We tend to see the deals do get better and better the closer we are to actual Black Friday or actual Travel Tuesday,” French said.
The biggest takeaway for travelers is to start thinking about what you might want to book, Berg said. 
“I really encourage travelers to do that exploration now so that on Travel Deal Tuesday, they can be ready to actually book,” she said. More