Nvidia To Replace Intel In The Dow Jones Industrial Average; Stock Jumps

 Just when it seemed that Nvidia's recent record rally was in danger of fizzling, a Deus Ex Machina arrived late on Friday when the determinations committee of S&P Dow Jones Indices, the owner of the Dow Jones Industrial Average, announced that Nvidia would replace Intel on the Dow Jones Industrial Average (which has clearly become anything but), a shakeup to the blue-chip index that replaces a flagging semiconductor company with the primary vendor of GPUs for AI. Separately, Sherwin Williams will unironically replace one-time chemical giant (and Dow Jones eponym), Dow, Inc, in the average as well. The switch will take place on Nov. 8.

Intel shares were down 1% in extended trading on Friday. Nvidia shares rose 1%.

Nvidia shares have climbed over 180% so far in 2024 as investors bet the company has emerged as the primary beneficiary of the AI boom. The fast rise of Nvidia on the back of its data center AI processors has led it to be one of only a handful of companies with a market cap over $3 trillion, alongside Microsoft and Apple, both of which are already included in the DJIA.

Over the last five years, NVDA and The Dow look a little different but we are sure it will fit right in...

On the other hand, Intel shares have tumbled more than 50% so far this year as the company struggles with manufacturing challenges, new competition for its central processors, and the sad reality that this once glorious chipmaker has missed out on the AI trend.

The Dow contains 30 components and is weighted by the share price of the individual stocks instead of the companies total market value. Nvidia put itself in better position in May, when the company announced a 10-for-1 stock split. While doing nothing to its market cap, the move slashed the price of each share by 90%, allowing it to become a part of the Dow without having too heavy a weighting.

The switch is the first change to the index since February, when Amazon replaced Walgreens Boots Alliance. Over the years, the industrial-heavy Dow has been playing catch up and gaining exposure to the largest technology companies. With the addition of Nvidia, four of the six trillion-dollar tech companies are now in the index. The two not in the index are Alphabet and Meta.

The 30 companies that make up the DJIA currently are shown below:

• 3M
• American Express
• Amgen
• Amazon
• Apple
• Boeing
• Caterpillar
• Chevron
• Cisco
• Coca-Cola
• Disney
• Dow
• Goldman Sachs
• Home Depot
• Honeywell
• IBM
• Intel
• Johnson & Johnson
• JPMorgan Chase
• McDonald's
• Merck
• Microsoft
• Nike
• Procter & Gamble
• Salesforce
• Travelers
• UnitedHealth Group
• Verizon
• Visa
• Walmart

Some will point out that such Dow Jones moves tend to be a bottom or top tick opportunity, and point to the August 2020 switch in the Dow Jones when Salesforce replaced Exxon. Since then XOM has more than doubled, while CRM is unchanged.

Will the Dow Jones also top-tick Nvidia this time, while unleashing a new golden age for Intel?

https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/nvidia-replace-intel-dow-jones-industrial-average-stock-jumps

Finger-Prick Test for Alzheimer’s Disease?

 A finger-prick blood test can accurately identify p-tau217 — a key biomarker of Alzheimer's disease (AD) — without the need for temperature or storage control measures.

In a pilot study, researchers found a good correlation of p-tau217 levels from blood obtained via standard venous sampling and from a single finger prick.

“We see the potential that capillary p-tau217 from dried blood spots could overcome the limitations of standard venous collection of being invasive, dependent on centrifuges and ultra-low temperature freezers, and also requiring less volume than standard plasma analysis,” said lead investigator Hanna Huber, PhD, Department of Psychiatry and Neurochemistry, Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology, University of Gothenburg, Sweden. 

The findings were presented on October 30 at the 17th Clinical Trials on Alzheimer's Disease (CTAD) conference.

Strong Link Between Venous and Capillary Samples 

p-tau217 has emerged as the most effective blood test to identify AD. However, traditional venous blood sampling requires certain infrastructure and immediate processing. Increased and simplified access to this blood biomarker could be crucial for early diagnosis, proper patient management, and prompt initiation of disease-modifying treatments. 

The DROP-AD project is investigating the diagnostic performance of finger-prick collection to accurately measure p-tau217. 

In the current study, the research team obtained paired venous blood and capillary blood samples from 206 adults (mean age, 71.8 years; 59% women), with or without cognitive impairment, from five European centers. A subset of participants provided a second finger-prick sample collected without any supervision. 

The capillary blood samples were obtained via a single finger prick, and then single blood drops were applied to a dried plasma spot (DPS) card, which was then shipped to a lab (without temperature control or cooling) for p-tau217 measurement. Cerebrospinal fluid biomarkers were available for a subset of individuals.

Throughout the entire study population, there was a “very convincing correlation” between p-tau217 levels from capillary DPS and venous plasma, Huber told conference attendees. 

Additionally, capillary DPS p-tau217 levels were able to discriminate amyloid-positive from amyloid-negative individuals, with levels of this biomarker increasing in a stepwise fashion, “from cognitively unimpaired individuals to individuals with mild cognitive impairment and, finally, to dementia patients,” Huber said.

Of note, capillary p-tau217 levels from DPS samples that were collected by research staff did not differ from unsupervised self-collected samples. 

What about the stability of the samples? Capillary DPS p-tau-217 is “stable over 2 weeks at room temperature,” Huber said. 

Ready for Prime Time?

Preliminary data from the DROP-AD project highlight the potential of using finger-prick blood collection to identify neurofilament light (NfL) and glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), two other AD biomarkers.

“We think that capillary p-tau217, but also other biomarkers, could be a widely accessible and cheap alternative for clinical practice and clinical trials in individuals with cognitive decline if the results are confirmed in longitudinal and home-sampling cohorts,” Huber concluded. 

“Measuring biomarkers by a simple finger prick could facilitate regular and autonomous sampling at home, which would be particularly useful in remote and rural settings,” she noted. 

The findings in this study confirm and extend earlier findings that the study team reported last year at the Alzheimer's Association International Conference (AAIC). 

“The data shared at CTAD 2024, along with the related material previously presented at AAIC 2023, reporting on a 'finger prick' blood test approach is interesting and emerging work but not yet ready for clinical use,” Rebecca M. Edelmayer, PhD, Alzheimer’s Association vice president of scientific engagement, told Medscape Medical News.

“That said, the idea of a highly accessible and scalable tool that can aid in easier and more equitable diagnosis would be welcomed by researchers, clinicians, and individuals and families affected by Alzheimer’s disease and all other dementias,” Edelmayer said.

“This finger-prick blood testing technology for Alzheimer’s biomarkers still has to be validated more broadly, but it is very promising. Advancements in technology and practice demonstrate the simplicity, transportability, and diagnostic value of blood-based biomarkers for Alzheimer’s,” she added. 

The Alzheimer’s Association is currently conducting a systematic review of the evidence and preparing clinical practice guidelines on blood-based biomarker tests for specialized healthcare settings, with publications, clinical resources, and tools anticipated in 2025, Edelmayer noted. 

The study had no commercial funding. Huber and Edelmayer report no relevant conflicts of interest. 

https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/finger-prick-test-alzheimers-disease-2024a1000k1b

Virtual Yoga Classes Improve Chronic Low Back Pain

 Virtual yoga classes significantly reduced chronic low back pain intensity and improved back-related function in health system employees. Improvements were sustained at 24 weeks, with reduced pain medication use and better sleep quality.

METHODOLOGY:

• A single-blinded, 24-week, 2-arm, randomized clinical trial was conducted from May 3, 2022, through May 23, 2023, comparing live-streamed yoga classes with a wait-list control among adults with chronic low back pain.
• A total of 140 participants aged 18-64 years with chronic low back pain were recruited from the Cleveland Clinic Employee Health Plan.
• Inclusion criteria included a mean low back pain intensity score of at least 4 on an 11-point numerical rating scale and daily back pain interference about half or more of the days.
• The intervention consisted of 12 consecutive weekly, 60-minute, virtual, live-streamed hatha yoga group classes.
• Coprimary outcomes were mean pain intensity in the previous week on the 11-point numerical rating scale and back-related function as assessed using the 23-point modified Roland Morris Disability Questionnaire at 12 weeks.

TAKEAWAY:

• Participants in the virtual yoga group showed greater reductions in mean pain intensity at 12 weeks (mean change, -1.5 points; P < .001) and 24 weeks (mean change, -2.3 points; P < .001) compared to the wait-list control group.
• Back-related function improved significantly in the virtual yoga group at 12 weeks (mean change, -2.8 points; P < .001) and 24 weeks (mean change, -4.6 points; P < .001) compared to the control group.
• Virtual yoga participants reported 21.2 percentage points less use of any analgesic medication during the past week at 24 weeks compared to the control group.
• Sleep quality improved more in the virtual yoga group at 12 weeks (mean change, 0.4 points; P = .008) and 24 weeks (mean change, 0.4 points; P = .005) compared to the control group.

IN PRACTICE:

"Given the demonstrated noninferiority of yoga to physical therapy, structured virtual yoga programs and physical therapy are reasonable choices for patients with [chronic low back pain] depending on accessibility, cost, and patient preference. These findings support the call by the National Academy of Medicine for increased evidenced-based pain treatments that can be disseminated via technology-based platforms," wrote the authors of the study.

SOURCE:

The study was led by Hallie Tankha, PhD, Cleveland Clinic in Cleveland. It was published online on November 1, in JAMA Network Open.

LIMITATIONS: 

The study had a low adherence rate, with only 36.6% of participants attending at least 50% of the yoga classes. There was also a higher rate of missing data in the yoga group compared to the control group. The study did not include a longer-term follow-up assessment beyond 24 weeks.

DISCLOSURES:

This study was supported by grants from Cleveland Clinic Healthcare Delivery and Implementation Science Center. Michael Rothberg, MD, MPH, disclosed receiving personal fees from the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association. Eric Roseen, DC, PhD, reported receiving grants from the National Institutes of Health National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health. Robert Saper, MD, MPH, disclosed receiving personal fees from UpToDate and grants from NCCIH related to yoga and tai chi for treatment of pain. Additional disclosures are noted in the original article.

This article was created using several editorial tools, including AI, as part of the process. Human editors reviewed this content before publication.

https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/virtual-yoga-classes-improve-chronic-low-back-pain-2024a1000k13

'BlackRock Reportedly Uses TikTok Influencers At ETF Launch Party'

 Larry Fink's BlackRock appears to have used a PR agency to tap TikTok influencers for a launch event in New York City to promote a new exchange-traded fund focused on the top 20 US stocks. 

According to TikTok influencer Piper Cassidy Phillips, she and other influencers were invited "to an influencer event with BlackRock" earlier this week. They were invited to a wine bar in the West Village. 

Phillips said this was the first time she had seen a financial institution inviting influencers to an event to promote an ETF product. She added that Fink's BlackRock worked with "a huge PR agency" to put on the event. 

Phillips discussed the iShares Top 20 US Stocks ETF (TOPT) in the video, which is focused on the 20 largest US stocks by market capitalization. 

Many of Phillips' followers on the Chinese social media platform were upset that BlackRock used influencers to promote financial products to retail investors.

"FINRA is gonna have a field day with this one," one TikToker wrote. 

X users respond...

Here's where we are in the cycle. 

"Selling your soul to BlackRock for a couple bucks," another TikTok said. 

https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/blackrock-reportedly-uses-tiktok-influencers-etf-launch-party

Liberal Dark Money Network Sends Inaccurate Election Texts to Voters Across US

 A progressive group funded by anti-Trump billionaire Reid Hoffman and other Democratic heavyweights is behind a rash of misleading text messages stoking concerns about voter suppression across the country, a Washington Free Beacon investigation has found.

AllVote, a low-profile super PAC launched this summer, has sent false information via text message to voters in Pennsylvania, Arizona, Georgia, and other states about their voting status, CNN, the Philadelphia Inquirer, and other outlets reported this week. Some messages inform voters who have already gone to the polls that they have yet to cast their ballots. Others have been provided inaccurate information about their polling places or drop-box locations.

The Illinois Statewide Terrorism & Intelligence Center said AllVote was behind "confusing text messages" about the election. Officials in McLean County, Ill., said voters were worried that their votes "hadn't counted" after receiving text messages stating that they had not cast their ballots.

An official in the New Mexico secretary of state's office, which fielded complaints about AllVote messages, said last week the mass texts were "something that the feds really need to look at and crack down on."

Beyond legal concerns about AllVote, its antics have stoked interest in its financial backers. While AllVote has gone to extensive lengths to mask its employees and donors, the Free Beacon can trace it back to the group Rapid Resist Action, formed in 2017 by Obama administration official Yoni Landau.

The key clue, the Free Beacon found, is a legal disclaimer at AllVote's website that redirects to a Rapid Resist Action web address.

While Rapid Resist Action does not disclose its donors, Hoffman's tax filings show he gave $484,000 to Rapid Resist Action through his nonprofit American Future Republic in 2022 and $180,000 to the group through another charity, Patriotic Republic, in 2021. Hoffman, a former associate of pedophile Jeffrey Epstein, has been linked to other Democratic misinformation controversies.

In 2017, Hoffman funded a technology firm that created fake online personas to dissuade conservatives from voting in Alabama's special election for Senate. Hoffman apologized after the scheme was uncovered the following year and claimed he had no knowledge of the tech firm's activities.

James McClave, a cryptocurrency investor who has emerged as a major Democratic party donor, gave $500,000 to Rapid Resist Action in 2022 through his charity, BEMC 4 Association. The donation was earmarked for a text messaging project from Movement Labs, an affiliate of Rapid Resist Action.

Rapid Resist Action has received five- and six-figure donations from the American Federation of State, City, County, and Municipal Employees, a major labor union, and the Sixteen Thirty Fund, the Democratic dark-money juggernaut. America Votes, a premier Democratic voter drive group, gave $250,000 to Rapid Resist Action last year.

It is unclear who has contributed to Rapid Resist Action this year, and if Hoffman, McClave, or any other donors are aware of the controversial AllVote operation. They did not respond to requests for comment.

A spokesman for AllVote declined to comment on the group's donors but said that the text messages went only to progressive voters and that AllVote and its related groups are "PACs engaging in commonplace voter contact work."

But it's not the first time that Landau, the proprietor of Rapid Resist Action and AllVote, have been involved in deceptive campaign tactics.

In 2022, the year in which Hoffman's nonprofit gave $484,000 to Rapid Resist Action, Landau apologized after one of his initiatives, Voting Futures Trust, was flagged for text messages to voters in New Jersey, Kansas, North Carolina, and other states that gave inaccurate drop-box location data. "We take full responsibility for these mistakes and have issued correction texts," Landau said, according to the New Jersey Globe.

In 2020, another Landau group sent misleading text messages to voters in Arizona, who reported they were falsely told they were ineligible to vote by mail.

"I was confused at first. I've been doing early voting for many years so I was shocked by the text," said a woman who received a text message. "I was also worried after seeing the link in the text that someone was trying to fish for information and trying to make it so my vote didn't count."

Earlier this year, a Landau operation called VoteWin sent messages to voters, falsely claiming they had not registered to vote.

"I'm deeply sorry for anyone that may have gotten the message in error, who is registered to vote, and we're looking into our content now to see if there are any variations that might be less certain but still as effective in generating new legal registrations," Landau told the cybersecurity publication Krebs on Security.

AllVote is part of a complex network of nonprofits and super PACs overseen by Landau, who directs the operation from his firm, Movement Labs, which uses "technology and experimentation to stop fascism and build progressive power." Landau has said his firm "has a lot more flexibility" than mainstream Democratic groups "to try new things and see what works."

"If the DNC or a state party tries something new and gets it wrong, there can be real negative consequences for the career of the person who made the decision," Landau said in 2022.

Rapid Resist Action has contributed to dozens of super PACs in recent months, all of which list the same treasurer on campaign documents. The treasurer, a progressive consultant named Howie Stanger, is also listed as treasurer for AllVote, VoteWin, and another newly formed super PAC, Did They Vote. Stanger, who formerly served as an executive with the anti-Israel activist group IfNotNow, is now the treasurer for Democratic Missouri Senate candidate Lucas Kunce, according to campaign filings.

Millions of dollars from Rapid Resist Action have flowed to another super PAC involved in controversial campaign tactics.

Thirteen super PACs funded solely by Rapid Resist Action have given $120,000 apiece to Voters of These 50 States of America, another super PAC registered to Stanger. Voters of These 50 States of America disclosed earlier this week that it spent $1.4 million on ads supporting Libertarian presidential candidate Chase Oliver in Michigan, part of a scheme to pull conservative votes away from Donald Trump in a key battleground state.

Voters of These 50 States of America has received $2 million from Evidence for Impact, a dark money group incorporated by the law firm of Harris campaign attorney Marc Elias, the Free Beacon reported.

Evidence for Impact is the sole funder of another super PAC, Civic Truth Action, that has spent nearly $2.5 million on mail parcels in support of anti-abortion activist Randall Terry, another ploy to pull votes from Trump.

Landau also oversees Contest Every Race, an initiative to recruit Democrats to run for office in rural and suburban areas. Minnesota attorney general Keith Ellison (D.) serves on the advisory board of Contest Every Race, along with J.B. Poersch, the president of Senate Majority PAC, the super PAC controlled by Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer (D., N.Y.).

Landau, Movement Labs, and Stanger did not respond to requests for comment. Hoffman and McClave, the Rapid Resist Action donors, did not respond to comment requests.

https://freebeacon.com/elections/something-that-the-feds-really-need-to-look-at-liberal-dark-money-network-sends-inaccurate-election-texts-to-voters-across-us/

The Illusion Of Growth: How Inflation Skews Our Perception Of The Stock Market

 by Alexander Frei via The Epoch Times,

Americans can readily see the effects of record-high inflation every time they shop. Prices have soared, from the grocery store to the gas pumps. Although inflation has cooled, families are still feeling the pinch.

And the harm doesn’t end there: Inflation also is making stock markets appear stronger than they really are and cutting into returns for everyone, including those with retirement accounts.

We seldom hear about that last point. When media outlets discuss the latest inflation rate, they typically highlight the average annual percentage change in the consumer price index. The CPI tracks a basketful of goods, including housing, food, energy, insurance, and more, measuring the average price increases of these items over time.

From 2016 to 2020, the inflation rate averaged 1.9 percent, which resulted in a cumulative price increase of about 7.7 percent over four years. The Federal Reserve’s target rate—about 2 percent—typically goes unnoticed by consumers, as wages tend to rise at a similar pace.

But from 2021 to the present, the inflation rate has averaged 4.9 percent, leading to a cumulative price increase of 19.6 percent. At these elevated levels, wages struggle to keep up, making inflation more noticeable for consumers. A recent poll revealed that 63 percent of voters say they believe the U.S. economy is on the wrong track and 62 percent characterize it as weak.

Yet despite this negative sentiment, the stock market appears to be booming. On Oct. 21, the Dow Jones and the S&P 500 hit all-time highs.

However, these indexes alone don’t tell the full story.

Inflation can distort how we perceive market gains. Although it may appear that investments in the stock market are yielding record-breaking returns, these returns are more moderate once they’re adjusted for inflation.

In short, inflation not only hurts consumers, it hurts investors—which includes most Americans. This hidden tax on savings and investments quietly eats away at real profits, leaving Americans with far less purchasing power than it appears on the surface.

To estimate how this would affect someone who invested in the stock market in January 2021, you compare the Dow Jones Industrial Average with its inflation-adjusted counterpart. Although the nominal stock market gains since 2021 show an increase of 39 percent, this growth shrinks to just 15 percent when adjusted for inflation.

Inflation, often overlooked in stock market discussions, has a tangible impact on investment returns. Investors who focus solely on nominal gains without considering inflation may develop a false sense of optimism about their portfolio’s performance.

So how can inflation have such a notable effect?

In simple terms, as prices rise, even significant returns lose their purchasing power. More money is required to buy the same goods and services, eroding the real value of one’s gains. As everything becomes more expensive, higher earnings or investment returns don’t stretch as far, making it harder to keep up with the true cost of living.

For comparison, one can track the average returns starting from 2016 to 2020. During this period, both the Dow and the inflation-adjusted Dow are much closer together, suggesting that inflation had a lesser effect on eroding profits. Indeed, despite the COVID-19 shock, the inflation-adjusted Dow rose by approximately 65 percent while the non-adjusted Dow increased by 81 percent.

Inflation is not just a consumer issue—it affects everyone, from families trying to make ends meet to investors on Wall Street. The disconnect between nominal market gains and their inflation-adjusted counterparts helps explain why many Americans, despite a seemingly booming stock market, voice concerns about the economy.

This illusion of growth highlights the need for a sharper focus on controlling inflation. Reducing wasteful government spending and bringing down inflation is essential not only to preserve the real value of investments, but to ensure that economic prosperity is felt across all levels of society.

Reprinted by permission from The Daily Signal, a publication of The Heritage Foundation.

https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/illusion-growth-how-inflation-skews-our-perception-stock-market