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The Daily Money: Dollar General boycott is next

The Daily Money: Dollar General boycott is next

USA Today28-05-2025

The Daily Money: Dollar General boycott is next
Good morning! This is Betty Lin-Fisher with today's edition of The Daily Money.
Dollar General is the next retailer to face a protest over its retreat of diversity, equity and inclusion efforts.Pastor Jamal-Harrison Bryant, who has led the Black faith community in a boycott of Target, says an electronic protest of Dollar General is next.At the same time, Bryant says the Target boycott is moving to a Target blackout, which will be indefinite.Here are more details in my USA TODAY exclusive story.
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Do you want to live to be 100? It turns out not a lot of people want to hit that century mark, according to a new survey.
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Know a graduate? Krispy Kreme will give that graduate a free dozen doughnuts for a year. There is a catch, though. Grads need to show up in their cap and gowns today to get a "Dough-ploma" certificate while supplies last.
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Effort to improve transportation in Bluefield moving ahead
Effort to improve transportation in Bluefield moving ahead

Yahoo

time31 minutes ago

  • Yahoo

Effort to improve transportation in Bluefield moving ahead

bluefield – A town hall meeting set for June 12 will give the Bluefield community opportunities to share ideas and ask questions about a road project aimed at making travel smoother and safer from Bluefield State University's entrances to the city's northeast side. City Manager Cecil Marson said Friday the meeting will start at 1:30 p.m. June 12 on the Bluefield State University campus. It will be conducted in the Othello Harris-Jefferson Student Center. Information gleaned from the town hall will help determine how to spend a $1.2 million federal Reconnecting Communities grant. Reconnecting Communities is a program under the U.S. Department of Transportation. 'About two years ago we submitted an application for the Reconnecting Communities Grant,' Marson said. 'It's laser-focused on the northeast end of the city and what that does, it basically takes you from (Route) 52 where the Bluefield State University entryway is and takes you all the way through the northeast end past the Grant Street Bridge down past the Hotel Thelma.' The project's goal is to improve transportation and safety between the university and Hotel Thelma, which is an historic Green Book lodging where Black travelers stayed during the segregation era. 'The whole premise behind this project is to connect that part of the city to the downtown and also rework the road infrastructure and streetscape, really clean up a lot of the stuff that borders Norfolk Southern (railyard) along that main drag of Pulaski Street, Hardy Street all the way up to Rock Street and up to the campus,' Marson said. The city will work on the project in conjunction with the West Virginia Department of Highways. People attending the June 12 town hall will meet with highways officials and engineers working on the plan. Marson said the city wants as much community participation as possible. 'Because we're going to go in there, take all of the suggestions that have gotten us to this point, have some designs and schematics of what these roads could potentially look like and really, this plan grant is to get some of the engineering done and get everything prepped so this fall, we can submit for the implementation funding,' he said. 'And that's where we get the big money and hopefully, God willing, really get some of these projects down and revamp the northeast part of town and get the roads and infrastructure everybody deserves over there, and also help reinforce the college and give them a better entryway.' Darrin Martin, president of Bluefield State University, said the project would make travel to and from the campus safer. Both the Route 52 and Rock Street entrances are difficult to use and hazardous at times. 'Obviously, you think about the entrance way to campus on both sides,' Martin said. 'This is going to make it safer for us and improve the flow of traffic.' Students, faculty and visitors entering campus at Rock Street have to navigate a sharp turn. One goal would be make this curve 'softer,' Martin said. One part of the plan which includes a roundabout at the busy Route 52 entrance would make that entry point safer as well. 'It can get dicey,' he said. 'You can look and all of a sudden a car is on top of you. This should help and make that safer.' In September 2024, the City of Bluefield was awarded a $25,748,152 in federal grants through President Biden's Bipartisan Infrastructure Law for the Safe Streets and Roads for All program. Marson said that the $1.2 million Reconnecting Communities grant is from a different federal program. 'Like the Safe Streets, all these grants kind of work this way,' Marson said. 'First, you apply for the grant because you have a project. The first portion is the planning, so you'll get a funding amount — that was $1.2 million for us — then you have to resubmit again for implementation. Implementation is where construction comes in and we're not there yet on this grant.' The project is big because it has been a long time since the city's northeast side has seen a major investment, Marson said. 'It's deserving. It needs it,' he said. 'We need to help the college, assist the residents, make it safer over there and clean up.' Contact Greg Jordan at gjordan@

Companies are dialing back their Pride Month celebrations — and angering both the left and the right
Companies are dialing back their Pride Month celebrations — and angering both the left and the right

Business Insider

time3 hours ago

  • Business Insider

Companies are dialing back their Pride Month celebrations — and angering both the left and the right

Corporate Pride is looking a little less proud this year. Companies seem to have followed a common Pride Month playbook for the past several years. The checklist included changing social media avatars to rainbow logos, sponsoring parade floats, making donations, or casting ads a little differently from the rest of the year. This June, corporate Pride seems quieter amid a combination of cultural and political pressure against DEI in general, and the LGBTQ+ community in particular. Brands have been dropping out of sponsoring Pride parades across the country, Pride merchandise collections are getting smaller, and Fortune 500 social-media avatars appear largely unchanged. More broadly, companies have pulled back on diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives, or at least calling them DEI. The shift has stirred up criticism from both liberals and conservatives. "We're sort of facing a tidal wave of backlash against something that many companies have said they support," Ike Silver, a marketing professor at the University of Southern California's Marshall School of Business, told Business Insider. This has made Pride Month a bigger balancing act for companies this year, particularly those that have openly embraced it in the past. "There's a little bit of a damned if you do, damned if you don't sort of element to this," said Graham Nolan, a PR professional who cofounded Do the Werq, a platform for queer representation in the marketing industry. Brands face new backlash over their approaches to Pride Month Pride Month had evolved over the past decade into something that companies perhaps felt obligated to participate in at the risk of appearing out of step with societal norms, Silver said. "It's really more about jumping on the bandwagon," he said, "if you're not getting a boost from it, you might as well not court the backlash." But as reactions to Target — and more recently BarkBox — have shown, brands that have openly embraced Pride Month in prior years face considerable risk stepping back (or even appearing to pull back) from it. Target was one of the most prominent major consumer brands supporting LGBTQ+ Pride. Two years ago, it included Pride merchandise across its stores, but this year and last, it offered a smaller, gentler selection in about half of its locations. A company spokesperson said Target also sponsors local events. "We are absolutely dedicated to fostering inclusivity for everyone," the spokesperson said in a statement to BI. BarkBox found itself in hot water this month when an employee's internal communication suggested the company pull promotions for its Pride merch, comparing them to MAGA products. The leaked message sparked outrage and an apology from founder and CEO Matt Meeker, who said the company stands by its Pride products. Companies haven't had the best time sticking the landing with Pride Pride Month, Nolan said, became "more a checklist of corporate fears than it was a checklist of consumer desires." People never asked for brands to add rainbows to their logos, for example, Nolan said. Some companies have faced pressure from more left-wing groups that accused them of "rainbow washing," or capitalizing on LGBTQ+ people without providing a tangible benefit to the community. Pride Month became more of a minefield in the last two years as conservatives took aim at Bud Light's partnership with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney, and followed quickly by Target facing blowback for its 2023 Pride merchandise collection. While Bud Light and Target walked back their LGBTQ+ campaigns, the retreats didn't exactly earn them goodwill from either side of the political spectrum. The division between the sides has only grown more pitched under Donald Trump's second presidency. For brands, it can feel like consumers "who oppose the stance see any whiff of support as negative, and those that support the stance will only give you credit if they think that you're really in it," Silver said. "They won't sort of reward these soft steps." Nolan said crafting the right message is increasingly difficult, especially since the very act of speaking to one group can de-emphasize another. "When it's not perfect, what you get is conservatives who are angry about the fact that the work exists, and then you've got liberals who go, 'Yeah, this is a nice ad, but I know this about your hiring practices,'" he said. New risks change the calculus — and provide new opportunities Beyond the growing political polarization, the issue is further complicated for companies by the threat of government pressure. Trump has shown a willingness to go after companies because of their diversity policies. While taking a stand in the face of real risk can make a company's motives seem more sincere (think Costco or Ben & Jerry's founders, which have defended their stances on diversity), Silver said consumers don't typically punish companies that remain truly neutral. Whether they choose to publicly embrace Pride Month or not, Nolan hopes companies will strategize behind the scenes about strengthening their relationships with the LGBTQ+ community year-round. With shoppers weighing in on social media and scrutinizing companies' moves over the past months, it's clear that shifting positions in either direction can be risky. "When you flip-flop, you lose the people who supported you when you are taking a position," Silver said. "And you don't necessarily regain the people who are against your position."

Should You Invest $1,000 in TGT today?
Should You Invest $1,000 in TGT today?

Yahoo

time3 hours ago

  • Yahoo

Should You Invest $1,000 in TGT today?

Target has struggled to meet the needs of cost-conscious customers. A turnaround could take several years to fully materialize. The retail giant's dividend is still ultra-safe. 10 stocks we like better than Target › Target (NYSE: TGT) is a passive income powerhouse with more than five decades of annual dividend raises and an enticing 4.8% yield. But even with the high payout, Target has lost investors money over the last five years while the S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC) has more than doubled with dividends included. Here's why Target is under pressure, and whether the dividend stock is a buy right now. Retailers like Target have been under pressure as consumers tighten spending amid inflation and economic uncertainty. Data from the University of Michigan shows that consumer sentiment is hovering around its lowest level since 2022. Some companies have capitalized on consumer needs by providing products and services consumers want at affordable prices. For example, Walmart and Costco Wholesale have steadily grown revenue while sustaining good margins despite macro challenges. Target has had some success with promotions and partnerships, but is still seeing an overall decline in foot traffic. The divergence between Target's stock price and Walmart's and Costco's over the last two to three years illustrates the degree to which investor confidence has weakened for Target relative to these other names. Target slashed its guidance in its most recent earnings announcement. The company is now on track for a third consecutive fiscal year of adjusted earnings-per-share (EPS) declines. With Target's sales and earnings falling, investors have understandably grown skeptical of the company's ability to execute. Target has built up a bad track record of overpromising and underdelivering, so it's hard to put too much faith in its guidance. To Target's credit, management acknowledged the poor results and is focusing on turning the business around rather than appeasing investors. The company plans to leverage efficiency improvements and a revamped product lineup to get customers in stores and return to meaningful sales growth. Target has the tools to pull it off, but the retailer has to manage costs better, align inventory with buyer behavior trends, and limit steep discounts that have crushed its margins in recent years. Target's flaws are glaring and ongoing, but it would be a mistake to overlook the qualities that could make the stock a good buy in June. Target's sales and earnings may be ticking down, but it is still a highly profitable business that generates cash flow. In fact, Target's EPS and free cash flow (FCF) per share remain significantly higher than its dividend per share, even though Target has raised its dividend for 53 consecutive years. Typically, when a company's stock price tanks and its dividend yield goes up, it's because earnings are declining and the dividend begins to look unaffordable. However, Target is in a unique situation where its dividend is highly affordable despite the stock price being around six-year lows and the yield ballooning. Another good way of measuring dividend affordability is comparing the FCF yield to the dividend yield. FCF yield takes FCF per share and divides it by the stock price, similar to how dividend yield is dividend per share divided by the stock price. FCF yield basically shows the theoretical dividend a company could pay if it used all of its FCF on dividends. Target's FCF yield is a sky-high 8.2% -- much more than its 4.8% dividend yield. So while the company isn't growing, it is still a very profitable business that is well positioned to grow its dividend. Investing $1,000 in Target demonstrates a belief in management's ability to turn the company around and leverage Target's strengths rather than expose its weaknesses. The company's main weakness is that it can't compete with Walmart, Costco, or Amazon in terms of price, but it can find a happy medium centered around an enjoyable customer experience at a good value. The Target Circle loyalty program and Target's exclusive and limited-time partnerships will be instrumental in pulling off the turnaround. In the meantime, investors can rest easy knowing that the dividend is affordable, even with the high yield. A $1,000 investment in Target would produce about $48 in dividend income per year, which is significantly more than the $13 or so you could expect from an S&P 500 index fund. Add it all up, and Target stands out as a solid buy for value and income investors today. Before you buy stock in Target, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the for investors to buy now… and Target wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $668,538!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $869,841!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor's total average return is 789% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 172% for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join . See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of June 2, 2025 John Mackey, former CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. Daniel Foelber has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Amazon, Costco Wholesale, Target, and Walmart. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Should You Invest $1,000 in TGT today? was originally published by The Motley Fool 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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