Latest news with #ChildCareandDevelopmentBlockGrant
CNBC
24-05-2025
- Business
- CNBC
Goldman Sachs says buy these five stocks that are set to pop
Goldman Sachs revealed recently several buy-rated stocks that analysts at the investment bank say are set to rise. The Wall Street firm says these companies are resilient and that investors should quickly buy them. CNBC Pro combed through Goldman Sachs research to find five stocks that it says have more upside. They include: Microsoft , KinderCare, Lyft, Woodward and Diamondback. KinderCare Buy the dip in shares of the early childhood learning company, according to analyst George Tong While KinderCare's most recent earnings report was mixed, Goldman is doubliing down on the stock. "While sales cycles have elongated, the company noted healthy growth in parental inquiries, communications and tours, which create a healthy pipeline that can convert during the seasonally strong summer months," Tong wrote. The bank also says it's optimistic that there will be no changes in President Trump's budget outline, which is a positive for the Child Care and Development Block Grant that assists low-income families. This in turn should help KinderCare revenue growth, Tong added. With shares down more than 34% this year, Tong urged clients to quickly accumulate shares. "KinderCare's business model is resilient in an uncertain macro environment given child care services are essential, with broader demand outpacing supply," he went on to say. Diamondback Energy The energy and natural gas company is firing on all cylinders, Goldman wrote recently. Analyst Neil Mehta sees a compelling entry point as shares are down about 17% this year. "As an industry cost-leader, FANG's execution strength can continue to drive capital efficiency improvements over time in our view," he wrote. Mehta likes Diamondback's robust free-cash flow and understands shareholders have concerns about the price of oil. "Investors also highlight risks associated with waiting for a more constructive near- to medium-term oil price to add barrels given timing the market can be challenging," he said. Still, Goldman is sticking with the stock. "We reiterate our Buy rating on FANG and remain constructive on FANG's consistency of execution strength following strong operating and financial results in 1Q25," the bank said. Woodward The aerospace and defense company is seeing robust demand, analyst Noah Poponak wrote, citing several catalysts ahead. Poponak recently held a series of meetings with Woodward's investor relations team and came away feeling even more bullish about the stock. "Aerospace aftermarket fundamentals are strong, including units, price and pent-up demand," the analyst wrote. Further, Poponak says military spending growth remains robust and aerospace manufacturing is picking up. "Industrial indicators are solid, including high levels of power demand," he added. The bank has a Street high, 12-month price target of $229 on the stock, and Woodward remains a top pick and is on Goldman's prestigious conviction buy list. "Multiple growth and margin drivers across the business," Poponak added. Woodward shares are up 25% this year. KinderCare "While sales cycles have elongated, the company noted healthy growth in parental inquiries, communications and tours, which create a healthy pipeline that can convert during the seasonally strong summer months. ... .KinderCare's business model is resilient in an uncertain macro environment given child care services are essential, with broader demand outpacing supply." Lyft "Strong Execution in a Stable Industry Backdrop. ... .While short-term debates will likely stay rooted in industry trends around rideshare pricing, market share fluctuations, positioning against the [autonomous vehicle] theme and/or any changes in consumer discretionary behavior, we believe that shares are dislocated from LYFT's earnings power in the next 2-3 years and upgrade the stock to Buy." Read more about this call here. Diamondback Energy "As an industry cost-leader, FANG's execution strength can continue to drive capital efficiency improvements over time in our view. ... .Investors also highlight risks associated with waiting for a more constructive near- to medium-term oil price to add barrels given timing market can be challenging ... We reiterate our Buy rating on FANG & remain constructive on FANG's consistency of execution strength following strong operating & financial results in 1Q25." Microsoft "With a strong presence across all layers of the cloud stack, including applications, platforms & infrastructure, MSFT is well-positioned, in our view, to capitalize on a number of long-term secular trends, such as Gen-AI, public cloud consumption, SaaS adoption, digital transformation, AI/ML, BI/analytics, & DevOps." Read more about this call here. Woodward "Multiple growth and margin drivers across the business ... Aerospace aftermarket fundamentals are strong, including units, price and pent-up demand ... Aerospace OE is starting to improve. Defense growth is solid, and [joint direct attack munition] is unique for WWD. Industrial indicators are solid, including high levels of power demand."
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Democratic senator questions whether RFK Jr. is the one ‘making decisions' at HHS
When Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. sat down with CBS News last month, the network's chief medical correspondent Dr. Jon LaPook, pressed the Cabinet secretary on some of his most controversial decisions from recent months. RFK Jr., however, repeatedly said he wasn't aware of the actions LaPook was describing. Last week, the spectacularly unqualified HHS secretary ran into a similar problem during back-to-back appearances before House and Senate committees: Lawmakers kept asking Kennedy about steps he and his department have taken, and he kept responding with answers such as 'When did I do that?' and 'I don't know about that.' This week, it happened yet again, during Kennedy's appearance before the Senate Appropriations Committee. Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois, for example, asked about HHS cutting funding for ALS research. The secretary said the senator's question was the first he'd heard about this. As the hearing progressed, and the problem persisted, Democratic Sen. Patty Murray of Washington raised a highly provocative point. 'Secretary Kennedy, listening to your testimony last week frankly left me pretty confused and concerned about what's happening at your department,' the senator said. 'You repeatedly claimed that staffing and funding cuts that have been reported on publicly and even confirmed by [HHS] staff are not happening. So either you're lying, or you're not the one making decisions.' RFK Jr. clearly wasn't pleased, but he proceeded to reinforce Murray's point: When the Washington Democrat asked, 'I am asking you a question about child care. I am asking you who made the decision to withhold Child Care and Development Block Grant funding?' Kennedy replied, 'That was made by my department.' Those with questions about the secretary's competence before the hearing were handed fresh rhetorical ammunition, as questions returned to the fore about whether the secretary is fully aware of what's happening in the agency he ostensibly leads. What's more, barring a dramatic change, Murray probably won't be the last person to wonder aloud whether RFK Jr. is 'the one making decisions' at HHS. This article was originally published on
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Opinion: Congressional funding for child care is crucial to supporting Utah families
Last week, I traveled from southern Utah to Washington, D.C., to speak with congressional staff about the urgent need to fund the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) program, our nation's main child care investment. As a home-based child care provider, CCDBG funds typically provide for 50-75% of my program funding. I'm in a rural area and the wages in my area are very low. As much as childcare providers love the work they do, it is work, and they still have to make a living and run their businesses. The block grant money has been foundational in providing scholarships and quality improvement funds for children at the highest risk. Before I opened my program, I spent almost 10 years working with children who had been victims of abuse and neglect in Utah. I saw up close the repeated cycles that come with poverty and a lack of support. As a child care provider I have also seen the good that comes when we interrupt generational patterns and choose to support families, which is why I'm asking Rep. Celeste Maloy to sign Rep. Burgess Owens' appropriations letter asking for robust funding for CCDBG. The cost of child care can be debilitating for families. I felt that as a young mom and social worker trying to figure out how to make it all work for my own family. And in the 17 years since I opened my own child care program, I've seen how hard it is for every family. But I also know how expensive it is to run a quality program and how hard it is to make the numbers work in a very broken system. This past year, for the first time in my program history, I had to raise my rates above the subsidy rate. I was conflicted about this for a long time, as I'm aware it has probably limited the number of low-income families that can choose my program. Those children especially need access to high-quality care, and their parents benefit greatly from the support they receive from a good program. But I also have my own responsibilities, and with rising costs, I did not have a choice. CCDBG funding will help and is a vital part of the solution moving forward. As I told congressional staff, CCDBG can help me as a small-business owner keep my door open while promoting parent choice and ensuring more parents can find and afford the care they need. Rep. Maloy has until May 16th to sign onto this important letter, which would make a world of difference for families, children and providers like me.
Yahoo
17-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Trump is escalating the fight over the role parents play in their kids' education
Trump signed an executive order aimed at expanding school voucher programs. He escalated a state-level fight by proposing redirecting federal funds from public schools to private schools. Supporters say vouchers give parents more choice in their kids' education, while skeptics say they sabotage public education. The push to provide public money to parents to send their children to schools outside their district has been raging at the state level for years. President Donald Trump is taking it up a notch. Trump's recent executive order aimed at expanding school voucher programs has long been a priority for Republican lawmakers. Trump's call to potentially redirect federal funds for that use would mark "a huge ideological shift" in the conversation, said Derek Black, a professor of law with a focus on education at the University of South Carolina. "The federal government, since before we even had the United States Constitution, has put its weight behind trying to expand our public education system," Black said. The order called for federal agencies to determine whether they could redirect funding for states that receive federal block grants meant for public education, like the Child Care and Development Block Grant, to use instead for sending children to private and religious schools. Over 20 states are already using their taxpayer funds for voucher programs. Advocates of vouchers lauded Trump's executive order for investing in more educational options and strengthening parents' role. Policy experts told BI that Trump's plan would likely face resistance from both Democratic and some Republican-led states that have previously rejected school voucher proposals. Savannah Newhouse, an Education Department spokesperson, told BI that the administration believes in "investing in meaningful activities that help public schools deliver high-quality education." Linda McMahon, Trump's pick for education secretary, also said during her Thursday confirmation hearing that "public schools are the bedrock of our education" and that universal vouchers will help public schools become more competitive. The administration has not yet introduced any proposals aimed at boosting public school education. Trump signed an executive order intended to ensure curricula in public classrooms align with his political ideologies. Black said that diverting funding to private schools, by definition, "may very well hurt the public school system." Christopher Lubienski, an education policy professor at Indiana University, told BI that the idea that involving parents in their kids' educations would improve achievement dates back to the early 1990s. Now, he said, the focus is on providing more choices for students beyond public school. The main criticism is that it could hurt students whose only option is public school. "There's the concern that families that don't have other options or can't get into a private school are going to be the ones left in public schools," Lubienski said. Most US students go to public schools, many of which are supported by hefty local tax revenues in wealthy school districts. Lubienski said that families in rural areas with fewer school options rely more heavily on the federal block grants Trump is targeting, and that they would suffer the most from funding diversions. He added that while voucher programs began with income thresholds, they have since morphed into universal programs in some states, benefiting some more affluent families who would've sent their kids to private school anyway. Supporters of Trump's executive order said it's a step in the right direction for the US education system. Robert Enlow, president and CEO of EdChoice — a nonprofit that advocates for voucher programs — told BI that Trump's executive order is intended to "give parents more power and to help states do their job better, rather than to get in the way of states." Enlow added that he thinks Trump's executive order will make it easier for students to directly access federal funds through the block grants. "Why must it go through the federal government and then go through the state government, then go through local government, where everyone gets cuts? Why can't it be given directly to families? And I think that's what I really like about what he's doing," Enlow said. Keri Rodrigues, cofounder and president of the National Parents Union, which advocates for policies that increase access to high-quality education, said that she's concerned about the potential outcome of redirecting public funds toward private schools. "We're going to just push all this money down to the states and depend that they're going to make the right choices and do the right things without leadership, without standards, without guidance and direction and best practice," Rodrigues told BI. "It's absurd." Lubieski said that Trump can only do so much without congressional approval. "It remains to be seen whether or not the White House goes through Congress, or they try to do this more through executive action," Lubienski said, referring to allocating more federal funding toward school vouchers. "So it's a political strategy that I don't think it's yet clear which one they're going to choose." It's not only blue states that might be resistant to Trump's proposals. Voters in Kentucky and Nebraska — two states that Trump won — rejected ballot measures that would have redirected funds from public schools to voucher programs. Black said that if the Trump administration tries to allocate funds without congressional approval, there will likely be litigation. More broadly, he said the implications of prioritizing private and religious schools over public schools raise a red flag. "The entire premise of the public school system, going back to Jefferson, going back to John Adams, was it was the common ground upon which democracy would develop," Black said. "Even if you still have public schools, if people have one political stripe, or one religion, if they all leave, that ends up leaving the people of the other political stripes left alone in the public school," he added. "And that's problematic." Got a tip, or have a story to share? Contact this reporter securely on Signal at asheffey.97 or email her at asheffey@ Read the original article on Business Insider
