AwesomeCapital

Saturday, June 21, 2025

Pelosi raked in millions last year — and her portfolio out-performed every large hedge fund

She might be the She-Wolf of Wall Street.

Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-California) raked in between $7.8 and $42.5 million in 2024 — meaning her estimated net worth with venture capitalist hubby Paul Pelosi could now top out at $413 million, new financial disclosures showed.

The staggering sum is an eye-popping jump from 2023, when financial disclosures showed the couple’s net worth topping out at a possible $370 million.

Pelosi’s exact net worth is not known because lawmakers are only required to disclose ranges.

Market research firm Quiver Quantitative, which estimates a single figure based on daily stock values it tracks, placed the pair’s 2024 worth at $257 million — up $26 million from a year earlier.

But the value of their various other ventures — which include but are not limited to a Napa Valley winery, ownership in a political data and consulting firm and a stake in a Bay area Italian restaurant — mean Pelosi’s worth could be far higher in the estimated range.

A large chunk of the couple’s fortune has come from a sizable stock portfolio and timely trades, all done in Paul Pelosi’s name.

The former House Speaker, who’s so infamous for trading Missouri Rep. Josh Hawley named a bill after her, and her husband dumped 5,000 shares of Microsoft stock worth an estimated $2.2 million in July — one of their largest sales in three years — a few short months before the FTC announced an antitrust investigation into the tech giant.

They also sold 2,000 shares — worth an estimated $525,000 — of Visa stock, less than three months before the credit card company was hit with a DOJ monopoly lawsuit.

Their best trade though might have been exercising a call option in December they bought in late 2023 at an estimated premium of $1.8 million, allowing them to nab 50,000 shares of hot AI chip stock NVIDIA for $12 a pop — less than one tenth of its market price.

In total the couple paid an estimated $2.4 million for the investment, which on paper is now worth more than $7.2 million.

NVIDIA wasn’t their only AI play of 2024.

The couple also paid between $600,000 and $1.25 million for a call option on California cybersecurity company Palo Alto Networks in February, the same week it was revealed the White House briefed lawmakers on a serious national security threat related to Russia.

The shares rose close to 20% in the days after the move.

The option allowed the pair to scoop up 14,000 shares of Palo Alto in December at a $100 strike price — half its trading value. The company has been crushing earnings over the past year and the investment is now worth around $2.8 million.

But the Queen of Stocks did suffer one setback — when she and Paul Pelosi ditched 2,500 shares of former Department of Government Efficiency boss Elon Musk’s Tesla in June, losing somewhere between $100,000 and $1 million on the trade.

In all, their investment portfolio pulled in an estimated 54% return in 2024, more than double the S&P 500’s 25% gain — and beating every large hedge fund, according to numbers in Bloomberg’s end-of-year tally of hedge funds’ returns.

The formidable profits come amid growing calls to ban Congress from trading individual stocks, arguing lawmakers have access to market-moving information ahead of the public.

Pelosi in the past rejected calls for a ban, stating “we’re a free‑market economy.”

She has since softened her stance in the face of growing criticism. When asked in May whether Congress should pass a trading ban, she replied, “If they do, they do.”

“Speaker Pelosi does not own any stocks, and she has no prior knowledge or subsequent involvement in any transactions,” a spokesperson told The Post.

The couple is already off to a rocking 2025.

In January, they bought call options for then-little-known artificial intelligence health firm, Tempus AI, which has since inked a $200 million deal with AstraZeneca and doubled its stock price.

The couple also took out call options for energy company Vistra — whose stock climbed last month after it unveiled a massive $1.9 billion deal to acquire natural gas facilities across the country from a private equity firm, citing rising US power demand.

https://nypost.com/2025/06/21/us-news/pelosi-added-millions-to-net-worth-last-year-report/

5 foods that naturally stimulate the ‘Ozempic hormone’ — without drugs

Want to shed pounds without getting poked? Your fork might be the fix.

While GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy have taken the weight-loss world by storm, there are some everyday foods that offer similar benefits naturally — no needle required.

“No one food is a magic bullet for anything, but getting a balanced diet rich in nutrition-dense foods is a great way to manage your appetite and feelings of being full,” Dr. Amir Khan, a general practitioner, said in an Instagram video.

Khan broke down five foods to add to your diet if you’re looking to naturally boost your levels of GLP-1, the hunger-controlling hormone that these trendy drugs are designed to mimic.

An added bonus: These foods are also packed with nutrients that benefit your whole body, not just your waistline.

But first: what is GLP-1?

GLP-1 is a hormone released by the small intestine after you eat, according to the Cleveland Clinic.

It plays several key roles in how the body processes food, including triggering insulin production to turn meals into energy and lower blood sugar levels.

GLP-1 drugs mimic this natural process by curbing appetite and reducing food intake, often leading to weight loss.

But according to Khan, some kitchen staples can produce similar effects.

#1 Eggs

Packed with protein and monounsaturated fats, eggs have been shown to help boost GLP-1 secretion.

“Egg whites in particular are thought to be beneficial to GLP-1 release,” Khan said.

#2 Certain nuts

Almonds, pistachios, and walnuts may help boost GLP-1 thanks to their fiber, protein, and healthy fats.

These nutrients work together to slow digestion, leading to a more steady rise in blood sugar and improving insulin sensitivity.

#3 High-fiber grains

Grains like oats, barley and whole wheat are packed with soluble fiber, which dissolves in water and forms a gel-like substance in your gut.

This gel slows digestion and the release of glucose into your bloodstream, preventing sugar spikes and triggering GLP-1 release.

#4 Olive oil

“Studies suggest unsaturated fats, like those in olive oil, stimulate GLP-1 release better than saturated fats found in butter,” Khan explained.

Olive oil also slows carbohydrate digestion, helping prevent rapid blood sugar spikes.

Its polyphenols and vitamin E provide antioxidant and anti-inflammatory benefits that support hormone regulation — including GLP-1.

A 2021 review found that a Mediterranean diet rich in olive oil led to higher post-meal GLP-1 levels, improved insulin sensitivity, and lower blood sugar compared to diets high in saturated fats.

#5 Some vegetables

Veggies like Brussels sprouts, broccoli and carrots are loaded with fiber, which helps regulate blood sugar.

Gut bacteria break down that fiber into short-chain fatty acids, which Khan says signal gut cells to release GLP-1 into the bloodstream.

America’s weight problem

About one in eight US adults have tried a GLP-1 drug, according to a 2024 KFF poll. Among them, nearly four in 10 say weight loss was the primary reason.

Obesity is an epidemic in America, with more than two in five adults and nearly one in five kids and teens classified as obese, per the CDC.

The health fallout is huge. Obesity is a risk factor for a wide range of chronic conditions, including heart disease, type 2 diabetes, osteoarthritis, sleep apnea, kidney disease and even several cancers.

But it’s not just physical. Obesity can take a toll on mental health, with research showing it increases the risk of developing low self-esteem, depression, eating disorders and chronic stress.

On top of that, people with obesity often face bias at school and work, taking a serious toll on their quality of life.

https://nypost.com/2025/06/21/health/5-foods-that-naturally-stimulate-the-ozempic-hormone/

Iran’s Supreme Leader picks ‘3 stooges’ to replace him as fear of assassination surges

Iran’s Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has chosen a secret list of three potential successors if he succumbs to the same fate as his growing list of valued lieutenants — another handful of whom were killed in overnight Israeli strikes Saturday.

Khamenei, 86, the Islamic Republic’s supreme leader since 1989, believes that either Israel or the US will try to kill him and crafted the list while holed up in a bunker, ordering his nation’s Assembly of Experts — the clerical body responsible for appointing the supreme leader — to choose from his handpicked pool should his enemies be successful, officials told The New York Times.

“If you need any more evidence that the ayatollah is shaking in his boots, look no further than him identifying his three stooges,” a source close to the White House told The Post.

Khamenei’s 55-year-old son, Mojtaba, also a cleric and close to the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, was once rumored to be a front-runner, but was not included on the ayatollah’s succession list, as Israel continues to dominate the skies over Tehran.

Who his three named candidates are is not clear — but the move is a deviation from Iran’s typical process for appointing a supreme leader.

Normally, the clerics pick a leader from their own list of candidates, in a process that could take months.

“The top priority is the preservation of the state,” said Vali Nasr, an Iran expert and professor of international affairs at Johns Hopkins University, told The Times about Khamenei’s decision.

“It is all calculative and pragmatic.”

The supreme leader has been relaying his wishes to his commanders through a single trusted aide — abandoning his use of electronic communications, according to the report.

Spokespeople for Iran’s mission to the United Nations did not immediately respond to The Post’s request for comment.

The Islamic Republic’s Ministry of Intelligence has also ordered all senior government officials and military commanders to remain below ground, according to two Iranian officials.

He has also been running through his chain of military command to choose an array of replacements for his growing list of murdered lieutenants.

Three commanders of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps were killed in separate strikes Friday and Saturday — including the “founder of the Iranian regime’s plan to destroy Israel,” officials in Tel Aviv said.

Saeed Izadi led the Palestine Corps of the overseas arm, known as the Quds Force, which was a “key coordinator” between Iran and Hamas, and helped arm the terrorist group ahead of its Oct. 7, 2023 massacre.

Benham Shahriyari was also killed. He led the arm’s weapons transfer unit, and was responsible for supplying missiles and rockets launched at Israel to Hezbollah, Hamas and Yemen’s Houthis, according to the IDF.

Israel also claimed to have killed Amin Pour Joudaki, commander of the Second Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Brigade, in which he “coordinated hundreds of drone launches toward Israeli territory.”

“Like the new head of the Iranian military whom the Israelis killed last week only days after he was promoted, these guys are not long for this world,” a former Trump administration national security official told The Post. “Their new godly command should be to book a one-way ticket out of the country ASAP.”

The fear of assassination is so rampant that the Ministry of Intelligence issued numerous security protocols that restrict officials from using any electronic devices to communicate.

All senior government officials and military commanders have also been ordered to hide underground.

Khamenei retreated into a bunker when the Iran-Israel conflict broke out last week — abandoning his highly secure compound in Tehran called the “beit rahbari,” or leader’s house.

He has delivered two recorded messages to the public, both insisting Iran would not surrender.

“The people of Iran will stand against a forced war,” he said in one.

https://nypost.com/2025/06/21/world-news/irans-ayatollah-ali-khamenei-picking-supreme-leader-successors/

Search This Blog