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Investopedia

Tesla Stock Is Back In The Green For 2024

~1.5 mins read

Tesla (TSLA) shares staged a strong rally this week, rising about 27% on the strength of upbeat second-quarter deliveries numbers.

The stock finished Friday at $251.52, up from last week's close of $197.88. They rose about 2% on Friday, retreating somewhat from a year-to-date high of $252.37 earlier in the session.

On Tuesday, the Elon Musk-led electric vehicle (EV) maker reported second-quarter deliveries of 443,956 vehicles, which topped analysts' consensus estimate of about 439,000.

Analysts have largely reacted positively to Tesla's deliveries data, with Bank of America and Wedbush Securities analysts raising their price targets to $260 and $300, respectively, from $220 and $275. J.P. Morgan analysts were cooler on the deliveries numbers, maintaining an "underweight" rating and price target of just $115.

“In a nutshell, the worst is in the rear-view mirror for Tesla as we believe the EV demand story is starting to return to the disruptive tech stalwart ahead,” Wedbush analysts said.

Tesla shares had dropped as low as $138.80 on April 22 after closing 2023 at $248.48. Friday marked the first day since Jan. 2 — the first trading day of 2024— that Tesla went into positive territory at all this year. As of Friday's close, they were just barely in the green for the year, up less than a tenth of a percent.

Looking ahead, analysts also pointed to Tesla’s planned “Robotaxi Day” on August 8, when Musk said the company will unveil an autonomous driving taxi.

"We continue to believe that Tesla is more of an AI and robotics play than a traditional car company," Wedbush analysts said. "...[N]ow the rubber meets the road as the Street anticipates August 8th as a key linchpin day for the Tesla story."

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What to know about this new study

A new study appears to deliver resounding yes: eating ultra-processed foods is linked to a greater risk of cognitive impairment and strokes.

This well-designed observational study examined data from the REGARDS (REasons for Geographic And Racial Differences in Stroke) project, a longitudinal study of non-Hispanic Black and white Americans ages 45 years and older. Study participants were initially enrolled between 2003 and 2007 and were given a number of questionnaires evaluating health, diet, exercise, body mass index, education, income, alcohol use, mood, and other factors. In addition, tests of memory and language were administered at regular intervals.

To examine the risk of stroke and cognitive impairment, data from 20,243 and 14,175 participants, respectively, were found usable based on the quality of the information from the questionnaires and tests. Approximately one-third of the sample identified as Black and the majority of the remaining two-thirds identified as white.

The results of the study

According to the authors' analysis, increasing the intake of ultra-processed foods by just 10% was associated with a significantly greater risk of cognitive impairment and stroke.

Intake of unprocessed or minimally processed foods was associated with a lower risk of cognitive impairment.

The effect of ultra-processed foods on stroke risk was greater for individuals who identified as Black compared to individuals who identified as white.

Study participants who reported following a healthy diet (like a Mediterranean, DASH, or MIND diet) and consumed minimal ultra-processed foods appeared to maintain better brain health compared to those who followed similar healthy diets but had more ultra-processed foods.

Why might ultra-processed foods be bad for your brain?

Here are some biologically plausible reasons:

UPFs are generally composed of processed carbohydrates that are very quickly broken down into simple sugars, equivalent to eating lots of candy. These sugar loads cause spikes of insulin, which can alter normal brain cell function.

Eating ultra-processed foods is associated with a higher risk of metabolic syndrome and obesity, well-established conditions linked to high blood pressure, abnormal blood lipid levels, and type 2 diabetes.

There are unhealthy additives in ultra-processed foods to change the texture, color, sweetness, or flavor. These additives disrupt the microbiome in the gut and can lead to gut inflammation that can cause

the production of microbiome-produced metabolites that can affect brain function (such as short-chain fatty acids and lipopolysaccharides)

leaky gut, allowing toxins and inflammatory molecules to enter the bloodstream and go to the brain

altered neurotransmitter function (such as serotonin) that can impact mood and cognition directly

increased cortisol levels that mimic being under chronic stress, which can directly impact hippocampal and frontal lobe function, affecting memory and executive function performance, respectively

an increased risk for Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and other neurodegenerative diseases due to inflammatory molecules traveling from the gut to the brain.

Because ultra-processed foods have poor nutritional value, people will often be hungry shortly after eating them, leading to overeating and its consequences.

The take-home message

Avoid processed foods, which can include chips and other snack foods, industrial breads and pastries, packaged sweets and candy, sugar-sweetened and diet sodas, instant noodles and soups, ready-to-eat meals and frozen dinners, and processed meats such as hot dogs and bologna. Eat unprocessed or minimally processed foods, which — when combined with a healthy Mediterranean menu of foods — include fish, olive oil, avocados, whole fruits and vegetables, nuts and beans, and whole grains.

Source: Harvard Health Publishing

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Why I Surround Myself With People Who Have Talents — Businessman Tony Elumelu

~0.2 mins read

Billionaire businessman Tony Elumelu has admitted to not possessing all the talents to be a successful entrepreneur, but rather surrounding himself with people who have talents.

According to him, any individual trying to succeed must recognize his limitations and surround themselves with people who can compliment them.

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Investopedia

Amazon Sent EU Information Request On Data Privacy Law Compliance

~1.8 mins read

Amazon (AMZN) on Friday was sent a formal request for information by the European Commission on how the body has complied with the body’s Digital Services Act (DSA).

The tech giant has been asked to provide information on the Amazon Store's Ad Library, specifically regarding whether it includes an option to deliver recommendations without using user profiling data. The company is required to release its information by July 26.

"Amazon is asked to provide detailed information on its compliance with the provisions concerning transparency of the recommender systems, the input factors, features, signals, information and metadata applied for such systems and options offered to users to opt out of being profiled for the recommender systems," it said.

If the European Commission, the European Union (EU)'s enforcement arm, believes Amazon is in violation of the DSA, it can open an investigation and, if found guilty, the company could be fined up to 6% of its "worldwide annual turnover."

“We are reviewing this request and working closely with the European Commission," an Amazon spokesperson told . "Amazon shares the goal of the European Commission to create a safe, predictable and trusted shopping environment. We think this is important for all participants in the retail industry, and we invest significantly in protecting our store from bad actors, illegal content, and in creating a trustworthy shopping experience. We have built on this strong foundation for DSA compliance.”

The Commission has been busy lately. On Thursday, reported that it is expected to level a formal warning against X, the Elon Musk-owned social media network formerly known as Twitter, for failing to combat dangerous content.

Earlier this week, it accused Meta Platforms' (META) practice of "pay or consent" advertising on Instagram and Facebook of violating the new Digital Markets Act (DMA), and charged Apple (AAPL) with its own DMA violation for unfairly restricting how developers can seek payments.

Amazon shares were up 1.1% to $199.84 as of 1:09 p.m. ET Friday. They have gained more than 30% year-to-date.

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