19 days ago
Updated Sept. 18, 2026 4:59 pm ET
Listen
(3 min)
The latest Market Talks covering Financial Services. Exclusively on Dow Jones Newswires at 4:20 ET, 12:20 ET and 16:50 ET.
1357 ET – Hyperliquid’s HYPE token rises 6.7% to $90.83 after the exchange announced that it would enable direct borrowing on its platform. HYPE hit a record $92.43 earlier in the session. Hyperliquid says that it will let users supply HYPE or BTC as collateral for loans, offering 65% and 50% loan-to-value, respectively, according to a statement on its website. The HYPE token has gained 30% in the past two months alone.(kirk.maltaiswsj.com)
#market
Listen
(3 min)
The latest Market Talks covering Financial Services. Exclusively on Dow Jones Newswires at 4:20 ET, 12:20 ET and 16:50 ET.
1357 ET – Hyperliquid’s HYPE token rises 6.7% to $90.83 after the exchange announced that it would enable direct borrowing on its platform. HYPE hit a record $92.43 earlier in the session. Hyperliquid says that it will let users supply HYPE or BTC as collateral for loans, offering 65% and 50% loan-to-value, respectively, according to a statement on its website. The HYPE token has gained 30% in the past two months alone.(kirk.maltaiswsj.com)
#market
20 days ago
Property and casualty insurer Progressive (NYSE: PGR) is probably best known for selling auto insurance. That's a highly competitive segment of the industry, but the company has proven its chops, reporting a strong combined ratio of 87.3% in the second quarter of 2026. Is the roughly 10% pullback from the 52-week high, and about 25% drawdown from 2025's peak, as of this writing, enough to make the stock a buy? Probably not if you are a value investor.
The combined ratio is a measure of profitability in the insurance sector, with numbers below 100% indicating that a company is earning more from premiums than it costs to support those premiums and cover claims. Progressive has a strong history of running its business well on this front. Basically, it is a good business. But paying too much for a good business can turn it into a bad investment, as Benjamin Graham was fond of saying (Graham notably helped train Warren Buffett).
Missed Nvidia in 2009? This Rare Signal Is Flashing Again. In 2009, a "Double Down" signal flashed for a little-known chipmaker called Nvidia. For the first time in years, that same "Total Conviction" signal is flashing for a company 1/100th the size of Nvidia. Continue »
So the real question here is whether the drawdowns noted above were sufficient to make Progressive's valuation attractive. The answer there isn't clean cut. For example, the price-to-sales ratio of 1.4x is in the middle of the historical range of roughly 0.5x to 2.2x. If anything, the P/S ratio is kind of toward the high side. The same general story holds with the price-to-book ratio. So these two metrics hint at a stock that isn't expensive, but it also isn't trading at bargain-basement prices.
The price-to-earnings ratio is a bit more positive, with the 11.1x P/E toward the lower end of its historical range. And the average insurance company has a P/E ratio of around 11.8x, so this makes Progressive look reasonably priced. Only Progressive's P/B ratio is 3.7x compared to the industry average of 1.7x, so the broader industry comparison still isn't a clear-cut win.
#ratio #progressive
The combined ratio is a measure of profitability in the insurance sector, with numbers below 100% indicating that a company is earning more from premiums than it costs to support those premiums and cover claims. Progressive has a strong history of running its business well on this front. Basically, it is a good business. But paying too much for a good business can turn it into a bad investment, as Benjamin Graham was fond of saying (Graham notably helped train Warren Buffett).
Missed Nvidia in 2009? This Rare Signal Is Flashing Again. In 2009, a "Double Down" signal flashed for a little-known chipmaker called Nvidia. For the first time in years, that same "Total Conviction" signal is flashing for a company 1/100th the size of Nvidia. Continue »
So the real question here is whether the drawdowns noted above were sufficient to make Progressive's valuation attractive. The answer there isn't clean cut. For example, the price-to-sales ratio of 1.4x is in the middle of the historical range of roughly 0.5x to 2.2x. If anything, the P/S ratio is kind of toward the high side. The same general story holds with the price-to-book ratio. So these two metrics hint at a stock that isn't expensive, but it also isn't trading at bargain-basement prices.
The price-to-earnings ratio is a bit more positive, with the 11.1x P/E toward the lower end of its historical range. And the average insurance company has a P/E ratio of around 11.8x, so this makes Progressive look reasonably priced. Only Progressive's P/B ratio is 3.7x compared to the industry average of 1.7x, so the broader industry comparison still isn't a clear-cut win.
#ratio #progressive
1 month ago
Moneywise and Yahoo Finance LLC may earn commission or revenue through links in the content below.
Running out of savings in old age is the biggest fear for many retirees. In fact, 67% of Americans are more worried about outliving their money than death itself, according to an Allianz Life study (1).
This persistent fear of a drained bank account could be pushing millions of seniors into uncomfortably tight budgets or risky personal finance behavior, but here's the strange part: the data says most retirees never come close to running out.
Jeff Bezos backs a platform that lets anyone invest in rental homes for as little as $100 — 6 ways to build wealth like a landlord without actually being one
JPMorgan sees gold hitting $5,000/oz by Q4 — and savvy investors are protecting their wealth with a tax-advantaged Gold IRA. Get your free guide from Priority Gold
#finance #wealth #allianz #life
Running out of savings in old age is the biggest fear for many retirees. In fact, 67% of Americans are more worried about outliving their money than death itself, according to an Allianz Life study (1).
This persistent fear of a drained bank account could be pushing millions of seniors into uncomfortably tight budgets or risky personal finance behavior, but here's the strange part: the data says most retirees never come close to running out.
Jeff Bezos backs a platform that lets anyone invest in rental homes for as little as $100 — 6 ways to build wealth like a landlord without actually being one
JPMorgan sees gold hitting $5,000/oz by Q4 — and savvy investors are protecting their wealth with a tax-advantaged Gold IRA. Get your free guide from Priority Gold
#finance #wealth #allianz #life
1 month ago
Strategy (MSTR) broke its 10-week Bitcoin pause with a $370M buy, sending Strive (ASST) 6% higher even as Bitcoin fell.
With SPY down 0.6% and Strive already up 97% in a month, its beta of 13.19 signals extreme reversal risk.
Act now: the ****** yst who called NVIDIA in 2010 just named his top 10 AI stocks — and MicroStrategy didn't make the cut. Grab the names FREE today.
Strive (NASDAQ:ASST) shares are climbing this morning after peer Strategy (NASDAQ:MSTR) ended a 10-week Bitcoin purchase pause, a sentiment shift for corporate treasury names that arrives even as Bitcoin (CRYPTO:BTC) itself trades slightly lower on the day. The divergence sets the tone for Monday's session.
Strive is up 7% to $23.20 in Monday trading. Meanwhile, the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSEARCA:SPY) is down 0.6% to $764.93. Bitcoin is down 0.5% to $78,397.57 over the past 24 hours, and that's the anchor ****** et for this entire trade.
#strive #strategy #mstr #even
With SPY down 0.6% and Strive already up 97% in a month, its beta of 13.19 signals extreme reversal risk.
Act now: the ****** yst who called NVIDIA in 2010 just named his top 10 AI stocks — and MicroStrategy didn't make the cut. Grab the names FREE today.
Strive (NASDAQ:ASST) shares are climbing this morning after peer Strategy (NASDAQ:MSTR) ended a 10-week Bitcoin purchase pause, a sentiment shift for corporate treasury names that arrives even as Bitcoin (CRYPTO:BTC) itself trades slightly lower on the day. The divergence sets the tone for Monday's session.
Strive is up 7% to $23.20 in Monday trading. Meanwhile, the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSEARCA:SPY) is down 0.6% to $764.93. Bitcoin is down 0.5% to $78,397.57 over the past 24 hours, and that's the anchor ****** et for this entire trade.
#strive #strategy #mstr #even
1 month ago
Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) has had its best month since 2025, driven by a short squeeze and U.S. Treasury buybacks of long-term securities. It's up 24% this month as of Aug. 28. This recent surge is welcome news for Bitcoin treasury companies, which carry significant amounts of Bitcoin on their balance sheets.
However, there's still skepticism surrounding these companies. Case in point: Strategy (NASDAQ: MSTR), the company that holds the most Bitcoin, has an mNAV (market valuation relative to the Bitcoin it holds) of 1.06, down from 3.89 in late 2024. It used to trade at a hefty premium to its Bitcoin holdings. Now, you only pay $1.06 for every $1 of Bitcoin it owns.
Missed Nvidia in 2009? This Rare Signal Is Flashing Again. In 2009, a "Double Down" signal flashed for a little-known chipmaker called Nvidia. For the first time in years, that same "Total Conviction" signal is flashing for a company 1/100th the size of Nvidia. Continue »
The low premium reflects less trust in the Bitcoin treasury model, and investors are right to be skeptical.
First, let's define what a Bitcoin treasury company is. Although many businesses own some Bitcoin, the term refers to companies whose primary purpose is to buy and hold the cryptocurrency. Tesla owns Bitcoin, but no one would call it a Bitcoin treasury company. Strategy, Twenty One Capital, and other companies that have adopted this approach focus entirely on Bitcoin accumulation.
#Companies
However, there's still skepticism surrounding these companies. Case in point: Strategy (NASDAQ: MSTR), the company that holds the most Bitcoin, has an mNAV (market valuation relative to the Bitcoin it holds) of 1.06, down from 3.89 in late 2024. It used to trade at a hefty premium to its Bitcoin holdings. Now, you only pay $1.06 for every $1 of Bitcoin it owns.
Missed Nvidia in 2009? This Rare Signal Is Flashing Again. In 2009, a "Double Down" signal flashed for a little-known chipmaker called Nvidia. For the first time in years, that same "Total Conviction" signal is flashing for a company 1/100th the size of Nvidia. Continue »
The low premium reflects less trust in the Bitcoin treasury model, and investors are right to be skeptical.
First, let's define what a Bitcoin treasury company is. Although many businesses own some Bitcoin, the term refers to companies whose primary purpose is to buy and hold the cryptocurrency. Tesla owns Bitcoin, but no one would call it a Bitcoin treasury company. Strategy, Twenty One Capital, and other companies that have adopted this approach focus entirely on Bitcoin accumulation.
#Companies
1 month ago
Bitcoin hashprice has recovered to about $39.06 per PH/s/day, up more than 43% from its June low near $27, as bitcoin's price moved toward $80,000 and network difficulty eased, according to data from Luxor's Hashrate Index.
The Aug. 22 difficulty adjustment reduced the mining threshold by 1.31% at block 963,648, according to Mempool data. Difficulty fell from 127.48 trillion to 125.81 trillion, leaving it just 0.7% above the 2026 low of 124.93 trillion reached in June.
The decline was in line with the flat-to-down-1% move expected before the retarget. It also erased the prior epoch's 0.99% increase and was Bitcoin's tenth downward adjustment of 2026, against seven increases.
Stay ahead of AI infrastructure deals. Get Blockspace in your inbox.
Lower difficulty increases bitcoin production per unit of active hashrate, ***** uming price, fees and operating costs remain unchanged. The latest move is modest, making bitcoin's price rally the main driver of the hashprice recovery.
#price #june #according
The Aug. 22 difficulty adjustment reduced the mining threshold by 1.31% at block 963,648, according to Mempool data. Difficulty fell from 127.48 trillion to 125.81 trillion, leaving it just 0.7% above the 2026 low of 124.93 trillion reached in June.
The decline was in line with the flat-to-down-1% move expected before the retarget. It also erased the prior epoch's 0.99% increase and was Bitcoin's tenth downward adjustment of 2026, against seven increases.
Stay ahead of AI infrastructure deals. Get Blockspace in your inbox.
Lower difficulty increases bitcoin production per unit of active hashrate, ***** uming price, fees and operating costs remain unchanged. The latest move is modest, making bitcoin's price rally the main driver of the hashprice recovery.
#price #june #according
