Investing

A line of shoppers wait to enter BJ’s Wholesale Club market at the Palisades Center shopping mall during the coronavirus outbreak in West Nyack, New York, March 14, 2020.
Mike Segar | Reuters

Concerns about a bank crisis have added to the woes of investors, who were already burdened with stubbornly high inflation and fears of an economic slowdown.
Given the ongoing uncertainty, turning to stock market experts to pick attractive stocks for the long term could be a good decision.

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Here are five compelling stocks chosen by Wall Street’s top analysts, according to TipRanks, a platform that ranks analysts based on their track records.

Allegro MicroSystems

Allegro Microsystems (ALGM) develops sensing and power semiconductor solutions for motion control and energy-efficient systems. On Tuesday, the company held its inaugural analyst day to provide insights into its strategy and technology.  
Needham analyst Quinn Bolton noted that at the event, management focused on the rapidly growing opportunities across two “secular megatrends” – electrification (mainly e-mobility) and industrial automation. Allegro expects to flourish in these two key markets and to deliver low-double-digit percentage revenue growth from fiscal 2023 to 2028.
Bolton thinks that his margin estimates for fiscal 2024 and 2025 seem conservative, given Allegro’s new long-term model that targets a gross margin of more than 58% and an operating margin of over 32%. He highlighted that the company’s e-mobility serviceable available market is expected to grow at a 25% compound annual growth rate to $3.9 billion by fiscal 2028.
“ALGM’s portfolio is aligned with the industrial secular growth trends in clean energy and automation,” said Bolton. Allegro expects its clean energy and automation SAM to grow at an 18% CAGR to $3.5 billion by fiscal 2028. (See Allegro Insider Trading Activity on TipRanks)

Impressed by Allegro’s growth prospects, Bolton raised his price target to $50 from $42 and reaffirmed a buy rating. Remarkably, Bolton ranks 2nd out of more than 8,000 analysts followed on TipRanks. His ratings have been profitable 67% of the time, generating a 36.3% average return.

CrowdStrike

Recent results of several cybersecurity companies, including CrowdStrike (CRWD), have reflected resilient demand. Enterprises are moderating their IT spending due to macro pressures but continue to allocate decent budgets to cybersecurity due to growing cyber attacks.
CrowdStrike’s adjusted earnings per share for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2023 (ended Jan. 31) increased 57%, fueled by revenue growth of 48%. At the end of the fiscal fourth quarter, the company’s annual recurring revenue stood at $2.56 billion, reflecting 48% year-over-year growth.
TD Cowen analyst Shaul Eyal attributed CrowdStrike’s upbeat performance to solid execution and robust demand for the company’s Falcon platform. Eyal added that the company is collaborating with Dell to deliver its Falcon platform to Dell’s customers through various avenues.
“We believe CRWD is positioned to achieve its goals of generating ending ARR of $5B by the end of FY26 and of reaching its target operating model in FY25,” said Eyal. He reiterated a buy rating on CrowdStrike with a price target of $180.
Eyal is ranked No. 14 among more than 8,000 analysts tracked on TipRanks. His ratings have been profitable 66% of the time, with each rating delivering a return of 23.7%, on average. (See CrowdStrike Stock Chart on TipRanks)

Oracle

Next on our list is enterprise software giant Oracle (ORCL), which delivered mixed results for the third quarter of fiscal 2023 (ended February 28, 2023). The company’s adjusted EPS grew 8% and came ahead of Wall Street’s expectations, while revenue growth of 18% fell short of estimates.
Nonetheless, Oracle is optimistic about the solid potential of its cloud business, which delivered 45% revenue growth in the fiscal third quarter. Further, management stated that Cerner, a healthcare technology company acquired in June 2022, has increased its healthcare contract base by about $5 billion. 
Monness, Crespi, Hardt, & Co. analyst Brian White said Oracle delivered “respectable 3Q:FY23 results in a treacherous environment.” He contends that the company’s cloud business continues to navigate ongoing challenges better than the leading public cloud vendors, who reported notable deceleration in revenue growth.
White cautioned investors that the “darkest days” of the economic downturn are ahead of us. That said, he reiterated a buy rating on Oracle with a price target of $113, saying, “Oracle represents a high-quality, value play with the opportunity to participate in a compelling cloud transformation and gain exposure to digital modernization initiatives in the healthcare industry.”
White holds the 50th position among more than 8,000 analysts on TipRanks. Additionally, 64% of his ratings have been profitable, with an average return of 18%. (See Oracle Blogger Opinions & Sentiment on TipRanks)

BJ’s Wholesale Club   

Warehouse club chain BJ’s Wholesale Club (BJ) continues to perform well even as the macro backdrop is getting tougher and pandemic-induced tailwinds have faded. The company recently held its fourth-quarter earnings call and first-ever investor day.
Baird analyst Peter Benedict, who ranks 129th on TipRanks, noted that the company’s membership base is “stronger than ever.” Membership fee income grew 10% in fiscal 2022 (ended January 28, 2023), driven by a 7% increase in members to 6.8 million, a rise in higher-tier penetration and solid renewal rates. It’s worth noting that BJ’s hit its all-time-high tenured renewal rate of 90% for the year.   
“With a structurally advantaged business model, growing/increasingly loyal membership base and emerging unit growth runway, BJ has the fundamental building blocks of a compelling long-duration consumer staple growth story,” explained Benedict. (See BJ’s Wholesale Financial Statements on TipRanks)   
Benedict increased the price target for BJ stock to $90 from $85 and reiterated a buy rating based on multiple strengths, including a solid balance sheet, free cash flow generation and efforts to enhance assortment. His ratings have been profitable 64% of the time, with an average return of 13.4%.

Stryker

Medical devices giant Stryker (SYK) has built a solid business over the years through strategic acquisitions and continued innovation in its medical and surgical, neurotechnology, and orthopaedics and spine divisions.
BTIG analyst Ryan Zimmerman recently hosted a fireside chat with Spencer Stiles, group president of Stryker Orthopaedics and Spine business and Jason Beach, vice president of investor relations. He highlighted that orthopedics procedure volumes are benefiting from a backlog that is projected to last about four to six quarters, as patients who postponed care previously are returning.
Zimmerman thinks that “SYK retains its growth leadership position in orthopedics even as competitive robotic systems iterate.” He expects Stryker’s new Mako Knee 2.0 software, the Insignia Hip launch and upcoming robotic launches in shoulder and spine in fiscal 2024 could “support a long and robust growth cycle.”
Zimmerman reiterated a buy rating on Stryker with a price target of $281. The analyst ranks 657 out of more than 8,300 analysts on TipRanks, with a success rate of 45%. Each of his ratings has delivered an average return of 8.9%. (See Stryker Hedge Fund Trading Activity on TipRanks)

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Company: Illumina (ILMN)

Business: Illumina develops, manufactures and markets life science tools and integrated systems for large-scale analysis of genetic variation and function. It operates through Core Illumina and Grail. Grail, which was acquired in August 2021, is a health-care company focused on early detection of multiple cancers. Grail’s Galleri blood test detects various types of cancers before they are symptomatic.
Stock Market Value: $35.4B ($224.55 per share)

Activist: Carl Icahn

Percentage Ownership:  1.39%
Average Cost: n/a
Activist Commentary: Carl Icahn is the grandfather of activist investing and a leading pioneer of modern-day shareholder activism. When most people think of Icahn, health-care companies are generally not their first thought. However, Icahn has had extensive activist experience at health-care companies. In nine prior concluded activist engagements in the health-care industry going back to ImClone Systems in 2006, Icahn has averaged a 66.27% return versus -0.11% for the S&P 500. In situations in which he received board representation, that average return goes up to 93.90% versus 17.58% for the S&P 500.

What’s Happening?

On March 13, Carl Icahn sent a letter to the company’s shareholders announcing his intention to nominate Vincent J. Intrieri, Jesse A. Lynn and Andrew J. Teno for election to the company’s board at the 2023 annual meeting. Additionally, Icahn criticized the company’s acquisition of Grail, which he says has led to $50 billion of value destruction.

Behind the Scenes

Illumina created Grail as a business unit in late 2015 and spun it out in January 2016. Less than five years later, in September 2020, Illumina agreed to acquire Grail back for $8 billion. They closed the acquisition a year later despite not getting approvals from the Federal Trade Commission or the European Union and with indications that there would be resistance from one if not both regulators. This angered the European Commission, which ultimately blocked the deal and levied the maximum fine. Illumina has appealed the decision and set aside a $453 million liability reserve for the potential European fine. Since the acquisition closed in August 2021, Illumina’s stock price fell by 57% from $522.89 to $225.88, eliminating $47 billion of shareholder value. To put that into perspective, the entire market cap of Silicon Valley Bank prior to its implosion was less than $16 billion.

Icahn thinks Illumina is a great company but a quintessential example of what is wrong in corporate America. He takes issue with Illumina spinning off Grail cheaply just to overpay for it less than five years later, but that is only the beginning. Reasonable boards overpay for companies all the time, but we know of no other board that has ever consummated an $8 billion acquisition knowing that the regulators were likely going to have a problem with it. Icahn said this is at least gross negligence and later said that Illumina directors that approved the acquisition could be “personally liable.” He would like to see Grail divested from the company, potentially through a rights offering, and management focused on the core business of Illumina.

So, Icahn does what Icahn does: He took a position in the company and nominated to the nine-person board three directors who he thinks can come in, right the ship and restore the shareholder value that has been lost. One might expect that a company that has destroyed so much shareholder value in so little time would welcome experienced and fresh eyes to turn things around. But Illumina rejected Icahn’s nominees because “the board has determined Icahn’s nominees lack relevant skills and experience.” Icahn’s nominees have significant restructuring, corporate governance, M&A, capital markets and legal experience — five things the company desperately needs. The current board has nine directors, seven of whom have a science and engineering background and two of whom have a financial background. Not one director is an investor and even more incredible is not one of the nine directors has any legal background or experience whatsoever. This board made an unprecedented decision to close an $8 billion acquisition in the face of resistance from both U.S. and European regulators without having anyone with any legal experience on the board and despite having to know that at the very least this decision was going to embark them on a multi-year legal battle. Moreover, even after this battle started, they did not add anyone with legal experience to the board. Now, when Icahn suggests they add to the board Jesse Lynn, general counsel to Icahn Enterprises with 27 years of legal experience, the board responds that he lacks the relevant skills and experience. 
A board that makes mistakes that cost shareholders tremendous value is obviously not a good thing, but it is reparable. What is much worse is a board that cannot even see the problems and the mistakes, and it also thinks the situation is under control as shareholder value continues to erode. That is what we have at Illumina. This can be fixed by adding Icahn’s three nominees to the board. Not only do they have the legal, capital markets and corporate governance experience to help the board spot the issues, they have the restructuring and M&A experience to help management execute a plan to restore shareholder value. But most of all, they have tremendous skills and experience in the most important thing this board needs that they fail to realize – holding management accountable.
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.

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Gender equity investing is investing for financial return, while promoting gender diversity.
Assets in U.S. gender equity funds have doubled over the trailing three years, according to Morningstar.
Fund providers point to research that shows gender diversity can help boost returns and a company’s profitability.

Flashpop | Stone | Getty Images

As women in America struggle to get equal pay and rise up the ladder, companies that empower and promote female workers are being rewarded by impact investors.
Known as gender lens or gender equity investing, the idea is to invest for financial return, while promoting gender diversity. The theme is becoming more popular — although it still represents a small slice of the investment pie, according to Morningstar.

Assets in U.S. gender equity funds have doubled over the trailing three years to $1.3 billion, as of the end of February, Morningstar found. Yet those funds represent less than 0.01% of total equity fund assets in the United States, according to the firm.

Funds focusing on gender equality

Ticker
Name
Fund size ($)
Expense Ratio
YTD total return
3-year average annual total return

FWOZX
Fidelity Advisor Women’s Leadership Z
131,202,145
0.69%
3.24%
19.83%

SHE
SPDR MSCI USA Gender Diversity ETF
195,412,450
0.20%
2.09%
14.68%

FDWM
Fidelity Women’s Leadership ETF
4,924,881
0.59%
3.37%
N/A

PXWEX
Impax Ellevate Global Women’s Ldr Inv
805,158,928
0.76%
2.35%
14.44%

GWILX
Glenmede Women in Leadership US Eq
21,070,997
0.85%
1.40%
19.70%

WCEO
Hypatia Women CEO ETF
1,563,267
0.85%
N/A
N/A

EQUL
IQ Engender Equality ETF
5,388,005
0.45%
0.37%
N/A

WOMN
Impact Shares YWCA Women’s Empwrmt ETF
33,829,448
0.75%
3.49%
24.42%

FWOAX
Fidelity Advisor Women’s Leadership A
131,202,145
1.10%
3.10%
19.34%

Source: Morningstar

But what exactly qualifies as gender lens investing, does it correlate to returns and can it make an impact?

‘Isolate that female factor, there will be alpha.’

Patricia Lizarraga first noticed what she calls “the female factor” about 15 years ago when she was working in investment banking. Her women CEO and CFO clients were getting tremendous results, she said.
These days she’s the managing partner of Hypatia Capital. In January, the asset management firm launched the Hypatia Women CEO exchange-traded fund (WCEO). The fund invests in all publicly-traded U.S. companies that have women CEOs, from small cap to mega cap. It’s down about 1% from its Jan. 9 debut, as of Thursday’s close. It has an expense ratio of 0.85%.
The fund is in the early stages and has about $1.5 million in net assets. It is sector weighted, which means the fewer women CEOs in any given sector, the more shares the fund has in the companies that do have female leaders. One of its top holdings is Occidental Petroleum, helmed by CEO Vicki Hollub, whom Lizarraga called “a visionary.”

“Women today outperform as CEOs because it is so much harder for a woman to become a CEO,” Lizarraga said. “The woman who makes it to the CEO spot has to jump through more hoops. If you can isolate that ‘female factor,’ there will be alpha.”

Hypatia Women CEO ETF’s top holdings

Ticker
Name
% of net assets

OIS
Oil States International
2.11

INSW
International Seaways
2.08

OXY
Occidental Petroleum
2.08

JXN
Jackson Financial
1.22

PGR
Progressive Corp.
1.21

LBC
Luther Burbank Corp
1.21

GBX
Greenbrier Cos
1.21

BXMT
Blackstone Mortgage Trust
1.20

BEN
Franklin Resources
1.20

EGBN
Eagle Bancorp
1.18

C
Citigroup
1.18

Source: Hypathia Capital, as of 3/1/2023

In fact, research shows that gender diversity boosts a company’s financial performance. S&P 500 companies that have more than 25% of female executives have a higher subsequent one-year return on equity than the rest of those in the index, according to research by Bank of America. The same goes for those who have more than one-third of women on the board, the firm found.
In addition, companies in the top quartile of gender diversity on executive teams were 25% more likely to experience above-average profitability than peer companies in the fourth quartile, a 2019 analysis by McKinsey & Company found.

Tracking the gender theme

Yet gender lens investing can be more than just investing in companies with female chief executives.
Funds may screen for a percentage of women on the board of directors and women in executive management roles, said Kenneth Lamont, senior researcher at Morningstar. They may also look at hiring, retention and promotion figures for women within a given company and gender pay gap data, if available.
“Every provider is going to give you a slightly different approach,” he said. “There is no absolute correct approach to tracking the gender theme.”
Some providers use research from data provider Equileap, which focuses on gender equality, to help determine holdings. The Amsterdam-based firm researches and ranks 4,000 public companies around the globe using 19 criteria, including the gender balance of the workforce, as well as pay gaps, career training, recruitment and female-friendly policies.

Women in leadership matters, but we need a more robust scorecard to assess gender equity.

Julia Fish
vice president at Glenmede

One of those who use Equileap data is Glenmede Investment Management, whose Women in Leadership U.S. Equity Portfolio (GWILX) invests in large-cap companies with women in significant roles and tilts toward those that exhibit stronger gender equality policies and practices. It has about $21.4 million in assets under management, according to Morningstar, and it has an expense ratio of 0.85%.
“Women in leadership matters, but we need a more robust scorecard to assess gender equity,” said Julia Fish, vice president of Glenmede Trust’s sustainable and impact investing team.

Glenmede Women in Leadership’s top holdings

Ticker
Name
% of net assets

MPC
Marathon Petroleum
2.82

DGX
Quest Diagnostics
2.81

IPG
Interpublic Group of Companies
2.78

SNPS
Synopsys
2.62

BIIB
Biogen
2.53

MRK
Merck & Co.
2.49

ULTA
Ulta Beauty
2.45

GD
General Dynamics
2.38

BKNG
Booking Holdings
2.37

DBX
Dropbox
2.35

Source: Glenmede, as of 12/31/2022

Glenmede Investment Management analyzed Equileap data and found on a sector-neutral basis, companies in the top quintile of gender balance in leadership and workforce experienced an average greater return and less risk than companies in the bottom quintile.
Yet those extra metrics on gender equity matter. Those in the top quintile of other proxies for gender equity — including pay equity, training and career development, access to benefits and diverse supply chains — also experienced greater returns and lower risk than the bottom quintile, the firm found.

Making an impact

The people who run these funds believe the investments can make an impact.
“What investors should also look for is the existence of shareholder engagement within these public market strategies — so the ability of a public market investor to use their shares to ask the company to go farther across environmental, social and governance features, but especially on gender-related issues,” Fish said.
It’s something activist investors have been doing, to some success. In 2018, Citigroup became the first big U.S. bank to agree to publish statistically adjusted equal pay for equal work numbers after Arjuna Capital’s Natasha Lamb pushed for it. The result was an increase in compensation for women and minority workers to bridge the gap.
For New York Life Investments, putting money toward fixing the gender gap is part of its mission. The firm’s IQ Engender Equality ETF (EQUL) donates a percentage of its management fee to Girls Who Code, a nonprofit that aims to boost the number of women in computer science. The fund is just over a year old, so while it grows assets, it is also augmenting its donations to the organization with additional contributions, said Wendy Wong, head of sustainable investment partnerships at New York Life Investments. EQUL has an expense ratio of 0.45%.
“They are trying to close the gender gap in technology. The pipeline isn’t growing as much as it should,” Wong said. “By not having a pipeline of women going into technology, that has really broad implications across everything.”

Don’t forget fundamentals

Those interested in investing in companies that promote and empower women should be cognizant of what holdings are in the fund and how companies are screened. Also, be sure to understand what fees are charged.
“A good story, or even a good moral story in some cases, shouldn’t blind you to the core fundamentals of investing,” Morningstar’s Lamont said.
Be aware of any biases that may exist with the funds. For instance, when tech stocks have done well, gender funds have tended to lag, he said. That’s because the global funds, generally, are underweight tech since those companies don’t tend to do well with diversity, Lamont said.
“Depending on how the fund that you’re looking at is built, it may have really quite explicit biases in it or risk factors that you should really understand before you invest,” he said.
Lastly, understand that more may be at play than gender diversity when it comes to returns, he said.
“I wouldn’t take all of the claims that are made about the performance benefits of having an extra female director on the board as gospel,” Lamont said. “If you believe in that, that’s great. But be prepared for that not quite materializing in the way you might expect.”
—CNBC’s Michael Bloom contributed reporting

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The checks, which consumers are receiving due to a legal settlement over Equifax’s 2017 data breach, were written against an account at Signature Bank.
The number of affected consumers is fewer than 5,000, according to the settlement administrator.
If you’re among the people whose check bounced, here’s what you need to know.

Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Some consumers who tried to deposit an Equifax settlement check in recent days got a surprise: It bounced.
The checks, a result of a legal settlement over the credit-reporting firm’s 2017 data breach, were written against an account at Signature Bank. The bank was taken over by regulators on Sunday after account holders — spooked by the failure of Silicon Valley Bank last week — began withdrawing their money en masse.

related investing news

However, the checks that were returned unpaid are not related to the bank’s failure, said Jennifer Keough, CEO of JND Legal Administration, which is handling the Equifax settlement.
“What happened here, due to a Signature Bank clerical error, certain checks that should have cleared were rejected by other banks,” Keough said.
More from Personal Finance:Consumers lost $8.8 billion to fraud in 2022, FTC saysHere are debts that cannot be eliminated in bankruptcySome newlyweds can face a ‘marriage tax penalty’
Fewer than 5,000 consumers are affected, Keough said. Roughly 18 million consumers were part of the class-action lawsuit that led to the settlement, she said.

Consumers are receiving payments after a data breach

In the wake of Equifax’s 2017 data breach, which compromised the personal information of more than 147 million consumers — including names, birth dates and Social Security numbers — the company became the target of multiple lawsuits and reached a settlement in 2019 with the Federal Trade Commission, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and all U.S. states and territories.

As a result, consumers who were affected by the breach had the option of signing up for either up to $125 or free credit monitoring at all three of the largest credit reporting firms: Equifax, Experian and TransUnion.

After implementation was delayed due to legal challenges, the settlement received final court approval in early 2022.
The cash payments — which may be far less than $125, such as $5 or $21 — began going out in mid-December either as a check, payment to a PayPal account or prepaid card via email from the settlement administrator, depending on how the consumer chose to receive it.

Here’s what to do if your settlement check bounced

If you are among those whose check bounced, you will be contacted by the administrator, Keough said.
“We’ll be notifying those individuals and reissuing their check,” she said.

Read more of CNBC’s coverage of the bank crisis

Additionally, if your bank charged you a fee for the incident, you should reach out to the administrator. You can do that via email (info@EquifaxBreachSettlement.com) or phone (1-833-759-2982).
“When they provide us with proof of [the charge], the money will be sent to them,” Keough said. 

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If President Joe Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan survives the Supreme Court, around 14 million people could see their balances entirely cleared.
Meanwhile, closer to 37 million people would get a portion of their debt forgiven.
The country’s outstanding student loan balance could drop to $1.3 trillion from $1.7 trillion.

A protest sign outside the Supreme Court in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 28, 2023.
The Washington Post | The Washington Post | Getty Images

There’s no precedent in recent history for the sweeping federal student loan forgiveness policy President Joe Biden is trying to carry out.
A look at the math of the program shows how deep the relief could be for borrowers, many of whom were struggling before the Covid pandemic — when the economy was in one of its healthiest periods.

Since then, federal student loan payments have been on hold for three years. Biden had hoped to cancel up to $20,000 in debt for tens of millions of Americans before resuming the bills, but his policy soon faced a barrage of legal challenges, and its fate now rests with the Supreme Court.
More from Personal Finance:Is Supreme Court Justice Barrett key to student debt relief?What to do if Biden’s student debt plan is struck downHere’s how things go so bad with student loan debt in the U.S.
The outcome of the justices’ decision could have dire consequences on families, said Thomas Gokey, co-founder of the Debt Collective, a national union of debtors.
“For many people, this is life and death,” Gokey said. “What’s at stake is being forced to choose between paying for student loans or being able to buy groceries, make rent and pay medical bills.”
Here’s what’s on the line, by the numbers.

$400 billion in student debt gone

If every eligible borrower applies for the relief, Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan is estimated to wipe out $400 billion in federal student debt, according to the Congressional Budget Office.
That would reduce the country’s $1.7 trillion outstanding education debt balance to $1.3 trillion.

14 million borrowers given a fresh start

Roughly a third of those with federal student loans, or 14 million people, would have their balances entirely forgiven by the president’s program, according to an estimate by higher education expert Mark Kantrowitz.
These borrowers likely won’t have to make a student loan payment again, Kantrowitz said. The Biden administration has said it won’t resume the bills until 60 days after the litigation over its plan resolves (or at the end of August if the challenges are still pending).

For many people, this is life and death.

Thomas Gokey
co-founder of the Debt Collective

“Sixty days will be enough to forgive student loan debt if the president’s plan survives,” Kantrowitz said. “They’ve already approved forgiveness for 16 million borrowers, so they just need to transmit this information to the loan servicers.
“It should take one to two weeks for the servicers to implement,” he added.

37 million people get some loan forgiveness

Biden’s relief is limited to borrowers who make under $125,000 a year as individuals or less than $250,000 as a couple.
Still, that means around 37 million people would be eligible for loan cancellation, Kantrowitz estimates — up to $20,000 if they received a Pell Grant in college, a type of aid for low-income families, or as much as $10,000 if they did not.

Monthly bills cut by a third or more

The U.S. Department of Education has said it plans to “re-amortize” borrowers’ new balances after forgiveness. That’s a wonky term that means it will recalculate people’s monthly payment based on their lower tab and the number of months they have left on their repayment timeline.
Kantrowitz provided an example: Let’s say a person currently owes $30,000 in student loans at a 5% interest rate. Before the pandemic, they would have paid around $320 a month on a 10-year repayment term.
If forgiveness goes through, and that person get $10,000 in relief, their total balance would be reduced by a third, and their monthly payment will drop by a third, to roughly $210 a month.

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In 2022, when the Federal Reserve hiked rates seven times and stocks suffered, safety-focused investors opened accounts at TreasuryDirect.gov, the online portal savers can use to buy Treasury bonds, Series I bonds and other securities directly from the U.S. government.
Last year, 3.6 million accounts were opened at TreasuryDirect, up from 689,369 in 2021, a roughly fivefold increase in that period.
Year to date through Tuesday, investors opened 222,703 accounts.

Young man working at home
Eva-katalin | E+ | Getty Images

Investors seeking safety from last year’s market havoc went running to Uncle Sam — that is, they opened more than 3 million accounts to buy Treasurys and other bonds directly from the U.S. government.
In 2022, savers created 3.6 million accounts at TreasuryDirect.gov, a website where investors can buy a range of savings bonds and Treasury securities from the U.S. government. That’s up about fivefold from 2021, when investors opened 689,369 accounts on the site.

Arrows pointing outwards

TreasuryDirect.gov

The spike in investor interest in the website coincides with a couple of key market events.

I bonds

First, savers turned toward Series I savings bonds, an inflation-protected and largely risk-free asset that’s issued by the federal government. The rate on these bonds has two components: a fixed rate of interest and a rate that varies based on inflation.
In May 2022, the Bureau of Fiscal Service announced that I bonds purchased from then through Oct. 28 of that year would earn a composite rate of 9.62% for the first six months after the date of issue. Bonds issued between Nov. 1, 2022, and April 30, 2023, have a rate of 6.89% — which is still attractive, even if it’s lower than last year’s bonanza.
Be aware that individuals buying I bonds through TreasuryDirect are limited to $10,000 in purchases per calendar year. You can buy up to $5,000 in paper I bonds using your tax refund.
Be sure you’re comfortable with tying up some of your funds in an I bond. Though you can cash it in after 12 months, you’ll lose the last 3 months of interest if you redeem it in fewer than five years.

Rising Treasury yields

The Federal Reserve’s rate hiking campaign, which began a year ago, spurred a rise in bond yields. Though this was bad news for people with diversified portfolios – they saw price declines in both fixed income and equities – it was good news for income-focused investors who wanted to buy Treasury securities on the cheap.
Indeed, the yield on the 10-year Treasury started 2022 around 1.5%, but surged to 4% by that fall. The inversion in the yield curve – an event in which yields on near-dated bonds are higher than long-dated issues – has also made Treasury bills especially promising. Consider that a 6-month T-bill has a yield of 4.91%.
Investors can ladder T-bills to extract a little more yield out of otherwise idle cash.
Aside from buying Treasurys through a brokerage firm, you can go directly to TreasuryDirect.gov.
There, you set up an account, link your bank and participate in an auction for Treasurys. Four-week, 8-week, 13-week and 26-week T-bills are auctioned every week. Two-year notes are auctioned monthly and 10-year Treasurys are auctioned every quarter.
Though these bonds are offering attractive yields and are deemed risk-free, investors should be aware that their yield may not keep pace with inflation. They might also miss out on investment opportunities in stocks, so be wary of how much you stash in these government bonds.
-CNBC’s Michelle Fox contributed to this story.         

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As of February, renters in the U.S. continued to owe nearly $11 billion in debt.
The average arrears is more than $2,000.
Here are some of your options if you’re in the red.

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With roughly two more months before the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services ends the three-year Covid public health emergency, more than 5 million of the nation’s households remain behind on their rent.
All together, tenants continued to owe nearly $11 billion in rental debt during the first two weeks of February, according to data by the National Equity Atlas. On average, renters who are behind owe $2,094.

Fortunately, the public health crisis led to the creation of a number of new protections for struggling renters, some of which remain in place.
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“In some cities, there might be rental assistance or free legal aid available, as well as community organizations and tenant unions that could help them understand their rights and possible solutions,” said Jacob Haas, research specialist at the Eviction Lab.
Here are some of your options if you’re in the red.

Consider your options for rent aid

Most rental assistance programs that opened during the pandemic are now closed, but some are still accepting applications.

On the National Low Income Housing Coalition’s website, you can find a state-by-state guide of relief options and their status.

Renters should keep track of the rental assistance opportunities available to them and apply quickly when they see one open, advocates say. The money tends to run out fast.
On Tuesday, the Texas Rent Relief Program began accepting applications for aid, but it’s already scheduled to stop doing so Thursday. A notice on its website reads, “Within the first 24 hours of re-opening, requests for assistance far exceeded available funding.”

Assess your financial resources

“The biggest potential issue is carrying a balance and paying interest on your rent,” Rossman said. “This can make an already sizable expense much more substantial.”
Instead, he recommends tenants ask their landlord for an extension or payment plan. Other ways to come up with rent can include borrowing from family members and friends, or from your retirement plan, Rossman said — although withdrawing from your nest egg comes with its own consequences.

Familiarize yourself with tenant rights

It’s worth researching and familiarizing yourself with any rights you as a tenant may have, experts say. Many of those rights expanded during the pandemic.
In certain cities, for example, landlords are now limited in how much they can raise your rent. If you’re facing eviction because of an increase that was illegal, it’s worth knowing: You may be able to bring this up in housing court, or with your landlord.

Protesters n Minneapolis rallied to stop housing evictions during the pandemic.
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In some places, you’re entitled to a set amount of notice with an eviction, such as at least 90 days in specific cases in Portland, Maine. During the school year, educators and families with school-age children recently got new eviction protections in Oakland, California.
Meanwhile, if your landlord has raised your rent above a certain amount, you could be eligible in a few cities, including Seattle and Portland, Oregon, to get some of your moving costs covered.

Work with a lawyer

If your landlord has moved to evict you, housing advocates recommend that you try to get a lawyer as soon as possible.
One study in New Orleans found that more than 65% of tenants with no legal representation were evicted, compared with just 15% of those who had a lawyer with them at their hearing.
You can find low-cost or free legal help with an eviction in your state at Lawhelp.org.
In a growing number of cities and states, including Washington, Maryland and Connecticut, tenants facing eviction now have a right to free counsel.
You can find a longer list of those places at civilrighttocounsel.org.

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There are more than a few factors to consider when deciding whether to work with a financial advisor. Here’s a look at some key boxes to check before deciding.
Are they a fiduciary? Do they have a disciplinary record? That’s just for starters.
Here’s a look at several questions to put to a financial professional you’re considering.

Customer shaking hands with car salesman buying a car
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Several considerations go into selecting a financial advisory firm, especially if you are in your prime working years and have plenty of time left before you retire.
For one, think about whether the advisors are fiduciaries. More and more investors today want to work with a professional who provides advice (versus selling products) and is legally obligated to consider a client’s best interest.

Also, do the advisors have a good disciplinary record? A violation doesn’t mean an advisor is a crook. Mistakes happen. But if they have a history of not keeping their own house in order, do you really want them to manage your family’s money? Entering their name into FINRA’s online Broker Check tool is an easy way to find out.
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Another factor is personal chemistry. Remember, your professional relationship with an advisor is much like that with a doctor — it could last decades. You don’t have to be best friends, but it would be better if you liked them.
These are all important concerns. Yet one that doesn’t come up as often: How equipped are the firm and its advisors to grow and evolve? Here are five questions to ask your current or would-be advisor to help determine whether they are running in place or capable of keeping up with your ever-changing needs.

How long has their firm’s leadership been in place, and how many of them were promoted from within? It would be silly and impractical for a company — financial services or otherwise — to have a policy against bringing in outside talent. Indeed, experienced leaders who can help businesses become more efficient and offer better services are valuable, no matter where they come from. Yet, if too many leaders are new to the firm or have not been groomed from within, it could be a sign that they are short-term hired guns whose primary responsibility is to supercharge growth at all costs. That approach may produce slimmer margins, but it’s unlikely to yield investments back into the firm that improves your experience. 
How long has the staff been in place? A startup can be a great place to work. Everyone is new and has a sense of purpose, which often infuses the workplace with a positive, almost virtuous, energy. The story is sometimes different when established businesses have few tenured employees and everyone is new. It could indicate that the culture is poor. That produces a very different energy throughout the office — one that could ultimately filter down to customers like you.
When was the last time they upgraded their technology, and how integrated is it? Imagine sitting with your advisor, looking at a screen displaying your investments. You have a question about one of your holdings, but it’s not there. To find it, they have to log into a different system. While this may not seem like a big deal, it’s a huge red flag when an advisor must toggle between two platforms to see all of a client’s holdings. It means they either have outdated or substandard technology — which, in turn, suggests they care more about improving their own margins than investing in up-to-date, integrated systems.
What safeguards do they have to protect customer data and thwart cyberattacks? Most cyber and data incidents result from human error (i.e., someone internally clicking a link they shouldn’t). With that in mind, ask them how often they undergo cybersecurity awareness training. Also, ask whether they monitor potential vulnerabilities within their systems and devices. Remember, this isn’t just about sensitive information getting compromised — as bad as that is. It’s also about being able to always trade within your portfolio. If a cyberattack takes down your firm for a prolonged period, you may not be able to do that.
How many of their advisors are near or under 40? The financial services industry is facing a demographic crunch, with the average advisor about 55 years old. To make matters worse, many of these advisors do not have a succession plan. There’s nothing wrong with working with an older advisor. At the same time, if they were to retire without having anyone internally set to take their place, it would create a long line of issues for you. If an advisor isn’t planning for their future, do you want them planning yours?

Your needs will change as you evolve and different things happen in your life, whether it’s getting married, having a baby or switching careers. Therefore, you need an advisor who will evolve right along with you.

Good firms and advisors can keep up with the latest wealth management and financial planning trends. The best ones, though, stay ahead of them.
— By Donald C. Cutler, senior principal at Haven Tower Group.

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