Author: Money Mechanics

Major U.S. equities indexes were mixed at midday Wednesday ahead of highly anticipated earnings from Nvidia (NVDA) due after the closing bell. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq gained, while the Dow fell. Shares of the AI chipmaker climbed ahead of what is being widely viewed as the biggest event of this earnings season. Lowe’s (LOW) stock surged after the home improvement retailer reported a better quarterly profit than analysts had expected. Alphabet (GOOG, GOOGL) shares continued their winning streak that began Monday when Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A, BRK.B) revealed a stake in the owner of Google and YouTube. Shares of…

Key Takeaways The Bureau of Labor Statistics will publish its report on Thursday on September job creation, after a six-week delay caused by the government shutdown.U.S. employers are forecast to have added 51,000 jobs, more than the 22,000 in August, although less than the 147,000 average in the 12 months through April.Uncertainty about tariffs has weighed on job creation, resulting in a significant hiring slowdown. A long-delayed report on job growth Thursday is likely to show the job market bounced back in September after a dismal summer.The Bureau of Labor Statistics is set to publish its monthly report on job…

Key Takeaways Robinhood’s automated investment portfolio added to its T-bill exposure last week, she said, a move toward some of the safest investments around. Guild said retail-investor trading volume hasn’t been as big compared to other downturns, but there was net buying on the dip. Some “smart money” has been seeing signs of rain—and reaching for the umbrella. Robinhood (HOOD), the company behind the popular retail trading app, last week added to its allocation to T-bills, the short-term Treasury notes considered some of the safest investments around, “to protect some capital,” CIO Stephanie Guild said in an interview with Bloomberg…

Dave Ramsey has guided millions of Americans through their debt struggles, but his advice to hit “pause” on your 401(k) while you’re paying off debt could cost you tens of thousands of dollars you’ll never get back. Pausing contributions forfeits employer matches, misses market rebounds that often follow market downturns, and derails the automatic savings that keep you on the path toward retirement. Financial advisors we spoke with say there’s a better way. Why Pausing Can Be a Pricey Mistake Here’s what you could lose if you stop contributing to your 401(k): You forfeit free money: Employer matches are real…

Key Takeaways Constellation Energy shares jumped Wednesday after the company said it received a federal loan of up to $1 billion to restart a nuclear reactor at Three Mile Island in Pennsylvania.Shares of Constellation and other nuclear energy companies have seen their stocks soar this year, amid anticipation of growing demand to power AI and support from the Trump administration. Constellation Energy (CEG) shares surged Wednesday after the power provider said it won a federal loan of up to $1 billion to restart a nuclear reactor at Pennsylvania’s Three Mile Island. The shares were up over 5% in recent trading,…

Key Takeaways Many women expect to live to age 90, yet a significant percentage of older women are unprepared for retirement. 27% of Generation X women and 19% of baby boomer women have saved less than $25,000 for retirement. Persistent gender pay gaps, career interruptions for caregiving, and limited access to retirement plans contribute to women’s lower retirement savings. Women can strengthen their retirement security by saving early, working longer, and delaying Social Security to maximize benefits. Women are planning to live long lives: their median anticipated life expectancy is 90 years, according to a new survey from the Transamerica…

Key Takeaways President Donald Trump once again expressed his desire to fire Fed Chair Jerome Powell, who has kept interest rates higher than Trump would prefer.Trump also threatened to fire Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent if he could not get Powell to cut rates.The Fed is an independent central bank, and Powell does not report to either Trump or Bessent. In pressuring the Federal Reserve to lower its benchmark interest rate, President Donald Trump is putting a twist on his “you’re fired” catchphrase from his days as a game show host. Speaking at a Saudi Arabian investment forum in Washington, D.C.…

Restaurant stock Cava Group (CAVA) has underperformed dramatically this year, down 60% year-to-date as the major market benchmarks have set new record highs. CAVA’s stock price is down more than 28% over the past month alone, pressured by fears that a consumer crunch will leave the $15 salad store out in the cold. Are you buying this dip – or betting on more losses? Based on the latest block trades, smart money is expecting additional downside for CAVA in the months ahead. Today, there was big unusual option activity at CAVA’s January 2026 35-strike puts, as volume of over 23,000 contracts hit the…

Today, after the US market closes, NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:) reports its fiscal year Q226 results—and rarely have euphoria and skepticism collided so sharply.Before we get to the technical numbers, let’s take a quick look at the fundamentals:Nvidia posted $46.7 billion in revenue in its second fiscal quarter—a 6% increase from Q126 and 56% year-over-year. The data center segment accounted for $41.1 billion, also up 56% from the previous year. Source: InvestingProThe data center segment—the core of Nvidia’s story—is expected to deliver about $48.8 billion. Profitability expectations are equally strong: a 73.7% gross margin, 65.9% operating margin, and roughly $30.5 billion…

The fifth installation of the video game Europa Universalis (hereafter EU5) just came out, and it had some interesting economic modelling issues. However, to get to explanation of how EU5 relates to the historical period (the start date of the game is 1337) I first need to go back to the historical background of what the situation was like in 1337 in the lands of the Roman Empire. (Although EU5 is global, I am really only familiar with European/Mediterranean history of that era. The game systems best fit “Western” regions, although the rest of the world gets filled in better…