Tesla shares up 4% after narrower-than-expected quarterly loss

Shares of Tesla Inc. rose 4.6% late Wednesday after the Silicon Valley car maker reported a narrower-than-expected second-quarter loss and sales above Wall Street expectations. Tesla said it lost $336.4 million, or $2.04 a share, in the quarter, compared with a loss of $293.2 million, or $2.09 a share, in the year-ago period. Adjusted for one-time items, Tesla lost $1.33 a share, compared with $1.61 a share a year ago. Revenue reached $2.8 billion, up from $1.3 billion a year ago. Analysts polled by FactSet had expected the company to report an adjusted loss of $1.88 a share on sales of $2.52 billion. Shares ended the regular session up 2%.

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From:: Stock Market News

Commercial REALTORS® See Gains in Income, Sales Volume

By Susanne Dwyer

Commercial REALTORS® are realizing more in gross income and sales volume, with the median annual gross income growing 11 percent to $120,800 and median sales volume rising 19 percent to $3.5 million, according to the National Association of REALTORS®’ (NAR) recently released 2017 Commercial Member Profile. The highest incomes were reported among appraisers and brokers, as well as those with more than 26 years of experience.

“There has been an uptick in REALTOR® members who choose to specialize in commercial real estate at the same time as commercial professionals report improvements in the market and their business activity,” says Bill Brown, president of NAR. “A stronger commercial market is a good indicator of a growing economy, so the outlook is positive for commercial members in the year ahead.”

The Profile shows the median transaction count declined by one to eight in the past year; 25 percent of commercial REALTORS® reported one to four transactions, while 27 percent reported over 20.

More highlights from the Profile include:

  • Forty-seven percent of commercial REALTORS® are brokers; 30 percent are licensed sales agents (consistent with last year’s findings).
  • Seventeen percent of commercial REALTORS® have a broker-associate license; 5 percent have an appraisal license (consistent with last year’s findings).
  • The median years of experience in real estate increased to 24 years in 2017, up from 20 years in 2016, as did the median years of experience of REALTORS® in commercial real estate: up from 15 years in 2016 to 19 years in 2017.
  • The median age of commercial REALTORS® is 60 years old (consistent with last year’s findings).
  • Almost three out of four commercial members are male (consistent with last year’s findings). Men reported being active in any real estate capacity for a median of 25 years and in commercial real estate for a median of 20 years (consistent with last year’s findings). Women reported being active in real estate for a median of 19 years (up from 14 years in 2016) and in commercial real estate for a median of 15 years (up from 11 years in 2016).
  • Commercial REALTORS® who manage properties typically manage 82,000 total square feet, representing 15 total spaces. Those who manage offices typically manage 25,000 total office square feet, representing seven total offices.
  • Thirty-three percent of commercial REALTORS® were involved in international transactions in 2016, down 2 percent from 2015. Eighteen percent reported an increase in international transactions, while only 1 percent reported a decrease.
  • Sixty-five percent of respondents are members of any of several commercial affiliated institutes, councils, or societies—up from 60 percent in 2016—including the CCIM Institute, the Institute of Real Estate Management, the Counselors of Real Estate, the REALTORS® Land Institute and the Society of Industrial and Office REALTORS®.

The annual study’s results represent REALTORS®, members of NAR, who conduct all or part of their business in commercial sales, leasing, brokerage and development for land, office and industrial space, multifamily and retail buildings, as well as property management.

For more information, please visit www.nar.realtor.

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From:: Real Estate News

5 of the Best Cities to Flip Houses In

By Susanne Dwyer

Flipping a house can be a profitable endeavor—especially in cities where flips thrive. The best cities, according to recently released findings from a study by WalletHub, boast a combination of a desirable quality of life, cost-effective renovation expenses and prime market potential.

The following cities, based on those criteria, are best for flips:

  1. El Paso, Texas
    El Paso earned the No. 1 ranking in WalletHub’s study, with a total score of 69.6. El Paso has the third-lowest bathroom remodeling costs, on average, of the 150 cities evaluated.
  1. Sioux Falls, S.D.
    Sioux Falls earned the No. 2 spot in the ranking, with a total score of 69.52.
  1. Fort Wayne, Ind.
    Fort Wayne earned the No. 3 spot in the ranking, with a total score of 67.38.
  1. Peoria, Ariz.
    Peoria earned the No. 4 spot in the ranking, with a total score of 66.6. Peoria has the fourth-lowest whole-home remodeling costs, on average, of the 150 cities evaluated.
  1. Oklahoma City, Okla.
    Oklahoma City earned the No. 5 spot in the ranking, with a total score of 66.56. Oklahoma City has the fifth-most real estate agents per capita of the 150 cities evaluated.

Source: WalletHub

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From:: Real Estate News

Regulator fines PwC $1 million for faulty Merrill Lynch audit

The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, the audit industry regulator, censured and imposed a $1 million civil penalty against PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP on Wednesday for issuing audit and examination reports without obtaining sufficient evidence to support its opinion for broker-dealer Merrill Lynch, a subsidiary of Bank of America [s:BAC], in 2014. Merrill Lynch had reported to PwC that it complied with the SEC’s Customer Protection Rule which requires a broker-dealer to hold certain customer securities in segregated accounts that are insulated from creditor liens if the broker’s business fails. However, PwC did not thoroughly verify Merrill Lynch was in compliance. For several years, including 2014, Merrill Lynch held tens of billions of dollars of its customers’ fully paid and excess margin securities in accounts that were subject to liens by third parties, in violation of the Customer Protection Rule, according to the Securities and Exchange Commission. PwC consented to the Board’s order without admitting or denying the findings in the order.

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From:: Stock Market News

Oil ends choppy session with gains after smaller-than-expected inventory drop

Oil futures ended a choppy trading session with gains Wednesday as signs of strong demand outweighed a smaller-than-expected drop in U.S. inventories. West Texas Intermediate crude for September delivery rose 43 cents, or 0.9%, to settle at $49.59 a barrel, recovering from earlier weakness. The Energy Information Administration said U.S. crude inventories fell by 1.5 million barrels last week, versus analyst expectations for a decline of more than 3 million barrels. The data, however, showed a pickup in refinery demand for crude and an increase in demand for gasoline.

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From:: Stock Market News

CFPB slaps JPMorgan Chase with $4.6M penalty over checking account problems

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau hit JPMorgan Chase with a $4.6 million penalty for failures related to information it provides for checking account screening reports. CFPB Director Richard Cordray explained the bureau is imposing the penalty “because Chase did not have the required processes to report this information accurately, and kept consumers in the dark about reporting disputes and application denials.” …read more

From:: Real Estate Wire

Risks of large syndicated bank loans remain high, regulators say

Risk in the portfolio of large syndicated bank loans declined a bit in the past year but still remains elevated, according to a joint annual report from three U.S. bank regulatory agencies released Wednesday. The high level of credit risk “stems mostly from distressed borrowers in the oil and gas sector,” and other industry sector borrowers exhibiting excessive leverage,” the report said. Since 2014, the decline in oil prices has led to a significant increase in adversely rated credits, the report said. The agencies noted $317 billion of leverage loans are in the lowest pass rating category “raising additional supervisory concerns should economic conditions decline.”

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From:: Stock Market News

Gold bucks weak U.S. dollar to settle marginally lower

Gold prices settled slightly lower on Wednesday, ignoring the weaker dollar, as the precious metal took a breather from its recent rally. Gold for December delivery slid $1 to settle at $1,278.40 an ounce. A soft dollar is typically supportive of dollar-denominated assets such as gold. The U.S. Dollar Index shed 0.4% to 92.69. Silver for September delivery also fell 3 cents, or 0.2%, to settle at $16.733 an ounce.

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From:: Stock Market News

J.P. Morgan Chase fined $4.6 million by CFPB over checking account screening

J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. was fined $4.6 millionby the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau for failures related to information it provides for checking account screening reports. Chase failed to have adequate processes for accurately reporting checking account information, kept consumers in the dark about the results of their disputes and kept consumers in the dark about key aspects of their checking account application denials, the CFPB said.

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From:: Stock Market News

Chesapeake Energy stock options ready for a big post-earnings move

Shares of Chesapeake Energy slumped 2.8% in afternoon trade Wednesday, putting them on track for a third-straight loss, as investors position for the oil and natural gas exploration company’s second-quarter results due out later this week. The company, which is scheduled to report results before Thursday’s open, is expected to swing to an adjusted profit for the fourth straight quarter, with analysts surveyed by FactSet estimating earnings per share of 14 cents, on average. Revenue is expected to decline for the ninth time in the past 10 quarters to $1.06 billion, according to FactSet. Options traders are ready for a relatively large stock reaction to results. A volatility play known as a straddle is pricing in a 7.1% one-day post-earnings move in Chesapeake’s stock in either direction, compared with the average one-day move of 6.0% after the past 20 quarterly reports. The stock has plunged 34% year to date, while the SPDR Energy Select Sector ETF has shed 12% and the S&P 500 has gained 10%.

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From:: Stock Market News