Woodside Wants to Sell 20%-30% of Louisiana LNG Holding Company
In an interview, Chief Executive Meg O'Neill said Woodside wants to sell 20%-30% of Louisiana LNG, which it acquired through the $900 million takeover of Tellurian last year. Negotiations have been ongoing for months, and Woodside decided in April to approve construction of the project before a sell-down of the holding company was agreed.
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I'm 62 and not ready to retire, but over working full-time. How do I make sure I can afford to slash my hours?
Imagine this scenario: Tracey from Philadelphia is going on 62, and while her friends are talking about retirement, she's not quite ready to walk off into her golden years just yet. She loves having structure and purpose to her days, as well as the mental challenge of work. Since she's divorced and her adult children have their own lives, she also looks forward to social interactions at the office. She's even become an informal mentor to some of the younger employees. But her health isn't what it used to be, and she wouldn't mind having a bit more time to putter around the garden and babysit her grandkids. Plus, she's tired of the daily commute to work. Yet she isn't quite ready for retirement, nor does she feel she's saved enough money to do so. Ideally, Tracey would like to cut back her hours to part-time work and slowly make the transition to retirement, perhaps over several years. But she's worried about how that could impact her overall retirement savings, as well as her pension and health insurance. She's also worried about how to broach the topic with her boss. She doesn't want to appear as though she's no longer committed to her role or the company, nor does she want to be relegated to less important 'busy work' until she officially retires. Here's what she needs to consider, and how she can bring this up at work. Don't miss Thanks to Jeff Bezos, you can now become a landlord for as little as $100 — and no, you don't have to deal with tenants or fix freezers. Here's how I'm 49 years old and have nothing saved for retirement — what should I do? Don't panic. Here are 6 of the easiest ways you can catch up (and fast) Want an extra $1,300,000 when you retire? Dave Ramsey says this 7-step plan 'works every single time' to kill debt, get rich in America — and that 'anyone' can do it What to consider before reducing your hours Reducing your hours or working part-time is an option for older workers who aren't quite ready for retirement, whether financially or emotionally (or both). For Tracey, part-time work would allow her to stay mentally sharp, continue saving for retirement and gently ease into her golden years. Some employers may even offer this as an option through partial or phased retirement, so it's worth checking in with HR. Retirement savings Tracey will need to crunch the numbers, perhaps with the help of a financial advisor, to see how a reduced salary would impact retirement savings goals. Like many Americans, Tracey probably hasn't met her retirement savings goals just yet. A recent Bankrate survey found that more than half (57%) of Americans (whether working full-time, part-time or temporarily unemployed) feel that they're behind with their savings for retirement. For workers 50 and older, there's the option to make annual catch-up contributions to a 401(k), 403(b) or governmental 457 plans. For 2025, workers can contribute up to an additional $7,500 for a total of $31,000. If you're considering going part-time before retirement, you'll likely have less to put aside in your retirement savings accounts and/or brokerage accounts — and you may not have the extra cash to benefit from catch-up contributions. Cutting down to part-time can also impact your pension (if you have one). Each pension plan has different rules; for example, some may have a provision for annualizing part-time earnings. So it's best to talk to the HR department about your options. If you have a spouse, you'll also want to discuss how going part-time could impact your shared retirement goals. Social Security If Tracey works part-time but still makes enough money to live on, she could potentially delay taking her Social Security benefit until her full retirement age (between age 66 and 67), when she'd receive 100% of her benefit. But Social Security benefits are calculated based on your 35 highest-earning years. If Tracey earned significantly more in her later career, cutting back her hours now could lower her average and slightly reduce her benefit. For those considering going part time, the Social Security Administration (SSA) has a number of online tools that can help you crunch the numbers to figure out how reducing your hours could affect your benefits down the road. Health insurance coverage Even if Tracey has already met her retirement savings goal and money isn't really an issue, she'll still need to consider health insurance. Medicare doesn't kick in until age 65, and employers are not obligated to provide health insurance part-time employees. In fact, only a quarter (26%) of part-time workers have employer-sponsored health coverage, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. However, anyone who works 30 hours a week or 130 hours a month is considered a full-time employee by the IRS under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). That means, if Tracey continues to work at least 30 hours a week until she turns 65, she'd still hold onto her employer-sponsored health coverage. If you find yourself wanting to reduce your work hours but losing health coverage in the process, you can fill out a Marketplace health insurance application to see if you're eligible for a plan based on your income (or free or low-cost coverage through Medicaid). Read more: Nervous about the stock market? Gain potential quarterly income through this $1B private real estate fund — even if you're not a millionaire. Working it out with your employer If you're in a similar position as Tracey and are ready to bring this topic up with your boss, first make sure to research your company's policies around part-time work. Once you're as aware of the policies as possible, prepare a proposal. Proposing part-time work to your employer The proposal that you bring to your boss should highlight the benefits of this arrangement both for you and for them. You can emphasize how the new arrangement would allow the company to continue to lean on your offerings while also giving you much-needed flexibility. The proposal should also address any potential concerns. According to career advice from Indeed, 'Your supervisor may worry about how the reduction of your work hours might result in a loss of work or impact your colleagues negatively. Try to validate these concerns and offer your supervisor options for overcoming any potential challenge.' For example, perhaps you have institutional knowledge that can help train the next generation of workers. If you're able to negotiate part-time work, it's advisable to sign a new employment agreement (or amend your current one) that outlines the change in hours, pay and benefits. What to do if your employer says no It's possible that, despite a stellar proposal, your boss may not go for it. If that's the case, there are still a couple of options. You could discuss the possibility of working for the company as a freelance consultant, which gives you control over which projects you take on. If you can't negotiate any arrangement with her current employer, you could also consider looking for part-time work elsewhere. This might be a good option for someone who still needs to save for retirement, but finds their current job to be a bad fit. Easing into retirement through part-time work could give Tracey the best of both worlds: the security and social structure of her job, along with the freedom to start enjoying more personal time. And for anyone in her position, the same holds true. As long as you carefully review the impact on savings, benefits and insurance, and work with your employer on a clear plan, you'll be better prepared to step confidently into the next chapter of life. What to read next Robert Kiyosaki warns of a 'Greater Depression' coming to the US — with millions of Americans going poor. But he says these 2 'easy-money' assets will bring in 'great wealth'. How to get in now Here are 5 simple ways to grow rich with real estate if you don't want to play landlord. And you can even start with as little as $10 Rich, young Americans are ditching the stormy stock market — here are the alternative assets they're banking on instead Here are 5 'must have' items that Americans (almost) always overpay for — and very quickly regret. How many are hurting you? Stay in the know. Join 200,000+ readers and get the best of Moneywise sent straight to your inbox every week for free. This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
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General Dynamics Stock: The Best Defense Prime
This article first appeared on GuruFocus. When investors look at defense contractors, names like Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman often dominate the conversation. But General Dynamics stands in a uniquely advantageous position that quietly combines consistent defense contract revenue with its crown jewel, a growth engine in its aerospace and private jet division: Gulfstream. While the others lean almost entirely on government contracts, GD has a hybrid identity. This hybrid is what makes it, arguably, the best-positioned prime defense contractor for long-term capital appreciation with a healthy defensive backbone. Warning! GuruFocus has detected 7 Warning Signs with GD. Gulfstream: A Built-In Growth Engine The centerpiece of GD's growth narrative is Gulfstream Aerospace, which produces some of the most iconic and in-demand business jets globally. At a time when corporate and high-net-worth individuals are doubling down on private travel, Gulfstream continues to capture outsized interest with revenue up 45.2% year over year in Q1 25. The G700 and G800 programs represent major technology leaps, offering long-range, ultra-luxury aircraft with increased operating efficiency. GD has positioned itself as not just a defense stalwart but a growth company in disguise. Gulfstream demand is inelastic often backed by corporate necessity or ultra-high-net-worth individual preferences that don't waver during typical economic cycles. While business jet deliveries across the industry took a temporary hit during COVID, General Dynamics maintained its backlog and is now benefiting from a post-pandemic normalization and even acceleration of demand. With corporate tax cuts being extended without end in sight, it would seem one of the primary beneficiaries would be Gulfstream and its luxe private jets. More importantly, Gulfstream's growth feeds back into GD's earnings diversification. Defense primes tend to be at the mercy of budget cycles. Not so for GD. With Gulfstream, they capture margin-rich, non-defense sales from private buyers and corporate fleet operators, many of whom are more economically resilient than ever. Excellence in Execution Against Competitors While looking at General Dynamics on its own would show that execution and delivery is fairly exceptional for a company of its size, it especially stands out when compared to the broader market, GD trades at a 20x PE multiple, which although comparable to its competitors, GD does not face the same issues. Lockheed Martin: in the last month saw its crown jewel, the f-35 program have its air force orders cut in half, reportedly due to cost overruns, which without question will hit the bottom line and investors in the company, also trading at roughly a 20 PE albeit with headwinds and negative exposures. (LMT Earnings in Q2 resulted in a greater than 10% decline) Northrop Grumman: year over year displayed a 6% decline in revenues, displaying a sluggish adaptation to realities in the defense industry, and also took a 477 million dollar hit to the B-21 raider program in Q1. Again an example of missing targets and taking surprise expenses, not a great outcome for investors when the company trades at a 20x earnings multiple. Raytheon: has quite a bit of civilian exposure with Pratt and Whitney and as a result faces a more cyclical business structure, while oil is currently low and would benefit RTX, this is not a certainty going forward and leaves investors susceptible to this risk (it also comes at a premium with the highest earnings multiples of any GD competitor at a 43x PE). Also from an operations side, they were fined a billion dollar criminal charge due to bribery by the DOJ in the last year, another example of questionable execution. Boeing: lastly is in all honesty a disaster of a company, struggling to get any significant wins other than the NGAD contract, which upon a deeper dive seems to be a quasi-bailout to the company rather than a legitimately earned contract as the company is struggling financially along with facing the damages of the 737 Max disaster. Even with rather direct support from the US government the company is still hemorrhaging cash flows and going on 5 years later, not displaying positive earnings. With General Dynamics, you get the reliable execution and strong margins typical of a top-tier defense prime without the baggage. It's the kind of company you can hold with confidence, free from the headline risk or operational drama that plagues some of its peers. Ramping Production and Higher Revenues Over the past few years, supply chain dysfunction has been the pain point of both commercial aerospace and defense production. GD wasn't immune. Gulfstream production was throttled by component delays, especially avionics and engines. However, 2024 marked a turning point. The company's latest guidance suggests that supply chains are stabilizing, and full-rate production is back on the table across key programs. On the defense side, the same applies. General Dynamics Land Systems and Marine Systems have both seen normalization in their subcontractor inputs. This bodes well for delivery timing and profit margins. For a firm heavily involved in long-cycle military hardware like Columbia-class submarines or Stryker land vehicles normalized production cadence directly translates into stronger free cash flow. From a purely hypothetical valuation perspective/ a reality check on its current market price, 14.93 EPS guided for 2025, and model assumptions of a 7% discount rate, 4% growth rate in earnings over the next 5 years (a conservative estimate, real ttm EPS growth is hovering around 10% over the last year) and 3% for longer term a DCF would confirm that GD is cheap at current valuations. Assuming the company can execute on modest earnings growth, there is significant value to the upside in a risk-off non cyclical investment. Uncertainty in Contracts? Not for GD One of the underappreciated elements of General Dynamics story is the nature of its defense contracts. While political dysfunction in Washington can create noise around government spending, GD's contracts are less exposed to discretionary cuts than most. The U.S. Navy's Columbia-class submarine program, for instance, is a top national defense priority, the contract of 23.4 billion and 5.1 billion modification (production underway)have essentially been locked in and would not be logistically possible to cancel or cut. This is also ignoring that canceling or deferring these types of programs is virtually off the table for strategic reasons. The war in Ukraine has also sharply altered the European security calculus. General Dynamics European Land Systems (GDELS) is capitalizing on increased armored vehicle demand across the continent. In other words, even if the U.S. were to tighten its budget belt slightly, international orders could offset that. A Tax Tailwind for Gulfstream Tax policy might not be the first thing that comes to mind when evaluating defense equities, but for Gulfstream, it matters. Business jet purchases in the U.S. benefit from accelerated depreciation provisions especially under bonus depreciation rules that have been in place and extended with the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. Although bonus depreciation is being phased down from its peak 100% level, it's still an influential factor. For high-earning individuals or corporations, being able to write off a major capital purchase like aGulfstream G700 in the first year remains a powerful incentive. In a high-margin segment like private aviation, tax policy can often be the final nudge that pushes a client to close a purchase. General Dynamics' investor materials have subtly nodded to this tailwind, and it's something that can continue supporting Gulfstream orders especially as election year tax rhetoric heats up and uncertainty grows around 2026 expirations (*The "Big Beautiful Bill" was shortly after this passed by US congress extending these cuts). Final Thoughts: The Quiet King of Defense While Northrop gets the headlines with recent involvement in conflicts, General Dynamics plays a quieter, more balanced game. Its dual engines of government contract stability and private aerospace growth give it a level of resilience that few can match. Whether you see escalating global conflict or looking for long-term capital appreciation from a capital-efficient compounder, GD quietly checks every box. In a world full of binary growth vs. safety trade-offs, General Dynamics offers both. For that reason, it is very well the best defense prime in the game and with current prices, a strong buy. Sign in to access your portfolio
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Exclusive-Amazon looks to ditch homegrown software for Android in Fire tablet revamp, sources say
By Greg Bensinger SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) -Amazon is plotting a big change to its Fire tablet lineup following years of escalating gripes from consumers and app developers over the company's homegrown operating system. As part of a project known internally as Kittyhawk, Amazon plans to release a higher-end tablet as soon as next year offering the Android operating system software for the first time, according to six people familiar with the matter. Since the Fire tablet's introduction in 2011, Amazon has used what is known as a 'forked' version of Android with custom modifications that make it work like a unique operating system. Amazon has long sought to undercut hardware rivals with inexpensive tablets and other devices that serve as a doorway to the firm's digital content, like e-books, videos and music. The devices have typically sold at or near manufacturing cost. But the focus on simplicity has held back sales, particularly among consumers who seek higher-performing devices. The multiyear project to switch to Android marks a philosophical change for the online retail giant, which has eschewed third-party operating systems and software in favor of its own. As a result, Amazon has offered its own app store requiring developers to make separate versions of their apps for Fire tablets, limiting the store's variety. If Kittyhawk is successful, Fire tablets could be more desirable for consumers who crave compatibility with other Android devices, the people said. They cautioned that Kittyhawk could be delayed or cancelled over financial or other concerns. Amazon declined to comment, saying it does not respond to rumors or speculation. 'Consumers have always expressed a concern about not having access to the latest Android versions, not having access to some of their apps because Amazon used their own store,' said Jitesh Ubrani, a researcher at IT advisory firm IDC. 'It's meant more work for developers in this day and age of largely free apps or services.' Ubrani noted that Amazon has nonetheless sold many millions of the tablets. Amazon has forfeited profits on the devices themselves in favor of making money on selling their associated services, like streaming movie rentals. But such inexpensive devices typically come with compromises like lower screen quality or battery life compared with pricier options. Amazon is the world's fourth-largest tablet seller, with 8% of the market, just behind Lenovo's 8.2%, according to second-quarter IDC data. Apple and Samsung were the market leaders with 33.1% and 18.7%, respectively. PRICIER TABLET The first Amazon Android tablet, slated for next year, will be pricier than current models, the people said. One of them said Amazon had discussed a $400 price tag, nearly double the cost of its current higher-end $230 Fire Max 11 tablet. IPads, by comparison, range from $350 to $1,200. Reuters could not learn additional specifications for the planned Amazon tablet, such as screen size and speaker quality or memory capacity. Amazon historically has avoided using software or other products from third parties, preferring to develop the services in-house or, barring that, to acquire a competitor. The Fire Phone smartphone championed by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and released in 2014 failed to win over buyers in part because of its reliance on Fire OS, as well as its high price tag. Amazon canceled the device and took a $170 million writedown. But the Seattle retailer has more recently shown a willingness to use rivals' services, particularly through its investment in startup Anthropic, whose Claude artificial intelligence software is the primary underpinning of Amazon's Alexa+ voice assistant and a chatbot used by employees known as Cedric. The new Fire tablet, the people said, will use the open-source version of Android, meaning it does not require direct coordination with Google and can be customized. Amazon is planning to roll out some lower-priced tablets with its Linux-based Vega operating system now in some Fire TV devices, some of the people said. The full slate of tablets will eventually be powered by a version of Android, the people said. The Fire project's internal code name of Kittyhawk seems to derive from the North Carolina town near where the Wright brothers conducted the first powered flight in 1903. But it is also the name of a failed flying car startup backed by Google co-founder Larry Page that burned through hundreds of millions in cash. Amazon declined to discuss the meaning behind its Kittyhawk project name. Sign in to access your portfolio
