What we’re reading (2/25)
“Red-Hot Stock Market Pushes More Companies To Go Public” (Wall Street Journal). “Last year’s increase in the number of companies listed on U.S. exchanges was the largest since the late-1990s dot-com bubble. The total is expected to surge even more this year as hundreds of companies tap everyday investors, according to data compiled by University of Florida finance professor Jay Ritter.”
“Robinhood Offers Blistering Retort To ‘Elitist’ Criticisms From Munger” (CNBC). “Robinhood fired back at Berkshire Hathaway Vice Chairman Charlie Munger, who earlier this week said the free trading app was having a ‘regrettable’ impact on investors.”
“Has McKinsey Lost Its Luster?” (New York Times). “Partners at McKinsey yesterday voted out their leader, Kevin Sneader, as the company deals with blowback over its role in the U.S. opioid crisis. It was the latest tough headline for the consulting firm, which may face growing threats to its status as a trusted adviser to companies and governments — and as a magnet for top talent.”
“Mortgage Rates Surge Higher For Second Week In A Row” (Washington Post). “The days of mortgage rates below 3 percent are fast coming to a close. According to the latest data released Thursday by Freddie Mac, the 30-year fixed-rate average climbed to 2.97 percent with an average 0.6 point. (Points are fees paid to a lender equal to 1 percent of the loan amount and are in addition to the interest rate.) It was 2.81 percent a week ago and 3.45 percent a year ago. The 30-year fixed average has risen 24 basis points in the past two weeks. (A basis point is 0.01 percentage point.)”
“CEOs Like Google's Sundar Pichai And Microsoft's Satya Nadella Are Among The Most Overpaid CEOs, According To A New Report” (Business Insider). “[C]ompanies that have consistently graced the list are performing worse than those that have never been mentioned. As You Sow has published this report annually since 2015, and nine CEOs have made the list every year, amounting to a total pay of $2 billion. However, these nine businesses have seen a lower annualized shareholder return compared to S&P 500 companies that have never made the overpaid CEO list.”
