BofA retains Hims & Hers stock rating amid pharma challenges

 On Friday, BofA Securities maintained an Underperform rating on shares of Hims & Hers Health, Inc. (NYSE:HIMS) with a steady price target of $18.00.

The firm expressed ongoing concerns about the future of the company's compounded GLP-1 products due to aggressive defense tactics by pharmaceutical manufacturers. These concerns come even as HIMS demonstrates solid financial health, with InvestingPro analysis showing a healthy current ratio of 2.14 and minimal debt levels.

The analyst from BofA Securities highlighted recent actions by Novo Nordisk (NYSE:NVO), a major pharmaceutical company, which could impact Hims & Hers' strategy. Last week, Novo Nordisk submitted a Citizen Petition to the FDA, seeking to restrict compounding pharmacies from producing generic versions of its diabetes drug Victoza, known generically as liraglutide.

This move by Novo Nordisk came after the Outsourcing Facilities Association nominated liraglutide for inclusion on the 503B Bulks List, which is a register of drug substances approved for compounding. The analyst emphasized the importance of following any forthcoming decisions from the FDA, as these could potentially limit Hims & Hers' ability to launch their compounded versions of liraglutide.

Hims & Hers, which is planning to introduce liraglutide in 2025, may face additional risks to their GLP-1 portfolio expansion strategy if further compounding restrictions are imposed. The company's anticipated product launches hinge on the ability to compound these substances, which are now under scrutiny.

https://www.investing.com/news/analyst-ratings/bofa-retains-hims--hers-stock-rating-amid-pharma-challenges-93CH-3819140

Israeli Security Cabinet Approves Gaza Ceasefire Deal After It's Signed In Doha

 Despite that Thursday night the hostage release-ceasefire deal which is to end the war in Gaza was already signed in Doha, there's still been some final government approval hurdles on the Israeli side.

Israel's security cabinet has issued its formal approval, but now the deal moves to the full cabinet for final discussion and vote, expected to be held before the Jewish Shabbat begins. The cabinet further recommends that "the government approve the proposed outline." 

Via GPO/TOI

A statement by the Israeli prime minister’s office indicated the cabinet accepted the deal "after examining all political, security, and humanitarian aspects; and with the understanding that the proposed deal supports the achievement of the war’s goals."

There are still expected to be some holdouts arguing against, however:

The PMO does not reveal who voted to support the move, but Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich’s Religious Zionism party and National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir’s Otzma Yehudit party both said they would not back the deal.

Earlier, the government said that the plan will still be implemented as of Sunday despite the bureaucratic delays, which means the High Court will still need to hold a hearing into petitions against the agreement, though it is not expected to intervene.

Despite these delays on the Israeli side, President-Elect Trump along with President Biden were the first world leaders this week to hail the deal.

An initial Hamas statement also celebrated this as a 'win' over the Israeli military machine, which has been unable to root out the Islamist insurgency in the strip. Words from Hamas leadership praised "the legendary steadfastness of the great Palestinian people and the valiant resistance in the Gaza Strip."

According to more of the latest details via an Al Jazeera summary:

• Hamas says that obstacles that arose in relation to the terms of the Gaza ceasefire agreement were resolved at dawn today, according to a statement issued by the group.
• The Israeli media has published names of the 33 Israeli captives who are going to be released in the first phase of the ceasefire agreement.
• If approved by the Israeli government and cabinet, the ceasefire deal could proceed by the planned timeline, with captives freed as early as Sunday, according to a statement from the Israeli PM’s office.
• Israeli attacks are intensifying on densely populated areas in the Gaza Strip, including in Gaza City and northern border towns, according to Al Jazeera’s Tareq Abu Azzoum, reporting from Deir el-Balah.

Bombardment of the Gaza Strip has meanwhile continued until the deal's full implementation Sunday...

If the truce holds, it will likely go down in the history books as a victory for Trump's early diplomacy. Progressives too have been wondering what took the Biden White House so long, given also that virtually the same deal was on the table previously this summer, and it collapsed - after the US administration brought no pressure to bear.

https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/israeli-security-cabinet-approves-gaza-ceasefire-deal-after-sides-sign-doha

FBI Nukes DEI Office, Trump Demands "All Records To Be Preserved"

 Fox News confirmed on Thursday that the FBI has shuttered its Office of Diversity and Inclusion (ODI). Shortly after the announcement, President-elect Donald Trump called for "all records" related to the woke unit of the federal agency to be preserved. The move comes amid a broader rollback of diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives across corporate America and other parts of the federal government. Critics, including Trump, argue that prioritizing DEI over meritocracy in the last decade has harmed the nation, pledging that meritocracy will be made great again under his incoming administration. 

"In recent weeks, the FBI took steps to close the Office of Diversity and Inclusion (ODI), effective by December 2024," the FBI informed Fox News. The federal agency—widely criticized for being weaponized by radical leftists to target political opponents—offered no explanation for the sudden closure of its DEI unit—speculation, however, as a new sheriff steps into the White House on Monday afternoon. 

Following the Fox News report, Trump on Truth Social wrote: "We demand that the FBI preserve and retain all records, documents, and information on the now closing DEI Office—Never should have been opened and, if it was, should have closed long ago. Why is it that they're closing one day before the Inauguration of a new Administration? The reason is, CORRUPTION!" 

"The question is why were they allowed to be focused on DEI in the first place?" Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) wrote on X. 

Blackburn said, "The FBI should be focused on catching criminals, not winning participation trophies." 

Earlier this month, Blackburn penned a letter to FBI Director Christopher Wray claiming that "radical" DEI practices had "endangered" Americans following the terrorist attack on Bourdon Street.

"I am deeply concerned that—under your leadership—the Bureau has prioritized DEI initiatives over its core mission of protecting the American people," Balckburn wrote in the Jan. 3 letter after referencing the terrorist attack. 

Former FBI special agent and Fox News contributor Nicole Parker noted, "I appreciate all forms of diversity. Make no mistake of that. What I do not appreciate is when there is a constant push for social justice weaponization at the FBI whose top priorities are to protect the American people and uphold the Constitution."

"I will end all of the Marxist diversity, equity and inclusion policies across the entire federal government immediately," Trump said in December. This comes as Trump tapped White House national security official Kash Patel to overhaul the FBI. 

Once the American people recognize that DEI was never designed to succeed but instead destroy the current system and pave the way for a socialist reconstruction of America via Marxist Democrats, these nation-killing initiatives will then be eradicated—not just from federal, state and local governments, and or the military, but also from corporate America. 

Last week, Meta's Mark Zuckerberg got the memo. He nuked DEI from Facebook and Instagram, sending "morale for queer staff in the shitter." The woke retreat has begun in corporate America and government.

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/fbi-nukes-dei-office-trump-demands-all-records-be-preserved

'Authorities Preparing For "Worst Case Scenarios" Ahead Of Trump Inauguration'

 by Paul Joseph Watson via Modernity.news,

Authorities in Washington DC are scanning for “nuclear irregularities” while the Secret Service preps for “worst case scenarios” as security preparations kick into high gear ahead of the inauguration of President-elect Donald Trump.

Trump will be sworn in for his second term in office on Monday, January 20th.

A report by CBS News reveals how Department of Energy helicopters are flying in grid patterns around the city from only 150 feet in the air in order to “scan for radiological or nuclear irregularities.”

Officials are attempting to map a “blueprint” of normal radiation readings over Washington in order to detect anything unusual like potential dirty bombs.

Any slight variation in readings sets off an alarm which is then investigated by the pilots.

The U.S. Secret Service, which has faced criticism for its previous lax security measures around Trump, is also roleplaying “worst case scenarios” that could interrupt the inauguration process.

According to Assistant Special Agent in Charge Michael Thomas, security measures for Trump’s inauguration will eclipse anything previously seen.

This includes the presence of 25,000 law enforcement officers and military personnel, including 7,800 National Guard soldiers.

30 miles of ‘anti-scale’ fencing around the site of the inauguration will also provide a “ring of steel” to protect the event and its 250,000 attendees.

More than 25 Coast Guard vessels are also in position to patrol the area.

During last month’s concern over mystery drones seen flying around the United States, one theory was that the drones were being flown by the U.S. Military to scan for missing nuclear material.

Trump continues to face a heightened threat after facing three assassination attempts over the last 6 months, with some of his supporters urging him to not even attend the inauguration in person.

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/authorities-preparing-worst-case-scenarios-ahead-trump-inauguration

'Cuba Begins Releasing Prisoners Following Biden Announcements'

 Hours after President Biden removed Cuba from a blacklist of nations that sponsor terrorism (and rolled back a raft of sanctions implemented by Donald Trump during his first presidency that have contributed to the communist-run island’s worst economic crisis in decades), Cuban leader Miguel Diaz-Canel said Cuba would “gradually” release 553 prisoners from its jails following talks with the Vatican.

As Reuters reports, in the July 2021 protests - the biggest since Fidel Castro’s 1959 revolution - thousands took to the streets in towns and cities across the island, many protesting shortages of food, medicine and electricity as COVID-19 cases soared.

Rights groups say at least 1,000 people were arrested after the demonstrations.

Cuba says those jailed committed crimes ranging from arson to vandalism and sedition.

In La Guinera, one of Havana’s poorest outlying neighborhoods and a hotspot for protests in 2021, Dariel Cruz Garcia walked alongside his mother on Wednesday morning, embracing neighbors and old friends.

Cruz Garcia, 23, was sentenced to 15 years in prison for sedition following the protests. The sentence, which had since been reduced, has not been waived or commuted, he said, but officers Tuesday evening told him he could serve the remainder of his sentence from home.

“There was tremendous intrigue at the jail yesterday,” he told Reuters after arriving back at his family house in La Guinera.

“Everyone was talking about it and then they came to find me last night.”

“I escaped from hell to be with my family. I’ll behave myself so I can move on.”

Cruz Garcia said several other prisoners who had been arrested following the 2021 protests and had been held with him had also been released.

Maricela Sosa, vice president of Cuba’s highest court, said on Wednesday morning that those liberated would be monitored for good behavior and could again be jailed should they violate terms of their parole.

“This is neither an amnesty nor a pardon,” Sosa said on state-run television.

Biden’s actions - should they endure a review by incoming President-elect Trump and the U.S. Congress - would mark the most significant detente in U.S.-Cuba relations since the Obama era.

Trump, a harsh Cuba critic who designated the island a state sponsor of terrorism in 2021, has yet to personally comment on this week’s developments.

But, as Reuters reports, Marco Rubio, Trump’s pick for Secretary of State, said on Wednesday during his confirmation hearing that the measures were not set in stone.

“Nothing that was agreed to is irreversible or binding on the new administration,” he said.

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/cuba-begins-releasing-prisoners-following-biden-announcements

Fire Erupts At California Battery Storage Plant

 If the raging wildfires across Los Angeles County weren't enough, California faced another crisis overnight as one of the world's largest battery storage facilities, situated about 100 miles south of San Francisco, caught fire, triggering area-wide evacuations. 

AP News reported that a fire broke out Thursday at the Moss Landing Power Plant, a natural gas-fired generation plant with thousands of lithium batteries for energy storage. Fires involving lithium batteries, as seen with electric vehicles, are notoriously difficult to extinguish and could burn uncontrollably for days. 

"There's no way to sugarcoat it. This is a disaster, is what it is," Monterey County Supervisor Glenn Church told local media outlet KSBW-TV. However, Church did not expect the fire to spread outside the perimeter of the plant. 

Local media outlet The Mercury News noted that fires at the Vistra plant, which Vistra Energy owns, and one of the largest battery storage facilities in the world boasting a capacity of 750 megawatts and 3,000 megawatt-hours, experienced fires in 2021 and 2022. The energy storage facility plays a massive role in stabilizing California's power grid.

It's unclear at this point what started the fire. Local authorities evacuated more than 2,000 people around the plant due to concerns over hazardous materials and potential chemical releases. 

"Our top priority is the safety of the community and our personnel, and Vistra deeply appreciates the continued assistance of our local emergency responders," Jenny Lyon, a spokesperson for Vistra, said in a statement.

KSBW said Vistra confirmed the fire was detected in the 300-MW Phase I energy storage facility. 

Here's footage of the fire posted on X:

Elon Musk on X denounced far-left MSM for spreading misinformation and disinformation about the fire:  

There's no update yet on the current grid impacts or how operations at the Moss Landing Power Plant are affected. It's another setback for Democrats in their push for a 'green' utopia in a state that seems to be imploding by the week.

https://www.zerohedge.com/commodities/disaster-fire-erupts-california-battery-storage-plant

'Visualizing AI's Perceived Impact On Job Creation, By Country'

 With the popularization of artificial intelligence, more than half of Americans report using AI regularly. Along with the conveniences this technology provides, however, there is growing fear about machines transforming professions or even replacing workers.

In this chart, Visual Capitalist's Bruno Venditti presents the results of a survey conducted by Ipsos, asking people if they believe artificial intelligence will lead to many new jobs being created in their country.

Methodology: Ipsos surveyed 33 countries between Friday, October 25, and Friday, November 8, 2024. For this survey, Ipsos interviewed 23,721 adults aged 18 and older.

Chinese Are the Most Optimistic

The Chinese are the most optimistic about artificial intelligence creating new jobs in their country, while Hungarians are the least optimistic.

China’s AI sector has experienced exponential growth, supported by government initiatives. The country also leads in AI academic research, although the U.S. remains at the forefront of turning research into products.

Two other Asian countries, Indonesia and Thailand, complete the top three on the list.

Rank	Country	Likely (%)	Unlikely (%)
1	🇨🇳 China	77	20
2	🇮🇩 Indonesia	74	23
3	🇹🇭 Thailand	71	24
4	🇹🇷 Türkiye	67	27
5	🇲🇾 Malaysia	65	29
6	🇮🇳 India	58	31
7	🇸🇬 Singapore	57	32
8	🇿🇦 South Africa	52	42
9	🇲🇽 Mexico	47	44
10	🇧🇷 Brazil	46	44
11	🇵🇭 Philippines	43	51
12	🇮🇪 Ireland	40	47
13	🇨🇴 Colombia	40	49
14	🇵🇪 Peru	40	46
15	🇦🇺 Australia	38	49
16	🇦🇷 Argentina	38	48
17	🇪🇸 Spain	38	48
18	🇰🇷 South Korea	37	54
19	🇷🇴 Romania	37	54
20	🇳🇱 Netherlands	36	54
21	🇺🇸 United States	36	49
22	🇨🇱 Chile	34	53
23	🇨🇭 Switzerland	34	55
24	🇫🇷 France	33	56
25	🇯🇵 Japan	33	47
26	🇨🇦 Canada	33	52
27	🇸🇪 Sweden	33	54
28	🇬🇧 Great Britain	32	54
29	🇧🇪 Belgium	31	58
30	🇮🇹 Italy	30	58
31	🇵🇱 Poland	29	58
32	🇩🇪 Germany	29	59
33	🇭🇺 Hungary	24	65
	🌍 Global Average	43	46

On the other hand, Europe dominates the list of countries that are less optimistic about AI’s impact on the labor market. Only 29% of people in Poland and Germany believe artificial intelligence will create many new jobs, while just 24% in Hungary think it is likely to happen.

https://www.zerohedge.com/technology/visualizing-ais-perceived-impact-job-creation-country