Latest news with #Findley
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
SNBR Q1 Earnings Call: Leadership Initiates Cost Cuts Amid Persistent Demand Weakness
Bedding manufacturer and retailer Sleep Number (NASDAQ:SNBR) missed Wall Street's revenue expectations in Q1 CY2025, with sales falling 16.4% year on year to $393.3 million. Its non-GAAP loss of $0.38 per share was significantly below analysts' consensus estimates. Is now the time to buy SNBR? Find out in our full research report (it's free). Revenue: $393.3 million vs analyst estimates of $398 million (16.4% year-on-year decline, 1.2% miss) Adjusted EPS: -$0.38 vs analyst estimates of -$0.06 (significant miss) Adjusted EBITDA: $22.04 million vs analyst estimates of $31.7 million (5.6% margin, 30.5% miss) Operating Margin: 0.5%, in line with the same quarter last year Free Cash Flow was -$7.23 million, down from $24.44 million in the same quarter last year Locations: 637 at quarter end, down from 661 in the same quarter last year Same-Store Sales fell 1% year on year (0% in the same quarter last year) Market Capitalization: $199.9 million Sleep Number's first quarter results reflected continued demand challenges, which new CEO Linda Findley addressed directly on the earnings call. Management attributed the sales decline to persistent consumer uncertainty and a loss of focus on the company's core value proposition. Findley emphasized that, upon joining in April, she identified opportunities for more effective marketing, streamlined decision-making, and a renewed focus on products that address immediate customer needs. CFO Francis Lee highlighted that operational efficiencies in supply chain and manufacturing helped expand gross margin, but these improvements were outweighed by lower fixed-cost leverage due to reduced sales. Looking ahead, management provided only directional guidance, citing the volatile macroeconomic environment and evolving consumer sentiment. The company expects continued pressure on topline performance but is focused on maintaining recent gross margin gains and implementing $80 million to $100 million in annualized cost reductions. Findley noted that everything is under review, including the supply chain, organizational structure, and product priorities, with a bias toward bold and rapid action. "We are fundamentally changing how we run our business and anticipate these changes will positively impact our financial model in 2025 and beyond," Lee stated. Sleep Number's leadership outlined a series of immediate and longer-term operational changes in response to ongoing revenue and profitability pressures. Management was explicit about the need to reset the business model and restore focus on clear customer benefits, rather than distant innovation goals. Leadership transition and new priorities: Linda Findley, the recently appointed CEO, initiated a comprehensive review of business strategy, emphasizing a return to the brand's core strengths in sleep wellness and customer-centricity. She cited the need to reconnect with customers' current needs rather than focusing solely on future innovations. Cost structure overhaul: The company announced a new executive and senior leadership structure, resulting in a 21% reduction in corporate management roles. This consolidation aims to improve decision speed, accountability, and expense control. Marketing model reset: Management is shifting from broad-based advertising to more targeted, benefits-focused digital campaigns. Chief Marketing Officer Amber Minson will lead efforts to enhance marketing efficiency and messaging effectiveness, aiming to drive more engagement per dollar spent. Product and R&D realignment: The company is redirecting R&D resources away from longer-term, uncertain adjacent opportunities to sustaining and improving core products. Management plans to focus innovation on features that matter most to customers now, while controlling associated costs. Tariff and supply chain flexibility: The team is actively managing sourcing and pricing strategies to offset potential tariff impacts, using supply chain flexibility to mitigate up to $17 million of a possible $30 million tariff headwind for 2025. They are also considering strategic pricing adjustments as part of this response. Management's outlook for the coming quarters is shaped by a cautious view of consumer demand and an aggressive focus on cost efficiency. The company's ability to execute on restructuring and reposition its core product offering will be critical to future performance. Sustained cost reductions: Leadership expects $80 million to $100 million in annualized cost savings, achieved through organizational redesign, marketing efficiency, and R&D reprioritization. These efforts are intended to protect margins even if sales remain pressured. Gross margin preservation: The company aims to maintain improvements in gross profit margin via ongoing supply chain optimization and material cost reductions, while offsetting most of the expected tariff headwinds through flexible sourcing and supplier partnerships. Demand-side risk: Management acknowledged that consumer sentiment remains weak and may not improve in the near term, potentially limiting topline recovery. The company is preparing for a prolonged period of subdued demand by building a more flexible and resilient cost structure. Alessandra Jimenez (Raymond James): Asked about immediate opportunities for improvement in 2025; Findley cited marketing efficiency, faster decision-making from organizational changes, and focusing R&D on core products. Dan Silverstein (UBS): Queried how marketing and partnerships will evolve; Findley emphasized shifting to digital, benefits-based messaging and maximizing value from existing and potential new partnerships. Peter Keith (Piper Sandler): Sought specifics on reconnecting with the core value proposition; Findley explained the need to better communicate the everyday benefits of Sleep Number beds and to focus product development on current customer needs. Bradley Thomas (KeyBanc): Asked about balancing marketing spend reductions with sales impact; Findley stressed a shift toward digital and targeted outreach to improve efficiency without simply cutting spend. Bradley Thomas (KeyBanc): Followed up on pricing and promotions amid tariffs; Findley stated they will use pricing selectively and balance promotions to manage both customer affordability and tariff impacts. In upcoming quarters, the StockStory team will monitor (1) the execution and financial impact of planned cost reductions, (2) the effectiveness of the new marketing strategy in stabilizing or growing demand, and (3) management's progress in maintaining gross margin gains despite tariff pressures and weak consumer sentiment. We will also track any updates on strategic changes to the product portfolio, store footprint, and supply chain structure as part of the company's broader transformation. Sleep Number currently trades at a forward EV-to-EBITDA ratio of 1.9×. Should you load up, cash out, or stay put? Find out in our free research report. Donald Trump's victory in the 2024 U.S. Presidential Election sent major indices to all-time highs, but stocks have retraced as investors debate the health of the economy and the potential impact of tariffs. While this leaves much uncertainty around 2025, a few companies are poised for long-term gains regardless of the political or macroeconomic climate, like our Top 9 Market-Beating Stocks. This is a curated list of our High Quality stocks that have generated a market-beating return of 176% over the last five years. Stocks that made our list in 2020 include now familiar names such as Nvidia (+1,545% between March 2020 and March 2025) as well as under-the-radar businesses like the once-micro-cap company Kadant (+351% five-year return). Find your next big winner with StockStory today. 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Yahoo
22-04-2025
- Yahoo
Exonerees experience gap in support in Wisconsin
In November, Wisconsin Innocence Project co-founder Keith Findley (left) spoke about wrongful convictions at an annual banquet in Menasha, Wisconsin organized by the advocacy organization ESTHER. Findley stands next to Jarrett Adams, whom Findley helped free after Adams was sentenced to 28 years in prison. Photo by Andrew Kennard The exoneration of David and Robert Bintz in a 1987 murder case has increased attention on what happens in Wisconsin after defendants' convictions are overturned and they are released from prison. The Wisconsin Claims Board considers compensation claims by innocent people who were convicted of a crime. The board can award up to $25,000, not including attorneys' fees, and not more than $5,000 for every year of wrongful imprisonment. It can recommend that the state Legislature award additional compensation. Exonerated people often experience more difficulty accessing services to help them reenter society than people who were released on probation or parole, according to Rachel Burg, co-director of the Wisconsin Innocence Project. State programs work with people on probation or parole before release, Burg said, and include pre-release job training, assistance with applications to public benefits and general release planning. After release, a person may have court or supervision-mandated programs, such as school or work requirements. 'By no means am I saying being on probation or parole is easy or conducive to successfully reentering society, but in theory there is access to resources that are not available to the wrongfully convicted,' Burg said in an email to the Examiner. Exonerated people don't have probation officers making sure they have their identification cards and get set up for Medicaid, she said, or parole agents helping with job applications. A guilty person gets more support from the state than an innocent person who was exonerated, Keith Findley, co-founder of the Wisconsin Innocence Project and an emeritus law professor at UW-Madison, said in an interview in November. 'They've spent often decades in prison, had their livelihoods taken away from them, their relationships, their homes, their professions, their good names,' Findley said. 'And then when we discover we got it wrong and made a mistake, we just open the door and say, 'OK, have a good life,' with nothing more from the state.' Findley said Wisconsin could create a state forensic science commission, as well as conviction integrity units (CIUs) in prosecutors' offices. In neighboring Michigan, the CIU in the state attorney general's office investigates claims of innocence that are accompanied by new evidence. Exonerees in the U.S. may receive compensation through a civil lawsuit, a private bill passed by a state legislature or a state law, if the state has a compensation statute. Wisconsin's compensation cap for wrongfully convicted people is one of the lowest caps in the country. The rare exception to the cap is if the Wisconsin Legislature approves a higher amount. The Wisconsin Claims Board decides whether to grant compensation to an exonerated person and can recommend that the Legislature award an amount higher than the $25,000 cap. The members of the Wisconsin Claims Board come from the Wisconsin Senate, the Wisconsin Assembly, the governor's office, the Wisconsin Department of Justice and the Wisconsin Department of Administration. Currently, the legislative representatives are Rep. Alex Dallman (R-Green Lake) and Sen. Eric Wimberger (R-Oconto). Wisconsin pays an average of about $4,200 per year of wrongful incarceration to those who filed and received compensation, according to an analysis of data collected by the National Registry of Exonerations, Wisconsin Watch reported. A bipartisan bill that would have increased the $25,000 cap to $1 million passed the Wisconsin State Assembly in 2016, the Capital Times reported. It didn't become law. The bill would have also granted assistance for transitioning back into society and up to 10 years in the state's health insurance program for public employees. There were 39 states, along with the District of Columbia, with compensation statutes for wrongful imprisonment as of March. Some states' compensation statutes allow exonerees to receive services, like assistance with tuition, job search and housing, Rachel Burg of the Wisconsin Innocence Project said. As of July 2023, 62 Wisconsin exonerees were wrongly convicted in state courts since 1989 and potentially eligible for compensation, according to a research paper that used information from the National Registry of Exonerations. Jeffrey Gutman of George Washington University Law School published 'Compensation under the Microscope: Wisconsin' in 2022, and it was updated in 2023. As of July 2023, 25 of the 62 had filed claims. 17 of 25 applicants were granted compensation, and 8 were denied. Gutman wrote that Wisconsin's filing rate was significantly below a national average of 58% and said that 'Wisconsin's low compensation is a logical explanation.' In Findley's view, Wisconsin's compensation plan for exonerees 'puts a very high burden' on innocent people to prove their innocence. Wisconsin's compensation statute does not give compensation to people because they show their conviction was overturned, the claims board said when it denied compensation to Lavontae Stinson in a 2024 decision. Stinson's conviction was overturned due to ineffective assistance of his legal counsel, the claims board said. For this to happen, Stinson had to show there was a 'reasonable probability' that more effective counsel would have led to a different result. According to the board's decision, the Milwaukee County District Attorney decided not to retry Stinson because the state could not meet its burden of proof. According to the DA, additional information from Stinson's post-conviction counsel 'cast some doubt on whether Stinson was involved at all in the crimes for which he was sent to prison.' To receive compensation, Stinson had to meet a different standard — proving his innocence with 'clear and convincing' evidence — and the board ruled his arguments and evidence did not meet the standard. In 2014, then-Gov. Scott Walker signed a bill granting Robert Lee Stinson an additional $90,000. In the end, Stinson was awarded the $115,000 he had requested from the Wisconsin State Claims Board — $5,000 for each year of his imprisonment. Gutman's 'Compensation Under the Microscope' reported 17 cases of exonerees receiving state compensation, going back to 1989. Stinson's case appeared to be the only example of the Wisconsin Legislature ordering additional compensation for a wrongfully convicted person following a claims board recommendation, he wrote. Stinson spent over two decades incarcerated for a conviction based on flawed evidence, FOX6 Milwaukee reported. He settled litigation with the city of Milwaukee for $7.5 million. Jarrett Adams, an attorney working with David and Robert Bintz, didn't yet know if the brothers could make a claim for a federal lawsuit, he told the Examiner in late February. Wisconsin's compensation statute might be the brothers' only opportunity for compensation, he said. In the case of Daryl Holloway, the claims board recommended an additional $975,000 in March 2022, Gutman wrote, and the Legislature hadn't acted on the recommendation as of June 2023. After a 3-2 vote, in a Jan. 30 decision, the board awarded Gabriel Lugo $25,000 in compensation, not including attorneys' fees. Lugo had been sentenced to 30 years in prison for a 2008 shooting and released in 2023 after his conviction was vacated. The board recommended that the Legislature award Lugo an additional $750,000. This is Part Two in a series on wrongful convictions. Read Part One here. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
18-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Sleep Number Announces Inducement Grants under Nasdaq Listing Rule 5635(c)(4)
MINNEAPOLIS, April 18, 2025--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sleep Number Corporation (Nasdaq: SNBR) today announced that it granted equity awards on April 15, 2025, as a material inducement to the employment of the company's newly-hired President and Chief Executive Officer, Linda A. Findley. As previously disclosed, in connection with the appointment of Findley as President and Chief Executive Officer effective April 7, 2025, Sleep Number granted Findley employment inducement awards consisting of: (i) 362,057 shares in a time-vested restricted stock unit award with a stock performance modifier that vests in three equal installments on each anniversary from the date of grant; (ii) 181,028 shares in a performance stock unit award vesting on the third anniversary of the date of grant with the number of shares to be earned based on actual company performance for fiscal years 2025 to 2027 and the company's relative total shareholder return; and (iii) 181,029 shares in a time-vested restricted stock unit award that vests in three equal installments on each anniversary from the date of grant. All grants are subject to continued employment and the terms of the respective award agreements. The inducement awards to Findley were granted as a material inducement to her employment and were approved by Sleep Number's Board of Directors on March 29, 2025, in accordance with Rule 5635(c)(4) of The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC. The awards were granted outside Sleep Number's equity incentive plan. About Sleep Number Corporation Sleep Number is a sleep wellness company. We are guided by our purpose to improve the health and wellbeing of society through higher quality sleep; to date, our innovations have improved nearly 16 million lives. Our sleep wellness platform helps solve sleep problems, whether it's providing individualized temperature control for each sleeper through our Climate360® smart bed or applying our 32 billion hours of longitudinal sleep data and expertise to research with global institutions. Our smart bed ecosystem drives best-in-class engagement through dynamic, adjustable, and effortless sleep with personalized sleep and health insights; our millions of Smart Sleepers are loyal brand advocates. And our 3,700 mission-driven team members passionately innovate to drive value creation through our vertically integrated business model, including our exclusive direct-to-consumer selling in nearly 650 stores and online. To learn more about life-changing, individualized sleep, visit a Sleep Number® store near you, our newsroom and investor relations sites, or View source version on Contacts Media Contact: Julie Elepano; Investor Contact: InvestorRelations@ Sign in to access your portfolio
The Independent
24-03-2025
- Business
- The Independent
Man who claimed Roundup caused his cancer awarded $2.1billion
A man who claimed Roundup weedkiller caused his cancer has been awarded nearly $2.1 billion (£1.6bn) in compensation and damages by a US jury. The verdict marks the latest in a long-running series of court battles Monsanto has faced over its Roundup herbicide. The settlement is one of the largest to date. The agrochemical giant says it will appeal the verdict, reached in a Georgia courtroom on Friday. The penalties awarded include $65 million in compensatory damages and $2 billion in punitive damages, law firms Arnold & Itkin LLP and Kline & Specter PC said in a statement. Plaintiff John Barnes filed his lawsuit against Monsanto in 2021, seeking damages related to his non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. Arnold & Itkin attorney Kyle Findley, the lead trial lawyer on the case, said the verdict will help put his client in a better position to get the treatment he needs going forward. 'It's been a long road for him ... and he was happy that the truth related to the product (has) been exposed,' Findley said on Sunday. He called the verdict an 'important milestone' after "another example of Monsanto's refusal to accept responsibility for poisoning people with this toxic product.' Germany-based Bayer, which acquired Monsanto in 2018, has continued to dispute claims that Roundup causes cancer. But the company has been hit with more than 177,000 lawsuits involving the weedkiller and set aside $16 billion to settle cases. In a statement, Monsanto said Friday's verdict 'conflicts with the overwhelming weight of scientific evidence and the consensus of regulatory bodies and their scientific assessments worldwide.' The company added that it continues 'to stand fully behind the safety' of Roundup products. For a variety of crops — including corn, soybeans and cotton — Roundup is designed to work with genetically modified seeds that resist the weedkiller's deadly effect. It allows farmers to produce more while conserving the soil by tilling it less. Some studies associate Roundup's key ingredient, glyphosate, with cancer, although the US Environmental Protection Agency has said it is not likely to be carcinogenic to humans when used as directed. Still, numerous lawsuits over the weedkiller allege glyphosate does cause non-Hodgkin lymphoma, arguing that Monsanto has failed to warn the public about serious risks for years. Friday's decision marks the fourth Roundup-related verdict that Findley's team has won to date — the largest of which was awarded in Philadelphia in January 2024, with damages totalling $2.25 billion. And he said his law firm has 'many more clients who are similarly situated as Mr. Barnes.' Monsanto, meanwhile, also maintains that it 'remains committed to trying cases' — and argues its wider record of Roundup-related litigation continues to reinforce the safety of its products. The company said it has prevailed in 17 of the last 25 related trials, while some previous damage awards have been reduced. Bayer has recently renewed and expanded an effort across a handful of US states to protect pesticide companies from claims they failed to warn that a product causes cancer, if labelling otherwise complies with EPA regulations. The company and other industry supports argue that litigation costs are unstainable and could impact Roundup's future availability. But opponents stress that such legislation would limit accountability.
Yahoo
24-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
GA jury awards nearly $2.1 billion verdict to man who says Roundup weedkiller caused his cancer
A jury in Georgia has ordered Monsanto parent Bayer to pay nearly $2.1 billion in damages to a man who says the company's Roundup weed killer caused his cancer, according to attorneys representing the plaintiff. The verdict marks the latest in a long-running series of court battles Monsanto has faced over its Roundup herbicide. The agrochemical giant says it will appeal the verdict, reached in a Georgia courtroom late Friday, in efforts to overturn the decision. [DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks] The penalties awarded include $65 million in compensatory damages and $2 billion in punitive damages, law firms Arnold & Itkin LLP and Kline & Specter PC said in a statement. That marks one of the largest legal settlements reached in a Roundup-related case to date. Plaintiff John Barnes filed his lawsuit against Monsanto in 2021, seeking damages related to his non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. Arnold & Itkin attorney Kyle Findley, the lead trial lawyer on the case, said the verdict will help put his client in a better position to get the treatment he needs going forward. 'It's been a long road for him ... and he was happy that the truth related to the product (has) been exposed,' Findley told The Associated Press on Sunday. He called the verdict an 'important milestone' after 'another example of Monsanto's refusal to accept responsibility for poisoning people with this toxic product.' Germany-based Bayer, which acquired Monsanto in 2018, has continued to dispute claims that Roundup causes cancer. But the company has been hit with more than 177,000 lawsuits involving the weedkiller and set aside $16 billion to settle cases. In a statement, Monsanto said Friday's verdict 'conflicts with the overwhelming weight of scientific evidence and the consensus of regulatory bodies and their scientific assessments worldwide.' The company added that it continues 'to stand fully behind the safety' of Roundup products. TRENDING STORIES: Wildfire contained after threatening dozens of homes in Floyd County Tucker man says his truck was stolen while he was just feet away at a restaurant 17-year-old arrested after shootout leaves teen dead in DeKalb County For a variety of crops — including corn, soybeans and cotton — Roundup is designed to work with genetically modified seeds that resist the weedkiller's deadly effect. It allows farmers to produce more while conserving the soil by tilling it less. Some studies associate Roundup's key ingredient, glyphosate, with cancer, although the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has said it is not likely to be carcinogenic to humans when used as directed. Still, numerous lawsuits over the weedkiller allege glyphosate does cause non-Hodgkin lymphoma, arguing that Monsanto has failed to warn the public about serious risks for years. Findley said that evidence relating to Barnes' case show 'many years of cover-ups' and 'backroom dealings.' He accused Monsanto of ignoring several scientific studies related to the toxicity of Roundup and said the company 'tried to find ways to persuade and distract and deny the connection between this product and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.' [SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter] Friday's decision marks the fourth Roundup-related verdict that Findley's team has won to date — the largest of which was awarded in Philadelphia in January 2024, with damages totaling $2.25 billion. And he said his law firm has 'many more clients who are similarly situated as Mr. Barnes.' Monsanto, meanwhile, also maintains that it 'remains committed to trying cases' — and argues its wider record of Roundup-related litigation continues to reinforce the safety of its products. The company said it has prevailed in 17 of the last 25 related trials, while some previous damage awards have been reduced. Bayer has recently renewed and expanded an effort across a handful of U.S. states to protect pesticide companies from claims they failed to warn that a product causes cancer, if labeling otherwise complies with EPA regulations. The company and other industry supports argue that litigation costs are unstainable and could impact Roundup's future availability. But opponents stress that such legislation would limit accountability.
