Latest news with #Feldman
Business Insider
a day ago
- Business
- Business Insider
DLTR, FIVE, or WMT: Which Retail Stock Is the Best Pick?
Retailers have been under pressure due to the impact of macro uncertainty on consumers' discretionary spending and tariff woes. Nonetheless, Wall Street is bullish on some retail stocks due to their ability to thrive despite short-term challenges. Using TipRanks' Stock Comparison Tool, we placed Dollar Tree (DLTR), Five Below (FIVE), and Walmart (WMT) against each other to find the best retail stock, according to Wall Street analysts. Confident Investing Starts Here: Dollar Tree (NASDAQ:DLTR) Dollar Tree stock has risen 20.4% year-to-date, driven by the discount store chain's efforts to improve its business and the sale of the Family Dollar business that weighed on the company's overall performance in recent years. Investors are also optimistic about Dollar Tree's strategic initiatives, including its multi-price point strategy. The retailer finished Fiscal 2024 with approximately 2,900 3.0 multi-price format stores, and is targeting 5,200 3.0 format stores by the end of 2025. Dollar Tree is scheduled to announce its results for the first quarter of Fiscal 2025 on June 4. Wall Street expects the company to report a 15.4% decline in EPS (earnings per share) to $1.21, while revenue is estimated to fall by more than 40% to $4.54 billion. These estimates reflect the impact of the sale of the Family Dollar business, weakness in consumer spending on discretionary items, and tariff-related pressures. What Is the Target Price for DLTR Stock? Heading into the Q1 FY25 results, Telsey analyst Joseph Feldman increased the price target for Dollar Tree stock to $95 from $82 and reiterated a Hold rating on the stock. The analyst stated that he is maintaining his Q1 2025 and 2025 estimates, thanks to DLTR's increased focus on productivity and profitability due to improving value, convenience, and discovery at its stores. He also expects the retailer to gain from its strategic initiatives, including plans to open about 400 new stores in 2025, expand its multi-price point assortment, and refresh its merchandise. While Feldman highlighted Dollar Tree's strong balance sheet and potential share repurchases, he believes tariff risk remains elevated in H2 2025 and 2026, given that the company directly imports about 40% of its total retail value purchases, mainly from China. Although the company plans to manage and mitigate a large part of tariffs, Feldman believes that overall exposure to imports is high, and the uncertainty related to changes in government policies remains a risk. Wall Street has a Moderate Buy consensus rating on Dollar Tree stock based on six Buys, 11 Holds, and one Sell recommendation. The average DLTR stock price target of $85.29 implies a downside risk of about 5.5% from current levels. Five Below (NASDAQ:FIVE) Five Below is a value retailer that targets teens and pre-teens with merchandise that is mostly priced between $1 and $5, with some items priced beyond $5. FIVE stock has risen 11% so far in 2025, driven by a favorable update on Q1 FY25 results. Also, the temporary agreement between the U.S. and China to slash tariffs also improved investor sentiment. The company is scheduled to announce its Q1 FY25 earnings on June 4. In early May, Five Below raised its Q1 FY25 guidance, with net sales expected to come in at about $967 million compared to the prior guidance of $905 million to $925 million, and comparable sales estimated to rise about 6.7% compared to the prior guidance of about flat to 2% increase. Further, Five Below expects Q1 FY25 adjusted EPS in the range of $0.82 to $0.84, up from the prior outlook of $0.50 to $0.61. Meanwhile, Wall Street expects Five Below to report EPS of $0.78, reflecting a 30% year-over-year growth. Revenue is expected to grow 18.5% to $961.25 million. Is Five Below a Good Stock to Invest? Following the Q1 update, Citi analyst Paul Lejuez increased the price target for Five Below stock to $121 from $80 and reaffirmed a Hold rating. The 5-star analyst noted that the company's revised Q1 FY25 comps guidance was well ahead of the previous outlook. Lejuez added that with comparisons easing significantly in Q2 FY25, he sees the possibility of Five Below delivering double-digit comparable sales growth, driven by its efforts to improve its assortment and simplify the pricing strategy. Further, the analyst expects Five Below to maintain its Fiscal 2025 outlook despite tariffs. With six Buys, 13 Holds, and one Sell recommendation, Wall Street has a Hold consensus rating on Five Below stock. The average FIVE stock price target of $98.53 implies about 15.6% upside potential from current levels. FIVE stock has advanced 11% so far in 2025. Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Big-box retailer Walmart delivered better-than-expected earnings for the first quarter of Fiscal 2026, though sales slightly lagged expectations. The company attributed its performance to higher transaction counts and unit volumes, along with robust e-commerce growth. While Walmart is not immune to tariffs, it is considered more resilient compared to its rivals due to its greater exposure to groceries and essentials compared to rivals who sell more discretionary goods. Moreover, the retailer is able to attract customers with its lower prices. Walmart is also strengthening customer engagement with faster deliveries, store remodels, and a wider assortment of brands. Is Walmart Stock a Buy, Hold, or Sell? In reaction to the Q1 FY26 print, Raymond James analyst Bobby Griffin reiterated a Buy rating on Walmart stock with a price target of $105. The 5-star analyst noted that Walmart exceeded Q1 estimates and reaffirmed its FY26 guidance despite heightened macro and tariff-related uncertainty. Griffin believes that Walmart is uniquely positioned to navigate the ongoing challenges, thanks to its diversified sourcing, replenishable assortment, disciplined inventory planning, and a structurally advantaged model across e-commerce and supply chain. He added that Walmart continues to lean into high-margin revenue streams, with advertising, membership, and marketplace all delivering strong growth and expanding contribution to profit. Griffin highlighted that Walmart's e-commerce business turned profitable in the U.S. and globally for the first time, a key milestone that supports long-term EBIT margin expansion. Over the long term, Griffin continues to view Walmart as a well-positioned retailer that can grow its operating income faster than sales, as the profit mix shifts further toward digital, data, and automation-enabled initiatives. Overall, Walmart scores a Strong Buy consensus rating based on 28 Buys and two Holds. The average WMT stock price target of $109.38 implies about 11% upside potential from current levels. WMT stock has risen 9.3% year-to-date. Conclusion Wall Street is highly bullish on Walmart, cautiously optimistic on Dollar Tree, and sidelined on Five Below stock. Currently, analysts see downside risk in Five Below and Dollar Tree stocks, while they expect further upside in WMT stock. Walmart's value proposition, robust e-commerce growth, and huge scale are some of the strengths that support analysts' bullish thesis.
Newsweek
6 days ago
- Politics
- Newsweek
San Francisco Public Schools Convert F's to C's, B's to A's in Equity Push
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. San Francisco's public high schools will implement a sweeping change to their grading system this fall, replacing traditional methods with a policy that allows students to pass with scores as low as 41 percent. The initiative, part of a broader "Grading for Equity" push, is stirring concern among educators, students and parents over academic standards and college readiness. The Context Similar policies across other Bay Area districts—such as Dublin, Oakland and Pleasanton—have seen mixed results and strong community reactions. Dublin Unified attempted a pilot of equity grading in 2023, which included removing zeros for missed assignments and awarding a minimum of 50 percent for any "reasonably attempted" work. That pilot, however, was met with outrage and resistance. Parents created petitions, formed WhatsApp groups and filled school board meetings to protest what they saw as a lowering of standards for their children. The Dublin school board eventually suspended the initiative, though individual teachers were still allowed to use the methods at their discretion. The experiment in San Francisco comes amid — or despite — a broader rethinking of DEI initiatives after the election of Donald Trump, who ran on a platform of excising what he and many others said were "unfair" equity practices in the government and private sectors. What To Know Superintendent Maria Su's plan in San Francisco was not subject to a public vote by the Board of Education, drawing criticism for lack of transparency. The new policy, set to affect more than 10,000 students across 14 high schools, significantly changes how academic performance is measured. Homework and classroom participation will no longer influence a student's final grade. Students will be assessed primarily on a final exam, which they can retake multiple times. Attendance and punctuality will not affect academic standing. The Mission High School and its distinctive tower in the Mission District. The Mission High School and its distinctive tower in the Mission District. Getty Images The plan was first revealed in the fine print of a 25-page agenda and reported by The Voice of San Francisco, a local nonprofit. The outlet reported that the district is hiring Joe Feldman, an educational consultant known for his book Grading for Equity, to train teachers this summer. "If our grading practices don't change, the achievement and opportunity gaps will remain for our most vulnerable students. If we are truly dedicated to equity, we have to stop avoiding the sensitive issue of grading and embrace it," Feldman said in a 2019 blog post for the School Superintendents Association (AASA). Feldman's book outlines how traditional grading can reinforce socioeconomic disparities and proposes alternative strategies for more equitable assessment. According to The Voice of San Francisco, the new system will be modeled in part on the San Leandro Unified School District, where students can earn an A with a score as low as 80 percent and pass with a D at just 21 percent. Under the forthcoming San Francisco policy, a score of 41 percent will qualify as a C. Reactions Split Supporters of the policy say it better reflects real student learning by de-emphasizing behavior-based penalties like late work or missed assignments. However, critics warn the policy could harm students who are already on track for college placement. "Nowhere in college do you get 50 percent for doing nothing," said Laurie Sargent, an eighth-grade English teacher in the Dublin Unified School District, in a 2024 Mercury News report. "Nowhere in the working world do you get 50 percent for doing nothing. If I don't show up to work, they don't pay me 50 percent of my salary—even if I made a reasonable attempt to get there." The change comes amid ongoing financial strain and declining enrollment across the district. While intended to address achievement gaps, critics argue the policy may only obscure the underlying academic challenges rather than solve them. Such a drastic and dramatic change in the high school grading system merits greater attention and scrutiny than the school district has given it so far," wrote John Trasviña, former dean of the University of San Francisco School of Law, in an op-ed for The Voice of San Francisco. Parents in San Francisco also have expressed frustration over being left out of the decision-making process. The school district's Office of Equity has not updated its public materials in nearly three years, and no broad outreach appears to have been conducted ahead of the rollout. What People Are Saying Katherine Hermens, a biology teacher at Dublin High School, told EdSurge in 2023: "It is time to emphasize learning over effort. Prioritizing learning is exactly what equitable grading does. It recognizes the individual journey of every student and acknowledges that we all learn differently—at our own pace and in various ways." John Trasviña, former dean of the University of San Francisco School of Law, wrote in an op-ed: "Grading for Equity de-emphasizes the importance of timely performance, assignment completion, and consistent attendance." What Happens Next School board members in San Francisco were reportedly not given a formal vote on this policy, triggering internal governance disputes. If there is enough public pressure, the Board of Education may seek to review or override the superintendent's decision, though there is no suggestion as of yet that such a move is imminent.
Yahoo
26-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Inside TikTok's Cannes Film Festival Takeover, From One-on-One Time With Tom Cruise to Reece Feldman's Short Film Premiere
TikTok creators got the surprise of their lives during the first week of Cannes Film Festival, when Tom Cruise showed up to give a talk on his new film 'Mission: Impossible — The Final Reckoning' ahead of its premiere. The 34 film-centric creators, who TikTok invited to the festival from across the globe, thought they were just coming to the platform's festival hub at the J.W. Marriott for a content creation workshop — until Cruise came out of nowhere. In partnership with Paramount, Cruise gave a 20-minute fireside chat with creator Reece Feldman (@guywithamoviecamera on the platform) and then hung around for about an hour after to have one-on-one conversations with as many of the TikTokers as possible. More from Variety Jafar Panahi's Cannes Palme d'Or Is a 'Powerful Blow to the Machinery of Repression in the Islamic Republic,' Says 'Seed of the Sacred Fig' Director Mohammad Rasoulov (EXCLUSIVE) 'Militantropos' Review: Austere Anti-War Doc Employs Formal Control in an Impassioned Defense of Ukraine 'The Last One for the Road' Review: A Pleasant Italian Gem on Drinking Buddies, Aging and Wistful Flavors of Life 'I've never asked permission to create,' Cruise told the room. 'Actors and filmmakers and businessmen say, 'What should I do?' Do it. Learn it, apply it and don't wait to know everything. The only way to learn is to go jump in, and don't worry about making mistakes.' For TikTok's EMEA head of content operations Marlène Masure, the time with Cruise underlines just how valuable TikTok has become not just as an official partner of the festival, but within the film industry as a whole. 'Having two hours in Tom Cruise's agenda is a testament to the power of our movie community and how important they are,' she told Variety during the festival, adding: 'I hope that this will inspire other studios to give bigger access to creators to top talents.' Indeed, TikTok's presence at the festival this year felt larger than ever, with several events and activations taking place. The platform had its own party, an industry brunch where Feldman interviewed Daniel Kaluuya about redefining fandom, and hosted a premiere for Feldman's first short film, 'Wait, Your Car?.' For Feldman, who started posting videos on the platform in 2020 of his experience working on the set of 'The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel' and now has 2.4 million followers, it was a pinch-me moment. 'That was always the dream,' he said of premiering his first project at Cannes. 'If I won the lottery at any point in my life, the first thing I was going to do was be like, 'Alright, let's sit down, let's choose one of the scripts I've written and let's get really practical about making this.'' Having been told about the opportunity in February, Feldman had roughly three months to write, cast, shoot, edit and deliver the short. 'Wait, Your Car?,' starring Whitney Peak, Ruby Cruz, Minnie Mills and Noa Fisher, follows four girls whose friendship is put to the test after one of them becomes convinced that her car is trying to kill her. The reception to the short in the Palais was glowing, with the screening room filled to standing-room only. Feldman plans to continue taking the short around the festival circuit in hopes that studios and production companies will take it as 'proof of style.' 'It's showing you how I like to shoot things, the tone, the timing, the tempo, the writing style, the humor,' he said. 'So that's the thing that I'm most excited for people to take away, like, 'That's the distinct voice of Reece.'' Masure sees the Cannes partnership, which started four years ago, as a way to give back to TikTok's thriving #FilmTok community and provide an inside look at the festival to those on the platform who may be discovering it for the first time. By the second week of the festival, 27,000 videos had been created on TikTok with the hashtag #Cannes2025, up from 22,000 last year, and posts from creators at the festival garnered over 26 million combined views. 'Cannes used to be a bit more restricted to a certain community of moviemakers in the movie industry,' Masure said. 'That's the whole purpose of what we do — provide more visibility to these talents. Everyone creating content on the platform can have a chance to become a great moviemaker.' Creator and presenter Zainab Jiwa (@zeewhatidid) has seen firsthand the growth in interest regarding the festival with her majority Gen-Z audience. 'It's been a great way to give them access into a space that seems exclusive in a way,' she said. 'What I've tried to do in every step of my journey is to take the audience with me, because I never had that growing up.' Jiwa, who went viral last fall for her playful junket interview with Denzel Washington in which he gave life advice, was on hand in the second week of the festival to be the platform's red carpet host for the premieres of Wes Anderson's 'The Phoenician Scheme,' Spike Lee's 'Highest 2 Lowest' and more. Though Jiwa may be holding a mic and talking to some of Hollywood's biggest stars, she acknowledges that her purpose is different than that of a journalist — many of whom have become frustrated in recent years with lack of access to talent at Cannes and other festivals. 'My aim in an interview in general isn't to get something out of them,' she said. 'I'm not here to find the scoop — my aim is to make them feel comfortable and to just have a chat because that's what my audience wants.' Both Jiwa and Feldman are also open about the fact that they partner with studios on many of their conversations. 'At the end of the day, I'm biased,' Feldman said. 'I'm being hired by these studios, so my opinion is, from the get-go, moot.' But that doesn't mean that they're only asking throwaway questions. In fact, Masure considers conversations between stars like Cruise and creators like Feldman to be more like peer discussions. 'He was very technical,' she said of Feldman's questions to Cruise, many of which centered around how he pulled off 'Mission: Impossible 8's' crazy stunt work. 'I mean, the guy has been working in movie production so he knows a great deal about this. It felt almost like a movie professional to another movie professional.' Overall, TikTok having a large presence at Cannes just makes practical sense to Feldman, as he sees the film industry and social media as now being 'intrinsically tied.' 'I think it's good to lean into the TikTok of it all,' he said. 'It doesn't mean having to ask talent to do dances — it could really just be hey, here's how you sign up for the festival.' He continued: 'Social doesn't have to be used in the most extreme of ways, and TikTok is a place where it's approachable. I do believe that it acts almost as a public sphere, and I think it's good that we're forced to confront voices outside of the ones that we just choose to hear.' Best of Variety New Movies Out Now in Theaters: What to See This Week Emmy Predictions: Talk/Scripted Variety Series - The Variety Categories Are Still a Mess; Netflix, Dropout, and 'Hot Ones' Stir Up Buzz Oscars Predictions 2026: 'Sinners' Becomes Early Contender Ahead of Cannes Film Festival
Yahoo
24-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
‘Strangers' Series In Works At Peacock; Leslie Mann & Gabrielle Union Eyed To Star In Thriller From Jon Harmon Feldman & 100% Productions
EXCLUSIVE: Peacock is developing Strangers, a thriller drama written and executive produced by Jon Harmon Feldman (Monarch). Leslie Mann (Cha Cha Real Smooth) and Gabrielle Union (Truth Be Told) are being eyed to star in the project, from Jennifer Klein and Sheldon Turner's 100% Productions, A+E Studios (The Lincoln Lawyer) and UCP. Strangers is described as Strangers On a Train with two female leads. In it, when a long-neglected housewife befriends a mysterious woman who is her polar opposite, the two women find that they have far more in common than they thought. As their friendship unfolds, we soon learn that they both harbor secrets that could quickly unravel their quiet suburban lives. More from Deadline Paramount Snaps Up Sales On Peacock's Miami Crime Drama 'M.I.A.' - LA Screenings Sports Calendar With NBA Key For Peacock, Says Comcast CFO Amid Playoff Fever; Calls ESPN App $30 Price Tag "Helpful" Sony Pictures Television Takes Global On Peacock Series 'The Miniature Wife' According to sources, Mann and Union don't have deals in place but would play the two leads and executive produce if the project goes forward. Reps from Peacock and A+E Studios declined comment. Feldman executive produces with Jennifer Klein and Sheldon Turner via their 100% Productions' overall deal at A + E Studios. The indie studio will co-produce with Peacock sibling UCP. Mann next stars in Poetic License, which marks her daughter Maude Apatow's feature directorial debut. She is repped by CAA. Union's upcoming films include The Casket Girls and Forbidden Fruit. She is repped by CAA, Range and Felker Toczek Suddleson McGinnis Ryan. Feldman has created such series as Tru Calling and No Ordinary Family. He recently served as executive producer and showrunner on the Fox country music drama Monarch. Feldman, who also has a project with Stephen A. Smith, Get Lifted and Outlier Society in the works at Amazon Studios and a novel coming out in 2026, is repped by WME and The Gotham Group. Best of Deadline Sean 'Diddy' Combs Sex-Trafficking Trial Updates: Cassie Ventura's Testimony, $10M Hotel Settlement, Drugs, Violence, & The Feds All The 'Mission: Impossible' Movies In Order - See Tom Cruise's 30-Year Journey As Ethan Hunt Denzel Washington's Career In Pictures: From 'Carbon Copy' To 'The Equalizer 3'
USA Today
24-05-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
How many Sooners made The Athletic's list of best CFB players since 2000? Who was snubbed?
How many Sooners made The Athletic's list of best CFB players since 2000? Who was snubbed? The Oklahoma Sooners have had more success than just about every other college football program during the 21st century. With a few exceptions, very few teams have been better than OU since 1999. Of course, it was after a dismal decade from 1989 to 1998, when the Sooners sunk to unprecedented lows, that new athletic director Joe Castiglione hired Florida defensive coordinator Bob Stoops to right the ship in Norman. When Stoops took the reins before the 1999 season, he set Oklahoma on a path that it's still on today. The Sooners won the national championship in Year 2 for Stoops during the 2000 season, and they have captured a bevy of conference championships over the last 26 seasons. They've been one of college football's premier programs of the last quarter-century. Bruce Feldman, who covers college football for The Athletic, took on the daunting task of ranking the 25 best college football players of the last 25 years. Narrowing down all of the sport's greats to only 25 since 2000 is extremely difficult, but Feldman took on the challenge. Just two Sooners made Feldman's list, beginning with safety Roy Williams, who starred for Oklahoma in the early Stoops years. Feldman has him as the No. 18 player in college football since 2000. He totaled 287 tackles, 34 TFLs, 9 INTs and 44 PBUs overall in his career and was stellar during the 2001 season, racking up 107 tackles, 14 TFLs, 5 INTs and 22 PBUs. "A standout on the Sooners' 2000 national title team, the 6-1, 220-pound California native set a BCS national title game record for most tackles by a defensive back with 12 as Oklahoma shut down Florida State 13-2," Feldman said. "The next season, as a junior, Williams became the first player to win both the Nagurski Trophy, as the nation's top defensive player, and the Thorpe Award, honoring the country's best defensive back. Williams' signature play happened in the 2001 Red River Rivalry game with Texas pinned deep near its goal with two minutes remaining and OU clinging to a 7-3 lead. Williams crowded the line before the snap, backed up, then blitzed, racing in and leaping over Longhorns running back Brett Robin, nearly swiping the ball out of Chris Simms' hand. The ball bounced into the hands of Teddy Lehman, who grabbed the fluttering ball and scored to propel Oklahoma to a 14-3 win." The other OU player to make the list was quarterback Baker Mayfield, who led the Sooners for the final two years of the Stoops era and the first season under Lincoln Riley. Feldman has him as the No. 14 player in the sport since 2000. He totaled 14,607 passing yards, 131 passing TDs, 1,083 rushing yards and 21 rushing TDs in his career. He had an unbelievable 2017 season when he went off for 4,627 passing yards, 43 passing TDs, 311 rushing yards and 5 rushing TDs. "Mayfield won the starting job as a walk-on freshman at Texas Tech in 2013 before transferring to Oklahoma, where he also initially walked on," Feldman said. "He flourished in Lincoln Riley's system, leading the Sooners to three Big 12 titles and two Playoff bids and finishing in the top four of the Heisman race three years in a row, including winning the award in 2017. Mayfield was at his best when the spotlight was brightest. In his return game to Lubbock, facing all sorts of animosity from the Red Raiders crowd, Mayfield passed for 545 yards and seven TDs (with no INTs) in a 66-59 win to outduel Patrick Mahomes. In 2017, he threw for 386 yards and three TDs, completing 77 percent of his passes in a blowout win at No. 5 Ohio State. He later shredded rival Oklahoma State for 598 passing yards and five TDs in a 62-52 win in Stillwater. He threw for seven TDs and zero picks in two games against top-10 TCU that season and had No. 2 Georgia on the ropes in a 54-48 loss in the CFP semifinal." Both Williams and Mayfield have a good argument that they could be ranked higher, as Williams was the engine of one of college football's best defenses for multiple seasons and has a national championship ring. Mayfield pulled the program out of a lull in the later Stoops years and won more conference championships than he lost conference games. Both players are questionably ranked behind guys like DeVonta Smith, Andrew Luck, Larry Fitzgerald, Terrell Suggs, and Travis Hunter. In fact, Mayfield landed at No. 2 on a very similar list from ESPN last summer. His spot on Feldman's list feels far too low, especially considering a Heisman Trophy has his name on it and he was a finalist two other times. While we're on the subject, plenty more OU players had to have been considered. Quarterbacks include Josh Heupel, Jason White, Sam Bradford, Landry Jones, Kyler Murray and Jalen Hurts. Running backs like Adrian Peterson and DeMarco Murray and pass catchers like Mark Clayton, Malcolm Kelly, Juaquin Iglesias, Jermaine Gresham, Ryan Broyles, Dede Westbrook, and CeeDee Lamb certainly have an argument. Defensively, it's tough to argue against the likes of Torrance Marshall, Rocky Calmus, Teddy Lehman, Derrick Strait, Tommie Harris, Dusty Dvoracek, Curtis Lofton and Gerald McCoy. Those OU defenses, especially until Brent Venables left after the 2011 season, were feared across the Big 12 and college football. Now, with Venables following Stoops and Riley as Oklahoma's third head coach over the last 26 seasons, it's time for the Sooners to put more players onto lists like these in the years to come. That starts with a pivotal 2025 season, the 27th season since Castiglione hired Stoops and thereby brought OU Football back to the top of college football. Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on X, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow Aaron on X @Aaron_Gelvin.
