Markus Andrews

Billionaire investor Bill Ackman told The Wall Street Journal he would “absolutely” do a deal with X, the social media platform previously known as Twitter.
Ackman’s novel investment vehicle, called a SPARC, got regulatory approval from the Securities and Exchange Commission on Friday.
Ackman posts on X regularly, on a wide range of topics, including his support for presidential candidates Vivek Ramaswamy and Robert Francis Kennedy Jr.

Bill Ackman, Pershing Square Capital Management CEO, speaking at the Delivering Alpha conference in NYC on Sept. 28th, 2023.
Adam Jeffery | CNBC

Billionaire investor Bill Ackman would “absolutely” do a deal with X, the social platform previously known as Twitter, with his newly approved investment vehicle, Ackman told The Wall Street Journal in a story published on Sunday.
On Friday, Ackman announced that the Securities and Exchange Commission approved his new financing vehicle, which he is calling a SPARC — a special purpose acquisition rights company. In a SPARC, investors will know what company the financing vehicle would be used to merge with before they have to pledge their investments.

“If your large private growth company wants to go public without the risks and expenses of a typical IPO, with Pershing Square as your anchor shareholder, please call me,” Ackman said in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter. “We promise a quick yes or no.”
Ackman told the Journal that he would “absolutely” consider using his newly formed SPARC to invest in X, the social media platform previously known as Twitter.
A spokesperson from Pershing Square Capital Management, Ackman’s investment firm, told CNBC the company had nothing further to add other than what was in the Journal story.
Investors interested in the SPARC were directed to follow Bill Ackman’s account on X for more information, according to the press release announcing the regulatory approval of the investment vehicle.
Ackman posts regularly on a wide variety of topics on X, including his support for U.S. presidential candidates Vivek Ramaswamy and Robert Francis Kennedy Jr., his assertion that he married the “female version of Elon Musk.”

While Ackman uses X regularly and told the Journal he would embrace using his newly formed investment vehicle to merge with X, the implications of being a public company make it unlikely that X would actually pursue the deal, according to Alan D. Jagolinzer, a professor of financial accounting at the University of Cambridge Judge Business School.
“Taking X public would expose X to financial and governance regulatory transparency and accountability; which is why I’m skeptical it’ll happen,” Jagolinzer said in a post on X.

Read the full story on The Wall Street Journal website here. More

The pandemic-era pause on federal student loan payments ends Sunday, leaving as many as 40 million Americans on the hook for a new monthly bill.
Economists caution that the impact on households and the economy remains largely uncertain, but retailers and lenders are bracing for a hit.
“The economy will struggle in the fourth quarter, in meaningful part due to the end of the student loan payment moratorium,” said Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Analytics.

Student loan forgiveness advocates rally outside the U.S. Supreme Court building in Washington, D.C., after the nation’s high court struck down President Joe Biden’s student debt relief program, June 30, 2023.
Kent Nishimura | Los Angeles Times | Getty Images

Ryan Moran, a nurse in Jacksonville, Florida, hasn’t thought about his federal student loans in years. But this month, he’s scrambling to figure out how to make room in his budget for his $500 monthly bill.
He and his wife, Amelia, plan to dine out less and to skip the football games they love to attend. His grocery bills will also need to shrink.

“And it’s not only consumption that decreases,” said Moran, 26. “Increasing monthly payments means I have to work overtime, taking time away from my family.”
The pandemic-era pause on federal student loan payments ends Sunday, leaving as many as 40 million Americans on the hook for a new monthly bill they haven’t needed to make in more than three years.
More from Personal Finance:How federal shutdown may affect Social Security, MedicareShutdown may ‘substantially disrupt’ restart of student loan billsWhite House wants to remove medical bills from credit reports
Economists caution that the impact on households and the economy remains largely uncertain, as there is little precedent for borrowers getting such a long break from their loan bills. But as the Biden administration ramps up repayment of the more than $1.7 trillion in federal student loan debt, retailers and lenders are bracing for a hit.
American households will get their first bills during an especially volatile period, with the highest interest rates in decades, workers on strike across the country and a looming government shutdown.

“The economy will struggle in the fourth quarter, in meaningful part due to the end of the student loan payment moratorium,” said Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Analytics.

‘Additional pressure on already strained budgets’

Financial services firm Jefferies is warning that “there could be a significant risk to consumer spending ahead,” because of the resumption of student loan payments. It recently surveyed about 600 consumers with student debt, finding that half of borrowers are “very concerned” about meeting all of their expenses.
Around 70% of borrowers plan to postpone big-ticket purchases come October, its poll found. Meanwhile, many people with student debt plan to cut back their spending on clothing, travel and food.

“As we go into the holiday season, this will be an extra drag on retail spending,” said Brett House, a professor at Columbia Business School.
The Biden administration had hoped to ease the transition back to loan payments by forgiving up to $20,000 in student debt for many borrowers, but the Supreme Court blocked that policy in June.
President Joe Biden is pursuing another path to cancel people’s debt, but it’s expected to be a lengthy process.
Scott Mushkin, founder and CEO of R5 Capital, a consumer research consulting firm, estimates that starting in October, around $7 billion to $8 billion per month will be reallocated to student loan payments.
“It’s definitely a challenge,” Mushkin said, pointing out that retailers that cater to educated consumers are most at risk.

Macy’s Herald Square store in New York is shown on Aug. 21, 2023.
View Press | Corbis News | Getty Images

Macy’s CEO Jeff Gennette mentioned student loans in the company’s earnings call in August.
“I think there are some headwinds coming, particularly with student loan[s], that expiration of the loan forgiveness,” Gennette said.
And during Target’s most recent earnings call, CFO Michael Fiddelke said that “the upcoming resumption of student loan repayments will put additional pressure on the already strained budgets of tens of millions of households.”

‘The payment shocks will be significant’

“The payment shocks will be significant” for borrowers and lenders, said Liz Pagel, senior vice president and head of TransUnion’s consumer lending business.

Many student loan borrowers have taken on additional debt during the payment pause, according to a recent study by the credit reporting company. Nearly a third of people with student debt put a balance on a new retail credit card over the last three years, it found. Around 15% took out a personal loan.
“These additional credit products mean additional monthly payments, which may pose added challenges,” Pagel said. The typical student loan bill is around $350 a month, but at least 10% of borrowers have a payment of over $700.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has also found that student loan borrowers have fallen deeper into debt during the pandemic, with more than half of borrowers holding higher monthly debt-related expenses than they did before the pause on bills began in March 2020.
More than 1 in 13 borrowers are currently behind on their other payment obligations, the CFPB says.
“These borrowers might be unable to make payments on their student loans if they are already missing payments on their credit cards or auto loans,” Kentia Elbaum, a spokesperson for the CFPB, said in a previous interview.
— Additional reporting by CNBC’s Melissa Repko. More

Shantanu Narayen, CEO, Adobe.
Mark Neuling | CNBC

Investors are grappling with uncertainty after a difficult September left the major averages reeling.
However, the current scenario also offers an opportunity to pick stocks that could generate attractive returns despite short-term pressures.

To that end, here are five stocks favored by Wall Street’s top analysts, according to TipRanks, a platform that ranks analysts based on their past performance.

Adobe

Software giant Adobe (ADBE) recently reported fiscal third-quarter earnings. The company is experiencing strength in subscriptions to its cloud-based software offerings.
Impressed with the quarter’s print, Deutsche Bank analyst Brad Zelnick boosted his price target for ADBE stock to $610 from $550 and reaffirmed a buy rating. The analyst said the results reinforce his view of Adobe as a winner in an emerging generative artificial intelligence world.  
Ahead of the results, Adobe announced the commercial availability of its Firefly generative AI offering and increased the pricing of its Creative Cloud product to reflect the integration of the new AI features. The analyst said that this pricing strategy could drive the adoption of the core Creative Cloud product with the embedded generative AI tools, which is better than selling the new features separately.
“This strategy should enable creatives to better appreciate the productivity benefits of generative AI more quickly, and make Firefly-powered generative AI offerings a critical part of their workflows, creating competitive differentiation as well as increasing the overall value of Creative Cloud,” said Zelnick.

The analyst also sees additional monetization opportunities through new standalone offerings like GenStudio. 
Zelnick ranks No.50 among more than 8,500 analysts tracked by TipRanks. His ratings have been profitable 71% of the time, with each delivering a return of 15.5%, on average. (See Adobe’s Technical Analysis on TipRanks)   

Salesforce

Zelnick is also bullish on another cloud software vendor: Salesforce (CRM). The analyst reiterated a buy rating on the stock with a price target of $260 following the company’s Dreamforce annual conference and investor meetings with the CEO of a Salesforce consulting partner and a global consulting firm executive.
He said that the Dreamforce event emphasized Salesforce’s leadership in AI customer relationship management (CRM), supported by a combination of “trust, data and interoperability.” (See Salesforce Hedge Fund Trading Activity on TipRanks).
The analyst noted that data cloud commentary from partners was optimistic, based on real demand and ongoing implementations.             
“With strong pricing power, unparalleled access to enormous trusted data, an eventual rotation back to front office spending, as well as management’s laser-focus on margins and cash flow growth, we believe Salesforce shares are poised to outperform,” said Zelnick.

Pinterest

Image-sharing platform Pinterest (PINS) held its investor day on Sept.19. At the event, the company said that it expects a compound annual growth rate in the mid to high teens for its revenue and an earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization margin that is in the low 30% range over the next three to five years.
Baird analyst Colin Sebastian noted that management expects an upside to its long-term targets if the underlying trends improve. The analyst highlighted that the shopping experience remains vital in the company’s overall strategy. Specifically, 96% of searches on Pinterest are unbranded, providing advertisers a huge opportunity to target users, with more than 50% of them using the platform to shop.
“Importantly, the Amazon ads integration seems to be going well, exceeding management’s initial expectations, with Pinterest using its recommendation engine to target Amazon ads at its own users,” added Sebastian.
The analyst reaffirmed a buy rating on PINS stock and a price target of $34, with a valuation that reflects rapid growth rate, an early stage of market share gains, as well as significant cash flow generation over the long term.
Sebastian ranks 328th out of more than 8,500 analysts tracked on TipRanks. Also, 54% of his ratings have been profitable, with an average return of 11.7%. (See Pinterest Blogger Opinions & Sentiment on TipRanks) 

Microsoft

Tech giant Microsoft (MSFT) recently made several announcements spanning its Microsoft 365 Copilot, Bing, Windows and Surface products.
Goldman Sachs analyst Kash Rangan thinks that the developments announced by the company reflect solid execution against its Copilot product roadmap and the strength of its OpenAI partnership.
“Microsoft’s speed to market, strong presence across the tech stack and well-established footprint within the enterprise give us confidence that Microsoft is well positioned to drive growth on the back of these announcements and be a key leader in the Gen-AI era,” said Rangan.
The analyst thinks that the company should be able to capture a solid part of its more-than-$135 billion total addressable market within Microsoft 365, with additional opportunities across its Azure, Windows, Dynamics and Bing/Edge offerings. He reiterated a buy rating on MSFT with a price target of $400.
Rangan holds the 509th position among more than 8,500 analysts on TipRanks. His ratings have been profitable 58% of the time, with each delivering an average return of 8.5%. (See Microsoft Financial Statements on TipRanks)

FedEx

We end this week’s list with logistics giant FedEx (FDX). The company recently reported fiscal first-quarter earnings that beat expectations, but a decline in revenue due to macro pressures. The bottom line benefited from the company’s cost-reduction initiatives.
Evercore analyst Jonathan Chappell, who holds the 156th position out of more than 8,500 analysts on TipRanks, noted the improvement in the company’s full-year earnings guidance range, despite the lower revenue outlook. The earnings outlook was fueled by the cost reductions under FedEx’s DRIVE program that is targeting savings of $1.8 billion in fiscal 2024.
Chappell said that FedEx grabbed about 400,000 packages of volume from its closest peer (UPS), with a lower possibility of these share gains reversing immediately. Further, FedEx gained almost 5,000 shipments per day from the liquidation of a key competitor (Yellow).
The analyst said, “FDX continues to build a track record of execution on its ambitious cost-cutting and efficiency targets, rendering the equity as a unique investment opportunity for when demand returns.”
Chappell maintained a buy rating on FDX and raised his price target to $291 from $276, saying that FDX remains his top pick. His ratings have been successful 65% of the time, with each rating delivering an average return of 19.7%. (See FedEx Insider Trading Activity on TipRanks).   More

Choja | E+ | Getty Images

Company: Azenta (AZTA)

Business: Azenta is a life sciences company that operates through two segments. First, there’s the life sciences products division, which offers automated cold sample management systems for compound and biological sample storage, equipment for sample preparation and handling, consumables and instruments that help customers in managing samples throughout their research discovery and development workflows. Then, there is the life sciences services segment, which provides comprehensive sample management programs, integrated cold chain solutions, informatics and sample-based laboratory services to advance scientific research and support drug development. The services include sample storage, genomic sequencing, gene synthesis, laboratory processing, laboratory analysis, biospecimen procurement and other support services.
Stock Market Value: $3.02B ($50.19 per share)

Activist: Politan Capital Management

Percentage Ownership: 6.87%
Average Cost: $44.83
Activist Commentary: Politan Capital Management was founded by Quentin Koffey. Most recently, Koffey led the activism strategy at Senator Investment Group. Prior to that, he led the activist practice at D.E. Shaw, and before that he was at Elliott Associates. Koffey is operating Politan more like a private equity fund than a traditional long-short equity hedge fund, as it can draw down locked-up capital to give it enough time to accomplish its goals through active engagement with boards and management teams to improve governance, operations or strategic direction. Politan looks for high quality businesses that underperform their peers or potential. These businesses also have a clear fix and a defined pathway to implement that solution. This is Politan’s second 13D filing and third activist campaign, all of which have been in the health-care sector.

What’s happening?

Politan has engaged in discussions with the Azenta board and management team regarding the company’s business, operations, financial condition, strategic plans, governance and other matters.

Behind the scenes

Azenta (formerly known as Brooks Automation) is not a new company. It has been around for nearly half a century. For decades it operated as a leading automation provider and partner to the global semiconductor manufacturing industry. On Feb. 1, 2022, Azenta sold its semiconductor automation business to Thomas H. Lee Partners, L.P. for about $3 billion. Today, it focuses exclusively on the life sciences businesses. Now, the company produces and services cold storage solutions and is the largest provider in its markets. 

Following the sale of the semiconductor business, the company had $2.7 billion of net cash on its balance sheet. Azenta used approximately $1 billion of that for stock buybacks and roughly $500 million to acquire B Medical, a temperature-controlled storage and transportation solutions business. That leaves them today with $1.1 billion in net cash and a $3.0 billion market cap. One-third of the company is cash, and investors want to know how it plans to deploy that capital. And they do have some cause to be concerned. While the share buyback was well advised, the acquisition of B Medical – which was completed on Oct. 3, 2022 – was not well received by the market. When the transaction was first announced on Aug. 8, 2022, the stock dropped over 10% through the following two days. Additionally, Azenta has missed guidance repeatedly, estimating double-digit margins and strong revenue growth, and falling woefully short on both metrics. This has put more pressure on the stock, which has dropped from $69.01 per share prior to the B Medical acquisition announcement to $50.77 prior to Politan’s 13D filing, a total of 26.4%. Over the same time, the S&P 500 has returned 8.1%.
Azenta has a very strong core business. The problems it is experiencing all revolve around the excess cash on the balance sheet. First, with one-third of the market cap of the company sitting in cash, it is impossible to accurately value Azenta when there is no clear direction for how that capital will be put to work. This is exacerbated by using $500 million on an acquisition that the market did not appear to agree with. This makes the company un-investable for many investors, not because they do not believe in management or think management is doing a bad job, but because of the uncertainty over such a big part of its asset base. However, this same dynamic creates an opportunity for activist investors. By getting a shareholder representative on the board who has a history of not only safeguarding, but growing shareholder value, it will give the market confidence that the capital will be put to an accretive use. This alone can change a company from trading at a discount to trading at a premium.
The second issue with the company is revenue growth and operating margins. The growth hurdles are not as much of an absolute issue as a relative one. Azenta’s top line has been growing, just not as fast as the company’s guidance. This also can be alleviated by adding board members with experience in communicating to the investor world. Further, operating margins have been significantly compressed, particularly versus guidance, but this is often a problem with companies that have an excess amount of cash. Companies that get a sudden influx of cash often lose the discipline to rein in costs as there is no urgency to operate on a tight budget. Putting a good portion of the cash to use wisely would not only create shareholder value, but it would force management to be more disciplined in their spending. This would lead to better operating margins that are more in line with management guidance.
If Politan is investing $200 million into a company that has one-third of its market cap in net cash, we expect the firm will want a seat at the table to advise on how that cash should be spent. We also believe that other shareholders would want the same. This is something management should want, too. Let’s make one thing clear that is often misunderstood in activist situations: Just because Politan filed a 13D and just because the firm is meeting with management, does not mean that it is critical of management. It also does not necessarily mean that the firm is not on the same page as management. It is very possible that both Politan and management want to do what is best for the share price and both value the other’s opinion, and we see a quick appointment to the Azenta board. However, if that is not the course taken, Politan has shown that it has conviction in its investments and will not shy away from a proxy fight. Given the company’s recent performance and the facts of this situation, we do not think it will come to that. Azenta’s director nomination deadline is Nov. 2, so we will not have to wait that long for an answer.  
Ken Squire is the founder and president of 13D Monitor, an institutional research service on shareholder activism, and the founder and portfolio manager of the 13D Activist Fund, a mutual fund that invests in a portfolio of activist 13D investments. Azenta is owned in the fund. More

83% of Gen Z workers consider themselves job hoppers, ResumeLab found.
Despite short-term benefits to job hopping, younger workers should be mindful of their long-term savings often linked to current and former employers.
“When you’re job hopping, it’s really easy to forget older accounts. You may forget to move or roll them out,” said Shaun Williams, partner and private wealth advisor of Paragon Capital Management based in Denver.

Office communication is becoming far more casual, and Gen Z is leading the shift, new research has found.
Aleksandargeorgiev | E+ | Getty Images

Generation Z is embracing frequent job changes, or job hopping, as a career approach.
In fact, 83% of surveyed Gen Z workers consider themselves job hoppers, according to ResumeLab, which polled more than 1,100 workers born between the mid-1990s and early 2010s. They view job hopping as a strategy to acquire new skills, face new challenges and seek environments that align with their values, the resume- and cover letter-building website found.

More from Personal Finance:Tim Scott suggests striking workers should be firedCorporate pensions are at their healthiest in more than a decadeThis big-ticket purchase may be a ‘grenade,’ advisor warns
However, it’s important for these workers not to lose sight of their long-term savings programs, such as 401(k) plans, linked to previous employers.
“When you’re job hopping, it’s really easy to forget older accounts. You may forget to move or roll them out,” said certified financial planner Shaun Williams, partner and private wealth advisor of Paragon Capital Management based in Denver. The firm is ranked No. 57 on the CNBC FA 100 list this year. 

Job hopping: pros and cons

Workers who frequently change jobs tend to increase their salaries faster than employees who stay in companies for longer, said CFP Sophia Bera Daigle, founder of virtual firm Gen Y Planning in Austin, Texas. Starting a new job is the best time to negotiate a higher salary, bonuses and perks, added Bera Daigle, who is also a member of CNBC’s Advisor Council.
Job hoppers earned increasingly more than job stayers during the Covid-19 pandemic, but gains have languished. Wages for “job switchers” were 5.6%, as wages for “job stayers” slid 5.2%, according to Atlanta Fed data.

However, job hopping won’t necessarily make work difficulties disappear. If there is a value disconnect at your current employer or if you want a raise, talk to your manager to try and address these concerns before you hunt for a new role, said Daigle, a member of the CNBC FA Council.
“Don’t complain to people who can’t help you. Bring concerns to your manager,” she added.

‘Take action with your old 401(k)’

More than half, 56%, of Americans in the workforce feel behind on their retirement savings, while 22% haven’t made retirement contributions in at least a year, according to a Bankrate survey.
As your funds keep growing for your retirement, keeping tabs on your old workplace accounts after you switch jobs can help ensure you aren’t losing track of those accounts over time.

“It’s important to take action with your old 401(k),” said Daigle.
Job hoppers typically have a few options for when they leave: keep their old 401(k) plan open with their old employer, roll it into an IRA, transfer it to the new employer’s plan or cash it out, said Williams. However, cashing out your retirement savings may not be in your best interest, he added. “That is the most detrimental thing job hoppers could do,” he said.
Here are three considerations for job hoppers looking to manage retirement accounts:

Your new employer may not accept rollovers from other 401(k) plans. Rolling over your 401(k) from a previous job may be a good move, but some companies may not allow it. Check before you take steps to initiate a rollover from your old plan.
A Roth individual retirement account may be a smart bet for younger workers. If you want to move your old 401(k) into an IRA, consider a Roth IRA. While you will owe taxes now to convert pretax funds to a Roth IRA, now may be a “great time” for young workers, who are likely in a lower tax bracket than they will be at retirement, said Daigle.
401(K) matches from your new employer may not belong to you. Companies use different timelines or “vesting” schedules to determine how long it takes for savers to fully own the employer contributions, said Daigle. In some cases, it can take five or six years. “Call your 401(k) provider and ask how vested you are in the 401(k) match and learn how much you’d get” if you left your job, said Daigle. More

Your Money

Women tend to think of themselves as savers rather than as investors.
Over time, not taking enough risk may reduce their wealth.
Here’s what one long-time portfolio manager says women can do to change that.

Tim Robberts | Digitalvision | Getty Images

When it comes to money, women tend to think of themselves as savers rather than investors. Having that perspective can affect women’s ability to grow wealth over time.
“The biggest risk to women’s portfolios is that we don’t take enough risk,” said Nancy Tengler, CEO and chief investment officer of Laffler Tengler Investments in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Tengler, who has served as a portfolio manager for more than 40 years, said she noticed women of all professions — from business executives to doctors to even a rodeo queen — would recoil when she told them what she does for a living.
Their common response was usually something like, “Oh, my husband handles that,” according to Tengler.
The reaction inspired Tengler to write her book, “The Women’s Guide to Successful Investing,” which was first published in 2014 and has been recently updated with a second edition.
“Women make better investors than men,” Tengler said, and are often less benchmark driven, willing to do more research and are open to changing their minds.

More from Women and Wealth:

Here’s a look at more coverage in CNBC’s Women & Wealth special report, where we explore ways women can increase income, save and make the most of opportunities.

Women investors tend to achieve positive returns and outperform men by 40 basis points, according to research from Fidelity Investments, based on an analysis of annual performance for 5.2 million accounts. Yet the firm also found women tend to hold too much cash on the sidelines and often feel they need to know more before they invest.

There are reasons why women should stay actively involved in the management of their household finances, according to Tengler. The average age of a woman’s first divorce is 30, while the average age of a widow is 59.
Tengler experienced this firsthand when she became a widow at 59.
Women are more likely than men to be hit with “financial curveballs” in retirement, according to recent research from Edward Jones and AgeWave.
“Women are less prepared to begin with for retirement,” said Lena Haas, head of wealth management advice and solutions at Edward Jones. “Women are hit with curveballs more frequently, and they’re less equipped to make adjustments in the financial area.”
For women who experience these life-changing events, it can be even more difficult if they are acquainting themselves with their investment portfolio for the first time, Tengler said.
To get started now, Tengler offers some advice.

1. Be willing to take more risk

Women are poised to amass greater wealth. By this year, it is estimated women will control $93 trillion in assets globally, according to Tengler, citing research from the Boston Consulting Group.
As individuals, women can only become wealthier by taking on appropriate levels of investment risk for their age and goal timelines.
Having just 5% of an investment portfolio in cash rather than in equities will lower annual total return by 0.30%, according to Tengler. Over a 20-year period, that may result in $30,000 less in growth for a portfolio that started with $100,000, assuming a 9% annual average stock return.

2. Stay the course

When it comes to investing, women may also miss out if they do not fully commit to their investment strategy.
For example, when market volatility hits, it may be tempting to sell and sit on the sidelines.
But investors who do this will see their returns drop as they lock in losses and miss out on an eventual rebound. While the average annual return may be 8%, missing the market’s five best days may bring that to just 6.2%, according to Tengler.
Over many years, missing the best market days may result in meaningful losses in wealth.
“Because women live longer, we need to engage in the investing process,” Tengler writes in her book. “And, learn the importance of taking enough risk.”

3. Buy companies you know and do your research

Selecting investments may seem intimidating for any investor. But it doesn’t have to be, according to Tengler.
Choosing company names you are familiar with may be a start. Moreover, it often pays to hold on to those stocks long-term, even when their outlook is not favorable, according to Tengler.
Many company stocks, including names like Starbucks, Microsoft or Apple, may have peaks and valleys.
“Over time, good things happen to the bad stocks of great companies,” Tengler said.

Large companies that tend to pay healthy dividends may also make sense for long-term goals.
Investors may alternatively turn to exchange-traded funds, which will give them broader access the market.
Importantly, it helps to do some research on your investments, even if you are working with a professional financial advisor.
“When you have knowledge, you make a much better client,” Tengler said. “And you get better returns from your advisor because they know you’re paying attention.” More

Payscale’s college salary report found that petroleum engineering currently holds the top spot for highest-paying bachelor’s degrees in 2023, followed by operations research and industrial engineering.
“These ‘hot’ jobs rely on specialized skill sets that are hard to come by. Such talent scarcity drives up the demand for these workers along with their pay,” says Jackson Gruver, Payscale’s data analyst.

Increasingly, your earnings potential varies greatly depending on your choice of major in college.
“Even more so than the school itself, choosing a major is key in determining what skills a graduate can perform out of school, and what types of professions they’re qualified for,” said Jackson Gruver, data analyst at Payscale.

“Ultimately, the degree you decide to pursue could have a significant impact on your lifetime earning potential.”
More from Personal Finance:Biden administration has a new plan to cancel student debt60% of Americans are still living paycheck to paycheckToday’s graduates make less than their parents
While students who pursue a major specifically in science, technology, engineering or math — collectively known as STEM disciplines — are projected to earn the most overall, Payscale’s college salary report found that petroleum engineering currently holds the top spot for highest-paying bachelor’s degrees in 2023.
Graduates in the field earn nearly six figures just starting out and more than $200,000 with 10 or more years of experience.

After petroleum engineering, operations research and industrial engineering majors are the next highest-paying majors, followed by interaction design, applied economics and management and building science. 

“STEM degrees dominate the rankings for highest-paying majors and STEM careers continue to offer highly competitive salaries in the job market,” said Payscale’s Gruver. “These ‘hot’ jobs rely on specialized skill sets that are hard to come by. Such talent scarcity drives up the demand for these workers along with their pay.”
Payscale’s college salary report is based on alumni salary data from nearly 3.5 million respondents nationwide.  

Determining ‘real return’ on academic investment

Of course, “not every student knows what they want to major in when they are applying to college,” said Robert Franek, editor in chief of The Princeton Review. But it is important to consider your area of study before taking out student loans to pay for college, he added.
“Just as a rule of thumb, students shouldn’t take on more debt than they expect to earn their first year after graduation,” Franek said. At the very least, that “forces the conversation of what is going to be the real return on my academic investment.”

Even with college application season in full swing, many families still question what a four-year degree is worth.
Some experts say the value of a bachelor’s degree is fading and more emphasis should be directed toward career training. A growing number of companies, including many in tech, are also dropping degree requirements for many middle-skill and even higher-skill roles.
However, earning a degree almost always pays off, according to The College Payoff, a report from the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce. 
Finishing college puts workers on track to earn a median of $2.8 million over their lifetimes, compared to $1.6 million if they only had a high school diploma, the report found. 
Subscribe to CNBC on YouTube. More