Activist Investors Call on Apple to Address Youth Phone Addiction
Apple under fire after two Apple investors urged the company to step up and play a bigger role in managing smartphone overuse and addiction. David Benoit, Activism Reporter at The Wall Street Journal, was with us to discuss why Jana Partners has decided to push Apple to develop tools and research the effects of smartphone overuse by young people.
Benoit says the investors aren’t saying its necessarily Apple’s responsibility to monitor phone usage. Instead, he thinks they believe that Apple could play an important role in acknowledging that they aren’t sure what the impact of all this phone usage will be, but could score points by giving parents the option to monitor usage.
Activist investors typically focus on things like buybacks and acquisitions. Benoit says this move by Jana Partners to take a stance on corporate responsibility is very different. He thinks following Jana's advice could help protect Apple from potential backlash on teen iPhone usage. In addition, Benoit says goodwill could help drive future sales if consumers feel Apple made a phone that is safe for kids.
President Biden issued his first executive to begin determining how the United States will move forward on digital currencies. Charlotte Principato, a financial services analyst for Morning Consult, joined Cheddar News Wrap to discuss. "What this executive order says is that crypto is mainstream," she said. "The United States has put our hat in the race to create a central bank digital currency and one with the power of the U.S. dollar behind it, so I think it's a really exciting time for both the cryptocurrency and the digital asset world."
Chris Natividad, CIO of EquBot, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell, where he elaborates on what ultimately dragged the Dow, S&P, and Nasdaq lower on Tuesday and discusses how investors are reacting to rising oil prices and February CPI data coming out later this week.
One NFL player got caught gambling on his own team, and now it's going to cost him. The NFL announced Monday that Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Calvin Ridley will be suspended for at least the entire 2022 season. The league said Ridley bet on NFL games during a five-day period last November. Frank Shwab, NFL and Betting Reporter at Yahoo Sports, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
Adam Johnson, Portfolio Manager at Adviser Investments, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell, where he explains why he believes we saw markets jump during Wednesday's session, and adds that investors have already priced in 'every possible kind of bad news we could have.'
President Joe Biden on Wednesday signed a long-awaited executive order on cryptocurrencies, striking a careful balance between highlighting the risks of digital assets and touting their potential benefits.
Stocks rallied for their biggest gain in nearly two years Wednesday as a sharp drop in oil prices eased fears that inflation was about to get worse around the globe.
McDonald’s said Tuesday it is temporarily closing all of its 850 restaurants in Russia in response to the country's invasion of Ukraine. The burger giant said it will continue paying its 62,000 employees in Russia.
The price of nickel, one of the key minerals needed to produce stainless steel and lithium-ion batteries, saw an unprecedented surge Tuesday amid fears that Western sanctions could cut off Russian supplies of the crucial commodity.
Apple on Tuesday unveiled a new version of its budget-priced iPhone that’s capable of connecting to ultrafast 5G wireless networks, an upgrade that has been available on the company’s upscale models for more than a year.
Cheddar's Michelle Castillo looks into the growth in cigar smoking that took place during the pandemic, and how supply chain woes have come to hurt this industry as well.