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Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Zacks.com featured highlights NetEase, Fox, Qifu Technology and UGI
Chicago, IL – May 30, 2025 – The stocks in this week's article are NetEase Inc. NTES, Fox Corp. FOX, Qifu Technology Inc. QFIN and UGI Corp. UGI. After staging a strong comeback from the lows hit in early April, Wall Street has been experiencing volatile trading again in recent weeks. Growing uncertainty around the new U.S. administration's economic tariffs continues to weigh on investor sentiment. In such a scenario, investors should shift their focus to products that provide stability and safety in a rocky market. And nothing seems better than dividend investing, which offers income and stability. Though dividend stocks do not offer dramatic price appreciation, they are a major source of consistent income for investors to create wealth when returns from the equity market are at risk. In fact, picking stocks with a history of dividend growth leads to a healthy portfolio with a greater scope of capital appreciation as opposed to simple dividend-paying stocks or those with high yields. We have selected four dividend growth stocks — NetEase Inc., Fox Corp., Qifu Technology Inc. and UGI Corp. — that could be compelling picks for investors amid the current market turmoil. Stocks that have a strong history of dividend growth belong to mature companies, which are less susceptible to large swings in the market, and thus act as a hedge against economic or political uncertainty as well as stock market volatility. At the same time, these offer downside protection with their consistent increase in payouts. Additionally, these stocks have superior fundamentals that make dividend growth a quality and promising investment for the long term. These include a sustainable business model, a long track of profitability, rising cash flows, good liquidity, a strong balance sheet and some value characteristics. Further, a history of strong dividend growth indicates that a dividend increase is likely in the future. Although these stocks do not necessarily have the highest yields, they have outperformed for a longer period than the broader stock market or any other dividend-paying stock. Here are four of the five stocks that fit the bill: Beijing-based NetEase is an Internet technology company engaged in the development of applications, services and other technologies for the Internet in China. The stock saw a solid earnings estimate revision of 70 cents for this year over the past 30 days and has an expected earnings growth rate of 10.6%. NetEase has a Zacks Rank #1 and a Growth Score of A. You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank stocks here. New York-based Fox Corp. produces and distributes news, sports and entertainment content. The company's brands include FOX News, FOX Sports, the FOX Network, the FOX Television Stations and sports cable networks FS1, FS2, Fox Deportes and Big Ten Network. The company saw a positive earnings estimate revision of 5 cents for the fiscal year (ending June 2025) over the past 30 days and has an expected earnings growth rate of 32.4%. Fox Corporation has a Zacks Rank #1 and a Growth Score of B. China-based Qifu Technology is a Credit-Tech platform principally in China that provides a comprehensive suite of technology services to assist financial institutions and consumers and SMEs in the loan lifecycle, ranging from borrower acquisition, preliminary credit assessment, fund matching and post-facilitation services. The stock saw a positive earnings estimate revision of a penny for this year over the past 30 days and has an expected earnings growth rate of 22.6%. Qifu has a Zacks Rank #2 and a Growth Score of A. Pennsylvania-based UGI Corp. is a holding company that distributes, stores, transports and markets energy products and related services through its subsidiaries. It is a domestic and international retail distributor of propane and butane liquefied petroleum gases; a provider of natural gas and electric service via regulated local distribution utilities; a generator of electricity and a regional marketer of energy commodities. The stock saw a positive earnings estimate revision of a couple of cents for the fiscal year (ending September 2025) over the past 30 days. UGI Corporation has a Zacks Rank #2 and a Growth Score of B. You can get the remaining stock on this list by signing up now for your 2-week free trial to the Research Wizard and start using this screen in your own trading. Further, you can also create your own strategies and test them first before taking the investment plunge. The Research Wizard is a great place to begin. It's easy to use. Everything is in plain language. And it's very intuitive. Start your Research Wizard trial today. And the next time you read an economic report, open up the Research Wizard, plug your finds in, and see what gems come out. Click here to sign up for a free trial to the Research Wizard today. Disclosure: Officers, directors and employees of Zacks Investment Research may own or have sold short securities and/or hold long and/or short positions in options that are mentioned in this material. An affiliated investment advisory firm may own or have sold short securities and/or hold long and/or short positions in options mentioned in this material. Disclosure: Performance information for Zacks' portfolios and strategies is available at: Since 2000, our top stock-picking strategies have blown away the S&P's +7.7% average gain per year. Amazingly, they soared with average gains of +48.4%, +50.2% and +56.7% per year. Today you can access their live picks without cost or obligation. See Stocks Free >> For the rest of this Screen of the Week article please visit at: Follow us on Twitter: Join us on Facebook: Zacks Investment Research is under common control with affiliated entities (including a broker-dealer and an investment adviser), which may engage in transactions involving the foregoing securities for the clients of such affiliates. Contact: Jim Giaquinto Company: Phone: 312-265-9268 Email: pr@ Visit: provides investment resources and informs you of these resources, which you may choose to use in making your own investment decisions. Zacks is providing information on this resource to you subject to the Zacks "Terms and Conditions of Service" disclaimer. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Inherent in any investment is the potential for loss. This material is being provided for informational purposes only and nothing herein constitutes investment, legal, accounting or tax advice, or a recommendation to buy, sell or hold a security. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. It should not be assumed that any investments in securities, companies, sectors or markets identified and described were or will be profitable. All information is current as of the date of herein and is subject to change without notice. Any views or opinions expressed may not reflect those of the firm as a whole. Zacks Investment Research does not engage in investment banking, market making or asset management activities of any securities. These returns are from hypothetical portfolios consisting of stocks with Zacks Rank = 1 that were rebalanced monthly with zero transaction costs. These are not the returns of actual portfolios of stocks. The S&P 500 is an unmanaged index. Visit for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report NetEase, Inc. (NTES) : Free Stock Analysis Report UGI Corporation (UGI) : Free Stock Analysis Report Fox Corporation (FOX) : Free Stock Analysis Report Qifu Technology, Inc. (QFIN) : Free Stock Analysis Report This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research ( Zacks Investment Research Error while retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data
Borneo Post
2 days ago
- Science
- Borneo Post
China strives to cultivate tech-savvy generation in AI-driven classrooms
A student operates an AI-powered VR device at Shenzhen Xiantian Foreign Language School in south China's Guangdong Province on March 21, 2025. – Xinhua photo GUANGZHOU (May 30): In a junior high school classroom in the southern tech hub of Shenzhen, a 14-year-old student surnamed Geng deftly adjusted the parameters of a neural network model, having previously used his AI-powered 'study buddy' to refine the narrative flow of his essay. In this classroom, students have learned to see the world through the eyes of a neural network. They were taught how AI models recognise digits from 0 to 9 based on their unique shapes like identifying a '7' by its vertical line and horizontal stroke, or a '2' by its curved body and top bar. Once confined to tech startups, such a scenario is now becoming a required course in some Chinese schools, as the nation pushes to make AI literacy as fundamental as math or literature. China's education authorities have pledged to universalise AI education in primary and secondary schools by 2030. In Shenzhen's Longgang District, 18 schools were selected to pilot AI-driven projects, including personalised homework systems and AI-powered essay grading. After two months of data training, the AI system, developed by Feixiang Xingqiu, is now able to tailor assignments to each student's needs. In the first three months of 2025, the Beijing-based education tech startup piloted its digital courses in over 1,000 schools, reaching 150,000 students nationwide. 'AI simulates the formation of human intelligence through learning, integrating knowledge and generating cognition. Therefore, the first field it embraces is education,' said Xiong Zhang, a computing professor at Beihang University. Yet, early introduction to AI for children is debated. Many experts warn that chatbot interactions may weaken a child's natural sense of wonder. 'In an era where AI can replicate human knowledge, education should shift its emphasis,' said Bai Fengshan, a professor from Tsinghua University. 'Given this shift, education should prioritise 'exploring the unknown,' especially in early childhood, rather than emphasising the acquisition of existing knowledge,' explained Bai, cautioning against premature AI exposure for children. Students attend a PE class with AI-powered devices at Shenzhen Longgang District Arts and Science School in south China's Guangdong Province on Jan 3, 2025. – Xinhua photo At the Qing Shui School in the western suburbs of Beijing, educators are designing lesson plans to leverage the strengths of AI while mitigating its potential drawbacks. Fifth-graders were initially allowed to observe how giant archer ants find their nest in the wild. Then, they used DeepSeek to design experiments with sugar water 'odor bridges' and alcohol 'odor erasers' to guide ants along paths. However, the AI plan failed to simulate real ant nest odors accurately, causing the ants to deviate. After refining their design, the students successfully replicated ant colony algorithms and learned that these algorithms can optimise 5G base stations, robotic collaboration and community logistics routes. The core value of AI-driven educational reform lies in cultivating 'authentic problem solvers' for the intelligent age, said Cao Yanyan, an education official in Mentougou District of Beijing. 'The goal is for students to acquire not just knowledge, but also systematic thinking and innovative methodologies,' Cao added. – Xinhua AI China education Xinhua
New York Post
2 days ago
- Health
- New York Post
NIH won't renew ‘cruel' drug experiments on beagle puppies — some as young as 8 months old
WASHINGTON — China-led drug tests on hundreds of beagle puppies won't be conducted anymore on the US taxpayers' dime, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) confirmed to The Post on Thursday — but the Defense Department still hasn't copped to partially funding the research deemed 'cruel' by lawmakers and a watchdog group. A $124,200 contract between the NIH and the Beijing-based biotech firm Pharmaron to test pharmaceuticals on the pooches from Sept. 1, 2023, to May 31, 2025, is not being renewed, according to a spokesperson with the public health agency's Office of Extramural Research. The taxpayer watchdog White Coat Waste Project unearthed the contract via a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request, with documents showing up to 300 beagles — as well as rats and mice — were being tested per week to help understand and treat neurological disorders. Advertisement 3 A $124,200 contract between the NIH and the Chinese biotech firm Pharmaron to test pharmaceuticals on beagles is not being renewed, a rep for the agency's Office of Extramural Research said. via White Coat Waste Project The experiments abided by the Animal Welfare Act and the Public Health Service Policy on Laboratory — but White Coat Waste pointed to the contract discussing how the pups, some as young as eight months, were 'reused' and then 'euthanized' if they suffered organ dysfunction, were infected or became weak. A Defense Department spokesperson previously claimed there was no 'evidence' of the Pentagon contributing taxpayer dollars to the research. Advertisement 'There is no evidence we can find that indicates the Department of Defense funds any related animal research,' a spokesperson said of the experiments in January 2025. 3 The contract stated the NIH's National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences 'received a DoD award to specifically fund animal studies delineated in this award.' Obtained via FOIA by White Coat Waste Project (WCW) But the contract stated the NIH's National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences 'received a DoD award to specifically fund animal studies delineated in this award.' Reps for the Defense Department did not respond to requests for comment. Advertisement White Coat Waste uncovered the contract as part of an investigation into more than two dozen Chinese labs that had received $2 million-plus in taxpayer funding for animal testing and other experiments. 3 The White Coat Waste Project probed more than two dozen Chinese labs that received $2 million-plus in taxpayer funding for animal testing and other experiments. Grandbrothers – 'We're thrilled that less than 48 hours after the US Navy banned all dog and cat tests following a White Coat Waste campaign, Trump's NIH is now cutting wasteful dog experiments we unearthed in a taxpayer-funded Chinese lab,' said White Coat Waste senior vice president Justin Goodman. 'We're proud of our hard-fought campaign that notched this victory and applaud NIH Director Jay Bhattacharya, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, and President Trump for kicking taxpayer-funded canine cruelty in China to the doghouse of history.' Advertisement Staten Island GOP Rep. Nicole Malliotakis and Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) have been among the lawmakers opposing taxpayer-funded animal testing and other potentially risky research in countries of concern, such as China. Pharmaron is one of several 'companies of concern' that had been blacklisted due to their Chinese Communist Party ties from doing official business with US firms, per legislation that passed the House last Congress but was never taken up in the Senate. The Department of Defense's Office of Inspector General audited the Pentagon's funding for overseas gain-of-function research last year and uncovered collaborations with the companies: Pharmaron, WuXi AppTec and Genscript Inc.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
China's Space Epoch conducts key test for reusable rocket ambitions
By Eduardo Baptista BEIJING (Reuters) -Chinese private rocket firm Space Epoch said on Thursday it had successfully run a flight recovery test, as China looks to catch up with the United States by developing its own version of a reusable rocket that can rival SpaceX's Flacon 9. As China and other space-faring nations look to develop tourism, infrastructure, and exploration, reusable rockets are indispensable to making their investments economically viable. Beijing-based Space Epoch, or SEPOCH, said its Yuanxingzhe-1 verification rocket was launched at 4:40 a.m from China's first sea-based space launch centre, off the waters of the eastern province of Shandong. The rocket soared upwards, its engines briefly shutting down after the peak of its trajectory, then reigniting as it began its vertical descent to enter the Yellow Sea in a circle of fire, a video posted on Space Epoch's WeChat account showed. "The success of this flight recovery test is a major breakthrough in the development process of liquid reusable rockets," Space Epoch said in a statement. The flight lasted 125 seconds, reaching a height of about 2.5 km (1.6 miles), it added. Space Epoch's ambition to develop reusable rocket technology is highlighted by its demonstration of Vertical Takeoff and Vertical Landing (VTVL). In this procedure, a rocket takes off vertically and returns to Earth with a vertical landing that uses rocket engines to slow and control the descent. Used by SpaceX's Falcon 9 and Starship, VTVL is crucial for any firm looking to retrieve and reuse rockets after their launch, a growing focus for investors and firms worldwide that could drastically reduce costs and spread their use wider. While tech entrepreneur Elon Musk's SpaceX is already launching and recovering orbital-class rockets on a routine basis, no Chinese firm has yet matched this feat. SpaceX's Falcon 9 first successful landing test was almost a decade ago, highlighting the yawning gap firms like Space Epoch must bridge to catch up. Space Epoch and Chinese peers, such as LandSpace, aim for maiden flights of their respective reusable rockets later this year, though no dates have been revealed. Last year LandSpace completed a 10-km (6.2-mile) VTVL test marking China's first in-flight engine reignition in descent, a technique Space Epoch appears to have also mastered with its latest launch.
Reuters
2 days ago
- Business
- Reuters
China's Space Epoch conducts key test for reusable rocket ambitions
BEIJING, May 29 (Reuters) - Chinese private rocket firm Space Epoch said on Thursday it had successfully run a flight recovery test, as China looks to catch up with the United States by developing its own version of a reusable rocket that can rival SpaceX's Flacon 9. As China and other space-faring nations look to develop tourism, infrastructure, and exploration, reusable rockets are indispensable to making their investments economically viable. Beijing-based Space Epoch, or SEPOCH, said its Yuanxingzhe-1 verification rocket was launched at 4:40 a.m from China's first sea-based space launch centre, off the waters of the eastern province of Shandong. The rocket soared upwards, its engines briefly shutting down after the peak of its trajectory, then reigniting as it began its vertical descent to enter the Yellow Sea in a circle of fire, a video posted on Space Epoch's WeChat account showed. "The success of this flight recovery test is a major breakthrough in the development process of liquid reusable rockets," Space Epoch said in a statement. The flight lasted 125 seconds, reaching a height of about 2.5 km (1.6 miles), it added. Space Epoch's ambition to develop reusable rocket technology is highlighted by its demonstration of Vertical Takeoff and Vertical Landing (VTVL). In this procedure, a rocket takes off vertically and returns to Earth with a vertical landing that uses rocket engines to slow and control the descent. Used by SpaceX's Falcon 9 and Starship, VTVL is crucial for any firm looking to retrieve and reuse rockets after their launch, a growing focus for investors and firms worldwide that could drastically reduce costs and spread their use wider. While tech entrepreneur Elon Musk's SpaceX is already launching and recovering orbital-class rockets on a routine basis, no Chinese firm has yet matched this feat. SpaceX's Falcon 9 first successful landing test was almost a decade ago, highlighting the yawning gap firms like Space Epoch must bridge to catch up. Space Epoch and Chinese peers, such as LandSpace, aim for maiden flights of their respective reusable rockets later this year, though no dates have been revealed. Last year LandSpace completed a 10-km (6.2-mile) VTVL test marking China's first in-flight engine reignition in descent, a technique Space Epoch appears to have also mastered with its latest launch.
