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Top leaders of the House of Representatives didn't hold back in admonishing Vice President Sara Duterte in the aftermath of the latter's unauthorized two-day stay at Batasan complex wherein she tried to have her way with security and employees. From left to right: Senior Deputy Speaker Aurelio "Dong" Gonzales Jr. (3rd district, Pampanga), Majority Leader Rep. Manuel Jose "Mannix" Dalipe (2nd district, Zamboanga City), Deputy Speaker David "Jay-jay" Suarez (2nd district, Quezon) (Facebook) Top leaders of the House of Representatives didn't hold back in admonishing Vice President Sara Duterte in the aftermath of the latter's unauthorized two-day stay at Batasan complex wherein she tried to have her way with security and employees. That she did all of these while avoiding to attend the House hearings on her alleged confidential and intelligence funds (CIF) misuse wasn't lost on Senior Deputy Speaker Aurelio "Dong" Gonzales Jr. (3rd district, Pampanga), Deputy Speaker David "Jay-jay" Suarez (2nd district, Quezon), and Majority Leader Rep. Manuel Jose "Mannix" Dalipe (2nd district, Zamboanga City). “Malinis ang report ng Commission on Audit (COA) sa paggamit ng pera ng taong bayan ng House of Representatives under Speaker Romualdez, ‘di gaya ng Office of the Vice President (OVP) under VP Duterte,” Gonzales said in a joint statement Sunday, Nov. 24. (COA's report on the House of Representatives' usage of funds under Speaker Romualdez is clean, unlike the OVP under VP Duterte.) Suarez said the lady official continues to resort to "diversionary tactics" in order to avoid giving actual explanations to the Committee on Good Government and Public Accountability on her usage of P612.5 million CIFs. The figure covers P500 million under the OVP and P112.5 under the Department of Education (DepEd), which Duterte led as the secretary for two years. “‘Yung mga paratang ni Vice President Duterte, istorya, drama, at budol-budol lang ‘yan. Sanay sila diyan, eksperto sila diyan sa budol-budol,” Suarez said. (Vice President Duterte's allegations are mere stories, dramatics, and deception. They're used to that, they're experts of deception.) The ranking congressmen likewise slammed the Vice President for claiming to have contacted an assassin to target President Marcos, Speaker Martin Romualdez, and First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos. This was in the event that she gets killed herself. “The gravity of these statements cannot be overstated. A kill-order on the President is not only a heinous crime but also a betrayal of the highest order—one that shakes the very foundation of our democratic institutions,” Gonzales said. “The Vice President, as the next in line to the Presidency, is entrusted with the responsibility of safeguarding the Constitution, not undermining it,” added the Cabalen. Dalipe--despite casting doubts on Duterte’s remarks--thought it was still prudent to ask authorities to conduct an exhaustive and impartial investigation to uncover the truth behind the assassination plot against the Chief Executive. “The people deserve to know the full extent of this plot, including any potential abuse of power or betrayal of public trust. The integrity of our democracy demands nothing less,” Dalipe said. ALSO READ: https://mb.com.ph/2024/11/23/house-leader-describes-vp-sara-s-latest-meltdown “The Vice President’s role as a constitutional successor makes this case extraordinarily sensitive. It is essential that we send a clear message that no one, regardless of position, is above the law,” added the Mindanaoan. Suarez warned of the broader implications of such an alleged plot. “This situation transcends politics—it is about the survival of our democracy, the preservation of public trust, and the safety and stability of our nation. Any individual, no matter how high their rank, must be held accountable for actions that threaten the integrity of our government,” Suarez said. “Conspiring with an assassin to target the President is a serious crime,” he underscored.
Manchester City's crisis continued with a 2-0 defeat away to Juventus in the Champions League on Wednesday, while Pep Guardiola's old club Barcelona beat Borussia Dortmund to clinch a spot in the knockout stage of Europe's elite club competition. Arsenal, AC Milan, Atletico Madrid, Lille, Feyenoord and Stuttgart were also victorious, but City's latest loss in a miserable run will dominate the headlines. The 2023 European champions succumbed in Turin as Dusan Vlahovic put Juventus ahead early in the second half when goalkeeper Ederson was unable to keep out his header. Ilkay Gundogan was denied an equaliser by a fine Michele Di Gregorio save, before Weston McKennie made it 2-0 with a fine acrobatic finish in the 75th minute. The result leaves Juventus on 11 points with two games left, a tally that is expected to be enough to guarantee them at least a place in the knockout phase play-offs. City, meanwhile, have now won just once in 10 in all competitions, with seven defeats in that time. With just eight points, they currently sit 22nd in the standings, in which the top 24 advance to the knockouts. Their next game will be crucial, as they travel to a Paris Saint-Germain side who sit a point beneath Guardiola's men. "We have to get points, we'll go to Paris to try and do that and the same goes for the final match at home (to Club Brugge)," Guardiola told Amazon Prime in Italy. Barcelona are second in the standings with 15 points, behind only Liverpool, after beating Dortmund 3-2 in a thriller in Germany, with Ferran Torres their hero. Raphinha fired Barca ahead with his 17th goal of the season, early in a remarkable second half. Serhou Guirassy equalised with a penalty on the hour mark, but substitute Torres put Barca back in front on 75 minutes, converting the loose ball after Fermin Lopez's shot was saved. Guirassy scored again for a quick equaliser, only for Torres to strike once more and win the game for Barca with five minutes left. Barcelona's tally leaves them, like Liverpool, ideally placed to finish in the top eight, which means direct progress to the last 16 without having to go through the play-offs. Arsenal are third in the standings on 13 points after easing to a 3-0 win over Monaco in London. Bukayo Saka scored twice, putting the Gunners ahead in the first half and making it 2-0 on 78 minutes as the hosts pounced on disastrous Monaco defending. Saka then turned provider for the late third, with substitute Kai Havertz credited with the final touch. Mikel Arteta's team are one of six sides on 13 points, with Lille also on that tally after edging Sturm Graz 3-2 in France thanks to a fine late winner from Hakon Haraldsson. Lille were 2-0 up through Osame Sahraoui and Mitchel Bakker, only for goals by Otar Kiteishvili and Mika Biereth to bring the Austrian champions back level. However, Icelandic midfielder Haraldsson secured Lille's fourth win of the campaign. Atletico eased to a 3-1 victory over Slovan Bratislava, with Antoine Griezmann scoring twice after Julian Alvarez had opened the scoring with an excellent strike. David Strelec pulled one back for the Slovaks, who are one of three teams already eliminated having lost six games out of six. The others are RB Leipzig and Young Boys. Milan defeated Red Star Belgrade 2-1 at San Siro with Tammy Abraham grabbing the winner three minutes from time. Rafael Leao had put Milan ahead only for Nemanja Radonjic to equalise for the Serbian side, who have lost five of their six games and are surely heading out. Benfica edged closer to a play-off spot with a 0-0 draw at home to Bologna of Italy, who have scored just one goal in six games and will go no further. Feyenoord stayed on course to go through after beating Sparta Prague 4-2 in Rotterdam, with Gernot Trauner, Igor Paixao, Anis Hadj Moussa and Santiago Gimenez netting their goals. Stuttgart kept alive their hopes of progress by coming from behind to beat Young Boys 5-1. Lukasz Lakomy put Young Boys ahead but Angelo Stiller levelled before Enzo Millot, Chris Fuehrich, Josha Vagnoman and Yannik Keitel all scored in the second half. The next round of Champions League games is scheduled for January 21 and 22, with the league phase concluding the following week. as/jc
The East Texas Council of Governments will disburse $1.75 million in grants to help improve emergency radio infrastructure, including to the City of Kilgore, Rains and Van Zandt counties, and others. Funded through Texas State House Bill 442 and administered by the Governor’s Public Safety Office, ETCOG said the State Emergency Radio Infrastructure program will support four key projects to improve current capabilities and address significant communication gaps. The City of Kilgore received $220,000 for TxWARN integration. The City of Kilgore recently joined the TxWARN system alongside Gregg County and the City of Longview. The grant will help them upgrade their consoles to fully integrate their services into TxWARN. Harrison County received $750,000 to help expand its TxWARN system to address a communication dead spot between Harrison and Gregg counties. A new Motorola tower will be established to enhance coverage for both counties and make it accessible for TxDOT use, ETCOG said. Rains County will upgrade its VHF System with a total of $600,000. ETCOG said Rains County's current VHF system is experiencing severe operability issues, hindering communication between officers and dispatch. Two new Motorola tower locations with improved height and coverage, along with new repeater equipment, are planned. Van Zandt County will use $180,000 to enhance its interoperability. Van Zandt County currently operates a radio system with L3Harris. This project will upgrade all five repeaters across its towers to improve interoperability with its volunteer fire departments and other agencies. In Harrison County, officials see the grant as a crucial step in achieving a long-term goal of modernizing communication systems. Harrison County Judge Chad Sims reflected on the progress made over the past two years in a press release. "A little over two years ago, leadership in Harrison County and the City of Marshall embarked on a multi-million-dollar journey to modernize and revitalize aging communications systems that were severely lacking," said Sims. "With the goal of ‘interoperable communications’ for all Harrison County first responders in mind, we partnered with other governmental agencies and private enterprises to develop a comprehensive plan.” Judge Sims explained how the SERI grant aligned perfectly with their vision. “In the early Spring of 2024, a SERI grant became available to support the construction and equipping of a communications tower. With assistance and guidance from the ETCOG staff, we applied and were recently awarded $750,000. This grant enables us to plug a big hole in our coverage map, accomplishing this critical improvement years ahead of schedule. The new tower and equipment will provide a much greater blanket of coverage for our first responders, translating to confidence and security for everyone.” Rains County Commissioner Jeremy Cook emphasized the importance of these upgrades in a press release. “Rains County, like other small counties, has witnessed technology surpass our current communication infrastructure capabilities,” said Cook. “We have had numerous dangerous incidents where our first responders were unable to communicate. Fortunately, no one has been hurt or worse. “Our Sheriff, Michael Hopkins, brought this issue to our attention, and with the assistance of Donetta Miller and the incredible ETCOG staff, we were fortunate enough to secure the SERI grant,” Cook added. “Donetta has gone above and beyond, connecting us with key partners like TxDOT, who will assist with the design, construction, and maintenance of the tower and communication system. This grant will create a safer and more successful environment for all first responders in Rains County while enhancing communications with state and local departments — truly a win-win.”
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InsurTech Market to Grow by USD 77.41 Billion (2024-2028), Driven by Business Efficiency Needs and AI Impacting Market Trends - Technavio
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Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Aspen Technology, Inc. ( NASDAQ:AZPN – Free Report ) by 10.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 10,652 shares of the technology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Aspen Technology were worth $2,544,000 at the end of the most recent quarter. Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of AZPN. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. lifted its position in shares of Aspen Technology by 38.5% in the second quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 553,862 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $110,014,000 after acquiring an additional 153,897 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Aspen Technology in the third quarter valued at about $290,880,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Aspen Technology by 26.5% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 524,604 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $104,199,000 after acquiring an additional 109,783 shares in the last quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Aspen Technology by 1.6% in the second quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 4,090,314 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $812,459,000 after acquiring an additional 65,143 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vontobel Holding Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Aspen Technology in the third quarter valued at about $14,322,000. 45.66% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors. Insider Buying and Selling at Aspen Technology In other Aspen Technology news, Director Jr. Robert M. Whelan sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $219.10, for a total transaction of $219,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 8,540 shares in the company, valued at $1,871,114. The trade was a 10.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link . Company insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock. Wall Street Analyst Weigh In View Our Latest Analysis on Aspen Technology Aspen Technology Price Performance Shares of NASDAQ AZPN opened at $250.85 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $238.78 and its two-hundred day moving average is $217.40. Aspen Technology, Inc. has a 1-year low of $171.25 and a 1-year high of $251.13. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.87 billion, a P/E ratio of -432.50, a PEG ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.76. Aspen Technology ( NASDAQ:AZPN – Get Free Report ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The technology company reported $0.85 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.39 by ($0.54). Aspen Technology had a positive return on equity of 2.81% and a negative net margin of 3.26%. The company had revenue of $215.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $265.04 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.96 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 13.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Aspen Technology, Inc. will post 6.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year. Aspen Technology Company Profile ( Free Report ) Aspen Technology, Inc provides industrial software that focuses on helping customers in asset-intensive industries worldwide. The company’s solutions address complex environments where it is critical to optimize the asset design, operation, and maintenance lifecycle. Its software is used in performance engineering, modeling and design, supply chain management, predictive and prescriptive maintenance, digital grid management, and industrial data management. Recommended Stories Five stocks we like better than Aspen Technology Breakout Stocks: What They Are and How to Identify Them Vertiv’s Cool Tech Makes Its Stock Red-Hot Stock Market Holidays 2022-2025 – Here’s When the NYSE and NASDAQ Will be Closed MarketBeat Week in Review – 11/18 – 11/22 How to Know if a Stock Pays Dividends and When They Are Paid Out 2 Finance Stocks With Competitive Advantages You Can’t Ignore Receive News & Ratings for Aspen Technology Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Aspen Technology and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter .
Oracle Corp. reported quarterly revenue in line with estimates, disappointing investors who have boosted the stock to a record high in recent weeks on enthusiasm for the company’s ascendant cloud business. The shares fell in extended trading. Share Market View All Nifty Gainers View All Company Value Change %Change Fiscal second-quarter revenue increased 9% to $14.1 billion, the company said Monday in a statement. Sales from Oracle’s closely watched cloud infrastructure business jumped 52% to $2.4 billion, in line with the growth projected by analysts. Oracle has long tried to find its footing in the lucrative industry of renting computing power and storage, which is dominated by much-larger rivals led by Amazon.com Inc.’s Amazon Web Services and Microsoft Corp. The recent success has been fueled by demand from artificial intelligence companies seeking to train their models and marquee customers like Uber Technologies Inc. and ByteDance Ltd.’s TikTok. Chairman Larry Ellison has focused particularly on Oracle’s ability to provide the hardware and integrated software needed to handle powerful AI workloads. The stock slipped about 8% in extended trading after closing at $190.45. Expectations were high for Oracle headed into the results, with its stock jumping 81% this year. It was a “mixed quarter against elevated expectations,” wrote Rishi Jaluria, an analyst at RBC Capital Markets. Remaining performance obligations — a measure of bookings — were $97 billion as of the period ended November 30, a step down from $99.1 billion in the previous quarter. Earnings, excluding some items, were $1.47 a share. Analysts, on average, estimated $1.48, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Total cloud sales, including infrastructure and applications, was $5.9 billion. Analysts, on average, estimated $6 billion. That 52% growth in infrastructure sales suggests “strong expansion in AI workloads, both from direct and indirect clients,” wrote Anurag Rana, an analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence. For the fiscal third quarter, revenue will increase about 8%, Chief Executive Officer Safra Catz said on a conference call after the results were released. Profit, excluding some items, will be $1.47 to $1.51 a share. Cloud revenue will rise about 24%, she said. All of those metrics missed analyst estimates. Still, executives remained bullish on company momentum. Oracle’s cloud “trains several of the world’s most important generative AI models because we are faster and less expensive than other clouds,” Ellison said in the statement. He added that Meta Platforms Inc. has signed an agreement to use Oracle’s cloud infrastructure to develop AI agents built on Meta’s Llama models. Capital expenditures, which are watched as a metric of data center investment, were $3.97 billion in the quarter. Analysts estimated $3.52 billion. Overall capital expenditures should double this fiscal year compared to the previous, Catz said. The company spent $6.87 billion in fiscal 2024, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Last week, a US Appeals Court federal court upheld a law that would ban TikTok in the US unless the social media company was sold by its Chinese parent company ByteDance Ltd. Oracle has warned investors that a ban on TikTok would hurt its financial results. Oracle executives didn’t comment on the conference call about TikTok’s situation.Play, Die, Mutate: A two-man team worked for an ungodly amount of time on a "simple" roguelike game, but now they are nearly done and celebrating their first major release. Caves of Qud is one of those punishingly hard games in which you can fully immerse yourself, with permadeath looming as a constant threat to spoil the fun. Caves of Qud takes inspiration from Dwarf Fortress and other lore-rich worlds, blending core quest-based gameplay mechanics with procedurally generated content. Freehold Games, which includes Brian Bucklew, Jason Grinblat, and other contributors, worked on the game for 17 years. Now, they have announced that release 1.0 is ready to launch on new and old PCs – stretching all the way back to the Windows 7 era. Caves of Qud (CoQ) is a science fantasy roguelike epic experience dealing with retrofuturism, deep simulation, and swathes of sentient plants, as stated on the game's official Steam page . The game has an "Overwhelmingly Positive" rating with 95% of positive reviews. The exotic, far future world depicted in CoQ contains thousand-year-old civilizations, while the player can assemble their character from over 70 "mutations" and defects. There is a digging feature that provides a way to overcome every obstacle, going through walls with a pickaxe, a corrosive gas mutation, a lava-melting ability, and more. Monster limbs can be "hacked" thanks to every NPC being a fully simulated character as the player's, so you could "psionically dominate" a spider, go through the world as a spider, lay webs and eat prey. Caves of Qud is brutally difficult and deaths are permanent, the developers warn, but players can always roll a new character if they want. CoQ 1.0 introduces some significant improvements to the game, including the conclusion of the main quest, multiple endings, new music and sound effects, a more polished UI. There's even a Dromad Deluxe Edition with additional contents and future DLCs, though I will never understand why people insist on pay more money to get "exclusive" stuff for a digital-only game. And no, my two Elden Ring Collector's Editions absolutely don't count here. To ease new players into the game, the developers collaborated with SBPlaysGames to create a beginner-friendly tutorial . This ensures that first-time players won't feel as lost as if they were trying to play Ultima I on a 2024 PC Booter machine. Now that CoQ 1.0 is complete, Freehold Games plans to take a well-deserved break before resuming development with new story arcs. The team has yet to decide whether these arcs will be released as free updates or paid DLC.
A well-thought-out move
Direxion Daily S&P Biotech Bull 3x Shares ( NYSEARCA:LABU – Get Free Report )’s share price gapped down before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $96.24, but opened at $94.00. Direxion Daily S&P Biotech Bull 3x Shares shares last traded at $94.42, with a volume of 203,924 shares trading hands. Direxion Daily S&P Biotech Bull 3x Shares Stock Down 4.3 % The firm has a fifty day moving average of $116.47 and a two-hundred day moving average of $123.16. Hedge Funds Weigh In On Direxion Daily S&P Biotech Bull 3x Shares Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in Direxion Daily S&P Biotech Bull 3x Shares during the second quarter valued at about $596,000. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Direxion Daily S&P Biotech Bull 3x Shares by 25.3% in the 2nd quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,087 shares of the company’s stock worth $464,000 after buying an additional 825 shares during the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in shares of Direxion Daily S&P Biotech Bull 3x Shares during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $68,000. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its position in Direxion Daily S&P Biotech Bull 3x Shares by 49.3% during the third quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 3,199 shares of the company’s stock valued at $412,000 after acquiring an additional 1,057 shares during the last quarter. Finally, McGuire Investment Group LLC boosted its stake in Direxion Daily S&P Biotech Bull 3x Shares by 3.9% in the third quarter. McGuire Investment Group LLC now owns 4,633 shares of the company’s stock valued at $596,000 after acquiring an additional 175 shares in the last quarter. About Direxion Daily S&P Biotech Bull 3x Shares The Direxion Daily S&P Biotech Bull 3X Shares (LABU) is an exchange-traded fund that is based on the S&P Biotechnology Select Industry index. The fund provides daily 3 times exposure to the S&P Biotechnology Select Industry Index. LABU was launched on May 28, 2015 and is managed by Direxion. Further Reading Receive News & Ratings for Direxion Daily S&P Biotech Bull 3x Shares Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Direxion Daily S&P Biotech Bull 3x Shares and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter .AI may help, hurt in humanitarian responsesNone
Clever Christmas decoration storage hacks that make them easy to pack away - and get out next yearFortnite fans are looking forward to the release of update 33.10, which will introduce a boatload of new content. Available on PS5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, Android and PC, update 33.10 will be available to download and install on the morning of December 10. As a numbered update, the download will be accompanied by an extended period of server downtime, which means you won't be able to play Fortnite, LEGO Fortnite, Rocket Racing and Fortnite Festival for at least a couple of hours. If you want to know when you can log back into Fortnite, check out the 33.10 server maintenance schedule below. READ MORE: Fortnite update 33.10 patch notes, downtime, first-person Ballistic mode, LEGO Brick Life According to Epic Games , Fortnite Battle Royale and all of its companion game modes will be taken offline in full at 9am GMT. However, as Epic points out in a tweet announcing the downtime, matchmaking will be disabled at around 8.30am UK time. "Sharpen your blades!" reads an Epic tweet. "Downtime for v33.10 begins at 4 AM ET with matchmaking ending shortly beforehand." Epic hasn't revealed exactly when downtime will come to an end, but maintenance typically lasts for at least a couple of hours. Judging by the amount of new content launching as part of update 33.10, expect downtime to come to an end at around midday. In terms of what fans can expect from the update, Epic has officially confirmed plans to bring a new first-person mode to the game. Fortnite Ballistic is a new first-person shooter mode featuring 5v5 battles with ranked and unranked modes. Described as a tactical game mode where teamwork is key, it will launch with the Skyline 10 map. Epic explains more: "Ballistic is launching with the Skyline 10 map, a starting set of weapons, and a limited number of items. Adjustments will be made beyond launch based on player feedback, in addition to major updates such as new maps, weapons, and features." The game is a no-build mode where all presets from your Locker will carry over. It supports existing skins and items, except for Pickaxes, Contrails, Instruments, Vehicles and Jam Tracks. There's also a new Text chat upgrade, as well as a LEGO social role-playing mode called Brick Tales. Daily Express will update this article when server downtime comes to an end.United Cup Day 3 Predictions Including Alexander Zverev vs Thiago Monteiro